Chapter 186
As Sun Woo-jin and his group stepped into the stone chamber, their eyes widened in shock as they took in their surroundings.
Inside the vast chamber were countless stone slabs, each bearing the lifeless forms of what must have been nearly a hundred people.
Yes.
They lay there as if dead.
There was no sign of movement, no breath, nothing to suggest they were alive. Yet, strangely, they didn’t look like corpses either.
Not a single one showed any sign of decay.
Suddenly, a phrase from the demon heads earlier flashed through Sun Woo-jin’s mind.
“…A workshop?”
In that instant, he realized who these people really were.
“Oh my god… They’re all ‘mine’.”
That’s right.
This so-called workshop was a place where ‘mine’—demonic constructs—were created.
These people were all in the process of being turned into ‘mine’.
Sun Woo-jin’s eyes darted around in horror.
All of them appeared to be martial artists—men and women, young and old—lying there, unaware of their fate, as if dead.
It was utterly heartbreaking.
But pushing those thoughts aside, Sun Woo-jin steadied himself.
Now was the time to focus on the situation at hand.
He quickly sent a message to his comrades.
Five thumbs-up signals and a beast scattered to hide around the door—left, right, and above.
Moments later, the demon heads neared the chamber.
“See? There’s nothing here. Let’s just leave.”
“We’ve come this far; we should at least check inside. But where did the workers go?”
As they spoke and stepped inside, suddenly, something rained down from their left, right, and above in an instant.
Shhhiiik!
“!”
“Ugh?!”
Shing! Pffwah! Pook! Crack! Snap!
Sun Woo-jin’s sword flashed like a beam of light, slicing a clean line across one demon head’s neck. At the same time, a shadowy blade swept past like a gale, sending another demon head’s severed head bouncing into the air.
That wasn’t all.
Zheng Chil’s hidden needles pierced a demon head’s carotid artery, Sun Woo-jin’s palm strike crushed another’s skull, and Ya Wunhyang’s whip coiled like a serpent around a neck, shattering the cervical vertebrae.
The entire attack was swift and flawless.
Only one managed a final, agonized cry before succumbing to Ya Wunhyang’s whip.
With all enemies down, Sun Woo-jin raised his palm, signaling his group to pause, then focused intently, scanning for any other demon heads.
“Hold position.”
But no matter how hard he concentrated, the area was clear.
At least within their detection range, there was no sign of movement.
Only then did Sun Woo-jin exhale a quiet sigh of relief.
“Good work, everyone.”
His words brought a wave of relief to the others.
“Phew, that was nerve-wracking.”
“Ugh, at my age, this kind of trouble…”
“My heart’s still pounding.”
While Bi Sa-yeong, Zheng Chil, and Ya Wunhyang muttered exhaustedly, only Seol Poong, who shared a similar sensitivity, smiled faintly, looking at Sun Woo-jin with encouragement.
The group took a moment to examine the people lying on the stone slabs.
It was clear—they were indeed dead.
Their cold, stiff bodies had been treated somehow to prevent decay, lying as if they might rise at any moment.
And they weren’t the only corpses.
Seol Poong, inspecting a corner of the chamber, suddenly called Sun Woo-jin over.
“Jin, come look at this.”
He had found a passage leading underground.
Below, hundreds more bodies were stacked, also preserved without decay.
Apparently, these were the people believed to have died during the Martial Emperor’s Bloodshed.
“Oh my god…”
“Judging by their appearance, they all seem to be martial artists. These must be the corpses destined to become Zhugui or Cheolgwi.”
Since most Zhugui and Cheolgwi were made from Miao tribe corpses, this assumption made sense.
If all of these became Cheolgwi, it meant hundreds of them could soon rise.
The thought alone was horrifying.
Then, one of the group, while scanning the chamber, suddenly recognized a familiar face among the corpses.
It was Bi Sa-yeong.
He stared at one body lying on a slab, his face turning pale.
“…M-Master?”
His words startled the others, who looked at him in surprise.
Trembling, Bi Sa-yeong reached out a shaky hand toward the middle-aged man lying as if asleep.
It was his master.
The one who had taken in orphaned Bi Sa-yeong as a child and raised him like a parent.
Though many years had passed, his master’s face remained unchanged, instantly recognizable.
Bi Sa-yeong’s trembling hand traced the cold, stiff features before he finally bowed his head onto his master’s chest.
His whole body shook with sorrow.
The others watched silently, their eyes filled with pity.
They couldn’t afford to linger here, but no one dared speak.
Finally, Ya Wunhyang broke the silence.
“Big Brother Sa, we have to go avenge your master.”
Bi Sa-yeong slowly lifted his head, his eyes bloodshot and fierce.
He looked at Sun Woo-jin and said, “Jin, we must destroy this place.”
Sun Woo-jin nodded firmly.
“Of course.”
Clenching his teeth, Bi Sa-yeong rose.
“Then let’s go. We have to save our comrades.”
With a resolute gaze, he led the way out of the chamber.
It was time to enter the Martial Emperor’s Blood Hall and rescue their allies.
“Here, eat up.”
The blood demon woman, naked as ever, entered the chamber carrying food for Na Seo-yu and Sak Mu-heun.
Since their first meeting, she had spent most of her time by their side.
Perhaps because she felt a kinship, knowing they were destined to become like her, or maybe because of her inherently kind nature, she cared for them attentively and kindly.
Na Seo-yu greeted her with a somber expression.
“Thank you. We’ll eat well.”
“No need to thank me—it’s what friends do.”
She said this as she fed food into Sak Mu-heun’s mouth, who had once again closed his eyes tightly.
