Chapter 13 : Ambush
Chapter 13: Ambush
Initially, he had not intended for things to go this way.
This was because he had not climbed Kunlun Mountain with the immediate intention of infiltrating the Kunlun Sect, one of the Nine Sect Alliance in Qinghai Province.
However, once Dan Woojin confirmed that the Second Young Master had arrived at Kunlun Mountain, he could not let such an opportunity pass.
— I will infiltrate, so if I don't return after a day, I want you to release poison into Kunlun.
— Understood.
Sa Hyeongseol, the Young Sect Leader of the Poison Demon Sect, answered without a moment's hesitation.
He spoke as if releasing poison into Kunlun was no trouble at all for him.
'That guy really is a madman.'
It was not for nothing that Sa Hyeongseol was called a man obsessed with poison.
"Tang Hoyeon, where are you coming from?"
Just as he was about to slip through the main gate of Kunlun,
A man dressed in green called out to Dan Woojin.
'Tang Hoyeon.'
That seemed to be the name of the man whose face he now wore.
'As foolishly as possible.'
Normally, during an infiltration, acquiring information about the person being impersonated is basic.
However, since this was an emergency infiltration, he had to acquire information on the spot.
He quickly scanned the man's face.
It was a face he knew.
'The Young Lord of the Tang Clan!'
"Ah, I apologize. I went for a brief walk, Young Lord."
Since he did not know the relationship between the two, he had to be extremely careful with his words.
He also could not let it be discovered that he was wearing a human skin mask.
Even his gait was based on the Steps of the Killing Soul.
Whatever the stride, the Steps of the Killing Soul possessed the mysterious ability to prevent an opponent from noticing the nature of the walk.
"It is late. I intend to go and observe the movements of the Demonic Cult tomorrow, so go in and rest quickly."
"Yes, I understand."
He quickly bowed his head and pretended to return to his quarters.
The important thing was.
'Where are the quarters located?'
Dan Woojin did not know the layout inside the Kunlun Sect.
He focused his senses to see if Tang Cheolsim’s gaze remained on him.
'Hmm?'
Tang Cheolsim, the Young Lord of the Tang Clan, was not showing much interest in Dan Woojin.
'He is going outside now?'
The sun set and the night deepened.
It was a member of the Tang Clan’s core personnel heading out at such an hour.
He needed to find out why.
* * *
Tang Cheolsim, the Young Lord of the Tang Clan, left the Kunlun Sect, leaving behind Tang Hoyeon, a direct disciple of the Poison Hall who had been dispatched to Qinghai with him.
"Tomorrow..."
He was scheduled to move to Xinjiang, where the Demonic Cult was located.
He had told Cheong Un of Kunlun that he had been driven out to Kunlun for political reasons, but Tang Cheolsim had visited here voluntarily.
"Father, I will return after achieving revenge for Hyemae."
Those who touched the bloodline of the Tang Clan were always made to pay the price.
That was the law of the Tang Clan.
And Tang Cheolsim’s only younger sister, Tang Sohye, had lost her life at the hands of the Demonic Cult.
From that moment on, Tang Cheolsim had always endured the urge to rush toward the Demonic Cult.
This was because Tang Cheolsim, who had to inherit the succession of the Tang Clan, might cause a major problem if something went wrong while he was heading for the Demonic Cult.
"This is an opportunity."
In order to reduce the power of the Tang Clan, which had risen to the rank of the best among the Five Great Clans, the Alliance requested that Tang Cheolsim be dispatched to Qinghai.
Five years had passed since the Great War between Orthodox and Demons. The purpose was to observe the movements of the Demonic Cult.
The high-ranking officials of the Alliance already knew that Tang Cheolsim would welcome this with open arms.
Though he felt sorry for his father, he had brought the elites of the Tang Clan with him.
With them, it did not seem difficult to infiltrate the Demonic Cult and poison at least one specific person.
The goal was only one.
"The Third Young Lady of the Heavenly Demon. I will make sure to watch you despair in pain."
Tang Cheolsim’s burning gaze felt as if it would emit poison at any moment.
'He definitely said the Third Young Lady, right?'
Am Yeong, or rather Dan Woojin, who had been watching Tang Cheolsim’s fury, quietly closed his eyes atop a tree.
