Chapter 186
**
The beast moves.
What else can I express? Staring down at the reckless plan, Dragon of the Earth Commander doubted his own eyes.
It’s monstrous power. His own strength had crossed the limits. He couldn’t even gauge if he stood above it.
Plus, this body possesses an odd resilience.
No, that’s not the problem. Resilience? It’s beyond bizarre, but what’s important lies beyond that.
Look. Those beastly movements. The howls that advance one step further even when pierced.
A warrior stained with blood moves. The masters of Sapa caught in its trajectory are swept away in unison. Shouts pour out from all directions, each of them launching their secret techniques just to cut down a single person.
This isn’t a well-formed army. But the individual prowess is so formidable that acceptance isn’t necessary.
Just a simple trick.
A struggle of dozens to slay a beast.
But it’s elusive. What should be caught remains unfathomable and runs rampant.
It moves with weapons embedded all over its body. Even with one eye lost, it gnashes its teeth and bites at its opponent’s throat.
A battlefield. The ground is a mess right now…
And all of it is being controlled by one man.
“Hah… hah…!”
A laugh escaped involuntarily. Dragon of the Earth Commander couldn’t dare to be certain.
Could that… Lord of the Cheonryong Association, the Cheonryong Association leader even imitate that?
Where on earth did such a being come from? What sort of sect trained that sword which slashes while drenched in blood?
An incomprehensible sword, a bewildering beast. The entire movement sends chills down one’s spine, reminiscent of a beast’s mandibles.
“…Incredible…”
An absurd plan.
I thought I would aid to some extent.
But that’s no longer the case.
“Are you really going to… hold back all of that… alone!?”
I misjudged the prediction. I was wrong.
The author possessed an indomitable spirit, an unbreakable will from the start.
The Sado Clan’s expedition is capitulating.
Even surpassing death…
To a beast that howls with a sword.
…
It moves. Not resting for a moment.
Amidst the crashing waves of pain, it focuses on just one thing.
Pulling out and breaking what is embedded in the body…
Not releasing the seized sword.
The Blood Sword howls. The Ear Sword does the same.
The gasping of Cheongeop whispers. The swiftly depleting inner strength is also visible.
So many. The number of enemies certainly doesn’t seem to decrease.
Kill one, they replenish. The voice of the commander is heard.
To suppress them.
Tear off their limbs and smash them into the ground.
Cheongeop is not invulnerable. Inner strength is consumed. The techniques I wield are the same.
The Modified Sword Transformation is no different. To maintain the same power, one must draw from all reserves, even physical strength.
My head spins messily. I am acutely aware of my shortcomings, yet…
Still, it gradually becomes clearer and closer.
The wall before me. The blocked place.
—KAAAAAAAH!!!
I reach out from the pit of death I forced myself into. I make another leap to climb upward.
A shadow attempts to drag me down from behind. That shines clearly in the enemies’ swords.
Death is before me. I don’t even know how many deaths I have surpassed.
But now that’s only natural. Going beyond mere survival…
I must truly and desperately want this.
Burn your muscles. Use every bit of that honed body.
Restrict your inner strength. Save it. If it’s depleted, I will become nothing.
More compactly.
More concisely.
A softly flowing line…
Heavy.
Swing freely.
Ice White Fire Wheel Sword
Second Form.
Application technique of Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword – Paemyo
Return.
To the origin.
“……!!!”
He sketches the moment he first held the sword with his fingertips.
I flounder. In the sea of blood. The floundering embodies the years I have spent.
Blood and sweat spilled. Days where I weighed life and death.
What lies before me is undoubtedly the rough waves. The blade’s current tightening around my neck in real-time.
But I see it. The line gradually becoming clearer.
The more I defy death, the faster my inner strength drains…
As my stamina and sweat deplete and I begin to feel the metallic taste on my tongue…
I can begin to reach it.
The shape of the path.
That slender line.
“…….!”
I hear the sounds of the enemies shouting. But they don’t register.
No, perhaps it’s just that I don’t want to hear it. As the sensation on the blade tip fills my hand.
The line emerges from within the blood.
The line from within the blood sees me.
My body drops to the extreme. I’ve completely forgotten how many piercing weapons have gone in and out of me.
Counting serves no purpose anymore. Dozens of holes have already torn through my body.
Only forward.
Continuously forward…
Pushing back the enemy.
Becoming a wave that resists the current.
—KAAAAAAAAAH!!!
Sing, oh song of the sword.
Devour the twisted expressions of the enemies and ignite even more.
—Wooded Dudded!
Once again, the sword plunges into my chest. Despite the horrific pain, I take another step forward.
I bite at the throat of the warrior wielding the sword. Tear it apart to reveal my resolve.
The line I drew on the ground is slowly approaching. Each step taken, albeit small, is covered in blood and corpses, reflecting the road I’ve walked.
Now I can no longer enfold my sword with my strong energy. If I store it, my inner strength will bottom out, and regeneration will become impossible.
Then, I shall confront with pure blade.
Not the Ice White Fire Wheel Sword nor the Modified Sword…
But with the pure Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Technique
Fourth Form
Flash Dispersal
Now. Let’s scatter.
