Chapter 63
A brief silence flowed through the bamboo forest.
Whoosh.
The "Elegant Bamboo Greets the Wind"—clear, pristine bamboo stalks swayed as the passing breeze brushed against them.
Yet the wind blowing near the pavilion swirled with killing intent, and the air hung as heavy as molten lead.
"So it's been uncovered."
Sang-ryang spoke in a tone that suggested it was of little consequence.
"What a pity."
His face filled with regret as he gazed up at the night sky.
"After yearning so desperately to return to the Demon Hall..."
They did not offer excuses. No—they couldn't.
They knew Bu Eun-seol's personality was exceedingly meticulous, thorough to the extreme.
The fact that he had posed such questions meant he had already deduced the truth.
"Truth be told, I had a faint suspicion."
After a long silence, Sang-ryang spoke again.
"That perhaps the Demon Hall had already identified our true nature."
"If you had such suspicions, why didn't you leave?"
"Well."
Sang-ryang wore a bitter smile.
"Maybe I wanted to prove we still had some use left."
"Use..."
"Indeed. Yueyang is a tangled web of intelligence networks from the Righteous and Unorthodox Factions. Since we managed to keep this branch running smoothly without conflict, I thought... perhaps the Demon Hall might have left us alone for that reason."
Sang-ryang took another swig of liquor before continuing in a low voice.
"When you killed the Black Serpent Saber on your first mission, I was overjoyed. I thought we had finally earned enough merit to return to the Demon Hall."
Whoosh—
Just then, a gust of wind swept around the pavilion.
"But that was just our delusion."
"..."
"You far exceeded our expectations—you were simply too outstanding."
Sang-ryang paused, savoring the breeze, then spoke again.
"You single-handedly handled every mission in Yueyang. Among them was the complete annihilation of the Righteous Faction's intelligence networks."
In just six months, Bu Eun-seol had not only dismantled those in Yueyang but also obliterated every Righteous Faction organization in the surrounding Hunan region.
"Thanks to you, the Righteous Faction's influence in Hunan has been utterly crushed. Now, anyone could comfortably manage the Yueyang branch."
The Gong Twin Demons had hoped for an outstanding agent to accomplish great deeds.
Yet, ironically, because an exceptionally outstanding agent had arrived, their own usefulness had completely vanished.
"Hounds that have outlived their purpose are boiled in the pot. That's just the natural order of things."
Bu Eun-seol sat motionless, his gaze unfocused, as if he hadn't heard a word.
Hesitation.
For the first time since entering the martial world, he hesitated.
They were the first people he had ever felt any attachment to since stepping into the martial world. And now, he had to sever their heads.
The martial world is merciless, the martial world is merciless...!
A world where one lived by the sword was an Uninterrupted Hell—a place where one must neither feel nor show affection.
"Such is the fate of all spies..."
Sang-ryang stared at Bu Eun-seol with an indifferent expression.
"Set aside your emotions. The outcome was decided long ago."
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol closed his eyes.
How much time passed?
When he slowly opened them again, the hesitation was gone—replaced by a sharp, gleaming light.
In that brief moment, he had severed all lingering attachments and sentiment.
"It seems I spoke unnecessarily."
Sang-ryang nodded, observing the cold glint in Bu Eun-seol's eyes.
"Well then, shall we begin?"
Shhk—!
In that instant, a strange whistling sound accompanied something sharp slicing toward Bu Eun-seol's back.
Swish.
With a light twist of his body, a dark gleam narrowly grazed past his shoulder.
Ma-un had struck like lightning, wielding his curved sickle in a sudden ambush.
"As expected—you never let your guard down!"
Ma-un cackled as he swung the Death Sickle again, but—
Swish!
This time, Sang-ryang, who had been standing at the front, attacked like lightning.
"In the martial world, you must always watch your back."
From the front, Sang-ryang and his Judge's Brush poured forth a sharp gleam, while from behind, Ma-un's Death Sickle enveloped Bu Eun-seol's entire body like a frigid frost.
Ssss—
Bu Eun-seol, unleashing the Ultimate Speed Shadowless, shifted his stance thirty-six times in place.
Whoosh! Slash!
