Chapter 191
Chapter 191
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 191
Chapter Title: Aftermath and a New Destination
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As long as they couldn't break through Baek Mu-sang's White Mist Wave, Jegal Seo-un and his companions were trapped in the poisonous fog, awaiting their deaths.
“Ugh.”
A groan escaped the lips of all four at once.
This was truly their limit.
They were somehow managing to block the barrage of attacks, but the ever-thickening poison was clouding their minds.
*'Is this really the end?'*
Jegal Seo-un bit his lip.
Never before had he faced a problem he couldn't solve with strategy... but a single mistake had endangered not only his own life but those of his friends as well.
If he hadn't brought Bu Eun-seol and Hyeok So-jin, they would have met a miserable end without even being able to resist.
*'It's over...'*
His internal energy, needed to fend off the poison, had run dry. Jegal Seo-un loosened his grip on his Six Harmony Fan.
Just as he was about to close his eyes,
*Kwoooooosh!*
A sudden, tremendous gust of wind erupted, so powerful it made his cheeks puff out.
Bu Eun-seol had appeared out of nowhere, creating a massive whirlwind that sent the White Mist Wave soaring into the air.
It was the ultimate technique of the Third Form of the Seven Forms of the Demonic Fist, Mang-a-dong-swae.
"What is this?"
Baek Mu-sang's eyes widened in utter bewilderment.
How could a man create a wind like a tornado with a single punch?
"Now!"
With the White Mist Wave broken, Jegal Seo-un's mind cleared, and he swung his Six Harmony Fan.
His companions, too, began to wield their weapons with all their might.
*'These bastards?'*
Baek Mu-sang was forced to personally deal with the full-force assault from Jegal Seo-un's group.
There was another problem.
The intruder, Bu Eun-seol, wasn't joining the fight. Instead, he stood there, his eyes gleaming as he stared intently at him.
*'Why is he just staring at me!'*
Under that piercing gaze, Baek Mu-sang's concentration wavered, and his movements began to falter.
*Puk!*
After about thirty exchanges, Mo Yong-gyeong found an opening, and his sharp sword pierced through Baek Mu-sang's lung.
*Shhk!*
Jegal Seo-un's Six Harmony Fan, moving like the wind, sliced deeply into his side.
*Kwajik!*
The Hwangbo brothers' Three Fists of the Heavenly King struck his Myeongmun and Daechu pressure points.
That was the end of Baek Mu-sang, who had terrorized the Yanggwang region for decades.
Though they were young prodigies, his life was ended by the ultimate arts of the Jegal, Mo Yong, and Hwangbo families...
In a way, it was not such a futile end.
"Get out of my way!"
Seeing Baek Mu-sang's gruesome death, Heuk Mu-sang felt his limbs go numb and his heart pound.
In truth, he had been looking for a chance to escape several times.
But Hyeok So-jin, drenched in blood and unleashing a myriad of techniques, clung to him like a vengeful water spirit.
"Get lost!"
Enraged, Heuk Mu-sang unleashed the Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo with a ferocity like spreading flames.
*Chik! Chik!*
Five shadowy claws tore through the air, relentlessly pursuing Hyeok So-jin no matter which way he dodged.
His clothes were torn, and blood streamed down his body.
But Hyeok So-jin, with eyes wide open, relentlessly attacked, persistently blocking Heuk Mu-sang's escape route.
"You leech! I said get out of my way!"
As Bu Eun-seol and Jegal Seo-un's group approached, Heuk Mu-sang launched a desperate, final strike.
*Papak!*
The dark shadows of the Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo exploded like rays of light, enveloping Hyeok So-jin's body.
In that instant, Heuk Mu-sang swiftly turned.
He had chosen to escape, even at the cost of injury.
"Heh heh. Where do you think you're going?"
But that was Heuk Mu-sang's mistake.
Hyeok So-jin's true ultimate art was Shin-yeol-ma-gi, a supreme demonic art of heaven-sundering, earth-destroying power that could freely redirect any force.
