Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 246

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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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Chapter 246
Crash!
As the earth trembled as if an earthquake had struck, Ki Ryeon No, who had been knocked unconscious, came to.
“Ugh!”
The moment Ki Ryeon No tried to push himself upright, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen, drawing a groan from his lips.
‘Why is my abdomen… that little bastard!’
The memory of the young Daoist who had kicked his midsection surfaced belatedly. He wrapped his hands around his belly and rose carefully to his feet.
When he attempted to draw upon his Internal Force as he normally would, his brow furrowed.
The moment he tried to summon his power, a bitter taste flooded his mouth and nausea threatened to overwhelm him.
An internal injury.
“Damn it!”
Curses spilled from his lips unbidden.
At the same time, rage surged through him.
“Where is that bastard….”
The instant he turned his head, eyes blazing as he searched for the one who had kicked him.
“…!”
A chill ran through him.
Crash! Bang!
Heaven and earth were being torn asunder.
A sword blooming with crimson plum blossoms clashed against a devastating fist, unleashing deafening explosions.
Not once or twice—dozens of collisions.
Each time they met, the energy waves erupted into fierce winds that tore at the ground beneath.
“The Nok Rim Dae Je… fighting evenly with that young Daoist?”
Ki Ryeon No’s eyebrows trembled visibly.
The youth who had kicked him was clashing with the Nok Rim Dae Je in a match of perfect equilibrium.
He was one who had watched the Nok Rim Dae Je since the days when he was merely a bandit leader, observing every step of his rise.
That was precisely why he knew.
Just how formidable the Nok Rim Dae Je truly was.
Had he not walked alone into the Chong Pyo Faction and brought it to ruin, seizing the faction master’s throne?
Yet even he could not overwhelm this opponent.
A mere youth who appeared barely past twenty.
“To think I meant to fight that monster myself….”
His throat bobbed heavily.
The enemy he had underestimated was, in reality, a freak of the highest order.
‘Surviving is a blessing in itself.’
Cold sweat dampened his palms.
He quickly surveyed his surroundings, confirmed that no one was watching him, and turned to leave.
‘I have no intention of dying here….’
The moment he began to distance himself urgently.
“Cough, cough! You… running away?”
A blood-soaked voice reached his ears.
He turned to see Baek Ui Gwi Myeon, his upper garment removed and his abdomen wrapped, limping toward him with great difficulty.
“You’re still alive?”
Ki Ryeon No stared at him in astonishment.
The man’s condition was dire.
Though his belly was wrapped with his robe, more than half of it was soaked with blood, and his face, drained of all color, was deathly pale.
“Are you… running… away?”
“Running? No. I was merely thinking of putting enough distance between us to avoid catching that monster’s attention.”
To Baek Ui Gwi Myeon’s question, Ki Ryeon No brazenly spun a lie.
‘Whether to flee or stand depends on who emerges victorious.’
He was cold-blooded about it.
Now that he had been noticed, he harbored no thoughts of retreat.
If the Nok Rim Dae Je won, his own head would surely be forfeit.
He would simply watch and wait for an opening.
“…….”
Baek Ui Gwi Myeon regarded Ki Ryeon No with a dubious expression, then shook his head.
This was not the moment for arguments.
He had to get there now.
To see with his own eyes the victory of the Faction Master.
* * *
The essence of the Maehwa Sword Technique, distilled to its very core.
Following the horizontal sword mark where the Sword Flower had cleaved heaven and earth asunder, he unleashed its momentum.
Gorgeous as a small flame spreading and growing.
Seven Absolute Maehwa Sword Fourth Form.
Overwhelming Sky Blood Blossom Flash.
‘Enough to rival anyone in All Under Heaven thereafter. So this is what the Nine Factions and One Gang produce. To have raised such a monster.’
Nok Rim Dae Je’s eyes deepened with intensity.
It was a sword technique that drew involuntary admiration.
