Tangmunjeon - Chapter 362



Only Krnovel

Flowers blooming in the snow

The cold air of the two people, Bukhae Ice Palace Lord and Baek Hyang-ah, filled the narrow space. However, the emotions expressed on their faces were polar opposites.

Baek Hyang-ah’s face is seething with anger. On the other hand, Bukhae Ice Palace Lord’s expression is as cold and cool as ever.

However, Baek Hyang-ah’s yin energy is much stronger and more ferocious than that of Bukhae Ice Palace Lord.

Hoo- Hoo-

Baek Hyang-ah took a couple of slow breaths, then lowered her posture, kicked the ground, and rushed at the Bukhae Ice Palace Lord.

Baek Hyang-ah’s hand cut through the air and aimed for the spleen of the Bukhae Ice Palace Lord.

If someone who had not studied martial arts saw Baek Hyang-ah’s hand, he would have said that it was a white and thin hand.

However, the impression of the Ice Palace Master was different. Thanks to the skill she learned from the leader of the Demonic Cult, Baek Hyang-ah’s hands were imbued with a powerful aura.

Hands that can break and tear anything they catch.

Any other unmanned unit would not have been able to withstand the massive amount of negative energy consumed by the small group.

If you spread out your stomach with just a few drops of water, your body’s yin energy will be exhausted, you will vomit blood, and you will be on the verge of death. However, for Baek Hyang-ah, it was not that difficult.

“hmm.”

Binggungju twisted his body slightly to avoid Baekhyang-ah’s hand.

As if Baek Hyang-ah had expected it, she waved her hand following the next move. After a few more gestures, the sword of the Northern Ice Palace Lord finally fell between Baek Hyang-ah’s fingers.

‘good.’

Baek Hyang-ah bent her pure white fingers to grab the sword, and easily broke it.

If it were a fight with any other warrior, it would have been a moment of victory, but not now. The Northern Ice Palace Lord had two swords.

To make matters worse, there are three more swords in the room. They are the swords of the Demonic Cult warriors who came to find Baek Hyang-ah before the Northern Ice Princess and died.

The Northern Ice Palace Master was already picking up a new sword from the floor.

Binggungju spoke while looking at Baekhyang-ah’s pure white hands.

“It’s an evil martial art.”

“Is it as evil as your actions?”

Baek Hyang-ah snapped, but Bukhae Ice Palace Lord ignored her and continued his story.

“A martial art that can only be mastered by wetting both hands with the blood of a child, and that can only be improved upon by absorbing human blood. It is much more vicious than any other magical art. It is difficult to even estimate how many lives it has taken.”

“You have to get your hands wet to learn? That’s never happened. Don’t pretend to know something when you don’t.”

“It’s no use trying to grab it. The scent of blood is vibrating from your hands and soul.”

A memory came to Baek Hyang-ah’s mind.

While learning martial arts in the Demonic Cult, Baek Hyang-ah would lose consciousness along with a strange scent towards the end of her training, only to wake up the next morning.

When I woke up after losing consciousness like that, my hands had slowly turned white without me even realizing it.

I thought there was something. I just had no way of knowing exactly what it was.

I couldn’t even actively reject it. The world is full of enemies, so how could I reject power?

The King of the North Sea Ice Palace laughed at Baek Hyang-ah.

“As expected, it seems like you have a knack for it. You said that you have to kill people to feel warmth, right? That must also be because of your martial arts skills.”

“It’s not because of my martial arts, it’s because of my yin energy. To survive…”

Baek Hyang-ah tried to make excuses without realizing it. However, the Lord of the Northern Sea Ice Palace did not even allow her to make excuses.

“You didn’t have that kind of habit before you left for the Demonic Cult. You probably didn’t have that kind of urge even after you took the Eternal Ice Crystal. That’s not because of your yin energy, but because of the strange nature of the magic you learned.”

Baek Hyang-ah felt dizzy.

So, has the reason you’ve been killing people up until now not been to survive, but to advance your martial arts skills?

That can’t be true.

