Chapter 77
When the assassin squad from the Blood Forest saw the suddenly appearing old man with the prosthetic leg, they smirked.
"Don't tell me that old man is supposed to be the expert from the Ansun branch of the Hao Sect?"
"They claimed the Ansun branch had quite the intimidating presence, so I came fairly tense, but it turns out it's just a lame old man. Tsk."
The young assassins curled their lips, sneering. But at that moment, the old experts from the Blood Forest furrowed their brows.
"Silence."
"Huh? Senior Gwanghu, why are you—"
"That is Pacheon Gong, the Number One Fiend of Sichuan Province."
"What...? You mean that old man?"
The lame old man who had appeared was none other than the Fierce Sky Faction Leader, Pacheon Gong.
Jaseong, aware that recent events in the Central Plains were tumultuous, had asked Pacheon Gong to look after the Ansun branch in his absence.
"What ruffians are stirring up such trouble here?"
Pacheon Gong spoke in a low, heavy voice—like a tiger growling.
With that, a murderous aura spread throughout the entire Red Light District.
Shattered bits of roof tiles trembled under the force of his energy, and even the flames of the burning lanterns faltered for a moment.
The assassin squad from the Blood Forest looked far more tense than before. A young assassin gulped and mumbled,
"Still just a lame old man. And besides, he's alone and we're twelve. We should be more than enough..."
But the young assassin didn't get to finish his sentence.
Whhhiiiirrr!
Suddenly, a chilling frost swept in. Next, four women appeared atop the inn's roof.
'What incredible inner power...!'
'Who are those women now...?!'
Four women clad in snow-white martial robes appeared suddenly.
They were Lee Rin's guardians from the North Sea Ice Palace.
Two held frost-edged long blades, while another wielded ice crystal North Sea needles, the Ice-Ember Needle.
At the forefront was Han Soweol, one of the North's most outstanding peak experts—and Lee Rin's nursemaid.
"How fortunate. Since the young lady is absent, there'll be no need for her to witness these gruesome scenes."
Han Soweol spoke in a low voice. A frigid cold powerful enough to freeze the air wafted from her.
Thanks to that, the Blood Forest assassins became even more nervous.
'Things are going worse than planned...'
'... I can't believe there were such powerful experts at the Ansun branch.'
'It's just a branch of the Hao Sect, yet why are so many great experts gathered here?!'
And even that wasn't the end.
"I came to retrieve my own manual, only to witness such evil—there's no way I can just stand by."
Suddenly, an old man's voice rang out. When the assassins turned that way, a white-haired old man was alighting gently on the inn's eaves.
With feather-light movements, he descended to the ground, embodying the indescribable majesty of a true expert.
'Who is this old man now?!'
He was the legendary great blade master, Shadowless Divine Thief, who'd once built bonds with Jaseong in the Wandering Warrior Village.
The Blood Forest assassins hesitated, swallowing hard.
Should they fight, or retreat and await another opportunity?
After brief deliberation, Gwanghu, the effective leader for this mission, sent out a secret voice transmission.
[It's already spilled water. Kill them all.]
There were twelve assassins in total, each a formidable martial artist.
The skills of the two suddenly-appearing old men and four women didn't seem ordinary, but the assassins had the numerical advantage.
So, they decided to fight.
"So the puppies have finally made up their minds. Shall we then begin?"
Pacheon Gong muttered in a low voice, drawing the sword at his waist. That instant,
Goooooooo—
An overwhelming presence flooded the entire Red Light District.
Pacheon Gong, known as the Number One Fiend of Sichuan Province, unleashed his true ki.
"We'll take care of that lame old man!"
The young assassins of the Blood Forest surrounded Pacheon Gong and attacked.
Some wielded long swords, some used hooked twin swords, and others swung short daggers.
A gruesome scenario as several experts launched a combined assault.
Yet Pacheon Gong didn't so much as blink.
'Pacheon Lightning Nine Swords, ninth form: Lightning Cuts Through Chaos!'
Pacheon Gong's sword swung, scattering crimson sword energy. Then—
BOOM! CRACK!
The arms of two young assassins who clashed swords with Pacheon Gong were twisted backward.
