Book 15 Chapter 1
The Three Captures and Three Releases.
The Seven Captures and Seven Releases.
Zhuge Liang let Meng Huo go seven times and recaptured him seven times.
“Kuaaaaaaak!”
Another sound, signifying the eternal disappearance of a life from this world, struck Ilpung’s eardrums. It was before the lingering tremors of the intermittent death cries had even faded.
He wanted to cover his ears. Even his tear-blurred vision couldn’t hide this desperate situation, filled with terror. It might have been happier to have his eyeballs gouged out and his eardrums torn.
Helpless!
Could there be a more accurate word to describe the current situation? How many times has this been?
Thirty…? Forty…? Or… fifty?
He had long since given up counting. He had had to count too much, too often.
But it seemed he wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore. Now, it would be easy to solve by simply subtracting one from a hundred. It was a simple reverse calculation, but the weight of life within it was unbearably heavy.
The luxurious emotion called ‘will to fight’ had completely vanished, not even a speck remaining. Hatred and anger, which used to ignite the will to fight with their outstanding efficacy, were now more meaningless than a tiny speck of dust in the face of unprecedented fear. The tip of his sword pointed to the ground, his gaze turned to the sky.
Thump, thump!
The sound of fallen leaves being crushed under the footsteps of the Grim Reaper echoed. To Ilpung’s ears, it sounded like the leaves of his soul letting out death cries.
Even as the god of death approached moment by moment, he stood still like a puppet with a broken string. At the cost of ninety-nine sacrifices, he had finally realized the futility of resistance.
‘Our eyes met?’
Scrape!
Below his knee, a burning sensation erupted as if scorched by fire.
“Gasp!”
An unprecedented pain, so intense it choked off even screams and swallowed groans, surged from his knee through his limbs and entire body.
‘I saw nothing… nothing at all…….’
His body’s instinctive defense mechanisms did not activate. They didn't activate, he couldn't even grasp what had happened.
Rustle.
Ilpung’s body collapsed onto the ground.
Splish.
The man lay down in his own blood.
The man was the last one. He was the final adversary. With this man’s end, no one stood on two feet on the earth anymore. Only one person! Except for the landscape architect who created this hellscape, the Grim Reaper with the silver mask……
‘He’ turned his head and slowly looked around.
Dozens of corpses lay scattered grotesquely on the ground. The number of corpses with all their limbs intact could be counted on one hand. Red blood, steadily flowing from the severed limbs, pooled together to form a vast river with dozens of tributaries.
The thick stench of blood that numbed the senses, the scattered internal organs that made one nauseous just by looking at them. It was a tragic and horrific scene, as if hell had been transplanted to the mortal world. Yet, behind the silver mask, his eyes showed no trace of emotion. It was a sight he had seen countless times, created countless times. Adding one more would be nothing special.
This battlefield unfolding before his eyes, this hellscape under his feet, were merely a meaningless and tedious routine to him.
“Human… not human……! Not human……”
From amidst the pile of corpses, a man lifted his head and let out a groan. His head was submerged in a pool of blood, and the clotted blood stung his eyes, but he was still alive. Both of his legs were completely gone from below the knees. It was Ilpung.
“Is… is he truly a manifestation of a devil……”
As if chasing an invisible mirage, as if trying to grasp at empty air, the man weakly extended his right hand towards him, the culprit of this situation.
“Cough!”
A mouthful of blood gushed out of Ilpung’s mouth. His sunken eyes were already bloodshot, so red it seemed the blood vessels had burst. Even a ghost’s eyes couldn't be more desperate.
“Chuiya… mother……”
The talisman pouch hanging from his right wrist suddenly caught his eye.
Ten years ago, his son, who had proudly entered the sect and followed in his footsteps, had given it to him with a bright smile. At the time, his son had added some lighthearted words.
“As Father knows well, our Wudang sect’s talismans are exceptionally effective. The divine power of Grand Supreme Lord Laozi and our ancestor, Zhang Sanfeng, will surely protect Father’s life.”
Although his son, now grown and showing promise as a swordsman among the talented youth, was always like a cute 10-year-old to him.
“Chuiya……”
Ten years since then… it had saved him from countless dangers, boasting of its efficacy… It seemed this talisman had an expiration date.
‘If I had known it had a time limit, I should have asked him to buy me an extra one…….’
A bitter smile formed on his lips, and overflowing tears streamed down his cheeks.
Flinch!
