Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Nowhere to Return
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A brief silence fell over the bamboo forest.
*Whoosh.*
The clear, elegant bamboo swayed in the passing wind.
But the breeze blowing near the pavilion carried a murderous intent, and the air was as heavy as lead.
“So, we’ve been found out.”
Sang-ryang said, his voice deceptively casual.
“A shame.”
Sang-ryang looked up at the night sky, his face filled with regret.
“I was so looking forward to returning to the Demonic Sanctum.”
They offered no excuses. No, they couldn’t.
They knew Bu Eun-seol was not only extremely cautious but also meticulous.
The fact that he was asking such a question meant he had already reached the truth.
“To be honest, I had a faint suspicion.”
After a long silence, Sang-ryang spoke again.
“I wondered if the Demonic Sanctum had already figured out who we were.”
“If you suspected as much, why didn’t you leave?”
“Well.”
Sang-ryang smiled bitterly.
“Perhaps we wanted to prove that we were still useful.”
“Useful…”
“Indeed. Yueyang is a region where the intelligence networks of the orthodox and unorthodox sects are all tangled together. We managed to keep the Yueyang branch running smoothly without any conflict, so I thought perhaps the Demonic Sanctum would leave us be.”
Sang-ryang took another sip of his drink and spoke in a low voice.
“I was overjoyed when you killed Heuk-sa-do on your first mission. I thought we could finally earn some merit and return to the Sanctum.”
*Swoosh.*
At that moment, a gust of wind swept around the pavilion.
“But we were mistaken.”
“…”
“You were a far more exceptional person than we could have ever anticipated.”
Sang-ryang paused, savoring the breeze for a moment before continuing.
“You handled every mission in Yueyang on your own. Among them was the task of annihilating the intelligence organizations of the orthodox sects.”
In the past six months, Bu Eun-seol had wiped out not only the orthodox sects’ organizations in Yueyang but also those located throughout Hunan Province.
“Thanks to you, the power of the orthodox sects’ networks in the Hunan region has been completely broken. As a result, the Yueyang branch can now be managed comfortably by anyone.”
The Gong-ssi Twin Demons had hoped for a skilled agent to join and earn merit for them.
But ironically, the arrival of an agent who was *too* skilled had rendered them completely useless.
“Once a hunting dog has served its purpose, it’s thrown in the pot. It’s the way of the world.”
Bu Eun-seol sat without focus, as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
Hesitation.
For the first time since entering the martial world, he was hesitating.
These were the first people he had felt an attachment to since setting out into the Jianghu. But now, he had to take their lives.
The martial world is heartless, the martial world is heartless…!
This world, where one lived by the sword, was a hell from which there was no escape, a place where one could neither feel nor give affection.
“This is the fate of a spy…”
Sang-ryang stared at Bu Eun-seol with a placid expression.
“Set your feelings aside. The ending is already written.”
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol closed his eyes.
How much time had passed?
When he slowly opened his eyes, the hesitation was gone, replaced by a sharp glint.
In that short time, he had severed all the lingering affection and attachments in his heart.
“I seem to have said something unnecessary.”
Sang-ryang nodded as he looked into Bu Eun-seol’s once-again cold, glittering eyes.
“Well then, shall we begin?”
*Shaaat!*
At that moment, with a strange sound of slicing air, something sharp shot toward Bu Eun-seol’s back.
*Ssk.*
Bu Eun-seol twisted his body lightly, and a dark gleam grazed past his shoulder.
Ma-un, now holding a curved scythe, had launched a surprise attack with lightning speed.
“As expected, you never let your guard down!”
The moment Ma-un laughed heartily and swung his scythe again,
*Swish!*
This time, Sang-ryang, who stood in front, struck out like a bolt of lightning.
“In the Jianghu, you must always watch your back.”
From the front, Sang-ryang’s Judge’s Brush unleashed a sharp, cold light, while from behind, a scythe as chilling as frost descended upon Bu Eun-seol’s entire body.
*Sss.*
Unleashing Extreme Speed, Formless Shadow, Bu Eun-seol changed his position thirty-six times where he stood.
