Chapter 96
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Going Astray (4)
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"...Brother-in-law!"
"Huh? What?"
"Is that really you, brother-in-law?"
"What are you talking about?"
He was nothing like the brother-in-law they knew. Sure, there were rumors of him being a playboy, but just now, he'd seemed utterly inhuman. He hadn't treated the man like a person at all.
Hmph!
Our little sisters-in-law are so cute.
Mujin knew exactly why they were reacting like this. Even treating enemies as people made the sisters-in-law appealing on a human level. But as martial artists, it was a flaw.
"Listen up, sisters-in-law. I won't say it twice. Mercy toward enemies is a luxury. Always kill them as quickly as possible."
"But brother-in-law, that was too cruel!"
"I needed information. When you have a goal, you don't pick and choose your methods. It's the duty every martial artist should have. Otherwise, you'll die—or the people around you will. Just so you know, if you'd messed up this time, you'd have met the worst kind of death. Don't say 'no way.' It would have been far worse than that."
The fate of women captured by those yogis was the worst imaginable. Death would have been a mercy. He'd never seen one who kept her sanity after regaining her senses. Why? Because they made her kill her own family and comrades, commit unspeakable betrayals. They'd have her panting like a dog in her father's arms before stabbing a knife into his heart. Staying sane after that would be the real oddity.
"Have we never really known you, brother-in-law?"
"Isn't that obvious? How often have we even seen each other? I don't know you sisters-in-law all that well either."
They struggled to keep up with his casual words and actions. They couldn't tell which side was the real him. But one thing was clear: their brother-in-law was strong, and he'd come to save them. They wouldn't forget that.
"Let's go."
"...?"
He spoke as if the job was done. They missed their chance to reply, too caught up in his refreshed expression.
"We're just leaving them like this?"
"The Beggars' Clan will show up soon."
"What about Senior Brother Cheonhyeon? And Lady Ok seems to have fallen to their sorcery too. Plus, we don't even know if Hero Guo of the Heavenly Lord Divine Spear is alive."
"Yeah, no idea."
"Oh, really?"
He couldn't care less.
Mujin first checked on Cheonhyeon. Not knowing the poison type, there wasn't much he could do—just measures to keep it from spreading further.
After snapping Ok Sohyang out of her trance, he shattered her Joyful Reunion Pill with the Soul-Piercing Demonic Eye. He couldn't tell if she was fully recovered from the kidnapping trauma, but he didn't fuss over it. Not being violated or turned into demon soldier fodder was blessing enough.
"You sisters-in-law stay here. I'll be right back."
"Brother-in-law!"
"What?"
"You have to come back safe."
"You think I won't?"
"No."
"Then we're good."
With that, he unleashed his movement technique and vanished from sight. Baek Yuhwa and Baek Yugyeong, suddenly blind to him, stood there dumbfounded, speechless.
'Brother-in-law, what kind of person are you, really?'
The Heavenly Lord Divine Spear and Extreme Killer were clashing at a fair distance away, turning the mountain into their battlefield as they unleashed their full power.
Kwaaaaang!
The mountains and trees shook violently.
The duel between the two masters grew fiercer as time passed. But the flow of battle wasn't what anyone expected. They seemed evenly matched, but in truth, Guo Yunbaek was in bad shape.
Hwoooo!
The shaft of his Azure Dragon Spear was scarred, its blade chipped in places. The damage had built up from blocking and countering assaults. And that was just the start—his clothes were torn, his upper body a ragged mess.
It was an absurd outcome.
Since mastering the Heavenly Apex Shadowless Spear to its pinnacle, few had ever wounded Guo Yunbaek. And he'd never taken this much damage in a fight.
His opponent's blade was ruthlessly practical. Not a single inch of error. Yet when exploiting an opening, he didn't hesitate to unleash the Emperor's Ironbreaker Stance. It was the epitome of the Killing Blade.
Was there someone like this in the martial world? If there was, only one came to mind.
And that was from long ago.
"Death-Defying Killing Blade... You're Extreme Killer."
"You're slower than I expected."
Extreme Killer Yi Yung.
One of the Seven Killers, a master of the blade said to have reached the pinnacle of killing arts. He'd vanished fifteen years ago, only to reappear today.
Guo Yunbaek, one of the Six Saints.
Yi Yung, one of the Seven Killers.
Both were ranked among the martial world's absolute elite, excluding the Divine Twenty-One Stars. They were contenders for those ranks as well.
Public opinion favored the Six Saints over the Seven Killers. The Killers wielded blades of villainy, while the Saints stood with the righteous factions.
Swaaaaak!
No more words.
Extreme Killer's killing blade surged forward mercilessly, intent on ending it. Murderous will gleamed in his strikes.
"Not a chance!"
Guo Yunbaek squeezed out his remaining inner energy, unleashing the final form of the Heavenly Apex Shadowless Spear: Heavenly Apex Sacred Flame. The transcendent spear art erupted into holy inferno.
Burn my body to slay you.
It was a desperate, life-risking gambit.
Hmph!
Extreme Killer didn't back down.
