Chapter 149

The King of Power Faces Off Against the Grand Master

Danwooseong could not sense the aura of the Great Master of the Golden Sword Night.

Master Golden Sword Night also couldn’t discern Dan Woo-seong’s exact cultivation level. This was because each could thoroughly conceal their qi with their own martial arts.

To the martial world’s masters, they might appear godlike, but when these two masters looked at each other, neither could gaze down upon the other like a god. Not unless they fully revealed their true strength.

Concealing and revealing are both strategies, so the preliminary battle has already begun. Danwooseong walked toward the open space, guarding against being confused by others’ realizations. Only Uisin could have gracefully sent off the Grand Master he had faced for seven days and nights.

Dan Woo-sung had no reason to follow suit.

He had chosen the path of the swordsman, so while walking with the Grand Master of the Ten Thousand Horses Palace, he had no other concerns.

He planned to tear him apart and then erase him from this world.

Geumgeom Il-ya, who had been slowly following behind Dan Woo-seong, spoke.

“Kwonwang, stop now. This spot is suitable.”

Geumgeom Il-ya chose a desolate place with nothing around. Danwoo-seong stopped and said.

“Let’s do it.”

Geumgeom Il-ya smiled as he watched Dan Woo-seong turn around. Dan Woo-seong paced back and forth like someone out for a stroll, stretched his body, then looked at Geumgeom Il-ya.

“Are you ready?”

Geumgeom Il-ya nodded.

“Always ready.”

“Of course you would be.”

There was no clamorous energy wave, no distinctive sound. Neither had any intention of engaging in childish psychological warfare, nor did they have any particular words to exchange before the fight.

Even facing death, they remained utterly calm.

Danwooseong stood motionless, gazing at Geumgeom Il-ya.

Gumgeom Il-ya gazed at Danwoo Seong, the unsheathed sword still clutched in his left hand, then slowly wiped the smile from his face.

‘This guy… he wasn’t meant to be a lowly subordinate from the start.’

That was the feeling.

In the vast, desolate space, the two stood facing each other, their lips sealed. Soon, a heavy silence mingled with desolation.

Each time an indifferent cloud passed, swallowing the moon, the light dimmed and brightened repeatedly.

Therefore, they could only glimpse each other’s expressions when the moonlight poured down.

Standing at a considerable distance, the two remained utterly motionless, their hearts sinking into cold stillness.

This time, as thick, dark clouds passed by and swallowed the moon, the figures of the two people faded into the darkness.

Pitch-black darkness.

The sword flashed like lightning, and a sword beam streaked through the space where Danwooseong had stood.

Swoosh…!

Each time the sword’s light sliced through the darkness, something was cut.

Trees far away were severed, and then the sound of something being cut echoed from the middle of an unnamed mountain. Startled birds shot up into the night sky all at once.

Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

Even Dan Wooseong felt a chill as the sound stretched on.

As the moonlight poured down once more.

Geumgeom Il-ya, sword in his right hand, fixed his gaze upon Danwooseong.

Danwooseong had barely shifted one step sideways along the trajectory of the sword’s light.

A straight line was etched into the ground, and everything that had been on it appeared to have been sliced clean off.

The two men studied each other’s expressions.

Still, there was no change whatsoever in their expressions.

Now that they had confirmed each other’s abilities, opening their mouths had become difficult.

Just then, the dark clouds that had been watching them since earlier began to drop raindrops.

Plop.

It was a kind warning and announcement that rain would pour down on this battlefield.

Suddenly, Danwooseong felt as if the sky’s movements and even the falling raindrops had slowed down.

He had intended to move faster than falling raindrops.

Then, as Danwooseong closed the distance with a leap, Geumgeom Il-ya instead widened the gap, swinging his sword multiple times.

The sword wind carried sword energy, and that energy left afterimages.

Even from a distance, Geumgeom Il-ya’s attacks were fast enough to be deadly, forcing Dan Woo-sung, who was charging forward, to rely on his martial arts to evade the sword energy.

‘Getting close isn’t easy either.’

The sword technique of Geumgeom Il-ya was so swift it seemed capable of splitting an instant to strike. Its very nature as sword energy made it all the more devastating. Yet the aftermath of the attack still stretched long behind Danwooseong.

Then the rain intensified.

