Chapter 116

At that moment, Wurin felt it.

That he absolutely had to kill the man in front of him.

He didn’t know how the Blood Demon Heaven-Piercing Art could possibly be used, but having seen it with his own eyes meant one thing—

He had encountered a “secret.”

It was either die or kill.

There could only be one future now.

He stamped his foot.

A massive surge of demonic flame twisted around his arm.

Black Flame’s Three Forms.

Blazing Assembly Sweeps Heaven.

Through the downpour, the enormous swirl of black flame coiled violently and rushed toward Unwi. The range extended dozens of jang wide.

But to Unwi, everything seemed to move in slow motion.

“Third Gate. Blood-Wind Flying Fright.”

His body became as light as a feather, and his energy so thin it was almost imperceptible.

In this moment, Unwi had become both incredibly faint—yet paradoxically, overwhelmingly powerful.

He lifted his foot slowly.

It wasn’t so much a step as it was crossing the very fabric of space itself.

But Wurin was certain.

He had been just a little bit faster.

Wurin’s attack swallowed the very space Unwi had been standing in.

KWA-A-A-AANG!!

With an earth-shattering roar, the rain that had been pounding from the sky reversed direction all at once. Space condensed, then ballooned outward—and exploded again.

KWA-A-A-AANG!!

The trees nearby were uprooted, those farther off trembled violently, and the ground collapsed beneath it all.

And in that instant—

Terror clouded Wurin’s eyes.

“......W-What the hell......?”

He was gone.

He should’ve crushed Unwi’s face in, but there wasn’t even a trace left. How was this possible?

Then, from the side, he felt a murderous aura so intense it screamed through his instincts. Wurin spun around and crossed both arms defensively.

He even diverted all the demonic flame he had raised into a protective barrier.

It was, quite literally, the best decision of his life.

ZZZEEEENG—!!

A sound like the fabric of nature itself tearing apart resounded as Wurin was hurled backward.

His arms tingled. The demonic flame he’d raised was snuffed out like a candle in the wind, and his protective energy shattered like glass.

This wasn’t something a Three Harmony Peak martial artist could ever produce—neither in movement nor destructive force.

“What the hell...... are you?!”

Wurin screamed.

His voice couldn’t hide his fear, and yet Unwi responded only with a short reply.

“I already told you, senior.”

Unwi’s voice vibrated the air.

And then—blood-colored mist began to whirl around him like a storm.

Blood Demon Heaven-Piercing Art was considered complete when all five gates were opened.

With Unwi’s current physical state, he could open up to the Third Gate at most.

Opening the Fourth would mean certain death.

Even at the Heaven and Earth Death Threshold level, one had to at least be at Sky-Person Realm to endure it.

Granted, you’d be bedridden for ten days after, but surviving it was what mattered.

In any case, for now, the Third Gate was the limit.

And he had to finish this quickly.

Unwi extended his hand.

The only one who realized what it meant was Han Murin, who stood nearby.

He threw the sword he was holding to Unwi, who caught it midair.

In that brief moment, Han Murin frowned.

‘......What was that......? Telekinetic grasp......?’

He didn’t understand.

The sword seemed to change trajectory slightly in the air.

Was it a trick of the eye?

But his puzzlement was nothing compared to what Wurin was thinking.

“......This is...... a conspiracy. Yes, a conspiracy. So Ten Thousand-Year Snow Palace has joined hands with Blood Origin Demonic Cult! Your real surname isn’t Seol—it’s Cheon! That’s it. That’s what this is!”

Wurin began screaming at the top of his lungs.

“That scarecrow suddenly wakes up and humiliates the Murim Alliance’s Jeongal Yeonghyeon at go? Ridiculous. Totally absurd! Who do you think of when it comes to go? The Celestial Daoist, of course! Supreme master of Murim! Even Gun Mugyeol and the rest had to concede a stone or two to him! You must be the Celestial Daoist’s hidden son. That explains why you’re so good at go! The original scarecrow Seol Unwi must’ve died long ago, and the Celestial Daoist sent his hidden child to Ten Thousand-Year Snow Palace. Right. That’s it. And it makes no sense that Seol Jungcheon didn’t know—he must be in on it too. This was all a plot from the beginning! Blood Cult and Snow Palace cooperating... you fucking lunatics... What do you bastards even want?! The unification of Zhongyuan? The destruction of the Murim Alliance? The disbandment of the Sichuan League? The fall of Sima Outer Sect? The extermination of all orthodox schools? What?! What the hell do you want?!”

He looked like a raving lunatic.

And yet, taken piece by piece, nothing he was saying was entirely nonsensical.

Unwi’s transformation had been truly shocking.

To someone who didn’t know better, it would be natural to think he was a completely different person.

So much so that even Han Murin, Wonyang, and Jusoah—watching from a distance—were wide-eyed as if thinking: He might have a point...

But Unwi had no intention of explaining.

Nor did he care.

He simply raised the sword.

The rain around him began to tremble.

