Chapter 188: Infiltrating the Martial Emperor's Tomb-4
Chapter 188: Infiltrating the Martial Emperor's Tomb-4
The encounter with Black Blood Illusion Demon Du Dang.
It was not as though he had failed to consider such a possibility from the moment he had heard the information from No Je-eok.
And even if he did encounter him, he had thought he would probably be able to handle it well enough.
After all, there were still two opportunities left to borrow Mukrang's power.
Seonwoo Jin had been confident.
He believed that if Mukrang were to appear at the forefront and use that Black Wolf Sword Technique from last time, someone like Black Blood Illusion Demon Du Dang, who was recognized more for his Soul Captivation Art than for combat, could be made to end up just like Am Hyeol-hyang had back then.
But....
'Of all times, why now....'
Seonwoo Jin bit his lip at the situation he had most wanted to avoid among all he had anticipated.
If the most important thing for Seonwoo Jin at that moment was rescuing his comrades, then the second most important thing was bringing this Emperor's Tomb crashing down.
This very place—the demon production facility.
He had harbored such thoughts even before coming here originally.
But after seeing Bi Sa-yeong's master in the workshop, those thoughts had solidified completely.
They absolutely had to destroy this Emperor's Tomb.
To prevent the demons that would emerge from here in the future—especially the Blood Demons—from ever appearing.
And also to ensure that the dead, like Bi Sa-yeong's master, would no longer be used as tools in the hands of those Blood Cult bastards.
'To do that, I needed to borrow Mukrang's help at the place where I could collapse the Emperor's Tomb....'
Seonwoo Jin's original plan had been to use the Mukrang Sword Technique at the heart of the Emperor's Tomb, at its central pillars, to bring the whole structure down.
So if he had to encounter Du Dang anyway, it should have been there.
That way, he could have resolved everything by borrowing Mukrang's power just once.
But to meet Black Blood Illusion Demon Du Dang here, in a place that seemed utterly removed from the Emperor's Tomb's central core—Seonwoo Jin's mind could not help but grow tangled with complications.
'If I borrow Mukrang's power now, I won't be able to borrow it later when I need to collapse the Emperor's Tomb....'
Of course, even if he borrowed Mukrang's power once now, there would still be one more opportunity remaining.
But to expend both of his two remaining chances in this single encounter was nothing short of infuriatingly unjust.
It was while Seonwoo Jin was caught in that moment's agonized deliberation that Mukrang suddenly spoke.
- It seems to me there is a way to overcome this situation for the time being.
'!'
At those words, Seonwoo Jin's ears perked up sharply.
As expected, the most revered figure in the world really was the Sword God, it seemed.
Mukrang continued speaking.
- This place is....
Listening to his words, Seonwoo Jin, who had been exchanging blows with Iron Palm Demon Venerable Po Jeo-gwan in a roughly matched duel, called out to Seol Pung the moment Mukrang finished speaking.
"Squad leader! This way, for a moment!"
Seol Pung, who had just shared a brief reunion with Na Seo-yu, entrusted Sak Mu-heun's acupoint release to her and then charged toward Po Jeo-gwan.
"Na So-jeo, Sak hyeongnim! Hyaaaap!"
At that, Po Jeo-gwan could feel his entire body tingling and prickling under a momentum that was like a fierce tiger bearing down upon him.
It was an intense, head-on crashing force, utterly different from Seonwoo Jin, who until now had moved like the wind and deflected his attacks.
Po Jeo-gwan ground his teeth and roared.
"Come on, you little brat!"
In the next instant, Seol Pung's furious assault collided with Po Jeo-gwan's twin palms, erupting in a massive impact.
Kwakwakwakwang!
At that moment, Bi Sa-yeong, who had been barely holding on alongside Ya Un-hyang while facing Heaven Strike Demon Lord Yun Yung-wan two-on-one, let out a scream-like shout.
"You bastard! What do you mean calling the squad leader over there?! You're supposed to send him this way!"
Bi Sa-yeong's scream was no mere exaggeration.
