Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 194

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 194
“The Flying Sword Demon?”
Jan Chil’s eyes narrowed as he regarded Ha U Jin, the scars crisscrossing his face writhing grotesquely in the shift of expression.
“An excellent opponent.”
He muttered the words and released his killing intent.
It was utterly unlike what had emanated during his confrontation with Baek Pa Gun mere moments ago.
This killing intent was viscous, clinging, suffocating.
Ha U Jin, receiving the full weight of it head-on, drew his breath slowly and deliberately.
“Hah.”
Emotions churned within him, yet he fought to keep his reason cold and clear.
His opponent was a master.
Allow himself to be clouded by such turbulent feeling, and his chances of victory would dwindle to nothing.
‘I cannot waver.’
He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.
There was no room for stray thoughts now.
Only one thing remained.
He would stake everything on this single blade and pour forth all he possessed to seize victory.
For Jongnam.
Ha U Jin’s sword lifted slightly.
With it, a pristine cloud mist bloomed from his body, wreathing his blade.
The crowd gasped in admiration.
Particularly the common folk with no knowledge of martial arts pressed their palms together in reverence.
“An immortal! A true immortal!”
“The celestial has descended upon All Under Heaven!”
Cheon Hui also turned his gaze toward Ha U Jin.
While he had displayed the Hyeon Cheon Gangang Qi before, it had never been accompanied by such a dense mist.
“Hmm, when did he break through that wall?”
He muttered to himself, observing the immortal energy woven into the mist that bloomed around him.
“Lucky break, or so I heard.”
Someone spoke to him from beside.
Yet Cheon Hui opened his mouth without turning his gaze to the newcomer.
“Fortune does matter, doesn’t it?”
“Heh, you think so?”
“They say it’s seven parts fortune, three parts skill. Even if the world grants you everything, without fortune there are things you cannot obtain.”
“Hmm, that’s wisdom indeed. Enlightenment is said to be heavenly fortune.”
The man chuckled softly through his words.
“It’s been a while since we’ve met like this.”
Only then did Cheon Hui turn his head.
The speaker was Im Young, the Sect Master of the Jongnam Sect and master of the Tai Yi Sword.
“It has been a long time.”
Im Young smiled as he spoke.
“Will you be entering this martial match?”
“One thing led to another, and here I am.”
“Then you have nothing to worry about.”
At those words, Cheon Hui tilted his head curiously.
“That’s surprising. Usually if a young one like me represents the Huashan Sect, people would be skeptical.”
“Heh. I might have been skeptical too, had I known nothing.”
Im Young’s beard trembled broadly.
“But I’ve heard about you so often from that troublesome disciple and my adorable great-grandchild that I’ve come to believe.”
“Is that so?”
Cheon Hui gave a slight shrug.
He was curious what exactly they had said, but he asked no further.
‘Probably just something about being talented or the like.’
Then Im Young slowly raised his head to look at the martial arena and asked.
“In your judgment, who will win?”
Cheon Hui answered with an expression suggesting the question was obvious.
“Well, of course—”
Before Cheon Hui could finish his words.
A shrill wind tore through the air!
A savage gust of force crashed down.
The Cloud Mist born from Hyeon Cheon Gangang Qi’s Inner Force coalesced into a dense mass and sank into the blade.
“……!”
Jan Chil’s eyebrows twitched.
It was the first sharp reaction he’d shown.
In the next instant, the ease vanished from his face as he moved his sword first for the first time.
The sudden opening strike—though perhaps it was an instinctive realization.
Clang!
With a sharp ring, the blades locked together.
Clang-clang-clang!
The two pressed harder against each other’s swords, neither willing to give ground.
‘So the rumor that he destroyed Baek Gwi Seong along with the Huashan Divine Sword wasn’t false, then?’
Jan Chil’s eyebrows knitted sharply. But there was no time for idle thoughts.
Swoosh—
Ha U Jin, who had been testing strength against him, suddenly drew his blade back and sent it sliding down the sword like a snake, aiming for the wrist.
“Hah!”
Jan Chil leaped backward.
Then he examined his hand.
He’d barely escaped a fatal wound, but his hand gripping the blade bore a raw gash.
Jan Chil’s expression hardened faintly.
Then.
Tak.
He suddenly sheathed his sword.
The utterly unexpected act bewildered not only the crowd but Ha U Jin as well.
Then Jan Chil’s mouth opened, bringing an even greater shock.
“I concede.”
At Jan Chil’s sudden declaration, a strange silence fell over Cheongyae Field.
“What?”
“Concede……?”
“All at once?”
As those who didn’t know how to react stared blankly at the martial arena.
“……What are you doing?”
Ha U Jin’s words caught Jan Chil as he stepped down from the arena.
“The world of combat is cold, they say—so you’re running away with your tail between your legs?”
Jan Chil let out a derisive snort.
Despite declaring defeat, he showed no shame whatsoever, bearing himself with confidence.
“Because it’s cold, you run. Why risk your life over something like this?”
“A martial artist without pride, I see.”
