Corpses formed a mountain.
It was not a figurative expression. The corpses of evil spirits truly filled the space, and seated atop them was Mabul, eyes closed as he chanted Buddhist sutras.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud!
The evil spirits began disappearing one after another in clouds of black smoke. Since they had all been dealt with almost simultaneously, they vanished together.
Once all the evil spirits had disappeared, a door came into view beyond them.
Mabul hurried toward it.
He had never expected to find himself worrying like this, but he was genuinely concerned about the Pungcheon Cult Leader.
Weren’t they friends? If they had remained as they were in the past, close only in words and laughing heartily together, he would never have taken such a risk to save him.
But lately, he had come to understand him. When the Pungcheon Cult Leader had first said he was quitting, Mabul had thought, What kind of idiotic thing is he doing? Now, he understood him.
Was that why?
He did not want the Pungcheon Cult Leader to die in a place like this.
When Mabul opened the door and entered, he found himself in a wasteland.
Whoooooosh!
A sandstorm blew in and engulfed him.
“Damn it.”
He was sick to death of this wretched illusion and this wretched sandstorm.
How was he supposed to escape from this endless wasteland?
Then something caught Mabul’s eye.
It was a flower blooming in a crack between the rocks. Mabul stood before it for a long while, looking down at the flower.
Whoooooooosh.
Just as an ominous sound seemed to come from behind him, the surroundings suddenly darkened as a shadow fell over him.
When Mabul turned around, a gigantic evil spirit of truly enormous proportions was looking down at him. It was an evil spirit formed from clumped sand.
Salbeop Hoein!
Golden qi surged from both of Mabul’s palms and shot forth.
Screeeech! Boom!
The qi struck the evil spirit squarely in the chest.
The next moment—
Whirrrrrr.
The sand around them swirled upward, then quickly filled the hole.
Screeeech! Boom!
The second blast of qi pierced a hole through the evil spirit’s face, but the result was the same. Sand instantly filled the hole.
Whoosh!
When the evil spirit extended its hand, sand poured forth with a rattling roar.
It was no ordinary sand. Sharp qi whirled around it, capable of tearing the body to pieces at the slightest touch.
Mabul threw himself aside to evade the attack.
Kra-boom!
The ground where he had been standing was gouged deeply, sending dust billowing into the air.
As Mabul retreated backward, the giant evil spirit slowly approached, as though intending to stomp him into the ground.
Mabul swiftly formed hand seals with both hands.
Demon Palm Annihilation Seal!
The next moment—
A shadow appeared around the evil spirit.
The evil spirit turned its head backward.
Above its head, a gigantic Buddha’s palm—far larger than the evil spirit itself—was striking down at it. Golden radiance poured from the palm.
Kuwaaaang!
“Kueeeeeeeek!”
Letting out an ear-splitting shriek, the evil spirit scattered into sand.
As Mabul pressed his palms together in prayer, the golden hand turned into a mass of light and vanished into the sandstorm.
Only the enormous imprint of a palm remained deeply embedded in the ground where the giant evil spirit had been.
A door appeared where the giant evil spirit had disappeared.
As Mabul was about to walk toward it, he saw the flower he had noticed earlier lying on the ground.
He picked it up and stared at it for a moment before tucking it into his waistband.
Then he strode into the next door.
* * *
When the Pungcheon Cult Leader imbued both hands with blue energy, the Hwan King hid behind Sobakta and said,
“You are not my opponent.”
Clank, clank.
The iron doors on either side of where the Pungcheon Cult Leader stood opened, and a master of illusion emerged from each one.
The Hwan King introduced them.
“They are the Blood Guardians who protect the Blood Sect.”
The Pungcheon Cult Leader replied,
“Imitations made by copying the Blood Guardians. Listen, and don’t forget. The Blood Sect is an organization that has already vanished.”
After finishing his words, the Pungcheon Cult Leader extended a hand.
Whirrrrrrrr!
Amid the sound of fierce wind, one of the Blood Guardians was sucked into the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s grasp.
It was the same technique the Hwan King had used earlier when pulling Sobakta toward him. The two techniques were similar, yet different.
Within the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s grasp, the man’s body began twisting without managing to resist even once.
“Grrrrrk.”
Demonic energy flowed from the Blood Guardian’s eyes. It was not the aura of a human being.
Crack crack crack crack.
His entire body twisted like laundry being wrung out, and he died.
“How long did it take to create this place?”
The Pungcheon Cult Leader could tell. The space within this painting had not been created solely through the power of the man standing before him, the Hwan King.
It was a preparation laid over hundreds of years in pursuit of the Blood Sect’s resurrection—a culmination of the Blood Sect’s illusion arts.
“It has existed since the time I first joined this organization.”
“You abandoned that long history and pursued your own dream.”
“You know as well as I do, don’t you? That as one goes through life, the wind sometimes blows in unexpected directions.”
The Pungcheon Cult Leader nodded and was about to answer when another Blood Guardian suddenly rushed toward him.
The instant he lunged for the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s vital points—
Screech! Thunk!
With the sharp sound of wind, something invisible pierced through his torso. The charging Blood Guardian collapsed on the spot.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader made a motion as if pulling something from the man’s body. Though nothing could be seen, judging by his actions, it seemed to be a long spear.
“How about it? I’d like to test myself against your Formless Qi.”
The Blood Sect, too, had possessed techniques that used invisible qi as a weapon, and so did the Pungcheon Cult.
Naturally, the Hwan King refused. If he were the sort of person who would accept such an offer, he would never have taken Sobakta hostage.
“That would be discourteous to those waiting for you.”
Clank, clank.
The iron doors on both sides opened again, and this time two Blood Guardians emerged from each.
“How many Blood Guardians did you have again? I read about it a long time ago, so I can’t remember.”
Judging by the Hwan King’s relaxed smile alone, there were likely many of them prepared. The fact that they emerged in groups instead of all at once was meant to exhaust the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s internal energy as much as possible.
“Isn’t it a waste to throw them away like this?”
“They were created for that very purpose.”
The cold-hearted Hwan King had no reason to worry about the Blood Guardians being expended.
The Blood Guardians, for their part, charged forward without knowing fear.
Screeeech!
Invisible Formless Qi flew from the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s hand.
Splurt!
The Blood Guardian at the front was driven into the wall. Since the spear could not be seen, he appeared to have died suspended in midair.
The remaining three Blood Guardians charged forward while simultaneously striking with their palms. Palm force filled with demonic energy flew toward the Pungcheon Cult Leader.
The spot where the Pungcheon Cult Leader had been standing was shattered, but he was already gone.
The Blood Guardian in front had his waist broken, the one on the left took a palm strike to the chest, and the last had his throat pierced.
The iron doors opened again, and this time four Blood Guardians emerged from each side. They knew no fear. Within this illusion, the Blood Guardians were nothing but killing weapons that carried out orders.
“I take back what I said before. I take back what I said about the old Blood Sect having been more bloodthirsty and savage than it is now. You’re worse.”
At the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s mockery, only a cold sneer appeared on the Hwan King’s lips.
The eight Blood Guardians who emerged this time attacked differently from those before them. They scattered in all directions, then began chanting in unison.
Red lines extended from their fingertips, forming a red web throughout the surroundings.
Like a net from which there was no escape, it pressed in on the Pungcheon Cult Leader and tightened around him.
“It’s dangerous, Master!”
Sobakta shouted in alarm, but there was nowhere to escape.
Slice.
At the moment the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s body was about to split into more than a dozen pieces, he vanished from that place.
He reappeared behind the Blood Guardian who had been attacking from the east.
Whirl.
Slice.
The blue energy in both of the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s hands became long lines and severed the Blood Guardian’s neck.
Before he could fall, another blue line from the Pungcheon Cult Leader cut through the air.
Thud!
The forehead of the Blood Guardian in front was pierced, and he collapsed.
Whirrrrrrrr.
The red and blue lines became entangled in the air.
But the red lines could not catch the blue ones. The blue lines slipped between the complicated tangles.
Whenever the blue lines drew taut, pieces of the Blood Guardians’ bodies were sliced away. The Pungcheon Cult Leader’s movements, using lines of qi, displayed the ultimate essence of illusion martial arts.
The Hwan King had naturally expected them to withstand an attack of this level, so he remained at ease even as the Blood Guardians died one after another.
More than anyone, he knew how much internal energy each of the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s techniques consumed. No matter how profound the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s internal energy was, he could not deal with all the Blood Guardians.
The iron doors opened again, and this time eight Blood Guardians emerged from each side.
* * *
Flap, flap.
The moment a blue butterfly settled on a Blood Guardian’s shoulder—
Sssrrrk.
The Blood Guardian slowly collapsed and died.
The butterfly that had felled the last Blood Guardian vanished from the air with a pop.
It was the moment the final Blood Guardian fell—the thirty-second of all those who had emerged from both doors.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader still stood with his hands behind his back, looking relaxed and aloof.
But Sobakta could hear it: his master’s breathing, which had previously been inaudible. His master was tired.
His master had been fighting an exceedingly difficult battle. The Blood Guardians were threatening enough, but the real problem was the Hwan King. While the Blood Guardians fought, he launched surprise attacks and kept up pressure, threatening his master. Whenever his master tried to sweep them all away with a grand illusion, the Hwan King invariably stepped in to interfere.
Master…
If Sobakta had not been there, his master would have tried to kill the Hwan King first by any means necessary.
Now, thirty-two Blood Guardians had emerged from each chamber. Sixty-four in total.
A fierce battle unfolded between the Pungcheon Cult Leader and the Blood Guardians. They charged at him like a swarm of bees, and he confronted them by drawing upon every martial art and illusion technique he possessed.
Blood Guardians were sent flying in bloody heaps beneath the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s palm force.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader evaded their attacks with illusions. Each time he unleashed a martial art, Blood Guardians fell as corpses, but his internal energy continued to be consumed in equal measure.
Boom! Boom!
The Pungcheon Cult Leader, driven backward as he blocked the rain of palm techniques with protective qi, was besieged by the Blood Guardians’ attacks. To that was added the treacherous Hwan King’s assault.
Enduring the impacts, the Pungcheon Cult Leader swung both palms. Blue qi swept through the space, smashing several more Blood Guardians apart.
Amid the fierce battle, the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s voice reached Sobakta through sound transmission.
―Three, two…
He counted without saying anything else.
But even without being told, Sobakta knew what his master wanted.
―One.
Sobakta tried to slam the back of his head into the Hwan King standing behind him with all his might.
Because the Hwan King had been concentrating all his attention on the Pungcheon Cult Leader’s battle, the headbutt nearly struck him squarely in the face.
At the instant he took a step back to evade it—
Screeeeeech!
Sobakta lowered his body, and the qi released by the Pungcheon Cult Leader swept through the space above him.
Kuwaaaang!
The Pungcheon Cult Leader rushed toward them.
It was an overly reckless attack, and he was struck repeatedly by the Blood Guardians. But he endured with his protective qi and flew toward Sobakta.
Just as the Pungcheon Cult Leader was about to escape into the Spatial Transposition Illusion Art together with Sobakta—
Whirrrrrrrr.
An invisible cord pulled Sobakta away first.
The Hwan King, who had retreated, had snared him before them.
The surprise attempt to rescue Sobakta had failed, and the Blood Guardians’ attacks poured down upon the Pungcheon Cult Leader.
Boom! Boom! Bang!
The Pungcheon Cult Leader once again focused on his battle with them.
And when he had finally dealt with all the remaining Blood Guardians, his breathing was ragged, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He had overused his internal energy and suffered internal injuries.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader had a premonition that he might die here. In front of Geom Mugeuk, he had loudly declared that this was his world. But everyone had limits.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, the Pungcheon Cult Leader looked at Sobakta. He remembered the boy when he had still been small—the boy who had looked up at him with bright, clever eyes.
“For some reason, I took a liking to you. Even among all those disciples, you stood out. Baekta. Even if I could go back and do it all over again, I would still make you my successor.”
Tears Sobakta had held back throughout the battle streamed from his eyes. An inexplicable grief welled up inside him. Now he could do better. If only he could survive, he could truly do better now.
Then the Hwan King whispered to Sobakta,
“You were right. Now is the time to concentrate on the battle.”
The Hwan King had sensed that it was time for him to step forward in earnest.
When the final door opened, sixty-four Blood Hand warriors would emerge from each room. Once they joined the assault, the Pungcheon Cult Leader would be finished.
“Watch closely. Watch how your master dies. Then I’ll destroy your dantian, sever the meridians in all four limbs, cut out your tongue, and throw you into the prison. I’ll make sure you spend the rest of your life remembering what happened today.”
Sobaekta was in despair. It was fine if he himself suffered. What he could not bear was his master dying because of him. I’m sorry, Master. I’m truly sorry.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader spoke to his disciple.
“Where have you ever heard of the Pungcheon Cult Leader shedding tears in an illusion? Wipe them away.”
Sobaekta wiped away his tears.
“And what did I tell you to say when you met someone like that?”
Sobaekta turned toward the Illusion King and said,
“You cowardly son of a bitch! Why don’t you get the hell out of here?”
Sobaekta saw the apology in his master’s eyes. His master was sorry that he could not save him. How could he ever repay such a great kindness?
“Master, you have already saved me.”
He had saved the soul more precious than life itself.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader beckoned for the Illusion King to come out.
The Illusion King slowly took several steps forward, then stopped where he stood.
“Still, I’ve been waiting the longest. Don’t you think you should at least let me get some fresh air?”
He was not one to take risks until the very end. With sixty-four Blood Hand warriors waiting behind each iron door, there was no need for him to go first.
Just as he gazed at the iron door with a satisfied smile—
A faint sound came from beyond it. It was the sound of something colliding, accompanied by vibrations.
The sound grew louder and louder.
Boom! Rumble! Boom! Crack! Crunch!
It seemed that screams had mingled with the sound of the wind, and then the noise gradually subsided.
Silence descended.
Clang.
The door opened, and light spilled out.
The person who strode through, radiating a golden brilliance, was Mabul. Behind him, the corpses of the Blood Hand warriors who had been waiting there lay scattered across the floor.
At his appearance, the expressions of the Pungcheon Cult Leader and Sobaekta brightened. The Illusion King’s expression, on the other hand, hardened coldly.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader’s gaze fell on the flower tucked into Mabul’s waistband. Yes, saying thank you was not enough. No gratitude in the world would ever be enough. And so he grumbled,
“You had time to pick flowers, did you? Your friend was having the fight of his life over here.”
The word friend came naturally, and the word friend was accepted just as naturally.
“Still, I think I got here earlier than the Young Cult Leader.”
“The Young Cult Leader is always late. He only comes running like the wind when he needs something, ordering me to hand this over or do that. He really knows how to make a person’s blood boil.”
Mabul nodded in agreement.
And that was when—
Kwakwakwakwakwakwang!
A sound like something being swept away rang out.
Kkwaaang!
The door opposite the one Mabul had emerged from was smashed apart, and something shot out through it.
They were the six demons of the Great Extinction Formula.
Not even a corpse remained in the corridor the six demons had pushed their way through.
Everyone held their breath at the sight of them. They were a split from the most terrifying-looking of the four demons of the east, west, south, and north, and the sight of the six demons standing in a row was enough to overwhelm everyone present.
Mabul pressed his palms together and bowed his head toward them. He was expressing his respect for the Nine-Fire Demon Technique.
As the six demons slowly vanished, Geom Mugeuk walked out, dragging the Black Demon Sword, blood dripping from its blade. His clothes were torn, and he was covered from head to toe in wounds. It was easy to imagine how difficult the passage he had crossed before reaching this place must have been. It was clear how desperately he had fought his way through.
The burning gazes of Geom Mugeuk and the Pungcheon Cult Leader met in midair. What need was there for words?
“In any case, our Cult Leader only badmouths me whenever I’m not around.”