No matter how much he possessed a movement technique that far surpassed that of a transcendent peak master, the current situation was simply too brutal for him.
Even if he himself could keep fleeing, his saje Ya Un-hyang was now reaching her limit.
But Seonwoo Jin answered as he flung his body toward the pillar situated at the center of the stone chamber.
"Hold out just a little longer!"
Then he pressed firmly on the lower part of the pillar that Mukrang had told him about.
At that, one of the stones positioned beneath the pillar slid inward with a grinding sound, just like earlier.
Mukrang immediately shouted.
- Turn it to the right!
Deureureureureung!
When he applied a bit of force, one tier of the pillar rotated to the right with a slight friction noise, just as Mukrang had said.
Then, vibration shook through the stone chamber once more.
Geureureureureung!
In that instant, Heaven Strike Demon Lord Yun Yung-wan, who had just shaken off Bi Sa-yeong and was bearing down on Ya Un-hyang, could only scream with a stunned expression at a situation he had never imagined possible.
"Wh-what?! What is that?!"
***
Geureureureureung!
"What now?"
Black Blood Illusion Demon Du Dang, who had been moving toward the stone chamber where Na Seo-yu and Sak Mu-heun were being held, furrowed his brow at the vibration of the mechanisms that had suddenly resumed.
"It's not the Middle Section this time. Where is it?"
Just moments before, he had been in the laboratory at the heart of the Inner Section, making preparations to turn Na Seo-yu and Sak Mu-heun into Blood Demons.
He had just finished perfecting everything so that the moment White-faced Corpse Demon Gu Woo-jeol returned, they could immediately begin the Blood Demon refinement process—when suddenly the noise of the mechanisms activating throughout the entire passageway had reached his ears.
"The mechanisms... are moving? Now, of all times?"
Du Dang could not believe it.
The mechanisms of this Emperor's Tomb had been constructed with such high technical mastery and perfection that even after the Blood Cult followers had spent long years studying them, they had ultimately been unable to find a way to control them.
They had realized that forcibly dismantling the mechanisms could cause the entire Emperor's Tomb to collapse, and so they had been forced to simply use the place as it was, having removed only the traps.
And yet, the mechanisms of the Emperor's Tomb had now activated once more, well over ten years after its discovery.
"How could this be... Could it be?!"
His first thought had been the worry that the Emperor's Tomb might be collapsing.
What if someone tried to dismantle the mechanisms incorrectly and the entire Emperor's Tomb came crashing down?
Du Dang, who had envisioned that possibility, shuddered as if the mere thought was horrifying.
"Ugh, how dreadful. That absolutely must not happen."
Everything they had spent long years researching existed within this place.
The materials for making demons, the production facilities, and furthermore, the research data and the secret methods for creating Blood Demons.
Of course, the data had been copied and sent to the Blood Demon as well, but even so, for Du Dang, losing this place was an unspeakably terrible thing he could not even bear to imagine.
So it was while Du Dang had been anxiously watching the situation unfold from the central laboratory.
Suddenly, Blood Demon No. 1, who had earlier rushed to him complaining that her head felt like it was splitting open, had spoken up as if a thought had just abruptly struck her, her expression startled.
"Father! My friends! My friends are in danger!"
"Hm?"
Blood Demon No. 1, perhaps due to the nature of the original material, possessed a remarkably gentle, affectionate, and warm-hearted personality even after being created as a Blood Demon.
And being such a person, even in this dangerous situation, thoughts of the others had come to her mind first.
"Father! My friends! Please save my friends!"
She pestered Du Dang with an urgent expression.
At her earnest plea, Du Dang had ultimately decided to go with her to where they were.
Observing the situation to some degree, he saw that the mechanisms' movements seemed concentrated only on the Middle Section, which had eased his worries about the laboratory. And more than anything, the thought had occurred to him that they might take advantage of the commotion to escape.
But what he actually came and witnessed was a sight he could never have imagined in all that time.
Deureureureureung!
Du Dang muttered with a dumbfounded expression.
"There... was a door there?"
