Chapter 285
'Young Hero Seol?'
Jongjeong Yak gazed at Bu Eun-seol, who had just demolished a wall to enter, her vision blurred.
But soon, dizziness overwhelmed her, and she collapsed unconscious.
"You—?"
Yang Seol's eyes widened as she watched Bu Eun-seol stride forward.
How was this rogue, who should have been dragged away like a dog by the Dragon God Sword Squad to be interrogated in the Bottomless Prison, standing here unharmed?
"How did you get here?"
"You should've sent better men."
Bu Eun-seol chuckled dryly.
"If someone suddenly draws their sword and demands you surrender without reason, who in their right mind would comply?"
In an instant, Yang Seol's expression twisted strangely.
The Dragon God Sword Squad she had dispatched were Second-grade swordsmen of the Martial Alliance. Even a Special-Grade Mercenary shouldn't have been able to break through their encirclement.
She had assumed he'd escaped secretly from the Bottomless Prison, but to overpower the Dragon God Sword Squad and come here?
"Hmm. So you're from the Seven Sages Gate. You had a hidden card up your sleeve, it seems."
Yang Seol's startled expression soon smoothed into composure.
No matter how formidable his martial arts were, he couldn't possibly defend against the insidious spread of her Poison Technique.
Swish.
With her hands clasped behind her back, Yang Seol subtly flexed her fingers.
A faint, mist-like poison energy coiled around Bu Eun-seol's body.
"Predictable, as expected."
Catching the acrid scent at the tip of his nose, Bu Eun-seol casually threw a single punch.
Whoosh!
A blade wind swept through the garden like a storm, and a razor-sharp force shot straight for Yang Seol's throat.
After receiving the teachings of the Buddha Honored One, Hong-hyeon, not only had the number of force streams he could unleash increased to five,
but he could now consolidate them into a single, devastating strike.
"Hmph."
Yang Seol snorted and thrust out a hand.
Black mist billowed from the ground, instantly enveloping Bu Eun-seol's body.
Shatter! Shatter!
But as the sharp gale force swirling around Bu Eun-seol's body intensified, the rising poison energy scattered into nothingness.
"..."
Yang Seol's face stiffened.
The martial world had countless Ultimate Arts, but none could repel poison energy with sheer force radiating from one's body.
Bu Eun-seol's martial prowess far surpassed even that of a Special-Grade Mercenary.
Finally sensing something amiss, Yang Seol demanded coldly:
"Who the hell are you?"
"None of your concern."
Bu Eun-seol immediately unleashed the Trident Thirteen Kicks. Simultaneously, his left hand deployed the Shark Fist (#).
Sssk!
As his Leg Technique and Fist Techniques unfolded in rapid succession, two strands of force surged forth, piercing into her sides from left and right.
'This bastard is trouble.'
Having spent years in the Martial Alliance, Yang Seol had witnessed the martial prowess of countless Masters.
But the martial arts Bu Eun-seol wielded were unlike anything she had ever seen, even in the Martial Alliance—the very gathering of the Righteous Path's forces.
They were mysterious and utterly unique.
Fwip!
With no way to evade the torrent of force, Yang Seol swiftly leaped into the air.
But that turned out to be her fatal mistake.
Shatter!
Another strand of force erupted from behind Bu Eun-seol, streaking straight toward the center of her body.
'What—?'
Horrified, Yang Seol twisted midair with the Cloud Dragon Somersault.
Thwak!
Yet the razor-sharp force grazed past, nearly cleaving through her shoulder.
"Ugh—!"
As she landed, she clutched her shoulder and let out a short, pained groan.
"What kind of martial art is this?"
"You've wasted your training."
Bu Eun-seol exhaled through his nose.
"What fool jumps into the air to dodge in close combat?"
Then, he launched a relentless barrage of Iron Peak Flying Kicks at her.
Yang Seol crossed her arms to shield her face, blocking the kicks.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
But the shockwaves sent her flying back dozens of jang.
Shatter!
And separate from the kicks, another force struck her lower abdomen.
Thud.
Hit by the Thirteenfold Qi Induction' force, Yang Seol's eyes rolled back as she collapsed unconscious.
Her body, hardened like steel from her Poison Technique, had withstood the blow without being split in half.
"Just as well."
Bu Eun-seol nodded, looking down at the unconscious Yang Seol.
Jongjeong Yak and Neung Jo-un had already passed out from the Poison Palm (#) she had scattered earlier.
"This way, we can interrogate Yang Seol without any concerns."
