Chapter 176: The Person I Want to See Most
Chapter 176: The Person I Want to See Most
Have you ever heard a sword weep?
At that sight, the eyes of the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader widened. Even Jo Yi-baek was seeing a blade cry of its own accord for the first time in his life.
In truth, the one most surprised was Geom Mu-geuk himself.
Since he had been granted the Black Demonic Sword, this was the first time it had ever let out such a sound. It was said that legendary blades like the Heavenly Demon Sword or the Black Demonic Sword only wept when they achieved perfect resonance with their master.
Fine. I will make sure they cannot mock you.
As Geom Mu-geuk gripped the hilt, the Black Demonic Sword finally ceased its lament.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader glanced at Jo Yi-baek. In that moment, both men shared the same grim realization.
Jo Yi-baek spoke to the Four Gentlemen.
"Do not underestimate your opponent. Fight with caution."
The Four Gentlemen had also never witnessed a sword weep, and they were inwardly tense.
Geom Mu-geuk interrogated them, his voice cold. "I can understand those men, but are you not warriors of the Orthodox Faction? Is it truly acceptable for you to kill someone sent on the direct orders of the Murim Alliance Leader?"
However, not one of the Four Gentlemen showed a shred of guilt. There was not a hint of hesitation or doubt in their eyes. It meant that, until now, they had carried out every order from the Jinryong Manor Lord without ever distinguishing between right and wrong.
Geom Mu-geuk looked at them with disdain. "Those titles do not suit you."
The moment he finished speaking, the Black Demonic Sword was drawn with the speed of a lightning bolt.
Flash!
A single streak of sword light erupted, and the bamboo in the courtyard was sliced clean in two.
It was the Azure Heaven Form, the fifth form of the Flying Heaven Sword Technique—a form built for pure speed. Juk, the "Bamboo" of the Four Gentlemen, could never have blocked an attack faster than anything Geom Mu-geuk had shown before. In the blink of an eye, his body was already being severed; he never even had the chance to defend.
As Juk collapsed to the side in a spray of blood, Maehwa leaped forward.
Swaaaaak! Thud!
Maehwa saw it clearly. Her lower half remained where it stood, while her severed upper torso flew forward through the air. What had bifurcated her was the Balanced Heaven Form, the first form of the Flying Heaven Sword Technique.
Nancho and Gukhwa rushed in from both sides simultaneously. Having witnessed the instantaneous deaths of their two companions, their movements were no longer as agile as usual.
The Black Demonic Sword underwent twelve transformations in mid-air.
It was the Changing Heaven Form, the second form of the Flying Heaven Sword Technique.
The noble Orchid, Nancho, was uprooted at the sixth transformation, and the pure white Chrysanthemum, Gukhwa, was torn apart as her petals vanished at the ninth.
Such was the power of the Flying Heaven Sword Technique having reached the Twelve-Star Great Achievement.
Geom Mu-geuk could feel it clearly. At the twelve-star stage, his sword technique was ripening further. His Body Immune to All Poisons and the Wind God Four Steps reaching the nine-star stage were all influencing and elevating his swordsmanship.
Woooooooong!
Having cut down the Four Gentlemen, the Black Demonic Sword cried once more.
When facing a crowd, the most important thing is seizing the initiative. One must plant seeds of fear in the hearts of those who charge in relying solely on numbers. They must be forced to realize that even with their numbers, death is the only certainty.
Silence hung over the area. No one was laughing anymore.
Geom Mu-geuk did not give his opponents a chance to compose themselves. Before the order to kill him could even be given, he moved.
In a flash, he cut down a masked man on his left. After piercing the man's heart, he spun in place and swung his blade in a wide arc. The throats of two masked men behind him were slashed simultaneously, erupting in fountains of crimson.
He leaped over a masked man lunging from the side, crushed the man's face with his knee, and then consecutively stabbed the attackers behind him.
By the time the sound of tearing flesh echoed, Geom Mu-geuk had already cut down a masked man standing on the opposite side. Given the man's skill, he should never have been defeated so easily, but in a flash, his throat was slit, and his world went dark.
