The Shadow's Identity
“Pfft, that face. No matter how many times I replay it, it's an absolute masterpiece.”
Walking along the winding mountain path after leaving the abandoned mine, Jeok-un couldn't stop a chuckle from escaping his lips.
It was still vivid in his mind.
The look on the Blood Sovereign's face when she heard she had to figure out the formulation on her own. She had looked completely out of it.
However, Hae-yeon was not by Jeok-un's side as he made his way down the mountain path.
—Now that the work is done, head back first.
—...Pardon?
It was because he had sent her back to Changsha alone the moment they stepped out of the abandoned mine.
There was only one reason.
Because I still have work to do here.
Jeok-un suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Then, he began to speak aloud to himself.
“A night hike might be dangerous, but since I used plenty of spiritual medicine during her treatment, her martial prowess must have increased. There's no need to worry too much.”
Jeok-un muttered abruptly.
One might have thought he was talking to himself.
But it was no monologue.
For Jeok-un, standing alone, was staring directly into the dense thicket as he spoke.
“Isn't that right, old man?”
Only the sound of the wind rustled through the branches and bushes.
It was a gentle breeze, almost as if trying to soothe him and suggest he was mistaken.
Yet, Jeok-un did not avert his gaze.
Just when any onlooker would have been convinced that Jeok-un was indeed imagining things.
The bushes rustled, and someone stepped out.
“...So you knew after all.”
A lame old man with streaks of silver hair.
It was Old Hwang.
Jeok-un shrugged.
“How could I not? You've been clinging to me like a cicada ever since we left Changsha. You tracked me perfectly, even inside that pitch-black mine.”
“...”
He knew from the very beginning?
Old Hwang's eyes turned cold. Naturally, a chilling aura, sharp as a blade, began to seep from him.
Amidst the tension that felt as if he might strike at any second, a strange gleam flickered in Jeok-un's eyes.
So his leg is perfectly fine.
Old Hwang was supposed to be a cripple who limped.
But now, he did not limp at all.
There seemed to be no issue with his movement, and furthermore, even intense martial arts would pose no burden to him.
Just as Jeok-un finished his silent assessment, Old Hwang spoke slowly.
“First, I must apologize for my insolence. However, having committed such an offense against you, Leader, I cannot shamelessly remain under your command.”
“Hmm, is that so? What a pity.”
During their first meeting, Jeok-un had warned Old Hwang.
—But you will have to make a decision by the time I return.
—Because I have no intention of keeping a 'shadow' of unknown identity under me.
Heeding that warning, Old Hwang had chosen to leave, and Jeok-un did not stop him.
“However, since I have already erred, may I commit one more insolence?”
“Go ahead.”
“Although you saved Hae-yeon's life, Leader, demanding the impossible from her just to keep her by your side seems a bit excessive.”
“Keep talking.”
“Even if she knows the ingredients, asking her to find the exact formulation ratio is like searching for a needle in a desert with nothing but a magnet, is it not?”
As mentioned, Old Hwang had also secretly followed them into the mine shaft.
He had overheard every command Jeok-un gave to Hae-yeon.
In a situation where information and experience were limited, confirmation bias was easy to fall into, and Old Hwang had committed the same error.
He had completely misunderstood the true intent behind Jeok-un's task.
“Are you not giving her an impossible task just to keep her bound to you for as long as possible?”
Old Hwang believed he had struck a nerve. However, Jeok-un's expression did not look like that of a man caught off guard.
Rather, he seemed marvelled that such a misunderstanding was possible, and that Old Hwang had actually come to that conclusion.
He looked on with genuine fascination.
He truly worries for her.
Hae-yeon was a subordinate Jeok-un cherished. Since she was someone he valued, having another person who cared for her like family was something to welcome, not reject.
“She is a child with many wounds that even you, Leader, do not know of. Forgive my presumption, but once you have used her for your purposes, please return her to where she belongs...”
“Hey, old man.”
Jeok-un cut Old Hwang off.
He decided he needed to correct the misconception before they exchanged any more words.
“She will succeed. Do not doubt her.”
“...!”
“She possesses far greater talent and skill than you think, old man.”
Instead of arguing, Old Hwang silently stared into Jeok-un's eyes.
There was not a single tremor in Jeok-un's gaze.
It was steady and direct—a reaction that only came from absolute conviction in one's own words.
In other words, Jeok-un trusted Hae-yeon completely.
Though it certainly won't be easy.
Even so, Jeok-un believed Hae-yeon could do it.
He believed it enough to wager his entire fortune on it.
It had always been that way before his regression.
Even when faced with impossible situations and harsh realities, Jeok-un had trusted his brothers and forged ahead.
And every single time, his brothers had risen to the occasion and succeeded.
Anyway, it's about time to get to the main point.
Jeok-un brought up the core issue at the right moment.
The core issue was none other than 'Old Hwang' himself.
“And while I understand you've grown fond of Hae-yeon, aren't you treating her a bit too much like your own granddaughter?”
“...!”
“I didn't intend to pry. At first, I couldn't guess your identity, but now I see it clearly.”
Old Hwang remained silent.
He had heard countless probing remarks in his life.
But at the words that followed, Old Hwang could no longer keep his silence.
“Returning to the Jianghu after thirty-five years? Good to meet you, Assassin.”
At Jeok-un's words, Old Hwang lunged forward like a bolt of lightning.
It was a movement truly worthy of an assassin.
Yet, there was no killing intent.
He likely intended to subdue Jeok-un first rather than kill him, wanting to pry out how he had discovered his identity.
Then I should play along. There's no need to drag out the greeting.
