The masked Taoist looked around the ruined Ink Night Heavenly Palace and clicked his tongue.
“When he unfolded the Seven Blood Tear Forms, entire sects would literally vanish without a trace.”
In that instant, a flash sparked in Bu Eunseol’s pupils.
At last, he realized what he had been doing wrong.
‘I was using the Seven Blood Tear Forms incorrectly.’
The true power of the Seven Blood Tear Forms was so overwhelming that it could reduce an entire area to ashes.
But unleashing it at full strength risked harming the innocent.
Above all, given Bu Eunseol’s own nature, he had long refrained from subduing enemies through sheer destructive force and had even avoided using such techniques in order to advance his martial arts properly. As a result, whenever he employed the Seven Blood Tear Forms, he always drastically limited its range and chose precise, targeted strikes.
But there had been no need for that.
No—he should not have done that.
The Seven Blood Tear Forms was, from the beginning, a technique that brought death to everything the enemy controlled—including the very space itself.
Kiiiiing!
In that moment, the mournful wail pouring from Bu Eunseol’s Silent Tiger Soul Sword tore through the heavens.
The instant he fully released the restrained power of the Seven Blood Tear Forms, a colossal, otherworldly roar—far beyond anything before—spread outward.
Crack. Craaaack!
Black blade energy began to coil around Bu Eunseol’s body.
The energy solidified into a gleaming aura, wrapping around him like armor.
Thud.
When even his face was enveloped like a helmet, Bu Eunseol took on the form of a death god incarnate—an embodiment of nightmare itself.
“What bizarre trickery!”
The three poured out their full power once more.
Ssssss.
At the same time, as Bu Eunseol unfolded the Seven Blood Tear Forms again, the Silent Tiger Soul Sword moved ceaselessly through empty air.
Yet no sound of cutting wind rang out, and no intense waves of true energy surged.
In utter silence, the blade simply moved, and within a space that seemed frozen in time… it erased the enemy’s very existence.
Hwaaaaak!
The blade energy enveloped the three, then the grass and trees around them, then the very space they dominated.
Thud.
Maeng So, Hyeon Jeong, and the masked Taoist all froze mid-motion, their bodies trembling violently.
The moment the true, unrestrained power of the Seven Blood Tear Forms poured forth, they finally understood.
The reason Bu Zhanyang had been called terror incarnate was that he severed space, severed flesh, severed even souls—imprinting upon those struck an endless despair so profound they came to crave death itself.
“What happens after death?”
Hyeon Jeong asked Bu Eunseol in a trembling voice.
“If we vanish like this… what happens to us?”
She was nominally a disciple of Buddhism.
Yet facing death, she could no longer endure the fear and asked Bu Eunseol about the afterlife.
Because the figure of Bu Eunseol wrapped in black blade energy looked exactly like a reaper who presided over death.
Hwaak.
When Bu Eunseol released the blade energy, the black aura enveloping his body vanished.
The form of a death god disappeared.
“I see.”
Seeing Bu Eunseol return from that reaper-like appearance to his refined, handsome features, Hyeon Jeong’s face relaxed as though she had attained realization.
“So death is merely death.”
Saaaa.
Her body scattered into dust on the wind.
Exposed to the true blade energy of the Seven Blood Tear Forms, her form turned to ash in an instant.
“Kuuuugh!”
As Hyeon Jeong became dust, Maeng So screamed.
“I can never die! I absolutely cannot…!”
Saaaa.
But he too scattered into powder and drifted away in all directions.
“You truly are Bu Zhanyang’s grandson.”
At that moment the masked Taoist spoke in a voice filled with dread.
“The martial world will once again witness the terror of the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.”
“Why is that terror?”
Bu Eunseol’s pupils were filled with boundless stillness.
Having unfolded the true Seven Blood Tear Forms, he now clearly felt the same solitude and desolation his grandfather had once experienced.
“My grandfather too longed for death.”
“You… still do not understand.”
The Taoist spoke in a shaking voice.
“That blade art ultimately summons the True Demon.”
Pa!
At the same instant, his body also turned to ash.
“What does the True Demon matter?”
Bu Eunseol remained calm.
He no longer felt any curiosity about their words.
Whether the True Demon or his kin appeared, he would simply cut them down.
“Grandfather.”
Ignoring them entirely, Bu Eunseol gazed at the distant sky.
“You must have suffered greatly.”
To cut down those who possessed Sealed Demon Fragments, he had to bring death even to the space around them.
Because of that destructive and terrifying power, innocent people nearby could not help but be caught in the blade energy and suffer harm.
“That is why, in his youth, he killed many innocents… and why, in his later years, such rumors no longer circulated.”
