Chapter 134: An Unwanted Conclusion (2)

That grin must have really pissed him off, because Yu Geuk's ice-cold expression finally cracked just a little.

The kind of crack that screamed pure irritation.

At the same time, massive amounts of chilling demonic energy began gathering around Yu Geuk's saber.

'This is a bit rushed, but I don't have a choice.'

The blade, now loaded with freezing energy, came flying straight at Seo Wan-pyeong, ready to cut him clean in half.

'...Ice arts really are a pain in the ass.'

Seo Wan-pyeong's smile vanished as he gritted his teeth and desperately pulled up every bit of internal energy from his dantian.

His body had already gone sluggish from all that cold energy that had seeped in. There was no way he could dodge something that dangerous-looking with footwork alone.

"Hup!"

True to its assassination-focused nature, a translucent aura wrapped around Seo Wan-pyeong's sword.

BOOM!!!

The moment the blade met the sword, cold energy exploded outward like a massive iceberg bursting apart, creating a thunderous roar.

Seo Wan-pyeong was launched backward through the steam cloud that formed from the explosion, flying a full 3 meters before he could barely manage to stop himself.

"Cough..."

He immediately coughed up a mouthful of blood. The impact had been brutal—not only was he spitting blood, but his eyes were completely bloodshot too.

But then...

"Heh heh heh."

Even with bloodshot eyes and blood trickling from his mouth, Seo Wan-pyeong was grinning again.

It wasn't like he'd gone crazy from internal injuries or anything.

The thing was, Yu Geuk—who'd just dealt him some serious internal damage—looked even more irritated than before.

"What's happening, Vice Hall Master?!"

"Who the hell is that guy?!"

The noise and energy waves from their clash had drawn the instructors and disciples of the Hall of the Demonic Way running over.

Seo Wan-pyeong had been counting on this exact thing happening. In his mind, his mission was already a success.

On the flip side, Yu Geuk knew this would happen too, which is why he tried to kill Seo Wan-pyeong as fast as possible. Even going so far as to force out a lethal technique.

Normally, Yu Geuk preferred to slowly pressure his opponents with cold energy, then unleash a devastating attack once their bodies were completely frozen stiff.

'...Now I can only pray that the Third Young Master didn't overhear our conversation.'

Though they had only exchanged a few blows, Yu Geuk had belatedly recognized his opponent’s identity in the process of their clash.

That's exactly why he wanted to finish off the Third Young Master even faster.

If he'd killed him before the others arrived, he could've made excuses about mistaking him for an intruder who'd snuck into the Hall of the Demonic Way.

But now, with everyone watching? That was dangerous territory.

"There was an intruder!"

Yu Geuk tried to get ahead of the story before the injured Third Young Master could speak.

"Hall Master, that bastard is one of the rats targeting my youngest brother!"

But Seo Wan-pyeong, with an expression of pure joy that didn't match his battered face, shouted out while spitting blood.

Yeom Ga-hwi, who'd arrived at the scene with the other instructors, stepped forward and asked, "Are you certain?"

"I heard it with my own ears! He's giving orders to kill my youngest brother during the test ten days from now!"

At Seo Wan-pyeong's declaration, Yu Geuk replied with an icy expression, "Hall Master, the Third Young Master is an intruder who barged into the Hall of the Demonic Way without permission before he's even a disciple of the Supreme One. Are you really going to believe his accusations?"

Yeom Ga-hwi looked at him with a deadpan expression.

“My apologies, but I already knew. I knew the Third Young Master’s entry on the Hall."

Yu Geuk almost ground his teeth without thinking.

'...So that's how it was.'

The moment he'd realized that the little rat eavesdropping on their conversation was the Third Young Master, Yu Geuk had already suspected something was amiss.

But he couldn't just back down now.

"Are you trying to frame me like this, Hall Master?"

Yu Geuk decided to play this off as some kind of internal power struggle within the Hall of the Demonic Way.

With all the instructors, assistant instructors, and disciples watching, he figured he could at least buy some time.

But he'd forgotten something important.

He'd been looking at Yeom Ga-hwi as just the 'Hall Master' for so long that he'd completely forgotten what kind of person Yeom Ga-hwi had been back when he was called the 'Fist Demon.'

Looking at Yu Geuk playing the victim, Yeom Ga-hwi spoke for the last time.

"If you want to play childish word games, go find someone else."

By the time the word 'else' hit Yu Geuk's ears...

BOOM!!!

The ground where Yeom Ga-hwi had been standing exploded.

Leaving only an afterimage, Yeom Ga-hwi had instantly closed in on Yu Geuk and was already swinging a fist charged with crimson energy.

But Yu Geuk had been somewhat prepared too. He quickly swung his cold energy-wrapped blade to block that punch.

Clang!

A weird metallic sound rang out—far too strange for just metal hitting flesh.

Clang! Clang!

A rapid succession of impact sounds and shockwaves echoed out.

***

"Third Brother! Are you alright?"

Il-mok, who'd come running at full speed the moment he heard the commotion, immediately checked on Seo Wan-pyeong's condition.

"Hmm. I'm fine, don't worry."

Maybe because he'd successfully carried out what his precious youngest brother had asked of him, Seo Wan-pyeong tried to look dependable and spoke with a confident expression.

'...Saying that when you look like that.'

Of course, with blood flowing from his mouth and his eyes completely bloodshot, he just looked pitiful rather than cool.

"Leave the rest to the Hall Master and me. For now, focus on circulating your energy. I'll stand guard. You did well, Third Brother."

"Right. I'll trust my little brother."

Seo Wan-pyeong, still trying to maintain that dependable image until the end, endured the pain from his internal injuries and the agony of the cold energy that had penetrated throughout his body, then sat cross-legged in meditation.

