Geom Mugeuk looked at the back of Yeon Baekjin, who had stepped in front of Seojin.
This was the kind of person he had always been. A man willing to face death for someone else.
But before the regression, he had lived on the dark side opposite that heroic image. Perhaps back then, his elder brother, the Sword King, and everyone else had all been looking at the reverse side of the coin.
Seojin asked Yeon Baekjin,
“Why are you trying to save me?”
He could not exactly say that, for some strange reason, his eyes kept being drawn to her and his heart with them.
“Because it’s something my brother did wrong.”
Yeon Baekjin turned to Geom Mugeuk and said,
“You said you came out to protect Seojin too, didn’t you?”
Geom Mugeuk nodded.
“Help me protect her!”
He was agitated. He knew that the more moments were like this, the calmer one had to be, but the three masked men who had appeared before them did not possess ordinary auras. The fact that they had revealed themselves like this meant they were experts so skilled they had no need to resort to ambush.
‘They sent the very best among the White Snake Squad.’
His hand trembled as he drew his sword. It was not simply because he was afraid. The object of his fury now was his elder brother. Sending experts of this caliber meant he was determined not to fail.
‘So you really mean to kill me.’
If he was going to die anyway, Yeon Baekjin wanted at least to save this woman.
“I may only be the younger brother of a mere martial hall master, but the woman beside me is blood kin of the Ghost Sect. If you bastards kill that woman, the Ghost Sect will slaughter every last one of you.”
Seojin, who had been standing behind Yeon Baekjin, stepped forward and stood side by side with him.
“I don’t think they’re the sort to withdraw because of that.”
Yeon Baekjin looked at Seojin. She had every reason to be frightened, yet she was calm.
‘Is it because she’s from a prestigious family after all?’
Part of it was Seojin’s innate temperament, but the reason she was calm was that she trusted the two people standing behind her. With Geom Mugeuk and Ian behind her, what was there to fear?
Yeon Baekjin’s gaze turned toward Geom Mugeuk and Ian behind them. He misunderstood the two of them.
‘Are you just going to stay there instead of stepping forward?’
The thought crossed his mind, but he did not say it. Fine. At their young age, how frightened must they be? He understood them.
The first of the three masked men to speak was Baek O-sa.
“Those who are about to die by our hands only ever say three things. They threaten, they hate, or they beg.”
Baek O-sa’s eyes, fixed on Yeon Baekjin, held mockery.
“In my experience, the ones who threaten are always the weakest.”
Yeon Baekjin did not waver. He set aside his anger toward his brother for the moment. In this instant, he had to remain calm.
“You know this isn’t a threat, don’t you? Do you think the Ghost Sect Master would simply overlook his daughter’s death?”
This time, Baek Pal-sa spoke.
“The younger brother of the Hwangryong Martial Hall master, bewitched by the beauty of the new trainees, violated and murdered them before vanishing.”
With those words, it became clear how they intended to handle this matter.
Rage surged up inside Yeon Baekjin. As if losing his life were not enough, his reputation would be dragged down into the mud as well.
Yeon Baekjin extended his sword forward and spoke coldly.
“Try it.”
Baek Pal-sa drew his sword and looked back at Baek Il-sa. All that remained was Baek Il-sa’s permission.
At that moment, Baek Il-sa was looking at one person. That person was Ian.
Baek Pal-sa and Baek O-sa thought he was staring because she was so beautiful, but that was not it. Baek Il-sa was seeing the true nature that the two of them could not.
‘Now I understand why the Sect Master sent me.’
Yeon Baekjin and Seojin were opponents Baek Pal-sa could handle well enough.
The problem was the young man and woman standing behind them. The feeling Geom Mugeuk and Ian gave off was strange. The issue was that he could not be certain of their ability. If they were experts, they should feel like experts; if they were weaklings, they should feel like weaklings. Yet what he sensed made them seem at times stronger than him, and at times as if they were nothing special.
‘The woman is the stronger one!’
Baek O-sa, on the other hand, reached a different conclusion.