His right hand, which had been reaching out in grief-stricken indignation, trembled like an aspen leaf. The hand was a mess, scarred and covered in dirt and blood.
“This… monstrous being……”
His vision blurred due to excessive bleeding. The images reflected in his eyes wavered like the surface of a lake after a stone has been thrown.
He had thought that if he was just, if he was upright and righteous, everything would be fine. He had thought, ‘Enough.’ But that thought had been too naive.
Power without justice is violence. But justice without power is merely an empty echo.
Powerless!
How bitterly he resented that word, that fact, now.
“Further ahead… from here… I can never let you…”
The distant figure of him, a mirage that could never be grasped even with eternal pursuit, briefly turned towards this side. The master of immense power… Was it a delusion that their eyes met for a moment? For an instant, ‘his’ hand trembled. A small light flickered at the tip of ‘his’ hand.
Pop!
Along with a burning sensation on his forehead, pitch-black darkness enveloped him.
‘Chuiya, may you become the supreme master of the sword…….’
In his fading consciousness, he sent his last wish to the heavens.
Thud!
With a dull thud, a mangled piece of flesh fell limply to the ground. There was no life left within it.
Crack!
The silk pouch split open, and pieces of yellow paper scattered and flew away in the indifferent wind.
This was the final stand of Gongsun Ilpung, the Wudang swordsman of the Unmatched Sword, the last defensive line of Nak-an Peak, which had formed a company of a hundred to protect the iron tracks.
“Here they come!”
A handsome young man, sitting on a rock that jutted out from one of the peaks of Nak-an Peak, gazing down the mountain, murmured in a low voice. A quiet voice, yet one filled with resolve.
Was it a woman, or a man?
Delicate facial features sculpted from white jade, black eyes of unfathomable melancholy, a slender waist, long, slender arms, and delicate fingers… A lithe build that seemed more fragile than agile. At first glance, anyone would mistake him for a woman. He looked so frail that one might worry if he could even kill a fly, making the blue sword and the red saber at his waist seem strangely out of place. However, the mystical aura concealed within them was far from ordinary, precluding them from being mere ornaments.
This handsome youth wore a martial arts uniform of a peculiar hue, a blend of crimson flames and white ice. The hair falling over his shoulders was a mystical silver-blue, as if crushed cyan jade had been scattered on ice.
Behind the handsome youth stood another young man of imposing stature, with hair reminiscent of a black lion’s mane. His eyes held the ferocity of a lion, and his entire body exuded a surging fighting spirit.
They were two incredibly contrasting individuals.
“The time has finally come!”
The young man reminiscent of a black lion spoke with a strong will and a past oath etched into his words.
His gaze returned to the handsome youth watching the mountain below, to his frail shoulders. A back that looked as if it would shatter if touched. But one should not be fooled by that seemingly fragile exterior. That would be an act of reckless folly… How many had paid dearly, deceived by that weak facade? It had been a long time since the number became incalculable; counting the grains of sand by the river might be faster.
Perhaps even if the nine sect leaders of the nine great sects attacked him at once, they could never defeat him. But the fools of the Meng Alliance didn’t know that. Even if they did know, they would likely plug their ears and eyes and refuse to admit it.
‘Frogs in a well. Thinking they can cover the sky with their hands! What? They say they are always working for the future of the martial world? When their words and actions are so different, how can they be believed! Trying to cover the sky with their hands…….’
Effort is not made with words, but with actions. Yet, those people sat in safety, indulging in the madness sent by a few followers, talking about the future of the martial world only with their mouths and tongues.
It was because of those fools that the martial world was in this state. He could say it with certainty. Compared to the master of that frail-looking back, those people were garbage. Worse than maggots.
“This is troubling!”
Lin murmured with a bitter smile, unable to hide it. His gaze remained fixed on the mountain below.
“Troubling? What is?”
Hyeok, the young man with the eyes of a black lion, chewing a blade of grass, asked.
A self-deprecating smile flickered on Lin’s lips.
“Looking at oneself squarely! It is truly regrettable this time that I cannot exaggerate myself!”
This was what it meant to face oneself directly. However, this timid attitude was an eyesore to the young man with the fierce eyes of a predatory beast that swept his black mane.
“Hmph, what use is the ability to escape reality! Living in delusion, wrapped in a fog of illusion, the harsh reality will not change!”
A chillingly ruthless condemnation. But it was the truth.
“Heh heh, I apologize. My apologies!”
Lin readily admitted his mistake. However, there was no trace of subservience in his demeanor.
