Chapter 346

Chapter 346
## Chapter 346. Revenge (2)

—

“Commander Jin, did you foresee this development as well?”

No, not in the slightest. On a battlefield, one maps out countless contingencies and prepares for them, but no one actually believes such an absurdity will occur. To be more precise, one fervently hopes that such a nightmare remains a mere hypothesis.

“It is still too early to say for sure.”

Inwardly, I pleaded and begged that reality would prove me wrong. If this creature truly was a Spirit, we were in a genuinely horrific predicament.

“……It cannot be, right?”

I directed my query to Yang-ja-pyeong, who had closed the distance to my side, speaking out of a desperate need for denial, but—

“……”

His lips remained pressed together in a grim line, offering no response.

“Young Master…… Yang?”

Why on earth are your eyes trembling so violently?

“Dammit……”

“There is no mistake. It is indeed the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear (**Man-nyeon-to-ung**).”

Yang-ja-pyeong, snapping out of his stupor at my oath, provided the definitive verification. The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear. I had no idea what the other Spirits looked like, but when contrasted with the Great Sun Monkey, the visual presence of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear did not seem exceptionally unique at first glance. What made it extraordinary was—

“It is colossal……”

Its proportions were monstrous. Even while hunched over, it loomed as large as a residence. But the moment the creature reared up on its hind legs—

“Shit……”

My head tilted back further than it ever had before. Its stature easily exceeded two *jang*. Its frame was so immensely dense that it was impossible to fathom the sheer volume of sustenance required daily just to sustain that bulk. At the ends of its paws, medium-sized obsidian talons gleamed with an eerie light, and from its eyes—which possessed no sclera, unlike a human’s—a faint, murderous aura leaked and drifted. Among mutated beasts, I could comprehend creatures like imugi or massive serpents possessing titanic frames due to shedding their skin, but it was difficult to readily accept that a mere bear, an animal that does not even undergo molting, could boast such an overwhelming mass.

Beside me, the voice of Il-gak drifted over, murmuring in a tone completely captivated by awe.

“Truly…… an absolute marvel of the natural world.”

Is this really the moment to be struck by poetic appreciation?

‘Something is wrong.’

According to what Yang-ja-pyeong had stated, a Spirit was an entity so elusive that one could traverse the entire Muk-rim for a lifetime without ever encountering a single one. That was precisely why they were revered as ‘Spirits’. Yet, first the Great Sun Monkey crossed our path, and now the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear had materialized before us……

‘There is undoubtedly a hidden link to the Demonic Cult.’

At this precise juncture, with the Demonic Cult having seized dominion over the Muk-rim, the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear was actively obstructing our route while projecting pure animosity. Could a coincidence of this magnitude truly exist? I refused to believe my fortune was that utterly wretched. Dammit, what a mess.

“Wha—what are your orders?”

Nam-hwa-seong was shivering uncontrollably, his gaze locked unmovingly upon the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear.

“What else can we do? We proceed exactly as orchestrated.”

“……”

Nam-hwa-seong’s complexion instantly turned an ashen, sickly shade. He was, after all, a primary participant in this designated vanguard strategy.

“Young Master Yang, I require you to lead the forward path.”

“……May fortune favor you.”

In response to my hand signal, the column resumed its advance. The initial strategy dictated that the moment the Spirit was sighted, the designated detachment would launch an immediate preemptive strike to lure the beast as far from the main group as humanly possible, but—

“Target……”

The sheer presence of its titanic mass and the suffocating pressure it radiated suggested this was not a dilemma that could be resolved by merely striking first. It triggered a primal terror, the instinct of a prey animal entirely separate from one’s internal reserves or level of martial cultivation, thoroughly overwhelming rational thought.

*Kwooooooooooo!*

A deafening roar reverberated violently through the dense woodlands. The individuals who were taking cautious steps froze instantly, their movements halting involuntarily, before they forced themselves forward again under the urgent prodding of those behind them.

“Get ready.”

“We—our full numbers have not yet assembled……”

“We must draw it away from this position immediately. How long do you intend to dally?”