As if the sword itself were disrupting the very elements.

Slowly—

Unwi opened his mouth.

“I denounce the rot of Murim.”

It was barely louder than a whisper, yet unmistakably a chant.

And it cut through the storm to reach every ear clearly.

As the first line ended, Unwi’s sword began to emit a faint vibration.

Wurin’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“What is this......?”

“To sweep away a hundred years of decay.”

At the end of the second line, wind rose around Unwi.

But this wasn’t mere wind. It was a distinct current that split the rain. The falling water began to spiral around him.

Wurin faltered.

His revived demonic flame flickered.

As someone who had reached Entered Spirit Realm, he could tell.

What Unwi was doing now—was dominion.

A mere Three Harmony Peak martial artist was now wielding control over the natural world, something said to be the exclusive realm of those who’d reached the Heaven and Earth Death Threshold.

“With the sword, I shall forge a new order.”

As the third line rang out, power exploded from Unwi’s sword. It was a force like no other.

Wurin felt as though he were standing at the heart of a typhoon.

The demonic flame he wielded shook violently, and even the surrounding energies fell out of his control.

He had to steady his nerves.

Now was the time to strike.

He had to do it now.

Before the song ended.

He leapt forward.

And then—

“Like a raging wind, I will sweep the world.”

The fourth line concluded—but Wurin smiled.

He had gotten close.

He had summoned every ounce of power.

Ash scattered from his eyes.

Black Flame’s Three Forms.

Ultimate Move – Demonic Flame Iron-Blood Divine Fist.

His fist, wrapped in black flame, became one with the force of nature itself as it swallowed the entire space around Unwi.

It was more precise, more explosive than before.

In that instant, Wurin was certain of his victory.

And Unwi’s sword, which had been held to the side, moved.

From upper-right to upper-left.

As the blade shifted, the surrounding energies moved with it.

It met Wurin’s fist—

ZZZEEEENG—!!

And detonated.

“Gah...!”

Wurin’s scream was swallowed by the blast as his body was hurled high into the air, then slammed into the ground.

Unwi walked forward.

Slowly—but with certainty—toward Wurin.

With each step, blood-red energy swirled violently around him.

“To sweep away all that is old.”

As the final line flowed out, Wurin’s body lifted off the ground.

As if invisible hands of wind had raised him up.

He hadn’t imagined it.

If one could control the surrounding energies fully—not just Telekinetic Grasp, but true dominion—this technique was certainly possible.

Wurin frantically gathered flame to defend himself, but the wind formed of blood energy extinguished it like a candle.

“This can’t be... this can’t be...!”

Unwi’s sword traced a circle.

Along its path, a blood dragon formed.

It descended on Wurin.

“G-GAAAAAHHHHH—!!”

His screams echoed as skin and shards of bone were torn and shredded.

“P-Please... spare me...”

His plea reached Unwi.

But it was a wish that would never come true.

This was Murim.

Unwi’s sword moved once more.

As if cleaving heaven and earth.

It passed through Wurin’s body in a single arc.

KWA-A-A-AANG!!

With the explosion, Wurin’s body shattered into thousands of pieces.

Flesh, bone, and entrails scattered in every direction.

Heaven-Defying Vast Sword.

Second Verse – Soul-Chasing Gale Art.

Unwi flicked the blood °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° from his blade.

Wurin no longer existed in this world.

What remained were only streaks of blood washed away by the rain and fragments so finely shredded they resembled powder.

Even if someone tried to gather them again, they wouldn’t have enough for even a single toe.

That was the kind of technique Soul-Chasing Gale Art was.

Unwi quietly collapsed to the ground, rain still falling on him.

Han Murin rushed to his side to support him.

“......Tower Lord......”

“......Cough... Did you see it?”

“Yes... I saw it.”

“What do you think... is the weakness of demonic flame?”

“......Mental discipline.”

Bleeding, Unwi gave a faint smile.

“Yes. That’s the right answer. Just like with all energies, the greatest weakness is always the person. Martial arts have inherent attributes, and energy is the same.”

“......Tower Lord... you don’t need to say more......”

Unwi shook his head.

He had to.

Han Murin had reached an awakening. He could now etch demonic flame’s weakness deep into his soul.

If not on this stage—if not at this very moment—he would never truly understand.

“......Demonic flame... once fear reaches an extreme, it loses control, and then it harms the user. That is its defining trait. Your killing intent is impressive. Don’t reduce it or suppress it.”

“......Tower Lord......”

“Your killing intent is born of rage. That primal rage cancels out the flaw of demonic flame. Don’t lose that nature—but control it. Only your pure willpower can make your demonic flame grow stronger.”

Something trickled from the corner of Han Murin’s eye.

Whether it was rain or tears was unclear—but one thing was certain.

Unwi’s heart.

“...Thank you.”

Truly, thank you.

Where in this world could there be another man like this?

The place Seol Unwi now occupied in Han Murin’s heart weighed heavier than anything else in the world.

He would serve him.

Until the day this life came to an end.