Chapter 450
Chapter 450
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 450
Chapter Title: It Has Already Begun
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Flash!
At the same moment, a silver light dyed the entire world.
It was the palm technique he had created and honed on his own, unleashed with all his might.
The Silver Flame Palm.
It was the essence of an art of annihilation, one that turned everything the palm touched into silver flames.
Moreover, he had used his Primal Essence Qi—an energy that drew upon his own life force—backed by over two hundred years of internal power…
Its power was enough to shatter even Mount Tai.
Whoooosh!
A fierce wind, strong enough to swallow the world, gusted forth, kicking up clouds of dust in every direction.
But Wiji Hye-sang was nowhere to be seen.
“Did I succeed?”
Myo Cheon-woo took a deep breath.
From using his Primal Essence Qi, his face seemed to have aged a decade, and the hair at his temples had turned white.
But a satisfied smile graced his lips.
He had, after all, dealt with the heir of the great Fiery Rain Sword Sect.
“Now, I must tie up the loose ends.”
Myo Cheon-woo drew a dagger from his robes. With no energy left, he couldn't sever his own heart meridian.
Since my life was saved, it is only right that I give it back.
From the beginning, he had intended to end his life along with the mastermind who controlled the Slaughter Fiends.
“Wow, you really had something up your sleeve, didn't you?”
But just then, a low voice spoke from behind Myo Cheon-woo.
It was the voice of Wiji Hye-sang.
“How.”
As Myo Cheon-woo asked in a trembling voice, Wiji Hye-sang smiled faintly and glanced around.
“As you can see.”
Only then did Myo Cheon-woo survey his surroundings.
He realized now that Wiji Hye-sang hadn't dodged; he himself had unleashed the Silver Flame Palm in the wrong direction.
“Was what I saw an illusion?”
“Perhaps.”
Wiji Hye-sang said with a shrug.
“In any case, never let your guard down when delivering the final blow to an enemy. That is a truth passed down through the generations in the martial world.”
Thud.
Myo Cheon-woo's hands and head drooped.
It was a complete defeat.
Wiji Hye-sang was a man of such profound martial arts and wisdom that he was beyond Myo Cheon-woo's comprehension.
“I truly don't understand.”
Wiji Hye-sang frowned, as if sensing something was amiss.
“You are a man who has achieved much by his side. Why would you do something so sloppy…”
Myo Cheon-woo was a talent great enough to be chosen as one of the Ten Demonic Masters, a man who had carried out many operations under the brilliant strategist, Bu Eun-seol.
He couldn't have been unaware that he stood no chance of defeating me, no matter what he tried.
He must have known that no matter the method, he would never find any evidence linking this to me.
So why? Why commit such a foolish and pathetic act?
“I may not be able to find it…”
Myo Cheon-woo snorted, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.
“But Bu Eun-seol… that man will definitely find it.”
Myo Cheon-woo knew.
In this situation, with his own abilities.
No, even if he mobilized the full power of the Four Shadows Hall, even if he found the Slaughter Fiend… he knew he would never find any proof.
But what if he risked his life to come to the Fiery Rain Sword Sect?
If only to satisfy his curiosity, someone connected to the Slaughter Fiends would surely appear before him.
And if he were to cause an incident—whether by taking that person down with him or by losing his own life?
Bu Eun-seol would definitely become suspicious.
And he had no doubt that one day, Bu Eun-seol would uncover every last piece of evidence.
“You did all this just to raise the suspicions of the Lord of the Martial Soul?”
“There was no evidence.”
Myo Cheon-woo laughed weakly.
“With my abilities, I had no other choice…”
“How absurd.”
“I have nothing more to say. Kill me.”
Myo Cheon-woo said with a look of resignation.
“I never planned on leaving here alive anyway.”
Kra-koom!
Just then, a deafening roar that shook the very earth rang out.
It was the sound of thunder, seeming to rip the sky apart. The sound grew closer, echoing continuously.
Rumble! Kra-koom!
The thunder finally grew so close it seemed to be directly overhead, and a faint shadow could be seen approaching from the sky.
Wiji Hye-sang watched its approach, then turned to Myo Cheon-woo and nodded.
“Unfortunately, it seems your wish to atone with your death will not be granted.”
Myo Cheon-woo's eyes widened.
The worst possible outcome he could imagine flashed through his mind.
‘Bu Eun-seol?’
Thump.
At that moment, a gray figure landed on the ground from the sky.
His entire body was cloaked in waves of true qi, and a blood-red light burned like charcoal in his eyes.
It was Bu Eun-seol.
“Lord of the Martial Soul.”
Seeing Bu Eun-seol, Wiji Hye-sang beamed and gave a silent, mock applause with his hands.
“Indeed, the protagonist always arrives at the most opportune moment.”
Wiji Hye-sang showed little surprise at Bu Eun-seol's appearance.
