Chapter 118
At Bu Eun-seol's words, Namgung Un, who had been lying down, shot upright.
"No, what do you mean by that?"
Then, folding his arms with a thoroughly confident expression, he declared:
"Though I wouldn't say my martial arts surpass Brother Seol's, I'm certainly not so lacking as to fall prey to trash like the Valley of Dark Death assassins."
"Have you ever fought assassins before?"
"No, but... what threat could backstabbing cowards possibly pose?"
"Assassins are strong. Especially in the mountains—they're practically invincible."
"Hahaha. You're calling those assassin riffraff invincible?"
Bu Eun-seol's voice turned icy.
"Large-scale battles in the mountains are nothing like martial duels. Especially in the dead of night, deep within the forests."
During his time on Hell Island, Bu Eun-seol had experienced all kinds of battles.
Fighting multiple enemies in the pitch-black mountains was a perilous gamble where your life could be snuffed out at any moment.
And if those enemies were assassins? No matter how skilled you were, your fate was sealed.
"Battling assassins in the mountains will teach you more than a hundred fights against martial artists in the Rivers and Lakes."
Bu Eun-seol spoke in a low voice.
"Assuming you survive, of course."
"If what you say is true, then we're doomed."
"Perhaps."
When Bu Eun-seol flashed a white-toothed smile, Namgung Un's face stiffened in shock.
"You really believe scouts will come here?"
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol gave a faint smile, and Namgung Un could almost see the grim reaper looming behind him, radiating menace.
"Ah... I think I've made a terrible mistake."
Feeling a chill run down his spine, Namgung Un flopped back down.
"Damn it. I came to gain experience in the Rivers and Lakes, but now I might just die for nothing."
By the third watch of the night, even the chirping of insects had faded.
The moonlight was obscured by clouds, and the world was steeped in silence.
If the Valley of Dark Death assassins planned to ambush them, now would be the perfect time.
Bu Eun-seol remained standing rigidly, with Heuk-pyo at his side.
Namgung Un, meanwhile, was already fast asleep, snoring loudly.
But then, Bu Eun-seol's eyes—crouched in the darkness—flashed.
"They're coming after all."
As Heuk-pyo tilted his head in confusion, Namgung Un, who had been lying down, seemed to sense something and quickly sat up.
Tsutsutsutsu.
The sound could have been the rustling of grass in the wind or the whisper of fabric brushing against tree bark.
"Judging by the footsteps, there are at least twenty of them."
Heuk-pyo pressed his ear to the ground, and Bu Eun-seol stood up indifferently.
"No need to wait. Strike first."
"M-me, sir?"
Heuk-pyo gulped.
He knew well the terror of assassins. Especially after the Valley of Dark Death's relentless night raids during their assault on the Heaven-Shaking Gate—there was no guarantee his hidden weapon techniques would work on them.
"Abandon any thought of eliminating them. All you can do is endure their attacks."
"Endure... and that's it?"
"Correct. For as long as you can."
"Understood."
Taking a deep breath at Bu Eun-seol's command, Heuk-pyo unleashed his movement technique.
Then, extending both arms toward the approaching figures, he unleashed a chaotic storm of thin, circular hidden weapons.
The Flying Flash Blood Chain Rings—a hidden weapon technique taught to him by Tang Gon.
Shwiriririk!
The Blood Chain Rings created dozens of afterimages. But then, their spinning visibly slowed—wasn't their speed decreasing?
'What—?'
Heuk-pyo's eyes widened as he watched.
'They're getting caught on the branches!'
Pak!
A short scream pierced the darkness as one of the Valley of Dark Death's masters, his shoulders embedded with Blood Chain Rings, collapsed to the ground.
Even after deploying the Tang Clan's pinnacle hidden weapon technique and striking first, Heuk-pyo had failed to properly take down even a single opponent.
"Over there!"
The moment Heuk-pyo was spotted, the assassins drew their swords and encircled him.
Normally, he would have used his movement technique to escape. But bound by Bu Eun-seol's order to hold out, Heuk-pyo stayed and hurled throwing darts instead.
Twing! Ting-ting!
Yet the Valley of Dark Death's masters easily deflected them, reading their trajectories.
"Surround him!"
True to their nature as assassins, they began firing hidden weapons to block Heuk-pyo's movements.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Heuk-pyo drew twin daggers and deflected their hidden weapons, but it wasn't enough.
