Light Novel: Volume 23 Episode 22
Manhwa: N/A
“Ugh!”
“Guegh!”
Screams erupted from the outskirts of martial artists that had surrounded Hwangbo Chiseung. Someone had hidden in the bushes and was sneakily attacking them.
Only after the screams erupted did the martial artists realize that the attackers were hiding in the bushes.
“There’s someone in the bushes!”
“Watch out, everyone!”
“Damn it!”
The warriors from the Golden Heaven Society and the Silver Lotus Society cursed as they glared at the bushes.
Rustle!
The bushes shook.
It was clear that someone was moving under the bushes that reached up to their waists.
“Chaat!”
“Who are these guys?”
The warriors yelled as they swung their swords.
Swoosh!
Instead of a reply, they only heard the sound of swords swinging.
“Keuk!”
“Everyone, be careful!”
“A, Assassins! There are assassins hiding in the bushes.”
It took a few more casualties before the warriors realized that the attackers hiding in the bushes were assassins.
“Why are there assassins here?!”
“Everyone, watch your backs!”
The warriors banded together to form a defensive formation.
But it was no use.
The assassins hiding in the bushes broke through their defensive formation and attacked from within them.
As a result, the damage to the warriors increased.
“What’s going on?”
Sa Domun looked around with an incredulous expression.
He hadn’t expected assassins to show up and interfere just as he was about to finish Hwangbo Chiseung— it was like adding ashes to cooked rice.
Sa Domun glared at Hwangbo Chiseung and said,
“You! What’s your connection with these assassins?”
“……”
Hwangbo Chiseung did not respond.
He could clearly see the assassins moving under the bushes.
The assassins were ruthlessly attacking the warriors, yet they didn’t touch a hair on his head.
Even a fool could tell that the assassins were trying to help him.
Hwangbo Chiseung looked around.
The air had changed.
Such an atmosphere might be unfamiliar to the warriors of the Golden Heaven Society or Silver Lotus Society, but it was all too familiar to Hwangbo Chiseung.
Thud!
Hwangbo Chiseung suddenly dropped to one knee and shouted,
“Your subordinate, Hwangbo Chiseung, greets his lord!”
He did this in front of Sa Domun.
This made his neck and head clearly exposed and vulnerable to Sa Domun.
Assuming such a posture in front of a master of Sa Domun’s caliber was akin to suicide.
Hwangbo Chiseung was aware of this.
Yet, without any hesitation, he knelt down on one knee and bowed his head.
“You madman!”
Sa Domun wore an expression of disbelief as he looked at Hwangbo Chiseung.
He couldn’t understand how Hwangbo Chiseung could believe in someone so much that he would show such a weakness.
“Fine! Just don’t regret this, you fool. I will now be taking your head—!”
Sa Domun infused the staff he was holding with internal energy. Immediately after, an aura similar to sword energy wrapped around the staff.
Sa Domun swung his staff at Hwangbo Chiseung’s neck.
The moment the staff strikes Hwangbo Chiseung’s neck, it would be sliced open like a watermelon.
Hwangbo Chiseung knew this as well. Yet, he did not move an inch, much less flinch.
“Die!”
Sa Domun’s shout echoed through the forest.
But, Hwangbo Chiseung did not die.
He was still on one knee, the nape of his neck exposed, but there was not a single wound on his body.
“Huh?”
Sa Domun blinked.
Thud!
At that moment, the arm holding the staff fell to the ground.
It was the staff that had been striking down on Hwangbo Chiseung, and the hand holding it was unmistakably Sa Domun’s.
Sa Domun could not understand.
He couldn’t grasp why his arm, which had been firmly attached to his body just moments before, had been cut off and was now lying on the ground.
It was so surreal that it took him a moment to comprehend what had happened.
“AHHHH!”
A dreadful scream escaped him belatedly.
Sa Domun clutched at the severed part of his shoulder and collapsed to the ground.
It was then.
Thrrrr!
Someone soundlessly descended in front of Hwangbo Chiseung from the air.
Dressed in black, with robes spread like wings, the face of the person who descended was unusually pale.
He also exuded an aura of mystery and possessed eerie beauty more so than any woman.
“What?”
Go Yeonhwa, who had been watching the scene from afar, covered her mouth.
The moment she saw his seemingly otherworldly appearance, a name came to her mind.
“Pyo… wol?”
“That’s right! And he’s my brother!”
Soma, who was beside her, said proudly.
“Your brother?”
“Yes! My brother.”
“That’s…”
Go Yeonhwa was at a loss for words.
In a short moment, dozens of thoughts flashed through her mind.
The aura she sensed emanating from the young child, Soma, was very peculiar. It seemed both sinister and mysteriously captivating at the same time.
Although she had never heard the name Soma before, it seemed that his claim of being Pyo-wol’s brother could be true.
“My goodness!”
Go Yeonhwa covered her mouth with both hands.
Pyo-wol was a name that anyone who had dipped their toes into Jianghu even a little bit would recognize. Although he hadn’t been in Jianghu for very long, his name was widely known in the martial world.
It was said that anyone targeted by Pyo-wol was no longer among the living.
There were even rumors circulating that taking one’s own life was a quicker, less painful way to die than falling into his hands.
His nickname, “Reaper,” was synonymous with death and terror.
However, by the end of last fall, he disappeared.
Even when the Golden Heaven Society and Silver Lotus Society mobilized many of their forces to search for him, he never showed up. This led many to believe that Pyo-wol had left Poyang Lake.
Nonetheless, they thought it was a good thing.
If he had remained at Poyang Lake to plot or continue his killings, things could have been worse.
By the time Go Yeonhwa, Silver Lotus Four Wings, and the Four Great Martial Artists entered Poyang Lake, Pyo-wol had already hidden his presence.