In his youth, he had not yet fully mastered that overwhelming blade energy, and so he could not help but kill countless people.
But as the subtlety and power of the blade art steadily grew, he eventually reached the level where he could shrink the range and accurately eliminate only his target.
Just like Bu Eunseol’s own Supreme Heavenly Flow Forms, which grew more refined and stable with each passing year.
‘Then…’
Suddenly Bu Eunseol realized something astonishing.
It was said that when someone possessing a Sealed Demon Fragment died, the fragment was absorbed by the one who killed them.
Yet when killed by the Seven Blood Tear Forms, no black mist spread at all.
“Did the Seven Blood Tear Forms erase the Sealed Demon Fragment?”
A joyful smile spread across Bu Eunseol’s face.
If so, then his grandfather’s wandering slaughter across the land had been precisely to eliminate these Sealed Demon Fragments.
“If that is true…”
Bu Eunseol looked at the traces of those who had turned to ash and gave a faint smile.
It was an opportunity to instantly dispel the guilt he had felt over his grandfather’s supposed atrocities.
Ziiing. Swirl, swirl.
At that moment, a bizarre sensation struck, and Bu Eunseol’s expression hardened.
In the end, black smoke rose from their remains once more and was once again being absorbed into his forearm.
Gulp, gulp.
Yet something was strange.
Unlike before, it was not mist being absorbed into his body.
Rather, it felt like true energy being forcibly injected from outside—a distinctly foreign yet vivid energy burrowing into the meridians of his forearm.
“Kh.”
Unconsciously, Bu Eunseol clutched his left arm.
He possessed the endurance and patience to bear any pain calmly yet the agony of this force piercing his forearm meridians was difficult to endure.
It was not physical pain—it felt far closer to a mental blow.
Sssss.
White smoke rose from Bu Eunseol’s left arm.
Ziiing.
At the same time, the Three Divine Energies activated on their own.
It was as though cold water had been poured onto a blazing fire—the searing energy rapidly subsided and began to vanish.
“Huu… huu.”
Sitting down heavily, Bu Eunseol took deep breaths.
As the Three Divine Energies circulated through his body, the pain slowly began to fade.
Yet something bizarre occurred.
The energy that had burrowed into his forearm meridians felt like an unrefined elixir that had not yet melted.
It was still lying dormant within his arm, waiting.
“What in the world is this?”
Bu Eunseol looked down at his arm.
In the past, Sealed Demon Fragments had exerted no effect on him whatsoever.
But now it had suddenly taken the form of tangible true energy, been absorbed into his body, and inflicted tremendous pain?
“The Seven Blood Tear Forms.”
After long contemplation, Bu Eunseol’s eyes widened.
“The Seven Blood Tear Forms altered the attribute of the Sealed Demon Fragment.”
His grandfather had eliminated those who possessed Sealed Demon Fragments and when they died by the Seven Blood Tear Forms, the fragments they released underwent a complete change in nature.
“In the end, this too is something I must resolve.”
Bu Eunseol took a deep breath.
For now, no amount of deep thought would solve this problem.
“Let us return.”
He had thought resolving this new mystery would take quite a long time.
Yet in less than a month, events would unfold so swiftly that the secret between the Sealed Demon Fragments and the Seven Blood Tear Forms would be unraveled—something he could never have dreamed.
In a remote mountain valley, deep in the wilderness.
A shadow walked along a path through dense forest.
After a long trek, the sound of water emerged, revealing a small stream. Beside it stood a simple stone hut that seemed to blend naturally with its surroundings.
Around this place, no sound could be heard except birdsong and the wind; only thick greenery draped the area. It was a deep, serene atmosphere, like the depths of an abyss.
Thud, thud.
The shadow finally stepped into a patch of sunlight.
A middle-aged man of bear-like bulk appeared—his beard wild and unkempt. His fierce, glaring eyes flashed with lightning-like intensity, exuding the aura of a great general who commanded armies under heaven.
The atmosphere around him was like the eye of a storm—silent, yet containing overwhelming power.
Palm King, Yuk Jangcheon.
The terrifying master who had perfected an invincible palm art with the strongest pair of hands in the world had been living as a recluse in this deep mountain valley.
“It still won’t work.”
Cupping the pouring sunlight in both hands, he shook his head with a pained expression.
He had retreated into the forest long ago and had spent years trying to break through the wall of the Supreme Heavenly Realm. He had retrained his body, meditated ceaselessly, and attempted to surpass his limits again and again.
All for the sake of revenge.
“Seon Woojin!”
Because of Seon Woojin’s schemes, the petty, selfish true face he had always hidden behind his stern demeanor had been exposed to the entire world.
