Chapter 189. Besieged on All Sides (9)
Cheong Yeon couldn't make sense of this situation at all.
Han Bin, who had been striding toward her, suddenly halted his steps.
Thud.
At the sight of Han Bin stopping as if he'd hit an invisible wall, Cheong Yeon froze mid-charge.
It was as if time itself had stopped.
After a few swallows' worth of time passed, Han Bin shouted.
"Come out already!"
No one answered his call.
The only sounds were the occasional songs drifting from the inn.
Han Bin's gaze fixed on the tallest pavilion in Jangun-hyeon.
Even Seol-hwa, standing beside him, tilted her head in confusion.
Cheong Yeon, who had been glaring at Han Bin with seething killing intent, turned her eyes that way too.
Who on earth is he calling?
That was the question on everyone's mind—except Han Bin's.
Even his enemy, Cheong Yeon.
As Seol-hwa and Cheong Yeon stared at the pavilion in bewilderment, a laugh echoed from its highest point.
"Hahaha!"
The laughter, infused with inner power, rang out as clearly as if the speaker were right in front of them.
It carried the thick stench of bloodlust.
Before the echo faded, Poison Venerable Cheon Dok appeared at the pavilion's edge, his green robe fluttering dramatically.
Surprisingly, it wasn't Han Bin who was startled—it was Cheong Yeon.
"Master."
And rightly so. Her master, Cheon Dok, had said he'd return in a few days.
His sudden appearance made no sense.
As Cheong Yeon stared wide-eyed, Cheon Dok leaped across the rooftops, his green robe billowing, closing the distance.
Up close enough to see his face, Cheon Dok grinned.
"Haha, you've had it rough, Cheong Yeon."
"Master, what's going on here?"
"There's a saying: to catch a fox, set the forest ablaze."
"What does that mean?"
"The one I want is him. From now on, we'll capture him and pry the method to control the plague from his lips. Then my title won't be Poison Venerable Cheon Dok—it'll be Poison Venerable of Myriad Poisons, haha."
Cheon Dok chatted with his disciple Cheong Yeon, completely ignoring Han Bin as if he weren't even there.
Then—
A chuckle interrupted them.
"Haha."
It was a feeble sound compared to Cheon Dok's inner power-laden laugh.
As insignificant as a fallen leaf under an autumn maple tree.
But the source of that unassuming laugh was the problem.
Cheon Dok stared at Han Bin in disbelief.
"Is this the time for you to laugh?"
"What else should I do, cry?"
"What's so funny?"
"Reuniting with your disciple right in front of the enemy? It's putting me to sleep. And you've been watching all this time—why'd you just let your dying subordinates rot?"
Han Bin glanced sidelong at Cheong Yeon as he posed the question.
And as expected, she reacted.
"What are you talking about, Master? Did that bastard say my Heuksu Squad...?"
Trailing off, Cheong Yeon scanned her surroundings.
The enemy's arrival and her master's laughter.
Amid the commotion, the Heuksu Squad showed no response.
Cheong Yeon spoke again.
"Tell me, Master."
Her voice trembled slightly.
The Heuksu Squad was her everything.
They were like the blood coursing through her veins.
But Cheon Dok replied in a dry, emotionless tone.
"Just as he said. The Heuksu Squad is no more."
"What?"
"Shouldn't you be asking him, not me? And can a leader who lost her subordinates even call herself worthy?"
"Master."
"If you want to stay under me, prove your worth."
Cheon Dok's voice carried inner power.
To anyone watching, he was clearly a Hwagyeong master.
Then Han Bin cut in again.
"That's rich coming from someone who let savable subordinates die. You used them as bait, and now you demand she prove herself? Are you even human?"
"Heh, I was going to take you in for your medical skills, but your tongue's got thorns. Looks like I need to rip it out first."
"Rip it out if you want. But I still have things to say. If a superior lets a subordinate drown without saving them, should the water take the blame? Or the superior?"
"You little...!"
Cheon Dok couldn't finish, his eyelids twitching in fury.
Their verbal sparring continued for the time it took to finish a cup of tea.
Seol-hwa, listening from the side, was flabbergasted.
Han Bin and she were the ones who'd taken out the enemies.
Yet according to Han Bin's logic, Cheon Dok was the real villain.
And it was so convincing that even Seol-hwa found herself nodding.
Glancing sideways, she saw not just herself—even her enemy, the poison user Cheong Yeon, seemed to agree with Han Bin's words.
She was shooting angry glares at her own master, Cheon Dok.
Even Cheon Dok wasn't attacking Han Bin outright; he was struggling to counter with logic.
It looked like a martial duel with words alone.
If debating martial arts with words counts, then my master Han Bin is at the pinnacle of Hwagyeong—the 12th gyeong.
Cheon Dok's face, locked in debate with Han Bin, flushed red with barely contained rage.
Now it was turning a dark purplish hue.
Moments later, he composed himself and bellowed.
"Demon-tongued wretch! I'll cut out your tongue and carve my words upon it!"
With that, Cheon Dok clapped his hands.
Clap!
At the sound, an evil aura spread through the surroundings.
Soon, green smoke billowed out three hundred jang in all directions, centered on Han Bin and Cheon Dok.
Not the pale smoke from a chimney, but thick green fumes.
