Chapter 47
Bi Wol raised her sword to block Kim Hyul's suddenly incoming fist. She had learned from watching countless of his matches.
In those matches, Kim Hyul had achieved victory by shattering numerous blades as if his hands were made of steel.
Kaang─!
A clear, crisp sound rang out as if iron had clashed with iron, and the distance between them widened significantly.
With a tingling sensation in her hand, Bi Wol realized that her opponent had truly mastered the Indestructible Diamond Body only after meeting his fist with her sword.
'...I thought it only existed in legends.'
The Indestructible Diamond Body (金剛不壞).
It refers to a body that has reached the highest realm of external martial arts, making it impervious to swords or blades, and unable to be harmed by anything.
Normally, Bi Wol would have easily become discouraged, thinking there was no way to defeat such an opponent, but now she had an elixir in her hands that could help her support her master.
'Still, I have to try. No matter how powerful the martial art is, it's ultimately just external cultivation.'
Although her sword-wielding hand was still trembling from the impact, Bi Wol took a deep breath to gather her thoughts.
"Did your master tell you about my fist technique?"
Kim Hyul spoke, looking at Bi Wol with a puzzled expression. Originally, the Six Harmonies Fist was a third-rate martial art, so it would be hard to find someone in the martial world who didn't know about it.
Paradoxically, because of this, many people didn't truly understand the fearsome nature of the Six Harmonies Fist. They might think it was just imitating animal movements or recklessly attacking using the whole body.
"...It wasn't a speed that could be reacted to by sight alone."
But Bi Wol's movement just now was strange.
As if she had sensed that it was a straight punch at an unavoidable speed, she had acted to block the fist with her sword.
"So you really are the disciple of that old man."
Kim Hyul sighed deeply as if in disbelief. The Undefeated Fist God, whose mere thought made his irritation rise.
Even in this martial world, it was an extraordinary thing to have the title "God" attached to one's name, given for never having lost in a fist fight.
"...That old man? Our master is quite young."
Bi Wol stopped her approaching footsteps at the incongruous statement. She instinctively felt that this was something she needed to hear.
"It must be someone you don't know. That man called Bing Yeon must have learned fist techniques from him long ago."
"Our master...?"
"Yes, the ill-tempered old man called the Undefeated Fist God. A madman who could become an immortal but refuses to ascend."
Kim Hyul bit his lower lip as he mentioned the master who had taught him his fist technique. The long-bearded old man who would severely reprimand and correct him if his posture was even slightly off.
"I've never seen his face directly, but since we learned from the same master... I guess you could call me your senior disciple."
As Kim Hyul finished speaking, a needle-like emotion began to rise in Bi Wol's heart.
She felt jealous and envious.
Why couldn't she be the first?
Just what was her master's true identity, to be able to attract the interest of so many people like this?
Even if he could see the future, he could have used that ability to live more selfishly. There was no reason for anyone to criticize him since he was living on borrowed time.
Bing Yeon was stubbornly altruistic.
'Even though I know it's because of that personality that he saved me when I was in trouble...'
Bi Wol's hand gripping the sword trembled with tension. She disliked how this man, Kim Hyul, seemed to know more about her master Bing Yeon than she did.
"...Don't be ridiculous. Are you saying you're my uncle in martial arts or something?"
"Not exactly, but I think the connection between the two of us around him is incredibly intense."
As Kim Hyul said this, he glanced back slightly. To the place where Bing Seolhwa, whom he outwardly regarded as his master, was sitting.
"That's true."
Bi Wol took a deep breath, realizing who he was referring to. After all, everything she had learned about dealing with the Six Harmonies Fist in preparation for the Dragon Phoenix Gathering was because of an unknown figure.
'That woman called Bing Seolhwa. She seemed to share the same bloodline as our master.'
Just before, Bi Wol had made up a flimsy excuse about going to the restroom and left her seat to try and identify the opponent her master Bing Yeon was so wary of.
In the place where all the sect leaders participating in the Dragon Phoenix Gathering were gathered, Bi Wol felt something strange when she saw a woman with the same white hair and blue eyes as Bing Yeon.
"Seongyeong Gate... It doesn't seem like a randomly chosen sect name, right?"
"That's right. A strange woman said that this world we're in now is wrong, and created this sect saying everything should be returned to how it was before. It's just for show."
Come to think of it, it was strange. Originally, the cold energy residing in her master's body was something so extraordinary that even the Northern Sea Ice Palace would be willing to pay an enormous sum to bring him in.
The Nine Yin Severed Pulse, which bestows genius-level talent from birth but drastically shortens one's lifespan.
"Then, that strange woman is the white-haired sect leader you're following, and she's indeed related to our master?"
"Yes, and in my estimation, there's a high probability they share the same bloodline."
