Ep476 - I Became a Drunkard in a Martial Arts Novel.

As they approached the enormous inferno, the heat became overwhelmingly intense. For an ordinary person, even being near the flames would be enough to cause them to melt from the heat alone. However, this was not the case for the two individuals present. Their bodies, having undergone a metamorphosis, were unbelievably tough and resilient for mere humans. Even so, entering the blaze directly was a daunting task, even for them. The heat was so oppressive that sweat poured down their bodies, causing their clothes to cling stickily to their skin. Eventually, they wrapped themselves in protective qi and plunged into the fiery abyss. Whoosh—! Red flames writhed across the thin, translucent barrier of their qi shield. "Ugh...!" Myunghyun felt a chill run down his spine. He clearly envisioned the dire outcome had they faced the flames bare-bodied, without the protection of their qi. After running across the flames swirling around their knees, they finally confronted their adversary. "Ha ha ha! It's been a while, Baek Woojin." She greeted Baek Woojin with a hearty laugh. Then her gaze shifted to the unwelcome guest, whom she regarded with disdain. "Hmph... What brings an old man who's half-dead here? Did you come seeking a burial site?" Despite her taunting provocations, Myunghyun remained composed, smiling sorrowfully as he drew his sword. "The reason this old man is here is quite simple." The pointed tip of the sword extended sharply toward her. "To finish the battle I could not conclude with you last time." "What...?" Jin Miyeon laughed, amused. How absurd it was that an elder who couldn't even withstand one of her blows back then had now thrown himself into the inferno to face her. "Ha ha ha ha ha!" Her laughter boomed across Mount Kunlun. Each echo of her laughter seemed to stir the blazing red flames, as if they danced at her command, eager to devour their prey that had willingly stepped into their maw. After laughing for quite some time, she asked Baek Woojin, still smiling broadly. "Is this true? Hmm? Not you, but that elder is the one who will face me?" Baek Woojin, uninterested in further conversation with her, answered curtly. "Yes, that's correct." "Hmm... Is that so." Her eyes and mouth twisted into a sulky expression. "Hmph, that's not bad, I suppose." Upon reflection, she realized she owed Myunghyun some debt. Had it not been for his intervention, she would have already taken over Qinghai Fortress and faced Baek Woojin empowered by the stronghold. Had she fortified her position there, perhaps things would have turned out differently for her. "Thinking about it... I must kill them both." One was simply not enough. Determined, she resolved to bring both Baek Woojin and that old man down with her. "Oh, how pleased the Master will be." With Mount Kunlun set ablaze, along with the lives of Baek Woojin, the Sword God, and one of the Three Sages, the Senior Sage. This would more than redeem her momentary lapse of faith in her deity! "Alright then." Shing! Her once ordinary fingernails extended, lengthening into the claws of a beast, capable of slicing through steel with ease. Enveloped in bright red qi, her claws glistened with the essence of the Fire Sage's power, imbued with the fiery element. "I'll kill you both in a single stroke." No sooner had she spoken than Jin Miyeon's form disappeared, vanishing in an instant. Or so it seemed. "Ugh...!" Keeping track of her elongated trail in the air, Myunghyun swiftly redirected his sword to his side. Clang! In that moment, claw and sword collided. "Ngh...!" Overpowered in speed and strength, Myunghyun staggered back. "Ha ha ha! Did you really think you could oppose me with just that? Hmm? Huh?!" Mocking him, Jin Miyeon relentlessly unleashed her powerful strikes, forcing Myunghyun to desperately fend off each blow, each parry met with searing heat. Shing! Clang! Kaa-kak! Continuously pushed back, Myunghyun could do nothing but defend, unable to even consider a counterattack, as one perilous moment after another threatened to pierce his heart. Yet, Myunghyun did not fall. No. "Ugh...!?" Not a single attack touched his body. After all, the essence of the Kunlun martial arts lay in flexibility and adaptation. And within those principles, a sudden explosive power shone. Patiently deflecting and absorbing every assault with his unyielding, yet flexible swordsmanship, he awaited his chance. "This old fool... Are you just going to keep blocking until you die?!" Frustrated, she screamed out. But Myunghyun responded only with a serene smile. "D-Damn...!" She was running out of time. The power she absorbed was slowly eating away at her body. Crack! As the fissure in her chest widened a bit more, her patience snapped. "Argh! This is infuriating—!" It was a side effect of the Fire Sage's technique. The excessive heat clouded her mind, shortening her already fraying patience. "Die, die, die already!" From her ten nails, bursts of energy erupted. Each strike bore enough destructive force to decisively claim a life. Myunghyun deftly twisted the trajectory of the force as it touched his sword, diverting its path away. The redirected energy dissipated harmlessly into the sky, the ground, or collided with trees. "Hah, hah…!" Even for her, this latest assault was a tremendous effort. No matter how abundant the energy contained within the Fire Sage's technique, her body could only harness so much. Having expended a great deal of her energy, she needed time to replenish it. And Myunghyun did not let this moment slip away. "Hah-at…!" He had walked the path with hope in his heart. Mount Kunlun. On the land where the essence of immortals was most palpable, he diligently honed the martial arts