Instead, he greeted him with great enthusiasm, as if he had been waiting.
“To think we'd meet again because your subordinate caused a ruckus.”
Myo Cheon-woo had come to the Fiery Rain Sword Sect based on intuition and circumstantial evidence, not solid proof.
And this action had done nothing but put Bu Eun-seol in a more difficult position.
Wiji Hye-sang was making sure to remind Bu Eun-seol of that fact.
“What to do? Considering my acquaintance with you, Lord…”
Toss.
Before Wiji Hye-sang could finish, Bu Eun-seol pulled a blood-stained mask from his robes.
It was a mask used by the Slaughter Fiends on Hell Island in the past.
Bu Eun-seol.
He was much faster than Myo Cheon-woo had anticipated.
He had investigated the entire situation and had finally found the very Slaughter Fiend who gave Myo Cheon-woo his orders.
Despite this, Wiji Hye-sang's expression remained unchanged.
He was confident.
Confident that even if Bu Eun-seol had caught the Slaughter Fiend, he wouldn't have found any evidence connecting him to it.
“What is that?”
As Wiji Hye-sang feigned ignorance, Bu Eun-seol spoke calmly.
“They say he was one of the men who acted as a Slaughter Fiend on Hell Island, and also one of the Fiery Rain Sword Sect's sword instructors.”
“Did he confess? Impossible.”
There was conviction in Wiji Hye-sang's eyes and expression.
A conviction that the Slaughter Fiend had not confessed.
“That's right. He didn't confess.”
Bu Eun-seol said calmly.
“Even our own hall didn't know the identities of the Slaughter Fiends sent to Hell Island back then. So I went and checked each one personally.”
Gazing down at the blood-stained mask, Bu Eun-seol offered a cold smile.
“Now all that's left is to confirm if the Slaughter Fiend sent by the Fiery Rain Sword Sect is still alive.”
A moment of silence passed.
He hadn't found evidence linking it to Wiji Hye-sang.
But he had ultimately revealed that the one who manipulated Myo Cheon-woo was a member of the Fiery Rain Sword Sect.
“So what Commander Myo said was true? He claimed he was recruited by a member of my sect and acted as a spy.”
“Anything to say?”
“Surely you're not going to treat me like a criminal over something like that, are you?”
Wiji Hye-sang wore a smile as sweet as if he were sucking on candy.
“It's not just my sect; many masters of the Ten Demonic Sects keep informants to monitor the movements of the Demonic Palace.”
He continued calmly.
“Well, I don't know why someone in the position of a sword instructor would be so curious about the Lord's activities… but since that could be considered a crime, you should punish him swiftly.”
Wiji Hye-sang's expression was unchanged.
He was drawing a line, framing it as the Slaughter Fiend's independent action.
“Or would you like to come to my sect now and investigate if there are others involved in this espionage? Or will you strike down Commander Myo, the spy, first?”
“…”
“Ah? I suppose it's difficult to lay a hand on your own subordinate, isn't it? Shall I do it for you?”
When Bu Eun-seol didn't answer, Wiji Hye-sang shrugged with a disappointed look.
“Don't tell me. You're not thinking of forgiving him, are you?”
Wiji Hye-sang.
This inscrutable man… seemed to treat even matters of life and death as a mere game.
“Why did you do it?”
A light like an active volcano flared in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
There was no proof.
But Bu Eun-seol could also feel it clearly. Wiji Hye-sang was behind all of this.
And he was genuinely enraged.
“Well now. We'll have to investigate to find out why a member of my sect did such a thing. But perhaps…”
Wiji Hye-sang looked straight into Bu Eun-seol's furious face and spoke calmly.
“Could it be that he wanted you to become stronger?”
He spoke with a sincere gaze, as if he meant it.
“Someone like you needs suitable trials. That's the only way you'll grow stronger.”
“Why would you want me to become stronger?”
“Because I want the Lord of the Martial Soul to protect the martial world.”
Despite Bu Eun-seol's frigid expression, Wiji Hye-sang gave a playful wink.
“As you know, there are many people in the martial world who hide their identities while doing bad things, aren't there?”
“…”
“And the position of heir to the Demonic Palace is perfect for handling such matters. Isn't it?”
Bu Eun-seol stared intently at Wiji Hye-sang.
At first glance, it sounded as if the Fiery Rain Sword Sect's Slaughter Fiend had discovered information about the Three Realms… and was helping Bu Eun-seol to stand against them.
But there was no way someone in the position of a sword instructor for the Fiery Rain Sword Sect would know such a thing.
The leadership of the Fiery Rain Sword Sect—Wiji Hye-sang—had to be behind it.
But even if Wiji Hye-sang was the mastermind, the question of 'why?' remained.
Was it purely to defeat the Three Realms?