Dozens of blossoms blooming in the wake of a single crimson line drawn horizontally.
And what of the killing intent contained within?
Each bloom, every single one, carried a vicious edge—its petals as sharp as blades.
‘Never mind such thoughts.’
Nok Rim Dae Je abandoned the train of speculation.
His mind was growing only more tangled.
In a clash between those whose martial prowess had touched the heavens, mere calculation meant nothing.
Only one thing mattered.
The Strong One Supreme.
That alone determined the outcome.
Nok Rim Dae Je twisted the energy force channeled through his right fist and drove it straight into the blossoms.
Crash!
Fierce sparks erupted.
In an instant the blossoms shattered, and dozens of fist strikes dissipated like phantoms.
Crash!
A violent aftershock erupted belatedly.
Cheon Hui’s eyes flickered slightly.
Energy force was invading his sword hand, accompanied by fierce vibrations.
‘Tch, look at that.’
The moment he felt it, he immediately began circulating his Internal Force.
The energy force dominating his hand crossed his elbow and reached his shoulder, and Cheon Hui burst it apart in one breath.
Boom!
From the shockwave, his Sect Robe tore at the shoulder, and the sleeve hung loose.
A masterful exchange of Internal Force.
‘Quite skilled.’
Cheon Hui rolled his shoulder lightly.
“Hm…….”
Meanwhile, Nok Rim Dae Je let out a faint groan and took a step back.
Then he slowly opened his palm.
The aged, scarred hand now bore a fresh wound, blood tracing a horizontal line across it.
Drip—
As he watched the blood flow down his palm, his expression turned glacially cold.
‘Blood……How long has it been since I’ve seen my own?’
Since completing the Celestial Form Green Bloom Secret Art and mastering the Golden Bell Technique to its limits, no one had ever drawn blood from him—not even a minor wound.
Yet here was blood, vivid and unmistakable.
‘I thought no rival existed in this Kangho save Pal Mu Shin……yet here stands such a monster.’
Nok Rim Dae Je’s lips twisted.
Though he had witnessed countless masters, this one before him was of a different caliber entirely.
‘Hehehehe, so All Under Heaven gifts me this trial, does it—reminding me I cannot claim it so easily.’
Crunch—
Nok Rim Dae Je clenched his fist.
The blood in his palm burned hot.
And his chest burned no less fiercely—the passion of a martial artist ignited within him.
Grrrrr—
As he unleashed his accumulated power, the earth and air began to convulse around him.
Whoosh!
Cheon Hui, buffeted by the gale Nok Rim Dae Je raised, tore away the remaining shreds of his sleeve entirely.
And he stared at Nok Rim Dae Je.
The vortex born from Nok Rim Dae Je’s center had become a tornado, reaching up to touch the sky.
The realm of Celestial Martial.
An ascending aura, as if proclaiming to the world that his Martial Prowess had touched the heavens.
Cheon Hui’s lips curved into a smile.
The massive energy force of Nok Rim Dae Je, swallowing the downpouring sunlight, pressed down with considerable weight.
‘Yes, this is what a true fight should be.’
An energy wave that bit at his skin.
The tingling felt in his sword-gripping hand and the surging internal force told him this was no easy opponent.
His grip tightened on the sword.
The sleeve tore, revealing the muscles of his right forearm swelling visibly, veins bulging beneath the skin.
Cheon Hui channeled his internal force through his feet.
The rough ground began to crumble beneath him in that instant.
Whoosh!
Cheon Hui launched his body forward.
The moment he deployed the An Hyang Pyo, a fierce wind swept across his face.
In a single leap, Cheon Hui reached Nok Rim Dae Je, and while still suspended in the air, he swung his sword.
Crash!
A deafening explosion erupted, loud enough to deafen the ears.
Nok Rim Dae Je, who had suddenly extended his palm to block the sword Cheon Hui swung, flashed his green eyes and clenched his fist.
Crack and crunch!
