Deep Fire - 7
Sima Sim trembled violently as he diligently guided the way. He was the sort who reveled in personal glory and a sense of superiority, and he cherished his own life just as much. No matter how much he schemed for even the slimmest chance of survival, his immediate priority was staying alive.
"Left... to the left."
"Too slow."
Jang Cheon saw no reason to walk honestly. With a swing of his sword, the pavilion's roof shattered, revealing the sunset sky in stark clarity. It was nearly dusk, and a shadow of dread fell over the strategist's face. Ignoring it, Jang Cheon hoisted him onto his shoulder and leaped into the air. The entire city sprawled below.
"Point it out."
"Eee, heehee, heehee!"
He struck Sima Sim's acupoint as the man flailed pathetically. For a brief moment, his right hand moved naturally. Even in the chaos of hovering in the sky for the first time in his life, the strategist struggled to recall the mental map. Meanwhile, Jang Cheon scanned the city with piercing eyes. Fires blazed in every direction. Something catastrophic had struck Seongdo. A faint metallic tang of blood rode the wind. Fortunately, no sign that Cheon Sohyang was in pursuit. If the Sima Family had anyone at Super First Rate level, they couldn't ignore a commotion this massive. The last he remembered, that girl had reached the Peak realm. At minimum, no immediate threat of death... none, he had to assume. But the chaos itself gnawed at him. At this scale, Seongdo's martial artists should be responding. This was Sichuan's premier city—experts aplenty. For the disorder to persist unchecked meant...
"The Demonic Cult."
Even if the Sima Family was subdued, their allies would linger. Screams echoed ceaselessly from every corner.
For instance, Hyungmun Street. A district of cheap inns and tawdry pleasures. Jang Do-sam, out to buy a gift for his daughter just past toddlerhood, felt an odd chill. Off the main avenue stood a small toy shop run by an acquaintance—quality playthings at fair prices. Peak season; the owner should be there.
"Hey, bro."
Empty. He stepped inside cautiously. He'd heard rumors of the Demonic Cult stirring lately, but he'd vaguely assumed it was a martial world affair. Apparently not. A fishy reek seeped into his nostrils. The shopkeeper lay slumped over a table, a golden dagger protruding from his pierced heart. The gruesome sight wrenched a scream from Jang Do-sam.
"Bro! Bro, what the... murder! Murder! Someone's dead—mmph!"
In an instant, a gloved hand in pristine white leather clamped over his mouth. The mysterious assailant held him fast; he couldn't even twist his head. The next moment, agony bloomed in his chest, and he breathed his last.
The killer muttered, "Three now. Quota filled precisely with the Blood Gold dagger."
The blade gleamed with sinister luster. Originally red-hued, it shifted to gold upon absorbing human blood—that was its trait. Hence its chilling name: Blood Gold. Sated with enough blood, it emitted a peculiar hum. The killer vanished into the shadows, listening to the buzz ripple through Seongdo's air.
Myriad Demons Rise
Screams flowed onward. Silent murders erupting everywhere. Repeated sightings. Chaos mingled with final gasps. Not every ritual went smoothly—some resisted, others thrashed in desperation, a few screamed to their last breath. Through it all, the Blood Gold's hum permeated, resonating, swelling, converging. Soon, that eerie drone reached even the tense, huddled girl.
"......A Divine Artifact. Why."
Beneath a crumbling wall. Cheon Sohyang, having slain Gu Su Mu Young and preparing her escape. A strange vibration stirred in her bosom. The item entrusted to her while fleeing the Demon Subjugation Squad. They had called it a Divine Artifact.
She hurriedly drew it out, inspecting the object. At a glance, merely a hefty white spherical jade. Void Sky Jade—that's what the Demon Subjugation Squad named it.
「Their goal is surely this jade. I... I thought it was just mere ornament...」
Cheon Sohyang knew no more details. Simply an ancient treasure the squad had safeguarded. Until now, no changes, no omens. Nothing but absurdly durable jade. Yet it thrummed now, resonating with those distant noises.
