The moment the life-saving artifact activated, the Makli Clan elder rocketed upwards at an incredible speed, and my Sword Gang could only graze his chest instead of striking his neck.
Swoosh!
Even so, it was enough to slice through his ribs, half his liver, and completely sever one of his lungs.
The Makli Clan elder, bleeding profusely, was still alive.
"Cough! Cough... Grlgrglgh.."
Despite spitting blood foam and barely holding together his falling intestines with spiritual power, he remained alive.
"Grunt, gasp... That... uniform... Cheongmun Clan...! You damned... colluding with, Jin Clan...!"
Despite having one lung crushed, he forcibly maintained his bodily functions through spiritual power.
Terrifying vitality.
But if left alone, he would eventually die from depleting all his spiritual power."Grunt... Cough.. Cheongmun Clan descendant, spare my life. I promise enormous compensation from the main family.
Many cultivators from different clans are currently on edge due to the massacre in the Heaven-Treading Desert...!
In two hundred years, there will be a great war, and every cultivator, including Qi Building, is crucial..!"
"......"
I silently held my sword, infusing it with Sword Gang.
Seeing this, the Makli Clan elder gritted his teeth.
"You fool! Don't you understand what's important...! I will ensure proper compensation for crossing the Byeokra border!
Please, I beg you..."
Buzz!
"Yiiik!"
He dodged my Sword Gang and started infusing energy into the life-saving artifact.
'He's pouring his life force into it...!'
Simultaneously, his figure turned blue and reached the edge of the barrier with astounding speed.
'That's a Core Formation's escape technique!'
The life-saving artifact seemed to allow lower-level cultivators to mimic the flying techniques used by Core Formation cultivators.
"Damn it..! I won't die like this! No way!!"
Boom!
The elder released all his power in a burst, shattering the barrier like a paper wall, creating an escape route.
The backlash caused the Jin Clan Qi Refining cultivators who had set up the array to spit out blood.
"You can't escape!"
"Ha, catch me if you can!"
He gripped the life-saving artifact on his chest and used the escape technique again.
In a blink, he moved another 30 meters away.
"Catch him!"
"Yes!"
I swiftly kicked through the air, shooting Sword Gang.
"You fools...! I won't die so easily to your schemes!"
Flash!
He activated the life-saving artifact again, and with a blue light, his figure moved further away once more.
'That direction is...!'
The faces of me, Kim Young-hoon, and other Jin Clan Qi Refining cultivators twisted.
He is flying towards the Makli Clan's outpost on the Yanguo border.
"Block him! We can't let him reach the outpost and receive support from Makli Clan's Qi Building cultivators!"
"I'm aware!"
Kim Young-hoon and I furiously pursued the Makli Clan elder, and a chase across the border region began.
Whoosh!
I swung my sword, shooting Sword Gang, and quickly formed hand seals to recite the Earth Imprisonment incantation, corresponding to the Earth Imprisonment Star.
"Earth Imprisonment!"
Rumble!
Pillars of earth shot up, attempting to trap the Makli Clan elder.
However, as he formed hand seals, a gust of Yin wind tore through the earth bars, scattering them back towards me.
Flash!
I assessed the space, dodging the falling debris, and leapt into the air.
At the same time, I unleashed a powerful sword slash with Transcending Peaks.
A semi-circular white Sword Gang shot towards the elder.
"Hah!"
As he formed hand seals, Yin energy coalesced into dark clouds, enveloping him and deflecting my Sword Gang.
Simultaneously, the dark clouds transformed into a Cloud Dragon and shot towards me.
But I charged straight towards him.
Unstoppable.
Flash!
A tremendous wave of intent resonated behind me, and the sound of Gang Qi Compression Sphere echoed.
Boom!
A fist-sized orb of light passed by me, entering the Cloud Dragon's mouth, exploding it, and rushing towards the Makli Clan elder.
"I cannot die!"
Flash!
He again infused life force into the life-saving artifact, disappearing with a blue light, and simultaneously, an explosion of Saber Gang erupted at his former location.
A storm of light!
Numerous light streams filled the space in front of me as if painting with saber scars.
As the explosion subsided, I burst through the light storm, extending a massive sword strike towards the fleeing Makli Clan elder!
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship
Qi Mountain, Heart Heaven!
The Sword Gang enhanced and expanded, widening its range as it extended towards the elder of the Makli Clan.
Whoosh!