Before his very eyes, the door of the stone chamber where Na Seo-yu and Sak Mu-heun had been imprisoned was just then closing.
A door he hadn't even known existed until now.
It was truly an absurd situation.
At that moment, Blood Demon No.1, who had been moving beside him, charged fiercely and slammed her fist against the door of the stone chamber.
"Yiaaap!"
Kwaaaaang!
She was frantic, as if fearing what might have happened to her comrades.
But even with her full-powered strike, which rivaled that of any ordinary transcendent peak master, the door didn't budge in the slightest.
It merely confirmed once again that this was an exceptionally well-crafted mechanism.
***
Confirming that the door had shut, Seonwoo Jin clenched his fist.
"It worked!"
Now, Du Dang and the other three transcendent peak masters could be prevented from joining the fray.
It meant he had bought a little time.
Seonwoo Jin no longer hesitated and immediately launched himself forward.
He shot toward the Heaven Strike Demon Lord Yun Yung-wan, who had been battling Bi Sa-yeong and Ya Un-hyang and was now staring blankly at the closed door.
Moonlight Illusion Sword Dance, Third Form.
Hyeonmangwol activated.
Having resolved to conserve as much time as possible, Seonwoo Jin immediately invoked the third form of the Moonlight Illusion Sword Dance, though it was still somewhat reckless.
Then, a sensation swept over Seonwoo Jin's entire body, as if his soul had left his body and he was observing everything from a third-party perspective.
Hwaaaaak!
Within that bizarre sensation, Seonwoo Jin became a beam of light and shot forward to stab the man.
Four Deaths Sword Art, First Form.
Ilsi Sail.
Shwiiiiik!
It was a thrust of incredible speed.
Yun Yung-wan, who had been dazed, was momentarily startled.
But as a transcendent peak master, he didn't panic even in that moment.
He immediately spun his body and kicked out at Seonwoo Jin's sword with a foot wreathed in force.
"Where do you think?!"
Hwoaaaaang!
It was an astonishing display of martial prowess, accurately kicking away the incoming blade with a leg technique.
But the very instant his foot accurately deflected Seonwoo Jin's sword, Seonwoo Jin's form crumbled and scattered like flower petals shattering.
It was the ultimate technique of the Heavenly Wind Movement Technique, Heavenly Wind Flower Petals.
Poosooseuk!
"!"
Suddenly split into multiple forms in all directions, Seonwoo Jin's figures made Yun Yung-wan momentarily flustered as he glanced around.
And in that moment, an afterimage of Seonwoo Jin, positioned precisely opposite to his line of sight, thrust a sword toward the back of his neck.
It was a chilling ambush.
Yet Yun Yung-wan scoffed.
He was not so easily trifled with that a transcendent peak master like himself would fall for such a cheap surprise attack.
His eyes flashing, he instead unleashed a razor-sharp chain kick toward the Seonwoo Jin who had ambushed him from behind.
"There you are!"
Puhwaak!
It was a three-strike chain kick sequence capable of knocking aside a blade and striking the opponent's body and head with almost no time gap.
However, the moment the first strike of that chain kick deflected the sword, Yun Yung-wan was horrified.
Paseuseuk!
The form of Seonwoo Jin, which had clearly been attacking him, dissipated like a mirage.
"Wh-what?!"
An afterimage moving like the real thing—it was a completely incomprehensible situation.
So naturally, the remaining two kicks he had already initiated sliced through empty air.
And at that moment, another of Seonwoo Jin's afterimages moved and launched a surprise attack on Yun Yung-wan.
Since he had already committed his offensive elsewhere, this ambush was even more lethal.
"You bastard!"
Gritting his teeth, Yun Yung-wan forcibly twisted his body and kicked Seonwoo Jin's sword again.
It was an incredible feat of agility, completing a sharp counterattack even in a desperate instant.
But this time, it was the same.
The moment his foot lashed out to kick Seonwoo Jin's sword again, he was doomed to repeat his previous experience.
Paseuseuk!
That form had vanished as an afterimage once more.
Yun Yung-wan screamed in horror.
