Reincarnated Sword Ghost

Chapter 56 : Heretical Sect

Heretical Sect

"Have you never seen an swift sword in your life?"

"Nonsense!"

The man charged straight at him. His opening move was identical to the one used by the so-called Young Hero Baek.

He raised his hand and struck down toward Jeong-un's head.

'No, it's different.'

Even if the technique was the same, the energy contained within was different. The bursting energy was immense.

Jeong-un could see the shockwave formed by the true ki rippling out in a perfect circle.

At the same time, Jeong-un instinctively took a step sideways.

His heightened senses from Moonlight Swift Steps sharply warned him of the danger.

"......!"

But that single step seemed to appear different in the opponent's eyes.

With a shocked face and wide-open eyes, he stared at Jeong-un, now standing beside him.

Jeong-un met his gaze and swung his arm.

His sleeve fluttered ever so slightly, and before anyone noticed, his sword was already at the man's neck.

Whoosh!

He barely tipped his head back and dodged.

Yet, the blade still nicked the skin, grazing his nape so thin it hardly left a mark.

Even so, there wasn't a single puncture wound on his skin.

"......"

The man, perhaps chilled, raised his hand and brushed it across his neck.

His eyes never left Jeong-un.

"Your movements are uncanny. It's as if you already knew where I'd attack."

"It's just that your senses are dull."

Jeong-un answered flatly, circulating true ki through his body and channeling it into his feet, readying himself for the next charge.

"You say I'm dull? If I really were, my head would have flown off just now. Or, if your sword had been a bit quicker."

"I agree. I should have been faster."

"......?"

While the man furrowed his brow, Jeong-un's body whipped up a gust.

Using lightness skill, he instantly closed the distance.

A flash of pure white brilliance burst forth at the same time.

"Hup!"

The man urgently raised both hands, blocking the sword that swept towards him.

Clang—!

Although sword and hand collided, the sound resembled the explosive crash of iron bars.

Both contained an abundance of true ki, resulting in such a sound.

The man took a step back and grinned leisurely.

"Your swordsmanship is quite fierce. No wonder you're so arrogant for your age."

"For your age, you sure talk too much."

Jeong-un didn't let up. He unleashed another flurry of attacks.

Lightning-quick sword strikes pressed his opponent relentlessly.

Each blow rang out like a hammer striking metal, a sound you'd expect from a blacksmith's workshop.

"Don't you think your talent is wasted! You're being used, you know!"

Despite their battle, the man's mouth never stopped.

Was it an attempt to cloud Jeong-un's mind?

Even between the crashes of iron, his voice wormed its way through.

"You're wasting your time and martial strength! Use them for yourself. Why waste your life sacrificing for others?"

"So you kill innocents, making them sacrifices for your martial advancement."

"Of course I do!"

Clang!

The man's grin only deepened.

He seemed to have forgotten his earlier attempt to escape.

"They were born for that fate. In terms of value, it's better for them to become fuel for my cultivation than to fester in miserable lives."

Jeong-un said nothing.

He'd heard such nonsense many times before.

It wasn't even worth replying; those who spouted such words had all died.

"Join our sect. You could live like a king!"

"......"

At that, even Jeong-un's eyebrow twitched faintly.

He swung his sword wide, pushing the man back.

The man also fell back a step and curled his lips in a smirk.

"What's this? Are you interested?"

"Your sect?"

"Yes."

A certain figure instinctively floated into Jeong-un's mind.

The very one connected to the strange cultivated power currently residing in his lower dantian.

'The Demonic Cult.'

That person claimed to be the cult leader of Ming Sect.

Jeong-un didn't know how large their power was, but their blind fanaticism was eerily clear.

Even the subordinate, when killed by his master, submitted without protest to the end.

"Are you lot related to the Demonic Cult?"

Jeong-un asked, and the man cocked his head.

"The Demonic Cult? You mean the old Ming Sect? Do those guys still exist?"

"I'm asking if that's whom you belong to."

"No, not at all."

The man's face showed deep offense.

So, calling it a 'cult' really did carry a religious overtone.

When referred to by another name, anger immediately flashed across his face.

"Don't lump us in with those vanished wraiths. We were founded by the Patriarch and are called the Blood Cult."

"The Blood Cult?"

"Yes. The miraculous feat of our Grandmaster was to forge the simple act of essence-draining into a unique martial art. He bestows his holy grace without reservation. Thanks to him, even seeds like myself live in luxury."

"......"

Jeong-un could roughly guess the gist.

He'd already seen plenty who used human blood and flesh as fuel for their martial arts.

They invariably banded together with like-minded types.

It seemed someone had formed those groups into a single sect.

The man looked at Jeong-un, giving a sly smile.

"I meant what I said earlier. You have rare talent. If you come with me, the Blood Lord will be greatly pleased."

"In case you forgot, I killed your son."

"That child, through his accumulated merit, will soon be reborn. Don't squander your gifts. The choice you make now will change your entire life."

He even spouted words about the illegal cycle of reincarnation without hesitation.

Jeong-un could easily see how warped their doctrine must be.

'What a cruel world this is.'

A bad harvest brings about famine, and famine throws the land into chaos—so the proverb said, and it was right on the mark.

Currently, the royal family was reportedly consumed with defending the northern border against marauders.

The world was in turmoil, so creatures like this kept springing up.

Woooom.

Without a word, Jeong-un raised his internal energy.

The man's expression stiffened—that was answer enough.

"You refuse the communal wine and insist on drinking alone."

