Chapter 512: Chapter 512

Immediately after exchanging a strike with the General Chief of the Green Forest Cavalry, Ak Su-rim’s voice pierced through Jeong Yeon-shin’s mind.

— Close your eyes. I will stand guard.

It was an experienced piece of advice.

Her words carried two meanings.

First, this was not a battle the Acting Commander of the Divine Sword Corps had to face alone. Second, it was a moment to cool both mind and body.

Jeong Yeon-shin stood still, calming his inner state for what felt like both a fleeting and drawn-out moment.

The Sword Clan and Ten Thousand Flowers in the Rain.

An unprecedented-scale battle in his entire time in the martial world.

Nearly a thousand deaths. With just two moves, he had driven two of the Thirteen Heavens to near annihilation. The cost, naturally, was bound to be enormous.

The strain on his stored energy and meridians was staggering, and for the first time in a long while, even the Baihui acupoint at the crown of his head throbbed.

Recovering fully would take more than a mere quarter-hour—it wouldn’t be enough even if he spent an entire day.

To make matters worse, Hyeok Ryeon Pungwol, the Lord of Murong Sect, continued scrutinizing him, his gaze sinking Jeong Yeon-shin’s exhausted body deeper into an invisible swamp.

As Ak Su-rim struck the ground with her staff and glared at the two top experts of the Green Forest Cavalry for a long while—

Finally, when Hyeok Ryeon Pungwol’s palm strike sent Mugeuk Jeonju flying into the fortress wall and General Chief Je Gangcheon barely stabilized the recoil of his own Arching Moon Dance technique before the deadlock was broken—

Jeong Yeon-shin stared ahead in silence.

A man rose from the furrowed ground that he himself had carved out, dust swirling thickly behind him. He wore a ghost mask with four eyes and was draped in a faded red Grand General’s battle robe.

The mere act of him standing upright caused the air above to distort, and the very atmosphere scorched as though flaying flesh, as if summer had been forcibly pulled forward.

For a brief moment, Jeong Yeon-shin thought—if Ma Gwang-ik’s Yang Guifei Spear had been trained without negligence, this would be its manifestation.

— Haeil Kwoncheon. The Chief of Endless Flow Lodge. A high-risk figure wielding the overwhelming fusion of imperial naval martial arts and the northern martial world's techniques...

Grand General Im Jin-myeong’s urgent transmission, spanning a thousand li, was abruptly cut off.

Had something happened?

At this moment, when he had to focus his entire senses on the enemies, he couldn’t afford to dwell on it.

The fortress itself was vast, easily encompassing ninety-nine halls, comparable in scale to a royal palace. The distance from the main gate to the Command Bureau was no small measure either.

Jeong Yeon-shin recalled the faces of the Command Bureau’s scholars all at once but did not allow emotion to show on his face. He had to trust in their resolve and Chi Cheon-gung Baek’s security measures.

[The weeds of the martial world...]

A voice, slightly playful yet tinged with boredom, resonated.

From behind him, a woman stood, her presence partially obscuring Haeil Kwoncheon due to her considerable height.

[No matter how many times you uproot them, they never truly disappear.]

Her violet robes fluttered, radiating an aura that overwhelmed those around her.

It was something beyond mere internal energy. Something Jeong Yeon-shin did not yet possess—an atmosphere born from more than just raw power.

Behind him, Ak Su-rim murmured absentmindedly, and Jeong Yeon-shin quickly discerned how this unfamiliar figure had sent Haeil Kwoncheon crashing down.

He traced the faint remnants of energy ripples lingering above them.

‘She brought him down from midair.’

By consecutively unleashing more than twenty-seven different techniques in precise succession, she had continuously deflected Haeil Kwoncheon’s attacks. And she had done it using spell-based martial arts.

An absurd display of skill.

Different from So Cheonmujuk, yet just as uncanny.

It was as if she could effortlessly dismantle any obstacle, like someone who had reigned at the peak of the martial world for an eternity.

Jeong Yeon-shin asked in a low voice.

The woman, who had been gazing at the distant horizon, tilted her head slightly.

Her sharp jawline became pronounced like the edge of a blade, and her lips moved with ease.

[You lack the Divine Sword. You are not the Commander of the Divine Sword Corps.]

[Did the brat of the Ma Clan finally wash his face with golden powder?]

The war axe that had been spinning like a typhoon in the grasp of the General Chief of the Green Forest Cavalry suddenly stopped.

A powerful gust of wind erupted, leaving deep indentations beside the warhorse’s hooves. The impact spread in heavy vibrations. At the same time, General Chief Je Gangcheon peered down at them from a slanted angle and spoke.