In less than fifteen minutes, he found himself completely surrounded, unable to move an inch.
Had it not been for the movement techniques Bu Eun-seol had taught him, he would have already collapsed, reduced to a wandering ghost in the mountains.
"Hm."
Bu Eun-seol, who had been silently observing, finally spoke.
"Now."
He pointed at Namgung Un, who was standing dumbfounded nearby.
"Help him."
At Bu Eun-seol's words, Namgung Un furrowed his brow and pointed at himself.
"You mean me?"
"Didn't you say you wanted real combat experience?"
"Well, that's—"
"This is a good opportunity. Fighting assassins in the dark, in the middle of a night ambush."
"Ugh..."
Namgung Un hesitated.
The idea of brawling with assassins in the middle of a mountain didn't sit well with him.
"Seol-Elder Brother. I may look like this, but I'm still a member of the Namgung Family."
"Are you afraid?"
"Afraid?!"
Namgung Un's eyes flashed as he suddenly raised his voice.
"Who said I was afraid?!"
With a sharp ptui!, he spat into his palm and gripped the Golden Needle Sword.
"It's just embarrassing to tangle with those lowly assassins, that's all!"
"You'll understand once you fight."
Bu Eun-seol's expression remained solemn.
"The terror of a forest where no light reaches."
"Just watch me!"
Namgung Un charged down the slope where Heuk-pyo was fighting and swung the Golden Needle Sword in a wide arc.
"Take this!"
Crash! Boom!
Every time the Golden Needle Sword sliced through the air, trees around them were cleaved apart.
But despite its overwhelming might, most of the assassins from the Valley of Dark Death surrounding Heuk-pyo remained unharmed.
"What the—?"
The assassins didn't even seem to be dodging, yet his Azure Sky Flying Swallow Sword kept missing.
He swung his sword relentlessly at them, but barely any enemies fell.
Upon closer inspection, they were skillfully using the terrain—trees, rocks, everything—to evade his strikes.
"Damn it all!"
Eventually, a curse exploded from Namgung Un's lips as he brandished his Golden Needle Sword.
"You rat bastards! Stop cowering and face me properly!"
The Azure Sky Flying Swallow Sword was a technique specialized for one-on-one duels against skilled opponents.
It was ill-suited for fighting multiple enemies in a pitch-black forest.
Thwak! Crack!
His sword strokes kept hammering against trees and rocks.
To make matters worse, unaccustomed to the darkness, Namgung Un occasionally unleashed strikes toward where Heuk-pyo was standing.
"Young Master! It's me!"
"S-sorry!"
Namgung Un had always traveled alone and had never fought alongside someone before.
In his panic, he swung his sword wildly, repeatedly crossing paths with Heuk-pyo's movements.
"Damn it."
The moment he hesitated and stopped his sword, the assassins seized the opportunity and struck.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The assassins of the Valley of Dark Death scattered and regrouped, driving Namgung Un and Heuk-pyo into a corner.
Both fought with everything they had, but against the assassins' tactics—exploiting the treacherous terrain and darkness—they were helpless.
'At this rate, we'll die.'
Namgung Un was so disoriented that he couldn't even muster a tenth of his true skill.
Heuk-pyo, watching the young master flail desperately to avoid hitting him, quickly formulated a plan.
'What if I stop attacking and just disrupt their movements instead?'
After traveling with Bu Eun-seol for so long, Heuk-pyo had reached a level where he could analyze the flow of battle and devise strategies.
"Young Master! I'll stop their movements!"
Having made up his mind, Heuk-pyo immediately broke away from Namgung Un and began circling the assassins.
Fwip! Fwip! Fwip!
Seizing the moment, he unleashed a flurry of hidden weapons—not to hit them, but to restrict their movement.
"Now!"
"Got it!"
With the assassins unable to use the terrain and forced into the open, Namgung Un swung his sword.
This wasn't the Azure Sky Flying Swallow Sword—it was a desperate strike aimed solely at exploiting their openings.
"Guhk!"
Unlike before, the assassins suffered deep wounds from the razor-sharp sword strokes.
'I see.'
Regaining his composure, Namgung Un stopped swinging his Golden Needle Sword wildly. Instead, he timed his strikes, unleashing precise killing moves the moment his enemies moved.
"Gyahhh—!"
Screams erupted one after another.
Heuk-pyo grew even more excited at the sight and hurled another volley of concealed weapons.
