Dari tubuh Jin Paecheon memancar energi yang kasar dan mendominasi.
Dari kejauhan di tengah laut gelap, terdengar suara tangisan pelan.
Dahulu, ketika ia tidak pernah menyerahkan inisiatif demi menjaga penampilan, dan tidak pernah menunjukkan belas kasihan kepada musuh yang ingin dibunuhnya.
Ya, ia pun pernah mengalami masa seperti itu.
Masa ketika ia hidup dengan bebas tanpa memedulikan orang lain—betapapun singkatnya.
Geom Mugeuk, yang sedang mengamati, merasa bahwa hari ini ia akhirnya akan melihat wajah asli Jin Paecheon.
Kenyataannya, ini juga merupakan pemandangan yang belum pernah Geom Mugeuk saksikan sebelumnya.
Dalam kehidupan sebelumnya sebelum regresi, ia tidak pernah mendapat kesempatan untuk menyaksikan seni bela diri Jin Paecheon.
Di sekeliling Hwa Yulcheong, yang menghunus pedangnya, energi kegelapan melonjak dan berputar.
Energi itu melilitnya seperti ular.
Hwa Yulcheong meluruskan kata-kata yang sebelumnya diucapkan Jin Paecheon.
"Bukan kau yang akan menurunkan tirai pada era ini."
Kegelapan yang mengalir darinya menelan sekitarnya, menyebar semakin pekat.
Dari aura buruk rupa ini saja, seseorang bisa merasakan betapa berbahayanya ia.
Itu adalah kegembiraan seorang pendekar bela diri yang berdiri di hadapan pertarungan dengan lawan yang layak, bukan sebagai Pemimpin Aliansi, melainkan sekadar sebagai seorang pria seni bela diri.
Geom Mugeuk, yang sedang mengamati, bertanya-tanya—
Peran apa yang dimiliki Hwa Yulcheong di Dark Palace?
Jika ia adalah master seperti ini, pasti ia mengetahui keberadaan Hwa Moogi.
Namun seperti biasa, Geom Mugeuk memilih untuk menganggap Hwa Moogi sebagai seseorang yang tidak ada. Banyak hal telah berubah sejak regresinya, namun ia berharap waktu kemunculan pria itu tetap sama.
Ia berharap Hwa Moogi muncul hanya setelah ia menyelesaikan semua persiapannya.
Dengan demikian, ia memimpikan hari ketika, setelah bermain Go bersama ayahnya, atau membaca buku bersama Blood Heaven Blade Demon, ia bisa berkata, "Aku akan keluar sebentar," lalu pergi membunuh Hwa Moogi.
Agar ketika ditanya ke mana ia pergi, ia bisa menjawab, "Baru saja membereskan sesuatu. Giliranku sekarang, kan?"
Di balik kabut yang menyelimuti hutan buluh, hujan halus mulai turun.
Bersama hujan itu, tirai panggung terangkat.
Momen tetesan air hujan menyentuh tanah—
Jin Paecheon menghilang dari posisinya.
Momen ketika Hwa Yulcheong mendongak ke atas—
Sebelum ia menyadarinya, Jin Paecheon sudah berada di atas kepalanya, menghantam dengan pedangnya. Seolah pria yang tadi berdiri di depan telah dicabut dan ditempelkan tepat di atasnya. Itulah betapa cepatnya kemampuan ringan tubuh Jin Paecheon.
Pedang yang turun secepat cahaya.
Swaeaeaeaeak!
Cahaya berpotongan dengan cahaya. Jika Jin Paecheon adalah cahaya, maka Hwa Yulcheong juga cahaya. Hwa Yulcheong menangkis pedang Jin Paecheon dengan pedangnya sendiri.
"Pemimpin Aliansi melancarkan serangan mendadak…."
Ia bermaksud mengejek serangan diam-diam itu, untuk menggoyahkan ketenangannya, namun Hwa Yulcheong tidak mendapat kesempatan untuk melakukannya.
