Chapter 101: Blackmail (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 101: Blackmail (2)
“Maybe I should just slaughter everyone in the Martial Alliance, regardless of age or gender.”
“You bastard!”
At my words, the Black-Veiled Bamboo Hat Man, who had been keeping his distance, couldn't hide his agitation.
He probably never imagined I would resort to such a tactic.
In any case, my goal in trying to become the Alliance Leader was to prevent the Martial Alliance from falling into the Golden Emperor’s hands.
Didn't they say it themselves? Even a cornered rat will bite a cat.
If I couldn't have the Martial Alliance anyway, there was no reason I couldn't turn the whole place upside down.
Then, the other man in the bamboo hat—the one who had blocked my sword strike—spoke up.
“This is mere bluster. There is no way you would do that.”
“What do you mean, ‘no way’? Can you still say that after seeing this?”
“Since ancient times, the Sword Immortal has been a Grandmaster of the Orthodox Faction who revered justice. Are we to believe his successor would massacre innocent people?”
Hearing those words, the first man paused for a moment. Then, he looked at me and burst into a boisterous laugh.
“Hahahaha! I almost fell for it. You’re right. A man of the cloth who has cultivated the Dao would never aim to slaughter his fellow members of the Orthodox Faction.”
I let out a smirk and replied.
“Do you really think I’d hesitate to do that if it meant instilling a sense of crisis in someone trying to control the Murim from the shadows?”
“Nonsense! Do you think we don't know this is just a ploy to confuse us?”
The guy who fell for it first sure has a lot to say.
In that case, is there any need to hesitate?
I raised my sword high.
“Stop bluffing!”
“As of today, the Golden Emperor is going to become quite famous. Or perhaps his infamy will surpass even that of the Five Great Villains.”
As soon as I finished speaking, I surged my internal power and focused it into the Evil Connection Sword.
When I openly released my energy, the man shouted in panic.
“You, truly!”
Whether he shouted or not, I swung my sword toward the wall.
A sharp killing intent erupted from the Evil Connection Sword along with the strike, threatening to demolish the wall.
It was at that exact moment.
The man who had blocked my previous strike moved like a flash of lightning to intercept it.
Clang—!
With a bone-chilling screech of metal, the sharp energy deflected off him in all directions, causing the floor and walls of the office to crack and splinter.
Slash! Rip! Craaaack!
‘Impressive.’
He had parried the strike and diverted the energy to minimize the damage. To think he didn't budge an inch from his spot even after I poured a significant amount of internal power into that blow.
As expected, he was a Peerless Master who had long since crossed the wall into the Realm of Superhumans.
The other man, who had kept his distance, shouted in disbelief.
“You’ve lost your mind!”
“What’s so crazy about it?”
“Are you truly the successor of the Sword Immortal?”
“Why? Do I not look the part?”
“A man claiming to be the Sword Immortal’s successor has not a shred of hesitation when it comes to killing his own kind? You’ve gone completely mad.”
“You lot were the ones who provoked me first.”
They seemed to have forgotten that they were the ones blackmailing me by holding my weaknesses over my head.
Maybe the old, weak version of me would have folded, but I wouldn't succumb to such threats now. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Then, the man who had blocked my strike rebuked me in a booming voice.
“You have fallen! Successor of the Sword Immortal!”
It wasn't his previously disguised voice.
‘...This voice?’
Though he had shouted in a heated tone, I had heard this voice before.
“How can a man who claims to revere the Dao sacrifice innocent people just for his own ends? How can you still call yourself a member of the Orthodox Faction!”
With his continued scolding, I became certain. I knew exactly who this voice belonged to.
He must have been so agitated that he lost his cool and forgot to disguise his voice.
As if conscious of his outburst, the other man rebuked him.
“That’s enough.”
Realizing his mistake, the man fell silent.
But it was already too late.
I looked at him and said, “Aren't you ashamed to be talking about someone else falling?”
“What are you talking about?”
What was the point of playing innocent and using a disguised voice now?
I snorted and said to him, “What a disappointment for the man recognized by all as the greatest swordsman of the Orthodox Faction. Former Alliance Leader, the First Sword of Wuhan, Baek Hyang-muk!”
‘!!!’
At my words, the man flinched.