"Arrgh?!"
"Gaaaah!!"
It was a scene that showed just how overwhelming Pacheon Gong's inner strength was.
With this clash, the true fight began.
"Ice Lord Asura Sword Art, sixth move: Ice Blossoms Fill the Sky!"
As Han Soweol cried out and thrust her sword, dozens of ice flowers spun from its tip—transparent and beautiful, but deadly cold.
Clatter! Splatter!
"Guhh?!"
Two Blood Forest assassins who rashly tried to block Han Soweol's chill coughed up blood.
At the sight, a Blood Forest old expert charged in.
"Getting uppity for a mere woman!"
The old expert with the Meteor Hammer, emitting murderous intent, swung it at Han Soweol.
CLANG!!
Han Soweol raised her sword to block the blow. Then, spinning gracefully, she unleashed Ice Lord Asura Sword Art, eighth move: Snowflowers Across Ten Thousand Miles.
Chachachachaching!!!
Han Soweol's furious swordplay was like a blizzard.
The old expert with the Meteor Hammer was forced completely on the defense, desperately searching for an opening to counter.
Whhiiiir!
At some point, a Ice-Ember Needle needle, flying like a bolt of lightning, pierced the old expert's shoulder from behind.
"Gyaaah!"
It had been fired by one of Han Soweol's guardian subordinates. Because of this, the old expert's stance broke.
Splatt!
Han Soweol immediately swung her sword and beheaded him.
The North Sea Ice Palace guardians not only excelled individually, but especially in formation tactics.
In particular, the surprise Ice-Ember Needle barrages left the Blood Forest assassins reeling.
'Damn it all...!'
Watching his men fall helplessly, their leader Gwanghu ground his teeth.
Only he could contend with the peak experts Pacheon Gong and Han Soweol.
But Gwanghu couldn't easily make a move. Shadowless Divine Thief stood before him with a leisurely smile.
"Enough! Begone from my sight! Blood Blade Frenzied Dance!"
Crossing his twin swords, Gwanghu unleashed an X-shaped sword energy wave.
KAKAKAKAKANG!
The tremendous force rattled surrounding buildings. But Shadowless Divine Thief just chuckled softly.
"Divine Claw Blade Art, third move: Swan Soars to Heaven."
Shadowless Divine Thief's blade swept through the air gracefully.
The light of the Divine Claw Blade Art glittered like the Milky Way descending upon the Red Light District's rooftops.
Before its brilliance, Gwanghu's X-shaped sword energies were gently swept away—no matter how many times he tried.
Finally, after three hundred exchanged moves—
Splatt!
Shadowless Divine Thief's blade slashed deeply into Gwanghu's thigh.
"Guhh?!"
Gwanghu grunted and staggered back.
Looking around, he saw his remaining men battered and broken under the combined assault of Pacheon Gong and the North Sea Ice Palace guardians.
'Damn it! At this rate, we'll be wiped out...! At the very least, I must escape alive and report these experts to the Blood Forest Lord!'
Thinking so, Gwanghu pulled a smoke bomb from his robes and detonated it—POOF!—trying to flee.
Whoosh! Splatt!
But just then, a Ice-Ember Needle needle flew from somewhere and pierced Gwanghu squarely in the back.
"Guh...?!"
It was a blow that struck straight through his heart.
Thus, every single Blood Forest assassin was subdued.
In the now-silent Red Light District street, only the assassins' blood remained.
"I was a bit nervous, since they strutted around so confidently, but in the end, they were nothing but trash."
Pacheon Gong sheathed his sword and spoke. Han Soweol replied indifferently,
"If not for our North Sea Ice-Ember Needle, the fight wouldn't have ended this quickly."
"That's true. I'm grateful for that. But, North Sea Ice Palace..."
"?"
"If you just slaughter everyone without question, what are we supposed to do?"
"What do you mean?"
"We need to leave at least one or two alive for interrogation, to uncover their backers."
"......!"
Han Soweol's eyes widened, realizing she hadn't thought of that.
In truth, the North Sea Ice Palace had enjoyed long peace since the Great Heavenly Demon War.
