Chapter 116

The next morning, Do Munseung was finally released from captivity and able to walk toward the entrance of the Guangjian Tomb.

Beside him, Mak Woojeon of the Thousand Meetings Sect was warming up, swinging his sword with practiced ease.

Mak Woojeon spoke to him.

“As you saw yesterday, inside that cave lurks Vice Sect Leader Ga Yuak, who’s gone mad with ‘Guangzheng’—a kind of madness. For some reason, he never ventures beyond a certain distance from the cave’s entrance. Instead, he attacks anyone who tries to enter.”

Do Munseung frowned at that.

Ga Yuak attacks anyone trying to enter the cave?

He looked at Mak Woojeon skeptically.

“If Vice Sect Leader Ga Yuak is truly the great master who has surpassed eighty years of internal energy cultivation, then if he’s guarding the cave, there’s no way I could get in.”

Mak Woojeon chuckled softly.

“Of course. And what’s more, after falling into that madness, his ‘Wu Wei’—his martial prowess—has risen another level. I fought him briefly, and now he’s on par with me.”

“What?!”

That was astonishing.

Ga Yuak’s Wu Wei had increased after falling into madness?

And now he was equal in skill to Mak Woojeon, who had surpassed ninety years of internal energy cultivation and was considered a supreme master?

It seemed the madness had actually enhanced his abilities.

As a martial artist, Do Munseung found that fascinating.

But for him, there was something even more important.

Mak Woojeon was telling him to break through such a formidable opponent and enter the cave.

The more he heard, the more impossible it sounded.

Seeing Do Munseung’s expression, Mak Woojeon patted his shoulder reassuringly.

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle him. I’ll go first and fight him at the entrance, holding him back. You just need to seize that moment and rush inside.”

Do Munseung looked again toward the cave.

The entrance wasn’t very wide. He pictured the scene Mak Woojeon described.

A bitter laugh escaped him.

So, at this narrow cave entrance, two masters with over ninety years of internal energy cultivation would be fighting, and he was supposed to slip inside unnoticed?

Did Mak Woojeon really believe that was possible?

And even if he got in, then what?

Do Munseung’s face twisted in disbelief.

“What if you lose him? Or, since you can’t enter the cave yourself, what if Ga Yuak ignores you and follows me inside to attack?”

Mak Woojeon sighed deeply, his expression grave.

“I’ll do my best to hold him back. You may not know it, but I’m in a desperate state myself. Trust me on this.”

That was ridiculous.

Trust someone who was basically planning to kill him?

Do Munseung laughed bitterly again but said no more.

After all, these people didn’t care whether he lived or died.

If he survived by some miracle, they might even kill him on purpose. Gambling with his life was only natural.

Staring at the red glow emanating from inside the cave, Do Munseung finally sighed in resignation and nodded.

“Alright. I suppose you have no other choice.”

Mak Woojeon smiled faintly.

“Thank you for understanding.”

From Mak Woojeon’s perspective, Do Munseung was a young man he liked more and more. If they had met under different circumstances, he might have taken him as a true disciple.

But Mak Woojeon had no idea what Do Munseung was thinking—or who he was secretly communicating with.

After their conversation, Mak Woojeon drew his sword and began walking toward the cave.

He shouted toward Vice Sect Leader Ga Yuak, whose eyes glowed red inside the cave.

“Yuak! I’m here! Do you recognize me?!”

But even Mak Woojeon knew the answer.

The ominous blood-red light still blazed from Ga Yuak’s eyes, and the murderous aura thickened, making the skin tingle.

Mak Woojeon’s tension rose.

As before, if he approached beyond a certain distance, Ga Yuak would leap out and attack.

Crash!

Just like that.

“Uwaaaah!”

Clang clang clang!

Ga Yuak’s sword flashed like lightning, clashing countless times with Mak Woojeon’s blade in midair.

The speed and intensity were so great that neither Do Munseung nor the other warriors could follow with their eyes.

As they exchanged blows, Mak Woojeon thought, His Wu Wei is the same as last time.

Facing Ga Yuak, who was nearly equal in swordsmanship, Mak Woojeon felt a slight relief.

He had worried that Ga Yuak’s Wu Wei might keep rising as the madness deepened.

But this time, it remained at the same level as before.

Apparently, the increase had only happened once, when Ga Yuak first fell into madness.

Feeling reassured, Mak Woojeon called out as he fought.

