Chapter 384
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 384
Chapter Title: Shall We Take a Look?
Ki Yu-chan really seemed busy.
He left the Dragon Training Pavilion the very next day.
After dumping a massive pile of work on Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul and Vice Pavilion Lord Yeon Baek-jin.
Yeon Baek-jin was busy fending off the workload.
But at the same time, he agonized over when to visit Yeon Ha-min and how to deliver the manual to her.
It would be best to meet her secretly, away from prying eyes.
But no matter how much he thought, he couldn't find a way.
He could summon her under the pretext of counseling cadets.
But he'd already called her before.
He couldn't single her out again.
And if he held sessions with a bunch of cadets to cover it up...
The amount of work Ki Yu-chan had left was just too overwhelming.
'Sigh. It'd be great if someone could help...'
The only person he could turn to was one: Ha Mu-baek.
He couldn't reveal Yeon Ha-min's true identity to anyone else.
But even Ha Mu-baek was away right now.
In the end, he'd have to handle it alone.
It was so frustrating.
He didn't even know when Ki Yu-chan would return to the Dragon Training Pavilion.
And so, Yeon Baek-jin took another stroll around the grand training grounds today, using it as an excuse.
By chance, the Fierce Dragon Corps was conducting group training.
As he scanned the area for Yeon Ha-min...
He flinched.
His eyes met Instructor Han Seol-bing's.
'Ah!'
In that moment, Yeon Baek-jin remembered something he'd completely forgotten.
Han Seol-bing, instructor of the Fierce Dragon Corps' Squad Twenty.
She also knew Yeon Ha-min's true identity.
How had he overlooked that crucial fact?
All he had to do was ask her.
So, instead of averting his gaze from Han Seol-bing, he kept staring.
She tilted her head in curiosity instead.
Yeon Baek-jin took one last look around the training grounds, etching Yeon Ha-min's figure in his eyes, then left.
"Vice Pavilion Lord."
How long had he walked?
When he reached a secluded spot...
A voice called from behind.
It was Han Seol-bing.
A glint flashed in Yeon Baek-jin's eyes.
He knew she was strong, but he hadn't realized she was a supreme expert who could approach him without him noticing at all.
At this level, she had surely reached the transcendent realm.
And yet, such a master was merely an instructor in the Fierce Dragon Corps...
Yeon Baek-jin shook his head at the thought.
'If that monster Ha Mu-baek can be a Fierce Dragon Corps instructor, then...'
An even greater monster had come to mind.
"What brings you here, Instructor Han?"
Yeon Baek-jin asked, trying to hide his surprise.
"You've been taking a lot of walks lately."
Han Seol-bing said, looking at him.
"Hm. With all the heavy workload lately, I've needed to clear my head more often."
"You seem to head toward the grand training grounds an awful lot."
"Have I? I thought I was just wandering wherever my feet took me. I hadn't noticed."
Yeon Baek-jin replied with a smile.
Han Seol-bing stared at him intently, her face saying she knew everything.
"What's with that look, Instructor Han?"
"Worried about Ha-min?"
At her question, Yeon Baek-jin nodded.
There was no reason to hide it since she already knew.
"Was it that obvious?"
"I know, so it stands out to me. No one else would notice."
Yeon Baek-jin nodded in relief at her answer.
"It's only natural to worry since Ha-min has to head to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest soon."
Han Seol-bing said understandingly.
The Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest wasn't just any place.
"Even so, your walks have been especially frequent these past couple of days."
Han Seol-bing pointed out.
'That's because Ki Yu-chan's gone.'
He could come watch over Yeon Ha-min more comfortably now.
"Ha-min is steadily growing stronger. Especially with Instructor Ha paying her so much attention. You don't need to worry too much."
That was what Han Seol-bing wanted to tell the clearly anxious Yeon Baek-jin.
"Sorry for the intrusion. Then..."
She cupped her hands in respect and turned to leave.
She couldn't stay away from the training grounds for too long.
But Yeon Baek-jin couldn't let her go like that.
He'd decided just moments ago to ask for her help.
"Um, Instructor Han."
Han Seol-bing paused and turned back.
"I have a favor to ask regarding Ha-min..."
"It's training time now, so I can't be away long. I'll come find you when it's quiet."
With that, she continued walking.
Yeon Baek-jin stared blankly after her.
No discussion of when or where?
"Ah...!"
Then it hit him.
Han Seol-bing was an instructor.
She could request a direct meeting with him, the vice pavilion lord.
He'd been so fixated on secrecy that he'd overlooked the simplest solution.
"Sigh. How can I be this stupid..."
He shook his head, berating himself.
And headed back to the vice pavilion lord's office.
"This isn't like me at all. It's weird."
He muttered what sounded like an excuse to himself—or perhaps to someone else.
"Hm."
Ha Mu-baek stopped in his tracks.
And tilted his head as if pondering something.
The Demon-Sealing Corps, Fierce Dragon Corps, and Pyeong Deok-jo watched him silently.
There must be a reason.
Their past experiences had taught them to trust Ha Mu-baek completely.
"This is tricky..."
Ha Mu-baek tilted his head, then turned around.
"Let's rest here for a bit."
"Why?"
Pyeong Deok-jo asked.
It had only been about two hours since their last break.
This wasn't the time to rest.
"I sense a headache-inducing bastard nearby."
Everyone blinked.
They couldn't quite believe Ha Mu-baek found something a "headache."
Ha Mu-baek's gaze turned to Pung Geon.
"How much do you know about the jiangshi territories?"
