Ch 28
A clearing surrounded by forests on all sides.
The person Jidaeho had been waiting for as anxiously as a girl was now facing a great crisis.
[Hehehehe! Die-!]
The attacker was Yodo-soon, ranked 5th in the Slaughterhouse Faction.
His arrows operated on a different level from ordinary warriors'. The tips carried enough internal energy to shatter walls, and his rapid volleys of five or six shots were spaced with cunning precision.
But the greater problem lay elsewhere.
"Jang Yi-seo-!"
Paralyzing poison had already numbed his hands, while toxic energy mingled with turbid internal energy, churning violently within him. To Jang Yi-seo, poison was as lethal as rat bait.
Thwip-thwip-thwip!
Jang Yi-seo kicked off the ground, hurling himself sideways as arrows streaked past. Six shafts embedded themselves in the abandoned house behind where he'd stood.
Another volley followed.
Ping!
This time, he narrowly evaded using the Falling Leaf Roll technique.
[Hehehehehe! How long can you keep dodging?!]
Yodo-soon was right. Continued evasion meant certain death. Yet...
'The arrow speeds... their angles... He's alternating between left and right flanks. Which means this time—'
Oddly, Jang Yi-seo looked almost lazily composed amid Mao's frantic shouts and Yodo-soon's triumphant laughter—the calm of someone ready to crush an irritating insect.
And crush it he did.
『Thunder Rotation Technique (雷轉法)』
Crackle!
Turbid energy—barely flowing through constricted meridians—transformed into crackling lightning. The Great Heavenly Cycle completed in less than a blink.
If Mao was swift, Jang Yi-seo became light incarnate.
Thwip-thwip-thwip!
Six more arrows erupted from the forest.
'Now!'
Jang Yi-seo shot forward like a loosed arrow, his speed and reflexes evading the projectiles mid-flight.
Flash.
"Urk?!"
He materialized before Yodo-soon—still nocking his next shot—with thunderclap suddenness.
Crunch!
"Gack—!"
A spinning kick turned Yodo-soon's scream into a death rattle. Though the strike appeared singular, seven points—nose, Adam's apple, collarbone, solar plexus, upper/lower abdomen, and groin—caved inward before the corpse slammed into a tree.
The technique seemed unremarkable when fueled by impure energy, yet it contained the essence of Great Monk Daegwang, the Murim Alliance's Seven-Legged Sage and orthodox faction's supreme leg technique master.
"Find enlightenment."
Jang Yi-seo offered curt condolences before turning away.
Fizzle.
Deactivating the technique, turbid energy rampaged through his meridians. Unstable by nature and now poisoned, collapse was inevitable.
"Damn."
He staggered backward.
"Jang Yi-seo-!"
As Mao sprinted toward him, his vision blurred. He crumpled against the smaller man's shoulder.
"Hey! You idiot! We need a medic—now!"
Mao hauled him up, already sprinting. Jang Yi-seo's ashen face screamed mortal peril.
"To... Heavenly Demon Hall..." Jang Yi-seo rasped over Mao's shoulder.
"You're full of arrows! Your face is corpse-pale! No medic means a coffin!"
"Hall... Go."
"Shut your disrespectful mouth! I'm deciding this!"
"Fast..."
"Hey!"
Jang Yi-seo steadied his breath, irritation cutting through the weakness.
"I know my limits. Rest... then fine. Just... go."
"You lunatic..."
Mao's lips trembled. What glory could justify this recklessness? Making himself a sect leader? No—this was pure madness.
Yet...
Mao's pupils wavered.
No one had ever shown him such raw sincerity. Not once. Only harm, indifference, or passive observation.
But Jang Yi-seo...
Mao clenched his eyes, then barked:
"Don't you dare regret this."
He broke into a run toward the Heavenly Demon Hall.
"Die and I'll bury you at the crossroads! A piss-stained shrine for stray dogs! Even Yama'll gag on your stench! Understood?"
"Heh."
"Laughing? I'm Mao—Wolha Village's mad dog! I'll do it!"
Jang Yi-seo chuckled weakly. Of course he would. Survival became mandatory.
For now...
Sleep.
Darkness swallowed Jang Yi-seo's vision.
Mao poured every ounce of strength into his sprint.
"To the Hall!"
Elsewhere, in the wind-haunted forest...
A lanky, masked archer stood over Yodo-soon's corpse, bow slung across his back.
"That lieutenant... What are you?"
He inspected the body with disbelief, trembling hands removing his mask to shroud the dead face.
Two tattooed characters glared from his exposed neck.
Slaughter (屠). Kill (殺).
It was the Slaughterhouse. The assassin wasn’t just Yodo-soon alone.
But what was even more astonishing was his face.
“You fool. To die so easily. But don’t worry. I, Yodo-soon, will definitely avenge you.”
The same name as the corpse being carried. And the same build, the same face.
That’s right.
The fifth-ranked Yodo-soon of the Slaughterhouse wasn’t just one person.