Our singular objective was to isolate the Spirit from the central force. This was hardly a situation where we could comfortably hunt the beast, and with more than half of our numbers suffering from wounds, attempting to slay a Spirit was an exercise in futility. Even so, I inwardly questioned whether it was truly feasible to drive back an entity that looked so utterly immovable. Yet, what alternative did we have? We had to accomplish it regardless of the difficulty.

“We must repel it as significantly as possible with our opening volley.”

“……”

Without another word spoken, I could sense the surrounding martial artists circulating their inner reserves to the absolute limit. From the shoulders of Il-gak, who had pressed his palms together, a pale vapor began to drift upward. Everyone understood the stakes. The moment that titanic entity began a chaotic rampage, the resulting casualties would be catastrophic.

“Ha…… this is insanity……”

Dang-gi-han and Mo-yong-jae-hwa, arriving late to the position, were left entirely speechless upon laying eyes on the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear.

“Hyung-nim. How do you propose we combat that?”

I haven’t the faintest clue either. It is my very first time encountering a bear of this scale.

What marks the ultimate distinction between a true Spirit and a standard mystical beast? Based on my single past experience, it lies in their profound intellect. Because my sample size is incredibly limited, I cannot present this as a definitive thesis to the scholarly community, but observing the creature now proves the theory. Why else would this massive bear be calculating our alignment, scanning both the vanguard and the rearguard of our line?

“It is moving……”

“What? Not yet—”

“Brace yourselves!”

A few individuals seemed to cling to the fragile hope that the beast might simply observe us and wander off. Let me clarify this once and for all: it is a grave error to view that creature as a simple, dim-witted animal. That absolute bastard, the Great Sun Monkey, manipulated natural formations at its own whim and was even capable of speech.

*Kwoooooooooooooo!*

True to its nature, the moment its gaze locked onto the 6th Squad, where our wounded were gathered, the bear launched into a furious sprint.

“Unleash everything!”

*Rumble.*

I channeled the massive reservoir of the Great Heaven Divine Palm I had built up within my hands and hurled it forward.

*Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!*

Instantly following my strike, Nam-hwa-seong’s Green Horn Iron Cloud Palm (**Nok-gak-cheol-un-jang**) supplemented the assault, and Shaolin’s legendary technique, the Great Strength Vajra Palm (**Dae-ryeok-geum-gang-jang**), discharged its devastating energy right on its heels.

*Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!*

That was merely the opening salvo. Once the engagement turned into an all-out clash, every single martial artist chosen for the vanguard detachment began to expend their respective ultimate techniques.

*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*

Given the sheer dimensions of the target, the difficulty of precision aiming was drastically reduced. It was a scenario where any random strike was guaranteed to find purchase. A cataclysmic force, powerful enough to completely hollow out a massive section of the forest, tore through the terrain.

“Break into a run!”

The moment the command tore through the air, the academy students who had been advancing with immense caution began sprinting like desperate souls. If they became entangled in the epicenter of this clash, their survival was effectively zero.

*Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!*

Emerald-tinted Three Yang Divine Palms (**Sam-yang-sin-jang**) were discharged in rapid succession, while the Heaven and Earth Sleeve Dagger Palms (**Geon-gon-su-ri-jang**) erupted continuously from both of Mo-yong-jae-hwa’s hands. The concussive backlash of the detonations was so severe that several of those fleeing nearby were thrown off balance, coughing up crimson spray as they ran. The vanguard detachment focused their entire attention on the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, possessing no spare focus to check on the fleeing students. Due to the splintered timber and the massive walls of earth thrown into the air, a thick, suffocating cloud of dust blanketed the battlefield. With our line of sight completely compromised, the precise condition of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear remained hidden.

“Did…… did we fell it?”

Right alongside the highly unlucky question uttered by Nam-hwa-seong, the undeniable, colossal silhouette of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear materialized clearly through the thinning vapor.

“Dammit……”

Accompanied by a venomous curse from a member of the vanguard, the thoroughly enraged Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear let loose a thunderous roar.

