Who Are You? (1)
You have acquired your first Human-grade technique.
Acquiring your first Human-grade technique brings you one step closer to the Dragon Blood Physique. As a special bonus, the level of the Basic Manual increases by one stage.
Basic Manual has been changed to Proficiency Manual.
Along with those messages, the manual began to sparkle.
Then the title Basic Manual slowly faded away, replaced by a new one.
Proficiency Manual (Proficiency manual)
The number of attributes you can hold has increased. The attribute limit has been raised.
Han Bin narrowed his eyes.
Proficiency Manual (Proficiency Manual)
……
Repetition (return): Forty (forty)
Heart (Heart): Twenty (twenty)
Excluding the Heart attributes that only increased when passing on the Soul Scattering Sword, everything had risen to forty.
The original ten Heart attributes had doubled to twenty.
Overall, the limits had increased by ten each.
Then the next message appeared.
Attributes will not decrease for one moment (quarter-hour).
Han Bin's eyes widened. Attributes not decreasing meant he could use his inner power infinitely for a quarter-hour.
Cheon Dok still had plenty of formulas left in him.
This could be a chance to complete the Human-grade formulas.
But as Han Bin tried to move, he let out a low groan.
"Hm."
He realized he was in a strange predicament.
A terrifying poison qi poured into him through Wol-a in relentless streams.
His legs and arms went numb, like a frog struck by lightning.
Han Bin focused his sense of smell to examine Cheon Dok's blood.
In the end, he had to let out a low sigh.
"Phew……."
Cheon Dok's blood was like all the poisons of the world fused into one.
It was better to see it as a pure crystallization of poison qi, not blood.
A poison crystallization equivalent to innate qi for a poison expert.
To Han Bin's eyes, it was clear Cheon Dok couldn't control his own poison qi.
Han Bin turned his gaze to examine himself.
'What the hell is this…….'
Han Bin's eyes widened.
The poison qi emanating from Cheon Dok was seeping into Han Bin's right hand.
His inner power alone couldn't block it.
His blackened skin looked like it would crumble like dry leaves at any moment.
But that only lasted a moment. His hand began to regain its original color.
The Recovery attribute was restoring his right hand to normal.
The same scene repeated in the blink of an eye, over and over.
Han Bin's hand appeared gray, neither black nor flesh-toned.
But if this continued, who knew what would happen next.
Infinite inner power lasted only a quarter-hour.
If this state persisted?
He might melt into the poison qi, his flesh mixing with Cheon Dok's.
First, he needed to shake off the numbness in his limbs.
Han Bin quickly circulated one technique.
Self-Imprisonment.
Swift Sword, Steadfast Horse.
At the same time, the remaining inner power in his dantian began to swirl.
Self-Imprisonment was a grafting technique from Flower Union.
It used the opponent's power to reflect a portion of the damage back at them.
As he circulated Self-Imprisonment, the stream of poison qi entering through Wol-a changed.
It split from one stream into two.
One stretched toward Han Bin.
The other was poison qi Han Bin reflected back at Cheon Dok.
It was actually reflecting the poison qi too.
Perhaps because he let a portion pass through?
Sensation was slowly returning to his body, except for his right arm.
That was when it happened.
Han Bin unwittingly opened his mouth.
The woman called Cheong Yeon had drawn her sword and was slowly walking toward him.
Step by step.
Neither fast nor slow.
Step by step.
Now only ten steps away.
If Cheong Yeon swung her sword in this tense standoff?
As Han Bin pondered his options,
the sound of blades clashing rang out.
Clang!
What met Cheong Yeon's sword was none other than Seol-hwa's blade.
Han Bin shifted his gaze to focus on Cheon Dok.
The swords of Seol-hwa and Cheong Yeon, locked together, created a slight gap.
Both had made space for their next attack.
After a brief exchange of glances,
as if recognizing each other's prowess, they simultaneously retreated a few steps and eyed one another.
Thud, thud.
Seol-hwa spoke.
"Why are you trying to hurt our young master, lady?"
"L-Lady……?"
"Our young master already told you. It wasn't him who hurt your subordinate—it was that nasty old man."
"Could you be quiet for a bit?"
"I'll be quiet if you just back off, lady."
Cheong Yeon scowled at Seol-hwa.
Her poison arts made her look older than she was, but not quite "lady" territory.
In a way, her appearance was like her reverse scale.
Cheong Yeon's face flushed with anger.
Of course, Seol-hwa could provoke like this because of Han Bin's influence.
Instinctively grabbing the opponent's weakness and scrambling their mind.
Seol-hwa put on her most innocent expression.
"Our young master told me something."
"……."
At Seol-hwa's sudden words, Cheong Yeon’s eyes gleamed silently.
Seol-hwa continued with an even brighter smile.
"He said most people make that exact face when they hear the truth. It's true!"
"You're just a kid, but you sure know how to rile someone up. Time to show you some spice."
"Rile up? You mean bone-chilling, right?"
Seol-hwa kept her mouth running nonstop.
Truth be told, even she was surprised by her own sharp tongue.
She'd never bantered like this—better to let swords do the talking.
Back in Heukcheon, Seol-hwa had been the silent type.
A killer's mouth was naturally heavy.
But since coming to Cheonsu Manor, things had changed.
She'd spoken more words than in all her time at Heukcheon combined.
And now it was even worse.
It felt like her tongue had turned into a waterwheel.
Seol-hwa quickly gathered her wits.
This wasn't the time to marvel at her changes.
She needed to focus on the enemy's sword.
Seol-hwa decided to end this duel quickly and help Han Bin.