Snap!
Bu Eun-seol flicked his Finger Wind, striking Yang Seol's Hollow Basin pressure point.
"Ghk—!"
At that, she writhed in excruciating pain before suddenly jerking upright, regaining consciousness.
Thud. Thud.
Bu Eun-seol walked straight toward the fallen Yang Seol, his expression indifferent as he spoke.
"Speak when you wish to speak."
"What?"
"When you have something to say, open your mouth."
Realizing his intent, Yang Seol scoffed.
"Do you really think I'd talk under torture?"
Snap-snap-snap!
Without a word, Bu Eun-seol sent his Finger Wind toward her dantian.
First, he sealed her internal energy to prevent her from severing her own heart meridian.
"...!"
As the decades of accumulated True Qi rapidly drained from her body, her once taut skin shriveled in an instant.
Pluck!
Then, he shoved his fingers into her mouth and yanked out the poisoned false teeth in one swift motion.
Watching Yang Seol writhe in agony, Bu Eun-seol activated Void Object Retrieval.
Shhhk!
A hidden pouch sewn into the inner lining of her clothes tore open, spilling its concealed contents onto the floor.
"Hmm."
Bu Eun-seol's gaze fixed on a blackened medicine bottle that had rolled out from her robes.
Inside was Bone-Melting Acid—enough to dissolve a human body without a trace with just a single drop.
"You've got some interesting things."
"You don't know how to conduct an interrogation, do you?"
Even as Bu Eun-seol picked up the Bone-Melting Acid, Yang Seol smirked viciously.
"This body is already crippled. With no chance of survival, what reason do I have to talk?"
She let out a hoarse laugh.
"Kill me now or pour the acid—do as you please."
"Not a chance. I won't use the Bone-Melting Acid. And I won't kill you either."
Bu Eun-seol flicked his Finger Wind again.
Her body began to twist violently, folding until her face nearly touched her stomach.
Watching dispassionately, Bu Eun-seol then sealed her Tear-Receiving pressure point, cutting off her vision.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"I told you I wouldn't kill you."
Instead of killing her, he had twisted her muscles and qi vessels.
"Do you really think torture will make me talk?"
"I haven't even started."
Bu Eun-seol smiled faintly.
"Now, I'll seal your ears and Mute Point pressure point last. That way, you'll live for about ten years—unable to see, hear, or speak."
Crack—!
Her body continued to contort until it curled into a grotesque, rounded mass.
The sight was so bizarre it looked as if someone had pasted Yang Seol's face onto a lump of meat.
"Human life is tougher than you think."
Bu Eun-seol hoisted her coiled body onto his shoulder.
"Even locked in a small iron coffin, fed only scraps, you'd survive for years without issue."
At those words, Yang Seol's pupils dilated in terror.
To be trapped in darkness—blind, deaf, with her tongue cut off, her entire body twisted into a ball—was nothing short of a living hell.
"I-I'll talk."
But Bu Eun-seol acted as though he hadn't heard, continuing to walk.
Desperate, Yang Seol screamed.
"I'll talk! Please!"
Halt.
He stopped and chuckled softly.
Truthfully, no martial art could sustain a twisted muscle-sealing technique for ten years.
Moreover, this was the Martial Alliance. Even if she shrank to the size of a child, there was no way to smuggle her out unnoticed.
'This kind of terror is unbearable.'
The Corpse Game he had endured with Bu Jan-yang.
Inside the coffin, one could neither see nor hear, nor even move.
Even Bu Eun-seol, with his iron will, had found the Corpse Game terrifying. And now, he was using it as a method of torture.
"I'll tell you everything! Just kill me cleanly!"
"I'm listening."
Bu Eun-seol didn't ask a single question.
He simply waited for her to spill every crucial piece of information on her own.
"This Lady is the Rakshasa Demon Woman of the Five Poisons Sect. Our sect has long prepared to plant spies within the Martial Alliance—"
'The Five Poisons Sect?'
Bu Eun-seol couldn't hide his shock.
The Five Poisons Sect—long believed to have vanished from the martial world—was still active?
"The Five Poisons Sect still exists?"
"Yes."
"Location."
"Secluded Valley of Neungra Mountain, Menggang Prefecture, Yunnan."
"That's strange. How on earth could the Five Poisons Sect reappear like this?"
The Five Poisons Sect had once ceaselessly circulated vicious poisons, throwing the murim into chaos—until they were annihilated overnight.
Yet the mysterious part was that no one could trace who had wiped them out.