Baek Hyang-ah gathered her courage and shouted.

“If what you say is true, then it’s a good thing! You can just throw away martial arts and such.”

“If it was a martial art that you could throw away at will, it wouldn’t have been called magic art. Even if you are lucky enough to survive, you will have to carry that magic art with you for the rest of your life. It will be a life where you will spread countless resentments and sorrows, so it is right to end your name before it is too late.”

Baek Hyang-ah’s heart wavered.

The faces of the dying people, their eyes filled with fear, came to mind.

The voices of the bereaved families, filled with sorrow, that I had once heard echoed in my ears.

And the Ice Palace Princess did not miss Baek Hyang-ah’s weakness.

The Ice Palace Master approached Baek Hyang-ah and used the signature sword technique of the North Sea Ice Palace, the Ice Spirit Water Flow Sword.

Baek Hyang-ah tried to grab the Ice Palace Lord’s sword or body by covering his vital point with one arm. However, Baek Hyang-ah’s hand was unable to touch the Ice Palace Lord’s sword or body at all.

It felt even more daunting than when I had just faced two of the Demonic Cult’s top masters and one of its top masters at the same time.

Since they have passed the peak, they are all lumped together as super peaks, but their levels are not similar. Even among the super peak unmanned, the level difference is obvious. It is not even possible to gain an advantage in terms of compatibility.

The Ice Palace Princess laughed at Baek Hyang-ah.

“Are you frustrated because your hands can’t reach me? Your yin energy is something that anyone would admire, but if you can endure it just a little longer, you will be able to see a considerable amount of foundation. The period of time you have been learning martial arts must not have been that long. Five years, or ten years at most?”

That was correct. Baek Hyang-ah began to learn martial arts in earnest when she became Muryangja’s disciple. It must have been around seven or eight years ago.

The Ice Palace Master said calmly.

“I have been practicing martial arts for over fifty years.”

Baek Hyang-ah shouted fiercely.

“The period of time doesn’t matter. I learned martial arts through hard work!”

“That’s a childish idea. Why do you think that only you had a hard time learning martial arts? Do you think that your efforts were more desperate than mine, who had to take responsibility for the lives of the northern people?”

Ice Palace Master suddenly lowered his posture, dug under Baek Hyang Ah, and raised his left hand.

If you give me your chin, the match is over. Baek Hyang-ah desperately twisted her body and tilted her head back to avoid the palm of Bukhae Ice Palace Lord.

‘Avoided.’

But that was a mistake. The Northern Ice Palace Lord grabbed Baekhyang-ah’s fluttering hair.

This was an attack that was aimed for this situation from the beginning. The Northern Ice Palace Lord turned his wrist and grabbed Baek Hyang-ah’s hair, then swung his arm around and slammed Baek Hyang-ah into the wall.

Kuuung-

The reception hall rang dully. The ice that had filled the inside of the building began to crack, and a faint creaking sound was heard.

Of course, this wasn’t all of the attacks by the North Sea Ice Palace.

The sword held in the right arm of the Northern Sea Ice Palace Master aimed for Baek Hyang-ah’s heart.

A bond of protection.

Baek Hyang-ah placed a huge amount of negative energy over her heart.

The skin, hardened like thousands of years of ice, blocked the tip of the sword of the Northern Ice Palace Master.

However, it was not enough defense. As Binggungju swung his sword with his right arm, he simultaneously drew his sword with his left arm and aimed for Baek Hyang-ah’s stomach.

The second sword held in the left hand of the Ice Palace Lord pierced Baek Hyang-ah’s stomach and the wall at the same time.

It was buried so deep that only the black handle of the Ice Palace Sword was visible.

“Ugh!”

Baek Hyang-ah exhaled roughly.

A pain I’ve never felt before spreads through my entire body. I can’t even breathe. Even taking a deep breath feels like my stomach is going to burst open.

However, Bukhae Ice Palace Lord paid no attention and gave a plain evaluation.

“It’s not enough. Well, since you easily obtained enormous power with overwhelming yin energy, enlightenment must not have been urgent.”

