Chapter 64: Giant Strength Demon-2
Chapter 64: Giant Strength Demon-2
Georyeokma Jeo Woong-won was seething with rage from the crown of his head down.
Those stupid bastards, he had assigned two men with over seventy years of internal energy, and they had squandered it all, coming back alone.
According to Gwijando So Yu-reung, one of his subordinates would be safe, but that was something he would only know if he actually returned.
If that one also failed to come back, the original ten men would now be reduced to just five.
This was a pretty serious problem.
Not because Georyeokma cared about his subordinates' lives, but because if he failed to properly carry out the task that Small-faced Demon Lord Sa Won-yang had ordered, his own life would also be in danger.
"You stupid bastard!"
Jeo Ung-won shouted, unable to contain his surging fury, and So Yu-reung sank to his knees and bowed his head deeply.
He felt an urge to smash that irritating head into pieces, but he had to endure it.
Because if he killed him, only a measly four men would be left now.
Besides, wasn't So Yu-reung the most useful among the remaining subordinates?
"Graaaaaaaagh!"
Unable to release his boiling rage, Jeo Ung-won roared, then suddenly recalled the woman he had left with his subordinate behind him.
And with burning eyes, he turned to look at her.
She was the sixth woman among the ten he had brought with him.
Of the ten women Sa Won-yang had sent, five had already been toyed with and killed.
Even that was only possible because Sa Won-yang had warned him not to draw any more attention, so instead of capturing women from elsewhere, he had carefully rationed the women he had, taking them out one by one.
That was why there were still five left....
But in today's mood, he didn't feel like he could do that at all.
He felt that only by playing with her to his heart's content and then utterly wrecking her would his anger be somewhat relieved.
"Bring me that bitch!"
Jeo Ung-won spoke, turning to the subordinate holding the woman with his blazing eyes.
At that, the eyes of the woman, who was already endlessly shedding tears, filled with the light of despair.
She felt that everything seemed to be over.
That was when.
"Hut!"
A black-masked figure suddenly leaped over the wall and landed in the courtyard.
The Blood Cultists, seeing him, were startled and shouted.
"Who goes there?!"
"Who the hell are you?!"
But the masked man seemed just as startled.
He shouted in an even louder voice.
"What?! You're Georyeokma Jeo Woong-won?!"
Jeo Ung-won's eyes, which had been staring with a 'What kind of scoundrel is this?' look, suddenly widened at the voice of the man who recognized him.
He recognized me! How?!
Jeo Ung-won yelled urgently.
"You bastard...?!"
But Jeo Ung-won couldn't finish his words.
Because the man had hastily thrown his body and fled over the wall again.
Pabak!
The Blood Cultists, flustered by the excessively swift escape, soon came to their senses and all threw their bodies into motion.
"You scoundrel!"
"Stop him!"
But Jeo Ung-won shouted at them.
"Stop! You guard this place! I will catch him myself!"
Leaving his subordinates halted at his voice, Jeo Ung-won's massive body leaped over the wall like a nimble swallow and chased after the masked figure.
'He recognized me! I absolutely cannot let him live!'
If that bastard spread rumors of his existence, it would truly be the end for him.
This time, he would surely be killed by the Small-faced Demon Lord's own hand.
So leaving it to his subordinates made him uneasy.
He had to handle it himself.
Jeo Ung-won ran at maximum speed.
But the distance to the masked man, who didn't look particularly strong, wasn't closing.
The man was probably a master of movement techniques.
But Jeo Ung-won had no way of knowing.
That even this current speed was Bi Sa-yeong appropriately adjusting his pace to lure him out.
Bi Sa-yeong was controlling his speed, keeping the distance between himself and Jeo Ung-won constant.
'He's quite fast. In that case....'
Jeo Ung-won began to concentrate his internal energy.
***
At the same moment.
As soon as Jeo Ung-won chased Bi Sa-yeong over the wall, Sak Mu-heun sent me a telepathic message.
[We don't know when that bastard will return. Let's go right now!]
But I dissuaded him.
[Wait a moment, Sak hyeongnim. Please hold on.]
