Chapter 327: Twist.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 327: Twist.
"Hehehehe... You were stripping so boldly just a moment ago. Now you're feeling bashful, are you?"
Watching her, the Evil Demon burst into a delighted laugh.
He was enjoying himself.
This woman, as beautiful as a goddess—
This woman, who was haughty beyond belief—
This woman, who had burned with a desire for revenge and sworn to kill him—
She was now flushing deep red with shame.
And she was doing so while hurriedly trying to cover her voluptuous breasts.
How could he not be delighted?
"Khahahaha! Even if you've reached the Profound Realm, you're still just a wench!"
The Evil Demon let out a boisterous laugh.
He was intoxicated by a sense of superiority.
Unlike himself, who was merely at the Upper Stage of the Transcendent Realm—the supposed limit of humanity—Bukgung Yeon had reached the Profound Realm, a state said to transcend humanity itself.
Yet, that very same Bukgung Yeon was moving according to his commands, stripping her clothes and submitting to him.
How could he not feel superior?
The Evil Demon thought to himself:
He wanted to satisfy this sense of superiority even more.
He wanted to heap even greater shame upon Bukgung Yeon.
"What are you doing! Strip the rest off this instant! Do you not see this girl?!"
The Evil Demon raised his voice, pointing at Seol-hyang. It was a ploy to shake her resolve.
"Sister! You mustn't submit!"
At that moment, Seol-hyang, who was held captive by the Evil Demon, screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Even if he spares us, it's obvious we'll suffer a shame and humiliation worse than death!"
Slap!
"Shut up, you bitch!"
Startled by Seol-hyang's sudden outburst, the Evil Demon quickly backhanded her across the cheek.
He was just about to finish his 'meal'; how dare she throw ashes on it?
"Pah! Sister! Don't worry about us, just do whatever you want!"
After spitting out a mouthful of blood, Seol-hyang screamed again.
"Will you not shut up?!"
Grab.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
His face flushed with rage, the Evil Demon hurriedly muffled Seol-hyang’s mouth. He couldn't let her shake Bukgung Yeon’s heart any further.
"What touching friendship! To say such things you don't even mean just to protect Bukgung Yeon!"
Keeping Seol-hyang’s mouth covered, the Evil Demon turned his head to look down at Bukgung Yeon and spoke quickly.
"You aren't thinking of having a change of heart and leaving this little sister behind, are you?"
The Evil Demon continued, his eyes darting nervously toward Bukgung Yeon.
In truth, he was mentally quite strained. He was terrified that she might make a rash decision after hearing the girl's words.
Though he had boldly claimed the villagers would be slaughtered if she killed him, the Evil Demon didn't actually want to die.
Naturally, his tension grew. If she were to lose her mind and go on a rampage, he would be the first to die.
Gulp.
The Evil Demon swallowed hard, watching Bukgung Yeon with anxious eyes.
Her expression was incredibly cold and composed.
The Evil Demon prayed and prayed inwardly that she wouldn't make a reckless choice.
"I can't."
Finally, Bukgung Yeon’s lips parted, and the words spilled out.
"I can't abandon them."
She looked at Seol-hyang with sorrowful eyes.
"These are people who have lived through twenty years of hell because of the Ice Palace's defeat. How could I possibly give up on them?"
Bukgung Yeon continued in a calm tone.
Though she burned with a desire for revenge, a part of her was weighed down by guilt toward the villagers. Guilt for the hellish lives they were forced to lead because the Ice Palace had lost to the Evil Demon.
She couldn't do it.
No, she didn't want to do it. She didn't want them to be sacrificed for the sake of her own stubbornness.
That was her definition of a ruler.
"Khahahaha! A wise decision!"
Hearing her words, the Evil Demon burst into a joyful laugh. The anxiety that had been gnawing at him vanished, replaced by a surge of elation.
Crunch!
"Aaaaaagh!"
Suddenly, the Evil Demon let out a piercing scream.
An excruciating pain flared in his hand—the very hand he had been using to muffle Seol-hyang’s mouth.
The Evil Demon quickly looked down.
There, he saw the woman savagely biting into his hand.
"You crazy bitch!"
The Evil Demon yanked his hand away and used his other hand to strike Seol-hyang across the face.
