The Great Heavenly Sword Emperor - Chapter 66

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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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#066. The Measure of Dongbang (4)

Dongbang Cheonbaek’s fury showed no signs of ebbing.
Dongbang Yeonhwi offered no words in response.
He merely glanced at him sidelong a few times, his gaze returning always to the battlefield below.
The spectators had suffered their own shock.
All had gathered to witness the end of Cheon Mujgyeol, the so-called “Evil Person”—and yes, they had been startled when the Main Gate opened and he emerged. But they understood well enough what had transpired beyond those gates.
Each of them knew, in broad strokes, what battle had raged outside.
Even granting—most generously—that Cheon Mujgyeol could somehow break through that perilous gauntlet and reach this place.
His opponents had been nothing less than four Protectors of the Dongbang Sect.
For him to face all four simultaneously seemed to offer him no conceivable advantage.
And yet what unfolded before their eyes now?
Though the battle was not yet finished, the moment the four Protectors’ rhythm shattered and Dongbang Cheolyun collapsed, the defeat of the Dongbang Sect was all but sealed.
How could Cheon Mujgyeol be this strong?
Throughout the Jianghu’s history, many evil persons had arisen, yet their limits had always been plain to see.
None had been this formidable, and each had met their end before long.
But Cheon Mujgyeol was different.
They had gathered to witness his end—yet perhaps what they were witnessing instead was the birth of an unprecedented evil that would reshape the Jianghu itself.

* * *

Beside Dongbang Cheonbaek, who had shot to his feet.
Dongbang Cheongnyu gazed down at the field with an impassive face.
‘Cheon Mujgyeol. Strong indeed.’
He knew, having crossed blades with him directly.
Cheon Mujgyeol’s power was genuine.
Even the Dongbang Sect, even their five Protectors, could not weather it easily.
Yet he could not convey this truth with precision.
Why? Because though he had clashed with Cheon Mujgyeol, he could not fathom the true depth of his strength—where it truly ended.
‘If I had stood there alongside them, would the outcome have differed?’
Dongbang Cheongnyu murmured to himself.

* * *

Before Cheon Mujgyeol and Bukgung Danya arrived at the village before the Dongbang Sect.
Within the sect, a council was convening to devise a strategy to meet Cheon Mujgyeol.
“If—should Cheon Mujgyeol breach even the Direct Force’s assault and reach the Main Gate—then it falls to you to engage him.”
Dongbang Yeonhwi addressed the five Protectors as he spoke.
“Simply give us the order, and we shall answer!”
Dongbang Cheolyun cried out with bold confidence.
But Dongbang Yeonhwi shook his head and continued.
“No. All five will fight together.”
“Pardon? But that—”
Dongbang Cheolyun bristled at what he deemed absurd.
Yet Dongbang Yeonhwi regarded him with cold composure and pressed on.
“Could you alone pierce the full offensive of the Direct Force’s five members?”
“I—well—”
Dongbang Cheolyun found his words tangled.
“Not you alone. None of the sect’s Protectors could breach such an assault single-handedly.”
Dongbang Yeonhwi spoke with cutting finality.
The Protectors had nothing to say.
They knew the Direct Force’s power better than anyone.
“I myself doubt Cheon Mujgyeol will even reach the Main Gate. Yet should he arrive there nonetheless, all five of you must face him at once. Such is the only measure of a man of that caliber.”
At Dongbang Yeonhwi’s words, the Protectors bristled with discontent.
It went without saying—none of them truly believed Cheon Mujgyeol would emerge unscathed after piercing the Direct Force, let alone reach the gate intact.
And yet five of them arrayed against such a battered opponent wounded their pride beyond bearing.
“I’ll sit this one out.”
Then Dongbang Cheongnyu spoke up abruptly.
All eyes turned toward him, and he continued tersely.
“I’ve already lost once. It doesn’t seem right for me to fight again by borrowing someone else’s strength.”
“Denied. You will fight. We cannot afford to give Cheon Mujgyeol any opening whatsoever.”
Dongbang Yeonhwi shook his head firmly in response to Dongbang Cheongnyu’s words.
“Cheon Mujgyeol is strong. But his condition cannot be perfect after coming this far, and with how much he’s expended, four others should suffice without me. If four cannot prevail, then five won’t make the difference—we cannot beat an opponent of his caliber regardless.”
Just as Dongbang Yeonhwi was about to speak again, Dongbang Cheonbaek cut in first.
“Do as you wish.”
“Sect Leader.”
Dongbang Yeonhwi stared at Dongbang Cheonbaek in surprise.
“Cheongnyu speaks the truth. What cannot be done with four will not be done with five either.”
Then Dongbang Cheonbaek turned his gaze to the other four protectors.
“Don’t disappoint me.”
“Of course not!”
Dongbang Cheolyun shouted with the greatest confidence.
The other three answered briefly, but with the same confidence Dongbang Cheolyun displayed.
“Good. See that I don’t have to step in.”
Dongbang Cheonbaek’s final words were bitterly cold.