The intelligence networks of both the Orthodox and Unorthodox Paths had tried to uncover which force had eradicated such a massive faction in a single stroke, but in the end, they found nothing.
The Five Poisons Sect had vanished into an enigma, with even the manner of their annihilation remaining unknown. And now, it had been completely rebuilt?
"Long ago, mysterious forces approached the scattered remnants of our sect's masters. They restored all the lost secret poison arts and provided vast financial support to rebuild the sect."
"And the identity of these forces?"
"We don't know. Truly."
"Then why infiltrate the Martial Alliance?"
"This Lady's purpose in joining the Martial Alliance was—"
Afraid that Bu Eun-seol might change his mind, she began frantically spilling everything she knew.
According to Yang Seol, the Five Poisons Sect had long been controlled by a certain force, and under their orders, they had been planting spies within the Martial Alliance for years.
And Yang Seol had distinguished herself most brilliantly among them—eventually rising to the position of Head of the Flower Honey Garden.
'So they gathered subordinate forces and turned them into a cell organization.'
It wasn't particularly shocking that the Five Poisons Sect had been planting spies in the Martial Alliance for so long.
But Bu Eun-seol was stunned by the methods of the forces controlling them.
Unconditional support—so that no one would dare question their identity.
And through this, the Five Poisons Sect had nurtured an exceptional spy like Yang Seol, placing her in a key position within the Martial Alliance.
"Then it's possible those same forces were the ones who annihilated the Five Poisons Sect."
The fact that they had restored the sect's lost poison arts and techniques to them—
Didn't that ultimately prove that those forces were the ones who had wiped them out in the first place?
"Of course."
"Then why didn't you verify that?"
Yang Seol spoke with a pained expression.
"Against a force that could annihilate our sect without a trace, then rebuild it at will... what good would resistance do?"
She wasn't wrong.
Against forces capable of deceiving even the intelligence networks of both the Orthodox and Unorthodox Paths—resistance would be futile.
They were simply grateful that their sect had been rebuilt at all.
"Hmph."
"W-wait! There's more crucial information!"
As Bu Eun-seol fell into deep thought, Yang Seol, her face twisted in fear, began listing more secrets.
"We recruited Danri Muk to embezzle funds from the Martial Alliance and deliver them to the Killing Sect. And that Killing Sect kidnapped children for human experimentation."
"Human experimentation?"
"Yes. The drugs they were developing had severe side effects. So they used children for testing. They could be applied quickly from a young age."
"You kidnapped children? Then why hasn't this come to light until now?"
Even if martial artists disregarded the government office, they couldn't possibly get away with abducting children unscathed.
"Most of them were orphans. No one searches for orphans, and they'd follow willingly for just a piece of bread."
A faint smile lingered at the corner of Yang Seol's lips, as if she were sharing an amusing story.
"And orphans don't even need to be disposed of secretly. Just burn them anywhere. As for the survivors, we turned them into assassins—"
BOOM!
Suddenly, Yang Seol's head exploded as if detonated from within.
With terrifying internal energy, Bu Eun-seol had employed a technique akin to the Bullet King's Inner Energy Bullet Art, crushing her skull in an instant.
"Success."
Bu Eun-seol spoke flatly.
"You deliberately provoked my killing intent, trying to choose a swift death."
The Five Poisons Sect and Yang Seol had committed atrocities so heinous they defied heaven's wrath.
Knowing she had no chance of survival, she had deliberately incited Bu Eun-seol's fury to ensure a clean death.
And Bu Eun-seol, fully aware of this, had no choice but to kill her in a single stroke.
His rage was that overwhelming.
Crack.
A bloody light surged in his eyes.
Children who had never known their parents' love, struggling to survive each day—
To take those children and subject them to cruel experiments, then turn the survivors into assassins?
As Bu Eun-seol stared down at Yang Seol's corpse, he poured Bone-Melting Powder over the remains of her shattered skull.
Sssss—
Blood and bodily fluids mingled before her skin and bones began dissolving like molten taffy.
When her body had finally liquefied into a single stream of blood, Bu Eun-seol summoned his internal energy once more.
The ground writhed like a living creature, gulping down the remnants in an instant.
Bu Eun-seol turned his gaze toward the fallen Jongjeong Yak and Neung Jo-un.
Jongjeong Yak had lost consciousness due to the Poison Art and internal injuries, while Neung Jo-un had his Soul Acupoint struck by Yang Seol.
