Chapter 78
A brief silence passed.
Then, abruptly, White Face began clapping with a hearty laugh.
"Truly remarkable! To possess such extraordinary discernment at such a young age!"
Nodding repeatedly, he extended his thumb toward Bu Eun-seol.
"A Martial World Treasure like the Spiritual Subtlety Divine Sword must be entrusted to an owner with the discernment it deserves. Hence, we conducted this test—though unintentionally."
White Face clasped his hands together, smiling as he drew the sword from the box.
"Though this blade cannot be used in actual combat, it is the work of Old Master Yong from Qilian Mountain, possessing considerable artistic value. The gemstones embedded in this sword alone are worth a thousand gold taels."
He offered the sword to Bu Eun-seol.
"This is a supplementary prize from the Money Manager, separate from the tournament's grand reward."
Bu Eun-seol merely stared down at the sword without moving.
"W-Well... please accept it."
Bu Eun-seol, who had been studying White Face's expression, did something uncharacteristic—his eyes curved into crescent moons.
"If I don't take this too, there'll be no justification left."
"Huh?"
Instead of answering, Bu Eun-seol gripped the sword White Face had extended.
The moment he did—
Pshhhh!
A plume of white smoke erupted from the hilt. Simultaneously—
Click!
Sharp, needle-thin spikes shot out from the grip. Given the foul stench they emitted, they were undoubtedly coated in Extreme Poison.
"Is this another test?"
As Bu Eun-seol slowly plucked the needles embedded in the hilt, White Face chuckled coldly.
"You don't seem surprised. I take it you anticipated everything."
Then Hwa-ran, standing beside him, smiled brightly and added,
"But you've been far too composed. Leaving aside the Blood Yin Poison on the needles, the Cloud Mist Snow Lung Poison you inhaled cannot be expelled with qi."
Cloud Mist Snow Lung Poison.
A specialized Smoke Poison and Energy-Dispersing Poison crafted by the masters of Death Incense, where hidden weapon experts gathered.
A single breath was enough to instantly halve one's Internal Energy.
"Heh heh heh."
A low laugh echoed as a middle-aged man in formal robes strode into the training hall.
His features were sharp, but his frame was plump, his skin glistening with oil. This was none other than Ok Ho-bang, the current manager of the Eastern Drifters, Western Wanderers.
Behind him followed two of the Eight Great Wanderers—his trusted subordinates, Hyeol-chu and Ghost Sickle.
"Confirmed—he's been poisoned by the Cloud Mist Snow Lung Poison."
Seeing Bu Eun-seol's pallid complexion, Ok Ho-bang revealed his true nature with a sinister grin.
"Young brat, you've caused us quite the headache."
Bu Eun-seol stared at Ok Ho-bang and asked,
"You're Money Manager Ok?"
"Indeed."
"Is killing the tournament winner a tradition here?"
As Bu Eun-seol's gaze swept over the armed wanderers, Ok Ho-bang let out a sigh.
"To be honest, I'd hoped it wouldn't come to this. Had you just drunk the tea, things would've ended neatly."
Ok Ho-bang chuckled darkly.
"Heh heh heh. If the tournament winner were caught committing indecent acts against our female wanderers, naturally, we couldn't hand over the divine sword."
"I see. That makes sense."
Bu Eun-seol nodded leisurely, prompting Hwa-ran to snap in a venomous tone,
"You're far too composed for someone in your position."
"That just means he's confident in his martial prowess."
Ghost Sickle, who had closed the distance unnoticed, flashed a sharp glare.
"But even with that confidence, you can't defeat the four of us with your Internal Power halved."
Individually, none of them could compare to Yangmyeong, the Blood Ghost Society's Hall Master—but together, their combined strength rivaled his.
Moreover, they were all experts in hidden weapons and poison, and above all, this was their territory—the Eastern Drifters, Western Wanderers.
Even if Bu Eun-seol had the skill to escape, there was no way he could break free.
"This should be entertaining."
Bu Eun-seol lightly extended his arm to the side.
Whoosh!
In an instant, one of the old iron swords lined up in the armory flew straight into his hand. A terrifying display of Void Object Retrieval.
"Your Internal Energy... hasn't weakened at all?"
The armory was a full thirty feet away. Yet he had summoned the sword with nothing more than a gesture?
"It has weakened."
"What?"
Bu Eun-seol glared at them icily.
"But not enough to stop me from severing your heads."
Bu Eun-seol's Reverse Polarity Heart Method had already reached the pinnacle of the Third Layer, and his Internal Power was nearly two sixty-year cycles in depth.