“That’s enough! Hold him here while you get inside quickly!”

He was confident he could keep Ga Yuak occupied long enough for Do Munseung to slip in—and even after that.

But just as Mak Woojeon gave the signal, something no one expected happened.

“Kihahahahaha!”

“Ohohohohoho!”

Suddenly, chilling laughter echoed.

Mak Woojeon recognized it all too well—the very laughter of those they had been desperately searching for until yesterday.

The Azure-Red Twin Swords had appeared.

The same pair who had toyed with Mak Woojeon and vanished.

“What?!” Mak Woojeon gasped, turning toward the source of the laughter even as he fought Ga Yuak.

Like ghosts emerging from the forest, they charged at the Thousand Meetings warriors stationed around the cave.

In an instant, a bloody explosion erupted.

Puhah!

“Gahhh!”

“Ahhh!”

The Thousand Meetings warriors had been fully focused on the duel between Mak Woojeon and Ga Yuak.

They were caught completely off guard, defenseless against the Azure-Red Twin Swords’ assault.

Blood sprayed like rain as the Twin Swords cut through them like a ghostly storm.

No one could slow their advance.

Among the bleeding, collapsing warriors, Mak Woojeon’s eyes locked on a single face.

Do Munseung—the one waiting to enter the cave.

Struck by a blow from a monstrous man, Do Munseung spat blood as he was hurled through the air.

The last hope Mak Woojeon had pinned on him.

“Ugh!”

Watching him fall helplessly to the ground, Mak Woojeon cried out in despair.

“No!”

But Do Munseung lay motionless, powerless.

His last hope was slipping away.

“Those bastards!”

Mak Woojeon felt like he was losing his mind.

But there was nothing he could do, locked in combat with Ga Yuak.

The one who was supposed to hold Ga Yuak back had become the one trapped by him.

And the Azure-Red Twin Swords didn’t stop there.

After slaughtering the Thousand Meetings warriors like a phantom, they passed by Mak Woojeon and Ga Yuak without hesitation and entered the cave.

Like a wind that swept through without resistance.

Straight toward the very place where the essence of the Guangjian Sword was said to be sleeping.

Mak Woojeon was stunned.

“What?!”

Suddenly, a thought struck him.

They already knew about the essence of the Guangjian Sword! Their attack on the sect and their trickery of me were all to seize it!

He was furious.

If this continued, they would steal the essence of the Guangjian Sword.

A raging fire erupted inside him, like a volcano breaking free from reason.

Mak Woojeon roared.

“You bastards! Do you think I’ll let you take it?!”

The flame of his inner heart blazed into a massive inferno.

His eyes saw nothing else now.

Only the cave entrance where they had gone.

With terrifying force, Mak Woojeon’s sword surged forward, striking Ga Yuak.

“Step aside!”

Crash! Crash! Boom!

The impact was tremendous.

Ga Yuak, who had been fighting evenly, was forced backward.

“Grrrrr!”

Without hesitation, Mak Woojeon left him behind and dashed into the cave.

“You bastards!”

His eyes now glowed the same fierce red as Ga Yuak’s.

---

The night before, Sun Woojin had secretly met with Do Munseung and learned the full story.

He understood everything.

“The essence of the Guangjian Sword, the legendary Zheng Minggang’s legacy! That’s what it was!”

No wonder Mak Woojeon had risen to become one of the Thirty-Six Stars of the World in his past life—because he had obtained it.

Sun Woojin’s mind raced.

Saving Do Munseung alone was no longer enough.

They had to prevent Mak Woojeon from acquiring the essence of the Guangjian Sword.

If left unchecked, he would find a way to claim it—and just like in his past life, become the Blood Demon’s cursed sword, staining the world with blood.

Moreover, the fact that he had transformed from a heavenly swordmaster into a killer swordmaster was likely connected to that maddening cave.

What to do…

Sun Woo-jin muttered to himself as he pondered over possible plans.

“The best way would be to kill him and take Yu-jin of the Light Sword for ourselves…”

Beside him, Dang Yeo-eun looked worried and spoke up.

“But both options won’t be easy. Facing Mak Woo-jeon, a master with over ninety years of internal energy cultivation, is one thing. More importantly, there’s no guarantee we’ll come out sane after entering that cave that’s said to drive people mad.”

“Hmm, that’s true.”