Kaang! Kaaang!
Inilah Pemimpin Aliansi Martial yang tidak pernah menyerahkan inisiatif. Kini tidak ada lagi kepura-puraan. Untuk bertahan hidup, ia adalah pria yang siap melemparkan kotoran ke mata lawannya.
Dengan kata lain, bebannya sudah terlepas.
Shwik! Shwik!
Tusukan demi tusukan Jin Paecheon ke titik-titik vital begitu kuat dan cepat. Normalnya, jika kuat maka lambat; untuk cepat harus mengorbankan kekuatan. Namun Jin Paecheon memiliki keduanya. Ia cepat dan kuat.
Jika itu adalah pedang master biasa, sudah lama patah. Namun pedang Hwa Yulcheong tidak patah. Energi kegelapan yang мощные melindungi pedangnya.
Sembari mengamati ini, Geom Mugeuk menyadari sesuatu yang penting.
'Ini bukan seni pedang yang digunakan Hwa Moogi.'
Sebelum ia sempat pertandingan yang layak dengan Hwa Moogi, ia dan Lee Ahn sama-sama tertusuk di dada, namun satu hal yang masih ia ingat dengan jelas—
'Hwa Moogi menggunakan seni bela diri yang berbeda.'
Ya, sebegitu kuat apapun tampaknya, dengan teknik itu, ia tidak mungkin bisa mengalahkan Seni Iblis Sembilan Bencana ayahnya.
Sembari menyaksikan pertarungan ini, Geom Mugeuk menemukan sesuatu yang sangat berarti.
Kedua pedang terbang liar saling menghantam, keduanya membawa dendam terpendam selama puluhan tahun.
Suara pedang bertabrakan dengan kecepatan yang terlalu cepat bagi mata, bagaikan keharmonisan musisi terampil. Tidak ada perlambatan atau percepatan—instrumen hanya semakin cepat, berlari menuju klimaksnya.
Garis-garis pedang menenun udara, hanya untuk lenyap.
Garis-garis itu tampak seperti goresan kuas dalam lukisan. Ribuan goresan digambar dan dihapus, tidak dikenal oleh orang biasa, namun ada seseorang yang dapat menghargai nilainya.
Bagi Geom Mugeuk, itu adalah garis-garis yang indah. Lukisan indah yang menyimpan penguasaan martial seumur hidup dua master agung.
Dengan penuh hormat, Geom Mugeuk terus mengamati seni bela diri Jin Paecheon.
Pemimpin Aliansi bisa saja memintanya mundur agar tidak memamerkan seni bela dirinya. Jika ia memintanya, ia akan menarik diri jauh ke belakang.
Namun Jin Paecheon tidak melakukannya. Ia menunjukkan seluruh seni bela dirinya, bahkan kepada seseorang yang mungkin suatu hari nanti menjadi musuhnya.
Inilah ukuran dari Pemimpin Aliansi Martial Jin Paecheon. Tuan Muda Kedua dari Kultus Iblis adalah bejana yang begitu besar hingga ia dapat tenggelam di dalamnya sepenuhnya.
Untuk membalas perasaan itu bukan berarti dengan sengaja berpaling. Sebagai gantinya, ia mengukir pertarungan dua pria itu ke dalam hatinya dengan fokus lebih dalam dibanding pertarungan manapun yang pernah disaksikannya.
Sebelum pertarungan dimulai, Geom Mugeuk telah memikirkan untuk campur tangan.
Bagaimana jika Jin Paecheon menemukan dirinya dalam bahaya?
Ia bermaksud melompat tanpa ragu. Apapun ketidaksukaan yang mungkin dirasakan Jin Paecheon nanti adalah masalah untuk nanti. Ia tidak akan pernah membiarkannya mati dalam pertarungan ini.
Bisakah ia benar-benar menyisipkan dirinya ke dalam pertarungan seperti itu?
