A rough and domineering energy flowed from Jin Pae-cheon’s body.
From far across the dark sea, a quiet cry could be heard.
The Martial Alliance Leader, Jin Pae-cheon, found a long-lost yearning within that darkness.
The version of himself from a time when he fought like a madman, without caring what others thought.
A time when he didn't yield the first strike for the sake of appearances, and showed no mercy to the enemies he wanted to kill.
Yes, he too had such a time.
A time when he lived freely, without worrying about others, however brief it may have been.
Geom Mugeuk, who was watching, felt that today he would be able to see his true nature.
'Show them clearly.
Show them who the Alliance Leader truly is.'
In truth, it was a side Geom Mugeuk had never seen before.
In his life before regression, he never had the chance to witness Jin Pae-cheon’s martial arts.
As Hwa Yul-cheong drew his sword, an aura of darkness swirled around his body.
The energy coiled around him like a snake.
As if to display the essence of the Darkness Palace, the energy was sinister, giving the feeling of a frozen hand squeezing one's heart.
Hwa Yul-cheong corrected what Jin Pae-cheon had said earlier.
“You are not the one who will bring the curtain down on this era.”
The dark energy flowing from him spread, encroaching on the surroundings and growing thicker.
This ominous aura alone was enough to feel how powerful he was.
Even seeing this fearsome momentum, Jin Pae-cheon was not intimidated in the least.
Rather, a faint smile formed on his lips.
It was the joy not of an Alliance Leader, but of a martial artist, facing a battle with a strong opponent.
Geom Mugeuk, watching, was curious.
Just what role did Hwa Yul-cheong play in the Darkness Palace?
A master of that level must know of Hwa Mugi’s existence.
Perhaps the person he mentioned moments ago, the one who would bring the curtain down on this era, was Hwa Mugi.
But Geom Mugeuk, as he had done until now, thought of Hwa Mugi as someone who didn't exist.
Though so much had changed since his regression, he hoped that the time of Hwa Mugi's appearance, at least, would not change.
He wanted him to appear only after he had finished all his preparations.
He fervently hoped that one day, while playing Go with his father or reading a book with the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, he could simply say, "I'll be back in a moment," and go kill Hwa Mugi.
So that when they asked where he went, he could say, "I just took care of something I had to do. Is it my turn to place a stone?"
Geom Mugeuk looked up at the sky.
A light drizzle began to fall in the misty bamboo forest.
With this rain, the curtain rose on the stage.
The moment the rain hit the ground!
Jin Pae-cheon vanished from his spot.
There was no sound, no sign of a leap.
The moment Hwa Yul-cheong looked up.
Jin Pae-cheon was already striking down with his sword from above his head.
It was as if the man who had been in front of him had been cut and pasted above his own head.
That was how fast Jin Pae-cheon's lightness arts were.
A sword striking down as fast as light.
Swiiiiiish!
Kaang!
Light and light intersected.
If Jin Pae-cheon was light, so was Hwa Yul-cheong.
Hwa Yul-cheong parried Jin Pae-cheon’s sword with his own.
“The Alliance Leader, launching a surprise attack…”
He tried to mock him for the sneak attack to shake his mind, but Hwa Yul-cheong had no such opportunity.
Kaang! Kaaang!
Jin Pae-cheon's fierce attacks continued.
This was a Martial Alliance Leader who did not yield the first strike.
There were no more pretenses.
To survive, he was prepared to throw dirt in his opponent's eyes.
In other words, his shackles had been released.
Swish! Swish!
Jin Pae-cheon's attacks, striking at his vital points, were strong and fast.
Typically, if one is strong, one is slow, and one must sacrifice strength for speed, but Jin Pae-cheon had both.
He was fast and strong.
And Hwa Yul-cheong received all of those powerful attacks.
An ordinary master’s sword would have shattered long ago.
But Hwa Yul-cheong’s sword did not break.
A powerful dark energy was protecting it.
Watching this, Geom Mugeuk realized one important fact.
'This isn't the sword art Hwa Mugi used.'
Though he and Lee Ahn had their chests pierced before they could even properly fight Hwa Mugi, he remembered one thing for sure.
He definitely did not use a sword art that emitted such an aura of darkness.
'Hwa Mugi used a different martial art.'
Yes, no matter how strong it seemed, that martial art could not have defeated his father's Nine Calamities Demon Art.
By watching this fight, Geom Mugeuk had discovered a very important fact.
The swords of the two men flew fiercely at each other, each blade carrying decades of pent-up resentment.
Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaengchaeng!
The sound of the two swords clashing, so fast they were invisible, sounded like a duet of musicians.
It did not slow down and speed up.
The instruments continued to accelerate, rushing towards a climax.