An assassin aims for a single, fatal blow.
An all-out attack with no path of retreat.
Even without killing intent, this was no different.
Since the old man intended to subdue him with all his might, Jeok-un would meet him head-on.
The power of Tam-rang should suffice.
Jeok-un unleashed the power of Tam-rang to meet him head-on.
A dull, heavy sound, like a massive boulder crashing down a cliff, echoed through the wild mountain.
“...”
As mountain birds fluttered away in fright and wild beasts fled from the sudden explosion, Jeok-un spoke.
“Has time been cruel to you? No, that's not it...”
Jeok-un tilted his head.
Judging by his aura and traces, the Assassin's martial realm was the Profound Realm.
Yet, the blow just now had only reached the Transformation Realm. It felt less like he had held back and more like he lacked the stamina to sustain it.
From this, Jeok-un became certain that the Assassin's decline in martial prowess was not due to the passage of time, but the lingering effects of an injury.
“It's the aftereffects of an injury.”
“...!”
At the confident assertion regarding his injury, Old Hwang unleashed waves of energy.
It was as if he was determined to kill Jeok-un to silence him.
Yet, Jeok-un replied calmly.
“Calm down. You're the old man Hae-yeon considers family. I have no intention of exposing the past of someone like you to the world.”
While placating Old Hwang, Jeok-un recalled his true identity once more.
He is as formidable as the rumors say. If his original strength had been intact, this might have been quite dangerous.
Old Hwang's moniker was the Shadowless Assassin, the greatest killer under heaven sixty years ago.
It was sixty years ago—a full sexagenary cycle—when the Shadowless Assassin first appeared in the Jianghu.
On his very first mission, one of the top one hundred masters fell.
And before he vanished, no fewer than two of the Ten Great Masters of the Land met their demise by his hand.
The Ten Great Masters.
Two of the ten strongest martial artists in the world.
One could easily imagine the massive storm that had swept through the Jianghu.
Yet, no information about the Shadowless Assassin had ever been revealed.
Gender, age, appearance, martial arts—nothing.
Not a single detail was known.
Aside from his moniker, only one fact had surfaced.
That the Assassin hailed from the Assassin Gate.
That was the last piece of information known, and it was from thirty-five years ago.
For he had vanished after completing his final mission thirty-five years ago.
The people of the world speculated that he had died at the hands of another master or had retired, but the truth was different.
“Your son, his wife, and your granddaughter, who left to escape the life of an assassin, met a brutal end.”
“...”
And so, the Assassin wandered for fourteen years to exact his blood vengeance.
Finally, twenty-one years ago, he uncovered the hidden identity of his enemies.
However, they discovered him as well. Faced with a martial force far greater than expected, he failed to achieve his revenge and was instead pursued until he fell down a thousand-foot abyss.
“And since you were first spotted in Sadocheon twenty years ago, you must have joined them to hide your identity while recovering from your injuries.”
But seeing as you haven't left Sadocheon to this day, it seems your injuries haven't fully healed.
In the midst of that, you saw Hae-yeon. She must have reminded you of your granddaughter, prompting you to risk exposure and pass down a portion of your martial arts to her.
“...”
Listening quietly to Jeok-un's deduction, Old Hwang finally spoke.
“Are you in league with them?”
“What?”
“Don't give me any nonsense about reading this in the archives of the Jegal Family. If the Jegal Family knew, the Murim Alliance would know. And if the Murim Alliance knew, they would never have left me in peace.”
“Ah, right. One of the Ten Great Masters you killed was from the Namgung Family.”
Old Hwang took another step forward.
“Hey, old man. It's a misunderstanding.”
Ignoring him, Old Hwang took another step closer. Jeok-un spoke flatly, tossing out the words.
It was the single sentence he had been waiting to deliver until this very moment.
“I didn't hear it from them. Quite the opposite, actually. I heard it from the ones you are hunting.”
“...!”
The ones he was hunting?
How did he know that?
The moment Old Hwang hesitated, Jeok-un smirked.
Old Hwang quickly hardened his expression, glaring at Jeok-un with piercing eyes.
“Stop talking nonsense. As if you know who I am hunting.”
The instant Old Hwang finished speaking, Jeok-un replied as if he had been waiting for the cue.
“It's the Demonic Cult.”
“...!!”
Old Hwang's eyes widened so far they looked ready to tear.
Indeed, the sworn enemy who had slaughtered Old Hwang's son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter was none other than the Demonic Cult.
The reason Jeok-un recognized Old Hwang and knew so much about him was because of his relentless battles against the Demonic Cult before his regression.
During the endless, grueling war of attrition with the Demonic Cult, he had once obtained a document regarding the Assassin.
At the time, Jeok-un had taken particular note of Old Hwang, as his deeds were highly remarkable.
It's no easy feat to wage such a long, bitter war against the Demonic Cult all by oneself.
That was precisely what had caught Jeok-un's attention.
He wasn't at the peak of a massive faction like Jeok-un had been.
Yet, he had played hide-and-seek for over twenty years, single-handedly hounding the Demonic Cult.
Old Hwang was that capable, which was why Jeok-un was going to such lengths to explain all this.
It would be a waste to let him go.
“Whether you believe me is up to you, but I also hold a grudge against them.”
“...”
“As the old saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. So, we can be allies, can't we?”
Saying this, Jeok-un suddenly spun around.
Old Hwang was startled.
It was madness.
Showing one's back to an assassin.
Yet, Jeok-un spoke without even looking back.
“Now, follow me. I'll let you verify the truth of my words.”
At those words, Old Hwang's heart wavered violently.