Chapter 78: Guanyin Palm-1
Chapter 78: Guanyin Palm-1
"Sago, we will arrive at Guanyin Hall shortly."
Gyeoljin Satae, the youngest elder of the Ami Sect, merely nodded once at her disciple Jeonghye's words.
Jeonghye knew her master's mood was far from good, but as the most senior among the ten disciples in the current investigation team, she had no choice but to carefully ask again.
"Um, Sago. What do you intend to do now?"
At this, Gyeoljin Satae fixed Jeonghye with a sharp glare and shot back.
"What do I intend to do? What do you mean, what do I intend to do? When visiting an external sect, is it not proper manners to first pay a respectful greeting?"
Jeonghye's expression turned bewildered at those words, and she asked again.
"B-but what if that place truly is a den of Blood Cultists who kidnapped Sajeo Jeong-in? If that turns out to be true... ."
They were currently on their way to investigate Guanyin Hall to confirm the contents of the letter Jeongyeon had sent to the west.
So, the instruction to formally greet them and enter was something Jeonghye could not comprehend at all.
But at Jeonghye's question, Gyeoljin Satae scowled deeply and shouted.
"Has it been confirmed that the place truly is a Blood Cult lair?! Doubting Guanyin Hall, our Ami's long-time ally, based on unverified facts! How dare you call yourself a disciple of the Great Ami?!"
"But Sago, right now we are here to investigate them...!"
"Silence! Still failing to realize your own fault and talking back! Once we return to the main sect, I shall report this to the sect leader and have you confined for a month of self-reflection!"
Jeonghye bit her lip.
Things were proceeding exactly as her master, Gyeolun Satae, had feared.
That was why Gyeolun Satae had insisted so vehemently on going herself... .
A few days ago, the letter sent by Jeongyeon had caused a massive shockwave among the leaders of the Ami Sect.
It was a letter stating that the most outstanding rising talent of the Ami Sect had been kidnapped by Blood Cultists, yet the current sect leader, Gyeolhan Satae, had tried to dismiss Jeongyeon's report after reading it.
But Jeongyeon had not sent the letter only to the sect leader, Gyeolhan Satae.
Having received Seonwoo Jin's advice, she had also sent an identical letter to her master, Gyeola Satae, and so Gyeola Satae was able to denounce sect leader Gyeolhan Satae before all the assembled elders for attempting to bury Jeongyeon's report without a single mention.
'To bury a report that an Ami Sect disciple has been kidnapped and her life is unknown! Are you truly the sect leader of the Ami Sect?!'
Gyeolhan Satae had no choice but to be thrown into utter confusion.
She had never imagined that a second letter had been sent separately.
However, Gyeolhan Satae was someone who had risen to the position of sect leader through political maneuvering alone.
Without panicking, she defended herself brazenly, claiming the story was too absurd to be worth mentioning.
'Jeong-in, who should be in the training hall under disciplinary measures, went outside without permission and was kidnapped? And by Blood Cultists disguised as Jeonghyeopbang? To anyone, is that not just an excuse to avoid punishment?! Was I supposed to believe such a ridiculous story?!'
Many could not help but be enraged by her stubbornness, which showed no concern for her disciple's safety.
But Gyeolhan Satae was not one to care about the anger of the opposition faction, and so the situation once again took on the familiar flow.
The kind of situation where they would only argue loudly before Gyeolhan Satae ultimately pushed through with the authority of the sect leader, leaving them unable to accomplish anything.
If there had been no other evidence, things would have inevitably ended that way.
But fortunately, Gyeola Satae had evidence.
Seonwoo Jin had given one half of the torn Blood Cult secret manual to Sak Mu-heun and the other half to Jeongyeon to enclose in her letter.
Thus, Gyeola Satae, holding the Blood Cult's secret manual in her hand, was able to smile confidently and speak to Gyeolhan Satae.
'A ridiculous story, you say. Even though this Blood Cult secret manual was enclosed with the letter?'
'...What?!'
In the end, even the sect leader Gyeolhan Satae had no choice but to agree that an investigation was necessary.
It at least meant the report of Blood Cultists being discovered was true, after all.
But this time, the problem was selecting the members of the investigation team.
Originally, Jeongyeon's master Gyeola Satae, or Jeonghye's master Gyeolun Satae, both of the opposition faction, had insisted they go personally to investigate.
