Chapter 499: Martial World (2)

The devastated plain.

The winter sunlight was as short as a warrior’s life thread.

The brilliant sunset that had stretched out magnificently was somehow sucked beyond the distant horizon.

The sunlight left no trace, and beneath the night sky that had leisurely darkened in its place, the breath of four people rose as white mist. The air was cold.

Time flowed, both long and short.

The place where the Blood Flame Cult Leader had been.

The ground was burnt black in the center, with various spots mottled with white frost.

Not even fragments of his corpse remained.

This was because he had successively received the Samadhi True Fire and ice techniques of supreme masters. Xiahou Wei-jin, Yun Xiao-yu, and Cheon So-so had acted. The Divine Sword Group of Desolate Fortress never left future troubles.

They had fought a great battle. Now they were not in perfect condition.

“This should be enough.”

Cheon So-so was the first to speak.

Xiahou Wei-jin interrupted her words and spoke.

“No blood demon could display regenerative abilities anymore. We froze, shattered, and melted again even a single drop of blood with divine techniques. Even if he had inherited the previous generation’s complete transmission, he wasn’t the previous Blood Flame Cult Leader himself. There’s nothing more to worry about.”

“…Right.”

Cheon So-so answered briefly, and her head turned to the side.

Jin Myeong-jo, who stood upright at some distance from the three people. The man who would assist Lightning Genius in the future.

It was said that the Acting Divine Sword Group Leader had personally designated him.

The kitchen of the Divine Sword Group hall where Desolate Divine Spear resided had recently become unusable. Cheon So-so also hoped that Yue Shou-lin would guard the position. At least it wasn’t Jin Myeong-jo.

“Let’s go, it’s urgent.”

She said. It was reasonable urging.

Recently, the atmosphere surrounding Xiangyang had been unusual. With the Emperor’s death and poor harvest as opportunities, the supply of materials had been cut off, and no merchant group dared to open their warehouses rashly.

Even the government officials who had served as the eyes and ears of the main castle had become infrequent in their communications.

There was some enormous current.

Anyone would inevitably feel that way.

The world was holding its breath, and the Squad Leaders had to quickly examine themselves and return.

There were even certain rumors that the elusive Ming Cult Leader was plotting a “great plan to defy heaven.” If the rumors were true, saying that Desolate Fortress’s situation was precarious would be insufficient.

But the next Divine Sword Group Leader at this moment paid no particular attention to his comrades’ internal and external injuries. Rather, he only gazed into the distance with eyes like clotted murky blood.

“……”

Blood Flame Cult’s Seventh Apostle was there.

The appearance of sitting languidly on the red grand master’s chair. She had undone the acupoints of the dead Blood Flame Cult Leader by herself.

It could be said to be fitting for someone who called herself the True Blood Cult Leader. The leisure of a peerless master emanated from the few strands of hair flowing over the back of her hand that supported her narrow chin.

“Strange.”

Her lips moved slowly. Her one and only pupil glared at Jin Myeong-jo with transparently red light. It was a gaze as if looking at a particularly worthless insect.

“You, mixed blood. How did you find me?”

She asked.

Jin Myeong-jo, who had been staring at the Seventh Apostle, slowly opened his mouth.

“I am Blood Guardian Squad Leader Jin Myeong-jo. Didn’t the Fortress Lord bestow upon you a fragment of Moon Spirit Divine Technique? That supreme yin energy, I mean. We have been tracking such familiar energy.”

“…Your energy sense is quite good. Fine, thank you. Now get lost.”

She said while sitting cross-legged on the spacious grand master’s chair. An appearance of immediately engaging in energy circulation and breath control. But Jin Myeong-jo didn’t move from his position.

The Seventh Apostle’s white eyelids rose.

“Are you trying to stand guard impertinently? If you don’t disappear immediately, you’ll regret it. Those eyeballs will be plucked out first.”

She threatened in a smooth voice.

Jin Myeong-jo shook his head.

“If you end the meeting here, you’ll be the one to regret it.”

Whack!

Instantly, the dust that had formed on the Seventh Apostle’s black eyepatch scattered like a lie, and her one blood-red pupil gleamed with colorless light.

The ankle thinly revealed below her red trouser hem began to generate the irregular energy waves characteristic of Blood Flame Cult’s body protection technique.

It was a precursor to attack.

