Chapter 547: Where There Is Light, There Is Darkness
Chapter 547: Where There Is Light, There Is Darkness
Jin Ha-ryeong and Yeo-jeong were concealed within a secret chamber deep inside the Heavenly Flower Pavilion.
When the full-scale battle erupted, the two had successfully slipped into the hidden room under the cover of the ensuing chaos.
The muffled sounds of combat drifted down from above—the rhythmic echoes of things breaking, shattering, and being pulverized.
Jin Ha-ryeong was dying to know what was happening outside, her heart heavy with worry, yet she remained perfectly still in her hiding spot.
If she were the person she used to be, she never would have chosen to hide. She would have fought alongside her brother, desperately trying to protect Yeo-jeong in the heat of the fray.
Back then, honor mattered more to her than anything else. Moreover, she would have been paralyzed by the fear that opening that door later would mean finding her brother’s corpse. She wouldn't have been able to endure the horror of being the sole survivor.
But the current Jin Ha-ryeong was different. Promises were now more important than honor, and the person she had to protect took precedence over her own pride. Her faith in her brother had also grown beyond measure.
Much of this change was due to her relationship with Geom Mu-geuk.
If even the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult thinks and acts that way, who am I to do otherwise?
She could already imagine Geom Mu-geuk’s reaction when he heard she had stayed hidden.
— You did great. You made the wisest choice!
And yet, he would still tease her.
— Ah, I should have been the one to say I’d protect the Pavilion Master! Do you have any idea how many times I almost died?
The thought of his inevitable reaction brought an involuntary smile to her lips.
Honestly, even in a situation like this, you make me look like a madwoman, smiling to herself.
Just then, Yeo-jeong spoke to her from behind.
"Miss Jin."
"Yes, Pavilion Master."
When Jin Ha-ryeong turned around, Yeo-jeong’s expression was incredibly calm—so much so that one might wonder if she was actually the one protecting Ha-ryeong.
"If a moment comes where you have to make a choice, please abandon me without hesitation."
Jin Ha-ryeong could tell that Yeo-jeong was being sincere.
"Yes, I will."
Perhaps because the answer came too easily, Yeo-jeong’s expression betrayed her disbelief.
Jin Ha-ryeong added, "I made a promise to him. I promised I would protect you no matter what."
Yeo-jeong smiled softly.
"The man you made that promise to would understand even if you were the only one to survive. He would likely comfort you more warmly than anyone else."
Jin Ha-ryeong thought to herself:
No, that man would hurl words of resentment at me. He would spit out harsh insults, saying it was my fault you died. He’d act so hateful just to make me feel something other than guilt. He’s the kind of person who would think doing that is for my own sake.
She knew now that Geom Mu-geuk was exactly that kind of man. That was why she had to protect Yeo-jeong at all costs.
Jin Ha-ryeong changed the subject.
"I wonder if my brother is fighting well."
She had lived her life believing that if someone had to die, it should be her, not her brother. That was how important he was to the Orthodox Murim.
"You probably don't know, do you? My brother is such a stolid, straight-laced man. It’s almost shocking that he became friends with the Young Cult Leader."
"Then you have nothing to worry about."
"Pardon?"
Yeo-jeong looked at her with a smile.
"Stolid people are usually the strongest in a crisis."
*
It was a complex labyrinth. The walls were made of thick steel, and the paths were convoluted.
The Blood Path Labyrinth Formation.
It was a deadly formation from which no one was said to return alive once they stepped inside.
The man leading Jin Ha-gun and the warriors of the Demon Extermination Squad through this formation was a man named Jeong-gyeong.
"This way."
The warriors of the Demon Extermination Squad were not only powerful martial artists but also possessed individual specialties. Some were experts in poison, some specialized in dark sorcery, and others were masters of tracking.
Jeong-gyeong’s specialty was breaking formations.
Given the nature of the Demon Extermination Squad, they often encountered enemies who utilized evil arts or formations. To prepare for such occasions, they had all trained and researched formation-breaking together.
However, as Jeong-gyeong led the way, he was visibly tense.
He had read and re-read books on formations until he had them memorized, but the Blood Path Labyrinth Formation was truly dangerous. It wasn't a formation that merely made one lose their way.
Every time they took a wrong turn and chose a Gate of Death instead of a Gate of Life, they would have to pay a terrible price.
Furthermore, no matter how much one studied, formations were constantly evolving. Those trying to break them often couldn't keep up with the speed of that evolution.
