Chapter 201
A Needle in a Bag
Gadeuk Sang glanced at Yeon Hojeong.
Yeon Hojeong was calmly sipping his tea with an indifferent expression.
"Third one."
"Yes, please speak."
"I’ve said this so often that my mouth feels like it's wearing out... but you’re really something else."
"Isn’t this a bit sudden?"
"Huh."
Gadeuk Sang smacked his lips and looked down at the center of the first floor of the tavern.
There, over ten Blood Sparrow Sect warriors, all dressed in blood-red martial attire, lay collapsed. Each one had their vital points pierced by a dagger, and if they weren’t treated by a physician immediately, they would likely become permanently disabled.
And standing in front of them was Tang Sang-ah.
Jegal Ahyeon swallowed hard.
"Really impressive."
"Hmm?"
"When we were on our way here, I didn’t realize it because everything was so chaotic, but that hidden weapon technique is truly amazing."
Yeon Hojeong nodded.
"Though her experience is somewhat lacking, Senior Sister has mastered the hidden weapon technique to the extent that she can accurately hit her target at any time and under any circumstances. Since hidden weapons are a lethal tool even against an opponent of equal skill, those guys are no match for her."
"That’s true, but she’s also incredibly fast, isn’t she?"
Jegal Ahyeon said, looking at Yeon Hojeong.
"She’s almost as fast as an arrow."
The arrow she referred to wasn’t just any arrow, but the ones fired by Mok Bi.
Yeon Hojeong smiled.
"It’s not quite as fast as an arrow."
"Really? To my eyes, it looked nearly the same."
"You haven’t seen her shoot when she’s really serious. Of course, there isn’t a huge difference."
"Heh."
Jegal Ahyeon gaped at Tang Sang-ah. In truth, whether it was Mok Bi or Tang Sang-ah, their skills with projectile weapons were so exceptional that comparing the two seemed pointless.
They were simply extraordinary. Jegal Ahyeon couldn’t help but marvel at the people whose martial talents were so pronounced, a talent he himself lacked. There truly were many geniuses in the world.
Gadeuk Sang asked Yeon Hojeong.
"So, what do you think? Should we wait here a little longer?"
Yeon Hojeong looked down at the Blood Sparrow Sect warriors without answering.
Gadeuk Sang slowly turned his gaze towards Pae Yul.
"......Yes? Senior Uncle?"
Pae Yul looked at Gadeuk Sang with an incredulous expression.
"Are you asking me right now?"
"Of course. You’re the eldest here."
Though he was the eldest, he wasn’t the leader.
Pae Yul sent a voice transmission to Yeon Hojeong.
[What are you going to do?]
[We should wait a little longer. Since we sent one off unharmed, the real ones will come within half a day.]
Pae Yul spoke up.
"Let’s wait for half a day more."
"Ah, understood."
Once again, Yeon Hojeong's prediction hit the mark with uncanny accuracy.
Bang!
The situation started off similarly to the encounter with the Blood Sparrow Sect warriors.
The ones who barged in, forcefully swinging the doors open, were experts from the Yanmo Hall.
Yeon Hojeong's eyes sparkled.
'Not bad.'
They were quite formidable. Although each wielded a different weapon, more than half of them possessed first-class martial arts.
The number was also considerable, around twenty, and the way they exuded murderous intent while maintaining controlled movements was impressive.
'With their skills, they could barely make it to the bottom ranks of the Thirty-Six Black Paths.'
Yeon Hojeong's judgment was precise.
"It’s the Yanmo Hall."
Gadeuk Sang's eyes gleamed.
“It’s a faction that joined the Thirty-Six Black Paths not too long ago. They took over the vacant spot after Eumsa Hall lost its power.”
Yeon Hojeong chuckled.
‘Eumsa Hall, huh.’
Eumsa Hall was the first target that the soldiers of the Myeolsagun faced in actual combat.
Once again, he was reminded of how weak the Black Path had become. The number of sects with deep-rooted histories could be counted on one hand, while hundreds of others appeared and disappeared daily.
‘As expected, Yangcheon knows his stuff.’
The most critical aspect when trying to unify such a chaotic Black Path was indeed something else.
It was discipline and history. By establishing strict rules and regulations and punishing anyone who violated them, regardless of the reason, order could be maintained.
Though ruthless and extreme, it was a method that could produce immediate results. And once accustomed to that way of life, they could begin to build a long history.
It was the method by which the Black Emperor Castle was established, and the same one Yangcheon used before the Black Emperor Castle had even formed.
‘Though I’m not sure if that guy came up with it on his own or if he had some help.’
