#86. Hell's Second Gate (3)
“This…… this makes no sense.”
A scream leaked from Jong Seogang's mouth. It was understandable. In his previous life, Sang Jeongmun of the 108 Peaks—who held the 17th peak—must have felt exactly the same upon witnessing this scene.
The mountain known in his past life only as some nameless evil peak, Makgan Mountain, had gained its notoriety starting with the appearance of the Golden Scale Azure Immortal. At the time, Sang Jeongmun had been the first to hear the news and mobilized every warrior in his sect, but they ultimately failed.
Not only was the Golden Scale Azure Immortal dwelling on Makgan Mountain, but so too was the Poison-Horned Black Toad, known as the natural predator of snakes.
The Poison-Horned Black Toad had emerged upon smelling the fishy stench of the Golden Scale Azure Immortal. Naturally, Sang Jeongmun's warriors should have fled on the spot, but they couldn't tear themselves away from the two 300-year-old spirit beasts right before their eyes. In the end, they suffered around four hundred casualties.
This incident weakened the Sang Clan irreversibly. Unable to withstand the assaults from the Cheongdo Alliance and the Yellow Sword Sect, they vanished into the annals of history.
And ironically, it was precisely those Cheongdo Alliance and Yellow Sword Sect forces now facing the Golden Scale Azure Immortal and Poison-Horned Black Toad here.
“Th-that horned toad first…… no, the snake first……”
The Poison-Horned Black Toad, drawn by the Golden Scale Azure Immortal's scent, quickly shifted its target amid the killing intent flying from all directions and began attacking the humans. Its long tongue flicked out and vanished in an instant, and three warriors disappeared without a trace.
“Kaaack!”
“Kkyaaagaga.”
“Agagaga!”
All that remained where they had stood were the swords they had been holding, while the Poison-Horned Black Toad tilted its head back and gulped down its mouthful.
“You damn toad bastard!”
Outraged by the loss of their comrades, several warriors charged at the toad like arrows. Thud, thud, thud, thud. Their swords struck its back simultaneously, but they couldn't pierce its flesh.
And it was right then that they sensed something off.
“Sniff sniff. What the……”
“Cough.”
The warriors who had climbed onto the toad's back to strike suddenly dropped their swords and clutched their throats. They leaped off as if unable to breathe, but they couldn't even take three steps. Their cyan-tinged faces quickly turned purple, then black, before they froze in place and breathed their last.
“Poison!”
“Don't get close!”
The battlefield turned into pandemonium in an instant. Pull away from the Poison-Horned Black Toad, and its lightning-fast tongue would lash out. Try to retreat further from the tongue, and the Golden Scale Azure Immortal would gape its maw and swallow them whole.
“Take out that one first! The one with the Second Gate Pass!”
At Jong Seogang's desperate shout, the warriors eyeing the chaos all turned toward Gam Cheolj in.
“You worthless shits! I'm going to be the next Yellow Sword Sect Lord! Move, now!”
“……”
Only when Gam Cheolj in nodded did they finally start advancing toward me again.
I gathered all my inner energy and unleashed my killing intent.
“Urk, what kind of killing intent……”
“Damn it……”
The Yellow Sword Sect warriors poured out their own killing intent to match mine. As the distance closed in a flash with their hesitant advance, our swords clashed. Clang, clang, clangclang.
I stepped into the Tae-eul Eight Myriad Divine Steps, scattering the Twin Heaven Sword Conclusion. Only Gam Cheolj in and a few others had reached the Peak realm, so the Twin Heaven Sword Conclusion was more than enough to handle them.
“He's falling back! Press him harder!”
I glanced at the triumphant Jong Seogang and said, “Your crew's in for a rough ride with an idiot like you at the helm.”
“……”
Normally, Peak realm warriors like Gam Cheolj in should have been dealing with the two spirit beasts, not me. It was only natural for the underlings to suffer when someone who didn't even grasp the basics of command was in charge.
Gurrrgle.
Gurrrgle.
The moment the Poison-Horned Black Toad's cry rang out:
“Wha…… wha?!”
The warriors frantically parrying my Twin Heaven Sword Conclusion suddenly realized they were right in front of the Poison-Horned Black Toad and paled in terror.