Though lacking energy, the sword itself is sharp.
Tear it apart and crush it. After all, the task remains the same.
Even without inner strength, I am still me.
I’m a warrior wielding the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword.
I tear and shatter everything. I’ll shred anything that stands before me.
Roar, oh beast within me. Swing your claws with your blood-soaked body.
Today, I will not die and will once again surpass myself here.
—Chwaaaaah!!!
“Will you catch up to the main lady?”
Into the shout, my soul.
Crushing even fragments of shattered metal…
Towards the sky!
—Quaddu Deug!!!
The unleashed sword pierces the last master’s throat. As if capping it all off, I swing it to cut and roll properly beyond the line.
The surroundings are silent. The once maddening howls have faded away as if they have fallen asleep.
But one thing is certain. The thousands of forces beyond that line are all looking at me. Their trembling gazes couldn’t meet mine, yet they gazed only at the blood smeared upon the blade’s tip.
Are they frightened?
I turn back. Taking in the scene I passed through.
Proving that I have been relentlessly slicing, blood and corpses are piled high. Some bob in the blood like objects floating on the ocean.
I had no strength left in my hands. But I still held the sword.
My voice didn’t emerge. Yet I could still make sounds with the sword tip.
There are so many. I can’t count them. I can’t even tell how many I’ve killed.
But one thing is clear.
They are all those who crossed the line, all those I have slain.
I slowly lowered the sword that had reached its limit. I looked down at the droplet of blood falling from the Blood Sword.
Surely, my body has reached its limit.
But something feels strange.
Somehow…
I feel like I can do a bit more.
How many deaths have I ascended this time? I cannot know. I suddenly noticed a blade lodged in my shoulder.
Pain is not something to get used to. Yet the intensity of immersion almost made me forget it.
My head is dizzy, and I undeniably hurt…
Yet I still grip the sword handle—that must be why.
“…….”
—Wooded.
I pulled out the sword embedded between bones. The metallic clang made the enemies flinch.
I stared blankly at the one in the center of them. A man staring at me without saying a word.
We exchanged glances briefly. Then I turned away.
I stepped over the corpses I had killed. Stepping precisely into the center of the Ear Sword, I stood tall once more.
Those who didn’t cross the line remained unscathed.
All those who crossed the line are dead.
The leader of the Sado Clan, now having obtained an answer to his desired question, spoke in a locked voice.
“…Retreat…”
With a single cough, the breath that had momentarily rested completed the sentence.
“We… retreat…”
I couldn’t kill them all, but I blocked thousands of troops.
With the sword tip, I crushed the endlessly pouring masters, stepping over yet another threshold.
I gazed at the retreating soldiers and turned my eyes toward the sky. The path that had been visible now grew noticeably closer.
The price I paid, having ground myself in death, the cost of battling against thousands and repeating dozens, hundreds of deaths for more than half a day.
A red sky began to faintly appear.
A strong conviction.
If I push just a little bit further…
The heavens will open.
I can take a step closer to the Heavenly Demon…
A stepping stone to a new realm.
…
Narin and Gwangyang trembled.
“Wh, what on earth…”
“Is, is all this… M, Master really…”
Bai Hyun and Gu Hwa-rin covered their mouths.
“…Is that truly a person?”
“No way… There’s no way a human can do such a thing…!”
Su-ryeon and Il-ho were silent.
“…….”
“…….”
The four members of the Demon Cult were no different.
“I thought it was impossible… Wow… This madman… Once it started, it was impossible to step in…?”
“O, older brother…”
“I’m not sure if it’s alright to go down. I feel like it’s not the time to touch it.”
“Prayer? At this distance, the smell of blood is overwhelming. It’s enough to twist my nose.”
While everyone was in shock, a shadow leaped down from the ramparts.
Quickly stepping on the protruding part of the castle wall, the small figure darted straight towards him.
“Daddy…!”
With that, the vicious wildness that had been choking the allied troops alongside the enemy faded away. The blood-soaked warrior tossed aside the completely shattered straw hat and gently embraced his charging daughter.
“…….”
He brushed aside his blood and sweat-soaked hair, catching his breath. As the two Ear Swords lodged in the ground were drawn into their sheaths…
The warrior who had overwhelmed thousands of soldiers rested his hand on his daughter’s head.
“…Daddy, I’m okay…?”
The staggering body was on the verge of collapsing at any moment.
But he slowly nodded his head.
“I’m fine.”
With that one word, those watching exhaled the breaths they had been holding.
The battlefield, seemingly suffocating.
Keeping the promise I had made to not let a single warrior cross that line.
Dragon of the Earth Commander gripped the castle wall tightly.
Who dares to call him a Master?
That’s…
A blood demon.
A beast drenched in blood. One whom we must cherish as an ally…
Isn’t that a beast?
“Who dares… to refer to him with the moniker of the Five Saints…?”
Dragon of the Earth Commander’s shoulders shook.
“A being that should perhaps be called beyond the Four Respected to the Five Respected is firmly present there…!”