Excluding the old masters, in terms of internal power, there was no one he fell short of.
That was why, even after inhaling the Cloud-Mist Snow Lung Poison, he still possessed the terrifying internal power of a full sixty-year cycle.
"Stop joking around!"
Ghost Sickle swung the twin sickles in his hands like lightning.
The Twelve Forms of Breaking Scatter Twin Sickles he had mastered was a dual sickle technique derived from assassin martial arts—once it seized the initiative, an endless chain of follow-up strikes would follow.
"Sickles, huh."
Bu Eun-seol's eyes gleamed with sharp light as he observed the cascading sickle shadows and drew his iron sword.
Drip-drop.
Suddenly, the sound of raindrops tapping against a window flowed from the iron sword in Bu Eun-seol's grip.
At the same time, his body, propelled by the Swift Shadowless technique, flashed past Ghost Sickle in an instant.
"Gyaaah!"
A bloodcurdling scream erupted in the same moment.
Though he had merely brushed past him, a fountain of blood burst from Ghost Sickle's throat.
"What in the...?"
The remaining wanderers and Ok Ho-bang gaped at the sight.
The sword stroke had been so fast that none of them had even properly seen how Bu Eun-seol had executed his technique.
Crack-crackle.
At that moment, fissures began spreading across the iron sword in Bu Eun-seol's hand before it shattered like a biscuit.
"Again with this."
"Th-that sword...!"
White Face's jaw dropped as he witnessed it.
Only then did a terrifying realization flash through his mind.
"The sword didn't shatter... because of a clash with Yangmyeong..."
"Correct."
At Bu Eun-seol's reply, the remaining wanderers and Ok Ho-bang turned deathly pale.
They had assumed Yangmyeong had forfeited the duel for some reason... but in truth, Bu Eun-seol had defeated him with a single sword stroke.
"You shattered the sword... from the aftermath of your sword technique?"
The moment White Face muttered under his breath—
Whoosh.
Bu Eun-seol retrieved another worn-out large saber from the armory using Void Object Retrieval.
"I don't care if it breaks hundreds of times. There are plenty of weapons here."
Bu Eun-seol bared his teeth in a grin, as if amused by something.
At the sight of him, Ok Ho-bang and the wanderers felt a terror as though the Grim Reaper of hell had appeared before them.
"What are you all standing around for?!"
White Face was the first to regain his senses.
Not only did he possess the most formidable martial arts among the remaining wanderers, but he also had nerves of steel.
The instant Bu Eun-seol lifted the large saber, exposing an opening, White Face immediately fired the hidden weapon device concealed in his sleeve.
Pew-pew-pew-pew-pew!
Activating the spring needle tube, dozens of poison needles rained down upon Bu Eun-seol's body.
Swish-swish-swish!
In that moment, Bu Eun-seol's body spun like a whirlwind.
Evading the needles in an instant with the Swift Shadowless technique, he appeared behind White Face and spoke in a low voice.
"You're not even worth using a sword technique on."
Slash!
No one saw when the large saber in his hand was drawn.
A sharp light flashed horizontally through the air, and a thin crimson line appeared across White Face's throat as he held the Spring Needle Tube.
Splurt!
As the ownerless head tumbled to the floor, blood sprayed in all directions.
"Let's finish this quickly."
Bu Eun-seol's pupils, illuminated by the lantern light, burned like charcoal.
The moment his pale, slender hand moved again, another life in this room would vanish without a trace.
"Y-Young Hero Bu!"
At that moment, Ok Ho-bang rushed forward and dropped to his knees before Bu Eun-seol, his voice trembling.
"I'll give you the Spiritual Subtlety Divine Sword! Spare me!"
"I don't need it."
"Y-you don't... need it...?"
Bu Eun-seol smiled coldly.
"I'll tear apart the entire Wandering Drifters and take it myself."
At those words, Ok Ho-bang's eyes bulged as his body shook uncontrollably.
Grim Reaper.
Before the wanderers' eyes stood the God of Death, toying with human lives between his fingers as if they were threads.
"W-we were wrong, Young Master!"
Hwa-ran let out a scream-like sob as she fell to her knees.
Beside her, Hyeol-chu also dropped to the ground.
"We were wrong!"
"Wrong? What exactly did you do wrong?"
Bu Eun-seol spoke indifferently, gazing at the blood-dripping large saber in his hand.
"Killing in Murim is just another part of daily life."
"Then... are you forgiving us?"
