Chapter 380 The Path to Becoming a God (8)

Chapter 380: The Path to Becoming a God (8)

Namgoong Muyoung sneered at the proposal that if he committed suicide, the Lion Clan would be left alone.

[Do you think I’d bat an eyelid if they all died?]

“…You really are cold-blooded.”

I looked at the Lion Clan’s headquarters and asked.

“But tell me. Do those friends over there know you’re Namgoong Muyeong?”

[…….]

“It’s strange, isn’t it? The leaders have clearly kept changing, yet you remain the same. So where exactly are all these new leaders?”

[……What are you trying to say?]

“That sword… it doesn’t turn back time, does it?”

[You doubt it even after seeing it with your own eyes?]

“I’m not doubting the sword. I’m doubting you.”

I pointed at the sword clutched in his right hand and asked.

“I suspect you use that sword to absorb the life force of your descendants. It must be…”

It was during the battle with the Lord of Namcheon Palace.

I have witnessed the sight of deceit, hatched from thousands of lives, granting strength and youth to its target.

“Like the Blood Sect’s sorcery.”

And now, the same malevolent energy I felt back then was emanating from the sacred artifact of the Hyeongmun Sect held by Namgung Muyeong.

Which meant.

[……I see.]

It meant that bastard had been sacrificing descendants who mastered the Emperor Sword Technique to extend his own lifespan.

“I could tell because a faint trace of that aura was mixed in with your internal energy.”

[You have keen eyes.]

“Thanks to someone.”

In that instant, a sinister aura erupted from Namgoong Muyoung’s entire body.

At the same time, a cruel smile spread across his previously expressionless face.

An expression that should have been impossible to see, if his claim that he had cast aside the seven deadly sins and reached the realm of the gods was true.

“As expected, you haven’t reached the realm of the gods.”

[How could I abandon the seven passions while waiting for my past life’s family?]

“Then why did you urge me to become a god?”

[Do I need to explain?]

“Of course not.”

With that answer, his divine form vanished.

The Nine Dragons Sect, the Zhengdao Sect, the Wuhuang Sect, and even the Lion Sect.

Before the audience of the martial world, my title match with him had begun.

Kukung!

His sword fell with a force like that of Mount Tai.

I narrowly dodged it, and his sword plunged into the ground.

CRASH.

The surrounding ground shattered completely, as if a magnitude 7 earthquake had struck.

“……”

Whether he had unleashed his full power or not, this force dwarfed the martial prowess I had witnessed before.

But battle is about momentum.

If I cowered just because the enemy was strong, only death would await me.

Whoosh!

A crescent-shaped slash, concentrated with immense force, swept across the front.

Thud!

Namgung Muyoung brought his sword down, instantly cleaving the crescent moon in two.

Skrrrr!

Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Thanks to that, the shattered moon blade flew toward the main body of the Lion Clan, taking the lives of those Sapa bastards.

It wasn’t intentional, but it was a huge win.

But true to his earlier declaration, he didn’t bat an eye at his subordinates’ deaths.

Instead, he swung his sword even faster and more fiercely.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

‘What? How can a normal attack be this powerful?’

I inwardly clicked my tongue but didn’t back off.

Puff-puff-puff. POW!

Instead, I parried his strikes with the Ten-Thirteen Parry and advanced.

Realizing my intent to close in, he struck down with an even stronger sword blow.

Kwoong!

With an impact that felt like my arm might break, I managed to approach him and unleashed a flurry of punches packed with power toward his sides.

CRASH! CRASH!

“You’re dead!”

Woo-ji-ji-ji-ji-jik!

Simultaneously, I delivered ten overlapping Moon Blades to his chest.

In an instant, a massive black hole formed.

Kuuuung!

Sensing something was amiss, Namgoong Muyoung swung his sword strike, as massive as Mount Tai, once more.

Paaaaaat!

The collision between the Emperor’s Sword Form and the Sovereign’s Sword Form unleashed a massive wave of energy that swept through the surroundings.

“Yeeek!”

[Gulp.]

A moment later.

The massive cloud of dust cleared, revealing his figure.

“You’re unharmed?”

