Chapter 292
Chapter 292
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 292
Chapter Title: Blood Serpent Valley
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Myo Cheon-u and Yu Un-ryong had returned from their long rest and were attending to their duties.
Following Seo Jin-ha’s advice, Bu Eun-seol had temporarily halted the operations of his intelligence network.
Instead, he had gathered the intelligence agents who were deployed externally and brought them to the Ma-jeon.
‘It wouldn’t be a bad idea to solve the problems closest to home first.’
It was no great secret that there was a spy within the Ma-jeon.
If the head of the Murim Alliance’s intelligence unit had been a spy groomed for decades, then there was bound to be a high-ranking spy in the Ma-jeon as well.
Of course, whether there was a spy or not was of no concern to him. He was merely trying to find one who might be connected to Sahyang.
“Lord.”
A vibrant, playful voice called from outside.
“Your humble servant, Myo Cheon-u, enters!”
The door opened, and a man with a sturdy build and bright eyes walked in. It was Myo Cheon-u.
“What is it?”
“A letter arrived from the Biyeonggak, so I brought it.”
As he took the envelope Myo Cheon-u offered, he saw the symbol of the Cheon-sal-dae stamped on the front.
It was from Seo Jin-ha.
—I’ve found a trace of Sahyang in Blood Serpent Valley. I will contact you again as soon as I can confirm.
The brief message, written in a concise hand, suggested he had hastily sent the information before returning to Blood Serpent Valley.
A sense of foreboding washed over Bu Eun-seol as he read the letter.
Blood Serpent Valley.
It was a poison clan located on Mount Podae in Shandong.
Mount Podae was a blessed land, a natural paradise where many spiritual herbs grew.
And in Blood Serpent Valley, they began using these spiritual herbs to create bizarre poisons never seen before.
That was the infamous Decomposing Corpse Blood Poison.
—We cannot stand by and let Blood Serpent Valley continue!
A terrifying poison that turned all of a victim’s blood into venom. The Decomposing Corpse Blood Poison.
When this poison circulated through the martial world, it harmed not only martial artists but also commoners and livestock.
In the end, masters from both the Orthodox and Unorthodox Factions, unable to tolerate the situation, swiftly annihilated Blood Serpent Valley.
Blood Serpent Valley, which had once defined an era, had vanished into the annals of history. But now it had been revived?
‘They must have been rebuilt with the support of a powerful faction, just like the O-dok-mun.’
Bu Eun-seol’s expression grew grave.
The problem was that Seo Jin-ha had single-handedly picked up the trail of this secretly lurking sect.
There was no way they would have been caught in the information net of Seo Jin-ha, who had only been investigating while out on leave.
‘They intentionally lured him in.’
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes narrowed.
Some faction had likely leaked the information to Seo Jin-ha on purpose to draw him in.
‘I shouldn’t have said anything.’
A wave of regret washed over him.
He had told Seo Jin-ha about Sahyang because he was the leader of the Cheon-sal-dae, a man who handled a wide variety of information.
He had merely hoped Seo Jin-ha would share any information he came across during his missions…
He never imagined Seo Jin-ha would use his leave to go out into the martial world and track down traces of Sahyang.
‘If Blood Serpent Valley was rebuilt long ago like the O-dok-mun, its roots and power will be beyond imagination.’
Bu Eun-seol clenched his fists.
This was by no means something Seo Jin-ha could handle.
Besides, hadn’t Sahyang always been connected to the Orthodox Faction?
“Is something wrong?”
Myo Cheon-u asked, looking at Bu Eun-seol’s grim expression.
“You look very troubled.”
“It’s nothing.”
When Bu Eun-seol shook his head, Myo Cheon-u looked disappointed.
“Bu Eun-seol. Myself included, aren’t we all your subordinates here?”
“I never said you weren’t.”
“A subordinate is someone who can carry out the will of their superior.”
Myo Cheon-u took a breath, then spoke the words he had long held in his heart.
“I don’t expect you to suddenly trust and rely on us. But if something is troubling you, can’t we share the burden as your subordinates?”
Myo Cheon-u’s gaze was fervent.
It was similar to the gaze of Seo Jin-ha, who held a passionate friendship. And for Bu Eun-seol, that was agonizing.
Seo Jin-ha, Myo Cheon-u…
Those two would not hesitate to lay down their lives for the sake of friendship.
But Bu Eun-seol did not want anyone to get hurt because of him.
That was why he had never intended to share a friendship with anyone in his entire life.
“If such a time comes, I will tell you,”
Bu Eun-seol replied in a detached voice, avoiding Myo Cheon-u’s intense gaze.
“As your superior.”
“…I understand.”
A surge of disappointment welled up in Myo Cheon-u, but he swallowed it down and turned away.
A few days later.
Bu Eun-seol returned from a walk around Hwahong Pavilion, trying to clear his complicated thoughts.
