Chapter 630

The Wind Saint watched the two fight without blinking an eye.

Heaven Crumbles, Earth Splits.

The sky shattered, and the earth cracked open.

The atmosphere churned crazily, and gusts of wind transformed into storms, tearing through the area.

Amidst it all stood Lee Cheong and Jang Cheon-hwa.

Lee Cheong’s blade summoned the storm, while Jang Cheon-hwa’s sword was accompanied by lightning.

Boom!

Every time they clashed, the earth turned over.

The earth literally flipped over, revealing its innards.

Massive rocks flew through the air like sheets of paper, leaving a deep crater in the earth.

‘How can a human exert such power?’

The Wind Saint, too, was an absolute martial artist. He knew better than anyone the extent of the power and limits that someone of this realm could exhibit.

But what he was witnessing surpassed even that.

Their power had clearly surpassed even the Absolute Realm.

‘Is that even possible? My supreme-ruler!’

A shiver ran down the Wind Saint’s spine.

He once devoted himself to martial arts, which allowed him to reach his current level. But after he reached this level, he didn’t immerse himself in martial arts as much.

He trained regularly to maintain his skills but had given up on achieving any further enlightenment.

Instead, he chose to freely roam the Kangho, thus earning the title ‘Wind Saint’.

Though he had given up on further achievements, Wind Saint had significant pride in his martial skills.

However, in front of these two, his pride shattered.

This was no ordinary human fight.

Crash!

The collision between Lee Cheong’s blade and Jang Cheon-hwa’s sword resulted in a massive explosion.

“Ugh!”

Unable to bear it any longer, the Wind Saint retreated.

Even after retreating fifty zhang, the aftermath of the clash was maddening.

Without a choice, Wind Saint moved back another thirty paces.

“They’re insane! Completely mad!”

Wind Saint’s white beard trembled.

He was overwhelmed with a sense of inadequacy.

While he was roaming Kangho, those two had chosen each other as rivals, pushing themselves to greater heights.

There was a vast gap between them and him.

One could bridge this gap with a moment of enlightenment, but no one knew when that enlightenment would come.

And for someone like the Wind Saint, who had let go of his martial arts, this realization was unlikely.

“Sigh!”

The Wind Saint let out a deep sigh.

The battle between the two intensified.

Swoosh!

The stormy winds reached the Wind Saint.

Instead of dodging, Wind Saint deployed his protective aura.

Thud!

The winds deflected upon hitting his aura.

Wind Saint’s white beard quivered from the impact.

However, Wind Saint watched the two fight without blinking an eye.

“Haah!”

Jang Cheon-hwa raised his sword toward the sky.

For a moment, an unparalleled energy concentrated on his sword.

With immense force, Jang Cheon-hwa swung his energy-laden sword at Lee Cheong.

In response, Lee Cheong swung his blade with all his might.

Known as the Heaven-Killing Sword, it was so powerful that it could even split the heavens.

Although it didn’t achieve the feats of his father, Lee Gwak, he too was revered for mastering it.

Naturally, his blade was imbued with the force of Heaven-killer.

Crash!

Their blades collided, sending out a monstrous shockwave.

The ground around the impact point cracked as if a wall bomb had exploded.

Jang Cheon-hwa’s eyes turned blood-red.

The immense shock had caused the blood vessels in his eyes to rupture, dyeing them in a deep crimson.

‘Lee Cheong! Truly remarkable. You are undoubtedly a once-in-a-lifetime adversary sent by the heavens.’

With unwavering resolve and backed by exceptional skills, they fought seven times, with Jang Cheon-hwa losing six.

However, there was no shame in it, since the Heavenly Killing Sword was a flawless martial art technique.

The technique was so profound that it had even overwhelmed his own master, Go Geom Wol. Being defeated by such a technique was no disgrace.

Jang Cheon-hwa honed his skills with even more determination.

Defeat became the driving force of his progress.

Overcoming his defeats, Jang Cheon-hwa achieved his current status.

‘Let’s end this.’

‘Brother!’

The eyes of Jang Cheon-hwa and Lee Cheong met.

Both read the intention in each other’s gaze.

They poured all of their energy into their weapons.

Vibrate!

The sword and blade, infused with an excess of energy, trembled as if they might break at any moment.

“Haah!”

“Chyah!”

Crash!

The faces of the two men were turned white by the light that erupted from the collision of the swords.

It was as if the sun had exploded.

The light bathed the entire area in pure white.

“Gah!”

The Wind Saint shielded his face from the blinding storm of light.

He was then hit by an immense shockwave.

Fortunately, he had unleashed his protective aura, so he wasn’t badly hurt, but the impact was still significant.

A trickle of blood appeared at the corner of Wind Saint’s lips.

Luckily, the shockwave quickly dissipated.

Only then did Wind Saint lower his hand and survey the battlefield.

“What happened…?”

Wind Saint’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

The terrain had changed entirely.

Mountains had crumbled into plains, and the plains had been gouged -deep enough to form lakes if filled with rainwater.

It was hard to believe that such devastation had resulted from a mere duel.

“Who won?”

Wind Saint, after observing the transformed terrain, regained his senses and searched for Jang Cheon-hwa and Lee Cheong.

They were not hard to find.