"The Dead Jiangshi, Blood Jiangshi, and Poison Jiangshi form packs and hold territories. Stronger ones like the Dark Iron Jiangshi claim vast areas, but we haven't pinpointed the Dark Blood Jiangshi's territory size yet."
A satisfying answer.
Though there were bizarre entities they hadn't identified.
Like the Severed-Head Blood Ghosts.
"The Dark Blood Jiangshi doesn't have a territory. Or rather, its range covers the entire Mountain-Crossing Great Wall."
"!"
The Demon-Sealing Corps was stunned.
Ha Mu-baek stated it so confidently, despite their ongoing uncertainty.
"But there was one that set up a territory around here and stayed put..."
The Demon-Sealing and Fierce Dragon Corps members listened intently.
"It vanished from that territory."
They tilted their heads.
If its domain was the entire Great Wall, wasn't that possible?
Setting a territory in the first place seemed odd.
"And now it's circling around us."
At those words, everyone paled in shock.
He'd saved the most vital part for last.
A Dark Blood Jiangshi prowling their surroundings.
"So then..."
Pyeong Deok-jo asked cautiously.
"Whether to take it out or just watch. That's the dilemma. What a pain."
Ha Mu-baek replied nonchalantly.
So that was it.
The "headache" was deciding what to do—not the act itself.
He spoke of a Dark Blood Jiangshi so casually?
How strong was this man?
Not even Pung Geon had ever seen a Dark Blood Jiangshi.
The first lesson upon joining the Demon-Sealing Corps was their appearance.
And the instruction: if encountered, flee without fail.
Maybe, with incredible luck, you might survive.
"Hm."
Ha Mu-baek crossed his arms, deep in thought.
Dealing with a Dark Blood Jiangshi wasn't hard.
But if it caused other territories to shift, that would be annoying.
"What to do."
He tapped his arm with his finger.
"Gulp."
Pung Geon, Yoo Gwi-gwang, and the others swallowed dryly.
How could they not?
They'd nearly died facing a Dark Iron Jiangshi last time.
Now Ha Mu-baek was talking about a Dark Blood Jiangshi.
"You lot."
Ha Mu-baek met the eyes of the nine staring at him and spoke.
"Dark Blood Jiangshi. Wanna see it?"
His expression was like asking if they wanted to peek at a caged beast.
Caught off guard, they all looked dazed.
Then someone...
Unknowingly nodded.
"Yes? Yes!"
All eight gazes turned to see Gwan Ha-kyeong, hands over her mouth in shock at her own words.
Ha Mu-baek grinned.
"Good. That's the spirit. You have to see the strong ones to get stronger yourself. Let's head that way."
Ha Mu-baek turned and started walking.
Pung Geon and the group followed mechanically, barely comprehending what was happening.
So.
She wanted to grow stronger.
She'd stumbled upon a manual by chance and mastered it effortlessly, growing truly, incredibly strong.
She'd been intoxicated by that power.
She wanted to grow even stronger, to elevate Wind Spirit Valley into Hubei's premier sect.
While devoting herself to a new manual...
She learned it was a vile trick from the wicked Blood Cult.
Word from the Righteous Heaven Alliance.
Chaos Blood Destruction Art.
Shortened to Destruction Art.
The moment one reached the twelfth star, they turned into a jiangshi—a vicious Dark Blood Jiangshi.
A cursed technique.
The instant she learned this...
Wind Spirit Valley Lord Pung Gi-hyu burned the manual.
Lest anyone else find and learn it.
She had learned it, though.
And grown stronger.
But she craved more strength.
'What if I stop before the pinnacle?'
If she halted at the eleventh star, short of the twelfth...
She could maximize her power without becoming a jiangshi.
Pung Gi-hyu kept training.
And finally reached the eleventh star.
'This is far enough.'
With superhuman willpower, she tried to stop.
She didn't want to become a jiangshi herself.
She hadn't known; otherwise, the addictive art would have carried her further in the heat of the moment.
But.
Knowing it turned one into a jiangshi...
She gathered her qi in her dantian, ceased circulation, and vowed never to train again.
Yet.
The qi amassed in her dantian surged wildly through her meridians on its own.
'Wh-what's h-happening...'
Against Pung Gi-hyu's will...
The qi raced through her channels, elevating the Destruction Art's realm.
In an instant, it hit the twelfth star.
'N-nooo!!! Aaaargh.'
The Destruction Art: upon reaching the eleventh star, qi autonomously propelled it to completion at the twelfth.
Even after the Righteous Heaven Alliance's warnings, victims persisted.
The greedy desire: "Just stop at eleven."
The Blood Cult exploited even that human frailty.
Pung Gi-hyu's memories cut off there.
She didn't remember annihilating her own sect—perhaps for the best.
Her memories returned...
Amid excruciating agony.
She couldn't twitch a finger.
A headless body before her eyes.
Instinct told her it was her own.
And...
A band of warriors who seemed to have slain her.
One face she recognized.
Yeon Clan's young master, Yeon Baek-ryang.
She wanted to thank him for killing her, but her lips wouldn't move.
Then floods of memories assaulted her.
Atrocities committed after the Destruction Art consumed her, turning her into a Dark Blood Jiangshi.
'Ugh... uuuugh.'
She writhed in torment, trying to scream, but the groans echoed only in her mind.
'Karma...'
She saw Yeon Baek-ryang facing off against someone, but it didn't matter to her.
Just her karmic retribution, dying like this.
Only guilt and sorrow for her sect's disciples, slain by her own hand.
Thus.
Surely.
She had closed her eyes in death.
Definitely.
Yet.
Blink. Blink.
Pung Gi-hyu's eyes blinked.
The starry night sky filled her vision.