Episode 277: Return to the Demonic Sect
The voice wasn’t imbued with any mystical energy.
Yet, it resonated from the heavens, carrying an aura of the divine.
Startled, Churyang turned around, only to find Sabigang speaking nonchalantly.
“Just ignore it and keep going.”
“Understood.”
Churyang steadied himself and resumed his stride with renewed determination.
‘As long as Master is with me, there’s nothing to fear.’
As they continued along the stone path, various mechanisms sprang to life.
At times, spears would shoot out from the walls, and at others, lightning would strike from a clear sky.
It was a labyrinth of bizarre traps.
The peculiarity lay in the fact that these traps relied heavily on formations rather than mechanical devices.
While the flying darts and spears were mechanical, the lightning and sudden flames were the work of formations.
Of course, the lightning and fire demons weren’t real, more like illusions.
But dismissing them as mere illusions could lead to electrocution or burns.
Each time a trap appeared, Churyang fought with all his might to fend it off.
Perhaps his efforts to hatch the Platan’s egg had paid off, as he felt his mana control had improved significantly.
How long had they been walking?
The sun set, stars filled the sky, and soon dawn began to break.
Churyang was drenched in sweat.
“Master, at this rate, we’ll never reach the end.”
“Just keep going.”
“But what if, as the voice said, we wander in this formation forever and die?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you have a proper funeral.”
“That’s not the point!”
Churyang protested, knowing there was no other way.
Grumbling inwardly, he continued on.
Then, it happened.
A grinding noise echoed from somewhere.
“What was that?”
Churyang furrowed his brow and looked around.
The stone path was still a tangled maze.
But then,
“What?”
A blue vine began to grow between the stone walls.
“What the…?”
“I don’t know, but it’s definitely not for decoration.”
“That’s not what I meant!”
“Then why ask?”
“Ugh!”
Churyang had no time for bickering.
A massive, writhing vine lunged at him like a serpent.
“Damn it!”
With a swift motion, a mana blade formed in Churyang’s right hand.
“Ha!”
He shouted, slicing through the vine that came at him.
Indeed, the mana blade was sharp.
Its sharpness depended on one’s mana proficiency, and his training hadn’t been in vain.
Churyang twisted and turned, slashing at the vines attacking from all directions.
“Damn, this is endless!”
The severed vines writhed like tentacles before eventually disintegrating.
The problem was, as they vanished, they left behind a sticky green residue that sizzled and smoked.
“Could it be poison…?”
“Take the antidote.”
Following Sabigang’s instruction, Churyang quickly bit into the antidote.
Its bitter taste spread through his mouth.
It was crafted by the Tang family, renowned for their expertise in poisons, so it should counter most toxins.
As Churyang continued to fend off the vines, he noticed his mana blade losing power.
Not only that, but its sharpness was waning.
It felt more like he was deflecting the vines rather than cutting them.
Despite Sabigang’s constant nagging, Churyang was too out of breath to focus.
“Master… I don’t think I can fend off all these vines… I might miss a few, so… please be careful too…”
As he spoke, Churyang glanced back at Sabigang, his jaw dropping in disbelief.
While he was struggling to fend off the vines, Sabigang stood there, arms crossed, watching calmly.
Even more astonishing, not a single vine reached for Sabigang.
“What… what’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
Sabigang replied nonchalantly, prompting Churyang to shout in frustration.
“Why are they only attacking me?”
“Why ask me?”
“I’m exhausted here!”
“Hang in there.”
“If you’re just going to stand there, could you at least help me out a bit?”
Churyang stomped on a vine coiling around his leg, crushing it.
Sabigang nodded approvingly.
“Your mana and internal energy seem to be harmonizing well now.”
“You’re unbelievable!”
With a final shout, Churyang thrust his mana blade at a large vine coming straight at him.
In that moment,
The mana blade shattered, scattering in all directions.
The vines charging at Churyang were struck by the fragments, losing their strength and collapsing.
“What…?”
Churyang gasped for air, clutching his knees.
‘What just happened?’
When he felt the mana blade cracking, he thought he was done for.
He expected it to vanish entirely.
But instead, it shattered and scattered, taking out all the attacking vines.
Though the mana blade was gone, it had been more of a gain than a loss.
After all, it was going to disappear anyway.
Churyang surveyed his surroundings before collapsing in exhaustion.
“Phew, that was close.”
“Well done.”
Sabigang approached, looking down at Churyang with a casual remark.
“You’ve mastered a finishing move.”
“A finishing… what?”
“The move you used at the end is a kind of finishing technique. You seemed to use it unconsciously, so don’t forget that feeling. However, using it will delay forming another mana blade, even if you have energy left. So, use it wisely.”