Since he had only reached the sixth level of mastery, he couldn't redirect consecutive attacks from a master like Heuk Mu-sang...
But a single strike?
*Papak!*
As he watched the incoming force of the Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo, purple flames erupted all over Hyeok So-jin's body.
And those flames instantly enveloped the force of the Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo.
Then drove it straight into the back of the retreating Heuk Mu-sang, in a line from his Shinju point to his Myeongmun point.
"Gaaah!"
Struck in the back by the sharp force of his own Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo, Heuk Mu-sang couldn't use his movement technique and collapsed.
"Ugh."
Heuk Mu-sang tried to get up in a hurry, but Hyeok So-jin was faster.
*Click.*
Hyeok So-jin aimed the tip of his precious sword at Heuk Mu-sang's neck and spoke in a solemn voice.
"In your next life, don't become a public enemy of the martial world. Be born with white teeth."
"What nonsense are you..."
Heuk Mu-sang's words were cut short.
Hyeok So-jin had sliced through his carotid artery in one swift motion.
*Click.*
Sheathing his sword, Hyeok So-jin let his shoulders slump and let out a weary groan.
"Kugh."
His skin, slashed by the Heuk-gyeong-ma-jo, was in tatters, and with his internal energy depleted, his dantian ached as if it would tear apart.
But he straightened his shoulders.
He had faced Heuk Mu-sang, a transcendent master he wouldn't have dared to fight before, and had claimed victory.
*'Of course, it would have been difficult if Brother Bu hadn't been watching...'*
He looked up at the sky and saw that dawn was breaking.
The light of the sky, slowly chasing away the darkness, was reflected clearly in Hyeok So-jin's eyes.
For a moment, he felt a sense of tranquility.
He was savoring the enlightenment gained from a battle that had brought him to the brink of death.
"Young Master Bu, Young Master Hyeok."
Just then, Jegal Seo-un carefully approached the two.
Behind him followed the rest of his group, unable to hide their astonishment.
However, the Hwangbo brothers and Mo Yong-gyeong, who had subtly looked down on Bu Eun-seol and Hyeok So-jin, hung their heads in shame.
"You two..."
Just as Jegal Seo-un was about to speak, his face filled with emotion,
"...!"
Bu Eun-seol's extrasensory perception sounded an alarm.
He felt a sharp gaze from somewhere, a feeling like a venomous snake slithering across the back of his neck.
*Hwaak!*
In an instant, Bu Eun-seol heightened all the senses of his Yasudo.
His pupils dilated, pouring out a strange light, and he sensed the energy of every living creature within a radius of eighty zhang.
*Paat!*
Kicking off the ground, Bu Eun-seol leaped eighty zhang in a single bound, disappearing into the deep, dark forest.
Having entered the deep forest in a single breath, Bu Eun-seol looked up at a giant tree standing before him and spread his hands.
Simultaneously, cool, sharp throwing daggers shot out from his sleeves.
*Paat!*
Just as the daggers, streaking like meteors across the night sky, were about to be swallowed by the giant tree,
*Jjeong! Jjeong!*
With a strange twanging sound, the daggers flying toward the tree suddenly dropped to the ground.
*Ssk.*
At that moment, a faint shadow appeared on a branch of the giant tree.
It was a masked person in strange night-crawling attire, as if one with the darkness.
*'Them again.'*
Bu Eun-seol understood at once.
How the Soul-Stealing Madman had managed to evade the pursuit of both the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions.
And how the Black and White Impermanence could have appeared at the same time and place as the Soul-Stealing Madman.
"...!"
The masked person's eyes fell on the Muk-geom slung across Bu Eun-seol's back, and a strange light gleamed in them.
There was something familiar about those eyes.
"Who are you people?"
When Bu Eun-seol asked, the masked person, instead of answering, lightly swept a long finger through the air.
*Jjeo-eong!*
In that instant, a tremendous shockwave and immense pressure poured down from the air.
It felt as if an enormous amount of internal energy was being unleashed, crushing his entire body.