My elongated Sword Gang struck down the elder, sending him crashing to the ground below.
Frowning, I formed hand seals to create an earthen prison.
'The Sword Gang's impact felt dull.'
It didn't cut through.
Even amidst this, he had managed to raise his protective Gang Qi, turning a deadly strike into a mere hit.
"Earth Imprisonment!"
Rumble!
Pillars of earth rose, encasing the elder of the Makli Clan.
However, with a powerful shout from within the earthen prison, my spell shattered and exploded.
'Indeed, Qi Building cultivators are in a league of their own.'
Neither Sword Gang nor spells could deliver a decisive blow.
But it didn't matter.
I had successfully hindered him.
Kim Young-hoon arrived anew, unleashing a barrage of Gang Spheres.
Nine spheres cascaded towards the elder.
Flash, flash, flash!
A storm of light relentlessly pressed in.
Amidst the tempest, a blue streak of light flickered.
"I cannot die, not like this..!"
The elder of the Makli Clan desperately activated his life-saving artifact, narrowly escaping Kim Young-hoon's onslaught.
His abdomen is torn open, and one arm had vanished.
Yet, he forcibly regenerated an arm using spiritual power and continued his escape.
'Not even a cockroach...'
I was astounded by his tenacity.
What kind of human is this?
'Qi Building cultivators don't die easily unless their head, heart, or dantian is completely destroyed... That saying is indeed true.'
Qi Building cultivators can substitute the functions of lost organs with the spiritual power they've cultivated.
Though the concept seemed absurd, it was proven true.
Of course, he would die once his spiritual power was depleted.
But for now, he remained alive.
Kim Young-hoon and I relentlessly pursued him.
While I hindered him, Kim Young-hoon followed up with lethal attacks.
The elder continually resorted to his life-saving artifact, narrowly escaping each time.
This cycle repeated, and despite being nearly dead, the elder kept consuming pills from his storage bag, barely managing to survive.
'It's hard to end this in one strike...'
The biggest problem was his efficiency countering the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts’ technique of erasing perception.
He has more and stronger magical artifacts than Makli Wangshin, and it seems the technique had become well-known due to previous confrontations with the Makli Clan.
'And he has so many pills...'
He kept popping them like snacks.
'Dragging this out is troublesome...'
The day was fading.
I clenched my teeth and launched my flying sword after the Makli Clan elder.
In any normal situation, this would be pointless.
For Qi Building cultivators, unless their protective aura’s weak point is precisely targeted, Sword Gang and sword strikes are ineffective.
But the elder, now pale as a ghost, dodged my flying sword.
To the nearly dead elder, even my flying sword posed a tremendous threat.
Swoosh!
My flying sword again narrowly missed the elder.
'In a chaotic battle, it's hard to precisely control a flying sword.'
A stable footing was necessary.
I landed and touched the ground.
"Swift as the Sky!"
I chanted the Sky Speed Star incantation and cast a spell.
Rumble!
The earth coalesced, forming a circular platform under my feet.
As I changed my hand seals, the platform slid across the earth.
Rumble!
The ground beneath became my vehicle.
Trees and rocks swiftly passed behind me.
High above, the now slower elder of the Makli Clan was visible.
I, on the ground, and Kim Young-hoon in the sky, surrounded him, unleashing Gang Spheres and Sword Gangs.
Standing on the platform, I took a stance and gripped my sword.
'I'll end this..!'
The end of life is always poignant.
How painful were the moments of death.
But the death in this life seems particularly meaningful.
The sun had set.
Before dawn the next day, my life would come to an end.
'Here I go.'
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship
Eleventh Move, Cliff Edge!
Crash!
I didn't unsheathe my sword.
Still in its scabbard, I sliced through, and launched my Sword Gang towards the sky.
With incredible speed, my Sword Gang shot upwards, and from above, nine orbs of light descended.
Caught in between, the elder of the Makli Clan panicked, then resignedly smiled and formed a hand seal.
"...Huh, you've won."
The sky was filled with light.
Amidst the storm of light, I saw the elder of the Makli Clan being diced, his protective aura scattering away.
"Cough..!"
The cultivator, once soaring in the sky, now fell to the ground.
Thud!
Barely alive, his remaining spiritual power was equivalent to a Qi Refining 1st or 2nd Star cultivator.
Even that was fading.
His life force flickered and his heartbeat weakened.
"You may take his last breath."
"Understood."