She displayed transcendence despite what must have been severe internal injuries.

Meanwhile, the noble clan Squad Leaders watched their confrontation from a position slightly apart from Jin Myeong-jo.

While Cheon So-so and Yun Xiao-yu prepared to intervene with expressionless faces, Xiahou Wei-jin was frowning deeply.

“This is an impossible mission. How can we persuade such a person to bring her to the main castle? Even if she once came as a guest, it doesn’t make sense. Isn’t she now… another Blood Flame Cult Leader? A walking natural disaster if there ever was one. Even though she’s been smashing Blood Flame Cult branches in a row rather than pillaging civilian homes, would reason work on that madness?”

He sought his comrades’ agreement with his thick voice.

Suddenly, Law Enforcement Squad Leader Yun Xiao-yu, who had briefly readjusted her grip on her sword hilt, opened her mouth.

“If persuasion fails and even the Blood Guardian Squad Leader suffers serious injury, there’s no telling how the Acting Group Leader might go astray. With that temperament, the main castle’s laws might become greatly disordered before Xiangyang faces a great crisis…”

It was unusually long talk for her. Xiahou Wei-jin nodded greatly.

“Internal and external troubles aplenty. I don’t know if it’s worth risking conflict with her at this time. Since we’re short-handed, we need to safely retrieve even that gloomy blood guardian fellow…”

Paang―!

The nearby atmosphere surged violently.

The Seventh Apostle had burst semi-transparent energy waves toward Jin Myeong-jo, and it was clear the conversation hadn’t gone smoothly.

Jin Myeong-jo only silently endured the sword wind while his jet-black hair flew violently backward.

Xiahou Wei-jin, who immediately lowered his stance, burst out in frustration.

“I don’t understand the reason! Why does the Acting Group Leader evaluate that fellow most highly in the main castle?! I still don’t know if the Squad Leader designation was correct!”

“It’s not evaluation. He said it was respect.”

Cheon So-so shook her head and spoke. Whitish cold air was already swirling between her fingers.

“The temperament that Lightning Genius most wants to resemble…”

Whoosh.

Suddenly her words were cut off. It was because the blood technique energy waves that had been roughly scraping the ground had disappeared without a trace.

“Let’s go. Xiangyang?”

The Seventh Apostle took the lead.

When had she come down from the grand master’s chair? The bright red Pure Blood Robe fluttered smoothly behind her back with a rustle. Blood Flame Cult’s divine body technique was indeed among the finest movements in the martial world.

“Myeong-jo? You breathe very elegantly. I can’t feel energy waves in your breathing. I’ll learn a little.”

The Seventh Apostle said.

She was being taken in as a purple-rank guest of the main castle.

The task ordered by the Acting Divine Sword Group Leader had come to fruition. In the chaotic era of turmoil, according to the Grand Administrator, it was the heaviest and most important mission.

As the noble clan Squad Leaders kept their mouths shut, the Seventh Apostle’s voice continued gently.

“If you’re a Divine Sword Squad Vice Leader, you’ll stay constantly next to the Divine Sword Group Leader, right? You’ve achieved the most among our sect’s bloodline. What mixed blood—you’re better than the past cult leaders.”

“……”

Jin Myeong-jo’s face hardened like a sculpture. Soon after, when he flicked his hand once, some scroll shot up from his bosom and fell into Cheon So-so’s grasp.

Thud.

Xiahou Wei-jin, who had approached her side, looked down at the scroll. It was a letter, with the phrase “To Lord Jeong Personally” magnificently carved like a dragon’s body on the surface.

“Why is the letter so thick?”

To his words, Jin Myeong-jo replied briefly.

“That will reduce my role a little.”

“I thought so. Like a bat, already being negligent in duties… What is this correspondence?”

“Demon Sword Technique.”

Formless Sword.

It was the Blood Guardian Squad Leader’s secret plan when cornered.

A person’s true heart is difficult to convey with writing alone. A priceless treasure was included in the letter earnestly requesting resignation.

If it were Jeong Yeon-shin, wouldn’t he create his own Formless Sword based on that formula, no matter how long it took?

“My swallow went on other business, so Squad Leader Cheon, please send it to the Acting Group Leader.”

“……”

Overwhelming composure.

The noble clan Squad Leaders didn’t know the letter’s exact contents.

They had only now come to vaguely understand Jeong Yeon-shin’s decision.

