Pursuit into the Illusory Space
In the inn room, I eyed the three taels of silver that Mo Seyoung had given me. She'd probably meant for me to feel the wall and challenge the Dragon-Tiger Contest, but this was actually a good thing for me.
My goal right now was to take first place in the Dragon-Tiger Contest. Once I did that, even Mo Seyoung would truly recognize my real power.
I could just show off my strength right in front of her, but that'd be no fun. Women melt for style and vibe.
There was nothing cooler than claiming the top spot at the biggest event in the righteous Murim world. Showing her that side of me would definitely make it easier to fuck her.
I'd originally entered the Dragon-Tiger Contest to reclaim the Brain Spirit Pill I'd lost to injury, but now I had even more reason to win.
"Young hero Jong. You're back."
When I returned to the lodging, Jin Samwol was waiting for me, stark naked. Seeing her seductive smile made my cock throb hard.
I fucked her right there. Her pussy was already soaking wet, like it had been desperately waiting for my dick.
What a slutty woman.
As the Dragon-Tiger Contest crept just a week away, Murim Alliance folks started showing up in Dengping City one by one.
Not just random warriors—there were masters renowned across the Central Plains. Alliance executives had names that spread whether they liked it or not.
That guy in the dragon robe must be Moyong Hwi, the Murim Alliance's strategist and head of the Moyong family.
Countless Alliance masters flooded Dengping City, but Moyong Hwi drew all the eyes. The Alliance's strategist appeared in Dengping clad in red robes embroidered with a coiling dragon.
Alliance masters stood guard around the horse-mounted Moyong Hwi, their formation tight and vigilant—over a hundred strong, every one a first-rate expert or better. A first-rate could enter the Dragon-Tiger Contest and breeze through the preliminaries.
Contest winners typically ranged from super first-rate to peak. Champions were flawless peak masters or, rarely, on the cusp of transcendence.
For a post-30s talent to reach that level was incredible. Peak masters were considered strong enough to found their own sect.
The instructors teaching disciples in the Nine Great Sects had to be peak or higher as a baseline—that meant peak experts could carve out a solid spot even in mega-organizations like the Nine Great Sects.
Transcendence opened elder positions in any sect; from Hwagyeong on, you could aim for sect leader. Moyong Hwi, head of one of the Five Great Families, was a Hwagyeong master.
Of course, high realm didn't guarantee sect leadership or family headship.
Even Namgung Mosan, head of the Namgung family, was just at the edge of peak—way too low for the eldest of the Five Great Families. That's why he was scouting powerhouses as sons-in-law.
I watched Moyong Hwi parade through Dengping City's streets.
Called the brain of the Murim Alliance, he was masterminding this Dragon-Tiger Contest. Him personally marching through the streets like this was a warning to us post-30s Murim folks: behave, no trouble.
"So that's the famous Moyong Hwi."
Naked Danyuha perched on the inn window sill, gazing at the parading Moyong Hwi. The Sa faction boss and the Alliance strategist were like water and oil. She toyed with her rakshasa mask, flashing a small smile.
"If I could, I'd love to cross swords with him. Haven't had a proper fight since my poison was cured. I've gained new insights since then—wanna test 'em out."
Sweat beaded on my skin at her words.
With tensions already high between righteous and Sa factions thanks to Lord Yeongwol's Four Sword Shadows, a Danyuha-Moyong Hwi duel would spell disaster. It'd play right into Sa Geomyeong's hands—maybe even spark the righteous-Sa war.
"Please hold back if possible."
"Heh heh! Just kidding. I won't do anything to put you in a tough spot."
As she said that, Danyuha reached for my face. Not satisfied from last night's fuck, she slithered her leg sticky-sweet over my thigh—a silent invite to overlap our bodies.
Seeing her toned body, my cock reacted on autopilot.
She was delicious anytime I fucked her. So I devoured her as much as possible. No match for her in martial arts, but on the bed? Reverse.
I held her three times, savoring her ecstatic reactions. Once my balls felt empty, I changed clothes.
Danyuha sprawled on the bed, basking in satisfied climax. She hugged the still-snoring Jin Samwol like a pillow and dozed off.
"Lady Yuha. I'm stepping out briefly."
"Go ahead. I need some sleep."
As I headed for the door, Cheonhwa—as a spirit snake—slithered up my ankle toward my crotch. She coiled around my cock, settling in.
"Take me with you~! Been ages since I went out~!"
I headed out with Cheonhwa.
Moyong Hwi's arrival had the streets buzzing. But his absolute master's presence worked wonders—street brawls visibly dropped. Piss him off, and you'd be disqualified from the contest.
With the Dragon-Tiger Contest a week out, warriors focused on honing skills over fighting, prepping for the final push.
Wanna plant my flag in Yeonmuk, but it's tricky.
I'd come out to fuck Hwasan's disciple Yeonmuk. Even if not right away, I needed to stake my claim somehow. But surprisingly, she holed up in her lodging, never venturing out.
Not just her—all Nine Great Sects disciples were hunkered down at Mansu Inn. Probably drilling hard for the contest.
If the contest started like this, chances to meet her would shrink. We might draw each other, but odds were against it.
Mansu Inn's entrance was triple-guarded by Sin Ja-u, ironclad. Sneaking in? Tough. Sin Ja-u was Hwagyeong.
A master who could eye elder or even sect leader spots anywhere. Same realm as Moyong Hwi patrolling in his red dragon robe.
Of course, Alliance bigwig Moyong Hwi's status outranked wildman Sin Ja-u, and mid-Hwagyeong Moyong topped fresh Hwagyeong Sin.
Cheonhwa's magic might slip us in, but with Nine Sects post-30s talents gathered, artifacts or formations likely protected it. Getting caught infiltrating? Headache city.
"Lady Cheonhwa. Think you can sneak us inside?"
Coiled tight around my dick, Cheonhwa transmitted:
-There's a special formation inside. Some Zhuge family kid set it up. Crude enough to break, but the guard at the gate would notice. Why's a guy that strong playing bodyguard?
"Hero Sin Ja-u serves as a guest warrior for the Pang family due to a debt of gratitude."
-Hmm. To slip past without him noticing, I'd need about two hours of prep work.
Right then, Mansu Inn's door opened. A handsome youth with crow-feather black hair emerged.
Namgung family's second son, Namgung Hyeok. Trailing him came Yeonmuk.
"Young lord Hyeok! Let's go together!"
She radiated crush vibes, following him closely. Namgung Hyeok showed zero interest.
"Young lord Hyeok. Where to?"
"Dropped my sword at the smithy. Final maintenance before the tournament."
"So thorough. The smithy—isn't it west side?"
"Yes."
"Hee hee. I just happen to have business around there too!"
Yeonmuk didn't specify her business. Obviously, tailing Namgung Hyeok to win his favor.
He didn't question or stop her. To him, she was background noise. Kinda pitiful watching it.
In the original story, Yeonmuk was materialistic, but she doesn't seem that way now.
The pair headed west. But suspicious figures shadowed them—two in bamboo hats. They'd been loitering by Mansu Inn like me.
Don't seem like fans of Namgung Hyeok or Yeonmuk... Who are they?
I tailed carefully, dodging their sight. Shadow Radar on, no one spotted me. I was pro at this.
Namgung Hyeok and Yeonmuk ducked into a narrow alley. One bamboo hat pulled a small brass plaque from his bosom. Shady aura screaming artifact.
#$%^#$%^
The plaque guy chanted something inaudible here. The plaque glowed faintly. Artifact confirmed.
Suddenly, Namgung Hyeok and Yeonmuk vanished from Shadow Radar. Teleported elsewhere.
Formation? No way—a Hoipo'i artifact?
Hoipo'i was a portable formation device from the Zhuge family.
The bamboo hats chanted again and poofed out too. Four people evaporated into thin air.
"Lady Cheonhwa. Know what happened to those guys?"
-Manipulating natural qi to shift to an illusory space. Advanced formation.
"Can you get us there?"
-Yep. Hold on.
Master of magic Cheonhwa delivered.
Perfect opportunity.
Heaven handed me the chance to fuck Yeonmuk. I pulled the Leon Mask from inventory.
◈ Perfectly conceals the wearer's identity.
◈ Can alter voice, fingerprints, genetic info, and more.
The return of Twin Black Demon Masked Gong Wuseon.
-Ready. Twisting the disrupted qi to open the space.
No sooner had Cheonhwa spoken than space rippled faintly ahead. A crack in the illusory space she'd created.
More precisely, she'd breached the boundary of the formation-made phantom realm. Step through, and I'd meet the mystery bamboo hats, Namgung Hyeok, and Yeonmuk.
Here we go.