Chapter 149
The Azure-Red Twin Swords?
It was a strange and unheard-of title, and despite being called “twin swords,” the bizarre figure carried only a single blade.
Yet no one could question this oddity.
He had darted in at an incredible speed, slipping through the ranks of the Blood Sect warriors in an instant.
And in the next moment, the Blood Sect fighters were sent flying as if exploded outward.
Puh-haaaak!
“Gyaaah!”
“Uwaaah!”
Like a ghost, the strange man moved through the Blood Sect warriors as if the area was deserted.
Around him, the warriors were flung back, blood spraying in all directions. It was as if a path of blood was being carved out behind him.
Then, one of the peak-level warriors from the Sunwoo family, who had been killing the Blood Sect fighters, rushed at him desperately, swinging a greatsword.
“You bastard!”
Bwaaaang!
The strike was fierce enough to split a boulder.
But despite the powerful blow coming at him, the strange man didn’t slow down at all.
He simply slipped past the flying blade with a soft, wind-like movement, barely shifting to the side.
Shhaaak!
Puh-hak!
After he passed, the warrior’s neck sprayed blood as his head shot high into the air.
Though it was early in the fight, a peak-level master had been killed in a single, absurdly one-sided clash.
“!”
The smile vanished from No Jo-song’s face as he watched.
What he had just witnessed was utterly impossible.
No master would dodge an opponent’s weapon with only a paper-thin margin like that.
Unless they had multiple lives, such a split-second miscalculation could mean instant death—an act tantamount to suicide.
So the only explanation for such reckless behavior was one thing.
No Jo-song spat out bitterly, “This guy’s insane!”
He had to be mad.
Or else he possessed the ability to perfectly read his opponent’s movements. But No Jo-song couldn’t believe this stranger was a master capable of anticipating a peak-level warrior’s moves so precisely as to dodge by a hair’s breadth.
No Jo-song swung his greatsword at the charging stranger like a gale.
“Die, you lunatic!”
Bwaaaang!
Just as No Jo-song’s beast-like strike was about to land, the stranger suddenly veered sharply at a right angle.
Ignoring inertia, his movement was baffling—he changed direction and accelerated rapidly.
Paang!
“!”
No Jo-song’s horrified gaze followed him belatedly.
Then he realized who the stranger’s true target was.
“Danger…!”
Shhaaak!
But it was already too late for No Jo-song to finish his warning.
Meanwhile, Jegal Seo-yul was locked in a fierce struggle against a twin-sword warrior.
Though she was similar in skill, she was gradually being pushed back.
The pressure of her first real battle and the opponent’s greedy, hungry eyes were making Jegal Seo-yul shrink back.
It was pathetic.
Despite all her previous duels, the reality of a life-or-death fight was so different.
“Hah-ap!”
She shouted, trying to steady her mind.
But seeing her uncle, who looked on the verge of collapse, being cornered nearby, she couldn’t calm herself.
Jegal Ji-yong was one of the greatest masters in the Jegal family.
Yet her uncle was being toyed with like a child.
It was over.
There seemed to be no hope left.
‘Is this how I die?’
Her eyes filled with despair.
Shhaaak!
A streak of light flashed past the twin-sword warrior who was laughing and swinging at her.
“?!”
It happened so fast she thought she must have imagined it.
But the next moment, she saw it was real.
The laughing twin-sword warrior suddenly spewed blood from the back of his neck and collapsed.
Puh-hwak!
Thud!
She stared blankly at the fallen warrior bleeding before her.
She was utterly stunned.
When she looked up, she saw the pale-faced stranger in blue, arms crossed, watching her.
She wasn’t the only one.
Her uncle, the vampire No Jo-song, and the two twin-sword warriors guarding the rear all stared at him in shock.
The stranger spoke arrogantly to her.
“If you want to live, shouldn’t you go help the others? How long do you plan to stand there dazed?”
“Y-yes! Y-yes, sir!”