However, sect leader Gyeolhan Satae argued that the youngest should gain experience in such matters, and appointed Gyeoljin Satae as the leader.
Naturally, she was of sect leader Gyeolhan Satae's faction.
The result was the current situation.
'Sago Gyeoljin probably received orders from the sect leader to simply pretend to investigate. But why? Why on earth would she give such orders when a Blood Cult demon has been discovered and Sajeo Jeong-in has been kidnapped?'
Jeonghye could not understand this matter.
But the more pressing issue was that she also had no idea what to do about it.
She simply felt utterly lost.
To make matters worse, Gyeoljin Satae had unpacked at an inn near Guanyin Hall and even sent a visiting notice to Guanyin Hall.
She had respectfully informed them that they would visit tomorrow.
Jeonghye was so dumbfounded that she was left speechless.
'I must do something. I must do something.'
Jeonghye fretted all night long about what she could do.
The next morning, Gyeoljin Satae led her ten disciples, including Jeonghye, to Guanyin Hall.
The main gate of Guanyin Hall stood wide open.
And as if to welcome them, some thirty martial artists were lined up on both sides.
A middle-aged martial artist, who seemed to be the representative stepping forward from among those warriors, offered a cupped-hand salute and greeted them.
"Welcome! To think you would come all this way from the Ami Sect, you must have endured great hardship on the long journey!"
Since they had arrived at Guanyin Hall on the second day, when it was a day's travel at most, they could not possibly have endured much hardship.
But at his polite words, Gyeoljin Satae smiled with satisfaction and returned a respectful cupped-hand salute.
"Hardship? Not at all. To welcome uninvited guests so warmly, I am at a loss. I am Gyeoljin of the Ami Sect."
Then the other party also returned a respectful cupped-hand salute.
"Ah! So it was Gyeoljin Satae! I have long heard of your esteemed reputation! To meet you in person like this is a tremendous honor! I am Jin Wonguk, acting master of Guanyin Hall."
"So, you are Jin Daehyeop. I too have long heard your great name. It is an honor to meet you."
Though she had never heard the name Jin Wonguk before, Gyeoljin Satae returned the greeting with a deeply respectful expression, as if she were truly delighted.
Then she subtly glanced back at Jeonghye.
It was as though she wished to say, 'See? This is the proper attitude of the orthodox faction.'
But Jeonghye did not look at her.
After agonizing for a long while the previous day, she had already resolved how she would act today.
Jeonghye stepped forward and offered a cupped-hand salute.
"It is an honor to meet you. I am Jeonghye of the Ami Sect. I was once greatly indebted to Master Seo Jangju. Might I be permitted to pay my respects to the master?"
Gyeoljin Satae glared fiercely at Jeonghye for suddenly stepping forward, but she could not bring herself to shout at her in front of others' gazes.
Then, the man named Jin Wonguk replied with a slightly troubled smile.
"It seems you have a connection with our master. Unfortunately, the master is currently away. If word had arrived beforehand, the master would surely have waited."
So, the master is absent?
Jeonghye's eyes sharpened slightly.
But with a smile still on her face, she spoke again.
"Ah, I see. How unfortunate. Then, might I perhaps meet Chief Manager Choe or Captain Yang Danju? I have greatly wished to see them as well."
At this, Jin Wonguk's gaze flickered slightly.
Then, with a troubled expression once more, he answered.
"Dear me, both of them are also currently away. When they return, I will be sure to... ."
In that instant, Jeonghye suddenly drew her sword in a surprise attack and lunged at Jin Wonguk.
Chang!
"Huh?!"
But Jin Wonguk stepped back and evaded her ambush, swift as lightning.
Then Gyeoljin Satae, who had been frowning and watching Jeonghye, cried out in shock at this sudden incident.
"Jeonghye, you wench! What on earth is the meaning of this...!"
But Jeonghye was quicker than Gyeoljin Satae.
Jeonghye pointed her sword at Jin Wonguk and shouted.
"We've caught you, Blood Cult demon! There is no one named Yang Danju in Guanyin Hall!"
At her words, Gyeoljin Satae, now wondering what this meant, also turned to look at Jin Wonguk.
Then Jin Wonguk, whose expression had briefly twisted, began to laugh lowly.
"Heuheuheuheuheu, now there's no choice. If only you hadn't known, you could have returned unharmed. Blame your excessive cleverness."
