Episode 77
But after casting a single glance at the fleeing group, Seolpung turned his gaze back to the wave of warriors rushing toward him like a tidal surge.
Of course, avoiding them was the sensible thing to do—but he didn’t want to.
Suddenly, Je Won-young, who was retreating in a panic, called out to him with a flustered expression.
“Seolpung, squad leader?!”
Though he hadn’t told Je Won-young, the mission wasn’t truly a failure yet.
Among the approaching enemies, Sak Moo-heun was surely mixed in.
From the start, Hae Cheong-yeon had thought it would be impossible for just them to cleanly take down three peak masters.
So, while she hadn’t told Je Won-young—who didn’t know Sak Moo-heun’s true identity—the original plan was for the hidden Sak Moo-heun to assassinate the rest.
But Seolpung’s refusal to flee wasn’t just because of that.
Watching the flood of warriors closing in, memories from his past surfaced.
The warriors swarming from all directions, his home engulfed in blood and flames, his mother carrying him wounded as they fled, and his grandfather, bloodied and struggling desperately.
Memories he had always tried to bury.
Seolpung hadn’t come to the front lines driven by revenge or chivalry like the others.
“No… I just wanted to run away.”
That was the truth.
He wanted to escape—from his grandfather’s dying wish for vengeance, and from the bloodline even his grandfather hadn’t known about.
Suddenly, he recalled advice from Hae Cheong-yeon’s father, the sword master Hae Un-baek.
“You’re already prepared to move on to the next stage. The only thing holding you back isn’t your body, but your mind. Whatever your reasons, you need to reflect more deeply on your inner self. Then you’ll find the key.”
He had seen right through Seolpung.
Though Seolpung habitually pushed himself relentlessly in training, part of him feared his own rising martial prowess.
Because he knew exactly what he would have to do once his skills reached their peak.
It was a burden—and a fear—too heavy to bear.
So he just wanted to live as Seolpung, the seventh squad leader of the Biryong Thirteen. If that were even possible.
“But…”
Seolpung also knew the truth.
If he stayed stuck, unable to break through his limits, he wouldn’t be able to continue even as the seventh squad leader.
Though this place had once been a refuge, he would eventually lose everything precious to him.
So now, he had to choose.
Would he stay here, running from fate? Or would he move forward to protect what mattered most?
And as a warrior, the answer had been clear from the start.
Seolpung fixed his gaze on the surging wave of warriors with a seriousness deeper than ever before.
Then, as if making a declaration, he murmured,
“I… will no longer run away.”
In the next instant, the tidal wave of Jeonghyeopbang warriors crashed down upon him.
“Yaaah!”
“Die!”
“Hah!”
Amid the hail of weapons raining from all sides, Seolpung was the first to gently deflect the side of a sword aimed to split his head.
The blade glanced off at an angle, and the attacker’s upper body lost balance, tilting forward. Seolpung gave a light shove.
“Ugh?!”
Before he knew it, the warrior’s body flew toward his comrades, who were then struck by their own weapons.
Thud!
“Gah!”
The warriors who had accidentally impaled their own allies froze in shock.
At that moment, another warrior swinging an axe beside them was also flung toward his comrades, forced to block their weapons with his own body.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
It was strange.
The warriors attacking Seolpung had somehow turned on each other without understanding what was happening.
But this was only the beginning.
The warriors around Seolpung were caught in an unstoppable current, thrown back toward their comrades as if caught in a whirlpool.
It was like being swept up in a dragon’s whirlwind.
This was a fight unlike Seolpung’s usual style—no longer the fierce, beast-like slaughter of enemies with dynamic, predatory movements.
A piece of advice from sword master Hae Un-baek echoed in Seolpung’s mind.
“Your martial arts are too heavily weighted toward movement. That’s not bad, but movement without stillness can become scattered. If you can grasp the secret of stillness within movement, not only this wall before you but the next stage beyond it won’t be impossible.”
Seolpung’s feet were rooted to the ground, unmoving, while the warriors rushing at him were flung in all directions by the dragon’s whirlwind he’d created.