*Kwooooooooooo!*

As the debris settled, it revealed that the hide of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear was marred by countless superficial lacerations, yet not a single martial artist felt a surge of triumph at the sight. Not one of those impacts had inflicted a genuinely critical wound. Even so, I held onto a tiny shred of optimism. It did not appear to manifest any strange elemental sorcery like the Great Sun Monkey. At the very least, unlike a fire-wielding creature, it couldn’t suddenly expectorate earth or rock……

Shit, seriously, it isn’t actually about to spit something, is it?

*Kwooooooo!*

Did the accumulation of those minor wounds serve only to stoke its primal fury? The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear abruptly threw one of its massive arms high into the air.

‘The gap between us should be too wide……’

The distance separating the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear from the vanguard detachment was a span that should have been entirely out of reach for a single limb, regardless of how massive its body was. However.

*Thud—*

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear slammed its heavy paw directly down onto the earth.

*Thud, thud—*

Is it merely an intimidation tactic? The exact microsecond that thought crossed my mind—

“What madness is this!!!!!”

The very earth beneath our feet began to roll and undulate like a violent tidal wave. The sheer scale of the vibration was enough to shatter one’s resolve. The ground, churning like a raging river at the height of a tempest, surged past the vanguard detachment and struck the fleeing column, detonating upward in an explosive surge.

*Pop!*

Instantly, massive waves of displaced soil turned into a deluge, completely burying the academy students beneath them.

“Aaargh!”

“Wha—what is happening!”

“Cough……!”

The retreating line dissolved into absolute chaos in a single heartbeat, with the remaining students frantically attempting to unearth their comrades trapped beneath the heavy soil.

*Kwooooooooooo!*

Simultaneously, a bizarre transformation began to manifest upon the form of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear as it bellowed to herald its dominance.

“Hy—Hyung-nim……. Look, the lacerations……”

The superficial cuts that had at least managed to scratch its surface.

“……”

Were visibly and steadily knitting themselves back together. Seriously, what kind of monstrosity is this?

*Kwooooooooooo!*
*Thud, thud, thud, thud,*

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, its outer hide completely restored, launched into a thundering charge.

“Erect a defense!!!!”

Il-gak had evidently pushed his Diamond Indestructible Divine Power (**Geum-gang-bul-goe-sin-gong**) to its absolute apex, causing brilliant golden arcs of energy to crackle across his entire form. Indeed, with a defensive shroud of that caliber, even the razor-sharp talons of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear shouldn’t easily…… At that precise moment.

“Ha……”

I watched in sheer disbelief as Il-gak vaulted off the terrain, rising up to meet the gaze of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear directly. What on earth did he hope to accomplish by ascending to such a height?

*Thud!*
*Boom!*

The massive bear casually swiped its heavy front limb at Il-gak’s airborne silhouette, sending the golden figure hurtling backward through the air like a bolt shot from a bow.

“That—that reckless fool……”

Given that he had deployed the Diamond Indestructible Divine Power, he likely avoided fatal internal trauma. I barked an order toward Nam-hwa-seong.

“Keep in mind that the creature boasts a mass triple our own!”

“Who are you calling an amateur!”

That bald monk was far more reckless than Nam-hwa-seong. The latter shrouded himself in his defensive inner reserve and embedded himself directly against the lower leg of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear. The beast attempted to shake its leg violently as though Nam-hwa-seong, clinging to its limb, was nothing more than an annoying insect, yet Nam-hwa-seong’s frame remained entirely anchored.

“Do not underestimate the Thousand-Pound Weight (**Cheon-geun-chu**) of the Sam-won-mun, you oversized brute— Aaargh!”

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, realizing after a few shakes that Nam-hwa-seong would not be easily dislodged, simply stomped its massive foot repeatedly into the bedrock.

*Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!*

Hammering the terrain a succession of times with its monumental weight—

*Boom.*

A deep, massive crater was hollowed out of the compacted earth, and Nam-hwa-seong, who had ultimately been forced to break his grip on the beast, lay collapsed at the bottom of the pit.

*Kwooooooooooo!*

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, having neutralized Nam-hwa-seong, immediately pivoted and lunged toward the academy students who were still desperately clawing their way out of the dirt mounds.

“Aaargh!”

