Chapter 52
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: Principles
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“……!”
At this point, Wang Il-cheon was out of options.
He had no choice but to throw everything into one final gamble.
“Die!”
Befitting his title of the Eight-Armed Bewitching Hand, a dizzying flurry of hand shadows instantly blanketed Cho Ak-ryang’s front.
In his hand was a dagger coated with a lethal poison that was said to kill with a mere scratch. However, his desperate ultimate technique was easily dismantled by a simple motion of twisting and striking up with an arm.
Wang Il-cheon’s dagger-wielding hand was flung away, leaving his chest wide open.
Cho Ak-ryang’s elbow smashed into it.
*Crack.*
That was the end.
His chest bones shattered, Wang Il-cheon vomited a mouthful of blood, then collapsed, gasping for breath.
“S-Spare me……”
A cold gaze fell upon Wang Il-cheon as he begged for his life.
“Go and tell the Seven Severing Demonic Lord how miserable the end of a traitor is.”
“……?”
Puzzled, Wang Il-cheon quickly nodded his head.
“I’ll be sure to tell him……”
Hope brightened Wang Il-cheon’s face. At that moment, Cho Ak-ryang’s fist shot up and struck his jaw.
*CRUNCH!*
With the sickening sound of shattering bone, Wang Il-cheon’s body flew through the air and landed like a damp leaf. Even in the moment of his death, his eyes were filled with an indelible question.
“I meant tell him when you get to the afterlife first.”
Cho Ak-ryang slowly turned.
He approached the man who was trembling like an aspen leaf in the wind.
He was the survivor Cho Ak-ryang had intentionally left alive.
Staring into the eyes of the man floundering in despair and terror, Cho Ak-ryang asked.
“Where is Neung So-mil?”
* * *
*Sizzle.*
“Gaaah!”
A bloodcurdling scream erupted from Neung So-mil’s mouth as a red-hot branding iron seared his thigh.
The horrific agony continued for a long time.
The acrid smell of burning flesh was enough to make him lose his senses.
Yet, the interrogator inflicting the torture showed no particular emotion on his face.
“Feeling like talking now?”
“……”
Neung So-mil didn't even have the energy to answer.
He could only hang limply in the chair he was tied to, gasping for breath.
His condition was truly wretched.
His fingernails and toenails had all been pulled out, exposing the raw flesh beneath, and the skin visible through his torn clothes was a patchwork of red and purple bruises.
His face was no different.
It was so swollen and battered that even his own parents wouldn't have recognized him.
Neung So-mil arduously moved his lips.
“What was that?”
The moment the interrogator stepped closer, Neung So-mil spat the blood pooled in his mouth into the man’s face.
Then, he grinned.
“……Go to hell, you son of a bitch.”
“Tsk, tsk.”
The interrogator clicked his tongue, then grabbed Neung So-mil’s hair and forced his head back. He waved the still-searing branding iron in front of Neung So-mil’s eyes.
“I don’t understand why you have to make things so complicated.”
The interrogator feigned a look of pity.
“I hope you’ll remember that we tried to be courteous. In the end, it was you, Sect Leader Neung, who dragged things out this way.”
“……”
“Do you know why we haven’t yet appointed that man, I Gyu, as the new sect leader?”
“……”
“This Alliance is not so desperate as to join hands with a foolish and greedy pig. In fact, we hold your abilities in very high regard, Sect Leader Neung. Building a faction of this size from nothing, with no background whatsoever, is not something just anyone can do.”
“……”
“So, why don’t we stop here?”
The interrogator waited for Neung So-mil’s response with a relaxed demeanor.
The key to torture wasn't how much pain one could inflict. It was how much fear one could instill through that pain.
And even that was just a means to an end: obtaining a confession.
For that purpose, sometimes, a little hope was necessary.
Just like now.
“If you just make a decision, Sect Leader Neung, we’ll treat your wounds immediately. And we’ll hand over I Gyu, the man who betrayed you. The Alliance will personally guarantee your safety until you regain control of the Swift Tidings Sect.”
“……”
“Furthermore, we could even plan future business ventures together.”
