Chapter 1261
A chilling tremor ran down Seok U-haeng's spine.
'This isn't mere information gathering—it's using that information to predict and control situations.'
He had always believed martial prowess alone was the measure of strength.
Yet without realizing it, Bu Eun-seol...
Had been dominating the world with nothing but the tip of his brush.
'And those half-wits actually pulled this off together?'
Bu Eun-seol was one thing, but—
The tactician Yu Un-ryong, who worked like a machine.
Myo Cheon-u, who seemed like a layabout, and the supposedly pathetic Unit Leaders and martial artists of the Death Shadow War Unit...
They had joined forces to weave a scheme so meticulous and vast it defied imagination?
Not to mention the training regimens being enforced in the Death Shadow War Unit.
They were so brutal that no master from any current martial faction could endure them.
And the missions and battles they undertook—
Were near-impossible feats that even the elite forces of any other faction would never survive.
Rustle.
At that moment, Seok U-haeng's hand, which had been swiftly skimming through documents, abruptly stopped.
Piled high on one side of the shelf were stacks of letters.
Gleam.
Seemingly intrigued, he set down the book and began leafing through the mountain of correspondence.
"Why haven't these been delivered?"
At Seok U-haeng's question, Wi Cheon-gyeong replied in a low voice,
"Information has its priorities. There's no need for the Lord to personally review every report collected by the Unit Members."
"Even news from Beyond the Frontier?"
"Protecting the Central Plains' martial world comes first."
For an instant, Seok U-haeng's eyes flashed.
It was the gaze of a born assassin—one fixated on the nape of its prey.
'No matter how sturdy the fortress walls, there's always a needle's gap.'
Assassins were beings who could slip through the tiniest crack amidst ten thousand soldiers to behead a general.
And within this seemingly flawless grand system, Seok U-haeng had finally found that needle's gap.
'An obsession with extreme efficiency has created a vulnerability.'
Even this perfect system had a fatal flaw.
Every piece of information was designed to converge at a single apex—
Bu Eun-seol.
The flow of intelligence, the judgments, the orders—
At the core of every process, Bu Eun-seol's intuition and insight had to intervene for the structure to function.
'A flaw born from shouldering too much alone.'
What if Bu Eun-seol were absent? Or if he made a wrong judgment?
This vast, intricate intelligence network risked instant paralysis or collapse.
It was like a sword honed too sharply—so brittle that even a minor impact could chip its edge.
'Yu Un-ryong assists him to mitigate the risk... but ultimately, all field operations must be resolved by Bu Eun-seol himself.'
Seok U-haeng closed the book.
Thud.
The sound echoed unusually loud.
'But... before long, even this will be perfected.'
Because that was the kind of man Bu Eun-seol was.
He might already be aware of this fatal flaw Seok U-haeng had uncovered.
And given time, he would undoubtedly plug that hole—
Even if it meant grinding himself to the bone.
In that moment, the last lingering hesitation in Seok U-haeng's heart dissipated like smoke.
The Death Shadow War Unit was nearing completion.
There was no gap left for him to wedge himself into.
"......"
Without a word, Seok U-haeng slid the book back into its place.
"There still seems to be material you haven't reviewed."
Wi Cheon-gyeong gestured to the remaining stacks of letters.
Their separate classification made it clear these were lower-priority reports.
Frowning, Seok U-haeng skimmed through them again. They contained updates on India's affairs and trivial rumors.
'These are...'
Just as Seok U-haeng's gaze lingered on one letter—
"How does it seem?"
Wi Cheon-gyeong let slip a faint smile.
"Doesn't it pique your interest?"
"......"
"Taking charge of such matters... has its advantages. You're not bound to the Hall—free to roam the world as you please."
Seok U-haeng shot Wi Cheon-gyeong an icy glare.
Only now did he realize why the man had shown him this place.
"Do I look like I'd do it?"
"Not particularly."
"Then why?"
"Because the possibility exists."
Wi Cheon-gyeong drew a deep breath before continuing.
"The Lord never abandons even the smallest possibility—he always tries. I learned that from him."
Seok U-haeng averted his eyes from Wi Cheon-gyeong's blazing gaze.
The man looked like a loyal hound, or a horse charging blindly forward.
And that was the kind of human Seok U-haeng despised most.
"Just give up."
Seok U-haeng spoke.
"I have no intention of staying here."
"The price."
"It'd be better to report to that bastard as soon as possible."
Seok U-haeng lowered his voice.
"Unless you want to shoulder all the blame for this."
Swish.