Nok Rim Dae Je’s right hand swallowed the plum blossom, reaching out to seize the blade.
In that moment, Cheon Hui twisted his ankle and changed direction with breathtaking speed.
Moving as gracefully as petals scattered by wind, Cheon Hui swung his sword again, targeting a gap in Nok Rim Dae Je’s defense.
And in that instant, a crimson plum blossom bloomed.
Nok Rim Dae Je rolled his green eyes downward, then lifted his knee toward Cheon Hui as he swung his sword.
A leg technique…?
Cheon Hui, seeing the knee rising through the air, hastily withdrew his blade.
Clang!
The blade met his knee.
Under the violent energy collision, the blade rippled like waves, letting out a mournful cry.
Cheon Hui hesitated just as he was about to draw upon his internal force to neutralize the impact.
Boom!
Nok Rim Dae Je stomped down with his full weight.
The ground cracked with a sharp sound, and in that fissure, dust rose up.
Crack and snap!
Nok Rim Dae Je, twisting muscles honed to their limit, thrust his left hand upward.
Cheon Hui threw his chin back.
His left hand cut through the air and struck the void, causing the atmosphere itself to rupture.
It was an energy force that seemed capable of shattering the heavens.
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
Nok Rim Dae Je’s green eyes held a glimmer of surprise—as if he had not expected this left hand to miss.
Just the briefest of moments.
Whirl—
Cheon Hui rotated on his left foot as his axis.
Thanks to the Divine Movement Hundred Changes, his body, which had lost its balance, moved in a brilliant burst like scattering petals.
Then, in the next moment, he swung his right foot.
The Small Leaf Kick Technique.
His right foot, bent like a reed, drove straight into Nok Rim Dae Je’s unguarded face.
Boom!
The sound of his nose fracturing echoed.
A violent shockwave erupted.
‘Is this the limit of external technique?’
Cheon Hui’s eyes grew cold.
Nok Rim Dae Je bore not a single wound.
“How dare you strike me with a kicking technique.”
With a look of disdain, Nok Rim Dae Je glared at Cheon Hui, then grasped the right foot embedded in his face and hurled it upward.
Whoosh—
Cheon Hui’s body flew through the air.
Confirming that Cheon Hui had nowhere to move, Nok Rim Dae Je extended his palm forward.
Flash!
Green radiance erupted from his palm, forming a thick column of energy.
The Martial Blow Projectile.
A palm strike infused with vast martial power shot toward Cheon Hui, who floated defenseless in the air.
In that state, it seemed as though it would sweep him away entirely.
But then.
Tap!
Cheon Hui kicked off the empty air.
Using the inner power of the Plum Blossom Divine Art, he conjured a barrier of energy in midair and launched himself directly into the path of the Martial Blow Projectile aimed at him.
The Baekryeon Sword, raised in an instant, caught the dark-green glinting projectile in the sunlight and drove downward.
Screech-screech-screech!
The momentum of the projectile was torn apart by the blade’s sweep, but the remaining force still raked across Cheon Hui’s body.
A gale brushed past his cheek.
Warm—
Then came the heat blooming across his cheek.
Blood.
Cheon Hui felt the warm blood streaming backward from the force of the impact, and he smiled.
Moments later, spear and sword collided.
Boom!
In that clash of Divine Power, the earth cracked and heaven itself cried out.
Between them, their eyes locked onto each other.
Black eyes, deep and still as a lake.
Green eyes, burning like wildfire.
Even their gazes clashed with fierce intensity.
The moment of eye contact passed.
Whoosh.
The instant Cheon Hui’s feet touched the ground from where he hung in midair, a sword form erupted without restraint.
Nok Rim Dae Je threw out his fist as well.
Boom-boom!
A terrible force collided.
Fist and sword continued to meet.
Boom! Crash! Boom!
Dozens of clashes unfolding in a single breath.
