Chapter 137: What is Emptied is Filled in Turn (3)

Muk Il-gwang had recovered from his internal injuries with astonishing speed and could now move freely. His recovery was truly fearsome.

Swinging his arms about with satisfaction, a smile spread across his face.

Hwang Hye-ryeong looked at him and remarked.

"You're scary!"

Muk Il-gwang's shoulders slumped immediately. Seeing this, Hwang Hye-ryeong smiled.

"But I'm glad you've made a full recovery."

"Yes!"

Muk Il-gwang answered loudly, as though his shoulders had never drooped in the first place. At the sight, Bang Jin-bo muttered.

"That one is quite serious as well."

He shook his head.

Muk Il-gwang's appearance was fierce enough to frighten even demons. Yet he was visibly affected by every word Hwang Hye-ryeong uttered.

The contrast between his intimidating exterior and his earnest demeanor was enough to draw a quiet laugh. But since he could not laugh openly, Bang Jin-bo had to turn his head to suppress it.

They were currently passing through the western Yue region of Anhui Province, having left Hunan Province behind.

Anhui Province was mountainous, with even more lakes. Cross a mountain and a vast lake would suddenly block the way; cross a lake and a towering mountain would loom before you.

Naturally, it took more time to traverse the same distance.

But the party was in no hurry.

Hurrying would not make the lake cross any faster, nor would it cause the mountains to vanish.

Once his injuries had healed, Muk Il-gwang had dismounted and begun walking. In his place, Bang Jin-bo rode the horse. For Bang Jin-bo, who was already somewhat tired, this was welcome news.

The western Yue region they were passing through was famous for its tea.

The tea grown here was called Cuilan, prized for its deep, bittersweet fragrance. Perhaps for this reason, as soon as they entered the region, the streets were saturated with the rich aroma of tea.

Even the Qingyan Inn, where they had taken lodging, was permeated with the scent. The moment they stepped inside, the rich fragrance lifted their spirits.

A smile graced Hwang Hye-ryeong's face.

They had been forced to camp outdoors many times on the journey here. Having grown up in the mountains, sleeping under the stars was not a hardship, but she longed earnestly for a warm bath.

Dam Ho had taken a separate cottage.

"I'll go bathe first."

Hwang Hye-ryeong hurried to the bathhouse.

Muk Il-gwang declared he would remain in the cottage to protect her.

Dam Ho and Bang Jin-bo left the two behind and went to the dining hall first.

The hall was filled with a considerable number of people. Many of them appeared to be martial artists.

Dam Ho and Bang Jin-bo found a seat in a secluded corner, away from the crowd. While Bang Jin-bo ordered several dishes from the server, Dam Ho gazed out the window.

As far as Dam Ho knew, there were no notable sects or martial schools in Qianshan. Yet a large proportion of those visible on the street carried weapons.

The whispers of those seated at a nearby table reached Dam Ho's ears.

"The Demonic Cult's return! Truly a grave matter. The world will soon be awash in blood."

"Who could disagree? I've even had to procure a sword for myself."

They were not even martial artists. Yet they wore swords at their belts.

It was proof of how deeply the Demonic Cult's emergence had unsettled the populace.

"And to think, the Demonic Cult is quite audacious. To slaughter hundreds in Akyang, which might as well be the Martial Alliance's very heart."

"Is that not why they are called the Demonic Cult? They are called that because they are just that merciless."

"That is true… I suppose the Namgung Family must be on high alert then."

The Namgung Family had settled in Anhui Province several hundred years ago. Over that long span, they had built a solid foundation and now stood as one of the Five Great Families, their reputation well known.

The Namgung Family were the undisputed masters of Anhui Province.

If the Namgung Family so much as sneezed, all of Anhui felt the chill. Thus, those who lived in the province could not help but keep a keen eye on the family's movements.

With the Demonic Cult emerging on the stage of history, it was the Namgung Family that was most active.

They had split their forces, dispatching half to the Martial Alliance while tightening security at their main residence. They recalled scattered branch disciples and recruited martial artists willing to lend their strength.