Hyeok, too, knew from the start that these were not mere words. But the fact that his self-deprecation was so close to the truth only fueled his anger.
“It takes a lot of courage to face oneself directly. Only the courageous can recognize the wall before their eyes and overcome it.”
This young man knew well that many people in this world didn't even know the existence of walls. He exaggeratedly patted his shoulders.
“Ai, ai… The future of the martial world… The weight must be immense! I fear rheumatism, lumbago, and shoulder arthritis might all strike at once!”
At his jest, Hyeok nodded his head.
“I agree! To pass through the Three Gates created by the combined efforts of official and private sectors in such a short time… As expected, they are monsters……”
Hyeok paused for a moment and then continued.
“Tsk, we wished so hard that our turn wouldn’t come… It seems our prayers were in vain. Damn it!”
He could clearly sense the presence of ‘him,’ still hundreds of layers away, to the point where the skin on his entire body stirred.
“Indeed, knowing one’s own abilities is more painful than one thinks! Especially when you realize your abilities fall short of the opponent’s!”
Hyeok knew well that this was not an insult but an objective fact.
“However, the true courage is to confront the truth even while knowing this! To know one’s place and fight with one’s beliefs to overcome it; that is true courage! Before that, it is not courage, but recklessness and blind bravado!”
The past year of intense determination, just to avoid that recklessness and not repeat the failure of that day. Finally, the time to showcase their trump card was approaching.
“A year… it was long……”
It was a time that could be considered long or short. But to them, it felt like an eternity.
A brief silence ensued.
“You… haven’t forgotten.”
After a long silence, Hyeok’s mouth opened again. A sword-like glint flashed in Lin’s dark eyes.
“Of course! How could I forget that humiliating memory! If I could erase it by scooping out my brain and rinsing it in ice water, I would do so without a moment’s hesitation! If only I could erase that memory, that humiliation!”
The eyes of the two, who were both unrivaled rivals and comrades who had shared life and death, met at a single point. They still remembered that day’s humiliation, as vividly as if it were yesterday, etched in their hearts like the brand of a flame.
Two years ago.
The memory of being surrounded by three hundred enemies, the fear that still lingered like an afterglow, came back with vivid realism.
Two years ago…
Disheveled hair, blood flowing from the corners of their mouths, torn clothes everywhere, and underneath, bruises of blue and red. ‘He’ quietly observed the two young men, who couldn't even be called alright with lies, with a deep gaze. Currently, ‘his’ chest was split diagonally with a long gash, revealing a thin, delicate red line within.
‘His’ right index finger gently brushed over the red line, as if discerning it. The corner of his mouth, revealed beneath the silver mask, slowly curled upwards.
“Unbelievable! To inflict a wound upon me… Is there still such talent left in the martial world, a mere sinking ship?”
‘He’ seemed amused rather than angry. His voice was unique, as if it had originated from a bottomless abyss and echoed with countless reverberations.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen my own blood. I don’t know where you suddenly appeared from, or whom you learned from, but you learned well, you learned well! Your skills and potential are superior to any martial artist I have ever met!”
This was the highest praise he could offer. However, neither of them was happy. They knew well that, excluding those who had joined his ranks, there were virtually no martial artists he had met who were still alive. Receiving praise from the one who would soon take their lives was perceived as nothing more than mockery. It was impossible to rejoice and say, ‘Oh, thank you! This is the greatest honor of my life! I will pass on this joy to my descendants for generations!’
“Damn it!”
Clang!
Simultaneously with the dull sound of chains clashing…
“Kill them!”
Hyeok shouted with a voice like a beast’s roar, spitting out the words. The twin sabers with blood-red blades, held in his hanging hands, were the fearsome demonic swords, the Hongcheon Saber, which had once invoked countless blood, but now they were silent, having lost their ferocity.
There was no way they could move. Now, the two young men were bound tightly by thick, dark iron chains, like beasts in hell, in eight directions.
“I apologize. I wasn't confident that restraints alone would suffice to quell your movements! I had to resort to this cumbersome method. Please bear with it, even though it’s heavy and inconvenient!”
‘He’ kindly asked for their understanding. Was he playing with them? Hyeok gritted his teeth. At the same time, he felt sorry for his friend, who had been captured with him.
“I’m sorry, Lin! I failed to seize the opportunity you created! It’s a failure!”
His voice, filled with deep regret, caused Lin to shake his head.
