Scholar Demon Venerable

A little while ago, the people of the Red Turban Gang, who had been having a drinking party, all turned their gazes to the main gate where the scream had come from.

A man was entering the main gate with a blood-stained longsword hanging down.

"You're having a lot of fun."

The man said with a sneer and looked around.

"This is why the rootless evil faction guys are no good."

Shwaek-

Seogeok.

A light flashed from the man's sword and was shot out. The waist of the person who had been stealthily approaching him from the side was cut.

Jeobeok, jeobeok.

The man took one step at a time towards the people who were having a drinking party in the front yard.

"Kill him!"

"Everyone, attack!"

The martial artists of the Red Turban Gang took out their weapons and rushed at the man like a swarm of bees.

"You moth-like things."

A cold sound came from the man's mouth, and the sword in his hand began to dance.

The clear sword in his hand, as if it were a brush, drew a blood flower in the air.

Chaaak.

The blood of the martial artists of the Red Turban Gang scattered in the air. The sound of screams and shouts endlessly echoed in the Red Turban Gang.

At that moment, a group of warriors flew over the wall.

"Kill them all!"

They attacked the martial artists of the Red Turban Gang without a word.

They were by no means the martial artists of the Hyeokryeon Manor. Rather, they were much stronger than them.

In less than a quarter of an hour, the fight stopped.

Most of the martial artists of the Red Turban Gang had been killed, and Lu Zhanghong was also covered in blood and forced to his knees.

He spoke the truth to live.

"Please spare me! We only attacked the Hyeokryeon Manor because someone told us to!"

The man who had killed the martial artists of the Red Turban Gang like a murderer asked him.

"Those people, where are they?"

"If you spare me, I will tell you."

"Choose whether you want to die while being tortured brutally, or whether you want to die nicely."

He was a really tough guy. Looking at his face, it seemed he was really thinking of torturing him.

Lu Zhanghong had no choice but to tell him what they had found out.

"They are... in the Fengyun Manor at the west gate."

At Lu Zhanghong's words, the man's eyes lit up, and he curled the corners of his mouth. At the man's smile, Lu Zhanghong dreamed of hope.

It seemed he could live if he was lucky.

"Where are the people who were captured?"

"Those guys took them."

The man's brow twitched.

His eyes also turned cold again.

"Then all the business here is finished."

Click.

The man swung his sword once, sheathed it, and turned his body.

Lu Zhanghong's head turned to his chest.

Blood was gushing out from his heart like a fountain.

"F*..."

Thud.

Lu Zhanghong's body collapsed.

On that day, the Red Turban Gang disappeared from Kaifeng.

* * *

As Yeom-ak was struggling to eat even the last piece of flesh stuck between the bones, a beggar came running in.

"Leader, we're in big trouble."

Yeom-ak, who was licking a bone, glanced at the man. The man quickly delivered the news.

"The Red Turban Gang has been smashed."

Yeom-ak stood up abruptly from his seat with surprised eyes.

"What?"

"It is said to be the man who is the martial arts teacher of the Hyeokryeon Manor and the group of the Hyeokryeon Manor."

"How long has it been?"

"It's been about a shichen..."

Hwiik, thwack.

The man who was reporting could not finish his words. The bone that the leader, Yeom-ak, had thrown hit his head.

"You damn beggar bastard! What are you going to do if you report that now!"

Kwaang!

Hwiririk.

Yeom-ak kicked the floor and unfolded his lightness skill. The place where he had been went in with a dent and was smashed like a spider web.

From the direction where the leader had disappeared, a telepathic message was heard to the elders.

-Bring the kids to the Fengyun Manor!

The elders who had heard the telepathic message gave instructions.

The faces of the elders who had received the order contorted.

The most senior, the Second Elder, got angry.

"No matter how urgent it is, what are you going to do if you go alone?"

"Second Elder, please endure it. It's not a matter of yesterday or today, is it?"

