Chapter 184: Confrontation

Nayuta Sword Mandala.

A martial art named by combining Kim Min-soo’s Hundred Martial Heavens Nayuta Projection Technique with Ma Moon-gi, Lord of the Thunder Sect of the Dawn Continent’s Thousand Thunder Mandala.

The mandala, in which Jang Woo-hyun poured out every martial art he possessed at once, was less a martial art and closer to magic or sorcery.

He infused his will into each of the Dragon King’s Scales, and hundreds of Jang Woo-hyuns unfolded thousands of martial arts to create hundreds of thousands of techniques.

No matter how different the level of a True Immortal’s power, if it was merely a fragment, then it could instead be suppressed by overwhelming force.

A radiant star, small in size but containing tremendous power.

The one Yeogongbaek had thrown was swept away and obliterated in the downpour of hundreds of thousands of techniques.

【Uwaaaaaah!】

Yeogongbaek tried to use sorcery and stir up the power of a True Immortal to somehow endure, but it was not easy.

The sorcery shattered, and the power of the True Immortal dissipated. The defensive sorceries wrapped around his body broke apart one after another, and Yeogongbaek plummeted downward.

Kwaaaang!

As he fell, he crashed into the Floating Island. A massive crater was formed, and countless techniques that had yet to vanish poured down toward it.

With an explosion so great that the entire Floating Island trembled, Yeogongbaek was driven deep into the ground.

Kugugugung!

When another thunderous explosion rang out—

A massive hole pierced through the Floating Island.

The colossal mass of land floating in the sky.

Some called it Sky Continent, but generally, the larger ones were referred to as Floating Continents, while the smaller ones were called Floating Islands.

Even the smaller of the Floating Continents boasted a size far greater than the Central Plains where Jang Woo-hyun had resided, and the Floating Islands, despite the name “island,” were also considerably vast.

Before Jang Woo-hyun’s eyes was a massive landmass penetrated vertically by a gigantic hole.

Standing upon the void, he slowly descended through the hole. All around him floated hundreds of blade scales, a sight reminiscent of a general leading a vast army.

‘Are we really necessary here?’

Mak Ya-wol, descending behind Jang Woo-hyun, suddenly had that thought.

Judging by the nature of his martial arts and his remarkable skill, Jang Woo-hyun could accomplish much on his own. He hardly needed to be with the Fighting Ghost Unit.

Even in the battle just now, although the Wind-Passing Great Sage and he had assisted, Jang Woo-hyun would have still brought Yeogongbaek down without them.

“Keep the order. I’m first.”

The Wind-Passing Great Sage came up beside Mak Ya-wol.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you want to fight him? I’m first.”

It was a misunderstanding born from the Great Sage’s guess at Mak Ya-wol’s thoughts.

Yet, upon witnessing Jang Woo-hyun’s true ability, Mak Ya-wol too had felt the urge to test himself against him.

“When are you planning on fighting him, then?”

“Not yet. You saw it yourself. Stick with that guy, and you’ll see what kind of opponents we’ll be fighting.”

Mak Ya-wol turned his head toward where the Great Sage’s gaze was directed. There lay Yeogongbaek, half-crazed from Jang Woo-hyun’s assault.

“We’ll be fighting monsters like that from now on. You won’t easily find anything more entertaining than this.”

Even if it was just a fragment of a True Immortal, it had been an exhilarating battle. As long as he could keep clashing with such power, Mak Ya-wol was content to postpone his fight with Jang Woo-hyun.

“But we’ll have to settle our own business one day.”

“What?”

At Mak Ya-wol’s words, the Wind-Passing Great Sage widened his eyes, then let out a savage laugh.

The two had been interrupted by Cho-su’s Annihilation Thunder Cannon before they could finish their fight. That was what Mak Ya-wol meant.

“Yeah, you’re right. We’ll have to finish our business too.”

But that was for later. There were many things yet to be done, and matters to resolve immediately.