“No! It was worth it just to wound his body! Moreover, the fault lies in my inexperience. If I had created a better opportunity… It’s my own inadequacy for not being able to risk my life!”
Lin was no better than Hyeok. His mysteriously unique crimson and cyan mixed martial arts uniform was now tattered and no better than rags. However, even that defeated appearance was not enough to completely hide his exquisite beauty.
The young man’s eyes still burned with an unyielding fighting spirit. As if reflecting that spirit, despite being bound by chains, he still tightly gripped his left sword, Bingru, and his right saber, Hongyeom, refusing to let go. This might have been his last expression of will.
‘Frustrating! If only I had another chance…’
But there was no next time. Perhaps they had been too arrogant. And they hadn’t given their all. Lin bit his lip, swallowing his rage.
‘If I hadn’t dodged the blow aimed at my abdomen back then and taken it without fear… then while that blow was tearing through my insides, Hyeok might have seized a more definite opportunity…’
But hypotheticals alone could not change the present. Time gone by could not be turned back, even by the breath of a god.
They had lost. A complete defeat.
Only death awaited the losers. But death itself was not feared. What was regrettable was that the hope they carried on their shoulders would fade with their deaths. But there was no strength left to struggle.
All one hundred elite surprise commandos who had come with them were dead, and now only the two of them remained. Furthermore, they were now facing a being more terrifying than those three hundred, standing on the corpses of their comrades, surrounded by the three hundred swords of the Dosan Sword Forest. To seek life here would be pathetic and meaningless.
Swish!
At that moment, ‘he’ turned his gaze again and looked thoughtfully at Lin’s face. Even this Grim Reaper, who presided over death and blood, seemed to occasionally experience the unfamiliar emotion of curiosity.
“You……”
There was only one thing he was curious about.
“Are you a woman?”
Hyeok shut his eyes tightly. He wanted to cover his ears too, but his hands were in such a state that he regretfully had to give up. As expected, a sound that seemed to split the heavens and earth erupted.
It was a roar fiercer than that of a beast.
“What! A wo-woman! I am a man! Can’t you see? Do your eyes serve as decoration? Where do you see me as a woman?”
Lin shouted, his face flushed crimson. Hyeok’s eardrums buzzed.
‘Tsk, I wanted to cover my ears because I knew this would happen…….’
But he couldn’t even afford the time to regret it. Forgetting that his limbs were bound, Lin lunged towards ‘him’.
“Whoa!”
Clang! Clang! Clatter!
The six chains restraining Lin were yanked, dragging their six handlers away, unable to withstand the force.
Screech!
The feet that resisted to stop dug into the ground, leaving deep furrows. Immense power emanated from that seemingly frail body, far beyond imagination.
“So, you were a man? That’s… a bit of a shame!”
Hyeok froze in surprise. He had almost forgotten his predicament and nodded in agreement.
Such thoughts were extremely dangerous and ominous. If he had agreed, his journey to the underworld would undoubtedly be very arduous. But what could he do? In truth, even to normal eyesight, it was natural to see him that way in every aspect. For a moment, Hyeok forgot his own predicament and thought so.
“What does it matter if I’m a man or a woman? From what I’ve heard, you show no mercy to women. Kill me quickly.”
However, ‘he’ shook his head.
“Tsk, tsk. Losing your composure over such a little provocation… Can you even be called a martial artist? You must know the most basic principle of swordsmanship, mustn’t you?”
“Th-that is……”
Lin’s face turned crimson with shame.
Immovable Mind!
It could be said that there was no one who practiced the sword who didn't know this principle, but the number of people who could actually practice it was few enough to be counted on one’s fingers. This was because the ability to bridge the gap between knowing and practicing, a difference as vast as heaven and earth, was possessed by extremely few.
“The martial world must have suffered greatly to raise individuals like you. It seems your final trump card has failed, so what should we do?”
It was a cruel twist of fate that the one who truly recognized their worth was not the old foxes of the Meng Alliance but their greatest adversary, ‘him’.
“Hmm… what to do about this?”
‘He’ murmured in a tone of great difficulty.
The death sentence had not yet been passed. The one holding their lives seemed to have not yet lost interest in the two of them.
Hyeok bristled.
“Damn it! I will not accept insults. Kill me quickly. Why all this blathering?”
He could endure death, but not insults. He would rather die cleanly than be toyed with.
“You are so impatient. That’s why you charge in recklessly as an immature martial artist. There’s no need to rush death. In the end, humans die. Only the speed differs… The judge deciding your life and death is me. If I choose survival, you will live even if you want to die, and if I choose annihilation, you will die even if you want to live.”
