Chapter 292: Azure Dragon Three Marbles

“I don’t have it.”

“Then could you tell me where it is?”

Yong Hwarin spoke politely.

“I can’t tell you that either.”

Yong Hwarin let out a sigh.

“Then are you telling me to use force?”

“You have no choice if you’re going to take it.”

“It’s not theft. That item originally belonged to the main family. The rightful owner is merely reclaiming what was theirs.”

“Hmph, I thought murim treasures didn’t have owners. Isn’t the one who possesses it the rightful one?”

As if waiting for that reply, Yong Hwarin answered back.

“Indeed. Then by your logic, one who steals it becomes its rightful owner too.”

As Yong Hwarin stepped forward, Dong Oh blocked his path.

“I’ll make this clear—I came here fully prepared. I’m not here to resolve things half-heartedly. If you’re going to fight, you’d better steel your heart as well.”

Hearing such chilling words in a polite tone from Yong Hwarin sent a shiver down Hong A-yul’s spine.

It was more oppressive than someone screaming and emitting killing intent.

Reading Dong Oh’s aura, Yong Hwarin sensed this wouldn’t be an easy fight.

“As expected of the fourth disciple of Heavenly Demon Army. Even your guard is no ordinary man. Lord of the Nation, please make sure that woman doesn’t escape.”

Entrusting Hong A-yul to Deuksang, Yong Hwarin faced off against Dong Oh.

“Yes. If she tries to run, I’ll cut off both her legs.”

It was the perfect answer from the leader of the Blood Green Unit.

Facing Yong Hwarin in person, Dong Oh felt a surge of competitive spirit rise within him.

‘At this age, do I still have the will to fight?’

The will to compete was something that only thrived in youth.

After passing sixty, even seventy, it had turned to stone, barely traceable.

He had believed that as one aged, not only the body aged, but so too did the martial soul.

But only now did he realize—

‘So that’s it. I said my martial soul had vanished because I’d aged. But that wasn’t it. If I have a worthy opponent, I can still feel this exhilarating urge to fight.’

Dong Oh smiled faintly.

He wanted to face Yong Hwarin purely as a martial artist, leaving behind Heavenly Demon Army or the demonic path.

“I’ve heard of your name for a long time. I always wanted to cross blades with you at least once. I, too, once had a name equal to yours, so I’ve always wanted to compare.”

Yong Hwarin smirked coldly.

“A greeting with a mask on is meaningless. The junior makes the first move, yes?”

To Dong Oh, Yong Hwarin seemed more like a bold, fiery junior of the demonic path.

“Ahahahaha! You’re quite the amusing fellow.”

Just like at the inn, even now, he didn’t bother with stiff etiquette in front of an opponent.

“Indeed. There’s no etiquette in battle.”

As Yong Hwarin charged in, Dong Oh unleashed his saber qi without hesitation.

To meet Dong Oh’s saber qi, Yong Hwarin responded with sword qi.

As the two men relentlessly released sword qi at each other, lights flashed all around.

Crack! Crack!

The roof tiles disintegrated into dust, as if weathered by time.

It was the result of their dense and powerful sword qi.

Like performing a sword dance, the two exchanged techniques in harmony.

To an onlooker, it might’ve seemed like a friendly spar, but in their space, deadly sword qi roamed that could easily sever limbs.

Clang!

After a clash, Yong Hwarin stepped back.

“I believe this is more than enough courtesy to a senior in murim.”

“And I believe I’ve shown enough respect to a junior as well.”

“Very well. Then don’t resent the harshness of a junior’s blade.”

“What’s the point of courtesy in battle?”

This time, Dong Oh lunged first, unleashing a flurry of assassin-level saber strikes.

Dong Oh was a famed bladesman known as the Striking Saber of the Demonic Path (막천도).

Yong Hwarin realized he had not been using his full strength.

Sure enough, Dong Oh’s saber now released a terrifying torrent of saber qi far beyond what he had shown earlier.

