Chapter 34: Next to Me. Closer.
While I was lost in thought for a moment.
Rumble—!
The second blocked passage suddenly opened. Tak Horak burst out from inside, his face full of utter defeat. He was covered in dirt, with wounds all over.
"Y-Young... Young Master!"
He spotted me and cried out in shock.
"Whoa, what happened to those wounds?!"
"……."
As if realizing all the chaos had finally ended, Tak Horak scratched his head sheepishly and said,
"I fell into one of the relic's traps... The Tang Clan bragged about being relic experts, but it was all the same crap."
"You must have had it rough."
"Sniff!"
Tak Horak's eyes welled up as if deeply moved. Well, among the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's superiors, ones who praised subordinates with a "good job" were rarer than hen's teeth. Not trying to kill each other was already top-tier.
"What the hell... Why are you like that, bro? And why's this guy dead?"
Dang Si Hyeok said with a baffled expression.
"And why's that crazy bitch dancing with her sword over there?"
Paeng So So was still performing her sword dance. I nodded toward her and said,
"Looks like she's gained enlightenment. She's expressing it through the form of Blade Dance. Best not to disturb her. Mess it up, and she'll lose that hard-earned insight."
"I wanna wake her. Wake her up real good."
"What'd you say?"
Dang Si Hyeok trembled as he spat,
"She's already a menace, causing all kinds of havoc. If she gets even stronger, who knows what she'll do next? Yeah. We gotta snap her out of it before she gains enlightenment. That's how we keep the peace in the jianghu."
Un Yeop Ja sighed and tugged at Dang Si Hyeok's collar, who was wearing a resolute expression. Dang Si Hyeok flailed, yelling to let go.
Seemed like his brief intelligence nerf from earlier had kicked back in. It was a sight that drew a sigh—and a strange chuckle—at the same time.
Anyway.
"So, is everyone alright? Any injuries?"
Un Yeop Ja answered my question.
"A few Tang Clan warriors got hurt. Just scrapes, though."
"And you, Daoist?"
"I'm fine. More importantly, young hero, you look pretty banged up..."
Un Yeop Ja narrowed his eyes, glancing between my shoulder and Sa Wol.
A Super Peak master like Un Yeop Ja could gauge wound size and cause just from the bandaging. He'd probably figured Sa Wol was responsible. She was the only one here using daggers as weapons.
Before it got awkward, I spoke first.
"That dead guy over there, Cho Yang. His goal was resurrecting the Little Witch."
"The Little Witch? Isn't that the previous-generation Demon Head? The one who terrorized people with her evil ice arts until the Dao King took her down? And you're saying he resurrected her?"
"The Little Witch's power was sealed in this artifact."
I showed Un Yeop Ja the Ice Crystal.
Un Yeop Ja, with his Super Peak sensitivity to qi, shivered at the energy leaking from it.
"Truly evil... and immense power."
"Ice Crystal. The plan was to revive her using this jade's power and human blood in some evil ritual. Turns out Cho Yang and she were lovers. Younger-looking than expected, huh?"
"Probably meant to sacrifice Paeng young lady as revenge against the Dao King."
"Exactly. We just got dragged into it by accident. Sa Wol lost her mind briefly due to Cho Yang's curse."
I felt Sa Wol glance my way. No need to mention her trauma, though.
"Hold on."
Dang Si Hyeok cut in.
"So, did you take down the Little Witch, bro? No way—the one the Dao King struggled to kill decades ago?"
A heavy silence fell at Dang Si Hyeok's words.
Warriors generally grew stronger with age thanks to inner energy accumulation. Sure, physical prime faded, but consistent training from Super Peak onward minimized the gap.
Considering that, how strong was the Little Witch?
I sensed the mood shifting oddly—not the awe from before, but tension. Especially from the Tang Clan warriors.
Caution.
I was playing the "eastern outsider" concept. Even if the jianghu and eastern regions were friendly, I was still a foreigner.
A jagged stone gets hammered down.
This was a wuxia world where one person could crush a group with raw power. Conversely, groups could bury individuals if threatened.
Even "righteous sects" eliminated threats to their power. Divine Emissary or not, our ties were too shallow—mere days old.
Un Yeop Ja aside, Dang Si Hyeok wasn't the type. But his Tang warriors would report up, and the clan's higher-ups would grow wary of me.
By then, even Dang Si Hyeok defending me would be too late.
If I were an overwhelming Heavenly Demon or a madman like Meng Wei Xue, maybe. But as someone just acting strong, drawing Tang Clan suspicion was the last thing I needed.
"No way. The Little Witch was a mindless puppet. She couldn't properly manifest Gang Qi, so I could take her down. Otherwise, I'd be the dead one."
"Ah, got it."
Dang Si Hyeok nodded readily. Taking down a fully aware Little Witch unscathed would've been harder to believe.
"Still, slaying her again is incredible, young hero. You've done the jianghu a huge service."
"Anyone here would've. Anyway."
I shifted the focused gazes.
"Paeng young lady needs to wrap up soon if we're escaping this relic."
"That's why I'm saying I'll wake her!"
"Wanna start a war between Tang and Paeng Clans?"
"Tch... "
Paeng So So's Blade Dance showed no signs of ending. Nearly half a geng in, and her momentum only grew.
She's not about to hit Super Peak, is she?
That was wild speculation. The gulf between Peak and Super Peak was vast.
Time to plan our next moves.
Minimal precautions done, time to head back to the cult. Betrayal was the one thing they despised most. Get branded a traitor, and I'd be in deep shit. Even Murim Returner's protagonist groveled to clear that stigma.
But thinking further grew hard. Pain easing unleashed crashing fatigue. Today alone: fighting unresponsive statues, battling a monster like the Little Witch, and taking my first major wound.
Without the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, I'd have collapsed ages ago.
Maybe catch a quick nap.
As my eyes began drifting shut.
"Little Witch!"
Suddenly, Paeng So So's voice boomed. Looking over, her blade was flying straight at me. Her eyes still dazed—she was adrift between trance and reality.
Put simply, she'd lost it.
Why the hell suddenly... Oh!
The Ice Crystal was in my robes. She must've sensed its energy and lashed out.
For someone not in her right mind, terrifying skill rode that blade. Enlightenment-boosted? Even 10 meters away, my body tingled.
"What?!"
Paeng So So snapped to, face paling in horror. But her straight, ferocious saber style didn't veer much. I surged qi to heighten perception.
Damn it.
That trajectory would clip me. I scrambled up, but a tad late.
Need to Blink.
That instant.
Swish—.
Sa Wol blocked my front. Natural, really.
If I die, the Gu Poison kills her too.
Her dagger clashed with Paeng So So's massive saber.
The issue? Matchup. Sa Wol was a mature Peak expert, but her arts favored assassination over frontal clashes. Unsurprisingly.
"Ngh!"
Skrrrt—!
Her feet gouged deep into the floor. She halted right before me.
"Little Witch!"
Paeng So So still hadn't fully recovered. Her body recoiled—her clan's signature stance.
Then.
"Gal!"
Un Yeop Ja's resonant shout echoed through the cave.
Whoa... Finally witnessing that.
Wuxia tropes always had someone yelling "Gal!" to snap folks out of it. Seeing it live—and it worked. Paeng So So came to at the sound.
Her clan's pure qi, amplified by Un Yeop Ja's "anti-demon" Gang Qi awakening, made it inevitable.
"...?!"
Paeng So So jolted back in shock.
"What did I do?"
"Compose yourself. You nearly fell into deviation into devil."
Un Yeop Ja briefed her. Hearing it, Paeng So So sighed and slumped down, tension draining.
"I've been nothing but trouble. Sorry, Kim bro."
"It's fine."
"Anyway, sorry to your guard too. Can't just walk away clean, though. Got nothing to give right now—only losses."
Paeng So So eyed Cho Yang's corpse bitterly.
For Treasure Hunters, it was a disaster. Zero gains, lives lost.
I was the only real winner here.
But that was that.
"Guess you owe me now."
"Yeah. Want something?"
I did.
Paeng So So was ripe for the fleecing.
"Well..."
As I opened my mouth.
Rumble—! The final third passage, sealed till now, ground open.
"Sis—!"
"Siiiis!"
Treasure Hunter members poured out. Dirt-covered, wounded, defeated beyond belief. Some teared up seeing Paeng So So.
"Why you all look like beggars? You with the Beggars' Sect or what, you punks?"
"We nearly died for real."
"Told you to train more. Weaklings."
"This is so unfair!"
Paeng So So smiled.
Well, whatever.
No trace of the madwoman who'd burned her clan in Paeng So So's warm smile.
Worried about me now?
If you're gonna worry, do it right. Already feels like dying.
You're the one making my head buzz like I'm dying.
My shoulder throbbed madly, eyes blinking like they had weights. Couldn't hold out anymore.
"Sa Wol. Hurt anywhere?"
"No. I'm fine."
"Then sit."
Sa Wol sat a hop away from me.
"Next to me. Closer."
Sa Wol shuffled nearer. When she was within arm's reach.
I leaned on her shoulder.
"Just like this for a bit. Punishment."
"……."
No helping it—my eyes drifted shut.
Acting as the Heavenly Demon