Chapter 201

Chapter 201: The Master Weeps, the Disciple Unleashes His Cry (1)

When they first heard the sound, the people assumed they had heard it wrong. But it was no illusion.

Scrape! Boom!

The sound came again.

A rhythm of footsteps that unnaturally irritated the spirit.

One foot stamped hard upon the earth, while the other dragged across the ground. The sound burrowed into the eardrums of every person present.

So Cheonsan's pupils trembled slightly.

The footfalls were nothing remarkable, yet they were strangely unsettling. Still, So Cheonsan suppressed his discomfort and prepared to play his final melody.

Booom!

The instant he plucked the strings of his pipa, the footstep rang out with particular force. So Cheonsan flinched involuntarily.

Clang!

"Urgh!"

The taut string screamed and snapped.

So Cheonsan stared down at his pipa in disbelief. The strings had been woven from Thousand-Layer Thread, the toughest material under heaven. They were a treasure that should never have broken, no matter how many times he played.

That this treasure had shattered sent his spirits plummeting to the lowest depths.

"Who goes there?"

His eyes blazed with hostility as he searched for the source of those ominous footsteps.

In the distance, a man was walking toward them.

One foot stepped forward, the other dragged behind.

Anyone could see he was a cripple. And yet something about his bearing was wrong.

The air, which had burned so hot with the frenzy of battle, cooled to ice the moment he appeared. The battlefield, which had been consumed by madness, fell deathly still.

The warriors of the Murim Alliance and the Demonic Cult ceased their movements, unable to tear their gaze from the man. No—they could not.

The man's overwhelming presence compelled their attention.

Regardless of the level of their martial arts, all eyes turned upon him.

So Cheonsan, Deung Cheon-so, Sage Hyeon-geom, and Sage Hyeon-so as well…

"Oh!"

The moment Sage Hyeon-so saw the limping figure visible through the ruined wall, his pupils dilated wildly.

Disheveled black hair, a black wind cloak fluttering ominously in the breeze, and a left foot that dragged ever so slightly.

The face was too distant to make out, yet Sage Hyeon-so recognized him at once.

Sage Hyeon-so's body began to tremble uncontrollably.

"Ho… Ho-ya!"

He reached out his hand without thinking, toward Dam Ho in the distance. But Dam Ho was far beyond his grasp.

Sage Hyeon-so drew his outstretched hand to his chest and broke into sobs.

"Boo hoo! Ho-ya!"

Scalding tears streamed down his face and soaked his robes.

"Grandpa… Waaah!"

When Sage Hyeon-so began to weep, the young Ha-yeong burst into tears as well, not understanding why.

"Ah, really…"

Cho Yeon-woon, who had been desperately guarding Sage Hyeon-so's back until now, finally let out a sigh of relief. The end of that nightmarish pipa performance alone was enough for him to catch his breath. But he too could not take his eyes from Dam Ho.

It was as though Dam Ho had become the center of the world.

Even as every gaze in Shouzhou fixed upon him with that overwhelming presence, Dam Ho's expression did not so much as change.

As though searching for something, Dam Ho slowly surveyed his surroundings.

"Hieek!"

"Mmn!"

Those who met his eyes involuntarily flinched. But Dam Ho passed them by without a second glance.

His gaze, which wandered as though seeking someone, froze in an instant. It was the detached cottage. And through the gap in the ruined wall, a familiar face appeared.

It was too far away to discern any features, yet he recognized it at once.

'Master.'

Just as Sage Hyeon-so had recognized Dam Ho in a single glance, so too did Dam Ho know him instantly.

Their gazes entwined in midair.

'Have you been well? Ho-ya.'

'Master!'

Their eyes alone were enough to read each other's hearts.

Dam Ho took a step toward Sage Hyeon-so.

"Who are you?"

A sharp, ringing voice echoed beside Dam Ho's ear. So Cheonsan had appeared before him, blocking his path with a glare.

