"Really?"

The Azure Dragon Lord's face was painted with confusion.

"Lord, is this...?"

The masters of the Azure Dragon Hall, who held aloft the noble banners of the Azure Dragon, were just as shaken.

They had just heard from the Gaebong Clan Lord that the Original Spirit of the First Heavenly Demon had manifested.

It went beyond mere disturbance—this was utter shock. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

And yet, the face of the Gaebong Clan Lord remained calm.

"This sword technique... the skill with the blade is that of the Sword Master. I suppose only such martial power could stand against the Heavenly Demon."

"I've seen enough. I’ll be on my way."

A tall, silent old man—Ak Bi-gang, who had lost both arms—spoke to Jeong Yeon-shin. Then he casually kicked up the Muk Ryeon Spear, the family’s command token, and thrust it into the pack on his back.

Step.

He turned slowly, then glanced at Dan Jeong-jeong and gave a faint smile.

"Yes, Yangyang would be best.

If the Thousand Gold Martial Diagram of Ip Hwangseong remains intact, it should include a Great Heavenly Circuit formula suitable for one who has lost the meridian points of both arms.

As for the Sword Master’s meridians, recovery is just a matter of time and rest."

"......!"

"You may even acquire the famous Jeong Family's Eye Technique. If it's at that level..."

Dan Jeong-jeong stood frozen, worrying over the Sword Master—Jeong Yeon-shin—the former Spear King who had lost everything.

"Old man, what’s with the confidence?"

"What did you say?"

"Right now, you’re just a patchwork of the former Seven Lords of the Tyrant King. Just die already."

Smack!

Suddenly, Dan Jeong-jeong lunged at Ak Bi-gang.

But the commotion paled in comparison to the ripple that had just expanded across the natural world.

No one even tried to stop her.

Rrrrrumble!

The sky rippled translucently.

The ground let out a deafening roar.

The scale was monstrous.

The aftershock of the single sword strike that had skimmed across the horizon continued to race along the mountain slopes.

Eventually, it even reached the very heart of the Mount Hua Sect.

***

An earthquake spread.

All the halls and daoist buildings began to shake faintly. A grinding noise rippled out, splitting wood and stone alike with a craaaack—while the dull tremors beneath the feet of the Mount Hua disciples gradually deepened.

“All senior brothers acting as sect master proxies who have learned the Shadow Fragrance Formation—protect the disciples!”

“By defensive measurement, this is not within a range we can fully evacuate!”

“Don’t descend the mountain! Crouch and brace! I will activate the Leafless Violet Mist Formation, so all disciples retreat to the Pavilion of Dawn!”

Elegant plum blossom robes fluttered violently.

Everyone was busy.

Having witnessed the annihilation of Zhongnan up close not long ago, they were the first to carry the young disciples on their backs. Only after that could they retrieve a few spiritual pills including the Self-Burning Elixir and some precious martial manuals from the secret vault.

It was a natural disaster.

With Sect Leader Yulha and Proxy Leader Yu Hyeon both absent, the one leading Mount Hua alone—Sword Severing Heaven Master—shouted thunderously.

“Master Wi Ji! I need your help!”

“I heard the call of another Immortal. If it’s Mount Hua’s Pavilion of Dawn, that must be where the young disciples are gathered—have you installed a protective formation there?”

“Exactly! Not just for the residence, but to prevent the collapse of the main peak!”

“In that case, we’re set! That’s Jeong Gong of Seomye...! You too will be able to recover your spiritual power, Immortal!”

Wi Ji Myo-hwa spoke without context. She had two children of about seven or eight from Mount Hua tucked under each arm, and the instant she stomped down with True Step, a surge of force shattered a slanting tree in midair.

Sword Severing Heaven Master, who had already drawn his sword, followed up with a question.

“You mean the owner of that sword strike? Are you saying the Divine Sword Corps Leader is the one who did this to Mount Hua?”

“If not for sword strikes of that magnitude, one couldn’t possibly face off against the opponent... Someone capable of pressing Jeong Gong that far must have appeared. Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense.”

Kwakwakwakwang!

The Heaven Master sent roof tiles from a collapsing hall flying away with a blast of sword wind. It was silent agreement.

The bond between Mount Hua’s Sleeping Dragon Yu Hyeon, Seomye of Ipwang Fortress, Yulha Nangnang, and Gwangya Ilmyeol was beyond question. Even after an unusually long and dry winter, and even though the Divine Sword Corps had been driven out of the world, many gossipers still talked about it enthusiastically.

And then—

Kwaaaaaaaaaa!