Yeon Hojeong stood up.
Gadeuk Sang's eyes were filled with curiosity.
“Are you going to do it yourself?”
“It wouldn't be right to leave it to the youngest, and I can’t let the fourth sister handle it all by herself either.”
Gadeuk Sang looked at the Yanmo Hall disciples with pity. Though they were clearly enemies, he couldn't help but feel sorry for them for some reason.
Pae Yul casually threw out a remark.
“Try not to spill too much blood if you can help it.”
“Understood.”
Thud!
Yeon Hojeong descended from the second floor to the first in an instant and stood before Tang Sang-ah.
Tang Sang-ah, who had already drawn a dagger, looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“Senior Brother?”
“I'll take care of those guys. You’ve done well, so go on upstairs and get some rest.”
“Oh, should I?”
Tang Sang-ah, feeling a bit self-conscious, glanced at Yeon Hojeong before heading up to the second floor.
Yanmo Hall's leader, Ho Geuk, narrowed his eyes.
“Is it you lot?”
Yeon Hojeong nodded.
“It’s us.”
“…Your arrogance knows no bounds. Do you even know who we are?”
“Should I?”
“What?”
“Let’s skip the pointless posturing and talk instead. Why were you tailing us?”
Ho Geuk hesitated.
“Tailing you? Who was tailing whom?”
“Haven’t cleaned out your ears lately? The moment we entered Honam, you Black Path bastards started following us. It pissed us off, so we killed them, and now you bloodstains show up, right?”
For a moment, surprise flashed across Ho Geuk’s face.
“You killed them?”
“What, should we have let them go?”
Yeon Hojeong’s voice was dripping with arrogance.
It was quite a provocative statement, but Ho Geuk couldn’t find fault with Yeon Hojeong’s words.
‘They tailed us? Who? No way it was Blood Sparrow…’
Suddenly, Ho Geuk realized.
‘It’s from that side!’
Indeed.
It must have been informants sent by the place that had swiftly integrated nearly half of the Black Path’s forces in a short time, forming a massive power— the residence of the martial god.
They openly claimed to be part of the Black Path, yet were vastly different from any other masters of the Black Path—a force unmatched by any in the martial world.
Ho Geuk's face turned pale.
On the other hand, Yeon Hojeong frowned.
“What’s this? Did you suddenly get scared?”
“Did you say… you killed them all?!”
“Yes.”
Ho Geuk turned around and shouted.
“You! The guy from the Blood Sparrow Sect! Come out!”
Before the words had even finished, a man dressed in blood-red martial robes stepped forward.
Ho Geuk’s eyes sharpened like a tiger's.
“You bastards, have you been secretly connecting with the Bu behind our backs?!”
“Wh-what?!”
“Answer me properly!”
“S-sorry! I don’t really…”
Well, it wasn’t as if someone like him, not even part of the sect’s leadership, would know about such matters.
But that was beside the point. Ho Geuk was already convinced that the Blood Sparrow Sect under Yanmo Hall had secretly established a connection with the Bu.
“You filthy bastards!”
Thud!
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes deepened.
Ho Geuk’s blow shattered the head of the Blood Sparrow Sect disciple with his Nang-a Staff. It was an excessively brutal move.
Ho Geuk huffed and puffed.
“These bastards, thinking they can ignore the main sect and act on their own because we’ve been too lenient?”
“Hey.”
Ho Geuk turned to Yeon Hojeong.
“What is the Bu ?”
“...?!”
“Is it, by any chance, the place where the Duel King resides?”
“…You bastard.”
Flash!
A tremendous killing intent erupted from the eyes of the Yanmo Hall disciples.
Yeon Hojeong was quite surprised. The surging murderous aura was as sharp as a blade.
“How dare you recklessly utter his title. You must have a death wish.”
The voice, almost growling, radiated with fury like molten lava.
From the second floor, Gadeuk Sang's eyes deepened as he looked down at them.
‘Impressive.’
He wasn’t referring to the intense killing intent. The truly impressive thing was the presence of Yangcheon, which made them exude such fierce murderous energy just from hearing his title.
‘This killing intent doesn’t come from fear. Their loyalty to Yangcheon is real.’
And that wasn’t the end of it.
Although he hadn’t mentioned it to the group, the fact that they were being tailed by an informant so soon after entering Honam was quite extraordinary.
‘The entire Honam province is already like Yangcheon’s empire. He has spread the immense intelligence network of the Black Path everywhere, thoroughly investigating anyone suspicious.’
Gadeuk Sang's cheeks twitched.