Around them, in a space roughly thirty paces in all directions, brilliant plum blossoms bloomed and fell in endless repetition, while verdant radiance flashed and shimmered.
The Maehwa Sword Technique unfolded ceaselessly.
Against it came the supreme techniques of Nok Rim Dae Je.
The battle of absolute masters who had reached the peak of martial arts transformed the very landscape of Huashan.
‘This man—merely past his twenties, and already like this?’
As the energy exchange continued, Nok Rim Dae Je felt astonishment burst forth.
Variations and killing techniques swirled about.
They were the sort that would’ve sent a young martial artist reeling in confusion.
Yet this one wore a face scarcely past his twentieth year, and in the way he deployed his martial arts, there emanated the seasoned competence of a battle-hardened veteran.
It was like facing someone who had weathered every storm life could throw.
As if sparring with one who had already returned from their autumn years renewed.
Rip!
Caught off guard by his own wonder, he opened a gap—and in that heartbeat, the Baekryeon Sword whistled through and tore the gray robe.
Watching cloth fragments dance in the air, Nok Rim Dae Je gritted his teeth and drove his fist forward.
Whoosh!
The fist grazed past Cheon Hui’s abdomen.
The pressure that followed tore his Sect Robe asunder, exposing his abdomen.
But Cheon Hui paid it no mind.
It was already a tattered rag—a mere rent at the side was hardly worth acknowledging.
‘I once thought I would never face a life-and-death duel like this again.’
The smile lingering at his lips deepened.
That position of an Absolute One, reached in a previous life.
How lonely. How desolate it had been.
But not this time.
Right before his eyes stood an opponent who did not falter against him—a rival worthy of the name.
‘Yet there is still more to come.’
The thirst had not yet been quenched.
‘Show me greater joy.’
Light blazed in Cheon Hui’s eyes.
“……!”
Nok Rim Dae Je, meeting that gaze, flinched for an instant.
In that flash of brilliance, he felt himself overwhelmed—a pressure that seized him without warning.
But rage erupted from him in the next instant.
Rage directed at himself.
“I am the one destined to hold All Under Heaven in my grip!”
With the cry, Nok Rim Dae Je unleashed the full force of his Internal Energy, launching a flurry of martial techniques.
Exploding Thunder Palm Art, Martial Blow Projectile, Mighty Tyrant Fist——
His sleeves tore to shreds under the relentless cascade of techniques.
In that instant, Cheon Hui’s thoughts accelerated.
Everything slowed.
Nok Rim Dae Je’s martial arts, the world itself.
Everything save one thing.
Only Cheon Hui’s mind spun with terrible clarity.
And in that moment.
A thunderous roar——
The Inner Power of the Plum Blossom Divine Art poured forth.
He must have felt it.
That the end had come.
In an instant, the blossoms that had bloomed ceaselessly began to fade one by one.
Until only a single flower remained.
Cheon Hui, watching the petal, raised his sword—charged with the Inner Power of the Plum Blossom Divine Art—toward the heavens.
‘I will cut.’
The intention flowed into the blade.
The sword descended slowly downward.
A whisper of steel——
The sole remaining blossom was severed, and the world drowned in profound darkness.
Seven Absolute Maehwa Sword Sixth Form.
Dark Fragrance Frozen Blossom.
Nok Rim Dae Je’s eyes flew wide open.
The world went dark.
An abyss unfurled, and all sensation vanished utterly.
‘The fragrance of plum blossoms……?’
The moment he caught the scent of plum blossoms at the tip of his nose, Nok Rim Dae Je saw it.
A single stroke of sword light.
The blade tore through darkness and cleaved diagonally across his body from shoulder to flank.
A spray of crimson——
Blood scattered in all directions.
“Uggh!”
Nok Rim Dae Je staggered backward.
Thanks to the Golden Bell Technique he had mastered, the wound was mercifully shallow.
“Too shallow,” Cheon Hui said, extending his blade.
