Light Novel: Volume 16 Episode 25
Manhwa: N/A
The Heaven Slaying Sword and the Snake Qi Thread infused with Black Lightning clashed.
Zheeeong!
An unearthly metallic sound burst out.
Lee Geumhan felt as if his sword was screaming.
The Snake Qi Thread infused with Black Lightning was like a venomous snake. It did not miss the microscopic cracks that had formed in his sword.
The venomous snake jumped through the crack and spread out in an instant.
“Heuk!”
Lee Geumhan’s face twisted.
He tried to expel the venomous snake that had penetrated his sword. However, even before he could react, the Snake Qi Thread infused with Black Lightning exploded.
Kwaaang!
The sword shattered before Lee Geumhan’s eyes.
The shattered fragments of the sword struck both Pyo-wol and Lee Geumhan.
The two were sent flying in opposite directions before crashing into the wall.
The wall collapsed, causing the two men to be buried in the bricks.
“Geumhan!”
Namgung Seol cried out to Lee Geumhan, her voice breaking.
She was about to rush to him, but at that moment, she felt a chilling sensation on her neck.
Cautiously looking down, she saw someone holding a broken sword fragment to her neck. With the blade so sharply honed, a simple cut would be enough to sever her breath.
At that moment, she heard the voice of the person holding the sword fragment to her neck from behind.
“Heuk… don’t move.”
The moment she heard the hoarse and weak voice, Namgung Seol immediately realized who the owner of the voice was.
“Hong… Ye-seol?”
“Yes. Don’t move. If you even as much twitch a finger, I’ll slit your neck off.”
The woman whispering in Namgung Seol’s ear was none other than Hong Ye-seol.
‘A mistake.’
Namgung Seol gritted her teeth.
Hong Ye-seol was clearly on the brink of death.
It was certain she would die if left alone, so Namung Seol hadn’t paid much attention.
All of her attention was focused on the fight between Pyo-wol and Lee Geumhan. She had no reason to care about the dying Hong Ye-seol.
In the midst of everyone’s indifference, Hong Ye-seol barely regained consciousness.
Although she had no strength to even lift a finger, she desperately moved to take out a medicinal pill she had kept hidden in her bosom and put it in her mouth.
The pill was the hard-to-obtain Life-Saving Injury Healing Pill.1
Although the medicinal pill wouldn’t instantly heal her wounds, it would at least slightly alleviate her condition.
Hong Ye-seol always carried the Life-Saving Injury Healing Pill with her, considering it a spare life.
While Pyo-wol and Lee Geumhan were fighting, Hong Ye-seol closed her eyes and waited for the medicine to take effect.
Miraculously, she regained the strength to move slightly.
At that time, everyone’s eyes were focused on the duel between Pyo-wol and Lee Geumhan. Thanks to that, Hong Ye-seol was able to sneak up behind Namgung Seol unnoticed.
“Ah!”
“Lady Namgung!”
The Snowflake Sword Squad let out a guarded shout the moment they saw Hong Ye-seol pointing a shard at Namgung Seol’s neck.
Hong Ye-seol struggled to speak,
“Don’t move. If even one of you moves, I will slit this wench’s fine neck right away.”
“Ugh!”
“Damn it!”
The Snowflake Sword Squad was unable to move under Hong Ye-seol’s threats.
This was because they sensed that her words were not just a bluff.
Her legs were shaking like an aspen tree and she looked like she would collapse at any moment if someone were to push her slightly, but even then, Hong Ye-seol’s eyes were filled with venom.
There was a determination in her eyes that even if she died, she would make sure she would not die alone.
Namgung Seol opened her mouth,
“You doing this won’t solve the problem.”
“It doesn’t have to.”
“I thought you were a rational person, but I’m disappointed.”
“I’m rational, that’s why I’m doing this. Whether I die alone or die with you, I’ve been thinking about what choice is more beneficial for me.”
“So you choose to die together?”
“Yes! Even if I die, I will never die alone.”