Without even sparing a glance at Wi Cheon-gyeong, who was watching him intently, he quietly turned away.
"Actually."
At that moment, Wi Cheon-gyeong spoke.
"I believe in you."
"......"
"I won't report you. Even if it costs me my head."
Realizing those words were sincere, Seok U-haeng scoffed.
"You're staking your life on someone you just met?"
"After being here so long, I've become half a fortune-teller, you see."
Trust.
Wi Cheon-gyeong handed Seok U-haeng the key called trust.
Because Bu Eun-seol had done the same.
Because he had given trust—and opened the hearts—of the Rootless Squad, who had once been called rootless brats.
I will never abandon you.
We will go to the end together.
And now, Wi Cheon-gyeong was passing that same trust to Seok U-haeng.
"You'll die soon."
Seok U-haeng turned away coldly.
But the sneer had vanished from his face.
Thud, thud.
As he stepped outside, the tranquil scenery of the Hidden Demon Pavilion came into view.
It looked like a gathering place for idle nobles.
But in truth, it was the most terrifying armed brigade in the martial world—an intelligence organization that surveyed the entire realm in a single glance.
Realizing this, Seok U-haeng wanted to loosen his belt.
Just looking at this place made him feel suffocated, as if he were wearing clothes that didn't fit.
Creak.
In the end, he left the Hidden Demon Pavilion.
He simply wanted to get away from here—as quickly as possible.
Ten days later. Hidden Demon Pavilion, conference hall.
A heavy silence hung over the table, where only a cold teacup sat abandoned.
"It's already been over ten days since Seok U-haeng left."
At Myo Cheon-u's muttering, Yu Un-ryong fiddled with his teacup and spoke.
"His martial arts must have fully recovered, so there's no reason for him to stay here any longer."
His expression was a strange mix of relief and regret.
"I didn't expect any formal farewells, but he really left without a word."
Myo Cheon-u sighed deeply and shook his head.
"He was a wild dog from the start. Not the kind of man you could keep fenced in the Death Shadow War Unit."
Bu Eun-seol said nothing.
In truth, he had been considering a suitable position for Seok U-haeng—one that would allow him to fully utilize his instincts as an assassin and his wolf-like temperament.
But it wasn't something that could be forced or requested.
The timing just wasn't right.
In any case, he was gone.
Bu Eun-seol erased all thought of him without hesitation.
Bang!
But then, the door burst open abruptly, and Wu Guang—Yu Un-ryong's aide—rushed in.
"We have a problem."
"What is it?"
Wu Guang hastily handed a letter to Bu Eun-seol.
The moment he read its contents, his face turned deathly pale.
"What happened?"
At Yu Un-ryong's question, Bu Eun-seol answered with a grave expression.
"A-wan has gone missing."
Instantly, the faces of the commanders stiffened.
A-wan, the chief executive of the Four Stars Trading Company, which monopolized India's white sandalwood—why would she suddenly disappear?
"A-wan was in India, wasn't she?"
At Yu Un-ryong's question, Wu Guang replied,
"She had obtained the Treasure Map to the Sacred Artifact the Lord was searching for and was on her way to the Central Plains to deliver it personally."
"What?!"
"But Nan Seong-wang, one of the Eight Overlords of India, who had been closely monitoring A-wan's movements, made his move."
"Nan Seong-wang?"
Yu Un-ryong couldn't understand.
"Why would he target A-wan?"
"Lady A-wan had been active in the Upper Realm, hadn't she? Her striking beauty was quite well-known among India's elite."
Wu Guang continued,
"Moreover, the place where she obtained the Treasure Map was... near Amara Fortress, under Nan Seong-wang's rule. He had every justification to take it from her."
"Why wasn't any of this reported earlier?"
Bu Eun-seol's voice dropped dangerously low.
"Why didn't we detect Nan Seong-wang's movements? Why didn't we know he was targeting A-wan?"
Of course, the Death Soul Squad's eyes and ears were still limited to the Central Plains—they couldn't instantly grasp the situation beyond the frontier.
But the Four Stars Trading Company was connected to the Martial Soul Society, so their circumstances and safety should have been monitored in real time.
"That's—"
At that moment, Wi Cheon-gyeong stepped forward and spoke.
"Lady A-wan repeatedly instructed the Death Soul Squad separately."
"What?"
She said that if the Lord were to learn of these matters, he would be troubled, so we were not to inform him."
All critical intelligence within the Death Soul Squad is designed to be reported directly to Bu Eun-seol.