At Jin Wonguk's words, Gyeoljin Satae's face drained of color.
Could it truly be real?
Then... .
Just then, Jin Wonguk shouted.
"Attack!"
At that, the warriors who had stood respectfully in two lines to welcome them, in an instant, their expressions twisted savagely as they began to rush in for the kill.
"Wahahaha! Kill the old women and capture only the young ones!"
"Idiot! Just spare the half-decent looking ones! We're abandoning this place anyway!"
Against the thirty-odd enemies, the Ami Sect's investigation team numbered a mere eleven.
And it was not only their numbers that were lacking.
"Die, old woman!"
"You dare!"
The moment the battle began, three warriors lunged at Gyeoljin Satae.
Yet every one of the blades they held was emitting a faint blade energy.
They were all masters at the initial stage of peak.
"Uwaaap!"
"Chaap!"
Cha-cha-chang! Cha-chang!
Gyeoljin Satae was an elder of the Ami Sect and a peak-level master who had breached the seventy-year wall of internal energy, but against the attacks of three peak-level warriors, she was immediately forced onto the defensive.
"Eeeik! You Blood Cult demon scum!"
Gyeoljin Satae gritted her teeth and somehow blocked the enemy's onslaught, but the three warriors burst into wild laughter and continued to press her relentlessly.
"Wahahaha! What do you call us, old woman?!"
"You just got old, huh? You got ugly too! Kuhahaha!"
"Right! We should just call you an old and ugly hag! Kihahaha!"
At the cult warriors' vulgar provocations, Gyeoljin Satae's face flushed red as if about to burst.
"You, you filthy bastards!"
At Gyeoljin Satae's reaction, the cultists furtively exchanged glances. Their gazes as they looked upon the easily enraged Gyeoljin Satae resembled a pack of wolves eyeing their prey.
Meanwhile, Jin Wonguk, who appeared to be the leader of the cult warriors, was walking slowly toward Jeonghye without any hurry.
Far from drawing a weapon, he was strolling leisurely with his hands clasped behind his back as if taking a walk, yet Jeonghye, who had already drawn her sword and aimed it at him, could do nothing but retreat step by step.
It was because she simply could not resist the overwhelming pressure emanating from his body.
He was unmistakably a master beyond her ability to contend with.
Jin Wonguk spoke, wearing a nauseating grin.
"I find you quite pleasing. Very pleasing, being so clever. Rest easy. Even if I kill all the others, I will take only you alive."
Jeonghye, having gulped dryly, gritted her teeth and shouted.
"If we do not return, the elites of the Ami Sect will come swarming! We already know that Jeonghyeopbang is a Blood Cult den as well! Do you think you can survive?!"
At that, Jin Wonguk laughed as if dumbfounded and replied.
"Ha, the elites of the Ami Sect will come swarming over? Do you really think so? Your sect leader seems to consider the tribute money we give her more important than the disciples of the Ami Sect."
Tribute money?!
Jeonghye's eyes trembled violently.
Could it be that the reason the sect leader had been friendly toward Jeonghyeopbang all this time was...?
Jin Wonguk continued speaking.
"Just look now. If they had truly suspected us, do you think they'd have sent only this much force? And with a formal visit notice?"
At Jin Wonguk's mocking words, Jeonghye could not refute him.
Because his words stabbed painfully deep into her heart.
Jin Wonguk, who had flashed a nauseating smile at the sight of Jeonghye, leisurely surveyed his surroundings.
Everywhere his gaze landed, the disciples of the Ami Sect were helplessly falling one after another.
Puhak!
"Aaaagh!"
"Saje!"
"Kuhahaha! Don't kill that one, capture her!"
"No, don't! Kyaaaagh!"
Jeonghye, too, could only watch all of these scenes unfold.
It was despairing.
But she clenched her teeth once again.
Everything was going exactly as she had anticipated. So she had to accept the outcome as well.
In truth, Jeonghye had already predicted that the result would be like this if these men were indeed cultists.
What could possibly be achieved with Gyeoljin Satae, who had the lowest martial prowess among the sasuks, and a mere ten disciples?
All she had wanted was, even at the cost of their own sacrifice, to alert the sect to the existence of the cultists.
If this much blood was spilled, no matter how rotten the leadership was, they would have no choice but to conduct a proper investigation.
But Jin Wonguk, seeing Jeonghye's expression, chuckled and spoke again.
