Chapter 151: When We Are Together
Chapter 151: When We Are Together
The village was ordinary. Or rather, it appeared that way.
There were pedestrians and merchants, and children were even running about. Looking at this scene alone, no one would ever imagine this was the infamous Villain Valley.
However, while it looked like a normal village at a glance, the gazes, the wariness, and the overall atmosphere of those moving through it were anything but ordinary. I felt secret glances being exchanged, but we walked along the path, pretending not to notice.
"Not everyone here follows the Master of Villain Valley. In fact, many are watching for a chance to seize his position. Think of it as being similar to the Green Forest."
That was why we didn't rush in using lightness skills. We made sure our movement wasn't perceived as an intrusion or an attack. If it were judged as an assault, every villain in the valley would come forward. Whether they liked the Master or not, they would stand up to protect their sanctuary.
Instead, we walked as mere visitors. This was a strategic choice we could only make because we had the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon with us—someone who knew the physiology of Villain Valley better than anyone.
As we walked along the path, about a dozen men and women were sitting in a circle in a vacant lot, drinking. They were laughing and chatting boisterously, as if something were incredibly joyful.
The moment we passed them, they sprang up, attempting to hurl hidden weapons. But before the weapons could even leave their hands—
Swoosh!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s blade qi swept through them a step faster. We had already been prepared for their ambush.
Their acting—laughing and playing—was decent enough, but the fact that not a single person spared us a glance as we passed was the giveaway. It might have been different if there were only two or three people, but for a dozen people to be sitting there without a single one looking our way was unnatural.
"Most villains in Villain Valley would sell their souls for money. The Master of Villain Valley likely put a bounty on our heads in anticipation of our arrival," the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon explained.
I smiled and replied, "He’d have to offer at least a million taels."
To which the Drunken Demon added, "Per person, surely?"
As we walked along, joking like that, more ambushers leaped out from the forests on both sides.
This time, the One Flower Sword Venerable lightly soared into the air, spinning once and unleashing sword qi. Her sword rotated with her, spraying sword qi in all directions. The attackers were sliced by the sharp energy and fell dead; not a single strand of qi missed its mark.
The Sword Venerable descended back to where she had been walking with an elegant movement technique. We continued our conversation as if nothing had happened.
"The Master of Villain Valley isn't the richest man under heaven; how could he afford a million taels per person?"
"That’s why only these kinds of small fry are flocking to us."
The moment the Drunken Demon spoke, hidden weapons flew from the bushes ahead.
We all lightly twisted our bodies to dodge. The weapons whistled through the gaps between the five of us. They flew fiercely, as if they were impossible to avoid, but everyone moved with ease and evaded them all.
This time, the Drunken Demon moved. His figure blurred and vanished into the bushes. He returned to his original spot even faster than he had entered. Not even a single scream was heard to indicate how he had handled the ambushers.
Upon his return, he took a sip of wine and said, "I gave them all a drink, and now they're sleeping."
I had never properly seen the Drunken Demon fight before, but seeing this alone, I knew his martial arts were not to be underestimated.
Continuing our trek, we arrived at a ferry dock.
"From here, we must take a boat across the river."
We took a boat we found at the dock and began to cross.
"Since I'm the youngest, I'll handle the oars."
Watching me row, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon asked, "When did you learn to handle a boat? You're quite skilled."
"Is there anything I can't do?"
The other three Demon Lords stared at me intently.
"Why are you all staring like that? It's embarrassing. See? My rowing is getting even better now. I happen to enjoy being the center of attention."
I joked, but they all looked at me with strange eyes. It was likely because there truly seemed to be nothing I couldn't do.
The boat cut through the current rapidly. After staring at the river for a moment, the Drunken Demon suddenly spoke to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
"Seeing you strike the enemies earlier, Senior, you are still as hale and hearty as ever."
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon looked visibly flustered by the Drunken Demon's sudden show of respect.
"Well, I don't drink much wine, you see."
At that, the One Flower Sword Venerable chimed in.
"In times like this, just say 'thank you.' I don't know how you can get older and yet your grumpiness never fades."