Was this truly the Blood God, known for his bloody reputation? Seeing him in person, it was hard to believe. He had envisioned someone more burly, covered in wounds, dripping with blood, a bloodthirsty beast. That was the limit of Hyeok’s imagination. But in reality, ‘he’ stood before him in a completely different form. The only noticeable features were the silver mask covering half his face and the terrifying, swirling eyes within.
“Do you wish to die so much?”
As ‘he’ raised his right hand, a dazzling white light emanated from his fingertips. It seemed to be a form of divine power.
“Kill us!”
He no longer wanted to be pathetic. Hyeok and Lin quietly closed their eyes, waiting for the fate that would befall them.
Whoosh!
As the mouth beneath the silver mask formed a smile, his hand lightly swung. Then, a surprising thing happened.
Rumble!
The heads of Hyeok and Lin, the two of them, trembled like they had been hit by a gale. At the same time, the iron chains that bound their bodies were cut into pieces like rotten straw and fell to the ground with a clatter.
A moment later, Hyeok and Lin slowly opened their eyes. After a moment of bewilderment, they began to check their physical condition. There were no wounds anywhere. Only then did they notice the pieces of iron chain scattered on the ground. The nightmarish chains, which they couldn’t escape no matter how much they struggled, seemed to be less than straw under his hand.
‘What astonishing power this is…….’
Judging by the lustrous dark sheen, it was easy to infer that these iron chains were no ordinary objects. They were likely made of dark steel. To be able to achieve this with a gesture as simple as a child’s wave… Truly, he was worthy of being called the ‘Calamity of Heaven,’ a symbol of fear and death in his living body.
“What is this prank?”
Hyeok was simply bewildered by the freedom they had regained, or rather, been given back.
“It is merely a slight whim. This raid was unfortunate. The life of a raid lies in speed and stealth. Only after these two are met can individual martial prowess be displayed. Next time, move like lightning in a manner as subtle as mist. If you are discovered so easily, the fun is ruined! It’s a toy I acquired with difficulty, I can’t just break it easily, can I?”
He was laughing. A chilling laugh. If a devil were to smile, it would be like this. Hyeok and Lin couldn’t help but feel a chill.
‘He’ spoke again.
“Let’s play tag. Didn’t they call it Seven Captures and Seven Releases? I believe it was an anecdote of Zhuge Liang. From now on, I will let you go three times. Whether you like it or not, you have no choice. I am the winner, and you are the losers. Regardless of era, rules are made by the victor. Therefore, I set the rules. Losers cannot defy the rules set by the victor. Struggle as much as you want during these three times I let you go. If you are caught all three times after being released three times, you will die on the spot.”
“My Lord! These are the ones who targeted your life. You cannot simply let them go.”
One of the warriors maintaining the encirclement shouted. It was Am-roe, the commander of the Am-roe Unit, who was directing the encirclement of three hundred. His eyes, as they glared at Hyeok and Lin, were filled with the light of resentment. A long, diagonal saber mark. The burning pain still coursed through his entire body. It was a trace of a slash, as if scorched by fire. It was the handiwork of Lin’s right saber, Hongyeom.
“I will not tolerate insubordination, Am-roe! Who do you think I am?”
At that majestic gaze, Am-roe immediately prostrated himself on the ground.
“You are the law of the martial world, and a god.”
‘He’ nodded his head.
“Do you intend to defy that law?”
“I… I have committed a grave sin. Forgive me, My Lord!”
The atmosphere in the hall turned cold, and silence fell. No further insubordination arose. They knew well what a "stone from another mountain" meant.
“Go! You who struggle! I look forward to you entertaining me more when we meet next time.”
Although they wanted to commit suicide out of shame, the two gritted their teeth. Not yet… they could not die yet. They still had a mission to fulfill.
“You will regret letting us go!”
“I look forward to it!”
‘He’ replied in a calm voice.
The two vowed to engrave this last voice in their hearts and never forget it.
‘Even if it means burning my soul and life, I will make sure he regrets this matter!’
The two swore to the heavens.
It might be an absurd joke, but it could be said that the person who played the biggest role in their training was none other than the Heavenly Calamity Blood God.
Without his existence, and without that game of tag, they would not have become this strong. No, they wouldn’t even be standing here now. Because they were already dead people two years ago.
Their lives had been prolonged by the cheap pity of their enemies. It was a life lived as a bonus. Nothing was to be regretted. There was nothing to fear.