Having his identity exposed must have been incredibly disconcerting.
I was the one who found it absurd. To think that the symbol of the Orthodox Faction, the man who had led the Martial Alliance through its greatest golden age, had joined hands with these people.
Whatever the reason, his actions were disappointing enough to make me wonder if he was truly the man I once knew.
Then again, something had been off ever since I learned that the Alliance Leader had mastered the Blood Heaven Great Achievement Art, a divine art that only the Cult Leader of our sect is supposed to know.
“……”
I pressed the man who could no longer find his words.
“Baek Hyang-muk. Does a man who was once the leader of the entire Martial Alliance have the right to lecture anyone else while conspiring here with those who seek to control the Murim from the shadows?”
“...It is a misunderstanding.”
He finally spoke, as if trying to explain himself.
“What misunderstanding? Even now, aren't you hiding your face inside the Martial Alliance and acting in secret with these people?”
“I am...”
As he tried to say something, the other man interrupted.
“Enough!”
He seemed to be trying to stop me from shaking Baek Hyang-muk’s resolve.
After all, if Baek Hyang-muk—the strongest combatant here—wavered, it would be difficult to stop me.
Then, the man spoke again.
“Change of plans. We kill him here and now.”
“Kill me?”
Why did it sound like even this was part of their plan?
The man turned his gaze toward me and said, “Successor of the Sword Immortal. Did you think we haven't been devising a way to kill you all this time?”
“A way to kill me?”
Had they prepared some kind of countermeasure?
While I was wondering, the man suddenly grit his teeth.
Crunch!
A sound like something shattering echoed from inside his mouth. It seemed he had been hiding something in his teeth.
Then, the veins on his neck—the only visible part of his skin—began to bulge and turn black.
Vroooooom!
His energy began to skyrocket.
Just moments ago, my Qi sense told me he was a Supreme Peak master, but his internal power alone had exploded to the point where it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he had reached the Realm of Superhumans.
Was such a thing possible through drugs alone, without a special martial art?
“Do you think power gained through drugs will last long?”
At my question, the man chuckled and replied.
“Taking this medicine consumes all of one's vitality to boost internal power nearly threefold.”
I frowned at his words.
It was because he said it consumed one's vitality.
That meant that while his internal power might temporarily increase, he would surely die once his vitality was exhausted.
“Are you throwing your life away?”
“It’s a small price to pay for killing the successor of the Sword Immortal.”
With those words, the man tried to blow a whistle hanging around his neck.
When I fired a blast of energy from the Evil Connection Sword to stop him, Baek Hyang-muk stepped in and blocked it.
Clang!
In that opening, the man blew the whistle.
Tweeeeeet!
The sound of the whistle echoed throughout the office and beyond.
The sound spread to every corner of the Strategist's Hall.
Don't tell me these guys...
The man looked at me, his lips curling into a sinister smirk.
“Every force here has staked their lives to capture you, Successor of the Sword Immortal.”
“Ha!”
“This place will be your grave.”
They seemed quite determined.
There were over two hundred people stationed inside the Strategist's Hall alone. If all of them had taken the pill that exploded their internal power at the cost of their vitality, they had essentially created a suicide squad.
They must have decided that this was the only way to capture me.
If you included Baek Hyang-muk, the greatest master of the Orthodox Faction, the immortal Seobok, and this man whose internal power had reached the superhuman realm through drugs, it was truly a formidable force.
The man gestured toward me and shouted.
“Gunbang! You tie him down!”
He seemed confident that Seobok, with his immortal body, could pin me down.
Seobok didn't respond to his command. Instead, he was pressing his hand against his forehead.
“What is it?”
“...It’s nothing.”
Seobok shook his head and prepared to lunged at me.
I let out a smirk and said, “You went through a lot of trouble to prepare all this. Well then, try your best to stop me.”
“What?”
Before he could even finish his question, I threw myself toward the window of the Strategist's Hall.
Baek Hyang-muk, Seobok, and the others all lunged at once to stop me, but my lightness skill—the Wind Shadow Step, refined to its ultimate state—was arguably the best in the Murim.
In an instant, I crashed through the window.
The startled man shouted, “H-Halt!”
Did you think I’d just stay here and fight you all day?