I approached the dying elder with a weary body.
This cultivator, who had once brought storms and darkened skies, now writhed pitifully, a mere insect.
I recalled my past life.
The dark clouds he summoned, the sinister gaze he cast down upon us...
Now, this once-mighty Qi Building cultivator lay in such a state.
"...To think, at the brink of death, you Qi Building cultivators are no different from the mere mortals you so much disdain."
I calmly lifted my sword.
At that moment.
"...I am no different from mortals..?"
The elder of the Makli Clan, with bloodshot eyes, stared at me.
"Don't make me laugh... I am Makli Yun-ryeon! An elder of the great Makli Clan... a distinguished cultivator!"
Flash!
"...!"
"Don't dare compare me to mere mortals...!"
His body swelled, emitting a putrid stench and blue light.
I immediately realized his intention.
'Self-destruction...!'
Swoosh!
I hastily retreated as a blinding explosion enveloped the area.
'What's this...?'
The explosion was massive in light but limited in destructive range and power.
'More like a flashbang than an explosion..?'
Suddenly!
I understood his plan.
"Kim Hyung! We must escape! In this vicinity..."
Kugugugu!
The stench of rotting corpses wafted through the air as a stream of green water, heavily mixed with corpse poison, surged towards us like a river.
Kirururuk, Krrrruk...
Kweeeek!
Keeeeek!
I hastily leaped into the air to avoid the green stream, but from within it, zombies poured out and leaped up, swinging their nails at me.
'Damn, this is...'
Chaaaa!
The green stream whirled up into a vortex.
From the center of the whirlpool, a middle-aged cultivator in blue emerged, holding a whisk.
The sheer size of this aura.
This pressure of spiritual power!
'Another Qi Building cultivator...!'
And this overwhelming spiritual aura.
Not just any ordinary Qi Building cultivator.
Late-stage Qi Building!
A powerful figure on par with Makli Wangshin!
"A distress flare suddenly burst into the sky, and it turns out to be a rescue signal sent by Yun-ryeon..."
The cultivator in blue at the center of the whirlpool flicked his finger, and the green waters brought him the clothes and the evening dew left behind by Makli Yun-ryeon.
"...He was an excellent alchemist. The high-quality elixirs he created numbered in the tens of thousands..."
He grinded his teeth as he glared at us.
"The cultivator from the Cheongmun Clan, and the decisive weapon of the Jin Clan... It seems you've cleverly exploited the treaty between Jin and Makli to kill Yun-ryeon..."
Realizing the situation, he alternated his gaze between me and Kim Young Hoon, beginning to gather spiritual power.
"Do not think you can die easily...!"
However, Kim Young-hoon sneered and unleashed another powerful technique.
"I wonder where you get such confidence... Even Makli Yun-ryeon, who reached the fourth stage of Qi Building couldn’t stop me. Do you really think I would fear someone only at the third stage?"
"Ha ha ha, I know you’re exhausted from dealing with Yun-ryeon. Even if the low-level cultivators of the Jin Clan assist, their spiritual power is nearly depleted... You are not enough."
"Hmm... If I were alone, that might be the case. But the brother from the Cheongmun Clan with me has power just below the Qi Building stage, beyond the 14th Star of Qi Refining. Together..."
"Joining forces?"
He laughed dismissively.
"Ah, you seem to be under a misunderstanding. When did I ever say I came alone?"
Kuuuuuu!
The dark night sky.
Dark storm clouds were gathering again.
Similar to the phenomena caused by Makli Yun-ryeon, the clouds seemed to mimic his techniques.
Though the clouds were about a quarter the size of those summoned by Makli Yun-ryeon, cold sweat ran down my back.
It seems as if the sky is covered with Yin energy.
"One of the later-generation disciples from our clan happened to be nearby gathering materials, so we came together."
"Uncle Makli Goon! You left too soon."
The newcomer was a young man dressed in blue.
With an ethereal look, he managed his spiritual power effortlessly, revealing his formidable presence.
Mid Qi Building!
'And almost transitioning to the late stage...'
A direct descendant of the Makli Clan!
A figure worthy of being called a later-generation disciple has appeared.
"Is it not that you’re too slow, little Jun. Well, anyway, thanks for coming. You take care of those Jin Clan remnants and the Cheongmun Clan guy. I'll deal with the external elder of the Jin Clan."
"Yes, but who sent the flare signal?"
