Chapter 821
Rumble.
As Gongson Dan-gyeong departed, Gwak Seong closed the door to the secret passageway.
Then, in a low voice, he muttered to himself:
"We martial artists live and die by the sword. Even if we perish today, we'll have no regrets."
Thud.
Once the door to the secret passage had fully shut, he slowly turned his body.
"It's just... a shame to die before we could fully realize our ambitions."
Gwak Seong gazed at the distant sky.
Under Gongson Dan-gyeong's command, they had honed the mysterious formation discipline known as the Dao Image.
They had also mastered countless supreme martial arts techniques from the Pratyekabuddha Hall of the Martial Alliance.
Gongson Dan-gyeong's memory was peerless—she could memorize entire martial arts manuals after a single glance.
And she had imparted all of them to the warriors of the Blood Fate Corps.
But now, due to the Jungson Clan's sudden ambush, their Grand Endeavor would remain unfulfilled.
"A pity. Even if all One Hundred and Eight Stars had emerged, I was confident we could have won."
The Dao Image that Gongson Dan-gyeong had devised—
It was an unprecedented, unparalleled mystical art that completely transcended the principles of martial arts and the functions of formations.
The warriors of the Blood Fate Corps had trained relentlessly, not resting a single day, to perfect this Dao Image.
They had also mastered the Shadow-Reflection Magic Lantern alongside their formation studies.
But now, caught in the enemy's ambush,
this peerless art had withered before it could ever bloom.
"At the very least, I must ensure the young warriors survive."
Gwak Seong drew his treasured sword from his waist.
With internal energy cultivated over six cycles and sword art that had reached the Summit of Mastery, along with exceptional military strategy and vast combat experience—
As both a martial artist and a commander leading the vanguard, he lacked nothing in capability.
But could even these be enough to face the One Hundred and Eight Stars? That, he could not guarantee.
—KRRREEEEEK!
In that moment, the defensive line crumbled.
The warriors of the Jungson Clan were swiftly advancing toward this place.
Wherever they passed, grass withered and the earth turned black.
They were already wielding the power of the One Hundred and Eight Stars.
"Shall I make some companions for the road to hell?"
The only consolation was that these inhuman beings wielding Supernatural Abilities were all bound by the limitations of their Domains.
And that he had spent all this time relentlessly training techniques to counter the One Hundred and Eight Stars.
RUMBLE.
As Gwak Seong channeled his internal energy, shockwaves of True Qi rippled outward in all directions.
Now, he was about to embark on the most dazzling, exhilarating—and final—battle of his life.
Huff... Huff...
Having escaped Ssangsu Valley through the secret passage, Gongson Dan-gyeong unleashed her Movement Technique like a madwoman.
'I can't even call for the Star Guard Corps.'
This entire area had fallen under the Domain of the 108 Stars.
Even if she fired a signal flare, it would be useless.
The only way to survive the Jungson Clan's grasp was to escape this place.
Sssssss...
But from somewhere, the sound of insect wings fluttering reached her ears.
As expected, they had laid a tight encirclement around Ssangsu Valley and sent pursuers wielding bizarre powers after her.
Whoosh!
Gongson Dan-gyeong sprinted forward without looking back.
Even as she ran, she swiftly gathered twigs and stones, scattering them in all directions.
She was deploying formations to shake off her pursuers.
Shhk—Shhk—Shhk!
She moved like a living, breathing battle formation, weaving her way through Mount Azure Cloud.
Gongson Dan-gyeong not only possessed extraordinary strategic genius—her mastery of formations was second only to Gongson Hwa-uk, the undisputed greatest in the martial world.
Now that she was fully committed to fleeing while deploying formations, even the Jungson Clan's pursuers had no choice but to struggle.
Swish... Sssss...
But the formations she had laid down were melting away like snow.
At the same time, she could feel the movements of the pursuers closing in rapidly behind her.
'The Martial Venerable must have handed over all my information.'
The Jungson Clan had made perfect preparations to hunt her down.
Before attacking, they had destroyed every last Shadow-Reflection Magic Lantern stored in Ssangsu Valley.
They had even anticipated that she would flee while deploying formations.
Now, they were using the traces of her formations to track her movements instead.
Sssssss...
Before she knew it, ten pursuers had closed in behind her.
Her escape route and trail had already been exposed.
'I need to head toward the river.'
She swiftly unleashed Lightness Art toward the sound of rushing water.
The river would not only wash away her scent and traces—it would allow her to set up a Back-to-the-Water Formation for a glorious last stand. At worst, she could leap into the current to escape.
Fwoosh!
In that instant, the pursuers closed in and unleashed a barrage of hidden weapons.