Kim Hyul nodded at Bi Wol's sharp deduction, and she began to piece together the information that had only been based on her intuition.
"I think so too."
The current leader of the Seongyeong Gate is a woman who has a very close relationship with our master. Otherwise, she couldn't have done something as strange as leaving writing on his back.
And that woman is someone who shares the same bloodline as our master. Given our master's righteous mindset and pure internal energy, there's no way he would have been abandoned in the Five Poison Sect and lived the life of an evil sect member.
Lastly, she is currently the most dangerous love rival.
Having finished all her calculations, Bi Wol immediately rushed at Kim Hyul. She couldn't just stand by and take this.
If she were to lose in this Dragon Phoenix Gathering, the white-haired woman might use the Ten Thousand Year Extreme Yang Pill to control Bing Yeon.
"...Then, I definitely can't afford to lose!"
"That's a good look in your eyes. You've finally found the will to fight."
Kaang, kang─! The sound of fist meeting sword rang out. The audience's attention was immediately drawn to the sight of sparks flying and the clashing sounds.
Countless exchanges passed. As if their hands and feet were perfectly matched, they engaged in precise offense and defense, but...
"Ugh...!"
In an instant, a fist was driven into Bi Wol's exposed side. The Six Harmonies Fist, which could attack and defend in all directions at once, had targeted the blind spot created by the sword.
She couldn't breathe properly. Pain rushed to the struck area as if it had been burned, nearly making her legs give out.
"Is this the end?"
Kim Hyul muttered lowly, seeing this. To avoid killing his opponent, it was better to force a surrender like this.
However,
"No...!"
Bi Wol gritted her teeth and tensed her entire body. She was trying to stand up again after nearly collapsing to her knees.
Chwaaak─!
Bi Wol swung her sword again, and although the blade grazed Kim Hyul's cheek, it left no wound on his face.
"I have mastered the Indestructible Diamond Body. It would be better for you to give up now."
Kang, kaang─! Kim Hyul blocked Bi Wol's sword with his bare arm, showing mercy. He knew that no matter how much she struggled, she could never defeat him with a sword.
"That's something we'll only know if we try properly...!"
Bi Wol continued to swing her sword while catching her ragged breath. Even knowing it was futile, she didn't want to disappoint her master Bing Yeon.
'The essence of the Six Harmonies Fist is the unity of heaven, earth, and the four directions.'
Bi Wol kept trying to find Kim Hyul's weak points. Breaking through the Six Harmonies Fist, which could attack and defend in all directions including up and down, was not as simple as one might think.
No matter how third-rate a martial art might be, it was difficult to defeat someone who had delved into it completely.
- The weakness of the Six Harmonies Fist is that when you try to increase its power by making the form larger, gaps appear.
- Then, I should deliberately create distance to make the movements larger, right?
Bi Wol recalled her previous conversation with Bing Yeon. Special measures were needed to defeat Kim Hyul, who combined the Six Harmonies Fist with the Indestructible Diamond Body.
- No, such a simple method won't work. The opponent will also be aware of such weaknesses, so they won't allow you to create distance.
Bing Yeon had expressed a negative opinion on Bi Wol's first idea for breaking through. As he said, the method of fighting at a distance had already been attempted by the Sacheon Party, and
Kim Hyul had achieved victory by catching flying hidden weapons in mid-air and throwing them back, a crazy method.
'Just a little more...! Just a bit...!'
Bi Wol had a separate strategy in mind.
The Indestructible Diamond Body is ultimately an external technique. It's just strengthening the visible body and muscles to the extreme.
- Then, the only way is to target the soft insides like internal organs, rather than the hard exterior.
- By the inside, you mean...
- If you create a gap that even the Six Harmonies Fist's defense can't block, and keep striking like you're tempering iron, there will surely be a part where the impact remains.
The reason she didn't give up despite seemingly having little effect, continuously clashing her sword with Kim Hyul's body as if creating resonance.
'First, I broke the ground to prevent him from channeling power through the earth...'
Bi Wol smiled as she saw Kim Hyul's arms starting to tremble. Originally, the Indestructible Diamond Body shouldn't receive any impact, but
'The opponent has accumulated impacts on his body from going through the preliminaries. I'm making that part vibrate and amplifying it.'
Now, the fatigue left by the countless challengers was engraved in Kim Hyul's body. No matter how much one trains, organs like the brain and internal organs can't be made as hard as steel.
As Bi Wol's final sword strike aimed at Kim Hyul's temple,
'Now...!'
Kaaaang─!
A sound like a huge bell ringing spread across the stage, and Kim Hyul began to bleed from his nose.
As drops of blood fell, he realized something was wrong and looked up at Bi Wol,
"...Ugh?!!"
Resonance (共鳴).
Staggering backward, he finally realized that she had targeted his internal organs, which the Indestructible Diamond Body couldn't protect.