"If the renegade master of Ipwang Ma had returned, it has been a long time since you have revealed yourself to the martial world..."

His words slowed, and his ghost-like perceptiveness flashed across his face.

"What is your name? Never did I imagine that Ipwang Fortress harbored another in violet."

[You are not worthy to know.]

Then, she turned her head a little further. Not toward Jeong Yeon-shin, but toward Ak Su-rim standing beside him.

[Su-rim, you remain unchanged.]

Jeong Yeon-shin glanced to the side.

The most reliable protector in the world, his senior, now wore an expression of shock.

Not the seasoned, battle-hardened warrior of the martial world, but a girl, struck speechless at the sight before her. It reminded him somewhat of when his grandfather had regained his youth.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight

Jeong Yeon-shin came to a swift conclusion.

“As expected of the First Under Heaven Sect.”

From the side, the Lord of Murong Sect clapped his hands in feigned admiration.

"You people just keep appearing out of nowhere. A lightning strike from the east, and now this... It’s like some grand demon’s scheme to overturn the martial world. Frightening, truly."

A sign of an impending disaster, perhaps. He tapped the ground lightly with the tip of his boot as he spoke, but the violet-clad woman’s gaze had already returned to Jeong Yeon-shin.

[What is your position?]

"...Acting Commander."

[Your disposition intrigues me. Shall we test it with our hands?]

A proposal for combat.

She didn’t radiate any particularly overpowering energy, yet she effortlessly dictated the mood of the battlefield.

It was entirely different from Jeong Yeon-shin, who had previously wielded techniques on a massive scale, following his instincts.

[These wretched bastards...?]

The woman in violet was never one to hide her emotions. The very fact that she now wore a deeply astonished expression was proof of that.

Jeong Yeon-shin said nothing more and stepped forward toward the Lord of Murong Sect, Haeil Kwoncheon, and the White King of Taebaek.

There was no hesitation in his advance toward the three absolute masters. He did not so much as exchange a word with the unknown violet-clad woman beside him.

It was an action that made no sense unless there was some meticulous plan behind it.

“I just pointed out to Jeong Yeon-shin his lack of qualifications as the Commander of the Divine Sword Corps, yet...”

Je Gangcheon’s lips twitched. It was hard to tell whether he was smiling or frowning.

“That spirit of his is certainly terrifying. I had thought to pass the time exchanging pleasantries with this unknown guest until reinforcements arrived, but it seems you are warriors of Ipwang Fortress to the bone—so selfish, and so utterly blind to the realities of warfare.”

His words shattered the tense deadlock.

A top expert of the Green Forest Cavalry suddenly lunged at Jeong Yeon-shin—only to be sent flying by Ak Su-rim’s instant spear throw.

The air trembled heavily. At the same time, another silver-armored expert, rotating in midair, kicked Ak Su-rim’s raised forearm and sent her sprawling.

A formation-breaking technique, characteristic of military warriors.

But the silver-armored warrior didn’t get to witness Ak Su-rim’s body skidding across the ground like a skipping stone.

Because Jeong Yeon-shin—who had just been advancing toward Je Gangcheon—was °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° suddenly back in place, as if time had been reversed, gripping the very leg that had kicked Ak Su-rim.

A footwork technique that turned back time.

Brilliant Wing Six Steps.

The Lord of Murong Sect, who had been idly observing with his arms crossed, slowly unfolded his hands and muttered.

“That’s no Diamond Immovable Footwork...”

"You shouldn’t have done that."

Jeong Yeon-shin’s voice slipped through his clenched teeth.

The silver-armored warrior—reported by the Command Bureau as a master who had suddenly emerged in the mountains and earned the title Heaven-Splitting Executioner, a man who had few rivals in the martial world—widened his eyes.

Jeong Yeon-shin crushed the man’s leg in a single grip and lifted his head.

A massive silhouette loomed in the air—a warrior astride a warhorse, casting a vast shadow as he descended.

In that instant, Jeong Yeon-shin twisted on the spot and hurled the Heaven-Splitting Executioner, leg and all, straight into the fortress wall—

—where a black-robed swordsman of the Divine Sword Corps, slumped like a corpse, casually reversed his grip on his sword and impaled the man’s throat.

He had done nothing but move his hand. His head was still bowed as if unconscious.

But his arm—was the Acting Commander’s arm.

Thanks to that, Jeong Yeon-shin had not wasted any unnecessary energy. And now, he could raise his palm toward the warrior hurtling down at him.

Instantly, Hurricane Force erupted.

A massive shockwave tore through the battlefield, sending threads of shimmering energy spiraling outward like a raging storm.

