Book 28 Chapter 11

Hyeoksan Il-eung, Meets the Fairies

- Shinma Pal Seon Ja

Hyeoksan Il-eung Gwak Hyun ran and thought.

How on earth did things turn out this way?

When he and his eleven disciples were first summoned by their master, who could have imagined such a nightmare would unfold?

The order he received from his master was to lead his eleven disciples and capture the "serial rapist-murderer" who had been causing a stir in Hunan Province, and execute him in the name of justice in the martial arts world.

It even felt a little ridiculous that all twelve of Hyeoksan Sect's new signboard, the Hyeoksan Twelve Swords, had to be mobilized to catch just one pervert. Then, their master said with a solemn face.

"There is suspicion of demonic cultivation."

And he added.

"If that's the case, the worst can happen, so never let your guard down. In the martial arts world, anything is possible."

But they were young and full of pride in their swordsmanship. With the twelve of them together, there was nothing to fear. To them, this was merely a minor task, a chance to get some fresh air after a long time, and to receive donations and conduct negotiations as a bonus. With all twelve Hyeoksan Swords dispatched, they could catch ten such perverts.

Gwak Hyun and his eleven disciples set out for Jangja Village, where the village chief who had donated to the Hyeoksan Sect lived, for an on-site investigation. Coincidentally, another kidnapping incident occurred in Jangja Village. Ordinary people might not have noticed, but those who had cultivated martial arts to a certain level could easily spot the traces left behind.

The Hyeoksan Twelve Swords immediately began their pursuit. Judging by the traces left as they fled, the pervert's martial arts didn't seem to be at a very high level. However, the pursuit took longer than expected, and they continued northward, crossing the border of Hunan Province and arriving in Hubei Province. Finally, they found fresh traces in front of a nameless mountain pass. They picked up the pace of their pursuit and crossed the pass. Now, the pervert's head was practically in their grasp.

But it was a trap.

They… there wasn't just one pervert, and they were ambushed.

In the surprise attack from behind, Gwak Hyun lost three of his disciples.

They had lured them in.

Their martial arts were beyond his imagination. Especially the ice-cold palm technique displayed by a man in white, who looked the youngest, was truly earth-shattering in its power. Who could have imagined that a person in his mid-twenties would possess such profound inner energy?

The extreme ice palm technique he unleashed broke three swords, and blood spurted from their owners' bodies. The Hyeoksan Twelve Swords, who were the pursuers, became the pursued, and after three were taken down in the initial surprise attack, they scattered and were defeated one by one.

Their combined strength, when not united, crumbled weakly like a sandcastle. The ten years of cultivation they had accumulated had turned to dust in an instant. All that remained was Gwak Hyun, the sole survivor. The other disciples had all fallen one by one, their blood frozen, collapsing in vain.

As he ran, evading their pursuit to destroy the evidence, Gwak Hyun's self-reproach did not cease.

Why had he let his guard down? To underestimate him as a mere pervert. One never knows until they fight directly.

Carelessness led to defeat, and defeat led to death, and now he was the only one left alive among the Hyeoksan Twelve Swords.

It was undoubtedly a disgrace.

Still, he had to live. He had to live, even at the cost of disgrace. If he died without avenging them, he would have no face to see his disciples in the afterlife.

However, his steps as he ran down the mountain path alone were not swift. He too had been struck by the ice-cold palm during the fierce battle. His legs slowed, and his complexion grew increasingly pale.

Even though the sun was still high in the sky, he was exhaling white breaths as if it were a midwinter night. It was proof that the bone-chilling cold was slowly spreading throughout his body.

His blood was freezing. The candle of hope in his heart was gradually extinguishing.

Their pursuit was now right behind him.

'Is this the end?'

He broke through the forest blocking his path. And he saw two groups of people standing in the middle of the main road. One of the groups was beautiful women dressed in black.

Seeing this, Gwak Hyun's face turned ashen. It was clear that these beautiful women were about to become the perverts' victims.

Looking at the women, all Gwak Hyun could do was shout in a desperate voice.

"Run! Run away!"

However, despite his urgent warning, stomping his feet, no one fled. Instead, a noblewoman at the forefront, with long red hair cascading down, dressed solely in black yet somehow giving an impression of elegance, looked at him intently and asked.

"What are you telling us to run away from?"

Her voice too possessed a glorious dignity.

"What did you see that has you so terrified? You look like you've suffered something terrible, tell us."

Hyeoksan Il-eung Gwak Hyun was dumbfounded that such a young-looking woman would address him so informally. He was trying to help them, and instead of running, she was speaking to him informally from the first encounter? She looked no older than forty, no matter how one looked at her. He himself was already approaching his mid-forties.