The Third Elder, who was next to him, received the Second Elder's words.

"Aing. After this is over, I will definitely complain to the Nine-fingered Divine Beggar."

The former leader and Yeom-ak's master, the Nine-fingered Divine Beggar, had entrusted the Beggars' Sect to Yeom-ak and had left for the martial world, and there had been no contact.

The Third Elder sighed as he heard the Second Elder's frustrated voice.

"Phew, what's the use? The water has already been spilled."

"Well, the gourd has been broken for a long time."

The Second Elder and the other members of the Beggars' Sect who were around all nodded their heads.

It had been several years since the Beggars' Sect had changed to be unlike the Beggars' Sect.

The fame of being the number one gang in the martial world was nowhere to be found. At least because they were enduring, they could get cold rice somewhere.

The Third Elder calmly said to the Second Elder.

"Let's hurry. We don't know what crazy thing he'll do if he goes alone like this."

"Alright. I'll go first, so bring the kids."

The Second Elder unfolded his lightness skill with the elders who were next to him. Behind him, dozens of members of the Beggars' Sect also unfolded their lightness skills in the direction of the west gate.

The Third Elder, who was left alone among the elders, said to his disciples.

"Only those above the Four Knots will participate in this matter. The rest will look at the four main gates, including the dog holes. Find out information about any suspicious guys, or guys who are trying to sneak out. If you miss them, you'll all die at the hands of the leader."

"Yes, Elder."

The remaining people answered in one voice.

Although he didn't know how things would turn out, he had to grasp everything that was happening in Kaifeng. If he didn't, it was clear that he would be beaten to a pulp by the mad dog.

* * *

Dozens of people were gathered in a large pavilion located in the center of the Fengyun Manor.

They were Cheongun and the Jinyiwei members.

After rescuing the Red Turban Gang and the Black Sword Gang from the attack of the Hyeokryeon Manor, Cheongun had brought all the captured people to the Fengyun Manor.

He couldn't just let them go.

The Hyeokryeon Manor had to know as little as possible about him. What they had to know was the misunderstanding that the Black Sword Gang and the Red Turban Gang had attacked.

Seok Deok-jo reported to Cheongun about this fight.

"Seven have died and twenty-two have been injured. Among them, nine are seriously injured, and the rest are lightly injured. It seems the lightly injured will not be able to move right away either."

Cheongun's complexion was not good throughout the report.

"The damage is greater than I thought."

"Yes, the damage was aggravated because of their strange formation."

It was because of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword Formation.

The Jinyiwei from the first to the ninth group, led by Seok Deok-jo, had managed to win by launching an ambush. In the process, they had defeated two martial artists who were classified as peak-level, but the counterattack of the Hyeokryeon Manor was also fierce.

In particular, the damage had increased as they had unfolded the formation.

Cheongun told them to take good care of the injured and then brought up the issue of the prisoners.

"Xiong Tian, what happened to the prisoners? Are they cooperating obediently?"

"Yes, Your Excellency, the interrogation is proceeding well."

"Did you also inform them that it is a rebellion?"

"Yes, when I said it was the Jinyiwei and that it was related to a rebellion, one or two of them are talking."

Cheongun nodded his head at Xiong Tian's answer.

He had already informed the captured warriors of the Hyeokryeon Manor that the Emperor had dispatched the Jinyiwei.

If they did not cooperate, they could be accused of being traitors. Fortunately, the person the Jinyiwei members were looking for was someone who was not related to them.

"Have them confirm the portrait and say that there will be a reward for those who give more information."

"I understand."

Cheongun knew that he could not get good information just by whipping them. It was better to give them a suitable carrot and get what he wanted.

After receiving all the reports, as he was talking about how to pressure the Hyeokrye-on Manor in the future, the Blood Emperor, who had been watching quietly, turned his head.

[Huh?]

At the Blood Emperor's reaction, Cheongun felt that something was strange.