Or was it because he was a figure who stood opposite the Infinite Realm? Did he wish for Bu Eun-seol to constantly clash with them and stir things up?
There was no way to know the answer.
Wiji Hye-sang was a man who never revealed his true intentions.
So, to find the answer, Bu Eun-seol acted.
Step, step.
Bu Eun-seol walked straight toward Wiji Hye-sang.
With each step, an uncontrollable killing intent poured from him.
He was truly intending to cut down Wiji Hye-sang with all his strength.
“No! You mustn't!”
Myo Cheon-woo, still on his knees, crawled desperately in front of Bu Eun-seol and cried out.
“You can't fight him.”
His meridians were severed, so he couldn't even stand, but he used all his strength to block Bu Eun-seol's path.
“You have to endure for now.”
There was no proof that Wiji Hye-sang was a member of the Three Realms.
He might have controlled the Slaughter Fiend, but the one who exposed Bu Eun-seol's movements was the spy, Myo Cheon-woo.
In other words, Bu Eun-seol had no justification to strike Wiji Hye-sang.
If he fought him without cause?
Regardless of the outcome, Bu Eun-seol would find it difficult to maintain his position as the heir of the Demonic Palace.
To touch the heir of the number one demonic sect meant collapsing one of the greatest pillars of the Demonic Palace.
Hadn't Grand Commander Yeop Hyo-cheon already shown his displeasure with Bu Eun-seol interfering with the Ten Demonic Sects?
In this situation, he absolutely could not clash with the Ten Demonic Sects without justification.
“This is all my fault!”
Myo Cheon-woo said with a desperate expression.
“He's right. I shouldn't have blamed others; I should have blamed myself!”
Myo Cheon-woo slammed his head on the ground and shouted.
“I'm the one who told him all about your movements until now. And…”
Woooong!
At that moment, a bloody light flared in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
Simultaneously,
Flick, flick, flick!
He flicked his fingers, sending out blasts of wind.
As if greatly enraged, with a motion like strumming a zither, he moved all ten fingers, continuously firing blasts of wind at Myo Cheon-woo.
Sizzle, vmmm.
For a brief moment, Myo Cheon-woo's body was covered in frost, which then melted, over and over again.
“Blech.”
Struck by a hundred blasts of wind in the time it took to draw a single breath, Myo Cheon-woo collapsed, vomiting a clump of black blood.
Ssssss.
A foul stench and white smoke rose from the black blood.
It was the very energy Wiji Hye-sang had been so confident could never be expelled.
The Glacier Flow Art and the Scorching River Grand Essence Qi.
Bu Eun-seol had once again used the two ultimate arts of extreme yin and extreme yang to instantly annihilate the sword energy that had permeated Myo Cheon-woo's meridians.
—Do not use that extreme yin energy and extreme yang energy from now on.
It was as if he could hear Ak Mu-ryeong's warning once more.
The extreme yin and yang energies flowing through Bu Eun-seol's body were like a bomb that could detonate at any moment.
But to save Myo Cheon-woo, Bu Eun-seol had used that power without hesitation.
“What an incredible martial art. It seems you injected opposing energies simultaneously. Have you learned another new technique?”
At Wiji Hye-sang's words, a sharp killing intent shimmered like a heat haze in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
Myo Cheon-woo had risked his life on this gamble, and Bu Eun-seol had now grasped the entire situation.
Now, only two choices remained.
Would he find evidence later and eradicate them all? Or would he settle things with Wiji Hye-sang here and now?
Seeing Wiji Hye-sang's persistently playful attitude, Bu Eun-seol had chosen the latter.
But when Myo Cheon-woo desperately stopped him, he changed his mind.
“Aw, if you've already made up your mind, isn't it better to see it through to the end?”
Wiji Hye-sang clicked his tongue in disappointment.
“If you want a duel, that's fine too. Shall we begin a personal duel right now? Or will you use the factions that support you to wage an all-out war?”
An intense desire flowed from Wiji Hye-sang's eyes.
“Either is fine. Go on, try me.”
A duel with Bu Eun-seol.
An all-out war between the Fiery Rain Sword Sect and the Wolves' Fang Pavilion—he seemed ready to welcome either.
For a cautious man like Wiji Hye-sang to say such things meant he was fully confident of victory.
“Ugh.”
Just then, as if on purpose, Myo Cheon-woo let out a loud groan of pain.
Bu Eun-seol stared fixedly at Wiji Hye-sang and said coldly.
“We'll do this next time.”
Although he had extracted all the sword energy, Myo Cheon-woo's injuries were extremely severe.
All his meridians were severed, and he had suffered terrible internal injuries.
If time passed like this, even if he survived, he would be crippled for life.
“Don't worry. There's a way to heal you.”
Bu Eun-seol said, helping Myo Cheon-woo up.