* * *

‘It would have made no difference even if I were there.’
He had pressed Cheon Mujgyeol into a corner for a moment, but ultimately the man had held firm.
And he had found a fracture in the combined assault of the four protectors, exploited it, and unraveled their formation.
Moreover, looking at Cheon Mujgyeol’s state, even cornering him had been something of an exaggeration.
There were a few minor wounds, but nothing that diminished his killing power.
Just from watching how he’d evaded three attacks moments ago, he was still close to his peak.
In the meantime, combat in the Yeonmujang had begun anew.

* * *

Cheon Mujgyeol evaded the attacks of three men with terrifying speed.
Unable to keep pace with his movements, the three protectors’ blades ended up striking one another instead.
The momentum swung sharply in Cheon Mujgyeol’s favor.
Crack!
With clear space now secured, Cheon Mujgyeol was relentless.
He didn’t calculate who to attack first, how to strike, or how to break them down.
He simply rushed at whoever was nearest.
That person was Dongbang Jinhyeok.
Watching Cheon Mujgyeol’s charge, Dongbang Jinhyeok wielded his blade with eyes sunken deep and cold.
The Dongbang Cheongmyeong Swordplay flowed cleanly.
It was a vicious assault, but Cheon Mujgyeol dismantled each strike one by one.
Crash-crash-bang!
Dongbang Jinhyeok quickly found himself on the defensive.
Was it the sheer power of Cheon Mujgyeol’s attacks?
No.
Dongbang Jinhyeok’s face was painted with bewilderment as he parried.
‘Does he have foresight or something?’
It was incomprehensible.
Cheon Mujgyeol moved as though he knew exactly which technique Dongbang Jinhyeok would use.
The direction, speed, power, and rhythm of the attacks—
He predicted everything and shattered each one a step ahead.
Unable to execute anything properly before it was blocked, all Dongbang Jinhyeok could do was defend against Cheon Mujgyeol’s relentless counterattacks.
As Dongbang Jinhyeok fell further into retreat, Dongbang Yeonho and Dongbang Mujin rushed at Cheon Mujgyeol simultaneously.
Even Dongbang Mujin, who had been flailing with his blade in a frenzy, seemed to have regained his composure and reason.
But it was already too late.
Bang!
Just as Dongbang Yeonho and Dongbang Mujin closed the distance to Cheon Mujgyeol, he drove Dongbang Jinhyeok back with a devastating blow.
The force of it—incomparable to anything before—sent a shattering wave of agony through Dongbang Jinhyeok’s body.
A wet cough burst from him.
Dongbang Jinhyeok, driven backward, bent double as blood spilled from his lips.
In that moment, the two men who had drawn dangerously close to Cheon Mujgyeol found themselves pulled deeper into his current.
Cheon Mujgyeol had held Dongbang Jinhyeok fast for precisely this reason—to draw them as far into the depths as possible.
A sharp whistle cut the air.
After hurling Dongbang Jinhyeok away, Cheon Mujgyeol spun toward the other two and unleashed his blade.
Steel met steel.
The instant Cheon Mujgyeol shoved Dongbang Jinhyeok aside, Dongbang Mujin instinctively twisted free.
But Dongbang Yeonho, whose reflexes lagged by only a heartbeat, was caught by Cheon Mujgyeol’s sword.
A sharp clash erupted.
Dongbang Yeonho gritted his teeth.
With every ounce of strength, he reversed the flow of his power toward Cheon Mujgyeol.
Thud!
Dongbang Yeonho did not meet Cheon Mujgyeol’s blade head-on.
Instead, he twisted his sword and raised it to redirect Cheon Mujgyeol’s momentum.
But it would not bend to his will.
Cheon Mujgyeol’s blade had already become a current too fierce to resist.
He tried to redirect it, but could not; instead, that same power crashed over him entirely.
Using a Chosik from Cheonryuk Yeoksem, Cheon Mujgyeol reversed the very current that Dongbang Yeonho had tried to shift.
Like two streams colliding from opposite directions to birth a towering wave, Dongbang Yeonho found himself facing force several times greater than what he had poured out.
