Although it was never clearly revealed whether he had dreamed of unifying the martial arts world from the beginning, he possessed absolute confidence in his martial arts. Feeling disdain for the tediously monotonous confrontation between the righteous and demonic paths, he finally decided to break through that dull situation. He achieved the unification of the martial arts world and the conquest of all under heaven. With his abilities at the time, it was not particularly impossible. He possessed the ultimate martial arts of the Supreme Mythical Realm.
As always in the martial arts world, countless people flocked like a pack of dogs under a powerful figure, forming a web-like force. And that force grew larger in proportion to the level of martial arts of its master. The people of the martial arts world, filled with fear and despair, trembled in dread as they referred to those who piled mountains of corpses and created seas of blood across the martial arts realm as the Eternal Heavenly Gods.
Across both the righteous and demonic martial arts worlds, there was no one capable of withstanding the godlike, astonishing martial arts of Eternal Heavenly Blood God Wi Cheon-mu. The martial arts world had dreamed of an absolute ruler since the beginning of its history, but the absolute ruler that finally emerged was as cruel as a demon and as heartless as the ice crystals of the northern sea. He mercilessly and all too easily pushed the entire martial arts world into a pit of terror and blood in the shortest time possible.
The righteous and demonic martial arts worlds were too powerless to resist that absolute ruler. The martial arts world was not only divided into the righteous and demonic paths, but the righteous path was also fragmented into pieces due to ideological and profit-driven differences, and the situation was the same on the demonic side. Thus, they were even more incapable of being a match for him.
Believing that divided forces could not exert great power, the Blood God Wi Cheon-mu began to forcefully integrate the demonic path as part of his plan to unify the martial arts world. He desired to possess even greater power, not content with his current position.
The invasion of the righteous path was postponed until after the unification of the demonic path. The righteous path gained a brief respite, but it was too early to feel at ease. This momentary relief was merely a preview of an even more terrible and tragic future. The opponent was already formidable, but if he managed to unify the demonic forces under his grasp, the outcome would be clear without needing to be said.
If the demonic path were to be unified under his hand, it was as clear as day that the righteous path, not yet gathered as a single force, would be trampled miserably under his feet. Even now, it was a struggle to hold out against him, so how could they possibly face him if he were to gather the tremendous strength of the demonic path as one? Everyone knew well that it was impossible. Therefore, the righteous path sought self-preservation measures to secure their own survival, and thus, setting aside their long-standing animosity and jealousy, they resolved to unite their strength under a single banner. That was how the Murim Alliance, the united federation of the righteous martial arts world, was born.
This force, known as the Righteous Alliance, appeared impressive on the surface but lacked substance. As it was hastily formed, it was a mere shell without a properly established system. The hastily assembled Murim Alliance struggled to even fend off a playful provocation from the Blood God Wi Cheon-mu, who had gathered endless strength and terror. At that time, he was pouring his energy into unifying the demonic path, so he only occasionally prodded the righteous path whenever he remembered. However, even after the righteous path had barely gathered their strength to form the Murim Alliance, they struggled to withstand a single playful attack from the Blood God Wi Cheon-mu. The lack of a properly established system was a critical issue. A castle built on sand was bound to crumble quickly.
However, the heavens did not completely abandon the righteous path. The heavens sent down a savior, as if to make a point. The sole individuals who had opposed him, the epitome of absolute terror and despair, were the saviors of the martial arts world who appeared like meteors: the Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin, and the demonic path’s savior, the Hegemonic Heaven Blade, the Demonic Martial God Gal Jung-hyeok.
The existence of these two could only be considered a gift from the gods to the martial arts world. It was something that could not happen without the presence of a divine being who valued order and harmony. If they had not existed, the martial arts world would have been struggling in an even deeper abyss of despair and terror under the dominion of Eternal Heavenly Blood God Wi Cheon-mu.
The Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin, was the first person to survive and return after confronting the immense martial arts of the Blood God Wi Cheon-mu, which had reduced all righteous martial artists to mere insects beneath his feet. Moreover, he even achieved the feat of landing a proper blow before returning. Without him, the righteous martial arts world would have had its name listed under the subordinate forces of the Blood God from the beginning.
The unique martial art of the Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, later revered as the Martial God by the righteous path, Hyeok Wol-rin, was the “Heaven and Earth Supreme Polarity Yin-Yang Unified Divine Technique.” It was the ultimate martial art that simultaneously harnessed yin and yang energies to unleash absolute power and destructive force. According to legend, it was an absurd divine technique that could simultaneously utilize the powers of the Flame Spirit and the Ice Soul. Also known as the “Supreme Polarity Azure-Crimson Divine Spirit Ice-Flame Technique,” it was the only exceptional divine technique at the time that could truly rival the martial arts of the Blood God.
However, despite being the only divine technique that could directly confront the Blood God’s martial arts, there had been no known successor who inherited his divine technique. The fact that he neither died young nor lived an extraordinary lifespan beyond that of ordinary people, yet left no heir, remains one of the unsolved mysteries of the martial arts world.