And the power of that whirlwind only grew stronger with time.
“That’s… insane!”
From behind, the cold-blooded warrior Naeng Gu-eon gritted his teeth, watching Seolpung’s growing power as he sent ordinary warriors charging forward.
It seemed he would have to intervene.
“If I just throw some hidden blades from afar, it shouldn’t be too dangerous.”
Though Seolpung was frightening, his stillness made Naeng Gu-eon think he could handle it.
Cautiously, he approached Seolpung, aiming the hidden blades he’d taken from his subordinates and focusing his energy.
“You bastard… die!”
Whish! Whish!
Four hidden blades, charged with all of Naeng Gu-eon’s power, shot toward Seolpung.
They moved with blinding speed—too fast for most warriors to even detect.
Seolpung’s eyes remained closed, seemingly unaware.
Naeng Gu-eon smiled triumphantly, watching the blades strike.
But in the next moment, horror dawned on him as the blades suddenly reversed course, flying back toward him.
Whish! Whish!
“?!”
He couldn’t comprehend what was happening.
But now wasn’t the time to understand—it was time to dodge.
If he failed, he might be killed by his own blades.
“Yah!”
He leapt to avoid the blades, but suddenly felt a sharp sting in his lower body.
“Ugh?!”
The pain was brief, but his legs went numb.
He couldn’t move.
“What… what is this?!”
Panicked, Naeng Gu-eon raised his arms to block the blades, only to realize his arms were frozen too.
“Ugh, ugh!”
His terrified scream was his last.
The four blades pierced his chest and neck.
Thud!
“Gah!”
The surrounding warriors gasped in shock.
“Naeng Dae-hyeop!”
“Naeng Dae-hyeop is dead!”
“Have all the peak masters been killed?!”
As chaos erupted among the Jeonghyeopbang warriors, Sak Moo-heun—who had ambushed Naeng Gu-eon from hiding—slipped back into the crowd.
He watched Seolpung, who was lost in a trance-like state, creating a human dragon’s whirlwind.
Seolpung was always impressive, but today he seemed on a whole different level.
Like an absolute ruler of the martial world.
Mount Jeomchang, Yunnan Province.
Once the headquarters of the Jeomchang Sect, one of the old nine great sects, this place was now the stronghold of the Blood Demon Cult.
The current leader and hero of the cult, Sa Hyehyeolma Jeon Mu-gwang, sat alone in the Jeomchang Sect leader’s office, calmly reading a dispatch sent by Jegal Ji-gang.
After finishing the letter, he smiled faintly like a refined scholar and suddenly spoke.
“So, the Jeonghyeopbang has finally been exposed.”
A voice echoed from the empty air.
“They lasted longer than expected, Your Excellency.”
The Blood Demon smiled gently and asked,
“So, the seeds have been sown sufficiently?”
“More than enough, Your Excellency.”
“Good. Then it’s time to clean up. Take Cheokgang and Sayu with you.”
There was a brief silence before the voice replied, sounding a bit flustered.
“Just sending Sokham would be enough, Your Excellency. Especially Cheokgang—taking that mad boar with us…”
At the subordinate’s awkward protest, the Blood Demon burst into hearty laughter.
“Hohoho! Gi-eum, you have trouble with Cheokgang too, huh? The reason I’m sending all three of you together isn’t for that, but because of the sword master.”
“…The sword master, sir?”
“Yes. Jegal Ji-gang wants the Heavenly Sword Master taken care of. This time, he’s being sent toward Jeonghyeopbang. Do you think the sword master can handle it alone?”
The voice didn’t dare answer.
Though not on the same level as the Blood Demon, he knew the sword master was a cut above himself.
The Blood Demon smiled again.
“Besides, this matter must be handled publicly, in front of the righteous sects. That way, Jegal Ji-gang won’t be able to complain later. So Cheokgang is more suitable. You’re just there to keep him from crossing the line.”
When the Blood Demon finished, the voice sounded somewhat deflated.
“Understood, Your Excellency. It will be as you command.”