"...Yun-ryeon has passed away."
Upon hearing this, the young man's face twisted in shock.
"Yun-ryeon...? How could such a great alchemist...?"
"It seems like Jin and Cheongmun clans conspired together. Using the pretext of crossing the border into Byeokra, they assassinated Yun-ryeon."
"...These despicable scum..."
The young man from Makli Clan grimaced with malice.
"You don’t know who you've killed... The most respected alchemist under the Core Formation elders of Makli Clan...
Many disciples have lost the chance to learn from him, and you cannot imagine how many precious elixirs that could have been refined... are now lost!"
I stared emotionlessly at the ranting young man, preparing my technique.
"Lucky me. Killing you here will save hundreds, maybe thousands of lives."
Today was likely my last day.
I had chosen this place as my grave.
I wasn't afraid to die.
But what weighed on my mind was...
"Kim Hyung! Run as far as you can!"
Kim Young-hoon dying here without being able to reach his goal.
While I was okay with my imminent death, I wished for him to live a little longer.
"I'll try to buy as much time as I can."
Using Endless Mountains Beyond Mountains, I charged at the younger, seemingly weaker mid Qi Building cultivator.
"Ha, this is laughable."
Kuuuuuuuu!
Yin wind gusted.
Beyond the yin wind, a ring of Yin energy flew towards me.
Using Severing Mountain Swordsmanship, I cut through Qi Building spell and occasionally used my own techniques to counter.
'Cut through everything!'
I slashed, parried, and dodged numerous spells, finding a sliver of an opening.
'Cut!'
My sword, in a swift motion, aimed at the mid-stage Qi Building young man.
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship, Twenty-Second Move, Severing Mountain!
All twenty-one forms unleashed at once, exploding through my sword.
'Break through!'
Severing Mountain!
The final form, named for its power to even cut through mountains, surged towards the mid Qi Building man.
And then.
Kaang!
My sword broke.
Not just the sword, but the Sword Gang covering it shattered into pieces.
Was it a defensive spell?
No.
A counterattack?
No.
Did he use a magic artifact?
No.
The mid Qi Building young man was doing nothing.
Just emitting protective Gang Qi using Pure Spiritual Force, he looked at me as if I was a joke.
His mere presence was enough to repel the onslaught of Sword Gang from a Five Energies Converging to the Origin martial artist.
'...So this is a Qi Building cultivator...'
A novice who had just entered Qi Building could be dealt with using the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts and other martial arts, risking life in a fight.
However, a cultivator who has truly experienced Qi Building and reached the mid-stage is an impossible opponent for a Five Energies Converging to the Origin martial artist.
Unlike Makli Yun-ryeon, who was nearly beaten to death by Kim Young Hoon, this young man is full of spiritual and physical strength.
'Ah, I see.'
I realized I have no chance against him.
Even facing Makli Wangshin in my past life was possible only because his strength had fallen from the third stage of Qi Building to the 4th Star of Qi Refining.
Anything beyond that is out of reach.
"Is this all you have? You insect."
Kwaang!
Immense Yin energy gathered in the young man’s hand, forming a dragon claw.
The dragon claw struck me, sending me crashing down into the forest below.
"Kheuk...!"
If I hadn't instinctively released my strength and deployed a defensive spell, I would have died in one blow.
There was a clear difference in our levels.
"Cough... Cough..."
Struggling to rise, I spat blood, unable to move my legs.
I saw pieces of my intestines mixed in the coughed up blood.
It seems my intestines are ruptured.
"Cough... Cough... Kaha... Kahaha..."
I coughed up blood, looking up at the night sky covered in dark clouds.
The green-robed cultivator was already pressing Kim Young-hoon in combat.
'...I can't be more ashamed.'
Running away? Buying time?
I had been overwhelmed so easily, now lying helplessly.
Shameful, utterly shameful.
An unaccomplished life.
I never achieved anything, merely confirming that even the heavens have rejected me.
I barely reached the mid-stage of Five Energies Converging to the Origin.
After the 7th Star of Qi Refining, I only studied in theory, never reaching higher as the heavens forbid it.
Even my death, which I thought would be somewhat honorable, turned out to be a miserable end, treated like vermin.
"Pathetic. Cheungmun Clan’s martial artist of Five Energies Converging to the Origin is you? Daring to face a cultivator with just some lump of iron in your hand.
Even the little cultivation you have is only up to the 7th Star of Qi Refining... Pathetic and useless..."
The young man from Makli Clan clicked his tongue, forming a seal.
"Since you dared to kill a member of my clan, under the pretext of border invasion, I too will kill you under the same pretext..."
My body was lifted by his spell, crossing the border between Byeokra and Yanguo.
"Regret killing a great alchemist of my clan as you die like an insect."
He formed another seal.
I felt a bitter smile on my lips.
'An insect-like fate...'
True enough.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't escape this fate.
What could I do when even the heavens deny me?
No matter how hard I tried, it was impossible to reach beyond.
I closed my eyes, waiting for death that was approaching.
An unfulfilled life.
The end of a tenacious life came just like that.
I thought it was my seventh return.
Kwaang!
An explosion sounded, and the binding spiritual power of the Makli Clan cultivator dispersed.
I opened my eyes and looked at the person who freed me.
A very familiar back.
"...Master...?"
My master, Cheongmun Ryeong, stood in front of me.
"How did you come here...?"
I asked in confusion, but Master didn't turn to me and replied shortly.
"Didn't you send a letter?"
"Yes...? But that should take at least three days to arrive..."
"Hmph! Three days? You’ve always been slow, but is even your letter to your master slow? Before you left, I put a much better transmission talisman in your storage device."
Master sighed and waved his hand.
In his hand was my crumpled letter.
"Did you think I wouldn’t know? You fool... I could tell your emotions just from your handwriting."
I thought I had written with maximum emotional restraint.
But it seems impossible to fool the eyes of my master.
"...My disciple. Why are you so frustrating to the end? I have conducted rituals and read the celestial omens with you countless times. I have read the celestial omens concerning you by myself hundreds of times. Did you think I wouldn’t know that your end is near?"
"......"
"It seemed that you knew your life was coming to an end, so you sent the letter... But what is this? Did you come here wanting to die honorably? Did you really intend to fight and die without telling me anything?"
Master scolded me with a tone of anger.
I couldn't help shed tears.
Master’s intent was a deep, dark blue.
The intent of sorrow.
Like the dark clouds covering the sky, his intent was also deeply colored with sorrow.
"...I'm sorry."
And then, I had to hear the words I least wanted to hear from my master.
"I failed you, I couldn't do anything for you..."
"...No, it's not your fault."
"I don't know how much time is left in your life, but still... shouldn't you say goodbye in front of your master?"
Master still didn’t turn to me as he spoke.
Somehow, I knew why.
Master's voice was trembling.
"...Yes. I will do that."
Then, it happened.
Makli Jun chuckled and shouted at my master.
"Ha, your disciple crossed the border of Yanguo recklessly, so I have to deal with him. Step aside..."
"...You seem to be under a strange misunderstanding. It's not the Qi Refining cultivators who are forbidden to cross borders without permission, but the main forces of each clan, the Qi Building cultivators. Therefore, my disciple has no reason to be judged by you."
"Huh, that's interesting. Then, as a Qi Building cultivator from Byeokra, you are also currently standing in Yanguo's land, so you fall under judgment too?"
"...Yanguo’s land?"
Kugugugu-
Green spiritual energy began to swirl around Master.
"Young one, you are mistaken. The territories among cultivator clans are not clearly defined by mortal laws. It's not about the borders of Yanguo or Byeokra as defined by mortals. The territories are based on the dragon veins (龍脈) flowing through each land.
The territories are marked based on the land where spiritual energy suitable for each cultivator clan flows. It's the countries of mortals that have been established under those territories. Not the other way around..."
Kugugugu!
Master’s formation diagram spread around him.
Simultaneously, the nature of the energy around us changed.
Kugugugu!
'This is...'
The energy of the dragon vein is changing!
The original spiritual energy of this land was pushed out and started to recede!
"In other words, dragon veins are the proof of the territory of cultivator clans. So long as I maintain the dragon veins, this land is our territory. Now it's the opposite, you have invaded the land of Cheongmun, Byeok, and Gongmyo, the three clans of Byeokra.
Get lost! If you dare to disturb the last moments between me and my disciple, I will not forgive you!"
"Eek, Eeek...!"
Makli Jun formed a seal, trying to drive away the dragon veins summoned by Master’s formation diagram.
However, whether it was due to the difference in skill and experience in handling spells and formations, his attempts to counter the formation were all thwarted.
"I will not allow...
Anyone to harm my disciple!"
***
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