Snapping back to her senses, Jegal Seo-yul hurried toward the warriors still fighting fiercely.
But as she ran, a thought struck her, and she paused to look back at him.
Though she had never seen his face or heard his voice before, something about his eyes and build felt strangely familiar.
‘Could it be…?’
The stranger, still with arms crossed, now spoke to Jegal Ji-yong.
“Saved you, and you’re just as dazed! Is that a family trait of yours?!”
Startled, Jegal Ji-yong stammered, “W-what? I-I mean…”
“If you can’t fight him, then you should at least take care of his men!”
Jegal Ji-yong immediately understood that “his men” meant the twin-sword warriors guarding the rear.
Apparently, this stranger was going to face off against No Jo-song.
Jegal Ji-yong had no reason to refuse.
He quickly nodded and replied, “Understood, Great Hero! Then I will!”
He immediately charged at the twin-sword warriors in the rear.
“You bastards!”
Shuhaaak!
No Jo-song, the vampire, paid no mind to Jegal Ji-yong leaving his side.
His beast-like eyes were fixed solely on the stranger.
The stranger cracked a faint smile, snapped his neck, and said,
“Shall we begin?”
I snapped my neck and steeled my resolve once more.
I knew this fight was beyond me.
He was on the verge of transcendent mastery, while I had yet to break through eighty years of internal cultivation.
Though I had fought and won against opponents one level above me, facing someone two levels higher was crossing a line.
It was probably a suicide mission, a perfect recipe for a tragic death.
Of course, that was if I hadn’t mastered the Moonlit Sword Dance.
Grinning fiercely, I said to him,
“Shall we begin?”
Then I unleashed the Moonlit Sword Dance.
Moonlit Sword Dance, First Form: Flying Moon.
Suddenly, the world shifted.
It was as if a dreamlike veil had been cast over the reality I had just known, giving everything an ethereal quality.
Within it, I stood once again as an all-powerful being.
No Jo-song charged first, like a fierce tiger.
But I smiled faintly and snapped my fingers.
Instantly, his speed slowed to a snail’s pace.
I could clearly see the monstrous greatsword he swung.
Now, just like before with the other opponent, I felt I could dodge his attack by the slimmest margin.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I raised my sword and chose to strike.
Silent Sword Technique, First Strike: Momentary Slash.
Shuhaak!
Even in this slowed world, my sword moved at a speed that seemed to exist on a different plane, stabbing toward his wrist.
I saw his eyes widen in shock.
‘Alright, let’s start by taking off an arm.’
That was my thought.
But a master on the cusp of transcendence was no easy foe.
Even in that tight moment, he shifted the arc of his swinging arm just enough to barely evade my strike.
Swish!
My sword grazed his forearm, slowly slicing it open.
As the thickening blood floated in the air, I stomped hard on the ground, changing my direction.
My ankle, knee, and hip felt like they might shatter under the strain.
Grit!
Clenching my teeth, I overcame the inertia and successfully changed course.
Spinning my body, I redirected the Momentary Slash into a horizontal cut.
Shhaaak!
Puh-hwak!
“Ugh!”
No Jo-song staggered back, clutching his deeply slashed side.
He was utterly disoriented by the stranger’s relentless assault.
The stranger’s movements were unfathomable.
He would stab at the attacking wrist, then, when the strike was barely avoided, instantly switch the lightning-fast thrust into a slash.
His style defied all the rules No Jo-song had ever known.
It was as if he existed outside the laws of the world.
Shu-hak!
The stranger ghosted forward again, stabbing with his sword.
“How dare you!”
Though the strike was like a beam of light, No Jo-song empowered his greatsword with his internal energy and blocked it.
Bwoooong!
Or so he thought.
At the last moment, the stranger’s sword suddenly changed course.
Shu-hak!
Like a living serpent, the blade slipped past No Jo-song’s greatsword and stabbed toward his chest.
It seemed impossible to block.
Terrified, No Jo-song unleashed all his strength.
“Hah-ap!”
Hwaaaak!
