A Flowering Stage martial artist possesses their own domain.

A domain is the space in which they exist, where their mind image exerts influence. The ability to control natural energy is merely a byproduct.

Thus, a Flowering Stage martial artist can fill a certain area with their mind image.

Yo-cheon-do-ji (橈天倒地).

Heaven and earth twisted. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper's mind image colored the space, and everything around it began to distort.

Even Seo-jun’s Yellow Dragon Emerges was caught in its influence. The dragon, made of Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art, veered off course and crashed into the ground.

“Hah…”

Even so, Giryeon’s Gatekeeper couldn’t help but marvel as he gazed at Seo-jun. Around Seo-jun’s skin, within the space of two finger-widths, even Giryeon’s mind image couldn’t reach.

“Curious.”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper flipped his open palm, and the earth and sky inverted. Yet gravity remained unchanged. Seo-jun’s body began to fall toward the sky.

Boom!

The Fist King propelled himself through the air with a kick, charging at Giryeon’s Gatekeeper. Seo-jun’s eyes flashed.

The Fist King’s body was extraordinarily tough. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper’s light attacks didn’t leave a scratch, while the Fist King’s punches pierced through defenses.

Seo-jun, thanks to his unique nature, was able to hold out against Giryeon’s Gatekeeper, but the real damage had to come from the Fist King.

‘I’ll support the Fist King.’

Having made up his mind, Seo-jun conjured blossoms beneath his feet. At the same time, two pairs of arms formed from demonic energy, and the horns on his head sensitively detected the energy within the domain.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper drew a circle with his fingers, gathering wind to entrap the Fist King.

But Seo-jun intervened in advance. He hurled an orb of Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art at the Fist King, the explosion dispersing the wind.

“I’ll deal with you later!”

Struck by the Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Art, the Fist King pressed forward. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper narrowed his eyes.

“Hmph.”

His left and right hands formed different seals.

Trees exploded out of the earth above, while fire surged up from below.

Wood gives birth to fire. The two spells combined, and a massive vortex of fire swept through the air.

Fwoooosh—!!

The flames engulfed the Fist King’s body, but he held his breath, swelling his muscles to push the flames away.

Seo-jun’s slit-like pupils scanned Giryeon’s Gatekeeper’s magic.

The Five Elements. He was beginning to understand earth (tu).

He had seen fire (huo) and wood (mu).

Three pieces of the elemental cycle were in place, so he could infer the remaining two.

Five Elements, Water, Convergence.

Sploosh—!

Streams of water erupted from the earth above and gathered into a single mass.

Though it didn’t extinguish Giryeon’s fire, it did reduce its intensity. The Fist King, relieved, clenched his fist.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper raised an eyebrow.

“You think you can compete with me in sorcery? Interesting. Fine, I’ll fight you with the Five Elements.”

With a flick of his fingers, earth began to fall from above, encasing him.

Fire gives birth to earth. The flames solidified the earth into a sturdy wall.

Boom—!!

The Fist King’s punch struck the wall of earth, cracking it. Behind the fractured wall, Giryeon’s Gatekeeper laughed.

“And now?”

Earth gives birth to metal. Shards of metal emerged from the cracks in the earth and shot toward the Fist King.

These weren’t ordinary shards. The metal, formed through sorcery, inflicted deep wounds on the Fist King’s tough skin.

Seo-jun grinned as he formed a hand seal with his fingers.

Though no one had taught him, his qi naturally guided his fingers to form the correct seal.

Five Elements, Fire, Melting.

The fire that Giryeon had summoned earlier flared up again, fueled by Seo-jun’s magic.

The flames encircled the Fist King, and the molten metal, softened slightly by the fire, failed to pierce his skin.

“Not bad.”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper waved his hand, preparing to cast another spell, but Seo-jun and the Fist King charged at him simultaneously.

“I thought we were competing in sorcery?”

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper smirked.

“Who said that?”

Lightning crackled around Seo-jun’s sword. A flash of inspiration struck him from the unfamiliar sight of the sky beneath his feet.

As his sword moved, the heavens surged. The three-headed, six-armed sovereign grasped swords in each of its hands and thrust forward.

Sovereign Sword Form (帝王劍形).

The Fist King squeezed all his strength into a single punch. The rotation began at his toes, passed through his waist, and traveled up to his shoulder, elbow, and finally, his fist.

Strong Fist.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper clicked his tongue.

“What a shame.”

He unleashed the full power of his mind image. Yo-cheon-do-ji. The space distorted as Seo-jun’s sword and the Fist King’s punch collided with it.

Boom—!!!

Seo-jun and the Fist King were blasted in opposite directions.

“Hngh…!”

Seo-jun quickly reassembled his shattered right arm using internal energy.

“Be careful!”

The Fist King’s shout.

In that instant, space warped, and Giryeon’s Gatekeeper appeared right before Seo-jun.

He swung his hand. Time seemed to slow. Seo-jun could clearly see the approaching hand. A knife-hand strike. Qi condensed at its edge, targeting his neck.

Slick—!

Seo-jun’s neck was sliced. His head fell. Darkness…

“Hehehe…!”

An arm formed of demonic energy instinctively grabbed his head and reattached it to his neck.

Experiencing death for a brief moment, Seo-jun felt a surge of exhilaration.

A thrilling burst of inspiration exploded within him, his mind ablaze with white-hot intensity, craving blood.

“I can do more!”

Red and blue yin and yang energy swirled around his sword. The energies merged into an inverse taegeuk, infusing the blade with a murky edge.

Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Qi (逆天日月罡氣).

He swung it. Giryeon’s Gatekeeper’s eyes widened as the space around him twisted.

Swishhhhh—

The sword sliced through even the space itself, grazing Giryeon’s body. He quickly retreated, laughing as he touched his neck. Blood. How many centuries had it been?

“Haha…! How amusing! You’re not human, are you?”

The Fist King, who had been flying through the air, also glanced at Seo-jun with strange eyes, subtly distancing himself.

Seo-jun tilted his head slightly as he stared at Giryeon’s Gatekeeper.

Swish—

The Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Qi dissipated from Seo-jun’s sword. Even he could only maintain it for a moment. Seo-jun tilted his head again.

“Well, fine. This is good. Feels great.”

Seo-jun’s whites of his eyes turned pitch-black. His crimson pupils stared intently at Giryeon’s Gatekeeper.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper, intrigued, spoke up.

“Hey, Fist Maniac.”

“What?” the Fist King growled, furrowing his brow.

“I think this guy might be a budding Heavenly Demon. Are you sure it’s fine to leave him like this?”

“Why the hell do you care? Just shut up and offer your neck.”

“Well, well, so much for worrying about you.”

“Quiet.”

As the two exchanged words, Seo-jun ground his teeth and trembled violently. His feet scraped the air as if he were ready to charge at any moment.

Giryeon’s Gatekeeper laughed loudly and waved his hand dismissively.

“Well, that’s enough for today. Time is short, and you’ve shown me something interesting.”

“Where do you think you’re—!”

Seo-jun dashed forward, his sword crackling with Heaven-Reversing Sun and Moon Qi. But Giryeon’s Gatekeeper warped space and vanished in an instant.

Whoosh—!

Seo-jun’s sword cut through the air. He whipped his head around, glaring at Giryeon’s Gatekeeper. The man smiled and waved.

“Until next time, when you’ve fully ripened.”

Fwoosh—!

As he disappeared, the domain dissolved.

The earth and sky returned to their rightful places, and Seo-jun’s feet touched the ground.

Grrrr—, Seo-jun growled, scratching his neck as he glared around. The Fist King called out to him from a distance.

“Hey, are you back to your senses?”

“Hnngh…”

“Guess not.”

The Fist King scratched his head. Seo-jun, his eyes still red, suddenly raised his hand and smacked his own head.

Boom!

His blackened eyes returned to white. Then, he began muttering nonsense. Chun-bong? Blue lotus? The Fist King couldn’t make sense of Seo-jun’s babbling.

Seo-jun rambled incoherently for a while before abruptly cutting off his horns.

The Fist King stared at him like he was crazy.

“Young folks these days…”

“…Shut up.”

With that, Seo-jun collapsed.

 

Namgung Chang-hwi gasped for breath as he surveyed his surroundings. The Black Lotus Sect forces were retreating.

A victory. Hard to believe, but it was true. His eyes trembled with disbelief.

“It’s really…”

He gazed at the battlefield where the Flowering Stage master and two Absolute Masters had fought. The landscape had been completely transformed.

During the brief moment he had witnessed their battle, it hadn’t seemed human.

The very space inside that spherical domain had twisted, mountains had risen, and firestorms had raged. It was like a fight between immortals. Yet somehow, the young lord had survived.

“I can’t believe it…”

What on earth had Lady Sua done to bring such a man into their family?

Since the day he arrived, he had saved people from the brink of death, and now, he had held off a Flowering Stage master and lived to tell the tale.

This was no ordinary feat.

While the Flowering Stage master had been occupied, the Martial Alliance had likely reaped enormous benefits.

Perhaps the head of the Joint Sect, near Giryeon Mountain, had made a move, impacting countless battlefields nearby.

Maybe they had even dealt with some of the Black Lotus Sect’s Absolute Masters.

“Waaaaaaaah—!!!”

Amidst the cheers, Namgung Chang-hwi slowly made his way toward Seo-jun.

His steps quickened as his emotions surged.

By the time he arrived, Jang Geuk and the Fist King were glaring at each other.

The Fist King furrowed his brow.

“Step aside, bandit.”

“Heh, what a rude bastard.”

“I won’t say it again.”

“Well, our lord may not look human, but he’s still Namgung’s son-in-law. Want your head chopped off by the head of the family?”

Namgung Chang-hwi wasn’t sure what was happening, but it was clear whose side he was on.

“Senior, please calm down. Let’s talk this out.”

 

‘That idiot never listens when I tell him to stop running around.’

In the top floor of the inn, Chun-bong munched on a sweet rice cake, staring out the window.

She had chosen a spot that gave her a clear view of the road her brother would inevitably pass through if he returned.

As she absentmindedly watched the people go by, someone spoke to her.

“Miss, why don’t we have a conversation—”

“I told you I have nothing to say.”

Chun-bong glared at the man persistently trying to speak to her.

The man awkwardly laughed and waved his hand.

“It’s nothing serious. I just thought we could share a drink…”

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“Do you want to die? I’ve been telling you to keep your temper in check, but you just keep pushing me…!”

Chun-bong infused her chopsticks with sword qi and swung them. The man recoiled in fear and quickly backed off.

“O-okay! I’ll leave! Please, put that away!”

“Hurry up and get lost.”

“Y-yes!”

The man scampered away.

Chun-bong sat back down and gazed out the window again.

A faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

‘Seo-jun, you bastard. Just wait till you get here.’

I’ll make sure you’re completely captivated by my mature charms…!

Chun-bong giggled to herself, lost in her daydreams.