Chapter 192

Chapter 192

Twenty years ago.

—Uni. What’s the strongest swordsmanship?

At mother’s sudden question, I thought carefully and answered.

—The strongest swordsmanship?

—Yes.

—That would be, wouldn’t it be father’s swordsmanship? Father is the strongest in the world.

—Well, gaga  is strong, but he’s not the best under heaven yet.

—What? But he’s that strong?

—Honestly speaking, even if he keeps going, the best under heaven is probably impossible. Because there are so many absurd monsters in this world. Even considering the rose-colored glasses in mother’s eyes.

Just because the Baek Ri Family is called the best family under heaven doesn’t mean they have the best martial arts under heaven.

Mother, who smiled bitterly, continued while stroking my hair.

—The strongest among Orthodox Path swordsmen is the Sword Saint. The strongest among Unorthodox Path swordsmen is currently the Ghost Sword . Then is their martial arts the best under heaven?

—But there’s also the Demonic Cult!

—That’s right. There’s the Demonic Cult too. The Demonic Cult surely has excellent swordsmen as well. Is it just the Demonic Cult? There are many hermit masters too. When the era changes, the best under heaven changes too. So saying any martial art is definitively the best under heaven is actually close to impossible.

—Eh…….

Isn’t that unromantic?

As I looked at mother with a pouty expression at her words, mother, with eyes saying “what?” while clenching her fist, glanced at me. When I averted my gaze, she chuckled and continued.

—But it’s not that there’s no martial art that’s the best under heaven.

—……Mother, you just said it’s close to impossible to determine that.

—I said close to impossible, I didn’t say it was impossible.

—That’s word play?

—You rascal.

Mother, who finally gave me a knuckle on the head, continued.

—I think like this. No matter who the person is, the sword that shows that person’s future is the strongest sword.

—Fu……ture?

—Yes. Future. Not the life lived until now, but the ideal world to pursue ahead.

Spreading feet shoulder-width apart, hands straight forward.

Mother, who showed a familiar starting stance, continued.

—Gaga’s sword is cold flame. It holds passion, but doesn’t lose composure. Even while blazing as if it will burn everything, it tries not to inflict a single wound on what belongs to him.

—That’s both gaga’s strength and weakness. He’s a fragile person who must constantly look back even while standing at the forefront. Such a sword makes gaga shine.

Was father’s sword such a sword?

While I was thinking, mother, who smiled bitterly, released her starting stance and patted my head with her palm. The following words.

—Our Uni’s sword is still a confident sword. It’s not yet clear what kind of sword it is. Is it because the life lived is short?

—……I’m not young. I even won everything at the Dragon-Phoenix Assembly.

—Oh my. You little thing.

Mother, who patted me as if looking at an immature child, chuckled.

—Anyway, if our Uni wants to become the best under heaven, there’s one thing to think about. Knowing what your sword is, what world you want to draw.

—……The world, I want to draw.

—Contain the life that is you. Past, present, and also future.

Become a sword that draws the future.

That’s what mother said. And I’ve been following those footsteps for twenty years.

That’s why.

There’s the current me.

“That’s…….”

“Heaven-Opening Sword Flow. It’s my unique martial art.”

“Opening Heaven.”

Namgung Yeoncheon, who briefly mulled it over, shook his arm in the air, unable to fully dispel the explosive force. The sword tip trembling violently.

“It certainly has power worthy of shaking heaven and earth. Indeed, worthy of putting the name Opening Heaven on one’s lips.”

“Thank you.”

“How long have you honed it?”

“Twenty years.”

“……Twenty years matching Namgung’s five hundred years.”

“Well, I’m not certain. I don’t yet think it’s a sword of that degree.”

“You mean what’s lacking isn’t the martial art but you.”

“Yes.”

At the honest answer, Namgung Yeoncheon, who twitched his eyebrows, looked at my sword tip without a trace of movement and chuckled. Soon after, his sword tip rising toward the front.

