Chapter 539: Chapter 539

An uninvited guest from none other than Mount Wudang, who brazenly summoned the Head Master of Wudang.

A woman clad in crimson light armor, worn as comfortably as silk robes.

The unique, ceaseless flow of internal energy from her Three Blossom-Drunken Purity Technique fluttered her cropped hair like a banner. A fierce spirit and youthful bravado radiated in tandem.

By Ipwang Fortress standards, she would be comparable to a Great Lord—an unmatched master.

Now, she stood still atop the hill.

Her eyes swept across Jeong Yeon-shin, Master Jade Veil, Wudang’s disciples, and Bukdo one by one, as if piecing together what had occurred earlier.

Jeong Yeon-shin, glancing at her, soon turned his gaze toward one of the elders—Master Jade Cliff—while sheathing his sword.

In that moment, a lingering hum—like a tongue vibrating against a blade—rose from the Song Gate Sword, but Jeong Yeon-shin did not let his gaze waver.

Acting Head of Wudang, who led over a hundred Taoist immortals with the dignity of a Grand Elder.

The middle-aged Taoist, with his square jaw, now wore an expression of detached serenity like a Shaolin monk.

Jeong Yeon-shin had learned to read faces since childhood. That was unmistakably the look of someone silently asking: “Now what?”

He’d often seen that same look on the children of Shin Yae-hyeon, peeking out from behind their older siblings. And beside them—always the swing on Dano Festival day.

But the moment Master Jade Cliff turned toward Jeong Yeon-shin, his expression softened.

His face, unusually friendly now. Despite being one who moved the entire Grand Wudang Sect, he respectfully brought his palms together. The uninvited guest was temporarily set aside.

"From here on, this is Wudang’s matter. If the opponent is from the Imperial Household, I have some sense of what their intentions may be. So I ask, Sir Jeong, please do not expend unnecessary energy here. Forgive me for the boldness, but... if you could rest at our main sanctuary with the Head Master, it would ease our hearts greatly."

You have borne much hardship.

Master Jade Cliff concluded in a deep voice. His every word and movement conveyed sincere respect.

At this moment, the wave of inner energy brushing Jeong Yeon-shin’s skin—one of the Taoist powers known as Dao Source Energy—felt more disciplined than overwhelming, perhaps due to the dignity of its wielder.

They are incredibly strong.

Among those forming the barrier that blocked Bukdo were elderly Taoist masters.

Likely elders of the Sage Order. Though their bodies had weakened with age and the unity of Jing-Qi-Shen had unraveled, their accumulated energy alone was staggering.

Each of them smiled at Jeong Yeon-shin with a flawless, serene grace.

The Taoists of Wudang, who watched over the livelihoods of the people in Ho-gwang alongside Ipwang Fortress, showed joy and gratitude without hesitation. Much like Sambong Zhenren once did.

Perhaps it was because he had shattered his inner demons and stepped forward on his own.

Jeong Yeon-shin could see it now.

That same face as Sambong Zhenren's was present in Master Jade Sword, and that same temperament flowed through the majority of Wudang’s disciples.

It was truly a remarkable thing.

Never had the word “Grandmaster” felt so real.

He had unified the scattered Taoist halls of Mount Wudang into one lineage of martial cultivation, and even in death, he had lived for centuries. To be remembered is to be immortal.

—I, the Divine Sword of Ipwang Fortress, ascend to the heavens.

Suddenly, the old voice of his maternal grandfather, Ma Yeon-jeok, brushed through Jeong Yeon-shin’s mind.

—Casting off this burdensome shell, I shall engrave an immortal name upon the world alongside you.

These were the words he had uttered as he ignited the Qing Flame of mutual destruction. And his opponent had been none other than the Bloodflame Cult Leader, one who Jeong Yeon-shin even now could not confidently defeat.

Only now did Jeong Yeon-shin begin to glimpse the true meaning hidden beneath those words.

In that moment, a Taiji symbol of blue flame etched itself deeper into his mind.

A sense of deepening martial enlightenment. A technique he had only recently created now moved like an extension of his body.

Even as his inner world churned, Jeong Yeon-shin drew the Song Gate Sword from the ribs of the Pale Phantom Nightmare.

With a tearing sound, the South Blossom Vast Tai Chi etched itself into the creature’s abdomen, and the radiant ring of sword energy that followed instantly cauterized the wound.

‘It worked somewhat. It did on the Head Master too.’

Leaving the creature’s shriek behind him, Jeong Yeon-shin sheathed the Song Gate Sword. A blade he would soon need to return to Wudang. But that didn’t matter right now.

He retrieved Master Jade Sword’s stone box from mid-air and handed it to Master Jade Veil.

