“Whew.”

Chun A-young huffed as she lowered her sword, wiping away sweat with the back of her hand. Her clothes were soaked with sweat and dirt.

Three months had passed in the Valley of Thousand Spirits. 

It was a period of much growth, growth faster than it had ever been. 

Perhaps the reason for all the improvement wasn’t even the Valley of Thousand Spirits.

Yeah, maybe…

She turned her head toward the deepest part of the Valley. 

There, beyond the darkness, was a young man. 

Woon-seong, who had entered three months ago, was still there.

Of course, Woon-seong did not continue to appear here and there in the valley. He was occasionally seen, but spent most of his time holed up in the deepest region.

However, his absence did not mean that the others forgot about his presence.

It was especially so for A-young. A wall that needed to be overcome someday; she was conscious of it. She had to defeat him. She couldn’t help but feel that way. 

Look, how could she not feel that huge presence blocking the inside of the valley? Moreover, its existence grew stronger every day. 

Chun A-young swallowed. I won’t lose.

But soon she shook away those thoughts. She had been training hard for the last three months. For the first time in ages, she felt the agony of torn skin, blisters and cuts littering her hands and arms. With all the new calluses, the hands of a young noble lady had transformed. But that was alright, since these hands held traces of her identity as a martial artist, one who had practiced the way of the sword with all her might.

Thanks to her struggles, the energy harnessed by the Dark Flower Red Heart was greater than ever before. It wouldn’t be long before A-young could summon the Divine Shaped Flame. 

Thinking of the future, she grinned.

It was not only A-young who had benefited during these three months. 

Influenced by Woon-seong’s growing presence, the rest of the 2nd Latent Demon Squad had also focused wholeheartedly on training. Perhaps it was because of his extravagant entrance into the Valley. 

Anyways…

Whatever the reason, the overall strength of the squad had risen to an unparalleled degree. 

A-young examined the members of the 2nd Latent Demon Squad. 

They’ll become a foundation for me to climb higher.

As she was the captain, it would only be better if the group she was in charge of became stronger. She smiled faintly.

A good harvest.

A-young turned, again, staring into the darkness.

I guess I have to thank you now.

Thank you for being such a good stimulant. 

She bowed her head slightly, barely discernible. 

Still, this was a bow from someone with the bloodline of the Heavenly Demon. 

Someone approached A-young from the side, “It’s done.”

“Excuse me?” A-young was afraid someone had seen her.

The member spoke again, slightly embarrassed, repeating what he had just said. “It’s time to leave.”

At that point, A-young suddenly realized that a total of six months had passed. Her punishment in the Valley of Thousand Spirits was over. 

Time to return to the Cult.

They’re gone.

Woon-seong slowly opened his eyes. 

Nothing that a large number of presences had begun to leave, he realized that it was about time for him to leave as well.

The 2nd Latent Demon Squad was to stay for half a year; Woon-seong’s stay overlapped with three of those months. And now that three months had passed, it was time for A-young and them to leave.

Feeling the presences receding, Woon-seong slowly rose to his feet. 

Of course, he was not getting up to send them out. 

The spear lying next to him trembled. 

Woo-woo!

As if responding to its cries, he picked it up. 

The energy of the Unrecorded…

He smiled faintly, feeling the power coursing through his body. 

Chun A-young had cultivated like crazy for the past three months, as if in competition with himself. As a result, she had indeed grown remarkably strong. 

However, Woon-seong did not feel the same pressure. 

He had achieved no less.

He was toeing the line of Transcendence. 

I’ve already been through this before and I’m in much better conditions this time.

Pills and remarkable martial arts he didn’t have access to last time, combined with experience and new abilities. 

They had brought Woon-seong onto a new path. 

‘Intimidation Qi’.

It felt a little different compared to before. If the previous one was like a cloud, this time it was spreading like a dense fog. 

Within this fog, Woon-seong began to move.

Movement delay.

Even an ant would be unable to escape. However, each movement contained the strength to crush layers of rock.

Huuung-

The air moved in slow motion, scattering and crackling with qi. A wind blew in circles, following the movement of the White Night Spear. 

The trajectory of the spear in his hands suddenly changed. His movements sped up, adapting to the differing speed and strength. 

Haste.

