The Brain Soul Meridian Probing
Yu Sucheon let out a long sigh as he swept the courtyard.
Thanks to Jeon Akgwan’s idiocy, his mother-in-law Jin Yeongyeong’s tyrannical reign would only grow more unbearable. As both daughter-in-law and servant, Yu Sucheon felt like he was already dead inside.
If only the old hag would drop dead, this miserable married life would at least end early…
But that was never going to happen.
Thanks to the Haegang Gijo-beop Dan Hyunwoo had taught her, Jin Yeongyeong grew healthier with each passing day. That left only one hope.
The faint dream that if he lived diligently enough, some terrifying Yama-like figure would eventually appear and strike Dan Hyunwoo down.
Please… let it be so…
It was nothing but a fantasy, yet the mere thought made him smile. In front of his only remaining hope, even Yu Sucheon wore an almost innocent expression.
But the possibility was zero.
He could declare it with absolute confidence across the entire Central Plains—who in their right mind would challenge that insane monster capable of seizing objects from thin air?
As that thought crossed his mind, the former Guryong Sect thugs who had been dragged off earlier finally emerged from the Dan Manor.
“You guys okay?”
At Yu Sucheon’s question, one of them—his entire body swollen and bruised from the thorough beating—answered.
“The beating was bad enough, but being trapped in that carriage and flying through the sky yesterday was even more terrifying. Is that really something a human being can do?”
“Looks like you finally understand who the real boss of the Guryong Sect is.”
The thugs nodded vigorously. The sneering laughter they’d let out when told to live as upright white path warriors had vanished completely.
Black path? That was yesterday’s me.
From today onward, I’m white path. No matter what anyone says, I want to scream it from the rooftops.
Yu Sucheon placed a hand on their shoulders.
“Since it’s come to this, if you can’t avoid it, you might as well enjoy it. Show everyone how diligently you’re living now. The eldest son of the Dan family will calm down eventually.”
“We were thinking the exact same thing. If even the Blood-Killing Demon Sword is living this honestly, then we…”
“Hang in there.”
“We’ll take our leave now.”
The Guryong Sect members limped away. One of them was even wiping away tears with his sleeve. The same bastards who used to make others cry every day were sobbing like children.
Damn. They were crying so pathetically it was almost disgusting.
Yu Sucheon picked up his broom again and gazed up at the sky.
“I wonder if Jeon Akgwan is still getting beaten over there?”
Hangzhou was in an uproar.
All because the Guryong Sect had changed.
The very same group that had committed every evil act imaginable had suddenly begun picking up trash on the streets, helping the poor, and rescuing women in danger.
These were the same men who used to harass and molest those very women.
They had always earned their money through every dirty method possible, without hesitation or shame.
Yet now they were taking on proper escort missions, working as temporary guards for courier companies, completing their tasks cleanly, and accepting only the exact payment agreed upon beforehand.
In the past they would have invented every excuse to squeeze out extra money.
The people of Hangzhou were utterly bewildered.
Have those bastards finally gone insane? Or did they hit their heads?
The Guryong Sect had been Hangzhou’s foremost black path faction, notorious as the most vicious sect in the entire Central Plains.
Their leader, Jeon Akgwan, was the kind of villain who would burst into tears if you claimed he wasn’t the worst of the worst.
Seeing such human garbage sweeping the streets was nothing short of shocking.
At first, the citizens couldn’t accept the change.
But as time passed, they gradually began to believe it.
When a Guryong Sect warrior helped a lost child find his parents and received an official commendation from the local magistrate, disbelief became harder than acceptance.
The gaze the people of Hangzhou turned toward the Guryong Sect grew softer by the day.
“Damn it all to hell. How did things end up like this?”
Of course, not everyone welcomed the change.
Cheon Ilseong, former head of the Mokhwa Merchant Group, was one such person.
After Jeon Akgwan escaped the Dan Manor, he should have come straight to retrieve him.
Instead, after failing to flee, the man had suddenly become a loyal dog of the Dan family.
Just thinking about what happened a few days ago made Cheon Ilseong’s teeth chatter with rage.
When Jeon Akgwan had visited his room, his face carried the enlightened expression of someone who had let go of everything.
It was the face of a servant.
Jeon Akgwan had chosen to walk the very path he once despised. But Cheon Ilseong could not accept the same fate.
It seemed Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan had given up, but he still held one final trump card.
Jeon Akgwan is a high-level expert. Yu Sucheon is a supreme expert. If even they couldn’t handle Dan Hyunwoo, then I just need to hire someone stronger than Yu Sucheon…
He still had wealth hidden away.
