Yeop Hyeon, the Root of All Evil
‘Challenge’
Yuk Jon Ju thought for a moment that he must have misheard.
“So… you’re saying you want to have a go at me or something like that?”
Yeop Hyeon nodded seriously.
“That’s right!”
At Yeop Hyeon’s words, Yuk Jon Ju’s expression turned icy.
“Yeop Hyeon… I already knew you were mad, but I didn’t realize it was this bad.”
The veiled woman standing beside Yeop Hyeon shook her head as well.
His opponent was Yuk Jon Ju. He was a true powerhouse, one of the strongest in the entire Qingcang Realm.
In the veiled woman’s eyes, Yeop Hyeon looked like a wild colt bucking without knowing its place.
But Yeop Hyeon felt wronged too. If he didn’t pick a fight with Yuk Jon Ju, this demon beast would keep tormenting him endlessly.
The problem was that he knew full well he could never beat Yuk Jon Ju.
Yeop Hyeon looked up at him and said, “Yuk Jon Ju, I know I’m no match for you. But that demon beast just now was raised by my master. So if you insist on taking that child, I have no choice but to fight you with my life on the line.”
‘Your master?’
Yuk Jon Ju narrowed his eyes and asked, “Who the hell is this master of yours?”
Yeop Hyeon shook his head.
“I can’t tell you!”
“Do you really think I won’t make a move?”
“Hahaha! Of course killing me would be easier than flipping your palm for you. But… what then? What do you plan to do after you kill me?”
At that moment, Yuk Jon Ju strode toward Yeop Hyeon.
“Kneel!”
Those two words pressed down on Yeop Hyeon like a mountain. His knees buckled, nearly touching the ground. He barely held out against the force.
His bones throughout his body began to emit grotesque cracking sounds, as if they might shatter at any moment.
Yeop Hyeon clenched his fists tight, gritted his teeth, and endured. His entire body trembled violently, cold sweat pouring down his forehead like rain.
‘Kneel?’
A ferocious smile twisted Yeop Hyeon’s face. Aside from the time he’d knelt for Yeop Ryeong, he had never once bowed his knee to another man.
“I’ll never kneel to you!”
Boom!
With Yeop Hyeon’s roar, a strand of Evil Intent Sword Intent burst from his body, shooting straight toward Yuk Jon Ju like an arrow.
Yuk Jon Ju’s face darkened as he slowly pressed down with his palm.
Boom!
The Evil Intent Sword Intent scattered into harmless fragments.
In an instant, Yeop Hyeon’s body flew back hundreds of zhang like a kite with its string cut, slamming into the ground and carving out a crater several zhang deep.
Yuk Jon Ju, hovering in the air, looked down at him coldly and said, “No matter how strong you think you are, to me, you’re just a pathetic ant.”
As Yuk Jon Ju moved to strike again, Yeop Hyeon leaped from the crater, sword in hand, charging straight at him.
Seeing Yeop Hyeon truly about to attack Yuk Jon Ju, the veiled woman on the side paled in shock.
Yuk Jon Ju sneered mockingly as Yeop Hyeon swung his sword, casually flicking his sleeve.
Boom!
Yeop Hyeon’s body was flung back once more, this time crashing into the city wall. In that instant, the wall above his head crumbled in a cascade of debris.
From amid the rubble of the wall, Yeop Hyeon spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. In that moment, he painfully realized just how weak he truly was.
‘Weak! Too weak!’
Though Yeop Hyeon boasted peak prowess among the younger generation, to the true masters of Jungto Sinju, he was still insurmountably inferior.
At that moment, a realization flashed through Yeop Hyeon’s mind.
Before absolute power, any schemes or plots were nothing but futile gestures!
Yuk Jon Ju, still floating in the air, looked down at Yeop Hyeon and said, “I don’t know how you turned Ma Jong and Gwi Jong to your side, but since things have come to this, from now on, Hogye Meng will play your tune. Personally.”
Then, Yuk Jon Ju glanced around and bellowed, “As long as Yeop Hyeon remains on Qingzhou soil, there will be no peace for Qingzhou!”
With that, Yuk Jon Ju turned and vanished.
He hadn’t killed Yeop Hyeon in the end. He still feared the enigmatic Heavenly Maiden.
But his patience was wearing thin. He hadn’t expected Ma Jong and Gwi Jong to retreat like that.
He didn’t want things to drag on any longer. He had noticed Yeop Hyeon had reached the Myriad Laws Realm.
Though Yeop Hyeon had concealed his aura, he couldn’t fool Yuk Jon Ju’s eyes.
At this rate of growth, it wouldn’t be long before Yeop Hyeon—not the Heavenly Maiden—became Hogye Meng’s greatest threat.
Just like how Hogye Meng had once dismissed Cangjie Sword Lord, only to suffer under his oppression for nearly a century.
After Yuk Jon Ju departed, his words spread like wildfire across all of Qingzhou.
As long as Yeop Hyeon stayed on Qingzhou soil, there would be no peace!
In an instant, Yeop Hyeon became the public enemy of everyone in Qingzhou.
Soon, countless sects, clans, and wandering martial artists from across Qingzhou began flooding into the Imperial City of Jiang Kingdom. Their sole goal: drive Yeop Hyeon out of Qingzhou.
Even people from Jiang Kingdom itself poured into the city, turning the base of Giun Mountain—home to Canglan Academy—into a sea of gathered warriors from every corner.
* * *
Manggu Mountain.
Ma Jong and Gwi Jong, having withdrawn from Jiang Kingdom, had already arrived at Manggu Mountain.
On the cloud ship, Go Myeong-heo and Gi Eon-no stood silently, facing Yuk Jon Ju.
Yuk Jon Ju looked at them and spoke. “I can’t for the life of me figure out why you two pulled back like this. You must have been deceived by Yeop Hyeon!”
Go Myeong-heo chuckled in response. “Yuk Jon Ju, we simply decided to retreat because that kid Yeop Hyeon turned out more impressive than expected.”
“Hmph… To be frank with you two, Yeop Hyeon’s backer is no simple matter. So here’s the deal: Hogye Meng will handle his backer. And we’ll take care of Yeop Hyeon ourselves. You two just ravage Qingzhou as you please.”
At those words, Go Myeong-heo and Gi Eon-no exchanged a glance.
“Why go to such lengths?”
Yuk Jon Ju replied to Go Myeong-heo, “Don’t ask for now. In any case, we’ll handle Yeop Hyeon and his forces, so you two can devour Qingzhou without crossing paths with him. Qingzhou’s a vast land—plenty of room if you set your minds to it, right?”
For a moment, the two wavered at his words.
Seeing this, Yuk Jon Ju pressed on. “Your two sects already missed one chance at Canglan Province. If you miss another good opportunity now…”
“Fine, we’ll do it!”
Gi Eon-no suddenly shouted.
Yuk Jon Ju turned to Go Myeong-heo, who pondered briefly before nodding.
“Agreed! But as you said, Ma Jong won’t fight Yeop Hyeon.”
“As you wish.”
With that, Yuk Jon Ju departed the cloud ship.
Soon, Ma Jong and Gwi Jong’s cloud ships turned their prows back toward Qingzhou.
“Sect Leader Go, what kind of monster is Yeop Hyeon’s backer that has you so scared?”
Gi Eon-no’s question drew a bitter smile from Go Myeong-heo. “If that bastard’s telling the truth, his backer is someone far stronger than we could imagine! In any case, when we return to Qingzhou, we’ll avoid anyone connected to Yeop Hyeon as much as possible. Like Yuk Jon Ju said, Qingzhou’s huge, resources scattered everywhere—no need to tangle with them.”
* * *
Inside Canglan Academy.
Yeop Hyeon lay on the bed. Beside him, Cheok Bal-eon carefully fed him hot porridge, spoonful by spoonful.
At that moment, Yeop Hyeon grabbed her hand. Cheok Bal-eon trembled slightly but didn’t pull away.
“Have you ever fed another man like this?”
“You’re the second.”
‘Second?’
Seeing Yeop Hyeon’s sullen expression, Cheok Bal-eon added, “The first was my little brother.”
“……”
Upon returning to Canglan Academy, Yeop Hyeon had immediately begun treatment. After consuming a Ziwon Dan, his body had recovered over seventy percent in less than half a shichen.
Once he could move somewhat freely, Yeop Hyeon entered the Gyeok Ok Tower right away. The moment he stepped inside, as he gazed at the entrance to the second floor, a voice echoed in his mind.
“Focus on the Dochik Sword!”
The voice was thin and faint, yet chillingly cold.
‘Dochik Sword?’
Yeop Hyeon furrowed his brow.
“What’s a Dochik Sword?”
At that instant, the character ‘土’ (Earth) appeared at the center of his forehead.
Dochik!
The moment the second floor’s entity returned, so had the Dochik.
“You want me to forge a sword from the Dochik?”
“I don’t know!”
‘Damn it! What the hell? What did I do wrong this time?’
But one fortunate thing: it was speaking directly now instead of sending paper notes.
“Concentrate the earth’s power, then use the Dochik as a medium to form the Dochik Sword… That’s what that woman said last.”
“Sword Immortal sis told you to make a Dochik Sword before she left!?”
“Argh, shut up! Don’t ask!”
“……”
Yeop Hyeon decided not to question the second floor’s entity any further.
Dochik!
Though he still didn’t fully understand the Dochik, he had used it before and knew its immense power.
If he could forge a sword from this Dochik and wield it, its might would be unimaginable.
At that moment, the voice from the second floor spoke again.
“Go find the second Dochik. If you don’t, you die!”
As Yeop Hyeon opened his mouth to ask something, information flooded into his mind. Moments later, his expression froze solid.
In truth, Yeop Hyeon had thought the second floor’s entity had just gone out for some air. But no—it had gone searching for a Dochik.
And it already knew where to find one.
Yeop Hyeon’s eyes lit up as he hurriedly dashed out of the tower.
At that moment, the second floor entity began thumping and making a racket.
“Hey! I’ve got urgent business—stay put! I’ll be right back, so don’t make a fuss!”
Exiting the Gyeok Ok Tower, Yeop Hyeon stepped out of the room. There, Gu Jiu and her group waited.
“Follow me!”
Yeop Hyeon led Gu Jiu and the others to the mountain peak. From there, they could see the black masses of people gathered at the base.
Spotting Yeop Hyeon, the crowd below roared in fury.
“Yeop Hyeon, get out of Jiang Kingdom!”
“Get out of Qingzhou!”
“Canglan Academy, get out of Qingzhou!”
“You disasters of Qingzhou, leave this place now!”
Their shouts filled Giun Mountain.
Not just at Canglan Academy—the crowds from across Qingzhou had swarmed even outside the Imperial City.
Their goal: expel Yeop Hyeon from Qingzhou.
Finally losing his temper, Mu Yun Qi yelled down at them.
“All of you shut up! If it weren’t for Yeop Hyeon, you’d all be dead long ago! Can’t you think for once!?”
“The one who should shut up is you! Ma Jong and Gwi Jong came to Qingzhou because of Yeop Hyeon from the start. He’s the root of all this!”
“Right! Yeop Hyeon’s the culprit! Without you lot, there’d be no reason for Jungto Sinju warriors to come here!”
“We don’t need your protection—get lost!”
“……”
Mu Yun Qi, rage boiling over, was about to leap down when Yeop Hyeon shook his head and stopped him.
“When they need me, I’m Yeop the National Scholar, Yeop the Dean. When they don’t, I’m Qingzhou’s calamity. Fine, let’s give them what they want. Spread the word: we’ll be leaving soon.”
“……”