The Blood Emperor's expression was saying something.

Cheongun spread his senses.

After a moment, he could feel something caught in his senses.

'Well, a guest has come.'

Looking at such a Cheongun, Cheongun gave an order to the Jinyiwei who were making a puzzled expression.

"A guest has come. Everyone, step back and protect the prisoners and the people of the manor. Thousand-household Commander Seok will take command."

"Chung! I receive the order."

Seok Deok-jo gave a military salute and stood up from his seat with the Jinyiwei.

Although it was Cheongun's words that someone was attacking this place, he did not ask again.

Cheongun left the pavilion and looked down at the shaded place in the wide courtyard in front of the pavilion.

A man in white was standing tall like a rock.

Cheongun took a step forward and said.

"To come in at this late hour without the owner's permission, who are you?"

The man tilted his head and slowly stepped forward.

He was puzzled that a man of coming-of-age had recognized his presence.

He couldn't tell if he had hidden his momentum or if he hadn't learned martial arts.

He soon looked at Cheongun slowly and then said with a face that said he couldn't believe it.

"Look at this? Hahaha, this is fun."

The man was happy as he looked at Cheongun's presence, which he could not grasp. He was so excited that he threw his head back and laughed.

The man who was standing tall in the wide courtyard in front of the pavilion sent his energy towards Cheongun.

Cheongun slightly spread his internal energy and blocked the opponent's killing intent.

As if he had expected it, the man smirked and drew his sword.

Seureureung.

"Who are you?"

The man asked again with an excited voice. What came back was not the answer he wanted.

"This is a funny guy. To the owner, who are you?"

"The owner... then you must be the one who moved the evil faction."

"Didn't you come knowing that?"

Thwack.

The man hit his forehead with his palm and shook his head.

"That's right, I did. Hahaha."

At the man's appearance, Cheongun said with an expression of no particular emotion.

"Are the guys who have surrounded the manor your subordinates?"

"As expected, you were hiding your martial arts. Not bad."

"I'll take that as an admission."

Cheongun nodded his head.

A group of people was surrounding the manor.

The number was not large. At most, it was twelve. The problem was that the momentum of those twelve was quite great, but he was not afraid. Rather, his blood was boiling.

Cheongun looked down at the man and said.

"We're not in a position to share our friendship, and the night is getting late, so how about we end it early?"

"Hahaha. Good, good. To think that there would be a day like this in my life."

The man injected his internal energy into his sword.

Jiiing.

The sword emitted a light, and the sword energy was clearly formed.

The man smiled brightly at Cheongun and said.

"You made me laugh quite a bit. How dare you show off your talents in front of me. I hope you have the skills to match your words."

The man's two eyes turned cold.

Pat!

The man kicked the ground and charged at Cheongun.

Cheongun grabbed the sword at his waist and unfolded his lightness skill, flying into the air.

Hwiik.

As Cheongun jumped up, the man kicked the ground hard while running and flew at Cheongun, who was in the air.

As the man thrust his sword at him, Cheongun assumed a stance in the air and unfolded his sword-drawing art.

Seukang!

The sword energy that had shot up from the scabbard flashed in the air.

The two passed each other and attacked again.

Chajajajang!

The two's positions were switched.

The man stepped on the air and changed his direction.

Cheongun landed on the floor and looked at the sky.

The man's body stopped in the air and then he unfolded an ultimate lightness skill and was shot at Cheongun.

"Die!"

The man's shout was filled with the confidence that he could kill Cheongun.

Cheongun gathered his sword to his chest and looked at the man who was falling.

He sneered and let out a shout.

"It won't go as you wish!"

Shusuk!

A single sharp sword soared into the air. As if to assist that sword energy, dozens of small sword energies rotated and followed.

The fourth move of the Universe Nine Swords of the Thousand Ages Sword Sovereign, Universe Ascending to Heaven.

Cheongun's sword energy covered the man.

(End of Chapter)