The Jungson Clan's masters used a highly unique form of concealed weaponry.
With every flick of their wrists,
an uncountable number of hidden projectiles erupted toward her.
'Wicked Incense?!'
A spark of realization flashed in Gongson Dan-gyeong's eyes.
The Wicked Incense's hidden weapons had long terrorized the murim, yet in recent years, no figures wielding them had appeared.
But suddenly, the Jungson Clan—
How had they obtained such a massive quantity of Wicked Incense's hidden weapons, which were notoriously difficult to acquire even in small numbers?
Fwip fwip fwip!
The hidden weapons they wielded were capable of shattering Protective Astral Energy, and they were launched at angles that made evasion impossible.
Thunk thunk!
Gongson Dan-gyeong finally halted her retreat, drawing a dagger to counter.
"Haaap!"
As she swung the blade, a strange force rippled outward, slowing the movements of her pursuers.
Though her martial arts weren't particularly advanced—
She was an exceptional talent, one capable of improving the profound Dao Image formation art she had learned from an ancient manual.
Like the martial arts of the Zhuge Clan, her techniques incorporated formations into combat.
With every swing of her blade, an eerie power spread, gradually ensnaring the masked assailants in sluggishness.
"Tch."
The pursuers hadn't anticipated her blending such esoteric formations into her martial arts.
Somewhat flustered, they swung their swords in retaliation.
Yet the more Gongson Dan-gyeong fought, the more it felt as though invisible threads were tightening around their bodies.
"Ugh—"
Unable to advance or retreat, the masked men bound by these unseen restraints—
Schlick!
—were cleaved in half at the waist, their bisected corpses collapsing onto the ground.
Thud!
The surviving masked men seized the opening as she fled, immediately launching another volley of hidden weapons.
Snap!
A serrated blade embedded itself into her body, and dark blood gushed forth.
The poison was so vile that even the mere graze of a weapon sent her stomach twisting with nausea.
'I have to survive.'
Gritting her teeth, she yanked the hidden weapon free.
Squelch—
Black blood splattered as agony wracked her body, as if every bone were crumbling.
But she had to survive.
If she didn't—who would avenge the Blood Heaven Blood Fate Corps?
Who would remember the lives of those young souls who had sacrificed everything for her sake?
Whoosh!
She unleashed her Movement Technique once more, darting through the terrain.
The growing roar of water suggested she was nearing the river.
'I just have to make it there.'
She pushed her Movement Technique to its limits—when suddenly—
Hweeeeng—
An overwhelming pressure descended, and a translucent wall materialized across a radius of roughly three hundred feet.
It was a colossal barrier, woven from Internal Energy.
Boom.
Simultaneously, over a hundred figures erupted from the ground as if sprouting from the earth itself.
All were clad in glistening black robes, their faces concealed behind veils.
'The One Hundred and Eight Stars?'
No matter how formidable a human's power—
No one could erect a barrier spanning hundreds of feet, sealing both sky and earth, through Internal Energy alone.
The number of masked men: one hundred and eight.
Unless they were all masters of the Martial Extreme Realm, they must be wielding the power of the One Hundred and Eight Stars.
"Impressive. We were told your martial arts were lacking, yet you fled all the way here."
The foremost black-robed figure stepped forward slowly.
A pungent, acrid scent stabbed at her nostrils.
'Poison People?'
As she scanned her surroundings, she finally grasped the truth of the one hundred and eight before her.
"You've made Poison People using the power of the One Hundred and Eight Stars."
Gongson Dan-gyeong spoke, her gaze fixed on the masked men.
"Rather than waste the Boundary-Prosperity Jade, you've employed the Yang Essence Ritual to mass-produce them."
The apparent leader among the masked men nodded, as if impressed.
"You know of the Boundary-Prosperity Jade. Truly fitting for the Martial Alliance's Chief Strategist."
"I also know you're puppets of the Jungson Clan."
Her words seemed to startle him—his eyes narrowed slightly.
"I wondered why they'd deploy such a force just to kill me. Now I see."
The masked man tilted his head, then nodded.
"You possess intelligence on our main house. That's why the Extermination Order was issued."
Though Gongson Dan-gyeong had been born under one of the One Hundred and Eight Stars, her brilliance had earned her only the epithet Star of Great Wisdom.
She didn't even know which star she belonged to—and she would never be able to wield its power again.
Because on his final day—
Chu-so had performed a Great Art upon her.
"After escaping the Jungson Clan, no one will ever detect the aura of the One Hundred and Eight Stars on you."
His words had been true.
After leaving the clan, the faint power that once flowed through her meridians could no longer be felt.
"But don't I need strength too?"
After joining the Martial Alliance, Gongson Dan-gyeong had keenly felt the need for power.
