Baek Manggi’s face as he looked at me held many emotions.
Fear, surprise, excitement, rage.
Of them, the first to leap out was surprise.
“You’re this young?”
When he had nearly died to my sword at first, he must have thought I was the Geugak Soma. That he had been mistaken. If I wasn’t the Geugak Soma, then I wouldn’t have been able to swing a sword so quickly.
“Hey, old man.”
I dispensed with courtesy toward him. I did not know what kind of life he had lived. But the moment he cut down Samrang here today, any reason to respect him disappeared.
“Did you say we were playing ghost tricks? Aren’t you the one playing ghost right now?”
“What did you just say?”
“I’m asking why you crawled out of your grave to meddle in the affairs of later generations. You lived through your own era and even earned the name Sword Emperor. Was that not enough?”
When I struck the sore spot, the air around us turned cold.
But I was feeling a scorching heat. It was the heat of the Geugak Soma behind me, slowly putting his mask on properly. I did not need to look into his eyes to know what he felt.
Yes, there are things one can know without words, without even looking.
“Listen, young junior. What use is such foul speech toward your elders?”
“Old man, you’re going to kill me anyway, so isn’t it shameless to expect manners on top of that? Then again, if you had any shame, you wouldn’t have been cutting down those young juniors.”
As the surrounding air grew even colder, he stroked his severed beard. I fanned his killing intent even higher.
“If your disciple went senile and threw himself into a power struggle, you, his master, should have stopped him. What are you doing crawling out as if you’d been waiting for this? Have you both gone senile as a pair?”
Baek Manggi’s face flushed slightly. Yes, get worked up. Get even more worked up.
I shouted to Bisa-in and the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path standing in the distance.
“Let’s send these old men back into history.”
It meant we would take care of this side, so they should handle Seok Gwanchu.
Hope bloomed in Bisa-in’s eyes, which had been filled with despair. If we took Baek Manggi, this fight was more than worth attempting.
On the other hand, Seok Gwanchu’s expression was stiff. He never could have imagined that a variable like this would appear in a matter for which he had even mobilized his master.
Baek Manggi asked coldly.
“Who are you, you bewitching wretch?”
“The one who will take an old man omitted from the register of the dead to the underworld.”
At that moment, Baek Manggi drew his sword with lightning speed.
Flash!
I barely dodged the sword that flew at me. Baek Manggi’s attack was fast and powerful.
At that instant!
Piiing!
The Geugak Soma’s Hyeorangji shot forth. Baek Manggi twisted his body to evade it, and my sword stabbed toward him.
As we clashed in an instant, the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path and Bisa-in also rushed at Seok Gwanchu.
I resolved to fight without worrying about the Geugak Soma.
To begin with, I had never fought in coordination with him, and I judged that trying some clumsy combined assault against Baek Manggi would only put us at a disadvantage. I trusted the Geugak Soma.
He would take care of himself. He would intervene on his own, dodge on his own, help on his own. He would fight well on his own.
That was why I fought with the mindset that I was fighting Baek Manggi one-on-one.
Clang!
There was another clash. His swift sword was too fast for the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path to receive. Even for the Geugak Soma, it would not be easy to dodge such attacks in succession.
If I saw it with my eyes and then blocked, it was already too late. I had to block with experience and instinct.
He’s attacking the left, so I should attack the right. The moment I thought something like that, my neck would be severed.
Baek Manggi’s techniques, which had insisted solely on speed, became dazzling. This sudden change was terribly threatening.
But I barely managed to block his attacks. I strove not to be suppressed by his aura.
As we exchanged techniques, the Geugak Soma’s Hyeorangji was released. Because our movements were so fast, the Hyeorangji had to be fired with extreme caution. One slight mistake and it might hit me.
Even though it was a two-on-one fight, Baek Manggi was not being pushed back at all. He was showing with his skill what it meant to have borne the name Sword Emperor eighty years ago.
His swordsmanship was one thing, but Baek Manggi’s footwork was also splendid. Had I not learned the Pungsin Four Steps, I would have been completely trampled by that footwork. To avoid being struck by the Hyeorangji, he fought as though tangled up with me, and every single step was astonishingly fluid.
After more than a hundred exchanges, Baek Manggi, who had been trading sword forms with me, suddenly unleashed palm force. It was truly an ever-changing attack, but fortunately, I was not late in releasing my own palm force to block it.
Boom!
As palm force met palm force, a thunderous roar exploded.
We both slid backward. Our inner power was almost equal. If not for the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Spirit Mushroom I had recently consumed, I would have been pushed back in internal energy.
When we had thus separated from each other, we had the leisure to speak.
“I do not wish to be surprised, yet I cannot help it. How in the world can you possess such profound inner power at that age?”
I spoke to him cheerfully.
“My friend, don’t you recognize me?”
“What?”
“I underwent Banrohwandong.”
For a moment, he thought I was someone he knew.
“Who?”
“Who else? Your foul-mouthed young junior. You don’t even have any friends, so why ask who I am?”
Only then did Baek Manggi realize I had mocked him. His expression twisted. Whenever I had the chance, I had to provoke him.