After a moment, the subordinate’s presence faded into the shadows, leaving the Blood Demon alone.
He sighed quietly.
He heard familiar footsteps approaching from afar.
They belonged to his daughter, Jeon Hee-geum.
His only remaining family, the reason he had no choice but to join the Blood Demon Cult, and the precious daughter he had finally been able to reclaim.
Yet despite her arrival, the Blood Demon’s expression was far from bright.
He knew exactly why she was coming.
After waiting a moment, Hyeolma used his intangible skill to open the door just as Jeon Hee-geum arrived.
A beautiful woman, no older than her thirties, stepped inside.
Her beauty suggested she must have been even more stunning in her youth. Yet, as she looked at Hyeolma, tears welled up in her eyes.
With a warm smile, Hyeolma spoke gently to her.
“Welcome, Hee-geum.”
But despite his kind words, Jeon Hee-geum’s eyes remained moist as she asked bluntly,
“Father, is there still no news of Yu-gyeom?”
Hyeolma finally sighed and replied,
“We’ve confirmed he left the Biryong Corps, so he’s probably on his way. But perhaps you should prepare yourself—he must have been shocked by the truth about the Jeomchang Sect and you.”
At that, tears streamed down Jeon Hee-geum’s face.
“Father, if anything happens to Yu-gyeom, I don’t think I could go on living.”
Hyeolma frowned slightly and said,
“Hmph! He’s already surpassed the pinnacle. Whether it’s you or him, there’s no way anything could happen to such a formidable master. Good news will come soon. Pull yourself together—you can’t show him a worn-out face when you meet again, can you?”
Comforted by his words, Jeon Hee-geum wiped her tears away.
Forcing a smile, she said,
“You’re right, Father. If I want to show him my best self when we reunite, I can’t be like this. I’ll focus more on my training.”
But just as she turned to leave, she paused and asked,
“Father… can I really trust you?”
Faced with the question from the only daughter he truly loved, Hyeolma sighed inwardly and answered,
“Trust me. I will never deceive you again.”
With that, Jeon Hee-geum stepped out of the study.
After she left, a rare flash of anger darkened Hyeolma’s face.
‘As expected from someone with the Ma clan’s blood—trouble from start to finish.’
Though Yu-gyeom was his grandson, Hyeolma had never intended to accept the son of his sworn enemy, the Ma clan leader, as family.
From the moment he found his daughter Jeon Hee-geum again, he had told her Yu-gyeom was dead.
Jeon Hee-geum had struggled deeply with this lie, only regaining her strength years later.
Recently, she had even begun various activities to support her father, and Hyeolma had foolishly allowed it.
But then she discovered that her supposedly dead son was alive and well.
The trust between father and daughter shattered in an instant.
That was why Hyeolma had to hastily change his planned meeting with the Martial Alliance leader to the Biryong Thirteen Corps.
‘It was all a setup to bring that Ma brat here…’
Everything afterward had gone according to Hyeolma’s design.
He had planted suggestions in Yu-gyeom’s mind, leading him to master the Blood Sect’s martial arts and leave the Biryong Corps.
All part of Hyeolma’s plan.
But amid all this, one thing had gone completely unexpected.
Yu-gyeom, who had accepted all the arrangements, never came to the Blood Sect.
Instead, having left the Biryong Corps, his whereabouts became unknown.
Even with the cunning of Sa Hyeolma Jeon Mu-gwang, this was an unforeseen outcome.
Hyeolma regretted it.
He should have just kidnapped him.
Or better yet, killed him before Jeon Hee-geum found out.
But now he knew well:
Unless Yu-gyeom returned, his relationship with his daughter would never heal.
Having deceived her once, if Yu-gyeom’s trail vanished completely, she would inevitably believe he had killed the boy.
Stepping outside his study, Hyeolma’s gaze fell on a towering tree nearby.
In an instant, the tree burst into flames.
Whoosh!
Engulfed in fierce fire, the tree turned to ash in a single breath.
All with just one glare from the enraged Hyeolma.