The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 371

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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 371.
Whoosh!
As Bu Eunseol unfolded her divine technique and swiftly escaped the pavilion’s perimeter, I caught sight of No Bong leisurely strolling through my field of vision.
“Hehehehe.”
The moment Bu Eunseol gave chase, No Bong extended his hand as if he had been waiting for this very moment.
“A child of the Nam Goong Family alone cannot stand against the Shil Hon In.”
Crack!
No need for lengthy words.
Bu Eunseol immediately deployed the Musang Cheonryu technique to seal off No Bong’s escape route.
“A fine sword technique.”
As No Bong casually waved his hand, the cascading cross-shaped sword energy melted away like snow.
“Such trivial sword energy is nothing but child’s play before the Yeong Ryu Wa Jeon.”
When No Bong extended his right hand again, an invisible force swirled and poured down toward Bu Eunseol’s face.
‘Tsk.’
Bu Eunseol attempted to deploy the Janwol Hyosung technique to dissipate that force.
However, the sword energy of the Janwol Hyosung could not eliminate the swirling power. I quickly flipped my body to evade the attack.
Sizzle!
As the force grazed my body, a sound like liquid evaporating accompanied the sudden pallor that drained from my face.
Merely from the force lightly brushing against my body, the blood within had evaporated.
‘This is the martial art of Hyeol Hwang.’
Hyeol Hwang was a master of the highest caliber during his era, and he was also a demonic cultivator who did not hesitate to kill.
Moreover, the Yeong Ryu Wa Jeon he deployed through his unique heart method, the Yang Hoe Gong, possessed a power invisible to the eye, and merely grazing the body could evaporate blood.
‘He has advanced it.’
In the past, Hyeol Hwang’s supreme technique required a direct strike to the body to unleash its full power.
But now, merely grazing the body causes the blood to evaporate.
‘Perhaps it is only natural.’
The Eight Emperors and Three Stars were masters from four hundred years ago.
And if their successors have continuously inherited their martial arts, they would naturally have developed and refined these supreme techniques across generations without cessation.
Did not So Ok Rim, the successor of Seong Hwang, also possess an improved version of the Yang Dan Eun Ha technique?
Sizzle! Sizzle!
Each time No Bong’s force grazed Bu Eunseol’s body, pale mist rose from it.
‘This cannot continue.’
Zing.
Bu Eunseol’s eyes gleamed with a brilliant blue as I drew upon my inner power.
I had deployed the Bing Ha Cheon Ryu Gyeol, the supreme technique of the Buk Hae Bing Gung.
Whoooosh!
Pouring out Han Bing Jin Gi from my left hand, I spread the frigid energy widely to begin freezing the area around No Bong.
“So you have learned even the supreme technique of the Bing Ha Dae Je.”
No Bong let out a low exclamation and suddenly unfolded a mysterious and elusive movement technique.
Whoosh. Whoosh.
His body appeared and disappeared like a phantom materializing from thin air, effortlessly evading the torrent of frigid energy I unleashed.
“Your mastery of ice techniques is still in its infancy. Your execution speed is far too slow.”
No Bong easily discerned the depth of my ice techniques and unleashed a vortex of lightning.
Ssshhh.
As I poured forth the Bing Ha Cheon Ryu Gyeol, I was driven back two steps, white vapor rising from my body.
I couldn’t measure the exact amount of blood that evaporated, but it seemed as though a handful had simply vanished.
“Hehehehe.”
No Bong gazed at my rigid expression and let out a derisive chuckle.
“Now do you understand that you are but a frog in a well?”
I had no choice but to acknowledge it.
The descendants of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars all wielded martial techniques with unique powers that transcended conventional understanding.
And these powers demonstrated overwhelming might that disregarded even the normal hierarchy of martial cultivation levels.
A technique of energy that could not be blocked by any means, evaporating blood in an instant within the range of its power.
This was the martial art of Hyeol Hwang.
―There are still many supreme masters in Murim that you do not know of. Moreover, there exist martial techniques that transcend the stages one must ordinarily pass through.