He could no longer remain among the leadership of the Martial Alliance and had been forced to leave.
But he could not abandon revenge.
To punish the wicked man who had toyed with him all this time, who had shattered all his ambitions in the final moment and left him unable to rise again.
To kill the vile bastard who had pushed him off an irreparable cliff.
He had devoted the rest of his life to honing his martial arts.
“How in the world did you build such martial prowess and reach that realm!”
Yuk Jangcheon’s wretched cry echoed through the surroundings.
He had observed Seon Woojin for a long time and had personally clashed with him, experiencing his martial arts firsthand. Thus he knew exactly how strong Seon Woojin was and how vast his potential.
“I gave up everything to kill you! I tried so hard!”
Yet no matter how much he exerted himself, he could not match Seon Woojin’s level.
No matter what he did… he could not reach a realm capable of killing Seon Woojin.
“I have tried everything!”
Seon Woojin’s potential was beyond imagination, and his martial arts had reached an unfathomable level. He had trained like a madman, even subjecting himself to ascetic suffering to break through his limits.
Yet it was useless.
Finally, today, he had reached the conclusion that no form of training could allow him to defeat Seon Woojin.
“Even if I trained for a hundred years, I could not catch up.”
The martial world did not know.
The true face of Seon Woojin.
How immense his potential was, how extraordinary his martial achievement.
Even Yuk Jangcheon had only realized it after risking his life in a duel with him.
“Even if I were given a thousand years, it would be the same.”
Yuk Jangcheon gazed at the distant sky with a wretched expression.
“While I trained for a thousand years, that bastard would simply reach an even higher realm.”
Drip.
Tears fell.
His entire life in the martial world flashed before him like a lantern.
There had been countless setbacks, yet he had always risen like a roly-poly toy.
But now there was no way left to rise again.
All that remained was despair.
“Uuuugh.”
His chest felt as though it would tear apart; he wanted to vomit blood.
If he could not suppress this rage and despair?
In the end, he would fall into heart demons.
“Even if I become a demon!”
Crack.
With bloodshot eyes, he roared at the sky.
“Just let me kill that bastard!”
The pride and self-respect of a martial artist who had overlooked the martial world his entire life had collapsed.
He was willing to fall into heart demons that devoured the spirit if only he could kill him.
—Arghhhh!
His anguished howl, suppressing unbearable pain, echoed into the distant sky.
He could not collapse like this.
He absolutely could not die like this.
“Haa.”
But at that moment, a low sigh sounded from behind the howling man.
In an instant, every hair on Yuk Jangcheon’s body stood on end.
No matter how distracted his mind had been, how could he not have sensed someone approaching so closely?
“Who is it!”
Yuk Jangcheon spun like lightning.
There stood an old man of about five cheok in height, his white hair neatly combed, looking like an immortal.
“You were on the very verge of becoming a murderous demon from overwhelming rage and despair.”
The old man swept his gaze over Yuk Jangcheon’s eyes and body with pupils that emitted a mysterious light.
“With such skill, there are almost no opponents in the martial world you cannot kill—yet how can you fail to control your killing intent?”
An astonishing statement.
Yuk Jangcheon had long ago reached the Supreme Heavenly Realm and had attained the state of Profound Tranquility, perfectly concealing his martial arts and inner force.
Yet this old man had instantly grasped not only his martial level but also the state of his mind?
“Who are you?”
Realizing the old man before him was no ordinary person, Yuk Jangcheon asked politely.
“This one is called Yuk Jangcheon, bearer of the excessive title of Palm King.”
He bowed once more.
“I wish to know your identity.”
“Palm King… I see. Your face has changed so much I did not recognize you.”
“You are…”
“This old man is merely someone who handles various matters in a place cut off from the world—you would not know even if I told you.”
Yuk Jangcheon could not believe it.
The old man exuded only a relaxed, transcendent aura, as though he were on the verge of ascending to immortality.
It seemed as if he could defeat even the Demon Emperor himself, yet Yuk Jangcheon could not discern the old man’s identity?
“However, I heard such a tragic and murderous wail that I could not simply pass by.”
The old man’s gaze was clear and free of malice.
“Why were you crying out so wretchedly?”
Under normal circumstances, Yuk Jangcheon would never have revealed his miserable story.
Yet upon seeing the unfathomable clarity in the old man’s eyes, he found himself speaking freely without realizing it.
“There is a young bastard I cannot defeat even if I train for a hundred years.”
“Haa.”
The old man let out another sigh.
Yuk Jangcheon possessed rare talent and physique; having trained at the risk of his life, he had already reached the ripe stage of the Supreme Heavenly Realm.