Hong Ye-seol laughed, revealing her teeth stained with blood.
Her appearance was reminiscent of a wicked demon.
Namgung Seol bit her lip tightly.
She never dreamed that she would suffer this kind of humiliation from an assassin she thought she had caught.
Her shoulders shook with shame.
She’d made it this far, breaking through the high waves on her own strength without the halo of the Heavenly Guardian Association, and that was why her pride in herself was tremendous.
She believed in pioneering her own destiny, so the current situation was not only insulting but also shameful to her.
‘I can’t believe I let my guard down…’
But regret is always too late.
Hong Ye-seol pressed the blade even more tightly against Namgung Seol’s neck.
The blade dug into her neck, drawing blood. A little deeper, and her life would have ended then and there.
It was then.
Crack!
Lee Geumhan pushed himself up through the rubble of the collapsed wall.
Broken blades were deeply embedded all over his body. But Lee Geumhan paid no attention to the blades and looked straight ahead.
At that moment, Pyo-wol also rose from the wall debris just like Lee Geumhan. Blades were also embedded in his body. However, Pyo-wol paid no attention to the wounds on his body and looked at Lee Geumhan.
His entire body felt numb.
This was the first time he had struggled so much like this since his enlightenment at Mount Tianzhu. It was also the first time he had suffered a wound of this magnitude.
He felt excruciating pain, like being crushed by a huge boulder.
It was the same for Lee Geumhan.
This was the first time he’d fought a battle this fierce since he’d gotten the nickname Sword Maniac.
It had been a long time since he had fought with all his might.
He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d poured all his strength into something like this.
Despite suffering similar wounds to his own, Pyo-wol’s complexion hadn’t changed at all. Just by looking at his face, one would never think he had fought a fierce battle.
Suddenly, Lee Geumhan’s gaze turned towards Namgung Seol.
At the sight of Namgung Seol being held hostage by Hong Ye-seol, his complexion changed slightly.
“Huh! It seems I underestimated her. I thought I had finished dealing with her.”
To anyone’s eyes, it was clear that Hong Ye-seol was a dead person walking.
She was likely to die if left alone, which was why he was able to focus on the battle with Pyo-wol.
However, against his better judgment, Hong Ye-seol stubbornly clung to life, creating this situation.
Even though she was panting as if she would collapse at any moment, she tightly held the blade aimed at Namgung Seol. What’s more, her body pressed so closely against Namgung Seol’s that it was actually impossible to pry them apart.
Her persistence and tenacity were truly admirable.
Lee Geumhan asked Pyo-wol,
“Are all assassins like that?”
“Not all of them.”
“Good, because if all assassins are like that, I wouldn’t be able to sleep soundly at night.”
The hostility in Lee Geumhan’s voice disappeared.
He saw no point in fighting Pyo-wol anymore with Namgung Seol being held hostage.
Lee Geumhan made way.
“Take her and go.”
“No, don’t do it because of me!”
Namgung Seol cried out.
The man who had always walked his own path without compromise was now bending his will because of her.
The sight broke her heart.
At that time, Hong Ye-seol whispered.
“If it hurts so much, why don’t you die here?”
Hong Ye-seol thrust the dagger in even more forcefully. Then, the blood flowing from the neck increased significantly.
Seeing Namgung Seol’s body stiffen, Hong Ye-seol laughed.
“I knew it. Everything about you is hypocrisy. You act like you can give everything for your man, but you don’t have the courage to actually give your own life, do you? And you say what you’re doing is for Jianghu? Don’t make me laugh. We, assassins, are far better than a hypocrite like you. At least we don’t shake with hypocrisy.”
Her voice was so low that only Namgung Seol could hear.
Namgung Seol trembled with shame.
She wanted to argue, but she couldn’t think of anything to say, because Hong Ye-seol had hit a mark.
Hong Ye-seol’s face was white as a sheet.
She only managed to stay conscious by hanging onto the Life-Saving Injury Healing Pill, but she was now reaching her limit.