“Cough!”

With every sweep of its massive arms and every heavy step of its feet, the count of the fallen rose. Several attempted to unleash radiant sword-qi utilizing intricate forms, but their efforts yielded nothing more than microscopic abrasions, and the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear did not even falter.

*Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.*

I bolted toward the beast at maximum velocity and propelled myself off the ground with every ounce of strength I possessed. The exact moment I achieved an elevation of precisely one *jang* directly above the crown of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear—I activated the Thousand-Pound Weight in tandem with my sword-light and drove down with a vertical strike aimed squarely at its skull.

*Grind.*

Even though it was a blade of sword-light capable of cleaving through solid matter, the sound that echoed was merely that of an edge forcing its way into dense muscle. It would have been ideal if I had managed to incapacitate it with that single blow, but the critical issue was that I only detected the slicing of flesh, not the fracturing of bone.

‘It…… managed to dodge that?’

At the final millisecond, the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear had abruptly wrenched its head to the side. Consequently, the Red Light Sword merely buried itself a bit deeper into the beast’s heavy shoulder.

*Kwooooooooooo!*

The creature thrashed its body violently from side to side in a spasm of agony. Simultaneously, it lashed out with its opposite arm, extended talons bared, prompting me to swiftly disengage my blade and leap high into the air once more. By a hair’s breadth, those lethal claws sliced through the empty space beneath my feet. Its natural resilience was utterly absurd, preventing the edge from biting properly. Furthermore, its inherent regenerative properties were so potent that the laceration was already actively sealing. To make matters worse, as if fully aware of its own recovery speed, it completely ignored the potent vanguard detachment and focused its one-sided slaughter entirely on the vulnerable wounded.

‘This is a losing battle……. There has to be a vulnerability…….’

At that moment, my gaze caught the crimson, blood-infused light saturating its eyes. The instant the creature brought its heavy limb downward—I channeled the Yang Family Breathing Technique (**Yang-ga-gi-gong**) that I had mastered after subduing the Great Sun Monkey and unleashed the Thousand-Pound Weight once more.

*Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!*

A torrent of searing heat cascaded down like a localized storm, scorching the dense fur of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear and releasing a rancid, burning odor. Whether the intense agony of a severe burn surpassed the pain of a blade cut, the beast began to swing its limbs in a blind panic. Evading its talons by a razor-thin margin as I touched down on the earth, I slid my body backward directly through its stance—then deployed the Flying Dragon Claw (**Bi-ryong-jo**) to scale its back once more. And then.

*Sizzle.*

Imbuing both of my hands with the pure essence of the Great Sun Energy (**Tae-yang-gi**), I applied the searing heat directly against both of the creature’s eyes.

*Kwooooooooooooooooo!*

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, assailed by a level of agony it had yet to experience, slammed both of its heavy paws over its ruined eyes. Capitalizing on that brief window of distraction, I lashed the Flying Dragon Claw securely around its neck and sprinted toward the rear with everything I had. Combining that momentum with the Thousand-Pound Weight, I began to forcibly drag the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear backward.

“Strike now! Unleash your techniques!!”

Devastating palm forces were discharged from every direction once more, and the beast, its paws still locked over its face, began to be steadily pulled away by the tension of the Flying Dragon Claw. Even so, the sheer mass of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear meant it barely shifted from its footing. At that exact juncture, a palm force of immense, concentrated power erupted from the treeline and smashed into the beast.

*Dong—*

A deep, resonance shuddered through the atmosphere, sounding precisely as though a massive temple bell had been struck.

“……Spirit-Bear disciple, it appears I cannot categorize you as a simple beast of the wild.”

Il-gak directed a somber, detached look toward the academy students who lay lifeless within the mounds of earth.

“For predators of the wild only slaughter when driven by hunger.”

Il-gak’s palms, pressed tightly together, pivoted to target the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear.

*Dong—*
*Dong—*

With each deliberate motion of his hands, the resonant chime of a bell rippled heavily across the clearing, and the titanic form of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, which had seemed as unyielding as a mountain range, finally began to be forced backward.

