Namgoong the Sword Ghost - Chapter 130

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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 130. The Sword Demon Coughs Blood
‘Post-Death Movement……he knows about it? That’s impossible.’
Saburo shook his head.
Eumsal Mun had moved in the shadows, operating covertly all this time.
They had never openly stepped into Zhongyuan’s spotlight, and whenever they acted, they always ensured the target died.
A forbidden technique of Ranpa-ryu.
Post-Death Movement.
It was a Special Attack Qi Control Technique premised on the caster’s death.
Just before dying, the caster would leave residual Qi in the corpse and ensure death as thoroughly as possible.
Then the opponent, believing the enemy defeated, would lower their guard.
In that moment, the body they thought dead would move through the residual Qi, completing mutual destruction—an elegant method indeed.
That mindset of achieving the mission with death as the predetermined cost was truly the epitome of a ninja’s way.
“A pathetic technique. A suicide attack, no less. How thoroughly have they been brainwashed?”
“You bastard!”
“Die!”
“Certain kill!”
The moment Ho Yeon scoffed at Post-Death Movement, the nearby ninja rushed at him.
To them, a ninja who executed Post-Death Movement for mission success deserved to be honored as a hero.
“Hah, I found it remarkable in the old days. Now it’s just pathetic.”
Tap-tap-tap!
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Two Iga-ryu ninja attacked Ho Yeon from left and right simultaneously.
One unfolded the Phantom Sword like blossoms scattering in the wind, while the other wielded the Quick Sword as if cutting moonlight.
To meet them, Ho Yeon surrounded himself in layers of storm clouds and stretched out his pale-blue dual fists horizontally, evenly distributed.
Crack! Clash!
Crunch!
The Forest Spirit Breaking, infused with the essence of Severance, snapped the two ninja’s Small Tai Swords as if breaking branches and hurled their upper and lower bodies in opposite directions.
Whoosh!
Slash!
Yet even after being split, the ninja with severed torso unfolded footwork, and the one missing lower body drove a hand blade forward.
“Tch, revolting.”
Ho Yeon clicked his tongue and lifted his leg high like an elegant crane, using one move of the Crane Wing Formation to sweep both corpses away.
Whoosh!
Bang! Bang!
Flesh scattered across the quiet Dan Bridge, painting it in vivid colors.
Seizing the opening, the next ninja closed in.
“Now!”
“Hah!”
Bang! Whoosh-whoosh!
Koga-ryu ninja from Eumsal Eight Families, skilled in pharmacology and poisons, hurled Poison Bullets, and toxic fumes mixed with the mist.
“Next!”
“Chain scythe!”
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Following close, Fudou-ryu ninja from Eumsal Eight Families, adept in covert arts, threw Chain Scythes—scythes wrapped in chains.
Dozens of Chain Scythes flew from all directions, ensnaring Ho Yeon, yet his expression remained serene.
“Poison, is it? Since ancient times, poison masters have always been my prey.”
Whooom!
His Yintang point blazed with heat, and Uigi Yeondong activated, ceding bodily control to itself.
All external air was repelled, and no poisonous Qi could invade his body.
“Merciful heavens! Has he achieved immunity to all poisons?”
Saburo gasped in alarm at Ho Yeon’s unaffected appearance within the poison mist.
But the shocking part was only beginning.
Crack!
Bzzzzt!
“Gaaahhh!”
“Keeegh!”
“Gruuugh!”
Heavenly Thunder Qi flickered across Ho Yeon’s entire body, and white electric current traveling down the Chain Scythes roasted the ninja to a golden brown.
“Are you all fools? The human body is a conductor. You idiots.”
Wrapping metal chain scythes around a user of Cheonroe Jewang Singong?
I’d sooner recommend touching a electric eel with your bare hands.
The powerful voltage had reduced all the chain scythes to ash, and freed from their restraint, Ho Yeon spun his fists rapidly, channeling the Rotating Silk Force as he thrust forward.
“Hyah!”
Bang! Boom-boom!
As the air split open, the internal qi gathered in Ho Yeon’s hands met the external qi and created friction.
In an instant, dozens of Continuous Linked Fists struck through empty space.
Whoosh! Whoosh-whoosh!
With each blow, flames erupted and burned away the poison smoke.
“Oh, it actually works? I thought that Namgung Chongsan was just bluffing.”
As Ho Yeon delighted in successfully executing the Fire God Flame for the first time, Cheonrae Geom spoke with a satisfied tone.
―Ahem! Boy, the martial arts of Namgung run deep and wide. The Fire God Flame contains the principle of Samadhi True Fire!
Ho Yeon nodded at Cheonrae Geom’s words.
‘Like flint, then. Converting kinetic energy into thermal energy? This is fascinating.’
An intrigued smile played across Ho Yeon’s face.
