Han Hyangmong and the old man, who had been watching from one side, began to tremble all over, seized by an unbearable fear.
Han Ruzhu's true strength was not precisely known, but at the very least, within the 강국 he was undoubtedly among the top five experts.
And yet he could not block even a single sword strike?
Could this woman have reached the realm of a Sword Master?
At that moment, the voice of the Heavenly Maiden rang out.
[One Sword Decides Life and Death. Those who stand before my single sword will live if I wish them to live, and die if I wish them to die. The moment I draw my sword, the opponent's life belongs entirely within that one sword. Remember this. Do you understand?]
Yeop Hyeon spoke hurriedly.
"Ah, I still don't really understand!"
The Heavenly Maiden nodded.
[If you had said you understood, I would have smacked you on the head. Sword techniques are unfathomably profound, so it is unreasonable to digest them all at once. However, if by seeing that single sword just now you gained even the slightest hint of enlightenment, then that alone will be a great harvest for you.]
Yeop Hyeon bowed deeply and clasped his fists.
"I will keep it in mind!"
"Now then…, next, let the one most confident in Chwiseonru step forward. If I draw my second sword, it will be my defeat."
"..."
As everyone fell silent, Han Ruzhu let out a bitter smile and spoke.
"Th-this one, Heavenly Maiden…, forgive my presumption, but this time our Chwiseonru—"
In an instant, Han Ruzhu's voice was abruptly cut off. The sword hanging before his forehead advanced half an inch, piercing straight through it. Fresh blood burst forth from his brow and began to soak his entire body as it ran down his nose and mouth.
Han Ruzhu's complexion darkened as if he had bitten into a lump of filth.
In truth, Chwiseonru had really stepped into shit this time.
Who could have imagined that such a powerful expert existed in this tiny kingdom?
Just then, a single black dot appeared in the distant sky. The dot gradually grew larger, and from that direction came the sound of someone laughing.
"The eighth Ruzhu of Chwiseonru greets you. Though I do not know how Chwiseonru incurred your displeasure, please first calm your anger—"
The sword pointing at Han Ruzhu's brow suddenly shot up into the air and flew toward the source of the sound.
"Aaagh-!"
Along with a miserable scream, a blood-soaked old man's head rolled off the cloud ship.
Han Ruzhu's face turned deathly pale. That woman's strength was far more terrifying than he had imagined.
She was not merely a Sword Master; she might even be a Sword Emperor-level sword cultivator!
A Sword Emperor, the emperor of the sword!
Han Ruzhu's face was already twisted beyond recognition. Of course, if Chwiseonru were to mobilize all its strength, they could stop her, but provoking a Sword Emperor-level expert would carry a price of death, or at the very least demotion. It was even entirely possible to be imprisoned in Purgatory and rot there for the rest of one's life!
Although the eighth Ruzhu was dead, the Heavenly Maiden showed no intention of sheathing her sword.
Due to several massive disturbances that had occurred atop the cloud ship, some powerful figures among the surrounding forces had already noticed that something unusual had happened there.
Yet not a single one dared to intervene. They could all sense that an unparalleled sword cultivator was aboard the cloud ship!
Gripping the sword that had returned to her side, the Heavenly Maiden pointed it at Han Ruzhu.
"Call more. Do not stop."
Han Ruzhu said with a pitiful smile.
"Heavenly Maiden, please, calm your anger for a moment and—"
Slash-!
With a chilling sound, one of Han Ruzhu's arms flew off.
"If you spout another word of nonsense, the next will be your head. I told you to call the others, and you only need to do as told. Do you understand?"
Han Ruzhu's expression twisted in agony. If he called them, he would surely meet the same fate as the eighth Ruzhu.
And if he did not call them? The sword before his eyes would not stop!
Was Chwiseonru really going to collapse like this?
Han Ruzhu turned his gaze toward Yeop Hyeon not far away. His insides began to boil.
'Didn't he say there was no backing? If he had said that someone at the level of a Sword Emperor was backing him, things would never have come to this!'
Meanwhile, Yeop Hyeon was just as flustered.
He knew she was no ordinary person, but he had never imagined she would be this strong.
Moreover, the fact that she could come out of the Boundary Jade was even more shocking.
At that moment, Yeop Hyeon felt something strange coming from the Boundary Jade Pagoda. It felt as if the beings sealed within were on the verge of breaking free.
Cold sweat trickled down Yeop Hyeon's back.
Just then, without anyone noticing, an old man wearing a gray robe appeared within the hall.
The white-haired old man exuded the bearing of an immortal sage.
Ignoring the gazes around him, he bowed respectfully to the Heavenly Maiden and spoke.
"The third Ruzhu of Chwiseonru greets the Sword Immortal!"
Sword Immortal!
At those words, Han Ruzhu's eyes widened in disbelief.
A Sword Immortal, a Sword Immortal!
How many Sword Immortals could one find even after searching the entirety of the Cheongchang Realm?
One thing was certain: not a single one had ever appeared in Cheongju!
"Your skill is not bad. Would you like to receive my sword?"
At the Heavenly Maiden's words, the sword began to tremble.
"Sword Immortal, please calm your anger. Your skill has already transcended Cheongju, and this junior is not even qualified to receive a single sword from you. Moreover, with your exalted status, is it not beneath you to trouble small existences like us?"
The old man's meaning was clear: he could not defeat her, and she should not bully the weak as a stronger being.
"Bully?"
The Heavenly Maiden laughed lightly, as if amused.
"Didn't your Chwiseonru just now say that they would kill my—no, that they would kill that boy over there and throw away his corpse, and that within Cheongju there was no force that could contend with Chwiseonru? And now you suddenly tell me not to bully the weak as a stronger being? How utterly laughable!"