Sword strokes embroidered the air and vanished.
The strokes looked like a painting drawn by an artist.
Though countless lines were drawn and erased, lines that an ordinary person could not recognize, there was someone who understood the value of this painting.
To Geom Mugeuk, they were beautiful lines.
It was a beautiful painting that contained the lifelong martial studies of two masters.
To be able to watch a duel between such masters this closely was a stroke of luck that could be called a fortuitous encounter.
Geom Mugeuk watched Jin Pae-cheon's martial arts with a sense of awe.
The Alliance Leader could have asked him to step aside, so as not to reveal his martial arts.
If he had, Geom Mugeuk would have retreated far away.
But Jin Pae-cheon did not.
He was showing all of his martial arts.
To someone who could become his enemy in the future.
This was the measure of the Martial Alliance Leader, Jin Pae-cheon.
A vessel so large that the Young Cult Master of the Demon Sect could be fully immersed in it.
Thank you, Alliance Leader.
The way to repay that sentiment was not to deliberately look away.
He engraved the fight of the two men in his heart more diligently than any other.
Before the fight began, Geom Mugeuk had considered intervening.
What if Jin Pae-cheon was in a dangerous situation?
He had intended to jump in without hesitation.
Dealing with Jin Pae-cheon's resentment was a problem for later.
He had absolutely no intention of letting him die in this fight.
But once the fight began, that thought changed.
It had to change.
Could he even interfere in that fight?
That thought naturally arose, as there was no opening in the two men's battle.
The moment an opening appeared, the fight would be over before he had a chance to intervene.
That was how incredible their skills were.
When the symphony of clashing swords reached its peak!
Papapapak!
Blood spurted from Hwa Yul-cheong’s arm and side.
In such a situation, one might throw a verbal jab while enjoying the advantageous position.
But Jin Pae-cheon, like a predator focused on the hunt, pressed his opponent even more fiercely.
Watching him, one could read his mind.
It doesn't have to be a grand technique.
As long as it can kill the opponent.
Seeing such a side of Jin Pae-cheon, Geom Mugeuk wished he could show this fight to Lee Ahn, Seo Daeryong, and his other subordinates.
Look, even the Martial Alliance Leader is fighting desperately without letting his guard down for a single moment, so who do you think you are!
Of course, that "you" included himself.
Hwa Yul-cheong desperately created distance.
But that was something Jin Pae-cheon had intentionally allowed.
Papapapapapak!
Dozens of Sword Qi burst up from the ground.
It was the first time Geom Mugeuk had seen it.
A martial art where Sword Qi burst up from the ground!
Jin Pae-cheon's signature martial art, the Imperial Sword Forms, was unleashed.
Imperial Sword Forms, Fourth Form: Creation of Heaven and Earth.
Dozens of Sword Qi pierced through the ground and shot upwards.
After becoming the Martial Alliance Leader, he had never used a form beyond the third.
Because from the fourth form onward, the techniques were purely for killing, he had not seen the need to display this domineering martial art.
Hwa Yul-cheong flew into the air to avoid the Sword Qi.
The only place to escape was the air.
Just then, the fifth form, linked to the fourth, was unleashed.
Imperial Sword Forms, Fifth Form: Flying Sword Dance.
Dozens of Sword Qi rained down on him, exposed in the air.
It was like dozens of arrows being fired at once, but the speed was different.
It was as if they were being fired from a mechanism, as fast as light itself.
He could not avoid the attacks coming from below and in front.
Knowing he couldn't block them all, Hwa Yul-cheong pushed his protective energy to its limit and swung his sword as much as he could.
Peopeopeopeong!
The Sword Qi that he failed to block with his sword struck his body.
Hwa Yul-cheong was sent flying and crashed to the ground.
But Jin Pae-cheon did not stop his attack.
Shiiiiiiik.
A single strand of Sword Qi scraped along the ground, shooting forward as if it were alive.
It was an attack that would have split the fallen man in two.
The moment the Sword Qi swept past the spot where Hwa Yul-cheong had been, he vanished from sight.
Geom Mugeuk thought he had used his dark energy to escape somewhere, but he had crossed space in an instant and reappeared.
Right behind Jin Pae-cheon.
Paaat!
Blood spurted from Jin Pae-cheon’s shoulder.
If he hadn't instinctively twisted his body to dodge, his arm would have been severed.
Geom Mugeuk, watching, was startled.
Not because Jin Pae-cheon was cut by the sword, nor because Hwa Yul-cheong's movement was as fast as a flash of lightning.
It wasn't even because the attack that cut Jin Pae-cheon's shoulder was a truly swift sword.
'I couldn't hear a thing!'
The moment he attacked Jin Pae-cheon, Geom Mugeuk heard nothing.
