The Ruler Of Darkness - Chapter 616



Only Noblemtl

Episode 616

Part 16 One Breath

‘When was the first time you held a sword…?’

This is a story from almost seventy years ago.

“He is the vessel that will revive the great Namgung family!”

I remembered my father, who was unusually strict, looking very happy.

“I wish I had no talent….”

I also remembered my mother, who was unusually tender-hearted, secretly wiping away her tears.

actually.

Now that I think about it, I can’t quite remember their faces.

Portraits of my parents remain.

But remembering my parents’ faces was like a portrait, not something that remained in my own memory.

I couldn’t even remember the face of my first love from childhood, whom I used to sneak peeks at from over there out of embarrassment.

“…nice to see you.”

The face of the woman I first met was now blurred.

In order to commemorate her, who passed away early from a chronic illness, I asked a famous artist to create several paintings of her when she was healthy.

I wonder if the ladies who came in later secretly got rid of it or something.

At one point, I suddenly remembered it and tried to look for it, but I couldn’t find it.

“Why are you looking for something like that now?”

“… Okay.”

but.

There were also some faces that were a little more memorable.

“How dare you, you little brat-?!”

He was the first person he ever killed.

He was the leader of a mountain fortress with a large build and a bushy beard.

“Keep on, keep on…!”

His eyes, which were completely bloodshot and trembling for a long time as he tried to stop the blood from pouring out of his wounded neck with both hands, stood there.

Eventually, the spasms stopped and I returned to my original position, revealing the whites of my eyes.

“… … .”

of course.

I couldn’t remember anything from the second time on.

It’s not that I didn’t remember from the beginning, but it’s been so long since I’ve remembered the person I killed.

I vaguely remembered it, but now I’ve completely forgotten it.

Honestly, the first opponent too.

All I could think of was his size, his beard, and his eyes.

but.

nevertheless.

Even after so many years, never.

There were also some things I never forgot.

* * *

“…then.”

The presenter was clearly seen holding the gold coin in his hand with trembling hands.

How clear it looks.

The worn surface of the gold coin’s rim was visible, reflecting the sunlight finely, and the presenter’s short-cropped fingernails were also visible, one by one.

Teeing-!

The presenter flicks the coin and looks at his outstretched hand.

I could see where the calluses were on my hands, what shape they were, and how deep they were.

And through those hands, we could see what kind of weapons he likes to use and what kind of techniques he specializes in.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The sound of gold coins soaring and spinning in the air was as loud as thunder.

Through the changes in the sound, it was also possible to distinguish how and at what height the wind from the stage was blowing.

Whoosh-! Whoosh-! Whoosh-!

The MC’s appearance, trying to hurriedly pull up his body technique to the limit and get off the stage, looked as slow as a turtle.

I reflexively read his new method, and I could read where he would step next and how he was utilizing his inner strength.

But I wasn’t distracted by that.

Wheezing-! Wheezing-! Wheezing-!

Beyond the gold coins that look and sound slower.

There was a warrior who was once great in his life.

Wheeeeeeing-!

On his chiseled face and the pure white skin revealed beyond the hem of his clothes, not a single scar could be found.

Namgungje knew the truth behind that appearance that was utterly uninhabited.

To the opponent so far.

That means no one has ever inflicted a wound that would leave a scar.

A few months after the end of the hibernation period.

Even though I have been to countless battlefields and defeated countless strong men.

No battle left him with a single scar.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeing-!

The gold coin, which had reached the peak of its parabola, began to slowly sparkle and reverse.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeing-!

“-write.”

It stopped before it could fully fill up the air it had been slowly sucking in for a long time.

It’s a one-breath engagement.

More air would be beneficial, but I wasn’t greedy.

Lungs that are too full of air and overly inflated reduce refinement.

Wheeeeeeing-! Wheeeeeeing-!

The falling gold coins began to get faster and faster.

“… … .”

The opponent also stopped breathing.

But his hands were still naturally pointing towards the floor.

The way he gripped the sword without any effort, and the posture he was taking.

I couldn’t help but admire the perfect natural body without any hint of unnecessary tension.

‘Is this Yeonseonhyeon…!’

And yet, his body was moving faithfully.

Click…!

I pushed the sword away a little with my thumb.

I gradually accelerated the internal power of the sword sheath that was connected to my body (身劍合一) and circulated energy.

As I breathed different types of energy into the sword and scabbard, a repulsive force began to be created.

Brrrrrrrr…!

Inside the scabbard, his beloved weapon vibrated and made a crying sound.