And so, she had strived relentlessly—to break the Great Art that Chu-so had bestowed upon her.
But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find a way to unleash the power of the One Hundred and Eight Stars.
To the point where she even began to doubt whether she truly was one of them in the first place.
After enduring countless trials and surviving numerous dangers,
she had devoted herself to Formation Study rather than martial arts. She believed it would make her stronger, faster.
But at last, she realized the truth—
Formation Study could never replace martial arts.
Thud.
Gongson Dan-gyeong dropped to one knee.
The poisonous energy surging through her had become unbearable.
"A waste to just kill you like this."
At that moment, the masked man at the forefront narrowed his eyes as he raked them over her figure.
Her clothes had been torn in several places from the ambush, revealing smooth, unblemished skin.
And the sight of it stirred something dark within him.
"If you provide me with a different kind of pleasure, I might let you live."
His pupils burned with hunger.
"Annihilation as a martial artist doesn't necessarily mean death."
Then, coaxingly, he added,
"If you come to our main house, you could forget your past and start a new life."
I can't die.
Ignoring the masked man's words, she extended her index and middle fingers and pressed them against her acupoints.
It was the Latent Power Burst Technique, one of the most renowned secret arts in the martial world—capable of manifesting invincible power for a quarter of an hour.
The legendary Golden Pellet Great Art of the Divine Martial Master.
Zzziiing—
Though golden motes of light swirled violently around Gongson Dan-gyeong's body, the masked man scoffed.
"Pointless struggl—"
Flash!
At that instant, a circular blade of sharp light erupted from her dagger.
The attack was sudden, impossibly swift—utterly unavoidable.
Thud.
The masked man's head, which had been swaying mockingly before her, dropped lifelessly to the ground.
Not a technique of the orthodox martial arts, but a killing art recorded in the Secret Scripture of Evil Death and Hidden Souls—a sinister scripture of the Black Death Cult.
The Life and Death Blood Wheel.
"Scatter!"
The masked men dispersed in all directions.
Flash!
The Blood Wheels were too fast to evade, relentlessly pursuing their targets like living creatures.
Thud. Thud.
One by one, the masked men fell like logs, struck down by the Blood Wheels.
But even after activating the Latent Power Burst, Gongson Dan-gyeong could only manifest nine Blood Wheels at most.
Cough!
She spat blood and collapsed to her knees.
The effects of the Golden Pellet Great Art had worn off, draining all her strength. Unable to hold on any longer, she crumpled to the ground.
"We should kill her quickly before she tries anything else."
At the subordinate's shout, the leader nodded.
"So this is how someone so young became the Martial Alliance's chief strategist. Ruthless indeed."
With his signal, the underlings closed in on Gongson Dan-gyeong and raised their hands in unison.
Zzziiing—
Black veins bulged from her neck, and dark blood trickled from her nose and mouth.
Even if her martial arts were lacking, she was still the Martial Alliance's chief strategist. She might still have a trump card.
So the masked men unleashed Extreme Poison from a distance, ensuring she couldn't retaliate.
I'm sorry.
In the end, she couldn't avenge the Blood Name Squad.
Her vision blurred, her breath grew labored.
Yet, in her fading consciousness, one face remained vividly clear—
Seon-u Jin's.
Just once more.
Only when death loomed near
did she finally allow herself to be honest.
If I could just see him one last time—
Her final wish wasn't revenge...
but to see the face of the one she loved again.
Though she had lived her entire life consumed by vengeance,
though she had sworn she would never know love between man and woman—
deep in her heart,
she had still dreamed of happiness with the one she loved.
May he be happy.
Slowly, Gongson Dan-gyeong closed her eyes.
And may he escape the Martial Alliance safely.
Even in her final moments,
her last wish was not for herself, but for the safety of the one she loved.
Thud.
And just as her soul began to sink into endless darkness—
Flash!
Suddenly, in the pitch-black world, a radiant light burst forth.
At the same time, a pure white figure descended from the distant sky before her eyes.
His face was utterly ordinary, his presence unremarkable.
But his gaze was infinitely deep and sorrowful, as if fixed on some faraway place.
It was Seon-u Jin—the man she had longed to see so desperately.
Am I dreaming?
As Gongson Dan-gyeong murmured faintly,
"Chief Strategist."
Bu Eun-seol, who was holding her in his arms,
realized she was dying from extreme poison poisoning and immediately infused her with Reverse Polarity True Qi.
But her body had already begun shutting down from the mysterious toxin created by the power of the One Hundred and Eight Stars.
'I must draw out the poison.'
Yet using the power of his poison constitution might break his disguise.