From Bu Eun-seol's perspective, it would have been better to leave them both to die.
That way, he wouldn't have to explain anything about Yang Seol's death.
"Hm."
Yet, Bu Eun-seol summoned his Internal Energy to treat them.
This investigation by the Martial Alliance was merely superficial. Sooner or later, he would have to investigate them again.
And these two would prove useful to him in the future.
"His Qi Vessels are twisted."
Neung Jo-un had recklessly used Primordial Essence True Qi, causing his Internal Energy to dissipate and his blood circulation to stagnate.
Whoosh!
As Bu Eun-seol injected Reverse Polarity True Qi through the Body-Striking Transmission Art, Neung Jo-un's blood flow immediately stabilized, and a flush of color returned to his face.
"Losing some Internal Energy is unavoidable."
Though the Reverse Polarity True Qi—imbued with Yin-Yang Qi—restored vitality to his body, the reckless use of Primordial Essence True Qi had already drained about one-third of his Internal Energy.
"Huuuh."
Taking another deep breath, Bu Eun-seol lifted Jongjeong Yak's limp body with his palm.
Thwack!
With a single strike, he slammed his palm against her Life Gate Acupoint.
Black blood gushed from her mouth, but soon, a healthy flush returned to her complexion.
By channeling a surge of profound Internal Energy, he had forcibly expelled the poison from her system.
"Ah—!"
Jongjeong Yak was the first to regain consciousness. Her eyes darted around before landing on Bu Eun-seol, and she gasped.
"What happened? Where's the Garden Master?"
"She was already gone when I arrived."
Jongjeong Yak blinked.
"Young Hero Seol, why are you here?"
Bu Eun-seol gestured toward the unconscious Neung Jo-un and replied nonchalantly.
"The Dragon God Sword Squad suddenly surrounded me, so I used my movement technique to slip away. Then I saw this man being dragged here, so I infiltrated the area."
"You came alone?"
"Yes. But by the time I arrived, you two were already unconscious, and this place was empty."
Jongjeong Yak took a deep breath.
She was certain he was lying.
He must have come here, confronted the Nectar Bureau's master, and eliminated her using some unfathomable martial technique.
'Just who is he?'
Why did he approach her? Why was he helping her so much? Her thoughts tangled into chaos.
"It's the truth."
Seeing Jongjeong Yak's bewildered expression, Bu Eun-seol spoke in a low voice.
"Why would I lie?"
Though his features were unremarkable, a mysterious light lingered in his pupils.
'He's not a bad person.'
If he had wanted to harm them, he wouldn't have bothered coming here at all.
But Bu Eun-seol had shaken off the Dragon God Sword Squad and risked his life to save them. That much was undeniable.
"I suppose there's no choice."
Jongjeong Yak smiled faintly.
Then, from her robes, she retrieved a small wooden box.
"Take it. The promised twenty-five Violet Essence Pills."
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"Since Deputy Hall Master Dan took his own life, there won't be a trial. His case is closed, so take them."
"But not everything has been resolved yet."
"Deputy Hall Master Dan committed suicide during the investigation. That alone will cause an enormous aftermath."
She took another deep breath.
"But this is an internal matter of the Alliance. If Young Hero Seol interferes further, I can't guarantee your safety."
Bu Eun-seol's lips curled into a faint smile.
She was worth saving after all.
Though ambitious, she still understood righteousness.
If Jongjeong Yak rose through the ranks, she would undoubtedly aid him in investigating the Martial Alliance in the future.
And if someone like her attained a high position, perhaps the Alliance itself... might become a slightly better organization.
"Are you sure I should leave? It's not fully resolved yet."
"There's no other way."
Jongjeong Yak bared her teeth in a grin.
"I should just be grateful to escape this mess with my life intact."
"Understood."
Bu Eun-seol accepted the Violet Essence Pills with an indifferent smile.
"Then, until next time."
Jongjeong Yak clasped her hands together.
"Thank you. For coming to save us."
A confident smile graced her lips.
Bu Eun-seol, as if resigned, calmly mirrored her gesture.
"I only did what I had to. Farewell."
Then he turned and strode out of the Nectar Bureau.
As he left, members of the Inspection Hall brushed past him, rushing into the Bureau. They must have belatedly uncovered the truth about the Garden Master's identity.
Creak.
Stepping outside the massive gates of the Martial Alliance, Bu Eun-seol's eyes gleamed coldly.
Now, it was time to annihilate the Five Poisons Sect—the ones who kidnapped children and committed every manner of evil.