Chapter 490: Do Not Be Lonely
Chapter 490: Do Not Be Lonely
“Show them, Uncle.”
If Hwi had been agitated, Geom Mu-geuk might have stopped him, but the man was as calm as ever. This was no impulsive, emotional brawl. It was a solemn warning from a loyal man who had spent his life as a guardian to a mere assassin—an inevitable clash between two opposing destinies.
“Show them that the only place for assassins is hell.”
The moment Mu-geuk finished speaking, Hwi lunged forward without hesitation. He charged toward the enemy, revealing a new side of himself. To those he protected, Hwi was a man who always showed his back, intercepting every attack meant for others. Now, he was the storm itself.
The Murder King did not retreat, swinging his daggers to meet the charge. His eyes grew unnervingly clear, and within that transparency, an unidentifiable emotion flickered. Though the exact nature of that feeling was unclear, one thing was certain: he acknowledged his opponent.
Clang!
The sharp ring of sword meeting dagger signaled the start of the battle. Both were martial artists who lived in the shadows, men who moved in secret to achieve their goals. This was a collision of two such souls.
Hwi’s swordsmanship was a peerless art passed down through the heads of the Heavenly Demon’s personal guard: the Demon Spirit Protection Sword Technique.
It was rooted in the art of the fast sword. By the nature of a guardian’s duty, one’s reactions had to be instantaneous; after all, the first move a guardian faced was almost always a surprise attack.
On the other hand, the Murder King had mastered the signature technique of the Death Spirit Emperor, the sovereign of assassins from three hundred years ago: the Assassination Dagger Strike Technique. He wielded a style that was legendary within the underworld.
Hwi pressed the Murder King ruthlessly. Mu-geuk, who had only ever seen Hwi’s peaceful side, realized for the first time that the man possessed such a savage edge. Today, Hwi fought like a relentless brawler who knew no retreat.
Sparks erupted as sword and dagger collided in midair. The Assassination Dagger Strike Technique was also a style based on extreme speed. Consequently, their exchange was so rapid it was nearly invisible to the naked eye— a dance where a single moment of distraction meant certain death.
Slash!
Hwi’s sword traced a lethal semicircle, attempting to cleave the Murder King in two.
Clang!
Blocking the strike, the Murder King thrust his daggers in rapid succession. The three strikes he unleashed in an instant aimed precisely at his opponent’s vital points. Hwi parried the attacks and leaped into the air, raining down a series of stabs from above.
The Murder King slid backward, evading the assault with exquisite footwork befitting his high-level martial arts. The Murder King was obsessed with taking a life; Hwi was determined to tear through the assassin’s torso.
The sword and daggers, imbued with their masters' killing intent, produced a sound like a frantic, rhythmic instrument.
Clang! Clang-clang! Cl-cl-cl-cl-clang!
Sparks flew with every contact, bursting in every direction like exploding fireworks. It was a grand feast of defensive swordsmanship and assassination arts unfolding at high speed. They grazed past each other, leaped, advanced, and retreated. Their bodies moved as swiftly as their blades. Blood splattered as edges grazed skin.
Hwi displayed a martial art so brilliant and magnificent that it seemed impossible a man of such power had lived so quietly until now. Under Hwi’s fierce momentum, the Murder King was being pushed back. The martial art of a man who had never initiated an attack in his life seemed to speak:
—We simply chose not to kill.
A flicker of confusion crossed the Murder King’s face. He had known his opponent was strong, but he hadn't expected him to be this formidable. Watching the scene, Myeong Sin realized once again that his survival against the Murder King earlier was entirely thanks to Hwi. It was because Hwi was this powerful that the Murder King had not dared to act recklessly.
However, the Murder King was no ordinary foe. He was successfully blocking all of Hwi’s incredible strikes. They were perfectly matched in skill.
Even as he prayed for and felt certain of Hwi’s victory, Mu-geuk was inwardly tense.
‘Uncle!’
If the enemy had been anyone other than the Murder King, he wouldn't have been this nervous. Should he leave it to Hwi until the end since it was his fight?
Absolutely not. If Hwi fell into even the slightest danger, Mu-geuk would intervene immediately. Even if Hwi resented him for it later, he would jump in without a moment’s hesitation. Hwi and the Murder King—their lives were not even comparable. He wouldn't trade Hwi for a thousand Murder Kings—no, not for every assassin in the Central Plains.
Suddenly, his father’s words came to mind.
‘If you’re going to put Hwi on the front lines, take responsibility for him.’
At this moment, he truly was putting Hwi forward.
‘I will take responsibility, Father.’
It was then.
Swish!
Someone launched a surprise attack from behind Mu-geuk.
Clang!
Spinning around, Mu-geuk swung his sword to block the ambush and made a shushing gesture at his assailant.
“Wait a second. This is an important moment.”
Mu-geuk turned his head back toward the fight between Hwi and the Murder King. Indeed, it was a critical moment in their duel.
Something erupted from the Murder King’s hand.
Pop-pop-pop!
Steel needles were discharged from a small, finger-thick cylinder hidden in his left hand.
Clang-clang-clang!