Crash!
Dongbang Yeonho staggered violently.
Cheon Mujgyeol seized the opening and drove deeper into his guard.
The Chosik of Paroun Jeolmaek unfolded in succession.
Dongbang Yeonho’s sword meridians, which had been trying to reverse the flow, were severed strand by strand.
Dongbang Yeonho felt his own power scatter and disperse.
As Cheon Mujgyeol’s blade rushed toward his face, he lifted his sword with only one thought—survival.
A deafening boom.
Like a kite with its string cut, Dongbang Yeonho was hurled backward with tremendous force.
Three Protectors fell.
Only Dongbang Mujin remained.
Having recovered his composure, Dongbang Mujin regarded Cheon Mujgyeol with a rigid, hardened expression.
A soft breath escaped him.
Hope seemed to have fled.
They had done all they could, yet Cheon Mujgyeol still stood.
But Dongbang Mujin did not lower his sword.
He knew that his own failure to maintain composure bore the greatest responsibility for their present state.
Had he kept his wits about him—had the four of them not broken formation—
He could not shake the thought that they might have cornered Cheon Mujgyeol far more effectively.
And so he could not surrender.
Even in defeat, he would see it through to the end, hold his ground, and give everything.
He surged forward.
Dongbang Mujin charged toward Cheon Mujgyeol.
With Bobeop he would shake his opponent’s focus; with Speed Sword he would confound him.
And his final strike would be hidden like a concealed blade, waiting beyond.
Dongbang Mujin intended to maintain distance, pin Cheon Mujgyeol in place, and seize his chance.
He surged again.
Cheon Mujgyeol moved as well.
And in the next instant, Dongbang Mujin’s eyes went wide.
Cheon Mujgyeol had appeared before him.
Dongbang Mujin prided himself on his speed.
Yet Cheon Mujgyeol was matching his pace perfectly.
It was more than mere speed-matching.
It was as though he had pierced all of Dongbang Mujin’s movements, mirroring them with flawless precision.
Dongbang Mujin’s entire strategy unraveled from the start.
From that moment on, it was Cheon Mujgyeol’s flow entirely.
The Cheonsingeom whirled in blinding arcs.
The Cheonsingeom swept through the air with devastating speed.
A Chosik of Nakseong Bigwang.
It was a sword strike as swift as the Speed Sword Dongbang Mujin wielded—no, swifter still.
Bang!
Dongbang Mujin staggered backward.
He’d managed to block it, but not through understanding—merely through reaction.
He’d parried by sheer luck, with no time to mount a proper defense.
Cheon Mujgyeol pressed forward, unleashing the Chosik of Nakseong Bigwang in relentless succession.
With a single technique, he began to overwhelm Dongbang Mujin entirely.
Neither footwork nor swordplay availed him.
Dongbang Mujin could only suffer it passively, his reserves of strength already spent.
After tasting blood, he’d abandoned reason for instinct and exhausted himself—nothing remained in him now.
Crash-crash-crash-bang!
“Gasp!”
At last, Dongbang Mujin collapsed as well, gasping, blood streaming from his lips.
Silence fell.
Between four men sprawled in different directions stood Cheon Mujgyeol, motionless.
Snap.
Cheon Mujgyeol turned his gaze.
His eyes met those of Dongbang Cheonbaek, who glared down at him with undisguised fury.
Snap.
Cheon Mujgyeol raised the Cheonsingeom, pointing it directly at Dongbang Cheonbaek.
Twitch-twitch.
The blade’s tip flicked slightly back and forth.
Seeing this, the cords stood out along Dongbang Cheonbaek’s temples.
He could not bear it—that insolent flicking of the sword point, beckoning him down as though summoning a dog.
Crack!
Dongbang Cheonbaek kicked off the floor and launched himself through the air.
Thud.
Dongbang Cheonbaek landed before Cheon Mujgyeol.

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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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