An empty fortress.

Where normally the seventeen banners of the Divine Sword Corps would have fluttered in formation, now every flagpole was broken.

Like new sprouts struck by famine.

It was the very first thing the occupiers of Ipwang Fortress had done.

“......”

After a moment of silence, a spear lying on the ground of the sparring yard suddenly sprang into the air. Ak Su-rim lightly gripped the long spear and smiled.

“Looks like you’re getting impatient. The bastard who used to hide and play tunes finally slithered out.”

Whoosh—

Though her rusted spear spun with flair, the gust of wind it kicked up couldn’t shake the oppressive pressure radiating from the two members of the Thirteen Celestials.

‘Damn it.’

She knew.

Just from Wollyo’s smooth smile alone.

“It was my error. I’ve realized now that playing tunes from afar won’t suffice.”

The Thirteen Celestials—those at the peak of the martial world.

Even alone, they could stir chaos in turbulent times. Even if they had once been reclusive during the absence of the Divine Sword Corps, it didn’t matter. Even those bearing the purple color now held positions as leading seats among the Celestials. Even the Elder Council Lord, Shin Byeok, had been brought to ruin this way.

If two members of the Celestials showed up in the capital fortress without its master, then it was practically another Ipwang Great Battle. And this time, without even a single purple to stand against them.

‘Just one step.’

Ak Su-rim thought.

If I take just one more step, I could pour this long life of mine into a single spear thrust—

Then it happened.

“A world where earth energy is rising unprecedentedly. And Celestials who conspire against the Divine Sword Corps Lord when more than one gathers.”

Shin Hwang spoke slowly.

“Those who were only a step away from peerless mastery have, at times, taken a great leap forward and made their names with new martial arts. So the famine isn’t just because of the Heavenly Tree. It’s simply the state of the world.”

Ak Su-rim found herself questioning again his unshakable breath. Why is he so calm? And why has he become so much heavier—unnecessarily so?

What’s more, Namgung Hwa-shin’s energy wave now resembled Shin Hwang’s. He was clearly out of his mind, and yet—somehow—he reminded her of Jeong Yeon-shin.

Before she knew it, the two of them had turned their backs to her and stood side by side.

“Senior Shin. I’ll take the front.”

“Namgung Hwa-shin, you know as well as I that this is the time to embody the role of a Seventeenth Lord.”

“No need for the formalities—just let me take the vanguard—”

“If something like this happens again, what will become of Lord Jeong’s peace of mind? He’ll be clashing with beings like the War God soon enough. It could lead to fatal consequences.”

BOOOOM!

Namgung Hwa-shin’s blade stomped into the ground and flew straight toward Wollyo’s face. Dust flipped in a straight line as Wollyo’s lips moved with unbothered calm.

“The fame of the Twin Kirins has faded, and a madman stands in their place. Is Seomye Martial Veins a place that ruins people?”

Every syllable layered over itself in translucent waves, unleashing a supreme martial technique that cracked the atmosphere of all Ipwang Fortress like a massive earthquake. Just as Namgung Hwa-shin was frozen mid-air, the Celestial Palace Lord shot up from the side.

“Pardon me.”

“......!”

It happened in an instant.

The Celestial Palace Lord struck the back of Namgung Hwa-shin’s knee and broke it, grabbed his throat before the Ipwang Sword could fall, flipped him mid-air by lifting his foot with his heel, and slammed his head straight into the ground.

KWA-KWA-KWANG—!

Namgung Hwa-shin spat blood. His internal energy flow, Donggong, was disrupted for a moment.

Every move brimmed with terrifying spiritual energy. As if it had absorbed the “earth energy” scattered from the fallen Celestials.

[Let me ask.]

The Celestial Palace Lord’s colorless eyes glinted purely as he sat atop Namgung Hwa-shin. His divine energy surged with excitement.

[What would happen if I hit you with Ultimate Martial Way in that state?]

At that moment, Ak Su-rim was blocked by Wollyo’s sonic energy waves, and Shin Hwang was slamming his twin flaming palms down on the Celestial Palace Lord’s back.

But the peerless master was faster.

SPLASH!

The Celestial Palace Lord drew back his hand, faint and watery like sunlight on a valley stream, and crimson blood sprayed. The shockwave burst through the ground afterward, shaking the earth.

“......!”

Ak Su-rim’s eyes widened as she tore through the sonic waves with her spear. She’d clearly seen it in that split second. The Celestial Palace Lord’s hand had been grazed by the drawn Ipwang Sword through an object-grasping move.

Even so, the Ipwang Sword was split like a rotted log, and Namgung Hwa-shin was pierced through the side, not the heart. He still held the now-half blade.

[They call my final technique Ultimate Martial Way—Moon Over the Palace—but I never meant to use it on any of you.]

The Celestial Palace Lord spun away like a pinwheel with Spiral Force, smiling as if delighted, even with a fist-sized dent in his back from Shin Hwang’s palm strike.

[I’ll only die to the Lord of the Divine Sword Corps. To the incarnation of martial history itself.]

“Crazy bastard...!”

Ak Su-rim cursed, but the Celestial Palace Lord’s grin only deepened.

