Namgung Chang-hwi leapt up the moment he realized what was happening.

A master of the Flowering Stage. Something unbelievable was unfolding.

Not only had a Flowering Stage martial artist shown up, but the entire force of the Black Lotus Sect in Daedong-hyeon had converged upon them.

The enemy's Absolute Masters numbered three, and fortunately, thanks to the young lord, Geomyeong had been severely injured.

On their side, there were four Absolute Masters—no, now there were five. He could feel the presence of two Absolute Masters battling against the Flowering Stage master.

‘What’s the best course of action?’

Retreat? That wasn’t possible. If they tried, they would all die before even forming a proper battle formation.

Fight back? Against a Flowering Stage martial artist? Madness.

From the Flowering Stage onward, martial artists began to transcend humanity. They stood somewhere between man and god. To confront one head-on was a suicidal act.

So, was there another option?

Namgung Chang-hwi, his mind racing, furrowed his brow and shouted.

“Form a sword formation, everyone!”

Each Absolute Master would take on one of the enemy's Absolute Masters, while the rest of the forces below that level…

“Damn it…! You lot, support the young lord! Venerable Jibeak! Chief of the Green Forest! You handle Baek Yeon-hada and Chuk Mugang!”

There was no other choice. If they couldn’t keep the Flowering Stage master occupied, they would be annihilated without question.

They had to gather all their peak-level warriors to buy time somehow, either until reinforcements arrived from their own Flowering Stage warriors or until the enemy's Flowering Stage master withdrew under pressure.

Those were the only two scenarios in which they would survive. Otherwise, everyone here would die.

Yes, it was a gamble, but one they had to take. The question now was how many of the enemy had been taken down by the young lord's ambush.

From his vantage point, Namgung Chang-hwi looked down at the battlefield, and the first thing that caught his eye was a scene of pure devastation.

“This is insane…”

Somehow, a battle was actually happening against the Flowering Stage master.

‘And over here…’

The forces of the Black Lotus Sect were rapidly approaching, though thankfully, their numbers weren’t overwhelming. At least not enough to make holding out impossible.

At that moment, the warriors sent to assist the young lord arrived in a hurry.

“Chief! The young lord said he doesn’t need our help and that we should deal with this situation quickly and support him afterward!”

“What? That’s ridiculous…!”

Even just providing support from behind with a formation would have been a great help.

But now wasn’t the time to hesitate.

“Prepare to engage!”

Namgung Chang-hwi drew his sword and unleashed his internal energy with great force.

Changgung Flying Swallow Sword (蒼穹飛燕劍)

His swift strike was blocked by Heuk-gweol’s blade. Heuk-gweol grinned.

“Meeting again, are we?”

Another war had begun.

 

Crack—!

Before Seo-jun's eyes, space was repeatedly shattering and mending.

The Fist King was sent flying again and again by Giryeon’s Gatekeeper’s hand, yet oddly enough, the Fist King seemed unharmed.

“I don’t break!”

The gorilla-like man threw another punch. With each strike, space cracked apart, and with each gesture of Giryeon’s Gatekeeper, the Fist King was sent flying once more.

“What the hell is that?”

Seo-jun laughed dryly as he placed his hand on the ground.

Five Elements, Earth, Elevation.

Rumble—!

The earth trembled and rose up beneath Giryeon’s Gatekeeper. Several small mountains formed around the floating master.

Though Seo-jun could also move in midair, the Flowering Stage masters had long since transcended the distinction between land and sky. To even the playing field, it was better to have solid ground to stand on.

“Oh, sorcery?”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper chuckled, forming a series of complex hand seals with both hands.

The peaks of the rising mountains were sliced off, transforming into the shape of swords. Hundreds of them.

With a flick of his fingers, Giryeon’s Gatekeeper sent all the swords flying toward Seo-jun.

Seo-jun leapt off the mountain, channeling enormous strength into the sword in his hand.

Giant Spirit Art. Overwhelming power that could overturn the sky.

The Sovereign Sword Form stemmed from the Changgung Mu-ae Sword Art. His father-in-law had generously bestowed the Changgung Mu-ae Sword Art, with the grace as vast as the sea.

Changgung Reflecting the World (蒼穹映世)

The blue sky reflected and colored the world.

Whoosh—!

All of the flying swords vanished, and at the same time, Seo-jun’s hand twitched.