Suddenly, the words Cheon Woon Gwang had spoken when I visited the Hwawoo Sword Sect flashed through my mind.
Could the stage-transcending martial techniques he mentioned refer precisely to the arts of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars?
If so, had Cheon Woon Gwang also clashed with a descendant of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars?
“The power of vortex lightning cannot be blocked by anything.”
As I fell into contemplation, No Bong raised both palms.
Though invisible to the eye, vortex-shaped lightning coalesced within his palms.
Each time this formidable lightning grazed my body, it evaporated my blood in an instant.
“Try to withstand it once more.”
No Bong unleashed the vortex lightning upon me again.
I dared not confront it directly and deployed my movement technique, continuously evading the onslaught.
“Huff. Huff.”
As the exchange continued, my breathing grew ragged.
The range of the vortex lightning’s assault was too vast; I had to deploy my movement technique at full power to widen the distance.
Thus I could not mount a single counterattack against No Bong’s assault, suffering helplessly.
Ssshhh.
In the meantime, blood was evaporating at a rate I could no longer track.
Click.
Struggling to breathe, I sheathed my sword once more.
“So this is all the successor of the Demon Palace, who shakes the Tianxia, amounts to.”
No Bong gazed at my pathetic state and wore a sinister smile.
“There exist techniques in Murim that transcend martial cultivation levels. May you come to realize such things exist as you regret in the afterlife.”
Whoooosh!
As No Bong extended both arms again, my hair shot skyward.
He spread the formidable vortex lightning widely in all directions, intent on making my blood boil and evaporate in an instant.
Whoosh.
But then something strange occurred.
The moment Bu Eunseol drew her sword again, the swirling torrent of Yeongryu Wa Jeon’s power reversed direction and began pouring outward.
‘I’ve been waiting for this moment.’
Bu Eunseol knew well that she could not achieve victory over No Bong, who had inherited Hyeol Hwang’s martial legacy, in a short span of time.
However, there existed a flaw she could exploit.
The flaw lay in his overconfidence in his own abilities and his absolute conviction that Yeongryu Wa Jeon could never be evaded.
That arrogance of No Bong’s was the opening she sought.
From the very first clash, Bu Eunseol had feigned helplessness against his onslaught.
By doing so, No Bong would inevitably unleash a devastating strike capable of evaporating blood in an instant.
And when he finally released that singular, blood-vaporizing strike,
Bu Eunseol employed the profound mysteries of Ban Sang Ban Ha and Icheon Yeok Ryeok, techniques she had never before revealed.
She instantaneously reversed the invisible and unstoppable power of Yeongryu Wa Jeon.
“Impossible!”
No Bong showed no great surprise even as Bu Eunseol turned his Yeongryu Wa Jeon back upon him.
And he leisurely unleashed Yeongryu Wa Jeon once more.
He poured forth the same power he had released, intending to neutralize it.
‘Now!’
But in that moment, the briefest of openings appeared.
And Bu Eunseol seized it without hesitation.
Flash!
A point of light erupted skyward through the void.
The Eighth Form of Musang Cheonryu—the purified essence of the Ultimate Counterattack Form, Cheonsang Ji Tan, unfolded.
“Impossible!”
No Bong crossed his hands in frantic defense.
Remarkably, he attempted to block even the Muk Geom’s movements, which pierced at light speed, with Yeongryu Wa Jeon.
Zing!
As the formidable power of Yeongryu Wa Jeon blocked the Muk Geom, the blade bent as though it might shatter.
“Hmph, so this is your hidden trump card….”
No Bong’s scornful words never reached their end.
Whistle!
A sharp whistling sound pierced the air, and simultaneously,
the frozen Muk Geom began moving with an eerie, organic flexibility, as though possessed by living breath.
A sword technique that transformed in response to the enemy’s movements—Cheon Woon Gwang’s ultimate killing form.
Guryong Seom Noe unfolded.
Whistle! Whistle!
Once, twice, three times….
When the Muk Geom’s trajectory finally bent for the fourth time, No Bong lost track of its path.
And losing track of the blade’s movement meant only one thing: death.
Splurt!