The Namgung Family's influence in Anhui Province was absolute, and many rallied to their banner.

For this reason, Anhui was in a state of great turmoil. That atmosphere was reflected fully in the inn where Dam Ho was staying.

Bang Jin-bo whispered softly.

"The Demonic Cult must be truly formidable. No matter where you go, all anyone talks about is the Demonic Cult. Is there truly anywhere that is safe from them?"

"Who knows!"

Dam Ho murmured in a flat voice.

Though the world was in an uproar over the Demonic Cult's emergence, it was of little concern to Dam Ho.

His sole interest at present was Hwang Hye-ryeong.

He needed only to deliver her safely to Huangshan. As for the rest of the world, it was none of his concern.

There were as many as grains of sand on the shore who had stepped forth to protect the Central Plains from the Demonic Cult's invasion, and a great many of them possessed the ability to do so.

Those men had banded together to form the Martial Alliance. With the Alliance in place, there was no need for Dam Ho to act.

While Dam Ho was lost in his own thoughts, the food arrived. Bang Jin-bo was the first to light up, dividing the dishes into manageable portions.

"Wow! The smell is incredible. Hurry and eat, Brother."

"Mm!"

True to Bang Jin-bo's enthusiasm, the food was quite good.

Dam Ho savored the meal in small bites. Bang Jin-bo also ate with a smile.

While the two were dining, Muk Il-gwang and Hwang Hye-ryeong entered the hall. Bang Jin-bo greeted them with a smile.

"Welcome. The food is delicious."

"It smells wonderful from the start."

Hwang Hye-ryeong smiled.

After her bath, her beauty shone even more brilliantly.

Her damp skin and hair were more than enough to quicken the hearts of many within the inn.

A lecherous glint appeared in the eyes of some men, but the moment they saw Muk Il-gwang's towering frame and fearsome countenance, those thoughts vanished without a trace.

"Gah! What kind of face is that?"

"Gack! I thought my heart had fallen out."

No matter how beautiful Hwang Hye-ryeong might be, they had no confidence in approaching her past the monstrous figure of Muk Il-gwang. They, too, had only one life.

Hwang Hye-ryeong chewed her food and murmured.

"It's good, but not as good as what Jin-bo makes."

"Hehe!"

"Jin-bo, how did you learn to cook so well?"

Hwang Hye-ryeong asked with a remarkably serious expression. Bang Jin-bo rubbed the back of his head, looking sheepish.

"I just kept at it."

"If you just keep at it, anyone can become good at it?"

"Are you interested in cooking?"

Hwang Hye-ryeong nodded. At that, Bang Jin-bo's face broke into a wide grin.

"If you have the interest, learning is not so difficult. Shall I teach you?"

"Is that really all right?"

"We will be together until we reach Huangshan, and cooking is not so hard."

"Then I would like that. It's a promise?"

"Yes!"

At Bang Jin-bo's answer, a pleased smile spread across Hwang Hye-ryeong's face. Muk Il-gwang, watching her, allowed a smile to rise to his own lips.

"Young brother, thank you!"

"It was nothing."

Hwang Hye-ryeong asked cautiously.

"Is there anything you need?"

"No. Ah, we could go to the market tonight."

"The market?"

"To make good food, you first need to learn how to select good ingredients. Choosing good ingredients is the most important part."

"Is that so?"

Hwang Hye-ryeong's eyes sparkled.

She had been to many markets in her life, but never once had she visited one to buy cooking ingredients.

Hwang Hye-ryeong turned her gaze to Dam Ho.

"May I go to the market, Big Brother?"

"Mm!"

When Dam Ho granted permission, a radiant smile blossomed on Hwang Hye-ryeong's face.

"Wonderful. Let's go shopping!"

"Hehe!"

Hwang Hye-ryeong raised her voice in excitement, and Bang Jin-bo laughed his characteristic laugh.

Muk Il-gwang watched the two of them and smiled.

They had invited Dam Ho to join them, but he had quietly declined.

After finishing their meal, the three went to the market together, and Dam Ho returned to the cottage.

