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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Boom!
The moment the explosion sounded, Namgung-Woo launched himself forward.
The force from his Infinite Steps momentarily halted the fight between the Banun Clan and the Wudang Sect.
Using the Ascending Dragon technique, empowered by the principle of Qi Control and Reversal, he soared into the air.
“That’s him…!”
Having received a description from the Black Sword Devil, the Dragon-Slaying Demonic Blade instantly recognized Namgung-Woo.
Seizing the opportunity, Daoist Go-won-jin lunged, his Pine Patterned Sword a blur of motion.
He deftly deflected the heavy crescent blade with a fluid movement, demonstrating the essence of Taiji Swordsmanship, the epitome of gentle power.
“Hah!”
The Dragon-Slaying Demonic Blade, instead of blocking, ducked low, narrowly avoiding the sword with an Iron Bridge technique.
But the Taiji Sword wasn’t so easily evaded.
Swish!
The sword grazed his shoulder.
As he stumbled, Daoist Go-won-jin struck with his palm.
It was the Cotton Palm, considered one of the Wudang Sect’s two ultimate techniques, alongside Taiji Fist.
The strike was soft, almost silent.
But the damage was far from insignificant.
Penetrating his protective Qi, it inflicted internal injuries.
“…Tsk. I underestimated him.”
He spat out a mouthful of blood.
The injury was manageable.
Namgung-Woo’s presence had already vanished from his senses.
From the moment Namgung-Woo launched himself into the air to Daoist Go-won-jin’s Cotton Palm strike, only three exchanges had occurred.
In less than ten seconds, he was gone.
Confirming the biggest threat had disappeared, the Dragon-Slaying Demonic Blade unleashed his full power.
“Now, I’ll show you what I’m truly capable of.”
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The Zhuge Family estate was in chaos.
Though lacking imposing walls, the estate was a fortress.
Mechanisms powered by intricate machinery and formations based on Feng Shui principles, enhanced by artificial spells.
These combined mechanisms and formations were the Zhuge Family’s greatest strength.
No other estate in the Central Plains could compare.
Even the Forbidden City paled in comparison, and while the Tang Family of Sichuan might surpass them in the quality of individual hidden weapons, their overall mechanisms were inferior.
It was a testament to their heritage as descendants of Zhuge Liang, the inventor of the Eight Trigrams Formation, the Ox-Horse Cart, and the Repeating Crossbow.
A fortress among fortresses.
It was said that while the Zhuge Family could be defeated, their estate could not be conquered.
Its defenses were legendary.
But now, they were crumbling.
Were they undone by some ingenious analysis of their formations?
Had someone leaked information about their mechanisms?
No.
It was brute force. Sheer destruction.
Walls collapsing.
Buildings exploding.
The ground shaking.
Flames and smoke rising.
The mechanisms designed to repel even thousands of soldiers, the formations meant to trap even Transcendent Realm experts, were useless.
Watching his meticulously crafted defenses crumble, Zhuge Chong muttered in disbelief.
“They’re truly mad. Gunpowder… did they think so little of the Imperial Court?”
Indeed.
The Banun Clan’s method of attack was simple: overwhelming explosive power.
This was why Namgung-Woo hadn’t sensed the attack beforehand.
There was no martial arts, no spells, no Qi to detect.
“To challenge the Zhuge Family, one must be prepared to go this far.”
The voice came from behind him.
He recognized it.
He had only heard it briefly, but his excellent memory recalled its owner.
“…Xu Lu.”
“I discarded that name long ago.”
Dongfang Huo chuckled self-deprecatingly at the mention of his forgotten name.
“Who told you that?”
He shook his head.
“No, it doesn’t matter. It must have been the Wudang Sect. They’d be eager to eliminate me this time.”
“…I thought you’d be at Mount Tianzi.”
“I didn’t come here for idle chatter.”
“If you want my answer, you should answer my questions as well.”
Dongfang Huo was a monster.
A monster who had lived for over eighty years.
Perhaps lacking in true enlightenment, he hadn’t reached the Transcendent Master realm, but he was an unpredictable opponent, even for those who had.
His internal energy, accumulated over decades.
His vast knowledge and diverse techniques, gathered indiscriminately.
His experience from both the Blood Cult Disaster and the Righteous-Unorthodox War.
But even facing such a monster, Zhuge Chong showed no fear.
He possessed the dignity of a Family Head.
“You used gunpowder. You must be confident you can get away with it. Is it the Imperial Consort?”
“…Indeed. As expected of Zhuge.”
The Imperial Consort.
The woman who held Emperor Shenghua’s favor.
She had even gotten away with murdering the Emperor’s only legitimate son.
She could easily erase the crime of using gunpowder, a violation of Imperial law.
As if rewarding him for the correct answer, or perhaps wanting to boast, Dongfang Huo elaborated.