The smoke blocked Han Bin and Seol-hwa's escape routes.
Of course, excluding the inn side, where Heuksa Gate served as a shield.
Han Bin glanced that way and remarked.
"Poison smoke, huh. Green means it's top-shelf stuff—must've cost a fortune. You came prepared, old man."
"Your laughter ends here."
With a smirk, Cheon Dok clapped again.
Clap, clap!
Two claps this time. At the signal, masked poison users burst through the smoke.
Unlike the Heuksu Squad Han Bin had dispatched, these wore green uniforms.
Green—the purest color of poison in Cheon Dok's view.
They were the ultra-elite poison users hand-raised by Cheon Dok: the Cheonin Cheondok Squad.
"Cheonin" meant each could take on a thousand men.
Even a master couldn't face a thousand foes.
But poison users were different.
In the world of poison arts, one toxin could melt a hundred elites.
Seeing the Cheonin Cheondok Squad, Han Bin narrowed his eyes.
He didn't know about Cheon Dok, but in his past life, he'd clashed with them before.
Ahead: Cheon Dok.
Behind: Cheonin Cheondok Squad.
Their appearance threw off Han Bin's calculations.
His plan had been to sow discord between Cheong Yeon and Cheon Dok, reaping the benefits as a third party.
Han Bin quickly snapped his fingers.
Snap!
As Seol-hwa looked to him, Han Bin shouted.
"Three!"
Seol-hwa vanished instantly.
"Three" signaled the Thirty-Six Stratagems' "make a dash for it."
She reappeared by the inn's fence.
There, she squatted casually, watching Cheon Dok's position.
Next to her was Jang Daechan of Heuksa Gate.
He was craning his neck at the absurd scene, eavesdropping on Han Bin and Cheon Dok's exchange.
From their conversation, he'd learned Cheon Dok was the poison user plotting to wipe out Jangun-hyeon's people.
The plague ravaging Jangun-hyeon seemed their doing too.
Han Bin, who did this to him; Cheon Dok, slaughtering innocent Jangun-hyeon folk.
Who was the real villain?
To Jang Daechan, they both looked like villains.
Not that a Sapa like him had room to talk.
Still, he found himself rooting for Han Bin.
If Han Bin lost, he'd end up as a puddle of blood too.
As Seol-hwa slipped away, Han Bin pulled a red cloth from his bosom and wrapped it tightly over his mouth and nose.
The cloth was made from leaves of century-old Baekdu Mountain snow ginseng.
Impregnated with extract from rare southern sea coral.
Procured in advance via Cheonri Escort Agency.
His poison resistance alone might not cut it, so he'd prepared it—perfect timing against the poison smoke.
Watching Han Bin's countermeasure, Cheon Dok let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.
"What are you?"
"The long tongue's you, old man! Why keep yapping at busy people? I'll do my thing, you do yours—without the chit-chat."
Furious at Han Bin's sarcasm, Cheon Dok roared.
"Attack!"
Han's response was faster.
Whoosh.
He melted away like spring snow before Cheon Dok.
Cheon Dok glanced where Seol-hwa had vanished.
Assuming Han Bin had fled there.
But only plague victims milled about—no Han Bin.
Cheon Dok scanned urgently.
The poison smoke made spotting him tricky.
Then a voice rang out from somewhere.
"Your own trap!"
It carried inner power.
Cheon Dok bellowed.
"You've been hiding your skills!"
"..."
But Han Bin fell silent.
Moments later, screams replaced his voice.
"Argh!"
He turned toward the cry.
A Cheonin Cheondok Squad poison user in green was collapsing.
Folding like a reed snapped by wind.
After a few swallows, another scream.
"Argh!"
The cries came at regular intervals.
So rhythmic it felt like they were keeping beat—like a courtesan singing to the seven-stringed qin.
To Han Bin, this was like a fish in water.
A solo Cheon Dok would've been tougher.
But sending minions first let Han Bin's Gugeol Ship-pal-bo and Jeon-gwang-seok-hwa shine.
Not just shine—blindingly.
In the green smoke, Han Bin vanished perfectly.
His lightness skill's speed and Banbagwi-jin's stealth formed a flawless combo.
Quietly, Han Bin checked the new formula.
Earth-grade (prefecture level) formula Tal (escape) acquired.
Human-grade (human grade): Geum (geum), Gak (gak). Seon (seon), Tal (escape)
One scattered Yongrin Sword Art formula completed. Technique activated.
Human-grade (Human grade) technique Geumseon Talgak (Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell) acquired.
Corresponds to the substitution method in Yongrin Sword Art techniques. When activated, leaves a shell behind and teleports to a desired location. Usable once every twelve double-hours. Requires 5 years of inner power.
Then—
Cheon Dok clapped again.
Clap, clap, clap!
The signal to clear the poison smoke.
As the Cheonin Cheondok Squad scrambled, another sound rang out.
Snap, snap!
Matching the inner power of Cheon Dok's claps.
Of course, it was Han Bin mimicking him perfectly.
Outrageous.
Cheon Dok hurriedly overturned the braziers producing the smoke himself.
In his haste, he wasted poison worth over ten nyang of gold.
As the fog lifted, the gruesome scene revealed itself in full.