Pikiran itu muncul secara alami, karena tidak ada celah sama sekali dalam pertukaran mereka. Momen celah muncul, pertarungan sudah berakhir sebelum ada kesempatan untuk bertindak. Begitulah hebatnya keterampilan kedua pria ini.
Ketika pertunjukan musik pedang yang beradu mencapai puncaknya—
Papapapak!
Di saat seperti ini, seseorang biasanya akan menikmati keunggulannya dan melontarkan cemoohan atau comentario.
Namun Jin Paecheon, bagaikan predator yang asyik dalam perburuan, menekan lawannya dengan lebih dahsyat lagi. Melihatnya, seseorang dapat membaca niatnya.
Tidak perlu menjadi teknik hebat. Selama dapat membunuh lawan, itu sudah cukup.
Melihat Jin Paecheon seperti ini, Geom Mugeuk berharap, jika memungkinkan, dapat menunjukkan pertarungan ini kepada Lee Ahn atau Seo Daeryong, atau kepada bawahannya yang lain.
Tentu saja, "kamu" di sana termasuk dirinya sendiri.
Hwa Yulcheong dengan putus asa memperlebar jarak.
Tapi itu adalah sesuatu yang Jin Paecheon izinkan dengan sengaja.
Papapapapapapak!
Untuk pertama kalinya Geom Mugeuk menyaksikannya—seni bela diri yang mengirim energi pedang menembus dari bawah tanah.
Seni andalan Jin Paecheon, Gaya Pedang Kaisar, telah dilepaskan.
Gaya Pedang Kaisar, Bentuk Keempat: Gemuruh Langit dan Bumi.
Puluhan energi pedang menembus tanah, meluncur ke langit.
Dari Bentuk Keempat ke atas, setiap gerakan hanya untuk membunuh, dan itulah mengapa ia menahan diri untuk tidak menampilkan seni bela diri yang tirani ini.
Hwa Yulcheong melompat ke udara untuk menghindari energi pedang. Satu-satunya tempat untuk melarikan diri adalah langit.
Di saat itulah Bentuk Kelima, yang terhubung dari Bentuk Keempat, dilepaskan.
Gaya Pedang Kaisar, Bentuk Kelima: Tarian Kaos Pedang Terbang.
Seolah-olah mereka mengucur dari mesin, seolah-olah mereka terbuat dari cahaya murni.
Shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik!
Tidak ada yang bisa menghindari serangan yang datang dari bawah dan dari depan. Mengetahui ia tidak dapat memblokir semuanya, Hwa Yulcheong mendorong Protective Energy-nya hingga batasnya dan mengayunkan pedangnya sebanyak mungkin.
Peo peo peo peong!
Hwa Yulcheong terlempar ke belakang dan menghantam tanah.
Namun Jin Paecheon tidak menghentikan serangannya.
Shiiiiik.
Suatu garis energi pedang meluncur di sepanjang tanah, melesat ke depan seolah hidup.
Saat energi pedang menyapu tempat di mana Hwa Yulcheong berada, ia menghilang dari pandangan.
Jin Paecheon pikir ia telah melarikan diri ke某处 dengan menggunakan energi kegelapan, namun dalam sekejap mata, ia melintasi ruang dan muncul—
Tepat di belakang Jin Paecheon.
Paaat!
Melihatnya, Geom Mugeuk terkejut.
Bukan karena Jin Paecheon telah dipotong, maupun karena gerakan Hwa Yulcheong cepat seperti kilat. Bukan juga karena serangan ke bahu Jin Paecheon adalah teknik pedang yang sangat cepat.
Pada momen ia menyerang Jin Paecheon, Geom Mugeuk tidak mendengar sama sekali.
Betapapun cepatnya pedang, seharusnya selalu ada suara di saat sesingkat itu.
Seolah-olah dunia telah sepenuhnya hening.
Inilah mengapa Jin Paecheon terkena serangan.
Pedang tanpa suara.