At the same time, Jeong Yeon-shin’s gaze swept over the Wudang disciples once more. In that moment, instead of Taoist faces, he saw the warriors of Ipwang Fortress etched into his vision.

Shin So-bin and Cheongmyeong, Heon Won-chang and Tae Yeom-ryong, and above all, Baek Mi-ryeo—those faces appeared with striking clarity.

‘I have more, don’t I?’

A silent thought directed at Sambong and Master Jade Sword.

At that moment, Master Jade Veil slowly released his grip on the box he had received with difficulty.

Thus, the box of Master Jade Sword came to rest completely in those wrinkled hands.

Jeong Yeon-shin made no show of emptiness. Just because his hands were lighter did not mean his heart had been hollowed.

A massive weight struck the ground.

Jeong Yeon-shin turned his head sharply—and there they were.

A pair of monstrous warhorses, massive in scale.

Just their approach had already stirred clouds of dust across the ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) plain.

Even the faintest breeze now pressed heavy against Jeong Yeon-shin’s skin.

The reason Bukdo had been able to move so freely—

Wudang’s disciples had released their sword formation.

Now, in this sole clearing, Jeong Yeon-shin and Master Jade Veil stood side by side. In this world, there were few things worthy of wariness.

And so, Bukdo approached him on horseback—and halted a few steps away.

A towering figure over seven feet tall, wearing a deeply shadowed straw hat. Even the lower half of the face was faintly visible.

The atmosphere itself warped from sheer internal energy. The voice came muffled, resonant.

[You surpassed them both.]

“What are you talking about?”

[It is not strange in our land. Inaction changes with the warrior’s composure and the steppe’s sky. Yet even the child of the War God resides within you. This judgment is no mere southern breeze. My eyes hold the fury of the northern storm.]

Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t fully grasp the great figure’s words, but in these cases, it was usually the speaker who was being cryptic.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

He had heard the name. Undisputed high command of the Northern Jianghu. Naturally, as the leader of the Divine Sword Sect, he would need to conduct himself with no gaps. In everything to come.

"If you have business, come over here."

Jeong Yeon-shin began walking calmly—as though he understood everything perfectly.

This was Mount Wudang. As a mere guest, it was not his place to act like the master. The right thing was to yield.

[A fine spirit. Innate.]

The monstrous warhorses followed behind Bukdo as he complied without resistance.

A chill coursed down Jeong Yeon-shin’s spine.

If many in the Northern Jianghu had eyes like his, Ipwang Fortress and the people of the realm would face a grueling battle ahead.

Hadn’t they said the Great Wall had fallen?

Then, suddenly, a weathered voice followed after him.

That quiet, steady gait of the elder Taoist who chose to accompany Jeong Yeon-shin in this moment—brought great comfort.

They said Wudang could stand even without a Head Master. The meaning of that was immense.

Master Jade Cliff, acting as Wudang’s Head Master, could not take his eyes off Jeong Yeon-shin for some time. And for good reason.

A supreme master in complete harmony of Essence, Qi, and Spirit.

Generally, this level is achieved by reaching the Three Blossoms-Drunken Purity state and forging a new inner image unique to oneself.

Some imagine an unbroken circle, others a thousand swords, and certain masters envision an unsetting sun—each layering that image over their martial arts, deepening its essence.

The union of Essence, Qi, and Spirit—when form and inner image become one.

This was true for Jade Cliff as well.

‘What in the world...?’

Only, his inner world had changed again. Once a proud river, his image had now embraced a blazing flame.

The watery circle had turned into a ring of blue flame.

The blue-flame Taiji, which had vanished without a trace from the ground—he had been affected by the Deputy of the Divine Sword Corps.

Even the secret Taoist martial techniques of the Wudang Sect, once neatly lined up in his mind, now seemed like they could be burned away within this flame.

Unless it was a case of internal deviation, there was only one possible meaning to such a transformation.

His entire life’s worth of techniques was condensing into a single move.

The ever-calm glow in Jade Cliff’s eyes wavered. The next Head Master of Wudang had just gained an extraordinary enlightenment through an encounter with the Divine Sword Deputy of Ipwang Fortress.

This wasn’t just a great fortune—it was a tremendous event that could not be taken lightly, no matter how near to peerless mastery Jade Cliff already was.

The concept of Taiji isn’t exclusive to Wudang—it’s a principle studied across all Taoist schools under heaven.

“You speak of an Imperial Edict,”

The woman in crimson armor had already closed the distance to just ten paces as she continued,

“Yet the Head Master hides far away behind the Divine Sword Deputy, and the Acting Head Master is lost in thought before my very eyes.”