Yet there existed a young man even he could not defeat?
“Who is that young man?”
“Seon Woojin. The one called the Sword King.”
“Sword King Seon Woojin.”
The old man narrowed his eyes.
The young grandmaster who had risen rapidly in the Martial Alliance through outstanding achievements, only to be repeatedly framed as a demonic plant by endless schemes among the Alliance’s leadership, and who had ultimately left to join the Azure Sky Alliance founded by the Bullet King.
The rumors had shaken the martial world, so even the old man knew something of Seon Woojin.
“Is he truly so formidable?”
The old man spoke with an expression of incomprehension.
“As far as this old man knows, Seon Woojin is not one of the Three Realms, possesses no special bloodline, and is not one of the Hundred and Eight Stars?”
Yuk Jangcheon furrowed his brow.
Now it seemed this old man was not truly cut off from the world, but rather well-versed in the affairs of the martial world.
“You seem to be someone from a hidden force in the martial world.”
Yuk Jangcheon glared fiercely and shouted, “You may kill me, but do not insult me!”
“Do not misunderstand. There is a reason this old man is somewhat familiar with the affairs of the martial world.”
“Silence! Get out at once!”
Red energy surged uncontrollably from Yuk Jangcheon’s body.
His uncontrollable killing intent materialized visibly in the air.
‘This is troublesome.’
The old man stroked his chin.
For a master like Yuk Jangcheon to fall into heart demons from rage and despair?
‘And if left alone like this…’
Yuk Jangcheon had already entered the state of heart demons.
If left as he was, he would eventually lose control of his killing intent and rage, becoming a slaughter demon and great butcher who massacred countless people.
‘What should I do?’
The old man had been quietly handling various tasks in seclusion and was finally on his way back to his own home, yet upon sensing a deep killing intent that disturbed the heavenly order and hearing the anguished wail, he had followed the sound of despair and arrived here.
‘No helping it.’ The old man made up his mind. ‘This too must be fate.’
Then he spoke to Yuk Jangcheon.
“You are not an evil man, and your nature is not wicked—yet your personality is obsessive and your attachments are strong.”
The old man sighed deeply.
“This old man originally intended to no longer interfere in the affairs of the martial world. But since this is also fate, I shall unfold the great art of my family for you.”
“Great art?”
“If you receive the great art of my family, you will become several times stronger than you are now. No martial art or power will be able to destroy your body.”
The old man took a deep breath and asked Yuk Jangcheon, “Do you have the courage to receive such a great art?”
“Heh heh heh.”
Yuk Jangcheon gave a faint laugh.
“Is there anyone in the world who would refuse when offered the fulfillment of a lifelong wish?”
“Think carefully. It may be an irreversible decision.”
“Look at me. I entered the martial world at fifteen, defeated countless strong enemies along the way, created the Nine Heavens Society, and commanded ten thousand warriors. After becoming the Deputy Palace Lord of the Martial Alliance, I endured ten more years amid endless schemes and plots, striving to become the Alliance Leader. Do you understand what I am saying?”
“……”
“I am no green youth of the martial world, old man.”
Yuk Jangcheon spoke with eyes full of killing intent.
“Do you think I do not know that in the martial world there is no such thing as unconditional favor, and no profit without a price?”
The old man nodded faintly.
“Indeed.”
Then he explained calmly.
“You have harbored such deep heart fire that you have reached an irreversible state.”
The old man shook his head.
“For now you are somehow holding on, but in time your madness will grow worse. Eventually you will become a slaughtering demon who dyes the world in blood.”
“I see.”
Yuk Jangcheon was not particularly surprised.
As a grandmaster of martial arts, he knew his own body better than anyone. Though he was suppressing despair and rage for now, he had long since sensed that his spirit had already begun to crumble.
“So you intend to kill me before the slaughter-madness begins?”
“I am offering you a favor. But as you said, nothing in the world comes without a price.”
“What must I pay?”
“Your life.”
The old man clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“When the great art of my family is performed on an ordinary human, they cannot endure even a single day and perish. But with a body as tempered as yours—a grandmaster of martial arts—you should last about half a month.”
“Then…”
“After that, your body will be completely destroyed. Even if a Great Arhat Immortal descended, it could not be saved.”
“Half a month.”
A faint light gleamed in Yuk Jangcheon’s eyes.
If he could become an invincible warrior for half a month…
An ordinary martial artist would surely seek out the Demon Emperor or the Heavenly Emperor, kill them, and leave an immortal name in the martial world.
But Yuk Jangcheon was different.
He thought only of killing Seon Woojin.
Nothing else.
