Chapter 356
Reading an attack is the same as taking the advantage.
He immediately sought to counterattack, but he could not.
“What... what is this...?”
Although he had clearly blocked it, the cold that had spread from the tip of Chief Seong’s dagger seeped into Mujin’s arm.
“Amitabha... this is—”
Chzzzzt.
With a hair-raising sound, Mujin’s left arm froze solid. Though his body had been honed by the Adamantine Body Art, at that moment he was utterly helpless.
It did not end there.
The frozen arm began to thaw slowly.
As the ice melted, the flesh and blood trapped inside poured out.
“Uh... uhuh... ah... Ami... Amitabha...”
The left arm was ruined.
Ya Suyeong, who had rushed forward, froze in shock where she stood.
“...W-what is that...?”
A Celestial Being’s master had been completely neutralized by a single attack.
If they had not been shocked, that would have been stranger.
After that, Chief Seong’s dagger grazed Mujin’s throat as he writhed in pain.
Shk—
Mujin’s head hit the ground.
Chief Seong’s gaze slowly turned to Ya Suyeong.
“Come.”
Ya Suyeong’s legs trembled. Even if the Demon-Alliance Blood-Qi Pill had temporarily amplified her innate energy, she could not face a monster who displayed such inhuman skill.
This was not a mere Celestial Being.
It looked like he was seeing something else entirely.
Ya Suyeong hastily raised her hands and dropped to her knees.
“I’m sorry... I’m sorry. We did not recognize the Heavenly Arbiter and the guardian Seong Yangho.”
From the moment the name White Snow Specter Corps surfaced, she had sensed it, but she had planned to kill them here nonetheless.
She had also planned to silence them—this was not what she had expected.
The gap was larger than she had imagined.
No matter how much she struggled, she could not win.
Chief Seong, staring calmly at Ya Suyeong, turned his head toward Seol Unhwi.
At that moment Seol Unhwi spoke.
“You are apologizing. And late, too.”
He burned the Sin Samyeon whole and looked down at Ya Suyeong. The chill in that gaze terrified her.
“Heavenly Arbiter... please show mercy just once...”
The Celestial Being, the pavilion lord of the Black Robe Pavilion, was begging for his life.
“Mercy, you say?”
“I’m sorry... truly sorry. From the start, we were too greedy! The spirit pills? Take them all! Please... please spare our lives...”
Chief Seong looked at Seol Unhwi without speaking.
He intended to follow Seol Unhwi’s decision.
For that brief instant, Seol Unhwi and Chief Seong exchanged looks. Because of the years they had shared, Chief Seong understood what it meant.
Seol Unhwi said, “Stand.”
Ya Suyeong rose without a word.
“If I spare you, what can you give me?”
Ya Suyeong staggered.
“...What can I... offer the Heavenly Arbiter...”
Her voice trailed as if she were thinking deeply.
Slowly, her foot moved forward.
One step.
It was a tiny step, but paradoxically a huge one.
Ya Suyeong was an assassin.
That single step closed the distance between her and Seol Unhwi from nine cheok to eight cheok.
Then, suddenly, she dropped to her knees.
“...I will give you the Black Robe Pavilion.”
“The Black Robe Pavilion?”
“I have nothing else to offer.”
“I see.”
Seol Unhwi watched her with an unreadable expression.
“All human actions have reasons. I cannot respect your choice to ingest the spirit pill, but I think I can respect the action you are taking now.”
It was an odd thing to say, but Ya Suyeong took it as affirmation.
Her expression brightened.
The moment she rose from her knees, her pupils flashed, and her left hand snatched the dagger from her waist.
The demonic qi amplified by the Demon-Alliance Blood-Qi Pill surged from her like an explosion.
At a speed that seemed able to pierce space itself, she hurled the dagger.
The target was obvious.
Seol Unhwi’s head.
She was certain. At this distance, the dagger she launched could not possibly be stopped by that bastard.
This was on a different level than the strike she had used before.
All-out, full-power.
A kill-or-die final strike.
But she did not see what came next.
Pluk-!
Chief Seong’s dagger pierced up from beneath and through her jaw.
The dagger’s tip protruded from the crown of her head.
At the same moment, a thunk resounded through the cavern.
Seol Unhwi had seized the dagger with his right arm.
“Are you all right?”
Seol Unhwi nodded and set the dagger down.
No matter how lethal the attack, if it is read, it means nothing.
Chief Seong wiped the blood from the sword and dagger and approached Seol Unhwi.
“I have a question. May I ask one?”
“Go ahead.”
“Did you truly intend to spare her?”
Seol Unhwi lightly tapped his face.
Not the mask of No-Name, but Seol Unhwi’s own face emerged.
Did he intend to spare her?
“I intended to spare her.”
“Ah...”
“A Celestial Being of that caliber would certainly strengthen the Heavenly Alliance, but sadly her killing intent was overflowing.”