As the Muk Geom grazed his throat, blood erupted from No Bong’s neck.
“Remarkable swordsmanship!”
No Bong, clutching his severed throat as blood poured forth, widened his eyes in shock.
“Blending the sword techniques of the Orthodox Sects with those of the Demonic Path!”
No Bong perceived in the single move Bu Eunseol had unleashed a fusion of the highest sword arts from both the Orthodox and Demonic traditions.
Ten Thousand Forms One Eclipse. And Heavenly Wound and Nine Dragon Thunder Slash.
These were sword techniques worthy of reaching the pinnacle of both Orthodox and Demonic paths. And Bu Eunseol had woven the essence of both into a single move.
“Had you not prided yourself on your Eternal Flowing Sword Art… victory would have been impossible.”
At Bu Eunseol’s words, No Bong smiled faintly.
“When one reaches this level of mastery, one cannot help but take pride in their martial arts. After all, I have already vanquished countless formidable opponents.”
Splurt!
With those words, blood surged anew from No Bong’s throat.
“Perhaps you might even surpass that person…”
But he could not finish his sentence.
Thud.
In that instant, No Bong’s throat was cleaved diagonally, and his head rolled to the ground.
Living sword art. The Nine Dragon Thunder Slash had severed not merely his carotid artery, but his entire neck.
“Huff… huff…”
Breathing heavily, Bu Eunseol had no time to compose herself before launching her body in the opposite direction.
If my calculations are correct, Nam Goong Woon can hold out for only a moment longer.
That moment has already passed… which means Nam Goong Woon’s life is now in grave danger.
Whoosh!
Unleashing the Extreme Speed Shadowless Movement in one breath, Bu Eunseol rushed toward the Pavilion.
Crash! Boom!
There, surrounded by members of Shil Hon In, Nam Goong Woon poured forth continuous sword strikes.
His entire body bore wounds, and his blue robes were stained crimson with blood.
Yet he continued to cry out, weaving together the third form of the Sovereign Sword Technique and the Spear Sky Flying Swallow Sword.
Mortal combat.
Somewhere along the way, Nam Goong Woon’s spirit and body had become one.
It was neither a fight for victory nor a struggle for survival.
He simply danced the sword dance, standing at the boundary between death and life, holding a single blade.
“He has advanced another level.”
In truth, descendants of the great families rarely risk their lives on perilous journeys through the Gangho.
This is because they receive excellent education from childhood, and they believe such education can substitute for experience.
Moreover, direct bloodline heirs are candidates to inherit the family headship, so they absolutely never undertake journeys risking their lives.
But Nam Goong Woon was different.
Beneath his gentle nature lay an indomitable spirit, and he possessed an unbreakable warrior’s soul that feared not death.
This is why he had ventured into the Gangho alone, without martial artists in attendance.
And that choice had allowed him to leap over a wall that ordinary family martial artists would need decades of training to overcome.
“Bu Hyung!”
Only then did Nam Goong Woon, wielding his sword like a madman in a trance, notice Bu Eunseol standing at a distance, watching him.
“Did you dispose of No Bong?”
“I did.”
Nam Goong Woon broke into a radiant smile.
We were alive!
There was no longer any need to fight with our lives on the line!
But then unexpected words spilled from Bu Eunseol’s lips.
“Well done.”
“Huh?”
“Keep going.”
Bu Eunseol nodded.
“It seems you haven’t reached your limit yet.”
Nam Goong Woon, who had been wielding his sword, jolted upright.
“What are you saying, Bu Hyung? I’m on the verge of death!”
“If you were truly on the verge of death, you wouldn’t have been able to answer at all.”
Bu Eunseol glanced around and then said,
“When you’re truly at death’s door, I’ll come.”
With those cold words, he vanished in an instant.
“….”
Nam Goong Woon’s face turned ashen as he watched him disappear.
Bu Eunseol was not one to joke. Moreover, he was someone who staked his life on martial arts.
If he had spoken thus, he would not help unless Nam Goong Woon truly reached the brink of death.
“Bu, Bu Hyung? Bu Hyung!”