Deflecting the hidden weapons with his sword, Hwi soared upward. Anticipating that this surprise attack would be linked to a follow-up, Hwi struck first while ascending, replacing defense with offense.
Slash-slash-slash!
Despite the unexpected counter, the Murder King did not panic and evaded the attack. Hwi had been prepared for a surprise move; he had fought with the mindset that it was actually stranger for an assassin to engage in a straightforward confrontation.
Only after Hwi safely navigated the ambush did Mu-geuk look back at the assassin behind him. Mu-geuk’s sword was already buried in the man’s heart. There was no way the assassin would have just stood there because Mu-geuk told him to "shh." The moment the man had tried to attack again, Mu-geuk had pierced his heart without even looking back.
Mu-geuk turned his gaze to the street. People were peeking out from everywhere, watching the fight. Many of them were likely assassins waiting for an opportunity.
Mu-geuk spoke to Myeong Sin.
“Alright, let’s go!”
He meant they should wipe out the rest of the assassins. Since there was no telling how they might interfere in the duel, it was best to eliminate them as quickly as possible. Of course, even then, Mu-geuk’s attention remained on Hwi’s fight. He appeared to be looking only at his immediate surroundings, but he was monitoring both sides—a feat of divine prowess possible only for a master who had reached a true realm of excellence.
“Let’s do that,” Myeong Sin replied.
It still didn't feel real to Myeong Sin—the fact that he was on the same side as the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult, facing off against the Murder King. It was a life he couldn't have imagined just a few days ago.
‘Right, I have to carry out the contract I assigned to myself.’
The two men strode down the street. There was a man pretending to be a spectator who was undoubtedly an assassin. However, it was a foolish choice that vastly underestimated Myeong Sin’s memory.
Whish-whish-whish!
The man dodged Myeong Sin’s daggers thrown in succession.
Thuck!
But he could not dodge Mu-geuk’s sword that followed immediately after.
“Pick them all out!”
Myeong Sin nodded. It was a gesture signaling his break from the Underworld and, by extension, all assassin organizations. Just then, something poured down from a two-story building.
Clatter-clatter-clatter.
Star-shaped hidden weapons rained down onto the street. Where they landed, sharp blades protruded upward. They weren't meant to kill by hitting the target, but to slow movement by littering the floor. Stepping on those sharp points would result in immediate poisoning.
However, these were not ordinary caltrops.
“Watch your step!” Mu-geuk warned.
Myeong Sin shouted back, “You’re the one who should watch out!”
The moment Myeong Sin’s shout ended, the hidden weapons on the ground detonated, launching themselves upward.
Pop-pop-pop-pop!
The blades launched by the explosions flew in all directions. It was an attack designed to exploit the fact that anyone seeing such weapons would focus on not stepping on them, never expecting them to launch like that. But Mu-geuk, having been warned, was not one to be caught.
“Don’t tell me you made these too?”
“I’m sorry to say, but I did.”
“Use this technique for me later!”
“If we survive this,” Myeong Sin replied.
Mu-geuk leaped into the air. “We will definitely survive!”
Mu-geuk flew toward the second floor—the very spot where the weapons had been scattered from.
Crash!
Mu-geuk smashed through the window and flew straight into the room.
Swish!
An assassin waiting by the window swung a dagger that grazed Mu-geuk’s face. It must have been a tantalizingly close moment for the assassin, but Mu-geuk had already sensed his presence the instant he broke through the window.
As Mu-geuk killed him, a hidden weapon shot out from under the bed, aiming for his ankles. This, too, was an ambush that would have been difficult to avoid.
Thud! Thud!
But Mu-geuk was already standing on the bed, driving his sword through it. The traps in this room didn't end there. A closet burst open, and another assassin’s attack followed.
Whir-whir-whir!
The man held a tiny repeating crossbow, and its power was formidable.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Holes were punched into the wall where Mu-geuk had just been standing. But at the same time, the assassin collapsed backward. A dagger was already embedded in his forehead—the very dagger Myeong Sin had given Mu-geuk as a gift.
When Mu-geuk looked out the window again, two assassins were attacking Myeong Sin. They had struck during the brief moment Mu-geuk had leaped to the second floor. They weren't ordinary assassins; they were elite killers hidden among the first-rate ones.
It was the Black Shadow Twin Killers, who had been disguised as the owner and clerk of the fabric shop. They lunged from the left and right, launching a combined attack on Myeong Sin. Their disguises were useless against him; they had to eliminate Myeong Sin as quickly as possible for their infiltration to have any meaning.
It was a bloody battle against two elite assassins. Despite his injured arm, Myeong Sin was proving that he hadn't won the position of second-in-command of the Underworld by a coin toss.
Hwi and the Murder King were no longer visible on the roof. The sounds of their battle echoed from beyond the buildings. Mu-geuk’s figure blurred through the air. He headed neither toward Hwi nor Myeong Sin. He had spotted someone aiming at Myeong Sin from the window of another building.
It was Eophwa, an elite assassin from Killing Heaven. As Mu-geuk charged toward him, the hidden weapon intended for Myeong Sin was fired at Mu-geuk instead.
