“Understood. I gratefully accept the secret manual.”
Geugak Soma respectfully received the secret manual.
No matter how desperately he had desired this secret manual, if the one giving it had not been Geom Mugeuk, he would never have accepted it. Yes, if it had not been the Young Cult Leader, never.
He was the one who had retrieved exactly this secret manual from amidst all those countless books. The Young Cult Leader was someone bound to him by such a deep fate.
Therefore, Geugak Soma gladly accepted the Sohyang Bisul and made no effort to hide his joy.
Having removed his mask today, he smiled more brightly than ever.
Geugak Soma poured wine for Geom Mugeuk.
“What will you do when the Cult Leader finds out later?”
“What is there to do? It is already too late. By then, Lord Soma, you will have fully mastered the martial arts. If Father demands it back, I shall return it.”
Soma laughed at Geom Mugeuk’s shameless strategy.
Though he spoke that way, Geom Mugeuk was certain.
Father would not ask for it back. Instead, as punishment, he would make him do something else.
This time, Geom Mugeuk filled Soma’s cup.
“My congratulations, Lord Soma.”
It was not congratulations from Geom Mugeuk to Soma, but from one martial artist to another. For obtaining the martial arts that would complete oneself was a moment every martial artist dreamed of, even in their dreams.
The two emptied their cups once more.
And Geom Mugeuk’s gifts were not limited to that alone.
“I suppose it is time for this to display its true worth.”
Geom Mugeuk drew a dagger from within his robes.
It was a Myriad Year Cold Iron dagger forged by melting the shackles of Gowol.
“I wish to present this to Lord Soma.”
Soma knew what kind of dagger this was.
“Is this not a dagger that holds meaning for the Young Cult Leader?”
“That is correct.”
He had divided the metal and had daggers made, sharing them with those who had been present when the shackles were disposed of.
“Yet you would give this to me?”
“It is an item with meaning. I could not give Lord Soma something meaningless.”
It meant that he gave it precisely because it held meaning, not that its meaning prevented him from giving it.
Those who had shared it with him would surely understand.
“I am fine without it.”
Geugak Soma adamantly refused, but Geom Mugeuk had already made up his mind to give it.
“I wield a sword, and when I do not wield a sword, I use fist techniques. In truth, the only time I use this dagger is to peel fruit. A dagger born of Myriad Year Cold Iron—does it not deserve better than such a pitiful existence?”
Geom Mugeuk extended the dagger.
“Please save this dagger.”
Still, Geugak Soma did not accept it. The Sohyang Bisul alone was already too great a gift to receive today.
Then Geom Mugeuk grasped the blade and showed him the hilt.
“It is already too late, Lord Soma.”
A character was engraved on the hilt.
So (笑).
A sigh escaped Geugak Soma. Young Cult Leader, how can you show me such profound affection?
In the end, he could refuse no longer.
“Thank you, Cult Leader.”
He respectfully accepted the dagger Geom Mugeuk offered.
And so the Myriad Year Cold Iron dagger found its rightful master.
Geom Mugeuk looked forward to the day. The day when the Sohyang Bisul would be unleashed from that dagger held in Soma’s hand. The moment when his three martial arts would harmonize and he would be reborn as a perfect martial artist.
“By the way, did you know? The cult rules state that if you give a gift, you must give three.”
“There is such a rule?”
“When I became the acting Cult Leader, I looked it up and found that there is. So I had no choice but to prepare one more.”
Geom Mugeuk opened a large box he had prepared in advance beneath the table.
Inside the box, divided into several compartments, were spirit medicines.
They were the very spirit medicines he had collected from the underground vault he had previously descended to with the Sword King.
At that time, the Sword King had said this:
“Feeding them to others is a waste of effort. Just eat them yourself while you can.”
But the mouth he was feeding it to now was neither his own, nor was it a stranger’s.
He could have distributed them, one root each, to the demonic lords, but Geom Mugeuk did not.
If it was his fate to have discovered the Sohyang Bisul, then giving these spirit medicines to Geugak Soma would also be fate.
Geugak Soma silently met Geom Mugeuk’s gaze.
Geom Mugeuk said nothing else. He spoke only one sentence. The most powerful sentence to persuade Soma.
“Become stronger.”
In an instant, fierce emotion swept across Geugak Soma’s face.
He was one who had crossed life-and-death moments with Geom Mugeuk countless times.
