The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 323
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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 323.
In the meantime, the solidified black vital energy burrowed into Cheon Geom’s vital points.
“Oh my, how terrifying!”
Cheon Geom laughed as he began swinging his greatsword left and right.
Whoosh!
Then a strange vital energy extended outward, and the destructive power of the Yeouui True Seal’s vital energy—comparable to sword force—began transforming into something as simple as metal.
Clang, clang, clang!
Cheon Geom had once again used the Myriad Forms Eclipse to subtly alter the properties of the Yeouui True Seal.
“A remarkable technique, but it won’t work on me!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Having deflected the Yeouui True Seal entirely, Cheon Geom closed the distance to Bu Eunseol and unleashed his swordplay.
It was so blindingly swift and infinitely variable that Bu Eunseol dared not meet it head-on, retreating continuously.
Cheon Geom seized the opportunity, drawing close enough that his sword nearly grazed her nose as he deployed his wild blade technique.
Boom!
Bu Eunseol unleashed the Yeouui True Seal once more.
This time, deployed from such close quarters, Cheon Geom could not evade it.
Slash!
Dozens of wounds erupted across Cheon Geom’s body in an instant.
Yet he swung his greatsword left and right again, altering the Yeouui True Seal’s properties before swiftly retreating from the attack range.
“Heh heh. So that’s how it works.”
The wounds on Cheon Geom’s retreating form were slowly closing.
His body was like that of a Heavenly General—minor wounds and internal injuries healed instantly.
A monster.
Cheon Geom was like a nightmare creature that revived again and again, no matter how many times it died.
Crack!
Seizing the advantage, Bu Eunseol deployed the Yeouui True Seal in her left hand while continuously unleashing the Formless Heavenly Stream with her right.
‘It’s unfortunate, but I cannot deploy the Thirteen Nights.’
Had I unleashed the Thirteen Nights, I could have navigated this battle far more easily.
Despite its outward appearance as a unique vital energy technique, the Thirteen Nights was ultimately the supreme martial art of the Orthodox Sects.
While masters of the Demonic Path might not recognize it, the greatest masters of the Orthodox Sects could not possibly fail to discern the Thirteen Nights’ true nature.
Clang! Clang!
Yet something was strange.
Cheon Geom, who had been fighting evenly all along, suddenly shifted into a defensive stance, focusing entirely on defense.
―It seems blocking became difficult.
Exclamations erupted from the spectators.
Cheon Geom’s swordplay had consistently overwhelmed the Formless Heavenly Stream.
But once the Yeouui True Seal was deployed, he apparently judged there was no opening for counterattacks, maintaining only a defensive posture.
Clang!
No matter what swordplay was unleashed, he devoted himself entirely to blocking the cascading sword strikes without counterattacking—his defense was so airtight that not a single drop of water could penetrate it.
‘He’s fallen for it.’
As Cheon Geom parried the torrential black energy and sword techniques pouring down upon him, a sinister smile played across his lips.
‘Continue your assault as you are.’
Though Muasang Cheonryu and Yeouui Jingyeol repeatedly probed for openings, Cheon Geom maintained Mansang Ilsik in pure defense with all his might.
Clang! Clang!
Exquisite sword techniques and sharp energy cascaded down in succession, yet Cheon Geom stubbornly held his defensive stance.
The defensive formation of Mansang Ilsik unfolded through two massive greatswords.
It had become an impenetrable shield of immense weight, perfectly blocking Bu Eunseol’s delicate sword techniques that poured down relentlessly.
Whoosh!
Though he occasionally counterattacked, even those movements were merely defensive maneuvers.
Screech.
After some forty exchanges, Bu Eunseol’s black energy dimmed, and the power of her sword techniques gradually waned.
‘Hehehehe.’
A smug smile flickered across Cheon Geom’s eyes as he maintained his stubborn defense.
‘Indeed, this technique consumes tremendous inner power. And besides… you are destined to lose to me.’
Bu Eunseol burned with vengeance.
She had devised countless schemes to sever my neck, and had even accepted this public challenge despite having no obligation to do so.
But Cheon Geom had no real need to kill Bu Eunseol at all.
Even a draw would grant him benefits close to victory.
‘I’ve brought you to the depths, so you’ll think you’ve won!’
Cheon Geom’s eyes gleamed with delight as he continuously wielded his greatswords, persistently maintaining his defensive formation.
‘You must kill me, but I have no such necessity!’
Bu Eunseol had accumulated tremendous martial achievements and accomplishments during this time.
Moreover, having done many good deeds, her reputation had soared like the sun high in the sky.