He lowered his stance deeply while holding down his sword, as if he was suppressing a giant beast that was about to jump out and run wild.

Wheezing-! Wheezing-! Wheezing-!

The gold coins were spinning and falling, regaining their speed again.

now.

He forgets them one by one.

Erase the spectators in the stands from your sight.

Erase their tense breathing from your ears.

I erased the appearance of the stadium, erased the presenter running away over there, and erased the experts watching from near the stage.

Whoosh-! Whoosh-! Whoosh-!

What’s left is.

azure.

oneself.

opponent.

goldfinch.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

and.

When the falling gold coins passed knee height, he.

Even the remaining blue sky was captured in the sword.

That’s it.

The boundless sword technique of the Blue Palace.

Transcendental form.

The next moment.

When the gold coin hits the floor.

He even forgot the gold coins.

Teeeeeeing-!

Namgungje was confident.

He realized that his sword was drawn faster than the sound of the gold coins bouncing off the ground.

and.

His sword vomited the sky.

* * *

“… … ?!”

“… … ?!”

Gam Woo-hyeon, the Demon Sword Stealer and the Hwasan Sword Dragon, were shocked at the same time.

Even they completely missed the first move of the two supreme beings.

Only the parting of clothes near the two people’s wrists seemed to prove what had happened.

There was no shock wave, no metallic noise, no vibration, no sound.

Are you saying that all of that was canceled out by the perfect strike of two supreme beings?

‘What the-?!’

‘What the-?!’

However, the two supreme beings.

The Sword of the Disappearing Ghost and the Volcanic Sword Dragon Gam Woo-hyeon did not allow any time to speculate.

Kakak…!

This time, Namgungje’s sword and Yeonseonhyeon’s sword clashed, sending sparks flying.

The moment when the two people extended their swords again was missed by everyone, but the sparks and the sound made it possible to understand what had happened.

But there were things they missed in the sparks and noise.

Phew, phew phew…!

In the meantime.

The point was that Namgung-je had been struck several times by Yeon So-hyeon’s opponent and that Namgung-je had already dissipated his strength.

And when I finally caught up and understood it, it was already.

Kang! Kakakakakakakakang!

The two supreme beings began to clash, and a storm of destruction was raging around them.

“crazy-?!”

“Huh-?!”

Anticipating the enormous aftershock, the Talmyeonggwigeom and the Volcanic Sword Dragon Gam Woo-hyeon drew their swords.

But they never used that sword.

Surprisingly enough.

Kukukukukukukukuku-!

The powerful storm that the two supreme beings had conjured did not leave their surroundings at all.

It wasn’t the consideration of the supreme beings.

They were pouring out all their power, even the power to leak out to the side and cause damage to the surroundings, onto their opponents.

“… … .”

“… … .”

The two masters were speechless as they stared at the sight that was far beyond common sense and logic.

* * *

‘under…!’

Namgungje burst into laughter inside.

It was because there was no sense.

Karak…!

His own sword, which had been flying sparks and flowing out of Yeonseonhyeon’s sword, aimed for his knee.

‘Huh?!’

However, the opponent pushed his knee into the face of his sword, completely changing the path of the sword.

As if a strong gravitational force was at work, Namgungje’s body was dragged along with the sword.

Swish!

I could see Yeon So-hyeon’s other knee coming up in front of my eyes.

‘What the heck?!’

At that moment, Namgungje breathed explosive energy into his sword and let go of his sword.

And then, double palms.

However, his own double-edged sword bounced off Yeon So-hyeon’s sword with an absurdly easy ease, and Yeon So-hyeon’s knee dug straight into his torso.

Phew…!

Namgungje did not stop Yeonseonhyun’s advances, which seemed to be trying to explode his torso.

Instead, he forced that power to circulate through his bloodstream.

It seemed as if all the blood vessels that had been flowing from the experience of the different opponents were bursting, but Namgung-je succeeded in transforming that power into his own martial arts.

Paaaaang!

And just in time.

His sword, which he had let go of with all its energy still in it, exploded like a time fuse and shot upward.

Namgungje caught the sword that was bouncing upward like a ray of light and spun it around like a whirlpool, exploding the sword of war.

Kwa, kwakakakakakak…!

But even so, Yeon-seon’s defense felt like an unbreakable wall.

Namgungje cheered.

‘This is it…! This is it…!’

But at the same time, I was desperate.

‘Breathing…!’

The intense use of internal qigong required intense breathing.

And Namgung Je himself was already using each breath to the extent of breaking all existing common sense.

‘Damn it…! This old body…!’

Kang! Kakang!

