Chapter 334
Hae Cheong-yeon let out a breath of relief.
The icy Dragon Fist Wind had dissipated weakly the moment he died.
Though she hadn’t put up her best defense while unleashing the Nine Heavens Blood Dragon Art, it was still an incredible feat of martial skill.
“To think someone with a body not even close to the pinnacle of cultivation could wield such power… truly monstrous.”
He was indeed worthy of being called the greatest of all time.
Suddenly, memories from a hundred years ago stirred in her mind—gruesome, lingering memories.
But as she shuddered briefly at the thought, a wicked smile spread across Hae Cheong-yeon’s face as she muttered to herself.
“So that dreadful bastard is finally gone.”
With that, there was no reason to hesitate any longer.
At last, the era where she could run wild had arrived.
“Uhuhuhu, once I fully take control of this body…! Ugh!”
At that moment, a sharp tightening gripped her heart, and she winced.
The blood demon Jeon Mu-gwang’s seal was growing stronger and stronger.
It seemed to be urging her to return quickly.
Gritting her teeth, Hae Cheong-yeon muttered as she looked toward the direction Dang Yeo-eun had fled.
“But I have to kill that bitch first…!”
Then, suddenly, she sensed someone approaching.
Three presences, in fact—and one of them was definitely Dang Yeo-eun.
Noticing Dang Yeo-eun’s presence, Hae Cheong-yeon smiled brightly and said,
“Oh hohoho! Thank you for coming back on your own! You’re a despicable woman for seducing my Cheong-yeon’s man, but I’ll at least let you die without pain!”
But then, she realized something strange.
One of the other two presences felt oddly familiar—not to the blood demon Gwa-yeom inside her, but to Hae Cheong-yeon herself.
“What…?”
After a brief hesitation, she clenched her teeth and sprang away—not toward Dang Yeo-eun’s direction, but toward Jeomchang Mountain in Yunnan Province, back to the Blood Sect.
Dang Yeo-eun was running back along the path she had fled earlier.
She had made that choice because she had encountered two people during her escape.
Leading them, she shouted,
“This way!”
She didn’t know if these two could defeat the monster that looked like Hae Cheong-yeon.
But she couldn’t keep running forever.
She had already confirmed she couldn’t outrun that woman on her own, and if even these two couldn’t handle her, then her chances of survival were slim.
Honestly, she was also deeply worried about Yang Moon-heon, Byeok Ri-jung, and the mysterious savior left behind.
She even thought it might be more comforting to face fate together than to abandon them and run.
At that moment, one of the two following her—a middle-aged man—asked gravely,
“Are you sure… it was Cheong-yeon?”
Startled, Dang Yeo-eun snapped back while running,
“Yes! It looked like someone had taken over Hae So-jeo’s body.”
The man sighed deeply.
“Hmm, our Cheong-yeon… to think she would do such a thing.”
Beside him, a beautiful woman comforted him,
“It’s not certain yet, is it? Don’t worry too much, Hero Hae.”
The middle-aged man forced a smile.
“Thank you for your kindness, Lady Son.”
Then Dang Yeo-eun suddenly cried out in alarm,
“Th-there!”
The two turned their gaze forward.
What they saw was a forest devastated as if a meteor had struck—completely scorched in a circular crater.
They stared in shock and sighed.
“Wow! Such power…”
“…Even I couldn’t have done this.”
The three scanned the area, searching for Hae Cheong-yeon and the others.
Soon after, Dang Yeo-eun found Byeok Ri-jung, unconscious and collapsed.
But there was no sign of Hae Cheong-yeon.
Nor of that unknown fiend.
Only a white sword, half-buried in the center of the crater, was visible.
After rescuing Byeok Ri-jung, Dang Yeo-eun hurried back to where Yang Moon-heon was.
On the way, they encountered Jeung Chil, utterly exhausted but running toward them.
“Huff! Huff! Yeo-eun! You’re safe! Thank goodness!”
“Brother Jeung Chil!”
Through him, Dang Yeo-eun and the others learned what had happened to Hae Cheong-yeon.