If we charged in like this, there was no guarantee we could defeat them.
The enemy's strength consisted of one who looked to be at the very early peak-level, one peak-level martial artist with certainly over seventy years of internal energy, and two more who appeared to be at the first-rate upper level.
In comparison, our strength was only me, at the early peak-level, and Sak Mu-heun with over seventy years of internal energy—just the two of us.
So if we clashed head-on like this, we would certainly be at a disadvantage.
Sak Mu-heun sent a telepathic message in an impatient tone.
[In any case, given our position, to attack them, we'd have to go all the way into the estate's inner courtyard. It's not a situation where we can ambush them. If so, it's better to ride our momentum and charge in all at once.]
His words definitely made sense.
Since we couldn't ambush them in the middle of the courtyard, and we didn't know when Georyeokma would return.
But even so, I saw one possibility.
[If you just wait for roughly a count of ten, that should be enough. Once that much time passes, those bastards will probably....]
That was when I was sending that telepathic message.
The minions of Georyeokma inside looked at the woman they were holding and began to speak.
"In any case, do we really just have to keep staring at this bitch, hyung-nim?"
At those words, I laughed hollowly inside.
As expected of Blood Cult scum.
I didn't even need to count to ten.
Then, the one who looked like the most skilled among them sneered and answered.
"Ha! And if we don't just watch? Do you want to touch her first and then get torn to shreds by our already enraged squad leader?"
It was an extremely rational answer, unbefitting a Blood Cultist.
I was disappointed.
But just as I was slightly disappointed by his firmness, those subordinates showed the true nature of Blood Cultists after all.
They hadn't given up despite his firm answer.
That subordinate smiled slyly and said.
"Of course, we can't be the ones to mount her first, but wouldn't just fondling her be fine? It's not like it leaves any marks."
"Hmm?"
At those words, even that leader couldn't answer.
It seemed his palate was beginning to be enticed.
And after pondering for a moment, he gave the answer I had expected.
"Well, just touching her doesn't really matter, does it? As long as we don't get caught."
Then the subordinate who had made the suggestion agreed with a bright face.
"Yes, hyung-nim! That's exactly what I meant!"
"Hmm, then how about we have one man keep watch for the squad leader's return, and the rest of us enjoy ourselves?"
"Yes! Sounds great, hyung-nim!"
The Blood Cultists merrily decided who would keep watch.
Naturally, since the two peak-level members had no intention of keeping watch, one of the two first-rate upper-level minions had to do it.
And unfortunately, the one who ended up keeping watch was the very minion who had first suggested the idea.
"H-how can this be...."
"Kukuku, that's too bad."
"Consider it your fate."
"If there's enough time, we'll switch with you, so keep a good watch."
As the minion assigned to keep watch trudged toward the wall with a deflated expression, the gazes of the remaining three now turned to the woman.
She was still immobilized from having her pressure points sealed, only shedding tears.
And in that moment, we moved.
[Now!]
Pabak!
As we sprang out from beyond the wall like lightning, the eyes of the minion who was walking out defenselessly widened greatly and he hurriedly drew his blade.
"You...!"
Chaeng!
Shyaak!
But as we passed by either side of him, a thin spurt of blood erupted from his opened throat.
It was the result of my sword clashing with his blade while Sak hyeongnim's sword lightly grazed past his neck.
Then, immediately charging at the other bastards, we both hurled throwing weapons.
"Haaap!"
"Hup!"
Hwiririririk!
The bastards, who had been completely distracted by the woman, were startled, but they soon came to their senses, and by the moment the frontmost one died, they already had their weapons drawn.
Then, spreading out to either side, they dodged or deflected the throwing weapons we had thrown.
"Hmph!"
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Chae-chaeng! Chaeng! Chae-chae-chaeng!
Truly, peak-level masters couldn't be taken down so easily. But first-rate ones were different.
"Gugh...."
The remaining first-rate Blood Cultist clutched my dagger buried in his throat and toppled backward.
Now only the two peak-level ones remained.
