If it had been the Cold Ice Dagger, maybe it would have frozen Han Janggwang’s sword, even for an instant.

And even the smallest hesitation could have opened a fatal gap.

It was regrettable — but it didn’t matter.

Truly, it didn’t matter.

Seol Unwi immediately dropped the dagger he was holding.

Just before it hit the ground, he kicked it upward with his foot.

And absurdly enough, the dagger’s blade flew straight toward Han Janggwang’s throat.

Han Janggwang’s eyes widened in disbelief at the impossible display of skill.

It wasn’t just the speed — even the angle was perfect.

At the last second, he threw his head back.

The dagger narrowly missed, slicing through the air.

In that brief instant, Han Janggwang’s balance broke.

And Seol Unwi didn’t miss his chance.

SLASH—!

Seol Unwi’s sword swept across Han Janggwang’s thigh.

Had Han Janggwang not instinctively twisted his leg aside, it would have been severed entirely.

Han Janggwang staggered backward.

He shouldn’t have.

He should have deflected the falling dagger first — should have knocked it away — before retreating.

But he didn’t.

Seol Unwi caught the falling dagger neatly and, without a shred of hesitation, hurled his sword instead.

SLASH—!

Han Janggwang twisted his body to avoid it, but Seol Unwi’s sword grazed his shoulder in a long, deep line.

Before he could even react, Seol Unwi threw the dagger next.

Han Janggwang, a seasoned master of the Five Qi Ascension, trusted his instincts and twisted aside again — but it was useless.

Seol Unwi had already carefully studied his every reaction.

This time, there would be no escape.

THUD—!

The dagger pierced straight into Han Janggwang’s right shoulder, with terrifying precision.

Blood erupted.

Strength fled from his arm.

A perfect strike — it severed not only the blood vessels but the nerves as well.

His sword slipped from his useless hand.

Han Janggwang’s whole body shuddered violently.

“…You… what are you…?”

“Seol Unwi,” came the cold reply.

“…No, you… This makes no sense…”

His right arm hung limp.

It was no different from being crippled.

Gritting his teeth, Han Janggwang bent down and picked up his sword with his left hand.

But no matter how he turned it over in his mind, he couldn’t understand it.

“This situation…”

“You think it doesn’t make sense?”

“……”

“You can’t understand how someone still in the Twin Radiance Manifestation could fight evenly against a master of Five Qi Ascension.”

“…That’s right.”

“It’s not that complicated.

Whether it’s a duel between martial artists or a war between sects, if you can predict your enemy, you can fight on equal terms — no matter the gap in power.”

“So you’re saying,” Han Janggwang said slowly, “that you’re predicting all my movements?”

“Yes.”

“You… mad bastard. That’s impossible…”

He trailed off.

But the result was right in front of him.

Impossible or not — it was happening.

Normally, it would take three martial artists at the Twin Radiance Manifestation level to match one Five Qi Ascension master.

To match one Three Flowers Gathering Essence master, you needed at least five.

And for a Three Flowers Gathering Essence martial artist to stand against a Five Qi Ascension expert like Han Janggwang, it would take ten or more.

Yet here, Seol Unwi, a mere Twin Radiance Manifestation, was fighting him alone.

For this fight to make any sense at all, there should have been at least a hundred Twin Radiance Manifestation martial artists backing him.

Why?

Because the quality of internal energy — the sheer power behind each move — was completely different.

Martial artists didn’t just use internal energy for fancy techniques.

They flew through the sky and shattered mountains not because of myths — but because their strength made such things real.

They could channel their energy through their blood vessels and unleash destruction beyond human imagination.

Their martial skills could easily destroy buildings or tear apart cliffs, whether they intended to kill or not.

On top of that, the experience they accumulated over decades turned them into living weapons — blades honed to perfect sharpness.

It was no wonder Han Janggwang couldn’t comprehend it.

“No matter how exhausted I am… this is…”

He couldn’t finish the thought.

Han Janggwang struggled to make sense of what he was seeing.

Luckily, one hypothesis floated up.

“…For you to predict not just my next move, but my next five — no, at least six moves ahead… is that what’s happening? No, it must be.

Otherwise, this situation couldn’t exist.”

He swallowed hard.

“Before I even swing my sword — before I even step forward — you already have the entire fight drawn out in your mind.

And if even a single prediction is wrong — if I move even slightly differently — you’ll die instantly.”

He was right.

Until now, the strongest opponent Seol Unwi had ever killed was at the Three Flowers Gathering Essence level.

Even the famed Ice-Frost Sword Scar had failed to reach Five Qi Ascension.

That was the difference — the massive gap between realms — and between individuals.

“Without a single mistake… you’re reading my every move — how a Five Qi Ascension master fights.

And with that, even minimal strength is enough to turn the situation.”

Han Janggwang shook his head.

“You’re… truly capable of that… what are you…”

“You’re more perceptive than I expected,” Seol Unwi said calmly.

“……”

“At this rate, you probably would have reached the Heaven and Earth Death Boundary in the near future.

Maybe not the Martial God Realm… but at least the Ascended Realm.”

“…You really think so.”

“Judging by your insight and movements, yes.

Unfortunately, you’ll never make it there.”

“……”

“You’ll die here today.”

Han Janggwang no longer smiled.

He finally understood.

Seol Unwi’s confidence was not empty bravado.

“I’ll clarify something for you,” Seol Unwi said.

“Yes, you were right earlier.

