You're Dead (2)
The Poison Hand Sect.
As one of the Sado-palmun, the Eight Unorthodox Sects, they specialized in poisons and had long set their sights on a single treasure.
The Myriad Poisons Body.
To anyone who cultivated poison arts, it was an irresistible prize.
Although the Sichuan Tang Family had done their best to hide all information regarding Tang Seo-yeon, keeping it a complete secret was impossible.
Ever since the Poison Hand Sect learned of her existence, they had coveted her. And finally...
"And now, she is in our hands."
The man gazed down at Tang Seo-yeon with an almost affectionate look.
He was deeply moved.
To think he was looking at the Myriad Poisons Body.
Although she had not yet mastered every poison art to perfection as the legends suggested, her utility was still boundless.
If used correctly, the Poison Hand Sect would rise to the very pinnacle of the Sado-palmun.
She probably wouldn't live long, but that didn't matter.
What they wanted wasn't the human named Tang Seo-yeon, but the legendary poisonous vessel that was the Myriad Poisons Body. Just then...
"Leader!"
A subordinate rushed in, his voice urgent.
"What is it?"
"A report from the scouts. The Tang Family is heading this way."
"What? How?"
The battle had ended quickly, and they had left no trace when they relocated.
There was no way they could have made such a sloppy mistake.
"Are you certain they are coming here?"
"Yes. A few of our men stayed behind to delay them, but they won't be able to buy much time."
"How many of them are there?"
"We couldn't get an exact count. However, the Head of the Tang Family is leading the vanguard."
"Damn it..."
The fact that the Tang Family Head himself had come meant he had mobilized his personal elite force.
"Split our forces. Half will stay to hold off the Tang Family, and the rest will move the Myriad Poisons Body."
"Yes, sir!"
"Oh, and make sure those bastards are left at the rear."
"Will they listen to us?"
The man smirked.
"They have no choice. We hold their weakness, after all."
"I will carry out your orders."
With that, they quickly prepared to move the unconscious Tang Seo-yeon.
Perhaps because they were in such a frantic rush, none of them noticed.
They didn't see Tang Seo-yeon's finger twitch, ever so slightly.
The Tang Family's pursuit squad advanced straight toward Tang Seo-yeon's location.
The only reason they could do so was...
"This way. Hurry."
Because Tang Jin was running at the very front, leading the way.
Tang Myeong caught up to Tang Jin's side and asked, "Are you certain?"
"Yes. I can smell the scent of the tracking incense from this direction."
Indeed.
They were currently tracking the scent of the tracking incense that had been placed on Tang Seo-yeon.
But when? And how?
To understand, we must turn back the clock slightly.
"W-what did you say?"
Tang Jin was dumbfounded.
Han Cheong-un had suddenly barged in on him while he was under house arrest, only to say...
"You know that tracking incense you lent me before?"
"...Yes."
"I put it on your sister, so we need to start tracking her right now."
Tang Jin stared blankly at Han Cheong-un.
What on earth was this guy talking about?
Out of nowhere, he claimed Tang Jin's sister had been kidnapped. When Tang Jin asked how they were supposed to find her, Han Cheong-un explained...
"You put tracking incense on my sister?"
"Yes."
"...On my sister?"
"Yes."
"Tracking incense?"
"Yes."
"..."
Did this bastard even realize what he had done wrong?
Did he think looking completely innocent made it okay?
In other words, Han Cheong-un was proudly admitting that he had marked the Tang Family's precious only daughter with tracking incense—a substance that allowed him to track and monitor her location at any time.
And he was saying this directly to her older brother?
To make matters worse, Tang Jin was the one who had created that very incense.
What kind of crazy bastard is this?
Tang Jin didn't even know which part of this absurdity he should be angry about first. He was utterly lost. However...
"Is it possible to track the incense?"
"Father."
"The most important thing is to find her. We can sort out the rest later."
"...Yes."
Right. That was true.
It was so absurd that his brain had temporarily short-circuited, but finding his sister was the top priority right now.
I'll deal with this legendary pervert later.
Tang Jin immediately set out.
And soon enough, he picked up the scent of the tracking incense he had crafted with his own hands.
"It's that way. Let's hurry."
And that was how...
The Tang Family was able to pinpoint and track the kidnapped Tang Seo-yeon's location.
Even as they ran, however, the suspicion lingering in Tang Myeong and Tang Jin's minds regarding Han Cheong-un did not fade.
And honestly, it was only natural.
"Ahem. Young Master Han, may I ask you a few questions?"
