Chapter 573: A Demon Scarier Than a Ghost Has Attached Itself
Chapter 573: A Demon Scarier Than a Ghost Has Attached Itself
When he first saw him, Yeon Baek-in thought the man was insane.
He had appeared in shabby martial attire, carrying a worn-out steel sword, and abruptly asked to dig a hole together.
But he wasn't a madman. Yeon Baek-in couldn't sense even a hint of madness from him.
‘Then, did he come to kill me?’
Did "digging a hole together" mean he intended to bury him in it?
—Where do you want to dig?
While tossing out the question naturally, Yeon Baek-in launched a surprise attack.
In the Jianghu, many martial artists looked down on instructors or masters of martial arts halls. Some even mocked them, saying they were just stealing money from snot-nosed brats. Yeon Baek-in had worked tirelessly because he hated hearing such things. Through endless effort, he had reached the pinnacle of his field as a Hall Master.
Swish.
It wasn't a position he had attained easily.
Whir.
The next moment, Yeon Baek-in stared at the man with a dazed expression. More accurately, he stared at his own sword, now held in the man's hand.
Losing the sword wasn't the problem. The problem was that he had no idea how it had been taken.
The man should have had to seize his hand or wrist in some way to disarm him. Yet, they were perfectly fine. He hadn't even felt the man’s touch, and yet his sword was gone. With such skill, the man could have killed him or forced his cooperation through threats.
Instead, the man flipped the sword and handed it back, hilt-first.
—You’re quite impatient.
Looking back, that was the moment the first button was fastened in their relationship. A master capable of suppressing his pressure points or snapping his neck with ease had chosen the simple act of returning the sword by the hilt.
—Shouldn't there be at least one day in a person's life when a fated encounter comes knocking on its own?
The man was smiling today just as brightly as he had that day.
Approaching Yeon Baek-in, the man washed his face, hands, and feet in the water trickling from the ceiling, then even rinsed his mouth.
"There's so much damn dust down here. By the way, have you eaten?"
"I have."
After his brief wash, the man uncovered a cloth in the corner. A basket was piled high with rice balls. The man began to wolf them down.
"Are you really okay with just that?"
"There are days when I feast on meat and wine, too."
When this project began, Yeon Baek-in had tried to provide every comfort. He offered to decorate a fine room, provide a comfortable bed, and bring in cooks to prepare feasts for every meal. But the man had refused. This was what he had said back then:
—It’s only when things are a bit uncomfortable and lacking that one grows stronger faster.
Yeon Baek-in had just confirmed with his own eyes that the man’s words about deprivation fueling growth were true. He had seen it in the hall members who could now freely wield Sword Qi. They were no longer the greenhorns they once were; they had become proper martial artists.
In this cramped, uncomfortable space, they had mastered things they couldn't learn even in the vast training grounds outside. And above all, those words applied most significantly to this man.
Yeon Baek-in could feel that the man had become even stronger than when he first arrived. Eating the same food and sleeping in the same place as the hall members, perhaps the man was using even this place as his own training ground.
As the man ate his rice balls, Yeon Baek-in recalled the day they first met.
—Deep beneath the Yellow Dragon Martial Arts Hall, there is a place where treasures and peerless divine arts are stored.
A master of this caliber wouldn't speak nonsense. Naturally, one question had arisen.
—With your skills, you could have killed me and taken over the Yellow Dragon Martial Arts Hall yourself. Why didn't you?
—True. But if the master of the Yellow Dragon Martial Arts Hall changes, the eyes of the Murim will be drawn to it. I want to proceed with this matter quietly.
—Is there any guarantee you won't kill me to silence a witness once the work is done?
—There isn't. You just have to trust me.
At first, Yeon Baek-in had joined hands with him out of necessity. Refusal meant death. He hadn't trusted him; he had planned to pretend to trust him while looking for a way to survive.
And now?
Yeon Baek-in looked at the man. Over the past months, the man had shown through actions, not words, that he was someone worthy of trust.
Did he trust him? Yes, he did.
However, his heart still pounded like crazy whenever he thought about the moment they would discover the door they sought beyond that wall.
—I will give the peerless divine arts found there to you.
—Why do you not want the manuals?
—Because no matter what I learn, I’ll still be stronger.
The man had let out a boisterous laugh. These were the words of a man who had snatched the sword of the Yellow Dragon Martial Arts Hall Master in a single move, without the latter even realizing how.
—What I want is something else.
What exactly did he want? Would he still look at Yeon Baek-in with the same eyes once they were in the room full of treasure? Would he spare him and all those hall members? Or would that steel sword be drawn, killing everyone here in a single stroke?
Whether the meeting with this man would turn out to be a nightmare or a fated encounter—the result was not far off.
