CHAPTER 486: THE END POINT (5)

In the face of the overwhelming power of the Supreme Pavilion Lord, Seol-Hwi’s resistance was futile.

He couldn’t defend himself properly even once, and had to endure the onslaught of attacks.

Crash! Bang, bang!

The indiscriminate barrage of the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s attacks continued for a long time.

When he finally stopped his movements, Seol-Hwi was already in a state so miserable that his life needed to be checked.

The Supreme Pavilion Lord sneered.

“How is it, your impression? Do you feel the gap in power?”

Seol-Hwi lay collapsed, his entire body covered in blood.

His eyes were already rolled back, and the blood flowing from his head made it doubtful whether he could live a normal life even with immediate treatment.

Looking down at the half-dead Seol-Hwi, the Supreme Pavilion Lord shook his head.

“This is just…”

He smacked his lips and muttered.

He realized that he had used more strength than intended because he was too excited.

One more strike and the opponent seemed like he would die on the spot.

The Supreme Pavilion Lord swallowed his regret that he should end Seol-Hwi here.

“You’re worse than trash.”

Thud!

He kicked at Seol-Hwi.

Even with a simple motion, Seol-Hwi’s body was sent flying far away.

“Hmm.”

The Supreme Pavilion Lord, who stood still for a moment, soon tilted his head. He approached Seol-Hwi again and kicked him once more.

This time, he put quite a bit of strength into it.

Boom!

Seol-Hwi’s body soared into the air once again before crashing to the ground.

The face of the Supreme Pavilion Lord, who was wearing a satisfied expression, suddenly hardened.

“What is this?”

The Supreme Pavilion Lord’s expression was full of confusion. His gaze was fixed on something that had appeared above, and he looked as if he couldn’t believe it.

[State]

Seol-Hwi [Subordinate Squad Leader]

16 types of injuries including physical disability

Health 1/640

Internal Energy 1/2300

“Strange. He should have died several times over by now…”

The Pavilion lord muttered.

His health was clearly almost depleted.

Normally, leaving him alone would have been enough to kill him.

Yet somehow, Seol-Hwi was still clinging to life.

“I can’t believe it. My heart is too soft.”

With a murderous glare, the Supreme Pavilion Lord approached Seol-Hwi.

This time, he reached out to crush his skull for sure.

But for some reason, his movement suddenly stopped.

‘This is…!’

Seol-Hwi’s eyes were unfocused. At first, he thought Seol-Hwi had just lost consciousness, but upon closer inspection, it wasn’t the case.

“No way!”

It was a sign.

One of the changes that occur during a breakthrough.

Usually, such a situation would lead directly to a qi deviation due to external shock, but with all his health and internal qi depleted, it was different. 𝘙ã𐌽őβËŞ

He was creating a change with the minimal qi needed to sustain life naturally.

“Damn…”

The Supreme Pavilion Lord hastily infused his hand with demonic qi.

He realized that simply using external force like a kick wouldn’t be enough to kill Seol-Hwi anymore.

He intended to completely destroy his opponent with a more powerful demonic qi.

“Haaaaa!”

A demonic flame incomparable to before was generated.

The Supreme Pavilion Lord’s fire demon, with power raised to 70%, was concentrated in his right arm.

As soon as the demonic qi gathered to a certain extent, he swung mercilessly at Seol-Hwi.

Boom!

The massive explosion and heat shook the space and spread in all directions.

It was an explosive demonic qi that could not be withstood with ordinary health and internal qi.

Seol-Hwi was engulfed in flames and soared into the sky in an instant.

“It’s over.”

The Supreme Pavilion Lord was certain of Seol-Hwi’s death. It was a demonic martial arts attack he couldn’t have withstood even in a normal state.

Nonetheless, just in case, he checked Seol-Hwi’s stats as he fell from the air.

“Damn it!”

There were unbelievable numbers written there.

[State]

Seol-Hwi [Subordinate Squad Leader]

999 injuries including physical disabilities

Health 1/???

Inner power 1/???

Unchanging numbers.

Instead, incomprehensible things were listed after health and internal qi.

In a situation too unbelievable to trust his eyes, the Supreme Pavilion Lord prepared for a final showdown once more.

“Pointless.”

“……!”

But Seol-Hwi, who was lying as if dead, slowly got up and spoke.

The Supreme Pavilion Lord asked in shock.

“Could it be, you… achieved a breakthrough in that brief moment?!”

There was no other explanation.

To move with such a battered body defied the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s understanding.

“No. If that were the case, your demonic attack would have driven me mad.”

“Then how… are you still alive?”

“Thanks to your help.”

“What nonsense is that!”

Seol-Hwi didn’t answer the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s question directly.

Instead, he slowly examined his own body.

After confirming his depleted health and internal qi, he spoke.

“Your punches opened all my acupoints.”

Seol-Hwi’s voice was calm.

“The moment my meridians connected, I experienced an enlightenment and a change in my state. However, my body’s condition was too critical for my physical abilities to improve dramatically. But your demonic qi attack can no longer threaten my life.”

The face of the Supreme Pavilion Lord twisted at those words.

“Don’t be ridiculous. No matter how much effort you put into sustaining life, to say there’s no damage from my Flame Demonic Arts… You expect me to believe that?”

A smile spread across Seol-Hwi’s lips.

“Then why don’t you test it yourself? See for yourself what state I’m in.”

As he extended his hand, the Supreme Pavilion Lord, who seemed ready to charge just moments ago, hesitated.

‘If what that guy says is true…’

Doubt sprouted in the heart of the Supreme Pavilion Lord.