“I threw away that trivial pride long ago.”
As he spoke without emotion, his gaze turned toward the Sinju Sa Pae camp.
Upon seeing the man and woman there who smiled faintly even as he conceded, his eyes turned cold and sharp.
‘If victory cannot be guaranteed, exhausting the Flying Sword Lord’s strength only serves those bastards.’
Even defeating Ha U Jin would be a problem.
The Huashan Sect’s representative for the third martial match still remained.
Soon he descended from the arena, and the Seophun Sect Master hurried over and opened his mouth.
“Th-this… what are you doing? Why did you suddenly forfeit……?”
The Seophun Sect Master pressed Jan Chil for answers.
“Are you questioning my decision?”
The reply that came back was cold.
The Seophun Sect Master suddenly recognized his position and shrank his neck.
“If you had not made such a grand commotion, this calamity would never have come to pass.”
Killing intent laced Jan Chil’s voice.
“I told you to gain the remnants of Baek Gwi Seong’s forces and withdraw.”
“Th-that is…….”
The Seophun Sect Master broke into a cold sweat.
What they had wanted from the Seophun Sect was to absorb the remnant forces of Baek Gwi Seong, not to seize Shenxi.
But the Seophun Sect Master had grown greedy.
More precisely, he had sought to expand his strength to break free from their grip.
And having come to this pass because of it, even with ten mouths he had nothing to say.
“Useless wretch.”
Just as Jan Chil spat out the words like chewing them.
“Why are you being so hostile?”
The Cold Woman interjected, her killing intent dissolving in an instant.
“My, surely a disciple doesn’t interrogate the sect master?”
“…….”
Jan Chil regarded her in silence, his gaze sharp as a blade.
He was about to turn away when—
“The martial match isn’t over yet.”
“You think you can stand against the Sword Saint?”
The Cold Woman’s smile deepened.
Watching that smile, the scar on Jan Chil’s face twitched.
“What are you getting at?”
“If we win this match, I—that is, Sa Gwi Bang—will claim a larger share of Shenxi than the others.”
Jan Chil’s eyes narrowed.
Once he’d declared a forfeit in this match, he’d surrendered all leverage.
Yet she was still making this proposal.
“You want to maintain our alliance?”
The Cold Woman smiled faintly.
“Shenxi is quite vast. Sa Gwi Bang alone would struggle to hold it indefinitely.”
In that moment, killing intent poured from Jan Chil like a blade.
“You’ve been aiming for this from the start.”
His killing intent came at her like needles, yet the Cold Woman remained unruffled.
“The circumstances simply aligned. Had you won every match, would I have been in a position to make such an offer?”
“…….”
“What will you do?”
Jan Chil withdrew his killing intent and answered.
“If we win, that’s what we’ll do.”
“Straightforward. I like that.”
The Cold Woman flicked her finger.
A man with an expressionless face appeared and handed a hat to Jan Chil.
Jan Chil took the hat and placed it upon his head.
“But what if you lose?”
“Then I’ll lose everything. However.”
The corners of the Cold Woman’s eyes curved upward.
“That won’t happen.”
“……How can you be so certain?”
“See for yourself.”
The moment those words left her lips—
Whoosh—
the Cold Woman vanished.
“……!”
Jan Chil’s eyes widened.
“Waahhh!”
“Another competitor!”
Cheers erupted from all sides.
A woman had suddenly appeared atop the martial grounds, now facing Ha U Jin.
“The girl is called Cho Ryeon.”
She performed the fist salute with elegant grace.
“It is an honor to meet the Sword Saint in such a contest.”
Ha U Jin returned the salute in kind.
“I am Ha U Jin.”
“The Sa Gwi Bang Master is unwell at present, so I’ve come in his stead.”
Cho Ryeon smiled softly.
At her beautiful smile, half the men in the crowd lost themselves.
“……Such a delicate young woman.”
“I hope she’ll be all right.”
Some watched her with concern, even though she belonged to a heterodox sect and Ha U Jin was a Daoist of the Jongnam Faction.
The Cold Woman’s smile grew more pronounced.
‘All the preparations are complete.’
Her eyes swept across the encampment where the Sinju Sa Pae had gathered. Just moments before, she had concluded arrangements not only with Jan Chil but also with the man standing beside Cheon Hui.
One thing remained.
Seizing victory.
“Then I’m counting on you.”
Cho Ryeon widened the distance.
In that instant, the air itself changed.
Ha U Jin, observing from close by, felt it at once and drew his blade.
‘……I can’t see anything.’
Ha U Jin’s pupils trembled.
Not only was the martial prowess of the woman before him beyond reckoning—its very limits escaped him.
‘A master of this caliber exists?’
Sweat beaded on the hand gripping his sword.
Then the woman’s lips curved upward.
“Why are you so tense?”
With those words, she stepped forward.
A single stride.
Yet in that one step, she erased fifty paces and stood directly before Ha U Jin’s face.
“……!”
Ha U Jin hastily swung his blade.
But before his sword could fully arc, impact struck his abdomen.