After exchanging a quick glance, Sak hyeongnim and I immediately split off to both sides and launched ourselves at the remaining peak-level opponents.
I took the one with over seventy years of internal energy, and Sak hyeongnim took the one at the entry stage of the peak realm.
"Hap!"
The first technique of the Seonwoo Thirteen Swords.
Divine Eagle Flight.
My sword surged toward the bastard, its blade radiating brilliant sword light like spreading wings.
But he snorted and struck back with his dao.
"Hmph! Petty tricks!"
Chwaaak!
His dao rent the space with ferocious momentum.
The wings formed by my sword light were torn in two with a single stroke.
But I was no longer behind those wings.
I had already flowed away on the Heavenly Wind Divine Art, circling around to his rear.
Then, once more, Divine Eagle Flight — I unfurled wings of sword light again.
"Haaap!"
Shuhaaak!
Though the attack was fluid and swift like flowing water, the gap in skill meant I couldn't truly hope for a decisive blow at that level.
He immediately spun around and slashed his dao horizontally, and with that single strike my sword form scattered once again.
"Cheap farce!"
Chwaaaak!
And in that very moment, my form was already circling back behind him.
It was a tactic of openly using the Illusion Sword to divert his gaze, then exploiting my superior movement technique to strike from the rear.
Though he outclassed me in skill, being dragged around like this, unable to mount a proper attack, seemed to irritate him.
His face twisting into a deep scowl, he shouted.
"Futile antics! Are you trying to play hide-and-seek with me?!"
Playing hide-and-seek, was it....
He wasn't entirely wrong.
The reason Sak hyeongnim and I had swapped matched opponents in terms of level was precisely because I excelled at that kind of game.
Even if my opponent outmatched me, I was confident I could buy enough time.
When I glanced to the side, Sak hyeongnim was unleashing a fierce assault on his own opponent.
The sword of the Blood Cultist at the peak entry stage was wavering — it looked like it would be over soon.
Then my opponent's gaze also shifted in that direction, and with a suddenly urgent expression, he lunged at me.
It seemed he wasn't a complete blockhead after all.
"You bastard! Die!"
Chuhwaaak!
His dao, radiating crimson blade energy, tore through space like a wide-sweeping net.
He clearly intended to leave me no room to dodge.
A crimson blade energy that was difficult for someone at my level to handle was closing in, spread wide like a net — it was a sound strategy against a lesser opponent like myself.
It would have been a truly dire situation.
If, that is, I hadn't mastered the Heavenly Wind Divine Art.
But!
Evading his blade energy, I retreated like a ghost and, with a grin, unfurled the Heavenly Wind Divine Art.
The profound mystery of the Heavenly Wind Divine Art.
Heavenly Wind Scattered Flowers.
Shaaaak!
My form scattered in all directions like flower petals borne on the wind, scattering afterimages in its wake.
Heavenly Wind Scattered Flowers — a secret technique of the Heavenly Wind Divine Art that could only be used after reaching the peak realm, and thus one that even Bi Sa-yeong could not yet employ.
His eyes darting about in panic at my afterimages scattering in every direction as they evaded his blade energy, he shouted.
"Wh-what is this?!"
I had thought this from the moment I first learned this technique, but for someone like me who wielded the Illusion Sword, its compatibility with these Heavenly Wind Flower Petals was exceptional.
And now, before he had properly grasped my true position, I immediately went on the counterattack.
The thirteenth technique of the Seonwoo Thirteen Swords.
Illusion Sword Mirror.
Shuhaaaak!
In an instant, my sword fractured into dozens, hundreds.
Then, surrounding him from all directions, they were poised to rain down like a meteor shower.
Shwaaaaa!
"Th-this can't be?!"
Panicked, he swung his dao with desperate strength to defend himself.
It was something I had learned during the fight with Ma Yu-gyeom before — the Illusion Sword was not inherently a highly effective method of attack against opponents at a higher realm than my own.
Because a clumsy illusion could, in fact, expose an opening to the opponent.
But the Illusion Sword Mirror, the original final technique of the Seonwoo Thirteen Swords, had no such flaw.