Yet the Judge's Brush rained down like hundreds of arrows, and the Death Sickle carved arcs through the air, severing all paths of retreat.
Clang!
With a deafening metallic clang, the movements of the Judge's Brush and the Death Sickle halted.
Bu Eun-seol's longsword, slipping out soundlessly, had intercepted their attacks.
Shhk—
Moving like a wisp of smoke, Bu Eun-seol swung his blade, and razor-sharp sword qi expanded endlessly.
"Incredible!"
Sang-ryang and Ma-un gasped in admiration as they blocked the torrent of sword strokes.
The Gong Twin Demons were seasoned masters with ample combat experience. No matter how strong their opponent, they could predict their movements and the angles of their strikes to some degree.
Yet, they found no openings in Bu Eun-seol's relentless sword strokes and were forced to retreat step by step.
"Drop your weapons."
Bu Eun-seol, pausing his assault for a moment, spoke coldly.
"You cannot defeat me."
"That remains to be seen."
Sang-ryang and Ma-un exchanged glances.
Whiik!
With a sound like a whistle, Sang-ryang's Judge's Brush technique abruptly changed.
The Judge's Brush—
A peculiar weapon with both ends sharpened like calligraphy brushes, originally used to strike pressure points while mimicking the strokes of writing.
But now, the technique had shifted, incorporating staff methods like striking, sweeping, and collapsing.
"A staff technique?"
Bu Eun-seol realized that Sang-ryang's altered technique bore a striking resemblance to staff arts.
"Indeed. This is the pride of our sect—the Dog-Beating Staff Method."
As it turned out, Sang-ryang had originally been from the Beggars' Sect and had concealed his true technique behind the Judge's Brush.
'Unpredictable martial forms.'
Paaat!
Once the straightforward calligraphy-like strokes of the Judge's Brush were infused with the Dog-Beating Staff Method, the martial forms became mystifyingly intricate.
"Tch."
Bu Eun-seol nearly had his body pierced multiple times by the Judge's Brush.
Had it not been for the heightened senses granted by the Way of the Beast, which allowed him to detect even the flow of air, he would have suffered grievous injuries.
"Where are you focusing your mind?!"
At that moment, a thunderous shout rang out as Ma-un's sickle grazed past Bu Eun-seol's back.
Bu Eun-seol swiftly raised his sword to block Ma-un's relentless chain of attacks.
Schwak!
But then, the wildly swaying chain sickle spreading in all directions, suddenly darted toward Bu Eun-seol's throat like a flash of light.
Fwip!
Twisting his body at the last moment, Bu Eun-seol narrowly avoided a fatal strike—but a thin line of blood still appeared on his neck.
'This is...'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes flashed, and Ma-un grinned as he retrieved his chain sickle.
"This is the pride of our sect—the Sun-Shooting Sword Art."
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened.
'They're masters from the Nine Sects!'
Now it was clear—the Gong Twin Demons were elite masters hailing from the orthodox Nine Sects.
Moreover, once they abandoned demonic path martial arts and revealed their orthodox sects' signature secret techniques, their power surged, and their movements became even more agile.
Clang! Clang-clang-clang!
Sword, Judge's Brush, and chain sickle clashed repeatedly in midair.
From the front, the Judge's Brush, now infused with the Dog-Beating Staff Method, filled the space with overwhelming force.
From behind, the chain sickle of the Sun-Shooting Sword Art flew freely, unbound by distance.
With the rare odd weapons of the martial world now combined with the supreme techniques of the Nine Sects, their attacks became impossible to predict.
'Good!'
Bu Eun-seol, observing the Judge's Brush and chain sickle filling the air, reversed his grip on his sword.
Fwip!
The single stroke he unleashed was not only slow but also clumsy, as though he were drunk.
"What—?"
Yet Sang-ryang and Ma-un gasped in shock and hastily retreated.
From Bu Eun-seol's single stroke, an overwhelming pressure erupted, shattering their movements and cunning variations.
"What kind of sword technique is this?"
Sang-ryang halted his attack, visibly startled.
"It has no name."
The stroke Bu Eun-seol had just executed was a fusion of every technique he had mastered thus far, tempered by the insights he had gained through real combat.