Because of this, they hadn’t had the chance to experience the terror of Pyo-wol firsthand. It didn’t even seem real to them.
That’s why some of them even boldly claim that they could defeat Pyo-wol.
Go Yeonhwa remembered laughing as she listened to those people bragging. Intoxicated and carried away by a sense of heroism, she also remembered boasting herself, saying that she could also win.
But upon seeing Pyo-wol, she realized how empty her own boasts had been.
Goosebumps broke out all over her body and wouldn’t subside.
Her body reacted to the terror of Pyo-wol before her mind did.
The chills soon turned into mild convulsions.
Her body trembled like a quaking aspen.
It felt as though an invisible awl was hollowing out her entire body.
She had never felt anything like this before in her life, which made it all the more frightening.
‘To think the Reaper was such a person.’
The moment she saw his otherworldly appearance and surreal appearance, she realized it.
That she could never be a match for him.
“No—!”
One of the Golden Heaven Society’s martial artist aimed his sword at the back of Pyo-wol’s head. But he failed to fulfill his intentions.
Bang!
This was because a woman appeared from our of where, slamming her palm down on the martial artist’s back.
The martial artist didn’t even manage to let out a scream as he fell to the ground, dead.
The woman was dressed in blood-red clothes.
At first glance, she appeared ordinary, but the more one looked, the more enchanting and mysterious her allure became.
“Yaat!”
This time, a warrior from the Silver Lotus Society attacked Pyo-wol, but before he could take more than two steps, he was killed by an assassin who also appeared out of nowhere.
The two assassins were like a giant barrier, perfectly blocking the martial artists from approaching Pyo-wol.
They were Hong Ye-seol and Thunder Eye.
Entrusting his back to them, Pyo-wol locked eyes with Hwangbo Chiseung.
“It’s been a long time.”
“Subordinate Hwangbo Chiseung pays his respect to his lord.”
“Get up.”
“Thank you.”
Only after Pyo-wol’s permission did Hwangbo Chiseung rise to his feet.
“Have you come to find me?”
“Yes, my lord!”
“You could have lived freely, yet you chose to seek me out.”
“I have already promised myself that I will serve you as my lord.”
“You’re staking your life on outdated values.”
Pyo-wol chuckled. However, his expression was not an unpleasant one.
“It’s an honor to see you again like this.”
“Honor? Anyway, did you cause all this commotion just to call me?”
“You knew all along.”
Hwangbo Chiseung laughed.
There was no way he could find Pyo-wol especially if he had decided to disappear.
Therefore, Hwangbo Chiseung deliberately chose to escalate the disturbance, hoping that his notoriety would reach Pyo-wol’s ears.
Fortunately, an old monster named Sa Domun got involved, and the situation spiraled out of control, bringing Pyo-wol to him.
He had achieved his goal.
In the process, he had sustained considerable injuries, but a few days of rest should be enough for a quick recovery.
It was then.
“You wretch!”
Sa Domun, who had lost an arm to Pyo-wol, regained his senses and charged.
With his one remaining hand, he executed a technique called Iron Tyrant Palm.1
The Iron Tyrant Palm was a technique that was said to be so powerful that it could crush a rock the size of a house into powder in an instant when fully mastered.
At that moment, Hwangbo Chiseung stepped in front of Pyo-wol.
“Now, we are equal.”
He swung his fist to meet Sa Domun’s.
Boom!
Their palm and fist collided, causing a loud explosion.
Sa Domun staggered back three or four steps.
His palm was shredded beyond recognition, as if it had been pounded by a hammer.
Hwangbo Chiseung’s Heavenly King’s Three Fists had surpassed the power of Iron Tyrant Palm.
“AAARGH!”
Sa Domun screamed belatedly.
He clutched his crushed hand between his legs and screamed to death.
His men who normally would have rushed to his aid were nowhere to be seen.
The Black Assassination Squad had taken care of the warriors from the Golden Heaven Society and the Silver Lotus Society.
“Ugh!”
Only then did Sa Domun realize the reality of his situation and staggered backward.
His face was overtaken by deep fear.
With one of his arms severed and his other arm mangled, he had no fighting spirit left.
“H, Help me! Please–!”
Sa Domun begged for his life.
Hwangbo Chiseung looked at Sa Domun with disdain.
He despised how Sa Domun had been infinitely arrogant when the odds were in his favor, and now, when disadvantaged, he groveled.
If it were him, he would rather die than show such a cowardly demeanor.
Hwangbo Chiseung sneaked a glance at Pyo-wol.
He was subtly asking for Pyo-wol’s decision on the matter. However, Pyo-wol did not say anything.
He just looked at Hwangbo Chiseung indifferently.
He had left all decision to Hwangbo Chiseung’s hands.
Swish!
Dozens of assassins gathered around Pyo-wol.
They were Hong Ye-seol, Thunder Eye, and the Black Assassination Squad.
Despite the presence of dozens of people, not a single sound could be heard.
Not a single breath, or even the sound of clothes rustling.
It was as if the space around Pyo-wol was isolated from the rest of the world.
It was a fascinating yet terrifying sight.
Hwangbo Chiseung felt every hair on his body stand on end.
An ordinary person would have fled without looking back upon seeing Pyo-wol. But Hwangbo Chiseung was different.
He had long decided to make Pyo-wol his lord.
‘My lord!’
And having decided to follow Pyo-wol, he should not have any hesitations.
“Cha-hat!”
Bam!
His fist slammed into Sa Domun’s upper body.
In an instant, Sa Domun’s upper body disappeared.
It was as if it had evaporated as it completely vanished without a trace.
It was truly an unbelievable sight to behold.
“My God!”
Go Yeonhwa covered her mouth with both hands.
Beside her, Soma was laughing.
LUNACAVE
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