Not the sound of Hwa Yul-cheong moving, nor the sound of the sword cutting through the air.
No matter how fast a sword is, it should make a sound for a fleeting moment.
It was as if his world was completely silent.
That was why Jin Pae-cheon had allowed the attack.
A soundless sword.
It was the unleashing of Hwa Yul-cheong's signature martial art, the Dark Heaven Silent Sword Art.
Geom Mugeuk knew better than anyone how difficult this attack was to block.
Since there was no sound, he couldn't rely on his sense of hearing.
When an opponent uses a swift sword, one must rely solely on sight.
For masters on the level of Jin Pae-cheon and Hwa Yul-cheong, they fight using all their senses, not just sight.
Of course, hearing was the second most important sense after sight.
And hearing was especially important if the opponent used a swift sword.
But to hear nothing at all?
And the single most decisive reason this attack was so tricky was this.
Without sound, it was impossible to gauge the strength of the incoming attack.
In the end, one always had to assume the strongest attack was coming and block accordingly.
Naturally, this would lead to extreme consumption of inner energy.
Geom Mugeuk could tell.
'This is the martial art he prepared for the day he would fight the Alliance Leader!'
Hwa Yul-cheong smiled coldly and said.
“I will be the one to bring down the curtain on your era."
The moment he finished speaking!
Kaang!
The second attack was blocked.
Yes, someone like the Alliance Leader might be able to block it once instinctively.
Chaeng!
But the third attack was also blocked.
For a moment, surprise flickered across Hwa Yul-cheong’s face.
Then, Jin Pae-cheon said something shocking.
“I can hear everything.”
Not only Hwa Yul-cheong, but Geom Mugeuk too was surprised.
Because Geom Mugeuk couldn't hear it.
Hwa Yul-cheong didn't believe it.
"Don't bluff just because you got lucky a few times."
In a flash, Hwa Yul-cheong struck from another place, at another point.
It was absolutely impossible to block.
It was a martial art that moved without revealing any sound or aura.
A martial art polished solely for this day.
Kaang!
But Jin Pae-cheon blocked the next attack as well.
Just then!
A huge wave of Sword Qi silently descended from above Jin Pae-cheon’s head.
Kwaaaaang!
Not only the sword-swinging attacks, but this Sword Qi attack also made no sound.
When the rising smoke settled, Jin Pae-cheon was standing in the same spot.
A deep hole was carved into the ground next to him, where he had narrowly dodged the attack.
It had enough power to cause a serious injury if it had been a direct hit.
But Jin Pae-cheon had dodged even that attack.
"You can really hear it?"
Startled, he hid in the darkness.
In an instant, the surroundings grew dark.
It was as if the only lantern in a lightless place had been suddenly snuffed out.
In the pitch-black darkness.
Geom Mugeuk knew.
Hwa Yul-cheong had unleashed a martial art using the aura of darkness.
Both Jin Pae-cheon and Geom Mugeuk stood in the darkness.
From within the darkness, Hwa Yul-cheong’s voice was heard.
“Truly incredible.”
His voice, filled with surprise and a sense of futility, was calm.
It seemed he believed that, at the very least, this darkness would protect him.
“Jin Pae-cheon."
For the first time, he called Jin Pae-cheon by his name.
This moment, hearing his name called, felt truly unfamiliar to Jin Pae-cheon.
Who would have dared to call him by his name after he became the Alliance Leader?
Come to think of it, in all the long years they had known each other as friends, Hwa Yul-cheong had never once called him by his name.
“I hated you.”
For the first time, he revealed his true feelings.
The emotion revealed after decades was hatred.
“I truly hated seeing you pretend for the sake of the Righteous Path martial artists. Most of the things you did were things you wouldn't have done if you weren't the Martial Alliance Leader, right?"
Geom Mugeuk could tell.
He was trying to shake Jin Pae-cheon’s mind in any way he could.
He could tell that this darkness had the effect of summoning inner demons.
The Heavenly Demon Body-Protecting Art had already begun to activate, protecting him.
Could the Alliance Leader withstand this dark energy?
Jin Pae-cheon did not fall for his provocation.
Something began to glow in the darkness.
It was Jin Pae-cheon’s sword.
Swaaaaaaaah.
The sword shone, imbued with a bright light, and that light illuminated Jin Pae-cheon’s face.
His resolute expression was unchanged.
The moment Jin Pae-cheon’s sword cut through the air.
Chwaaaak!
The curtain of darkness was sliced apart by his sword.
Like a pitch-black cloth being torn, the darkness split, and light poured in.
Walking out of the torn darkness and into the light, Jin Pae-cheon spoke.
“Now, you will come to hate me even more.”