More importantly, he was well acquainted with Peng Jinwoo, head of the Yongmun family—a branch of the Hebei Peng Clan and one of the top two experts in Zhejiang Province.
Making the request wouldn’t be difficult.
Cheon Ilseong quickly wrote a letter. Soon afterward, a carrier pigeon bearing the message flew off toward the Yongmun family.
That night.
Two men sliced through the thick darkness and entered the medical room.
A sticky killing intent clung to them, accompanied by the heavy stench of blood—like rotting gore.
They sat down.
“If you were waiting for the head of the Yongmun family, give up. He’s not the sort of person who would come to a place like this.”
The assassin spoke as if to confirm the Yongmun family had no direct involvement.
The Yongmun family was connected to Cheon Ilseong only through business. Once the Mokhwa Merchant Group fell into Dan Hyunwoo’s hands, they had simply sent assassins to resolve the inconvenience.
The assassin studied Cheon Ilseong’s face.
“Looks like you understand. You may call me the Employer.”
Sharp eyes gleamed like blades in the darkness.
Cheon Ilseong realized the Yongmun family had sent a true professional.
“The amount I can offer is fifty gold ingots.”
“One hundred. And don’t assume we know nothing. The eldest son of the Dan family is powerful—strong enough to force Yu Sucheon to his knees.”
The employer leaned back in his chair. His movements were utterly silent, almost unnerving.
Just from that, one could gauge his skill. Even Yu Sucheon would find it nearly impossible to defeat this man.
And there were two of them.
Cheon Ilseong asked, “With one hundred gold ingots, can you guarantee the eldest son of the Dan family will stop breathing?”
“You won’t regret this. Twenty-three years as an assassin. I have never failed. I will deliver his head within two days.”
“I’ll trust those words and pay. Please, get me out of this hell.”
“There’s one correction I must make. It’s not that you’re trusting me.”
“What do you mean?”
The employer rose without a sound and answered.
“The moment you gave me the money, it was already finished.”
Two days later.
Swish.
Though it was still daytime, a dark shadow lingered behind a building.
Dan Hyunwoo handed over twenty nyang of silver.
The man in his fifties who received it grinned widely. The deal was complete.
“Starting tomorrow,” the man said.
“Good. I’ll finish my preparations on this end as well.”
“Hehehe, what preparations could there be? Just leave everything to me and don’t worry.”
“I’ll trust you.”
Dan Hyunwoo extended his hand. The man shook it firmly, baring his teeth in a smile the entire time.
The two who had concluded their business in the dark, gloomy space hardly looked like they were meeting for wholesome reasons.
The man glanced around and added, “I’ll take full responsibility for Doyun and teach him properly.”
“I’m relieved to hear the teacher will pay him such close attention.”
“Hahaha, it’s nothing. Truth be told, the twenty nyang is to buy snacks for the other children. They might get jealous of a new student joining midway, so I’ll use it to soothe them.”
“I didn’t realize entering an academy midway was so difficult.”
“Hangzhou is where the wealthiest families of the Central Plains gather. The parents’ interference is fierce. They won’t welcome a mid-term student, but twenty nyang worth of support should smooth things over.”
“Please take good care of Doyun starting tomorrow.”
“Don’t worry. You should head back now.”
Dan Hyunwoo had nearly given up on finding a mid-term placement for Eun Doyun.
That was when Yu Sucheon introduced him to a teacher he knew—the most prestigious academy in Hangzhou. It was surprising that Yu Sucheon was acquainted with the man, but the help had been invaluable.
Dan Hyunwoo turned toward the Dan Manor.
Having waited for the teacher until the children’s lessons ended, the sky had already grown dark.
As he walked, he suddenly stopped in a narrow alleyway even tighter than the one where he had spoken with the teacher.
A desolate wind blew through.
“Come out,” Dan Hyunwoo said. “Before I come find you myself.”
At his words, a man—the Employer—emerged from a gap in the wall overgrown with trees and bushes.
Dressed in black martial robes meant to blend with darkness, he spoke while wrapped in killing intent.
“So surprise attacks don’t work on you.”
“Judging by the nature of the internal energy you’re emitting, you’re an assassin. In that case, asking who hired you would be pointless—you won’t answer.”
“Keeping secrets even unto death is the first rule of our profession.”
“Then conversation ends here.”
“Mutual, it seems.”
Shing.
The assassin drew his sword. The narrow alley that could barely accommodate one person filled with murderous aura.
Dan Hyunwoo raised his scabbard.
As if that were the signal, the assassin’s figure shot forward like lightning.