Dam Ho's brow twitched, but So Cheonsan paid it no heed and continued.

"Did I not ask? Reveal your identity at once."

"……"

"Aside from that, you are…"

So Cheonsan's voice rose higher. It was at that moment—

Tap!

Dam Ho suddenly launched himself from the ground. He had deployed the Charging Step.

Without a word or warning, Dam Ho hurtled forward like a battering ram. So Cheonsan was terrified.

"Madman!"

But he was one of the Seven Great Demon Masters, a supreme expert even among the Demonic Cult. In that desperate moment, he plucked the remaining strings of his pipa.

Twang!

A devastating sonic wave hurtled straight toward Dam Ho.

The skin on his face rippled like waves, and his robes flapped wildly. His chest was shaken and his meridians rattled, but Dam Ho's fierce gaze did not dim in the slightest.

Kwaaaang!

Dam Ho's Fortress Breaking Fist smashed through the wall of sound and slammed directly into So Cheonsan's torso.

"Mmn!"

So Cheonsan's body slid backward. A faint trace of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The pipa in his hand had shattered into pieces. He had blocked Dam Ho's attack with his pipa by a hair's breadth. But the crisis was far from over.

Whoosh!

Dam Ho's second and third strikes descended upon him like a storm.

So Cheonsan hastily drew a jade flute from his robes and swung it. A cloud of qi rose to envelop Dam Ho.

Kwaaaang!

With a thunderous boom, So Cheonsan's body lurched.

In that instant, Dam Ho burst through the dust and charged at So Cheonsan.

'He wasn't a cripple after all?'

Even in that critical moment, So Cheonsan harbored such a thought. Dam Ho's movements were so swift and fluid that they showed no trace of any disability.

Boom!

A short Single Strike landed upon So Cheonsan's body.

"Urk!"

So Cheonsan staggered and swung his jade flute. The flute was already sheathed in a fierce aura.

Though So Cheonsan was renowned as the master of sonic arts, he could easily manifest a blade of internal energy.

Smack!

The jade flute, charged with energy, struck Dam Ho's shoulder. In that instant, the Explosive Demon Energy erupted and scattered the qi.

"What?"

So Cheonsan, who had been certain this blow would inflict a fatal wound, was stunned. And Dam Ho did not let that brief moment slip by.

Grip!

Dam Ho seized So Cheonsan's collar, crossing his arms in an X. He was preparing to unleash the Heaven-Reach Strike.

So Cheonsan's body lifted into the air, his feet leaving the ground. In an instant, the breath was crushed from his lungs, and his face flushed red.

But as a supreme master, his response was dazzling.

Crack!

His jade flute hammered Dam Ho's torso three or four times in the space of a heartbeat. The impact forced Dam Ho's grip to release.

So Cheonsan, freed at last, hastily retreated and brought the jade flute to his lips.

He intended to play the Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound.

If the Ten-Li Annihilation Sound was a wide-area sonic attack designed for mass slaughter, the Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound was a one-on-one killing technique that concentrated all sonic power into a single point.

It concentrated the full force of the Ten-Li Annihilation Sound into a single point, making its power absolutely devastating.

'I only need to play it once.'

If he could unleash the Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound, even if it did not kill Dam Ho, it would deal a crippling blow.

But Dam Ho did not give him that single chance. As though he had never been struck at all, Dam Ho's fist smashed into So Cheonsan's side.

Boom!

With a thunderous roar, So Cheonsan's body lurched. He had managed to block with his elbow, but the impact left his internal organs reeling.

Whoosh!

Dam Ho's leg lashed out like a whip.

So Cheonsan swung the jade flute to protect his body instead of playing it.

Crack!

The leg and the jade flute collided.

The jade flute, infused with So Cheonsan's internal energy, was harder and sharper than any divine weapon. He had infused every drop of his internal energy, determined to sever Dam Ho's leg in a single blow. But instead of breaking Dam Ho's leg, the hand gripping the jade flute was torn open, blood gushing forth.