And then the five forms began to trace faint trajectories across all of Ipwang Fortress.

It was due to a great mass of presences beginning to surround the city. Nearby sects that had sensed something strange over the last three days, and communication networks belonging to the factions that once ruled the fortress, had begun to converge on Yangyang.

Everyone was in a hurry.

KWAKWAKWA—! CRASH!

Two black-clads swapped positions constantly, leaving afterimages and silvery glows behind them like streaking comets. Despite the chaos, they were maintaining combat against two peerless masters.

And Ak Su-rim’s doubts only deepened.

‘What is this? Why...’

What had happened in the North?

CLANG!

In that moment, as she launched herself with her heavy body and severed Wollyo’s sonic energy waves with her spear, Shin Hwang and the mad Namgung Hwa-shin exchanged faint glances of admiration.

They had little expectation of Ak Su-rim. And she found that unfamiliar too.

FWOOOSH!

Then came a blast of palm wind from the Celestial Palace Lord that sent Namgung Hwa-shin flying. As if intending to kill him outright, the Celestial Palace Lord twisted the air with his left fist and followed.

Bursting through the roof of Changcheon Platform’s pavilion, Ak Su-rim intercepted him.

[Hmm?]

Her extended spear deflected his punch, and when she pulled it back, it ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) tangled up his balance at his core. Then she used aerial footwork to create distance and stabbed forward like a beam of light.

Her final technique.

CRACK!

[Oops!]

Bare-Handed Blade Catch.

The Celestial Palace Lord caught the spearhead with his bare hand, and in that moment, Ak Su-rim realized she had become baggage to the juniors.

Her lips curved in a serene smile.

“The martial world’s in real trouble now.” 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

[For a technique as basic as the Lannachal Spear Style to be this formidable... at least in terms of form completion, it's far beyond mine... Hm?]

“The other Black Ranks have grown this strong. And Seomye is only eighteen years old now... What happens when someone of that rank grows older?”

Ak Su-rim, pretending to tease, spoke as if casually. Yet her words held weight. At the same time, she let go of her spear and stepped back. Her hair, as black as ebony, fluttered forward.

Ssshhk.

The last thing she saw before her consciousness dimmed like a dream was the sight of Namgung Hwa-shin’s back filling her vision.

Three days of relentless battle right after flying from Shandong to Yangyang — it was only natural for her vision to blur at this moment.

The only things she could clearly sense were the movements of her two juniors, and the echo of Wollyo’s sound-based martial speech.

“Since ancient times, the world has belonged to those who love to boast.”

“Now, truly, all have been thrown into the melting pot that is the Central Plains. It’s time even you lay down your arrogance.”

“Even if the Divine Sword Corps returns whole, and the Purple Ranks regain all five fingers, they’ll never again dominate the world as they once did. Let alone the Black Ranks...”

“Let’s count them out. The Divine Sword Corps has made a legendary return, so you’ll be opposed by the imperial generals, the Three Great Commanders, and the Three Supreme Protectors of the Imperial Family.”

“Add to that the former clan leaders of the Eight Noble Clans now joined with the Grand Righteous Alliance, our own Tyrant Seven, the rising Thirteen Lords, the Supreme Swordmaster of the Blade Sect, and those who, like the Yozoku, are rumored to follow the God of War himself.”

“Even the noble families aligned with the Tree of the World seem hostile to everyone. The Four Grand Protectors among them — they’re practically monsters. Do you know this?”

“In any case, it seems like the eyes of the entire world are focused on Yangyang now. Judging by the auras alone, it feels like we’re surrounded by an army.”

“Are you alright with this? For the Divine Sword Corps’ leader to recklessly launch a siege just to reclaim his house...?”

The sound-based martial speech—meant to rattle the listener’s inner demon.

By that time, Namgung Hwa-shin was enduring overwhelming pressure within the shadows cast by the hands of the Celestial Palace Lord.

The endless whispers of the sound technique surged heat all the way to her crown chakra. Her whole body trembled in convulsions.

Atop the oversized main pavilion of the Celestial Forest—

Sword and fist trajectories crisscrossed in hundreds of silver-white threads, tangling like silk strands.

And every strike sparked just inches from Namgung Hwa-shin’s body.

Quake Sword Style's Simgeuk Qilin was being repeatedly intercepted before it could build up speed.

The shockwaves from the explosion of footwork energy swirled violently through the inner fortress.

KWAOOOOOM—!

Death was imminent.

As Namgung Hwa-shin’s sword path swelled like a cloud and produced countless transformations, Wollyo, who had been dancing in tandem with her in his defensive movements, suddenly laughed.

“So in the end, it's the Vast Sky Limitless Sword. No matter how formidable Seomye's martial flow is, Ipwang Fortress was only ever a dream for you.”

“Just like how the Ming Dynasty dreamed for centuries of conquering the North, but could do nothing against the Northern Kings, the Six Original Star Lords, or the God of War.”

It happened in a flash.

Suddenly, the wind died down.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Everyone’s movements halted for reasons they didn’t understand — as if a single motion would result in beheading within a true vacuum.

“......”