It flew toward Yong Hwarin like an unraveled skein of thread.

Saber qi of Qi Net Mastery level was enough to be suffocating.

Yong Hwarin raised his qi to the level of Qi Clot and countered it head-on.

“Impressive!”

Dong Oh marveled at how effortlessly Yong Hwarin manifested his qi at the Qi Clot level.

Watching the two clash, Deuksang and Hong A-yul felt puzzled.

‘Why aren’t they using enhanced qi?’

The two were more than capable of unleashing Nascent Qi.

Yet they were confronting each other with sword qi instead of enhanced qi.

It seemed they were testing and discerning each other’s martial arts.

As if to say, “Can you surpass this?” each revealed their secret techniques one by one.

Indeed, when Dong Oh released Qi Net Mastery, Yong Hwarin instantly countered with Qi Clot.

And now Dong Oh answered back.

“How about this?”

A violet energy flashed from Dong Oh’s saber, forming a distinct shape.

Watching the manifestation of saber qi, Yong Hwarin asked,

“Have you ever fought Yi Taegong or Il Taegong before, senior?”

Dong Oh nodded.

“I fought Il Taegong and lost. That’s how I came to serve under him.”

“Then could you compare me with Il Taegong?”

“You’ll need to defeat me first, won’t you?”

As Dong Oh raised his saber toward Yong Hwarin, the violet energy slowly took the shape of a lotus pattern.

“Lotus Eight-Form Saber!”

Deuksang unconsciously muttered.

The Lotus Eight-Form Saber was a martial art long thought to be lost in murim.

It was the unique saber technique of Baek Gwa, the peerless saber wielder once famed under the title of Lotus Peerless Saber.

Deuksang remembered it clearly because, before becoming the leader of the Blood Green Unit, he had scoured every martial record within the Hidden Saint Cult to learn the Lotus Eight-Form Saber.

Even within the Hidden Saint Cult, a portion of the technique had survived, but it amounted to less than a third, so he had given up on training it.

Originally, Deuksang preferred sabers over swords due to his large build and strength.

That’s how he came across the Lotus Eight-Form Saber, but since only fragments remained, it left him disappointed.

Later, even after mastering the Western Painting Sword as the leader of the Blood Green Unit, his lingering attachment to the Lotus Eight-Form Saber persisted.

He had never imagined someone would be able to fully demonstrate the technique.

“Hoho, someone who recognizes the Lotus Eight-Form Saber! You must be from the Hidden Saint Cult.”

Startled by his own muttering, Deuksang instinctively answered with a clasped-hands greeting.

“Indeed, senior. That is the martial art I once wished to learn.”

Baek Gwa had been the only saber wielder of the Hidden Saint Cult to have mastered the Lotus Eight-Form Saber.

After he left the cult and went into seclusion, the Lotus Eight-Form Saber was considered lost.

Later, Baek Gwa took on a disciple—that disciple was none other than Dong Oh.

Dong Oh’s martial talent wasn’t bad, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to complete the Lotus Eight-Form Saber.

Even as he spoke, five lotus flowers bloomed around him.

If one mastered the Lotus Eight-Form Saber completely, they could manifest eight lotuses. However, due to Dong Oh’s limited mastery, he could only form five.

“To think I’d witness Qi Bloom in person like this.”

Even in such a dangerous moment, Yong Hwarin was filled with awe.

Qi Bloom was the final stage of sword qi.

It was the state where qi took on a distinct form—a technique achievable only when one’s control over qi reached the realm of absolute purity.

Although Yong Hwarin had reached the Boundary of the Upper World and attained the realms of Protective Energy and Unity of Sword and Mind, his control over qi had not yet reached its pinnacle.

Thus, he was still incapable of creating Qi Bloom.

This disparity came from the different realms of martial knowledge, martial arts, sword qi, and enhanced qi.