'What manner of body is this solid?'

But before he could dwell on the question, Dam Ho's assault continued.

At So Cheonsan's very nose, the Single Strike Wall was deployed.

A shockwave radiated outward, striking So Cheonsan's eardrums.

Whirrr!

The sudden ringing caused So Cheonsan to momentarily lose his balance, his head spinning.

It was but a flicker of unsteadiness. But for Dam Ho, that was enough.

Smack!

The Single Strike struck So Cheonsan's temple. His mind, already in disarray, was thrown into utter chaos.

'The Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound…'

Even then, So Cheonsan instinctively tried to play the flute. If only he could perform the Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound, a single reversal was still possible.

In that instant, Dam Ho's palm pressed flat against his chest.

Whoooosh!

The Five Finger Rock Breaking Technique unleashed its full power.

So Cheonsan's chest caved inward in a spiral.

"Kuhuk!"

A terrible pain that resonated to the very marrow of his bones finally tore a scream from So Cheonsan. He had never felt such agony in all his life.

Dam Ho seized the staggering So Cheonsan by the collar. Though dazed, So Cheonsan realized Dam Ho was about to unleash the Heaven-Reach Strike once more.

"You bastard!"

There was no leisure to play the jade flute. So Cheonsan attempted to release all the internal energy in his body at once, deploying a protective aura.

Crack!

In that moment, Dam Ho twisted one of So Cheonsan's arms. The arm contorted like a pretzel, the bones shattering to fragments.

The broken bones pierced through the flesh and jutted grotesquely outward.

The pain beyond imagination scattered So Cheonsan's internal energy. His protective aura vanished without a trace.

Dam Ho once again seized So Cheonsan's collar in a viselike grip. And the Heaven-Reach Strike was unleashed.

Like a tree swept up in a typhoon, So Cheonsan's body soared into the air. His legs flailed for a moment before his body flipped and plummeted earthward like a thunderbolt.

Kwaaaaang!

A tremendous boom that shook the hearts of all present erupted as So Cheonsan's body was driven upside down into the ground. Dust rose, and the earth let out a cry of pain.

"……"

Silence descended upon the hall.

Friend and foe alike, every eye was wide with shock.

The impossible scene that had unfolded before their very eyes forced them into stunned silence.

So Cheonsan had been one of the Seven Great Demon Masters and a grandmaster of sonic arts.

A legendary wielder of sonic power whose single performance could annihilate all living things within ten li—he had not even managed a proper melody before his life was snuffed out at Dam Ho's hands.

Had he played the Slaughter Heaven Demonic Sound even once, the outcome might have been different.

But Dam Ho had not granted him that single opportunity, pressing forward like a storm to end his life.

They had seen it with their own eyes, yet the entire spectacle felt like a lie.

It was like a nightmare—utterly unreal—and it enforced their silence.

Despite the ferocious assault he had unleashed upon So Cheonsan, Dam Ho's breathing had not so much as quickened.

Behind him, So Cheonsan's body crumpled to the ground, but Dam Ho did not so much as turn his head as he moved forward.

Boom! Scrape! Boom! Scrape!

His footsteps sent shudders through the onlookers.

Dam Ho was heading toward Sage Hyeon-so. He spared not a glance for any other direction, his eyes fixed solely upon the old man.

That single-minded gaze filled the people with fear.

"How… how can such a person…"

"The Ten-Li Reaper couldn't even raise a hand…"

"The Demon Master of Despair has appeared…"

The warriors of the Demonic Cult began to retreat, stepping back in terror before turning and fleeing outright.

Like a receding tide, the Demonic Cult's forces withdrew, allowing the Murim Alliance warriors to breathe at last. But not a single person fully relaxed their guard.

They watched Dam Ho in breathless silence.

Dam Ho had arrived before the detached cottage.

"Master!"