My goal was to use the Golden Emperor’s appearance to lay waste to the Martial Alliance.
Of course, I had already decided which place to wreck first.
I had the perfect spot in mind.
Swish!
I flew toward my destination.
I could hear their shouts from behind.
“Catch him! We must catch him at all costs!”
With those words, the man, Baek Hyang-muk, Seobok, and a swarm of warriors in the Strategist's Hall uniforms poured out of the windows.
Crash! Smash! Shatter!
It was quite a sight to see them bursting through the paper windows of the Strategist's Hall building.
They must be dying of anxiety. If they didn't catch me, the Golden Emperor—who wasn't even here—would become the public enemy of the entire Murim.
I intentionally maintained a distance from them as I used my lightness skill.
It wouldn't do if they couldn't keep up.
—Where are you going?
‘Yellow Dragon Hall.’
—Ha!
At my answer, the Lesser Conversation Sword seemed impressed.
What a great opportunity this was. I had been wondering how to kill Moyong Su, the man who had plunged a sword into my stomach before my regression, and now this chance had presented itself.
Before long, the Hall Master's Palace, where the various halls were gathered, came into view.
Seeing the buildings with the plaque that read "Yellow Dragon Hall," I entered without hesitation.
The guards protecting the Yellow Dragon Hall tried to stop me as I suddenly appeared.
“Stop! You cannot enter this place without—”
Slash!
I severed both of their legs with a single strike.
“Aaaagh!”
They rolled on the ground, screaming in agony. Leaving them behind, I leaped over the entrance pavilion.
Perhaps having heard the screams, numerous members of the Yellow Dragon Hall poured out of the buildings.
The Yellow Dragon Hall was composed of the direct and collateral lines of the Moyong Family, as well as the young elites from various sects and clans in Liaoning Province associated with them. It was essentially the core strength of the Moyong Family itself.
“What is the meaning of this?”
Those who came out of the outer buildings were stunned to see the guards with their legs severed.
“What?!”
“Who on earth is that man?”
“One of his eyes is...”
Yes, one eye was golden. They must have seen it clearly.
I lunged into the gap between the startled warriors. Then, I began to slash and hack at them mercilessly.
Slash! Rip! Tear!
“Aaaagh!”
“Gah!”
They tried to draw their weapons and resist, but even their best masters were only first-rate. How could they possibly stop me?
I left one or two out of every ten alive and killed the rest with a single strike. When the survivors woke up, they would be able to describe this cruelty in great detail.
“Catch him!”
“Waaaaah!”
At the sound of the erupting screams, the members of the Yellow Dragon Hall swarmed toward me.
True to its reputation as one of the three largest halls in the Martial Alliance, the Yellow Dragon Hall had a massive number of members. In an instant, over two hundred people surrounded me.
Among them, I saw Moyong Su, the Hall Master of the Yellow Dragon Hall.
“Who on earth is that man?”
“I don't know, sir! He suddenly appeared in our hall and started attacking our members.”
“Capture him at once!”
I guess he didn't plan on stepping up himself. Fine, then I’ll go to him.
I swung my sword at the people surrounding me.
“Move.”
Slash!
“Aaaagh!”
“Gah!”
In an instant, about twenty people were cut in half by the sharp energy emanating from my sword.
Those who were only second or first-rate couldn't block my sword at all. Just as a thousand ants can't do anything to a water buffalo.
“S-Stop him! Stop him!”
Moyong Su turned pale, terrified by my overwhelming martial prowess. No matter how much of an elite he was among the younger generation, he was at most a Peak Realm master.
It was embarrassing to think I had been killed by someone like him before my regression.
Slash! Slash!
I walked toward him, cutting down the members who stood in my way.
Covered in blood, I must have looked like a demon from hell.
When I got within ten paces, the hesitating man turned around and tried to flee, abandoning his command.
However...
Flicker!
Using the Shape Transformation technique, I instantly blocked the path of the fleeing man.
“Heh!”
I gave the startled man a thin smile.
“It won't do for the leader to run away.”
“W-Who are you? Why are you doing this...?”
“Ask the guy who’s already in hell why you’re dying.”
“What?”
As soon as I finished speaking, I brought my hand down on his head.
Thwack!
“Guh!”
Crunch!