If Cheon Geom could merely gain the reputation of matching the successor of Demon Palace who shakes all of Tianxia, the Lord of Muhonjung?
He would obtain a foothold for his comeback once more.
‘Let’s see who lasts longer, Bu Eunseol!’
Even if Cheon Geom won this duel, he would not kill Bu Eunseol.
He would merely sever her right arm to demonstrate his magnanimity to the Murim.
And in the next confrontation, he would cut off her left leg.
Leaving her able to wield a sword until the end.
So that she could face him for a long time to come.
‘Bu Eunseol! Your clever mind couldn’t calculate this, could it?’
In Cheon Geom’s eyes, crescent-shaped and narrowed, a pristine madness gleamed once more.
Whoosh.
Had her inner power been exhausted?
The black energy flowing from Bu Eunseol’s body began to fade gradually.
Cheon Geom inwardly exulted and attempted a counterattack.
Screech!
But the moment he transitioned from defense to offense, black energy spun out from Bu Eunseol’s body like a spider’s web.
She deployed Yeouui Jingyeol, waiting only for the instant when Cheon Geom counterattacked.
‘Hehehe. That trick won’t work on me anymore.’
Cheon Geom abandoned any thought of counterattack, focusing solely on deflecting each sword strike.
Clang! Clang!
Two hundred strikes had already passed between them.
No matter what sword technique Bu Eunseol unleashed, Cheon Geom defended against every single one.
「Haha. Hahahaha!」
Cheon Geom burst into mad laughter through his transmission of voice.
「You want to kill me, don’t you? But you can’t. You want revenge, but what can you do?」
A pristine madness gleamed in Cheon Geom’s eyes.
「I have no confidence in killing you, but I have absolute confidence in blocking your attacks. Hahahaha!」
He knew all too well that Bu Eunseol desired his death.
But if she could not achieve it?
Then merely watching her writhe in that anguish was already Cheon Geom’s victory in this duel.
「Try harder! Strike with all your might!」
Bu Eunseol unleashed the Musang Cheonryu three times in succession, yet Cheon Geom blocked it all effortlessly.
When such a master of the blade fought purely on defense, even Bu Eunseol could not pierce through that wall.
―This is a strange duel indeed.
As time wore on, the martial artists watching began to murmur among themselves.
One side slashed as if intent on murder, while the other defended with all their strength.
It was not a matter of skill difference.
Bu Eunseol poured out indiscriminate sword strikes, even deliberately exposing openings, yet Cheon Geom did not even attempt a counterattack.
It was truly like the clash of spear and shield.
The spear only thrust, and the shield only blocked.
Whoosh!
Finally, Bu Eunseol withdrew her blade and retreated a step.
“Haah. Haah.”
She breathed heavily.
It was natural law that the attacker’s stamina depleted faster than the defender’s.
If this exchange of offense and defense continued, Bu Eunseol would tire first.
Whooom!
Forcing her inner energy to surge, black heat shimmer began rising from her entire body once more.
She had deployed the Yeouijin Gyeol once again to shatter Cheon Geom’s defense.
Thud.
Cheon Geom held his great sword toward heaven and earth, a satisfied smile playing at his lips.
This would be Bu Eunseol’s final, desperate strike.
And if he could block just this one attack, Cheon Geom would claim victory in this duel.
“Haaah!”
Bu Eunseol released a battle cry for the first time.
In that instant, Cheon Geom’s smile deepened.
A cry of encouragement was proof that she was struggling, both mentally and physically.
And he too unleashed the Myriad Forms Eclipse with all his might.
A resonant hum!
Sword energy flowed from the great blade as a shimmering azure haze began to rise.
A deafening roar!
In that moment, Bu Eunseol deployed the Formless Heavenly Current, unfurling a tempestuous cascade of sword strikes.
A sharp metallic clash!
In that instant, a spherical barrier of brilliant blue light materialized around Cheon Geom’s body.
By drawing out Geom Joon’s Myriad Forms Eclipse—the technique of the Orthodox Sects’ greatest swordsman—into a purely defensive posture, a concrete sword barrier had been formed.
A thunderous boom and brilliant flash!
The distance between Bu Eunseol and Cheon Geom was merely six paces.
Between them, two dragons—one black, one blue—writhed in a tangle of radiant light.
Shockwaves rippled outward from the epicenter of their clash, and fierce winds swept in all directions, toppling trees and vegetation across the landscape.
A fading whistle.
As the dust finally settled, the two figures became visible.
Bu Eunseol and Cheon Geom.
Both stood motionless in their pre-technique stances.
A soft drip, drip.
Yet there was a crucial difference: blood flowed from Bu Eunseol’s shoulder and left forearm.