“Ugh!”

Baek Hyang-ah was pinned against the wall, enduring the excruciating pain as she tried to pull out the sword.

The internal energy flowed out more intensely from the dantian where the sword was barely avoided. A huge snowflake bloomed on the wall that was touching Baek Hyang-ah’s back.

Dang Mu-jin told me not to use my internal energy excessively.

Baek Hyang-ah couldn’t tell exactly what the expression ‘excessive’ meant.

But I could instinctively tell that I had crossed the line.

No, since I was pouring out all of my Jinwonjinki, it may not have been a big issue how much of my internal energy I had left.

Before Baek Hyang-ah could pull out the sword stuck in her stomach, the Bukhae Ice Palace Lord approached Baek Hyang-ah again with two swords in hand. There was still no trace of battle passion on the Ice Palace Lord’s face.

Baek Hyang-ah bit her lower lip.

The two swords of the Ice Palace Lord again aimed for Baek Hyang-ah’s stomach. One was for her heart. The other was for her left shoulder.

There was no other choice. Baek Hyang-ah used her goodwill to block the sword aimed at her heart.

And then he waited for the second sword to sink into his shoulder.

Phew.

The pain is coming.

“Ahhhhhh!”

“So, it looks like you can’t block two places at the same time?”

But Baek Hyang-ah also had a plan. She held the sword with both hands, enduring the pain of the blade piercing her shoulder and stomach.

The enormous amount of negative energy that Baek Hyang-ah had drawn up went against the blade and covered the hand of the Northern Ice Palace Lord.

The frozen hand will not be able to open, and a huge amount of negative energy will rise up through the hand and freeze the entire body of the North Sea Ice Palace Lord.

This was the ultimate move that Baek Hyang-ah could show. It was a move that no one could defeat if they were inspectors.

But the King of the North Sea Ice Palace smiled wryly.

“What if you show me the talent I taught you?”

“uh···?”

The Northern Ice Palace Master taught this skill to Baek Hyang-ah and told her that even he would not be able to stop this skill.

But the Ice Palace Lord lightly put down his sword.

“How naive. Do you think I taught you everything? Or do you think I would fight you without knowing your abilities like those idiots of the Demonic Cult? How foolish, how foolish.”

As he spoke, the King of the North Sea Ice Palace reached out and filled his palm with the blood that flowed from Baek Hyang-ah’s stomach. Then he licked the blood.

For the first time, a genuine smile appeared on the Ice Palace Master’s face.

“That’s great. I never thought that not taking the ice cream too hastily would lead to such great fortune.”

Then, the Ice Palace Master picked up the half-broken blade that was rolling on the floor.

This is the blade that Baek Hyang-ah broke when they first started fighting.

Baek Hyang-ah looked at the blade, panting in pain. What was she planning to do with it?

No matter what he did, there was no way out for Baek Hyang-ah. With swords stuck in her stomach and shoulder, she couldn’t move, so what could she do? The fight was already over.

However, the Ice Palace Princess did something that Baek Hyang Ah did not expect. She immediately turned around and threw the blade back.

Wedge-

The broken blade pierced the wall of the room and flew into the hallway of the reception hall.

visor-

And then there was the sound of iron clashing with iron.

Hyun-gong appeared with an embarrassed smile.

“···Since when have you known?”

“From the beginning.”

Hyun-gong watched the fight between the Northern Ice Princess and Baek Hyang-ah, waiting for an opportunity. He was thinking about how to act to get the best result.

Of course, if there was a problem, he planned to sneak away and escape. To begin with, Hyeon-gong did not have a very friendly relationship with Baek Hyang-ah, so he had no intention of forcing himself to save her.

Hyun-gong spoke in a serious voice.

“Okay. Now it’s time to talk calmly. In exchange for turning a blind eye to what I saw here…”

As Hyun-gong spoke like that, he looked at the face of the Lord of the Northern Sea Ice Palace.

The eyes of the Northern Ice Palace Lord were still cold. The bloodstain on the corner of the Ice Palace Lord’s mouth felt meaningful.

