I Won't Let a Single One Escape
In the eyes of everyone watching, Yeop Hyeon was anything but normal.
The onlookers, who had crowded in at his mad frenzy, scattered in an instant.
Yeop Hyeon had even lunged toward Mu Yun Qi and the others. Mu Yun Qi hurriedly grabbed him in a bear hug.
"You idiot, calm down! Just calm the hell down!"
For a moment, Yeop Hyeon's eyes returned to normal. He stared at Mu Yun Qi, who was clinging to him, looking utterly baffled.
"What... what the hell are you doing?"
"You don't remember what just happened?"
"What happened?"
"......"
At that point, Bai Ze met Yeop Hyeon's gaze and pointed to the gruesome corpses strewn about.
Yeop Hyeon looked at the bodies, then turned back to Mu Yun Qi.
"Did you do that?"
"Argh, do you seriously have amnesia or something? You doing this on purpose?"
"I... did that?"
"......"
With no progress in the conversation, Yeop Hyeon shook his head and said,
"Let's go. We were heading to the secret realm, right?"
Yeop Hyeon gripped his sword loosely and started walking slowly.
Mu Yun Qi watched him go and muttered,
"That guy's not faking it, I don't think."
Bai Ze and Ji An Zhi nodded in agreement.
Mu Yun Qi let out a deep sigh.
"If he's like this now... imagine if something happened to Yeop Ryeong. Who knows what he'd do... Whew... Let's get moving!"
The three hurried after Yeop Hyeon. He was like a bomb ready to go off at any moment. If they took their eyes off him even for a second, who knew what might happen next.
Word that Yeop Hyeon had turned a dozen Changmok Academy students into headless corpses in the blink of an eye reached the Jeoguk branch of Changmok Academy. Moments later, dozens of shadows burst out from the academy.
They soon blocked Yeop Hyeon and his group at a street corner.
The man at the front bellowed at Yeop Hyeon in rage.
"This isn't Jiang Kingdom—it's Jeoguk! How dare you...!"
His face suddenly paled, and he yanked his body back. But right then, a flash of sword light gleamed right before his eyes.
Fast!
Slash—!
Before he could react, the man's head flew into the sky.
It didn't end there. The Spirit Water Sword, following Yeop Hyeon's will, sliced through the air once more. One Changmok Academy student's waist was cleanly severed.
Only then did the Changmok students freak out and stumble back wildly. Yeop Hyeon didn't stop. With an even more ferocious expression, he launched himself at them.
"Insolent bastard!"
At that moment, a voice thick with fury rang out, and an intangible surge of energy pressed down on Yeop Hyeon.
Penetrating Nether Realm!
Yeop Hyeon looked up sharply. An old man hovered above him, glaring down with murderous eyes.
Yeop Hyeon shot straight toward him.
One Sword Determines Life and Death!
The old man's face twisted in shock as he clasped his hands together and slammed them down.
An invisible wave crashed toward Yeop Hyeon—but it shattered in an instant under the sword light.
Slash—!
A wide-eyed head sprayed blood as it soared through the air.
The onlookers all around fell into stunned shock. The Changmok Academy students froze like statues.
And for good reason—the old man had been the vice dean of Jeoguk's Changmok Academy.
A Penetrating Nether Realm expert felled by a single sword strike.
Mu Yun Qi and the others were just as shocked. They knew Yeop Hyeon could hold his own against a Penetrating Nether Realm master, but killing one? That hadn't even crossed their minds!
Yeop Hyeon's figure slowly descended to the ground. When he lifted his head and eyed the remaining Changmok students, they scattered in abject terror.
Yeop Hyeon moved to chase them, but Mu Yun Qi grabbed his arm with all his strength.
"W-We gotta find Yeop Ryeong first... Let's deal with them after we get Ryeong!"
Mu Yun Qi was convinced something was wrong with Yeop Hyeon's mind.
The current Yeop Hyeon was killing every warrior who crossed his path—and getting more excited with each one.
If they didn't find Yeop Ryeong soon, Yeop Hyeon's sanity might collapse entirely!
"Mu Yun Qi, why are you still hugging me?"
"......"
Half a shichen later, Yeop Hyeon and the group finally reached the Ok-san Mountain Range. The peaks stretched endlessly, as if piercing the heavens.
While the others paused to take in the majestic view, Bai Ze furrowed his brow.
"Something's off..."
Bai Ze flattened himself to the ground, sniffed, and turned to the others.
"Human scent. At least two."
Yeop Hyeon stepped forward.
"No need to worry! I'll kill 'em—you guys just bury the bodies!"
Yeop Hyeon picked up speed.
