Chapter 599:
Almost everyone who encounters Wei Yan-ho's martial arts for the first time has the same thought.
'Wh-what is this?'
Magnificent.
Pure white energy gathers at the sword tip, emitting a dazzling light. everal glowing spheres of light bloomed from the sword tip.
Nowhere in this world would one see such a spectacle.
When it comes to magnificence, even Huashan's Plum Blossom Sword Technique, which could compete with anything under Heaven, is not this magnificent.
At the same time, it's fast.
Paaaaat!
The light spheres that had been swirling around the sword tip flew forward at terrifying speed.
There's no time allowed to even react with an 'Oh!' The moment one thinks something is flying toward them, the light sphere has already reached right in front of their nose.
So there's no way they could react.
Kwaaaaang!
Kwaaaaaang!
Explosions of light swept through.
The warriors of White Sword Castle who had been charging at Wei Yan-ho like a swarm of bees got caught up in the light explosions that covered the world.
Not even screams emerge.
Those caught up in the light explosions that flashed momentarily couldn't even properly resist and simply collapsed.
Watching this scene, Baek Hui-myeong's eyes narrowed.
'What on earth is that?'
Can that be called swordsmanship?
The sword is infinite.
A true sword is not bound by form.
These were words he had heard countless times growing up. And it was also the path of the sword he pursued.
Ten Thousand Swords means all swords. That means Wei Yan-ho's sword is also within the category of Ten Thousand Swords. But isn't that too strange to be called swordsmanship?
In terms of launching energy to bring down enemies, it's closer to palm techniques.
In terms of each blast of energy exploding and pressuring, it's closer to fist techniques.
But that magnificence was definitely that of the sword.
Baek Hui-myeong shook his head violently.
Ten Thousand Swords contains all swords in the world.
But Wei Yan-ho's method right now is, how should I put it…
It seemed as if he was containing all the martial arts in the world at his sword tip. Baek Hui-myeong, who had briefly entertained such a thought, shook his head violently.
'No, no.'
That's nonsense.
Even Ten Thousand Swords, which is the culmination of swordsmanship, has had no one complete it for generations. Three hundred years ago, after Sword Emperor Baek Mu-han completed one form of Ten Thousand Swords, no one has dared to discuss the completion of Ten Thousand Swords.
No, perhaps no one has ever completed Ten Thousand Swords until now. Even Sword Emperor Baek Mu-han never declared with his own mouth that he had completed Ten Thousand Swords.
Later generations merely speculate that he must have reached the ultimate realm of Ten Thousand Swords based on his greatness and strength.
But to look beyond Ten Thousand Swords toward a new realm?
That's something no human could do.
'Absolutely not!'
He could say this with certainty.
It's not that he's looking down on Wei Yan-ho. Baek Hui-myeong grew up watching the absolute strongman called the family head from childhood. He knows all too well how lacking he himself is.
If we're talking about talent for the sword alone, his younger siblings are rather better than him. So there's no reason for him to now suddenly underestimate Wei Yan-ho.
He's not looking down on Wei Yan-ho. This is something no one could do. Even that Sword Emperor couldn't attempt it.
'No.'
Even though he appears unable to break free from basic concepts, considering all of that, he couldn't think that Wei Yan-ho was approaching something beyond Ten Thousand Swords.
Wei Yan-ho lacks experience. To systematize and internalize all of that requires countless experiences. But when would young Wei Yan-ho have accumulated that time?
Baek Hui-myeong calmed his mind.
Whatever that is doesn't matter. Whether it's a new realm of martial arts or a new realm of the sword. Even if it's something else entirely different from both, the result won't change.
Because Wei Yan-ho will die here today.
There might be few people in this world who could become stronger warriors than Sword Emperor Baek Mu-han. What's important isn't the possibility, but whether that possibility is realized.
No matter how great a possibility Wei Yan-ho might have, if he dies here today, he'll merely leave one line in history as a warrior who had his neck cut while resisting White Sword Castle.
"Young Master."
"Ah."
Baek Hui-myeong nodded.
'But how terrifying.'
Those charging forward are all being swept away.
'Is he actually above Gwon-geuk?'
Wei Yan-ho's martial prowess was no less than that of Gwon-geuk. No, it could be evaluated as even greater.
'But I completely can't understand it. Even his internal energy seems to be above Gwon-geuk's level.'
The precision and understanding of the sword can transcend age. It often happens that a heaven-sent genius defeats an old master who has devoted his entire life to the sword. But internal energy is a completely different matter.
It's internal energy that made even Baek Hui-myeong gasp in shock at Gwon-geuk. But doesn't Wei Yan-ho's internal energy also seem to surpass Gwon-geuk's?
'If this guy had grown up in an ordinary world, just how strong would he have become?'
Perhaps he could have aimed for the Sword Emperor's position?
It's possible, or it might not be. But what's certain is that Wei Yan-ho would have left his name in history too. Even if he couldn't become the greatest of all time, he might have been able to claim a position among the Five Greatest Masters of All Time.
But that's a story of when the flower bloomed.
"Breaking an unbloomed flower bud is quite regrettable, but it gives me that much base pleasure."
Baek Hui-myeong curled up the corners of his mouth.
"Gi-hon."
"Yes."
"Begin."
"Yes!"
Feeling Gi-hon slip aside, Baek Hui-myeong made a strange smile.
'Such a regrettable thing.'
Wei Yan-ho is strong. Incredibly strong.
One absolute master can handle more than the role of a group. Those who don't reach that level, whether a thousand or ten thousand are gathered, cannot handle a single master.