Nam Goong Woon looked around, but Bu Eunseol’s presence had completely vanished.
The Shil Hoon In members surged forward with even sharper killing intent as Bu Eunseol disappeared.
“Damn it all!”
A strange curse he had never uttered before burst forth unbidden.
“Shit. If I’m going to die, I’ll die once!”
Ptui.
Nam Goong Woon spat into his palm and gripped his golden needle sword, crying out with bitter resolve to the Shil Hoon In members.
“You bastards! Come at me all at once!”
* * *
Gae Bang sealed its gates.
The sect that had held one pillar of the Nine Sects One Alliance declared closure.
Yet the reason was so absurd it was difficult to believe.
Hae Poong and Mak Hoong, who had been fighting over the position of sect leader, had engaged in armed conflict.
As a result, over eighty percent of Gae Bang’s elite warriors—the Beggar Squad—lost their lives.
In other words, the flower of Gae Bang’s forces had been obliterated by the meaningless battle between two men.
But had it been only this, the world would not have been so shocked.
―Sect Leader No Bong had used disciples and a certain substance to manufacture a drug that should never have been created.
―Moreover, he had used it to cultivate countless Shil Hoon In members!
A large force from the Nam Goong Family suddenly descended upon the Cheonhwa Mountain Estate where No Bong had been hiding.
And they exposed all of No Bong’s misdeeds and corruption in detail, submitting the evidence to the Murim Alliance.
Moreover, in the process, evidence emerged that Hae Poong was taking advantage of the situation to create the Shil Hon In.
―This branch is finished now.
Those were the words Hae Poong spoke as he was being transported to the Murim Alliance’s Underground Prison.
The reason Gae Bang had been able to bind so many branches together so firmly.
It was because they always upheld righteousness and made integrity their foundation, strictly adhering to their rules and principles.
Yet Gae Bang committed such vile acts that even the Demonic Path would not dare attempt.
For Gae Bang to wash away this filthy stain and rise again… an immeasurably long time would have to pass.
In stark contrast, fortune had smiled upon the Nam Goong Family.
Nam Goong Woon, who had always been called a reckless fool, single-handedly crushed Gae Bang’s conspiracy and recovered all three hundred-odd bizarre drugs hidden within the Cheonhwa Mountain Estate.
Through Nam Goong Woon’s exploits, the Nam Goong Family received numerous treasures from the Murim Alliance and once again demonstrated to the Murim world that they could exercise tremendous influence over all branches.
Furthermore, through this incident, the Nam Goong Family proved once more that as the head of the Eight Great Families, they possessed a power that surpassed even the Nine Sects One Alliance.
The Nam Goong Family’s Chui Hyeon Hall.
The office there was densely lined with bookshelves stacked with volumes.
And before a desk with its back to the window sat a refined middle-aged man, brush in hand, composing a letter.
His appearance was as flawless as jade, and he cultivated a magnificent beard upon his chin.
Yet his gaze remained frozen as cold as ice, and a formidable aura that brooked no approach emanated from his entire being.
This was none other than Namgung Jeong, the current patriarch of the Nam Goong Family.
Knock, knock.
With the sound of knuckles against the door came Si Bi’s low voice.
“The youngest young master has arrived.”
“Let him enter.”
The door opened, and Nam Goong Woon, dressed in blue robes, stepped inside with a tense expression.
Though he was a carefree spirit who feared nothing in the world, before his father Namgung Jeong he always shrank like a mouse before a cat.
“Father.”
Nam Goong Woon bowed deeply in respect, but Namgung Jeong did not even glance at him.
Scratch, scratch.
The interior was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop, with only the occasional sound of brush strokes upon paper.
‘Father.’
Nam Goong Woon, standing motionless like a stone monument, bit his lip.
Though they were father and son, Namgung Jeong treated Nam Goong Woon with particular harshness and coldness.
‘Is love so deep that even a child comes to resent it?’
Nam Goong Woon understood.
That his father Namgung Jeong hated him.
Because his mother had died in childbirth labor pains bringing him into the world.
‘After that day, they say his nature changed.’