Five Elements, Earth, Eruption.

Columns of earth shot up from the towering mountains, aiming for Giryeon’s Gatekeeper.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper brought his index and middle fingers together and slashed upward.

Boom—!

The pillars that had risen were shattered in midair. Simultaneously, the Fist King once again charged in from somewhere.

“You bastard!”

Crack—!

With a punch, the Fist King shattered the energy barrier around Giryeon’s Gatekeeper and charged in. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper frowned.

“You’ve become even tougher.”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper brought his hands together, then pulled them apart. Between his hands, a long sword materialized.

A master of the Flowering Stage commands their own domain. The space within their reach becomes their domain, and within that domain, they command the natural energy itself.

In battles between Flowering Stage masters, the contest is over control of that domain. But if the opponent lacks the power to assert their own domain, then within the domain of a Flowering Stage master, they become like a god.

“Form.”

The energy within the air condensed, binding the Fist King.

“Hngh…!”

The Fist King exerted his strength and broke free, but it was too late.

“Now, die.”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper launched his sword. It weighed over ten thousand gwan (about 37.5 tons), and with the compressed energy at the tip, there was almost nothing in the world it couldn’t pierce.

The Fist King glared and swung his fist to meet it head-on.

“No, you’re crazy!”

Seo-jun, flying in, grabbed the Fist King by the leg and threw him out of the way.

Whoosh—!

The sword narrowly missed the Fist King and pierced a distant mountain. A massive hole appeared in the center of the mountain. Seo-jun let out a dry laugh.

“That’s insane.”

He had a strong feeling things were going south, but despite that, he couldn’t help the grin that crept across his face.

It had been a long time since he’d been in a fight where he didn’t need to think about anything else but killing.

Of course, the odds of him dying were far greater. There was no time for hiding tricks or holding back.

He hadn’t wanted to use this in such a crowded place, but there was no other choice.

Jolt—!

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper stared at Seo-jun in surprise as his fingertips tingled.

“You…”

This pressure. He had felt it once, long ago.

“Are you Namgung Myeong? No, that can’t be…”

This was undoubtedly the Sovereign Sword Form. But Namgung’s successor had not yet reached this level of mastery. So, who was this in front of him?

“Well… I’ll just have to capture you and ask.”

He attempted to seize Seo-jun with the natural energy around him.

But he couldn’t.

The natural energy that should have enveloped Seo-jun failed to breach a two-finger distance around his skin.

“Hah…”

“No matter how strong you are, you can’t just try to subdue me with your energy, you bastard!”

Baekha Ghost Conqueror. Absorbing Star Technique. Both martial arts activated simultaneously, absorbing the energy around him.

You couldn’t fight a Flowering Stage master with the same strategies as before.

His internal energy might be near limitless, but so was that of a Flowering Stage master.

A Flowering Stage master doesn’t just rely on their own internal energy. They use it sparingly, merely as an anchor, while manipulating the natural energy around them. Their consumption of their own energy is minimal, and replenishing their energy is almost effortless.

‘But so what?’

If you sever the head from the body, even a Flowering Stage master would die, wouldn’t they?

Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art.

Swishhhhhhhhh—

A twisted, inverse taegeuk symbol shot forth. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper raised his hand with a strange expression and slashed upward.

Boom—!

The trajectory of the Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art was bent, flying up into the sky.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper glanced at his burning fingertips and let out a breath.

“What are you, really? You’re not quite at the Flowering Stage, but then again… maybe you are? How strange.”

“Arrrrgh…!!!”

Boom!

The Fist King came charging again, and Giryeon’s Gatekeeper, with a whistle, formed a hand seal.

Whistle—!

“Ugh!”

A fierce gust of wind blew the Fist King away, and just behind him, Seo-jun’s eyes met Giryeon’s Gatekeeper’s.

Crackle—!

Energy swirled around Seo-jun’s sword, yin and yang merging into a chaotic swirl. It formed an inverse taegeuk, coiling like a dragon.

Yellow Dragon Emerges 

The tainted dragon, its body made of Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art, roared as it rushed toward Giryeon’s Gatekeeper.

“I haven’t encountered a madman like you in six hundred years.”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper let out a chuckle. Just what was this person, so gleefully grinning in the face of death? He summoned his mind image.

His mind image began to warp the space around him, solidifying into his domain.

“Yo-cheon-do-ji”.

The world twisted.