“Don’t you find it uncomfortable to keep your eyes shut like that?”
“It’s better than keeping them open.”
“That’s strange. You could just look around, but you’re acting like a fool.”
“If you’re really worried, I could put clothes on you.”
“Clothes? Nah, that’s too much trouble. Besides, it wouldn’t be fair. You only have to open your eyes, but I’d have to make and wear clothes.”
She smiled playfully, teasing Sak Mu-heun.
From what they’d seen, she enjoyed joking around like this—a mischievous spirit.
As they bantered, she suddenly smiled brightly.
“Oh! I hope Shima Father comes back soon. Then we wouldn’t just be playing with words—we could actually move together.”
Her words darkened Na Seo-yu and Sak Mu-heun’s faces even more.
They knew exactly who she meant—Baekmyeon Shima Guujeol, one of the Blood Sect’s top figures.
If he returned, it meant they’d be turned into blood demons like her.
Sak Mu-heun suddenly said to her, “We could move together even now, if you’d just lift the blood seal.”
She shook her head with a laugh.
“No way. I told you before, Hwanma Father already said no. He said you’d try to run if the seal was lifted.”
Sometimes she seemed carefree and playful, but when it came to orders from Hwanma or Shima, she was strictly obedient.
Na Seo-yu suspected it was some kind of mental restriction.
Once, she’d asked the woman if she ever wondered who she had been before.
The woman had gone blank for a moment, then suddenly clutched her head in pain.
When the pain passed, she seemed to have forgotten the question entirely.
It had to be a mental block.
Na Seo-yu felt sorry for her and hadn’t pressed her with difficult questions since.
But now, she knew she couldn’t hold back.
If Baekmyeon Shima really returned, everything would be over.
Steeling herself, Na Seo-yu spoke up.
“Actually, we don’t want to become blood demons like you.”
The woman’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Huh? You don’t want to play with me?”
“No, it’s not that. We just don’t want to end up like you. Look at yourself. Think about your white energy. You were never part of the Blood Sect. Everyone trained in their martial arts uses red energy.”
The woman repeated slowly, “Red… energy?”
“Yes. Your energy is dazzling white. That’s proof you were once on our side—a righteous faction fighting against the blood demons. Think about it. You weren’t always like this.”
For a moment, her expression went blank, then suddenly she clutched her head.
“Ahhh! My head!”
It was the same reaction as before.
But Naseoyu didn’t stop, even as he saw her in pain.
He kept pressing her.
“This is happening now, too. When I asked about the past, your head hurt, right? This has to be the mental block they placed on you. Think carefully. You were originally one of the righteous sect, not a tool of the Blood Demon. You fought against the Blood Demon. Please, try to remember.”
“Ahhh!”
Naseoyu hoped that by continuing to question her, he might break the mental barrier causing her suffering.
But things didn’t go as he wished.
“Ahhh!”
She screamed, clutching her head, unable to bear it any longer, and bolted out of the chamber.
Her speed was incredible—almost that of a supreme master.
“So…!”
Naseoyu was left speechless as she vanished in an instant.
Silence fell.
After a moment, Naseoyu asked weakly, “Brother Sak, was it my fault?”
Sak Muhn sighed and replied, “No. We had to try something. You did well. But… because of this, the protective barrier that had been shielding us has disappeared.”
“……”
Naseoyu was speechless.
Her anxiety stemmed from exactly that.
The Blood Demon woman had always stayed close by, blocking other demon masters from approaching.
Because of her, the two of them had remained safe.
But Naseoyu’s recent actions had effectively removed that shield.
She prayed desperately for the woman’s return before anything worse happened.
“Please…”
But the world did not heed her wish.
Voices came from outside the chamber.
“Did you see that crazy woman just now?”
“Yeah. She was clutching her head like a madwoman, running toward Lord Hwanma. Something must be wrong.”
“Ha ha ha, of course something’s wrong. The woman inside the chamber is all alone now.”
“Heh heh heh, I see.”
Naseoyu’s heart sank.
It was the voices of those demon masters.
The ones who had seemed so formidable were now back outside the chamber.
“No! Please!”
Naseoyu silently begged them not to enter.
But against her desperate hope, they stepped inside.
Then they spoke to her.
“Pretty thing, how have you been?”
“Ha ha ha! Kuga and Juga have terrible luck. Of all times, they’re at the central hall. Ha ha ha!”
“Even better for us. We get to have all the fun ourselves! Ha ha ha!”
Their greedy voices filled the room, and Naseoyu could only whisper in despair,
“No….”
At the same time, Sun Woojin and his group emerged from the chamber and cautiously made their way down the long, straight corridor they had failed to cross earlier.
“So far, no sign of anyone. If we take the right path at the four-way junction, then left, then right again…”
No Jeok had said there was an entrance to the inner quarters there.
Of course, he’d also warned that guards would be posted at that entrance.
But there was no choice now.
Sun Woojin was prepared to cause a commotion if necessary once they reached that point.
“It’d be best if we can lure the guards away, but if not, we’ll have to take them out quickly…”
Thinking this, Sun Woojin swiftly exited the straight corridor and turned right.
Then, just as they approached a fork and were about to turn left, he suddenly stopped.
Raising his hand, he signaled the group to halt.
His urgent voice came through their comms.
—Stop! There appear to be six supreme masters and two top-tier masters at what seems to be the entrance to the inner quarters.
The group’s faces went pale.
They were finally facing the top-tier masters.
And of all places, right at the only entrance to the inner quarters.
They waited tensely for Sun Woojin’s orders.
But he was just as unsettled.
“Damn it, there’s no way to silently take out top-tier masters… What do we do?”
It was an impossible situation.