If Bu Eun-seol were to extend his focus to analyzing the flow of information from regions beyond the Central Plains, such as India or Tibet—
Even he wouldn't be able to endure it, no matter who he was.
A-wan knew this. That's why she deliberately withheld information about India, where there had been no major incidents yet.
Or the fact that Nan Seong-wang harbored feelings for her.
"She even specifically requested... that we not inform you if there was a chance you might oppose her return to the Central Plains."
"Lord Wi. Does that even make sense?"
Yu Un-ryong, unable to hold back any longer, roared.
"No matter what she said, how could you—? Do you not know that the Lord prioritizes the safety of those around him above all else—?!"
He was about to shout further but abruptly clamped his mouth shut.
He knew Wi Cheon-gyeong's heart all too well.
Right now, Bu Eun-seol was already stretched thin handling multiple crises.
If this matter regarding India had been reported—
He would have either gone to verify the situation himself or set off for India immediately.
And countless ongoing operations would have been delayed as a result.
"There's no need to worry."
Then, Wi Cheon-gyeong abruptly made an unexpected declaration.
"Lady A-wan will be safe."
And he continued with conviction.
"I showed Seok Dae-ga not only the Death Soul Squad's intelligence network but also all the signs of unrest and potential dangers emerging from India this time."
"What?"
"Has the Lord not been searching the world for the right person to lead the preemptive threat elimination team—the Guardian Unit?"
Wi Cheon-gyeong said,
"I believe it. This matter will undoubtedly be resolved by him."
"You fool."
At that, Myo Cheon-u, unable to stay silent any longer, hissed under his breath.
"Do you have any idea what kind of man Seok U-haeng is?"
"Of course I do. Grandmaster Seok is a former Ten Demonic Heir—"
As Wi Cheon-gyeong continued, he noticed not only Myo Cheon-u's expression but also Yu Un-ryong's and Bu Eun-seol's faces hardening into grim masks.
"What's wrong?"
At Wi Cheon-gyeong's question, Yu Un-ryong's face twisted in anguish.
"Seok U-haeng is nothing like me or Myo Cheon-u."
"......"
"That he once became the supreme leader of the Twelve Earthly Branches, that he mastered the Heavenly Evil Ghost Demon Art from the Heavenly Evil Sect—which transformed his skin into something serpentine—"
Yu Un-ryong relayed, in a voice heavy with grief, a story he had never dared share with the Death Shadow War Unit's captains until now.
"The reason he fought alone against the elite assassins of the Extreme Killing Secret Pavilion in Jiangnan's underground waterways—only to ultimately take his own life—"
"......"
"Was because he wanted, just once, to defeat the Lord. That man was driven by a monstrous, unyielding desire to win—even if it killed him."
For the sake of Seok U-haeng's pride—a man who had considered Bu Eun-seol his rival even in death—
Bu Eun-seol had only belatedly shared this truth with Yu Un-ryong and Myo Cheon-u.
To the Death Shadow War Unit's captains, he had merely stated that Seok U-haeng had died in an explosion after failing to overcome the elite assassins of the Extreme Killing Secret Pavilion.
"I see."
Wi Cheon-gyeong nodded slowly.
Only now did he understand why Seok U-haeng had refused to kneel before Bu Eun-seol, even in death.
"Actually, Grandmaster Seok—"
Just as Wi Cheon-gyeong, recalling something, was about to continue, Bu Eun-seol turned to Wu Guang and asked,
"Current status?"
"Reports indicate the ambush began three days ago. The elite guards managed to get Lady A-wan to safety first, but—"
Three days ago.
There was no need to confirm further.
Even if the sun rose in the west, there was no way a master of Nan Seong-wang's caliber wouldn't have captured A-wan by now.
But Bu Eun-seol didn't give up. No—he had never once in his life known the meaning of surrender.
KRA-BOOM—!
With a sound like the very air being torn apart, Bu Eun-seol's figure vanished in a flash of lightning.
Only the acrid scent of burning lingered where he had stood.
Using the power of the Wind & Cloud Divine Qi, he passed through the window in an instant.
And with the Thunder Essence Divine Qi, he was gone in the blink of an eye.
Only he—
Could traverse from the Central Plains to the lands beyond the frontier in a single day.
An endless wasteland stretched beneath a raging sandstorm.
The howling winds were the only sound breaking the silence—a land devoid of life, a realm of death itself.
Across this desolation, a single procession moved cautiously.
Thirty martial artists escorted a woman on horseback.
Her white robes fluttered in the wind, revealing clear eyes through the gaps in her face-covering veil.