He knew better than anyone what enemies they faced, and he well knew that absurdly powerful beings existed. That was why he knew Geom Mugeuk was striving even harder.
Yes, the Young Cult Leader was telling him this now.
Grow stronger and fight alongside me.
Geugak Soma likewise said nothing more. He no longer refused the gifts.
He slowly donned the white mask resting on the table once more. He too spoke only a single sentence.
“I will become stronger.”
* * *
Geom Muyang had still not left Wuhan.
The second hideout was not far from the first. Rather, it was closer to the main compound of the Martial Alliance.
It defied expectations that he would flee far away.
Geom Muyang stood by the window, gazing outside as it began to grow dark.
Gwak Yeong silently watched his back.
The most taciturn back in the world.
Could the back of someone she had met only a few days ago hold such great meaning?
She wanted to say something to him, but did not know what words to speak.
She had always been bright and confident.
The reason words did not come easily was guilt. She had never dreamed that her brother might have applied Pursuit Incense to his letter. Because of her, these people had nearly faced great danger.
Was he angry?
No. There was nothing more infuriating than asking an angry person if they were angry.
What will you do now?
What good is knowing that! Yes, that was not a question for her to ask.
In the end, the words she found were these:
“Use me to catch them.”
Had her words been too obvious? The taciturn back merely continued to stare out the window.
Geom Muyang did not place the blame on her.
He had anticipated there would be a reason she was kept alive. It was his own failure that he had not identified that reason in advance.
Then Branch Leader Homyeong entered and reported:
“The White Dragon Unit has begun to comb through Wuhan.”
Since this hideout was not a thoroughly concealed inner sanctuary of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, it would eventually be discovered by their search.
“How long until this place is found?”
“A day at the earliest, two days at the most.”
It was far too little time to resolve the problem.
Homyeong looked at Gwak Yeong.
“If that woman returns to the Alliance, the search will be halted.”
Because the purpose of their search was to find Gwak Yeong.
At that, Gwak Yeong quickly stepped back.
“Don’t tell me to go out! I won’t go out. Call me selfish if you must, but I cannot.”
Her instincts told her: if she went out, she would die.
“I will hide in a storehouse if you tell me to, and I will dig a hole in the ground and breathe through a reed if that is what it takes. Just don’t tell me to go back.”
When Geom Muyang and Homyeong said nothing, she finally let out a sigh.
Insisting like this was a selfish decision, just as she had said. Because the one who could save her brother was not her, but that man.
“I will go out. But please, keep your promise.”
Then Geom Muyang spoke in a low voice.
“If you go out, you will die.”
“I am not afraid of dying.”
She was prepared to gladly die if it meant saving her brother.
“Not you. Your brother will die.”
“!”
“As long as you are with us, you have value as leverage.”
Hearing those words, Gwak Yeong realized. Even now, she had value as leverage. Because she was the reason these people were being chased by the White Dragon Unit.
They could make other demands using her brother’s life as collateral. Because they did not know what role she might play, they would keep her brother alive.
Gwak Yeong looked at Geom Muyang with renewed eyes.
“You’re from the demonic path, yet so clever!”
The words had slipped out, and she flinched in surprise, covering her mouth. When a hint of bewilderment flashed in Geom Muyang’s eyes, she flushed red and lowered her head.
“I’m sorry. The words I was thinking in my head just popped out without thinking.”
Fortunately, a subordinate entered the room just then, delivering news from the Tongcheongak.
“The Tongcheongak has identified the location where the counterfeit weapons were made.”
Based on Gwak Yeong’s testimony, the Tongcheongak had succeeded in analyzing the location.
“They say they were manufactured in a warehouse building located in a remote area about twenty li away.”
Going there would be meaningless. It would already be empty.
“Who is the owner of the warehouse?”
“A man named Sogong.”
Hearing the name, Gwak Yeong was startled.
“I know him! He is a merchant who supplies materials to the Martial Alliance’s Iron Workshop.”
He was someone she was acquainted with. He had traded with the Martial Alliance’s Iron Workshop for a long time. That man was in league with them? She could not believe it.
Homyeong spoke to Geom Muyang.
“I will go and capture him.”
“Let us go together.”
Because of who their opponent was, they had to move carefully.
As Geom Muyang was about to leave, Gwak Yeong called out loudly. She was not going to be intimidated by her earlier mistake; she was going to see them off spiritedly.