Ok Ho-bang forced a laugh, to which Bu Eun-seol replied indifferently,
"I told you. It's just the way of Murim..."
People lived and died—such was the natural order in the martial world. In other words, Bu Eun-seol had nothing to forgive nor hesitate over.
"You—Young Hero Bu!"
At those words, Ok Ho-bang and the mercenaries' eyes darkened with terror.
The moment that large saber moved, their souls would be wandering the nine heavens.
And then—
Crash!
Half of the training hall's roof collapsed, and—
"Young Master!"
A short cry rang out as a black shadow dropped from the roof, landing at Bu Eun-seol's feet.
A boy clad in plain black martial robes—Heuk-pyo.
"Please show them mercy!"
Heuk-pyo knelt before Bu Eun-seol, who still held the large saber aloft.
"They were only afraid of breaking their promise with the Hell Blood Citadel."
"...Step aside."
"Young—Young Master!"
"I said step aside."
Bu Eun-seol's voice was icy as he looked down at Heuk-pyo.
"I have never once forgiven those who sought my life."
Shudder.
Ok Ho-bang and the mercenaries trembled in fear at those words.
Even if the heavens split, they knew—Bu Eun-seol would never forgive them.
"Young Master!"
Thud! Thud!
Heuk-pyo, still on his knees, struck his forehead against the ground and cried out.
"He may not have been a father to be proud of... but he is the only family I have left under this sky!"
In that instant, Bu Eun-seol's gaze shifted.
He had never imagined that Ok Ho-bang and Heuk-pyo were father and son.
"Though I was born a bastard and lived as a wanderer... when Money Manager Ok learned the truth, he treated me with great kindness."
Heuk-pyo's desperate eyes welled with tears as he stared at Bu Eun-seol.
"Can I not share even a fraction of my blood kin's sin?"
Bu Eun-seol's voice was frigid.
"Stand up."
"Huh?"
When Heuk-pyo lifted his head, Bu Eun-seol had already drawn back his saber and turned away.
"From now on, don't cry or kneel. Such actions... change nothing."
Heuk-pyo quickly wiped his tears and rose with determination.
"Understood. I will never cry or kneel again."
"That's enough."
Bu Eun-seol and Heuk-pyo—for a moment, they resembled a young master and his disciple.
Regaining his composure, Heuk-pyo turned to Ok Ho-bang and the mercenaries.
"Young Master has forgiven you. It's over now. Stand up."
"Th—thank you, Young Hero Bu."
Bu Eun-seol regarded Ok Ho-bang coldly.
"Your life was saved by your son."
Ok Ho-bang's face twisted in shame. Then he approached Heuk-pyo and grasped his hands.
"My... my boy..."
Until now, he had ignored Heuk-pyo's advice, recruiting lowly mercenaries of poor character.
And by disregarding the warning never to provoke Bu Eun-seol, he had endangered not only himself but every mercenary in the Eastern Drifters, Western Wanderers.
"This father of yours is ashamed. I never listened to you..."
Heuk-pyo's eyes flashed.
Except in private, Ok Ho-bang had never once referred to himself as his father before.
"From now on, I'll follow your words. I won't recruit criminals or mercenaries with wicked hearts into our hall."
Ok Ho-bang then turned to Hyeol-chu and Hwa-ran behind him.
"You two as well. If you wish to remain in the Eastern Drifters, Western Wanderers, you must abandon wrongdoing."
"O—of course! How could we refuse?"
Hyeol-chu nodded, and Hwa-ran bowed deeply.
Had Heuk-pyo not intervened, they would have lost their heads to Bu Eun-seol. They would never dare misbehave again.
"My boy."
Then Ok Ho-bang stepped closer to Heuk-pyo.
"Until now, I've been a disgrace of a father. But from this day forward, I will never again give you reason to be ashamed. I will restore the Eastern Drifters, Western Wanderers to what it once was—a gathering place for honorable mercenaries."
True reformation was rare.
But having narrowly escaped death thanks to Heuk-pyo, Ok Ho-bang was reborn in an instant.
"Hahaha!"
Suddenly, laughter echoed, followed by a low sigh that seemed to come from all directions.
"It seems there was no need for me to intervene after all."
Bu Eun-seol's pupils sharpened, gleaming with intensity.
Even with the heightened senses of the Beast Path, he could not locate the source of the voice.
'Six Harmonies Voice Transmission?'
A Peak Realm technique—one that could not even be imitated without three sixty-year cycle of internal energy—was unfolding before his very eyes.