Death Light as a Feather
Ouyang Qiangang took his first step with the calm ease of a man out for a stroll.
KRAK!
His left foot came down on the sword blade that was punching up through the floorboards — and crushed it flat.
"Kgh!"
With the assassin's dying scream, blood welled up through the gaps in the corridor's wooden planks. The true qi of the Everlasting Formless Divine Art, channeled down through the blade, had detonated inside the would-be ambusher's body.
At the same instant, Ouyang Qiangang's right hand shot out into empty air.
Shff—
His grip, faster than lightning, caught the throat of the second assassin dropping from the ceiling with perfect precision.
Crack—!
A spine-chilling sound echoed through the corridor as the man's neck snapped before he could so much as scream.
BOOM!
The door burst apart, and a pair of short blades flew straight for Ouyang Qiangang's heart. But the moment that door shattered, a fierce, frost-laden whirlwind was already blooming from his right hand — the Gale Phantom Cyclone Palms unfurling at full force.
SHRAAAAAA—
CRUNCH!
"Uwaaagh!"
The third assassin, a massive hole punched clean through his chest, slammed into the wall with a final shriek of agony.
All of it had happened in the blink of a single step.
When three assassins fell so pathetically, the rest of them — lurking in ambush at either end of the corridor — burst out all at once. They had finally understood that Ouyang Qiangang was a transcendent master no one of them could hope to face alone.
But it was the worst possible choice they could have made.
SHRAAAAAA—
The storm of blue palm-shadows conjured by the Gale Phantom Cyclone Palms flooded the narrow corridor from wall to wall and swept the assassins away without mercy. Desperately, they threw up their defensive qi to block the palm force — and it availed them nothing. Palm force of that terrifying speed, layered with the weight of a mountain, shattered their swords like glass and tore their bodies apart like paper.
BAMBAMBAMBAMBAM—
CRUNCH!
CRACK!
Chestbones caved inward. Skulls split apart. The horrifying symphony of splattering blood, flying flesh, and snapping bone filled the corridor from end to end. It was a living hell.
In the space of a heartbeat, more than a dozen first-rate assassins were wiped from existence.
The moment Ouyang Qiangang moved to walk, with indifferent eyes, down the corridor draped in death —
Sssss—
A longsword wreathed in sword qi flew silently from behind him, aimed straight at his heart. The internal force riding that blade was on an entirely different dimension from anything he had faced so far. It was a sword strike of terrifying power — nothing less than the realm of Peak.
A cold sneer curled Ouyang Qiangang's lips. At last, the Ten Shadow Lords who had been guarding Gu-yang Cheong-cheong had stepped in personally.
Piiik—
A sharp whistle slipped from between his lips. In the same breath, he unfolded the Nine Palaces Trailing Fragrance Steps as though he had eyes in the back of his head, evading the assassin's blade by less than a sheet of paper's width.
Swip!
Startled that his perfect ambush strike had failed, the Shadow Lord's figure melted back into the darkness as if dissolving into it.
Then, in Ouyang Qiangang's mind's eye, an image appeared: Hwang Nodae carrying Gu-yang Cheong-cheong to safety and slipping away into the shadows. A still frame transmitted by the nanobots.
The chain that had been squeezing his heart was gone.
A smile spread across Ouyang Qiangang's lips — one soaked in a bone-chilling killing intent.
Shff—
The Shadow Lord's sword, reappearing out of nowhere, plunged silently into his flank.
Doctor, shall I activate maximum combat mode?
'No need. I can deal with the interest on this debt without your help.'
Whiik—
His form, flowing through the Nine Palaces Trailing Fragrance Steps, bent at an impossible angle, and the Shadow Lord's blade pierced nothing but empty air. Before the man could vanish into the darkness again, Ouyang Qiangang closed the distance with the Treading Ripple Steps.
The Gale Phantom Cyclone Palms erupted from his hands like a storm!
BAMBAMBAMBAM—!