I immediately executed the Ghost Food Shadow Step and slipped right between its legs.
“H-how?!”
The Yellow Sword Sect warriors stared blankly as I passed the Poison-Horned Black Toad, utterly shocked. Now its tongue was targeting them.
“Kwaaack!”
“D-dodge!”
“You idiots! Don't dodge! It's just one toad!”
Despite Jong Seogang's furious bellows, the Yellow Sword Sect warriors froze, eyes fixed only on Gam Cheolj in.
“Use palm strikes!”
“Yes!”
The Yellow Sword Sect warriors unleashed their palm techniques in unison. Boom boom boom boom boom. Thick dust clouded the air, obscuring the Poison-Horned Black Toad.
“……”
“D-did we get it?”
No sooner had the suspicious warrior spoken than a massive shadow loomed over their heads.
“Sh-shit!”
Thud.
Gurrgle.
Gurrgle.
The Poison-Horned Black Toad rampaged unscathed through their midst.
“You guys okay?”
I rushed to the gold-silver-bronze brothers and checked them over. Fortunately, none seemed seriously hurt.
“Big Brother, what the hell is that thing?”
“What else? The Second Gate Pass.”
“Is this really how we're supposed to pass the Second Gate?”
Eunho stared at me in disbelief. The guy who would recite word-for-word things I never said now hid none of his doubt.
“Listen up. From now on, we hit the pursuers.”
“What?!”
“Right now?”
“Yeah. If not now, we can't shake them. And if the others don't learn what happens when they mess with us, the pursuit won't stop. You wanna keep munching jerky with blood-soaked hands amid corpses from here on out?”
“……Where do we start?”
Geum Pyo shook his head, clearly sick of the last few days. If he was already like this, what would happen later?
“But is this okay? Once we take them out, we'll be next on the menu.”
“Why do you think I taught you the Ghost Food Shadow Step?”
“It'll fool that thing?”
“It's lived long enough to form an inner core, but it's still just a beast. No intelligence—just honed instincts—which makes it even easier to trick.”
“Got it.”
With that, we scattered in all directions. I headed straight back to the Yellow Sword Sect group battling the Poison-Horned Black Toad.
“Attack! Kill it! How can you not even catch a single toad? And you call yourselves Yellow Sword Sect warriors?!”
Jong Seogang had lost all his usual composure, screaming in full frenzy. Gam Cheolj in and the others were calmly hunting from a distance, but to Jong Seogang's eyes, it looked like they were avoiding battle with the toad.
“Jin Sowoon! Where's that Jin Sowoon bastard?!”
Distracted by the Poison-Horned Black Toad for a moment, he started scanning around, shouting my name.
-Keurk!
-Gack!
-T-Tae-eul Gate! Tae-eul Gate is attacking!
Screams began echoing from afar. The Yellow Sword Sect warriors, vision blocked by the pervasive dust, fretted over potential ambushes while facing the toad. It was making the fight increasingly difficult.
“Young master, we should fall back for now.”
“……What?”
“We're not prepared to hunt the Poison-Horned Black Toad or the Golden Scale Azure Immortal right now.”
“What did you just say?! We have both the First and Second Gate Passes right in front of us!”
“If we keep this up, the entire Yellow Sword Sect contingent might die.”
“Gam Cheolj in!!!”
Jong Seogang's enraged roar thundered through the field.
“Do I look like a joke because I haven't been formally appointed young lord yet?!”
“……”
Jong Seogang seemed to have lost all reason in his excitement.
“I'm Jong Seogang of the Yellow Sword Sect!”
“……”
“If we retreat now, we'll lose not just the First Gate Pass, but the spirit beast for the Second as well! Can you take responsibility for that? Speak!”
“……”
Jong Seogang was acting exactly as he had in his previous life when he worked for the Execution Hall and doomed his own sect.
'People really don't change.'
Deciding he was no longer worth my attention, I sought out Jang Sunwon, the vice leader of the Cheongdo Alliance. He was surveilling the surroundings from the safest spot with his guards.
“Your men are dying, and you're just gonna watch?”