Slap!
Seol-hyang’s head snapped to the side from the force of the blow.
Throb. Throb.
Her cheek immediately began to swell.
Yet, Seol-hyang did not yield and shouted out.
"They wouldn't want to live that hellish life again either!"
Seol-hyang looked at Bukgung Yeon with unwavering eyes.
"The same goes for us! We would rather choose death than live in shame! So, Sister, do exactly as you wish!"
"You damn bitch!"
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Livid with rage, the Evil Demon quickly struck Seol-hyang’s acupoints.
The voice that had been screaming vanished as if it had never existed.
The Evil Demon glared at Seol-hyang, his face twisted with irritation. It occurred to him that he had chosen the wrong hostage.
He had intentionally dragged out the prettiest and most fragile-looking girl among the captives, but she turned out to be insane. He never imagined she would keep talking back after being beaten like that.
'That fucking bitch, seriously.'
The Evil Demon looked down at Seol-hyang with annoyance before slowly turning his gaze forward to gauge Bukgung Yeon’s reaction. He was afraid her resolve might have been affected.
"............"
Bukgung Yeon stood there regally, her expression deep in thought.
The Evil Demon began to feel a sense of unease. He feared she might have changed her mind.
Soon, that fear began to turn into anger. Everything had been going exactly as he wanted, only to be derailed in an instant.
The Evil Demon glared at Seol-hyang, whose body was paralyzed by the acupoint strike.
It was all because of this wench. If not for her, Bukgung Yeon wouldn't be wavering.
The Evil Demon decided. If he got rid of this girl who was making Bukgung Yeon hesitate, she would surely come to her senses.
"Bukgung Yeon!"
The Evil Demon called out in a voice thick with rage.
"If you don't strip your clothes and bow your head this instant, I will hurl this wench off the fortress wall!"
Having said his piece, the Evil Demon grabbed Seol-hyang by the throat and thrust her out over the edge of the wall.
"I'll count to three! Decide!"
The Evil Demon spoke sharply. He couldn't give her time to think. He had to force her to act on emotion rather than rational judgment.
"..........."
Bukgung Yeon stared at the Evil Demon with trembling eyes. She hadn't reached a decision yet.
The words Seol-hyang had screamed at the risk of her life had sent ripples through her heart. She realized there was something she hadn't considered at all.
If she bowed to them here, the villagers would certainly live. But in exchange, they would return to the same hellish life they had known before. A life where they were plundered, exploited, and where their very lives were treated as cheap.
Simply being alive didn't guarantee happiness.
Realizing this, she couldn't make a proper judgment on how she should act.
With eyes that wouldn't stop shaking, Bukgung Yeon looked at Seol-hyang suspended in mid-air. Her body was stiff and frozen. She had clearly been paralyzed by an acupoint strike.
In such a state, if she were to fall from the fortress wall, no martial artist—no matter their realm—could possibly emerge unscathed.
She would die. Horribly.
Yeon agonized. Should she listen to Seol-hyang’s words, or should she save her?
"One!"
The Evil Demon began to shout at the top of his lungs.
"Two!"
He immediately called out the next number. He had no intention of giving her time to think.
Before shouting the final number, he stole a glance downward to see what choice she had made.
Bukgung Yeon hadn't taken any action. She hadn't attacked him, she hadn't knelt, and she hadn't stripped. She just stood there, paralyzed by indecision.
She was unable to choose.
'You brought this on yourself!'
The Evil Demon thought. This girl's death was entirely Bukgung Yeon’s fault.
"Three!"
As he shouted the number, the Evil Demon let go.
He had no regrets. It was a waste since she was such a beautiful girl, but he felt it was a necessary choice to prove his sincerity. Once this girl's body shattered on the ground, Bukgung Yeon would realize the gravity of the situation.
A cruel smile spread across the Evil Demon’s lips.
"No!"
Seeing the Evil Demon release his grip, Bukgung Yeon let out a scream. She immediately began to gather her frigid qi.
Whirrrrrrr!
The only thought in her mind was that she had to save Seol-hyang.
Gathering the cold energy in her palm, Bukgung Yeon thrust her hand forward.
Swoooooosh!
A massive storm of frigid qi blasted forward at incredible speed. The freezing gale reached the base of the wall, and a massive pillar of ice began to surge up from the ground.