Geom Mugeuk tahu lebih baik dari siapa pun betapa sulitnya serangan ini untuk bertahan.
Tanpa suara, seseorang tidak dapat bergantung pada pendengaran.
Jika lawan menggunakan pedang cepat, seseorang harus bergantung hanya pada penglihatan.
Master seperti Jin Paecheon dan Hwa Yulcheong bertarung menggunakan tidak hanya penglihatan tetapi semua indera mereka. Secara alami, pendengaran adalah indera kedua yang paling penting setelah penglihatan.
Tapi sekarang, tidak ada suara sama sekali?
Dan alasan paling menentukan mengapa serangan ini begitu merepotkan adalah ini—
Tanpa suara, seseorang tidak dapat mengukur kekuatan
Chapter 664: I Can Hear It All
From Jin Paecheon’s body, a rough and domineering energy surged forth.
From far across the dark sea came the sound of a quiet weeping.
Back when he never yielded the initiative for the sake of appearances, and never showed mercy to an enemy he wished to kill.
Yes, he, too, had such a time.
A time when he lived freely without minding others—however short it had been.
Geom Mugeuk, who had been watching, felt that today he would finally see Jin Paecheon’s true face.
In truth, it was also a sight Geom Mugeuk had never seen before.
In his life before the regression, he had never had the chance to witness Jin Paecheon’s martial arts.
Around Hwa Yulcheong, who drew his sword, the energy of darkness surged and swirled.
It coiled about him like a serpent.
Hwa Yulcheong corrected the words Jin Paecheon had spoken earlier.
“It is not you who will bring down the curtain on this era.”
The darkness flowing from him engulfed the surroundings, spreading ever thicker.
From this ominous aura alone, one could feel just how formidable he was.
It was the joy of a martial artist standing before battle with a worthy opponent, not as an Alliance Leader, but simply as a man of martial arts.
Geom Mugeuk, watching, wondered—
What role did Hwa Yulcheong hold within the Dark Palace?
If he was such a master, surely he would know of Hwa Moogi’s existence.
But as always, Geom Mugeuk chose to think of Hwa Moogi as someone who did not exist. Many things had changed since his regression, yet he hoped the timing of that man’s appearance would remain the same.
He wished for Hwa Moogi to appear only after he had completed all his preparations.
Thus, he dreamed of the day when, after playing Go with his father, or reading books with the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, he could say, “I’ll step out for a moment,” and go kill Hwa Moogi.
So that when asked where he had been, he could answer, “I just took care of something. It’s my turn now, isn’t it?”
In the fog-laden bamboo grove, a fine rain began to fall.
With that rain, the curtain of the stage rose.
The moment the raindrops struck the ground—
Jin Paecheon vanished from the spot.
The moment Hwa Yulcheong looked upward—
Before he knew it, Jin Paecheon was already above his head, striking down with his sword. It was as if the man who had been standing ahead had been plucked up and pasted right above him. That was how fast Jin Paecheon’s lightness skill was.
A sword descending as swift as light.
Swaeaeaeaeak!
Light crossed with light. If Jin Paecheon was light, then Hwa Yulcheong was also light. Hwa Yulcheong deflected Jin Paecheon’s sword with his own.
“The Alliance Leader launches a surprise attack….”
He meant to taunt him for ambushing, to shake his composure, but Hwa Yulcheong had no chance to do so.
Kaang! Kaaang!
This was a Martial Alliance Leader who never yielded the initiative. Now there was no pretense left. To survive, he was a man prepared to fling dirt into his opponent’s eyes.
In other words, the shackles had come off.
Shwik! Shwik!
Jin Paecheon’s thrusts toward the vital points were both strong and fast. Normally, if one was strong, they were slow; to be quick, they had to sacrifice strength. But Jin Paecheon possessed both. He was fast and strong.
If it had been an ordinary master’s sword, it would have broken long ago. But Hwa Yulcheong’s blade did not break. A powerful dark energy was protecting his sword.