"I am Gwak Hyun, Hyeoksan Il-eung. Perverts are chasing us from behind. So please leave this place quickly! I cannot protect all of you by myself!"

A few among the crowd were surprised to hear his name. Hyeoksan Il-eung, the chief disciple of Hyeoksan Twelve Swords, had quite a reputation in the martial arts world. No one was more surprised than Hyeoksan Il-gi Baek Mu-yeong. He didn't look like the senior disciple he knew at all. Where was that handsome and energetic man? He looked so haggard, as if he were about to die. He had changed so much that he almost didn't recognize him at first.

"Perverts? Why would a healthy man be chased by such cockroach-like perverts? What a strange thing."

The red-haired woman said so, then looked at a graceful woman standing beside her, leaning on a dragon-headed staff. It was as if she was asking for unspoken permission. The woman with the dragon-headed staff slightly raised her unfathomable eyes, looked into the distance, and subtly nodded.

At that sight, the red-haired woman also nodded and opened her mouth.

"Yes, we are in a hurry on our journey, but we have time to listen briefly. Tell us briefly what happened."

Gwak Hyun became frustrated when he realized he wasn't getting through.

"Now is not the time to be doing this?! Are you all reassured because you have swords in your hands? They are not ordinary perverts! Even our Hyeoksan Twelve Swords were no match for them!"

Then the red-haired woman asked the woman standing silently beside her with her translucent, water-colored hair tied up.

"Hyeoksan Twelve Swords? Sister, do you know them? One of them is Hyeoksan Il-eung."

The water-colored haired woman shook her head and replied in a clear voice.

"It's not a name I recall, but Hye-a might remember."

"Really? Hye-a, I'm curious. What kind of children are they?"

It was as if a conversation where one person said, "They're not worth remembering, you don't need to know," and another said, "Really? But I'm curious. Who are they?" had been elegantly transformed.

Hyeoksan Il-eung Gwak Hyun, who was contemplating whether to run away alone, froze on the spot.

'They don't know who the Hyeoksan Twelve Swords are? And they call them children? Who are they calling children? Could it be me?'

He looked at the three beautiful women standing before him, women who appeared to be in their late thirties at most.

Although they looked like they were in their late thirties at most, their attire and behavior suggested they held a high status. But who was Hyeoksan Il-eung? He was even mentioned as the next successor of the Hyeoksan Sect. Yet, they treated him, the candidate for the next successor of the Hyeoksan Sect, as someone they had never heard of, as a mere 'child'. At that moment, Gal Hyo-hye, who had returned to her position, stepped forward with a polite bow and said.

"Yes, Second Mother. They are individuals who have recently begun to gain fame. Hyeoksan Il-eung can be considered the leader of those twelve. There is nothing else worth remembering about them."

Gwak Hyun, who had never been treated this way before, was speechless, forgetting the urgency of the situation. However, his humiliation was not yet over.

"I see. Child, it's your turn now. Since you've delayed us, the explanation of the situation is done. Tell us the names of the perverts chasing you and go."

The red-haired woman urged Gwak Hyun again. Her tone was like that of a passerby comforting a crying child on the street, asking why they were crying. He felt a surge of anger, but for some reason, when he met her gaze, he felt inexplicably intimidated and could not help but answer obediently. It was probably due to his extreme mental and physical exhaustion.

"They are called Seokjeong Gwangpung Cho Un and Chae Hong Chil Ma."

A few members of Bilu Yeon's group, who had been watching passively, caught between intervening and fleeing, tilted their heads at the names. They thought they were famous perverts who had defeated the Hyeoksan Twelve Swords, but these were names they had almost never heard before.

"Have you heard of them, old master?"

Namgung Sang whispered to Yeom Do.

"No, I haven't. Among the famous perverts lately, there's only Seokjeong Gwangpung."

"Ah, the Seokjeong Gwangpung who instilled fear in women of the martial arts world fifty years ago. I heard his ice-cold palm was of a terrifying level and that many martial artists lost their lives at his hands."

"Yes, of course, I haven't fought him directly."

When the man designated as a martial arts criminal by the Elimination Squad fell off a cliff, he was still in his mid-teens.

"Then are they a new group of perverts?"

"I don't know. And I don't want to know. What's important now is not that."

"Then what is it?"

"We need to get out of this place without attracting any attention. Right now."

Yeom Do's words were extremely serious. Namgung Sang couldn't understand why Yeom Do, the old master, was acting this way.

