“The disciple of the Volcano Sword Saint. The Volcano Sword Demon, Mu Hui. It’s our first meeting, isn’t it?”

The White-Faced Demon studied Mu Hui with a curious gaze, as if he had stumbled upon something fascinating.

“How did you recognize me?”

“Is there anyone else in the martial world who would play such a twisted prank?”

Only the White-Faced Demon, who had mastered the Art of Changing Faces, could perfectly mimic Dokgo Heon’s appearance and even replicate the energy waves of the Dokgo Heart Technique to the point of capturing Mu Hui’s attention.

“A twisted prank, you say? Is there any other pastime in this world as intriguing and refined? If so, do enlighten me.”

The White-Faced Demon covered his entire face with his palms as he continued speaking.

“Reading, drinking, singing and dancing, gourmet food, women, slaughter, wealth, martial arts—none of these amuse me as much as humans do.”

His voice, muffled by his hands, began to change, becoming eerily familiar—it was the voice of Hyeonjo.

“To dissect, manipulate, and break humans, and to witness the myriad reactions that follow—there’s nothing more delightful.”

When he lowered his hands, his face had transformed into that of Hyeonjo.

No matter how skilled one was in the arts of disguise and bone manipulation, mimicking another’s face usually required some auxiliary tools. Yet, the White-Faced Demon could change his face at will with just his martial arts.

Watching this, Dokgo Yul’s face turned from red to pale, while Mu Hui struggled to suppress the murderous intent rising within him.

To kill, one must first master their killing intent.

It was a strange truth of martial arts, but one that Mu Hui knew well.

Exhaling a heated breath, Mu Hui glared at the White-Faced Demon, who wore Hyeonjo’s face with a benevolent expression.

“I speculated on the reasons for creating the secret chamber, but it was pointless. You did it purely for amusement, out of malice.”

“You know me well. Did the Sword Saint tell you about me in his lifetime?”

The White-Faced Demon, still wearing Hyeonjo’s face, beamed widely. Despite the identical face, the smile felt entirely different from the one Mu Hui remembered.

“Disciples, what did you think when you learned of your masters’ secret chamber? I’m genuinely curious. Were you nostalgic? Sad? Or perhaps you were glad to find traces of your new masters?”

“You’re a mad old demon.”

As the White-Faced Demon’s laughter echoed, Dokgo Yul raised his sword with a face full of dread.

Mu Hui was no different. With a cold expression, he silently gripped the Plum Blossom Sword.

Seeing the unwavering composure of the Sword Saint and Sword Demon’s disciples, the White-Faced Demon’s laughter grew slightly dry.

“Meeting you was amusing, but your reactions are disappointing. I wanted to see your expectations shattered, your hopes dashed, and your anger rise.”

After a moment of contemplation, the White-Faced Demon clapped his knee and nodded. Changing his face and voice back to Dokgo Heon’s, he grasped the Black Iron Sword and spoke.

“Here’s what I’ll do. I’ll kill everyone across the way in the guise of the Sword Demon. The Overlord Castle has a deep grudge against the Sword Demon, and the Volcano Sect honors him with a memorial tablet. I’m curious how they’ll react to rumors of being massacred by the supposedly dead Sword Demon.”

Unable to hold back any longer, Dokgo Yul roared like a tiger at the sight of the White-Faced Demon laughing maniacally with Dokgo Heon’s face.

“Don’t you dare tarnish my master’s name!”

As Dokgo Yul, his reason snapped, lunged at the White-Faced Demon, Mu Hui grabbed his shoulder.

With a firm grip and the added pressure of internal energy, Dokgo Yul glared at Mu Hui with fierce eyes. But Mu Hui merely smiled back.

“Sorry, but this one’s mine.”

That smile made Dokgo Yul’s grip on his sword loosen.

Mu Hui’s smile resembled their beloved master’s far more than the White-Faced Demon’s did, even with Dokgo Heon’s face.

After staring at Mu Hui’s smile for a long moment, Dokgo Yul nodded and quietly stepped back.

Watching this, the White-Faced Demon chuckled.

“Come to think of it, the disciples I raised, the Forward Sword Demon, died by your hand. You’ve ruined all my carefully crafted toys.”

“The twisted thoughts and grudges of the Forward Sword Demon, was that your doing too?”

“Ha ha ha!”

The White-Faced Demon laughed as he lunged at Mu Hui. His movements were reminiscent of the Dokgo Divine Technique.

Whoosh!