As always, in a fight, the side that gets agitated loses.
For the first time, sword qi burst from his agitated blade.
Swaaaaaak!
It was the moment I had been waiting for.
Boom!
The sword qi I released collided with the incoming sword qi, and an explosion rang out.
Not missing this opportunity, the Geugak Soma unleashed Hyeorangji and Mageuk Gwangpokjang in succession. Since it was a two-on-one fight, this battle was advantageous to us.
I poured out Yeomcheon, the sword qi release form, one after another.
The Geugak Soma likewise ceaselessly unleashed Hyeorangji and Mageuk Gwangpokjang.
Baek Manggi frantically swung his sword and released palm force to disperse them. Explosions rang out one after another.
Boom! Boom! Kwaaaang! Boom!
The ground shook, and dust rose into the air.
At this tremendous exchange, even Seok Gwanchu, Bisa-in, and the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path stopped fighting and watched for the result.
When the attacks ceased and the dust settled, we were astonished.
He was standing unharmed.
And then came the Sword Emperor’s ultimate technique, created by rage.
Sssssssss!
Before him, his sword was splitting into sword-shaped sword qi.
I could tell. He intended to kill everyone here with a single move. He meant to kill the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path and Bisa-in, then face us together with Seok Gwanchu.
The Black Demon Sword rose before my chest and began to split.
Sssssssssss!
The Seventh Form of the Flying Heaven Sword Art, Yucheon.
Was it because I had achieved great completion of the twelve stars? It split far faster than before, and into a far greater number.
Baek Manggi’s sword qi flew toward everyone here.
Shwik-shwik-shwik-shwik-shwik-shwik-shwik!
Swaaaaaaaaa!
At the same time, my sword qi was also released.
In the next instant, a magnificent sight unfolded.
Two kinds of lines embroidered the space. Lines meant to kill, and lines meant to protect.
The moment those two lines intersected, explosions from sword qi striking sword qi burst out in succession.
Bisa-in saw it. Baek Manggi’s sword qi flying toward his face. Its speed was so terrifying that even if he tried to dodge, he would not be able to.
But my sword qi flew in faster, tore that sword qi apart, and destroyed it right before his eyes.
Boom!
It was the same for the other Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path. The sight of sword qi flying toward them being ripped apart by other sword qi was something they would hardly ever see again in their lives.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Kwaang! Boom!
The Geugak Soma destroyed the sword qi on his own. I trusted that he would, so I did not block the sword qi aimed at him.
When all the sword qi that had flown out disappeared, the dust had also completely settled.
Baek Manggi came into view. His eyes, mixed with disbelief, surprise, and rage, were filled only with killing intent. Seok Gwanchu was shocked and flustered. He had never imagined that his master’s secret ultimate technique would be blocked.
Conversely, the eyes of Bisa-in and the Thirteen Wolves of the Evil Path as they looked at us were filled with astonishment. Beyond surprise, it was close to awe.
This time, I was the first to charge at Baek Manggi.
If you do your utmost, then I will give my all. If you die, only you die, but if I die, far too many people will die.
I poured everything into my sword.
In an instant, dozens of moves were exchanged.
Blood sprayed from both our bodies. There was no leisure to check where and how we had been cut. The fact that blood was flying even though I wore the finest Heavenly Silkworm Thread and the Ghost Tiger Robe meant that, had I not worn them, several parts of me might already have been cut off.
As I endured, and endured again, I sensed impatience from Baek Manggi.
When was the last time he had fought such a long bloody battle?
Fifty years ago? Seventy years ago? Perhaps he had never experienced such a difficult fight at all. After becoming the Sword Emperor, no one would have dared challenge him lightly.
In this fight, the Geugak Soma’s help was absolute. Because our battle was too fast, he did not intervene recklessly, but whenever he was certain, he fired Hyeorangji.
When I was in danger, Hyeorangji saved me. A single Hyeorangji arriving at the right moment changed the flow of the battle and gave me an opportunity.
In the end, Baek Manggi changed his plan and tried to kill the Geugak Soma first.
The instant I sensed his killing intent toward the Geugak Soma, I drove Baek Manggi back like a madman.
If I gave him an opening, the Geugak Soma would die.
That was my only thought.
I did not want to lose the Geugak Soma in this fight. I did not want him to die to this old man.
If anyone kills him, it’ll be me! You damned old man!
That desperate desire created one astonishing phenomenon.
Everything vanished from my field of vision, and only Baek Manggi remained.
It was as if, against a black background, only Baek Manggi stood before me in white robes, moving alone. I could see nothing else.
All sound was cut off as well. I could hear only my own sounds and the sounds Baek Manggi made. It was an astonishing experience I had never undergone since learning martial arts.
At the moment Baek Manggi’s sword and mine collided, scattering sparks.
There was another change.
Now even Baek Manggi disappeared, and in my eyes, only his sword moved. Only my sword was visible. Perhaps, if more time passed, even these swords would cease to be seen.
Baek Manggi’s sword began to appear more and more clearly.