Ultimately, Tang Myeong spoke up as they dashed forward.
"Go ahead."
"Why did you put tracking incense on my daughter?"
"Ah, that was easy. I just applied it to the gift I gave Lady Tang."
"..."
No, he didn't ask how, he asked why!
"I am asking for the reason you put it on her."
"I told you. I put it on the gift."
Was this bastard pretending to be dense on purpose?
Han Cheong-un nodded with a completely shameless expression.
"Fortunately, the tracking incense Young Master Tang Jin made was completely colorless and odorless, so it was very easy to apply."
Was that really something to say so proudly?
Tang Myeong stared at him, dumbfounded, his mouth slightly agape. This time, Tang Jin chimed in.
"Wait, how did you even know I could make such an incense when you asked for it?"
"Of course I knew."
"But how?"
"Knowing what is obvious is just obvious."
"You have no intention of answering, do you?"
"Why would you say that? Oh, look, enemies ahead."
"What enemies... Ugh!"
Clang!
Unfortunately, enemies had indeed appeared.
A group of masked men blocked the Tang Family's path. And then...
"Out of the way!"
The moment they encountered the enemies, several flashes of light shot from Tang Myeong's fingertips, blowing the enemies' heads apart.
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
Tang Myeong dispatched five enemies in a single breath.
The moment he identified them as foes, his demeanor completely shifted.
These bastards dared to touch my daughter?
Their motives or goals didn't matter.
Once they were deemed enemies, such thoughts were merely distractions.
"Die."
With a cold murmur, flying daggers rained down in all directions.
"Argh!"
"Aaargh!"
The power was on a completely different level from ordinary hidden weapons.
Tang Myeong's flying daggers blew off heads and tore watermelon-sized holes through torsos.
It was a display of power truly worthy of the Tang Family Head.
The flashes of light flying from his fingertips never missed.
Claiming a life with every single throw, he was a death god delivering demise.
The masked men falling left and right couldn't even slow him down. However...
"Impressive."
Watching the spectacle from a slight distance, Han Cheong-un muttered in quiet admiration.
The Poison Cloud Death God, Tang Myeong.
Han Cheong-un had heard of the name, but this was his first time witnessing his skills in person. In the two Great Wars between the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions that Han Cheong-un remembered, Tang Myeong had not been present.
When the Tang Family was destroyed during the Tang Family Blood Tragedy, the only survivors were Tang Jin, who happened to be away at the time, and a few branch family members.
To think a man like that wasn't there during the war...
It was a tragedy no matter how many times he thought about it.
Watching Tang Myeong weave through the enemies with phantom-like footwork while unleashing daggers in every direction was more than enough to show why the Sichuan Tang Family was feared. But then...
Swish!
For the first time, the Tang Family Head's dagger missed.
That in itself wasn't surprising. The opponent seemed to be a skilled expert in his own right.
It was a perfectly plausible occurrence.
But the moment the opponent threw a dagger using the exact same technique as the Tang Family Head, Tang Myeong's eyes widened.
Thud!
The dagger grazed Tang Myeong's cheek and pierced straight through a massive tree behind him.
Tang Myeong stared blankly at the opponent who had thrown the dagger at him, before his face contorted into a demonic scowl.
"How dare you!"
With a thunderous roar, he unleashed a barrage of flying daggers forward.
The dozen or so daggers leaving his fingertips shimmered like a heat haze, splitting and leaving afterimages.
By the time they reached the opponent, it looked as if hundreds of daggers were raining down upon them.
Dance of Ten Thousand Daggers
The Tang Family's dagger technique, mastered to the Peak realm, unfolded from the Family Head's hands. However...
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
The opponent's body swayed like a ghost, and the hundreds of daggers passed harmlessly through the afterimages, striking the ground behind him.
Seeing this, Tang Myeong bit his lip.
"Damn it..."
"Father, just now, that was...?"
Tang Jin tried to say something, but Tang Myeong cut him off.
"Tang Jin!"
"Yes? Yes, Father."
"Can you still track the incense?"
"Yes. I can."
"Then go. I will handle things here."
"..."
Tang Jin hesitated.
He had a good guess as to why his father was sending him away. But if his suspicion was correct, shouldn't he stay and help?
If the opponent was indeed who he thought it was, even his father couldn't guarantee a victory...
Smack!
Suddenly, Tang Jin was struck on the back of his head.
He gritted his teeth and shouted, "Argh! Who was that?!"
"It's me."
Han Cheong-un stood there, resting his spear over his shoulder as he looked at him calmly.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
"Waking you up."