It was hard to believe, but it couldn’t be ignored either.

There was definitely a change in Seol-Hwi’s body, and his demonic arts had no effect.

It meant that the numbers in front of him didn’t tell the whole story.

‘It’s certain that his condition is unstable.’

The Supreme Pavilion Lord organized his thoughts.

He still had his doubts, but it led to the thought that this might actually be an opportunity.

Even if it wasn’t a case of going berserk, Seol-Hwi’s condition was undoubtedly unstable.

He thought that if it was the extreme heat of his Flame Body Demonic Arts, which could penetrate to the bones, it might be possible.

“Fine. I’ll check it out!”

Once he made up his mind, the Supreme Pavilion Lord didn’t hesitate any longer.

He summoned the maximum power to generate Flame Body Demonic Arts.

As he pushed it to its extreme, a massive flame completely engulfed his body.

“Haaat!”

With the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s shout, the extreme power of Flame Body Demonic Arts burst toward Seol-Hwi.

A hellfire that seemed impossible to exist in this world unfolded before him.

Hwaaa—aaack! Kuang!

The fierce Flame Body Demonic Arts engulfed Seol-Hwi’s body. With flames penetrating every corner of his body, the Grand Master was convinced of his victory.

“You’re finished!”

True to its name, which claimed that even a handful of flames could melt bones, the heat of the fire art, raised to its extreme, was beyond imagination.

It was truly the pinnacle of the fire demon.

Without reaching the utmost level, it was impossible to handle, let alone control, these flames.

However, soon, the confident expression of the Supreme Pavilion Lord began to waver.

“No matter how high you’ve ascended in the demonic arts… What is this!”

The flames were still fiercely blazing, but Seol-Hwi remained unfazed.

He was still alive, and his qi level did not drop below 1.

Seol-Hwi spoke in a calm voice.

“From the start, your power couldn’t affect me. Even the power of the fire art you’ve mastered has its limits.”

While the Supreme Pavilion Lord was at a loss for words, Seol-Hwi continued speaking.

“Now, I will show you a higher level of fire art. Of course, it will be with the true divine art, not demon arts.”

Whirr—

The fire arts that enveloped Seol-Hwi’s entire body concentrated in an instant.

For an ordinary martial artist, controlling such immense demonic qi was an impossible task.

Only those who had reached the utmost level could achieve this.

But Seol-Hwi was different.

He controlled this rampaging qi with the principle of Taiji.

Instead of control, it was guidance. The demonic qi moved naturally, as if dancing, at his fingertips.

Swish.

Seol-Hwi did not stop there.

Along with the guided demonic qi, he drew upon the divine art of Yang qi.

His internal qi level was merely 1, but Seol-Hwi realized that the innate qi flowing within him far exceeded that level.

Roar!

Flames of two colors surged from Seol-Hwi’s fingertips.

One was the familiar red flame of the Flame Body Demonic Arts, the other was a mysterious qi that the Supreme Pavilion Lord had never seen before in his life.

The sight sent chills down the Supreme Pavilion Lord’s spine.

‘What on earth is this power!’

As the overwhelming qi surged in, the Supreme Pavilion Lord hastily raised his martial arts form to take a defensive stance.

But his efforts were in vain.

In the face of Seol-Hwi’s power, he was as helpless as a leaf in a storm.

In an instant, his defense crumbled, and he was swept away by the tremendous force.

Swoosh—

After the flames spread in all directions, the world fell silent.

Only the occasional crackling sound from the burning ground broke the stillness.

“…….”

Seol-Hwi slowly lowered his gaze.

The Supreme Pavilion Lord’s figure was nowhere to be found.

As expected, his body had completely melted away, leaving no recognizable form.

Moreover, the fierce fire energy that had enveloped Seol-Hwi’s entire body vanished as if it were an illusion.

“It’s difficult.”

Seol-Hwi murmured.

He barely survived, but he found it hard to fully accept the current change.

Unlike the past, he couldn’t precisely gauge his current state.

“I pierced the Ren and Du meridians to reach a new level, but…….”

The realm he realized and reached was judged to be not the Peak Demon, but the Peak Master level.

However, the change happened so suddenly, and there was no dramatic transformation like rebirth.

So much so that Seol-Hwi doubted whether he had truly reached the Peak Master level.

‘Could it be because of this…….’

Seol-Hwi’s gaze turned upward again. His status window appeared before his eyes.

[State]

Seol-Hwi [Subordinate Squad leader]

Body Normal

health 30 million/30 million [Max]

Internal qi 30 million/30 million [Max]

Despite the significant changes, this figure seemed to fall short of the level of Peak Demon. Furthermore, the word ‘maximum’ was grating on his nerves.

“Maybe it’s something that Jang Dal set up……”

Seol-Hwi considered the possibility that all of this was part of Jang Dal’s scheme.

It could have been a mechanism to prevent him from becoming too strong too quickly.

Just like the figures he saw at the first gate.

He thought that this limitation might be the reason why transformation was impossible.

“We’ll soon find out what state we’re in now.”

[You have passed the 4th gate.]

Seol-Hwi shook his head lightly. The fight wasn’t over yet.

Soon, he would be able to confirm his true strength through the opponent that would appear before him.

[The 5th gate is opening.]

As the door opened, a familiar figure appeared. It was an opponent more than suitable for testing Seol-Hwi’s strength.

“Nice to see you.”

A smile spread across Seol-Hwi’s lips.

The formidable adversary he had encountered just before gaining his fortune.

One of the higher elders of Mount Hua Sect, Goo Jong-myung, appeared before him once again.