They gritted their teeth. They did not shy away from the pain of flesh festering and bones grinding. With a heart of extreme determination, they endured hardship and cultivated themselves. Whether it rained or snowed, whether it was hot or cold, whether it was clear or cloudy, they never thought of resting. They had a goal they had to reach. There was an enemy they had to defeat.
Stronger, even stronger!
A great wall lay before their eyes. If they could not overcome that wall, they would only die in shame. Other options? A second choice? Such things did not exist. Therefore, they bet everything on overcoming that wall. And in return for risking their lives, they finally achieved one result.
“Hey, Lin!”
Hyeok, awakened from his past thoughts on the summit of Nak-an Peak, called out to his friend.
Taegeuk Shinhyup, Hyeok Wol-rin, commonly known as Lin.
A handsome man with a tall stature and dazzling silver-blue hair that caught the eye. However, the aura and bearing emanating from his shoulders and back were by no means the superficial ‘showiness’ often found in inexperienced individuals.
“Yes? What is it?”
Lin replied, but did not turn around.
He had a history of causing many misunderstandings and incidents due to his beauty, which could be mistaken for a woman’s. Therefore, one had to be very careful with certain words in his presence (though it had eased considerably now).
“Did you… complete it?”
To Hyeok’s cautious question, the youth called Lin quietly nodded. However, his eyes, still fixed on the mountain below, were locked onto a single point as if nailed to the void. A great power existed there. After a brief struggle, that power had easily removed the last obstacle and was leisurely making its way upwards towards them. There was no sign of urgency.
“Barely! It was close. Hyeok, how about you?”
He asked, still without turning his head. The youth reminiscent of a black lion, Hyeok, also nodded.
“Same here. Without completing that, there would be no chance of victory, and we wouldn’t be standing here, would we? We’re already dead people, aren’t we? A dog’s death. When I struggled to survive, impossible things became possible. Heh heh, like worms wriggling and trying to escape the swamp of death… foolish insects……”
The voice of the youth called Hyeok was filled with self-deprecation.
“Don’t say that! By completing it, we’ve only gained a one-in-ten chance of victory!”
The future of the martial world rested on this one-in-ten chance.
“One in ten… That’s a more hopeful prospect than none. To fight bearing the fate of the entire martial world… It’s too much of a burden on my back, I can’t do it. I don’t want to fight this fight again. Besides, the fools of the Meng Alliance won’t know about our efforts!”
“I completely agree! But if those fools don’t know, someone has to do it, right? We can’t trust them either…”
There are values in this world worth trusting, but also worthlessness that should never be blindly believed.
“Con-qian-yi-yue-he-bi…!”
Lin uttered in a quiet voice.
“You finally did it, Lin!”
Hyeok’s voice trembled slightly with suppressed excitement.
“It was touch and go!”
“Did you finally overcome the ‘wall of delusion’? Congratulations! I apologize for saying this at such a time, but…”
Under the sinister and wicked gesture of the Grim Reaper, lives were scattering like dust. The blood-soaked earth wailed, and the air screamed. A thick scent of blood was eroding the wind blowing on the mountain. It was certainly not a good time.
“Hyeok, I have one request for you!”
Lin said.
“What is it?”
It was extremely unusual for this friend to utter the word “request.”
“If I die here today and you survive, please ensure that my insights and ‘my ultimate secret technique’ are not lost! If we lose here today, it will prove that even ‘that’ didn’t work against him, but I don’t want to lose my last insights.”
Hyeok shouted indignantly.
“Nonsense! Don’t say such unlucky things! The true victory is when I eradicate the enemy and survive. Anything else is a crushing defeat, nothing more, nothing less!”
Although he spoke harshly, Hyeok secretly agreed with the sentiment. He had to consider the opposite scenario as well. If he died and Lin survived, he knew well that his friend was the only one who could pass on his ‘ultimate secret technique’ to future generations.
Only those who cross the wall can see the world beyond it. Those who do not overcome the wall cannot understand it, even if they die. It would be impossible to explain to a frog in a well the world outside the well.
These two knew this better than anyone. Therefore, both of them needed the friend before them, who had seen the world beyond the wall together, and whom they recognized as equals, to prevent the severance of their secret transmissions.
“When I first saw you, I thought you were incredibly annoying… You looked pretty like a woman for a man, and I decided not to get close to you because you were shy and didn’t say much, but now… well, you’re still not much more likable than you were then…”
Hyeok’s confession about the past was scathing. But Lin was not to be outdone. Was it out of competitiveness?