"Were you perhaps thinking that if you sacrificed yourselves, you could catch us? Kuhuhuhu, you dream big. Once we finish off you people, we will burn down Guaneumjang and leave immediately. Do you think your Ami Sect could find us then?"
Jin Wonguk did not make a move against her easily.
Rather, he seemed to be enjoying the ongoing conversation. Perhaps he derived more pleasure from driving his opponent to despair with words.
Thinking this, Jeonghye shouted with a fierce glare.
"We already know that you came from Jeonghyeopbang! No matter how you try to flee this place...!"
But cutting her off, Jin Wonguk calmly asked.
"Do you have any proof?"
At those words, Jeonghye was struck speechless.
"...What?"
"I asked if you have any proof. Proof that we came from Jeonghyeopbang, or proof that Jeonghyeopbang is a den of the Blood Cult."
"...."
They had the Blood Cult's secret manual, but for now, Jeonghye did not speak of it.
Then Jin Wonguk smiled with deep satisfaction and said.
"Let me tell you how things will unfold from here. You will vanish, and your sect leader Gyeolhan Satae will probably dispatch an investigation team. Perhaps she might even try to investigate Jeonghyeopbang. But, there will be no evidence anywhere, and Gyeolhan Satae will never be able to pressure Jeonghyeopbang. That old woman has already gobbled up too much from us over the years. She didn't foresee it could become her own weakness."
Jeonghye's expression grew darker as she listened to his words.
She already knew that the sect leader, Gyeolhan Satae, was not a good person.
However, she had thought that she would at least safeguard the pride of the Ami Sect, but to think she was this deeply corrupted.
Moreover, if she had a weakness held by Jeonghyeopbang, might she not even attempt a proper investigation?
Such anxieties grew larger and larger in her mind.
Jin Wonguk spoke to Jeonghye as if hammering a final nail into a coffin.
"Your sacrifice will be a dog's death. Because the Ami Sect will ultimately be unable to touch Jeonghyeopbang. And... do you perhaps know why we extended our hand even into the territory of the Ami Sect?"
With a vaguely questioning look on her otherwise rigid face, Jeonghye looked at Jin Wonguk, who grinned nauseatingly and said.
"Because we judged that the Ami Sect of today is weak enough to be devoured entirely."
Jeonghye's body trembled violently.
Somehow, his words felt true, and the fact that her once-proud sect had fallen so low was utterly despairing.
Jin Wonguk, now wearing an expression of great satisfaction at the despair coloring Jeonghye's eyes, finally began to move his body.
Looking at Gyeoljin Satae, who was still holding out alone while all the other Ami Sect disciples had been subdued, he said.
"Now then, the pleasant conversation is over. It's time to subdue you and go finish off that old woman."
It was just as he reached his hand out toward Jeonghye.
Pyusyusyusyuk!
Throwing weapons suddenly flew in from somewhere.
"Huh?"
Jin Wonguk had no choice but to hastily withdraw his hand and deflect the projectiles.
Ta-dang! Tang! Tang tang!
Then, turning his head toward where they came from, he was about to shout.
"What bastard...?!"
That was when.
Grasp!
"Kyaak?!"
"Wha, what is it?!"
Jin Wonguk could not help but be astonished.
In that brief instant, someone had flown in at a speed comparable to the throwing weapons and snatched away Jeonghye, who had been right in front of him.
It seemed to be a person, but the speed was so swift he couldn't even properly confirm it—it felt like a single gust of wind had swept past.
It was none other than Bi Sa-yeong.
Bi Sa-yeong, who had deployed the Explosive Advance Step on top of his top-tier movement technique, had rescued Jeonghye, the only one who had not yet been subdued.
As he snatched Jeonghye and broke away from the battlefield, he shouted.
"I leave the rear to you!"
Jin Wonguk stared blankly at Bi Sa-yeong, who was rapidly receding into the distance at an incredible speed.
Leave the rear to him?
At that moment, sensing something, Jin Wonguk jerked his head around and hastily drew his blade.
Chang!
Then he could confirm that yet another figure of tremendous speed was charging at him, this time.
It was a man with an exceedingly handsome face.
He was shouting with a fierce grin.
"Of course!"
Jin Wonguk urgently threw his body backward.
In his eyes, the opponent's sword light was unfurling like brilliant, dazzling wings.
It was Seonwoo Jin.