“A woman too beautiful to kill.”
It seemed Baek O-sa had judged her to be nothing much.
At last, Baek Il-sa’s order fell.
“Kill him first.”
Baek Pal-sa stepped forward.
“I’ll take care of it.”
Baek Pal-sa rushed at Yeon Baekjin. He did not even give his opponent a chance to prepare himself.
His sword flew in, aiming for Yeon Baekjin’s neck, heart, and vital points.
Clang, clang, clang!
Fortunately, Yeon Baekjin responded calmly. An exchange continued in which a single mistake would cost him his life.
Ian focused on Yeon Baekjin’s movements.
Yeon Baekjin was a man who had achieved mastery of the Hwangryong Sword Art. Through his fight, she could see how the original Hwangryong Sword Art was used in actual combat.
Only by knowing the original Hwangryong Sword Art precisely could she understand how it had been reinterpreted.
In the blink of an eye, more than thirty exchanges passed. Yeon Baekjin, who had mastered the Hwangryong Sword Art, was not a weak man.
But as the exchanges went on, he grew increasingly disadvantaged. The martial art he had learned was, in the end, the orthodox swordsmanship of a martial hall, while Baek Pal-sa’s martial art was designed to kill opponents. On top of that, Yeon Baekjin’s real combat experience was comparatively far too lacking.
Blood sprayed from Yeon Baekjin’s arm.
At the sight of blood, Yeon Baekjin became agitated, and the situation worsened further.
Not missing the opportunity, Baek Pal-sa pressed him hard.
Just when he could no longer endure—
Hiiiiiiieek.
Suddenly, with a ghostly wail, Yeon Baekjin’s shadow surged up and engulfed Baek Pal-sa.
The person who helped him in that moment of crisis was Seojin, with her ghost art. She was still only able to cast ghost arts that showed illusions or limited an opponent’s field of vision rather than launch direct attacks.
But in this fight, that one move was an opportunity capable of reversing victory and defeat.
Because of the shadow covering his face, Baek Pal-sa lost sight of Yeon Baekjin for an instant.
Yeon Baekjin did not miss that chance. Rather than retreating, he slid diagonally forward, charged in, and swung his sword.
Shiiik.
Slash!
Blood sprayed from Baek Pal-sa’s side before he could block.
Now the situation had been reversed. As Baek Pal-sa staggered backward, Yeon Baekjin was about to rush in and cut off his breath.
At that moment, Baek O-sa, who had been watching, scattered hidden weapons. They were aimed at both Yeon Baekjin and Seojin.
Swaaaaaak!
As the hidden weapons flew in, Yeon Baekjin instinctively threw himself toward Seojin. He could not let the woman who had saved him die.
‘Is this the end?’
He expected several hidden weapons to bury themselves in his back.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!
From behind him came the sound of hidden weapons being deflected.
When Yeon Baekjin turned back, Ian was already standing in front of them, blocking the way.
‘She knocked down all those hidden weapons?’
It had seemed as though dozens of them had been scattered at once. Yeon Baekjin stared at Ian in astonishment. And that was not all.
Thud.
Baek Pal-sa toppled forward just like that. The hidden weapons Ian had deflected were lodged in his neck and heart.
Baek O-sa stepped forward.
“So you were hiding your skill.”
He looked back at Baek Il-sa. The way she had deflected the hidden weapons was no ordinary technique, so his gaze said they should attack together. But Baek Il-sa did not step forward.
‘Is that noble pride of yours making you refuse a joint attack?’
He would rather that were the case. If Baek Il-sa was not stepping forward because he truly sensed that the opponent was not easy to deal with, then they had really fallen into a difficult situation.
Meanwhile, Seojin staunched the bleeding from Yeon Baekjin’s arm. When the hidden weapons had flown earlier, he had thrown himself toward her.
Watching them, Geom Mugeuk was certain their fates had completely changed. Now they had saved each other’s lives.
‘It’s done.’
This was the moment he achieved the greatest purpose for which he had come to Hwangryong Martial Hall.