Death-Defying Killing Blade: Extreme Killer Form, Dark Heaven Tribulation.
Dark skies enveloped the rigid flames, all creation trembling in terror.
Darkness clashed with light.
Puaaaaaang!
In the taut moment drowned in darkness, a single ray of light rebounded. Then Guo Yunbaek plummeted into the abyss. He rolled across the ground before stabbing his spear shaft to halt.
Jururururu!
His body was drenched in red.
More shocking still: the blade of his beloved Azure Dragon Spear was gone, severed by Extreme Killer's blade.
Cough!
His internal injuries were severe. Blood flooded his throat with every cough, staining his lips.
Haaa.
Guo Yunbaek stood, dispersing the blade intent and catching his breath. Toothless, he'd fight with gums—his spirit unbroken.
Chaeng chaeng!
Instead of ultimate techniques, Extreme Killer switched to basic forms, redirecting fluidly. His swift blade relentlessly targeted Guo Yunbaek's weaknesses. Wounds from blade qi multiplied, his mind clouding with each new gash.
Tatata tang!
The bladeless Azure Dragon Spear looked pitiful, marred everywhere by dark blade energy. It barely held, but odds of victory dwindled.
'...Am I dying here?'
It was a death trap Guo Yunbaek never saw coming.
Facing death, he charged forward instead of retreating—like a wounded beast unleashing all.
But desperate resolve needs a foe to meet it head-on.
Extreme Killer's mind was ice-cold as the North Sea, merciless to the end. He tightened the noose without a hint of slack.
"Time to end this."
Guo Yunbaek admitted the conclusion neared. His inner and outer energies depleted, blood loss blurring his vision. Standing was a miracle.
'What a letdown.'
He hadn't wanted to go like this. His dream of reaching the spear's zenith unfulfilled.
Puk!
A blade pierced flesh. Disbelief filled his downward gaze.
"Who..."
Clang!
No answer. The killer stabbed his back, then severed his head.
Degurururu!
The dull eyes of the rolling head refused to close. He met death still grasping reality.
Thud!
The headless corpse toppled like a marionette with cut strings.
Mujin stood there.
"Killers aren't cautious enough."
Mujin inspected the fallen body several times, then jammed the Azure Dragon Spear blade—picked up along the way—into Extreme Killer's rolling head. Just in case it twitched back to life.
Whoa!
Even on death's door, Guo Yunbaek clung to his fading sight. Seeing his tormentor die so simply after endless pressure was hollow beyond words.
"Who the hell are you?"
"You'll know soon enough. Point is, I saved you, Hero Guo. My request is simple: say you killed Extreme Killer."
A new master's emergence was what the martial world craved. Ambitious warriors flooded in for fame. And Extreme Killer was one of the Seven—even without Divine Twenty-One Stars status.
"Why? Killing him would earn you fame."
"I doubt he's alone."
"Dumping the mess on me?"
"Exactly."
Guo Yunbaek couldn't hide his emptiness at Mujin's pragmatic choice over glory. And casually handing off the cleanup? Utterly shameless and irresponsible, in a way.
"Ha ha ha, the rivers and lakes are vast indeed."
"Just an ambush."
"Result's the same: Extreme Killer's dead."
"You're no pushover."
Assassins were often scorned as lowly, even if they slew masters. The martial world's bias for honorable duels never wavered.
But any survivor knew: survival trumped strength.
"Fine, I'll say I did it. No skin off my back."
"Might bite you. Extreme Killer's just a pawn."
"Spare me the jokes."
"Tortured one; got a rough outline."
"Hell of a life."
Guo Yunbaek looked skeptical. From anyone else, he'd brush it off. But Mujin had slain Extreme Killer in an instant. His words carried weight. Why would a peer like him lie after showing such power?
A new storm would brew in the martial world.
A gale-force one.
Time to chat more with this powerhouse...
...Huh?
He's leaving?
Just walks off.
Only then did Guo Yunbaek snap out of his daze and call out.
"Hey! Slighting an elder brings heavenly punishment."
"You're not sixty yet, are you?"
Guo Yunbaek was a bit shy of his sixtieth birthday bash.
Criminals aged into geezers at forty, but masters peaked later. Higher realms defied age. Their pure, profound energy crushed youthful bravado. Old monsters didn't vanish—they blocked the young relentlessly. Rush in cocky, and you're done.
"Gotta live to see it."
"Heard you're a lone wolf. Beggars' Clan intel's lagging."
"Hearts change. Time to settle down."
"Kang Mujin of Pine Tiger Sect. Be my guest."
Before assassinating Extreme Killer, Mujin had briefly appraised Guo Yunbaek's spear. He'd watched his style up to the brink of death. Admired the tenacity ignoring demise, never yielding.
-You got hooked.
'This is how you hook 'em.'
A Life-Death Duel with Extreme Killer would've confirmed his identity. And purely on grit, growth potential existed.
Not before dosing him, though.
"Open up."
"Why?"
Mujin gauged three drops from the vial. Precious stuff, even for rinsing Mijoo's mouth—but worth it for landing a master.