And I thought, this is not a situation where I can get something out of it.

“···I have no intention of demanding anything. There is no reason to be so thorough in calculating the pros and cons of everything. But since it has come to this, I will help the respected Lord of the Ice Palace and make sure things don’t get too out of hand···.”

However, the Ice Palace Lord was walking towards Hyeon-gong with his sword in hand.

Hyun-gong’s eyes trembled.

The Ice Palace Lord was not a fool. Instead of asking Hyungong to clean up the mess, he chose to kill the killer.

“···I want to help you clean up the mess. Wouldn’t that be constructive for both of us···!”

Hyun-gong continued his story as if he knew nothing, then suddenly pulled out his sword and swung it.

visor-

However, the Northern Ice Palace Princess easily blocked Hyungong’s sword.

It was natural, since I wasn’t careless from the beginning.

Hyun-gong spat out a small curse. Chew.

Hyun-gong turned his head slightly and checked Baek Hyang-ah’s condition. There was no need to look closely. She was in critical condition.

‘There’s nothing I can do about it anyway.’

Hyun-gong assessed the current situation.

‘Did the people of the North Sea Ice Palace outside know about the North Sea Ice Palace Lord’s hidden plan?’

‘A few of his confidants may know, but most of them probably don’t. That’s why he attempted murder.’

‘How long will it take for the people to return after defeating the Demonic Cult’s unmanned forces?’

‘It’s hard to estimate. But whether we defeat them all or not, we’ll be back before the day is over. We’ll need to rest and eat. If it’s short, we might be back in half a day. The cold takes a lot of stamina away.’

‘What is the difference between Ice Palace Master and my martial arts?’

‘Ice Palace has the upper hand. That’s for sure.’

‘Then will I be defeated by the Ice Palace Lord?’

‘no.’

Hyun-gong’s final judgment was full of confidence. Wasn’t he confident in defense alone?

A fight you win if you can hold out until people come to you. And your defenses won’t be breached.

The situation became clear.

Relations between my in-laws and my friends will get very bad, but it’s better than dying here.

‘···No, it might not be my wife’s family. There’s no way I could get married after killing my father-in-law···.’

But Hyun-gong quickly dispersed his last thoughts.

First of all, since I was attacked by the Ice Palace Lord, I thought that Seolhwa might understand.

Hyun-gong took a deep breath and said.

“Remember this clearly. You were the one who rejected my offer.”

*

‘Is this it?’

Although Binggungju’s expression was still calm, he was quite flustered inside.

Even though they continued to attack nonstop for almost half an hour, Hyungong’s defenses showed no signs of breaking down. All that the Ice Palace Master left Hyungong with were a few small scratches that barely showed a drop of blood.

‘I thought the young man’s achievements were quite good, but it wasn’t just that. It was a defense that solid.’

Should we extend the hand of reconciliation again now?

No. The Northern Ice Palace Princess quickly gave up.

That guy named Hyun-gong, despite his neat appearance, seems to have a sinister nature.

It’s obvious as day that if you let a guy like that take advantage of you, the consequences will be dire.

Hyun-gong was also very nervous.

The most powerful technique that Hyun-gong can use is the Daejong Yeo-ha, which took the life of Cheon-pae Gwak Ji-dal.

If only he could unleash the Great Bell, he was confident that he could inflict a fatal wound on the Northern Sea Ice Princess.

But the problem is that it is impossible to unfold the Great Bell.

It is a perfect formula that unfolds after calculating all the variables that are involved.

However, it was not possible to calculate the variables that the North Sea Ice Palace had.

Just when you think the bottom is being revealed, a new diet and new martial arts appear.

Even the martial arts of the Northern Sea Ice Palace Master were completely different from those of the ordinary Jeongpa or Sapa martial artists, so there was no way to measure them.

He normally swings one sword, but sometimes he swings two swords, and sometimes he shoots yin energy like a dagger to target weak points. It’s impossible to figure out.