The Black Iron Sword in the White-Faced Demon’s hands began to stir the air with a heavy wind, turning gray as it followed the intricacies of the Dokgo Sword Technique.

Not only was he mimicking the Dokgo Heart Technique through the Art of Changing Faces, but the White-Faced Demon was also convincingly imitating the Sword Demon’s martial arts.

Mu Hui was appalled.

The White-Faced Demon mimicking his past self was utterly repulsive.

Calming his raised eyebrows, Mu Hui adjusted his grip on the Plum Blossom Sword. The blade, as if painted, filled with a purple hue.

Watching the Dokgo Sword Technique unfold in the White-Faced Demon’s hands, Mu Hui responded not with the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Technique, but with the Iron Plum Sword Technique.

Clang!

The clash of the two swords echoed with a deafening roar, shaking the cliff.

As the Dokgo Sword Technique and the Iron Plum Sword Technique collided, the ground beneath the two men cracked, and stone fragments flew into the air.

Feeling the sword energy flowing through the Black Iron Sword, the White-Faced Demon glanced at Mu Hui with a hint of surprise.

The Plum Blossom Sword wasn’t suited for wielding a heavy sword. Yet, it matched the weight and power of the Black Iron Sword, indicating Mu Hui’s profound understanding of heavy swords.

“Surprising! For a disciple of the Sword Saint to have such deep insight into heavy swords. One might think you’re the Sword Demon’s disciple.”

“Worm. You do a decent job of imitating.”

“I’m quite interested in the Sword Saint and the Sword Demon.”

Simultaneously, the White-Faced Demon and Mu Hui stomped the ground, overturning it. The dust that rose was split apart by the fierce sword winds from both sides.

Crash!

Each time the two swords clashed, a piercing noise that seemed to tear the eardrums resounded repeatedly.

The storm of sword energy pouring down like a torrent would make anyone with lower martial skills cough up blood just from exposure.

Mu Hui’s shoulders shook as he blocked the Black Iron Sword striking at his waist.

Though his numerous misdeeds and elusive nature kept him from being fully exposed, in terms of martial prowess alone, the White-Faced Demon was on par with emperors.

Even having mastered the peculiar Art of Changing Faces, his ability to convincingly execute other martial arts was evident.

Had he abandoned the Black Iron Sword and unleashed his true martial art, the White Crane Palm Technique, Mu Hui, already suffering from internal injuries, would have been at a disadvantage.

‘The sword marks in the secret chamber, and his proficiency with the Dokgo Sword Technique, are more adept than I expected.’

As a diagonal sword strike descended, Mu Hui twisted his shoulder back to evade. Simultaneously, he struck the side of the Black Iron Sword, deflecting it, and in that gap, he swung a heavy sword wind in a slanting arc.

All the while, Mu Hui never lost sight of the Black Iron Sword’s movements.

‘He’s imitating the Dokgo Sword Technique, but it’s not perfect. Is he persisting just for amusement?’

It seemed the White-Faced Demon had invested considerable effort and attachment in mimicking the Sword Demon.

Blocking a sword strike that cleaved the ground and rose toward his chin, Mu Hui focused on the Black Iron Sword in the White-Faced Demon’s hands.

The crack that had formed when he blocked the demonic energy of a masked man in his past life. Mu Hui’s Plum Blossom Sword extended directly toward the point of the crack.

As Mu Hui’s entire body rotated, the Plum Blossom Sword drew a diagonal arc in the air, swinging with a refreshing force.

Boom!

With a sound like a boulder shattering, the White-Faced Demon retreated for the first time. Mu Hui pursued him, stepping on the Shadowless Step.

Even as he slashed diagonally to disrupt the Dokgo Sword Technique’s path, he layered the Purple Mist Energy to further increase the weight of the Plum Blossom Sword.

‘Hmm.’

Though the metallic taste of blood lingered at the corner of his mouth, Mu Hui ignored it and thrust the Plum Blossom Sword.

Despite occasional disruptions in his internal energy flow due to his injuries, Mu Hui maintained his offensive through precise energy control.

During the exchange, Mu Hui occasionally showed openings, which the White-Faced Demon tried to exploit, but it wasn’t easy.

Mu Hui didn’t withdraw his sword or retreat defensively; instead, he unleashed fierce attacks, pushing the White-Faced Demon back.

A sword style focused solely on offense.

Defending through attack.

This movement embodied the essence of the Dokgo Sword Technique, which sought to cut down enemies swiftly and efficiently.

No matter how much the White-Faced Demon mimicked the form of the Dokgo Sword Technique, without understanding its essence, he couldn’t replicate such intricate details.