Massive circular shockwaves surged into the sky, one after another, and the eyes of Wi Ji Myo-hwa and the Heaven Master followed that hazy spectacle like lightning. White and red glowing eyes, flashing with the secrets of Zhongnan and Mount Hua’s inner energy arts. For a fleeting moment, Jeong Yeon-shin appeared in their eyes.

Wreathed in a dark blue flame upon his sword, soaring with his body and sword united in the stance of Divine Sword Unity, striking upward with a perfectly straight sword arc.

A peerless master had made a move.

Wi Ji Myo-hwa and the Heaven Master were both high-level experts among the Three Harmonies Purification Peak masters, not easily underestimated by anyone, and yet this meant something—it meant they were too slow.

His internal reserves, fine muscle control, and energy points across his whole body were far from intact.

In a way, it was only natural. The Heaven Master had felt a shiver when he had prepared the disciples during the Great Chaos of the Spirit Mountain Range. The one-sided battle between Jeong Yeon-shin and two previous-generation masters.

After such a battle, he should be in bed recovering—but to see him soaring in midair like this? It was absurd. It was endurance befitting a Battle God.

But the opponent was the real problem.

‘...A battle of such rarity in all history.’

As the leader of the Plum Blossom Swordsmen, the Heaven Master possessed deep insight, experience, and even practiced inner cultivation. And the woman now closing in on Jeong Yeon-shin with her arms behind her back—her overwhelming demonic energy could be felt.

Zaaaaa―

Yet her energy waves weren’t unusually thick.

In fact, when comparing sheer inner reserves, she would fall far behind Yulha. Her movements were even easier to track than Jeong Yeon-shin’s, so her instantaneous explosive force couldn’t possibly match even that of a traditional sect leader.

And yet the Heaven Master muttered as if in pain.

“Heaven... Demon...”

The will to aid Jeong Yeon-shin folded in on itself, as if struck by some demonic art. It was irresistible.

[Swing that formless sword a little more.]

A voice echoed playfully, as if enjoying a game.

Hair as black as midnight billowed like a waterfall. She looked divine—like the incarnation of the word “untouchable.”

Even though she wore the appearance of Ma Gwang-ik’s first sword slave.

Jjeong!

She waved her hand high above, and the resulting vibration split the sea of clouds like a wave and shook the main peak to its core. Across the mountain flanks, the cries of young disciples rang out.

Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu-gung!

The collapse of the hall complexes sped up. Nature itself seemed to convulse. Surely, all the palm force had struck the Divine Sword Corps Leader, and no rebound had come from that point.

In other words, she was producing a wide-range shockwave without using external force. As if the mystery of the Heavenly Demon’s Dominating Steps had been applied to every movement.

Incomprehensible.

‘That is a Martial God.’

The Heaven Master turned his steps north.

That was the direction of Mount Hua’s “Gate.” The true power of the orthodox sect lay there.

“Master Wi Ji, I must summon the elders of the inner sect. Forgive my impertinence, but I must entrust the safety of the disciples to you... Master Wi Ji!”

Kwaang!

Wi Ji Myo-hwa leapt into the sky. It happened suddenly, but there was no need to guess the destination—it was clearly toward the Heavenly Demon and Jeong Yeon-shin. She had already handed off the children of Mount Hua to others.

She seemed completely unaffected by the presence of the demonic force. She simply gauged the situation and moved the instant she sensed Jeong Yeon-shin’s disadvantage.

‘What an outrageous temperament...!’

Thus the Heaven Master prayed for their safety and quickly arrived deep within the main peak. Before him lay the “Gate,” where pale mist pooled like a lake.

Kureureung! Kugugugung!

In the sky, dark blue flames spread like lightning, then vanished. The Nak An Peak, which had been cut by a single sword, sustained itself thanks to the Leafless Violet Mist Formation and other Daoist formations.

It was a mystery passed down even before the founder Gwang Yeong-ja had unified Mount Hua’s daoist halls.

The Heaven Master had to protect it.

So he spoke toward the misty lake.

“Calamity has struck the Immortal Mountain.”

Just one sentence.

That was enough.

Whatever the reason the past Sword Immortals had entered the Gate—whether to protect the world or to sacrifice themselves—it was clear they had been born and raised on Mount Hua. They could not ignore their sect.

‘No matter how heavy the burden they bear...’

Even Ipwang Fortress was the same. If the Divine Sword Corps Leader called, there would surely be some past-generation masters who would come from the Gate or from exile.

“Heaven Master.”

A voice echoed from within the Gate.

“Are you saying we should lay down the burden we’ve taken upon ourselves?”

The aged voice carried a soft reverberation, soothing like a balm upon the heart. Of course he knew the voice. The Twilight Swordsman—once a rival of Yulha’s master for the position of Head Disciple two generations ago—now a secluded master of the Sword of Sacred Flame Yulha.