Blood dripped from the flat of the sword, trickling through the cracks of the fractured stone.
Cheon Hui moved forward again, approaching Nok Rim Dae Je.
Step after step——
The sound of approaching footfalls.
Nok Rim Dae Je’s gaze wavered.
‘Did I lose?’
He could not accept it.
Since reaching his realm, he had never tasted defeat.
He had been certain that only the Eight Celestial Martial Masters could stand as his equal in all Gangho.
Yet here he was.
“No…… Not yet. Not yet……”
Nok Rim Dae Je glared at the approaching Cheon Hui and drew upon every last shred of his remaining power.
“——It is not finished!”
A blood-stained hand surged forward with violent force toward Cheon Hui’s head.
A vicious strike.
The Exploding Thunder Palm Art unfurled without warning, rushing to rake across Cheon Hui’s face.
Yet Cheon Hui did not dodge.
Instead, he threw himself forward.
And drove his sword downward.
The Baekryeon Sword, charged with the squeezed power of the Plum Blossom Divine Art, met his hand in that instant.

Screeeech!
A long gash opened across Nok Rim Dae Je’s shoulder, and blood poured out in a torrent.
In the same breath, Cheon Hui snapped the blade.
And just as he drove downward to sever Nok Rim Dae Je’s neck, a strange sensation washed over him.
‘What is this?’
It was in that instant.
Crack-crack!
Fractures spider-webbed across the Baekryeon Sword.
Already pushed to its limit by Nok Rim Dae Je’s relentless onslaught, the Baekryeon Sword finally gave way and shattered.
Clang!
A sharp, clear note rang out.
“Ugh!”
Nok Rim Dae Je’s eyes squeezed shut.
Shards of the broken blade had embedded themselves not only across his entire body but, most critically, pierced straight through his right eye.
“It held out longer than I expected.”
Cheon Hui hurled the ruined hilt aside with a flick of his wrist.
Against an absolute master like Nok Rim Dae Je, for the blade to endure this long was remarkable enough.
“Now it’s time to finish this.”
Cheon Hui raised his palm high.
The palm, coursing with the fierce internal energy of the Plum Blossom Divine Art, was about to shatter Nok Rim Dae Je’s Hundred Convergence Point when—
“Leader!”
Baek Ui Gwi Myeon shoved Nok Rim Dae Je out of the way.
Crunch!
“Haghh!”
Baek Ui Gwi Myeon, who had taken the Plum Blossom Palm in Nok Rim Dae Je’s stead, convulsed violently.
“You… must… live……”
He gasped out those final words and collapsed.
‘I didn’t sense him coming.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
Locked in mortal combat with Nok Rim Dae Je, he had poured nearly all his internal force into the exchange and failed to notice Baek Ui Gwi Myeon’s approach.
Then.
Thud!
Having bought himself time through Baek Ui Gwi Myeon’s sacrifice, Nok Rim Dae Je tore himself from the ground and bolted.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Cheon Hui was about to give chase when—
“That’s… enough. Cough. Cough.”
A voice came, punctuated by gasping breaths.
Cheon Hui’s expression darkened as he saw the Sect Master, pallid as death.
“You’d leave a threat alive?”
“The living matter more… hack.”
The Sect Master’s legs buckled beneath him, and he sank to his knees.
His internal injuries were severe.
The Sect Master, having coughed up blood several times, looked up at Cheon Hui, his lips trembling.
“My disciples… help them……”
Before he could finish, the Sect Master collapsed completely.
Cheon Hui’s face twisted in frustration.
He wanted nothing more than to disobey and pursue Nok Rim Dae Je at once.
But.
‘If I go, someone dies.’
He turned his gaze toward the disciples.
Still locked in combat with the Nok Lim fighters, wounds were accumulating across their bodies.
“Damn it. How much longer must I keep playing savior?”
Cheon Hui exhaled sharply, lifted the wounded Sect Master onto his back, and pushed off the ground.

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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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