Martial God of the Sun and Moon - Chapter 184
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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 184
Moyong Aejeon’s eyes, kneeling on the ground, grew dim as consciousness flickered in and out.
“I… have lost.”
Dokgo Myeong stood dazed for a moment, unable to comprehend the situation and merely catching his breath, before snapping to attention at Moyong Aejeon’s words.
“I have won.”
“…”
Even as his breathing grew ragged, Moyong Aejeon straightened his wavering waist with effort, maintaining an upright posture.
As a member of a noble clan, he could not allow himself to collapse to the ground in disgrace.
“Alliance Leader!”
“No!”
Anguished cries erupted from the Geongon Sect Members who continued fighting.
Moyong Aejeon furrowed his brow and glared at them.
“Silence. Do not make a commotion.”
Having snapped at his subordinates, Moyong Aejeon lifted his head.
The fighting had momentarily ceased.
He fixed Dokgo Myeong with bloodshot eyes.
“Now end it.”
Dokgo Myeong remained silent for a moment before speaking in a solemn tone.
“With such martial prowess cultivated, yet you could not stop the household head?”
“…”
Moyong Aejeon stared into the distance with hollow eyes, then spoke with a twisted smile.
“It was not that I could not—it was that I would not. Why could I not offer loyal counsel…? I cannot remember. It seems my life was too precious to me.”
“You offer no excuses.”
“My time has come. If your curiosity is satisfied, do not shame me further—kill me.”
Dokgo Myeong nodded and raised his hand edge straight.
Yet strangely, he felt no immediate urge to strike.
“Do you have any final words?”
Moyong Aejeon regarded him with an expression of surprise.
Dokgo Myeong waited silently for his last testament.
‘Come to think of it, it had been a long time since I fought an opponent like this.’
This battle had involved no blood techniques, hidden weapons, poison, ambushes, combined formations, or wheel combat tactics. While his words had been utterly base, once the fighting began, he displayed only pure martial skill.
Though I harbored no intention of sparing an enemy, I felt inclined to hear his final words.
“I thought you were some reckless fool… yet to fight such a man, defeat was inevitable.”
He laughed hollowly before speaking in a dignified tone.
“Bring me my sword.”
Dokgo Myeong picked up the blade that had fallen to the ground and handed it to Moyong Aejeon.
Moyong Aejeon gently wiped the blade as if bidding farewell, then offered it back to Dokgo Myeong.
“Take it.”
“…”
“The Geongon Sword—I walked through life with it. It is too fine a blade to fall into unworthy hands.”
“I’m not a swordsman.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll entrust it to you.”
Entrust it to me?
Dokgo Myeong grasped the true meaning behind those words and let out an involuntary hollow laugh.
Moyong Aejeon had just entrusted his blade to his subordinates. Even without him, his men would exhaust themselves to the bone to retrieve the sword.
“Understood. I’ll keep it safe.”
“If it takes too long, do as you see fit.”
Moyong Aejeon’s pupils gradually grew dim.
He stared blankly ahead and murmured.
“I won in martial prowess… but lost in spirit… I became complicit in the household lord’s wickedness under the guise of loyalty. Only now, at death’s door, do I understand…”
Black blood poured from Moyong Aejeon’s mouth in a torrent.
Soon his eyes flickered with a brief moment of clarity.
“Now flee, Dokgo Myeong.”
“What?”
“If you can… escape…”
His words trailed off. His final breath had ceased, and he collapsed limply.
And in that very moment.
Whiiiiing!
My sensory meridians sent out a warning.
‘It’s not over?’
Crack!
A foreign aura brushed against my nerves.
Had my perception been delayed because I was focused on the fight?
Dokgo Myeong’s eyes sharpened as I surveyed my surroundings.
‘Could it be the main household?’
Relief flashed across my eyes.
If they had appeared during the argument, it would be one thing, but arriving at this moment made them welcome reinforcements.
The outer branch wouldn’t kill me but would take me away, so they could help settle this situation.
But it wasn’t the household. Though the aura felt familiar, it was entirely different from the Dokgo Household’s energy.
“Chamma Brigade! Assemble! Now!”
The brief moment of relief vanished, and I shouted urgently.
“What is the matter?”