They stood in the center of the altered terrain.

By appearance alone, one couldn’t tell who had won or lost.

Both looked so serene that it was hard to believe they had just been in fierce combat.

Their breaths remained steady, not even a hint of fatigue.

Then, Jang Cheon-Hwa spoke.

“Thank you for all this time. May your journey ahead be peaceful. Thanks to you, I wasn’t lonely. Now, without you, I wonder how I’ll endure this solitude.”

Jang Cheon-Hwa gazed at Lee Cheong with heartfelt eyes.

Instead of replying, Lee Cheong looked at the sword in his hand.

Whoosh!

The blade he’d carried all his life crumbled into dust.

The hilt was all that remained of the once-mighty weapon, reflecting Lee Cheong himself.

Lee Cheong sighed deeply and said,

“Ah! It seems I’ve indeed lost.”

“Did you anticipate this defeat?”

“I had a feeling after our seventh duel. I realized the gap between us would only widen.”

TL/N- Why didn’t he kill him earlier?

“Is that so?”

“Just as I expected.”

Lee Cheong wore a bitter smile.

With his death, the Mad Martial Sect would probably fall into decline, but he didn’t feel too sorry or remorseful.

Every beautiful flower withers in due time, and even the full moon wanes – such is the way of the world.

No matter how great Lee Gwak, the founder of the Mad Martial Sect, was, he couldn’t maintain his accomplishments forever.

His only regret was that he was leaving without seeing his son Lee Geom-han one last time.

‘May you overcome these challenges, my son.’

Suddenly,

Whish!

Lee Cheong began to disintegrate, turning to dust.

His body was losing cohesion due to the massive external impact and the strain of overexerting his internal energy.

Lee Cheong spoke for the last time.

“Brother! Rest assured, you won’t be lonely for long.”

“You mean there’s another worthy opponent out there for me?”

“You’ll see in time.”

“So, you have faith in someone.”

“……”

Lee Cheong didn’t reply.

Or rather, he couldn’t.

His body had already disintegrated entirely.

The wind carried the dust away,

And just like that, Lee Cheong, the Grandmaster, disappeared from the world.

“Phew!”

Jang Cheon-Hwa sighed softly, scanning his surroundings.

However, there was no sign of Wind Saint anywhere.

“Did he flee?”

It was so baffling it wasn’t even funny.

His only brother had abandoned him. Even if they weren’t close, he never expected this.

“It’s okay! I’ve always been alone from the beginning.”

Jang Cheon-Hwa looked up at the sky.

Splash!

Rain began to pour on his face.

＊＊＊

Lee Geom-Han suddenly looked up at the sky.

The raindrops splashed onto his face.

At first, it started with a couple of drops, but soon the rain transformed into a downpour.

Whoosh!

The rain fiercely poured onto the surface of Poyang Lake.

It was raining heavily on the lake. Lee Geom-han stood there and took it all in.

He felt uneasy for some reason.

A chill ran through his body, and his heart raced unusually.

“Why do I feel this way?”

Lee Geom-han frowned deeply.

There was no external factor provoking him.

The Kangho Great War was already tilting in favor of the Silver Lotus Hall.

The Golden Heavenly Hall was steadily being pushed back by the Silver Lotus Hall due to their dwindling public support.

If things continued like this, Silver Lotus Hall would undoubtedly emerge victorious in the Great Kangho War.

“But why does my heart feel so restless?”

Ominous thoughts continued to overwhelm him.

He had never felt this way before.

Not knowing how to shake off the uneasy feeling, Lee Geom-han walked aimlessly in the rain.

He was completely drenched.

How long had he walked?

“Geom-han!”

Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed from behind.

He turned to see Namgung Seol approaching him, holding an umbrella.

Despite the umbrella, her sleeves and hem were wet.

“Seol!”

“Why are you standing in the rain?”

“Just because…”

Lee Geom-han trailed off, noticing the letter in Namgung Seol’s hand.

“What’s that?”

“It’s from the Mad Martial Sect .”

“Mad Martial Sect?”

Lee Geom-han tilted his head, puzzled.

There was no reason for the Mad Martial Sect to send him a letter.

Namgung Seol handed the letter to him.

The letter was sealed, so the sender’s identity was unknown.

Rip!

Lee Geom-han quickly broke the seal and opened the letter.

As he read the letter, his pupils shook violently as if there had been an earthquake.

“What’s the matter?”

Namgung Seol asked with a puzzled expression. But, Lee Geom-han didn’t answer and continued reading.

When he finally finished, he fell to his knees in the mud.

“What’s written that…”

Namgung Seol snatched the letter and read it.

Her expression mirrored Lee Geom-han’s disbelief.

‘My son!

By the time you read this letter, I might no longer be part of this world.

I am heading to confront the leader of the Heavenly Martial Sect to put an end to the age-old enmity.

If I win, you won’t receive this letter, but if you do, know that I have departed this realm.

I have given my all to stop him throughout my life.

Reflecting on it, there was no ‘me’ in my life.

Only the warrior existed, dedicated to stopping the entity called Jang-cheon-hwa.

My son!

My dear son!

I only have regrets for you.

For leaving you with such a heavy burden.

But never think you are alone.

For you have…’