His palm strikes were fast enough to leave no afterimage at all, yet each one carried the weight to shatter a mountain. Sensing in that instant that there was no room to retreat from the thirty-six strikes raining down upon him, the Shadow Lord swung his sword with everything he had.
KAANG!
SHRAAAANG—!
Watching the sword that had been his companion for a lifetime shatter like a toy, the Shadow Lord's eyes showed, for the first time, a terror that went beyond mere shock.
Ouyang Qiangang did not stop.
SWAAAAANG—
The follow-up Explosion Flame King Strike smashed into the Shadow Lord's legs.
KWAJIK—
Palm force laden with monstrous power ground both of his legs to pulp in a single blow.
"Ggghhh—!"
Even in that state, the Shadow Lord clenched his teeth and swung both palms at Ouyang Qiangang. But it was a fool's resistance.
SHRAAAAAA—
The Gale Phantom Cyclone Palms obliterated his palm-force head-on — and crushed both of his arms without a shred of mercy besides.
THUD—!
Robbed of all four limbs, the Shadow Lord collapsed to the floor, blood fountaining from his stumps.
Thud.
He stared up at Ouyang Qiangang with a face half-drained of its senses. Then, as though grasping at something, he stammered out a question.
"Don't tell me… you're… Ouyang… Qiangang…?"
"So you are surprised."
Ouyang Qiangang looked down at the Shadow Lord with icy eyes and spoke.
"Tell me. Where did you come from? And whose orders are you acting under? Answer honestly, and I'll let you go without pain."
His voice was cold as ice. But instead of answering, the Shadow Lord retched up mouthful after mouthful of red blood and burst out laughing.
"Khh… khk…"
In his eyes, alongside contempt, there seethed a madness beyond all words.
"Asking an assassin… who hired him… you truly don't know… the first thing about the martial world…"
"You're choosing death, then? Foolish."
"The foolish one… is you, boy…"
The Shadow Lord boiled up the last of his internal energy and severed his own heart meridian. It was a painful but certain method of self-destruction — one only a Peak master could perform.
"I'll see you… in hell before long… khk-khk… khh…"
The light died in the Shadow Lord's eyes.
Ouyang Qiangang could only stare, dazed, at the man who had ended his own life without the slightest hesitation. He had never imagined the assassin would take his own life so easily — which meant there had been no way to stop him.
Ouyang Qiangang's gaze grew heavy.
'Death here weighs nothing more than a feather… Hoo… I still have far too much left to learn about this world…'
Even with overwhelming martial force, he had failed to extract the information he needed. It was a bitter lesson in the truth that the martial world did not run on the logic of strength alone.
Ouyang Qiangang left the blood-soaked manor behind and headed for the Ouyang Clan Manor. But his footsteps were not quick — there was simply too much to think through.
'There are few sects that could mobilize that many skilled assassins… where could they be from? And who in the world hired them to kill me?'
His eyes sank deep and dark as the sea.
'The most obvious suspect as the client would be Dong Hyeon-do. His watchers would have reported that I created the Evil-Warding Sacred Unit…'
Ouyang Qiangang did not yet know that he had earned the alias "Divine Doctor of Life and Death." No one had thought to tell him. And so it had never once occurred to him that Dong Hyeon-do feared the revelation of that title to the world. He suspected only that Dong Hyeon-do disliked the shift in the Ouyang Clan's standing brought about by the Evil-Warding Sacred Unit's sales, and wanted him dead for that reason alone.
'My second suspect is whoever spread the Black Death. Whoever it was, they'd have every reason to want me dead for stopping it with the Evil-Warding Sacred Unit. The problem is I have no idea who they are…'
He frowned.
'Damn it. Not a single easy opponent in the lot.'
The sunlight was strengthening, and people were filling the streets.
'First, I leave the manor as planned. Whoever is hunting me, they are a real and present threat. If I stay at the manor, my family will be exposed to danger — exactly what happened with Cheong-ah.'
With his mind made up, he returned to the Ouyang Clan Manor.