*Dong—*
*Dong—*

*Kwooooooooooooooooo!*

The beast attempted to dig its claws into the earth to resist, but unable to uncover its eyes, it was systematically driven backward step by step.

*Dong—*
*Dong—*

Ultimately, the silhouette of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear was propelled a significant distance away from the fleeing column. A brilliant, golden aura settled over both of Il-gak’s fists.

*Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop—*

While it did not possess the catastrophic scale of the Ten Thousand Flowers Unrivaled Fist (**Man-hwa-mu-jeok-gwon**), each time Il-gak drove his fists forward, the dense hide of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, positioned two *jang* away, ruptured violently. The beast shed torrents of crimson and dropped chunks of flesh for the very first time. Seizing this critical opening, Dang-gi-han hurled a succession of poison-laced flying daggers directly into the exposed wounds.

“Hyaaaaaah!”

As a final stroke, I attempted to sever the creature’s entire limb utilizing a concentrated strand of sword-light.

*Thud!*

Yet, even though the muscle was entirely hollowed out to reveal the underlying skeletal structure, the bone itself refused to fracture.

*Grrrr.*

The exact moment a profound sense of unease washed over me—

“……”

My line of sight locked directly with both eyes of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear—the very eyes I had previously incinerated with pure heat.

*Whish—*

It was nothing more than a casual, backhanded swipe.

*Thud!*

My entire internal anatomy spasmed and violently recoiled. After splintering several massive trees and finally halting my momentum, the split second I pushed off the earth to regain my footing—

“Gack.”

A mouthful of thick crimson welled up. I had been thoroughly enveloped in my defensive inner shroud. ……How on earth had Il-gak and Nam-hwa-seong managed to withstand an impact like that? Forcing down the agonizing internal trauma that felt as though my organs were being inverted, I charged toward the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear once more, desperately praying that what I had glimpsed in that final microsecond was an illusion.

*Kwoooooooooooo—*

Emitting a savage, intimidating roar, the eyes of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear had reverted to pristine condition. That absolutely monstrous rate of recovery.

“Shit…… are you some kind of living jiangshi?”

Even the extensive trauma inflicted by the coordinated, full-power assault of our vanguard detachment was vanishing in the blink of an eye.

“……”

The features of every single member of the vanguard contorted in grim dismay. The sentiment was mirrored by the academy students who were frantically digging for the injured trapped under the soil waves.

“Ho—how can we possibly…… overcome this……”

“What kind of entity is it truly……”

The entire group froze, thoroughly paralyzed by an absolute disparity in raw power that offered no path to victory. Ha, I had never intended to take a gamble of this magnitude.

*Sheath.*

I returned the Red Light Sword to its scabbard and forcibly ushered the vanguard detachment backward.

“From this moment on, prioritize the extraction of those buried beneath the earth!”

“Ji—Jin Dan-ju?”

“Move immediately!”

The combatants who had been holding the line against the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear began to yield ground one by one.

*Kwooooooooooo*

Believing it had secured total dominance, the beast prepared to lunge toward the retreating academy students once more.

*Rumble.*

I directed the full force of the Great Heaven Divine Palm built up in my hands straight at its chest.

*Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!*

Before the concussive force could even dissipate, I summoned the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand (**Seong-hwa-myeol-ma-su**) and unleashed the devastating torrent of the Ten Thousand Flowers Unrivaled Fist.

*Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!*

The massive reservoir of internal energy stored within my dantian was utterly drained in a single instant. Blazing torrents of fire enveloped the entirety of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear’s form. However.

“Shit……”

Accompanied by a heavy plume of acrid smoke, the intense flames began to steadily recede. As the structural damage was repaired, even the deep burn marks vanished into nothingness. Even so, I could not afford to halt my assault. Throwing a single, fleeting glance toward the excavation site, I scaled the massive frame of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear exactly as I was and wrapped the cord of the Flying Dragon Claw tightly around its throat.

“Commander Jin! Every single soul has been unearthed!”

“Then execute a full retreat instantly!”

“But leaving you……”

“This is a direct order! Fall back now!”