The two stood before Yeogongbaek, who grimaced in pain, following after Jang Woo-hyun.

Yeogongbaek’s state was now drastically different from before.

The silver armor that had encased his body was broken in places, and the golden light that had once poured from his eyes had dimmed.

It was clear to anyone that his strength had waned.

Meeting Jang Woo-hyun’s gaze as he descended slowly, Yeogongbaek’s hand trembled as though seized by fear.

‘I can’t win.’

He had believed he would never lose to anyone, but that thought was shattered by Jang Woo-hyun’s assault.

The destructive power pouring from the radiant sigil had been beyond imagination. He had barely endured by using every means at his disposal.

His reinforced sorcery had vanished, and even the power of the True Immortal had been swept away.

The Wind-Passing Great Sage of the Demonic Spirit Realm and Mak Ya-wol of the Fighting Ghost Unit were formidable, yet even they could not compare to Jang Woo-hyun as he was now.

‘A monster…’

A monster who crushed even the fragment of a True Immortal with raw power.

It was something he could neither accept nor comprehend. To Yeogongbaek, Jang Woo-hyun was an existence beyond measure—a terrifying being.

‘I need to retreat.’

He thought of escape. He could not face this monster as he was.

‘I need to prepare again.’

He needed to use more sacrifices to draw down greater power, and gather all the forces of the Ascension Cult. If they were picked off one by one, annihilation was inevitable.

Yeogongbaek’s mind spun rapidly. He discreetly prepared a sorcery for escape.

Just as he was about to use it—

Click.

His movements froze as if something had caught him. His face twisted in shock and confusion.

And then—

A voice rang in his head.

Someone’s will, inaudible to anyone else.

“N-no! Not yet! Please, give me another chance! I can withstand it! I swear! Please!”

Suddenly, Yeogongbaek began to plead desperately with someone unseen.

Jang Woo-hyun halted his attack at the sight. The Wind-Passing Great Sage and Mak Ya-wol did the same. Instead, the three instinctively stepped back, widening the distance.

It was a primal decision, their intuition warning them not to approach Yeogongbaek now.

“Please! Please! Give me a chance…”

Yeogongbaek now wailed, bowing and begging as though worshipping.

His face, as he pressed his forehead to the ground and rubbed his hands together, twisted hideously.

“No! Noooo!”

In his screams, Yeogongbaek’s eyes lost their light. His head dropped like that of a puppet with its strings cut.

Moments later.

His head rose again, light slowly returning to his eyes.

But this time, it was not golden light. Instead, a faint silver radiance shone within.

The shattered silver armor fell away, leaving only his arms dyed in silver.

Kuuuuung!

In an instant, the atmosphere shifted. No—it was not just the air. The very world itself was changing.

“Damn it…”

Realizing what was happening, the Wind-Passing Great Sage clicked his tongue, while Jang Woo-hyun and Mak Ya-wol raised their weapons.

Yeogongbaek closed his eyes once, then opened them again.

Kwaaang!

A massive shockwave exploded outward.

━━━━━━━!!

A sound like the world collapsing rang out, and the Floating Island above their heads split in half and fell.

The three of them felt it simultaneously. This was not some great power descending.

It was simply that a being high above had sent down its will.

That alone was enough to shake the world and shatter the nearby Floating Island.

Yeogongbaek’s gaze turned toward the three. Behind that gaze, they felt the immeasurable will of a colossal existence.

“Khk!”

“Ugh!”

Just by meeting its eyes, the immense will tore through their minds. It felt as though their brains had been mashed into pulp, and their eyes burst apart.

It was the advent of a great will. A god had manifested.

Voices echoed in their minds.

Bow your head. Worship.

Follow the great being. The god speaks.

Through the pain, Jang Woo-hyun clenched his teeth and walked across the void.

Under Yeogongbaek’s gaze, his body tore apart. Yet he did not retreat, standing firm before him.

“Is it you?”

Even if his body broke, Jang Woo-hyun remained composed. Having experienced this twice before, his spirit had grown resilient. He felt he could endure it somehow.

