Almighty God of War - Chapter 121

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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121

 

Before the six companions gaped an endless darkness with its mouth wide open.

 

As they stepped inside, a completely different landscape unfolded.

 

It was an underground canyon without sky.

 

Sheer cliffs soared endlessly into the darkness of the ceiling, and bluish phosphorescent moss growing in patches on the walls dimly illuminated the surroundings.

 

On the floor lay weapons and armor that hadn’t rotted despite hundreds of years, scattered like broken bones, while the smell of aged metal and damp earth stung their noses.

 

A strange space where reality and illusion couldn’t be distinguished.

 

Jegal Hwi, who knew much, muttered in a heavy tone.

 

“Could it be… this place is the legendary ‘Canyon of Vengeful Spirits’…?”

 

Before his words even finished, the sound of something scraping came from beneath the ground.

 

Screech-

 

The pitch-black soil of the floor crumbled, and a single hand turned to bare bone burst out.

 

Soon after, from another spot, and yet another spot, hundreds of hands mixed with bone and flesh simultaneously pierced through the ground and rose up.

 

Crack-!

 

The ground heaved, and about three hundred armored jiangshi simultaneously revealed themselves.

 

From within their empty helmets, red malevolent light flickered in their eye sockets.

 

The companions’ faces hardened as they saw them.

 

They felt a different sense of intimidation from these Soldier Jiangshi compared to the lower-grade jiangshi they had encountered before.

 

Armed and formed in ranks, they moved systematically like living soldiers.

 

At their center stood a Commander Jiangshi of exceptionally massive build, his entire body wrapped in Black Iron Armor.

 

Every time it moved its finger, the formations of surrounding jiangshi moved in perfect unison.

 

“Damn… those bastards will be more troublesome than living soldiers.”

 

Paeng Mangyeong clicked his tongue as he readjusted his grip on his Great Sword.

 

Jegal Hwi quickly analyzed the situation and shouted.

 

“The canyon is narrow, so a frontal assault would be disadvantageous! Elder Brother Paeng and Elder Brother Hwangbo, please take the lead and block their momentum!”

 

“Kuhaha! Good! I’ll send those walking corpses back to their graves!”

 

As Paeng Mangyeong prepared to charge forward with wild laughter, Hwangbo Pung also clenched his fists in a stance as solid as rock.

 

Jegal Hwi’s instructions continued.

 

“Young Hero Han and Branch Master Pung, please take the flanks and provide support so our formation doesn’t collapse!”

 

Hanjo’s Black Dragon Chain uncoiled like a serpent, and Pung Socheong’s Moon Shadow Daggers emitted a cold light like moonlight.

 

While everyone prepared for battle in hair-trigger tension, Guyang Cheongang was looking elsewhere.

 

His gaze was fixed not on the battlefield, but on the Commander Jiangshi controlling everything from behind the jiangshi forces.

 

‘Akasha, that big guy in the back. I’m targeting only him.’

 

[Powerful command waves are being emitted from the target. It’s perfectly controlling the behavioral patterns of the other jiangshi. That entity is presumed to be the ‘head’ of the jiangshi.]

 

‘The head… what would happen if I cut that off?’

 

A playful nuance mixed into Akasha’s voice.

 

[If you’re curious, why don’t you try it directly?]

 

‘That’s what I intend to do.’

 

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes became sharp as blades.

 

“Euhahahaha! Shatter!”

 

Along with Paeng Mangyeong’s wild laughter, golden Blade Energy swept through the ranks of jiangshi like a roaring fierce tiger.

 

However, the response of the soldier jiangshi was qualitatively different from the lower-grade jiangshi before.

 

Kwang!

 

The jiangshi at the front formed a shield wall in unison and took his blade head-on.

 

With a thunderous sound like a giant bell ringing, Paeng Mangyeong unconsciously frowned at the shock that made his entire arm tingle numbly.

 

“Huh?”

 

Not missing that momentary opening, dozens of spears and swords rose like a forest of steel and struck down at the group.

 

Shwaaak!

 

Jegal Hwi’s expression hardened.

 

‘These bastards are an army moving under one will! They could annihilate any decent small or medium sect within a day.’

 

The battle instantly turned into a chaotic melee.

 

Hwangbo Pung’s Heavenly King Fist struck a jiangshi’s chest armor hard, but it deflected the impact with its shield while simultaneously stabbing at his side with its sword.

 

“Be careful. These things aren’t ordinary!”

 

As Hwangbo Pung gritted his teeth and shouted, even more intense Fist Qi blazed like lava above his fists.

 

Pung Socheong’s twin daggers flew up like two streams of moonlight aiming for their necks, but the jiangshi blocked them with mechanically precise shield techniques.

 

Hanjo’s situation wasn’t good either.

 

The Black Dragon Chain writhed like a black dragon trying to bind their feet, but the soldier jiangshi dodged it like shadows while maintaining their formation.

 

At that moment, Jegal Hwi’s sharp cry cut through the chaotic battlefield.

 

“Elder Brother Paeng! The three spearmen on the left! Those are the waist of their formation!”

 

“Kahahaha! You should have said so earlier!”

 

Paeng Mangyeong burst into wild laughter as if he had been waiting and kicked off the ground.

 

The phantom of a giant tiger appeared above his great sword.

 

“Fierce Tiger Emerges from Mountain!”

 

Bang! Crack!

 

The great sword that struck down like lightning tore through the first spearman’s armor like paper and crushed his bones.

 

Following Split Mountain Cleave Sea!

 

A horizontal slash that seemed to split mountains and cleave seas cut the second spearman in half at the waist.

 

“Break Gate Shatter Barrier!”

 

Bang bang bang! Rumble!

 

The last spearman desperately raised his shield to block, but Paeng Mangyeong’s great sword shattered the creature’s upper body along with the shield into pieces.

 

“Wuhahahaha! How refreshing!”

 

Gripping his great sword with one hand, Paeng Mangyeong charged toward the next enemies while radiating boiling fighting spirit.

 

Once Jegal Hwi grasped the formation of the soldier jiangshi, the stalemate began to gradually tip in their favor.

 

However, it was insufficient to instantly collapse their defensive line that was like a steel fortress.

 

By the time about fifty jiangshi had scattered as bone fragments and the group’s breathing became rough.

 

Jegal Hwi, who had been piercing through the battlefield with eagle eyes, shouted with bulging veins.

 

“Now! Five steps forward from the center!”

 

“Take this!”

 

Hwangbo Pung fiercely stepped forward and unleashed the Heavenly King Fist.

 

Bang! Bang! Bang!

 

As the mighty fist qi shattered the shield wall, Paeng Mangyeong’s great sword swept through the gap, drawing a deadly crescent.

 

Clang! Crack!

 

In an instant, a single path opened through the forest of steel.

 

A path of death leading to the Command Jiangshi.

 

Only Guyang Cheongang saw that path.

 

The moment Phantom Shadowless Step unfolded, his figure vanished from the ground.

 

Movement that could not be explained by human movement techniques.

 

As if freed from the bonds of gravity, he crossed through midair, lightly stepping on the heads and shoulders of the jiangshi.

 

His figure was like a single black meteor streaking across the night sky.

 

Whooooosh-!

 

The cold air of the canyon split against his robes and screamed.

 

By the time the Soldier Jiangshi raised their heads to look at the sky, the black meteor had already passed overhead.

 

Before they could count to two, Guyang Cheongang had reached directly above the Command Jiangshi’s head.

 

The Command Jiangshi, bursting red malevolent light from its empty eye sockets, raised its great sword.

 

But before the creature could draw up the yin energy from its bones, a blue star fell from the sky.

 

Guyang Cheongang’s right hand traced the trajectory of the Gale Flash Technique and fell like a massive hammer onto the creature’s head.

 

Crash!

 

A momentary silence as if sound had disappeared.

 

Soon after, the Command Jiangshi’s head shattered into pieces, black fragments scattering in all directions.

 

The moment that explosive sound echoed throughout the canyon, hundreds of Soldier Jiangshi that had filled the battlefield collapsed all at once like dolls with severed strings.

 

Creak… thud.

 

An eerie silence returned to the hellish canyon.

 

The six looked around at each other.

 

Hwangbo Pung was the first to speak.

 

“Is it over?”

 

Paeng Mangyeong rested his great sword on his shoulder and laughed heartily.

 

“Hahaha! To think that Xiahou Great Hero’s martial arts, called divine, would be this outstanding. I wonder if people would believe it if we told them outside.”

 

Hanjo and Pung Socheong silently looked at Guyang Cheongang.

 

Their eyes were clearly filled with awe.

 

Jegal Hwi looked at Guyang Cheongang with strange eyes and said.

 

“It’s not over yet.”

 

Guyang Cheongang also nodded and continued.

 

“It’s not over until it’s over.”

 

His gaze was looking beyond the canyon.

 

After passing through the Canyon of Vengeful Spirits, another underground cavern appeared before the group.

 

Its scale was twice that of the first cavern.

