He strode forward, grabbed her by the collar, and hurled her into the sky like she weighed nothing.
"Snap out of it already," Gunju muttered, eyes half-lidded with boredom. "We haven't even started the real fight."
He crouched low, Qi bursting from his legs in a fiery surge that scorched the bark beneath him — and then he launched upward, his fist cocked back, glowing with a condensed inferno.
Above, Cheondok Hwang spun in midair, her hair lashing like whips. Her pupils narrowed.
That Qi… if it touches me, I'll be vaporized!
She twisted, gathering every drop of venomous Qi in her meridians. A sickly violet aura bloomed from her hands like coiling serpents.
The moment they clashed — fire and poison collided.
Their hands struck.
A curved shockwave exploded across the sky, splitting clouds and ripping trees from their roots. They were both thrown back, bouncing off midair with veil steps, only to launch toward each other again, faster than before.
Their battle spilled into the forest canopy.
They used branches like springboards, slingshotting through the mist — blades clashing, palms striking, poison mist trailing behind Cheondok while Gunju's fists left arcs of flame in the air.
From below, it was chaos.
Beak and the remaining assassins watched, squinting upward. Even with his fifth-stage Blood Eyes activated, Beak could barely track them.
"This speed…" he muttered, eyes narrowing. "Even I can't follow."
The surviving soldiers could only hear distant detonations. Trees collapsed like towers struck by lightning. Poison cloud and flame storms clashed midair.
To the watchers, it wasn't just a fight.
It was two monsters tearing the sky apart — a serpent goddess of venom, and a man whose fists burned like demonic suns.
"He's forcing her to use everything," Beak whispered. "That's how it should be."
He inhaled deeply, watching as their silhouettes blurred, clashed again — and vanished into the treetops like ghosts.
Cheondok Hwang was livid.
She knew Gunju outmatched her. Younger than the other Pillars, yet more terrifying than all of them. His growth was unnatural. His talent, monstrous. No wonder the Heavenly Demon favored him above all.
"I know it," she muttered through clenched teeth. "I'm going to die here…"
But she wasn't going alone.
Her eyes locked on Gunju as she spread her arms wide, drawing in every lingering drop of venomous Qi — from her dead disciples, fallen soldiers, and the bones of those who once practiced her deadly arts.
Their lifeforce surged into her, forming a swirling storm of toxic purple mist and death.
Gunju arched an eyebrow. "Oh… interesting."
He recognized the technique. The Forbidden Miasma Rebirth — a suicidal art of convergence, sacrificing life span and body to unleash a death wave strong enough to flatten mountains.
"She's going all in," he muttered. "Desperate move. Classic."
Still, he admired her resolve. Even knowing she'd age decades in seconds, Cheondok Hwang poured her soul into the attack.
Her skin began to wrinkle. Her jet-black hair dulled with streaks of gray. Her lips turned blue. Yet her aura kept swelling.
Gunju tilted his head. "Looks like your real age is catching up, Elder Sister. You're starting to look like somebody's grandma."
She trembled. Her face twisted in fury. "I don't care how I look — if I die, I'll drag you down with me!"
Gunju chuckled. "Oh? And who said I'd let you finish powering up?"
Her eyes widened in horror.
Suddenly, the air shattered.
"Asura King's Wrath – Six-Arm Descent."
Gunju's Qi erupted like a volcano. From his back, a towering Asura construct burst forth — dark as night, wreathed in black fire. Two demonic faces. Six flaming arms. Its roar alone cracked trees in half.
"No—!" Cheondok screamed.
But it was too late.
The Asura surged forward, its six fists slamming down in perfect sync, crushing her like an insect before her own forbidden technique could finish charging.
BOOM.
The impact was blinding — a nuclear shockwave laced with poison, fire, and raw force. The mountain shook. Forests bent sideways. The clouds overhead split.
Down below, Seo Gyeol's eyes snapped open. "Troops — shield yourselves! The wave's coming!"
Beak narrowed his eyes. "That's Lord Gunju's wrath…"
Soldiers ducked behind boulders and trees as a howling storm of pressure and wind tore across the battlefield.
A crater began to form where Cheondok Hwang once stood.
And when the smoke cleared — nothing remained.
Gunju landed slowly beside the massive crater.
A perfect imprint—eight feet deep, shaped like a monstrous hand—was all that remained of Cheondok Hwang.
"Gone without a trace," he muttered, scanning the scorched earth. "Good."
He leapt back to the ruins of the Thousand Venom Sect, where the crumbled remains of its once-proud walls smoked in the distance. Soldiers and assassins from every division knelt as he approached.
"Congratulations, my lord. The battle was won," said Seo Gyeol, smiling through clenched pain. His chest was wrapped in thick bandages, blood still soaking through.
Gunju nodded. "I'm relieved we only lost a few men. The Venom Sect… wasn't weak. But they got too comfortable."
He turned, frowning. "Beak."
Beak stepped forward and knelt without hesitation. "Yes, my lord."
"What's the status of the other divisions?"
At once, the leaders of the Second, Fourth, and Sixth Divisions stepped from the shadows. Behind them, their squads dropped to one knee.
"We are present and awaiting orders," they answered in unison.
Gunju's eyes narrowed.
The Third Division was absent—still under punishment. And the Fifth Division… still recovering. The bitterness rose in his mouth.
"Tch… check the area," he ordered. "Anyone still breathing—child, woman, traitor, or rat—I want them erased. I felt life force hiding a mile off. Hunt it down."
The division leaders nodded sharply. "As you command."
In a breath, they vanished into the trees.
Gunju sighed and stretched his neck. "The Elders are going to nag me for this," he muttered, then smirked. "But I wonder… how's my little Mae Bi holding up?"
He chuckled quietly to himself.
…..
Meanwhile — far from the ruins of the Thousand Venom Sect…
Inside the Blood Blade Sect's royal physician wing, Mae Bi lay unconscious, his entire body wrapped in thick bandages. His skin was nearly melted off during his brutal fight with Oh Mun-Jae. No matter what the physicians did, he remained unresponsive—on the very edge of death.
Dok Yon, the royal physician, had entrusted Mae Bi's care to his two disciples while he join the war.
But the girls… weren't hopeful.
"He's not going to make it," one whispered. "He's already survived longer than he should have."
Suddenly—
[System Update Complete.]
[System: Healing protocol finished.]
[System: Update installed — 80% functionality restored.]
Mae Bi's brow furrowed slightly.
A low groan escaped his lips. "…So annoying."
One of the girls flinched. "Did… did he just speak?"
The other rushed to the bedside. "Wait—what?! He moved! His face—he's frowning!"
"It's been two days! There's no way he's—should we pour water on him?"
"Idiot! Get the herbal tonic!"
"But I don't know where it is!"
"Aish—useless! Fine, I'll get it!"
The two girls scrambled off, arguing down the corridor.
[System: Full-body restoration complete.]
Mae Bi's eyes shot open.
His breath hitched. The bandages around his torso unraveled, falling away like paper. Though his body bore faint scars, his skin shimmered faintly, as if reborn.
He sat up slowly, blinking at the morning light pouring in from the open window.
"…Huh," he muttered. "What the hell did I miss?"