79 - Missions, Intelligence (10) - The Heaven-Slaying Sword

Mok Riwon exhaled deeply, steadying his Qi. Had it not been for a momentary judgment to cover his skin with Qi at the moment of the explosion, he would already have been burnt to a crisp. Mok Riwon bowed his head to check his condition. His upper clothing had completely burned away, leaving no trace. His skin had a slight reddish hue, seemingly unable to fully eradicate the heat. The throbbing pain was likely due to burns. ‘I can move.’ I can wield my sword. I will not fall from this. Mok Riwon raised his head. He exhaled sharply at the sight of Oh Gang Ak still laughing mockingly. "Shall we continue?" Oh Gang Ak was covered in wounds, blood streaming down his body. From his staggering state, it seemed he could no longer use martial arts or techniques. Oh Gang Ak clucked his tongue at Mok Riwon's words. "As if." Oh Gang Ak once again enveloped himself in threatening Qi. As a result, the bleeding from his wounds ceased as they sizzled shut. "Would I give up so easily? Huh? Why would I be a devil if I gave up just because my skin got scratched a bit?" Mok Riwon's attacks were fierce but lacked substance. For some reason, he had not touched a single vital point, and by targeting predictable areas, it was possible to avoid fatal injuries just by surrounding the skin with demonic Qi. As such, having stemmed the bleeding, he could fight again. Oh Gang Ak glared at Mok Riwon for a moment and then continued. "...Right, you said you wouldn't kill me." -I'll spare your life. That's the greatest mercy I can offer. The words of the Deputy Sect Leader echoed in his mind. They overlapped with what Mok Riwon said. Arrogant. And disgusting. Looking down on each other, rushing to attack in a moment so busy, there could hardly be a more nauseating arrogance. "What about that star makes you so cocksure? Do you think you own the world just because you have it?" Oh Gang Ak felt a boiling rage within. How should he describe this feeling? He detested the mere existence of his opponent. Beyond just being alive and breathing, he hated even the record of his existence. If only that thing did not exist. If only that star were gone, everything would have been mine. The thought plagued him incessantly. Though Oh Gang Ak would not admit it, the name of this emotion was clearly envy. "Without that star, you're nothing." "...I never wished for that star. And I will not rely on it." "That's what they all say. You know what's common among those who possess a star? They're arrogant, thinking they can control it. Yet eventually, they become fools clinging to the star, swept away by fate." The Demonic Infernal Qi surged, taking a more vivid hue of blood. Oh Gang Ak's sclera too matched the color, turning bloody. "Try using the star. I'll suppress it. I'll show you that it's worth nothing." Superior to the star. Oh Gang Ak was confident he could prove that. "What does a mere peak realm brat know?" Roar! The Demonic Infernal Qi became even more violent. Beyond enveloping Oh Gang Ak, it began to form the shape of a sinister spirit behind him. Demonic Infernal Qi - Infernal Spirit Technique. A technique and Qi Gong that began to unfold, proving the pinnacle of mastery. As Oh Gang Ak raised his arm, the spirit did likewise. The ghost, a manifestation of his envy and anger, eventually reached out towards Mok Riwon. Thud! The stretching hand swept through space. In that moment, Mok Riwon felt an intense murderous aura heating up his entire body and thrust his sword forward, stepping into the Jin frame. 'Not twice!' He wouldn't be caught off guard by Qi Gong a second time. Having fully understood Qi Gong during the duel with the Metal Sword, there wouldn't be another time he'd be taken by surprise just because of Qi Gong. Hiss. A dark Qi wave surged from Mok Riwon's sword. Once again, the first form of the Thousand Chain Sword was executed. Soul-Escaping Burst. A sword that blurs both instinct and emotion, exclusively delivering meticulously calculated attacks. A sword that torments its own soul to bring forth nothing but the blade. It began to sweep away the sinister spirit's hand head-on. Boom! Qi clashed against Qi, and the sword repelled the hand, a storm erupting in an instant. Dark winds scattered the flames, which then regathered into a hand once again. Amidst this, Mok Riwon stepped forward. 'This won't lead to victory.' No matter how much he attacked the Qi Gong, he couldn't defeat the devil. It was merely an act of shaving off the opponent's power, and the rate at which he was using up his own power was faster. 'Engage.' Thud! Mok Riwon took another step forward. It was a mystical step. Despite moving forward, all movements served as preparatory actions supporting the sword technique, blurring Mok Riwon's form. Accelerating beyond the control of the sword, he added the rotational force of each step into the motion. This was a footwork devised solely for the Soul-Escaping Burst. Ghostly Rapid Steps. Swiftly- Mok Riwon's form blurred, seemingly splitting into multiple images. Oh Gang Ak advanced with a 'Ha!' laugh. "Think bustling around will do you any good!" With the other hand that had been idle until then, he extended it forward in a move that was a technique. It was to use the Demonic Infernal Qi through the body of the sinister spirit. "Use the star!" As Oh Gang Ak clenched his fist, the sinister spirit did the same. Intensifying the Qi wave, the spirit's fist became more distinct. Bubbles of Qi formed over it, creating a shape as if it was about to burst any moment. Oh Gang Ak thrust his fist forward. Exploding Fist. True to its name, explosions began to erupt along the path of the fist. Mok Riwon's breath 'gasped' to a halt. That is dangerous. With that judgment, Mok Riwon's body dived lower. While maintaining his sprinting speed, he shot forward as if he’d become a shadow. Even amidst this, the