"It's merely... what I've felt until now, expressed in my own way."
At Bu Eun-seol's words, Sang-ryang let out an impressed sigh.
"Remarkable! To manifest such insight into a single stroke at your age."
Ma-un chuckled darkly beside him.
"Elder Brother. It seems we'll finally get to fight to our heart's content!"
"Indeed."
Sang-ryang inhaled deeply, and a flash of lightning seemed to ignite in his eyes.
"Now, let's see the true end of this!"
What followed was a brutal clash.
The Gong Twin Demons, wielding the supreme techniques of the Nine Great Sects fused seamlessly with the unorthodox weapon arts of the Demonic Path.
Bu Eun-seol, a prodigy of martial arts, refining his own original martial arts by tempering Practical Combat Martial Arts with his experiences in the martial world.
A righteous faction master and a demonic prodigy—two existences that could never coexist—clashed relentlessly, until finally, the end began to reveal itself.
'Now!'
The moment the conclusion of their bloody struggle became visible, Bu Eun-seol gathered every last drop of his internal energy and unleashed it.
Compressing the blade that had been swirling through the air, he became a streak of light, plunging straight into the net of combined techniques woven by the Gong Twin Demons.
"Good!"
Realizing that this exchange would decide life and death, the Gong Twin Demons also poured their full strength into two blinding flashes of light.
WHOOSH—!
The moment their full-powered strikes collided, a gale erupted, kicking up a storm of dust and debris.
Huuuu...
As the wind settled and the dust cleared, the figures of Bu Eun-seol, still gripping his sword, and the Gong Twin Demons standing before and behind him came into view.
"Why...?"
Bu Eun-seol's voice trembled slightly.
Drops of blood dripped from the tip of his blade.
Yet, the Judge's Brush and chain scythe pressed against his chest and back had stopped short—they hadn't pierced his clothes.
At the final moment, the Gong Twin Demons had withdrawn their attacks.
"A spy whose identity is exposed... has nowhere to return to..."
A dry smile played on Sang-ryang's lips as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
"I told you... the outcome was already decided."
With a pained expression, Sang-ryang glanced at Ma-un, who stood behind Bu Eun-seol.
Ma-un remained frozen, his chain scythe still extended, eyes wide open. His heart had been pierced—he had died instantly.
"Ma-un... he took quite a liking to you. Said it felt like he'd gained a stubborn little brother."
Bu Eun-seol said nothing.
No—he couldn't even open his mouth.
Sang-ryang took a deep, shuddering breath and spoke in a low voice.
"Eighteen. No... I suppose I can call you Bu Eun-seol now, can't I?"
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened, and Sang-ryang smiled faintly.
"I've known for a long time... that you're the Ten Demonic Heir from Langya Pavilion."
With a fading gaze, Sang-ryang struggled to continue.
"The Alliance... and even the Demon Hall... have their eyes on you. Do you understand what that means?"
Not just the Martial Alliance—even the Demon Hall was watching Bu Eun-seol.
It meant they still hadn't let go of their suspicions about him.
"The winds of the martial world are treacherous. Trust no one... and be careful."
Sang-ryang placed a weak hand on Bu Eun-seol's shoulder.
And with those final words, he quietly breathed his last.
Two nameless graves appeared on a small hillside.
Their occupants were Sang-ryang and Ma-un—spies of the Martial Alliance.
The Martial Alliance would never acknowledge the existence of the Gong Twin Demons. To do so would be admitting they had sent infiltrators to spy on the Demon Hall.
The same would hold true for the Beggars' Sect and the Diancang Sect.
—A spy whose identity is exposed... has nowhere to return to...
Just as Sang-ryang had said, they truly had no home to return to.
Bu Eun-seol carefully prepared the bodies of the Gong Twin Demons, performing the funeral rites with solemn respect. Then, he buried them himself in a sunny spot.
It was all he could do for them now.
"May the afterlife..."
Bu Eun-seol's blurred gaze lingered on the graves.
"...have a place where you can return."
His eyes empty, he turned away slowly.
He had made up his mind.
It was time to return to Langya Pavilion.