*Whish! Swish!*
But the Judge’s Brush rained down like hundreds of arrows, and the scythe carved an arc, cutting off all avenues of retreat.
*Clang!*
With a loud clash of metal, the movements of the Judge’s Brush and the scythe came to a halt.
Bu Eun-seol’s longsword, which had slid out soundlessly, had blocked their attack.
*Chik. Chik.*
Moving like a wisp of smoke, Bu Eun-seol swung his sword, and a sharp sword energy expanded ceaselessly.
“Incredible!”
Sang-ryang and Ma-un, fending off the storm of sword techniques, exclaimed in admiration.
The Gong-ssi Twin Demons were masters with vast combat experience. No matter how strong their opponent, they could usually predict their movements and the angle of their attacks to some extent.
And yet, they could find no opening in the sword techniques Bu Eun-seol unleashed, forcing them to retreat again and again.
“Lower your weapons.”
Bu Eun-seol said coldly, pausing his assault for a moment.
“You cannot defeat me.”
“We’ll see about that.”
Sang-ryang and Ma-un exchanged a glance.
*Whoosh!*
With a whistling sound, the style of Sang-ryang’s Judge’s Brush suddenly changed.
The Judge’s Brush.
A unique weapon made of a steel rod with both ends sharpened like a brush, it was used to strike vital points, incorporating techniques reminiscent of calligraphy.
But now, wasn’t the new brush style using staff techniques like striking, sweeping, and smashing?
“A staff art?”
Bu Eun-seol realized that Sang-ryang’s new brush style was remarkably similar to a staff art.
“That’s right. This is the pride of my sect, the Dog Beating Staff Technique.”
It turned out that Sang-ryang was from the Beggars’ Sect and had been using the Judge’s Brush style to hide his true skills.
‘Unpredictable moves.’
*Paat!*
Once the Dog Beating Staff Technique was added to the Judge’s Brush, which had previously been as straightforward as calligraphy, its movements became profound and mysterious.
“Kuh.”
Bu Eun-seol was nearly pierced by the Judge’s Brush several times.
If not for the power of the Beast Dao, which allowed him to sense even the flow of the air, he would have been seriously injured.
“Where is your mind wandering!”
At that moment, with a thunderous shout, Ma-un’s scythe grazed Bu Eun-seol’s back.
Bu Eun-seol quickly raised his sword to block Ma-un’s follow-up combination attack.
*Chwaak.*
But the chain scythe, which had been swaying erratically and spreading in all directions, suddenly flashed and shot toward Bu Eun-seol’s neck.
*Pat!*
He twisted away swiftly, but a line of blood appeared on his neck.
‘This is…’
As Bu Eun-seol’s eyes flashed, Ma-un grinned and raised his chain scythe.
“This is the pride of my school, the Sa-il Sword Technique.”
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes widened.
‘So they were masters of the Nine Great Sects!’
It was now clear that the Gong-ssi Twin Demons were masters from the Nine Great Sects.
Furthermore, as they revealed their orthodox sects’ true ultimate techniques instead of demonic martial arts, their power rose and their movements became more agile.
*Clang! Clang-clang-clang!*
The sword, the Judge’s Brush, and the chain scythe clashed repeatedly in the air.
In front, the Judge’s Brush filled the space with the techniques of the Dog Beating Staff Technique.
Behind, the chain scythe of the Sa-il Sword Technique shot out freely, unconstrained by distance.
With the ultimate arts of the Nine Great Sects combined with rare and unique weapons, the direction of their attacks became completely unpredictable.
‘Good!’
Bu Eun-seol, gazing at the Judge’s Brush and chain scythe that filled the air, gripped his sword in a reverse hold.
*Pat!*
The single sword strike Bu Eun-seol unleashed was not fast; rather, it was clumsy, as if he were drunk.
“What?”
But Sang-ryang and Ma-un cried out in bewilderment and hastily retreated.
Bu Eun-seol’s strike had unleashed an immense pressure that shattered their movements and their subtle variations.
“What kind of sword art is this?”
Sang-ryang stopped his attack, greatly surprised.
“It has no name.”
The technique he had just displayed was a sword form that incorporated all the skills he had learned and the insights he had gained from real combat.
“I merely expressed what I have felt until now, in my own way.”
