Formation! Cheonmu Squadron 3
After breaking into the peak realm, my five senses had sharpened beyond anything I'd ever experienced. Even faint noises that ordinary people—or even most experts—couldn't detect rang crystal clear in my ears.
This sound has to be Instructor Huang Yi-cheon's Flying Dragon Spear!
There was a distinctive, clear, resonant chime whenever the Flying Dragon Spear clashed with another weapon. An average person might miss it, but I could distinguish it without fail.
[Yuon! Jincheon!]
I immediately concealed my presence and sent a mental transmission to the two, who were searching a fair distance away. They caught on without a word, following silently behind me, making not a single sound.
[Hide your presence as best you can and stick with me. Instructor Huang Yi-cheon is fighting someone!]
"……!!"
They were stunned by my words. This nameless mountain in Henan Province had been utterly peaceful, with no obvious villains in sight. A fight breaking out here was rare—even in the entire history of Cheonmu Academy.
[And... it's someone stronger than Instructor Huang Yi-cheon!]
That made their jaws drop even further. I knew the enemy was superior because of the sounds—or rather, the sudden lack of them.
The weapon clashes have stopped.
What did that mean? Either Instructor Huang Yi-cheon, the Flying Dragon Twin Spears, had won, or his foe had. If he'd won, he would've called out to us nine times out of ten, telling us to withdraw since an incident had occurred.
His words and actions might be lighthearted, but he cares for us cadets more than anyone.
No sounds at all? That meant he'd been subdued by the enemy. In other words...
A powerhouse stronger than the exceptional peak realm expert, Flying Dragon Twin Spears Huang Yi-cheon!
Could the three of us take on a monster like that? Back to square one: we had two choices—flee and call for reinforcements, or confront them head-on.
Swoosh!
Before voicing the options, I turned to my comrades for their input. To my surprise...
Nod!
Peng Jincheon and even the timid Meng Yuon were both signaling to charge ahead. It was simple why they were of one mind: we couldn't abandon Instructor Huang Yi-cheon. He was more than just a superior—he was a good man and a true warrior, beyond rank or status. Letting him die pointlessly like this was unthinkable.
[Alright, then... We'll go all out, push back the enemy, and rescue Flying Dragon Twin Spears Instructor Huang Yi-cheon!]
Cheonmu Squadron 3's goal had changed. Protecting the blue flag and breaking the final training record? That was secondary now, with this emergency unfolding. Saving the instructor in peril came first.
Whoosh!
We didn't rush blindly. "Haste makes waste," as the saying goes. Keeping our presences as hidden as possible, we advanced stealthily.
[We're about to make contact!]
Leading the way, I signaled my friends via transmission. One more step forward, and peering ahead—there it was, just as I'd feared.
"Urgh!"
Incredibly, Flying Dragon Twin Spears Instructor Huang Yi-cheon was a bloody mess, on the verge of death. And standing over him with a manic grin was a figure whose identity shocked me to my core.
Nine Yin Demon Lord Neung Se-geuk!
I nearly blew my cover from the sheer surprise. And why? Because this Nine Yin Demon Lord Neung Se-geuk wasn't from the orthodox sects or the unorthodox factions...
He's from the Demonic Cult!
The Demonic Cult shouldn't appear until the mid-to-late arcs of Seven Falls, Eight Rises: The Invincible Fist King, during the Seven Transmissions Eight Mechanisms Invincible Fist King saga. I couldn't believe a Demonic Cult expert—and a division commander level at that—had shown up now.
What the hell is going on?
Pondering deeply, I reviewed this world's timeline and history. One conclusion emerged.
Right! Nine Yin Demon Lord Neung Se-geuk starts as a division commander and later becomes one of the Demonic Cult's Ten Elders.
I recalled the completion condition for his demonic art, the Nine Yin Asura Demonic Art. Infamous even within the Demonic Cult for its viciousness, perfecting it required devouring the inner energy of over a hundred elite warriors. The original novel described him completing it on some nameless mountain in Henan.
Putting it all together!
In the original, the final training dragged on, so we never crossed paths with Neung Se-geuk, who we weren't supposed to meet. But I pushed too hard and too fast, running into him early?
My guess hardened into certainty. Nothing else made sense. If so, this "coincidence" was brutally harsh. Of all places, here? He was destined to become a Demonic Cult Ten Elder—one of those who all reached the Entry to Divinity realm, beyond peak.
No. He hasn't become a Ten Elder yet, nor reached Entry to Divinity.
That future was still distant. Right now, his demonic art was incomplete, and he hadn't transcended to Entry to Divinity. Worth a shot.