Had she not endured because of her resentment and pride, she would have fallen long ago.
Her eyelids kept closing.
Strength was leaving the hand holding the dagger. Yet, Hong Ye-seol still stood stubbornly, using Namgung Seol as support.
‘Devilish…’
‘Are all assassins like this?’
The sight of her made even the Snowflake Sword Squad sick.
Pyo-wol passed by Lee Geumhan and headed towards Hong Ye-seol.
The closer he got, the more her legs weakened. Hong Ye-seol bit her lip desperately, trying to hold on somehow.
Pyo-wol held out his hand to her.
“That’s enough.”
“Who are… you to save me?”
“I was just passing by.”
“Haha! How… fun…ny…”
At that moment, Hong Ye-seol’s body collapsed.
Pyo-wol held her up.
She had lost so much blood that there was no color left on her face, and her body was as cold as ice.
She was still alive and breathing thanks to the Life-Saving Injury Healing Pill, but she looked like she would die at any moment.
Quick special measures had to be taken.
Pyo-wol carried Hong Ye-seol.
Namgung Seol looked at him and said,
“If you get involved with her, your fate won’t be smooth either.”
“Is that all you can say? That’s not how you threaten. It’s much more effective to make someone imagine specifically what will happen than to make it vague.”
“What?”
“Like this, for example. From now on, I’m going to target you. When you sleep, when you eat, when you breathe– my blade will always be after your life. Can these people protect you? Can they protect you for a year, a decade, an eternity? If so, then let me test them. After all, I’m going to target only you for the rest of my life.”
“……”
For a moment, Namgung Seol froze.
Just the thought of Pyo-wol lurking in the shadows and targeting her made chills run down her spine.
Pyo-wol was a top-notch assassin.
Unless she reached Lee Geumhan’s level, there was no way to block Pyo-wol’s surprise attack. But Lee Geumhan couldn’t stay by her side twenty-four hours a day and protect her from Pyo-wol.
To stop a single assassin, she would need at least ten times as many troops.
Let alone when the opponent is Pyo-wol, known as the best assassin in Jianghu.
Even if she had a hundred men escorting her, there was no guarantee that they could stop him.
If an assassin like Pyo-wol targets her, not only will her daily life be paralyzed, but so will all her external activities. If that happened, her plan to help Lee Geumhan would most likely be in ruins.
This threat was even more terrifying because it came from no one else but Pyo-wol. If someone like him came after her, she would never be able to sleep peacefully again for the rest of her life.
Just thinking about it sent chills down her spine.
Pyo-wol turned his head slightly and looked at her.
“You see? That’s how you threaten someone.”
“W, Wait a moment.”
Namgung Seol hastily called Pyo-wol. But Pyo-wol flew away without a reply.
Namgung Seol’s legs gave out, collapsing to the ground.
Lee Geumhan sighed as he came over to her.
“Are you all right?”
“Geumhan!”
“Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”
“I’m sorry. Because of me, everything went wrong–”
“If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t have been able to corner that assassin to this extent. It’s not because of your lack of ability. Pyo-wol’s abilities are just far beyond our expectations.”
“If he really sets his mind and targets me–”
“He won’t.”
“How can you be sure?”
“If he really wanted to target you, he wouldn’t have needed to say all that.”
“Haa…”
“Not only his martial arts but even his mentality is so outstanding. If he really turns into an enemy, there will be no end to the consequences.”
Even with Lee Geumhan’s reassurance and consolation, Namgung Seol’s heart was not easily calmed.
Even though she was called the Thousand-Year-Old Fox, she could not think of anything in front of Pyo-wol’s terrifying threat.
Lee Geumhan looked at her with a pitying gaze.
It was best not to confront someone like Pyo-wol, but if they did, they had to see it through to the end.
Lee Geumhan missed that opportunity.
Now it was unknown when such a chance would come again.
Lee Geumhan looked at his hand.
In his hand, only the broken hilt of the sword remained.
“Hoo!”
Lee Geumhan let out a long sigh.
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