“I've already been through having my meridians severed. It might take time, but you can make a full recovery.”
Seo Jin-ha had his severed meridians sealed by the Medicine King Hall Lord after his dantian was destroyed.
And he fully recovered his body by training at the Azure Spirit Palace of the Cloud Sea and the Wolves' Fang Pavilion.
Although Myo Cheon-woo's injuries were no better than his, he could surely be healed completely.
“Oh? Are you really not going to fight?”
Wiji Hye-sang pouted with a look of disappointment.
“Isn't it a bit ridiculous? For someone who made such a grand entrance, this is a very disappointing conclusion.”
“Don't worry. It's already begun.”
“Begun?”
As he blinked, wondering what that meant,
Fwoosh.
A sound of tearing air came from the direction of the Fiery Rain Sword Sect, and a warrior in black martial robes appeared, prostrating himself before Wiji Hye-sang.
“We have a huge problem!”
“What is it?”
“All branches of the Joyful Forest have been shut down simultaneously.”
The Joyful Forest was a chain of lavish gambling dens established in every major city.
The Joyful Forest was equipped with every kind of gamble a person could experience. It also included luxurious lodging and brothels.
If one had enough money, they could stay there and enjoy alcohol, pleasure, and gambling, completely forgetting the passage of time.
And the Joyful Forest was an intelligence organization managed by the Fiery Rain Sword Sect, as well as their financial lifeline, bringing in immense profits.
This was the reason Wiji Hye-sang's influence was so strong—stronger even than that of Head Instructor Wi Hyeok-gun, who managed all the sect's affairs in place of Wiji Mu-a. It was because he controlled the Joyful Forest.
And now they had all been shut down at once?
Crack.
It was as if a crack had appeared on Wiji Hye-sang's smiling face.
And a murderous expression, one never seen before, was revealed.
It was as if his true face, hidden beneath a shell, was finally showing itself.
“What do you mean?”
“The men from the Demonic Palace, from the Lord of the Martial Soul, they swarmed in all at once and the Joyful Forest…”
“I wasn't asking you.”
A vein bulged on Wiji Hye-sang's brow as he glared at Bu Eun-seol.
“By what authority did you shut down the Joyful Forest? Because a commander of the Four Shadows Hall was recruited by my sect's Slaughter Fiend and became a spy? For a petty crime like that?”
“The funds flowing from the Joyful Forest weren't just going to the Fiery Rain Sword Sect, but also to the Unorthodox Faction, the Underworld, the government, and… even to the Martial Alliance.”
Bu Eun-seol smiled coldly.
“For the Fiery Rain Sword Sect, a pillar of the demonic martial world, to commit an act of treason by funding the Martial Alliance… It's truly unbelievable.”
“Do you have proof?”
Wiji Hye-sang scoffed.
He was a perfectionist and never left evidence. He was confident that not even Bu Eun-seol could find any.
“I do.”
Bu Eun-seol said, glancing at Myo Cheon-woo.
“Sufficient grounds to overturn the Joyful Forest.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Seven Immortals Teahouse.”
The Seven Immortals Teahouse was founded by Man Gi-ryung, a wealthy merchant from Jinan, and was famous for its low prices and high-quality tea.
There was at least one in every major city and marketplace.
“You must have been confident it would never arouse suspicion. Besides, some were operated under different names, not the Seven Immortals Teahouse.”
“…”
“After all, Myo Cheon-woo enjoys a cup of tea whenever he goes into the city.”
In that instant, the color drained from Wiji Hye-sang's face.
As Bu Eun-seol said, knowing that Myo Cheon-woo habitually drank tea whenever he went into the city,
they had maintained their communication network through the Seven Immortals Teahouse.
Though it was registered under Man Gi-ryung's name, it was actually a place secretly operated by Wiji Hye-sang.
It also served as an information-gathering hub, so security was tight and word never leaked.
It was the optimal place for a rendezvous.
But Myo Cheon-woo had been suspicious all along.
Just because he liked tea, just because it was a place that could avoid suspicion.
They couldn't possibly have every teahouse across the Central Plains under their control.
Therefore, he had intentionally changed the meeting place several times.
His reason was that to avoid suspicion, they should only meet in places related to the Demonic Palace's business.
And he believed that if the meeting places belonged to those behind the Slaughter Fiends… Bu Eun-seol would surely investigate them.
And his efforts and faith were not in vain.
Bu Eun-seol overlooked nothing, not even the smallest detail, and thoroughly investigated every teahouse Myo Cheon-woo had visited…
And in the end, he had uncovered that Wiji Hye-sang was operating the Seven Immortals Teahouse.
—That man will definitely find it.
For a moment, Myo Cheon-woo's words flashed through Wiji Hye-sang's mind.
Trusting in Bu Eun-seol's abilities, another of Myo Cheon-woo's gambles had paid off.