The Shadow's Final Pull
“Huff! Huff!”
Yayul Jeok had never imagined his breathing could become this ragged.
Trickle…
“Kugh!”
A sharp pain flared from his severed left shoulder. He had used extreme pressure-point techniques to staunch the bleeding, but even that was no longer possible.
His internal injuries worsened with every passing moment, and the little inner energy he had left drained away faster. Even the energy he had gathered at his pressure points to stop the bleeding was being consumed bit by bit.
Once that energy was gone, nothing would hold back the waterfall of blood. He would die from blood loss. ‘It’s fine.’ He forced his blurring eyes open. ‘Still… it’s fine.’
Dragging his feet with difficulty, Yayul Jeok finally reached the small hidden chamber connected to the nineteenth passage—Night Castle’s one-hundred-thirty-sixth minor secret cave.
There, before his eyes, stood the massive trigger lever that could activate the Hwasan-dae-yeon.
Kugugung! Kugung!
The chamber trembled. Fierce battles raged throughout the labyrinthine passages. By now, more than half the Shadow Altar assassins must have fallen. The Myeolsa Army had infiltrated as well, so the casualties were surely devastating.
The one saving grace was that every Shadow Altar member excelled in poison and hidden weapons. Even against two supreme masters, they might hold out for a while.
Twitch!
As Yayul Jeok tried to approach the lever, his lower body suddenly lost all strength. He forced power into his toes.
He truly had nothing left. The only strength remaining was just enough to keep him alive a little longer. ‘It won’t work.’
He had believed that burning loyalty and faith would let him trigger the Hwasan-dae-yeon and even contact the main sect. He had been wrong. He had underestimated the enemy’s forces and their schemes. ‘I can’t send word… but…’
Rather than surviving to report the situation, it would be better to activate the device even if it cost him his life. That was his final judgment. Only now, at the very end, could he make a cold decision for the sect’s sake. ‘A pity. Though regrettable, if the Evil God has decreed my life ends here, then so be it.’
Yayul Jeok looked up at the ceiling. The hidden chamber, lit by a single night pearl, was narrow and dark. Aside from tiny air vents and the entrance, it was completely sealed.
Yet Yayul Jeok was not looking at the ceiling—he was gazing at the sky beyond it, and at the god who dwelt beyond that sky. ‘I cannot know what the god desires, nor why my life must end here. However…’
At least he had lived fiercely. He had lived for the god, yet also lived as himself. He had obeyed every order of the sect, but he had never lost his own identity.
A faint smile touched Yayul Jeok’s lips. The formless god he had always seen now seemed to wear a clear expression.
It was a face he had seen only once in his life—the son of the god who led the Saeum Sect, the god himself. The current leader of the Saeum Sect stood there.
“…Fulfill the great work.”
Yayul Jeok placed his remaining hand on the trigger lever. It normally required the combined strength of ten strong men to move. In his prime, Yayul Jeok would have snorted and pressed it down with ease.
But in his ruined state, even that was impossible. He would have to squeeze every last drop of inner energy and muscle power just to move it.
Yayul Jeok closed his eyes and gathered every trace of inner energy he had fixed for stopping the bleeding, channeling it all into his hand.
Fwoooosh!
Blood gushed from his left shoulder.
“Krrrrgh!”
His face flushed crimson as he forced every ounce of remaining strength upward. The color lasted only a moment. From massive blood loss, his face turned deathly pale at terrifying speed. ‘Just… a little more!’
Kuuuung!
The trigger lever began to sink, little by little.
To prevent accidental activation, the lever was secured by three separate locks. Yayul Jeok bit his lip.
Click!
The lever passed the first lock.
Only the first. Yayul Jeok felt the world spin.
“Urrgh!”
Click!
The lever passed the second lock.
“Haaah!”
For an instant, Yayul Jeok could not draw breath. His lung function had deteriorated to the extreme. No matter how hard he tried to inhale, air would not enter. Without air, he could not exert strength—and he had no time. Blood continued to pour even now.
“Rrrgh!”
Clenching his teeth, Yayul Jeok drew up even his innate vital energy. It would scatter to heaven and earth when he died anyway. There was no point saving it when death was merely being hastened.
Whoosh!
Life returned to Yayul Jeok’s face for a moment as his nearly depleted innate energy exploded. He pressed down on the lever with all his might.
“Aaaaaagh!”
At that moment—
Kwaaang!
A massive hole burst open in the chamber wall. Dozens of rock fragments slammed into Yayul Jeok’s body and head.
It was a moment of shock, yet Yayul Jeok did not stop. His eyes could no longer see. He took one final step forward.
“No!!”
A woman’s sharp voice rang out.
And then…
Click!
The lever passed the final, third lock.
Thud!
At the same instant, Yayul Jeok was flung sideways and crashed into the wall.
“Kuhk!”
The blood he coughed up was bright red. Of course, Yayul Jeok could not see the color of the blood he had vomited.
Rumble…
“W-what is this? Did it actually activate?!”
“…It has.”
Even as he lay dying, Yayul Jeok’s lips twitched faintly. A familiar voice.
“Damn it! Then what happens now? From this moment, every assassin beside a high official will immediately kill their target?”
“That is correct.”
“I don’t understand! No matter how large the explosion or how thick the smoke, Guangdong Province is enormous!”
