Chapter 146
Chapter 146
The Spy (2)
'H-how does he know that?!'
Though Gong Sun-beon maintained an outwardly calm demeanor, inwardly he was reeling with shock.
The information Tang Se-woon had just revealed was something the young man should have had no way of knowing.
And yet—it was the absolute truth.
The Nine-Tailed Fox, known as the Celestial Fox, was a monstrous entity capable of overturning the world with its demonic power.
But the Fox Spirit, Horijung, was nothing more than a lesser creature, incomparable to such a being.
Of course, even as a lesser entity, Horijung still possessed power equivalent to that of a martial artist at the Flower Realm—but that was beside the point.
Se-woon smirked as he watched Gong Sun-beon's reaction and added,
"A single tail split into nine branches—that's the Celestial Fox, a divine beast. Nine separate tails? That's just Horijung, a lowly demon."
"......!!"
"You might've fooled blind fools until now, but not me."
Se-woon curled his lips into a sneer, driving the point home.
Gong Sun-beon felt as though his lungs had been pierced, cold sweat trickling down his back.
'No—aside from Bang Ju, who helped me capture this thing, no one else should know about Horijung!'
Information about Horijung had never been leaked to the martial world.
It was a demonic entity he and Bang Ju had discovered together—the very reason he had earned the title of "Fox Summoner" in the first place.
"......It's not the Nine-Tails?"
"No, what's Horijung?"
"What's going on?"
Damn it all!
Sensing the growing unrest among his subordinates, Gong Sun-beon raised his voice.
If morale collapsed any further, annihilation was inevitable.
"Don't be fooled by the nonsense of some mere blacksmith! White Mask, tear them apart!!"
"!!"
Whoosh!
At its master's command, the fox spirit—its body covered in snow-white fur—lunged at Se-woon like a bolt of lightning.
Its massive form moved like a shifting mountain, and the Dark Sorcerers of Heaven-Piercing Gang, momentarily shaken, quickly regained their composure and unleashed another wave of curses.
"That's right! Don't fall for the enemy's tricks!"
"Die!"
Even after losing half their numbers, over a dozen sorcerers remained.
Driven by the terror of death, they poured their full strength into their spells, unleashing a torrent of dark energy far more potent than before.
But that wasn't all.
Grrroooowl!
The fox spirit's howl sent shockwaves rippling through the air.
Like ripples spreading across a tranquil lake, a sinister energy began to permeate the surroundings.
Whoosh!
A ring of flame descended vertically toward Moo-myeong and Se-woon, while razor-sharp shards of ice shot toward them like arrows.
But the moment those spells came into contact with the waves emitted by Horijung—
Fwoooosh!
Craaack!
In an instant, their power multiplied severalfold.
For the first time, Moo-myeong's expression twisted with alarm.
"......!"
This was the true power of Horijung—White Mask's ability.
The power to amplify the effects of any spell cast by those under its control.
Moo-myeong abandoned any thought of blocking and focused solely on evasion.
BOOM!
KA-BOOM!
The next moment, deafening explosions rocked the battlefield.
"Gaaah!"
"Grrk!"
At the same time, Se-woon was also under attack.
But his situation was entirely different.
The sorcerers, bathed in Horijung's amplifying waves, had shed all semblance of humanity.
Like rabid dogs, they charged forward, frothing at the mouth, their eyes bloodshot as if pumped full of narcotics.
Crack!
The barrier of Heavenly Silk blocked their advance, but—
Crunch!
Snap!
They ignored their own shattered bones, wildly swinging their limbs in a frenzy.
Horijung's power had pushed the curses they wielded into a state of near-madness.
Though it seemed like Se-woon's side was being pushed back under the relentless assault—
'Tch. Compared to the real thing, this power is just trash.'
Se-woon frowned, having already assessed Horijung's limits.
The true Celestial Fox—the strongest demonic entity—had chosen to end its own life rather than submit to Blood Demon's control.
Now, it lay sealed away in a place unknown to all.
And Se-woon, with his memories of the past life, knew exactly where.
He had already begun laying the groundwork to claim it for himself.
'Time to wrap this up.'
Swoosh!
Se-woon withdrew the barrier holding back his enemies.
"Graaah!"
"Krrrk!"
The berserk sorcerers charged from all directions.
Whoosh!
At the same time, Horijung itself seized the opening and struck.
Thoom!
Three of its nine tails stretched out like tentacles, lashing toward Se-woon.
Each tail carried the force of a martial artist at the Flower Realm—equivalent to facing three such warriors simultaneously.
In this dire moment—
Hssss!
An overwhelming surge of Yin energy erupted from Se-woon.
Pure white, so stark that Horijung's own energy seemed dull in comparison.
Flash!
The Heavenly Silk threads woven across the battlefield suddenly flared with light.
'Ice Wheel Binding.'
Crackle!
Snap!
Hundreds—no, thousands—of overlapping threads of frost instantly froze every enemy in place.
Every foe who had been moments away from striking Se-woon was now encased in ice.
Screeeech!
Horijung let out a pained shriek.
Its three tails, too, had been frozen solid.
Even its spiritual form convulsed in agony under the extreme cold.