At that moment, Jeong Yeon-shin’s cold blue eyes flashed with a single, unwavering thought.

Kill the martial world.

No matter how much he suppressed his emotions, no matter how he tried to remain calm—he was still an eighteen-year-old Acting Commander, and his tranquility was paper-thin.

It was like the moat surrounding the fortress. Now dry, because Haeil Kwoncheon had evaporated its waters.

The ground beneath Jeong Yeon-shin’s feet fractured into fine fissures.

The protective energy surrounding Je Gangcheon and his warhorse was torn apart like mist.

And then—Jeong Yeon-shin took a single step aside and raised Heaven’s Thunder overhead.

It was a seamless link between Brilliant Wing Steps and Deep Ultimate Qilin—the arc of his sword carved a pale trajectory through the air, brushing against the warhorse’s body.

The beast exploded, shredded into pieces as if caught in an artillery blast.

[...I know the state your body is in, Jeong Yeon-shin.]

Amidst the flying blood, flesh, and bone fragments scattering the sunlight, Je Gangcheon kicked off the ruined saddle and soared.

[I also know that every time you are cornered, you invent new and strange techniques to overcome your enemies.]

When Qi, Essence, and Spirit were pushed to their absolute limit, the resulting force shimmered like a ray of light.

This was unmistakably the precursor to Arching Moon Dance. Having already used it once, it was clear he intended to shatter all eight of his extraordinary meridians.

[But that is nothing more than an individual’s talent—unless one ascends to the realm of the War God, it is meaningless. Commanding a force equal to an army is an entirely different matter.]

A sound like a drum being struck reverberated.

Perhaps because he was executing it without a warhorse?

In an instant, vibrations engulfed his body and violently shook the very atmosphere, as if an earthquake had struck the sky itself.

And it wasn’t just Je Gangcheon.

From behind Jeong Yeon-shin, where Haeil Kwoncheon faced the violet-clad woman, the same ominous resonance could be felt.

Somewhere beyond, rapid Light Movement techniques and an overwhelming tide of martial artists surged over the city walls of Yangyang.

A battlefield-wide surge in military will.

[From this day forward, Ipwang Fortress will fall. The barriers that divide the world—nations, ranks, bloodlines, and the distinction between orthodox and unorthodox—will become meaningless in the face of the famine that is about to engulf everything. I, the lowest of bandits, shall erase the ‘gaps’ that separate you all. This world—at least the martial world—must become one.]

Je Gangcheon’s intent flooded the battlefield like a waterfall, pulling everything toward him with an immense gravitational force.

Clearly, this was a form of Force Emission.

This was the Ultimate Survival Technique, a skill executed only when one had lost their warhorse.

A murky ripple emerged beneath the feet of the approaching martial artists near the fortress gates.

It looked almost like Devouring Absorption Technique was being activated from afar—

Their Light Movement-generated air currents were all being siphoned toward Je Gangcheon, just as the power of the previous cavalry charge had flowed into him.

A chorus of panicked voices.

At the same time, two swords flew from Jeong Yeon-shin’s waist, drawn and resheathed in a single motion.

For a fleeting moment, his Songmoon Blade traced an arc so sharp it seemed to slice through time itself.

The instant his blade pointed at Je Gangcheon—

All shockwaves disappeared.

Only the sound of flesh splitting apart remained.

A dull, hollow impact.

It burst from Je Gangcheon’s body.

And then—Jeong Yeon-shin, appearing like a mirage, dragged him down and planted a foot on his chest.

It had all happened in an instant.

Jeong Yeon-shin, his pupils burning a fierce blue, gazed down at him.

For a true master, there was no need for new techniques.

A bitter chuckle escaped Je Gangcheon’s lips.

His chest had been split open, so the sound was faint.

“...Such an absolute... state of balance. But if you keep pushing beyond your limits, how do you intend to face the masses—the entire martial world?”

A small gourd soared through the air.

Jeong Yeon-shin caught it without hesitation and glanced toward the one who had thrown it—a languid-looking young man in blue robes.

One of the Three Servants of Myeongryu Corps.

The scent of the gourd’s contents was familiar.

Thunder Immortal Wine.

A legendary elixir in Ipwang Fortress. He had drunk it once before, in front of the Lord of Ipwang Fortress, when he was bestowed the title Seomye.

Without hesitation, Jeong Yeon-shin uncorked the bottle and began drinking.

With the General Chief of the Green Forest Cavalry crushed beneath his feet—

With no effort to suppress the sound of his throat gulping—

For once, he was fully immersed in battle.

The battlefield fell silent.

Even the martial artists charging in stopped in their tracks.