Rumble!
The ice pillar rose higher and higher until it met the falling Seol-hyang.
Thud.
Seol-hyang’s body landed safely on the flat top of the ice pillar, the impact muffled.
"Phew..."
Seeing this, Bukgung Yeon let out a sigh of relief. She had made it just in time. If she had hesitated for even a second longer, at least one of Seol-hyang’s limbs would have been shattered.
Pshk!
Suddenly, the sound of flesh being pierced erupted from somewhere.
Bukgung Yeon was confused. What was that sound?
But she soon realized where the sound had come from.
Sizzle. Burn.
A searing, burning pain suddenly flared in her right shoulder.
"Aaaaagh!"
Driven by the agonizing pain, Bukgung Yeon quickly looked down.
There, she saw a spear impaled through her right shoulder.
She realized then that Lee Yeon had ambushed her.
"I believe I told you? That I would throw my spear the moment you gathered your strength."
Lee Yeon spoke with a calm, detached expression.
Bukgung Yeon slowly turned her body. She glared at the man who had driven the spear into her.
"You... bastard..."
"A man's word is worth a thousand pieces of gold."
Lee Yeon stared back at Bukgung Yeon with indifferent eyes.
"Still, I am quite impressed. I didn't expect the Ice White Divine Palm to be of such a high level."
Rip!
Ignoring Lee Yeon’s words, Bukgung Yeon began to pull the spear out of her shoulder.
"Grrr... Aaaaagh!"
The process was excruciating, and Bukgung Yeon couldn't help but scream.
Clang!
Once the spear was completely removed, she hurled it away.
"Haa... haa... haa..."
Bukgung Yeon panted heavily. It seemed pulling out the spear had drained a significant amount of her mental and physical energy.
"You put up quite a fight, but it seems this is the end."
Lee Yeon spoke with a composed face.
"Haa... what are you... talking about... This... isn't even a wound..."
"You're being stubborn. The spear was coated in neurotoxin. It's a potent substance that can paralyze the entire body with just a scratch. There's no way you can withstand it."
"Haa... haa... I'm serious..."
"There is no longer a martial artist before me. Only a stubborn child who refuses to lose."
Lee Yeon continued calmly.
"It is a pity. If you had abandoned that girl, you could have remained a martial artist until the very end."
Lee Yeon slowly extended his hand.
Vrrrrrrrr!
Once again, hundreds of spears flew into the air around him. Soon, they were hovering above his head, their tips all pointed toward Bukgung Yeon.
"You've worked hard. I shall find the Ice Essence on my own."
Having finished his sentence, Lee Yeon gathered even more energy. He intended to grant her a grand end.
BOOM!
Suddenly, a thunderous roar echoed, vibrating against their eardrums.
His flow interrupted by the sound, Lee Yeon frowned. What was that noise at such a critical moment?
BOOM!
The roar echoed again, painfully loud.
Annoyed, Lee Yeon turned his head toward the source of the sound.
There, he saw a massive cloud of dust billowing up not far away.
BOOM!
Another roar erupted, and he witnessed a second massive cloud of dust rising even closer than before.
'What is that?'
Puzzled, Lee Yeon narrowed his eyes and focused his vision to find the source of the noise.
BOOM!
And when the sound erupted once more...
He saw it.
A man bursting through the dust at an unbelievable speed.
Seeing this, Lee Yeon threw the spear he was holding directly at the man. He was deeply displeased that his business was being interrupted.
Screeeeeech!
Lee Yeon’s spear, imbued with immense power, streaked toward the man.
Lee Yeon expected the spear to pierce the man's head clean through.
Unfortunately, Lee Yeon’s plan did not go as expected.
"Twist."
The spear flying toward the man suddenly veered off course and came flying back toward Lee Yeon himself.
Lee Yeon’s face twisted in bewilderment.
What kind of sorcery was this? How could a spear in flight turn around and return to its sender?
Lee Yeon reached out to catch the spear.
Grab!
"Ugh!"
The moment he caught the spear, he couldn't help but let out a groan.
The spear that had returned to him was perfectly saturated with his own internal energy.
Not a single drop of power had been lost.
A look of pure horror dawned on Lee Yeon’s face.