Swordless Demonic Path

"Aren't you Young Lady Jo of Wudang? I greeted you once at the Alliance, do you remember? I am Kang-ryo of Hengshan."

The disciples of the Hengshan Sect approached Jo Geom-ok and Woo Jeong-bong, who were eating.

They were three men and two women who appeared to be of a similar age.

As the words 'Wudang Sect' came out of Kang-ryo's mouth, the second floor of the tavern became noisy.

Jo Geom-ok, who was looking around at the disciples of the Hengshan Sect, stood up from her seat.

"You are Young Master Kang. Nice to meet you."

Although she greeted him lightly, Jo Geom-ok had an indifferent expression. In fact, she did not remember the disciples of the Hengshan Sect.

Since Kang-ryo had revealed his name, she had just greeted him out of courtesy.

The Martial Alliance was a place where so many people came and went. She could not remember every single disciple of the Hengshan Sect.

The Hengshan Sect was at the bottom of the seven sects. Since the Zhongnan Sect and the Kongtong Sect had been annihilated, it was a place that had barely entered the seven sects, so it did not have a large presence in the Martial Alliance.

Kang-ryo looked at Woo Jeong-bong and Jin Sa-wol and asked.

"And you two?"

"This is my senior brother."

Woo Jeong-bong stood up from his seat and cupped his fist.

"I am Hyun Jin."

"Ah! I have heard of your reputation."

Kang-ryo and the other disciples of the Hengshan Sect cupped their fists at Woo Jeong-bong. If it was Hyun Jin of the Wudang Sect, his reputation was high in the martial world.

Woo Jeong-bong shrugged his shoulders as if he were in a good mood.

"This is my friend."

As Jo Geom-ok introduced him as a friend, Jin Sa-wol cupped his fist.

"I am Jin Sa-wol."

"Nice to meet you. What is your sect?"

"I have no sect, I'm just a hunter."

At the word 'hunter', Kang-ryo and the other disciples of the Hengshan Sect frowned.

Their gazes changed at once. It was a gaze as if they were looking at a bug.

"What business do you two have here?"

Kang-ryo ignored Jin Sa-wol and only mentioned Woo Jeong-bong and Jo Geom-ok. He was implicitly looking down on Jin Sa-wol.

Jin Sa-wol did not care, and Jo Geom-ok still had an indifferent expression.

Woo Jeong-bong said.

"I came because I have something to do. But what business do the brothers of the Hengshan Sect have here?"

"We are on our way to Guangzhou. We plan to investigate the Sea Peak Spirit Map, which is making the martial world noisy these days, with the Hainan Sect there."

"With the Hainan Sect?"

"Because it's not a place we can go to by ourselves."

At Kang-ryo's answer, Woo Jeong-bong smiled.

"I see."

"If you are on your way to Guangzhou, please join us."

"No. Rather, it seems Brother Kang has something to worry about."

Woo Jeong-bong politely refused and then looked outside the tavern. Kang-ryo's gaze also turned outside the tavern.

Thump-thump-thump!

The ruffians who had returned came back, leading their comrades.

The number seemed to be over fifty. Since there were many of them, their momentum was very fierce.

"The beggar bastards of the Hengshan Sect, get out here! I, the invincible Great Saber Won-chung, will kill you all!"

A man from an unorthodox sect with a huge build shouted loudly.

"Worthless bastards."

Kang-ryo muttered in a low voice and went outside the tavern. His senior and junior brothers followed behind him.

Kang-ryo's eyes, who was going outside, subtly turned to Jo Geom-ok. Her beauty was still dazzling.

As the disciples of the Hengshan Sect went outside, Jo Geom-ok looked at Jin Sa-wol with a cold gaze.

"The five monkeys are looking down on people."

Jin Sa-wol tilted his head as the chill emitted from Jo Geom-ok was directed at him. Jo Geom-ok eventually even revealed her killing intent.

"Don't say you're a hunter."

"Why?"

"Because the monkey group is annoying."

Although Jin Sa-wol recalled the gazes of the disciples of the Hengshan Sect when they looked at him, he did not pay much attention. He would not have to face them anyway.

Jo Geom-ok, as if annoyed by Jin Sa-wol, who was consistently unresponsive, spoke again.

"The Gangnam Grand Inn is my inn. Why can't you say it? The grand inn is mine. I am such a great person. Why can't you say it?"