If she were truly an Imperial Emissary, then she should be closest to the Divine Sword Deputy here.

But the farther Jeong Yeon-shin walked, the clearer her voice became, as if gaining confidence with his departure.

“...I question the legitimacy of this so-called edict. And your identity as well. Weren’t the noble ones of Beijing embroiled in strife over who the next Son of Heaven would be?”

In contrast to how he’d addressed Jeong Yeon-shin, Jade Cliff’s demeanor toward her was harsh. His voice retained only the barest courtesy.

Even Jang Bong Jusehwa, who had approached near the clearing, paused slightly at the tension.

‘What a waste of time.’

He needed to settle this precious moment of insight. And now, of all places, at Wudang’s very heart, he had to confront a high-handed intruder as the sect’s acting head.

Even if the Wudang Taoists never claimed to rule Mount Wudang, they couldn’t help but feel disrespected.

That tension was evident in the woman’s eyes. At that moment, a sharp clicking sounded from the joints of her armor.

A sound made by the interlocking metal plates of her outfit, manipulated through a most unusual form of inner energy.

“If not for those ignorant Taoists trusting in Sir Jeong...”

“If you cannot trust a living Taiji, then what can one trust in this world?”

“Acting Head Master?”

Murmurs spread among the Wudang disciples drawing closer to the woman. But Jade Cliff remained unmoved, like the humble sage of Master Jade Sword’s lineage.

A warrior who seeks the Way through serving the people. A man of the Jianghu who wanted to spend all his time contemplating the Taiji now burning in his mind.

“There is no exaggeration in what I said. If you cannot prove your identity before I count to ten, I’ll leave it to my disciples to deal with you.”

“You’re naïve to the world.”

Yet the woman was no less extraordinary. Her next words bore the weight of the world’s current state.

“There is no place in this land untouched by the late emperor’s will. The Imperial Household is no different. His rightful heir has already ascended to the throne, and even the North faltered before his majesty’s might, halting the front lines. Thus, His Majesty now seeks to restore order beneath the Great Wall.”

As she spoke, she pulled a carved token from her robes.

A symbol of two trees whose roots overlapped from top and bottom. Resembling ancient trees rooted in water, it was the emblem of a legitimate heir of the military arts.

It was said to grant protection against heat and cold on the battlefield.

The border of the tree emblem glowed gold. It was a true divine artifact.

“The Emperor has changed? Since when...!”

The Wudang disciples stirred quietly as well. Even for those known as immortals above the clouds, the affairs of the world were of great interest.

For when the country trembles, the commoners perish first.

“...‘To summon the three greatest masters of the Imperial Household and the powerful figures of the world to reforge the blades of the realm, the Heavenly Martial Imperial Examination shall be held in Shaanxi. The Wudang Head Master is required to attend and bring honor to the event.’ You should take it as a great honor that the first edict of the new Emperor has fallen upon this land of Ho-gwang.”

As soon as the woman finished speaking, a man’s voice rustled in like a light breeze.

“Nanjili, Henan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan—you can bet any land housing a great sect has received it. To those martial artists who’ve become more like regional warlords, this is a once-in-a-lifetime gamble—the court throwing a grand summons.”

“How dare you speak so... Ma Gwang-ik?”

The woman and the Wudang Taoists turned their gazes toward a distant tree branch.

There, a one-eyed youth clad in black robes sat crouched atop a pine branch, waving casually toward Jeong Yeon-shin in the distance.

Meanwhile, Ma Gwang-ik Cheongmyeong’s mouth moved separately from that gesture.

“Apparently, after Guildmaster Joo Gwang-shin boldly charged into the Great Wall, the one pretending to be a war god turned out to be just a divine impostor. That’s probably why the Northern Jianghu has quieted—so they can hunt for the real one. And as for the so-called ‘Heavenly Martial Examination’...”

“Ma Gwang-ik, say no more. I request it in the name of the Supreme Tiger General.”

The woman spoke in a low, warning tone. But Cheongmyeong’s voice remained clear—just as his name implied.

“It’s a conscription martial tournament called by the Imperial Court across the entire Jianghu. It’s nothing like those regional Dragon-Phoenix Gatherings held by local noble families. I hear even Zhongnan Sect received the edict. And among them, one of the most talked-about prodigies—the young disciple of the Zhongnan Sword Immortal—is said to be included...”

It happened in a flash.

At sunset, a purple shadow filled the clearing. In that instant, the hem of a robe reflected in the eyes of the Supreme Tiger General carried the force of an unstoppable natural disaster.

“Hye-ah? You mean Jeong Hye?”

The voice came first, and the reverse wind of lightness skill followed, expanding in concentric ripples.

The world had begun to move.