“Commander?”
“Damn it! We could have won!”
Perhaps because the Geongon Sect members’ fighting spirit had been broken, the Chamma Brigade members gathered around me without major difficulty.
My lips parted.
“It’s the Bloodfiend Sect.”
“…!”
“They’re in the vicinity right now… Tsk!”
I clicked my tongue and turned my head.
“You’ve arrived sooner than expected.”
The Bloodfiend disciples turned their heads along with Dokgo Myeong.
The opposite side of the arena.
There stood a middle-aged man wearing a bamboo hat pulled low.
“Delighted to see you. Though I can’t say this is the most pleasant place for pleasantries.”
His voice was soft, almost as if tinged with amusement.
His stance, the aura he radiated, his clothing and bearing—nothing appeared particularly remarkable.
The problem lay in his hands. Both were stained pitch-black, as if dipped deep in ink.
Dokgo Myeong growled.
“…The Black Bloodfiend.”
At those words, the middle-aged man shook his head vigorously.
“Bloodfiend? Call me Divine Fiend instead. That is my proper title.”
“You dare claim divinity? How laughable.”
“That is merely a matter of perspective.”
The Black Bloodfiend let out a hearty laugh.
The hierarchy of the Jeongheol Singyeong was straightforward. There were one hundred and eight commanders, each leading their own forces.
Most commanders changed constantly. When they died, they were replaced; when defeated in martial contests, they fell from their positions.
Yet the Sect Master, the Grand Commander, and the Three Great Fiends remained unchanged throughout the sect’s history. These five were the true architects of the Jeongheol Sect, its core pillars, and the masterminds behind everything.
‘So he reveals himself once more, the Black Bloodfiend.’
A murderous glint flickered in Dokgo Myeong’s eyes.
I faced the very architect of the Jeongheol Sect’s grand conspiracy against the martial world—the old demon who orchestrated the current situation and earned the epithet “Black Hand.”
“Why do you show yourself here? You should have been constrained in your movements.”
The Black Bloodfiend opened his eyes wide as if in admiration.
“What is it you truly don’t know? I thought you were a fool who grasped everything from mere scraps, yet you understand far more than I expected.”
“What’s your purpose? Why risk exposure?”
The expressions of the Bloodfiend disciples surrounding Dokgo Myeong grew peculiar.
Not because they couldn’t follow the conversation, but because Dokgo Myeong—who ordinarily despised the Bloodfiend sect with extreme prejudice—was now engaging in direct dialogue with this creature.
‘Could his internal injuries be that severe?’
‘The bleeding won’t stop. Normally, a single breath would have sealed it.’
Soon the commanders realized Dokgo Myeong was buying time.
And they could see that the situation had deteriorated to the point where such tactics were necessary.
The Black Bloodfiend chuckled and replied.
“You’ve stirred up far too much chaos. I had no choice but to intervene. To think you’d even make contact with the Singnyeo faction.”
Dokgo Myeong questioned as if he didn’t understand.
“The Singnyeo faction?”
A brief silence descended.
The Black Bloodfiend smiled faintly.
“You are truly formidable.”
Dokgo Myeong spoke with composure, changing the subject.
“It seems you’ve come to set things right, but I’m afraid you’re too late. I’ve already overturned the entire feast. Go back quietly.”
“Do you truly believe that? I suspect this is merely the beginning for me.”
“Huff.”
Dokgo Myeong exhaled sharply.
My inner energy flowed far more smoothly now. This was sufficient.
Dokgo Myeong spoke in a fearless voice.
“Then enough talk. Come at me. You were aiming for my neck, were you not?”
“Hahahaha.”
The Black Bloodfiend suddenly burst into laughter.
Soon after, he shook his head.
“There is no need for that.”
At those words, a flicker of uncertainty crossed Dokgo Myeong’s sharp gaze.
Something felt wrong. From the Black Bloodfiend, he sensed not the slightest hint of fighting spirit.
Then the Black Bloodfiend’s lips parted.
“Do you not find it strange?”
“What?”
“Did I truly not notice that you were circulating your energy irregularly?”
Dokgo Myeong’s expression twisted.
The Black Bloodfiend continued with a hint of amusement in his voice.