They flinched in surprise as I approached with the Ghost Food Shadow Step.
“Jin Sowoon……”
Jang Sunwon growled my name through gritted teeth.
“Quite touching. Never thought you'd say my name like that.”
“……You know me?”
He looked utterly baffled. Of course—our connection was from my previous life.
“Take your warriors and leave, and I won't pursue.”
“……”
He pondered, face conflicted. So shallow. Even as his own men and allies died, he calculated gains and losses. The classic trait of those who believed they held the upper hand.
'And they usually make the same dumb choice.'
Jang Sunwon's brows shot up.
“What cheap trick is this?! Hand over all the First Gate Passes right now!”
“Knew you'd pick that.”
You couldn't just pick up a warrior like Gam Cheolj in anywhere. And the Cheongdo Alliance had never produced a secret guard of that caliber.
The Black Dragon Sword, still slick with fresh blood, whipped around, conjuring dozens of phantom blades in all directions.
The Cheongdo guards stepped forward with their staffs, but their heavy techniques couldn't surpass the subtleties of transformation in the Twin Heaven Sword Conclusion.
“Urk.”
“Ngh.”
The four guards collapsed in an instant, and Jang Sunwon's eyes trembled violently.
“A-alright. W-we'll go ba……”
“Deciding now that your life's at risk?”
“I said we're leaving! We're retreating, so……”
“Die like a vice leader.”
“Kgh! You bastard! How dare you…… to our Cheongdo Alli……”
Jang Sunwon couldn't finish, his chest splitting open as he crumpled.
I infused my voice with inner energy and bellowed:
-The Cheongdo Alliance vice leader is dead! Those who want to live, look out for yourselves!
…….
……?!
……!!
The warriors who witnessed Jang Sunwon's death in disbelief began to falter. The Cheongdo ones, busy with the Golden Scale Azure Immortal, couldn't even dream of approaching me.
“Kill him! Kill that guy, and we win! We get into the Murim Academy!”
Jong Seogang pointed at me and screamed, but no one dared move rashly.
I stepped into the Heavenly Lone Walker God Step and appeared before Jong Seogang in a flash.
“Hup! What kind of lightness skill…… cough!”
I thrust the Black Dragon Sword straight into him.
“What the……”
Jong Seogang's eyes stared in disbelief at the blade buried in his chest.
Schluck.
His body tilted, and the sword slid free from within.
“……”
“……”
“……”
The Yellow Sword Sect warriors battling the Poison-Horned Black Toad gaped in stunned silence.
“No one from the Yellow Sword Sect is getting into the Murim Academy now. You wanna keep going?”
I addressed Gam Cheolj in, the real power there.
“……”
“If you do, every last Yellow Sword Sect warrior buries their bones here. As you saw, our Tae-eul Gate isn't affected by those spirit beasts.”
“……”
Gam Cheolj in glanced around. Nearly fifty warriors lay dead. Barely thirty remained. The other twenty had been reduced to wandering spirits without even corpses.
Even if everyone focused solely on the hunt, it was touch-and-go. Continuing under Tae-eul Gate ambushes meant they'd all die here.
“We retreat.”
“……”
“……”
“……”
No one objected to Gam Cheolj in's decision. If anything, they looked relieved.
“Smart choice.”
“……Thank you for sparing our warriors' lives.”
“You saved their lives.”
“Everyone, fall back! We're heading out!”
No sooner had Gam Cheolj in spoken than the Yellow Sword Sect warriors unleashed palm winds to cover their retreat.
With the Yellow Sword Sect pulling back, the Poison-Horned Black Toad turned toward the Golden Scale Azure Immortal again, forcing the Cheongdo Alliance warriors—who could no longer hold out—to withdraw as well.
“You have until the incense stick burns out! Anyone still here will be seen as choosing to fight to the end!”
“What about the Golden Scale Azure Immortal and Poison-Horned Black Toad?!”
“I'll handle them.”
“?”
I leaped high above the two spirit beasts' heads and unleashed the Cartoon Invincible Fist. Boom boom boom boom boom boom.
The massive creatures, unmoved by their bulk, were pinned immobile like boulders crushing them.
“What the…… impossible.”