Masked men who attempted an ambush by leaping from the roofs were instead skewered in mid-air. They fell like withered autumn leaves.
Geom Mu-geuk was fast—far too fast.
In an instant, over a dozen people became corpses. The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader finally found his voice and shouted, "Use a combined attack! A combined attack!"
By the time he finished his sentence, four more were dead.
Geom Mu-geuk was a tiger that had leaped into a flock of sheep. Of course, these were no ordinary sheep; they lunged like madmen, swinging their blades with suicidal fervor. Even as they were being swept away, their swords managed to strike Geom Mu-geuk's body.
However, because he did not allow any direct hits, the glancing blows could not penetrate the Supreme Heavenly Silkworm Thread and the Ghost Tiger Armor.
"He is faster than the Alliance Leader was in his prime," Jo Yi-baek remarked, his voice trembling.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader said nothing. In the time it took for those words to be spoken, three more fell.
"He is human; he will eventually tire."
That was their only hope. As long as he was human, his internal energy would eventually reach its limit.
Even as a dozen men rushed him, Geom Mu-geuk was the one who charged. He ran, but it did not look like running. He glided across the ground like a phantom sliding on ice. Masked men collapsed to the left and right in his wake.
Hidden weapons poured down from all directions.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Geom Mu-geuk's sword wove a tapestry of light in the air. Every incoming projectile was deflected. A few struck his body, but his movements did not slow in the slightest.
Geom Mu-geuk soared upward. The masked men who had been throwing hidden weapons from the roofs fell one by one.
They died if they attacked, and they died if they turned to flee. They died if they fought alone, and they died if they used a combined attack. Even when they succeeded in stabbing him, Geom Mu-geuk did not fall. If he absolutely had to allow an attack, he offered up the areas protected by his specialized armor.
Crunch.
A masked man, now a corpse, flew through the air and smashed the table where the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader and Jo Yi-baek were sitting.
"One cannot fight like that simply by being strong in martial arts. That man... is someone who has killed countless people."
Through the way Geom Mu-geuk fought, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader could tell. His opponent was incredibly experienced in combat. One could not fight like that without having crossed rivers of blood. He was a man who knew exactly how to kill his enemies in the fastest and most efficient way possible.
"How can he be like that when he is so young?"
"Is that not why we plunged into this Murim? Because it is so entertaining."
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader did not show fear. Whether it was because he had a hidden trump card or because he was prepared for death, it was hard to say.
When more than half of the masked men were dead, the survivors lost their will to fight. From that point on, their role was reduced from trying to kill Geom Mu-geuk to merely trying to exhaust him.
Finally, the last masked man collapsed.
"Huff, huff, huff!"
Only the sound of Geom Mu-geuk's heavy breathing echoed through the courtyard.
Of the three masters—the man with the Horse-Cleaving Blade, the Defeated Monk, and the Great Poison Elder—the first to move was the Defeated Monk, Yorai.
He charged, swinging his iron staff, giving Geom Mu-geuk no room to breathe.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The iron staff and the sword clashed repeatedly. Yorai pressed his advantage with immense, crushing strength. Geom Mu-geuk retreated, seemingly overwhelmed by the power.
Believing he had the upper hand, Yorai infused his full internal power into the iron staff. Confident in his energy, he lured Mu-geuk into a contest of internal power. He was certain of his own strength, and his opponent was clearly exhausted.
Yorai pushed with his internal energy. He was sure he would win, but he had overlooked one fact: Geom Mu-geuk was this exhausted precisely because he had been fighting while conserving his internal energy as much as possible.
No matter how much internal energy Yorai possessed, it could not compare to Geom Mu-geuk's.
As Geom Mu-geuk's internal power surged in like a tidal wave, Yorai's arms, gripping the iron staff, began to tremble violently.
It was then that the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader gave his command.
"Great Poison Elder!"
The moment the words left his mouth, something flew from the Great Poison Elder's hand. Because they were locked in a contest of internal power, neither Geom Mu-geuk nor Yorai could avoid it.
Pop!
A pitch-black poison mist erupted, swallowing both men.
"It is done!" The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader stood up abruptly.