She interfered, but her tone was soft. At any other time, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon would have acted even more stubborn, but this time, he backed down.
"Thank you."
He had readily thanked the Drunken Demon.
"Don't mention it. I only said what I felt."
The One Flower Sword Venerable looked at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon with an expression that asked what had gotten into him. I could feel that the Drunken Demon was making an effort. That effort was creating change.
My eyes met the Drunken Demon's. Thanks, brother. You're doing great.
The attacks continued.
When the boat reached the middle of the river, ambushers erupted from the water, firing hidden weapons. This time, I leaped up while holding the oar and struck them down.
I bashed one, stepped on him to leap toward another, and bashed the next. It looked simple, but it was a technique combining the highest level of footwork and lightness skills. All those who had leaped up were struck by the oar, their heads bursting as they fell back into the water.
Dressed in fish-scale suits, they were the Yellow River Water Ghosts who once roamed the Yellow River region. They were criminals who had plundered passing ships and slaughtered passengers before eventually being driven to live here in Villain Valley.
The very moment I landed back on the boat—
Boom!
With an explosion, our ferry was blown to pieces.
The Demon Lords and I all soared into the air. The Water Ghosts poked their heads out of the water and fired poisoned needles from blowguns in their mouths.
Phut! Phut! Phut!
However, not a single Demon Lord was hit. Moving their bodies in mid-air, they evaded every hidden weapon. This time, the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon stepped forward.
Ping! Pee-ing! Ping! Ping!
He fired the Blood Calamity Finger in rapid succession. It was the first time I realized his finger wind could be unleashed so continuously. Those who had fired the poisoned needles turned into corpses and floated to the surface like dead fish.
The Demon Lords and I each landed on a piece of the broken boat. Even though we stood on fragments smaller than a man's forearm, they did not sink.
Sshhhhhhh.
The wood carrying the Demon Lords cut through the water and moved forward. There were Water Ghosts poking their heads out far behind us, but they didn't dare attack. The mere sight of us crossing the river on broken pieces of wood by exerting internal energy was enough to make them lose their will to fight.
In an instant, we reached the opposite bank. It was about a hundred yards from there that we were blocked by people whose names were recognizable. The movement techniques of the five martial artists blocking our path were no ordinary feat.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon recognized them. "The Five Evils of Chongqing!"
They were individuals who had once committed atrocities based in the Chongqing area.
"Few people recognize us after all these years. Old man, who are you?"
"You've forgotten me."
"Do you know me?"
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon merely gave a thin smile. "Seeing as you're blocking our path, it seems your judgment has faded as much as your memory in your old age."
The expression of the First Evil hardened. He had stepped forward to kill, but an inexplicable, unpleasant feeling nagged at him. He was certain he had seen this old man somewhere, but he couldn't remember where.
"Kill them!"
The First Evil gave the command to his subordinates, but in the end, it became a command for the Demon Lords. Before the words even finished, we each took on an opponent.
The Extreme Evil Smiling Demon unleashed the Blood Calamity Finger. Unable to dodge the finger wind fired from close range, the Fourth Evil's forehead was pierced, and he collapsed. The One Flower Sword Venerable's sword technique severed the Second Evil's neck, and my Azure Heaven Form split the Fifth Evil's chest in the blink of an eye. The Third Evil's head was shattered by the Drunken Demon's Blood Tear.
Only the First Evil remained. The moment they died, he remembered.
"Ah! You... why are you here?"
His voice trembled violently. There was a time when the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's name shook the Jianghu. Back then, the First Evil couldn't even meet his eyes, and now, years later, they had met again here.
The First Evil desperately tried to leap away and flee, but his body was sliced in half by the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's great blade.
As we fought together, I felt one thing. Though they seemed to fight nonchalantly, the Demon Lords were conscious of each other. They used every move with deliberation and watched each other's techniques closely, even while pretending not to. In a sense, the opponents they cared about weren't the villains of Villain Valley, but each other. And what they observed most closely were my movements and martial arts.
Even so, I didn't bother hiding my skills. I didn't show everything, but I didn't go out of my way to diminish my abilities either. I was the one who would become their leader. I had to make them believe in and follow me.