By generating an extreme, staggering number of illusion swords, there was simply no moment for an opening to appear.
Amidst my illusion blades filling his surroundings, his dao lashed out, emitting blade energy as if to shred everything in every direction.
"Haaaap!"
Chuhwaaak!
Then, my illusion swords scattered away like phantoms.
This was the most futile thing about the Illusion Sword Mirror.
It consumed immense internal energy to create dozens, hundreds of illusion swords, but because they were all phantoms, they could inflict no actual harm upon the opponent.
And yet, it was a bizarre sword technique that consumed more of the user's energy than it did the opponent's, making it pointless as a tactic of attrition. That was the Illusion Sword Mirror.
Which was why I had refrained from using it until now....
Realizing that the countless sword shadows that had descended upon him had all been illusions, the calm returned to his eyes.
He muttered, his gaze now more mocking than panicked.
"What a pointless waste...."
However, despite all those drawbacks, there was a reason I had used it here, you see?
He still had not pinpointed my location.
On top of that, in the midst of breaking through the Illusion Sword Mirror, he had even swung his dao in excessively wide, reckless motions.
And in contrast, I was now equipped with a weapon I had never possessed before.
Namely, the Jeomchang Sect's Sail Sword Technique, a style that allowed me to pierce an opponent's weak point at extreme speed.
Revealing myself from behind him, I extended my sword without hesitation.
The first technique of the Sail Sword Technique.
One Strike.
In an instant, my sword, transformed into a beam of light, pierced through his back.
Puk!
"Kuheok!"
Blood erupting from his mouth, he laboriously turned his head to look at me.
His eyes were filled with nothing but disbelief.
I looked back at him and grinned broadly.
I simply couldn't suppress my laughter.
I had wondered if it would actually work, and I had truly taken down a master a full realm above me.
A surge of euphoria was flooding my mind.
"Well now, if you go down like this, won't it make me look a little bad?"
Turning my head, I saw Sak hyeongnim, having just cleaved open his opponent's chest, looking at me with an incredulous expression, laughing.
"I was lucky. He let his guard down since he thought my skill was lacking compared to his own."
"Last time you nearly killed me, and now this — you must be the luckiest man alive. Luck that repeats itself is called skill, my friend."
Smiling sheepishly at his praise, we decided to first unseal the pressure points of the woman who had been staring at us with astonished eyes.
Then, the woman, whose face had been covered in tear stains, expressed her gratitude in a voice far more composed than I had expected.
"This disciple of Ami, Jeong Yeon, offers her thanks to her benefactors."
At those words, we could only be utterly stunned.
"What?! You're a disciple of the Ami Sect?!"
"Yes, I am the twenty-fifth generation disciple of the Ami Sect."
It was something I had not imagined at all.
Even though the Ami Sect's prestige had fallen since the heavy losses suffered during the Great Blood War, it was still one of the Nine Great Sects. I never expected to find a disciple of theirs held captive here by the Blood Cult's demon heads.
While we stood surprised by these thoughts, she spoke again.
"In the basement of this estate, one of my fellow disciples and three other women are still held captive. It is shameless of me, but might I implore you to save them as well?"
It seemed she had been subjected to acupoint sealing for so long that, even with the points released, she still could not properly move her body.
We answered readily.
"Ah, yes. That goes without saying. Do not worry, sojeo."
We had to hurry.
There was no telling how long Bi Sa-yeong could keep luring Georyeokma away.
But just then, I sensed something flying in from the direction of the forest.
It seemed to be Georyeokma.
Hurriedly, I spoke to Sak Mu-heun.
"Sak hyeongnim! Please take care of this sojeo! I'll lure the bastard away again for now...!"
But as I was saying this, the sight of the massive Georyeokma, who had flown in light as a bird despite his bulk and now stood upon the wall, made me unable to finish my sentence.
"What's this? So there were more rats after all?"
My eyes widened in horror.
In the hand of the bastard, who was grinning a bloody smile as he looked at us, hung the limp body of Bi Sa-yeong, his fate indiscernible.