The next morning.

BWOOOONG!

Mad Dragon (Axe) sliced through the air, glittering as it caught the sunlight.

“Hm.”

Yeon Hojeong’s body—soaked through with sweat—was trembling faintly.

Since breaking through the Martial End Wall, this was the first time he’d trained at full power. He couldn’t unleash his destructive methods, so he used delicate internal-energy control to keep the surrounding objects from being wrecked.

Still not under control.

Strangely, using the Azure Dragon Art he’d learned recently felt easier. The Azure Dragon Art itself focused on evasion and counterattacks, minimizing wasted force.

The Vermilion Bird Art, on the other hand, was a vicious set of Killing Methods, and the White Tiger Art was a forward-driving assault that didn’t know how to retreat. The Black Tortoise Art was a defense that nothing could pierce, but if he couldn’t control its power, gaps still appeared all the same.

Even if the other three are harder to control than Azure Dragon... I learned them way earlier. And the gap is still this big.

Yeon Hojeong clicked his tongue inside his head.

It’s because of the Jade Wave True Formula.

As he mastered Azure Dragon, the Four Spirit Qi reached completion—and that completed Four Spirit Qi, through mutual-generation, rose into a higher realm.

The problem was the Jade Wave True Formula. The Jade Wave True Formula, the foundation that supported the Four Spirits, had grown on its own to develop the “frame” required to handle extremely dense energy, reaching full tenfold completion.

I need to make the Jade Wave True Formula completely mine first, and only then touch the Four Spirit Arts. The Four Spirit Arts are branches, nothing more.

The Jade Wave True Formula wasn’t the same as Vast Heaven Qi, either. If it had been Vast Heaven Qi—aiming only for endless internal-energy amplification—this kind of issue wouldn’t have stood out so sharply.

But with Vast Heaven Qi, I can’t reach beyond that point. Either way, it’s my lack.

When a problem surfaced, he didn’t look for excuses—he knew how to take responsibility seriously. That was one of Yeon Hojeong’s strengths.

If I refine the Jade Wave True Formula and melt all Five Great Divine Arts into it...

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes gleamed.

I should ask Father tonight.

Unfortunately, his father wasn’t in the residence right now.

They were both councilors, but that didn’t mean they did the same work. Yeon Wi had a keen eye for commerce, and he’d taken a temporary advisory role in managing the ALLIANCE OF THE MARTIAL WORLD’s funds.

Alongside Je Gal Munho, Yeon Wi was one of the busiest councilors.

“Are you done training?”

“Hm?”

Yeon Hojeong looked at Mookbi.

She, too, was drenched in sweat. She’d been training before Yeon Hojeong even came out to the rear garden—so she must have been pushing herself hard.

“Any progress?”

Mookbi gave a bitter smile.

“I don’t know.”

She was a master with the Martial End Wall right in front of her. To meet that wall of realization, she’d need more than simple repetition—she’d need deep contemplation.

Yeon Hojeong tipped his gaze up at the sky.

Plenty of time.

He adjusted his grip on Mad Dragon (Axe) and spoke to her.

“How about it? Take one shot.”

“What?”

“People say realization matters if you want to build a higher realm. But realization isn’t as big a deal as you think.”

Curiosity rose on Mookbi’s face.

This was coming from someone who’d broken through the Martial End Wall. Friendship aside, it was worth hearing.

“Then what is it?”

“Before that—what do you think realization is?”

“Realization is... realization.”

Yeon Hojeong clicked his tongue.

“How did you reach your realm? Did something suddenly flash in your head and you ‘realized’ it?”

“Ah...”

“No, right?”

Mookbi nodded with an awkward expression.

“I just worked hard, and before I knew it...”

“That’s it. Working hard. But that’s the baseline. What matters is how useful your effort is.”

“Useful effort?”

“Do you remember why I taught you Vast Heaven Qi?”

Mookbi’s eyes brightened.

“I remember.”

“Learning Vast Heaven Qi didn’t make your Nine Dragons Archery grow. But through Vast Heaven Qi and barehanded combat training, you were able to layer instinctive shooting technique over your archery.”

“...!”

“It’s right to aim higher. But it also matters whether you’ve taken everything you can from where you’re standing right now.”