Having finished the rice balls, the man washed his hands in the running water. Though he dressed shabbily, he was a clean and tidy person.
"Why did you come down?"
"I heard the excavation is nearing its end, so I came to check. It’s also been a while since I’ve seen your face."
Having finished washing his hands, the man turned toward Yeon Baek-in. Under the man’s steady gaze, Yeon Baek-in felt a tightening pressure in his chest. Ever since their first meeting, he found it impossible to lie while looking into this man's eyes.
"You must be worried about your younger brother."
In that instant, Yeon Baek-in realized. The man knew everything happening outside. He even knew he was troubled because of his brother. Yeon Baek-in grew inwardly tense when the man brought up his brother. His brother was currently trying to find this place.
"The problem grew because a blood relative of the Ghost Gate entered the hall."
The man spoke as if he even knew Seo Jin was there.
"The problem isn't that little ghost from the Ghost Gate."
"What do you mean?"
"A demon scarier than a ghost has attached itself to them."
"Who are you talking about?"
The man only gave a cryptic smile and didn't reveal the identity.
"Our Hall Master is struggling even with a single little ghost, so I should head up."
Yeon Baek-in was startled by his declaration to go outside. Just who had arrived?
"Please, don't. You shouldn't leave your post at such a critical time, should you?"
At that, the man shouted.
"Let us have a break too!"
Yeon Baek-in was flustered by the completely unexpected remark. The hall members all looked over with expressions that said, 'He's right!'
"Of course, you should rest."
Seeing the flustered Yeon Baek-in, the man flashed a sly, mischievous grin. It was clear he had been joking.
"The kids are exhausted. We also need new personnel to break through the final gate."
"How many do you need? I'll handpick the most talented ones and send them down."
For some reason, the man declined.
"No need for that. This time, I'll go and pick them myself."
Then, the man shouted to the hall members.
"Come and eat!"
The hall members swarmed over and grabbed the rice balls.
"Wash your hands before you eat! Ugh, you filthy rascals!"
At the man's shout, some washed their hands, while others just laughed and took the rice balls. Having suffered together, the atmosphere among them was excellent. Some of them were hall members Yeon Baek-in knew well. After spending time with this man, their gazes and auras had changed so much they seemed like different people.
The man shouted to them again.
"We're going out for a few days. Everyone, get some proper rest until then! And get ready to receive the youngest ones."
The hall members cheered in delight. The man, who had been walking around barefoot, put on his shoes and strode toward Yeon Baek-in.
"Let's head up."
"Very well."
As they walked toward the mechanism leading upward, the man asked.
"Is this place more important? Or is your brother more important?"
Yeon Baek-in couldn't answer. He didn't want to give this man a justification.
—Didn't you already choose your brother?
Yeon Baek-in let out a sigh. He might as well have answered. He should have immediately said his brother was more important.
The man slapped Yeon Baek-in on the back.
"You should at least say it's your brother."
Yeon Baek-in remained silent.
The man said calmly, "Don't worry. I'll resolve it peacefully."
Yeon Baek-in looked at the man. Watching his profile, he felt a sense of relief. Even if he were to die, there was a unique sense of trust this man provided in this moment. And this side of the man was likely the strength that had kept the buttons of their relationship fastened all this time.
*
"What kind of person is the Young Cult Leader?"
At Seo Jin's question, Lee An turned her head toward her. The two women were on their way back after visiting the Tongcheon Pavilion and the Eun-wol branch.
One could tell just by looking at the way Geom Mu-geuk and Lee An treated each other—the words they spoke and the looks they exchanged—how deep their affection was. That was why Seo Jin thought Lee An would be the person who knew the Young Cult Leader best.
Lee An described Geom Mu-geuk in a single word.
"A dream. He is truly like a dream."
"A dream?"
"He's someone who makes me dream of becoming like him."
If there were good dreams, there were also nightmares.
"He's also someone who makes me feel the anxiety that one day I might wake up and find all of this was just a dream."
Just as he had suddenly changed one day, would he suddenly return to how he was before? Such a vague fear lingered in her heart. It was a fear she hadn't even shared with Seo Dae-ryong or Jang Ho, yet it was the first thing she confessed to Seo Jin.
"What if it is a dream? You just have to not wake up until you die."
Lee An laughed at those words. She liked having Seo Jin as a team leader. They were both women and got along well. After all, Blue Face was relatively difficult to talk to.
"Anyway, just be ready to be surprised. He's someone who shows us something amazing every time."
Then Seo Jin spoke.
"I think I already know a little bit."
Inside an inn, Geom Mu-geuk and Yeon Baek-jin were drinking together. The seemingly fastidious Yeon Baek-jin was talking to Geom Mu-geuk with a flushed face. He didn't look guarded at all.