"Something's off. Gives me the creeps."
Her senses screamed warning too. With intuition that had once brushed the heavens, Cheon Sohyang sensed ill fortune engulfing the city. And it tied to this uncanny vibration... and her Divine Artifact.
"Aaagh!"
"No! Spare me!"
Screams rang from every quarter. The Sima Family was surely mobilizing. Now burning buildings dotted the skyline. Then came the strange sound.
"Run forward."
The voice seemed to emanate from the jade itself. Instinctively, Cheon Sohyang clutched it to her chest and bolted. The voice was right. Lingering here was perilous. She had to transport this jade somewhere. The girl ran—down flaming boulevards, past burning brothels and shops, shoving through scattering crowds. Smoke choked the air. When had the fires spread so far?
"Cough, cough!"
Nothing visible. But she couldn't stop. Onward she pressed. By chance, her path veered toward the recently collapsed Murim Alliance Seongdo branch.
"I-I told you! We have to run! Your disciple can't be saved, I said—ah, aaah!"
Before the Cheongpung Inn's smoldering ruins, Jang Cheon materialized. The crippled man slung over his shoulder wailed. Sima Sim had faithfully led him to Cheon Sohyang's last reported position. No trace. Predictable, really—Gu Su Mu Young hadn't dragged her back, meaning she'd slipped away. After that, even Sima Sim was at his wits' end, jumping in panic. Two Transformation Realm experts shredded before his eyes—who cared about reports? The plan had crumbled long ago. The Demonic Cult's mind-controller lay dead, halved. He himself was kidnapped, the host meant to die before sunset still at large. No calculus accounted for this. Two Transformation Realm masters insufficient for one girl? Absurd.
"It's all over now......"
Of course, none of it concerned Jang Cheon.
"Surely a tracking method exists. If not, devise one with that vaunted brain of yours. I'll count to ten."
Or else? Obvious: exquisite agony. Sima Sim racked his mind desperately. No evidence lingered in the half-charred city. Regrettably, his choice wasn't some brilliant insight born of genius. Sobbing, he begged.
"Fuck, I don't know! The Void Chaos will awaken soon! We're all dead! If the host isn't killed before sunset, it manifests!"
"You mean you don't know the tracking method?"
"Yes! I don't know! Gonna die anyway—might as well speak my piece! You turtle spawn! Still blind to what's crucial, you cur?"
"Then die it is."
Jang Cheon severed Sima Sim's throat impassively. The strategist's head tumbled through the ashen debris. Jang Cheon too sensed the ominous pall over the city. Such upheavals weren't new in his time—violence and greed often birthed riots and looting. But this felt different. Not mindless mayhem.
He closed his eyes briefly, then vaulted skyward.
Eogi Chungso. Channeling qi to the Yongcheon acupoint propelled him dozens of zhang high. Layered with Hwagong Dabo, he truly walked the heavens. Thus he did—to survey soaring flames, screams, and the disciple within.
"Hah."
He frowned. There, plain as day. Visible only from this altitude? Seongdo's blazes bore clear intent. For example, that street's inferno—and flames blooming opposite. Together, they traced a line. Such lines everywhere. Scattered yet precise. From the ground, smoke and pandemonium obscured them. From above: a canvas. A motif. The city as easel, fire as pigment. A colossal bird, wings poised to unfurl and ascend, ablaze amid Seongdo's streets.
"What manner of freakish rite is this."
Three centuries past—such a portent? He was Manifestation Realm, scourge of the martial world. He knew secrets aplenty. None like this. Wait.
"......I have."
Chasing instinct through memory, his gaze darkened. He recalled this emblem. Not Demonic Cult. Not Murim Alliance. Shaolin's Geumroe-ok. The abyss sealing worst evils and secrets, untouched even by Ksitigarbha's light—strongest forbidden ground in the jianghu. Where he first claimed Heuk-yo. Among the cave's enigmatic wall motifs lurked that blazing bird. Identical in every detail.