Meanwhile, the red-haired woman, who had been told by Gal Hyo-hye, "I have no separate information about individuals with such nicknames, Second Mother. It's likely a nickname they gave themselves quite recently," frowned and said.

"If it's Chil Ma, that means seven, and adding one more makes eight in total? Are you still allowing perverts to appear so close by? And at this particular time…"

At that, the dignified woman with the dragon-headed staff, who had been silently observing until now, opened her mouth for the first time.

"Indeed, recently the Heukcheon Alliance's work has been too lax."

She slightly furrowed her brows with eyes as deep as an abyss. She was a woman who exuded a mountain-like dignity and presence, and when she gently frowned, the members of Bilu Yeon's group were startled, feeling an inexplicable sense of pressure. Although Yeom Do and Bing Geom's warnings, as well as their appearance and demeanor, were not ordinary, they never expected that the first words spoken by the woman with the dragon-headed staff would be related to the Heukcheon Alliance. What surprised them even more were the subsequent conversations.

"Yes, Eldest Sister. We need to give them some re-education."

Said the red-haired woman in a firm voice. The woman with the dragon-headed staff nodded slightly as if it were obvious, then looked at the water-colored haired woman who had been standing quietly. The woman who received her gaze replied in a gentle voice.

"Yes, I will take care of it."

As Yeom Do and Bing Geom unconsciously pulled their straw hats down further, the group, each feeling a sense of foreboding, broke out in a cold sweat internally. They felt as if they had run into people by chance who they should never have met as a rescue team.

Regardless of what the onlookers were thinking, the red-haired woman called out to Gwak Hyun, who had been in a state of confusion for some time.

"Good. Then tell us one more thing before you go. Where are they?"

Gwak Hyun asked with a bewildered expression.

"Yes, where are they? What do you mean?"

Gwak Hyun was now speaking politely without realizing it. Despite being treated with such disregard, he could no longer speak informally, let alone rebel, having overheard their conversation. Of course, he hadn't grasped exactly what had been said in his dazed state, but he understood that it was something significant.

To him, who asked with a bewildered face, the woman said with a frown.

"I'm talking about those perverts."

However, she didn't need to hear the answer.

"Khuhuhuhu, to meet eleven damsels in distress in the mountains like this! Huhuhuhu, what good luck today!"

"Kililililili, who said otherwise? We've dealt with the troublesome Hyeoksan Twelve Swords for a while, so tonight we can burn the night away with the groans of women!"

People's brows furrowed simultaneously at the voices that seemed to come from all directions, making their origin indiscernible. The voices were filled with lustful desire, causing physical revulsion in those who heard them.

"What vulgar…!"

Mahhyeong, who was enraged, tried to look around and shout, but Yong Cheonmyeong quickly restrained her. They were hiding their identities as women, and if they spoke, they could be exposed in this dangerous situation. How many female warriors were there on this martial arts path?

The next moment,

Seven ruffians fell from the air. They were strangely dressed in red, crimson, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and purple clothes, respectively. These were the culprits behind the recent serial kidnapping and rape cases in Hunan Province, Chae Hong Chil Ma.

The technique they had just used was Dengcheon Nakji (登天落地), an ascending lightness skill that involved kicking off branches and using the recoil to leap high into the air and descend vertically from above. This technique created the effect of a human falling from the sky as if from nowhere, thus naturally instilling fear.

As Gwak Hyun's eyes filled with despair at this terrifying sight, a man in white silk landed gracefully behind them. He exuded confidence and composure as he fanned himself with an ornate white jade fan. He seemed to be Cho Un, Seokjeong Gwangpung, the sworn brother of Chae Hong Chil Ma.

Although he looked to be in his mid-twenties, he didn't seem like someone who would plan and lead serial kidnapping incidents with perverts. Instead, he looked surprisingly handsome, like a promising young martial artist. Furthermore, unlike Chae Hong Chil Ma, who had displayed vulgar talk even before appearing, he merely smiled and fanned himself.

"What are you trying to do?"

Yeom Do asked in a low but strong voice, grabbing Mo Yong-hwi's hand as he tried to rush forward. The upright young man Mo Yong-hwi looked at Yeom Do with eyes burning with chivalry.

'Why are you stopping me?'

Those eyes seemed to exclaim.

"Do you not know? Of course, we are going to save them."

Mo Yong-hwi replied with a firm tone.

"Save them? Which ones?"

Namgung Sang answered from beside him.

"Of course, it's the women being threatened by those shameless perverts."