This was A-wan—the sacred maiden of the Four Sacred Tribes and the administrator of the Four Stars Trading Company.
"The sun will set soon. We should make camp."
One of the escort warriors dismounted and bowed respectfully as he reported.
"Let us rest near those rocks ahead."
Upon reaching the rocky terrain, the warriors either sat to rest or drank water.
A-wan gazed at the distant sky and closed her eyes.
Soon, I will see him again.
The Martial Soul Society Leader.
The beloved who had taken root deep in her heart.
Not only had he saved the Four Sacred Tribes from near annihilation under the Iron Elephant King Sang Do-gang-cheon's grip in Nashik City, but he had also recovered their lost sacred artifacts.
Above all, when she had been in danger, he had disregarded his own life to save hers.
The women of the Four Sacred Tribes all believed in fate.
A-wan had instinctively known that Bu Eun-seol was her destiny, and she had come to love him sincerely.
But that love was not easy.
Bu Eun-seol was a hero who shielded everyone from the Abyssal Forces while seeking vengeance.
Knowing how much he bore alone, she couldn't recklessly go to him, no matter how much she longed to.
Hoping only to be of help, she had poured her efforts into building the Four Stars Trading Company into the greatest merchant guild in India.
Her labor had not been in vain—the company's influence grew with each passing day, and through the Martial Soul Society, she could deliver a portion of its vast profits to Bu Eun-seol.
And recently, something joyous had happened.
Through meeting many high-ranking officials in India, she had naturally begun dealing in antiques and sharpened her eye for them.
By chance, she had obtained a jade tablet containing clues to the Earth's Sacred Artifact—the very thing Bu Eun-seol had been desperately searching for.
—He'll be shocked when he sees this, won't he?
Bu Eun-seol had told her to focus on growing the Four Stars Trading Company until the day he returned to India.
But there was no telling when he would come back, and even if he did, he might not meet her.
But if she brought him such a treasure?
He wouldn't scold her for coming to the Central Plains—he would welcome her with genuine joy.
—I must deliver this to him.
The Sacred Artifact must never fall into others' hands.
And if this treasure map was real?
As the sacred maiden of the Four Sacred Tribes, she could be of great help in recovering the artifact.
"Someone approaches!"
The captain of the escort suddenly shouted to A-wan.
Turning her head, she saw dust rising in the distance.
No—it wasn't just dust. It was the earth churned up by hundreds of masters charging toward them.
"Form the defensive circle!"
At the captain's command, the thirty guards swiftly moved to deploy a circular formation.
But judging by the dust cloud, the enemy numbered at least three hundred.
And they weren't ordinary warriors—they seemed to be elite fighters trained in specialized martial arts.
"No, we must flee!"
Before the captain could finish speaking—
—Heh heh heh.
A low, creeping laughter echoed from all directions.
KWAOOO!
In an instant, the sandstorm raged uncontrollably, swallowing the escort whole.
ZIIING!
But the guards were all warriors of the Four Sacred Tribes, capable of wielding the power of the Sacred Artifacts.
Erupting with azure light, they unleashed tremendous force against the enemies conjuring the sandstorm.
How much time had passed?
CLANG—CLANG—
Metallic sounds reverberated endlessly until—
SPLURT!
Finally, the thirty guards coughed up blood and collapsed.
SHHHH—
The dust settled at that moment, revealing three hundred warriors clad in bizarre uniforms—covering only one side of their chests and stomachs.
SHWIK.
Their ranks parted, and a grotesque old man with dark skin and a crimson cloak slowly stepped forward.
With each step, a sinister energy, like that of a black viper, pulsed around him.
This was one of the Eight Overlords of India—
The ruler of Amara Fortress.
Nan Seong-wang.
"A-wan."
Nan Seong-wang bared a hideous smile.
"I have come to claim you."
One of the Eight Overlords of India—
Had personally pursued her all the way from India, just to capture her.
"Do not fear."
His voice was gentle, but the desire within it clung like a serpent's tongue.
Her face from three years ago, when he first saw her in Nashik City, remained vivid in his mind.
A woman standing beneath the shade of blue trees, clad in white.
Though her face had been veiled, her eyes alone had pierced his heart.
Eyes as clear as crystal, yet holding unfathomable mystery in their depths.
Though he already had dozens of beauties in his harem, none could compare to A-wan's grace.
And if he could possess her—the sacred maiden of the Four Sacred Tribes?
He would also gain the power passed down through her bloodline.
That was why his longing was all the more desperate.