In the courtyard of the cottage stood an ancient tree. It had been there long before the Qingyan Inn was built.

Dam Ho took a seat beneath it.

Leaning against the massive trunk and closing his eyes, a flood of thoughts surged upon him like a deluge. Dam Ho pruned away the useless thoughts, leaving only one.

Dark Shadow Fist.

It was now called the Lone Walker's art.

The Dark Shadow Fist achieved near-perfect power on the battlefield. Its application and destructive force were beyond compare with other martial arts.

The only limitation was its effectiveness in one-against-many combat.

But even that could be addressed with changes in the application of its techniques, so it was not a major concern.

The problem was the meditation trance.

He had once come close to falling into a meditation trance, drawn by the word "Lone Walker." At the time, it had been in an isolated old bookshop, so there was no issue. But if it happened in the heat of battle, he would face a grave crisis.

Dam Ho contemplated himself and the Dark Shadow Fist with care.

His body was, in and of itself, a weapon of perfection. The damage to the muscles of his left leg, causing a slight limp, was no longer a problem.

Through countless battles, Dam Ho had realized how to transform that weakness into strength. That realization had in turn been absorbed into the Dark Shadow Fist.

At least physically, there was no issue.

The problem was his heart.

Dam Ho was well aware that he was not normal.

His mind was thoroughly broken.

The loss of his childhood, the isolation at Mount Hua, the entanglement of twisted human relationships—all of it had warped and bent him, pulling him sharply to one extreme.

For that reason, he thought of everything in terms of himself and was numb to the pain of others.

He felt nothing for anything outside the few things he held dear.

A life of absolute solitude. An isolated existence.

'Is that why the word "Lone Walker" drew me so strongly?'

After the massacre of his village, his heart had been filled with darkness. Even when he was with his Master, even now at this moment of reuniting with his sister, the darkness had not lifted.

The darkness was his part—no, it was his very self.

It was impossible to dispel the darkness from his heart. Above all, Dam Ho had no intention of dispelling it.

'What must I do?'

Dam Ho thought, and thought again.

It was only a simple contemplation, but he was desperate.

He had lived desperately since childhood, and at this very moment he was thinking desperately.

For him, leisure meant carelessness, and carelessness meant death.

He knew this too well, which was why he was always on guard and never let anyone close.

The only one he had ever allowed close was Hyeon-so Sage.

When his thoughts reached Hyeon-so Sage, a sudden, overwhelming longing seized him.

He wanted to see him laugh. He wanted to hear his kind voice.

It was the first time he had felt such a thing, and Dam Ho was taken aback.

Boom!

The Dark Soul Heart Method suddenly surged violently.

The energy of the Dark Soul Heart Method, which had always been thoroughly controlled, was now spreading of its own accord.

'Why?'

Dam Ho was alarmed.

At first, he tried to control it. But subduing the runaways energy all at once was impossible.

"Kuh!"

Dam Ho's face twisted.

Pop! Pop!

Veins bulged beneath his skin. His entire body was seized with tremors.

Agony, as though his whole being were being torn apart, forced his mouth open. He had thought himself numb to pain. But this sudden onslaught of agony proved just how wrong that assumption was, ravaging every inch of his body.

It was as though molten lava were surging through his veins. The intense heat threatened to consume him entirely.

A trace of blood appeared at the corner of his lips. Bright crimson.

It was not a good omen.

If he left it unchecked, he would suffer grave internal injuries, or worse, die.

He needed to quell the rampage of his energy.

Shudder!

But it was only a wish.

The lava-like energy surging through his body invaded his mind. His consciousness began to fade.

If he lost control now, his body would be consumed by the Dark Soul Heart Method.

'Should I let it go?'

Just as that thought arose,

The Heaven Enshrined in the Heart—the heart holds the image of the heavens.

The Heavens Weighted Within the Heart—the heart bears the heaviness of the heavens.

The Mind Governing the Heavens—when the heart moves, it can govern the heavens.

The Heavy Heart Moves the Heavens—a heavy heart moves the heavens.