*'Kuh!'*
The pressure was so intense that his body buckled and his vision blurred.
*'This internal energy...'*
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened.
The internal energy the masked person was unleashing was on par with that of Dan Wol-hon, the Lord of the Demonic Possession Bureau—an incredible level.
Bu Eun-seol drew upon his Ban-geuk Heart Art with all his might.
*Paang!*
A red aura erupted from his body, soaring into the night sky.
Bu Eun-seol straightened his body and looked up at the giant tree, but the masked person was already gone.
"Brother Bu!"
Just then, Hyeok So-jin's shout was heard, followed by Jegal Seo-un and his group.
"What in the world happened?"
Landing on the ground, Hyeok So-jin asked, and Bu Eun-seol replied in a low voice.
"There was a masked person."
"Again?"
At that moment, Jegal Seo-un also landed and approached Bu Eun-seol.
"What happened?"
"Someone was hiding here."
"Here... you say?"
Jegal Seo-un looked up at the giant tree where Bu Eun-seol's gaze was fixed, his face pale with shock.
This spot was eighty zhang away from the battlefield, deep in the forest. Moreover, hadn't Bu Eun-seol just expended his strength and energy in a life-or-death struggle?
Yet he had instantly detected a master hiding at this distance...
*'He is a person whose martial prowess is beyond our ability to even comprehend.'*
This was a thought shared not only by Jegal Seo-un but also by Mo Yong-gyeong and the Hwangbo brothers.
"Young Master Bu. I don't know how we can ever repay you for your help."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head at Jegal Seo-un's words.
"Don't worry about it. I didn't do it to help you."
"What do you mean..."
"It was just a common journey through the Jianghu."
The Jianghu journey.
Countless martial artists speak of and actually undertake a journey through the Jianghu.
After all, simply wandering the Jianghu could be called a journey.
But the journey Bu Eun-seol spoke of was the act of a martial artist not avoiding the trials they must face, but overcoming them to improve themselves.
It was a passionate path that the direct descendants of the Eight Great Families, raised like precious jewels, could not dare to imitate.
"It was merely a fleeting encounter."
Bu Eun-seol gave a calm nod and turned to leave, but Mo Yong-gyeong stepped forward and clasped his hands.
"You two saved us when we were acting like naive puppies, ignorant of the dangers of the Jianghu. How can we let you leave just like this?"
Then, Hwangbo Cheon-gyeong and Je-gyeong also stepped forward and clasped their hands.
"That's right. Please give us a chance to repay your kindness."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
"If you think you owe me a debt... forget it."
Bu Eun-seol gave a dry smile and calmly turned away.
"That is how you can repay the debt."
And immediately, he used his movement technique to exit the forest.
Hyeok So-jin also prepared to use his movement technique to follow.
But then he glanced down at his blood-soaked body and said with a gloomy expression.
"By any chance..."
Jegal Seo-un's group all nodded eagerly.
"Please speak, benefactor."
"Do you have any decent wound medicine?"
At such an unexpected request, the group stared at each other in bewilderment, blinking.
Then, Jegal Seo-rin, who was behind them, hastily took out a yellow bottle from her robes.
"It's Baek-gyeol-go from the Hallim Medical Clan."
"Thank you."
Hyeok So-jin took the medicine bottle and clasped his hands.
"Please keep it a secret that we were with you for this incident. It will be better for all of us."
The group had witnessed the true martial prowess and ultimate arts of Bu Eun-seol and Hyeok So-jin.
Because of that, they had already realized that the two were successors of the Ten Demonic Sects.
"What does it matter?"
Hwangbo Cheon-gyeong said, thumping his chest.
"Even if our paths are different, aren't there many heroes in the martial world who form sworn brotherhoods?"
Hwangbo Je-gyeong also nodded hastily.
"That's right. This is fate. Why don't we build a friendship from now on?"
Hyeok So-jin gave a bitter smile.
When they thought we were nobodies, they ignored us so thoroughly...
