Chapter 131

The glow of the sunset enveloped the Moonlight Sword, radiating light.

In that instant, Cho Gak’s head rolled nimbly.

‘The burning sunset hue of True Energy. The characteristic of Zhu Yang’s Mindfulness Sutra from the Divine Maiden Sect. So the claim of being Seomun Sulin’s disciple isn’t a lie after all.’

The Imperial Palace Warriors were nurtured by the Emperor with a grudge, meant to suppress the Martial World.

They were well-versed in the prominent martial arts and had knowledge of their weaknesses and countermeasures.

‘The Moon Lady Sword is no problem.’

The Moon Lady Sword Art was originally learned and used by the soldiers of Yue, and it had been passed down, still holding the foundational position in military martial arts to this day.

Of course, Cho Gak could use it with his eyes closed.

‘The Divine Maiden’s True Skill? I’ve not heard of it before. Was it created by Seomun Sulin? If it dares to claim the name of skill, it must be extraordinary.’

But using the defensive Qi, the master of Transformation shouldn’t be in danger against merely a peak master’s soft technique.

‘It shouldn’t be that troublesome, except for that unknown old man over there.’

Both Choi Riyong and the Buddhist warriors intended to take things seriously.

Anyhow, that was Cho Gak’s conclusion.

In truth, the duel between a peak warrior and a Transformation master was hardly different from a fight between a child and an adult.

It was childish to receive a Life and Death Match just for a little (or greatly) insolent behavior, but in reality, it was simply a hassle to subdue them, not that he lacked confidence.

But then, at that moment, the blade of Qing’s sword surged with a sliver of energy.

This was a trick that was absolutely impossible using just the sword aura.

If one could easily extend the sword energy, everyone would just keep a light sword handy to whip out and swing around like a lightsaber from a famous story instead of lugging around heavy swords.

So, the sword energy didn’t simply surge up.

Upon closer inspection, it was actually high-density sword energies gathering and appearing as one.

Though he still didn’t quite know the workings of the reverse-root-seeking vision, at the very least, one thing: the flowing True Energy through the Qi Meridians had significantly expanded, transforming into what could only be called a super high-output True Energy sprayer.

In modern terms, it felt like consuming double the True Energy while the power was a bit more than one and a half times stronger.

However, Qing’s cultivation had already transcended the realms by quite a margin, so the sword energy, which couldn’t even form a river, didn’t consume that much True Energy anyway.

“One!”

Qing shouted that and drew a straight line.

A thick sword energy clashed with Cho Gak’s blooming Qi.

There was no sound of blades colliding, but at that moment, a shockwave erupted into the air from the center, blasting outward.

However, Qing’s expression twisted while Cho Gak’s face slightly relaxed, so the result of their first clash was clear.

Oh dear, seems I’m no match as a swordsman after all.

Cho Gak’s sword dove toward Qing’s energy, even managing to nibble at the blade of the Moonlight Sword.

The Counterattack was merely a basic long-range technique available to a master of Transformation.

Unless one was a specialized master of strong techniques, its power couldn’t even compare to merely throwing some energy with a memory of its form.

Thus, the true fear from the master of Transformation was not the Counterattack itself, but the ability to compress and unleash the energy from his own weapon visibly out into the world.

A purple energy swirled around Cho Gak’s sword, layering it thickly.

It was the scene of Hwasan Taoists foaming at the mouth.

It was the Imperial Palace’s rehashed version of the Zha Shen Gong technique.

Qing, startled, halted his sword, but already there was a significant bite taken out of the blade.

My Moonlight Sword!

I hardly even got to use it!

Having to welcome the new Moonlight Sword No. 9 after barely using it a few times, Qing awkwardly smiled and said.

“Um, you’re a master, huh, mind giving me a little leniency?”

“Nonsense!”

Cho Gak’s sword moved swiftly.

The Yellow Jade Demon Sword, a brutal killing blade forged from the most severe determination to suppress demons.

Yet, it was a slight mismatch, as the Demon Sword was one of the strongest killing martial arts from the Zhengpai sect.

Trying to attack while avoiding the opponent’s vital points was bound to be awkward.

For Cho Gak, whose death meant the annihilation of his clan, the enemy’s vital points were just another vital point of his own.

“Uwah! Kyaah! Ack! Ah, ah! Ah! Gaaah! Ack!”