The assassins attempted to ambush Heuk-pyo, who was directing Namgung Un's movements, but each time, Namgung Un blocked their attacks like an iron wall.
"Not bad. Their coordination is impressive."
From a distance, Bu Eun-seol nodded slightly.
As the two stubbornly held their ground, the assassins of the Valley of Dark Death gradually began to falter.
Namgung Un had broken free from rigid sword forms, freely unleashing killing moves, while Heuk-pyo timed his concealed weapons by pinpointing openings in the enemy's defenses and reading the flow of battle.
—A single battle against assassins in the mountains will grant you greater enlightenment than a hundred duels against martial artists in the Rivers and Lakes.
The words Bu Eun-seol had once spoken flashed simultaneously through Namgung Un and Heuk-pyo's minds.
—Assuming, of course, you survive.
Only now did the two truly grasp the meaning behind those words.
If they survived this battle—
They would undoubtedly ascend to a higher level of skill.
"Damn these... daylight ghouls...!"
The assassins of the Valley of Dark Death gnashed their teeth in frustration.
Namgung Un and Heuk-pyo, clinging to life like vengeful water ghosts, had completely ruined their plan to scout the enemy camp's size.
"Fall back!"
With an irritated shout, the assassins swiftly retreated, vanishing into the darkness on the opposite side.
"Huff... Huff..."
As the enemies withdrew, Namgung Un and Heuk-pyo gasped for breath, their chests heaving.
"I... I almost died for real back there."
"That makes two of us."
A chaotic melee against assassins in the dead of night, deep in the mountains—
In this fight, neither the finesse of sword techniques nor the speed of concealed weapons had been of any use.
Watching them from above, Bu Eun-seol remarked flatly,
"Now you understand the difference."
A battle against multiple enemies in the dark forest—
It was not a contest of martial arts, but a collision of killing intent against killing intent.
"Yeah... Ugh."
Namgung Un used his blood-soaked Golden Needle Sword as a crutch to stand, steadying his breath.
"But I still don't get it. Why didn't my clan ever train us like this?"
"Because they didn't need to."
Bu Eun-seol's gaze remained fixed on the darkened woods.
"A direct descendant of a noble house, fighting multiple enemies deep in the mountains at night... That's not a battle that happens unless the fate of a sect or clan is at stake."
"I suppose you're right."
Namgung Un sheathed his sword, clicking his tongue.
"Then... does that mean you've fought in battles where the fate of a sect was at stake?"
Bu Eun-seol remained silent.
To become the Ten Demonic Heir, he had fought countless prodigies on Hell Island, each battle a matter of life and death.
Such training methods were nearly unheard of in martial history—something only the Inheritors who survived Hell Island had experienced.
"Young Master. Do you think the ambush succeeded?"
Heuk-pyo wore a troubled expression.
"If they sent scouts here, the Blade Tyrant Gate must already have a grasp of our movements... I doubt the ambush will work."
Heuk-pyo had Bu Eun-seol's temperament figured out.
If he had truly expected the Wanderer Corps's ambush to succeed, he wouldn't have been standing here so leisurely, guarding the camp.
"To execute an ambush, you must read the battlefield like the lines of a palm. But the Heaven-Shaking Gate rushed their plans too hastily."
Bu Eun-seol lifted his head, gazing north where the wanderers had departed.
"Most likely... they'll fail miserably."
Heuk-pyo nodded silently, then muttered something strange.
"Young Master... it's like there's nothing you don't know. No matter how much experience you have in the Rivers and Lakes..."
"It's not experience in the Rivers and Lakes."
"Huh?"
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol turned away.
—Back then, in Hwangju Prefecture, the number of martial artists who died away from home was beyond counting.
And suddenly, he was lost in memory.
Hwangju Prefecture had been a place where conflicts between factions never ceased—where countless martial artists, or spies, fought and met their deaths.
While preparing the dead, Bu Eun-seol and Bu Jan-yang had always deduced their causes of death.
And that act was no different from studying and analyzing the strategies and habits of martial artists day after day.
"Rest for now."
Bu Eun-seol lay down in the bushes and closed his eyes.
Just before dawn, the sound of footsteps approached the camp.
The figures that emerged were uniformly drenched in blood, their eyes hollow.
"..."
Heuk-pyo and Namgung Un, resting against a rock, exchanged glances, their mouths slightly agape.
Because Bu Eun-seol's prediction had been terrifyingly accurate.