When his wife died, Namgung Jeong suffered a great shock, and thereafter he secluded himself completely, forbidding all external activities.
The problem was that unlike his other sons, he treated Nam Goong Woon with terrifying severity, and even now never cast a warm glance his way.
Nam Goong Woon’s reckless behavior in childhood had been an act of rebellion against his cold father.
‘The family head lost a wife, but I lost a warm mother to embrace me!’
Crack.
Nam Goong Woon clenched his fists tightly.
If he didn’t, he feared he might actually voice the words screaming inside his heart.
“Hahaha.”
Instead, Nam Goong Woon scratched his head and clasped his hands together.
Always like this—wearing that foolish, vacant smile of a reckless fool.
“If there’s nothing else you require, I’ll take my leave.”
And as he turned to go,
“Your skills have improved somewhat, it seems.”
The voice of the Nam Goong Family head, who had honed the intermediate sword technique to its pinnacle, carried a gravitas far exceeding his lean frame.
“You faced over a hundred Shil Hoon In alone, I hear.”
“I was merely fortunate.”
As Nam Goong Woon scratched his head, Namgung Jeong’s eyes grew piercing.
“Ascending a level comes not from luck, but from new experiences and enlightenment.”
A flash like a hidden blade emanated from Namgung Jeong’s eyes.
“Tell me. What new things did you encounter on this journey through Gangho?”
Nam Goong Woon scratched his head.
New experiences? All he’d done was follow Bu Eunseol around playing the role of a beggar, hadn’t he?
“I… I fished food scraps out of the sewers and ate them.”
“The sewers?”
“It was unavoidable for infiltrating Gae Bang. And I wore clothes covered in filth. The stench was unbearable, and I was scolded for it. Hahaha.”
In truth, the precious things Nam Goong Woon had experienced were the truths of the world that Bu Eunseol had imparted to him.
And the enlightenment he’d gained through them.
Had anyone else asked about this, Nam Goong Woon would have explained it calmly.
But faced with his father Namgung Jeong’s solemn gaze, his mind went blank—and so he could only force out this hollow laughter and nonsense.
“Hmm.”
When Namgung Jeong let out a dissatisfied grunt, sweat beaded on Nam Goong Woon’s forehead.
In truth, Chui Hyeon Hall was little more than a place of terror to him.
Whenever he’d committed grave mistakes as a child, he’d been dragged here and severely punished by Namgung Jeong.
A place filled with such bitter memories could hardly produce pleasant conversation.
Click.
Then Namgung Jeong withdrew something from his robes and placed it on the table.
Upon closer inspection, it was an extremely worn coin bearing peculiar markings.
“It is Shin San Ja’s coin of gratitude.”
Namgung Jeong spoke in a low voice, gazing down at the worn coin.
“Shin San Ja conveyed this secretly to the Main House. It must be because you resolved this matter well.”
“Is that so? How fortunate.”
As Nam Goong Woon laughed vacantly, Namgung Jeong spoke in a low voice.
“I will give this coin of gratitude to you.”
Nam Goong Woon’s eyes widened in an instant.
The Debt Repayment Tablet was worth far more than any martial arts manual. Yet he was offering it to him?
If he could use the Debt Repayment Tablet to receive answers from the sage with the most outstanding wisdom in Murim, the one who knew everything?
Becoming the head of the Nam Goong Family was no longer a dream.
“Will you accept it?”
Originally, Nam Goong Woon had intended to refuse.
He harbored no ambition to become the family head, nor did he entertain any thoughts of using the Debt Repayment Tablet to realize some hidden agenda.
‘Ah.’
But the face of a handsome man flashed through his mind.
Unlike himself, that man would surely need the Debt Repayment Tablet.
“Are you truly giving this to me?”
“I am.”
“Then may I use it as I see fit?”
When Namgung Jeong nodded, Nam Goong Woon nodded in return.
“I accept it.”
“What do you intend to do with it?”
Namgung Jeong’s eyes gleamed with faint anticipation. But unexpected words flowed from Nam Goong Woon’s lips.
“I will give it to my elder brother.”

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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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