sword accelerates. The sword, out of Mok Riwon's control and unwilling to lose its gained speed, continued to scatter light as it clashed against the punching hand and the ground. Five steps. It was exactly at that distance that the two men's eyes met. A distance too close for a sinister spirit to interfere. Oh Gang Ak ground his teeth. Mok Riwon narrowed his pupils. Eventually, the sword, accelerated beyond its limits, shot towards his arm. "Don't make me laugh-!" Instantly, with Oh Gang Ak's shout, an explosion emerged from his body. BOOM! * In that fleeting moment, Mok Riwon shot out a Qi wave beyond the reach of his sword. Using the Soul-Escaping Burst, he concentrated internal power and showered it upon Oh Gang Ak's shoulder. Slowly, a dark Qi sword pierced through the explosion, eventually embedding itself in his shoulder. Drip-drip-. The imagery of blood spilling engraved itself onto Mok Riwon's retina. Yet, his heart was filled with despair. 'It's shallow.' Despite having shot it with the resolve to sever an arm, sacrificing defense, it barely penetrated the shoulder joint. Within the elongated moment, Mok Riwon sensed defeat. The explosive Qi was approaching. There was no way to stop it anymore. 'Despite my stubbornness.' Would it end in failure like this? In a moment of bitterness, Mok Riwon faintly smiled. His eyes were tightly shut. That's when it happened. WHOOSH! An oppressive force that overshadowed the space swept over Mok Riwon and Oh Gang Ak. Mok Riwon's eyes snapped open in that instant. Oh Gang Ak let out a hollow laugh with a 'Huh!'. "Rise." 'Whoosh!' The explosive Qi was split. And raising his head, Mok Riwon saw the unfamiliar back of a familiar person. “…Sword Dragon.” "I said, rise." A deep blue Qi engulfed the entire space. Its density was comparable to the pinnacle reached by Oh Gang Ak. It was the Qi of Namgung Jin-cheon, praised to be unsurpassed in strength by his generation. Namgung Jin-cheon glanced sideways at Mok Riwon. His eyes, for some reason, were filled with anger. "There's no room for failure. Rise. We’ll somehow capture that bastard." The moment Namgung Jin-cheon turned his head back, Oh Gang Ak began to laugh maniacally. "Imperial Might!" The shoulder was aching. No, it felt crushed. The Qi wave was so suffocatingly dense, you would wonder how much elixir had been applied. But that was it. "You're just the same, a pig!" Oh Gang Ak's Infernal Spirit Qi swelled once again. This time, too, he advanced with a punch. Along with this, Oh Gang Ak stepped forward, his right shoulder joint shattered as if he didn’t care, the punch was exhilarating. WHOOM! The air burst into a loud explosion. Seeing it approach, Namgung Jin-cheon raised his sword. "Who is calling whom a pig." Zing! Blue Qi wrapped around Namgung Jin-cheon's sword. Immediately thereafter, the sword slashed downward. There was no intricate technique. Just overwhelming might. This was the very sword he had obsessively trained every day since the duel with the Metal Sword. Ssshhhk! The Infernal Spirit, the sinister fist, was split into two. "Silent Dragon!" Mok Riwon launched forward. Despite the dwindling internal energy causing breathlessness, it wasn’t a problem. ‘I can still wield my sword.’ The body moves. There was enough internal energy left to empower the sword. The previous maneuver had damaged the devil’s shoulder to the point of rendering it useless. Then there was only one target. ‘The intact shoulder.’ Mok Riwon's form scattered. Once again, the sword began to accelerate. Thump, thump! Thump-thump-thump! The sword starting to rev up on the ground turned into a faints veil of light. With the Soul-Escaping Burst and the Ghostly Rapid Steps unfolding together, Mok Riwon reached right in front of Oh Gang Ak in an instant. Oh Gang Ak's eyes bulged. 'Don't make me laugh.' This wasn’t it. He had intended to conquer the star, not to be subdued by a combined assault. He meant to suppress a beast lost in murderous rage, not to crumble by techniques. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Crack! Oh Gang Ak reached out his hand. He reeled in the Infernal Spirit to wrap around his intact arm. This too belonged to the realm of Qi Gong techniques. It was the essence of his technique to incorporate Qi Gong into his body by merging with the Infernal Spirit. The moment it reached out. Crackle. Mok Riwon's extending sword pierced through Oh Gang Ak’s fist. ‘…Huh?’ Before the pain, what unfolded visually caught his eye. The blade, weaving through the fist wreathed in explosive Qi, was slowly advancing. From the joints of the fingers, across the back of the hand, through the forearm and elbow, all the way to the shoulder. Sizzle! His own arm was being split lengthwise. It was inconceivable. Qi Gong wasn’t supposed to be something that could be blocked by mere sword energy. It comprised the true meaning of martial arts that he had dedicated his life to, embodying will and intent. It wasn’t just physical force, but the manifestation of thought, so why was it being divided by a mere blade? ‘My whole life….’ In that instant of reflection, Oh Gang Ak realized. The lifelong ambition of sitting in the Deputy Sect Leader's seat, aspiring to one day ascend to the supreme position, was it still ongoing? ‘…Is it?’ It wasn’t. From the moment he encountered that man, from the moment his face was torn away by that man, his will had changed. It became tainted. The Infernal Spirit no longer sought the path of a devil craving dominance but became a defeated individual filled with envy, and since that day, he had not become stronger. Even though he had been at the pinnacle of his power the day he lost his position as Deputy Sect Leader, decades had passed and he was still at the pinnacle. Drip-drip. As blood scattered in the air, Oh Gang Ak had a realization. ‘I’ve regressed.’ Engulfed in envy, he had been continuously regressing all this time.