She was already defying his order to stay put, so she might as well help actively.
Seol-hwa swiftly unleashed a Soul Scattering Sword technique Han Bin had taught her.
What she deployed was the fifth form of the Soul Scattering Sword, the most powerful she could manage: White Soul.
It wasn't at the level to disrupt the soul, but it had enough power to stun the opponent's mind.
Seol-hwa thrust her sword straight and charged forward.
At the same time, a change occurred in Cheong Yeon's opposing blade.
The sword was gradually turning black.
It was sword force forged not from qi, but poison qi.
The footsteps of the two echoed around them like a galloping four-horse carriage.
Thud, thud.
The clash followed.
Clang!
The moment their blades met, Seol-hwa's eyes widened at the odd sensation.
Crack!
Before the Soul Scattering energy could overwhelm her foe, her own sword failed to hold.
Seol-hwa staggered back a few steps and looked ahead.
But what she was staring at wasn't Cheong Yeon—it was her own sword.
A fine crack had formed on Seol-hwa's blade.
"Ah, it was cheap junk!"
With a regretful look, Seol-hwa glanced toward Jang Daechan of Heuksa Gate.
The Heuksa Gate warriors, who had been densely packed watching the duel, were scattering bit by bit.
Seol-hwa turned back to her opponent.
At the same time, she recalled the Uhyul Rang Sword in her bosom.
The shortsword was advantageous for assassination but disadvantageous in a one-on-one like this, so she hadn't used it.
But though short, could the Uhyul Rang Sword withstand the Soul Scattering energy fully?
Seol-hwa quickly hurled her held sword at the enemy.
Whoosh.
Not as precise as Han Bin, but it flew straight at Cheong Yeon's head.
Cheong Yeon deflected Seol-hwa's incoming sword with a swing.
Clang!
In an instant, the sword shattered into two pieces, a fragment flying toward Cheong Yeon's forehead.
Cheong Yeon whipped her head aside, dodging the shard while slashing at Seol-hwa with her own sword.
Clang!
A bizarre sound rang from the blades.
An odd sensation traveled up the sword into Cheong Yeon's hand.
It felt like striking a boulder weighing tens of thousands of catties.
Cheong Yeon's sword bounced powerlessly from her grip and flew off somewhere.
Whirr!
The real problem was the strange sensation spreading through her hand.
Cheong Yeon barely realized it was a slight tremor—a vibration.
The vibration, faint at first in her hand, grew stronger traveling through her veins.
And its destination was none other than Cheong Yeon's head.
Her mind went blank, as if pummeled by a hammer.
In that moment, a shortsword flew toward her throat.
Cheong Yeon gritted her teeth and raised her scabbard to block the dagger.
Bang!
Cheong Yeon's scabbard clashed with Seol-hwa's Uhyul Rang Sword, unleashing a tremendous shockwave like a Heavenly Thunder exploding between them.
But the one shocked was Cheong Yeon alone.
If Cheong Yeon was an egg, Seol-hwa was a rock.
An egg smashing against a rock.
Cheong Yeon shattered like the eggshell, while Seol-hwa stood unmoved, gripping her Uhyul Rang Sword.
As a result, Cheong Yeon flew backward powerlessly.
Fluttering like a puppet with cut strings.
Oddly, the direction she flew was toward Han Bin.
Han Bin, just freed from the numbness and about to retreat, widened his eyes.
Because the poison expert called Cheong Yeon was hurtling toward him.
Now able to move, Han Bin yanked Wol-a from Cheon Dok's body.
Then he swiftly retreated.
In that instant, the poison qi linking them severed.
Cheong Yeon tumbled once and rolled between Han Bin and Cheon Dok.
As Han Bin and Cheon Dok eyed each other warily a few steps apart, Cheong Yeon used her scabbard as a cane to barely stand.
Propping herself up with the scabbard, she glared at Han Bin.
Unable to continue fighting, she was blocking for her master.
In a way, a pitiful sight.
But Han Bin felt no pity for an enemy.
Why would he?
As Han Bin aimed Wol-a at Cheong Yeon,
Cheon Dok suddenly struck her head.
Thwack!
Everyone's eyes widened at the unexpected turn.
Of course, Han Bin was no exception.
As all were stunned, Cheon Dok let out a small chuckle through his lips.
"Heh."
With that laugh, Cheong Yeon's body began to lose its vitality.
Though Han Bin had interrupted his transformation into the Myriad Poison Physique, Cheon Dok was extracting all of his disciple Cheong Yeon's poison qi to achieve what he desired.
The process of drawing out the poison qi was as simple and swift as a mosquito sucking blood.
It happened in the blink of an eye, before Han Bin could react.
Glancing around, Han Bin saw Seol-hwa frozen like a statue, mouth agape.
She seemed to judge her actions a mistake.
Han Bin quickly waved her off.
A signal to retreat.
Seol-hwa hesitantly backed away per Han Bin's order.
Well, truthfully, the situation wasn't bad for Han Bin.
An enemy had been reduced to one, creating a perfect one-on-one.
And he could escape anytime.
Even if he couldn't kill Cheon Dok, the guy was just a frog in a jar.
Kang Yu-chan of the Geumuiwi was tightly controlling the village.
Han Bin casually shook off the poisonous blood from Wol-a.
Splat!
As Cheon Dok's blood splattered the ground, the soil melted away.
Sizzle.
Han Bin observed Cheon Dok for now.
Charging recklessly with an escape route was for fools.
Cheon Dok's white sclera, facing Han Bin, gradually turned green.