Qing was busy dodging, unleashing a frantic sound that was half a gasp, half a scream, and half awe.

If they clashed, there’d be nothing left of his sword.

In the meantime, Qing was trying to create noise, hoping to distract his opponent to look for an opportunity.

But, no matter how non-lethal the attacks were, he was up against a master of Transformation and a sword expert, whose swordsmanship was so divine.

If Qing checked the Martial Arts Inventory, he would’ve seen the shimmering purple border of the Demon Sword.

Qing twisted his waist, narrowly avoiding the blade infused with Qi.

Yet, the energy was sharper than it seemed.

Instantly, the clothing around his waist was slashed and a slight stain of red appeared on his skin.

“Ack! Wait! I actually got cut! Kyaah!”

Scratches began appearing on his thigh and shoulder, leaving those parts of his outfit a colorful mess.

Despite having evaded, the skin felt split and sore, and while pain hints at a serious wound, the feeling wasn’t unpleasantly overwhelming…

“Ack!! Ack! Ack!? Huh? What? Why? What?”

Qing’s cries began to taper off.

What’s going on?

It hurts, but oddly, it’s okay?

No, how should I put it.

There’s a warm sting, not bad at all, almost a strange, delightful sensation, like scratching a mosquito bite.

Having realized this, Qing’s dodging movements became more refined.

With fewer unnecessary movements, his gaze steadied and his motions became simpler, dodging strikes without further taking injuries.

Cho Gak quickly noticed this change.

‘That girl is becoming increasingly adept at dodging!’

Seething in outrage, Cho Gak bellowed.

“Why are you! What are you trying to do! Just going to keep dodging?”

“Then!? Should I take a hit!?”

As Qing shouted that, he flexed his knees.

With his feet planted, he splayed his torso horizontally to the ground, supporting himself with his arms.

Cho Gak momentarily faltered, having missed Qing’s sudden change to a nearly impossible stance, often referred to as the Iron Plate Bridge.

Qing kicked off the ground from that position, causing Cho Gak to see him spring up right before his eyes.

With a sudden rise, Qing thrust his sword forward.

“Hmph! No way!”

But the difference in realms was too significant.

Cho Gak effortlessly swung his sword, causing Qing’s arm, still holding the sword, to get knocked wide open.

In that instant, Qing’s eyes sparkled as his left hand shot out unexpectedly.

Thwack! Cho Gak hurriedly lifted his arm to block.

Then, with his left hand open, he bent his fingers to form the basic shape of the Claw Technique often called the ‘Mighty Claw’ to swing at Cho Gak.

The Yellow Jade Wind Posture.

If a Gongdong Sect Taoist saw this, they would have screamed about how he was stealing the school’s key doctrines.

However, the Supreme Hand-to-Hand Combat, despite being a demonic martial art, belonged to the realm of the most mystical techniques in the world.

With thrusts and bends, slashing and striking with fingertips, then smacking with the back of the hand and pushing with the palm, using just his index and middle fingers to poke with the knuckle, a combination of six strikes unfolded in a single breath.

Using the entire hand in martial arts was what defined skilled techniques and this was truly the essence of such martial arts.

The basic study of the claw art learned was simply no match, and Cho Gak’s energy-wrapped hand could only defend against the assault, forced to withstand it.

Meanwhile, the arms that had strayed far away returned.

Once again, energy erupted explosively from Qing’s sword.

As Cho Gak’s gaze turned there, the chilling crimson light dove in, striking at his side.

This reaction made Qing leap back immediately.

He landed a few elegant strikes but Qing’s expression darkened.

“Damn, the defensive Qi. It’s hard to have any fun.”

Qing shook his numb left arm as he muttered.

In contrast, Cho Gak showed a façade of slight relaxation.

“Ha. So you did possess some confidence. I’ll acknowledge your skill’s intricacy. But don’t you know the difference in ranks divides like a mountain? If you withdraw now, I’ll show mercy, okay?”

Just as Cho Gak was trying to coerce him to retreat with words, a sudden grimace crossed his face.

He felt a chilling, prickling sensation in his side unexpectedly.

His left hand and forearm also felt oddly cold and tingly.

Hastily tracing his Qi meridians, Cho Gak realized the presence of a stealthily infiltrated poison.

The chilling poison seeped into his blood, pervading through him, yet oddly enough, it simultaneously blended with an unusual warmth, making him barely perceptible to the pain.