Churyang was about to respond when the voice from the sky interrupted again.
“Don’t get complacent just because you survived. You will remain here forever…”
“Enough already.”
Sabigang interrupted, picking his ear casually.
“What… what did you say?”
The voice sounded flustered.
Sabigang glanced around as he continued.
“By now, you should realize your formation doesn’t work on me.”
“That… that can’t be…!”
“I’m getting bored. Though, if you want to keep training my disciple, I won’t stop you.”
”…”
The voice fell silent.
Churyang, still catching his breath, looked at Sabigang in confusion.
“Training? And what do you mean the formation doesn’t work on you?”
“You saw it. The plants only attacked you.”
“Well, yes, but… does that mean none of the traps affected you?”
“Pretty much. Though mechanical traps are real, so I had to block or dodge those.”
“My goodness…”
Churyang muttered, feeling a mix of disbelief and relief.
It seemed unfair, but he didn’t argue further.
From Sabigang’s words, it was clear that leading him through this place was all part of his training.
‘Then… could it be…?’
Churyang looked at Sabigang with a weary expression.
“Do you know how to get out of this maze?”
“It’s not really a maze. I can see two people right over there.”
“What? Where?”
Churyang looked around frantically, but all he saw were the confining stone walls.
However, the voice seemed noticeably unsettled by Sabigang’s words.
“Hmm. I didn’t expect you to be completely unaffected by the formation. Impressive.”
As soon as the voice finished, the stone walls wavered like a mirage before disappearing entirely.
The dawn light vanished, replaced by the bright midday sun they had first encountered.
“What… what just happened?”
Churyang gasped, looking around to find a shabby house surrounded by a simple fence.
“Since we entered, only a short time has actually passed.”
“What?”
Churyang exclaimed in shock.
They had spent what felt like a whole day and night, yet it had been only a brief moment?
Sabigang nodded slightly, murmuring to himself.
“Now I understand how that peddler was so elusive.”
“Apologies for the earlier rudeness. Please, come inside.”
A voice called from the house, the same one that had spoken from the sky.
However, unlike before, there was no mystical aura or heavenly voice.
It was just an ordinary voice.
As Sabigang and Churyang entered the house, they saw two people sitting across from each other at a table.
The two stood up and greeted them with a respectful bow.
“Welcome. I am Jeong Ryugwang, the chief of Haomun. And this is the master of Haomun.”
“Haomun Master, Wang Yi.”
It seemed that the voice belonged to Jeong Ryugwang, the chief.
After brief introductions, Sabigang and Churyang took their seats.
Jeong Ryugwang spoke first.
“I apologize for any offense upon our first meeting. I hope you can forgive us.”
“Admitting it’s an offense and then just asking for understanding? That’s quite the audacious approach,” Sabigang retorted bluntly.
Jeong Ryugwang and Wang Yi exchanged glances, looking a bit taken aback.
Wang Yi, now slightly irritated, grumbled in response.
“We had no choice. We needed to test if you were someone we could share information with.”
“Since when did Haomun become so arrogant? Weren’t you the sect that used to hide like mice, relying solely on your intelligence network? Well, at least my disciple got some good training out of it.”
At this point, even the relatively composed Jeong Ryugwang couldn’t hold back his irritation.
“Even if Haomun is insignificant, how can you speak so brazenly to our faces…!”
“Let me ask you something.”
”…?”
“When you set that formation against me, what were you thinking?”
“That was…”
“You must have considered the possibility that I might wander forever and die.”
“Ugh.”
Jeong Ryugwang couldn’t deny it. If Sabigang’s internal strength hadn’t been so profound, the formation wouldn’t have been broken so easily.
Sabigang smiled coldly.
“I’m looking at you now with the same mindset you had back then.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just as you tested my martial skills, I intend to test your intelligence network. If it doesn’t meet my standards…”
Gulp.
“…if it doesn’t?”
“Neither of you will leave here alive.”
Bang!
Unable to contain himself, Wang Yi slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly.
“We agreed to meet because you pleaded at Sohwaru, and now you dare speak like this? What do you take me for?”
But in the next moment, Wang Yi swallowed hard, his eyes wide with shock.
Before he knew it, a sword hovered just a hair’s breadth from his throat.
Amazingly, the sword was floating in mid-air.
What was even more terrifying was the murderous intent emanating from the sword itself, as if it had a will of its own, eager to taste blood.
‘What… what is this…?’
Cold sweat trickled down Wang Yi’s back as Sabigang spoke icily.
“Sit down and shut up. I have many questions.”