“Killing intent?”
To be honest, Chief Seong had believed Ya Suyeong’s plea was sincere.
But Seol Unhwi had not.
“When she cried to be spared, her killing intent did not subside; it only grew.”
“How could you read that?”
“Experience.”
Seol Unhwi smiled faintly.
“I’ve been tormented by too many assassins to be unaware.”
Seol Unhwi walked slowly forward.
“Clear out the martial artists at the rear, then we’ll enter the next gate.”
Chief Seong nodded.
There were two entrances at this stage of the hidden realm.
One passage led outward, and the other led to the next checkpoint.
Seol Unhwi planned to send everyone out.
***
Chief Seong surveyed the martial artists around him.
Ya Suyeong and Mujin’s bodies lay on the ground, and about a hundred martial artists stared blankly at the scene.
“Hear me.”
Chief Seong’s voice echoed through the cavern.
“You’ve guessed our identities. The person I serve and I will pass to the next gate. We do not wish to be obstructed, nor to be burdened with protecting anyone.”
The martial artists murmured.
“And us...?”
“To be blunt, you have very poor luck.”
Chief Seong spoke coldly.
“The reason is simple: Geum Mujeok will be waiting outside.”
Those words hardened the faces of the martial artists.
A martial artist’s temperament isn’t as complicated as one might think. Someone like Geum Mujeok would act decisively, so it was highly probable he was waiting outside.
Some had heard of Geum Mujeok and knew enough to shudder.
A few emitted small whimpers.
“But—”
Chief Seong pointed at the spirit pills piled beside Ya Suyeong and Mujin.
“Take all of these. The pills Ya Suyeong and Mujin would have taken, and the share meant for Geum Mujeok. There are over fifty spirit pills.”
The martial artists’ eyes lit up.
“You may fight over them or divide them by agreement—that’s your business. We do not care.”
A martial artist with a trembling voice asked, “Then what of your deal with Geum Mujeok?”
“Regardless of the talk, you did consent before entering the hidden realm. We will prevent any trouble on that matter.”
Chief Seong’s answer was concise.
It was just enough.
It preserved face, achieved results, and removed problems.
At his words, the murmuring among the martial artists grew. Even to them, this was not a bad deal. In fact, it was a good deal.
Two Celestial Beings were gone and yet over fifty spirit pills remained.
Now, as Chief Seong had said, they could divide them among themselves.
Whether they paid for them, fought for them, or sold them and split the profits was up to them.
Then.
“Wait.”
A martial artist stepped forward.
A middle-aged man who looked to have reached the Rising Spirit threshold.
“If we leave, would you not consider giving us some of the spirit pills you obtained?”
Silence fell over the cavern.
Chief Seong’s gaze turned icy.
Under normal circumstances he might have laughed bitterly.
He had seen greedy martial artists before; smooth words would usually tame them.
But not now.
His hand moved.
Pthuk!
A dagger flew like lightning—one he had drawn without anyone noticing—and pierced the man’s brow exactly.
Thuk.
The man’s head snapped back and he fell to the floor.
His skull splintered and his brain matter spilled out.
“When someone shows goodwill, they should at least be grateful.”
Chief Seong’s voice was like ice.
“If you are only willing to take without sacrifice, without qualification, without knowing your place, you have no right.”
He slowly scanned those around him.
“Death is the path that benefits the group.”
No one had expected him to act like that.
“Martial society has its rules,” Chief Seong continued.
“A strong person giving a weak person one chance is already kindness. Giving two chances is rare, and three chances do not exist. That is the code of the martial world—the law of survival...”
His gaze swept every martial artist present.
Those who sought to block Seol Unhwi’s path or exploit his mercy—whether they were martial gods or not—would not be left alone.
That was Chief Seong’s intent, and Seol Unhwi would not want Chief Seong to be remembered as a coward.
A cold killing intent emanated from Chief Seong.
“This place is a hidden realm. Anything can happen here; remember that.”
The martial artists began to tremble.
They needed to see the situation differently.
They had been cowed by Ya Suyeong and Mujin.
Yet Chief Seong had fought them nearly to a standstill and won.
In front of Chief Seong, they were mere weaklings.
“Are you ready?”
Seol Unhwi’s voice was calm and small, yet it sounded like thunder.
Chief Seong answered courteously.
“It will be finished soon, young master.”
Then he turned back to the martial artists.
“Take your chances now and leave.”
At that word, the martial artists moved at once.
Some grabbed spirit pills, others fled as if escaping. Not a single person remained.
Thus, the hundred or so martial artists «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» all departed.
Only Seol Unhwi and Chief Seong remained in the cavern.
Chief Seong approached Seol Unhwi and bowed his head.
“The clearing is complete, young master.”
Seol Unhwi patted Chief Seong’s shoulder.