novelraw Chapter 258 : Achieving Twisted Qi
Chapter 258 : Achieving Twisted Qi
Chapter 258: Achieving Twisted Qi
As his thoughts deepened, I eventually reached a single point of connection.
‘Back then, when the soul of the Demonic Master mentioned the Moonlight Demon Art, he briefly talked about another martial art from Ihwa Palace, the Glass Divine Art. At that time, he said the original name of the Glass Divine Art was Jaha Divine Art. Then it all makes sense. The reason they’re targeting the children of the Sect Leader from the Mount Hua Sect might be because of the Jaha Divine Art. Maybe the Glass Divine Art and Jaha Divine Art are somehow connected. To extinguish the Self-Revolving Inner Qi, the internal cultivation method of the Jaha Divine Art might be necessary. If the Jaha Divine Art is indeed connected to the Glass Divine Art, then it may not even be a martial art born from the orthodox martial world. But then, what does the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword have to do with the Jaha Divine Art that they would go as far as to steal it?’
I had many thoughts, but they weren’t coming together. So I decided to try confirming it through Man Inhwa.
“Hey, Miss Man. You remember when I was once under the effect of the Soul Reaping Art, right? I got a lot of information from you back then.”
Man Inhwa flinched slightly and stammered in response.
“So, so what? What are you saying you learned?”
“Isn’t it because of the Glass Divine Art that you're trying to kidnap Master Sa and Lady Sa?”
At those words, Man Inhwa’s expression noticeably stiffened.
“H-How do you know about that?”
I pushed further.
“To complete the Glass Divine Art, you need the Jaha Divine Art. And the Jaha Divine Art can only be mastered by the Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect. So you're planning to kidnap their descendants to trade for it.”
Honestly, I was just stringing together bits and pieces.
I had just blurted out whatever came to mind, but seeing Man Inhwa and the elder behind her react with shock confirmed that I was right.
“H-How do you...?”
“If you think about it, it’s obvious. You’ve been trying to kidnap Sa Jeokwoo and his sister. And when the Moonlight Demon Art failed, you probably turned to cultivating the Glass Divine Art. But to do that, the Jaha Divine Art is a prerequisite.”
What I said was something only those in the upper echelons of Ihwa Palace would know.
For me to say such things so casually, of course they’d be flustered.
“Hahaha, I didn’t believe it when I first heard about you, but you really are a cunning child.”
Jang Goe admired how I’d pieced it all together from what Man Inhwa had said.
“That’s why none of you will leave this place alive. You know too much.”
“That’s fine. Senior, let’s say I’m going to die—could you at least tell me why you need the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword?”
“Oh? You thought that far ahead too?”
“Wouldn’t I be a fool if I hadn’t?”
Jang Goe smiled gently. It was the kind of smile a kind grandfather might show his grandson.
“You’ll find out in the afterlife.”
When Jang Goe stepped forward, Yoro followed suit.
“If I’m going to die anyway, I’d like to know why. Wouldn’t that make it a little less unfair?”
Man Inhwa stared at me suspiciously, watching me speak so calmly, as if death was inevitable.
‘That guy’s not the type to give up so easily.’
Even if Elder Jang Goe and Elder Yoro were impressive, I wasn’t someone who’d cower before them. So for me to act like this was strange.
Thinking that Jang Goe might fall for my words and carelessly respond, Man Inhwa interrupted.
“You’ll never know. So just die.”
It was the moment Jang Goe had been about to answer, having been drawn into my speech, but Man Inhwa beat him to it. He gave a bitter smile.
‘That bastard... He’s really skilled at making people let their guard down.’
“You say I’ll never know?”
I had thought Jang Goe was nearly convinced, so when Man Inhwa interrupted, it annoyed me.
Then suddenly, I clapped my hands.
Clap!
“That’s it. Right. Now I get it. Why you tried to steal the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword. I got the clue from your words. Do you know what it is?”
Man Inhwa looked at me and sneered.
“Hmph, you think I’d fall for your trick? Like I’d give away a clue?”
She clicked her tongue, thinking I was one of those guys who never failed to surprise until the very end.
“No, really. I got a clue from what you said.”
“And what is that?”
Even though she knew it was nonsense, she couldn’t help but ask.
“To complete the Glass Divine Art, you need spiritual energy.”
Man Inhwa tried hard to suppress her expression, but there was no way to fake that.
‘How the hell does this bastard know that!’
She confirmed my words with a curse.
“When you said I’d ‘never know’, that word ‘never’ was the clue.”
And I really had found my clue from that word.
The Four Divine Items were all divine objects imbued with spiritual energy.
If the Glass Divine Art was an advanced martial art that handled enhanced qi, then it would absolutely require spiritual energy, and something to manage that spiritual energy.
From Man Inhwa’s perspective, the only one among the Four Divine Items she knew the location of was the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword, so it was only natural that she tried to steal it.