“Safe travels!”
Geom Muyang glanced at her, then left without a word.
Once the two left, she muttered to herself in a low voice.
“Couldn’t you at least respond when someone speaks to you?”
* * *
Sogong woke from sleep.
A masked man was looking down at him. It was Homyeong.
Sogong startled in fright, trying to scream, but no voice came out. His vital point had already been suppressed.
“If you make a sound, not only you but everyone in this house dies.”
There was no more terrifying threat than that, so Sogong nodded.
Only then did Homyeong release his vital point.
Sogong sat up. There was another masked man in the room. Geom Muyang was sitting in a chair in the corner, watching him.
“What do you want?”
He had been a merchant his whole life. The fact that they had not killed him yet meant they wanted something from him.
It was Homyeong who asked. He cut straight to the chase and asked what he wanted to know.
“The warehouse—who did you lend it to?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He denied it flatly, but his eyes were already shaking.
Homyeong immediately pressed down firmly on his shoulder. It was the pressure point used for torture.
As terrible pain surged through him, just as Sogong was about to scream, terrifying words flowed from Homyeong that made the scream retreat back into his throat.
“Anyone who wakes up and runs here because of your voice dies.”
Sogong gritted his teeth. Amidst the surging agony, he let out a silent scream.
After a moment, when Homyeong removed his hand from the shoulder, Sogong was drenched in sweat.
“……I cannot tell you.”
His words had changed from “I don’t know” to “I cannot tell you.”
This time, Homyeong pressed the pressure point even harder.
A mere merchant, he had endured once, but he could not endure a second time.
“Leader Do!”
What came from his mouth was not a name, but a title.
“Leader Do? Which Leader Do?”
To Homyeong’s question, Sogong answered with a trembling voice.
“The White Dragon Unit’s Leader Do.”
Geom Muyang was shocked, and Homyeong was shocked.
The White Dragon Unit’s leader, Doinsu.
They had never expected his name to come up.
Geom Muyang rose from his seat and approached Sogong. Intimidated by his momentum, Sogong quickly added. There was a reason he had been unable to answer easily.
“Leader Do said he was borrowing it for Alliance business. He said he was carrying out a secret operation and I must never speak of it.”
Geom Muyang, now close, stared intently into Sogong’s eyes.
“I am not lying. Please, spare me.”
Geom Muyang could tell he was not lying. The White Dragon Leader was not a name that could come up as a lie.
Geom Muyang spoke to him with cold eyes.
“If you reveal that we came here, things will become complicated. As a merchant, you can calculate as much. Just think of it as a bad dream.”
Tap.
Sogong, his sleep point suppressed, fell asleep.
Geom Muyang and Homyeong left Sogong’s house as stealthily as they had entered.
Only after reaching a secluded forest far from there did they remove their masks.
Homyeong spoke in a low tone.
“I never expected the White Dragon Leader to be involved in this matter.”
He could have been a villain from the start.
Or, as he had done with Gwak Yeong earlier, they could be blackmailing the White Dragon Leader by exploiting his weakness.
Whichever the case, he was not someone they could easily touch. If things went wrong, it could lead to a major conflict between the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and the Martial Alliance.
Homyeong inwardly tensed at what decision Geom Muyang would make. The moment he suggested going after the White Dragon Leader, this fight would enter a new phase.
And as Homyeong expected, Geom Muyang chose a frontal breakthrough.
“The clues lead to the White Dragon Leader, so we must meet him.”
Homyeong respectfully answered Geom Muyang’s words.
“Yes! I will request all information on him from the Tongcheongak!”
The two flew back toward their hideout.
After they disappeared, a short while later a man flew in swiftly and landed silently in that spot.
One could guess how great his skill was from his movement art alone.
Landing with his white changsam fluttering, he was extremely tall. His face was large, his eyes were large, and his arms and legs were long, and at his waist hung a brilliant blue sword.
He was none other than Byeoksan, the absolute master who had come to Wuhan this time together with Hanwolgaek.
He was the blue flag that had been pinned in the Tongcheongak operations room.
“You wretched things! Today will be your last day.”
Just as Byeoksan was about to secretly pursue the two again, he suddenly halted and looked to one side. Someone was here.
“Come out.”
True to his words, a voice came from behind a tree some distance away.
“The Buddha always taught us to show mercy.”
From behind the tree, a golden light began to flow forth faintly.