Yong Hwarin synchronized himself with his sword.

Dong Oh, seeing this, was deeply impressed.

“Oh! Unity of Sword and Mind!”

Even amidst a life-and-death battle, to admire an opponent’s realm was something only a true martial artist could do.

After reaching his own realm, Yong Hwarin no longer saw enemies simply as targets to be killed.

When facing someone of equal or higher realm, he became more eager to test their strength.

That unexpected brilliance thrilled him, his heart pounding.

Dong Oh, moved by Yong Hwarin’s Unity of Sword and Mind, shook his saber.

Rumble!

As the air seemed to vibrate, the five lotus flowers shot toward Yong Hwarin.

Though they looked like splendid lotuses, Yong Hwarin knew they were solidified qi—true Qi Bloom—so he did not underestimate them, bracing himself fully.

Qi Bloom was the final stage of sword qi, nearly equivalent to Nascent Qi.

In murim, it was often said that a fully mastered Qi Bloom was more powerful than poorly developed Nascent Qi. Its potency varied drastically depending on the level of mastery.

‘Heavenly Thunder Soaring Dragon!’

Looking at the five lotuses, Yong Hwarin recalled a technique from the Soaring Dragon Emperor Sword.

He also summoned the energy of the Dongyeo Thunderquake.

A sharp, eerie sensation spread from his Self-Revolving Inner Qi through both his Laogong Points.

He intended to counter the Qi Bloom by drawing upon the strongest force—thunder energy.

“Kh!”

Feeling his Self-Revolving Inner Qi insufficient to withstand the Qi Bloom, Yong Hwarin redirected it to the Tai Chi Dantian for amplification.

The tingling pain rose through his throat and escaped as a groan.

Crackle!

Blue thunder energy flared from Yong Hwarin’s sword, striking down five times toward the lotus flowers.

Snap!

Each time, the surrounding roof tiles turned to dust.

Hong A-yul’s eyes widened to the brink as the lotus and thunder energies clashed.

“My god… Thunder Bloom!”

After shattering the five lotus flowers, Yong Hwarin’s thunder energy formed a single flower.

It looked as though bluish energy had blossomed into a lone flower.

Crackle!

An energy capable of burning away the world bloomed from the tip of Yong Hwarin’s sword.

Hong A-yul trembled, fearing that if that flower bud burst, the Thunder Bloom would incinerate Dong Oh.

“I’m ready.”

Dong Oh sensed death approaching.

If he poured all his essence into his saber now, he felt no regret—even if the Thunder Bloom incinerated him in an instant.

“Let me ask one last thing. Compared to Yi Taegong or Il Taegong, where do I stand?”

Dong Oh gave a slight smile.

“If you grow further, you’ll be strong enough to challenge Yi Taegong. But compared to Il Taegong, you still have a long way to go.”

“What realm has he reached?”

“Lord Ju recently attained the realm of Sacrificial Sword.”

At those words, Yong Hwarin asked again.

“Sacrificial Sword… Is that the realm of Sword Levitation Technique?”

“No. That’s the realm Yi Taegong has reached.”

“Hmm.”

‘Ah, so that’s why he said I might one day contend with Yi Taegong. The realm beyond Unity of Sword and Mind is Sword Levitation Technique.’

However, Sword Levitation Technique could be called a fictional realm invented by those ignorant of martial arts.

It referred to the technique of controlling a sword with qi. Once one reached the realm of Void Manipulation, Sword Levitation could be achieved.

But among martial artists who surpassed the Transcendent Stage, Sword Levitation was used more for show than real combat.

Because if controlling the sword with qi couldn’t match the power of wielding it with one’s hand, it held little value in high-level battle.

Sword Levitation, in truth, was only effective against weaker opponents.

Yet, the masked man’s claim that Yi Taegong had reached Sword Levitation was a veiled way of saying his control over vital essence had become incredibly refined—thus, formidable.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep