Chapter 41: Asura Sword Sect
The members of the Conquering King Sect traveled by carts and carriages in order to conserve their strength ahead of the upcoming battle with the Asura Sword Sect.
Jang Woo-hyun’s party shared a carriage with the three top leaders of the Conquering King Sect, and that became the starting point for a number of questions being thrown their way.
The main subject of interest was Jin Ha-un, the prodigy of the Blue Star Sect.
"Of course! He must be the disciple of Red River True Man. Who else in the Blue Star Sect could raise such a monstrous kid other than that old man?"
Kang Pyo-seong nodded as he started the conversation.
Though Sichuan and Guangdong Province were far apart, he had long heard the name of Red River True Man.
The greatest master of the Blue Star Sect. In Sichuan, the man was even called the Sword Immortal. That said enough about his skills.
"Has your master broken through the wall?"
It was Go Jin who asked, seated quietly next to them. He had met Red River True Man a few times. In his younger days, they had even crossed swords.
"If by ‘the wall’ you mean what I think you do, then yes—my master has surpassed it."
"Heh..."
Go Jin let out a bitter chuckle.
He himself had been stopped at that wall, unable to go any further, but Red River of the Blue Star Sect had broken through and entered the realm of absoluteness. It made him feel like he alone had been left behind.
"Ha-un, when did you enter the peak level?"
This time, Jeon An-chu addressed him directly, calling his name without hesitation.
Thanks to his handsome appearance and polite, friendly demeanor, Jin Ha-un had quickly become close with the three leaders of the Conquering King Sect, regardless of whether they were from the orthodox or unorthodox side.
Part of the reason was the sly and calculating Hwang An, who always tried to gauge others, and also Jang Woo-hyun, whose skill rivaled theirs and thus made interaction with him a bit difficult.
"Just before we came here."
"Really?"
"Yes. While following my hyung and fighting alongside him, I somehow reached that wall. Not long ago, I had a small realization that made me stronger."
"By hyung, do you mean Master Jang?"
When Jin Ha-un nodded and answered yes, Kang Pyo-seong continued questioning.
"How many fights have you been through?"
"Um, let’s see. We met again at the auction house..."
"Auction house? You don’t mean the Shangguan Family’s auction house? The one where the Demon Cult stirred up trouble recently?"
"Yes, that’s the one. We met there, and he just ran straight into battle, pulling me along. That’s when it all started."
"Who else have you fought?"
"Not long ago, we fought Jeok Sa-bang of Guilin, and after that, we went up against four Sword Yakshas. Then we battled two rather unusual ones right after."
"What? You took down six Sword Yakshas? Did you fight alongside him when he clashed with the Asura Sword Sect?"
"I didn’t exactly fight with him—just helped from the side. I didn’t do it alone either. Hwang An-hyung helped too."
"Hah, hahahaha..."
Having fought beside Jang Woo-hyun, who had charged into the Asura Sword Sect on his own, it was no wonder his skills had improved. They had essentially been fighting with their lives on the line.
‘So that’s why they were pushed back so easily?’
He had wondered why they had broken through Guangxi Province so quickly, but if they’d taken out that many Sword Yakshas, it made sense. The Asura Sword Sect would’ve had to regroup their scattered forces.
"Hyung, this is..."
Jeon An-chu trailed off without finishing his sentence: ‘That definitely helped us.’ He had once led a force called the Golden Axe Sect and thus could fully grasp the current situation.
Even though his younger brother didn’t finish the sentence, Kang Pyo-seong understood and nodded. He too acknowledged that their help had been significant.
"Ha-un, your group has been a great help to us."
"If the Asura Sword Sect has no hidden aces left, then the two of us only need to take down two of the Three Sword Kings."
At Jeon An-chu’s comment, Jin Ha-un smiled awkwardly and opened his mouth.
"Um... the thing is..."
"What is it? Is there something you want to say?"
"No..."
"What do you mean no? No what? You don’t want to say it?"
"No, it’s just... the Three Sword Kings..."
Kang Pyo-seong furrowed his brow in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
"There are no more Three Sword Kings. There should only be one left now."
"Only one?"
"Yes. We already took care of the Blood Sword King and the Swift Sword King."
"What? Who did?"
"That was Woo-hyun-hyung. When I mentioned fighting the Sword Yakshas earlier, that was when hyung also defeated the Swift Sword King."
Their jaws dropped slightly at Jin Ha-un’s reply.
"Th-then only the Tiger-Eyed Sword King remains. The Asura Sword Sect might have hidden power, but officially only one is left."
As Jeon An-chu continued, somewhat flustered, Jin Ha-un grinned—like a mischievous child revealing a secret.
"That one’s gone too."