“Allow me to explain. Here, you must become the mastermind behind a bloodshed, not fall to some unknown master. This was always meant to be.”
“It has already been revealed that I am not the mastermind behind the Guhwahyeolsa incident.”
“Who mentioned the Guhwahyeolsa incident?”
A chill ran down my spine.
At those words, every hair on Dokgo Myeong’s body seemed to stand on end in an instant.
The Black Bloodfiend spoke his final words with deliberate emphasis.
“This place is called Muhan, is it not? Perhaps it will be known as the Muhan Bloodshed. Or perhaps the Falling Dragon Bloodshed.”
In that moment, my senses screamed warnings frantically.
Dokgo Myeong’s eyes flashed with light.
Despite facing an enemy, he hastily turned his head to survey the area around the arena.
Among the chaos of the Martial Arts Alliance Leaders, figures emanating an eerie aura became visible.
Among them were those I had sparred with during the day, those I had debated with, and even one with whom I had shared lotus leaf rice.
And their hands had turned a dark crimson.
“Only through blood can the defiled world be reborn anew….”
The moment Dokgo Myeong saw this, he screamed at the top of his lungs toward those around him.
But his voice was immediately swallowed by a far greater roar.
Thunder bombs. The Dengyongji transformed into hell in an instant with explosions and deafening sounds. The sky seemed to collapse, and the earth erupted and tangled in chaos.
As a high-pitched ringing echoed in my ears, a strange vibration from somewhere resonated through my head and chest.
Duuuuung!
A sound like striking a great bell.
Clang! Crash!
Different bell tones followed, reverberating in all directions and mingling with the aftermath of the explosions.
Even as blood streamed from his ears, Dokgo Myeong surged to his feet and hurled himself toward the Chamma Platform.
In that instant, a crimson mist bloomed from all directions, engulfing them.
* * *
When I opened my eyes, hell lay before me.
The ground was slick and stained crimson, while the sky poured down torrential rain as if pierced through.
Does hell receive rain?
It shouldn’t. Which means this place isn’t hell.
In truth, I already knew where this was.
This was a battlefield. The ground was a tangle of corpses, severed limbs that had once been human, and congealed blood.
‘A vision from my past life?’
Soon I caught sight of a face and faltered.
It wasn’t a vision from my past life.
A ghastly pale face—Dokgo Wi-hak. The white robes he favored were drenched in mud and blood.
Beside him lay Jang Sam, Son Tae-im, Jeongcheon Alliance Leader Kang Yeop-cheong, Dokgo Jo-hak, Gwak Dae-ryong, Dokgo Ak, Geum Seok-du, Namgung Sohwa, Cheolmu-baek, Ye-hwa….
Familiar faces stared at me with vacant eyes.
Unlike them, I stood whole and unbroken.
I could immediately discern what this vision was.
This was my own fear.
I blinked for a moment….
“Damn it, seriously.”
I burst into laughter.
“How tedious. How utterly tedious. What am I supposed to do about it?”
What, should I lose my mind and tear out my own hair?
Or thrash about in agony and shed tears?
No, that’s going too far.
What kind of person do they take me for?
I was startled, yes, but would my mind truly crumble over this?
‘Why do all these bastards pull the same tricks? Can their creativity really be this lacking?’
This was clearly an attachment to an unforgotten past—regret and fear of the future.
A nightmare landscape I habitually dreamed of when I lay down to sleep.
So I remained calm.
Because I knew it was a nightmare.
A vision that would never come to pass, one I had sworn to prevent.
Whoosh!
In that moment, my sensory threads ignited like wildfire, beginning to incinerate the vision before me.
Or rather, that’s how it felt. The illusions still filled my sight, but I perceived them only as one might admire a well-painted picture.
It was a strange sensation.
This bizarre formation must have been the Jeongheol Sect’s trump card, yet it barely affected me.
Come to think of it, the same held true in my past life, so this life was no different.
Or perhaps my sensory threads possessed some immunity to such things?
I couldn’t tell.
‘I’ve seen enough. Time to get up now.’
Whooooosh!
Dokgo Myeong unleashed all the power of the Heavenly Outer Realm to its maximum.
Boom!
An intense wave of energy erupted from the Dragon Scale Cannon infused with his full martial force.
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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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