A passage from the Heavy Heaven Heart Method suddenly came to mind.

It was a passage he had forgotten while cultivating the Dark Soul Heart Method.

'A heavy heart moves the heavens?'

It was a passage he had never understood. But at this very moment, it seemed as though he might.

In that instant, the voice of Hyeon-so Sage echoed once more.

—All you need is a steadfast heart. That alone is enough.

It was a hallucination conjured by his own mind. Dam Ho knew this. Yet a smile rose to his lips.

—Ho-ya, is that not so?

'Yes, it is.'

The Master asked, and the disciple answered.

The atmosphere instantly froze.

The four people here specialized in disguise and infiltration, not exceptionally high martial arts. Facing Snake Scorpion Poison King, who had turned Yunnan’s martial world into a wasteland, was absurd from the start.

If they could have handled him in the first place, they wouldn’t have been just monitoring him!

The four exchanged glances with each other.

Let’s run!

Of course, one person would have to stay behind. Then even Snake Scorpion Poison King wouldn’t be able to catch them all – that was their calculation.

The idler signaled the other three with his eyes. He planned to sacrifice himself to save the other three. The idler took a stance to charge at Jin Ja-gang. And the other three prepared to flee in all directions the moment the idler charged.

But just as the idler was about to lift his heel and charge, and the three’s gazes split apart.

Jin Ja-gang suddenly lifted a small pouch and turned it upside down.

Whoosh!

Unidentifiable dark powder poured out.

Dust-like powder rose hazily at the entrance to the alley. The idler, who had been about to charge at Jin Ja-gang, was startled and fell backward.

Jin Ja-gang looked at the four and continued speaking calmly.

“What kind of poison do you think I’m scattering now? Will you be able to pass through here, or won’t you?”

The idler and the other three held their breath and retreated backward. Since poison had been scattered, they couldn’t charge forward.

They had no choice but to flee in the opposite direction. They were prepared to commit suicide if caught, and even if caught, only the minimum number should be captured.

Jin Ja-gang said to the four.

“I have no grudge against you. If you just answer my questions, I’ll let you go.”

The four naturally had no intention of doing so.

“Run!”

The moment the idler shouted, the four fled in the opposite direction. The quick-bodied peddler ran out first. The moment the peddler turned the corner at the end of the alley and disappeared, a scream rang out. Then the warrior dressed as a laborer also let out a scream the moment he turned the corner.

“Aah!”

“Kugh!”

The idler and farmer hurriedly stopped. The peddler and laborer were rolling around in front, both clutching their feet and groaning. There seemed to be something on the ground.

The idler and farmer couldn’t pass through that spot, not knowing what had happened.

Soon Jin Ja-gang followed right behind them.

Jin Ja-gang swung his fist. The farmer tried to block Jin Ja-gang’s fist with his pitchfork. Jin Ja-gang twisted his fist and struck the farmer’s forearm.

Prick!

The farmer felt something sharp embed in his forearm. It seemed he had hidden a needle or something between his knuckles.

“Damn it!”

The farmer screamed and retreated backward.

Jin Ja-gang immediately changed direction toward the idler. The idler had just seen the laborer get attacked by Jin Ja-gang and scream, so he didn’t rashly face Jin Ja-gang directly.

When Jin Ja-gang attacked, he flinched in surprise and dodged, continuing to retreat and only evade.

But as the idler dodged Jin Ja-gang’s fists several times, he began to feel somewhat puzzled.

Snake Scorpion Poison King was the one who had destroyed Yunnan’s poison sects. He had even brought down Zhuge Yan. Then he should definitely be a tremendous master. Either using movement techniques invisible to the eye or having poison fly around just by extending his hand.

But looking at his movements, though agile, it was hard to see him as a martial arts master. No matter how generously he judged, he didn’t seem that much better than himself. That made it even more confusing.

The idler was the most skilled in martial arts among those here. He could face ten or twenty back-alley thugs simultaneously.

‘Could it be… this isn’t him?’

If he wasn’t Snake Scorpion Poison King…?