Jo Yi-baek stood as well and asked, "What kind of poison is it?"
"It is the Extreme Yin Fatal Poison, the most powerful of the Great Poison Elder's toxins! That is the end of him!"
"Ah!" At the Leader's certainty, Jo Yi-baek finally felt relieved. He had been deeply regretting his choice, wondering if he had backed the wrong side.
Someone staggered out from the black smoke. In that short time, he had been poisoned and was bleeding from every orifice. He muttered something unintelligible before collapsing face-forward. It was Yorai.
And when the poison mist settled, everyone was struck with horror.
Geom Mu-geuk was standing there, perfectly fine.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader and Jo Yi-baek shouted simultaneously.
"Immunity to All Poisons?"
"A Body Immune to All Poisons!"
Even as enemies, they felt a sense of awe. This was the moment they saw with their own eyes the legendary physique they had only heard of in myths.
But surviving the poison wasn't the only issue.
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch!
Blades of energy were now floating in front of Geom Mu-geuk's chest. Inside the poison mist, he had already manifested sword-shaped sword qi. Their number had increased again; now, twenty of them hovered in the air.
Flying Heaven Sword Technique, Seventh Form: Flowing Heaven Form.
Swish, swish, swish, swish!
The twenty streaks of sword qi flew like rays of light and embedded themselves in the Great Poison Elder. He swung his palms, trying to block them, but he could not stop twenty streaks of sword qi flying at his entire body.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The downpour of sword qi pierced through him.
As the Great Poison Elder collapsed, the man with the Horse-Cleaving Blade was already swinging his weapon down toward Geom Mu-geuk's face. With Geom Mu-geuk's sword still embedded in the wall behind the Great Poison Elder after launching the Flowing Heaven Form, the man thought he would die if he missed this chance.
Geom Mu-geuk narrowly dodged the attack, and at the very moment their faces passed inches apart—
Whoosh.
Geom Mu-geuk exhaled the smoke he had been holding in his mouth.
"Aaaaaaaagh!"
He had held the previous poison mist in his mouth and spat it directly at the man with the Horse-Cleaving Blade. A single breath was enough. The man clutched his face, let out a horrific scream, rolled on the ground, and died while bleeding from his seven orifices.
Now, the only ones left were Geom Mu-geuk, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader, and Jo Yi-baek.
Looking at the corpses scattered everywhere, Jo Yi-baek felt as if this were all a nightmare. But he realized that if he didn't wake up soon, he would die within it.
Jo Yi-baek shouted, "Do not forget! I am on the Alliance Leader's side! I was the one who told you the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader was coming here—"
Fwoosh! Boom!
Half of Jo Yi-baek's face was blown away, and the remaining part turned to ash. A powerful Heat Yang True Qi had been unleashed.
Withdrawing the hand that had launched the palm force, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader picked up the wine cup in front of him and drank slowly.
"I am the type of person who must finish what needs to be done to feel satisfied."
He meant that he had intended to kill the traitor anyway.
Geom Mu-geuk reached out his hand, and the Black Demonic Sword embedded in the wall returned to his grip.
"You might think yourself grand, but in my eyes, you are insignificant. If you want to live quietly, then live quietly; if you want to be a hero, then step forward proudly. What exactly are you? Hiding and plotting, sowing discord from the shadows, manipulating people without their knowledge. Recruiting father and son separately without letting them know. Do you think that is impressive? No, it is merely cowardly and despicable."
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader gave a bitter smile.
"What can I do? That is who I am. I find it so entertaining and happy when I am plotting things from behind the scenes."
He should have kept doing that. But as his influence and power grew, he had become complacent. An event like today? He couldn't have imagined it back when he had only a handful of people protecting him. He had hidden and hidden again. But now that he had a hundred people guarding him, he had acted arrogantly, as if he were invincible.
"I suppose I must return to my roots and start over."
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader's body began to glow with heat. At the very least, his martial arts were not insignificant. In an instant, the surrounding air grew scorching.
Geom Mu-geuk realized immediately. The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader was a master of the most extreme yang martial arts.
Dangerous.