Finally, Xiahou Wei-jin’s mouth was tightly sealed.

Step.

Jin Myeong-jo stepped forward with a face cold as a corpse. Returning to simplicity and truth. Beneath his feet, which showed no momentum, the dust of the wasteland swirled briefly before scattering like smoke.

From the place where the Blood Flame Cult Leader’s corpse had been, a whirlwind suddenly arose and was sucked into the Blood Guardian Squad Leader’s black leather shoes.

He was a solid Divine Sword Squad Vice Leader.

* * *

The city of noble clans was unusually noisy. Where thick tree trunks rose like castle walls, long-eared children sat kicking their legs, and the cheeks of the masters standing guard here and there on the trees were rarely drawing smooth curves.

It was the central part of World Tree.

These weren’t people who had been indifferent even when Zhu royal family members personally came to deliver supplies. Each occasionally whispered someone’s name.

“It’s only a temporary measure.”

It was the ruined hall of the clan’s Council of Elders.

Even after uttering the brief words, Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t ease his vigilance.

The force gathered here was by no means easy. World Tree’s Four Great Protectors. Though he had met only three, each one was formidable.

If this city turned hostile, it would not be easy to preserve his life.

‘No, I would certainly die.’

He thought.

Three people seated around with him entered his vision.

Dragon Finger Sword Master, Golden Thunder, and Heaven-Reaching Bow Spirit. Those who had each learned incomprehensibly different martial arts over immeasurably long years. Who could handle the joint attack of three peerless masters? It was work that required the Desolate Fortress Lord to come.

“Doesn’t the tea suit your taste?”

A woman’s voice came from behind.

The clan’s First Elder was pacing around the table after dismissing her subordinates. It was with movements like handing over wrapping cloths or reheating tea water.

She had set her own broken leg earlier.

It seemed she had fixed the shattered bone using the powerful true energy in her body as a splint, but even though the torn meridians must have caused great pain, she didn’t rest at all.

And Jeong Yeon-shin had heard many stories.

Things difficult to believe readily. These weren’t people who shared no information as before. Starting with secrets about the Desolate Fortress Lord.

When her travels were prolonged like today, she would always come here and stay for a long time before setting out for the main castle, they said. This visit was also in the same context.

He couldn’t even hear the reason.

It was because Dragon Finger Sword Master had blocked Golden Thunder, who was trying to tell everything with an excited face. Jeong Yeon-shin also didn’t bother to ask further. It was a story worth hearing when the Desolate Fortress Lord told him directly.

He slowly opened his mouth.

“When will Master come?”

“It should be about time now. Originally, when she goes out and comes back, she washes for quite a while. She also does energy circulation and breath control and cleansing… if she brings turbid energy from outside, she can’t achieve unity with World Tree.”

Golden Thunder answered.

Soon his head tilted sideways.

“But it wasn’t this much before, was it? They say Emperor Qian-ling died the year before last? How many years has it been now? I’m getting impatient, let’s go find her.”

No one moved.

Perhaps it was because of Golden Thunder’s nonsense becoming chronic.

Jeong Yeon-shin stared at him. Two years since Emperor Jianling’s death would be the time when he would be buried in a grave and remain. If he couldn’t do anything about his natural lifespan, it would really be so.

It was when his mood was sinking.

“That power.”

Dragon Finger Sword Master spoke slowly.

“Was it called Luminous Wheel Technique?”

“Yes.”

“You said it was a temporary measure?”

“Energy is consumed, and World Tree’s suction force is deep as an abyss. Unless I continue to stay in this city, it will quickly regain its original hungry state.”

“……”

“It was something that couldn’t be resolved by human power. Master would have known this too.”

Jeong Yeon-shin concluded quietly.

And he was inwardly worried. At this time when the entire world was unusual, he had intended to gain even a little help from this clan.

A letter that had once flown from the Administrative Office contained the movements of the Thirteen Heavens. Along with the note that their movement was tremendously large.

‘If two or three of the Four Great Protectors could look after Xiangyang even briefly…’

It would ease some worry about the main castle.

But worldly affairs were difficult. The First Elder’s expression hardened as she was pouring tea.

“If it’s a temporary measure, how long…?”

“It’s difficult to exceed three days. After that, I must inject true energy again.”