Saburo, meanwhile, issued his command with a rigid expression.
“High-Level Ninja. Attack.”
Tap! Whoosh-whoosh!
Four ninjas surrounded Ho Yeon at the cardinal points.
Two wielded Small Tai Swords, one wore a Hand Claw Hook with eight hooks, and the last was armed with only his bare hands.
“Three at peak realm, one at extreme mastery?”
Ho Yeon scanned the four ninjas, his gaze settling on the bare-handed man in the end.
Tap!
Just as expected.
As the bare-handed ninja gestured, the other three rushed in.
Ninjas do not employ general formation battles. They deploy wheel formations with perfect discipline.
‘Well, that suits me fine.’
Ho Yeon glanced around him.
The number of ninjas had fallen by more than half.
And considerable time had passed.
Things were proceeding exactly as planned.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
As an Iga-ryu ninja approached from the southwest, snapping his waist with the mystery of Elastic Lightness, that hip force transmitted to his Small Tai Sword, which moved roughly as if tearing wind shadows.
Whoosh!
Ho Yeon leaned back using the Iron Board Bridge technique, and another Iga-ryu ninja from the northeast thrust forward with strikes like falling meteors.
Boom!
As Ho Yeon fell toward the ground, he struck the Dan Bridge with his left palm.
This generated rebound force in place of a Tremor Foot, and his right fist gathered unprecedented power.
“Ha!”
The Mountain God Collapse in a single strike swallowed dozens of meteor-like strikes whole.
Boom!
Crack!
Though the Iga-ryu ninja’s blade was wreathed in a subtle qi flame, it could not withstand Ho Yeon’s Collapse Fist and shattered completely.
Crackle!
“Gasp!”
“Ugh!”
White lightning danced across Ho Yeon’s entire body, and the Iga-ryu ninja tried to flee, but no footwork could be faster than lightning.
Flash!
Even from an imperfect stance, Ho Yeon executed a perfect Tremor Step and appeared before the fleeing ninja.
Filled with Cheonrae Gi, the Thunder God Strike shot forth violently, following the mysteries of explosion and advance.
Crackle! Boom!
“Hhhhhhh!”
The ninja whose chest had been pierced through died, teeth chattering.
“Hmm?”
Ho Yeon, who had braced for Post-Death Movement, raised an eyebrow as the corpse remained still.
‘Could it be…?’
Having discovered something interesting, Ho Yeon extended his index finger toward the presence that was secretly approaching from the southeast blind spot.
Boom!
White lightning flashed from his fingertip, and struck by the Heavenly Thunder Finger, the paralyzed ninja found Ho Yeon diving into his embrace with a palm thrust.
Crackle-boom!
With a deafening thunder that shook heaven and earth, the Heavenly Thunder Strike shot through, and the upper body of the ninja who had crossed his Hand Claw Hooks was torn away entirely.
Crack!
The lower half of the ninja, shredded by the teeth of the colossal lightning beast, lay motionless as well.
“Ha ha ha! So that’s it! You’re all moving by manipulating the electrical signals of your own bodies, aren’t you?”
Ho Yeon’s eyes flashed as he grasped the secret of Sahugi-dong.
Their technique was fundamentally identical to the Cheonroe Body Control.
Was every martial art evidence of the principle of All Streams Return to Source?
No—since Cheonroe Body Control had been fashioned after Sahugi-dong, this was rather One Stream Reaches All Streams.
Ho Yeon had climbed a single tributary and reached the confluent waters.
‘Come to think of it, even the false Shin So Wan’s counterfeit mask shattered the instant it touched the Cheonrae Gi.’
The Heavenly Face Mask Technique these creatures wielded was undoubtedly a method of manipulating the bioelectric signals of the body to alter the shape of muscle and bone.
When the Cheonrae Gi scrambled those electrical signals into chaos, the mask technique crumbled.
“Raaaagh!”
As his comrade was torn to pieces, the Iga-ryu ninja charged forward with a savage cry, as if to avenge him.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
As he rushed forward, the ninja’s silhouette danced and swayed within the shadows, and every phantom figure solidified into being before streaking toward Ho Yeon.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
The thrusts of a dozen shadow-forms, sharp as the fangs of a night wolf, converged upon Ho Yeon.
A secret technique of Iga-ryu.
The Shadow Extinction Blade Dance—Night Wolf Fang Flash.
“Enough learning. Illusions scatter at a single sweep.”
Ho Yeon’s hand spread wide like a fan, and the Cheonroe Three Palm Second Form Thunder Shockwave erupted.
Crackle-crackle!
Lightning arced between his splayed fingers, obliterating every shadow in an instant.
Boom!
Then, with a casual flick of his hand through empty air, a white palm-shadow burst from within the thunder and struck the Iga-ryu ninja’s true body.
“Ugh—!”