Mo Yong-hwi was not the only one trying to step forward. Even if they seemed to be involved with the dark arts, who wouldn't feel righteous indignation at the sight of beautiful women on the verge of being violated by perverts? However, the reason they didn't rush forward immediately was due to the cautious instructions from Yeom Do and Bing Geom, who had been sending warnings to the rescue team.

Even Yeongryeong, observing the situation, noticed something strange. Ok Yu-gyeong, who would normally be the first to get angry and rush forward, was calmly observing with a serious expression, as if contemplating something, rather than getting angry. Jang Hong also felt suspicious of her demeanor.

"I feel like I've seen it somewhere before…"

Ok Yu-gyeong muttered to herself, slightly furrowing her brows.

"…Permission!"

Mo Yong-hwi quietly asked Yeom Do for permission to put his chivalry into practice. However, Yeom Do refused the request outright.

"Stop, you might die doing that."

Yeom Do said, shaking his head. Mo Yong-hwi, who had expected permission, became enraged by the unexpected answer.

"Did you suddenly become a coward? Are you going to stand by and watch while women are threatened by perverts? I am not afraid of such perverts!"

Although his voice was low, these were quite harsh words coming from Mo Yong-hwi, who was usually excessively polite. This meant that he was greatly agitated, and his righteous indignation was immense.

No matter how much these women seemed to be connected to the dark arts, he could never stand by and watch such injustice. Above all, his洁癖 (cleanliness obsession) would not allow him to leave such filthy people unchecked. Such trash needed to be cleaned up for the sake of the world.

Yeom Do's red eyebrows twitched for a moment at Mo Yong-hwi's words. However, for some reason, instead of exploding, he suppressed himself.

Self-control. Yeom Do was truly different today. He lowered his voice as much as possible and whispered. It was a voice so low that even Mo Yong-hwi could barely hear it.

"You foolish kid, who said you'd die by those trash?"

"Th-then?"

Then Yeom Do even used telepathy to warn the energetic youths around him.

"I'll say it simply. If you rush out recklessly, you'll all be killed by those aunts!"

'…Aunts?'

Despite the fact that they looked no older than their mid-thirties at most, the word 'aunts' coming from Yeom Do's mouth… The youths of the rescue team who received the telepathic message were dumbfounded.

Yeom Do's words didn't quite make sense and were difficult to understand.

"I don't understand."

Mo Yong-hwi muttered, shaking his head in confusion.

"You don't need to understand. Just be prepared and watch. Then you'll understand."

This time, it was Bing Geom's telepathic message.

Yeom Do telepathically asked Bing Geom, who seemed somewhat worried.

"Why don't you just tell them outright?"

"Hold on. What if someone accidentally reveals their surprise and makes a mistake? It's like a startled thief breaking a general's porcelain."

"You speak very complicatedly."

"Simply put, ignorance is bliss."

It was rare for these two to agree, but today was a day when they were in unison, one after another.

However, it wasn't only Mo Yong-hwi who couldn't calm his mind despite their warnings. Namgung Sang and Yong Cheonmyeong also placed their hands on their weapons, raised their fighting spirit, and prepared to step forward. No, they tried to step forward.

Just as they drew their swords and moved forward, a hand stopped their steps.

"You stay right there."

It was a hand of indescribable beauty. No wrinkles could be found on that hand. It was as if time itself had frozen on that hand. The owner of the hand that blocked their steps was the grand madam dressed in black, who was at the forefront.

As if her words carried some unseen power, the three people could not move a single step further. Even though a madam who looked to be in her mid to late thirties was treating them like children, they felt no displeasure. It was due to the naturalness imbued in her words.

"Yes? But…"

Mo Yong-hwi, flustered by the unexpected situation, stammered. However, the black-clad grand madam's attitude was firm.

"I will remember your benevolent heart that does not overlook injustice. However, protecting one's own body is the law of our family. Their malice and threat are directed at us, so although I am busy, I must now deal with this matter and leave."

What was so fitting?

Mo Yong-hwi was extremely confused, unable to understand the current situation.

If they were other women, they would have cried out for help in fear. Even martial artists, when encountering despicable villains like perverts while with men, rarely stepped forward themselves. They might have stared with wide eyes, impatiently asking what they were doing and why they weren't rescuing them quickly. There was nothing wrong with that. If they were going to solve it themselves, there was no need to gather in a group.

But these women refused even offered help, as if telling children to step aside.

Although they seemed to possess extraordinary abilities from the start, they were truly astonishing women. However, in the end, Mo Yong-hwi could not understand why Yeom Do and Bing Geom feared them, or why they said they would die if they stepped forward.

Until their identities were revealed shortly after.