West of Hamyang County.
A massive building towered over a desolate street devoid of pavilions or ornate buildings.
Three stories high.
The clean-looking structure, seemingly built only recently, was none other than Paewangmun, the newly rising powerhouse currently making waves across Shaanxi.
"It's chilly."
Jang Sam, the gate-guarding warrior of Paewangmun, muttered as he rubbed his hands together.
"Hahaha, it is evening, after all."
Chuk Go, who was guarding the gate alongside him, said with a laugh, and Jang Sam shrugged.
After a moment, his eyes gleamed.
"But did you know that?"
Jang Sam stopped rubbing his hands and whispered with a serious expression.
"They say contact with Paegyeongdan, who attacked Bifung Trading Company, has been cut off. It's a mess right now."
"A mess?"
Chuk Kang scoffed.
"They're probably just wrapping things up before having a drink. The Taesan Ilgwon Danju-nim loves his drink, after all."
"Hahaha, that's true, but..."
The two, who had been conversing with smiles, suddenly halted.
Ahead of them, in the darkness, a presence was drawing closer.
Thud— Thud—
The approaching shadow revealed its form under the light spilling from Paewangmun.
"Hm? Daoist robes?"
Jang Sam tilted his head.
In the five years he had served as a gate guard, a daoist had never once visited Paewangmun.
'More importantly, is there a daoist who wears such dark robes?'
He looked the daoist up and down, clad in a rare combination of black and red, before cautiously speaking.
"What business brings you to our sect?"
"To see the Sect Master."
The attitude and tone, as if the daoist had thrown all manners out the window, made the two men bristle.
"This insolent brat!"
"How dare you speak of our Sect Master...!"
The daoist, Cheon Hwi, looked at them flatly as their faces turned crimson with rage.
"Too noisy. Is the Sect Master inside or not?"
"You bastard!"
"I'll fix that attitude of yours!"
The moment the two simultaneously drew their swords at the words that, far from an apology, had become even more insolent—
Kwaaang!
A massive explosive sound erupted.
"W-what!"
"What's going on!"
Having fallen asleep at the late hour, the disciples of Paewangmun hastily threw on their martial garb and rushed out of their rooms at the explosion.
Then they stopped dead at the sight before them.
"The gate..."
The massive gate that had guarded Paewangmun for twenty years was completely shattered, raising a cloud of dust.
Following that, a line of martial artists appeared.
The roughly sixty martial artists wore gray martial uniforms with the character Middle (中) inscribed on their chests.
Paejungdan (覇中團), one of Paewangmun's three martial squads, immediately bypassed the Paewangmun disciples and stood in a line like a wall upon their entrance.
The sharp-featured middle-aged man at the forefront of Paejungdan approached the gate.
The Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest (血殺刀客), who had once gained quite a reputation as a blade-wielding assassin in Shaanxi, frowned as he looked at the devastation.
"What in the world is..."
At that moment.
Thud— Thud—
Footsteps were heard.
Then a figure emerged through the settling dust.
"You should have just answered."
Cheon Hwi, who had smashed the gate, met eyes with the Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest who was glaring at him.
"How dare you in a place like this..."
Watching him speak with a grave expression, Cheon Hwi thought it appropriate and opened his mouth.
"Are you the Sect Master here?"
The Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest's eyebrows shot up.
"You insolent brat! Such impudence! Someone of your station cannot meet him!"
"Then never mind."
Cheon Hwi walked right past him.
"How dare you!"
The Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest, enraged by such an attitude, was about to draw his blade when—
Wham—
A fist, swung much faster than him, smashed into his face.
Pu-uk!
"Keok!"
The Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest's head snapped to the side.
Perhaps because he took it squarely.
His body crumbled and he fell to his knees before collapsing helplessly.
Gurrr—
His fallen face was a wreck.
His nasal bone was crushed and caved in, and his teeth clattered to the ground.
"D-Danju-nim?"
They had expected to see the Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest draw blood, but with the situation reversed, the Paejungdan members were horrified.
Thud— Thud—
Cheon Hwi lightly trampled the fallen Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest and stepped into Paewangmun.
The horrified Paejungdan members bristled with rage.
"This brat, against Danju-nim!"
"This bastard!"
Seeing Cheon Hwi insult the Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest, the Paejungdan members drew their blades and stomped their feet without needing to be told.
Tatatat!
Cheon Hwi, watching them charge with curses mixed in, kicked up the blade the Blood-Slaughter Blade Guest had failed to draw.
Swish!
He then caught the blade that rose into the air.
After performing a series of near-divine actions, he instantly drew up the internal energy of the Plum Blossom Divine Art and channeled it into the blade.
At that moment, an astonishing change occurred.