In a chamber of the main hall, Gu-yang Cheong-cheong slept with a peaceful face — but the tracks of tears not yet dried were still plain at the corners of her eyes. Gu-yang Baek, Dong Yeon-hwa, and Gu-yang Cheon-gi stood wordlessly at her side, exhaustion etched into every line of their faces.
Stepping into the room and seeing them like that, Ouyang Qiangang's heart grew heavy.
'I will build a clan that no one dares touch. So that they never have to suffer like this again…'
At his entrance, Gu-yang Baek shot to his feet.
"Gang-ah! Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine, Father."
"Thank heaven. Everyone has been worrying themselves sick over you."
"How is Cheong-ah?"
"She was terribly frightened, but she's unharmed."
Ouyang Qiangang nodded and walked to Gu-yang Cheong-cheong's side, gently taking her small hand. The moment he wrapped his fingers around that soft, still-childish hand, a crushing fatigue washed over him — strange and overwhelming. Without realizing it, he had been wound tight with terror at the thought that he might lose Gu-yang Cheong-cheong.
Gu-yang Baek spoke.
"Hwang Nodae tells me you fought the kidnappers. Did you learn who they were? I confess I'm dying to know what drove them to such a deed."
Ouyang Qiangang exhaled inwardly and delivered the lie he had prepared.
"They were a band of wandering rogues who roam the martial world. They abducted Cheong-ah to squeeze money out of the family. Unfortunately, the moment I tried to drag them back here to the manor, they took their own lives."
Gu-yang Baek's eyes widened.
"Hmm… I would have liked to see the faces of such men, at least… and they killed themselves."
Ouyang Qiangang could not bring himself to say that the assassins had targeted Cheong-ah because of him. If Gu-yang Baek learned the truth, he would never permit his son to leave the manor.
As he delivered his false report, Ouyang Qiangang's gaze brushed past Hwang Nodae and Du Jin-seong, who stood behind Gu-yang Baek. The two men bowed their heads slightly — a silent promise to say nothing to the patriarch. Their faces were full of worry, but it was clear they had no intention of defying his will.
Ouyang Qiangang spoke.
"Father, I must leave the manor today, as planned."
"What did you say?"
Gu-yang Baek went on, stunned.
"Cheong-ah has just suffered something this horrific, and you mean to go somewhere?"
"That is precisely why I must leave today."
Ouyang Qiangang's voice was calm, but it carried a will like tempered steel.
"I'm not sure I follow you."
"Cheong-ah was abducted from our own home by nothing more than a band of rogues because the manor's defenses are lax. And they are lax because we've never dared build our strength properly, for fear of Grandfather's eye."
"Hmm…"
"The more swiftly I move, the sooner this main family breaks free of my maternal grandfather's influence. And then Cheong-ah will be safe."
"Hoo…"
As he gazed at his son and let out a quiet sigh, bitterness and pride tangled together in Gu-yang Baek's eyes.
"Very well. If that is truly what your heart tells you, then do as you intend."
He managed to press his worry for his son down inside a single, impassive sentence.
After bidding farewell to Gu-yang Baek and Dong Yeon-hwa, Ouyang Qiangang stood before Gu-yang Cheon-gi. The boy's eyes, already braced for a long parting, misted over.
"Hyung-nim…"
"I won't be gone long. Take good care of our parents while I'm away. And play with Cheong-ah plenty — my share too."
"Yes… hyung-nim."
Ouyang Qiangang stroked the head of his sleeping youngest sibling one last time and left the room. Geum Wang nuzzled his cheek once against Gu-yang Cheong-cheong's, then bounded up onto Ouyang Qiangang's shoulder.
By the front gate, Hwang Nodae was already waiting with Du Jin-seong, a bundle of belongings fetched from Ouyang Qiangang's residence cradled in his arms. Ouyang Qiangang took the bundle and addressed the two men through his voice transmission.
Hwang Nodae and Du Jin-seong bowed at the waist in silence, their faces set with unwavering resolve.