[Indeed, a true descendant of the royal line. He is worthy to be the rival of the Imperial Sword Form.]

He pointed behind him and said.

“Your main camp? It’s been completely destroyed, right? Look over there. It’s completely collapsed, you see?”

Just as he was about to turn around, fooled by the bluff.

POW!

I unleashed the Heavenly King Divine Step with all my might.

Breaking the speed of sound, a sonic boom erupted.

I used that momentum to kick Namgoong Muyeong in the side.

Crack!

Even struck by a force powerful enough to shatter a house-sized boulder in one blow, he didn’t flinch.

Instead, he only radiated fighting spirit with eyes blazing with fury.

“Tsk!”

Flash!

At that moment, a sword flew toward my throat.

The lightning-fast strike snapped me back to my senses, and I jerked my head back.

Spot.

If I’d let my guard down even slightly, that razor-sharp strike would’ve sent me on a one-way trip to the afterlife. My spine tingled.

‘I almost died.’

Namgoong Muyeong’s attack didn’t end there.

Thinking his swift sword had landed cleanly, he unleashed a flurry of strikes, radiating a sinister aura.

Kwaaang!

To block the bastard’s sword, he deployed his power, unleashing an explosive surge of formidable energy across the front.

Crackle!

Immediately after, he deployed the Moon-Cutting technique to close the gap in his defense.

The final battle of the former royal lineage unfolded.

Heavenly King’s Scripture.

Crackle. Snap.

The Ten Heavenly Kings, having reached the peak of their power, raged like madmen.

Clustering together, it exploded, generating immense energy.

I compressed that energy to its absolute limit and fired it straight at the Lion Clan Leader’s chest.

——!

An explosion without even a sound.

The crystallization of pure energy exploded, creating a Big Bang.

And Namgoong Muyoung’s sword moved.

His blade instantly stained crimson, gathering immense internal energy at its tip.

And then.

He thrust his sword toward the Big Bang before him.

Kwaaah… Zzzzzz…

No impact sound was heard, but the collision was not quiet.

It was simply an immense high-frequency sound inaudible to the human ear.

As proof, a massive shockwave radiated out from the point of impact.

“Yik!”

The former king’s form, seeking to expand, and the emperor’s sword form, seeking to contract.

Two peerless divine arts born from the same root tore at each other’s throats to prove themselves.

‘Ah…’

They say warriors come to know each other by clashing weapons.

In this moment, I could grasp the magnitude of the loneliness Namgoong Muyeong carried.

And I became certain.

He, too, was nothing more than an ordinary man.

Of course.

“Die, you bastard!”

Not that I feel sorry for him, though.

Crunch.

As he struggled to withstand the immense pressure, the sound of cracking bones echoed.

His legs trembled violently, his neck couldn’t lift against the immense pressure, and his torso kept getting pushed back.

But he was no different.

Namgoong Muyeong’s face, which had remained composed throughout, was flushed crimson.

‘Is this it?’

Time to unleash his final, ultimate technique?

In that moment of hesitation.

—-!

The two energies couldn’t withstand each other’s power and exploded.

Thanks to that, I was sent flying over three hundred meters and slammed into a tree.

“Cough.”

“Son-in-law! Take this!”

They say even a lucky bastard picks up money when he falls.

The coin happened to land near his father-in-law, who tossed him a single pill.

Though it was a small, strange pill, it should help stabilize his energy.

He swallowed it in one gulp and dashed forward again.

This was the beginning of the battle.

[Hmph!]

Namgoong Muyoung swung his sword at me once more, heavy as Mount Tai.

CRASH!

A tremendous ripping sound.

“Hmph!”

I dodged the sword, unleashed a blast wave on his torso, and struck his lower body.

Thud.

He struck my jaw with his left hand, having absorbed the technique with his body.

Gritting my teeth, I endured and drew the crescent moon.

Whoosh!

Simultaneously, I unleashed the pre-prepared Jeonju Sword Technique, the Four Directions Strike, aiming for the back of his head.

Attacked from front and back simultaneously, Namgung Muyeong twisted his arms and back.

Boom!