Once Il-mok confirmed that Seo Wan-pyeong had started his meditation, he quickly sent a telepathic message to someone.

—Instructor Eun Ryeo, please stop Instructor Ma.

Eun Ryeo, who'd arrived at the scene and was watching the situation unfold, looked puzzled.

—Do you know what's going on here, Disciple Il-mok?

—I don't have time to explain the details. Instructor Ma might try to kill himself, so you need to stop him!

—!?

His voice transmission brought a look of confusion to Eun Ryeo’s face but only briefly.

She was also a martial artist of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, so she wasn't naive enough to just stand around panicking in an urgent situation like this.

'Since he asked me to prevent suicide, I just need to stay near Instructor Ma and keep watch.'

Deciding to hide near Ma Do-yeong and observe the situation, she carefully deployed stealth techniques and quietly approached him.

With people continuously gathering at the scene, there was almost no chance Ma Do-yeong would notice her using stealth techniques.

Not unless he had been keeping a close eye on her from the beginning.

And right now, Ma Do-yeong didn't have the luxury of watching Eun Ryeo.

He was frantically turning his head this way and that, trying to assess the situation with a face full of complex emotions.

'Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. Where did things start going wrong?'

It seemed like everyone from the Hall of the Demonic Way had gathered now, with dozens of people surrounding them.

BOOM!

In the center, the Hall Master and Vice Hall Master kept clashing, creating explosive sounds and energy waves.

In the midst of all this, Ma Do-yeong was wrestling with just one thought.

'Should I help the Vice Hall Master kill the Hall Master? Or should I just kill myself?'

If he got caught here, there was a risk that both he and the Vice Hall Master might expose 'that person's' identity. In that case, suicide might be the right choice.

On the other hand, if he attacked the Hall Master, there might be at least some chance of survival. But suicide was just death, and then everything would be over.

The scales that had been wavering endlessly in that split second finally tipped to one side.

'Too many people have already gathered. Even if we miraculously kill the Hall Master, there's no way out.'

Having made his decision, Ma Do-yeong drew his sword and brought it down toward his own heart.

"Urk!?"

But the pain came from somewhere else, not his heart.

The moment he'd made his move, Eun Ryeo had instantly emerged from stealth and struck his pressure points.

Ma Do-yeong, who'd been lost in deep thought, hadn't noticed her approach even when she got right next to him.

Having stopped Ma Do-yeong's suicide attempt, Eun Ryeo looked toward Il-mok with an expression like she'd seen a ghost.

'How the hell did he know this guy would try to kill himself?'

Unaware of Eun Ryeo's thoughts, Il-mok was nodding with an 'I knew it' expression.

He could make this prediction because he'd been burned by similar experiences several times before.

'Either try to take me hostage, or commit suicide. Those were the only two options.'

Il-mok shouted toward Yeom Ga-hwi, who was engaged in fierce combat with Yu Geuk.

"Hall Master!! Ma Do-yeong has been subdued!"

The moment that shout ended...

BOOM!

A massive explosion roared, and Yu Geuk's body was sent flying backward.

With blood at the corner of his mouth, Yu Geuk wore an unusually desperate expression as he swung his blade repeatedly in the air, sending blade energy flying toward Yeom Ga-hwi.

Watching the blade energy coming at him, Yeom Ga-hwi took a punching stance with his usual deadpan expression.

At the same time, crimson energy flowed throughout his entire body, taking the form of three heads and six arms.

BOOM!!!

As if the punching motion had been skipped entirely, six crimson trajectories were suddenly carved through the air.

'Crazy... he really looks like a damn Asura.'

Il-mok, who'd already been unconscious when Yeom Ga-hwi had subdued Chu Il-hwan, was seeing Yeom Ga-hwi's martial arts for the first time.

The blood-colored fist energy Yeom Ga-hwi had launched easily shattered Yu Geuk's blade energy.

Whoooosh!

The remaining cluster of fist energy, still with power left, flew straight toward Yu Geuk.

Yu Geuk, who'd been trying to buy time with blade energy to set up a big technique, abandoned forming his energy and just threw his body aside.

BOOM!

Six explosions went off with barely any time between them.

Yeom Ga-hwi, who'd already deployed his lightness skill, had closed in right next to Yu Geuk, who'd desperately thrown himself aside, and swung his fist.

BOOM!!!

Once again, Yu Geuk and Yeom Ga-hwi were exchanging blade and fists at close range, their blade and fists clashing, creating a continuous roar as the pale-blue cold energy and blood-red energy collided.

It was a battle between two absolute masters of a different caliber.

Il-mok was watching that battle without blinking even once, as if he didn't want to miss a single tiny movement or detailed use of energy, and he was thinking.

'No.'

He wanted to stop watching.

But his body had all its nerves on edge, completely focused on the fight, and even his sixth sense—his energy perception—was razor sharp.

Maybe it was because he'd reached a certain level now.

'Stop!!'

He couldn't read every move in the battle between the two masters, but little by little, insight filled the gaps between his knowledge, and he was beginning to understand the subtleties within the ongoing fight.

—Look at that lightning-fast fist! That's how you properly use speed!

—Do you see that saber technique? That's the true essence of stillness within motion!

In one corner of his mind, that damn Demonic Art was making a racket.

—What are you doing?! Hurry up and draw your sword and swing it! Are you going to miss this opportunity!!

In the midst of this flood of enlightening insights rushing in like a tide...

'Shut the fuck up!!'

Il-mok was struggling with all his might not to draw his sword.

He was, quite possibly, the first man in the history of the martial world to reject enlightenment.