Reading his master's heart, the Black Demonic Sword let out another long cry.
Geom Mu-geuk's head grew dizzy, and his breath felt stifled. Since it was pure martial arts and not an illusion, there was no other way to deal with it. He endured by raising his Body Protection Qi. He had never experienced such heat in his life; it felt as if he had been thrown into lava.
At the very moment the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader was about to unleash a palm force of extreme yang containing flames—the surroundings changed.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader was startled.
Whirrrrrrr.
Suddenly, the environment shifted. He was no longer in the manor, but standing on a snowy mountain where a blizzard was raging. The cold snow blowing against his face was real. Even the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader, who had seen it all, was shocked.
"This is..."
Far ahead, Geom Mu-geuk was picking up snow from the ground and rubbing it on his face. The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader also touched the snow piled on the ground. It was real.
Whirrrrrrr.
Under the fierce blizzard and cold, the Leader's extreme yang energy, which had been burning like a flame, flickered out. As the heat subsided, his killing intent and fighting spirit vanished with it.
The two men returned to their original positions.
In the middle of the manor filled with corpses, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader asked, "What martial art is that?"
"Space-Time Displacement Technique."
The moment he heard the answer, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader was no longer there. The final move he unleashed was a stealth technique. It was his last resort and hidden trump card to vanish from sight and escape the area.
His belief that he could survive any situation turned him into prey caught in a spiderweb.
Stab!
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader opened his eyes and looked down at his chest. Geom Mu-geuk's sword, having seen through the stealth, had pierced his heart.
The Leader summoned his final bit of energy to observe Geom Mu-geuk. Qi was being emitted around Geom Mu-geuk's body like a spiderweb. It was the Qi Emission he had learned from the Heavenly Demon during their hunting trip, and now it was spread out as densely as a spider's web, just as his father's had been. There had been no gap for the Leader's stealth technique to slip through.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader spoke as if he had no regrets.
"...If that martial art, the Space-Time Displacement Technique, poison, and stealth all don't work... then I suppose I must die."
Truly, in today's battle, Geom Mu-geuk had used everything he had learned until now.
The Heavenly Mandate Society Leader left his final words before drawing his last breath. "I... have met someone like you before."
Geom Mu-geuk was startled. "Where? Where!"
But with those words, the Heavenly Mandate Society Leader had already passed away.
It's Hwa Mu-gi! This man has met Hwa Mu-gi.
Of course, it could have been someone else, but Geom Mu-geuk believed the person the Leader mentioned was Hwa Mu-gi.
Hwa Mu-gi was alive somewhere. Growing strong just like him, walking toward their destiny. Geom Mu-geuk was no longer afraid of him. Because he, too, was living his life to the fullest.
Yes, Hwa Mu-gi was Hwa Mu-gi. For now, it was time to savor the joy of victory.
He had finally successfully completed the successor's test his father had given him. It was especially meaningful that he had finished it alone, without the help of the Demon Lords.
Geom Mu-geuk left the manor. Once he was gone, the Murim Alliance Leader would take care of the rest. He had already said his goodbyes to Jin Pae-cheon and Jin Ha-ryeong, so he could leave just like this.
Outside the manor, Seo Dae-ryong was waiting on the driver's seat of a carriage.
"This is a carriage driven by the winner of the Young Dragon Tournament. Consider it an honor."
Contrary to his words, Seo Dae-ryong's eyes were trembling. Thank you for returning safely. That intense emotion was written all over his face.
"I've bought new martial robes and put them inside, so please change."
"Thank you."
Geom Mu-geuk climbed into the carriage. "Let's go. Home."
"Who do you want to see the most?"
Geom Mu-geuk leaned back in the carriage and closed his eyes. "The person I want to see most is..."
The only thing that heard his barely audible answer was the wind that brushed past his hair.
"Who did you say?"
When Seo Dae-ryong looked back, Geom Mu-geuk, who had poured all his mental energy into the fight, had fallen asleep. The new robes were draped over his knees; he hadn't even had the chance to change.
You truly worked hard, Pavilion Master.
And so, the carriage began to race toward the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.