"Heh heh heh. To think such a fine warrior would stumble into my secret lair."
Nine Yin Demon Lord Neung Se-geuk hoisted the bloodied Instructor Huang Yi-cheon, preparing his Nine Yin Asura Demonic Art. Like the cult's infamous Star-Sucking Great Law, it drained inner energy—but indirectly, requiring a "human sacrifice" first. A degraded version of the Star-Sucking Great Law, basically.
"I'll put you to good use."
He looked like a short, frail old farmer, but his sly voice carried murderous intent as he raised his hand toward Huang Yi-cheon's throat.
"......"
Even on death's door, Instructor Huang Yi-cheon didn't call for us or scream for help. He didn't fire the emergency flare we'd been issued for crises. Instead, he held his breath, accepting death calmly—to spare us from falling into the demon's trap if we came running.
Instructor Huang is protecting us to the end.
How could we abandon him now?
"Whoever you are, farewell."
Neung Se-geuk raised his hand higher. His other signature: the Nine Yin Bone-Shattering Hand. A hand technique master and near-superhuman, his palms gleamed with extreme yin energy, rivaling the Demonic Cult's deadliest weapons.
Shiiiing!
With cold eyes and razor-sharp hands, he lunged for Huang Yi-cheon's throat. I couldn't just watch.
-Flame Tiger Double Claws!
I exploded forward, unleashing my most powerful hand technique. The searing energy of Flame Tiger Double Claws erupted in my palms, fiercer than ever in this all-out ambush.
Roarrrrr!
My tiger-claw hands successfully repelled his Nine Yin Bone-Shattering Hand.
Boom!
Impressive as ever, Neung Se-geuk. Despite the perfect opening, he didn't take a direct hit—instead, he redirected his strike from Huang Yi-cheon straight at me, canceling it out.
What a monster.
Truly superhuman. Not yet at Entry to Divinity, but close. Meaning right now, he was a top-tier peak realm expert—far above me or Huang Yi-cheon.
Still, I didn't despair.
-Heaven and Earth Universal Blade!
My attack might've failed, but my two friends followed with their desperate ambushes.
Feeling Peng Jincheon's ultimate Northern Peng Clan Heaven and Earth Universal Blade Technique, I focused on scooping up the defenseless Instructor Huang Yi-cheon from the ground instead of watching.
I could've aided Peng Jincheon's strike for better effect, but that risked the instructor becoming a hostage. We had to avoid that nightmare.
And one more.
-Fighting Spirit Advance Wave!
Meng Yuon's ambush right behind Peng Jincheon was reliable too. For pure speed in a surprise attack, nothing beat his swift sword.
From my intervention to their strikes—all in a single breath.
Boom!
The ambushes landed true. We three hurriedly secured Instructor Huang Yi-cheon.
"Instructor!"
"Are you alright?"
Checking him over amid our worry, it was just as feared: severe blood loss. Left like this, his life hung by a thread. For a top expert of Cheonmu Academy—and the orthodox martial world—to be beaten this badly? Astonishing on every level.
"Cough! Hack! R-run... away......"
Even now, he gestured for us to flee. He'd sized up the foe at a glance: no chance for us.
But we'd come too far to turn back.
"Heh heh heh. What a lucky day. First a prime warrior, now three orthodox brats."
Through the settling dust, Nine Yin Demon Lord Neung Se-geuk emerged with minor bleeding. He looked like a pathetic old wretch, but in that moment, like a fiend from hell.
"No way!"
"We hit him clean, but......"
Meng Yuon and Peng Jincheon, relieved by the successful ambush, reeled at Neung Se-geuk's near-unscathed state. I'd expected some damage, even if not death—but this?
He was strong now, and destined to be stronger.
"Quality ingredients delivering themselves."
He dismissed us as rats in a trap. Even Instructor Huang Yi-cheon looked grim, on the brink of passing out. Meng Yuon and Peng Jincheon teetered on despair.
"Rest easy, Instructor."
I pressed his bleeding acupoint and fed him an emergency recovery pill. Today was unlucky for him—running into a Demonic Cultist—but lucky too. My medical skills outstripped most first-rate physicians, and I had top-grade pills. He wouldn't die here.
Slump.
I entrusted the sedated instructor to the others and rose calmly. Beating the Nine Yin Demon Lord alone? Tough. But all-in as Cheonmu Squadron 3? Who knows.
"Cheonmu Squadron 3. From this moment..."
Crack!
I clenched my fist furiously and continued.
"We strike the evil bastard with everything we've got!"