It was a pair of twins disguised as a single assassin—a two-person team. This was why the direction of the rapid-fire arrows and the subsequent volley from the right could be entirely different.
“Jang Yi-seo. I will kill you with my own hands. Without fail.”
The ill-fated entanglement with the Slaughterhouse grew deeper by the day.
– Mahaesan Horong Hall.
Unnoticed, time flowed onward as the sun climbed higher into the sky.
Only half an hour remained until the private audience with the sect leader.
The main gate of Horong Hall, leading to the Heavenly Demon Hall, was due to close.
“Hall Master Ji Dae-ho, what should we do?”
A subordinate cautiously asked, though by now they should have been preparing to shut the gates. The Seventh Prince still hadn’t arrived. Ji Dae-ho kept his eyes fixed on the path as he answered firmly.
“Wait a moment longer. Just a moment. That bastard will come.”
In his agitation, Ji Dae-ho even spat out the term “that bastard.” The subordinates jolted, wondering if he’d referred to the Seventh Prince so crudely—but no.
His mind was wholly consumed by one thought:
Did I misjudge you? I believed you’d rise higher than this. Jang Yi-seo…...
There was no basis for it. Yet Ji Dae-ho felt certain.
Jang Yi-seo—that bastard—would surely make an unexpected move. He’d create a miracle-like upheaval.
But his face still hadn’t appeared…….
Ji Dae-ho’s throat tightened unnaturally, his palms slick with cold sweat.
“Is he truly not coming?”
Had his hope been misplaced? The path remained barren, time slipping cruelly away.
Before he knew it, the half-hour had passed. The chance for the audience was lost.
It defied all reason. Unless granted explicit exemption, attendance was mandatory when summoned by the sect leader.
There could be no excuse.
Disappointment hung thick as Ji Dae-ho finally turned his back.
“Close it.”
At his command, the subordinates moved with ruthless efficiency.
Creeeeak—!
As everyone turned away and the gates began shutting—
“Waaaaaait—!”
Ji Dae-ho’s eyes flew open as he whirled around. The corners of his mouth crept upward toward his ears.
He’s here. He’s here!
They’d finally revealed themselves.
In a manner no one could have anticipated.
Mao charged up the slope with a furious cry.
Behind him, Jang Yi-seo hung limp as a corpse over his shoulder.
“Open the gates—!”
Ji Dae-ho’s roar shook the air.
When Jang Yi-seo regained consciousness, the first thing he noticed was a bitter, cloying scent.
The pungent aroma stung his nostrils, forcing a groan from his lips.
“Ugh……”
Then came the pain. Each movement of his arrow-pierced arms sent waves of searing agony, as if his flesh were branded.
He lifted his eyelids to find medicinal poultices applied to the wounds on his hardened muscles.
“The herbs reek like poison, but I vouch for their efficacy.”
At the voice beside him, Jang Yi-seo turned his head. A burly man sat in a chair, gazing down at him with an imposing air.
The Wise Tiger.
Ji Dae-ho, master of Horong Hall.
“The arrows were buried too deep for too long. You should rest awhile……”
Before he finished speaking, Jang Yi-seo pushed himself upright. Despite the strain of even lifting his arms, he shifted into a combat stance.
His face remained impassive. Ji Dae-ho frowned at the sight.
“……Stubborn to the bone. Tch. Then again, that’s how proper sect members ought to be.”
“Did I arrive in time?”
“Worrying about your master the instant you wake?”
“I’ve my duties to uphold.”
“Tch. Save your concern. The Seventh Prince left for the Heavenly Demon Hall earlier. By now, whether the gates opened or not…...something’s transpired.”
Jang Yi-seo gave a faint nod. That sufficed. Meeting the Heavenly Demon together would’ve been ideal, but this was enough.
“Is this……Horong Hall?”
He belatedly scanned his surroundings. Not that he needed to ask—tiger motifs covered every surface from ceiling to walls.
Ji Dae-ho answered with pride.
“To be precise, a temporary outpost before the Heavenly Demon Hall. The Seventh Prince insisted on dragging you here, hence our presence.”
“Is that……so?”
When Jang Yi-seo replied in surprise, Ji Dae-ho nodded.
“Never thought I’d see the day the Seventh Prince kept someone at his side. After losing his only comrades, his eyes…...they’d already let go of everything. Even when I saw him afterward, nothing changed. But this time—” He studied Jang Yi-seo. “—he was sincere. Seems he’s placed profound trust in you.”
Is that so? Jang Yi-seo lowered his head, expression blank. Should he rejoice at this success or choke on its bitterness? Either way, the words brought no comfort. He was, after all, a spy masquerading as an ally.
“An apology first.”
Jang Yi-seo’s head snapped up. Apology?
“While you slept…...I saw something without consent.”
“What……?”
“Your body.”
“My……body?!”
Jang Yi-seo’s eyes widened as he looked down.
#Let’s go. To the Heavenly Demon Hall (2)