‘How dare you try to imitate the Dokgo Sword Technique?’

Mu Hui infused the Iron Plum Sword Technique with the movements of the Dokgo Sword Technique. The purple trails, fierce and wild, scattered through the air.

The intense purple trajectory left a vivid mark in the sky.

Crash!

The Plum Blossom Sword relentlessly struck the Black Iron Sword.

Mu Hui persistently targeted the crack in the Black Iron Sword.

The freely changing techniques of the Iron Plum Sword Technique extended with formidable might, hammering the Black Iron Sword.

Each strike, capable of splitting a boulder in a single blow, poured down like falling petals.

Mu-hui’s plum blossom robe fluttered wildly as he unleashed the Iron Hawk Sword Technique like a storm. He lunged forward, swinging his plum blossom sword upward with fierce intensity.

“Hup!”

The White-Faced Ogre quickly pulled back his black iron sword, using it as a shield to block the attack.

The relentless assault of the Iron Hawk Sword Technique forced the White-Faced Ogre to retreat a step, while Mu-hui advanced two steps, thrusting his sword forward.

Clang!

The White-Faced Ogre tried to block the plum blossom sword aimed at his heart by turning his black iron sword sideways to use its broad side.

Mu-hui pressed harder, driving his sword into a crack. As the blade’s tip wedged into the tiny fissure, he gritted his teeth and held his grip firm.

Veins bulged on the back of his hand as the blade itself began to spin. The rotation traveled down the vibrating blade to the tip.

The plum blossom sword’s tip, caught in the crack of the black iron sword, struggled to rotate.

Screech!

A sharp sound of metal scraping against metal echoed, and the White-Faced Ogre realized Mu-hui’s intent. He struck the blade of his black iron sword with his palm.

Boom!

With a massive recoil, both Mu-hui and the White-Faced Ogre were thrown back more than five steps.

“Fiery Sword Demon.”

“Shut up!”

The White-Faced Ogre tried to speak, but Mu-hui shot forward like an arrow, closing the distance.

Unlike the White-Faced Ogre, who was in peak condition, Mu-hui was not at his best after a fierce battle with the Sword King. A prolonged fight was not in his favor; he needed to end it quickly.

The plum blossom sword, once aimed at the sky, slowly descended to an ambiguous height between mid and low. Meanwhile, the energy within the sword was compressing even further.

The layered energy was so condensed that it seemed the sword might shatter under the pressure, surpassing the weight of the black iron sword.

Whoosh!

Even a slight lowering of the sword caused the air around it to ripple faintly.

Though it hadn’t touched the ground, the mere direction and swing of the plum blossom sword left scars on the earth.

In his past life as a sword demon, Mu-hui had developed nine nameless techniques. These had helped him create the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Technique, but he didn’t stop there.

He was confident he could create a sword technique surpassing the Solitary Sword Technique and continued his research.

One day, he hoped to pass on this new technique to Dokgo Yul, fulfilling his duty as a master for the first and last time.

Mu-hui integrated one of these techniques into the Iron Hawk Sword Technique. His ankle rotated, his waist twisted, and the plum blossom sword naturally soared upward.

Boom!

As Mu-hui’s step cracked the ground like a spiderweb, the plum blossom sword, which had risen high, struck down like lightning.

The oppressive sword force seemed to tear through the air, propelling the plum blossom sword forward as the atmosphere split and burst.

In an instant, the plum blossom sword vanished, reappearing directly above the black iron sword, unleashing its concentrated power in a massive explosion.

Boom!

The sound was like a temple bell shattering, echoing across the entire Buwon Mountain.

The black iron sword, unable to withstand the direct hit from the plum blossom sword, finally split in two.

“I’m sorry.”

Having shattered the black iron sword that had been with him in his past life, Mu-hui felt a pang of regret.

The White-Faced Ogre, having lost his grip on the black iron sword, looked at his own hand.

Unable to withstand Mu-hui’s recent strike, his hand was torn, blood pouring out.

“Hahaha!”

Despite his injury, the White-Faced Ogre laughed, reaching for the broken blade of the black iron sword.

Thud!

Just an inch away from the black iron sword’s hilt, the White-Faced Ogre’s hand could go no further.

Mu-hui, holding the plum blossom sword in reverse, had pierced the White-Faced Ogre’s palm and pinned it to the ground.

Mu-hui gritted his teeth, staring into the eyes of the White-Faced Ogre, who still had the eyes of a mischievous child.

“That sword is not for the likes of you.”