Thud, patter, patter-patter…

Geumgeom Il-ya spoke as if welcoming the downpour.

“How splendid.”

Soon, torrential rain poured down upon the two.

Whoosh…

Rainwater streamed down Danwooseong and Geumgeom Il-ya’s faces.

Danwooseong still approached Geumgeom Il-ya, and Geumgeom Il-ya widened the distance. Given that his opponent’s nickname was ‘Sword King’ and his own specialty was sword energy, this was a natural countermeasure.

The fact that someone of the rank of Grand Master at Manmagung valued ‘distance’ so highly was proof that he was not underestimating Dan Wooseong in the slightest.

Danwooseong asked.

“You’re not the type to retreat, yet you’re quite peculiar.”

“You, on the other hand, need no false modesty. You were a rare powerhouse. Even I found it difficult to gauge just how much strength you were concealing.”

“You flatter me…”

The two men smiled, their faces drenched in rain.

Then they moved in a circular pattern. Dan Woo-sung still pursued, while Geumgeom Il-ya retreated.

Danwooseong had expected the Grand Masters of the Ten Thousand Horses Palace to fight with lofty pride, wielding supremely high martial arts. Yet seeing them act this way only heightened his tension. For the Golden Sword Night had not yet unleashed its full power either.

A complex psychological battle raged like pouring rain.

As Dan Woosung unleashed his fist wind…

Geumgeom Il-ya met the fist wind with his sword thrust vertically.

BOOM!

Enveloped by the fist wind, Geumgeom Il-ya formed a sword seal while suspended in midair.

In the instant his fingers traced up the blade…

Geumgeom Il-ya’s sword was bathed in a brilliant light.

Danwooseong was now resolved not to be surprised even if the Grand Master turned the entire area into a mountain of blades and a forest of swords.

‘Come on.’

Geumgeom Il-ya suddenly appeared before Danwoo-seong and swung his sword.

Shh!

The sword slashed past, aiming for Dan Wooseong’s neck.

In that instant, a light afterimage in the exact shape of the sword remained in place.

This was Geumgeom Il-ya’s technique, the Thousand Swords Fireworks Scene.

This was not an afterimage, but the sword energy itself. The sword energy created by Geumgeom Il-ya had taken root in the void. Subsequently, every time Geumgeom Il-ya launched a meaningful attack, the number of sword forms suspended in the void kept increasing.

Danwooseong’s eyes grew dizzy.

Danwooseong unleashed his full power toward Geumgeom Il-ya, and even in the trajectory of the sword that blocked it, the shape of a sword remained.

Zheng…!

Dan Woo-sung could only scrutinize the sword’s form.

‘It’s not an illusion.’

But as if warning him not to look too closely, Geumgeom Il-ya’s assault continued. Amidst the exchange of offense and defense, the increasing number of sword forms gradually filled the area. Especially as the sword forms began to take positions, seemingly blocking the retreat route, the battlefield felt like it was narrowing.

As if analyzing the space itself, Geumgeom Il-ya scattered sword forms everywhere while attacking Dan Woo-sung, then spoke.

“You’re remarkably cautious.”

Danwooseong refrained from touching the yellow sword suspended in midair. Normally, one would touch it to discern its true nature, even at the cost of expending energy.

Touching the yellow sword triggered a reaction from the other yellow swords.

Sword techniques were applied within formations, and within those formations, the subtleties of flying swords were interwoven.

These intertwined techniques were controlled by Geumgeom Il-ya, intent on killing.

But Dan Wuxing evaded using his body art, not even considering touching it.

Geumgeom Il-ya snorted derisively.

“I wonder what will become of you with that caution.”

From that moment on, every time Geumgeom Il-ya swung his sword, three more golden swords appeared.

Swish!

Seeing Danwooseong being extremely cautious, he was determined to fill the Thousand Swords.

Fireworks signify the scenery of spring.

The moment the thousand yellow swords filling every direction pierced the opponent’s body, the very fountains of blood spilling from a thousand holes would become the spring scenery the demonic path desired.

Geumgeom Il-ya darted about busily like a painter wielding a sword instead of a brush, while Dan Woo-seong leapt through the rain-drenched Thousand Swords Fireworks Scene like its protagonist.

Suddenly, swords were everywhere.