"Well, if it's only that much..."
The two women entered the inn and sat down at the table where Geom Mu-geuk and Yeon Baek-jin were seated.
"We're back."
After greeting Geom Mu-geuk, they also greeted Yeon Baek-jin.
Geom Mu-geuk said to the two women, "I told Master Yeon the truth. That we followed Seo Jin to protect her."
That was enough to explain how he had described their relationship to Yeon Baek-jin. Yeon Baek-jin's gaze turned toward Seo Jin. He had already discussed with Geom Mu-geuk how Im Hyeon had come to find him and how he had learned about this matter—a conversation he normally should have had with her. Since there was no need to repeat it, he stood up from his seat.
This was also why Geom Mu-geuk had revealed himself to him. He hoped Yeon Baek-jin wouldn't get deeply involved with her. He wanted this connection to be a passing one.
As Yeon Baek-jin prepared to leave, Geom Mu-geuk spoke.
"Try talking to your older brother."
Yeon Baek-jin flinched at the unexpected suggestion. After staring at Geom Mu-geuk for a moment, he recalled what Mu-geuk had said before.
"You said if I bought you a drink, you'd tell me how to avoid brothers shedding blood in a power struggle, didn't you?"
"I did."
"Is telling me to talk to my brother really that solution?"
His expression made it clear he was asking if that was all there was to it.
"Yes, that's right."
Yeon Baek-jin snorted. No matter how much he thought about it, this wasn't something that could be solved through conversation.
"I guess I can't buy you that drink yet."
As he turned to leave, Geom Mu-geuk said, "It might seem like there are many ways for martial artists to resolve conflicts, but most are settled in one of two ways."
"And what are those?"
"Dialogue and the sword."
Geom Mu-geuk added calmly, "Whether it works or not, meet him first. Relationships that seem the most hopeless can sometimes turn out surprisingly well."
*
The next day, the atmosphere in the White Dragon Unit was somber.
Two members of the White Dragon Unit had already met their deaths. On top of that, grim rumors were circulating that Instructor Pyo-san had committed suicide.
"They said a temporary instructor is coming today before the new permanent one is assigned."
While the hall members were discussing who the temporary instructor might be, Yu Gwang was trembling with anxiety.
"I feel like something even bigger is going to happen."
Gyo Seok spoke dismissively.
"Who's going to die this time? Me? You?"
"I'm not joking."
"I'm not joking either. So what? Should I quit the hall and go back to my hometown?"
"Sorry."
Yu Gwang felt bad for Gyo Seok. If he felt anxious, he should just swallow it down. There was no need to make others anxious too.
Then, someone spoke from behind.
"It's better than not knowing that something ominous is happening."
It was Lee An. She was grateful to Yu Gwang for stepping up bravely yesterday, and she believed his talent was an essential instinct for a martial artist.
"In fact, I think it wouldn't be a bad idea to hone that sense of yours."
Coming from Lee An of all people, Yu Gwang was deeply moved.
"By any chance, that shield you mentioned..."
Gyo Seok covered Yu Gwang's mouth.
"Don't."
He stopped him in advance, fearing he would ask if they were still recruiting for that "shield."
"I won't! I said I won't! Do I look that stupid to you?"
"Exactly that much! No, even more!"
Lee An laughed as she watched the two. In truth, she wanted to take them both to the Ghost Shadow Squad. Of course, that was impossible. She couldn't let these innocent boys join the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Just then, the noisy area fell silent.
"The new instructor is coming."
Someone was walking toward them. He was a man with his hair tied back, wearing shabby martial attire and carrying a single steel sword, but his aura was bright. He had the most radiant expression of any instructor or master they had seen here.
The moment he saw him, Geom Mu-geuk understood. He understood why Yeon Baek-jin had no choice but to walk such a fate. It wasn't because of his brother. His brother, too, must have been a victim in the end.
Because the man before them was one of the Twelve Zodiac Kings. And not just any of the Twelve Zodiac Kings.
He was the First King among them. The Sword King, Ak Gun-hak.
Though it was after the three absolute masters of the era had died and Hwa Mu-gi had gone into seclusion, he had risen to the position of the strongest under heaven during the era of the Twelve Zodiac Kings. He was, in name and reality, the strongest martial artist.
Geom Mu-geuk calmed his racing heart and steadied himself by gripping the hilt of the Black Demonic Sword. He did this because his sword might have vibrated on its own in response to the opponent's aura. He had met several of the Twelve Zodiac Kings before, but he had never been this tense.
Having reached the hall members, the Sword King introduced himself to everyone.
"I am Instructor Ak, and I'll be teaching you temporarily until a new instructor is assigned."
The Sword King gave the hall members a wide grin.
"Now then, shall we start with each of you introducing yourselves?"