At Jo Geom-ok's words, Woo Jeong-bong and Jin Sa-wol looked at each other and shook their heads.

Jo Geom-ok crossed her arms as if she were very angry and put strength into her eyes.

"Ugh!"

A scream was heard from outside.

The three poked their heads out the window. As expected, the disciples of the Hengshan Sect were chasing away the group of unorthodox people who had flocked.

The leader also seemed to be no match for Kang-ryo and had lost consciousness and was sitting down.

"The monkeys of Hengshan are quite good for their looks."

"What's the standard for a monkey?"

When Woo Jeong-bong asked, Jo Geom-ok looked at Woo Jeong-bong's eyes, nose, and mouth in order.

"If they're uglier than you, senior brother, they're monkeys."

"Pfft!"

Jin Sa-wol could not hold it in and spat out the tea he was drinking.

Jin Sa-wol suddenly thought that it was a good thing he had come with them.

"So I'm a person."

Woo Jeong-bong smiled brightly as if he were in a good mood at the words that he was the standard.

Then Jo Geom-ok spoke again.

"So, senior brother, you are somewhere between a person and a monkey."

"What are you talking about? Am I a person or not?"

"Be quiet."

Jo Geom-ok waved her hand as if she were annoyed and turned her gaze out the window.

"Keuk!"

"Ugh!"

He saw three people being knocked out by Kang-ryo's feet and fists. The disciples of the Hengshan Sect, who were standing around him, were good at covering each other's gaps, as if they had practiced together for a long time.

The leader, who was sitting, shook his head as if he had come to his senses and stood up. He held a broadsword in his hand and shouted at his subordinates.

"Get up and fight! Don't you know that if you're looked down on once in this business, it's over?! Kill them!"

Kang-ryo jumped in front of the leader who was shouting loudly.

Kang-ryo, who had jumped over two zhang, struck the leader's nose with a fist full of internal energy.

Thwack!

"Kraaak!"

The leader, whose nose had collapsed, fell back, spewing a double nosebleed, and Kang-ryo drew his sword and shouted.

"Now I will face you with a sword! Those who want to die, step forward!"

It was an opponent he couldn't win against even when fighting with his bare hands. Moreover, as he drew his sword, Kang-ryo looked like a god of death to the bandits.

Hurry-hurry! Thump!

The men who had flocked disappeared in an instant with their injured comrades.

Cheers echoed from here and there.

Kang-ryo raised his head and smiled at Jo Geom-ok, who was sitting at the window.

Jo Geom-ok looked at Kang-ryo with an indifferent expression and then turned her head.

Kang-ryo, who had come up to the second floor, cupped his fist at Jo Geom-ok.

"How about going to Guangzhou together? Since the Guryeon Mountain Range is deep and large, the more people there are, the better."

"No. We're going to rest here a little longer. We're still tired from the journey."

"That's a shame. Understood. Then."

Kang-ryo did not lose his smile and went down. After that, the disciples of the Hengshan Sect left the village.

After they had left and about a quarter of an hour had passed, the three left the tavern and headed for Guryeon Mountain.

* * *

The huge Guryeon Mountain Range, which cut through the eastern part of Guangdong Province, was a huge mountain range with thousands of peaks connected.

Since the mountains were large and the forests were dense, it was a place where many forest bandits had been active since the past.

As they entered the mountain, the smell of blood flowed in with the wind.

"It's the smell of blood."

Jo Geom-ok, who was walking on the road, sniffed and said, and Woo Jeong-bong's expression hardened.

Jin Sa-wol found a corpse lying on the side of the road and shook his head. It was a corpse that had died about half a day ago.

"Kraak!"

Clang! Clang! Clang!

"Be careful!"

A loud voice erupted from over the mountain in the distance. It was Kang-ryo's voice.

Whoosh!

The first person to move was Woo Jeong-bong. He crossed the ridge in an instant.

Mi Ga-reung, the third leader of the Blood Death Faction, was wearing short hair and only shorts.

A red snake was wrapped around his upper body. The red snake tattoo was also a mark of the Blood Death Faction.

He, with a willow-leaf saber slung over his shoulder, looked at the disciples of the Hengshan Sect who were fighting with his subordinates.

Kang-ryo's entire body was full of large and small wounds. The other four were also holding on behind him, but it didn't seem like it would last long.

"Kraak!"

Thwack!