Mookbi’s eyes wavered.

Yeon Hojeong tapped Mad Dragon (Axe).

“My martial art—the Four Spirit Arts—only truly begins after I’ve learned all four arts. In other words, even before I got the Azure Dragon Art, I was already fully prepared to break through the Martial End Wall.”

“I-I see.”

“Don’t just look up. Look sideways, too. If you grope around here and there, you’ll feel it—at some point, you’ll realize you’re standing higher than you used to.”

Realization was, in the end, just a word game. A shift in thinking—breaking fixed notions—was enough for martial arts to grow. That was realization.

The kind of realization that couldn’t be described in words or writing wasn’t something to discuss at their level—at least not right now.

“You’re an archer. For archers, it’s harder to feel the brutality between life and death than it is for fist fighters or swordsmen. That’s not because of martial level—it’s because of the nature of the weapon.”

“That was part of it, wasn’t it. Why you taught me barehanded combat.”

“Yeah. So you need to face people. In the end, martial arts are a discipline that’s hard to advance without an opponent.”

Mookbi stared at Yeon Hojeong with a fascinated look.

“Where did you even learn things like that?”

Yeon Hojeong snorted.

“Experience.”

“You’re not old enough to have built up that kind of experience.”

“Experience is like martial realm. Age doesn’t matter. There are plenty of middle-aged masters who aren’t even as good as you.”

“Well... true.”

THUD.

Yeon Hojeong drew a line in the dirt with Mad Dragon (Axe).

“I’ll stand right here. Fire one shot. Like you’re really trying to kill me.”

Tension fell over Mookbi’s face.

“Are you sure?”

“Who’s worried about who?”

At Yeon Hojeong’s teasing tone, Mookbi let out a small laugh.

“By the time you regret it with a hole in your head, it’ll be too late.”

“Hmph.”

WOOOOONG.

Blue true energy rose from Yeon Hojeong’s body. Jade Wave True Qi.

“One arrow. If [N O V E L I G H T] you can’t take me with that one arrow, you die. Shoot with that in mind.”

“...Okay.”

THUMP.

Mookbi widened the distance.

If the distance was too close, it became easier to read. Whether archery or hidden weapons, you needed proper distance for true power.

“Ready?”

KRRRK.

Mookbi set an iron arrow to Red Lotus Bow.

There was no answer. Her eyes were already locked onto Yeon Hojeong.

Yeon Hojeong smiled to himself.

Looking at you, it’s clear—you’re not some harmless softie.

She was less a martial artist than a hunter. Rather than trading blows head-on, she’d honed martial arts meant solely to kill her target.

In the past, people hadn’t said it for nothing—that if the Dark Emperor and the Divine Archer moved together, they could kill even the greatest under heaven.

The Dark Emperor was a warrior. The Divine Archer was a hunter. There was no better combination when it came to killing an enemy.

And now—

Now that they had returned to a past that was also a future, the two of them were being honed day by day to reclaim that cold, razor-bright glory.

Fwoooooong.

The flow of the air changed.

Even the way the air bent and funneled toward a single point on Red Lotus Bow was chilling.

Yeon Hojeong’s face hardened.

Good.

Even if he’d reached Transcendent Peak, one lapse still meant death.

And Mookbi was a master archer. Yeon Hojeong could see what she couldn’t—but her archery threatened anyone.

If she grew careless, she died. If she fired a life-staking strike, then he had to stake his life as well.

Tsss.

Yeon Hojeong leveled Mad Dragon (Axe) at Mookbi.

Just lifting a long, heavy axe and pointing it at someone demanded monstrous strength.

It had been possible before, but now it was different. The posture of Yeon Hojeong, pointing Mad Dragon (Axe) straight at her, was steady—and yet flexible.

A realm that could hold opposing principles in a single body.

Cold sweat slid down Mookbi’s forehead as she looked at Transcendent Peak master Yeon Hojeong, the Green Mountain Tiger General.

...

Whiiish.

A chilly wind blew.

I can’t see it.

The moment she recognized him as prey, Mookbi transformed into a reaper whose only purpose was to take his life.

Even through the eyes of a reaper, she couldn’t find an opening.