In forcing through the Myriad Forms Eclipse, I had instead sustained injuries.
‘I’ve won!’
One step closer to victory, Cheon Geom’s eyes narrowed to crescents of delight.
Had there been no spectators from the Murim present, he would have danced and burst into wild laughter.
A sharp intake of breath!
Then Bu Eunseol once more unleashed the Yiui Jingyeol and Formless Heavenly Current with full force.
But the black sword energy grew increasingly faint, and the Formless Heavenly Current began to reveal gaps in its execution.
‘It’s time to finish this.’
Cheon Geom smiled with satisfaction.
Bu Eunseol’s sword technique posed no further threat to him.
Moreover, his inner energy had been depleted to less than half.
‘Whatever else might be deceptive, inner energy reserves cannot be faked.’
Regardless of his intentions, he was genuinely running on empty reserves of inner power.
「So you had superiority in inner energy alone—what good is it now that your fearsome reserves have been exposed as depleted?」
Cheon Geom, having sent the telepathic message, smirked and raised his great blade high.
“Shall we end this?”
A sharp metallic sound!
As he unleashed the Myriad Forms Eclipse, his great blade blurred and a torrent of swift, razor-sharp sword strikes cascaded forth.
Yet something strange occurred.
Bu Eunseol gazed at the incoming strikes with lowered eyes, and instead of raising his blade to meet the great sword, he drove his own body forward against it.
‘What is this fool doing?’
In that instant, a chill ran down Cheon Geom’s spine.
In such an urgent situation, there was no way he would be playing games. Cheon Geom was certain that Bu Eunseol was executing some kind of stratagem.
Whoosh!
Cheon Geom’s great sword, which had been aiming to sever Bu Eunseol’s neck and legs, suddenly changed direction mid-air.
“….”
Bu Eunseol’s lips curled upward as if she had expected exactly this from Cheon Geom.
‘This bastard.’
Cheon Geom felt fury rising within him, but he did not attack recklessly.
Until now, Bu Eunseol had repeatedly outwitted him through various schemes. There had to be a reason behind such deliberate actions.
“That was a perfect opportunity. Why didn’t you attack?”
Cheon Geom merely smiled at Bu Eunseol’s provocation, refusing to strike rashly.
“Then I will.”
Bu Eunseol swung the Bing Hun Sword and attacked him.
However, the sword technique she displayed was like that of a drunkard—the blade’s path was crooked and utterly devoid of power.
‘Is she deliberately exposing openings?’
Cheon Geom let out a scoff.
He had deduced that Bu Eunseol was intentionally revealing flaws to bait a counterattack.
‘I will absolutely not counterattack.’
Cheon Geom’s objective was not to kill Bu Eunseol.
Merely surviving would constitute his victory. He would not fall for such provocations under any circumstances.
Whoosh!
Bu Eunseol’s Bing Hun Sword traced an arc through the air once more, thrusting toward Cheon Geom’s neck.
Though anyone could see it was a pathetic sword strike, Cheon Geom defended against it with the caution of someone blocking a lethal technique.
Clang!
As blade met blade, Bu Eunseol stepped closer and thrust toward Cheon Geom’s lower abdomen.
Clang.
Having blocked the attack once more, Cheon Geom’s expression grew peculiar.
There was no inner force whatsoever in Bu Eunseol’s sword. She was literally stabbing at him with a clumsy, playful sword technique.
Cheon Geom tilted his head, as if he had never anticipated such a form of provocation from Bu Eunseol.
‘Is she trying to play with me?’
Once again, Bu Eunseol lightly swung her sword to attack him.
‘Should I just cut her down?’
To attack so clumsily at close range like this?
If he were to deploy his sword technique with full intent—
No matter how swift Bu Eunseol’s movement technique or reflexes were, he could sever her neck in a single stroke.
‘No. I won’t fall for it.’
This was a person who had employed countless schemes to outwit him.
She was not someone who would stake her life on such a provocation without any defense.
‘She must still have the power to unleash that dark demonic energy.’
In the end, Cheon Geom defended against Bu Eunseol’s sword technique with utmost caution.
―Hahahaha!
After repeating this for about ten seconds, laughter erupted from all around.
Bu Eunseol was wielding her sword technique sloppily like a drunk, while Cheon Geom was retreating desperately and defending as if facing a mortal enemy?
―So that’s what it was?
Only then did the Murim practitioners watching realize that Cheon Geom had been defending in such a crude manner all this time.
―Is that the Ten Thousand Phenomena Eclipse that Geom Joon boasts about?
―The Ten Thousand Phenomena Eclipse? More like the Clinging to Life and Fearing Death technique would suit him better.