Just like when you were dealing with Cheonpae Gwak Ji-dal, if you act like you’re going to let things be, you’re sure to lose your life.

‘It’s only a matter of time before the country can hold out like this. If it were Namgung Myung or Hong Geol Gae, they would be dead by now.’

The breathtaking confrontation between the two continued endlessly. Now, it is impossible to tell how many times they fought.

And as time went by, the one who became more anxious was not Hyun-gong, but Bukhae Ice Palace Lord. What would happen if people came back and saw this situation?

Meanwhile, a faint sound came to the ears of the Northern Sea Ice Princess and the Duke of Xuan.

Squeak-

The sound of a door opening.

Outside the reception hall, a snowstorm is still raging. Since there is no sound of doors opening in other buildings, someone must have entered the reception hall.

‘Who the hell are you?’

Ice Palace Master’s heart beat quickly.

I don’t even expect cooperation. I just hope it’s not the worst case scenario.

At least I hope someone who won’t interfere with this situation.

And then one person appeared. It was Seolhwa.

Seolhwa looked at Bukhae Ice Palace Lord and Hyeon-gong with a surprised expression.

Seolhwa had a hard time figuring out what was going on. Why on earth were Hyungong and his father fighting?

However, Hyun-gong read one piece of information from Seol-hwa’s expression.

Seolhwa clearly seemed to know that Hyungong was here and came looking for him.

Hyun-gong shouted harshly.

“How did you know and come here!”

“That story about going to see Dang Mu-jin was a lie, wasn’t it?”

It feels like I’ve been hit in the back of the head.

“Uh… How did you know?”

“I’ve never been fooled by you. I knew from the beginning that you lied a lot.”

What does that mean?

Hyun-gong’s heart beat faster. His chest started to hurt painfully.

Hyun-gong asked hesitantly.

“Then, why, why are you by my side until now…”

Seolhwa’s answer was clear.

“You’ve always been sincere to me. And I’ve always been sincere to you. Isn’t that enough?”

For some reason tears welled up in my eyes. My throat got choked up.

But for some reason, I found myself smiling. I felt my strength return.

The world is beautiful, even if it’s bloody.

‘Will Seolhwa take my side?’

I couldn’t figure that out.

Hyun-gong observed the expression on the face of the Bukhae Ice Palace Lord.

Binggungju can’t let his guard down. Rather, he looks a little embarrassed.

‘It seems that the Northern Ice Palace Lord is not sure whether Seolhwa will take his side.’

Hyun-gong’s prediction was correct.

Seolhwa couldn’t aim her sword at the Ice Palace Lord of the North Sea, because the Ice Palace Lord was Seolhwa’s father.

Likewise, Seolhwa couldn’t point her sword at Hyeon-gong. She hadn’t made a hundred-year promise, but she had decided to be with Hyeon-gong for the rest of her life.

One more person was added to the battlefield, but the situation did not change much.

Hyun-gong whispered softly to Seol-hwa.

“It’s dangerous, so step back.”

But before Seolhwa could step back, the Northern Ice Princess lowered her posture and kicked the ground.

“Ugh!”

The North Sea Ice Palace Lord stretched out his left arm like lightning.

The only difference from before was that the target was not Hyun-gong, but Seol-hwa.

Hyun-gong realized this through the eyes of the Bukhae Ice Palace Lord and the movements of his shoulders.

‘It’s nonsense.’

That’s for sure.

He simply stretched out his arm to induce Hyun-gong’s opening, and the attack of the Northern Ice Palace Lord towards Seol-hwa was not a salcho.

Perhaps because he hoped that even just once, Seol-hwa would not get hurt, the Lord of the Northern Sea Ice Palace did not even swing his sword.

It’s obvious and shallow.

Hyun-gong knew everything. He even knew it before the Lord of the Northern Sea Ice Palace could fully extend his arm.

Now, all you have to do is calmly take advantage of the North Sea Ice Palace’s weak points and unleash your attack.

However, Hyun-gong threw himself in front of Seol-hwa without realizing it.

It was something I couldn’t understand myself.