I am predicting your every move.

I’m reading the entire flow of this fight five moves — or more — ahead.”

“So you’re distributing your internal energy accordingly.”

“Exactly,” Seol Unwi said.

“I use the least amount of movement to achieve the greatest efficiency.

Especially when facing a higher realm opponent, that’s the ideal strategy.”

“If you want to kill me, Lord Han,” Seol Unwi continued, “there’s only one way.

You have to break free of my predictions.”

“……”

“You have to completely shatter the flow of battle I see in my mind.

Because I allocate my energy according to that mental map — if you strike into my blind spot first, I’ll die without even realizing it.”

“……Aren’t you afraid of dying?” Han Janggwang asked.

It wasn’t an idle question.

If you thought carefully about everything Seol Unwi had said, it became clear.

He was constantly walking the blade’s edge — every moment — staking his life without hesitation.

Even the slightest misstep meant death.

He was moving through battle atop the knife’s edge of death — again and again.

Without absolute conviction in himself, it would be impossible.

Even with conviction, the looming shadow of death would be no illusion, but a brutal reality.

“……Until now, I had the wrong idea about you,” Han Janggwang said quietly.

“……”

“You… will become a Great Demon.”

“Me?” Seol Unwi said calmly.

“With that kind of spirit and boldness,” Han Janggwang said, “you wouldn’t die easily anywhere.

And your background is even the Everlasting Snow Palace.

You didn’t hesitate to slaughter hundreds of martial artists, and even when their deaths were certain, your eyes never wavered.

Yes… in the end, you’ll bring down the Everlasting Snow Palace.

You’ll become a Great Demon.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Seol Unwi replied.

“…Today, I will kill the seed of that Great Demon,” Han Janggwang said, gripping his sword tighter.

“Come,” he growled.

“You come to me,” Seol Unwi answered calmly.

“Hah! So it’s not part of the plan you’ve mapped out in your head, is it?”

Seol Unwi burst into laughter.

This man… he was more interesting than expected.

“Don’t forget,” Seol Unwi said, voice sharp, “even a beast can take down a tiger.”

Before he even finished speaking, Han Janggwang’s sword tore through the air.

His movements were different now — it was as if he had become a completely different person.

This is…

Seol Unwi’s prediction was off.

Han Janggwang’s swordplay had changed.

It was as if he had been hiding his true skills all along.

A chill radiated from his blade.

SLASH—!

The sword cut deep across Seol Unwi’s shoulder from an unexpected angle, blood spraying into the air.

The textbook precision of Han Janggwang’s swordsmanship had suddenly turned erratic — unconventional.

His sword flashed again, this time striking downward from above.

Seol Unwi twisted his body just in time, but the blade grazed his cheek as it passed.

“It’ll be different now,” Han Janggwang said.

“Different from before.”

Seol Unwi’s expression didn’t change.

Wounds?

He had never assumed he wouldn’t be wounded.

Unorthodox swordplay?

It didn’t matter.

Unexpected movements?

Such things did not exist.

Han Janggwang locked eyes with Seol Unwi.

Seol Unwi had lost all his weapons.

But the look in his eyes had grown even sharper, even more dangerous.

Han Janggwang slashed again.

A brilliant arc of swordlight ripped toward Seol Unwi’s neck.

Seol Unwi crouched low, driving his body into the ground.

The snow of the mountain exploded upward, blinding Han Janggwang’s sight.

“Clever little tricks!” Han Janggwang roared.

With a blast of internal energy, the blinding snow was blown away.

But in that instant —

A stone, clutched in Seol Unwi’s hand, flew straight toward Han Janggwang’s temple.

CRACK—!

His defensive aura blocked it, but the shock threw Han Janggwang’s footing off-balance.

Seol Unwi didn’t miss the opening.

With a surge of Grand Void Internal Energy, he drove a fist toward Han Janggwang’s chest.

“Urgh…!”

Han Janggwang stumbled backward.

Thanks to his protective aura, the blow wasn’t fatal, but the impact had clearly rattled him.

“As expected of a master at Five Qi Ascension,” Seol Unwi said, almost casually.

“Your defensive aura is no joke.”

“You… you still have the nerve to taunt me?!” Han Janggwang roared, his voice trembling with fury.

He swung his sword again, slicing the air.

Seol Unwi twisted his body and narrowly dodged, but the blade caught the edge of his robe, slicing it open.

And in that moment—

Han Janggwang should have thought it through.

Why had their positions shifted to this place?

Why had Seol Unwi suddenly started using his fists?

With his Grand Void Internal Energy, Seol Unwi could have torn through Han Janggwang’s defensive aura.

But he hadn’t.

He had only pushed.

The answer lay beneath Seol Unwi’s feet.

Han Janggwang’s gaze finally shifted downward — and his skin crawled.

The Snow-White Sword.

Seol Unwi’s Snow-White Sword lay at his feet.

The very same sword Seol Unwi had thrown earlier — the one Han Janggwang had knocked aside.

It was lying exactly where it needed to be.

Every single one of Seol Unwi’s movements had been calculated from the start.

By the time Han Janggwang realized it, it was already too late.

Seol Unwi’s body ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) moved like the wind.

In a flash, he snatched up the Snow-White Sword, and the blade was already flying toward Han Janggwang’s solar plexus.

SHING—!!

Han Janggwang barely managed to raise his sword and block it.

His face twisted in shock as he stumbled backward.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep