Kill!
Suddenly, Yeop Hyeon’s face twisted into a terrifying scowl, and Gang Gu flinched in alarm. She stared at him for a long moment before letting out a bitter, self-mocking laugh.
“Fine, I get it—it’s an item worth coveting. But I never imagined you and that child would have such poor judgment in people.”
Gang Gu pulled a black booklet from within her robes and tossed it at Yeop Hyeon’s feet.
Yeop Hyeon stared intently at the sleek, glossy booklet. On its cover, these words were etched:
Earth-grade Item: Silence Extinction Finger
Yeop Hyeon pocketed the booklet and left the bamboo hut without another word.
Gang Gu watched his retreating back with cold eyes. Moments later, she drew a black stone brimming with xuangi from her bosom and gripped it tightly. Closing her eyes, she murmured,
“Ranxiu, that man can’t be trusted.”
At the same moment, far from Yangjie City, a woman in white robes halted her steps. She too held a black stone in her hand. After gazing at it briefly, she abruptly turned in the opposite direction.
“Miss? Where are you going in the middle of heading to the duel?”
Someone shouted from behind, but she didn’t look back and kept walking.
Emerging from the bamboo hut, Yeop Hyeon leaped onto the palace rooftops. Scanning his surroundings, he clutched the booklet and shouted,
“Hahaha! In the end, it’s mine!”
With that, he dropped down from the roof and vanished into the darkness in the blink of an eye.
“It’s an Earth-grade weapon!”
Someone yelled from the shadows, and countless figures sprang up, giving chase. Leading them was Bei Chen. A man and woman followed close behind—warriors even she feared.
Yeop Hyeon burst out of the eastern sword district in an instant and plunged into the dense forest. A horde of martial artists pursued him madly.
Gang Gu had long faded from their minds.
The Earth-grade weapon was now in Yeop Hyeon’s hands.
Yeop Hyeon was accustomed to navigating rugged mountains. As time passed, the gap between them widened.
Yet Bei Chen and the others refused to give up, hounding him relentlessly.
Yeop Hyeon darted through the woods like a nimble leopard, evading their pursuit. Night fell over the mountains, pitch black.
Yeop Hyeon grinned. The deep darkness made even his fingers hard to see, but traversing such wild hills was child’s play for him.
The other martial artists’ faces darkened. Though they had trained in mountains before, none had lived in them like Yeop Hyeon.
Fear began to creep into the pursuers’ hearts—not just of Yeop Hyeon, but of each other.
In such a situation, stabbing a rival in the back was commonplace among warriors.
Hiding atop an ancient tree in the thick woods, Yeop Hyeon pulled out Yeop Ryeong’s doll and smiled.
“Oppa will be back soon!”
“Not if we can help it!”
A voice rang out nearby.
Yeop Hyeon narrowed his eyes and scanned around. Below the tree stood a woman.
It was Bei Chen. The man and woman flanked her.
Yeop Hyeon’s face darkened as he shouted,
“How did you find me?”
“We have backers. You don’t. Do you understand the difference?”
Then, something bizarre happened.
Crack!
With a sharp slap, Bei Chen’s body flew a dozen zhang. When she scrambled up, a vivid red handprint marred her cheek.
“……”
Stunned for a moment, Yeop Hyeon composed himself and yelled,
“Truth is, I have someone watching over me too!”
The man and woman backed away warily, eyes sharp.
They hadn’t seen how Bei Chen was struck. Facing an invisible attacker was suicide.
Bei Chen’s face twisted in confusion.
‘Who struck me!?’
She scanned around, but saw nothing. Yeop Hyeon calmly straightened his clothes, clearly confident in something.
“Did you really think I had no one behind me?”
Yeop Hyeon wagged his index finger side to side.
“Do you think I’d wander into a place like this without back—”
Crack!
Another sharp sound echoed, and a figure soared through the air.
But this time, it wasn’t Bei Chen.
It was Yeop Hyeon!
Bei Chen and the pair’s faces went slack.
Yeop Hyeon touched his stinging cheek, dazed.
‘Does this thing slap anyone it doesn’t like? Even when no one’s around—how does that help!?’
As he slowly rose, a beastly claw mark scarred one side of his face.
The atmosphere turned strangely awkward.
Yeop Hyeon cleared his throat awkwardly and spoke.
“A-anyway, we’re all here for opportunities. So, let’s…”
“‘So let’s sit and talk it out openly’? Is that what you were going to say?”
Bei Chen cut him off with a light laugh.
Yeop Hyeon straightened up.
“Ahem… I didn’t expect you to agree. We…”
Before he finished, Bei Chen shook her head.
“I thought your head was a bit off before, but now I see it’s really—”
She couldn’t finish. Yeop Hyeon’s figure vanished into the darkness.
Bei Chen’s face hardened.
“Why so chatty!?”
The man in ink-black robes glared at her, then dashed after Yeop Hyeon with the woman.
Bei Chen’s face twisted savagely. She shot after them, scattering fallen leaves in her wake.
Yeop Hyeon ran with grim focus.
In his exchange with Bei Chen, he’d gleaned key information.
Someone was feeding her group his location!
Someone was breaking the rules!
The reason was simple: Yeop Hyeon had no backers.
If An Ranxiu were here, they wouldn’t dare such tricks!
Yeop Hyeon clenched his fist. The problem was massive. No matter where he hid, Bei Chen’s group would find him.
Fighting head-on was impossible; he couldn’t match the three.
Suddenly, Yeop Hyeon stopped. An idea struck him. He scanned around, then dashed up a small hill. At the top, he suddenly tumbled down toward the base, rolling wildly. Amid the chaos, the booklet with the Earth-grade weapon slipped into the leaves.
Yeop Hyeon had dropped it on purpose.
Using his momentum, he sprinted forward, stopping only after some distance. Soon, someone appeared before him.
Bei Chen.
Without catching his breath, Yeop Hyeon charged her. She sneered mockingly and thrust a palm at his chest.
This strike was to test his liver—not full power. But Yeop Hyeon didn’t dodge; he took it head-on.
Boom!
His body bent like a bow and flew several zhang, crashing into a tree and crumpling to the ground.
Bei Chen frowned and shouted,
“What trick is this now!?”
The arriving man and woman stared in bewilderment.
Clutching the dirt, Yeop Hyeon rose, blood trickling from his mouth, and protested indignantly,
“I already handed over the weapon—why try to kill me!?”
Bei Chen’s face turned incredulous.
The man and woman eyed her suspiciously.
Yeop Hyeon spat more blood, glaring furiously.
“You vicious bitch… You promised to let me go if I gave up the weapon, but now you want to silence me. How ruthless!”
Bei Chen scowled.
“What scheme is this!? Think they’ll believe you!?”
She glanced at the pair; they exchanged looks. Then Yeop Hyeon convulsed and shed everything but his undergarments, stripping naked.
The man and woman raised their brows.
Yeop Hyeon covered himself.
“Anything on my body?”
He pointed at Bei Chen.
“But you? If you’re innocent, show us the pledge ring on your finger!”
The pair’s gazes shifted to the ring on Bei Chen’s hand.
Bei Chen glared at Yeop Hyeon as if to kill with her eyes alone.
“A so-called great sword cultivator resorting to petty lies—you’re nothing but trash!”
Mighty energy surged from her, pressing down on Yeop Hyeon.
The man and woman unleashed their own furious auras, overwhelming hers.
Yeop Hyeon sighed inwardly in relief.
Bei Chen yelled at them,
“Are you idiots!? Believing him!?”
The man glanced at the bleeding Yeop Hyeon.
“He’s a sword cultivator, at least. I’ve never seen one lie. But… could I see your pledge ring?”
Bei Chen’s expression chilled.
One shouldn’t casually demand to see another’s pledge ring—it was an unspoken rule among warriors.
His request was hard to accept.
Bei Chen slowly clenched her fist. The pair stayed vigilant, ready to strike.
Then Yeop Hyeon spoke.
“Cangmu Academy warriors will arrive soon! I saw her send a distress signal. She’s just stalling!”
The pair’s faces grew grave.
‘Calling for reinforcements and buying time!?’
Mysterious energy began emanating around them.
Bei Chen shot Yeop Hyeon a venomous glare. If looks could kill, he’d be dead hundreds of times over!
“Kill him!”
Yeop Hyeon shouted and lunged at Bei Chen.
The two warriors hesitated briefly, then leaped into action.