Just before the blade pierced his chest, a surge of energy burst from No Jo-song’s entire body.
It was a crude but definite protective aura.
Twoong!
The sword strike that nearly pierced his chest grazed No Jo-song’s body and bounced off.
He had managed to block the attack with his defensive energy shield.
It was an incredible stroke of luck.
Only after narrowly escaping the crisis could No Jo-song finally let out a sigh of relief.
He had exhausted a tremendous amount of inner power all at once, but at least he was still alive.
Then, something changed.
The glint in the madman’s eyes—who had stepped back from the shield’s rebound—suddenly grew serious.
Gone was the hazy, drunken look from before; now his gaze was sharp and focused, like a hawk zeroing in on its prey.
Without hesitation, the madman lunged forward again, his sword aimed straight at No Jo-song.
Shiiik!
Thunk!
No Jo-song, momentarily thrown off by the sudden shift in the attacker’s demeanor, watched as the blade struck the defensive shield and bounced off once more.
He couldn’t help but frown.
“What the hell? What’s he trying to do?”
The sword strike was even faster than before—precise enough to exploit any opening and truly threatening.
Yet he was deliberately attacking the shield itself.
And that wasn’t all.
“Huuuuu…”
The madman exhaled deeply, readying himself to thrust again.
It was clear he had no intention of giving up until he pierced through the shield.
“Is this guy seriously insane?”
No Jo-song was dumbfounded by the reckless persistence.
But there was no point in stopping him.
“Fine. Come at me again.”
No Jo-song focused his energy into both arms once more.
He planned to hold the shield just a little longer—then, the moment the madman’s attack failed, he would launch a counterstrike.
“Die, you lunatic!”
At that instant, the madman’s sword flashed forward like a streak of light.
No Jo-song couldn’t explain why, but the sword technique looked almost identical to someone from Sun Woo-jin’s memories.
Puuuuk!
“Ugh!”
Just as No Jo-song raised both hands to strike the attacker down, a searing pain exploded in his chest, and his strength drained away.
“N-no way…”
The madman’s blade had pierced through No Jo-song’s chest.
He had broken through the defensive shield and stabbed him directly.
It was unbelievable.
Thud!
Kneeling there, impaled by the sword, No Jo-song muttered bitterly through clenched teeth.
“No… no, this can’t be how I die. I should have gone to the Sun Woo family…”
And then, he breathed his last.
For the infamous Madou Vampire Lord No Jo-song, who thrived on blood, this was a pitifully anticlimactic end.
Sun Woo-jin exhaled deeply.
After countless strikes, he could finally feel his thrust shatter the wall.
He should have been exhilarated, but his mind was elsewhere.
He had just realized the meaning behind No Jo-song’s final words.
Sun Woo-jin shifted his gaze.
He saw Je Gal Ji-yong pressing two Madou warriors at the peak of their power.
The battle was nearing its conclusion.
The same was true for the other fights.
The Blood Sect warriors had already been decimated by Sun Woo-jin earlier, and now they had no peak-level fighters left.
Meanwhile, the Gaeyang Gate and Sun Woo family warriors had Je Gal Seo-yul, a peak master, joining the fray.
Unbeknownst to them, Jeok Ma-hyeok and Gyeon Jung were also providing covert support.
Thanks to them, the Sun Woo fortress—the enemy’s primary target—was still standing.
Sun Woo-jin sent a secret message to Jeok Ma-hyeok and Gyeon Jung.
—I’m heading to the Sun Woo family first. Follow me once I’ve finished here.
Judging from No Jo-song’s last words, it seemed the enemy had infiltrated the Sun Woo family as well.
Pa-ang!
Sun Woo-jin unleashed his explosive energy technique, shooting forward like an arrow.
His destination: the Sun Woo family.
Je Gal Seo-yul, who had been slaughtering the Blood Sect warriors, suddenly turned her gaze toward his soaring back.
Her eyes were filled with confusion as she watched him disappear into the sky.