"Again?!"
And at that instant, at the precise moment Yun Yung-wan's posture had completely broken down, Seonwoo Jin stabbed at his rear once more.
Four Deaths Sword Art, First Form.
Ilsi Sail.
Shwiiiik!
"!"
It was a thrust that seemed like light itself.
A tremendous speed incomparable to the Ilsi Sail he had first unleashed against Yun Yung-wan.
Panicked, Yun Yung-wan hurriedly tried to manifest his Protective Strong Qi.
"Hap...!"
Puhook!
But he wasn't even granted the time to manifest his Protective Strong Qi.
Because Seonwoo Jin's sword, already thrusting at super-high speed, had pierced through his chest.
"Kuh-heok!"
His heart pierced, Yun Yung-wan looked at Seonwoo Jin with eyes of disbelief.
And then he collapsed to his knees with a thud.
It was the moment Seonwoo Jin single-handedly took down the Heaven Strike Demon Lord Yun Yung-wan, a transcendent peak master rated on par with the Bloodthirsty Demon Lord Ji Gwang-ok he had faced in the Poison Forest before.
***
At the same time, Seol Pung and the Iron Palm Demon Lord Po Jeo-gwan were clashing head-on, strength against strength.
Kwakwakwakwakwang!
Seol Pung's kick, charged in like a fierce tiger, collided with Po Jeo-gwan's palm strike. His elbow, swung with his whole body, also smashed into a palm strike. The straight punch, thrust at close range, also met a palm strike.
In that violent collision, Po Jeo-gwan was steadily being pushed backward.
Eudeudeuk!
Po Jeo-gwan ground his teeth.
He simply could not tolerate this situation—being pushed back in a direct, head-on clash against an opponent who barely looked to be in his twenties.
"You little punk..."
That was when it happened.
"Kuh-heok!"
A death cry suddenly reached Po Jeo-gwan's ears.
Yun Yung-wan, who had been facing Seonwoo Jin, was dead.
Catching a glimpse of Yun Yung-wan impaled by the sword, Po Jeo-gwan's eyes widened in shock.
"How could this be!"
With the door to the stone chamber closed, Yun Yung-wan had been killed.
That meant the bastard who had killed Yun Yung-wan would now be coming for them.
Especially in a situation where the Blood Wind Demon Lord Eo Chi-ram also seemed to be getting pushed back by that monkey-like old man.
'This isn't going to work.'
Growing desperate, Po Jeo-gwan finally resolved to bring out his ultimate technique.
He decided to take a gamble to somehow end this fight quickly.
"Huuuup!"
He concentrated his entire body's internal energy into both palms.
Now he intended to unleash it all at once like a torrent.
But at that moment, Seol Pung, who had been fighting him, let out a chuckle and muttered.
"Come to think of it, I didn't have time to be dawdling either. From now on, I'll have to give it my best."
"What did you say?!"
It was the moment Po Jeo-gwan's expression twisted into a deep frown at his words.
Suddenly, from between Seol Pung's tightly shut eyes, a crimson energy erupted like an explosion.
Hwaaak!
And in that instant, Seol Pung charged in at a speed incomparable to just before.
Puhwaak!
"!"
Startled, Po Jeo-gwan struck out reflexively.
It was the ultimate technique he had been preparing.
"Euh-haaaaaap!"
Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwang!
His chain palm strike poured out like a torrent.
It was a terrifying momentum, as if it could pulverize even a giant boulder into sand.
But against Seol Pung, who had begun using the Red Eye martial art, it was useless.
Like a fish swimming against a raging current, Seol Pung was weaving his way through Po Jeo-gwan's fierce barrage.
Pabababababak!
As Seol Pung deflected all of his chain palm strikes and closed in, a look of fear finally began to dawn in Po Jeo-gwan's eyes.
"Th-this..."
And in that moment, now within striking distance, Seol Pung's chain strike pummeled Po Jeo-gwan.
Ppababababababak!
"Kuh-heo-eo-eok!"
Po Jeo-gwan's body was reduced to a pulp in the span of a single breath.