“Everyone wants to live. Not just live, but live young. And the Imperial Consort’s desire was stronger than anyone’s. It was easy to manipulate her.”
The Imperial Consort had murdered the Emperor’s child out of spite after her own child died.
Unable to bear more children due to her age, she had committed countless atrocities to prevent other women from bearing the Emperor’s heirs.
The promise of renewed youth must have been irresistible.
Even if the officials in Wuhan were friendly with the Zhuge Family, they couldn’t defy orders from higher up.
With the Imperial Consort’s backing, the Banun Clan could freely operate within Wuhan.
Zhuge Chong finally understood the reason behind the unexpected attack.
“So… so greedy. You’d take innocent lives just to cling to life so pathetically! And you call yourself the leader of the Wudang…!”
Boom!
Before he could finish, Dongfang Huo attacked.
A sword wind, launched with two extended fingers, sliced through the air, narrowly missing Zhuge Chong and shattering a wall behind him.
His playful smile vanished, replaced by an icy expression.
He walked towards Zhuge Chong.
“We don’t ask for much. We just want to live. To extend this meager life, even for a little while. Isn’t the desire to survive a basic instinct? Why is it wrong to follow that instinct? It’s those who passively accept death who betray the principles of life. We are simply fighting harder than anyone else. Fighting against fate.”
A strange energy enveloped him.
Tendrils of Qi, like tentacles, extended from his body.
But strangely, the energy was pure and untainted.
It resembled the righteous internal energy of Daoist Go-won-jin, but with a layer of miasma covering it.
Fallen Immortal.
The meaning of his title became clear.
“If you still don’t understand, I’ll take what I want by force.”
He didn’t care if Zhuge Chong lost a limb or two.
He intended to leave him barely alive.
He unleashed a flurry of attacks.
Deadly blades of Qi shot from his fingertips.
It was his unique martial art, based on the Wudang Sect’s Soul-Severing Sword Technique, known for its directness and lethality, despite being rooted in the principle of overcoming hardness with softness, combined with various other techniques he had learned.
But Zhuge Chong wasn’t weak.
He was also a Transcendent Realm expert.
He swiftly drew and unfolded his fan, creating a powerful gust of wind.
“The Seven Star Lamp Life Extension Method is impossible for humans!”
He dodged Dongfang Huo’s relentless attacks, using the Heavenly Secrets Evasive Steps, a renowned Zhuge Family movement technique, and shouted.
Dongfang Huo, pressing his attack, calmly replied.
“With the Soul Anchor, it’s possible.”
“The Soul Anchor’s resonance is already disrupted! It can’t maintain its power for seven days!”
“That’s what you think. I can do it.”
Crack!
He stopped using his finger attacks and struck with his open palm.
The sudden blow caught Zhuge Chong off guard.
Even the Heavenly Secrets Evasive Steps, which disoriented opponents by manipulating the Eight Trigrams, couldn’t overcome Dongfang Huo’s experience.
Dongfang Huo was stronger.
The Cotton Palm, a Wudang Sect secret technique.
The same technique that had injured the Dragon-Slaying Demonic Blade now ravaged Zhuge Chong’s internal organs.
“Gah…!”
His Heavenly Secrets Evasive Steps faltered, and he stumbled back, coughing up blood.
He straightened his body and maintained his stance, showing his disciplined training.
“…The Seven Star Lamp… Life Extension Method… shouldn’t be used with artifacts like the Soul Anchor… the spirit, Qi, and body are constantly changing… even if you force the spirit to stay with the Soul Anchor, the body won’t be able to withstand it…”
“I know.”
A sinister aura enveloped Dongfang Huo.
“That’s why I’ll test it on others first. After a few adjustments, I’ll get the desired results.”
“…You’ve truly chosen… the path of inhumanity!”
“The moment you broke my sword, I made my choice.”
There was no turning back.
Zhuge Chong assessed his condition.
The Cotton Palm was a devastating technique, but he had managed to minimize the damage by raising his protective Qi in time.
His Great Heaven Star Divine Art was still circulating smoothly.
He could still fight.
Seeing his resolve, Dongfang Huo clicked his tongue.
“Give up. You can’t win. Your mechanisms and formations are destroyed. The Dragon-Slaying Demonic Blade is holding back the Wudang Sect. And Branch Leader Neung-un? Myeol Seom-ma is dealing with him. Unless you have a Transcendent Master, you can’t turn this around. Just surrender the Soul Anchor and the Seven Star Lamp Life Extension Method. Then I’ll let you live.”
“…We have one.”
“Oh? Then show me. What trick do you have left?”
“Trick? It’s not a trick.”
Zhuge Chong smiled triumphantly.
Dongfang Huo was right.
Only a Transcendent Master could overcome this crisis.
And while the Zhuge Family didn’t have one…
“My niece brought one back.”
As if his words were a command, lightning struck.
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