No. More precisely...

There were too many openings—that was the problem.

It felt like she could hit no matter where she aimed. And yet it also felt like she would fail no matter where she aimed.

It’s natural.

While keeping Mad Dragon (Axe) pointed at her, he subtly turned his stance.

He narrowed his vulnerable radius—an ideal posture when facing an archer.

If I shoot halfway, it’ll miss—and in a blink, he’ll be on me and take my head off.

She could see it.

The image of Yeon Hojeong’s explosive power and merciless killing strike taking her head clean off.

Then...

WOOONG! WOOONG! WOOONG!

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes flashed.

Red Lotus Bow shifted, little by little. She moved her aiming window, disturbing direction and timing.

A textbook response. That strange, subtle motion alone made defense and evasion twice as difficult.

WHIIIIIIING!

The wind strengthened.

Mookbi breathed it in. The dull, gritty smell unique to metal heightened her tension.

White Tiger Qi.

White true energy rose from beneath his feet, as if measuring the moment of attack.

And that White Tiger wind warned her.

If you miss, he attacks immediately. And with that one attack, you die.

Drip.

Another line of cold sweat slid down.

What do I do? Where do I aim to catch him? Dragon Tooth Cannon is strong, but if it’s Young Master Yeon, he’ll block it without much trouble...

Then—

Huh?

Mookbi’s eyes shook.

Why do I have to use Dragon Tooth Cannon?

Dragon Tooth Cannon was the technique she could fire with the most confidence within Nine Dragons Heaven-Splitting Bow.

But its destructive power wouldn’t land on him. If so, did she still have to cling to it until the end?

Yeon Hojeong’s words surfaced in her mind.

What matters is how useful your effort is.

She couldn’t catch Yeon Hojeong with Dragon Tooth Cannon.

So then—

FWOOOOOOONG!!

A strange, gray true energy surged up from beneath Mookbi’s feet.

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes widened.

Vast Heaven Qi?!

In that instant, Mookbi released the string.

TWAAANG!

An iron arrow wrapped in gray mist shot out like lightning.

Even for Yeon Hojeong—whose five senses and internal-energy quality had been maximized after breaking through the Martial End Wall—it was too fast to perceive as slow. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Lower body.

In that sliver of a sliver of a moment—

Yeon Hojeong realized her arrow was targeting his thigh. It looked like it was flying straight in, but past a certain point it curved downward—a short-range curved shot.

Still too much, I guess?

Even as that thought passed, Yeon Hojeong’s hand was already moving down. The moment the arrow released, his instincts read the killing intent and shifted his hand’s position.

Either way, it’s a failure.

Just as Yeon Hojeong’s left hand was about to snatch the gray iron arrow—

WHUMP!

Surprise flashed in Yeon Hojeong’s eyes.

The fired arrow split vertically in midair, multiplying into five.

Wandering Dragon Scattering Lightning Bolts?!

THUNK-THUNK-THUNK-THUNK!

Yeon Hojeong flinched.

Of the five arrows, four buried themselves in the ground. One was caught in Yeon Hojeong’s hand—and that arrowhead lightly bit into his thigh.

If he hadn’t caught it in time, it would’ve punched straight through.

“...Damn.”

A gasp of admiration escaped him.

“Wandering Dragon Scattering Lightning Bolts isn’t an archery technique you can use at this distance.”

Yeon Hojeong turned his head.

“Isn’t that right?”

“Haah... haah!”

Panting, Mookbi had already taken his rear angle—drawing the string with no arrow.

And Mad Dragon (Axe) was touching her collarbone.

Mookbi panted and spoke.

“Haah! Haah! I—I forced my true energy to reverse... but it still didn’t work?”

“It’s a shame. It is. But...”

Yeon Hojeong smiled.

“Well done. You really fired it like you meant to stake your life.”

Mookbi grinned.

The smile on her face slowly drained of color, turning pale—then blue. Forcing her true energy to reverse and compressing her breathing too hard had worsened her internal injuries.

TWIIING!

Unable to endure the tension, Red Lotus Bow dropped to the ground. Mookbi lost consciousness and collapsed.

Yeon Hojeong caught her quickly.

Pride shone on his face.

“Well done.”