As mocking laughter echoed from all directions, a vicious light flashed in Cheon Geom’s eyes.
‘This wretch!’
Only then did he realize that Bu Eunseol’s actions up until now had been to humiliate him.
A madwoman.
Bu Eunseol was a true lunatic who didn’t even care about her own life.
“Fine. Very fine.”
A pure white heat shimmer rose from Cheon Geom’s body.
I had been thinking too much.
I should have just fought like a madman and won. Unlike usual, I had been thinking far too much.
“Now let’s see two real madmen fight….”
A draw? Cut off an arm and duel again next time?
I abandoned such wishful thinking and resolved to cut down Bu Eunseol with all my strength from this moment on.
Whoosh!
As Cheon Geom twisted and swung his great sword, the sword aura transformed.
And finally, it coiled around Bu Eunseol’s neck as she approached without any defensive movement.
Splash!
The blade of the great sword grazed perilously close, and blood sprayed.
‘It was all bluster.’
Having finally seized the advantage, Cheon Geom wore a triumphant smile.
She had no strength to counterattack, yet she was making a reckless gamble just to humiliate him?
‘Now I’ll finish this.’
And immediately changing his sword technique, he closed the distance in one breath and slashed at Bu Eunseol’s neck.
Thrashing! Thrashing!
As Cheon Geom unleashed his killing intent and deployed the Ten Thousand Phenomena Eclipse, Bu Eunseol’s Icy Soul Sword began jumping like a living fish.
The absolute defense technique of the Heavenly Sword Society.
The Diamond Fish Sword had unfolded.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
As the great sword unleashed dozens of sword strikes in a single motion, Bu Eunseol’s Icy Soul Sword also poured out pale cold energy, following the trajectory of the great sword.
‘Good! Let’s try this!’
Cheon Geom deployed the Ten Thousand Phenomena Eclipse with all his strength to break through Bu Eunseol’s defense.
Though he poured out all manner of sword techniques he possessed, he could not shatter that persistently clinging, bizarre defensive sword form.
“This sect’s sword technique can break through all the sword methods of every school in Tianxia!”
Cheon Geom proclaimed loudly and unfolded the supreme sword form of the Ten Thousand Phenomena Eclipse—Half Above Half Below, the wondrous principle of Shifting Heaven and Exchanging Force.
It was a wondrous principle that reversed the properties of Bu Eunseol’s Flexible True Form, transforming the nature of all incoming external force so it could be deflected by the sword.
Clang. Whoosh.
The Diamond Sword, having finally grasped the subtleties of the Two Heavens Reversal Force, lost the mysterious power of the Wind and Cloud Harmony Formation that responded to killing intent.
Thwack!
At last, having found an opening, Cheon Geom unleashed a decisive strike at Bu Eunseol’s throat.
Thwack!
Bu Eunseol unfolded the Extreme Speed Shadowless technique to evade the attack, yet blood sprayed across her right shoulder.
‘Now!’
Cheon Geom seized the opportunity and immediately deployed the Ten Thousand Swords Eclipse once more, aiming for her throat.
Tremor.
As the Diamond Sword unfurled once again in Bu Eunseol’s hand, Cheon Geom cried out in triumph.
‘You cannot block with such swordplay!’
Clang!
Blade met blade once more.
In that instant, Cheon Geom’s expression twisted into something grotesque.
‘How is this possible?’
The formidable power he had infused into the great sword suddenly transformed into a gentle force, repelled by Bu Eunseol’s Ice Soul Sword.
“So that was it.”
A knowing smile played across Bu Eunseol’s lips as she gazed upon Cheon Geom.
“I’ve been curious all this time. How exactly did you alter the properties of the Heavenly Sword Formation?”
In truth, I could have decided the match against Cheon Geom in a single exchange.
Yet I deliberately prolonged the battle, drawing him to attack with killing intent intact.
Only then would the Diamond Sword unfold, allowing me to properly observe and steal the secrets of Cheon Geom’s Ten Thousand Swords Eclipse.
The Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin.
A technique of the Formless Heaven Stream’s fourth form—to discern the subtleties of an opponent’s swordplay and instantly mimic it.
Yet to steal the Ten Thousand Swords Eclipse, which had reached the pinnacle of Orthodox Sect sword arts, in a single moment was originally an impossible feat.
Through prolonged exchanges, I extracted only the essence of the Ten Thousand Swords Eclipse—the core sword principle of transforming vital energy’s properties.
In other words, every moment of this battle had been groundwork to steal the mysteries of the Ten Thousand Swords Eclipse from Cheon Geom.
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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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