Sichuan Dang Clan (3)
“I had no choice if I wanted to live. Please forgive me!”
Having sorted out the Sun Golden Frog's gallbladder and even produced ten Sun Golden Frog Pills on top of that, Hyeon Yucheon had no intention of killing him.
Besides, he didn't think this warranted taking a life—not when the commission fee was free to boot.
'And besides, what's done is done.'
As Hyeon Yucheon had anticipated, the Eokdang Pharmacy was already swarming with Dang Clan elites.
Sect Leader, could our identities have been exposed?
Eum Ji-myeong, ever the cautious one, sent a transmission, but Hyeon Yucheon shook his head.
The disguises were flawless, and Gong Jin wasn't some irredeemably wicked sort.
There was no reason for suspicion.
Dang Bijan probably launched this all-out assault because he couldn't bear to let the Sun Golden Frog's gallbladder slip away again.
Hyeon Yucheon's prediction hit the mark.
Dang Bijan had judged that if he failed this time, he'd never complete his Thousand Blood Poison Flow. That's why he'd mobilized even his personal guard.
It was right then.
Boom!
A figure didn't just throw open the door—he smashed it outright and barged straight into the reception room.
“Gong Jin! Where's my gallbladder? Where is it?!”
This man, brazenly voicing his greed—honest to a fault in his selfishness—was none other than the Thousand Blood Poison Maniac, Dang Bijan.
'So he's the head of the Dang Clan.'
Hyeon Yucheon and his companions recognized him at a glance.
He was one of the fools who'd picked a petty fight with them during their speed-sword duel against Namgung Ungwang. Easy to spot.
“Oh, y-you're here?”
Unlike the twisted Dang Bijan, the mild-mannered Gong Jin hung his head, mortified on behalf of Hyeon Yucheon's group.
“Hahaha! Well done! Securing the Sun Golden Frog's gallbladder—our Dang Clan will reward you handsomely.”
Dang Bijan ignored them entirely.
He was the type who never minded others' opinions or empathized with their feelings.
“We haven't secured it yet... These folks said it's awkward to sell...”
“Heh heh heh. Who'd dare refuse when I want to buy it?”
Even to ears with no grudge against him, his words grated—yet he was oblivious to his own rudeness.
Crunch!
Jin Gwangma Geom Ga Jinuk, already irked by Dang Bijan's antics during the Five Great Families incident, could hold back no longer.
Just as he stepped forward—
“Actually, this item is already slated for handling by the Demon Sword Merchant Association. So we can't sell it.”
Haomen leader So Jaun intervened, aiming to defuse things smoothly.
She'd name-dropped the Demon Sword Sect, the mere mention of which sent chills down the spines of righteous warriors these days.
And sure enough—
Flinch!
Dang Bijan, arrogant and overbearing from the moment he entered, faltered dramatically for once.
It was So Jaun's keen insight at work.
With their disguises in place, why fight? Better to scare off this nuisance without hassle.
But the Thousand Blood Poison Maniac Dang Bijan was a villain beyond expectations.
Click!
He suddenly moved to shut the reception room door, then barked at his subordinates.
“Clear out everyone around!”
His ominous actions sent a chill through Gong Jin, the pharmacy owner.
“C-Clan head... why...?”
Before Gong Jin could finish, Dang Bijan grinned wickedly.
The upturned smirk was that of a cold-blooded killer.
“Including you, I'm planning a full massacre to silence everyone. If I slaughter you all, not even the Demon Sword Merchant Association—or that bastard Hyeon Yucheon—will hear a whisper.”
To Dang Bijan, Hyeon Yucheon was both terror incarnate and an object of seething hatred.
His words dripped with venom.
“W-what?!”
Gong Jin leaped back, eyes bulging at the bombshell.
Fine for himself—but this young couple and their group? Dying because of him?
“Sorry about that. To be blunt...”
Dang Bijan was utterly heartless.
“All your lives combined aren't worth that one Sun Golden Frog gallbladder.”
He pointed at the gallbladder Hyeon Yucheon held.
“How can you say that...? Kill me if you must. But these people... they're young, innocent newlyweds. Show them mercy!”
Gong Jin had only seen Dang Bijan in good moods, so he utterly misjudged the man.
When pleased, Dang Bijan was jovially magnanimous. But when twisted? A different beast entirely.
“Mercy? Of course. I'll make it quick and painless. After all, you brought me great fortune.”
With that, he advanced on Hyeon Yucheon from the young couple.
'And I'll snag those precious pills you're carrying while I'm at it.'
Some might argue: He's still a renowned righteous clan head—how's this possible?
Far from it.
Look around: Not every grand sect leader is virtuous or kind.
They could hide their monstrous nature and rampage freely.
“I won't beg forgiveness. But thank you... and become nourishment for our great Dang Clan.”
As Dang Bijan hurled mockery at his victims, piling up karma step by step—
“From the first time I saw you, your ugly mug's been nothing but bad luck.”
Hyeon Yucheon, patience spent, finally stepped forward.
His two senior brothers and So Jaun instantly readied for battle.