Seeing the flicker in Neung So-mil’s eyes, the interrogator curled his lips into a slight smile.
It was working.
Mindless torture was not always the answer.
Especially not for someone as resolute as Neung So-mil.
Despair leads to resignation, but with a glimmer of hope, despair itself can become terror.
Above all, the look in those eyes was not one that had given up on life.
Neung So-mil struggled to open his mouth.
“Water… a little water…”
The interrogator nodded, and a warrior from the Evil-Shattering Corps brought a bowl and poured water into Neung So-mil’s mouth.
After gulping down the water, Neung So-mil seemed to regain some strength. He raised his eyes to look at the interrogator.
“What do you want me to do?”
“I want to know why you were gathering information on our Alliance.”
Neung So-mil smirked.
“What reason would a guy who lives and dies by information have? You scrape up whatever you can get your hands on. After all, you hold absolute influence in the martial world today.”
“Is that all? Then why did you issue a separate directive? And why focus so intensely on the Evil-Shattering Corps and its commander?”
“Because I adore the Commander of the Evil-Shattering Corps.”
“What?”
“I have a certain taste. I heard your Alliance Leader seduced his subordinates in a similar way, didn’t he? I couldn’t dare touch the Alliance Leader, so I thought I’d try my luck with the Corps Commander.”
As the interrogator’s face contorted, Neung So-mil cackled.
“Thanks for the water, you bastards.”
The interrogator’s eyes glinted menacingly.
“Right. You should be. Because I plan to collect payment for that water starting now.”
Just then, another warrior from the Evil-Shattering Corps entered and whispered something to the interrogator.
The interrogator smiled quietly and looked at Neung So-mil.
“I’ll give you one last chance. Why were you gathering information on the Evil-Shattering Corps separately?”
“I told you, I was curious what the Corps Commander tasted like.”
“I can’t understand it. Why a clever man like you would make the worst possible choice. It’s a pity. A true pity. I mean that sincerely.”
With a sigh, the interrogator approached Neung So-mil.
“You’ve heard of Shattering Bones and Tearing Tendons, haven’t you?”
“……!”
For the first time, genuine fear flickered in Neung So-mil’s eyes.
“First, I’ll break your ribs. Just like this.”
The interrogator’s fingers dug into Neung So-mil’s side.
*Snap.*
“Uwaaack!”
Ignoring the agonizing scream, the interrogator continued.
“I’ll break every single rib, one by one. Do you know what happens then? Every time you breathe, the broken ribs will pierce your lungs.”
Simply being alive would become a living hell.
“Then, I’ll sever the tendons in your ankles and carve out your kneecaps so you can’t stand on your own two feet. After that, I’ll break every single joint in your body. I guarantee, you’ll learn that the human body can, under certain circumstances, become as limp as a mollusk’s.”
Of course, all sorts of other torture methods would follow.
Searing his Sea of Qi acupoint with a heated poker to destroy his dantian, severing the ligaments in his limbs to watch the shrunken muscles clump and fuse together.
Neung So-mil, who had been taking shallow breaths due to the pain, gritted his teeth so hard they could have shattered as the interrogator calmly explained the procedure for Shattering Bones and Tearing Tendons.
But his expression crumbled at the final words.
“It seems some beggar child tried to deliver a letter to you.”
“……!”
“I’ve already sent people to the meeting place. What do you think that means?”
The interrogator flashed a cruel smile.
“It means you are no longer needed.”
With those words, the interrogator’s hand dug into Neung So-mil’s other side.
*Snap.*
“Son of a bitch!”
At the sight of Neung So-mil spewing a curse instead of a scream, the interrogator cast him a chilling look.
“Do you have any last words? It’s already too late, but if you reveal who’s behind this now, I’ll at least grant you a painless death.”
With a blazing light shooting from his eyes, Neung So-mil shouted.
“Fuck you! My one eternal regret is dying at the hands of a dog like you! Your Evil-Shattering Corps can go to hell, and that unspeakable bastard can go to hell! This life is such a fucking mess! Shit!”
“That unspeakable bastard?”