A young man of age, who was one of the disciples of the Hengshan Sect, grabbed his leg and collapsed. His thigh was deeply cut, and blood was flowing freely.

"Seventh Junior Brother!"

Although Kang-ryo shouted in pity, he could not help. A Blood Death Faction member was swinging a saber in front of him.

He did not dodge the opponent's saber but blocked it with his sword.

He was planning to attack when he had a chance while defending.

But the Blood Death Faction members seemed to have learned martial arts systematically and attacked and retreated at the right time.

Mi Ga-reung threw a gaze full of lust at the female disciples of the Hengshan Sect.

'Their bodies are good, and their faces are pretty, so it's a shame to just kill them.'

He shouted.

"Don't kill the women, capture them!"

"Hehehe! Yes!"

"Of course, leader!"

"Since she's a woman of the martial world, she's pretty."

Hearing the words of his subordinates, Mi Ga-reung laughed out loud. Mi Ga-reung's gaze turned to the top of a tree.

"Since the deputy leader is a woman, she can't enjoy it. Should I introduce you to a good man?"

"Be quiet."

A low voice flowed from the top of the tree. Mi Ga-reung shrugged his shoulders and licked his tongue at the two female disciples of the Hengshan Sect.

"You bastards!"

Whoosh!

Kang-ryo's sword extended straight forward and stabbed the chest of the Blood Death Faction member who was leaving a sneer.

The Blood Death Faction member, who had been stabbed in the chest in disbelief after being careless, collapsed with a scream.

"You fool."

Another Blood Death Faction member, who was cursing his dead comrade, attacked Kang-ryo.

Clang!

Although the sword and the saber clashed, the Blood Death Faction member was pushed back by the force and retreated. Another Blood Death Faction member took his place.

"Hmph! Hmph!"

Kang-ryo's eyes, who was pouring sweat like rain, shook. Dozens of members of the Blood Death Faction were surrounding them on all sides.

"Ack!"

With a scream, the senior brother standing on the right held his waist and collapsed.

Whoosh!

It was then that the sound of wind was heard.

Immediately after, a sword light flashed and cut down the Blood Death Faction members who were near Kang-ryo.

"Kraak!"

"Ack!"

"What! You son of a bitch!"

Thump! Thump-thump!

As five people collapsed in an instant, the eyes of the Blood Death Faction members turned to Woo Jeong-bong.

"What kind of bastard are you!"

Mi Ga-reung shouted when a master appeared. The way he flew and moved his sword was different from the disciples of the Hengshan Sect.

"A disciple of the Wudang Sect who was passing by."

At Woo Jeong-bong's words, Mi Ga-reung's expression hardened. He raised his hand. Then the Blood Death Faction members retreated in an orderly manner.

Clang!

Mi Ga-reung, who had drawn his saber and held it in his hand, revealed his killing intent and shrugged his shoulders.

"If you had just passed by without looking, you would have at least saved your life. You're a fool."

Whoosh!

Mi Ga-reung, who had raised his saber and approached Woo Jeong-bong in an instant, moved his saber a dozen or so times at a fast speed.

The saber shadows that went back and forth between horizontal and vertical made Woo Jeong-bong's eyes dizzy. The Blood Death Faction members cheered.

Mi Ga-reung was sure of victory.

Woo Jeong-bong's eyes seemed to have no focus. It was as if he were mesmerized by his own Blood Saber Art.

He had seen martial artists with that kind of expression once or twice.

Flash!

It was then that a light shone. A sword energy flashed and cut Mi Ga-reung's arm and neck.

"Huh?"

Mi Ga-reung's eyes widened.

'This isn't it? What is it?'

Thwack! Thump!

Mi Ga-reung's figure collapsed helplessly on Woo Jeong-bong's left.

"What is this bastard? Why is he dancing uselessly. There are too many gaps."

Woo Jeong-bong shook his head as if he were dumbfounded. Mi Ga-reung's saber art was just a trick that moved from side to side in Woo Jeong-bong's eyes.

Whoosh!

Woo Jeong-bong quickly raised his sword and blocked his face at the sound of wind.

Clang!

Five small, leaf-shaped darts hit the shaking sword and bounced off.

-Whistle!

It was then that a whistle was heard. At the sound of the whistle from the top of the tree, the members of the Blood Death Faction all fled into the forest.

"Stop!"

Whoosh!

Woo Jeong-bong jumped up and flew towards the enemy who had thrown the darts at him.

(End of Chapter)