“W-what? Do I know you?”
Stunned by Hyeon Yucheon's boldness, Dang Bijan peered hard at his face—but swore he'd never met this stranger.
Dang Bijan prided himself on his sharp memory; he wouldn't forget.
“It's me, me. Don't you recognize?”
“...?”
To the still-clueless Dang Bijan, he offered a merciful hint.
“The Thousand Blood Poison Maniac who struts around on his own ego—the man you've feared most lately, the one you badmouth behind his back because you can't face him head-on.”
The atmosphere thickening ominously, Dang Bijan listened—then jolted in shock, blurting a name and title.
“No way... the Demon Sword Young Master... Hyeon Yucheon?”
With that, Hyeon Yucheon shed his disguise, revealing his true face.
“Correct, Thousand Blood Poison Maniac.”
The instant his features emerged, Dang Bijan recoiled harder than if he'd seen his late parents resurrected.
“Impossible!”
How had this happened?
It was like leisurely hunting rabbits in a burrow—only to stumble on a tiger. A great tiger.
“Gasp! Hah! Young hero Hyeon Yucheon, lord of the Demon Sword Sect! Then those behind you...”
Gong Jin was equally stunned.
Shff, shff!
At Hyeon Yucheon's signal, Jin Gwangma Geom Ga Jinuk, suppressing his rage; Flash Light Flying Gentleman Eum Ji-myeong; and Faceless Black Rabbit So Jaun all dropped their disguises.
Ooh!
The well-drilled Sichuan Dang Clan forces—Dang Clan's elite Dang Family Heavenly Blood Squad—gasped in unison at the unexpected heavyweights.
These weren't just any foes. They were disciples of the demonic legend Cheon Baeksang—one-man armies, each worth a thousand.
“Greetings, Dang Clan head.”
“Remember that petty quarrel we had?”
Hyeon Yucheon's senior brothers, thrilled for a chance to cut loose after so long, unleashed their suppressed inner power.
“Seriously. Even when we're trying to keep it low-key, why's he gotta be so oblivious?”
So Jaun, the Haomen leader, was gearing up too.
Especially irked, she was.
'I was finally playing house with young hero Hyeon all cozy-like, and this idiot ruins it?'
Truth be told, her push for a peaceful exit was all for this—to prolong the newlywed act.
Interrupted so soon? Her fury boiled over.
“S-so you brought it here because...”
Dang Bijan's pupils quaked.
“That's right. It's my item, so I brought it. No reason to sell to vermin like you.”
Hyeon Yucheon stomped him verbally first.
“And you need this gallbladder bad, right?”
He planned full revenge.
“I'd sooner feed it to a stray dog as charity than hand it to you.”
Dang Bijan, lost in happy fantasies, plunged into despair—his breath growing labored.
“Gasp, gasp! D-Dang Family Heavenly Blood Squad! What are you waiting for? Attack... now!”
He retreated hastily, ducking behind his elite guard.
Of all places, he'd met the tiger on a single-log bridge.
Escape at any cost—even sacrificing his entire Heavenly Blood Squad.
'And if luck's on my side, I'll grab that Sun Golden Frog gallbladder too.'
Still fixated, Dang Bijan schemed.
“Sect Leader, don't waste energy on that Sapa trash worse than vermin.”
“We'll handle the Dang Clan's ragtag bunch.”
Bad news for Dang Bijan: Every companion with Hyeon Yucheon was a super peak realm master.
Especially—
Ga Jinuk, the Brilliant Light Demon Sword and eldest senior brother, unleashed his mighty sword-gang, smashing into the poison-wielding Heavenly Blood Squad.
And that was just the start.
Eum Ji-myeong, master of swift and light swordplay, followed up.
Usually tied up with Merchant Association duties, he relished returning to the front lines—blood surging.
'Yes, this is it.'
Eum Ji-myeong reveled, rediscovering his feral instincts after so long.
“Arrrgh!”
Under the onslaught of these two transcendent masters, the Heavenly Blood Squad—who terrorized Sichuan's holy ground—vomited blood and died en masse.
The rare survivors hurled their signature poisons and hidden weapons, but So Jaun wasn't about to sit idle.
So Jaun deployed her signature soul-seizing illusion.
What made this soul-seizure hypnosis terrifying? It faltered against equals or superiors—but against inferiors, nothing was deadlier.
“What the hell!”
“Why're you throwing hidden weapons at me?!”
“We've poisoned ourselves with our own toxins!”
The once-peaceful Eokdang Pharmacy descended into pandemonium.
“Eek!”
Subordinates dying around him? Dang Bijan didn't care. He obsessed over stealing the Sun Golden Frog's gallbladder.
He hadn't bolted immediately for good reason.
'Word is, the Demon Sword Young Master's lightness skill isn't that fast.'
Close-range, he compensated with footwork. But long-distance? A known weakness.
The Sichuan Dang Clan, however, boasted superior lightness arts.
Confident in his speed, Dang Bijan circled, eyeing the prize—
The supposedly slow Hyeon Yucheon vanished—reappearing instantly before Dang Bijan.