There was no way Dan Woojin could forget the incident where the Young Lord of the Tang Clan led a group to attack the Demonic Cult.
In his previous life, if the Seventh Young Master died in the Demonic Cave, the next child of the Cult Leader to die was the Sixth Young Lady, Dan Youngyoung.
'Was Tang Cheolsim originally planning to kill Dan Soso?'
But in reality, it was the Sixth Young Lady, Dan Youngyoung, who died.
It might have been because of the Cult Leader's trial, but it could also have been because Dan Youngyoung and Dan Soso looked alike.
Dan Woojin had no intention of letting the children of the Cult Leader die one by one.
The reason?
It was simple.
'If anyone kills them, it will be me.'
Only then would he be able to become stronger in a short period of time through the Soul Killing Art.
Furthermore.
'Tang Cheolsim is the perfect person for me to use to infiltrate the Tang Clan.'
Dan Woojin’s goal was only one.
The deaths of the Murim Alliance Leader and the Strategist.
To achieve his revenge, Dan Woojin intended to become strong quickly.
For now, he had successfully infiltrated without issue.
Dan Woojin secretly grasped the strength of the Tang Clan while also beginning to stealthily observe the movements of Kunlun.
Am Yeong’s secret martial art, the Soul Killing Art, was a rare killing method that could kill even masters referred to as peerless experts.
Thanks to that, Dan Woojin roamed the Kunlun Sect but was able to avoid being caught even by the Sect Leader.
He then called a messenger pigeon, wrote a message for Sa Hyeongseol, and sent it off.
* * *
— Tomorrow, find the Third Young Lady and the Sixth Young Lady and prevent them from being poisoned.
Sa Hyeongseol fell into deep thought after reading the message from the pigeon.
"It is strange."
He could not understand why he was suddenly told to protect the Third and Sixth Young Ladies.
He was in a situation where he should be worrying about himself.
Was he confident in his own martial prowess?
Moreover,
'His disguise technique is so outstanding.'
He was completely deceived.
The rumors that had spread about the Seventh Young Master before he entered the Demonic Cave were not true at all.
Sa Hyeongseol judged it to be so.
Judging by the current appearance of Dan Woojin starting from what he showed at the Poison Demon Sect, his past reputation must have been entirely fabricated.
Grin.
Naturally, the corners of Sa Hyeongseol’s mouth twitched.
This was because he was very curious about what Dan Woojin, who had even mastered poison arts, would do.
"Poison Rain."
Swoosh!
At Sa Hyeongseol’s murmur, a man in black fell from the air.
"Did you call?"
"Information on the other young masters?"
"The Second Young Master, who killed a warrior of the Tang Clan yesterday, has retreated for a while with the Young Sect Leader of the Sword Demon Sect. The Eldest Young Master and the Third Young Lady are not even lingering near Kunlun Mountain. What is a bit worrying are the Fourth Young Master and the Fifth Young Master. It seemed they were setting traps along with the warriors of the Saber Demon Sect and the Bow Demon Sect, perhaps intending to attack at the foot of the mountain."
Sa Hyeongseol nodded at the movements of the Young Cult Leader candidates that came out in succession.
While the other Seven Great Demonic Sects ignored the Poison Demon Sect, the Poison Demon Sect was building its strength in the background.
'I was contemplating whom to recruit.'
Dan Woojin had shortened that time.
'This trial is the best battlefield for us to perform.'
As the opponents were warriors who handled poison, there were many things for Sa Hyeongseol to do on this battlefield.
Since it seemed Dan Woojin would continue to interact with the Poison Demon Sect only if he made an impression this time, Sa Hyeongseol intended to fulfill his duty as the Young Sect Leader of the Poison Demon Sect.
"Wait, I don't think I have heard the destination of the Sixth Young Lady yet?"
"I apologize. The movements of the Sixth Young Lady have not been identified yet."
"...We must find her. Move quickly."
"Yes."
If the Third Young Lady had not yet arrived at Kunlun Mountain, Sa Hyeongseol felt he had to at least prevent the Sixth Young Lady from being poisoned by the Tang Clan to face Dan Woojin again.
Sa Hyeongseol’s movements began to become busy.
At that time, the main gate of the Kunlun Sect,
"Then, I will be off."