I only used two stars of internal power, but the moment I hit him, his skull was crushed, his eyeballs popped out, and blood sprayed from his seven orifices.
Moyong Su’s body, his head caved in, staggered like a puppet with its strings cut. It was as if he were dancing in his own blood.
“H-Hall Master!”
“This can't be...”
The members of the Yellow Dragon Hall were left in utter despair.
If it were an enemy they could somewhat handle, they might have vented their rage, but I had not only slaughtered their members with overwhelming power but also killed their Hall Master, Moyong Su, in a single blow. Who could possibly speak up?
Swish! Swish!
At that moment, the three men in bamboo hats and the warriors in Strategist's Hall uniforms appeared at the Yellow Dragon Hall.
Thinking they were allies, the surviving members of the Yellow Dragon Hall cried out.
“Are you from the Strategist's Hall?”
“P-Please help us!”
“That man with the golden eye suddenly appeared and slaughtered our Hall Master Moyong and our members!”
The man in the bamboo hat, whom I presumed to be Baek Hyang-muk, looked at the numerous corpses and glared at me, lifting his hat in disbelief.
“You’ve finally done it.”
His voice was thick with rage. He seemed furious, believing I had killed innocent members of the Orthodox Faction.
The man who had taken the drug stepped forward past him and tried to shout while pointing at me.
“Listen, everyone! I am from the Strategist's Hall. That man is—”
It was before he could finish his sentence.
I stomped my foot against the ground.
Boom!
In that instant, a thunderous shockwave spread in all directions, and the surviving members of the Yellow Dragon Hall suddenly rolled their eyes back and collapsed to the ground.
Thud! Thud!
Did they really think I’d let them blabber about me being the successor of the Sword Immortal?
Seeing them all collapse, the man in the bamboo hat muttered in a voice full of disbelief.
“Could it be... the Blood Demon Subjugation Step?”
Actually, I was going to snap my fingers, but since I sensed people from the neighboring halls gathering due to the commotion, I used the Transformation Eye Scripture at its peak mastery.
Judging by the significant consumption of my Innate True Qi, it seemed at least two or three hundred people had collapsed.
Baek Hyang-muk said to the other man in the bamboo hat.
“He is the Lesser Sword Immortal—no, the master of the Blood Demon. Why are you surprised now? If we don't kill him quickly, more people will be sacrificed.”
“Hmph! I know.”
The man in the bamboo hat raised his hand, and the warriors from the Strategist's Hall surrounded me in a circle. They were forming a barrier, fearing I might escape again.
The man in the bamboo hat, Seobok, and Baek Hyang-muk took their Qi control stances and closed the distance.
Baek Hyang-muk pointed his sword at me and said, “I heard you inherited the true teachings of the Sword Immortal, who was called the Number One Sword Under Heaven. I wanted to test my skills against you at least once. It’s a pity it has to happen like this.”
“I don't need your sentimentality. Focus on killing him.”
I snorted at their conversation. Then, I gripped the hilt of the Evil Connection Sword with both hands in a reverse grip and said.
“I’ll start by saying I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I didn't intend to use my full power if I could help it, but I’m also running out of time. Let’s wrap this up all at once.”
The man found my words absurd.
“Ha! You certainly underestimate us. No matter how strong you are as the successor of the Sword Immortal, against a force of this caliber, you won't easily—”
It was before he could finish his sentence.
Crackle! Zap!
‘!!!’
As my entire body was enveloped in lightning through the Adaptation of Thunder Energy, the man was struck dumb.
“We have to stop him!”
Flash! Flash!
Sensing the danger, Baek Hyang-muk and Seobok lunged at me simultaneously.
Despite their immense pressure, I plunged the Evil Connection Sword into the ground while in the state of Adaptation of Thunder Energy.
Thud!
‘Great Dao Heavenly Thunder Sword Method, 3rd Form: Reverse Heaven Lightning Thunder.’
It was at that exact moment.
Crackle! Boom! Roar!
Lightning erupted upward from the ground across an area of over thirty meters.
“What?!”
“T-This is!”
Baek Hyang-muk and Seobok, who were rushing toward me, were both struck with utter horror.
It was a cataclysmic phenomenon, as if the thunder and lightning that should have struck from the heavens were instead surging violently up toward the sky.