He unleashed a sword strike of immense power, shattering both the Houyesa and the Sword of the Moon simultaneously.

Truly, it was the majesty befitting a god of war.

‘What the hell!’

He didn’t stop there.

Pulling the sword embedded in the ground, he lashed out at my side.

CRACK! CRUNCH.

“Guh.”

The sheer power, like wielding a mountain, left me breathless.

“……!”

Then, a sole filled my vision.

SMACK!

My head snapped back in one swift motion.

A completely hopeless situation.

I unfurled the Heavenly Net at my waist to halt his charge.

[Do you really think something like this can stop me?]

CRASH! CRUNCH…

He swung his sword vertically, and the Heavenly Net, said to be a treasure of the ages, turned to dust and vanished.

“Die!”

Honoring the Heavenly Net that sacrificed itself to buy me a turn, I poured half my remaining energy into unleashing the Heavenly King’s Palm.

A tiny energy crystal the size of a fingernail sparked the Big Bang.

—-!

Namgoong Muyeong thrust his sword in, just as before.

“Yik!”

I thought another standoff was beginning, but his reaction was slightly different.

He pointed his left index finger at me and unleashed an intangible energy blast.

Thud!

“Guh!”

My leg was instantly pierced.

In response, I fired a preemptive strike back at him.

POW! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

For one minute, the deadly exchange continued.

After exchanging a hundred attacks.

Thud!

My lower abdomen, where my dantian was located, was completely pierced through.

At the same time, the Heavenly King began to scream.

“Kkeuh!”

He had to somehow regain control, but Namgoong Muyoung’s sword pressed the Heavenly King’s Bell even harder.

“Guh!”

Splash.

I was helplessly pushed back.

[This is the end.]

Just as he declared the end.

Thwack!

A sword wrapped in pure white light flew from afar and pierced Namgoong Muyoung’s back.

[……!]

The blade was so sharp it completely pierced through the area near Namgoong Muyoung’s heart, despite his body being tightly wrapped in protective energy.

And the moment I saw him like that, I unleashed the Heavenly King’s Sword.

An explosion like a meteor strike followed, hurling him far away.

I watched the Lion Clan leader flying through the air and caught my breath.

His heart pierced, he flew hundreds of meters.

Without gathering all seven sacred orbs and praying to the Dragon God, there was no way to survive.

Sure enough.

Whoosh…

As the dust settled, the bloodied form of Namgung Muyeong came into view.

“Nice!”

I clenched my fist.

That’s right.

I never intended to fight fairly from the start.

‘If you’re a righteous faction, you gang up; if you gang up, you’re a righteous faction.’

Given the different lives we’ve led, isn’t it inevitable that I’d be at a disadvantage?

“You’re here.”

“It’s been a long time.”

So I pleaded with the Lord of Muwang Fortress, now the Third Under Heaven, to bring him in.

To eliminate Namgung Muyoung together and become the second-greatest man under heaven.

“The North Sea Heavenly Lord spoke the truth. He is no human.”

The Lord of Muwang City muttered, staring at Namgung Muyoung, now a bloody mess, then turned to me.

“And you, too, have transcended humanity.”

“Oh, I’m not quite there yet.”

“Go check the body.”

Thud, thud.

The Emperor of Wu walked toward Namgoong Muyoung.

Watching his retreating back, an ominous foreboding washed over me.

He clearly saw his heart pierced through and his body torn to shreds.

No matter what, as long as he was bound to a human body, there was no way he could survive.

Then why this unease?

‘What the hell is this?’

It was then.

Namgoong Muyeong’s snow-white sword came into view.

‘Life force?’

Without a moment to think, he unfolded the Heavenly King’s Divine Sword.

“Hm?”

The Emperor of the Heavens turned to look at me with a puzzled expression.

“Get out of the way!”

I grabbed his back and launched myself forward.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

Buhwang!

A sword energy of immense pressure swept over the heads of Mu Huangcheng and me.

We were this close to crossing the Jordan River hand in hand with the Emperor.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Far off, Namgoong Muyeong rose, bloodied but radiating fighting spirit.

“Wow…”

I’m gonna puke.