Watching this, Geom Mugeuk noticed something important.
‘This is not the sword art Hwa Moogi used.’
Before he had even had a proper match with Hwa Moogi, he and Lee Ahn had both been pierced through the chest, but one thing he clearly remembered—
‘Hwa Moogi used a different martial art.’
Yes, no matter how strong this seemed, with that technique, he could never have defeated his father’s Nine Calamities Demon Art.
Watching this fight, Geom Mugeuk had discovered something of great significance.
The two swords flew wildly toward each other, both carrying decades of pent-up resentment.
The sound of the swords meeting at speeds too fast for the eye, like the harmony of skilled musicians. There was no slowing or quickening—the instruments only grew faster, racing toward their climax.
Sword lines embroidered the air, only to vanish.
The lines seemed like brushstrokes in a painting. Countless strokes drawn and erased, unrecognizable to ordinary people, but there was someone who could appreciate their worth.
To Geom Mugeuk, they were beautiful lines. A beautiful painting holding the lifetime martial mastery of two great masters.
With reverence, Geom Mugeuk continued to watch Jin Paecheon’s martial arts.
The Alliance Leader could have asked him to step aside so as not to reveal his martial arts. If he had, he would have withdrawn far away.
But Jin Paecheon did not. He was showing all of his martial arts, even to someone who might one day become his enemy.
This was the measure of the Martial Alliance Leader Jin Paecheon. The Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult was a vessel so large he could be submerged in it entirely.
To repay that sentiment did not mean deliberately looking away. Instead, he carved the two men’s fight into his heart with more focus than any battle he had ever witnessed.
Before the fight began, Geom Mugeuk had thought about intervening.
If Jin Paecheon were to find himself in danger?
He intended to jump in without hesitation. Whatever resentment Jin Paecheon might bear later was a problem for later. He would never allow him to die in this fight.
Could he really insert himself into such a battle?
That thought came naturally, for there was no opening whatsoever in their exchange. The moment an opening appeared, the fight would already be over before there was a chance to act. That was how great the skill of these two men was.
When the musical performance of clashing swords reached its peak—
Papapapak!
In moments like this, one might normally relish the advantage and throw out a taunt or a remark.
But Jin Paecheon, like a predator engrossed in the hunt, pressed his opponent even more fiercely. Watching him, one could read his intent.
It did not need to be a grand technique. So long as it could kill the opponent, it was enough.
Seeing Jin Paecheon like this, Geom Mugeuk wanted, if possible, to show this battle to Lee Ahn or Seo Daeryong, or to his other subordinates.
Of course, that “you” included himself as well.
Hwa Yulcheong desperately widened the distance.
But that was something Jin Paecheon had allowed on purpose.
Papapapapapapak!
It was the first time Geom Mugeuk had seen it—a martial art that sent sword energy piercing up from beneath the ground.
Jin Paecheon’s signature martial art, the Emperor’s Sword Style, had been unleashed.
Emperor’s Sword Style, Fourth Form: Heaven and Earth Shattering.
Dozens of sword energies pierced through the ground, soaring skyward.
From the Fourth Form onward, every move was solely for killing, and so he had refrained from showing this tyrannical martial art.
Hwa Yulcheong leapt into the air to evade the sword energy. The only place to escape was the sky.
It was at that very moment that the Fifth Form, linked from the Fourth, was unleashed.
Emperor’s Sword Style, Fifth Form: Flying Sword Chaos Dance.
It was as if they were pouring out from a machine, as if they were made of pure light.
Shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik shwik!
There was no avoiding the attacks coming from below and from the front. Knowing he could not block them all, Hwa Yulcheong pushed his Protective Energy to its limit and swung his sword as much as possible.
Peo peo peo peong!
Hwa Yulcheong flew back and crashed into the ground.
But Jin Paecheon did not stop his assault.
Shiiiiik.