Clang-clang-clang!
The weapon, flying with a sharp whistling sound, was a signature tool of Killing Heaven: the Paralysis Smoke Ring. It was an absolute hidden weapon with the highest lethality rate. Even a graze from the flying ring possessed the terrifying power to tear a martial artist’s flesh and bone. But that wasn't its true nature.
Slice!
The moment Mu-geuk cut the flying weapon with his sword, paralysis powder erupted from the severed ring. It wasn't a lethal poison, but a drug that rendered muscles useless in an instant.
Mu-geuk, who had been flying through the air, began to fall. Eophwa lunged out of the window. This brief moment of paralysis was exactly what he had been waiting for.
Whoosh!
As Eophwa tried to cleave the head of the supposedly frozen Mu-geuk during his fall, Mu-geuk’s Black Demonic Sword whipped out in an instant, severing the assassin's throat.
Eophwa died with his eyes wide open, a look of utter incomprehension on his face. It had never failed before. But the paralysis powder didn't work on Mu-geuk. Because Eophwa had never encountered such a case, the elite assassin had been taken down in a single strike.
Mu-geuk turned and threw a dagger.
Whish-whish-whish!
The three daggers flew toward one of the Black Shadow Twin Killers. The opponent turned to deflect the daggers, but that was enough to break the stalemate.
Thuck!
Not missing the opening, Myeong Sin stabbed his opponent’s arm and thigh in succession. With one of them wounded, the balance of the fight tilted.
“That’s why you should make me lots of gifts in the future! See how they come back to help when needed?”
Joking even in this situation? Myeong Sin wanted to retort, but he didn't have the luxury.
Leaving Myeong Sin to finish off the remaining Twin Killer, Mu-geuk landed on the roof of the opposite building. Hwi and the Murder King were fighting in an empty lot behind the buildings. Their sword and daggers clashed so rapidly they were a blur.
Mu-geuk didn't look at the weapons; he looked at their eyes.
‘He can win.’
Hwi’s skill was solid. He was like a massive fortress wall that wouldn't crumble under any wind. The Murder King likely felt it even more vividly. The Murder King threw a volley of hidden weapons to create distance.
At that exact moment, the Murder King’s dagger glowed white.
‘Dangerous!’
Mu-geuk could tell he was about to use a major technique. Just as Mu-geuk was about to step in, he saw Hwi’s face. His expression was calm, showing no sign of tension.
A silver radiance erupted from the tip of the Murder King’s dagger. In the next instant, dozens of silver streaks of Gang Qi poured toward Hwi.
Flying Sword Light Rain.
It was one of the secret techniques of the Assassination Dagger Strike Technique. Against the silver energy pouring down like light, Hwi’s sword began to embroider the air.
Cl-cl-cl-cl-cl-cl-clang!
Mu-geuk saw it—the sword lines being drawn rapidly in front of Hwi. If one were to watch a spider spinning its web at high speed, it would look like that. Sword lines were created in the blink of an eye.
The ultimate technique of the Demon Spirit Protection Sword Technique, imbued with the will to block any attack: Guardian Sword Wall.
It was the first time Mu-geuk had seen the sword wall Hwi created.
Boom! Bang! Boom-boom-boom! Crash!
The Gang Qi and the sword wall collided. The silver radiance shattered into fragments, scattering like a mist of light. The Murder King’s attack had been neutralized. The Murder King was genuinely shocked; he hadn't expected the Flying Sword Light Rain to be blocked.
“The guardian of the Demonic Cult Leader,” he offered with genuine admiration. “You are more than the rumors suggest.”
Hwi stood silently, his sword hanging low.
It was then.
Swish-swish-swish-swish!
Over a dozen assassins dropped down on either side of the Murder King. Their movements alone revealed they were no ordinary martial artists. As if his only goal was the death of his opponent, the Murder King charged toward Hwi along with the assassins.
It had been a neck-and-neck fight with just the Murder King. Yet, Hwi did not feel fear or retreat. A guardian must be at his calmest in such moments. Hwi told himself the Cult Leader was behind him. He told himself the Young Cult Leader was behind him. He was a man who could exert double or triple his strength when he thought that way.
“Assassins belong in hell!”
He repeated the words Mu-geuk had said at the start of the fight. Coming from Hwi’s mouth, the words carried a different weight. Hwi adjusted his grip on his sword and charged forward. He did not back down. Behind him was the Cult Leader, the Young Cult Leader, and his pride as the head of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult’s guards.
Just then, Mu-geuk’s voice rang out from behind.
“Do not be lonely, Uncle! Your allies are here!”
In the next moment, the assassins charging toward Hwi were struck with horror. Something had spread out wide on either side of Hwi as he ran toward them.
The sight made their eyes bulge. It was a swarm of terrifying-looking evil ghosts.
Mu-geuk had unleashed the Nine Calamities Demonic Art, Great Annihilation Form. Excluding the space where Hwi stood, the ghosts multiplied and spread out like wings on either side of him.
Rumble!
The ghosts charged forward alongside Hwi.