Absorb the Elders' Hall (5)
That night, while Mugeom Sword Young Master Hyeon Yucheon and the elite warriors were away, a group moved stealthily under the cover of deep darkness.
No need to spell it out—they were the men from the Murim Alliance's Shaanxi branch.
They had cleverly disguised themselves as a common merchant caravan, inching closer to the Demon Sword Sect.
"Deputy Branch Leader, where did you say we're heading again?"
Hwang Bojinung scratched his thick skull roughly, accompanied by every last expert from the Shaanxi branch.
Hah~ What a thick-headed idiot.
They'd drilled it into him multiple times before departure, and here he was asking the same damn question. It was enough to make one choke on frustration.
"We're targeting the foothills of Haeha Mountain, east of the Demon Sword Sect's main hall. As I told you."
Jegalseon swallowed his rage with effort.
"Oh right, yeah. That's the old building where they used to house retired or elderly elders from generation to generation."
Hwang Bojinung wasn't a complete fool; he barely managed to recall it.
That's right.
Their target was the Demon Sword Sect's vulnerable eastern gate, long considered a weak point.
"Yes. From what I know, it's been vacant for ages—practically begging to be sealed shut. But for some reason, it's still wide open."
"Why the hell would they leave it open?"
"Isn't it obvious? No matter how impressive this Mugeom Sword Young Master is, he's still just a green kid clueless about the world. Ignorance breeds gaps like that."
Of course, that wasn't true at all.
There was only one reason Hyeon Yucheon kept the Elders' Hall open and well-maintained, sunlight streaming in.
He believed the day would come when the Elders' Hall predecessors returned, truly uniting the Demon Sword Sect as one.
These two fools, blissfully ignorant, chuckled away as they sketched their grand blueprint.
"Heh heh heh, as expected of the Cunning Fox Flying Sword. Perfect."
Hwang Bojinung clapped Jegalseon on the shoulder with his pot-lid hand.
Thud thud!
The smaller-framed Jegalseon felt the pain from the brutish gesture but hid it well.
Fine. If anything, I'm the brains—the strategist who shapes the board and pulls the strings! This oaf with his big voice is just a pawn.
Jegalseon soothed himself with self-praise, claiming a mental victory.
In truth, Jegalseon had his talents: smart, cunning enough for the fox moniker in his title.
Good head on his shoulders, decent all around... except his intel was always half a beat—or a full one—behind.
He had no clue the Elders' Hall was now brimming with top-tier experts.
"As I said, we seize the empty Elders' Hall building, then carry out the main event."
Worried the hulking Hwang Bojinung might screw things up, Jegalseon took the lead.
Sure, there were guards at the Demon Sword Sect's east gate, but with him in direct command, it'd be a breeze.
They drew near the Elders' Hall—and that's when it hit.
Hm?
Only now, closing in, did Jegalseon sense something off.
The east gate's defenses might be lax, but this level of silence? Something was wrong.
It happened right then.
Slash!
A chilling sound that sent shivers down the spine—and with it, the head of a Murim Alliance Shaanxi subordinate standing right beside Jegalseon tumbled free.
"H-heck!"
Caught up in his own smugness, Jegalseon shrieked like a third-rate rookie.
Even more insane was Hwang Bojinung's reaction.
"You moron! I said keep quiet?!"
True to his reputation for dullness, Hwang Bojinung bellowed even louder.
No time for finger-pointing between Jegalseon and Hwang Bojinung.
"So, you're the rats sneaking in at dawn... Figures."
The one who'd unleashed that single sword strike was Dawn Dominating Sword Gang Hwija, second-in-command of the Elders' Hall after Blood Moon Fist Demon Danlibyeok.
A swordmaster cherished by the Demon Sword Ghost Elder, he grew only sharper with age—an oddity.
"What the...?"
Jegalseon, Hwang Bojinung, and the Murim Alliance crew—too focused on infiltration—finally snapped to and looked around.
And sure enough?
"Eek!"
The Elders' Hall's veteran experts had appeared, encircling them.
From now on, we'll handle security around the Elders' Hall ourselves.
In truth, the Elders' Hall experts mobilized so swiftly because they were already standing guard.
Danlibyeok and Gang Hwija side by side—they'd walked right into it, and Danlibyeok had summoned every last member.
My god!
Jegalseon and Hwang Bojinung were on the verge of madness.
These sudden arrivals were shocking enough, but the real puzzle?
Who the hell are these old geezers?
Regular old men? They'd have slit their throats quietly. But these weren't ordinary elders.
No—heroes of a bygone era fit better.
"To dare... invade our sect. You've got guts."
Above all, the overwhelming presence was the veteran speaking now: Blood Moon Fist Demon Danlibyeok.
The signature technique of the Blood Moon Fist Demon unleashed.
Danlibyeok erupted with crimson energy from his entire body, radiating a fearsome pressure reminiscent of his prime.