If that happened, Gongson Dan-gyeong would discover his true identity, and all his plans would unravel.
"You came to save me again."
Having regained her senses, Gongson Dan-gyeong looked at Bu Eun-seol and smiled brightly.
"But this time, you were a little too late."
"It's alright. I'll detoxify you immediately."
"It's useless."
Gongson Dan-gyeong shook her head.
"This isn't ordinary poison. They're using the Yang Essence Ritual to manifest power akin to the One Hundred and Eight Stars."
Then she spoke resolutely.
"Though it carries toxic energy, it isn't true poison—so even a poison person who has reached the Sage Among Poisons realm could never detoxify it."
"Chief Strategist."
"It's alright. I've always been prepared for this."
Gongson Dan-gyeong smiled serenely.
"Those who seek revenge live every day expecting death."
Without replying, Bu Eun-seol immediately channeled the Reverse Extreme Inner Method, attempting to draw out her poison.
But it was futile.
Just as she said, the toxin unleashed by the masked men wasn't actual poison but a supernatural ability that mimicked its effects.
Even Bu Eun-seol, who could detoxify any poison, was helpless against it.
"Save your internal energy. And flee this place quickly."
Despite dying, Gongson Dan-gyeong worried only for Bu Eun-seol.
"And don't carry out my revenge—leave the Martial Alliance at once and live happily."
Bu Eun-seol's eyes widened.
She had already guessed he intended to leave the Martial Alliance.
"I truly loved you."
Gongson Dan-gyeong reached out to touch Bu Eun-seol's cheek as he held her.
"I even dreamed of staying by your side once my revenge was complete."
As she continued speaking, her pupils grew transparent.
"Not beside the Sword King of the Righteous Faction... but beside the Grandmaster of the Demonic Path who shakes the heavens."
"Chief Strategist."
The corners of Bu Eun-seol's eyes trembled violently.
Gongson Dan-gyeong had known his true identity all along.
"Why...?"
"I was afraid."
She smiled faintly.
"If you realized I knew, you might leave me."
A single tear, beautiful as a pearl, fell from her outstretched eyes.
"That's why... I couldn't tell you."
Her slowly extended hand nearly touched Bu Eun-seol's cheek.
Thud.
But her arm ultimately fell limp.
Time seemed to freeze in that instant, and Bu Eun-seol's pupils turned hollow.
'She knew.'
When sorrow reaches its peak, one grows numb.
Bu Eun-seol stared at Gongson Dan-gyeong with empty eyes.
She had known his identity for a long time.
Yet she never revealed it, never even considered exposing him.
Because she had genuinely come to love him.
If he discovered she knew the truth... he might leave her forever.
That was her only fear.
Enough to abandon even her revenge.
"Chief Strategist."
Bu Eun-seol carefully lifted Gongson Dan-gyeong, whose breath had ceased.
She didn't look dead—only as if she had fallen into a deep slumber.
"That bastard is Seon-u Jin!"
At that moment, the lead masked man pointed at Bu Eun-seol and shouted.
"We must kill him too!"
Kwaaaah—!
The surrounding masked men unleashed another wave of toxic energy.
Unfazed, Bu Eun-seol continued walking slowly, cradling Gongson Dan-gyeong.
Sshhk—!
Simultaneously, the heads of masked men spewing poison from about thirty feet away soared into the sky.
"How—?"
The masked men blinked in confusion.
That bastard was walking calmly with both arms occupied—so how had their comrades' heads flown off?
Was he using sorcery?
Fwah! Fwah!
Yet with every step Bu Eun-seol took, more masked men's heads soared skyward.
Six hundred years' worth of internal energy, combined with Wind & Cloud Divine Qi.
The fusion of these two powers—the Wish-Fulfilling Qi Formula.
And wrath sharp enough to rend the heavens.
All coalesced into one.
An invisible, ultra-high-speed sword.
A blade of vengeance extending infinitely.
Severing the masked men's heads midair.
"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you the truth."
Pausing briefly, Bu Eun-seol gazed down at Gongson Dan-gyeong's closed eyes.
Memories of their time together flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.
When she assigned him missions, when they argued in suspicion, when they purged the Heavenly Human Cult together, when they visited the Gongson Clan together...
Looking back, they had spent so much time side by side.
And without realizing it, affection had grown—both sweet and bitter.
Sshhk! Sshhk! Bang!
Meanwhile, the heads of the One Hundred and Eight Stars weren't just being severed—they were exploding.
In less than seven and a half minutes, over a hundred masked men had become headless corpses.
A sea of corpses and blood.
The dead piled like mountains; their spilled blood formed an ocean.
Expressionless,
Bu Eun-seol stepped slowly forward, treading the blood-soaked earth.