Soon, the fight between Baek O-sa and Ian began.
Because Ian fought using the Hwangryong Sword Art, Yeon Baekjin, watching her swordsmanship, was inwardly astonished.
‘It’s similar to the Hwangryong Sword Art.’
It was similar, yet different from what he had learned.
‘That instructor taught it to her!’
In those forms, Yeon Baekjin saw a river flowing at ease, and he saw a fierce wind raging. Flames blazed hotly, and lightning struck.
As the fight continued, Yeon Baekjin’s eyes grew wider and wider. Only today did he learn that the Hwangryong Sword Art could be this powerful and beautiful.
He did not know. The swordsmanship unfolding before him was something she had only just learned today. And she was using it this magnificently in actual combat.
In the earlier fight against Yeon Baekjin, the more exchanges passed, the more advantageous Baek Pal-sa had become. But in this fight, the more exchanges passed, the more advantageous Ian became. Through her first real battle, her Hwangryong Sword Art was becoming incomparably more stable with every move.
When they first exchanged blows, Baek O-sa thought it was a fight worth trying. But in an instant, the balance collapsed, and he began to be pushed back.
The moment Baek O-sa shouted for help—
Shiiik!
Thrust!
Ian’s sword pierced Baek O-sa’s chest. From the moment she had heard the word “violate and murder” from Baek Pal-sa earlier, she had felt no hesitation whatsoever in killing them.
“……You will die miserably. That man is ranked first in the main squad.”
Even at Baek O-sa’s words, Ian showed no fear at all.
“What you say before dying is the same after all.”
It was what Baek O-sa himself had said earlier.
Before dying by his hand, his opponents threatened, hated, or begged. He, too, had failed to escape those categories.
Papatatata!
When Ian pulled out her sword, he collapsed, spraying blood.
Geom Mugeuk looked at her with satisfaction.
The fact that she could display this much skill with a martial art she had learned only today plainly showed just how outstanding her talent for martial arts was, and also just how high her current realm had become.
‘Become stronger, Ian.’
In this martial world swarming with all manner of villains, if she was to live while showing that face to the world, she would have to become so strong that no one would dare challenge her.
Ian did not rejoice or feel exhilarated. She merely looked down at her sword in silence.
Both were firsts.
Killing with the Hwangryong Sword Art, and staining the Ilwol Sword with blood.
The reinterpreted Hwangryong Sword Art truly felt as though it did not contain a single unnecessary element. And though its power was weaker than the Bicheon Sword Art, it consumed far less internal energy.
Because of that, there could be no better auxiliary sword art. There would be times when she had to hide her identity, and times when she had to fight while conserving her internal energy.
Baek Il-sa’s expression had turned completely stiff. This was truly an unforeseen situation.
But that did not mean he felt fear. He was Baek Il-sa, after all.
“Who are you people?”
Geom Mugeuk answered leisurely.
“We’re new members of Hwangryong Martial Hall’s White Dragon Class, aren’t we? You must have investigated us before coming.”
The investigation had been completely wrong.
‘Squad Leader! If there was something bothering you, you shouldn’t have accepted the commission.’
But it was not the squad leader he should resent. When he had come here, he too had indulged in every manner of arrogance, thinking that being sent instead of Baek I-sa meant there was something troubling about this job.
“Ranked first in the White Snake Squad, are you? To think the number one rank is facing off against a trainee from Hwangryong Martial Hall’s basic White Dragon Class! If it were me, I’d be too ashamed to reveal my rank.”
Geom Mugeuk stood at the very back, provoking and mocking him with words, but Baek Il-sa did not take the bait.
He faced Ian cautiously. As he always had, he intended to kill them all, one by one. In the end, the one left alive would be him.
Swaaaaaak!
Sword energy burst out from Baek Il-sa’s sword in a surprise attack.
Boom!
The sword energy released from Ian’s sword collided with Baek Il-sa’s. Dust rose with an ear-splitting explosion.
Clang, clang, clang, clang!