The guardians had seldom seen assassins, so the idea of interrogation hadn't occurred to them.
"By the way, senior, who might you be?"
This time, Pacheon Gong turned and questioned Shadowless Divine Thief.
Pacheon Gong, who rarely showed others respect, did so now because Shadowless Divine Thief's martial skill was no ordinary thing.
"Merely a passerby, nothing more."
"... A passerby?"
"Tell the Ansun branch leader that the White-haired Blade Elder was here."
Shadowless Divine Thief replied with a faint smile. With those parting words, he darted away atop the rooftops.
In any case, thanks to connections with such diverse experts, Jaseong's Red Light District escaped unscathed.
What's more, the martial world now saw just how formidable the Ansun branch's martial force truly was—a warning to martial artists in both the Central Plains and the outer world.
* * *
In the quiet archive of the Shadow Pavilion.
Amidst dustless, orderly bookcases, a black hawk flapped its wings and swooped in.
Flap—
'That black hawk... Looks like one from our Ansun branch.'
Jaseong held out his hand, just to test. The hawk flew straight to perch on the back of his hand.
"Looks like Hyang-I had something to report already."
With a puzzled expression, Jaseong untied the message from the hawk's leg. In the next moment, his eyes flashed sharply.
[Emergency Report: Assassins have appeared in Ansun's Red Light District. With the help of the Fierce Sky Faction Leader, guardians from the North Sea, and Shadowless Divine Thief, all assassins have been subdued.]
"......!"
Not only Jaseong, but Lee Rin and Gu Janghu also widened their eyes at the letter.
"Assassins... Who sent them?"
Standing nearby, Lee Rin furrowed her delicate brow. Jaseong thought for a moment before answering.
"It's most likely the Murong Clan. Of all the clans in the Central Plains, the ones with the deepest grudge against us are the Murong."
"The so-called Five Great Clans really are no better than the demonic sects!"
"At least, thanks to the Fierce Sky Faction Leader and your North Sea guardians, we avoided severe losses."
"That's some consolation. But to think even Shadowless Divine Thief showed up. I never thought that old man would lend a hand. Why did he suddenly appear in Ansun's Red Light District?"
Who knows?
That, no one could say.
In any case, Jaseong was deeply grateful to those who had defended the Red Light District.
Without them, it would've been ruined by now.
Sometime after, Jaseong began to finalize his scheme.
The Seven-Star Cloud Blade.
One of the Eight Legendary Treasures of the martial world.
A mythical treasured blade said to have been used centuries ago by Blade Sovereign Cheonunhak.
Whether it truly existed was irrelevant. The important thing was that mere mention of its name could once again ignite the martial world.
"From now, I'll explain the first step of our plan to Cause a Rift in the Martial World."
Jaseong spoke in a low voice.
"Do you remember the Thousand-Year Ginseng incident from eight years ago?"
"Uh... I hadn't entered the Central Plains yet, so I'm not familiar."
"I remember it, leader. The nine orthodox sects fought amongst themselves to obtain the Thousand-Year Ginseng elixir."
With a twisted smile, Jaseong continued,
"This time, we'll use one of the Eight Legendary Treasures—The Seven-Star Cloud Blade—as bait to make the orthodox clans fight each other."
"What...? What do you mean...?"
"To seize the Seven-Star Cloud Blade, they'll become suspicious, keep each other in check, and eventually, cut each other down."
"......!"
Lee Rin and Gu Janghu held their breath at the same time, tension on their faces.
"But, leader, they're not fools. Can you really use the Seven-Star Cloud Blade—a weapon we don't even possess—as bait? Will they fall for it so easily?"
"Don't worry. Greed blinds people. Besides..."
Jaseong gestured at the archive of the Shadow Pavilion.
"If we put the information here to use, we can fabricate 'evidence' they'll be forced to believe."
Once more, Jaseong slowly surveyed the archive of the Shadow Pavilion.
Tens of millions of letters and all the secrets within.
Roughly three hours later. At last, Jaseong left the Shadow Pavilion.
In his emotionless hand, he held a second trigger—one that would unleash a storm across the martial world.