“……”

“Even that can’t be called a fundamental solution. There’s the energy needed for World Tree to perform its role immediately, and my measure is like arbitrarily making it feel satiated…”

Jeong Yeon-shin spoke the facts plainly.

While the Four Great Protectors could briefly absent themselves, it couldn’t be said that the entire clan had become free.

Not only was the distance from here to Xiangyang considerable, but it was difficult to see the noble clans as fundamentally liberated.

It wasn’t something humans could accomplish. Jeong Yeon-shin felt a wall for the first time. A solution would only emerge if figures who competed for supremacy throughout history like Bodhidharma, Zhang Sanfeng, and the first Heavenly Demon gathered to exchange discussions.

“Oh my…”

The First Elder set down her teacup. Dragon Finger Sword Master silently nodded, and Heaven-Reaching Bow Spirit stared at Jeong Yeon-shin with a face that showed what she was thinking.

Only Golden Thunder was cheerfully laughing.

“Why? I’m breathing easier and it’s good. I should dry some mulberry leaves while we’re at it. Shall I give you a leaf? Previously Emperor Qian-ling lit it and smoked the fumes, and this was really just…”

“Yes, we caught our breath. That alone is truly a grateful thing. None of the clan should act ungratefully.”

The First Elder’s voice was firm. A voice like being forced awake while having a good dream.

Jeong Yeon-shin slowly lowered his eyes.

Perhaps it was because the years he had lived in the Jeong family estate were much longer. Letting go of expectations wasn’t difficult. If everything had been possible with just natural ability from the beginning, his martial world journey wouldn’t have been stained with loss.

‘Whatever Master’s purpose was, to Xiangyang I alone…’

Then.

Tap—

A gentle hand touched the back of his neck. An extremely warm sensation. Various feelings came simultaneously like a dream.

The fine hair below his neck was slowly pressed down, and while the sense of time touching his skin was crumpled like a thick blanket, there was even a breeze that swept down his entire body like dandelion petals from the nape of his neck.

He could know without turning around.

It was the Desolate Fortress Lord.

Jeong Yeon-shin couldn’t open his mouth. He didn’t want to.

“Lightning Genius.”

A crystalline voice penetrated his ear then slowly scattered. Suddenly some gold bracelet flashed in one corner of Jeong Yeon-shin’s vision.

It seemed to be something Master had brought, with crooked leaf patterns like a child’s carving melting down in midair.

Suddenly Jeong Yeon-shin’s vision changed.

Whoosh!

It was a sound that rang in his head.

Unity.

He could see the back of a youth wearing a purple long robe from above. It was the same as when he had once eaten a piece of World Tree. At this moment, Jeong Yeon-shin was looking at himself through the Desolate Fortress Lord’s body.

While receiving all the gazes of the surroundings, who were completely shocked by the sudden conduct.

A feeling of being buried in an abyss.

His senses had changed.

‘That is…?’

Jeong Yeon-shin discovered something in his own body seen through the Desolate Fortress Lord’s eyes.

Deep in his heart, a speck of radiance stood in the form of Wudang’s Pine Pattern Ancient Sword. Somehow it was accompanied by the metallic smell characteristic of blades that seeped to his nose.

He realized precisely.

It was the Taoist Three Clear Powers that Dark Heaven Emperor had left.

Soon the Desolate Fortress Lord straightened her upper body that had been slightly tilted toward him.

Whack.

Sword wind that arose while scraping the jade-green palace robe sleeves cut through the bottom of the table. With a thump sound, the table sank down like a platform.

She who had naturally guided her disciple to the center faced Jeong Yeon-shin. By then, the gold bracelet that had been melting down in midair was floating like a water drop that had stopped falling.

The Desolate Fortress Lord’s long fingers brushed that spot.

Rustle.

It was an instant until the fingertips stained with gold touched Jeong Yeon-shin’s shoulder.

Slowly.

She began to overlay the originally black character “Desolate” with gold.

The extremely soft touch of her fingers tickled Jeong Yeon-shin’s shoulder, and after time like eternity flowed, the long-stroked writing filled both shoulders.

Before he knew it, Jeong Yeon-shin had returned to his own body.

“……”

Their eyes met.

They had overlapped bodies and mixed senses. No particular greetings were necessary. The Desolate Fortress Lord’s deep green pupils also just gazed at him quietly.

“I will give you two.”

She slowly moved her lips.

“Go and return.”

That was a departure ceremony.

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