This indicated that Qing’s divine skill with the Divine Maiden’s True Skill had surprisingly surpassed the original Supreme Hand-to-Hand Combat in malevolence.

“What is this?”

Only then did Cho Gak notice Qing’s long, white hands, the most beautiful in the world.

If her face was of an absolute beauty, surely her hands would be beautiful too, right?

Having seen all this, a certain martial skill sprung to mind.

“This is the claw art.”

“Wahh!!! Waaahh!! Here I come again!”

Qing shouted, charging once more.

Qing was employing the technique usually used to block someone’s speech.

At the same time, he tightened his grip on the Moonlight Sword with both hands, thrusting it sideways, where the glow of colors—red, white, and purple—brilliantly blended and burst out chaotically.

To anyone stating that this was undoubtedly a desperate last resort was an understatement.

From Cho Gak’s sword, starlight intensely flowed.

He aimed to cleave the very blade, intending to crush the opponent’s fighting spirit.

The massive sword of energy that extended beyond Qing’s shoulder suddenly shot forward.

The enormous hue drew a thick stroke in the air.

The sword wrapped in Qi appeared small in comparison, yet everyone present instinctively recognized it as the more dangerous, destructive starlight.

And thus, as the two energies were about to collide,

Qing’s sword went soaring into the sky without a hint of control.

Letting go of the object he gripped tightly in both hands, it naturally flew far away.

Cho Gak had just aimed to cleave the sword, but Qing’s sword had disappeared, and out went Cho Gak’s sword slicing through empty air with only his clenching hand extended far outdoors.

“Gap!”

Qing’s right hand swung back, seizing a long object’s handle.

It was the handle of the timeless steel dagger with a clinking mechanism.

With gritted teeth, as Cho Gak drew out the defensive Qi to its utmost, Qing went all out with the Magic Flute raised from below in a sideways strike.

Wham!!!

The power of the Magic Flute was enough to make even a strongman like Xiang Yu take a step back, striking Cho Gak’s chest.

Cho Gak’s heel lifted from the ground as he lost his balance and staggered.

Though the defensive energy could absorb the impact transmitted through his body, it was helpless against pure physical force pushing through.

If he’d known, he would have endured with the Heavenly Weight Press.

Yet, who could have imagined such a delicate figure, adorned with a fragile feminine shape except for a large chest, would unleash such tremendous strength?

Qing swung the Magic Flute and left hand alternately with brute force.

Choi Riyong once remarked that the true strength of a warrior comes from being firmly rooted in the earth.

Thus, Cho Gak found himself on the defensive after losing his balance.

He could only wrap himself in his defensive Qi, hunching his body and retreating desperately.

Qing was also frantic.

Amidst this, blood was spilling, tearing, and the bone-breaking sensations were absent, allowing him to feel nothing he desired.

Really, damn it. What the hell is a master of Transformation? Is it invincible!?

I’ve got my Qi too! I want to use my Qi!

Is it so pathetic to live in the realm of peak mastery without Qi!?

But surely, if I keep swinging at them, they’d die, right?

Who do I think I am?

A peak late master who’s taken down masters of Transformation, the world’s genius.

I’ll need to brag to my master.

As Qing thought this, lifting the Magic Flute once more, he was suddenly engulfed in a chilling aura that made every hair on his body stand on end, sending shivers down his spine.

The murderous intent from the master of Transformation began.

Reacting to the Qi, Qing’s instincts screamed that he would most certainly die.

“You, wretched little b***h!!! Die!!”

Qing swiftly planted his feet, pushing himself away.

But already, it was a step too late.

The trajectory of the starlight sliced precisely through Qing.

Swish.

He felt the skin of his body tear, a cutting sensation clear and present.

He learned that when a blade makes contact, the sound comes through the body instead of the ears.

At that moment, instead of pain, it was fierce, burning rage that welled up.

No way, this son of a b***h! How dare he wound me!?

This lowlife scoundrel with a ton of bad karma!

Whoever it was could be laying low and die in peace!

This is unacceptable.

At the very least I can’t be wounded by this garbage.

This isn’t fair.

Bad people should get hurt, and good people should be blessed.

And I am the most righteous person in the world.

I’m the most important and precious person there is.

Yet this beastly piece of trash doesn’t know its place.

In Qing’s eyes, a sinister red star yawned, bursting with radiance.

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