When he entered his office, a thin envelope was lying on his desk.
In an instant, a glint flashed in Bu Eun-seol’s eyes.
*Swish.*
With a cautious expression, he slowly examined the envelope. The end was bulging, as if it contained something thick.
As he slowly opened it, he instinctively knew one thing.
The ominous feeling he had felt before. It had finally become reality.
*Thud.*
Something heavy fell from the open envelope onto the table.
It was a freshly severed ear.
Bu Eun-seol recognized it as Seo Jin-ha’s at a single glance.
The very ear that had listened to his words as they drank on the rooftop not long ago.
It was now brutally cut off and placed inside an envelope.
—If you want to save this man, come to Blood Serpent Valley alone.
A short message was written on the enclosed letter.
But something was strange.
Bu Eun-seol could ignore the letter and send the Ma-jeon’s forces.
Yet the letter contained only that single line, with no further threats.
In other words, they were confident that Bu Eun-seol would come alone.
‘They know me well.’
Not only did they have a thorough grasp of Bu Eun-seol’s personality…
They were also confident that if he sent the Ma-jeon’s forces, they could immediately cut their losses and disappear.
‘There is no choice.’
Bu Eun-seol looked at the Muk-geom hanging on the wall.
To find the traces of Sahyang.
To save Seo Jin-ha.
He had to go to Blood Serpent Valley alone, without telling anyone.
***
After leaving the Ma-jeon, Bu Eun-seol used his full movement technique and arrived at Mount Podae, where Blood Serpent Valley was located.
The Hanzhong area, where Mount Podae stood, was a dense cluster of mountains, perfectly fitting the description of a remote, mountainous region.
However, the name Mount Podae did not come from the mountain’s resemblance to a sack.
It was because the Buddhist name of a master who cultivated the Dao here centuries ago was Podae.
Master Podae was said to have treated the sick in the area with his outstanding medical skills and Daoist powers.
So, to honor Master Podae, the people named this place Mount Podae.
But Mount Podae, with its beautiful legend, became a symbol of terror once the heinous poison clan, Blood Serpent Valley, established itself there.
Decomposing Corpse Blood Poison.
A strange poison that turned one's blood entirely into venom upon infection. Because of it, this area had become a desolate land where no one lived.
*Swoosh.*
Using his movement technique to reach the entrance of Blood Serpent Valley in a single breath, Bu Eun-seol frowned.
“They’re at it again.”
Blood Serpent Valley, a sect that had been destroyed long ago, was now perfectly rebuilt.
However, the interior resembled not a martial arts sect but a livestock farm, as if raising animals.
He also saw large glass tubes, similar to the ones he had seen in the underground city in the mountains with Yu Hwa-ryeong.
‘Are they different?’
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes narrowed as he examined the glass tubes.
Unlike the tubes in the underground city, which were filled with red liquid, these were filled with black liquid.
It seemed they were researching how to transform people with poison rather than spiritual medicine.
‘I don’t understand.’
They were persistently researching drugs to enhance physical strength.
With the power to instantly restore a destroyed sect, they were practically no different from the Supreme Ruler of the martial world.
Was there really a need to develop such drugs?
‘In a case like this…’
Bu Eun-seol’s mind raced.
Perhaps they were not a single entity.
If their power was dispersed, there was reason to strengthen their forces to keep each other in check.
‘If not that, then it means there is a powerful enemy that even they cannot defeat.’
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
All of this was just speculation. He couldn't know the exact truth.
Looking back, despite all they had done, almost nothing had been revealed about them.
‘No need to be hasty. I just need to eliminate them one by one.’
No matter how great their power, restoring a fallen sect would have required an enormous amount of capital.
If he found and destroyed them one by one like this, they would eventually have no choice but to show their tail.
—One wrong step, and you will follow the same path as the Martial Emperor.
Suddenly, the lament of King Tan he had heard in the Martial Emperor’s Secret Archive came to mind.
The Martial Emperor, who had been forced to leave the martial world in sorrow four hundred years ago after being falsely accused.
Even a supreme master like him could not stop them, whose influence spread throughout the entire martial world.
To exterminate them, he had to concentrate an immense power and wipe them out in a single blow.
*Rustle. Rustle.*
At that moment, a strange sound echoed, and grotesque figures dressed in black began to appear.
Their entire bodies, including their faces, were wrapped in bandages that had a strange sheen.
In both hands, they held malformed blades curved like large sickles.
They looked like a swarm of giant stag beetles with sharp mandibles pouring out.
*Shing.*
Bu Eun-seol immediately drew his Muk-geom against the charging figures.
There was no need for conversation.
He just had to cut them down quickly and rescue Seo Jin-ha.
*Swish!*
A sharp sword technique created a wide arc, and the figures at the front collapsed.
But the charging figures paid no heed, screaming as they lunged forward.
Some even used the corpses of their comrades as springboards to leap forward.