Mu Yun Qi and the other two chased after him in a panic.
"Yeop Gangdo, please... get a grip...!!"
How much time passed? Yeop Hyeon, sprinting like a madman, suddenly halted. Moments later, Mu Yun Qi caught up. As he opened his mouth to speak, Yeop Hyeon pointed at the ground.
Mu Yun Qi examined it—nothing but scattered leaves.
Then Yeop Hyeon casually kicked a stone forward.
Rumble—!
The ground ahead collapsed with a thud. Hundreds of arrows rained down from all sides, their razor-sharp tips coated in green poison!
Mu Yun Qi went pale.
If they'd blundered through unaware, they'd be pincushions by now.
Right then, Yeop Hyeon shot to the right. Three people hiding behind a tree jumped in alarm, exchanging glances.
By the time they decided to attack, Yeop Hyeon had vanished from sight.
Whoosh—!
The three heads thudded limply to the ground.
Yeop Hyeon then launched toward the front. He stopped before a massive tree, ears picking up movement above.
Ring—!
A sword cry echoed through the silent woods as the Spirit Water Sword soared into the sky.
Thud...
A head tumbled from the tree onto his feet.
"Impressive!"
A voice rang out. Yeop Hyeon scanned around. About ten zhang ahead stood a man with long, disheveled hair. Crooked mouth, beady eyes like nostrils—his face was downright ugly.
The man grinned.
"Nice skills. Worth what they paid, alright. But... this is just the beginning! Your little sister's already tucked away deep in the secret realm. She's waiting there. Just don't be late. If you are... hahaha!"
With that, the man vanished like the wind.
Yeop Hyeon shot after him—but even at full speed, he couldn't catch up.
The long-haired man glanced back leisurely.
"Better hurry. Or your sister's gonna meet a miserable end. Hahaha!"
Right then, a shadow darted out and blocked his path.
It was Mu Yun Qi!
Mu Yun Qi smirked at the man.
"That fast, huh?"
In a blur, Mu Yun Qi left an afterimage and vanished.
The long-haired man recoiled in surprise, thrusting his hand forward. Countless silver gleams shot from his palm.
Mu Yun Qi dodged the hidden weapons with agile movements. Just as he prepared to strike, a dying scream pierced his ears.
Before Mu Yun Qi, the long-haired man collapsed, legs severed. Behind him, Yeop Hyeon glared down with bloodthirsty eyes.
Yeop Hyeon had no intention of killing him yet. He jammed his sword into the man's collarbone and started dragging him off somewhere.
"You trash! Kill me quick! Do it!"
The man screamed, but Yeop Hyeon ignored him and pressed on.
Then Bai Ze and Ji An Zhi arrived.
Mu Yun Qi sighed deeply.
"These idiots... why do they keep provoking that Ho Mae Gwang Ma..."
Ho Mae Gwang Ma!
That's what they called Yeop Hyeon. He acted like a few screws were loose most days, but mention his sister and his eyes went feral. No matter how much they joked around, Yeop Ryeong was the one line you never crossed. Mu Yun Qi had learned that the hard way once and was extra cautious now.
Touch his sister, and he became someone else entirely.
Ho Mae Gwang Ma—the sister-protecting mad demon. That was Yeop Hyeon in a nutshell!
Mu Yun Qi sighed again.
"Some of 'em might fight fair, but there'll be cowards too. Bai Ze, you've got that tough body—stay by Yeop Hyeon and block any flying daggers. Ji An Zhi, contact Dean Ji right now and beg for reinforcements. We four can't handle this alone. Especially with Yeop Gangdo out of his mind!"
Ji An Zhi nodded.
"Already did."
Bai Ze turned to Mu Yun Qi.
"Alright, what about you? What's your job?"
"I'm the fastest of us four, so I'll split off and hunt for Yeop Ryeong. If we rescue her, this'll get a lot easier! Anyway, let's move—can't leave that guy alone too long!"
The three chased after Yeop Hyeon.
Yeop Hyeon dragged the long-haired man into the woods. When they reached a clearing, the man screamed like a maniac, begging for death.
Yeop Hyeon still wouldn't grant it.
He stopped and looked down at the wailing man. A savage grin twisted Yeop Hyeon's lips.
"I've been too soft all this time. That's why they thought they could kidnap Ryeong. No more mistakes like that."
With that, Yeop Hyeon kicked the man's head hard.
Thud—!
The long-haired man died a pathetic death.
Yeop Hyeon dragged his sword along the ground as he walked forward slowly.
"Ryeong, don't worry. Big bro's gonna take you home soon... But first... I won't let a single one of the bastards who did this to you get away..."