Needless to say, it was Chun A-young who most closely watched the fight between Woon-seong and the Blade Ogre. In her eyes, Woon-seong had become a completely different person. 

How can taking off two bracers make him that powerful…?

To be honest, Woon-seong was being pushed back a bit, but he was still managing to fight back. 

A-young chewed on her lip. How much has he grown since we left the Cult? The difference over the last half year seemed to be clearly visible before her, making her feel worse. At the same time, she could not help but admire his character. 

He was Number 900 at the beginning of the Cave of Latent Demons. But by the last Trial, the Strife of Life and Death, he had risen to the top. At that time, she thought they were similar. 

If I fight him now… A-young could only shake her head.

At that moment, the battle between the two came to a peak and a bright flash burst out. 

Kua-kuang!

It was never easy two fuse two martial arts into one. Even more, the two spear arts he was mixing were absolutely top of the top. If Murim were to know that he had successfully combined two martial arts that he had not perfected, even if just for a moment, many would be vomiting blood [1]. This meant that Woon-seong was more than just top class.

There were three reasons why Woon-seong was able to succeed in this heaven-defying task. 

First, he was lucky. There is always some luck needed in creating things, especially in creating something from nothing. 

Second, his concentration had been compressed to the extreme. His concentration, which was already superior to that of others, was compressed to the limit, opening a new world for the boy. It was as if a wall in his mind had broken down, allowing him to awaken parts that had been hard to reach. 

The third and final reason was the most important in explaining how he was able to complete the fusion. 

The third reason was none other than essence and identity — the uniqueness of Hyuk Woon-seong. 

The Spear Master Sect was a top sect in both scholarly learning and martial arts. The boy had accumulated the essences of numerous martial arts after many years. In addition, he also had the knowledge of demonic arts. As the situation became more serious, this gathered knowledge was like a heated bulb. The extreme concentration made it possible to find exactly what was needed from the emerging knowledge and miraculously use it to complete the martial art. 

Kuakuakuakua—!

A giant dragon wiped out the entire body of the Blade Ogre of the Green Mountains, its teeth tearing and claws ripping. 

Moreover, the dragon’s movements were soft and ecstatic. It could not be stopped by a shower of rain or blocked by a wall — everything collapsed when it touched the dragon’s might. 

“Augh!”

The Blade Ogre screamed as his body was torn apart, but that was it. Soon, his head soared and fell off the spear of the boy. 

Scht—!

The newly created martial art was not only enough to kill the Blade Ogre, it pushed forward and left a large trace on the floor. There were even traces of its claws passing by. 

The other members who were hunting the remaining Nine Vices, were amazed. 

However, the facial expression of Woon-seong, who had created such a phenomenon, was very calm. Well, not exactly calm. In reality, he had no idea what to do because he was embarrassed by the attention. 

“Amazing…”

It was a word from A-young, who murmured subconsciously, that caused Woon-seong to awaken from his stupor. His senses came back to the vivid reality. In a daze, the sight of his own destruction was shown before him. 

Did I do that?

Woon-seong almost laughed at himself. The old him had also been able to create traces of destruction when fighting. But looking at the current destruction, this had already surpassed the power he had in his past life. 

How did I do that?

It seemed as if he had exceeded his own limits. So how did he do it? He squeezed his spear with his fingers. It had been so sudden and instinctual that he could not fully remember it himself, but only remembered how it felt. If someone had asked him to do it again, he would have had no confidence in replicating it. 

Nevertheless, he couldn’t help but be pleased. I think I have found the way to go.

Despite his happiness, Woon-seong suddenly became aware of the state of his body as a terrible fatigue hit him. 

“Hnng.”

There were wounds all over his body. He had been injured like this quite often in the past, but it was the first time this had happened since he had become Number 900. Since reincarnation, he had not met someone who could threaten him to this extent. 

Of course, if it was my past life, I wouldn’t have struggled against the Blade Ogre.

He was still lacking a lot. 

Woon-seong recognized this fact and spread medicinal ointment on his wounds.

A-young approached him. Her hands held some ointment which seemed to be her own. “Is there any place you can’t reach? I’ll help you.”

Then, she didn’t wait for his answer and spread the ointment on his back. His back was also full of scars, just like everywhere else. A-young’s eyes widened, her fingertips ghosting over the edges, confirming them up close. Woon-seong hadn’t shown it earlier, but each movement had been painful and bitter. 

You didn’t let go of your spear even with wounds like these?

A-young realized why he could win against the Blade Ogre. It wasn’t simply because he was powerful. What was more amazing was his willpower. Indeed, he had never given up until the end. Since he could beat the Blade Ogre with two iron rings, what if he took them all off? A-young, imagining that far, shook her head. She was disgusted by the difference between herself and Woon-seong. 

Woon-seong wrapped clean cloth over the places where he had applied the medicine.

“There is no debt between us anymore.”

It took a moment, but Woon-seong realized that A-young was talking about their confrontation during the Strife of Life and Death. At the same time, he got up from where he had been sitting and wore the new cape that Gwan Tae-ryang handed to him. “You say some funny things.”

Hearing the cold and cynical words, A-young looked at him as if she were surprised.

Woon-seong’s eyes were sharp. “What do you mean ‘no debt’? I’m pretty sure you owe me now.” He grabbed his spear as he said so, strapping it back on. “Let me make myself clear. You didn’t let me win back then. You just didn’t have the confidence to win, so you stepped back. If you don’t like it, you can try me right now.”

A frosty aura flowed out of the boy’s body. He had just finished a battle. His condition was not great, as wounds covered his body. Blood still flowed from these places, dying the cloth red. 

Nevertheless…A-young dared not open her mouth at the moment. It felt like an illusion of a huge beast was in front of her. She swallowed. 

Towards A-young, Woon-seong spoke with little emotion. “Don’t be such a baby. If you decided to live in Murim, behave like an adult. If you’re looking for someone to coddle you, don’t even pretend to be a martial artist.”

“What are you talking about?”

He turned his head back, “I’m saying you’re acting like a little bitch right now.” 

At the end of his mini lecture, Woon-seong escaped from her side and moved towards the 1st Latent Demon Squad. A-young could only stare unhappily at the distant boy. 

Hmph. Woon-seong made a face with his tongue sticking out at A-young’s dazed expression. I gave you some good advice.

Like he said, it really was just some advice. He clearly recognized A-young’s talent and the threat she posed. If she had similarly ambitious thoughts, it was likely that she would become his opponent in the bid for Young Leader. On the other hand, if she supported him later on as the daughter of the Cult Leader, he would become a serious threat to other competitors. 

If he thought the latter, it was some correct advice. However, A-young’s actions were so different from what he expected that he just couldn’t not speak. 

Pretending to be an adult and acting like a child when necessary…

“Tsk.” Woon-seong shook his head once more and clicked his tongue. But no matter how he thought…

It was really unnecessary.

But he just had to make some things clear. There was no debt to be cancelled, but rather she now owed him. 

The Leader of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon is indebted to me…

Okay, maybe that was overstating it. 

Once his thoughts came to this, he banished them altogether and shouted at the members of the 1st Latent Demon Squad. “Retrieve the heads of the Nine Vices and the Blade Ogre. We’re returning to Mt. Heaven!”

Even with the Blade Ogre, the Nine Vices were originally the mission of the 2nd Latent Demon Squad. But in this case, half of the trainees who cut their heads off were members of the 1st. Woon-seong had every intention of taking all the credit. 

Oh well, the credit shall be the price for the advice.

[1] vomiting blood: completely shaken up; thrown into a state of utter disbelief or shock