Throughout his story, the middle-aged man’s expression grew heavier and heavier.
It took less than half a day for Hae Cheong-yeon to return to Jeomchang Mountain.
Flying faster than a bird, the distance was nothing to her.
Arriving at Jeomchang Mountain at incredible speed, she dove straight down from the sky toward the Blood Sect’s main hall—now the office of the Blood Demon Jeon Mu-gwang.
Tap!
Waiting outside was the blood demon, already aware of her approach.
He smiled faintly and asked,
“Did you have an enjoyable time?”
Hae Cheong-yeon snapped angrily,
“You insolent brat! Not only did you seal me, but you dare to pressure me with it?!”
Though the core was the ancient blood demon Gwa-yeom from six hundred years ago, the outward appearance was that of a twenty-two-year-old Hae Cheong-yeon.
For Jeon Mu-gwang, having such a young woman yell at him for being arrogant was hardly pleasant.
But he responded with a bright smile, seemingly unbothered.
“If I offended you, I apologize. I was just worried you might not return if you went too far. Please understand my concern.”
Hae Cheong-yeon gritted her teeth and glared at his smooth words.
She wanted nothing more than to smash his head right then and there.
But she knew she couldn’t.
As long as the seal was on her heart, she had no way to resist him.
Before performing the Ancient Blood Demon Soul Technique, Jeon Mu-gwang had sealed her heart.
It was to prevent the returning ancient blood demon from disobeying or trying to control him.
A wise move, indeed.
The returning blood demon ignored all of Jeon Mu-gwang’s commands.
Had the seal not been placed beforehand, the blood demon would have already turned the tables—either sealing Jeon Mu-gwang or killing him outright.
Jeon Mu-gwang smiled gently again and said,
“The reason I sent the signal urging your swift return was because I have an urgent request—for the sake of the Blood Sect’s dominion.”
Hae Cheong-yeon ground her teeth at the shamelessness of calling the pain from the seal a mere signal.
The relaxed expression and confident gaze of someone who knew she couldn’t resist was infuriating.
She wanted to tear him apart right then and there.
But after a moment of grinding her teeth and glaring, her expression softened, and she smiled faintly.
With a languid look, she said,
“If it’s for the Blood Sect’s dominion, I suppose I have no choice but to help. By the way…”
Trailing off, she casually brushed her bangs aside.
Her beautiful face and alluring eyes were revealed.
Her features were breathtakingly beautiful.
Even Jeon Mu-gwang, a master of the highest cultivation, momentarily stiffened.
Now wearing a seductive smile, she slowly approached him.
“I haven’t been with a man for a hundred years. Suddenly, my body’s heating up all over. You know how that is, right? So…”
With a provocative smile, she lightly brushed her finger against his body and said,
“Don’t you want to have me? Don’t you desire this body?”
At that dizzying temptation, Jeon Mu-gwang flinched.
His throat went dry, and his eyes fixated solely on her figure.
She was a powerful enchantress, a true temptress of the world.
Jeon Mu-gwang had long desired Hae Cheong-yeon.
Though the core was the ancient blood demon, the body was hers—and he had no reason to resist her seduction.
He finally grinned greedily and reached out toward her.
But then—
Hae Cheong-yeon suddenly frowned sharply and shoved him away.
Smack!
“Hmm?!”
Startled by her sudden move, Jeon Mu-gwang’s eyes widened.
His gaze was already wild with lust.
But she didn’t look at him.
Frowning, she muttered to herself,
“Alright, alright, Cheong-yeon. I understand. I didn’t realize you’d be so reluctant. My mistake.”
After a moment of soothing self-talk, she looked at Jeon Mu-gwang with cold eyes and said,
“Our Cheong-yeon doesn’t want to do it with you. Seems you’re just not attractive enough for her first time.”
Jeon Mu-gwang glared at her with burning, fierce eyes.
How dare she provoke him and then give such nonsense as an excuse?
He would never let this go.
He planned to use the seal to force himself on her.
But at that moment, Hae Cheong-yeon spoke coldly.