But now that they know we're not only skilled but also successors of the Ten Demonic Sects, their attitude has changed so drastically.
*'If I were to build a friendship, it would be with the Jegal family, not you guys.'*
The Jegal siblings had straightforward personalities and treated the two without prejudice, trusting only the skills they saw with their own eyes.
Besides, in the current state of the martial world, a peaceful exchange between the Demonic Path and the Orthodox Faction is impossible.
Hyeok So-jin had no desire to take on such a risk to associate with insincere people like the Hwangbo brothers.
"We have... complicated circumstances."
Smiling faintly, Hyeok So-jin looked at the Jegal siblings, smiled, and clasped his hands.
"Let's meet again if we have the chance."
For a moment, Mo Yong-gyeong and the Hwangbo brothers' faces were filled with embarrassment.
He hadn't said it directly, but his gaze was fixed on the Jegal siblings, making his intentions clear.
*Paat!*
And he immediately used his movement technique, disappearing in the direction Bu Eun-seol had gone.
"..."
The rest of the group, except for the Jegal siblings, watched him go with bitter expressions.
If there was any silver lining, it was that they had learned a lesson from this incident...
From now on, they would never judge people by their appearance and reputation alone.
***
—The prodigies of the Jegal, Mo Yong, and Hwangbo families have dealt with the Soul-Stealing Madman and the Black and White Impermanence!
—They were Jegal Seo-un, the 'Prodigy Jegal'; Mo Yong-gyeong, the 'Flash Sword'; and the third and youngest sons of the Hwangbo family, known as the 'Twin Fists of Heavenly Collapse'!
For a while, the martial world was abuzz with stories of the three great families.
The Soul-Stealing Madman, who, disguised as a physician, had massacred innocent commoners and young martial artists, spreading his infamy throughout the martial world.
The Black and White Impermanence, who, after being expelled from the Ghost Gate, had caused immense harm to the martial world for over twenty years.
These great villains were dealt with by mere prodigies from the three great families?
—It must be a lie.
If nothing else, the Black and White Impermanence were villains known to have reached the transcendent realm long ago.
For five direct descendants from the three great families—and not even the young lords—to deal with three transcendent masters was an impossible feat.
—It has been confirmed that they did indeed kill the Soul-Stealing Madman and the Black and White Impermanence!
However, various information networks in the martial world confirmed that Jegal Seo-un's group had been hiding on a path in Mount Ujung and that they had, in fact, killed them.
But their actions afterward were strange.
After defeating those terrifying villains, the Jegal siblings, Mo Yong-gyeong, and the Hwangbo brothers returned to their families and, as if by agreement, all entered seclusion.
—Were they seriously injured?
The heroes of the hour, who had only to reap the fame from their great achievements, suddenly went into seclusion instead of appearing in the martial world?
Various information networks and sects came up with all sorts of speculations, but no one could provide a clear answer.
***
A cramped tavern in a small village.
"Hahaha."
Hyeok So-jin, having drained his cup of wine, laughed heartily and said.
"Gaining a reputation too great to handle has become a poison in itself."
Jegal Seo-un's group didn't even have the skill to kill the Soul-Stealing Madman on their own.
Yet, rumors spread that they had also dealt with big shots like the Black and White Impermanence all at once...
In exchange for gaining a level of fame and martial prowess they couldn't handle, they could no longer show themselves in public.
"Still, they were smart about it. Seclusion, of all things."
Hyeok So-jin chuckled.
In reality, they didn't possess that level of skill...
So they plan to enter seclusion, improve their skills, and then reappear.
"Anyway, Brother Bu, your choice was the right one. If we hadn't gotten involved, we would have missed out on a proper Jianghu journey."
Despite Hyeok So-jin's chatter, Bu Eun-seol just silently tilted his wine cup.
Finally, after emptying a whole pitcher of wine, Bu Eun-seol stood up.
"It's time to leave."
"Where are you going?"
Bu Eun-seol looked down at Hyeok So-jin with an indifferent gaze and said.
"The Ma-jeon."