“No fool could miss the crimson smoke rising from this entire mountain. That is why it is called the Hwasan-dae-yeon—because it resembles an erupting volcano. Furthermore…”
“…?!”
“The Hwasan-dae-yeon releases a massive quantity of a special scent similar to the Ten-Thousand-Li Tracking Incense. The assassins themselves cannot detect it, but trained tracking hounds are stationed across dozens of li. At most, within half a shichen, every targeted official will be dead.”
“Then you should have killed the hounds first instead of coming all the way here!”
“We do not know how many there are, nor where they are positioned. Would you slaughter every dog in Guangdong just to catch the tracking hounds?”
“……”
“And there is one more piece of bad news.”
“…What now?”
“Half a shichen from now, this Night Castle will also collapse.”
“Damn it!”
Even while dying, Yayul Jeok felt a flicker of surprise. ‘He knew even that.’ He had only told Sama Hyeon how the Hwasan-dae-yeon worked and what its purpose was. He had never mentioned that Night Castle would fall half a shichen later. ‘Impressive. Truly impressive.’
Even if imperfect, independently discovering the formula for the Four-Flower Gate was already remarkable. Now it seemed he also possessed considerable skill with mechanical devices.
Such talent was rare. Sama Hyeon was truly a heaven-sent successor to the Shadow God title. Yayul Jeok had recognized that talent early and planned to make him the next Shadow God, then bring him into the Saeum Sect to establish a new branch. That dream had long since crumbled, yet even while dying, the regret remained. ‘No helping it. At least the final mission is complete…’
At that moment—
“That will not happen.”
Thwack!
Yayul Jeok’s eyes snapped open.
“Kaaaaagh!”
It felt as though thousands of needles were racing through his veins, tearing apart every nerve in his body.
Having already accepted death, the unexpected agony jolted him back to full consciousness. So shocked that he could only open and close his mouth like a fish after screaming, he failed to notice that the blood streaming from his left shoulder had suddenly stopped.
“Do you remember this technique?”
“……!!”
“It is the Thousand-Torture Needle Hand Art of the Shadow God Technique. One of the Shadow God’s killing arts that can torture an opponent horrifically through nothing more than precise control of inner energy, without any tools.”
“Kuhk!”
“Eyes that could not see will open, and ears that could not hear will hear. As long as even a shred of life remains, you will not be allowed to die without my permission.”
Yayul Jeok looked at Sama Hyeon with trembling eyes. Sama Hyeon’s entire body was drenched in blood—he must have slain countless assassins on his way here.
Yet Sama Hyeon’s face remained as rigid as a doll. His voice held no inflection, and his breathing was inaudible. He was in an utterly calm state, maintaining the composure of an assassin even after countless battles.
Staring silently into Yayul Jeok’s eyes, Sama Hyeon gave a cold smile.
“You failed to contact that foolish place called the Saeum Sect. I was right, wasn’t I?”
“……!!”
Sama Hyeon turned to Muk Bi. Muk Bi nodded with a heavy expression. It was fortunate that no report had reached the main base, but this could only be considered a partial success. The Hwasan-dae-yeon had already been triggered.
Sama Hyeon looked back at Yayul Jeok. In that brief moment, Yayul Jeok’s face had twisted in agony.
“Y-you bastard…!”
“……”
“Kill me. I am your enemy, am I not?”
“Did you think I would let you live? Of course I will kill you.”
Shhk.
Sama Hyeon drew a throwing dagger from his robes—one of the two daggers he had sharpened tens of thousands of times solely to kill Yayul Jeok.
“But I will not kill you easily. Until Night Castle collapses, you will suffer pain so intense that half a shichen will feel like ten years. Only then may you die.”
“Y-you bastard!”
Sama Hyeon spoke to Muk Bi.
“I will deal with this man. Leave first with the others.”
“No.”
“What do you mean?”
Muk Bi glared at Yayul Jeok.
“I received orders from the Grand Commander to bring back this man’s life.”
“This man’s life is mine. Many may covet his head, but the first right belongs to me.”
“Then prove it.”
“Prove what?”
“Bring me proof that he is dead—whether you cut off his head or bring his corpse. Then I will step aside.”
Sama Hyeon gave a cold laugh.
“You trust me?”
“Just answer. If you do not decide now, my arrow will aim for your heart.”
“……”
“……”
After staring at Muk Bi for a long moment, Sama Hyeon turned his gaze back to Yayul Jeok.
“I will leave him at the place where you met your superior before. Now get out.”
“Fine.”
Whoosh!
Muk Bi hurried out of the passage. She had to kill the remaining assassins and evacuate the allies.
A terrifying smile spread across Sama Hyeon’s face as he looked at Yayul Jeok.
“Shall we begin?”
Blood vessels bulged in Yayul Jeok’s eyes.
Sama Hyeon seized Yayul Jeok’s ribs with a hand glowing red.
Hissssss!
“Kaaaaaaaagh!”
* * *
“Hah!”
Commander Go Yul cried out in shock.
“W-who are you?!”
“Even seeing me, you do not recognize? I am but an old man with sweat dripping down.”
“Then why are you strangling my concubine?! Remove that filthy hand at once…!!”
“If I remove this hand, you will die.”
“…What?”
The old man, holding the struggling woman by the neck and lifting her high, grinned.
“Consider yourself lucky. We cannot save everyone.”