My vision, brightened by the Divine Eye Art, had finally begun to take effect. It was not that he had become slower, nor that I had become faster. I was the one who had adapted to this speed first. My eyes had adapted.
Only the swords had been visible, but now Baek Manggi’s figure appeared again.
I could see his face.
Now, at last, I could see.
That he was struggling.
That he regretted.
That he feared.
And I saw it.
The single opening shown by the man who had been perfect.
The moment I recognized it, my sword had already put my will into action. My sword and body were one.
Thud!
The moment my sword pierced Baek Manggi’s heart.
My vision returned to normal. As the surrounding darkness vanished, I began to see my surroundings.
There were already several holes in Baek Manggi’s body, and blood was flowing from them. They were the places Hyeorangji had struck.
I did not know when Baek Manggi had been hit by them. Even while facing the two of us, he had fought this well.
Looking down at his final gaze, which held surprise and shock, emptiness and fear, and every other emotion, I slowly pulled out my sword. I was so exhausted and drained that I had nothing to say to him.
Blood gushed from his heart, and Baek Manggi collapsed, dead.
Had I not achieved great completion of the twelve stars, I would have lost this fight. Had I not fought together with the Geugak Soma, we would have died.
In murim, there exist monstrous masters of the previous generation like this. They are in the Murim Alliance, they are in our cult, and they are also in the Evil Path Alliance like this.
Old masters who lie hardened like fossils, then abruptly spring out and try to flare with their final flame. That is why murim is frightening.
“Ah, I’m dying.”
I flopped down where I stood. The drain on my mind had been so great that I did not even have the strength to move a finger. Unless someone actually thrust a sword at me, I felt I could not move. The groan truly escaped me on its own.
The Geugak Soma also plopped down beside me. Beneath my mask, I could see his chin. I saw blood dried beneath it.
“Are you hurt?”
“It’s just a light scratch.”
“You’re probably ugly already, so you can’t afford to injure your face!”
As if he had never expected me to say such a thing in this situation, he gave a faint laugh.
“After fighting that hard, you still want to make jokes?”
“When an opportunity comes, you shouldn’t let it pass.”
“Second Young Master, you’re bleeding a lot.”
“I’m in so much pain I could die.”
Geugak Soma pressed my blood points, staunching the bleeding in my arms, legs, abdomen, and shoulder.
When we first set out on this journey, could I ever have imagined a moment would come when he would be stopping my wounds from bleeding?
“What happened to the fight over there?”
At my question, Geugak Soma glanced over toward the place where the battle was still raging, then said to me,
“It’s more or less ending.”
Seeing as he wasn’t saying we needed to help, it seemed Bi Sa-in’s side was winning.
For a while, we looked up at the sky in silence.
Then I spoke first.
“Thank you.”
After a brief pause, Geugak Soma said,
“Thank you.”
We only thanked each other. We added nothing more. There was no need to.
“I’ll buy you a new mask.”
“Please buy me a better one. That mask made me sweat if I wore it too long.”
“I will.”
It was right then.
“Kraaaagh!”
A scream rang out—the kind that comes when someone’s life is cut short.
When I lifted my head, I saw Bi Sa-in’s sword and the swords of the three Sado Thirteen Wolves buried in Seok Gwan-chu’s body.
During the fight, it seemed two more of the Sado Thirteen Wolves had been sacrificed; they lay collapsed on the ground. The wicked never go to the underworld alone.
I pushed myself up and sat.
Bi Sa-in walked toward me. He stopped a short distance away and stared at Baek Mang-gi’s corpse. It seemed he could hardly believe we had killed him.
He bowed his head to me. For the first time, he bowed to me.
“Thanks to you, I survived.”
I smiled and said to him,
“Thanks to you, I nearly died.”
He did not smile. Still holding his sword, blood dripping steadily from it, he spoke with eyes full of resolve.
“I intend to go straight from here to kill Seok Gwan-chu’s grandson.”
He was more courteous than when he had dealt with me before. And he was taking my advice well.
“The testimony of our Sado Thirteen Wolves should be enough evidence.”
“Be sure to make it a Sado Alliance where that will hold true.”
“Then I will see you next time.”
Bi Sa-in bowed his head. The Bi Sa-in I had first met and the Bi Sa-in now were completely different people.
After they collected their comrades’ bodies and left, Geugak Soma asked,
“For the sake of our cult, shouldn’t we be placing an even bigger fool than Bi Sa-in as the successor?”
“I suppose so.”
“Then why did you help that man?”
It was something that had begun because Seok Gwan-chu’s grandson was a piece of trash, but to Geugak Soma I answered like this.
“Still, if the opponent is too much of a fool, it isn’t any fun, is it?”
Geugak Soma gave a faint snort of laughter. He must have thought the same. He was the kind of person who burned hotter the stronger his opponent was.
“Shall we go as well?”
“Ahhh, my leg hurts too much to walk. Please carry me.”
“Stop exaggerating. You’re limping on the other leg now.”
Geugak Soma and I walked side by side and left that place.
In the place we left behind, only the faint moonlight shone upon the sight of an old, and even older, desire cooling coldly away.