‘This is much more dangerous than I thought.’
The size of Honam province, and the number of Black Path informants deployed throughout it.
It was a task that consumed an astronomical amount of money. Yangcheon had unleashed that enormous wealth and manpower without hesitation.
They still didn’t know what Yangcheon’s ultimate goal was. But one thing was certain: he was far more terrifying than they had imagined.
‘Damn, are we really going to penetrate into the heart of this?’
Gadeuk Sang's eyes shifted to Yeon Hojeong.
Yeon Hojeong smiled.
“Either way, it seems from the way things are going that you, too, have established a connection with this Duel King.”
“…Ha!”
“Good. I wanted to meet him anyway.”
Yeon Hojeong arrogantly lifted his chin.
“Lead the way. I’ll see with my own eyes just how great this man really is.”
Ho Geuk’s patience snapped.
“Stop with the bullshit and die, you little brat!”
Whoosh!
The Nang-a Staff, hurtling down with enough force to split the air, was truly intimidating. The power behind it felt strong enough to shatter not just a human skull, but even a rock in a single blow.
Yeon Hojeong took a short breath.
Thud!
Ho Geuk’s face, which had been drenched in murderous intent, filled with shock.
“Not bad strength.”
Yeon Hojeong had blocked the Nang-a Staff with just his left hand.
It wasn’t just the strength that was impressive; he had grabbed the staff’s sharp, protruding edge with his bare hand, yet there wasn’t a single scratch on him.
“You bastard!”
Ho Geuk, with a shout that was half disbelief, tried to pull the staff back. He was astonished once again.
Tremble.
The Nang-a Staff, which he held with both hands, faintly trembled. Despite using all his strength, he couldn’t wrench it free from Yeon Hojeong’s grip.
It was an unbelievably powerful grip.
“You seem to be the leader of this pathetic bunch, so I won’t completely crush you.”
Yeon Hojeong’s foot moved like lightning.
Thud!
“Guh-ugh!”
The tip of his foot struck directly in the center of Ho Geuk’s abdomen.
Ho Geuk staggered and then collapsed to his knees on the spot. The pain in his gut was so overwhelming that he couldn’t even faint.
The Yanmo Hall disciples looked at Yeon Hojeong with eyes full of shock.
Yeon Hojeong beckoned with a flick of his fingers.
“You’re not going to back off quietly, are you? Come on, hurry up and attack.”
Swish! Swish!
The Yanmo Hall disciples unleashed another wave of murderous intent.
Ho Geuk, trembling, tried to speak. He wanted to scream at them not to attack, to fall back for now.
“...!!”
But no sound came out. Even breathing was a struggle at this point.
“Kill him!”
“Rip off all his limbs!”
The Yanmo Hall disciples charged at Yeon Hojeong all at once.
Ho Geuk’s face twisted in despair.
‘No!’
Thud! Crack! Crunch! Bang!
With chilling sounds, the disciples fell one after another.
Crunch! Rip!
Bones snapped, and cartilage was torn apart. Skin was ripped, and hip joints were dislocated.
There wasn’t a trace of mercy in the vicious techniques. Even though a single strike would have been enough, Yeon Hojeong deliberately added two or three extra blows to shatter the bones throughout their bodies.
Ho Geuk’s complexion turned deathly pale.
‘This... this madman!’
It was rare to find someone in the Black Path who wasn’t cruel, but this went beyond the pale.
He specifically targeted areas that would leave permanent disabilities, even if they healed. While such brutality might be expected from someone notorious for their ruthlessness, the real problem was the look in his eyes.
Yeon Hojeong, smiling brightly as he took down the disciples, looked like a ghost.
His expression was one of joy, but his eyes were cold and detached, devoid of any crazed frenzy for destruction.
That inexplicable disconnect and his precise, skillful destruction evoked a chilling fear in those who witnessed it.
“Cough! Ugh! S-stop it, you crazy bastard!”
Thud!
Yeon Hojeong sent the last disciple flying out the door, shattering his sternum in the process, then took a deep breath.
Ho Geuk’s hands trembled uncontrollably.
Yeon Hojeong, smiling with satisfaction, looked up at the ceiling, as if feeling a sense of relief.
“Yes, this is it.”
The feeling of returning home.
A world filled with pure, unrestrained violence, where one fights, covered in mud, and thoroughly crushes any resistance.
“It’s been a long time.”
The Grandmaster of the Black Path had descended into the murim world.
It wasn’t the return of the eldest son of the Byeoksan Yeon family, but the grand reappearance of Yeon Hojeong, the Dark Emperor of the Black Flame.