“Who are you to say that! Hoho, same here! Your hair was dark red like chicken blood, and your face was rugged like a mountain bandit, making you seem like a hot-blooded fool with only muscles in your head.”
With a “Hmph,” Lin said with a sly voice, completely devoid of the seriousness from moments before.
“What? How dare you have such impudent thoughts about me? Ho, how presumptuous.”
“It’s you who’s talking! Did you lose your eyesight?”
The events of that time flashed back in their minds as vividly as if they had happened yesterday.
The two who seemed like oil and water, never to mix, were now inseparable comrades who entrusted their lives to each other. The faces of the two, who had contorted their expressions as if they would come to blows at any moment, relaxed in an instant with a “Pfft.”
“Hahahaha!”
The two looked at each other and burst into laughter. Regardless of the past, they were now comrades who had entrusted their lives, honor, and pride to each other, the most reliable and trustworthy in this world.
“Let us swear. Even if one of us remains, we will never let the lineage of these two secret techniques be cut! And we will strive for the future of the martial world, for the portion of the other person! Not for personal or organizational gain, but for the entire martial world! And for the future!”
Hyeok Wol-rin was a person who worried about the peace of the entire martial world before his own safety. Even the rough Gal-jung Hyeok could not help but feel solemn in the face of such high ideals.
“Alright! I swear by my beloved Hongcheon Saber and the red blood flowing in my veins!”
Hyeok exclaimed gallantly and responded.
As proof of their pact, the two exchanged scrolls containing their secret techniques. Exchanging martial arts manuals, which were their pride and equivalent to their lives, was akin to entrusting their souls to a friend.
Then Hyeok swore.
“Even if the sky crumbles and the earth splits, even if the seas overflow and the rivers dry up, as long as the flame of my life remains, this promise will be kept! Even the power of the King of the Underworld cannot break this oath!”
“Thank you, my friend!”
They were true friends.
Gazing at the moon with lonely eyes, the old man sighed. The person wearing a worn-out robe was none other than old man Hyeok. The hair, once like a black lion’s mane, had now turned gray, and his soulmate, his only true friend, was nowhere in this world.
“What a stingy friend, passing on such a heavy burden to me and running away alone……”
Deep melancholy filled the old man’s voice.
“It’s not something one can carry alone.”
The future of the martial world. It was a weight that could not be measured by quantity.
“Damn friend……”
The comrade who could have shared that burden was no longer here. That fact made his absence even greater.
“And two troublesome relics! Ck, a bothersome last will and two vexing relics… It’s truly a losing proposition!”
He grumbled incessantly, but he didn’t seem to dislike it.
The old man regained his energy and stood up. The moonlight poured down from above.
It was a bright night.
There was still much to do. He had to do it one by one, step by step.
“Alright! Then, shall I go to keep my friend’s promise! It was… in that direction, wasn’t it?”
The old man set his direction and began to walk towards it without hesitation.
“Hmm… I need to do something about those two, the red and blue ones……”
These guys and those guys, all of them were utterly perplexing. They were truly difficult disciples.
Mo Yong-hwi also stared endlessly at the full moon hanging in the autumn night sky.
The pale round shape of the moon, shimmering on the pitch-black lake, sometimes felt like a mirror reflecting the dark abyss of a person’s soul.
Was this feeling merely an illusion born of emotional weakness?
He couldn’t forgive himself for entrusting his friend and turning his back, without even being sure of the existence beyond the darkness… Even with the pretext of saving Eun Seol-ran, he still couldn’t fully forgive himself.
Of course, he didn’t think there was no chance at all. He knew that there was an unknown entity within Bi Ryu-yeon, something he himself couldn't grasp. But even so, the existence beyond that darkness was too powerful. Entrusting his back to Bi Ryu-yeon was undeniably a gamble. What if he hadn’t returned alive? Mo Yong-hwi would probably never forgive himself.
Since then, he had spent more time alone like this. It was a feeling he experienced for the first time. Shame that made his face flush and his heart feel like it was being torn apart.
If Bi Ryu-yeon hadn’t helped, the moonlight that enveloped them that day would have been the last moonlight of their lives, for him as well as for Eun Seol-ran. And the dawn would never again be reflected in their eyes. Not to mention the sunset…
He couldn’t protect Eun Seol-ran. He had pushed his friend into danger.
“And yet, what am I, the foremost sword master of the righteous path?”
