Inside the Secret Vault.
Silence settled over the stone chamber that no one had entered for hundreds of years.
A black secret manual floated in midair.
The Northern Sky Overlord Art.
Peng Mucheon slowly reached out.
At that moment—
Boom!
The Black Lotus Saintess's sword came flying.
Peng Mucheon turned and blocked it.
Clang!
"The secret manual is mine."
The saintess spoke coldly.
Peng Mucheon raised his great saber.
"What's part of the Peng Clan should naturally be protected by the Peng Clan."
Their auras collided.
Rumble!
The walls of the stone chamber shook.
Then black light suddenly erupted from the secret manual.
Boom!
Peng Mucheon and the saintess were driven backward at the same time.
And from deep within the stone chamber, an old man's voice echoed.
"You who desire the overlord's way of the Northern Sky."
Everyone froze.
"First, cast away your own heart."
Peng Mucheon narrowed his eyes.
"Who are you?"
There was no answer.
Instead, a massive pattern appeared across the floor of the stone chamber.
The Northern Sky Overlord Formation.
Seo Yeonhwa shouted.
"Clan Lord! Fall back!"
But it was already too late.
Black energy surged up from beneath Peng Mucheon's feet.
Rumble, rumble!
The energy coiled around his body and burrowed toward his heart.
"Guh!"
Peng Mucheon's face twisted in agony.
The saintess smiled.
"It seems the Northern Sky Overlord Art isn't a martial art just anyone can learn."
Peng Mucheon gritted his teeth.
"Shut up."
"That martial art doesn't make people stronger."
The saintess spoke slowly.
"It turns them into monsters."
Peng Mucheon's eyes turned red.
Northern Snowfield
Meanwhile.
The battle between Yu Hwanghui and the Northern Sky Blood Fiend was also reaching its climax.
Boom!
The iron staff slammed down hard against the White Wolf Crescent Saber.
Yu Hwanghui's horse dropped to its knees.
The Northern Sky Blood Fiend laughed.
"It's over."
At that moment.
Yu Hwanghui let go of his crescent saber.
"What?"
He leaped from the saddle.
Then he caught the Northern Sky Blood Fiend's iron staff with his bare hands.
Crack!
The Northern Sky Blood Fiend's eyes widened.
"Where did that strength—"
Yu Hwanghui said in a low voice,
"The White Wolf Corps' martial art isn't meant to be fought with a blade alone."
Silver energy exploded from his body.
The White Wolf Divine Art.
Yu Hwanghui shoved the Northern Sky Blood Fiend away.
Crash!
The Northern Sky Blood Fiend tumbled dozens of yards across the snow.
Peng Seola watched with a startled expression.
"General, you know the White Wolf Divine Art..."
Yu Hwanghui picked up the White Wolf Crescent Saber again.
"A technique I've kept hidden for a long time."
The Northern Sky Blood Fiend slowly rose.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Yet he was smiling.
"Interesting."
He threw away the iron staff.
Then he drew a black greatsword from behind his back.
"I have something hidden too."
Red energy rose from the black greatsword.
"Blood Heaven Demon Art."
Yu Hwanghui's expression hardened.
"A demonic art..."
"That's right."
The Northern Sky Blood Fiend charged.
"One of us is dying today!"
Boom!
Their weapons collided.
Peng Clan Main Camp
At the North Gate, Peng Cheonho was holding back the Black Lotus Cult's massive army.
"Thousand Blades Corps!"
"Yes!"
"Defend the walls!"
"Defend them!"
The Thousand Blades Corps' archers drew their bows in unison.
"Fire!"
Whoosh!
Hundreds of arrows covered the night sky.
Black Lotus martial artists fell.
But the enemy kept surging forward.
Peng Cheonho swung his great saber.
Slash!
The enemy general's armor split in two.
"You're still a long way from breaking through!"
Then.
A massive chain came flying from below the walls.
Crash!
The chain embedded itself in the battlements.
And the Black Lotus Cult's hulking warriors began climbing the walls.
Peng Cheonho shouted.
"They're scaling the walls!"
The Thousand Blades Corps' female officers stepped forward.
Peng Yuran swung her iron flail.
Boom!
So Harin's twin crescent wheels spun through the air.
Slash!
Baek Yeonju drew her sword.
"Thousand Blades Corps!"
The three women shouted together.
"Advance!"
Fierce close-quarters combat erupted atop the walls.
Secret Vault
Peng Mucheon dropped to one knee.
Black energy was exploding from his body.
The saintess slowly approached.
"You can't withstand it."
Peng Mucheon raised his head.
"Not yet..."
He clenched his fist.
"It's not over."
The black pattern engraved on his heart turned red.
Rumble!
The entire stone chamber shook.
For the first time, the saintess's expression hardened.
"No way..."
Peng Mucheon rose to his feet.
Black energy covered him like armor.
Yet his eyes remained clear.
"I'm not becoming a monster."
He raised his great saber.
"I'm the one controlling the monster."
Boom!
Peng Mucheon's aura exploded.
The first technique of the Northern Sky Overlord Art.
Heavenfall.
The great saber came crashing down.
The saintess raised her sword to block it.
BOOM!
The entire stone chamber shook.
The saintess's knees buckled.
For the first time, fear appeared in her eyes.
"This power..."
Peng Mucheon said,
"The real fight starts now."
At that moment.
Another door opened deep within the Secret Vault.
Click.
Click.
And from within it—
An ancient coffin emerged into view.
Engraved on the coffin was not the Peng Clan's emblem,
but a single unfamiliar symbol.
A black wolf.
Peng Mucheon's expression hardened.
It was identical to the White Wolf emblem Yu Hwanghui carried.
And from inside the coffin—
Thump.
Thump.
Something moved.
Next Chapter — Chapter 5: "The Black Wolf's Coffin"
The founder of the Peng Clan of Hebei and the origins of the White Wolf Corps.
And the identity of the black wolf that has slept for a thousand years will finally be revealed.