"Gone again? What’s gone now?"
Kang Pyo-seong pressed for a clearer answer.
"The hidden aces. They’re probably gone too."
"Don’t tell me..."
"Again?"
Their eyes turned toward Jang Woo-hyun, who was quietly looking out the window.
"Yeah, that was Woo-hyun-hyung too. What were their names again...?"
"Don Ga-ryang and Hwi Jeon."
Hwang An answered Jin Ha-un’s question.
"Don Ga-ryang? You don’t mean the Jade-faced Spider Lord of the Sichuan Tang Clan?"
Go Jin jumped in again. The name Jade-faced Branch Lord, Don Ga-ryang, was well known even to him.
"Yes, that’s him. And Hwi Jeon is the ‘One Fist Annihilation’ of the Guangxi Hoga Clan."
"..."
Don Ga-ryang was publicly known as a peak-level martial artist.
The "One Fist Annihilation" had been recognized as a master-level martial artist when his name first came out, but he’d been praised even back then. If he had continued training, he would definitely have become a peak-level martial artist by now.
In short, Jang Woo-hyun had recently defeated three peak-level martial artists.
‘No, wait. He also defeated the Blood Sword King before that.’
Four peak-level martial artists were dead—by the hand of a single man.
And judging from what they’d heard, a considerable number of Sword Yakshas had also been defeated.
As he listened, Kang Pyo-seong suddenly had a thought.
‘Are we the ones barging in on someone else’s war?’
It wasn’t Jang Woo-hyun who had interfered in the sect war—it was the Conquering King Sect that had intruded into his solo war against the Asura Sword Sect.
The Asura Sword Sect hadn’t been holding back their attack to consolidate power. They simply didn’t have any masters left to launch one.
Jeon An-chu seemed to be thinking the same thing as he locked eyes with Kang Pyo-seong.
Both of them sat there, stunned for a while. Go Jin, on the other hand, kept his smile intact.
The carriage carrying the six of them rolled on in silence for quite some time.
Rumble.
With the sound of a collapsing building came screams and shouts.
As the chaotic noise echoed around him, the Sect Leader of the Asura Sword Sect, Yeo Gun-hwi, sat still and tried to figure out where it had all gone wrong.
Was it the Tyrant King’s retreat into seclusion, which left the leash on the Tyrant Ten slack?
Or was it when Kang Pyo-seong founded the Conquering King Sect and launched an attack on the Tiger Sword Escort Agency?
Neither of those were it.
The real beginning of the downfall was when they got entangled with Jang Woo-hyun.
First, a Sword Yaksha died. Then, the Blood Sword King who went after him was also killed.
‘Should it have ended there?’
What followed was a chain of attacks from their subordinate sects. Three were destroyed, and three broke out of control and shut themselves in.
The hidden cards—Jade-faced Spider Lord and One Fist Annihilation—disappeared. Even Lee Doo-heung, who had followed them, was now out of contact.
The worst-case scenario.
They were all probably dead.
After crossing paths with Jang Woo-hyun, they had lost four peak-level masters and nine master-level fighters. Even a major sect would have its foundation shaken by such a loss.
With their main forces lost, there was no way to stop the advancing Conquering King Sect.
Hyeong Choong, known as the Tiger-Eyed Sword King, had mobilized all remaining Sword Yakshas and Black Yakshas, but even he couldn’t guarantee victory.
Yeo Gun-hwi, too, had been about to join the counterattack, but couldn’t leave his place because of a force heading directly toward him. That energy was steadily getting closer.
‘It must be the Merciless Sword or Explosive Blade.’
They were likely aiming for the head of the sect. That way, the war would end quickly without spreading further.
As the noise approached, Yeo Gun-hwi rose from his seat.
This was where the tide would turn.
Even if they lacked in numbers, he had confidence.
He would take down the strongest enemy here and then charge out to end this battle himself.
Who was he, after all?
The Tyrant of Guangxi Province, the leader of the Asura Sword Sect.
The Six-Armed Swift Sword, the Asura Sword Emperor—Yeo Gun-hwi.
That was the name by which the Martial World knew him.
The Sword Emperor of Asura would write a new history here.
Step.
He drew his sword and strode through the great hall.
The noise, now nearly at the entrance, was just seconds away.
Crash!
The door burst open as someone stepped inside.
Yeo Gun-hwi’s eyes widened as if tearing apart.
The last person he had expected appeared before him.
* * *
Explosions, curses, and screams filled the air.
Having arrived near the Asura Sword Sect, the Conquering King Sect made no strategic preparations—they simply charged in and smashed through the gate.
Inside, they immediately clashed with the warriors of the sect who had been lying in wait.
While the overall numbers were small, the balance tilted due to the difference in masters.