As sword met sword, sparks flared within the dust.
Baek Il-sa was strong. He was on a different level from the two who had died earlier.
Baek Il-sa’s martial art was a sword art that had crawled up a tower of murder and reached its peak.
But Ian’s Bicheon Sword Art, which she had mastered, was a martial art that such a tower of killing intent could not withstand even if it reached the heavens.
Her Bicheon Sword Art was completely different from the Hwangryong Sword Art she had displayed earlier, and also different from the Bicheon Sword Art that Geom Mugeuk used.
Her swordsmanship was delicate and graceful, and at the same time sharp and powerful.
Astonishingly, when Baek Il-sa exchanged the first move with her, he already sensed his defeat.
He thought it would have been nice if Baek Pal-sa and Baek O-sa were still alive. They needed to see this fight so they could think, Ah! So this is why we lost.
No, even if they saw it, they would not understand. They would not understand just how strong this woman was.
Shaaaaaak.
Her sword cut through the air, drawing a dazzling trajectory he could not possibly follow.
In that instant, he saw it. In Ian’s eyes, the countless people he had killed flashed past like a revolving lantern.
Shiiik.
Thrust!
Even though the sword had pierced through his chest, he felt no pain.
His final words were neither a plea, nor hatred, nor a threat.
“Perfect.”
His final words were praise for Ian.
With those words, Baek Ilsa toppled over and died.
Ian was bewildered. She had thought it would be a much harder fight than this. Why else would she have sent Geom Mugeuk a voice transmission like that?
―Is this man really ranked first in the White Snake Squad?
Geom Mugeuk’s pleased reply came back.
―Do you understand your own skill now?
Ian’s level was not something the likes of the White Snake Squad could do anything about.
Yeon Baekjin stared blankly at Baek Ilsa’s corpse. That woman had killed the top-ranked master of the White Snake Squad?
In a trembling voice, Yeon Baekjin thanked Ian. He no longer spoke down to her carelessly.
“Thank you for saving me.”
“Great Hero Yeon, you tried to save our Seojin too, didn’t you?”
Rather than joy at having survived, Yeon Baekjin felt dejected. He had not known his own brother was trying to kill him, and he had failed to recognize that this woman was such an extraordinary master.
‘I deserved to die.’
His gaze turned toward Geom Mugeuk.
Ever since they had met, the man had given him a strange feeling. Perhaps he was an even greater master than this woman.
“You killed their number one. The White Snake Squad won’t let this pass. The entire White Snake Squad will come swarming in!”
At Yeon Baekjin’s worry, Geom Mugeuk smiled in a way whose meaning was hard to read.
“As life goes on, all kinds of animals may come to Hwangryong Martial Hall. But the white snake will never come again.”
“How can you be so certain?”
Geom Mugeuk said to Ian,
“Send word to the White Snake Squad. Tell them not to interfere in our affairs anymore.”
“Yes.”
Yeon Baekjin asked in a trembling voice,
“Who in the world are you people?”
Was he saying that the fearsome White Snake Squad would stay out of it simply because they were told to?
Only then did Geom Mugeuk reveal his identity.
“I am Geom Mugeuk, Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”
“!”
In that instant, Yeon Baekjin froze.
Ian and Seojin also revealed who they were.
“I am Ian, Captain of the Ghost Shadow Unit of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”
“I am Seojin, Second Squad Leader of the Ghost Shadow Unit of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”
Yeon Baekjin turned deathly pale and could not say a word.
Could one believe that a blood relative of the Ghost Gate was serving merely as a squad leader in some unit? Yes, if it were only one place, it could be believed.
A person who traveled with the greatest beauty under heaven, a woman who could easily kill the top-ranked master of the White Snake Squad? Yes, if it were only one person, it could be believed.
‘Even so, the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult!’
He had treated him so carelessly until now.
Toward that confusion and disbelief, Geom Mugeuk spoke calmly.
“Whether I disappear from your life like smoke, or become a vicious Young Cult Leader, is now up to you.”