Black and White Martial Emperor

“Haaaa.”

A healthy glow returned to Yangcheon’s face as he exhaled softly.

He looked down at his hand.

Simply clenching and opening it again felt astonishingly natural.

So this was it.

They said the surest way to realize that something precious had been lost was to regain it.

Yangcheon could no longer deny his mistake.

I thought I was merely tired because I had too much on my mind. I thought that was all.

He had not even realized that something was wrong with his body. He had only noticed that he tired a little more quickly than before and that his instincts had grown duller compared to his youth.

Looking back, it was absurd.

He had not only entered the Limitless Realm, but continued advancing even within it, becoming an absolute master who could aspire to the very summit of the world.

Age meant nothing in the realm of a Martial God. If anything, time should only add maturity, wisdom, and enlightenment. There was no reason for his abilities to decline.

Yet he had blamed his condition on age and lamented the cruelty of passing time.

How utterly ridiculous.

Yangcheon closed his eyes.

Yeon Hojeong’s voice echoed in his ears.

“The Perverse Lust Cult Leader is powerful—powerful enough to defeat you, Manor Lord Yang. Why do you think a master of that level spared your life after using a martial art whose countermeasures would become obvious once word of it spread?”

“You could never have realized it yourself. You were already viewing the world through contaminated True Qi. Perhaps a duel to the death might have exposed it, but merely examining your wounds after no proper battle could never have given you the answer. You had never even been forced to draw out the limits of your power.”

Yangcheon sighed.

“I never even fought properly... Ha.”

Being defeated by the Perverse Lust Cult Leader certainly angered him. Yet although the encounter had shocked him deeply, he was not as furious about the defeat itself as one might expect.

He had simply been outmatched.

The loss stung, but it was something he could accept.

What truly infuriated and shamed Yangcheon was that he had never fought properly and had merely obsessed over his wound. As a man who bore the name Fighting King, he had lost sight of his own identity.

He had sought to transform the powerless, dispirited Dark Path into another sun of the martial world. His personal ambition had certainly played a large part, but he had also pursued that goal with the conviction that no one but him could accomplish it.

Thus, he had established Ink Dragon Manor and built a force formidable enough that even the Martial Alliance watched it warily.

But he was the Fighting King.

The king of battle.

An undefeated combatant whose mastery of fighting arts ranked among the greatest under heaven.

And yet, simply because he had become a sovereign, he had forgotten the very foundation that had made him who he was.

There could be no greater shame.

I swore I would be different from the countless rulers who appeared throughout thousands of years of history. I would become a bold and magnanimous sovereign worthy of the name Fighting King.

Yangcheon sighed again.

But look at me now. I have failed both as a sovereign and as the Fighting King.

FWOOSH!

Black-crimson energy rose from his fist.

Within it dwelled the spirit of a lion that could dominate the entire continent. It was darker than when he had sparred with Yeon Hojeong, savagely pure and utterly free of even the smallest impurity.

This was the true Black Lion Qi.

It remained incomplete, the final piece still missing, but even so, it possessed overwhelmingly greater density and versatility than Blood Lion Qi. It was an invincible divine art.

“...Things will be different from now on.”

WHOOSH!

The Black Lion Qi vanished, leaving only the will of the Fighting King behind.

“The world is undergoing a great upheaval. There is no reason for us alone to spend our lives watching everyone else’s reactions.”

Yangcheon turned toward the window.

“Perverse Lust Cult... You crossed the line.”

Their relationship had always been one of mutual deception. They used each other, and when one side ceased to be useful, the other would discard it without a second thought.

But contaminating the True Qi of the Dark Path’s sovereign—and attempting to turn him into a puppet on top of that—was something Yangcheon could never forgive.

“You, at least, will die by my hand.”

Dense Killing Intent poured from Yangcheon’s eyes.

RUMBLE!

The great hall shook despite him releasing no Inner Qi.

His murderous will alone made the air tremble. Dust and stone powder fell from the ceiling.

This was the true power of an absolute master who had entered the Limitless Realm. It was why even Buseon, despite reaching such extraordinary heights herself, could not meet her master’s gaze directly.

A short while later—

“Manor Lord.”

“What is it?”

“Someone has arrived from Putuo Hermitage.”

Yangcheon’s eyes flashed.

“Putuo Hermitage?”

“Yes.”

“My disciple said the situation there had been resolved.”

“The visitor says the details must be explained to you in person. However, after making a few inquiries, it appears they have come seeking assistance in deciding who will inherit the position of Sword Empress.”

Yangcheon’s gaze turned cold.

They wanted outside help deciding the next Sword Empress.

In other words, someone intended to borrow a foreign power to seize control.

I expected them to turn on one another, but they came here to ask Ink Dragon Manor for help?

Yangcheon had sent his disciple precisely to plunge Putuo Hermitage into internal strife, yet the development was so absurd that he nearly laughed.

People who had never dirtied their hands with worldly schemes were frightening in their own way. They were clumsy and foolish, but that also made it impossible to predict what they might do.

Still, this is not bad.

Putuo Hermitage was a sword sect that had produced the Sword Empress for generations.

The Sword Empress’s abilities were far greater than most imagined. She rarely appeared in the martial world, but whenever she did, she displayed enough power to overturn the balance under heaven.

Her strength was so overwhelming that whenever a Sword Empress emerged, people joked that the list of the Ten Greatest Masters under Heaven would need another place added to it.

If Ink Dragon Manor becomes involved in Putuo Hermitage’s dispute, we will establish a foothold from which we can interfere in its politics.

He had only intended to prevent them from interfering in his affairs, yet they had reached out to him first.

This was an opportunity.

A perfect chance to acquire a useful piece on the board.