Simultaneously with my roar, the students who had successfully extracted the wounded began to rapidly vacate the immediate sector. Meanwhile, I triggered the absolute maximum output of the Blue Dragon Bead (**Cheong-ryong-hwan**).

‘Given its absurd rate of recovery, it shouldn’t be completely drained into a desiccated corpse.’

Deploying the Blue Dragon Bead in plain view of so many witnesses was a highly perilous gamble. Yet, I was entirely bereft of alternative strategies.

“Let us find out who breaks first, you or me!”

Via the channel of the Blue Dragon Bead, a titanic torrent of raw internal energy flooded directly into my dantian. It was an overwhelming surge of force that felt as though it would violently rupture every meridian in my body, including the Eight Extraordinary Vessels.

“Ugh…… ugh……”

The thick veins across my entire body, including my face, distended violently as though on the verge of bursting open. Exactly what scale of power was contained within this artifact? My dantian, which already housed a reserve exceeding five *gap-ja*, was topped off to absolute capacity in a heartbeat.

“Aaargh!”

I had once harbored the delusion that possessing the Blue Dragon Bead meant I would never have to fear any adversary. That illusion had been thoroughly shattered during my encounter with Je-geum-hak. It was nothing more than blind hubris. The dantian, the meridians, and the energy pathways all possess definitive structural thresholds. A mortal frame is not forged from unyielding cold iron. Energy forced into the system so crudely ultimately ravages the vessel from within.

The power saturated my core, and the moment it reached its peak, it erupted outward. Whether utilizing the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand or the destructive impact of the Mutual Destruction Fist (**Gong-myeol-gwon**), I discharged whatever technique was capable of registering a blow. It was an immense stroke of luck that this particular creature did not radiate an aura of absolute flame from its entire hide like the Great Sun Monkey had.

*Kwooooooooooooooo*

The Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear bellowed in sheer agony, but my own physical state was rapidly deteriorating. Not only was my dantian under immense strain, but the blood vessels throughout my entire form bulged to their absolute limits, then contracted violently as if they were about to snap.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

When the beast realized that shaking me from its back was an impossible task, it began to thrash and roll erratically in every direction, deliberately slamming its massive weight against the trunks of ancient trees.

“Cough!”

Another significant torrent of crimson erupted from my throat. I ultimately attempted to disengage the Flying Dragon Claw and sever the connection to escape, but—

“Dammit……”

Whether due to becoming hopelessly entangled during our chaotic tumbling, the pristine cords of the Thousand-Silk Thread (**Cheon-jam-sa**) refused to yield. There was no cause for panic. If I could simply regulate my internal reserves with composure……

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

Refusing to grant me even a second of respite, the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear rolled across the earth once more. Because my hands were thoroughly anchored by the loops of the Flying Dragon Claw, discarding myself from the beast’s frame was impossible. Accessing the power of the Blue Dragon Bead yet again, I channeled the newly absorbed inner reserves into the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand. The moment the searing aura of the technique made contact with the freshly regenerated tissue of the beast’s head, the creature let loose a screech that sounded entirely like a violent convulsion. Frankly, anyone would lose their sanity if the skin atop their skull was systematically and repeatedly incinerated away.

While its cognitive faculties were thoroughly dazed by the pain, I forced my way closer to its crown.

*Crunch.*

As I violently peeled away the blackened, shriveled layer of ruined hide, the smooth surface of an obsidian skull was exposed. Damn, is this bone or solid iron ore?

*Thud—*
*Thud—*

Regardless of how many times I hammered that skeletal structure utilizing the raw heat of the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand, there was absolutely no indication of it fracturing or giving way.