It's like how even if there are a thousand bees in a beehive, they cannot defeat a single hornet. The bee's stinger cannot pierce the hornet, and the bee's mouth also cannot penetrate the hornet's shell.
So there's no way to attack. The only option is to surround it completely with their bodies and generate heat to cook it to death. But that only works because it's a hornet.
Super masters are incomparably faster than ordinary warriors. They don't allow themselves to be surrounded like hornets.
So those who attack can only die one by one.
When they think they're moderately tired, they distance themselves to rest, and when they come back, that's it. In wars between warriors, the most troublesome thing isn't a large army but super masters moving in small numbers like Wei Yan-ho now.
'It's like a swarm of bees charging at a hornet.'
Gwon-geuk inflicted great damage on them. But that can't be called damage. If they could capture a master like Gwon-geuk, they could endure even serious damage.
If they could capture Gwon-geuk in exchange for letting the enemy go without damage, that would actually be considered a tremendous success.
But Wei Yan-ho is different.
He doesn't need to protect everyone like Gwon-geuk. He just needs to buy some time and then leave. He doesn't have the same sense of responsibility and duty as Gwon-geuk.
He doesn't need to harm himself to save others. It's a matter of position before being human. To deal with such a person, they need at least a master of Wei Yan-ho's caliber.
'But this side has a different method.'
Baek Hui-myeong smiled.
Others might not know, but it definitely works on Wei Yan-ho.
"Huup!"
Gi-hon took his stance and glared at Wei Yan-ho.
"It won't work easily, so concentrate."
"Yes!"
Gi-hon stared at Wei Yan-ho with cold eyes. Then he put his palms together and began muttering something.
Gooooooo.
Something began to swirl within him.
'That is?'
Jang-il and Wei Jeong-han's gazes turned to one side. The sight of Gi-hon taking a strange stance in a corner of the battlefield entered their eyes.
'Why?'
They couldn't help but wonder.
They could tell that person was trying to do something. But what made them wonder wasn't that person's attempt.
Why did their gazes turn that way?
This place right now is a battlefield where death runs rampant. Under normal circumstances, there would be no reason for them to look toward that distant place. Yet their gazes turned as if bewitched.
When they couldn't understand their own actions, the reason entered their eyes.
"Demonic energy?"
"That thing!"
Exclamations burst from Wei Jeong-han and Jang-il's mouths simultaneously. Clear demonic energy poured out from the body of the person who had taken the strange stance.
Demonic energy visible to the naked eye flew toward Wei Yan-ho.
"Yan-ho!"
"Damn it!"
They knew that demonic energy of that level couldn't harm Wei Yan-ho. But those people aren't fools either. The fact that they're doing such a thing means there's definitely something they're aiming for.
Wei Yan-ho also seemed to notice that something was flying toward him as he turned his head.
"Huh?"
At that moment, a lump of pitch-black demonic energy covered Wei Yan-ho.
Watching this scene, Baek Hui-myeong clenched his fist.
'Got it!'
If it had been energy with killing intent, Wei Yan-ho would have dodged. But the demonic energy Gi-hon released was just demonic energy. There's no reason to dodge demonic energy that poses no threat whatsoever.
That will be what strangles Wei Yan-ho's neck.
"Now! Go wild!"
Baek Hui-myeong shouted with a triumphant face.
"…What should I go wild about?"
"…Huh?"
But before he could enjoy his joy, at Wei Yan-ho's voice that returned, Baek Hui-myeong flinched and stepped back.
"Tsk!"
Wei Yan-ho waved his hand, scattering the demonic energy that covered him in all directions.
"You're not trying to play games, are you?"
"…"
Baek Hui-myeong's eyes grew larger than coins.
His wide-open eyes showed just how shocked Baek Hui-myeong was right now.
"H-how?"
The battle had stopped at some point.
"How what?"
"Why aren't you having a seizure?"
Wei Yan-ho frowned.
"What have you been talking about since earlier? It's annoying."
"You, you…"
Baek Hui-myeong's fingertips trembled slightly. Those trembling fingers desperately pointed at Wei Yan-ho.
"You didn't learn the Sword Emperor's Secret Manual, did you?"
"Sword Emperor's Secret Manual?"
Wei Yan-ho tilted his head and clapped his hands.
"Ah, that secret manual! You mean that thing?"
"Why didn't you learn it? It was in your hands?"
"That's an obvious question. I didn't learn it because there was no need to learn it."
"…What?"
Wei Yan-ho curled up the corners of his mouth with a grin.
"That thing's fake, you know."
"…"
"There's no need to learn something fake."
Baek Hui-myeong's mouth fell slightly open.
He didn't learn it?
He knew it was fake?
"W-wait a minute."
Baek Hui-myeong couldn't overcome his bewilderment and shouted loudly.
"Th-then you're saying you sold it knowing it was fake?"
"Yes."
"No, you crazy bastard…"
Wei Yan-ho shrugged his shoulders.
"What does it matter whether it's fake or real? Those people wanted to buy a secret manual, and I wanted to sell a secret manual. Then it's settled. Still, I have a conscience, so I sold it saying it was a secret manual that came from a cave, not that it was the Sword Emperor's martial arts."
"…"
Is that normally called having a conscience?
Crack.
Wei Yan-ho cracked his neck left and right.
"I was wondering what you were so confident about, and it was this? Well, too bad your trump card didn't work. Now then…"
Paaaat.
Wei Yan-ho launched himself into the air.
"All that's left is getting beaten up!"
Light clusters filling the air fell toward Baek Hui-myeong.