Whoosh!
But Se-woon didn't stop there.
He dashed forward, crossing his arms as the Heavenly Silk threads intertwined.
"Heaven's Edge."
Schlick!
Crunch!
A horrifying sound of severing echoed—so loud it was almost deafening.
And for good reason.
Hundreds, thousands of cuts had been made simultaneously.
Thud!
Clatter!
The sound of frozen shards hitting the ground overlapped in a cacophony.
In an instant, every Dark Sorcerer of Heaven-Piercing Gang—save for Gong Sun-beon, who stood farther back—was reduced to lifeless corpses.
Screeeech!
Horijung writhed in agony, its three tails severed.
'W-what is this?!'
Gong Sun-beon stared in disbelief at the mangled state of his prized spirit—until—
Thud!
The earth trembled as something fell from the sky.
Se-woon, having leapt into the air, swung the gathered Heavenly Silk threads like a blade, carving a crescent moon in the air.
Schwing!
"......!!"
Horijung's head tumbled to the ground before Gong Sun-beon's eyes.
There was no time to mourn the loss of his familiar.
Thunk!
Squelch!
"Gaaah!"
Four threads shot like arrows, piercing through the bones and flesh of his legs.
As his body collapsed in agony, forcing him to his knees—
"Now, let's settle your debts."
Moo-myeong grinned down at him with a chilling smile.
"G-guh... ugh..."
Soon after, Gong Sun-beon was reduced to a pitiful wreck.
Only the whites of his eyes remained visible.
Moo-myeong had meticulously applied the most gruesome torture techniques he had learned since childhood in the Death Gate.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Moo-myeong exhaled.
"Whew, that's enough. He's useless now—let's kill him, Master."
"G-guhh!!"
Hearing this, Gong Sun-beon let out a strangled cry.
"N-no! I-I'm still valuable! Truly!!"
The moment his sanity returned, he wept and begged for his life.
Se-woon stared down at him with icy detachment.
'A leech like you. While Bang Ju died for his greed, you clung to life with disgusting tenacity.'
In other words—he was the perfect pawn to exploit.
"P-please, Young Master Tang!"
"Horijung is dead. What use do you have now?"
"H-Horijung can be revived with time! And I—I'm the deputy leader of Heaven-Piercing Gang, one of the Five Evils! I can tell you everything—our movements, all the intelligence on the Evil Faction that could help you!"
"Hmm."
Seeing Se-woon's apparent disinterest, Gong Sun-beon hastily added:
"The Qingcheng Faction! Yes—they're targeting you! They poisoned the river upstream to sicken civilians, then—"
"—planned to pin it on the Tang Clan. That's why I bought the ingredients for your Cursed Poison, isn't it?"
"Eh?"
Now that he mentioned it—that was exactly right.
Swish.
As Moo-myeong casually raised his twin daggers, Gong Sun-beon panicked.
"T-then what about the 'Blood Cult'—the secret organization manipulating the Qingcheng Faction from the shadows?!"
"Right. Their leader, Blood Demon, ordered it. He must've tempted the Heaven-Piercing Gang leader with forbidden sorcery to break away from the Evil Faction."
"H-how do you—?"
"Master, he's useless. Let's just kill him."
As Moo-myeong slowly advanced, Gong Sun-beon screamed another desperate revelation.
"AAAH! T-Heaven-Piercing Gang is targeting the Divine Maiden Sect!"
Moo-myeong halted.
Se-woon's eyes gleamed.
This was new—something that hadn't happened in his past life.
Gong Sun-beon, sensing this was his lifeline, poured out everything.
"Once we help the Qingcheng Faction take Sichuan, in two months, we'll open the path to the Divine Maiden Sect's headquarters! Once our Cursed Poison is complete, both sides will exchange documents to ensure neither betrays the other! It's true!!"
Tang Se-woon fell into thought.
The Heaven-Piercing Gang leader's plan became clear.
That man's lust for sorcery surpassed all others.
No doubt he sought to subdue the Nine Heavens Maiden and steal all her spells and divine techniques.
"Now that's useful."
"S-spare me?"
"Fine."
"Th-thank you! Thank you!!"
"But if you want to keep living, you'll need a leash."
"......Huh? W-wait—?!"
Se-woon forced his mouth open.
Tap-tap!
A bizarre skittering sound came from Se-woon's sleeve as something small crawled forward along his wrist.
"SCREEEEEK!!!"
Gong Sun-beon thrashed in horror.
A Male-Female Gu Poison, its spider-like legs twitching, crept toward him.
As a Dark Sorcerer, Gong Sun-beon recognized it instantly.
When he resisted, Se-woon spoke coldly.
"Swallow it, or die."
"H-hiiie...."
Gulp.
In the end, Gong Sun-beon swallowed the Gu Poison willingly.
Once the creature settled into his heart, Se-woon murmured:
"Your life is mine now."
"......!!"
"If you want to live, you'll hand over all intelligence on the Evil Faction—and continue feeding me new information regularly."
"Y-you want me to... spy?"
"No."
Se-woon shook his head.
"You'll be a slave."
"!!"
Gong Sun-beon's face twisted in despair.
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