In fact, his whereabouts were known up until just 20 years ago. According to one theory, there was a credible rumor circulating in the martial arts world that his extraordinary divine technique had become obsolete due to the lack of a suitable talent to inherit it. If that rumor were true, the martial arts world would once again have to despair. It was because his martial art was the only one in the martial arts realm that could stand against the Blood God’s martial arts. Although there had been no news of his martial art becoming extinct, there had also been no news of a martial art surpassing it appearing in the martial arts world.
Therefore, the theory that he had left behind a secret manual or arrangement was widely regarded as a compelling fact, causing the entire martial arts world to indulge in vain fantasies and contributing to the illusion of suddenly gaining formidable martial prowess.
And then there was another person, Gal Jung-hyeok, the Demonic Martial God, the Hegemonic Heaven Blade, the possessor of the unparalleled blade technique that could even collapse the heavens. He was the savior of the demonic path who had gathered the demonic forces, which were on the verge of being beaten into unconsciousness by the Eternal Heavenly Gods, and formed a resistance force. Gal Jung-hyeok was also later revered as a Martial God by the demonic side, but since it overlapped with the Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin, the character “Ma” (Demonic) (魔) was added to his title.
He brought together the scattered, broken pieces of the demonic path’s strength, and that was the birth of the Black Heavenly Alliance, the united alliance of the demonic martial arts world and the organization against the Eternal Heavenly Gods.
All the demonic path members clung to the one and only lifeline of the demonic path, which was on the verge of collapse. Strangely, the more people clung to the lifeline, the stronger it became instead of weakening. And finally, another miracle occurred. It was literally a miracle.
Despite his tremendous martial arts of the Mythical Realm and absolute charisma, the absolute ruler Eternal Heavenly Blood God Wi Cheon-mu was simultaneously shunned by both the righteous and demonic paths due to his mad strength, violence, and terror. Thus, he became the public enemy of the martial arts world.
However, designating someone as a public enemy and shunning them would only be possible if one possessed the strength and ability to do so. No matter how much one tries to ostracize someone, it would be futile if one is inferior in strength.
Thus, the demonic path, which had been in a state of chaos under the blade of the Blood God, began to organize a resistance against the Blood God’s existence by forming the Black Heavenly Alliance, the united alliance of the demonic sects, under the Thunderous Heaven Blade of the Hegemonic Heaven Blade Gal Jung-hyeok, although somewhat reluctantly following the example of the righteous path.
Originally, the demonic path consisted mainly of sects that valued profit, so their unification was even more difficult and time-consuming. However, the Blood God would never look kindly upon this alliance force that had barely been formed after a long time.
Naturally, the Blood God became furious and took action. When the demonic path, his place of origin and essentially his roots, conspired against him and revolted—despite him only bestowing upon them a baptism of blood and terror—he trembled with a deep sense of betrayal. Of course, he had treated them somewhat harshly, but he couldn’t help but feel betrayed. His unification measures were so strict and reckless that even the demonic side had turned away from him.
And then a miracle occurred. It was none other than the alliance between the Righteous Alliance and the Black Heavenly Alliance. The righteous and demonic martial arts worlds, which had spent a long time in tension and confrontation, formed a united front against a common enemy. It was something that neither the righteous nor the demonic side had ever predicted. A joint alliance between the righteous and demonic martial arts worlds, which could only be considered a false dream even in dreams, was formed. Something that no one had imagined until then had been realized due to a common powerful adversary. It could be considered a truly historic event.
The formation of a united front between the Righteous Alliance of the righteous path and the Black Heavenly Alliance of the demonic path. The Blood God Wi Cheon-mu found himself isolated in a situation where he was caught between a rock and a hard place. He and his shadow, the Eternal Heavenly Gods, were temporarily faced with difficulties. However, that predicament was short-lived, and even in the midst of being surrounded on all sides and caught between a rock and a hard place, he did not lose his confidence and arrogance.
The Righteous Alliance and the Black Heavenly Alliance mustered all their military strength and devised and executed a plan to surround and annihilate the den of the Eternal Heavenly Gods, which no one had dared to approach until then. It was a desperate clash where both sides had put everything on the line. One would think that he would feel at least a hint of fear in such a situation, but the Blood God, on the contrary, attempted to break through the forces of both sides head-on without the slightest fear. The three forces clashed head-on, and the result was astonishing.
The demonic path, which had been complacent thinking they were now united, and the righteous path, which had let their guard down thinking that with the demonic side also united, things would be somewhat easier for them, both suffered tremendous losses and were left in a state of delirium after drinking barrels of the bitter cup of defeat. It was the result of recklessly mobilizing their forces despite having formed the united alliance not long ago. It exposed their inexperience in operating an organization. Consequently, both the righteous and demonic paths had no choice but to suffer massive blows, and the impact was so great that even if the entire martial arts world devoted all its efforts, it would take more than 30 years and a staggering amount of financial resources equivalent to thousands of horse-drawn carriages to barely recover.