It was as if a massive black wave was crashing down on him from above.
*Swoooosh!*
As the innumerable figures swung their malformed blades all at once, a chilling sound of displaced air echoed through the sky.
It was a terrifying scene that made one’s flesh crawl, but Bu Eun-seol swung the Muk-geom like a windmill, cutting down the figures again and again.
It was like watching black insects being pulverized by a high-speed rotating blade.
*Rustle. Rustle.*
But the number of figures pouring out was truly endless.
Their bodies seemed to have been steeped in drugs, making them extremely tough, and they felt no fear or terror.
Even when fatally wounded, they attacked tenaciously, only collapsing after a considerable delay.
*Swish!*
A series of rapid sword strikes burst forth, and blood spurted from the carotid arteries of the charging figures.
Their blood was not clear but somewhat viscous. The speed at which the blood flowed was also several times slower than that of ordinary humans.
‘So they can’t mass-produce Gyeol-ma-yeon-ok-in.’
What if these figures were like Gu Ju-hon, the Gyeol-ma-yeon-ok-in who wouldn't die unless their heads were completely severed or their vital blood was drained?
Bu Eun-seol would never have been able to handle such a large number of them.
Conversely, their goal might be to mass-produce Gyeol-ma-yeon-ok-in like Gu Ju-hon.
If that were possible, they would have simply wiped out the Ma-jeon with thousands of Gyeol-ma-yeon-ok-in, rather than luring Bu Eun-seol to attack him.
*Hiss, hiss, hiss!*
In the time it took for an incense stick to burn, Bu Eun-seol had cut down over a hundred figures.
But the number of figures pouring out seemed not to have diminished at all.
“Hoo.”
Gradually, ragged breaths began to escape Bu Eun-seol’s lips.
‘Are they trying to exhaust my internal energy?’
At some point, the figures had surrounded Bu Eun-seol and were repeatedly advancing and retreating.
This tactic was used to drain an opponent's internal energy before launching an all-out assault when they were exhausted.
*Slice!*
Normally, a single strike would have cut down dozens, but due to the tangled formation, he only managed to inflict fatal wounds on three or four figures.
“Hoo.”
Bu Eun-seol regulated his breathing and once again drew upon his internal energy to unleash his sword techniques.
The incessant sound of slicing echoed, and spurting blood rained down.
But the figures moved like a swarm of insects, relentlessly swinging their malformed blades.
As more time passed, a metallic taste began to fill Bu Eun-seol’s mouth as he swung his sword.
If the number of figures did not decrease and this continued, he would eventually collapse from exhaustion.
“Fine!”
With a thunderous roar, Bu Eun-seol infused all the formidable internal energy flowing through his body into the Muk-geom.
*Vwoom!*
With a low vibration, an inky sword aura soared into the sky.
Drenched in the Ban-geuk-jin-gi, the black sword energy that erupted from the Muk-geom shot up a staggering fifty feet.
*Vwoom! Vwoom!*
It looked less like sword energy and more like a black dragon ascending to the heavens with a pearl in its grasp.
*Chwaaaak!*
As the Mu-sang-cheon-ryu-sik, imbued with sword energy, unfolded, the formation of the figures began to collapse with a tearing sound.
Every time the seemingly alive sword energy cut through the air, dozens of figures fell at once.
How much time had passed?
*Thud, thud, thud.*
The black shadows that had darkened the entire area slowly disappeared.
The wall of flesh formed by the figures blocking the entrance had finally crumbled.
*Pitter-patter.*
Crimson blood rained down from the sky.
The powerful sword energy had decapitated the figures all at once, causing the spattered blood to pour down simultaneously.
*Gush, gush, gush.*
Rivers of blood flowed on the ground, and around them, the corpses of the figures were piled up like mountains.
*Step, step.*
Three figures walked through the puddles of blood.
They were so identical in appearance, height, clothing, and even expression that it was impossible to tell them apart.
“Impressive.”
Then, the three men spoke in unison.
“Even if they are just empty shells, to deal with so many Soul-Lost People without a single scratch.”
An unpleasant, buzzing sensation tickled Bu Eun-seol’s ears, as if an insect had crawled inside.
They had produced a strange vibration by speaking at the exact same time, without the slightest deviation.
“The Cheon family’s three brothers?”
Bu Eun-seol instantly identified the triplets.
Triplets were rare among martial arts masters, and there was only one set who could even speak in perfect unison.
“That’s right. We are the Mad Heaven Three Ghosts.”
The Mad Heaven Three Ghosts.
Commonly known as the Cheon family’s three brothers, they were not only formidable martial artists but also possessed a very unique ability.
The complete sharing of body and soul.
For example, if one felt physical pain, the other two felt the exact same pain.
The same went for emotions like joy and sadness. They shared everything.
Suddenly, as if realizing something, Bu Eun-seol nodded.
“So that’s why you’re unaffected.”