At Bu Eun-seol’s words, Sang-ryang let out a cry of admiration.
“Incredible! To be able to manifest your insights into a sword form at your age.”
Ma-un, however, laughed heartily.
“Brother. It seems we’ll have a satisfying fight for the first time in a while!”
“Indeed.”
Sang-ryang took a deep breath, and a flash of lightning sparked in his eyes.
“Now, let’s see this to the true end!”
It was a desperate battle.
The Gong-ssi Twin Demons, who had combined the ultimate arts of the Nine Great Sects, passed down for generations, with the unique weapon skills of the demonic path.
Bu Eun-seol, a peerless martial prodigy who was forging his own unique martial art by melting practical combat skills with his experience in the Jianghu.
The master of the orthodox path and the prodigy of the demonic path, two forces that could not coexist, clashed relentlessly, and finally, the end began to come into view.
‘Now!’
As the end of the bloody battle finally appeared, Bu Eun-seol drew upon his internal energy with all his might.
Condensing the sword blade that had been weaving through the air, Bu Eun-seol became a streak of light and leaped into the web of the combined attack created by the Gong-ssi Twin Demons.
“Excellent!”
Realizing this exchange would decide life and death, the Gong-ssi Twin Demons also unleashed two intense beams of light with all their strength.
*Paaaaa!*
As their full-powered strikes slammed into each other, a violent gale erupted, and dust flew in all directions.
*Whooosh.*
As the wind died down and the thick dust settled, Bu Eun-seol could be seen, sword in hand, with the Gong-ssi Twin Demons standing before and behind him.
“Why…”
Bu Eun-seol’s voice trembled slightly as he held his sword.
Blood dripped from its tip.
But the Judge’s Brush and the chain scythe, touching his chest and back, had stopped without piercing his clothes.
At the last moment, the Gong-ssi Twin Demons had withdrawn their attack.
“A spy who’s been discovered has nowhere to return to…”
A dry smile formed on Sang-ryang’s lips as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
“I told you, didn’t I? The ending was already written.”
Sang-ryang looked with a pained expression at Ma-un, who stood behind Bu Eun-seol.
Ma-un’s eyes were wide open, his chain scythe still extended. His heart had been pierced, and he had died instantly.
“That fellow Ma-un… he was quite fond of you too. Said it was like having a stubborn younger brother.”
Bu Eun-seol said nothing.
No, he couldn’t even open his mouth.
Sang-ryang took a deep, ragged breath and spoke in a low voice.
“Number Eighteen. No, I suppose I can call you Bu Eun-seol now?”
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes widened, and Sang-ryang gave a faint smile.
“I’ve known for a long time that you were one of the Ten Demonic Masters of Nang-ya-gak.”
With fading eyes, Sang-ryang struggled to continue.
“The Alliance, and the Demonic Sanctum as well… they are watching you. Do you understand what that means?”
Not just the Martial Alliance, but the Demonic Sanctum was also watching Bu Eun-seol.
It meant they had not yet let go of their suspicions about him.
“The winds of the Jianghu are harsh. Trust no one, and be careful.”
Sang-ryang placed a hand gently on Bu Eun-seol’s shoulder.
And with those final words, he quietly breathed his last.
***
Two nameless graves now stood on a small hill.
Their owners were Sang-ryang and Ma-un, spies of the Martial Alliance.
The Martial Alliance would never acknowledge the existence of the Gong-ssi Twin Demons. To do so would be to admit they had sent spies to infiltrate the Demonic Sanctum.
It would be the same for the Beggars’ Sect and the Diancang Sect.
—A spy who’s been discovered has nowhere to return to…
Just as Sang-ryang had said, they truly had nowhere to return.
Bu Eun-seol collected the bodies of the Gong-ssi Twin Demons and respectfully prepared them for burial. Then, with his own hands, he buried them in a sunny spot.
This was the only thing he could do for them now.
“I hope in the afterlife…”
Bu Eun-seol’s eyes blurred as he looked at the graves.
“…there is a place for you to return.”
Staring at the graves with an empty gaze, Bu Eun-seol slowly turned around.
He had decided to return to Nang-ya-gak.