"What?"
"You think too much."
"Huh?"
"Being cautious is your strength, but it can also be your weakness."
"..."
Since when do you know me well enough to say that? Tang Jin wanted to argue, but somehow, the words rang true.
He had heard similar remarks from others before.
"Let's trust the Family Head here and go rescue Lady Tang."
"But..."
"How frustrating..."
Han Cheong-un sighed and pointed at the mysterious figure who had dodged the Family Head's attack.
"Dealing with that guy is the Family Head's role and duty. But saving your sister is something only you can do."
"Mmm..."
"So we should divide the roles and move quickly. Why are you wasting time hesitating?"
"..."
The logic was sound.
Tang Jin glanced at his father and said, "You won't lose, right?"
"Who do you think you are talking to?"
"I'll trust you."
Leaving those words behind, Tang Jin leaped forward. Without even looking at his son, Tang Myeong called out.
"Number One."
"Yes, Family Head."
"The Shadow Dagger Unit will follow Tang Jin."
"Understood!"
Having sent all his subordinates away, Tang Myeong looked at the masked man in front of him.
"Let's start by hearing your excuse."
"..."
"Uncle!"
At those words, the masked opponent let out a low groan and pulled off his mask.
The face revealed was one Tang Myeong knew all too well.
"It has been quite a while since you called me uncle, Family Head."
First Elder Tang Pyeong.
He revealed his face before Tang Myeong.
At the same time, many of the other masked men removed their masks.
As Tang Myeong recognized their faces, his eyes widened.
"Tang Jo, Tang Seong... even you all..."
The men revealing their faces were the key figures of the Sichuan Tang Family.
Although they frequently clashed with him and sided with the elders, they were still blood relatives of the Tang Family. And yet...
"Have you all lost your minds?"
"...Family Head."
"How else could you commit such an act unless you've gone mad?"
At Tang Myeong's thunderous rebuke, a few of them quietly averted their eyes.
However, Tang Pyeong, the mastermind behind this, merely smirked.
"Listen to me, Family Head."
"Speak."
"I am simply trying to correct your late father's mistake."
"What?"
"Attempting to create a cursed existence like the Myriad Poisons Body was a mistake from the start. Is it not?"
Tang Myeong gritted his teeth.
It was indeed his late father who had decided to create the Myriad Poisons Body. But to hear such words from the mouths of the elders who had been the first to support it back then...
"So? To correct that mistake, you sold out my daughter?"
"You can always have another child."
"..."
"How can the Head of the Tang Family be so soft-hearted?"
At that moment, something snapped inside Tang Myeong. And then...
"Ha... Hahaha."
Tang Myeong laughed.
A laugh filled with bitter regret burst from him.
To think I trusted these people as the pillars of the family... I have lived a foolish life. Truly foolish.
Despite his turbulent emotions, the others did not dare to rush him.
Tang Myeong should have been full of openings right now, yet they couldn't spot a single one. On the contrary...
D-danger...
I have to get away.
Their martial instincts and primal survival urges screamed at them.
They needed to flee immediately. And when Tang Myeong's laughter finally subsided...
"I thought perhaps there was a reason."
"..."
"I even imagined that you might have been blackmailed, that it was an unavoidable situation."
"..."
"But to think you were simply trash to the core."
"..."
"I cannot listen to this disgust any longer."
"Family Head, what are you..."
"By my authority as the Head of the Sichuan Tang Family, I decree."
"..."
"First Elder Tang Pyeong, who betrayed the family and abandoned all moral laws, along with the rest of the trash gathered here."
"..."
"You are all hereby expelled from the family. Furthermore, you will be executed on this spot for threatening the bloodline of the Sichuan Tang Family."
"Do you truly believe you can handle all of us alone, Family Head?"
Tang Pyeong gripped a flying dagger in one hand and gathered poison energy in the other as he spoke.
"I am the First Elder of the Sichuan Tang Family. I was a core warrior of the Tang Family before you, Myeong, even learned to walk."
"And the others here are no pushovers either—"
"Cut the bullshit."
Tang Myeong's cold words cut off Tang Pyeong's grand speech. And then...
"You are making one crucial mistake."
"What...?"
Tang Pyeong stopped mid-sentence.
An aura far surpassing his own was rising from his nephew.
"Why do you think my father chose me among all my brothers? Especially since we didn't even get along."
"..."
"The answer is simple."
"..."
"Because I was the strongest in the entire Sichuan Tang Family."
With those words, Tang Myeong's figure blurred and vanished.