He stretched out his sword as if he was spitting out a true sword strike that had shed the sword form of the Emperor’s Sword.

Kakakan!

But it was blocked.

Already, he was moving his arms and legs, which were convulsing and clenching violently for air, mixing fists and legs.

‘Ahhh…!’

But there is no breathing.

Kwon Gak, whose strength had dropped significantly, was helplessly blocked by Yeon Soo-hyeon, and instead, he was hit several times in that split second of attack and defense.

‘Ahhhhhhh…!’

The vital points were barely defended, but now it was difficult to even properly absorb the impact.

but.

‘Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…!’

Squeeze.

Squeeze it even harder.

I also forgot my father’s and mother’s faces.

I forgot my first love and my first wife’s face.

He even forgot the faces of the countless enemies he had killed.

but.

There was something he never forgot.

‘I am-!’

As his sword embraced the autumn sky and took on a vivid blue hue, Yeon Soo-hyeon’s eyes widened.

Kakakakakakakakakakang!

‘Nanuuuuuuuuuu-!’

Kwaaaaang…!

As he stepped back and took a step back, the floor of the stage exploded.

This was because Namgungje could no longer absorb or use his opponent’s internal power, but had to let it out.

but.

He must do it.

Another step forward.

‘Sword King Namgung Jedaaaaa…!’

It was the final blow, and at the same time.

It was the first blow that King Namgungje of Geomwang directed towards that place.

which.

It was the beginning of a new challenge toward perfection for the character of Namgung Je, the Sword King, who had forgotten his own age of nearly eighty.

* * *

“Haa, haa… .”

“Hoo, hoo… .”

In the middle of a stadium shrouded in silence.

On the stage that was shattered as if a bomb had exploded, only the sound of two superhumans catching their breath could be heard.

“…what?”

The crowd began to stir.

“What the hell happened?”

“Who won anyway?”

King Namgungje and Yeonsuhyeon.

Both of them had their clothes badly damaged.

And both of them were drenched in sweat, trying to control their heavy breathing.

But no one’s neck fell off, and no one fell down.

It was a close match of only one breath, so it was a natural result, but it was also natural that the audience could not know the outcome of the match.

And surprisingly,

“…The Sword of the Talmyeong Demon.”

The same was true for masters like Talmyeonggwigeom and Hwasangeomryong Gam Woo-hyeon.

“Who do you think won?”

For a moment, the hesitant Talmyeonggwigeom opened his mouth.

“In a situation where the odds were almost equal, it seems that the lord occasionally gained the upper hand….”

“under…!”

Volcanic Sword Dragon Gam Woo-Hyeon burst into self-deprecating laughter.

“Are you saying that even we don’t know the outcome…?”

At that time, when arguments were about to begin here and there.

“… Thank you, Your Highness.”

King Namgungje, who was catching his breath, spoke with a tired but joyful smile.

“Thanks to you, my eyes have been greatly opened.”

“It was a good fight.”

Yeon So-hyeon also put both hands together and greeted politely.

“Then, let’s end this fight here-.”

“-What are you talking about?”

“yes?”

King Namgungje of the Sword said with a sly, mischievous smile.

“Shouldn’t the results be made known to everyone?”

“But that’s-.”

Yeon So-hyeon raised her hand to stop him, but King Namgung Je was quick.

“I declare to all in the name of the Sword King, this victory is the Archduke’s…!”

Then, King Namgung Je lifted his arm and revealed the area around his armpit. And indeed.

There was a scene where clothes were torn and blood was beginning to seep out.

“Huh, huh… ?!”

“That’s…!”

As the crowd began to stir, remembering the rule that the first person to bleed, the one who loses, King Namgung Je shouted.

“Although the Archduke had already won the first exchange, the Archduke showed mercy for the sake of this old man’s reputation…!”

Then King Namgung Je approached Yeonseonhyeon and took his hand, holding it up high for everyone to see.

Waaaa …

As the crowd began to cheer, Yeon Soo-hyun smiled bitterly and spoke softly.

“… It would have been okay if it ended in a draw.”

“No. That can’t be, because….”

King Namgung Je, who took his gaze off Yeon So-hyeon, shouted loudly at the audience.

“Remember today’s results! Next time, this Sword King will definitely win!”

“Ooooh, next time…?!”

“Are you saying you’re going to try again?!”

As the audience began to burn with the unexpected declaration, Namgung Je laughed loudly.

“Hahaha! Hahahahaha…!”

Under the clear autumn sky.

The old man’s laughter, as cool as the sky, soared high into the sky.