At that moment, something popped into Sun Woo-jin’s mind.

In fact, it was the first thing he thought of the moment he heard about the cave only being accessible to those with a ‘pure mind.’

“Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol.”

When he had memorized all the books in the Sunwoo family’s martial arts library, he had once read a book by that name.

It was a strange text—not a method for cultivating internal energy, nor a scripture, but some kind of unusual incantation.

He had almost dismissed it, but since the martial arts texts right next to it were Shaolin techniques like the Iron Nail Mind Method and the Arhat Fist, he figured it might be worth a closer look. So he read it three times and memorized it.

After that, it had been pushed to the back of his mind—until now, when the word ‘pure mind’ suddenly brought it back.

Especially the phrase written on the first page of the Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol gripped his heart tightly:

—“It will free you from all evil delusions. But beware the soul-breaking of the Heavenly Demon.”

That was the opening line.

Given the word ‘pure mind,’ he guessed it was a protection against mental attacks from outside.

And though he didn’t know exactly what ‘soul-breaking’ meant, if the ‘Heavenly Demon’ referred to the same ‘Heavenly Demon’ of the demonic cult, then everything except that would be blocked.

That sounded more reliable than any claim of being able to block all worldly threats.

In the end, Sun Woo-jin decided to master it.

“Alright, let’s give it a shot!”

After all, he had nothing to lose.

There was no better plan anyway.

Learning the Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol wasn’t difficult.

Since it was a mantra composed solely of incantations rather than a method for cultivating internal energy, it didn’t feel like he was achieving anything or leveling up.

But after about half a day of practice, Sun Woo-jin tested it by stealthily approaching the cave.

The closer he got, the more he could sense an unknown energy trying to invade his soul—and the protective barrier of the Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol holding it back.

It was a success.

A great success.

“Heh, unbelievable.”

Sun Woo-jin chuckled dryly.

To think he had memorized this secret technique and left it unused all this time.

It was like carrying a jewel in his pocket but treating it like a mere stone.

If only he had realized its power earlier and taught it to his comrades, maybe they could have even blocked the Blood Sect’s soul-seizing technique.

His thoughts briefly drifted to the face of Myung Sa-hyun, who had died so tragically.

But he quickly shook his head, brushing the thought away.

It was wiser to be grateful he had discovered it now, at least.

That night, Sun Woo-jin and Dang Yeo-eun practiced the Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol together until dawn.

He also taught it to Do Moon-seung via telepathic communication, just in case.

Though it was unlikely that Do Moon-seung, who was currently pretending to be dead outside the cave, would come inside.

Now, having entered the cave, Sun Woo-jin felt an astonishing calmness in his heart despite the evil energy trying to shake his soul—and he smiled with satisfaction.

He asked Dang Yeo-eun through telepathy.

—“Miss Dang, are you alright?”

—“Yes! Strangely, my mind feels peaceful! I can definitely sense the energies trying to invade around us! It’s amazing!”

That was a relief.

He had worried about Dang Yeo-eun’s sensitive nature.

Originally, Sun Woo-jin had planned to enter alone, but she insisted on coming along, refusing to be left behind in such danger.

Fortunately, the Daeyeon Jeongsim-gyeol was clearly working for her as well.

Then, from behind, the furious roar of Mak Woo-jeon echoed.

“You bastards!”

He was pushing past Ga Yoo-ak and following them into the cave.

Sensing this, Sun Woo-jin quickly said,

—“Let’s move, Miss Dang!”

The two swiftly entered the cave.

Ahead, the dark tunnel split into two paths.

Sun Woo-jin sent a telepathic message.

—“Left!”

Though he didn’t know the difference between the two, he chose one and dashed down it.

Just after they disappeared to the left, Mak Woo-jeon arrived at the fork.

“Grrrrrr!”

His eyes glowed red with bloodlust as he growled like a beast.

Still, he shouted intermittently.

“It’s mine! Grrr! I said it’s mine! I’ll never let it be taken! Grrrr!”

Apparently, his greed remained intact.

Having come from the bright outside into the dark cave, Mak Woo-jeon hadn’t seen where the others went.

Moreover, the two had moved as quietly as possible, not even making a sound.

So after briefly looking left and right at the fork, Mak Woo-jeon finally lunged to the right.

“Grrrrr!”

Right after he charged, Ga Yoo-ak, who was following close behind, also ran to the right in pursuit.