It lay upon the ground, it filled the sky, and it waited everywhere he tried to flee or looked. The Golden Sword Night, painting a picture moment by moment, would never let Danwooseong go.

As Danwooseong attempted to create distance by deploying his lightness skill…

Geumgeom Il-ya unleashed the Hundred Swords Formation as if to say, “Not a chance.” It was a technique like throwing paint.

Swish-swish-swish!

The energy of the golden swords, extending along Dan Woosung’s intended escape path, spread left and right, forming a curtain of blades.

Then, the Hundred Swords Formation unfolded in rapid succession.

The golden sword, forged in an instant, filled the area where the two stood.

Of course, Jin Geom Il-ya’s internal energy consumption while deploying the Thousand Swords Lotus Sutra was greater than Dan Woo-seong’s. But all that mattered was killing him. As soon as he unleashed his sword wind at Dan Woo-seong, Jin Geom Il-ya, having created distance, intended to slowly put the finishing touches on the painting that was the Thousand Swords Lotus Sutra.

Golden Sword Night retreated like a ghost, wielding a thousand swords like a single, masterful blade.

‘Die.’

Yellow swords scattered in all directions poured down upon Dan Woosung simultaneously.

Whooooooooooosh!

It was truly a spectacular sight.

Even Geumgeom Il-ya wondered how the Fist King would block this.

But Dan Wooseong’s response was truly befitting of the Kwonwang.

He stomped the ground with his thunderous footsteps.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!

As Danwooseong infused his deepened power to unleash the Brain Horn, the entire area shattered and was smashed to pieces. Amidst the chaos, he simultaneously pulled up the surging dust and piles of rocks—split, cracked, and broken—using the Flower Blossom Technique coiled around his left hand.

A response entirely different from his previous fighting style.

The very nature of his thought and the unfolding of his action had changed.

The piles of rocks that had filled the area soared skyward, propelled by Danwooseong’s command, martial prowess, inner strength, and will.

A thousand swords poured down.

Thousands of boulders launched their counterattack.

POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW! POW

Amidst the chaos, Danwooseong, enveloped in a white current, swung his thunder fist…

A thunderous roar echoed through the night sky, devoid of lightning.

The Heavenly Sword Lotus Sutra itself smashed into the scattered pile of rocks, shattering as if obliterated. A white fist burst forth from the painting, enveloping the Golden Sword Night.

Amidst Jin Geom Il Ya’s disorientation, he cleaved the white fist.

Crack!

The fist split in two.

The pile of earth covering him also split in two.

The view ahead opened up refreshingly.

But Danwooseong was not there.

Geumgeom Il-ya’s gaze rose toward the sky.

Dan Woo-sung was in an odd position. The downpour made it impossible to tell what he was doing.

‘A spear?’

The moment he judged it to be a spear-throwing stance, Geumgeom Il-ya unleashed a series of white sword strikes into the air, creating a curtain of blades.

As if layers of bone-like sword barriers embroidered the air,

A thunderbolt pierced through that barrier all at once.

Crackle-crackle-crackle!

The thunder spear, which instantly pierced through all the white sword lines, arrived before Geumgeom Il-ya. Geumgeom Il-ya then unleashed a burst of energy from his left hand.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaang!

Knocked back by the shockwave, Jin Jian Yiyaya thrust off the ground once, soaring into the air as he retreated. The distance between them widened in an instant.

Geumgeom Il-ya’s expression turned pale.

It wasn’t a loss of power; it felt like a defeat in the clash of blows.

Danwooseong’s voice drifted in from somewhere.

“Grandmaster, I told you escape was impossible for both of us.”

Geumgeom Il-ya retorted with a cold expression.

“As if that were possible. Come.”

Geumgeom Il-ya steadied his breathing, sword in hand. Far away, Danwooseong stood with arms outstretched, drenched in the rain.

Why was he standing still in this situation?

Dan Woosung suddenly raised his head, watching the pouring rain. Then, as he attempted the Samla Mansang Chukgi technique, his dantian began to surge again, and his energy was rapidly recovering.

While Geumgeom Il-ya recovered through breathing, Dan Woo-sung was recovering along with all things in the universe.

Danwooseong smiled as the rain fell on his face.

It was truly exhilarating.