Cheonju slowly nodded.

“The current Master of the Divine Sword Corps is holding back the calamity, but... he has already done more than enough. Besides, the disaster that has befallen the Main Mountain... is believed to be none other than the original form of the First Heavenly Demon, resurrected by the Sect Leader of the Bright Flame Cult...”

That was as far as he got.

Somehow, three figures had already emerged amidst the mist, etched like a divine painting. Even now, on the quaking rocky peaks, it felt as though plum blossoms were fluttering through the air.

Cheonju was overtaken by a melancholy sentiment.

He had drawn out the true power of Mount Hua with his own hands. There was no turning back now. All the sects that once weighed the fate of the world and the safety of the martial community would begin calling forth the departed of past generations—and at the forefront of that tide would be the Grand Righteous Alliance, staking its existence on mere survival.

‘In the newly restructured world, there will be no chivalry.’

Just as Mount Hua had now turned its back on the world.

“I... I’ve no time to think. What of Yulha?”

One of the three shadows, hands clasped behind his back, quietly asked.

The silhouette of the Twilight Swordsman calmly gazed into the air. Just then—whoosh—a violent sword wind from the Divine Sword Corps Master slammed down, sending his robe ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) flaring wildly. Though cloaked in detachment and overwhelming presence, he was clearly shaken.

“The Headmaster...”

Cheonju lowered his thick eyebrows.

“...was defeated in a life-or-death duel against the Lord of the Shattered Sword, and was on the brink of death. At that very moment, the Guardians of the Tree of the World took him away, saying he might survive if he remained near the ‘Tree’...”

“Right then, was it? The timing is too convenient, is it not?”

“I thought so as well. But I couldn’t keep up with the Light Sword of Yongji or the archery of Baek of the Celestial Palace. It was the Lord of the Shattered Sword, Dan Seong-eum, who chased them like a madman. After that, a message came from the Tree of the World. ‘Take care of the Main Mountain’... It was the Headmaster’s handwriting.”

“So things became chaotic for you, and you were forced to step back. The Great Elder of the Tree of the World is not someone to be trusted... no, perhaps now, in this Jianghu, no one should be trusted.”

So even we have come to this—murmured the silhouette of the Twilight Swordsman with a bitter chuckle.

Ruuuumble!

Once again, the mountain range shook.

“......!”

Cheonju silently unfurled his Hidden Fragrance Blade Path Manual stance. He had almost lost his balance. It was quite literally a descending catastrophe—an irresistible force of nature falling from the sky.

The Heavenly Demon and the Divine Sword Corps Master.

These were the ones who would now confront the ancestors of Mount Hua’s past.

“But the swordplay of that Divine Sword Corps youth... it’s odd.”

Perhaps it was to diminish the primal terror they all felt at the Heavenly Demon’s manifestation. One of the Twilight Swordsmen—Twilight Swordsman himself—spoke slowly.

“His martial power and his Three Purities are utterly staggering... but he wields demonic energy. Very deep, very pure demonic energy from an orthodox demonic bloodline.”

His voice was dry, like brittle leaves crumbling underfoot.

“How could he have obtained that? Through what kind of karma?”

“......”

In that moment, an icy chill crawled down Cheonju’s spine.

This was the man who had failed to become Head Disciple, losing to Yulha’s master. But why? Perhaps the former master had seen something—that Twilight Swordsman’s nature leaned more toward the sword than the Dao.

“Could it be... those two...”

Twilight Swordsman said,

“...are clashing over legitimacy?”

All around was in chaos, yet near the gate, silence began to descend.

Just then, a woman’s voice rang out.

—Master, instead of spouting nonsense, how about lending a hand?

Cheonju’s mouth fell open.

“Headmaster...?!”

—That young man and I once promised to bathe together in the self-heating medicinal bath of the Purple Cypress Hall. Don’t doubt his character. If you want to burst a few of the Guardians’ skulls, be my guest.

That clear, commanding voice—it was Yulha.

—The Tree of the World is watching all of this. That friend seems to be managing just fine. Either return to your post or lend your strength. That’s an order from the Headmaster.

Her tone hadn’t changed. She always said the right thing at the right time.

An unbelievable event was unfolding.

‘Just... what in the world...!’

At this moment—

Across all of the martial world, through unknown means and unseen eyes—who knew how many were watching this very place?

The appearance of the Heavenly Demon carried that much weight.

BOOOOM!!

With a soul-crushing pressure, Jeong Yeon-shin and the Heavenly Demon landed. As if the outcome was already tipped.

“.......”

Amidst the faint silence, one figure staggered, swaying like a dance.

Rustle.

The movement was swaying—as if drunk.

It wasn’t Jeong Yeon-shin.

It was the Heavenly Demon.