Therefore, today, he had to rely on precise calculations as well as a great deal of intuition and unconventional choices.
Knowing that everyone’s life rested in his hands, Jeong-gyeong felt a mix of fear and exhilaration.
"It’s this door."
They opened the door and entered a room filled with bronze mirrors. Dozens of small mirrors were plastered everywhere, enough to make one’s head spin.
As soon as they were all inside...
Screeeech.
A mechanism on the front dais activated.
Sand began to pour into one side of a tilted balance scale. As it did, the scale began to slowly sink toward the floor.
Seeing this, Jeong-gyeong shouted, "We have to find the Gate of Life before that scale hits the ground! It’s one of these mirrors!"
They didn't have much time. How were they supposed to figure out which of these many mirrors was the Gate of Life in such a short window? Jeong-gyeong was flustered; he had never encountered this specific variation before.
The Demon Extermination Squad warriors rushed to the mirrors, touching them and checking for anything unusual.
Meanwhile, the scale sank lower and lower.
Just before the scale touched the floor, Jin Ha-gun lunged forward and shoved one of the mirrors with all his might.
"It’s this one!"
The moment he pushed the mirror, everyone braced themselves, tense and ready for whatever might happen. They didn't know if poison mist would spray out or if hidden weapons would rain down.
Right then, the falling sand stopped, and the scale began to rise back to its original position.
The mirror Jin Ha-gun had chosen was indeed the Gate of Life.
With a heavy clack, a door opened in the wall.
Everyone let out a sigh of relief, clutching their chests.
"How did you know it was that mirror?"
To Jeong-gyeong’s question, Jin Ha-gun gave an unexpected answer.
"I just took a gamble."
"Pardon?"
Everyone stared at him with shocked expressions.
Then, Gwang-hyo of the Demon Extermination Squad laughed and said, "Actually, that’s for the best. Isn't luck the thing we need most right now?"
In truth, Jin Ha-gun’s words were half-right and half-wrong. At the last second, he had noticed that his shadow wasn't reflected in that particular mirror.
Still, since he had made a split-second choice without checking all the other mirrors, it was essentially a gamble—but his instinctive choice had been correct.
Leaving the mirror room, they continued to search for the way out.
They navigated the labyrinth step by step until, eventually, Jeong-gyeong accidentally chose a Gate of Death. He had made his choice based on careful deduction and calculation, but there had been a trap hidden in the process.
Clang!
The floor tilted like a steep ramp.
Rumble, rumble!
The sound of something heavy rolling toward them echoed from somewhere unseen above.
"Get back!"
At Jeong-gyeong’s cry, everyone prepared to leap in the opposite direction.
But in that instant, Jin Ha-gun threw himself toward the direction of the rolling sound.
"Stop it before it gains more momentum!"
This was the solution he had come up with for this trap in a split second.
The Demon Extermination Squad warriors followed suit.
Rumble, crash!
The thing rolling toward them was a massive iron ball.
Jin Ha-gun’s choice was correct. If they had left it alone, it would have reached an unstoppable speed before crushing them. But now...
Grip!
Jin Ha-gun braced his back against the iron ball, circulating his internal energy to its limit. The warriors who followed him joined in immediately.
Grind, rumble...
As they all poured their full internal energy into the effort, the speed finally slowed until the massive iron ball came to a complete halt.
Then, the tilted floor returned to its original level.
"Phew!"
Jin Ha-gun let out a breath of relief.
"Are you alright?"
Jin Ha-gun nodded at his subordinates' inquiry.
"I'm fine."
"If it weren't for your quick thinking, Captain, we would have been in serious trouble."
While this trap might not have killed them all, many could have been injured or killed. It was no easy feat to think of running toward the danger in such a moment.
Because of this, the Demon Extermination Squad members looked at Jin Ha-gun with newfound respect. They knew he was a man of great chivalry and high martial arts, but they hadn't had many chances to see him display such quick wit and wisdom.
Jin Ha-gun was proving to be exceptionally strong in a crisis. Once he had resolved to get everyone out alive, his sense of responsibility manifested as incredible focus.
Jeong-gyeong approached and bowed his head, looking ashamed.
"I made a mistake. I am sorry."
"It’s alright. We wouldn't have made it this far without you."
It wasn't just empty comfort. Without him, they would have faced such crises many times over by now.
"Finding the Gate of Life will only get harder. It’s okay to make mistakes. Don't you have all these 'solutions' standing right behind you?"