Moreover, even after suffering such enormous damage, they failed to eliminate him. It was truly the worst and most unfortunate news. Even the simultaneous underhanded and cowardly attack from both the righteous and demonic paths had failed to erase his existence from the martial arts world…
The Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin, who had stood as the final line of defense, suffered a defeat from the Blood God’s last desperate strike and was left in a state requiring three years of recuperation. The Hegemonic Heaven Blade, the Demonic Martial God Gal Jung-hyeok, who had confronted him just before, was in an even worse condition. He had sustained fatal injuries that required four years of recovery.
Of course, Eternal Heavenly Wi Cheon-mu did not emerge unscathed either. And his whereabouts vanished like a stone falling off a cliff or a grain of sand swallowed by the vast ocean.
His existence, which had risen as the terror and nightmare of the entire martial arts world, disappeared into the thick fog without confirmation of his life or death—although he was wounded at the time of his disappearance, he was clearly alive—so the peace and tranquility of the martial artists’ sleep could not be assured. The ultimate goal of the all-out strike, the eradication of the Blood God’s existence, had ended in failure, so how could they rest easy and go to sleep?
Judging from the aftermath of the Blood God’s martial arts, if he were to regain his original level of martial arts after escaping and going into hiding, it was the judgment of the martial arts world that he would be guaranteed a lifespan of at least 200 years, although it was a dreadful assumption. This was because once martial arts reached a certain level, the physical body would undergo a transformation, rejuvenating and regaining youth and strength.
Even now, the former sect leader of the Shaolin Sect, the Venerable Il-gak, was 140 years old, and the age of the Boundless True Lord, the first among the Eight Swords of Wudang, was approaching 150 years old. Moreover, despite being over 120 years old, they possessed fluffy skin like that of a man in his twenties, elastic muscles, and unfathomably high martial arts, instead of becoming old and frail. The supreme masters were the ones who possessed the power to even subdue the cruelty of time.
Therefore, hoping for the Blood God’s body, which was said to have reached the Mythical Realm, to wither and weaken with the passage of time could only be considered a selfish thought. Even the current Venerable Il-gak and the Boundless True Lord did not dare to guarantee victory against the Blood God at his level back then, so who could possibly be complacent? Even Ok Hyeon Jin-in himself was now 120 years old. However, he had never felt a sense of defeat or inferiority against any young person. And it was indeed the case. No young talent capable of breaking his sword had emerged from his sect, the Wudang Sect.
Thus, considering that the Blood God was 50 years old at the time, it meant that they could not rest easy for at least the next 150 years. Moreover, given the high probability of the existence of a successor who could follow in his footsteps, the martial arts world was still in a position where it could never let its guard down.
Almost all martial artists began to suffer from severe cases of premature ejaculation even during their nightly affairs with their wives since that day. Clinics across the land experienced a great boom. This shocking symptom of unknown cause struck the entire martial arts world like an epidemic. The number of martial artists being shunned by both their wives and concubines soared, and they visited clinics complaining of severe loss of appetite along with insomnia. Clinics in various regions were busy day and night with patients exhibiting similar or identical symptoms.
Naturally, with the prevalence of collective nationwide premature ejaculation and depression, the red-light districts at the time were on the verge of closing down. Fortunately, the taverns thrived thanks to the foolish challengers who tried to eliminate their anxiety through alcohol, either out of desperation or drunkenness, but the daily bed rental businesses run by courtesans struggled and floundered in a severe recession. With a bed of gravel when lying down and a seat of thorns when sitting, who could possibly let their guard down?
Thus, they began to seek measures for the swift eradication of premature ejaculation and peaceful sleep. And they finally reached a conclusion. The conclusion drawn from the battle with the Eternal Heavenly Gods was that there was a severe lack of supreme masters capable of rivaling his existence. It was the need for outstanding talents.
What would have become of the martial arts world if the Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign Hyeok Wol-rin of the righteous path and the Hegemonic Heaven Blade Gal Jung-hyeok of the demonic path had not existed? The mere thought of it was enough to send chills down one’s spine.
This concern was not limited to ordinary martial artists. It was even more urgent for the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin and the Hegemonic Heaven Blade Gal Jung-hyeok, the only two individuals who had directly exchanged blows with him and survived. Countermeasures were necessary. The two of them simultaneously felt the need to cultivate a strength that would not crumble when facing the potential return of Eternal Heavenly Blood God Wi Cheon-mu and his shadow, the Eternal Heavenly Gods. Therefore, the Supreme Polarity Divine Sovereign, the Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin, with the assistance of the Three Saints of the Celestial Martial Arts, the top masters of the martial arts world at the time who had helped him confront the Eternal Heavenly Gods, established a comprehensive martial arts educational institution for the martial arts world. That was the beginning of the Heavenly Martial Arts Academy.