Crack!
The air burst apart, and Ha U Jin’s Sect Robe tore across his back.
The woman, her fist driven deep into his belly, parted her crimson lips.
“Are you relaxed now?”
“……Thanks to you, I am.”
As Ha U Jin answered in an even tone and raised his head—
Whoosh!
A pure white, dense mist erupted outward.
It enveloped Ha U Jin’s body, then coalesced tightly around his blade.
As that fierce momentum poured forth—
Swish—
The woman retreated several steps.
‘Her reputation wasn’t undeserved, then.’
The woman, feeling an intensity greater than she’d anticipated, studied Ha U Jin.
“This time, I’ll be the one to advance.”
Ha U Jin settled into his stance.
Sword raised to eye level.
Right foot forward.
It appeared ordinary at first glance, yet his momentum was unmistakable.
Ha U Jin steadied his breath and spoke.
“Receive this.”
In that moment his blade moved with force, and the Cheonha Thirty-Six Sword Techniques took form.
The Cheonha Tao Tao, the Cheonha Fei Xie, and finally the Cheonha Xing Chen unfolding at last.
Three ultimate techniques, fierce and swift as lightning, advanced in succession and crashed down upon the woman.
The crowd could not catch their breath at the relentless barrage, so swift that the eye could barely follow.
It seemed at any moment that these strikes would bring Cho Ryeon to defeat.
Yet—
Her lips curled in a long smile.
Her lips curled in a long smile.
Simultaneously, an indescribable torrent of force erupted, and a snow-white palm unfurled.
So pale it reflected the very sunlight falling upon it, that palm met the Cheonha Thirty-Six Sword Techniques with overwhelming power.
So swift that all who witnessed the match missed it entirely.
Boom!
A violent shockwave tore across the field in all directions.
And it was not merely one.
Boom! Crash!
The shockwaves came in rapid succession, shrouding the arena in dust.
But that was not all.
The shockwaves tore through Cheongyae Field itself.
Where the two forces collided, the unresolved energy scattered outward, spreading across the edges of Cheongyae Field.
“Ugh!”
“Kyah!”
Just as the crowd braced themselves, digging in their heels against the fierce gale threatening to sweep them backward,
“They’ve really staked their lives on this, haven’t they?”
Cheon Hui observed the martial match with the detachment of someone wholly unmoved by the roiling wind.
The collisions continued unbroken.
Ha U Jin, his Sect Robe billowing dramatically as he wielded his blade, moved with the fluid grace of water, one with the mist he conjured.
The Cold Woman’s method was entirely different.
Overwhelming dominance and ice-cold killing intent.
Her palms, swept forth in rhythm with her flowing sleeves, met Ha U Jin’s strikes as though pressing the entire world down beneath her.
Then Ha U Jin’s momentum shifted.
Impatient with the stalemate, he planted his left foot with tremendous force, deciding to force an end.
His sole met the ground.
Boom!
A weighty shockwave drove the dust outward.
Simultaneously, his Sect Robe tore along the back, snapping violently in the wind as his hair whipped about him.
In that same instant, he thrust his blade straight forward.
Directly toward the very center of the Cold Woman’s palm.
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed at the sight.
The first technique that came to mind was the Cheonha Qi Tan, which created the illusion of a spear being fired.
‘No. It’s different from that. This is as though All Under Heaven were condensed into a single….’
Ha U Jin’s swordsmanship was extraordinary.
Perfectly straightforward in its thrust.
Yet what lay within it defied description.
It was as though this single sword strike contained everything, and everything was contained within this one strike.
‘If he perfects it, Jongnam will become far greater than it is now.’
It was not speculation—it was certainty.
Most martial artists settled for their present strength and believed that becoming stronger required nothing more than secret techniques.
But Ha U Jin? What of him?
He was forging his own advancement.
No—he was carving out his own Sword Path, moving ever forward.
Toward the destination known as Grandmaster Generation.
Though of course, not yet.
His path was unstable, riddled with gaps.
And no one could know whether this road’s end would be success or failure.
It was possible the journey would end with him obtaining nothing at all.
Yet Ha U Jin pressed onward.
A solitary journey toward a destination whose outcome remained unknown.
‘What a shame. How much better if he belonged to the Huashan Sect.’
Then it happened.
A sharp cry tore through the air!
Cho Ryeon urgently drew upon her Internal Force.
She too seemed momentarily startled by the extended blade, but her reaction was swift and decisive.
A cool whisper of sound—
Transparent Inner Power tinged with an icy aura wrapped around her hands, and in that instant,
She struck out!
Her hand extended with tremendous force.
‘What—?’
Cheon Hui’s brow furrowed at the sight.
The manner in which she wielded her Internal Force in that brief moment, her stance, and the momentum that followed—
All of it was hauntingly familiar.
‘The Jade Eternal Divine Demon Hand of the Raksasa Bing Mo…?’
In that instant, Ha U Jin’s blade met her palm, and a brilliance so dazzling it swallowed the entire Cheongyae Field erupted between them.

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