"That's right! That aura—definitely the Blood Moon Fist Demon!"
Hwang Bojinung made a huge fuss the moment he saw the distinctive display.
He remembered Danlibyeok because they both walked the path of fist and leg arts.
How could I forget?
In the last half-century of murim history, Danlibyeok was one who'd etched his name with fist and leg mastery.
"Blood Moon Fist Demon Danlibyeok?"
"Th-the guy who supposedly butchered orthodox experts barehanded?"
"Why's a legend like that here...?"
Once Danlibyeok's identity hit, the Murim Alliance Shaanxi forces tucked tail before the fight even started.
But only for a moment.
Spilled water can't be gathered—what now?
Jegalseon pondered, but no other path remained.
Fleeing now would only invite worse disaster.
Only option: all-out assault.
"Don't get reckless! They're old and frail. Look closely!"
Jegalseon revised his plan.
Originally, seize the empty hall—but now, kill them all and retreat.
"..."
Despite his shout, the Alliance men's response was ice-cold.
Even Hwang Bojinung's.
Old and frail against a legendary demon? Absurd.
"Fine then—taste an old man's fists!"
Danlibyeok's eyes gleamed with blood-red light.
Unleashing his arts inside the Demon Sword Sect after so long filled him with pride.
Age-forgotten fist force swept the enemy ranks.
Crack-boom-bang!
Danlibyeok's fist force, unburdened by years, ravaged the Murim Alliance troops in an instant.
"Damn it!"
Hwang Bojinung dithered uselessly as his men scattered from a single exchange.
"You bald bastard! You said the Elders' Hall was empty?!"
All he could do was blame innocent Jegalseon.
"Uh, ugh."
Jegalseon panicked too.
The Elders' Hall was supposed to be vacant—no real veterans left in the sect?
No matter how he turned it over, it didn't add up.
Per intel from Jegalsega, they shouldn't be here.
What the hell had happened?
"No need to panic. The elders returned for us young, green ones."
More figures emerged behind the stunned Jegalseon and Alliance forces.
Not from the Elders' Hall vicinity—Little Light Demon Gyeon Jong-o and young Demon Sword Sect warriors, off-duty for once and enjoying rare rest, now revealed themselves.
"Gyeon Jong-o?"
"What's this about?"
The Elders' Hall veterans couldn't hide their surprise.
Especially Jong-o—he harbored the biggest grudge against us, right?
So why bring reinforcements now?
"Forgive our midnight intrusion, elders. It's just..."
Gyeon Jong-o scratched his head sheepishly, showing his inexperience.
"The night air's chill—didn't want you elders straining on guard duty. So we patrolled on the sly."
That's right.
That was why Gyeon Jong-o led the young warriors here.
Seeing elders pull guard shifts because of him sat wrong deep down.
"Hah! You don't get it. Old age means no sleep anyway!"
Grasping the rough youth's intent, Danlibyeok unusually beamed with joy.
First time he'd looked this thrilled unleashing Blood Moon Unmatched Fighting Advance Fist.
"Good. Let old and young of the Demon Sword Sect join forces... and purge these invaders!"
Danlibyeok's call drew unified roars from Gyeon Jong-o and his peers.
"Yes, elder!"
Thus, the Demon Sword Sect's invader purge began.
Hwang Bojinung and Jegalseon were trapped: push forward, and Elders' Hall experts blocked; retreat, and endless young aces encircled. True deadlock.
Sword cleaved through the retreating foe.
Soon enough, the Murim Alliance Shaanxi branch met utter defeat.
Splurt!
Jegalseon, who'd strutted on brains alone, had his skull burst by Danlibyeok's fist force.
Slash!
Hwang Bojinung, attempting retreat, took Gyeon Jong-o's sword straight through the chest.
What an odd twist.
Representatives of clashing generations—Danlibyeok and Gyeon Jong-o—stood shoulder-to-shoulder in victory. Couldn't be better.
Even more inspiring lay ahead.
"Mastered our sect's sword?"
"Yes, but I'm slow—barely grasped the Sixteen Demon Sword Forms."
Gyeon Jong-o answered Danlibyeok sheepishly.
His frame and instincts shone, but grasping arts? Not so much. Hence his fondness for the sect's basics: Sixteen Demon Sword Forms.
"...Ever thought of learning my Blood Moon Unmatched Fighting Advance Fist?"
Danlibyeok made a stunning offer.
"P-pardon? Me?"
Gyeon Jong-o gawked, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Your nature suits fists over sword. Not too late."
"I'd love to, but... I'm too dim..."
Gyeon Jong-o knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance but hesitated.
Worried he'd disappoint Danlibyeok.
"No worries. My art needs just two talents."
"What're they?"
Danlibyeok, soon his master, grinned at the question.
"Persistence and grit."
Precisely what Gyeon Jong-o possessed in spades.