“What kind of technique is that from a Tae-eul Gate warrior?”
The warriors forgot to flee, staring in awe.
I bellowed again with inner energy:
-One incense stick! I said one incense stick!
As if struck by lightning, their eyes flew wide. Regardless of sect, they hoisted whatever corpses they could and bolted down the mountain.
Should he be happy about this or not?
As the enemies—who had choked them like a dense net—scattered like rats before a cat, Eunho felt conflicted.
'If they all run like that, how are we supposed to catch the monster?'
Whether it was a 200-year or 300-year spirit beast, it was a once-in-a-lifetime treasure for most warriors. But to him, barely past twenty, it was just a man-eating monster.
“Big Brother can handle it, so they bailed. No biggie.”
Geum Pyo dismissed Eunho's worry with casual indifference, as if it were no concern at all.
“……Hoo.”
Dongryong shook the blood from his sword, looking refreshed.
Then Jin Sowoon, mid-battle with the two monsters, kicked off the air and landed beside the gold-silver-bronze trio.
“Huh?”
“Whoa!”
“……!”
The brothers' eyes widened naturally.
“What if you come here all sudden like?”
Eunho blurted in anxiety before he could stop himself.
“……”
Jin Sowoon eyed him lazily.
Realizing his slip, Eunho quickly added, “Big Brother, you sent them off 'cause you have a plan to catch it, right?”
Jin Sowoon flicked the venom from his Black Dragon Sword and raised a brow as if to say, What are you on about? That expression only fueled Eunho and Geum Pyo's unease.
“I'm not one of the Ten Great Masters of the world. How the hell am I supposed to catch those?”
True. True enough. He didn't know the limits of Big Brother's skills, but taking down centuries-old spirit beasts was another matter entirely.
……But was now the time to say that?
“So you sent everyone away without even planning to catch it?”
At least if he wasn't confident, they could've teamed up…… Nah, teaming up with him was unimaginable anyway.
“So we should've just left it there?”
“Why catch something we don't need to in the first place?”
“Huh?”
Wondering if he'd missed something, Eunho glanced at Geum Pyo—who was scrubbing bloodstains from his clothes—and Dongryong, who gawked at the spirit beasts with his mouth agape. Clearly, he wasn't the only one confused. The other two had just stopped thinking.
“No need to catch it. Resume the Ghost Food Shadow Step from now.”
“……”
As Jin Sowoon demonstrated the Ghost Food Shadow Step, he vanished from perception despite being right there. Meanwhile, Geum Pyo and Dongryong's versions still leaked a faint presence.
“It's a fight between the toad's natural predator snake and the horned toad that eats those snakes. No need for us to butt in.”
“What……”
“Watch.”
As Jin Sowoon's group erased their presence, the two ferocious monsters, searching for humans, looked puzzled and scanned around. Realizing the people were gone, they turned their hostility on each other.
Kyaaaahhh.
Grurrrrgle.
The spirit beasts' clash erupted in an instant. The Golden Scale Azure Immortal coiled to constrict the Poison-Horned Black Toad, which leaped with its massive body, ramming its head horn into the snake.
Kyaaaahhh.
The Golden Scale Azure Immortal's scales—impervious to most swords—dented deeply, and it shrieked piercingly. The high-pitched cry stabbed their eardrums.
“So we just wait for one to win, then take out the victor? But that doesn't look easy either.”
Even if one died, what plan was there for the survivor?
“No need for that either.”
The battle intensified. The Golden Scale Azure Immortal spewed venom everywhere, and the Poison-Horned Black Toad shuddered, paralyzed on contact. Seizing the moment, the snake gaped its jaws and swallowed the toad whole.
“Wha! That'll destroy the inner core……”
“Not over yet.”
With its throat bulging from the swallowed toad, the Golden Scale Azure Immortal tried to digest it swiftly.
Crack.
Pierce.
A horn sprouted from the Golden Scale Azure Immortal's head.
'Oh! Eating the Poison-Horned Black Toad to evolve into a Poison-Horned Golden Scale Azure Immortal?' The absurd thought flashed through his mind.
Blood fountained from between the horns as the Golden Scale Azure Immortal collapsed with its massive body.