“Let them in.”

*****

SHIIIIK!

An extraordinarily destructive sword strike pierced the air, leaving a trail of light behind it.

THUNK!

A hole half an inch wide appeared in the center of a boulder fifty feet away.

Considering how explosively the sword energy had erupted, like a volcano coming to life, the mark it left was far too small. It had been an absolute strike powerful enough to pulverize several boulders of that size.

But Tang Gwan, having witnessed it himself, could never dismiss the strike as weak.

If anything, it sent a chill through him.

So this is how far he has come.

Goosebumps rose across his body.

He can compress such immense power to this degree before releasing it?

The small mark did not diminish the sword strike’s greatness.

Its very smallness was what made it so extraordinary.

The destructive force behind Yeon Wi’s absolute strike was so overwhelming that even First Martial General Beonjak would struggle to endure it. In other words, aside from the masters of the Supreme Heavens, no one could block that sword power.

Drawing out such tremendous force was difficult enough.

Maintaining and controlling it was several times harder.

Yeon Wi had reduced power that erupted like a volcano to something the size of a campfire. Its flames might have been small, but their heat had been compressed until they could evaporate an entire lake.

What a monstrous martial art.

SHING!

Yeon Wi sheathed his sword.

“How embarrassing.”

“What is?”

Yeon Wi clicked his tongue.

“What I seek is not one absolute strike, but Three Swords. Yet I cannot even properly control the first of them.”

“...?!”

“Originally, it should not have left so much as a speck of a mark. Instead, it made a hole that large. I wanted the force to seep inside and spread, not punch straight through.”

Yeon Wi shook his head.

“The martial path truly is an ordeal. I thought I had come far enough, but I still have a long way to go.”

Tang Gwan was dumbfounded.

“Is that really what you should be saying right now?”

“Hmm?”

“Among all the martial artists alive today, excluding the masters of the Supreme Heavens, how many do you think could block that strike?”

For those words to come from the fiercely proud Tang Gwan was the highest praise imaginable.

Yeon Wi smiled.

“I appreciate the compliment, but I merely wish to complete what I seek. I am grateful that you call it impressive, but what remains distant is still distant.”

“Good grief.”

“To my eyes, your Sky-Filling Art and Flower Rain Art are far more remarkable than my sword strike. I have never seen another martial art capable of manipulating True Qi with such delicacy. In terms of pure technique, I doubt any martial art under heaven could rival them.”

Tang Gwan gave a crooked smile.

“That does not make me feel any better. Unlike me, throwing every hidden weapon I possess and perhaps a few I do not, you pursue absolute slaughter with a single simple sword strike. You are making me feel rather inadequate.”

It was uncharacteristic teasing from Tang Gwan.

Of course, despite his words, his pride in the Sky-Filling Art and Flower Rain Art was no less than Yeon Wi’s pride in his absolute sword strike.

“Besides, do you not still have far to go before completing your own martial arts? The Sky-Filling Art and Flower Rain Art are difficult enough to wield separately, yet you intend to combine them into a single work of art. My crude imagination cannot even picture it.”

“That is enough. Let us stop gilding each other’s faces. This is becoming unbearably embarrassing.”

Yeon Wi burst into hearty laughter.

Tang Gwan gave him a puzzled look.

“By the way, do you think the boy will want to inherit that sword?”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“Your eldest son.”

“Hojeong?”

“Yes.”

Yeon Wi tilted his head.

“I have no intention whatsoever of teaching him this sword.”

“What?!”

Tang Gwan stared at him in disbelief.

“You are not going to pass that sword on to him?”

“Oh, I would teach him if he asked. But do you truly think he will? He is already steadily forging his own martial path.”

Yeon Wi shrugged.

“Who knows? Considering how quickly he has been growing, he may already have surpassed even my present realm.”

“Nonsense. No matter how gifted the boy is, that is impossible.”

“Ha ha.”

“Then who are you going to teach if not Yeon Hojeong?”

“...Hojeong is not my only son.”

“You intend to teach it to your second son? That sword?”

“Why not?”

Tang Gwan frowned.

“I do not mean to disparage your son, but... can the younger one handle it? Forget mastering it. He would be fortunate not to fall prey to an inner demon while trying to follow that sword.”

Yeon Wi’s sword was as dangerous as it was powerful.

Its level was so high that approaching it with incomplete understanding could cause a martial artist to regress rather than advance.

Yeon Wi smiled.

“If he cannot handle it now, I can teach him after he has grown enough to do so.”

“That is true, but...”

Tang Gwan trailed off.

This was another area where he and Yeon Wi were undeniably different.

Tang Gwan had no intention of teaching the perfected Sky-Filling and Flower Rain arts to anyone except his true successor.

An absolute martial art was itself a source of the Clan Lord’s authority.

“And that day will not be so far away. Jipyeong’s understanding of the sword is astonishing. When it comes to swordsmanship alone, he may even surpass Hojeong.”

“Yeon Hojeong said the same thing. I still find it difficult to believe.”

“Ha ha ha.”

As though trying to change the mood, Tang Gwan made a joke entirely in character for him.

“Whoever you intend to teach, they will first need to return with all four limbs intact before the question matters. Save your pleasant worries for later.”

It was a vicious joke.

Yeon Wi gave a bitter smile and looked up at the sky.

“No. I have decided to believe that my children are not the sort to die in a place like that. So I will begin worrying about it now.”

Despite his words, Yeon Wi’s concern had only deepened as time passed.

It was also why his absolute sword strike had developed so rapidly.

He had continued swinging his sword without rest, simply to forget his worries.

After staring at the sky for a long time, Yeon Wi closed his eyes.

“Come home safely, you little troublemakers.”