Slowly, Yeogongbaek’s mouth opened.

【────■─ ■──】

Words he could not understand at all spilled forth.

Because of the difference in realms, no communication was possible.

Puhk! Pung! Puhk!

Just by hearing those words, Jang Woo-hyun and Mak Ya-wol’s bodies tore and burst. To hear the words of this being and come into contact with its will placed unbearable strain upon their bodies.

Yet amid the agony, Jang Woo-hyun did not back down, but calmly met Yeogongbaek’s eyes.

Beyond the silver radiance of that gaze—

He saw a being from an unfathomable distance.

Three-Thousand Radiant Precious Heaven Sovereign.

At last, Jang Woo-hyun faced the entity directly.

The being ever so slightly lifted the corner of its lips as it looked upon him. Though its expression did not change, Jang Woo-hyun thought the True Immortal was smiling.

And then—

Before he knew it, Jang Woo-hyun was in another space.

‘A Microcosm?’

At first, he thought he had entered someone’s Microcosm, like the one Heavenly Void True Man had once shown him. But this was different.

This was not where Jang Woo-hyun had been. He did not know where this was, but only his consciousness had been drawn here.

An endless corridor, entirely white, so vast it was bizarre.

The towering white pillars seemed to reach hundreds of jang in height.

Intricate, ornate patterns were engraved upon the pillars and walls.

The ceiling strangely reflected the sky, changing constantly.

At first, it was a clear sunny day, then clouds formed, then thunder rumbled and rain fell, and suddenly it became night, revealing countless stars.

The ever-changing sky above was mysterious and beautiful, and for a moment Jang Woo-hyun was captivated.

Shaking his head once, he resumed walking forward.

He did not know what this place was, but he felt he had to.

Perhaps because only consciousness existed here, the moment he thought of moving quickly, the scenery itself shifted backward. It was similar to the Step-Shrinking technique Taecheong Divine Sovereign had once shown him.

After passing tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of li, he arrived at an open space.

All around, countless stars filled the surroundings, with streams of rainbow light flowing here and there. A river of stars like the Milky Way stretched across the void.

When he looked forward after surveying the area, the first thing that caught his eye was a colossal heart.

The beating heart was mismatched in color, as if patched together from many pieces.

And beneath that immense heart—

Someone sat upon a shattered throne. Illuminated from behind by a silver halo, the figure appeared only as a black shadow.

Though he could not see clearly, Jang Woo-hyun knew who it was.

‘Three-Thousand Radiant Precious Heaven Sovereign.’

At last, Jang Woo-hyun confronted the True Immortal that targeted him.

And then—

Crack!

The instant he recognized it, Jang Woo-hyun was crushed and shattered.

At first, he thought everything had ended. Jang Woo-hyun believed he had died.

His consciousness sank toward the bottom.

His memories, his thoughts, his will—all faded away.

Chaaareuk. Kang! Kagang!

Then the sound of metal clashing rang out, and countless blades rose up from the ground.

Within Jang Woo-hyun’s consciousness—

His Microcosm, the Sword Forest of Dosan, began to form. Only then did Jang Woo-hyun regain his awareness.

‘If I had truly died, I wouldn’t even have the thought that I died.’

He would not even be able to continue thinking. Which meant he was not dead.

With that realization, Jang Woo-hyun found himself back in that place.

The space where star-rivers flowed and rainbow lights gleamed like the universe.

The enormous heart of many colors, and the shattered throne beneath it, upon which sat the shadowed figure.

Jang Woo-hyun gripped the Black Wilds Sword.

But he did not charge the black silhouette. Not because he was afraid of it.

‘This isn’t a place where I can fight.’

This space was such a place. The real Jang Woo-hyun was not even here. Only a fragment of his consciousness had been drawn in.

And if combat were possible, the shadowed figure would have already attacked him directly.

What Jang Woo-hyun had just experienced was an illusion, a form of mental attack.

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