Thud.
Grurrgle.
Grurrgle.
The Poison-Horned Black Toad yanked its horn free from the snake's head, skin partially melted, and barely wriggled out.
“See? Told you no need to fight.”
Big Brother, now atop the toad's head, plunged the Black Dragon Sword deep into its eye.
Gruk.
The Poison-Horned Black Toad died without much resistance.
Eunho asked in shock, “Big Brother, you knew the pursuers would come and led us to Makgan Mountain on purpose, right?”
“We had to pass the Second Gate anyway. We're broke. So we borrowed someone else's 'help.'”
“……'Help'?”
While Eunho stood dazed, Jin Sowoon turned to Geum Pyo and Dongryong.
“Can you trust this big brother now?”
“Big Brother! I've never once doubted you since the day I was born!”
“Big Brother! I'd believe you even if you said you made bean paste from red beans!”
“……”
As Geum Pyo and Dongryong cheered in victory's euphoria, Eunho couldn't join in, a nagging unease lingering.
Is this right?
No matter how he thought about it, it didn't sit well.
'This doesn't feel like the Murim Academy's intent with their exam.'
Sure, as an educational institution, they couldn't outright say, “We want rich kids,” so they designed it this way. But solving a problem meant to be unsolvable—how flustered would the academy be?
'Is this really okay?'
Geum Pyo and Dongryong, failing to piggyback Big Brother for joy due to lack of strength, now looked to him. Eunho sighed softly and stopped thinking.
“Honestly, I have no idea what to do.”
Yang Gunbaek stared despairingly at the Golden Scale Azure Immortal and Poison-Horned Black Toad.
With Jeon Seo-eung unable to approach due to the net of killing intent, Yang Gunbaek had come himself out of worry. It was convenient for me since I had business to settle, but his face looked far from relaxed.
“What's wrong?”
“If I report this as-is, they'll think I'm lying for sure.”
“……Haha. That so?”
Yang Gunbaek sighed deeply, then quickly composed himself.
“What a relief. I was worried, but to think you'd achieve such excellent results.”
“Thanks to your concern.”
“Did you get the Second Gate Pass?”
After slaying the Golden Scale Azure Immortal and Poison-Horned Black Toad and extracting their inner cores, Murim Alliance examiners and warriors appeared from somewhere.
“They processed it in three gapja each.”
“Truly impressive.”
Yang Gunbaek stared blankly at the corpses before his eyes snapped wide.
“Then…… what about the bodies? Turning them over to the Alliance?”
The examiners had asked the same, as the Alliance typically handled spirit beast corpses and cores.
“I have better connections. Why bother with them?”
My meaningful smile made Yang Gunbaek's mouth gape impossibly wide.
“I'll…… handle it without regrets, absolutely.”
“While you're at it, take care of this too.”
I handed him the inner cores from the Golden Scale Azure Immortal and Poison-Horned Black Toad. His eyes bulged.
“Dispose of those two and procure three suitable spirit elixirs.”
“……Young master Sowoon. Of course that's possible, but wouldn't it be better to consume these directly rather than selling them for others?”
“True, but their inner energy is still under ten years cultivated.”
“Ah……”
I glanced at the gold-silver-bronze brothers fooling around.
The cores contained poison. Someone with sufficient inner energy could convert even that, but the brothers would be poisoned before absorbing them.
“Handle their carcasses too and add the proceeds to buy all spirit elixirs.”
“Yes. I'll get the elixirs before disposing of the beasts.”
I tilted my head at Yang Gunbaek's words.
“That works for me, but you don't have to push yourself……”
Procuring elixirs before selling meant fronting his own or his sect's money. That could lead to increased handling, storage, and incidental costs if sales lagged—or worse, if they didn't sell.
I couldn't fathom why he'd shoulder unnecessary risk.
“……”
Yang Gunbaek hesitated, lips twitching, before speaking.
“I don't want to ruin the good mood, but……”
“Something up?”
“Young master Sowoon, you don't have time.”
“What? Even if the First Gate was late, the Second should've been quicker.”
“The Mount Wudang, Huashan, and Jeomchang factions have started moving.”
“……?”
“Toward you.”