No, but if this person wasn’t Snake Scorpion Poison King, why would the other three comrades be rolling on the ground?

The idler was confused, but gradually Jin Ja-gang’s movements became familiar to his eyes. Perhaps because he was limping, his attacks weren’t as fast as expected.

‘This guy, he mentioned something about rumors earlier. Are the rumors really exaggerated?’

Half fearful and half doubtful, the idler tried attacking.

He pressed down on Jin Ja-gang’s extending wrist with his palm while striking Jin Ja-gang’s temple with his other palm.

Smack!

Jin Ja-gang’s head shook and his body swayed.

“Huh?”

At the last moment, Jin Ja-gang had turned his head, so it didn’t hit properly. However, the idler was bewildered since he had never thought his attack would work in one try.

‘This guy… is he really Snake Scorpion Poison King?’

If it was the Snake Scorpion Poison King he knew, shouldn’t he not be able to touch even a hair?

However, the idler realized his hand was caught in Jin Ja-gang’s grip. Jin Ja-gang was grasping the idler’s forearm like scratching it.

It was surprising that he had grabbed his arm the moment he was hit, but he couldn’t understand what he intended to do with that. Couldn’t he just shake off his arm?

“What…”

At that moment.

Jin Ja-gang’s right eye turned reddish, and suddenly his fingers gripping the idler’s forearm dug into the flesh.

Crane Sect’s grappling technique, Capturing Dragon Strike!

The idler felt pain as if his forearm was being gouged with a red-hot iron skewer, and his hair stood on end. His arm and shoulder instantly stiffened.

“Uh, uaaaah!”

When the idler screamed, Jin Ja-gang stuffed the leather pouch he was holding in his left hand into the idler’s mouth.

Jin Ja-gang had seen an assassin commit suicide before. The assassin had chosen suicide to keep secrets even though he could have fought more. This time too, in case the idler might commit suicide, he needed to prevent him from biting his poison pill or tongue.

But Jin Ja-gang’s choice ended in failure.

Suddenly the idler’s body convulsed greatly. Though he couldn’t make a sound with leather in his mouth, his eyes rolled back.

Red blood spread across his chest. A sharp pitchfork protruded from his chest, having pierced through from behind.

The farmer had killed the idler when he was captured. The farmer stood with the pitchfork thrust in, spitting blood foam and dying. It wasn’t from poison Jin Ja-gang had used.

It seemed he had already swallowed a poison pill before thrusting the pitchfork.

Seeing this, the peddler and laborer sighed. Their faces showed they realized they too were doomed.

The laborer put something in his mouth. The laborer soon foamed blood at his mouth… But the peddler hesitated a bit and missed the chance to swallow his poison pill. Even though poison needles were already deeply embedded in his soles, there seemed to be some hesitation about dying.

He tried to swallow the poison pill belatedly, but Bian Bu, who had secretly crawled there, rushed at him. Bian Bu stabbed the back of the peddler’s neck with a bamboo stick.

“Urgh!”

The peddler’s body stiffened and he dropped the poison pill in his hand.

“Whew…”

Bian Bu grimaced in pain, blood streaming from his heel. Then when he looked up, he saw Jin Ja-gang also leaning against the wall and gasping for breath like himself. Jin Ja-gang’s face was covered with sweat.

“Are you… alright?”

Jin Ja-gang nodded without answering and caught his breath.

Bian Bu complained.

“Really too much, friend. Knowing I was being attacked, you were late coming because you were scattering saliva in front? Thanks to that, I became a cripple. Much obliged.”

The reason Jin Ja-gang couldn’t immediately help even though Bian Bu’s ankle tendon was being cut was because he had to go hide poison needles in the direction they would flee.

Jin Ja-gang silently walked to the peddler to check his condition.

“I stabbed his pressure point, so he won’t be able to move for about an hour.”

Bian Bu grumbled.

“Are you really Snake Scorpion Poison King? What kind of poison are you using that these guys are fine? Thanks to that, we almost let them all die or escape. Good thing I caught one.”

The fortune teller speech disappeared and Bian Bu spoke at length as if his gag had been removed.