Boom!
The ground beneath the assassin’s foot caved in deeply. With every step, the pressure of his internal energy sent dirt and stone flying violently.
He closed the distance in an instant.
The assassin’s sword streaked toward Dan Hyunwoo’s head.
Dan Hyunwoo took one step back and avoided it effortlessly. At the same moment, his own sword left its sheath.
The assassin smiled coldly.
In such a cramped alley, drawing one’s sword even slightly later meant surrendering most of the initiative. That was the iron law of life-and-death combat, and no amount of martial prowess could change it.
Unless one was several moves above their opponent.
The assassin read Dan Hyunwoo’s sword path.
Barring any surprises, the man would die in the next exchange.
That was when the assassin’s eyes widened.
The sword he expected to fly toward him had instead turned backward.
Squish!
“Urk… How did you—”
Another assassin who had been closing in from behind Dan Hyunwoo violently vomited blood.
The Employer’s eyes trembled.
Don’t tell me the reason he drew his sword late was…
It meant Dan Hyunwoo had known there were two assassins from the very beginning.
“Tsk!”
The Employer quickly retreated a step, but Dan Hyunwoo spun once through the air even faster and appeared behind the stabbed assassin.
Thud!
The stabbed man gasped as Dan Hyunwoo kicked him squarely in the back. With an unimaginable amount of internal energy behind the kick, the assassin’s body flew helplessly toward his partner.
The Employer tried to block.
Crash!
It was too fast. The two collided head-on, and the Employer was hurled backward.
It was only bodies striking each other, yet the impact felt like shattering bones, rattling his skull.
“Ugh!”
Entangled together, they rolled several times down the alley. The Employer gritted his teeth. His left arm was useless. His right wrist was twisted as well. Holding a sword was now impossible.
He quickly disentangled himself and fled in the opposite direction without looking back.
“Huk!”
His eyes shook. Dan Hyunwoo was already standing there.
How could he be faster than an assassin like himself?
Just… just how many moves above is he?!
Dan Hyunwoo’s fist slammed directly into the Employer’s face.
Boom!
A sound impossible to produce with a mere fist rang out. The Employer’s teeth scattered like rain.
I wasn’t told he was this level of expert! This isn’t just a few moves above—he’s on an entirely different plane!
Overwhelming terror flooded his chest. With no teeth left, his gums clacked together.
For twenty-three years he had lived in darkness, sustained by blood.
Yet before this man, he felt completely naked. That cold gaze seemed to strip every secret from his soul.
It was the eyes of someone who had killed hundreds—thousands.
Boom! Boom! Crash!
The fists continued to hammer down. Each time, the Employer struggled desperately not to lose consciousness. That was all he could do.
The absolute expert Dan Hyunwoo felt like an immovable wall. Even the will to resist had been crushed.
Blood sprayed violently from the Employer’s mouth.
Dan Hyunwoo spoke.
“Keeping secrets even in death is the first rule of assassins, wasn’t it?”
“That’s right! Just kill me! You’ll never get the answer you want!”
Though his spirit was broken, his pride as an assassin remained. Besides, he would die either way. If so, he would at least spit in Dan Hyunwoo’s face.
The Employer twisted his lips in a mocking sneer.
Dan Hyunwoo simply spread his hand and placed it on the man’s head.
The Employer was confused by how utterly calm the other man’s expression remained. The attitude filled him with unease—almost dread.
What is this bastard trying to do? Is he really curious about the client? Why would he bother with such a meaningless—
At that moment, Dan Hyunwoo’s fingertips released all his internal energy like countless silver threads, piercing deep into the Employer’s brain.
Brain Soul Meridian Probing. A forbidden imperial technique that extracts information directly from the target’s brain. Side effect: permanent mental incapacitation.
“Kyaaaaaaaagh! You think I’ll talk just from this?! In twenty-three years there have been countless dangerous moments, but I never once revealed a client! Kyaaaaaaaagh!”
He endured. He resisted with everything he had, glaring at Dan Hyunwoo with the conviction that no words would ever leave his lips.
Dan Hyunwoo, expression still perfectly calm, asked, “Who is the client?”
“Kuk! I will never ans… After turning beside the prefectural office and walking twenty jang, then turning right and walking another ten jang, Cheon Ilseong is hospitalized in the fifteenth room of HwalSaeng Uigak. That bastard begged me over and over to make sure the young master was taken care of. Huk…?!”
His eyes widened like a startled rabbit.
Dan Hyunwoo spoke softly.
“Hold on a little longer until the next question. You’ll soon forget your own name as well.”