There’s a saying: “When things reach their extreme, they must reverse.”

When someone’s suffering reaches the absolute limit, a reversal is inevitable.

It’s the same with the mind. If you stack shock upon shock, demon upon demon, some madmen go so far into agony that they regain clarity.

It’s like an ordinary man, overwhelmed by anger, simply falling asleep mid-rage.

If one’s original spirit is calm and one has refined the upper dantian with great aptitude, they might be able to swell the divine sense of the crown chakra.

Just like how the peerless drunkard Joo Gwang-shin strengthened himself by stimulating the upper dantian with wine.

Ak Su-rim, within that eternally stretched moment, stared ahead.

Namgung Hwa-shin was holding a broken sword with clear eyes.

[Resonance Division. Supply me with true energy.]

The inner force forcibly holding Ak Su-rim’s body together drained out like an ebbing tide.

She instinctively knew—this moment, the broken Ipwang Sword held in Namgung Hwa-shin’s hand was about to reveal his entire life.

No one expected this.

Heh.

Wollyo gave a hollow laugh through sound-based technique. Even if he could gather the life of a young defeated warrior in his palm, so what?

Neither he nor the Celestial Palace Lord had time to prepare their Void Moon Art.

Namgung Hwa-shin spoke.

[Do you need preparation to wield the Swift Sword? Seomye’s martial flow did not teach so.]

By the time he lowered his stance and hid the broken sword behind his waist, the audience had noticed.

A brief but intense mental whisper resounded.

[Simgeuk.]

In that instant—

The severed edges of the flags lined along the ramparts were suddenly smooth.

It happened in utter silence, without a trace of wind.

“What...?!”

The chest of the Celestial Palace Lord, who had sidestepped just a moment ago, was split by a blood-red horizon.

The circulation of true energy in her central dantian halted, and she was instantly seized by Shin Hwang.

The Celestial Palace Lord turned her head to the opposite rampart—

Sllrch.

Namgung Hwa-shin was lifting Wollyo’s already severed head.

The sleek, shimmering black hair that once flowed like noble silk was now clenched in his white, princely hand.

But Wollyo was still alive.

In this age where the earth’s energy is drawn only to the strongest, Wollyo’s innate life force still allowed his sound technique to produce words.

His severed head spoke.

“...This isn’t the usual Void Moon Art.”

[I made the most precious sword technique of my life my way of living.]

A thought rooted in the upper dantian never lies.

Any expert who has ascended knows this truth.

Wollyo’s twisted head laughed.

“You forced your way through the wall. The backlash will be severe.”

[You’re right. With the inner demon gone, it seems I’m now tormented by the sleep demon.]

Namgung Hwa-shin replied as he struggled to keep his eyes open.

As those sleepy eyes met his gaze, Wollyo’s expression twisted.

“As I’ve said—while you were gone, the order of the world has completely changed. You’re nothing but a remnant loser...!”

[Listen.]

Step.

Namgung Hwa-shin turned toward the main gate, still holding Wollyo’s head high.

Across the vast horizon of Yangyang, countless human silhouettes were beginning to appear.

They were like ambush scouts, surrounding the city.

Representatives of noble households, major sects, the Thirteen Lords, the Four Clans Alliance, Martial Inspectors’ Union, the Tyrant Seven, and even celestial nobles and Haomen clans with unclear affiliations—

It was the gaze of an entire era.

[In the winter of the Gyeongjin year, led by Divine Sword Corps Master Seomye, five hundred eighty-six warriors of Ipwang Fortress advanced into the demonic lands that had troubled the people of this world for centuries. And now, in the current year of Sinsa....]

The thought, amplified by Resonance Division’s energy supply, spread like Voice Transmission across the Six Harmonies. Namgung Hwa-shin continued calmly.

[The Northern Conquest was completed.]

Truth.

The light faded from Wollyo’s eyes.

“......”

The horizon, which had trembled slightly with the shadows of countless people, froze.

It swallowed the last of the sunset’s glow.

And night fell.

[The Central Plains will come to understand.]

Namgung Hwa-shin’s voice overlapped with the creeping dusk.

[What we sacrificed in that land. And how the Master of the Divine Sword Corps has transformed.]

***

That dawn—

A young man of the Purple Rank descended with the moonlight.

Even from afar, it was clear he was leading an overwhelming force through the fields.

Yangyang’s horizon quaked.

“The Divine Sword Corps Master’s deputy has returned!”

“He’s accompanied by an unidentified Yozoku and the Blood Master! The White Qilin has declared the Northern Campaign a success! This is a de facto victory declaration!”

“The Blade Seal of the Ascended Sword has been confirmed!”

“Request appearance profiling for all demonic sect warriors within the fortress!”

One message turned into another like fire signals.

Messenger birds flew wildly in and out of the encirclement, scattering black ink and feathers.

Yet not a single wingbeat reached Ipwang Fortress.

Not even a breeze of spring managed to enter.

But the Master of the Divine Sword Corps did.

Fwap—

Seventeen banners hanging over the fortress began flapping wildly.

And the rumors that exploded across the land transformed into overwhelming pressure—

Crushing down on the entire martial world.