It was pathetic. It was hollow.
‘This won’t do! I must become stronger!’
The mirror of moonlight dragged him back to that moment in the past. The face of Eun Seol-ran, who had been in his arms at the time, flashed in his mind. At that time, her face, where the moonlight slipped, shone like a pale white pearl. Remembering that sight, he felt choked with a faint emotion. Mo Yong-hwi vividly remembered that feeling.
Mo Yong-hwi swore to the sky he looked at and the ground he stood on.
“I will become strong!”
Even more so to protect her!
Mo Yong-hwi shouted forcefully at the moon.
Clap, clap, clap, clap!
At that moment, a clapping sound echoed from behind him, where no one should have been. It appeared suddenly, as if it had fallen from the sky.
“Who are you?”
Even though it was a situation where shouting ‘Who are you?’ would be perfectly normal, this polite young man did not commit such rudeness.
From among the shadows of the shrubs, a figure walked out. As he focused his inner vision, the figure became clearer. The figure was surprisingly an old man. And not just any old man.
“Magnificent! Truly magnificent! Jeong-cheon’s grandson is indeed well-raised. A man should have such spirit!”
The uninvited guest, who praised Mo Yong-hwi in a cheerful voice, was surprisingly someone he knew. It was the mysterious old man who had introduced himself as old man Hyeok. When dealing with this old man, even the ice-cold Bing Sword and the fiery Yeom Sword showed evident signs of careful respect.
Given that there were as many eccentric individuals in the martial world as grains of sand, he was undoubtedly an elder with profound inner strength.
“Ah, it’s you, senior.”
Mo Yong-hwi, always polite, quickly bowed and paid his respects. However, a sense of curiosity surged within him.
Why was this old man here, in such a secluded place, at this late hour? And Jeong-cheon? Even the polite Mo Yong-hwi couldn’t help but feel a mix of displeasure and bewilderment at this part.
Judging from the context, it clearly referred to his grandfather, Mo Yong Jeong-cheon, whom he revered like the heavens. To address the Sword Saint, one of the Three Stars of Cheonmu, as if he were a child? Yet, the old man seemed completely unfazed by this fact.
Who on earth was this old man?
“But why have you come all the way here…?”
Mo Yong-hwi asked. However, all he could confirm was that not all questions have answers.
“Do you think it’s possible for a single person to handle both Yin and Yang energies simultaneously?”
A question in response to a question. However, there was no correlation between the two.
Mo Yong-hwi answered without hesitation.
“It seems possible, for starters!”
“’For starters’… Hoho? Why?”
The old man asked with an intrigued expression.
“Because there was someone who showed us it was possible with their own body!”
A hundred years ago, Hyeok Wol-rin, the Martial God and Savior, who wielded the power of both Yin and Yang energies freely even in a human body, saving the martial world from crisis.
However, no one had succeeded in embodying it since then.
But existence precedes essence. Even if Martial God Hyeok Wol-rin was the only one throughout history, he had, in the form of a human, proven that the union of Yin and Yang energies was possible.
“Your words are correct from a certain perspective. But that is not the answer I seek!”
“Then?”
“Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘when things reach their extreme, they reverse’?”
“Where are you coming from, old man?”
Yeom Do asked Hyeok Jung, who was walking leisurely towards the inn. It seemed he hadn't slept yet either.
“Huh, red hair? You’re not asleep yet?”
If anyone else had called him by that nickname, he would have exploded, but Hyeok, being this old man, even the fiery, unbearable Yeom Do couldn’t do that.
“Yes, I couldn’t sleep, so I was briefly admiring the moon.”
“You have such poetic inclinations? I find that hard to believe.”
The old man spoke too honestly. Yeom Do let out a wry smile.
“But why are you out at this late hour?”
“Just a stroll. I had a matter of courtship to attend to.”
“Courtship…?”
Yeom Do asked, his expression contorting strangely.
“Yes, courtship! But… I was rejected!”
Yeom Do’s eyes widened.
“You were rejected?”
The old man nodded vigorously. He had a look of pure joy, as if he were about to die, which was peculiar for someone who had just been rejected.
“Exactly. I was so confident, but I was soundly rejected. Hahahaha.”
In Hongmae Valley, bathed in moonlight, an old man’s cheerful laughter echoed.
‘Why is he laughing?’
Yeom Do found it a complete mystery why the old man, who said he was rejected, was so cheerful. Yeom Do stood beside him for a while with a look of utter bewilderment.