A streak of sword energy skimmed along the ground, shooting forward as if alive.
The instant the sword energy swept past where Hwa Yulcheong had been, he vanished from sight.
Jin Paecheon thought he had escaped somewhere using the dark energy, but in the blink of an eye, he crossed the space and appeared—
Right behind Jin Paecheon.
Paaat!
Watching, Geom Mugeuk was startled.
It was not because Jin Paecheon had been cut, nor because Hwa Yulcheong’s movements were lightning fast. It was not even because the strike to Jin Paecheon’s shoulder had been an extremely swift sword technique.
At the moment he attacked Jin Paecheon, Geom Mugeuk had heard nothing at all.
No matter how fast a sword was, there should always be a sound in that fleeting moment.
It was as if the world had gone completely silent.
That was why Jin Paecheon had been hit.
A soundless sword.
Geom Mugeuk knew better than anyone how difficult this attack was to defend against.
With no sound, one could not rely on hearing.
If the opponent used a swift sword, one had to depend solely on sight.
Masters like Jin Paecheon and Hwa Yulcheong fought using not only sight but all their senses. Naturally, hearing was the second most important sense after sight.
But now, there was no sound at all?
And the most decisive reason this attack was so troublesome was this—
Without sound, one could not gauge the strength of the incoming strike.
As a result, one had to assume every attack was the strongest possible and block accordingly. Naturally, the internal energy consumption would be extreme.
‘So this is the martial art he prepared for the day he would fight the Alliance Leader!’
Hwa Yulcheong spoke with a cold smile.
“I will be the one to bring down the curtain on your era.”
The moment the words left his mouth—
The second attack was blocked. Yes, for someone of the Alliance Leader’s caliber, blocking once by instinct was possible.
Chaeang!
But the third attack was blocked as well.
A flicker of surprise passed over Hwa Yulcheong’s face.
“I can hear it all.”
Both Hwa Yulcheong and Geom Mugeuk were startled.
After all, nothing had reached Geom Mugeuk’s ears.
Hwa Yulcheong did not believe him.
In an instant, Hwa Yulcheong moved, stabbing from one spot to another. It was an attack that could not be blocked—his martial art revealed neither sound nor any trace of energy. This was the technique he had honed solely for this day.
Kaang!
But Jin Paecheon blocked even this next strike.
And then—
Kwaaaang!
Not only was there no sound in the swing of the sword, but this sword energy also made no sound at all.
When the rising smoke cleared, Jin Paecheon was still standing in place.
Beside him, a deep hole had been gouged into the ground from where the strike had landed after he narrowly evaded it.
But Jin Paecheon had avoided even that attack.
“You really can hear it?”
Startled, Hwa Yulcheong vanished into the darkness.
In an instant, the surroundings darkened, as if the only lamp in a lightless place had been abruptly snuffed out.
Geom Mugeuk understood that Hwa Yulcheong had unleashed a martial art using the energy of darkness.
Both Jin Paecheon and Geom Mugeuk stood within that darkness.
From within it, Hwa Yulcheong’s voice rang out.
“Jin Paecheon.”
For the first time, he spoke Jin Paecheon’s name.
Jin Paecheon felt a deep strangeness at hearing his name spoken. Since becoming Alliance Leader, who would dare address him so directly?
And as he thought of it, he realized—throughout all their long years as friends, Hwa Yulcheong had never once spoken his name.
For the first time, he revealed his honest feelings. After decades, the first emotion he laid bare was hatred.
“Putting on that fake face for the sake of orthodox martial artists—I truly hated that. Most of the things you did were things you never would have done if you hadn’t been the Martial Alliance Leader, right?”
Geom Mugeuk could tell. He was trying in any way he could to shake Jin Paecheon’s heart. It was clear this darkness carried the effect of stirring up heart-demons. His Heavenly Demon Body Protection Technique had already begun to activate and shield him.
Would the Alliance Leader be able to withstand this energy of darkness?
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