 

The height alone seemed to easily exceed ten zhang, and the circumference reached several hundred zhang.

 

This place too, like the previous locations, had dim light flowing from the walls and ceiling.

 

What caught the group’s attention was the massive red pond in the center, bubbling and boiling.

 

A pond that seemed to boil with dark red blood.

 

From there came a sticky, sweet smell, and red steam rose thickly above it.

 

Around the pond, about twenty jiangshi wandered slowly like specters.

 

Though their numbers were less than a tenth of the soldier jiangshi they had fought in the Canyon of Resentment, the dangerous atmosphere was incomparably stronger.

 

The appearance of the jiangshi was eerie.

 

Not only their naked skin, but every strand of hair and every pupil was stained blood red.

 

They looked like evil spirits born from a sea of blood.

 

Paeng Mangyeong frowned deeply and spoke.

 

“Damn, this place is like hell in the mortal world.”

 

Then Pung Socheong, her face pale, muttered in a trembling voice.

 

“Those are… Blood Jiangshi…”

 

Jegal Hwi continued with a grave expression.

 

“Those are the demons that massacred thousands during the Great War of Orthodox and Demonic. They say even three of them together can match a peak master…”

 

Hanjo, tense, unconsciously gripped the Black Dragon Chain tighter.

 

Paeng Mangyeong also showed clear signs of tension.

 

A nightmare they had only heard of in legends was unfolding before their eyes.

 

Jegal Hwi shouted.

 

“Be careful! That rising from the pond is Blood Poison Qi! If you inhale it for too long, your mind will become clouded and you’ll see hallucinations. In severe cases, you’ll lose consciousness!”

 

Indeed, the air near the pond was sticky like honey, and within that sweet smell lurked a strange bewitching sensation.

 

“Reduce your breathing as much as possible. If you lose consciousness, we’ll all become food for the Blood Jiangshi.”

 

Jegal Hwi’s voice as he continued shouting was clearly tense.

 

The Blood Jiangshi moved.

 

At first they were slow like slugs, but the next moment their bodies became like red lightning.

 

Blood-colored afterimages crossed in midair as they charged toward the group at terrifying speed.

 

The group didn’t hesitate either.

 

Paeng Mangyeong charged forward at the lead, his great sword flashing, while Hwangbo Pung followed beside him with clenched fists.

 

Paeng Mangyeong’s great sword collided with a Blood Jiangshi’s claws, which were over five inches long, in midair.

 

Crash!

 

Sparks flew with an explosive sound.

 

The Blood Jiangshi’s shoulder was gouged more than five inches deep, and dark red blood spurted like a fountain.

 

“Hahahaha, even Blood Jiangshi can be cut!”

 

Just as Paeng Mangyeong burst into triumphant laughter,

 

The red energy filling the cavern surged like waves and enveloped the Blood Jiangshi’s wound.

 

And shockingly, red flesh writhed and sprouted from the cross-section of the gouged shoulder, completely regenerating in the blink of an eye.

 

The Blood Jiangshi shrugged its restored shoulder and made a mocking sound.

 

Grrr-

 

“Damn!”

 

A rough word escaped from the usually composed Hwangbo Pung’s mouth.

 

Jegal Hwi, having grasped the situation, quickly continued speaking.

 

“Seeing that the Blood Jiangshi can’t leave the area around the blood pond, it’s not complete yet. Somewhere in that pond, there must be a ‘core’ that’s like their heart. If we don’t destroy that, those things won’t die!”

 

Guyang Cheongang shouted.

 

“I’ll handle the core.”

 

And he urgently spoke to Akasha.

 

‘Did you hear? Scan that pond. You should be able to find the point where death energy is strongly condensed.’

 

[Understood, Doctor. The pond’s energy is too complex, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact location. I need more time.]

 

Meanwhile, the Blood Jiangshi’s attacks continued like a rolling wheel.

 

Paeng Mangyeong and Hwangbo Pung stepped forward to establish a defensive line.

 

This time, they had to focus on defense rather than offense.

 

Bang! Bang! Clang!

 

Paeng Mangyeong’s great sword blocked the Blood Jiangshi’s claws and teeth, while Hwangbo Pung’s fists pushed back the charging Blood Jiangshi.

 

Hanjo and Pung Socheong supported them from both flanks.

 

The Black Dragon Chain attacked the Blood Jiangshi’s legs to restrict their swift movements, while Pung Socheong’s twin daggers launched surprise attacks from behind, reducing the burden on the defensive line.

 

However, the situation worsened as time passed.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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