“What a shame.”

“What do you mean?”

“That you weren’t born under Namgung’s tutelage. If you’d been born with Namgung Family’s bloodline, Namgung could have welcomed a thousand-year prosperity.”

“Well, the Namgung Family wouldn’t be bad, but I prefer the Baek Ri Family.”

“Didn’t you sever ties?”

“Not yet. And it doesn’t seem like it will go as far as severing ties in the future either.”

As I spoke while glancing sideways at Baek Risan, Namgung Yeoncheon, who wore a faint smile, drew up his internal energy.

“Is this the first time showing it?”

“This seems like it will be the first time properly showing it.”

“Good. With martial arts of that degree, it’s not lacking as Namgung’s opponent. But I don’t intend to lose easily.”

“I didn’t intend to win easily either.”

An opponent I’ve never beaten yet. An opponent I couldn’t guarantee victory against until now.

There’s no room for carelessness. He’s an opponent I mustn’t be careless against. Even if I have the upper hand, with just one chi of error, I could hand victory to the opponent.

“Come.”

“I’ll go.”

Slowly.

Drawing up internal energy to contain the universe in my body. Opening the sky and pulling the world behind it. What I must do is simple.

Pajik—!

Heavenly Thunder Body  Entry

Opening the Body

Opening the body.

Heavenly Thunder Body  Advance

Penetrating Heaven

Using the opened body as a path to connect heaven and earth. Containing the Three Powers in the body.

“Receive this.”

I took a starting stance while drawing up internal energy. Both feet shoulder-width apart. One hand forward.

Internal energy rising from the lower danjeon circulated through the entire body as fast as lightning.

Heaven-Opening Sword Flow

Heaven Pierce

Next, the moment I was about to draw all the gathered internal energy to the sword tip and thrust.

Everyone on the duel stage turned their gaze toward the top of Mount Cheonju.

“Wait. This is…….”

“Big trouble.”

Without answering my words, Namgung Yeoncheon, whose complexion stiffened, gripped his sword tightly. And the Sword Sovereign interjecting between them.

“The duel is suspended. Namgung Family Head. Uicheonmun Lord.”

“Yes. It doesn’t seem like a situation for that.”

“I’ll block here, so first evacuate the family members…….”

“It’s already too late.”

At the Sword Sovereign’s words, Namgung Yeoncheon, who answered, clenched his fist tightly. The following statement.

“Once unleashed, the Imperial Sword’s reins don’t care about distance.”

Imperial Sword Form

One Step Prostration

Mount Tai presses down.

“Block it!”

The moment she regained her senses, the Sword Sovereign burst out a warning cry and drew her sword. The Sword Sovereign trying to block the sword strike descending brilliantly from above.

It’s insufficient. The Sword Sovereign’s sword is sharp but can’t cut through everything. Though she can cut Mount Tai, she can’t block all of falling Mount Tai.

She can’t block it. Everyone here will be crushed.

——That’s only the story if the Sword Sovereign faced it alone.

‘Left side.’

‘I’ll take the right.’

I quickly communicated with just eye contact with Namgung Yeoncheon and took position. Because otherwise, we couldn’t protect everyone.

Split internal energy.

Even fragments made the air tremble—I gripped my sword while experiencing that grand momentum. What’s needed is destructive power. A massive iron hammer that can break the hammer falling from the front.

Heaven-Opening Sword Flow

Strong Lightning

Incandescent.

Ppajijijijijik—!!!

Thunder starting as one strand and branching into dozens dug into the Imperial energy and shattered it. Internal energy scattering into pieces and dispersing into the air.

“……I’ll ask just one thing. Namgung Family Head.”

The Sword Sovereign, who had been watching the blue internal energy dissipate, opened her mouth with a stiffly hardened face. A monster suddenly standing before her eyes.

“I haven’t received such reports at the Alliance level, but Namgung Senior.”

“Have you gone beyond ipma  and entered simma ?”