‘Have I truly hit my limit……’

It felt entirely surreal, yet I was gripped by the distinct sensation that victory was a mere fraction of an inch away if I could just muster one final push. My dantian still possessed a vast reservoir of inner energy, yet for some inexplicable reason, my upper limbs refused to respond with any remaining strength. If only a single ally could land a solitary, decisive blow on my behalf……

“Is there anyone left……”

When I strained to turn my head, my gaze met only the scattered remains of those who had already lost their life force. Ah, that’s right. I had commanded everyone to flee so I could safely deploy the Blue Dragon Bead. I should be engineering my own escape right about now as well……

Unraveling the complex loops of the Thousand-Silk Thread was an incredibly arduous task under these conditions, and even if I succeeded, there was zero chance that the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear, whose rage had completely peaked, would simply allow me to walk away. I discarded such naïve expectations. If I were in the position of that beast, I would pursue my tormentor to the very ends of the earth to rip them to shreds, even if it cost me an entire limb. Ultimately, either my own internal pathways would disintegrate and I would perish from utter exhaustion, or the creature’s supernatural pool of recovery would run entirely dry and it would drop dead…… But I highly doubted the beast would expire first. Just look at this, its muscle tissue is already actively reconstructing itself even now.

My singular hope was that the Sa-hwal-dan would manage to open enough distance in time. At the very least, for as long as I could maintain my grip on this monster……

“Commander Jin!”

At that exact juncture, the distinct voice of Il-gak—who was supposed to be well on his way supervising the evacuation of the wounded—echoed clearly through the trees.

Eh?

I forced my neck around with immense difficulty only to spot a solitary, brilliant bald head sprinting directly back into the danger zone.

‘He truly possesses an absolute inability to follow instructions.’

Yet, why did his arrival bring such an immense surge of relief? A faint chuckle escaped my lips as I swiftly refocused my gaze upon the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear. Its frame had grown slightly more gaunt, but it had far from transformed into a dried husk. He wouldn’t look at this state and immediately suspect the deployment of the forbidden Heaven-Absorbing Great Art (**Heup-seong-dae-beop**), right?

“Il-gak! Deploy the Hundred-Step Divine Fist (**Baek-bo-sin-gwon**)!!”

“W—what?”

“The crown of its head! Shatter that absolute skull!”

It would be an exercise in futility to attempt to fracture it utilizing standard martial forms. It hadn’t budged a single millimeter regardless of how many times I pounded it with the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand. In that particular regard, what an incredible stroke of fortune it was that the human who refused to listen to a damn thing happened to be Il-gak. The legendary Seventy-Two Styles of Shaolin were guaranteed to unleash a sufficient tier of concussive destruction.

“However……”

I understood perfectly well what ethical dilemma was causing him to waver. But this was absolutely not the moment to balance such considerations.

“Execute the strike immediately, you stubborn monk!!!”

The hesitation marring Il-gak’s features instantly dissolved into a mask of absolute gravitas. Subsequently, his heavy monastic vestments ballooned outward as though about to rip apart from the sheer volume of energy channeled within.

“Commander Jin, brace yourself for the impact……”

For some reason, his tone carried a distinct edge of annoyance…… he wouldn’t happen to miss his targeting, would he? While I was actively shivering with sudden anxiety—

*Woooooo.*

Much like the spatial distortion of the Mutual Destruction Fist, the very atmosphere warped as a fist-force of pure, concentrated energy coalesced in the open air. This was the pinnacle technique that boasted the absolute highest tier of raw, destructive capability among the entirety of the Seventy-Two Styles of Shaolin.

The Hundred-Step Divine Fist.

*Swish—*

The concentrated fist-force descended through the clearing, leaving a radiant trail across the sky precisely like a falling star. And with mathematical precision, it detonated squarely against the exposed skull of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear.

*Kaboom——*

From the sheer, cataclysmic force of the concussive impact, my entire body was nearly ripped from my positioning for a split second, but because the loops of the Thousand-Silk Thread had thoroughly anchored my frame, no catastrophic mishap occurred.

“Commander Jin, is the target neutralized?”

Looking back toward Il-gak, who had delivered the question while looking completely drained of vitality, an involuntary smile of deep satisfaction spread across my face.

*Crack—*

A distinct, localized fracture had manifested across the crown of the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear’s skull, which had previously seemed far more unyielding than refined steel. It was a more than sufficient opening to plunge the Sacred Fire Demon-Slaying Hand directly inside.

That bald monk who can’t follow orders to save his life.

“For the very first time in your existence, you have made yourself genuinely useful.”

Marshalling every last fragment of my remaining inner reserves, I drove my hand deep into the fracture.