On this side alone, there were three peak-level martial artists.
Go Jin, Kang Pyo-seong, and Jeon An-chu tore through the battlefield, and the tide of war shifted drastically.
As Kang Pyo-seong spotted the last remaining member of the Three Sword Kings rushing toward them, he spoke up.
"Master Jang! I’ll leave that to you."
"Understood."
With numerous enemies blocking their path, Jang Woo-hyun unleashed a sword strike.
A single slash tore a hole in the encirclement, and the group rushed through.
As he ran, Jang Woo-hyun gathered his momentum.
It was both a signal and a greeting to the Sect Leader of the Asura Sword Sect: I’m coming to meet you.
"Hyung, I’ll open the path!"
Now at the peak level, Jin Ha-un charged ahead alongside Hwang An, who had reached master level, cutting down the enemies that came running at them.
Over ten warriors, including Sword Yakshas, blocked their way, but they didn’t stand a chance. Jin Ha-un’s sword qi cleaved them all apart.
"One sword, one kill!"
"One sword, one kill is here!"
His skill was so overwhelming that even the enemies were mistaking him for a famed assassin.
"He’s invading with the Conquering King Sect!"
People came charging at Jin Ha-un from all directions, but no one could match him. At this point, it would take someone at the level of a Sword King to stand against him.
Smashing through the warriors blocking the way, the group arrived in front of a massive building.
As Jang Woo-hyun sent out a signal, a powerful energy began to emanate from within the building.
As if it had been waiting, a menacing killing intent emerged.
The Sect Leader of the Asura Sword Sect was returning the greeting.
I’m here. Come to me.
"Kill them!"
A group burst out from the side of the massive building.
At the front was a man dressed in luxurious clothing—that was none other than Sang Mun-cheon, the Vice Sect Leader of the Asura Sword Sect.
Jang Woo-hyun didn’t recognize his face. Assuming the man charging at the front was the leader, he immediately sent forth Black Wolf Fang.
Sang Mun-cheon, still in mid-charge, was sliced in half and died on the spot.
Though unintentional, this brought a close to the grudge that had lingered since the Demon Extermination Sect days.
"Brother Jang! We’ll handle things here—go finish it!"
At Hwang An’s shout, Jang Woo-hyun sent a slash that shattered the doors of the large building.
Stepping inside, he saw columns lining the hall, and at the far end from the entrance, a single chair.
The only object in that massive building was that chair.
And standing not far from it—
There stood a man.
"The Asura Sword Emperor, Yeo Gun-hwi?"
Yeo Gun-hwi’s eyes widened, shocked at what he saw.
"You are…"
"Jang Woo-hyun."
"…So you’re the one."
Upon hearing the name, Yeo Gun-hwi covered his face with one hand and let out a laugh.
The root cause of this entire disaster stood before him. And now he had even entered here, allied with the Conquering King Sect.
Perhaps he had been a member of the Conquering King Sect from the start.
"Was it all… planned from the beginning?"
Had he taken a moment to think about how Jang Woo-hyun had been tangled with Sang Mun-cheon, he would have known that wasn’t the case. But at this moment, Yeo Gun-hwi couldn’t think rationally.
"Fine. I’ll start with you and kill them all."
His sword gleamed with light as Yeo Gun-hwi raised his momentum.
"Die here."
Sliding across the floor with incredible speed, Yeo Gun-hwi’s sword shot toward Jang Woo-hyun. Jang Woo-hyun responded by drawing Flying Swallow Sword and clashing with him.
Boom!
The swords collided, unleashing a thunderous crash.
That was the beginning.
Jang Woo-hyun smiled. He looked forward to seeing what kind of martial arts this so-called Sword Emperor—rumored to be stronger than the Sword King—would show him.
Smiling faintly, Jang Woo-hyun unfurled his qi threads tightly and densely.
‘As expected!’
Just like Lee Doo-heung, Yeo Gun-hwi had created his own sword path. It couldn’t be seen or easily sensed. It was almost like a hidden weapon.
If he hadn’t opened his qi threads, even Jang Woo-hyun might not have noticed.
Dozens of sword paths filled the surrounding area.
Far more than Lee Doo-heung had used.
Among them, Yeo Gun-hwi’s sword picked up speed, following one of the paths.
Boom! Boom!
Jang Woo-hyun read the direction ahead of time and predicted the sword’s trajectory. Though the strikes were lightning fast, he blocked them all.
And then, as he blocked the attacks, Jang Woo-hyun’s expression stiffened.
Because it was far from what he had expected.
‘What is this?’
Asura Sword Emperor, Yeo Gun-hwi.
‘He’s weak.’
He was far too lacking compared to what Jang Woo-hyun had imagined.