The Thunder Shadow Instant, appearing without warning, felled the Iga-ryu ninja as he vomited black smoke.
Then.
Whoosh!
A ninja from the Tekkou school dropped from above and landed behind Ho Yeon.
The Iga-ryu ninja’s loud charge, his use of the Phantom Sword to dazzle the eyes—all of it had been a sacrifice for this moment.
Moonlight Tiger Assault.
The man descended as softly as a prowling tiger, then reached out with lethal grace.
Like a tiger springing from its lair, this man belonged to Fudou-ryu, one of the Eumsal Eight Families, whose specialty was Bone Law.
Bone Law was a combat art that employed the bones and joints of the body to subdue an opponent—
Choking, throwing, joint manipulation; martial techniques rarely seen in Zhongyuan.
Thud! Thud!
Crack!
The Fudou-ryu ninja locked Ho Yeon in a crushing embrace and applied a merciless choking force.
For an ordinary man, it would have meant shattered bones and crushed lungs in a heartbeat. Ho Yeon merely smiled.
“You fool. You grant me Zero Distance? You want to die?”
Snap!
Crackle-crackle!
Ho Yeon instantly detonated the Cheonrae Gi across his entire body.
“Aaaarrrrgh!”
The Fudou-ryu ninja was hardened against ordinary pain, but the agony of lightning searing every inch of his flesh was an ordeal he had never known.
Bone and flesh melted; his vision blazed white; sound ceased.
“Guh—!”
Certain of death, the Fudou-ryu ninja spent his last strength wrapping his legs around Ho Yeon’s in a final entanglement, as a tiger might sweep the earth with its tail.
“Still clinging, you worm?”
Crackle-boom!
Flash!
Frowning at such persistence, Ho Yeon raised the voltage. Brilliant white lightning consumed the Fudou-ryu ninja, and he crumbled into charred ash.
In that instant.
Whoosh-whoosh!
Whoosh-whoosh!
While the Fudou-ryu ninja had held Ho Yeon fast, dark iron chains, slick as an ink snake, coiled swiftly around him.
Crack!
Thud! Thud-thud-thud!
Once Ho Yeon was ensnared, the ninjas drove their blades through the chain’s links, pinning him like a stake to the Dan Bridge floor.
Drawing on his experience from before, he had fortified himself against electrocution.
Crackle! Snap-snap-crackle!
Thanks to that, the ninja escaped unharmed from the Cheonrae Gi that Namgung Ho Yeon unleashed.
“…Hmm? Could it be…?”
The iron chain withstood the voltage of the Cheonrae Gi differently than the Chain Scythe from before.
Ordinary iron would have melted and burned away under such intense heat, yet this chain radiated a biting cold instead, as though the metal itself ached.
“Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron?”
“Ha ha, correct!”
As Namgung Ho Yeon’s eyes went wide, Saburo smiled knowingly and nodded.
Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron—aged for ten thousand years in its pure form—was so precious that even a trace of it in a blade earned the name of masterwork.
To forge an iron chain of this length from such a rare metal?
“Are you made of money?”
“Krr-hrr, even if young, a dragon is still a dragon. Dragon-slaying requires investment of this caliber.”
Saburo cried out with the exhilaration of an angler who had just hooked a great catch.
“Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron cannot be severed save by superior strength—it is a treasure of the ages. You, who are no Peak Realm master, can never break free from that chain!”
There had been considerable sacrifice.
At last, the objective was achieved.
It was then that Saburo raised a cry of triumph.
“Is that so?”
Namgung Ho Yeon’s demeanor shifted as a meaningful smile crossed his face.
‘True Qi Combustion.’
A deep, resonant hum—
His dantian twisted, and brilliant blue light erupted from Namgung Ho Yeon’s eyes.
His output surged explosively, and the Cheonrae Gi converged in his right hand, forming a cluster of stars.
Hand Radiance.
Shriek—
His right hand, wreathed in an otherworldly blue silk, cleaved through the Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron chain.
Thud-thud-thud!
“Did you truly think so?”
“Gasp!”
The moment Namgung Ho Yeon broke free from his bonds and rushed toward the rigid Saburo—
A figure descended.
A ninja in black materialized suddenly in midair, dropping directly into Namgung Ho Yeon’s path.
Slash!
He thrust a spear toward Namgung Ho Yeon’s brow—a single-edged blade weapon shaped like a crescent halberd, but far sharper and more vicious.
“What now…”
Namgung Ho Yeon moved to deflect the spear with his still-glowing Hand Radiance—
Whisper!
The spear aimed at his brow vanished; in its place, a phantom thrust drove toward his heart.
“…!”
Namgung Ho Yeon’s eyes snapped open wide.
Thump!
The sound of the blade piercing flesh.
“Retch! Cough!”
Namgung Ho Yeon coughed up blood in violent heaves.

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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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