A linear movement that connected you to your enemies. The air distorted as space melted, qi sweeping over the area. 

Boom, boom!

A new cave was made, pounded into the wall. This was evidence that Woon-seong had entered a new state. 

Another dreadful wave was brewing.

Rain of Star Destruction.

Hualalalala-

The ground shook like it had been hit by an earthquake.

Black Night of the Fourth Moon.

Guaguaguagauagua!

Pieces of stone smashed into the ground, creating craters and plumes of sand dust. 

Standing within the cloud, Woon-seong slowly lowered his spear. 

“Whew.”

No, not yet. There was still one more move!

The spear in his hand was pulled back as his muscles tensed. As soon as he bent down, the energy contained within his spear rushed out like rolling thunder, striking the area around him.

Flow of the Divine Dragon!

Kuku-

A golden dragon flew through the Valley of Thousand Spirits, its roar echoing through the empty cliff. A chunk of the wall fell from the sky, creating a heavy sound. Again, dust covered his vision. 

After the billow of sand and dust subsided, the traces of destruction would be seen. 

There were multiple cuts on the cliff, followed by a large cut from the ‘Black Night of the Fourth Moon’. The deepest cut was from the ‘Flow of the Divine Dragon’, which had torn into the walls as it passed by. 

Would people who saw its traces think that a true dragon had descended?

It was obvious that Woon-seong was at least twice as strong as before. 

Woon-seong couldn’t help but smile. What the Unrecorded left behind suits me perfectly. 

Maybe it was because of the Spear Master Sect’s arts at the foundation of it all. 

The Spear Master Sect was Woon-seong’s root. 

Even during this second life, his foundation had never changed. 

Instead, his natural athleticism had overlapped with new martial arts to create an even stronger base. 

The roots wove together to form the Tempered True Blossom. 

No, they did not just weave together, they harmonized. 

Woon-seong savored this feeling and slowly closed his eyes. He had achieved what he wanted when he entered the Valley of Thousand Spirits, so it was time to move on.

‘Demonic Medicine of Blood Kalpa’.

He looked at the two marble-like pills that he had pulled out, then shoved them into his mouth without hesitation. 

Gulp.

The pills melted away in no time and Woon-seong swallowed carefully.

Hot energy flowed down his throat, flashing past his stomach. Inside, the medicine met with the force of the Intimidation Qi, scattering around the body. 

He gathered his energy slowly, carefully. 

I’m ready.

He had gathered enough energy in one place. 

Let them open: the ‘Twin Veins of Control’! Opening them up is the way to becoming a true master of martial arts!

Energy that he could barely contain rampaged through his veins, crashing into the walls that blocked his channels of control. His body shook violently as a dreadful pain spread throughout his body. The impact was transported to the brain, causing more mind-boggling, spine-breaking pain. 

Ugh…I need to concentrate or I’ll end up passing out.

But Woon-seong was upset.

The veins were still blocked.

One more time!

He tried again.

Boom!

The rushing energy hitting a roadblock caused extreme pain. 

However, the walls are thinner!

Go! Do it! Again!

Woon-seong continued to direct his energy without missing a beat. Once again, the energy crashed into the blockage and rebounded. As the internal injuries increased, blood to gush out of his mouth. 

I’ve done this before! There’s no reason I can’t succeed this time!

Indeed, Woon-seong had opened his Twin Veins of Control in his first life, allowing him to enter the Transcendence realm. There was no reason he could not do it again. 

Once more!

Kuaaaaaaang!

Along with a thundering sound in his mind, the wall blocking the veins finally collapsed.

A cool sensation flooded his body, numbing the pain. 

But such a sensation was too short. 

The pain inflicted by breaking through was too much. After enduring for so long, Woon-seong finally found the pain unbearable and collapsed into unconsciousness. 

As he lost consciousness, the excess energy within his body began to circulate once more. Like a wild horse, it stampeded through Woon-seong’s body.

No, that was actually incorrect. 

The energy was carefully controlled, scattering into different limbs. 

If someone was present to follow the qi flow, they would discover that Woon-seong’s qi was being directed by a mysterious force from within the White Night Spear… 

Undoubtedly, a surprising result awaited Woon-seong.

And soon… 

Thump, thump, thump….

Small sounds echoed through Woon-seong’s changing body.