The Sword Sovereign sighed while looking at the old man emanating momentum like a well-tempered blade.

Before her eyes.

The former Namgung Family Head—no.

The former Ten Heavens member called Sword King.

Namgung Hyeok  was there.

“Filthy minions of the Demonic Cult…….”

With blood-red eyes clearly not looking normal streaming out.

“This old man will slaughter them all. Without leaving a single one…….”

“The Sword King elder is saying he’ll kill us. What will you do?”

“It seems he came feeling the gipa  of the duel. There wouldn’t have been any occasion for gipa this strong to spread in the Namgung Family otherwise.”

Whether he reacted to my gipa or Namgung Yeoncheon’s gipa doesn’t matter. In any case, Namgung Hyeok now considers us minions of the Demonic Cult and is trying to kill us.

“To conceal such a dangerous situation…… The Alliance will severely hold you responsible for this incident. Namgung Family Head.”

“……I’ll accept it willingly.”

“Huuu. Then what now?”

“What will you do?”

“We have no choice but to subdue him.”

“Can you manage it?”

“I can’t do it alone. Honestly speaking, I’m a bit below Namgung Senior. Winning in a duel might be possible, but subduing him…… would be especially difficult.”

The Sword Sovereign, who smiled bitterly, took one step back toward where Namgung Yeoncheon and I were and whispered softly.

“You mustn’t wound him. While I block, strike the opening. Can you do it?”

“I’ll try.”

“Good.”

The Sword Sovereign, who took a deep breath, raised her sword tip while taking a starting stance. 

“Then I’ll trust you.”

The moment Namgung Hyeok, seeing that, was about to take one more step forward.

Milky Way Thousand Scales Sword Art

Milky Way Alignment

The Sword Sovereign thrust her sword strike one step ahead.

Stars fall.

The Sword Sovereign’s sword strike, sharp enough to create the illusion, digging into all the vital points of Namgung Hyeok’s entire body, flashed its fangs. However, Namgung Hyeok broke through that attack with a sneer.

“Laughable!”

Imperial Sword Form

Peak Breaking

Breaking Mount Tai.

True to that name, Namgung Hyeok, who smashed the sword strike as if crushing it, lowered his sword with a bleak look. Eyes lofty like the eyes of an emperor on an incognito tour.

“Evil Path Alliance youngster…….”

“After losing to you, I entered closed-door training. I contemplated who I was. Why I lost…… what Namgung’s sword lacked…….”

“……You mean me?”

“Who else besides you. Nameless……!”

He’s gone senile.

I sighed while watching Namgung Hyeok mistake me for the Evil Path Alliance Leader. Though Namgung Yeoncheon would be closer in age, why does he mistake me instead of that side? Blood relation?

“I completed Namgung’s sword. I proved that Namgung doesn’t lose to your worthless martial flow.”

“This time, you prove it. That you have sufficient qualifications to survive my sword……!”

Namgung Hyeok roaring.

“……I’m sorry.”

Watching Namgung Yeoncheon sweep his face covered in fatigue at that sight, I sighed. What could we do when the situation turned out like this?

“Please take various things into account.”

“If it’s something I can account for…….”

“You promised.”

There’s no choice. I have no choice but to draw out everything, even my reserves.

I sighed and drew up my internal energy. The opponent is former Ten Heavens. Sword King Namgung Hyeok. An opponent who wields power even more formidable than the Sword Sovereign.

If I want to properly receive even one strike, I must use my full power. My sword hasn’t yet grown enough to suppress the Ten Heavens.

“I really don’t want to use this.”

I’ll be bedridden for a while.

Pajik! Pajijijijijik—!!!

I shook my head and slowly drew up internal energy. Sparks flying.

“Die miserably. Nameless—!!!”

The moment Namgung Hyeok rushed in executing the Imperial Sword Form.

“That can’t be allowed. Elder.”

Heavenly Thunder Body  Completion

Opening Heaven

Contained the Thunder God in my body.