Jeong-gyeong turned around to see his comrades watching him. It was a message that even if he slipped up, they would break through together.
Jin Ha-gun addressed the group.
"Let’s break out of here and show the bastard who made this exactly who we are."
"Yes, sir!"
The Demon Extermination Squad warriors answered in a thunderous roar.
They began to move forward again, toward the next choice between life and death.
*
The Combat King closed his eyes against the sudden downpour of sunlight.
It wasn't just sunlight. It was a scorching heat that felt as if it would wither the entire world.
He squinted and shielded his eyes with his hand. His palm felt hot.
The Combat King was bewildered by the sudden change in surroundings. He was standing on parched earth, cracked and dry. And hanging in the sky was a real sun—a blazing midday sun without a single cloud in sight.
"What is this?"
Geom Mu-geuk and the Smiling Demon stood before him.
The moment the two had walked toward him and the Smiling Demon had flicked Geom Mu-geuk’s blade, the surroundings had suddenly transformed.
Unlike the confused Combat King, the Dark King knew exactly what this was.
"The Space-Time Displacement Technique."
The Dark King recognized it at a glance. A flicker of surprise crossed her eyes, which shimmered over the Combat King’s own.
"The unique secret technique of the Pungcheon Cult Leader. Impressive. To think that greedy old man passed this down to the Young Cult Leader."
The Dark King’s curiosity lay elsewhere.
"If you knew how to use the Space-Time Displacement Technique, why didn't you use it from the start?"
There was only one reason.
"Because my friends were fighting there with me."
He had worried that if he only pulled the Combat King in, the Dark King might kill Bi Sa-in or Jin Ha-gun.
However, he couldn't bring the Dark King in as well. While he could pull someone close to him into the Space-Time Displacement Technique, he couldn't bring in someone hidden inside a carriage, out of his line of sight.
Even if he could have, he wouldn't have chosen to. Taking on the Dark King as well would have taken too much time, and there was no telling what variables might arise in the battle involving his friends or the Smiling Demon outside.
He had intended to hold out as long as possible and use it as a last resort.
But he had seen the cord connected to the carriage snap earlier, confirming that Bi Sa-in was safe. The Smiling Demon was also safe, and Jin Ha-gun had already entered the formation.
Finally, the moment the Dark King descended into the Combat King’s body...
He decided it was time to use the Space-Time Displacement Technique. However, his opponent was an absolute master of dark sorcery. He could not afford to let his guard down for even a second.
Even now, the Dark King’s emotions were closer to surprise and admiration than agitation or anxiety.
"Because of your friends. So the rumor about your anxiety over your friends dying was true."
Geom Mu-geuk nodded.
"At the same time, that anxiety is my strength."
The Combat King, who had been listening, spoke up.
"Do you think I can't kill you just because it isn't night?"
Geom Mu-geuk nodded.
"Isn't that the case? Your Dark Heaven Night God Art won't be able to exert its full power."
Indeed, the white rings that had been in the Combat King’s pupils were now so thin they were barely visible.
"As long as the two of us have joined forces, it doesn't matter if it's not night."
"If that were true, you would have attacked during the day in the first place. You wouldn't have caused all this trouble in the dead of night like a bunch of rats."
At the mention of rats, the Combat King roared.
"Shut up!"
The Dark King restrained the agitated Combat King.
"Calm yourself. The more you speak with the Young Cult Leader, the more you lose."
Then, the Dark King spoke in a calm tone.
"The Young Cult Leader is right. If we fight here, we will lose."
She had accurately grasped the situation.
The Combat King glared like a wounded beast, but the Dark King superimposed over him had a tranquil gaze. Her eyes flickered between Geom Mu-geuk and the Smiling Demon.
In this moment, the eyes of the two men looked remarkably similar. That was why she knew, even without having fought them yet, just how fantastically they would coordinate in battle.
"Knowing that, why are you so relaxed?"
To Geom Mu-geuk’s question, the Dark King replied, "Because where there is light, there is always darkness."
It felt as if the Dark King, shimmering within the Combat King’s body, was smiling.
It was at that very moment.
The surroundings suddenly began to grow dark. This was a world created by Geom Mu-geuk, a place that should have been impossible to darken.
Geom Mu-geuk and the Smiling Demon looked back. They could see where the darkness was beginning.
Their gazes turned toward the sky.
The moon was covering the sun.
It was an eclipse.