"Then, let me offer you a choice."

Jeong-un gathered true ki into his sword and spoke.

The man looked at him, puzzled.

"Go on."

"Come here, kneel, and quietly bare your neck. Then, if you close your eyes for a moment and open them, you'll find yourself in the afterlife. If you don't, you'll die in agony."

"... You brat, how dare you!"

The man charged forward in an instant.

This time, Jeong-un did the same.

He stamped his foot hard, kicking up dust that spun in a vortex and filled the space.

They clashed midway, with bursts of energy exploding in rapid succession.

Kaang—!

'I'm just a bit faster.'

What he said about his opponent being slow wasn't just a taunt.

He truly felt that way.

The man could wrap his body entirely in body-protecting ki to ward off attacks and could solidify true ki in both hands.

He also had a formidable grip on the fist-and-palm arts practiced with two hands.

But that was it.

After a few exchanges, Jeong-un quickly grew accustomed to the man's monotonous combinations.

Gradually, more sword strikes began to land on the opponent's body.

Yet, the man maintained a composed expression.

"I thought I told you—"

Fwoosh!

"Your sword can't so much as scratch my body."

As Jeong-un's blade brushed past the man's side, an invisible shield of energy truly brushed it aside, just as his foe had said.

If the sword managed to get past his hands, he would simply deflect it this way.

He seemed to place complete faith in the protection of his body-protecting ki.

'This won't work.'

This approach wasn't going to cut it, Jeong-un muttered inwardly.

He wanted to finish before anyone else arrived.

No matter how much he'd requested support,

he needed to bear the consequences of his actions.

Baek Sang had called it his duty.

But it would be hard to avoid self-blame if any of their support got hurt because of this mess.

'That's why I must take care of this one myself.'

Jeong-un quickly drew the scene forth in his mind.

It was the image of him slaying his foe.

Whoosh!

He deliberately made a large movement, swinging his sword flamboyantly.

He appeared as if, frustrated that nothing worked, he was just lashing out—a natural look for one so young.

The sudden, forceful blow made the man's face tense with surprise as he bent low.

But there was still leisure in his movement. Dodging was easy for him.

Spotting an opening caused by Jeong-un's exaggerated motion, excitement flickered in the man's eyes.

"You arrogant brat!"

He drew his arm far back, ready to strike up from below.

Far more fortified cultivated power than before filled his arm, as if aiming to end it in one blow.

But this was precisely what Jeong-un wanted.

True ki, already supplied from his dantian, gathered dense internal energy and hurtled for his Yongcheon point.

Boom!

Just as he'd waited for, he planted his foot in a forcible stride—and a surge of vital ki erupted, splitting the ground open.

Jeong-un fully absorbed the rebound through his veins and led it into his wrist.

'......!'

His whole body felt as if it was vibrating.

That was how immense the cultivated power flowing through his veins was.

Not a single drop could be wasted.

Only if he handled everything perfectly could the sword move he imagined become reality.

'I can do this.'

He clenched his teeth. His cultivation fully infused the blade.

At last, he swept the sword downward, as if pouring out everything from below.

"What the—?!"

Sensing the prelude to a massive surge of energy, the man hastily withdrew his hands in shock, then raised them to block the descending blade.

He appeared intent on parrying the sword as he'd done all along.

Thus, the two powers collided again.

Saaak—!

But the sound was different this time.

No explosive burst of energy came.

This time, the man's hands failed to stop Jeong-un's sword.

With a natural slicing sound, both arms were lopped off.

"Aaargh!"

His scream followed.

Eyes wide in disbelief, he stared.

Skeok!

In that split second, both his hands were severed.

Yet, Jeong-un's swordsmanship never waned.

It was never a technique to be satisfied with just this much.

Unimpeded, he continued his downward slash.

Sseuuuk!

The blade began splitting him from head down, like a piece of paper.

His severed arms had not yet hit the ground.

"......!"

Both eyes blazed with denial. He could not accept the moment of death.

He must have still been trusting in the body-protecting ki encasing him.

But not even both arms charged with full cultivation could block this blow.

There was no way a paper-thin aura would carry him through.

Before there was time for the light to die from his eyes,

Seok─!

his body split cleanly in two.

The sword completely cleaved the martial artist's body.

Thud.

The corpse fell weakly, divided in two.

There wasn't a single scratch on his body, thanks to his vaunted body-protecting ki.

Except for being split apart.

For someone who'd babbled endlessly, death was quiet.

'... I've improved.'

But Jeong-un had already lost interest in the corpse.

He was retracing the sword move he'd just reproduced.

He had channeled true ki to the farthest point of his body—the Yongcheon point, triggered the forcible stride, and then compacted the rebound, releasing it all at once.

The aftermath left his whole body throbbing.

Even the meridian he used unconsciously was the same.

A well-tempered body means true ki can flow freely through its meridians.

Jeong-un's body was exactly like that.

With the capability of One Illumination Movement Technique, even light intent could move true ki fluidly through his resilient meridians.

But now, even those meridians were burdened.

He could feel he'd pushed them to their limits.

It also didn't help that this wasn't a sword move solely fueled by his own true ki.

The biggest factor behind that overwhelming sword force had calmly returned to his dantian.

'If I recklessly use this twice, I might faint.'

As he thought that, he sensed someone approaching from behind.

Tap.

It was Baek Sang.

Blood covered his plain clothes—he must have fought a fierce battle.

He glanced between Jeong-un and the corpse in front of him and mumbled,

"What on earth...?"