of Kunlun. Thus, he crafted a scenario where Kunlun's martial prowess could shine brightest. The internal energy he summoned enveloped him in a tangible, soft aura. This aura gradually transformed into a dense, white mist, which manifested as clouds. Among them, branches extended long, adorned with peaches as plump as a baby's bottom. Cloud Peach Orchard. Within the clouds where the dragon roamed. And there unfolded the orchard, a manifestation of his lifelong yearning to touch immortality. "What... What is this…!" Everything beneath his mental construct was suppressed. The blazing red flames consuming Mount Kunlun were swallowed by the white clouds, disappearing entirely. "My... my flames...!" Those flames were her own construct. She had ascended to her current realm by forcibly integrating the Fire Sage's power. A world crudely dominated by flames, leaving no room for anything else, resulting from the intrusion. No matter how fierce, the flawed could not defeat the complete. Her flames vanished because of this reason. Hidden within the clouds he conjured, Myunghyun finally spoke. "I have always felt sorrow." Jin Miyeon thrashed around, her eyes wide, trying to locate him, but her attempts were futile. "Where are you?! Show yourself now! You cowardly old man…!" Ignoring her outburst, Myunghyun continued. "I have always regretted thinking I never showed you the martial arts that embody my life's work before my defeat." The world is vast, with countless exceptional people. Thus, experiencing defeat is natural. There is no shame in it. It only means their cultivation was deeper than his at that time. But this time, it was both shameful and regrettable. Because he had not showcased the essence of all his years of dedication to his opponent. Thus, when Baek Woojin spared his life, he was genuinely grateful. For getting the opportunity to reveal his mental construct to the woman who almost brought him death. His strength was waning, unable to maintain it for much longer. Therefore, the contest became even simpler. "If my energy depletes and this world dissipates, victory is yours." Jin Miyeon gritted her teeth and twisted her lips. "Hmph... Do you really think I'll just stand here and take an old man's attacks?!" Fwoosh! Her body was engulfed in a bright red flame. It was the manifestation of protective qi, saturated with fiery energy. Having fortified her defenses, Myunghyun commenced his attack. Within the thick clouds, his figure soared. Soon, rain-like qi poured down. Boom! "Ngh...!" The explosive power of the Taehodo Dragon Sword's method relentlessly hammered at her protective qi. As the rain of qi ceased, she relaxed her stance to counter. "W-What is this…!" But she couldn't retaliate. Moments earlier, Myunghyun, who had been launching qi attacks from the clouds, disappeared again. In the brief pause, Myunghyun reappeared and swung his sword. Boom! The ability allowing this was one of the most renowned techniques of the Kunlun sect, the Cloud Dragon's Eight Movements. A supreme martial skill that invokes the imagery of a dragon weaving through the clouds with eight dynamic movements. The thick clouds served as camouflage, hiding Myunghyun's contorting movements. Because of this, Jin Miyeon couldn't discern where Myunghyun was moving. And not being able to predict the direction of the attack meant her response would become significantly slower. “Ugh…!” No matter how sturdy her protective qi was, it couldn't last indefinitely. Especially with Jin Miyeon having nearly exhausted her internal energy in a fit of rage. Although the Fire Sage's technique continued to supply energy, it was insufficient to maintain a full-body protective qi shield. ‘This can't go on…!’ She felt the presence of death looming at her nape. It was terrifying. The will of the Heavenly Demon, her vengeance. To achieve neither and to die in vain was simply unacceptable. “No, no, no, no…!” Her protective qi gradually peeled away. As fear reached its zenith, her gaze turned to the fissure on her chest. Crack! Death approached closer with every passing moment. With each heartbeat, the power of the Fire Sage grew stronger, ironically fueling her resolve not to die in vain. Thus, she decided to hasten her demise. Crunch! She drove her nails into the crack on her chest. And she extended its length with her own hands. Crack! Red lines spread rapidly across her upper body. Simultaneously, the energy of the Fire Sage embedded in her heart surged throughout her body. In moments, her body, imbued entirely with divine energy, erupted in flames. “Aaaah!” A scream mingled with agony and ecstasy. At that instant, the expanding pillar of flame began erasing the world Myunghyun had created around her. “No, this can't be…!” Watching his mental construct erased and the world reigniting, Myunghyun groaned. “Huhehe, hahaha…!” From within the flames, she burst into laughter. Crack! The crack extending from her chest had reached her face, but it didn't matter anymore. ‘With this power…!’ With this, she could reduce those contemptible beings and even Mount Kunlun to mere ashes. “I’ll kill them all…!” Her eyes consumed by madness. She ceaselessly drew upon the infinite energy coursing through her, forming a massive sphere. A colossal fireball, tightly packed with the flames of the Fire Sage's technique. Like a rising sun, it brightly illuminated the world. “Everything…, everything will burn!” The fireball, like a miniature sun, descended toward Mount Kunlun. Rumble…! As the roaring sound of terror shook Mount Kunlun and the fireball neared its impact on the mountain’s base— The world was overturned once more. --- Author's Note: I will return with the next installment. Thank you for always reading. Have a peaceful night. (_ _)