Next, we were attacked by those using poison mist. Several men who had been hiding revealed themselves and sprayed poison mist at us. As the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the One Flower Sword Venerable stepped forward simultaneously and flicked their sleeves, the incoming poison mist was blown back toward those who had sprayed it. They collapsed in agony, blood spraying from every orifice of their bodies.
For the first time since entering this place, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the One Flower Sword Venerable had worked in harmony to face an enemy. They looked at each other. The gaze they shared was becoming increasingly softer.
"Once we pass this field, we will reach the residence of the Master of Villain Valley."
With about a hundred yards left to the residence, villains armed with spears poured out all at once from one side. The massive man leading them held a spear as large as a pillar. He was the Giant Strength Ghost Spear, a man whose infamy with a single spear had once rung through the Murim. An Unorthodox Faction expert who had founded his own school of spear arts, he had disappeared after being branded a Public Enemy of the Murim for attacking a Murim Alliance branch, only to resurface here in Villain Valley.
Dozens of villains appeared from the opposite side as well. Dressed in black martial robes and masks that revealed only their eyes, they were assassins. The one leading them was Eun-wol. Once famous as a top-tier assassin, she was now leading an assassin organization here.
Those who appeared from another direction were wearing only their undergarments. Standing with vacant eyes, they were intoxicated by drugs. However, if one were to let their guard down due to their appearance, they would be torn apart and killed. Their martial arts were far higher than they appeared, and they were incapable of feeling pain even when pierced by swords or blades. If they decided to rush in like madmen, few could withstand their momentum.
Not only them, but a group consisting only of women appeared, as did men dressed as hunters and a group of beggars. Those who appeared were not under the command of the Master of Villain Valley, but were individuals who lived with their own respective powers. They had been fighting each other to seize hegemony over Villain Valley. It was also because of these people that the Master of Villain Valley's subordinates felt their positions were in danger after being killed.
The killing intent and momentum directed at us were extraordinary, but the Demon Lords were not shaken in the least. The Extreme Evil Smiling Demon, wearing his blood-stained mask, looked at them with his arms crossed haughtily. That composure was overwhelming the opposition.
The other Demon Lords were the same. Their mere presence, standing tall and proud, kept the hundreds of villains from daring to charge. The Blood Heaven Blade Demon stepped forward and shouted in a booming voice.
"If you're going to attack, attack all at once!"
Rumble!
Blade Force enveloped his lowered Heaven Extermination Great Blade. His force was as red as blood. It was the first time I had seen his Blade Force, and perhaps because of its blood-red hue, it was truly intense and impressive.
Starting with him, the Demon Lords unleashed their respective auras. Sword Force also enveloped the One Flower Sword Venerable's White Flower Sword. Her Sword Force was a pure, snowy white. It was a color that suited her perfectly.
As the momentum of the five of us radiated in all directions, the villains recoiled as if pushed back by an invisible force. If I had come alone or only with the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon, we would have had to fight them all. But coming with the four Demon Lords, no one dared to challenge us.
Though hundreds had gathered, they didn't dare attack and only watched from a distance. When we were together, there was nothing to fear.
In the end, they couldn't bring themselves to attack. Our momentum was one thing, but knowing that our destination was the Master of Villain Valley's residence, they saw no reason to fight us. Their greed was now directed toward something greater.
We moved our feet again. At the end of that path stood the manor where the Master of Villain Valley lived. On the plaque of the main gate, it was written: Evil Aiding Evil (同惡相助). It meant that even villains help each other to achieve evil.
"He must have received reports of our arrival, so he'll be waiting with his own preparations."
At my words, the Extreme Evil Smiling Demon shattered the plaque with his Demon Extreme Wild Rage Palm. The spot where the plaque had been was blown away entirely, vanishing without a trace. Simultaneously, the other Demon Lords unleashed their palm force. The main gate and the front wall crumbled into dust.
"I don't know how it would be if I had come alone, but with four of us together..."
The Extreme Evil Smiling Demon added as he led the way inside. "If mere preparations could counter us, we would have to step down from our titles as Demon Lords, wouldn't we?"