Crrrrack!
Unable to withstand the surging internal energy of the Plum Blossom Divine Art, cracks began to form on the blade with an ominous sound.
Ultimately, the blade could no longer endure the internal energy.
Kwaaang!
With an explosive sound, it detonated.
W-what is this!"
"......!"
When the shattered blade fragments shot out like hidden weapons, the Paejungdan members were thrown into sheer terror.
Some turned to flee.
Some raised their weapons to block.
But before they could react.
Pu-pu-pu-uk!
The blade fragments ravaged them.
The fragments pierced their bodies faster than they could turn to flee, and the weapons they raised to block were shattered.
"Ke, keuheok."
"Kwaaagh!"
In an instant, screams filled the air.
But the screams did not last long and quickly died down.
Instead, all that remained were faint groans and desperate cries for help.
"This is pretty good. It'll be useful against small fry like this."
Cheon Hwi tossed away the blade, now nothing but a hilt with the blade gone, and surveyed his surroundings.
It was over in an instant.
Two-thirds of the Paejungdan members were killed instantly by the blade fragments, without even a moment to feel pain.
But were the remaining one-third unharmed?
Not at all.
Though they barely survived, judging by their state, they had sustained injuries so severe they would either die soon or live the rest of their lives as cripples.
Shudder—
The Paewangmun disciples trembled with fear after witnessing what was essentially a living hell.
"T-this is..."
Their faces contorted with terror at the unbelievable sight before them.
It had been a mere fraction of an instant.
From the moment the young daoist kicked up the blade, to the present carnage.
Then Cheon Hwi turned his head.
"Where is the Sect Master?"
The Paewangmun disciples collectively swallowed their breath.
Had he said this a moment earlier, they would have all bristled with rage, but having witnessed Cheon Hwi's divine prowess, they could not take any action.
Seeing them, Cheon Hwi furrowed his brow.
"Hmm, you can't all be mute, can you?"
Muttering, he stomped his foot.
Whoosh!
His figure vanished.
Afterwards, Cheon Hwi instantly plunged into the ranks of the Paejungdan members lined up in formation.
"......!"
The moment a Paejungdan member, who had belatedly perceived Cheon Hwi's figure, widened his eyes.
Grab—
Cheon Hwi seized his face.
Then he slowly applied pressure with the fingers gripping his face.
"Kwaaaagh!"
Looking at him screaming, Cheon Hwi nodded and released his grip.
Then, staring directly into his terror-filled eyes, he parted his lips.
"I asked where the Sect Master is."
"I-Inside..."
The moment he heard the answer, Cheon Hwi applied force again to his relaxed fingers.
Crack!
"Inside, you say?"
Muttering, Cheon Hwi tossed the corpse aside and looked up at the pavilion of Paewangmun.
Meanwhile, the Paewangmun disciples who had been holding their breath nearby slowly backed away.
Cheon Hwi pulled his chin.
Those who had been trying to flee gave awkward smiles when Cheon Hwi looked at them.
"Where are you going?"
Cheon Hwi's hand moved.
Crack! Pu-uk!
A one-sided slaughter unfolded.
The Paewangmun disciples, watching the continuous brutality of Cheon Hwi's methods, shuddered with revulsion.
"You dog!"
"Are you even a daoist?"
"A daoist, using such cruel methods!"
Cheon Hwi looked at them shouting at him and made an expression of disbelief.
Perhaps emboldened, one of the Paewangmun disciples pointed a finger and shouted.
"If word gets out that you've done such a thing, you'll be expelled from... Kkaaagh!"
Crunch!
Cheon Hwi snapped his fingers.
"Who are you pointing at?"
He then grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. The man seized by the neck shrieked, terrified by Cheon Hwi's sunken eyes, which were as deep as a bottomless abyss.
"I-If the righteous faction finds out you committed such atrocities, do you think they'll leave you alone!"
"So?"
Cheon Hwi tightened his grip.
Crack!
The neck bone shattered in an instant, and the man's body went limp as he died instantly.
Cheon Hwi tossed the corpse and warned the Paewangmun disciples watching him.
"Then I just have to kill all of you, right? Then no one would know I did this. Right?"
The faces of the Paewangmun disciples turned pale blue.
That was no daoist.
They didn't care much for the righteous faction, but even so, there was a line.
But what was this?
Let alone a line, he just did whatever he pleased.
Even the demonic path wasn't this bad.
At that moment.
Creak—
A middle-aged man with a well-groomed beard appeared through the open door.
A sturdy frame and a confident expression.
Cheon Hwi, who had been watching him appear boldly, twisted one corner of his mouth.
"Are you the Sect Master?"