“If you don’t want me to send you back after all the trouble of bringing you here, then it’s best you don’t try. I’m not an easy girl to handle.”
At those words, Jeon Mookwang, who had been about to grab her roughly, flinched.
He understood exactly what she meant.
The golden seal branded on Hae Cheong-yeon’s heart was a binding mark—if she disobeyed Jeon Mookwang’s orders, it would cause her heart unbearable pain, and if it worsened, it could even burst.
So what she was really saying was that she’d rather have her heart explode than follow his commands.
Jeon Mookwang’s face twisted for a moment, greed boiling beneath the surface, but in the end, he forced himself to calm down.
After all, as she said, he couldn’t just kill the Yeokcheon Blood Demon he’d gone through so much trouble to bring here, just to satisfy his lust.
With eyes radiating a dark, ominous light, Jeon Mookwang stared at her and said, “I’m quite disappointed that you can’t be fully controlled, just a mere young woman.”
Hae Cheong-yeon, the Yeokcheon Blood Demon, responded with a sultry smile dripping with seduction.
“Of course you’re disappointed. But if a soul has a body strong enough to handle me, shouldn’t it be able to do at least this much?”
She asked back, then turned gracefully and began walking toward her room.
But the moment her back was turned, her face hardened like stone.
“Damn it…”
Truth be told, she was just as frustrated.
Her soul, which hadn’t been fully consumed yet, and the golden seal on her heart—both were sources of irritation.
When she first returned to a body capable of containing her soul, she had been filled with pure joy.
Such a perfect body—it felt as if it had been made just for her.
With this body, she was certain she could unleash her powers to their fullest.
But that joy was short-lived, as she soon realized the original owner of this body was no pushover.
“This is ridiculous. How could the soul of a mere twenty-two-year-old girl…”
The soul of the Yeokcheon Blood Demon, who had been the absolute ruler of the martial world for six hundred years, was on a completely different level from other souls.
That was why, when she possessed a body, she could ignore other souls.
But Hae Cheong-yeon’s soul was different.
Even though it was clearly far weaker, for some reason, she couldn’t fully suppress it.
If anything, she risked losing control of the body altogether.
Even the Yeokcheon Blood Demon, who had ruled the martial world for centuries, was at a loss.
So she decided to change tactics.
Instead of fighting Hae Cheong-yeon’s soul head-on, she would shock it, slowly weakening her mental strength.
That was the real reason she had sought out Sun Woo-jin.
Because by taking over Hae Cheong-yeon’s body and sharing her memories, she learned that he thought of Hae Cheong-yeon as nothing more than a friend.
“And that plan was a complete success.”
From there, she made sure Hae Cheong-yeon overheard Sun Woo-jin promising marriage to another woman.
Seizing the opportunity, the Yeokcheon Blood Demon took control and even nearly killed Jin So-eun, Sun Woo-jin’s lover, with Hae Cheong-yeon’s own hands.
Both moves were perfect for breaking Hae Cheong-yeon’s spirit.
Guilt was a powerful weapon to shatter the mind.
But as she thought it through, she ground her teeth.
“If only I could have killed Dang Yeo-eun too, I could have broken her even more thoroughly.”
Hae Cheong-yeon didn’t realize it yet, but killing Sun Woo-jin’s lover with her own hands, blinded by jealousy, was an act that corrupted her own soul.
If she had killed Dang Yeo-eun herself, she might have fully taken over this body by now.
“Sleeping with the Blood Demon would have done the same.”
But now, having failed both to kill Dang Yeo-eun and to get involved with Jeon Mookwang, the Yeokcheon Blood Demon Gwa-yeom had no choice but to be content with merely coaxing Hae Cheong-yeon and maintaining partial control over the body.
It was truly a regrettable situation.
Just then, behind her, Jeon Mookwang, fully composed again, spoke.
“By the way, didn’t you say you’d do the favor I asked earlier? The one for the sake of the Blood Sect’s dominion?”
At his words, Hae Cheong-yeon turned to him with a cold expression.
As Jeon Mookwang continued speaking, a wicked yet breathtakingly beautiful smile slowly spread across her face.