After failing to obtain it, she likely shifted to kidnapping the Sa Jeokwoo siblings to at least get the Jaha Divine Art.
Had I not known the nature of the Four Divine Items, or if I hadn’t heard about the Moonlight Demon Art and Glass Divine Art from the soul of the Demonic Master, these would’ve been things I’d never know—just like Man Inhwa said.
“It’s a shame. I was going to spare your life because of your potential, but you’ve just thrown away your own chance to live.”
Jang Goe drew a pair of judge's pens from his robe.
One of the judge’s pens was blue, the other red.
Seeing them, Jeong Minji muttered from behind.
"Ah, that man is Cheonghong Blood Warrior (靑紅血士), the one who swept the murim in a bloodstorm thirty years ago!"
"Oh, I didn’t expect you to know this old man’s title."
"He killed countless orthodox masters. He was a master equivalent to one of the Six Demonic Clans, and since it’s been thirty years, he could be even stronger than them now."
Man Inhwa, having heard that, spoke up.
"I told you. Today is your memorial day."
I replied with a faint smile.
"You won’t know that until I die. That’s not something the living should say, is it?"
I spoke to the Three Chivalrous Sisters.
"Could the three of you take on that shabby old man over there?"
At those words, Elder Yoro’s cheek twitched. Just like before, I had a real knack for irritating people.
"Well then, shall we see just how formidable your old age truly is, senior?"
As Jang Goe readjusted his Cheonghong Judge’s Pens and spoke—
"Let’s see, outstanding junior—"
Trying to go along with the rhythm, he began to speak—but I suddenly changed the direction I was charging in.
With the energy of Qi of Graceful Breeze, I rushed in and slashed through the third of the Four Twin Demon Generals.
Then turning around, I immediately fired successive Large Needles using Dragon Scale Finger at the startled fourth.
Pipiping!
"Khk!"
He blocked two of the needles with his sword, but was careless and missed one.
That one struck squarely into his forehead.
"Two of them should be enough for Master Poong to hold on."
Poong Imso simply nodded, still in shock.
If it was just two of the Four Twin Demon Generals, she was confident she could manage them with the Five Elements Sword Formation.
Jang Goe shouted in fury.
"You bastard!"
"You seem like a gentleman—let’s refrain from swearing, shall we?"
That only fanned his rage further.
Even as I spoke, I continued to shoot Large Needles using Dragon Scale Finger, keeping him from approaching.
So even the initiative returned to me.
The Four Twin Demon Generals, overwhelmed with the grief of losing two brothers, couldn’t launch a proper attack.
As their eyes focused solely on avenging themselves by attacking me, they found themselves being pushed into a defensive stance.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, Sa Ilhyang let out a gasp as she watched me fight.
"I knew Young Master Yong was strong, but now… I can’t even imagine how strong he truly is."
"Even if it was a surprise attack, how many in the murim could kill two of the Four Twin Demon Generals in a single exchange?"
Ho Maeyok also stared, astonished, as I clashed with Jang Goe.
"What could have possibly happened during the time we were separated for him to become so strong? Is this what Senior Brother meant by desperation?"
Seeing her two junior sisters distracted, Poong Imso snapped at them.
"Focus! Right now, we need to tie up those two demon bastards. That’s all you should think about!"
Only then did Sa Ilhyang and Ho Maeyok commit themselves fully to the Five Elements Sword Formation.
After thirty exchanges, Jang Goe and I both stepped back.
But we smiled at each other.
"You're young, but I can’t deny it. If someone like you existed thirty years ago, I would never have dared to step into the murim."
"You're old, but still incredibly vigorous. If the murim were filled with relics like you, it’d be suffocating for younger prodigies trying to step foot in the world."
It annoyed him that I didn’t yield even a single word.
"Be careful from now on."
"I’ll keep that in mind."
Jang Goe swung his Cheonghong Judge’s Pens and launched another attack.
The two judge's pens crossed paths, creating graceful trails of glowing strokes with each technique.
For the first time, I fully merged the Soaring Dragon Emperor Sword and the Azure Bamboo Sword to counter Jang Goe’s pens.
Harnessing the Nine Dragons Heavenly Ascent Technique, the two martial arts unfolded as if they were one, leaving Jang Goe unable to gain any advantage with his techniques.
So he changed tactics and amplified his momentum.
I likewise invoked the energies of Hoi Eulshin to respond.
Jang Goe suddenly felt as though I was using him as a training dummy to refine my martial arts.
‘This brat… he’s training against me?’
Enraged, he expelled all the qi in his body and released Nascent Qi.
‘If you survive this, I’ll call you hyung!’
Kuang!
With a tremendous explosion, Elder Yoro and the Three Chivalrous Sisters turned their heads toward my direction in the middle of their fight.
Still under the Forbidden Restriction, the Three Chivalrous Sisters were holding their own almost equally against Elder Yoro.