"Seriously, are you certain it is alright if Kunlun Sect does not provide help?"
The Taoist Cheong Un was seeing off the warriors of the Tang Clan as they left Kunlun.
"It is fine. We only plan to observe the movements in Xinjiang and return. Since we may have to rely on you again, I would be grateful if you would wait comfortably."
"Yes, I will make sure to contact the Alliance well."
"Thank you."
After exchanging greetings with Cheong Un, Tang Cheolsim led the Tang Clan warriors down Kunlun Mountain.
"Preparations?"
"Completed. But Young Lord, are we truly infiltrating the Demonic Cult?"
"Why? Don’t tell me you’re not confident?"
"Of course not, sir!"
"Keep your wits about you. Xinjiang is just a short distance away once we leave Kunlun."
"Yes!"
Tang Cheolsim turned his head toward the warrior of the Poison Hall who was quickly reorganizing the ranks.
"Tang Hoyeon?"
This was because he realized that Tang Hoyeon of the Poison Hall, who managed the Tang Clan’s poisons brought all the way to Qinghai, was back there.
"Did you call?"
At Tang Cheolsim’s call, Tang Hoyeon ran over in a single breath and stood before him.
"Why are you in the rear?"
"Ah, I was checking the poisons."
"Already?"
"There is a high probability that enemies will be everywhere once we descend Kunlun Mountain. I thought it would be better to prepare in advance."
Dan Woojin, disguised as Tang Hoyeon, answered while looking directly into Tang Cheolsim’s eyes.
The previous night, Dan Woojin had completely finished identifying Tang Hoyeon’s personality in his quarters.
Just by looking at the structure of the room and the items Tang Hoyeon used, he could quickly deduce what kind of personality he had.
Being from the Poison Hall, Tang Hoyeon had a large number of poisons stockpiled in his quarters. Those many poisons were in a state of being neatly organized and classified.
He could tell that the man had a thorough personality and a tendency toward perfectionism.
When such a bastard came to the periphery with the Young Lord, what kind of relationship would he have formed with him?
The answer came quickly.
"If you say so. Come to the front as soon as you are finished checking."
"Yes, Young Lord."
He felt like a capable helper who took care of many things on his own without Tang Cheolsim, the Young Lord, having to worry about minor details.
He did not feel any gaze of suspicion toward Dan Woojin at all.
"Well, then..."
In the early dawn, Dan Woojin realized that he had to move even before crossing over into Xinjiang to save Dan Youngyoung.
The reason for that was,
Whoosh— Stab!
"I-It's an ambush!"
As soon as the Tang Clan warriors descended Kunlun Mountain, there were those who charged at them.
Archery, the specialty of the Bow Demon Sect, began to pierce the Tang Clan warriors.
"Spray the poison mist! We must block their vision!"
Dan Woojin did not panic at the sudden attack but issued instructions to the Tang Clan warriors while spraying poison mist.
At the same time, he looked for the Young Lord Tang Cheolsim.
Swoosh!
Tang Cheolsim was already charging toward the place where the arrows were fired from the moment they were shot.
Daggers were thrown from both of Tang Cheolsim’s hands.
'The hidden weapon art of the Tang Clan!'
It was incredible.
The speed of the thrown daggers was such that one could not catch up with them by eye.
Stab—
"Gagh!"
The warriors of the Bow Demon Sect who were firing arrows from atop the trees died in an instant.
It seemed the damage would be great if Tang Cheolsim was left as he was.
"Young Lord!"
While quickly shouting, Dan Woojin looked for the practitioners of the Saber Demon Sect, not the Bow Demon Sect.
The Fourth Young Master, Dan Shinhyeok, was certain to be somewhere here.
'The Fifth Young Master, Dan Yuun, is not the type to care about such trials. He likely agreed to cooperate with the Bow Demon Sect but decided to sit out, saying that ambushes are not to his taste. Therefore.'
Woong—
"So you are the Young Lord of the Tang Clan?"
Dan Woojin, who confirmed that Saber Qi was rising from the saber of a man dressed in black, turned his gaze.
The fourth son of the Heavenly Demon, the Fourth Young Master Dan Shinhyeok, was swinging his saber toward Tang Cheolsim.