Jin Ja-gang answered with a stiffly frowning face.

“I used poison that causes diarrhea.”

Only now did the poison take effect, as the paralyzed peddler’s body began to smell foul. The peddler didn’t speak but his face turned red with embarrassment.

Bian Bu’s mouth fell open in disbelief.

“Snake Scorpion Poison King used such poison…!”

Of course, if you had diarrhea, you’d lose strength and couldn’t fight or run away, so it was surprisingly a good method. But it felt somewhat inappropriate for Snake Scorpion Poison King, who carried tremendous rumors, to use such trivial poison.

“I can’t kill people I don’t even know.”

Bian Bu’s expression became even more incredulous.

“Very different from the rumors I heard. Your martial arts seem lackluster too.”

But as Bian Bu spoke, he looked at the idler who had died with finger holes in his forearm and added more words.

“No, it doesn’t seem entirely lackluster. But less than the rumors.”

Someone with poor internal energy couldn’t make holes in a person’s forearm with their fingers.

Still, it was true that Jin Ja-gang’s martial arts were strange somewhere. It was also true that his martial arts weren’t as high as expected. If his martial arts were high, there would have been no need to go around back to scatter poison needles and return.

Then he too wouldn’t have lost a leg.

However, the situation wasn’t suitable for just complaining. Bian Bu wrapped his injured ankle with cloth and limped toward the peddler.

“Ugh, that stench… Don’t you usually shit yourself?”

Bian Bu frowned and waved his hand in front of his nose.

“You, can you talk? What organization? What were you aiming for coming here?”

The peddler’s face turned red and blue as he gritted his teeth.

“Kill me. I won’t say anything.”

“If you wanted to die, you would have taken poison and died already.”

The peddler bit down hard on his teeth. He seemed to feel ashamed himself.

“So spill it. What will hiding it improve? It’ll just be painful.”

Bian Bu took out a bamboo stick and spun it between his fingers. When the peddler glared with wide eyes, he stabbed the bamboo stick between his collarbones. It went in two joints deep.

“Kugh!”

Blood vessels bulged in the peddler’s neck and jaw.

“This isn’t just a bamboo stick but has a long steel needle inside. It’ll hurt a lot.”

The peddler gritted his teeth.

“If you can endure it, then endure.”

Bian Bu pulled out five bamboo sticks and stuck one just above the peddler’s knee. Then he continued sticking bamboo sticks, moving up half a span at a time.

“Kugh, kugh!”

Four were stuck in a row along the inside of his thigh.

If he stuck the last remaining one in the current state, it would naturally be stuck right in the middle of his groin.

The peddler’s face was covered with sweat from pain and anxiety. Bian Bu smiled apologetically.

“Sorry. But doing spy work, you might not be able to function as a man and such things can happen. That’s originally what our kind of work is like. If you get caught, you die, if not, then not. Hehe.”

Bian Bu raised the bamboo stick. The peddler cursed with veins bulging on his forehead.

“Our capture will soon be known, so you won’t be able to survive either! Burn to death with this village!”

“Well, as expected.”

Bian Bu called Jin Ja-gang.

“Do you have anything to ask? I’ve heard all the necessary talk.”

“What?”

The peddler was flustered.

Jin Ja-gang didn’t have anything particular to ask. He already knew who these people worked for and why they were monitoring him.

“Nothing.”

The peddler gritted his teeth.

“You won’t say more even if asked anyway, so hurry up and kill me!”

The moment the peddler finished speaking, Bian Bu drew a dagger from his waist, went to the peddler, and slit his throat. The peddler spurted blood from his neck and collapsed.

Bian Bu casually wiped the dagger on the peddler’s clothes and said.

“These guys were preparing to use you to implicate our dark path. And you heard just now, right? About burning this village. That’s the last scheme these guys prepared in case their previous trick failed.”

Jin Ja-gang looked at Bian Bu somewhat bewildered. When Bian Bu saw Jin Ja-gang’s gaze directed at him wiping blood from the dagger, he asked back as if wondering why.

“What? Why?”