The old man said nothing. He knew all too well that excuses were useless before such a powerhouse.
He then approached Yeop Hyeon and bowed deeply.
"Young Master, Chwiseonru has committed a grave offense. I beg you, with a heart as vast as the sea, to forgive us generously!"
This apology, made under the Heavenly Maiden's watchful eye, was undeniably sincere.
Yeop Hyeon said nothing. In such a situation, he believed silence was the best choice.
The old man then turned to look at Han Ruzhu. Just as Han Ruzhu was about to speak, the old man stretched out his hand, and an overwhelming force enveloped Han Ruzhu's entire body.
Boom-!
With a tremendous sound, Han Ruzhu was reduced to ashes in an instant.
The old man once more bowed respectfully to the Heavenly Maiden and said,
"Please, withdraw your anger."
Without replying, the Heavenly Maiden withdrew her jade-like hand. Instantly, the sword at her side flew beneath the cloud ship and fell into the riverbed that had already dried up.
Splaash-!
In an instant, water began to fill the parched river once more. The living creatures that revived within it also returned to their original places as if nothing had happened.
At this sight, the old man's heart pounded violently.
At the same time, the Heavenly Maiden's figure atop the bow of the ship grew faint and then vanished without a trace. As everyone searched for her with their eyes, a woman's voice suddenly echoed throughout the hall.
[Chwiseonru, listen well. If you are dissatisfied with today's events, you may come and find me at any time. I am Invincible, and I will face you however you wish!]
A moment of absolute silence fell over the deck where the Heavenly Maiden had disappeared.
The old man in the gray robe also remained silent. Though his expression did not change, his heart was filled with fury. Since Chwiseonru had revealed itself to the world, this was the first time it had suffered such humiliation at the hands of another martial artist.
Yet he could not express his anger in the slightest.
A Sword Immortal!
Though he could not be absolutely certain, it was presumed that the Heavenly Maiden had reached the realm of a Sword Immortal. If that were the case, she was an existence Chwiseonru must never provoke.
If Chwiseonru were to gather all its forces, it could at best contend with a single Sword Immortal. But that was all.
And what if she had other friends or forces behind her? Even if she stood alone, confronting her would be a matter grave enough to gamble Chwiseonru's very survival.
Just how powerful was a Sword Immortal?
If one were to list the beings in the world that must never be provoked, the first would be the Protectors of Heaven and Earth.
The next would be Sword Immortals.
And if a Sword Immortal were also a Protector of Heaven and Earth? It was a thought too horrifying to even imagine.
Thus, no matter how thoroughly the Heavenly Maiden had crushed their pride, the third Ruzhu could only endure it.
It was common knowledge that Sword Immortals were all eccentric in temperament. If he said even a single wrong word, he might be reduced to a handful of ashes.
After a long silence, the third Ruzhu turned his head and looked at Yeop Hyeon. The reason the Sword Immortal had shown restraint must have been because of this boy!
Sword Immortals were known to prefer solitude, but once they accepted a disciple, their attitude inevitably changed.
'A disciple of a Sword Immortal….'
The third Ruzhu's expression grew complicated. Someone of that status should, by principle, be recruited with full effort. However, with matters having escalated to this extent, recruiting him would not be easy.
The third Ruzhu walked up to Yeop Hyeon. After looking at him for a moment, he took out a purple card from his robes and let it fall before Yeop Hyeon.
"Young Master, please consider what happened just now as water under the bridge and forget it. This is a calling card given only to Chwiseonru's honored guests. Please accept it as a small token of sincerity."
Han Hyangmong, who had come over at some point, added an explanation.
"That card is very special. Its holder receives a fifty percent discount when purchasing items at our Chwihwaru. Conversely, when selling items, all fees that would normally be paid to Chwihwaru are completely waived. As for other benefits, you can learn about them gradually in the future."
Yeop Hyeon did not refuse the card. After putting it away, he clasped his fists toward them.
"It seems the situation has been settled, so I will go and take some rest. Farewell."
With that, Yeop Hyeon left with Yeop Ryeong.
After the figures of the Yeop siblings had completely disappeared, Han Hyangmong and the old man who attended her knelt down on the ground.
The third Ruzhu slowly closed his eyes.
"Although your grandfather was my subordinate, I always treated him like a brother. You are his granddaughter, so to me you are no different from my own granddaughter."
Han Hyangmong silently nodded slightly.
"I do not wish to kill my friend's only blood relative. For the time being, withdraw from all matters of Chwiseonru and reflect in the Imperial City."
Han Hyangmong's expression grew despondent.
Years of effort had effectively gone down the drain because of this incident.
The third Ruzhu turned his gaze beyond the cloud ship. There, he saw the great river, restored to its former state, surging powerfully once more.
"A Sword Immortal… I never thought I would encounter one like this in my lifetime…."
Leaving those words behind, the third Ruzhu vanished into the sky in an instant.
Left alone on the deck, Han Hyangmong showed a pitiful smile to the old man.
"Did I… do something wrong?"
"Miss, the affairs of the world are as unpredictable as the depths of the sea. There is no need to blame yourself too much."
"I should have befriended him properly from the start. If I had made good use of his potential and the presence of the person backing him, it would have been much easier to rise to the core of Chwiseonru in the future. But because I calculated too much, I missed the chance to change my own and my family's fate!"
The old man lowered his gaze to the ground without a word.
Han Hyangmong looked up at the endlessly stretching sky and murmured.
"Yes, that's enough. Let's take today's events as a lesson!"