“Yeah! That bastard’s the worst of them all! Never gives me a damn thing, just sends me on errands! And now he’s getting people killed? That conscienceless fucker! Even as a ghost, I’ll curse that bastard for all eternity! May he be reborn as a eunuch in his next life, and the life after that, forever!”
“So who is this bastard?”
“He exists! A filthy bastard like that!”
“His name?”
“I told you I’m not saying, you son of a bitch!”
As he screamed at the top of his lungs, Neung So-mil suddenly felt a strange sensation. A chill ran down his spine for some reason. Come to think of it, the interrogator’s voice also sounded somewhat different.
Neung So-mil lifted his head and looked at the interrogator.
He blinked several times, confirming and reconfirming who he was looking at.
“Ah, fuck……”
The curse slipped out unconsciously.
No matter how he looked, the person standing before him was undoubtedly Cho Ak-ryang.
Looking around, he saw the room was filled with corpses.
For a moment, Neung So-mil forgot his pain, his face twisting into a grimace.
“……I’m truly fucked.”
* * *
On a quiet mountain path outside the village.
Following behind Cho Ak-ryang, Neung So-mil cautiously spoke up.
“When did you arrive?”
Neung So-mil flinched when Cho Ak-ryang turned around.
“Was it from ‘that bastard’s the worst of them all’?”
‘Dammit!’
He heard everything.
As Cho Ak-ryang started walking again, Neung So-mil warily began to move as well.
But he couldn’t go far before a groan escaped him.
“Urgh……”
Two of his ribs were already broken.
Forget walking; even breathing was a struggle. On top of that, days of harsh torture had completely drained his stamina.
Even so, Neung So-mil let out a crazed laugh.
“Heheh.”
“What’s so amusing?”
“The interrogator who was torturing me.”
“What about him?”
“Just imagining the look of horror on that bastard’s face when he saw you, Your Honor, is enough to lift my spirits.”
In fact, he had felt good from the moment he heard that the man had intercepted the letter and sent the Evil-Shattering Corps to the meeting point.
The thought of them being struck by a sudden disaster and losing their minds was enough to wash away all his frustrations at once.
Cho Ak-ryang looked at Neung So-mil as if he were pathetic.
This one was definitely not in his right mind either.
Staring at Neung So-mil for a moment, Cho Ak-ryang posed a question.
“But why didn’t you say my name?”
Cho Ak-ryang was genuinely curious about that.
They hadn't shared a bond deep enough to risk one’s life for, nor were they bound by loyalty.
If one had to define it, their relationship was one forged through fear.
He couldn't understand why Neung So-mil had endured all that torture.
Neung So-mil spat out the blood in his mouth and answered nonchalantly.
“Because of my principles.”
“Principles?”
“Isn’t it the same for you, Your Honor?”
As Cho Ak-ryang looked puzzled, Neung So-mil questioned him back.
“Don’t you say that you always keep your word?”
“I do.”
“So do I.”
“Is that… all?”
“Is there a need for any other reason?”
Gazing at Neung So-mil, Cho Ak-ryang let out a smirk.
With things having come to this, Cho Ak-ryang had to reconsider his opinion of Neung So-mil.
He was a better man than he had thought.
It is difficult even for the powerful to keep their faith.
For the powerless to keep their faith is ten times harder.
Just then, recalling something, Neung So-mil ground his teeth.
“Though, I also held out because of that damn I Gyu.”
“I Gyu?”
“He’s my vice-leader. I told him to look into the Martial Alliance and the Evil-Shattering Corps, and he got scared and betrayed me. He’s the one who reported me to the Martial Alliance.”
“Was he after the leader’s position?”
Neung So-mil nodded.
“He always wanted the Swift Tidings Sect to go under the Martial Alliance’s banner.”
I Gyu wasn’t the only one who thought that way.
Many factions had indeed sought refuge under the Martial Alliance’s shadow.
“Well, they’d never have to worry about their livelihood. And they wouldn’t have to volunteer for dangerous jobs like we do now.”
“It seems you think differently.”
Wincing from the pain in his broken ribs, Neung So-mil nodded.