Chapter 413 – Evil Fate Continues Endlessly (1)

"Huff!"

Yo Sa-ran let out a strange breathing sound. Her right shoulder hung limply without strength. Her collarbone was shattered. Not only that, her right side was grotesquely torn away as if ripped by the claws of a giant bird.

Between the white bone and red flesh, an enormous amount of blood was flowing down. If it had been just a little deeper, her heart would have burst.

At the moment of crisis, she barely survived by deploying protective sword energy with all her might. But as if struck by a house-sized boulder that had rolled down from a mountaintop, all the joints in her body were acting up on their own, and her muscles were ruptured so she couldn't put strength into them.

All she could do was barely keep breathing without collapsing. Around her, dozens of martial artists were sprawled out in wretched states.

They were Divine Fire Hall martial artists who had been pulled in by Dam Ho's attractive force.

With bones protruding through skin and limbs broken in bizarre directions, their appearance sprawled out was so horrible it would be frightening to see even in dreams.

Fortunately, other martial artists who had escaped the battle range and saved their lives were watching the scene with bated breath.

"Whew!"

Yo Sa-ran exhaled the breath she had been holding back. In her vision, she saw Dam Ho standing alone and tall.

Dam Ho's appearance looked more wretched than the Divine Fire Hall martial artists collapsed on the ground. His jet-black hair was matted red with fresh blood, and his entire body was covered with large and small wounds. Broken, shattered, ruptured – every kind of wound a human could experience covered his body.

That he was still alive with such wounds was unbelievable. Even though he had wounds that would make breathing difficult for an ordinary person, let alone standing, Dam Ho's fierce gaze and venom hadn't softened at all.

More survivors remained than the dead. Yet no one dared attack Dam Ho.

Though they too prided themselves on being second to none in venom and evil, they were overwhelmed by Dam Ho's even more vicious appearance.

How on earth should they deal with him?

The heavenly net hadn't worked on him.

Mass attacks were useless, and he couldn't be stopped even by absolute masters – how should they attack such an opponent?

Divine Fire Hall's martial artists saw despair in Dam Ho.

A giant wall of despair that could never be brought down by any method.

"Hup!"

Suddenly Yo Sa-ran vomited blood and knelt down. Her face was paler than white paper.

She had done her best.

She had drawn up every drop of inner power to deploy her strongest ultimate technique. Yet she couldn't bring down Dam Ho. After vomiting blood for a while, she barely raised her head to look at Dam Ho.

"Why… didn't you kill me?"

She knew.

That Dam Ho had held back.

If he had put in just a little more power, she would already be dead. That she was still alive was because Dam Ho had shown mercy.

When Dam Ho didn't answer, she asked again.

"Pity?"

"I just repaid a debt."

"Debt?"

"The debt for saving my sister."

"Sister?"

"Hwang Hye-ryeong."

"Ah!"

Only then did Yo Sa-ran let out a quiet exclamation.

Dam Ho looked at Yo Sa-ran indifferently.

Before parting, Hwang Hye-ryeong had told him about receiving help from Yo Sa-ran. And she had asked him – if they ever clashed, to show mercy just once.

It was a request from his only blood relative.

Though she now used the surname Hwang instead of Dam, she was Dam Ho's precious sister. He couldn't ignore such a sister's request.

Yo Sa-ran smiled.

Her blood-stained teeth were revealed.

"If that was the case, you should have shown mercy before fighting. To beat me up thoroughly and then show mercy. Haha! Truly amazing. Amazing… Cough!"

Yo Sa-ran vomited blood once more. She tried to laugh but couldn't anymore.

She struggled to stand up.

Her legs were shaking and even breathing was difficult, but she didn't give up and stood.

It was already shameful to receive pity from an enemy – she couldn't show any more weakness.

Even then, Dam Ho didn't move. Perhaps he couldn't move. No matter how much one transcended human limits, moving with such wounds was nearly impossible.

Perhaps if they attacked now, they could finish off Dam Ho.

The probability was eight or nine out of ten. But not a single one of Divine Fire Hall's martial artists moved.

They were that overwhelmed by Dam Ho.

They no longer felt the will to fight against him.

That was the dignity possessed by an absolute being.

Dam Ho wasn't just one among the many martial artists of the martial world. He had already risen to the ranks of absolute beings, and the weight and majesty he possessed made them not even want to challenge him.

Yo Sa-ran bowed to Dam Ho.

"Divine Cult Military Commander Yo Sa-ran expresses gratitude for Fist Demon Dam's consideration. With today's consideration, all debts between you and me are settled. So even if we meet next time, there's no need to show mercy."

"……"

"Even if we meet again, I will risk my life to do my best and fight you with everything I have. If that's okay with you, I'll withdraw now."

At Yo Sa-ran's dignified words, Dam Ho silently nodded. Then she looked at the surviving Divine Fire Hall martial artists and said:

"Let's go."

"But……"

"Why do you want to fight? Go ahead and try if you can."

"……"

Divine Fire Hall martial artists bit their lips hard.

To withdraw like this after losing their leader was something their pride wouldn't allow.

Thud!

At that moment Dam Ho stepped toward them. A powerful vibration traveled through the earth and reached the Divine Fire Hall martial artists.

Divine Fire Hall martial artists flinched and looked at Dam Ho.

"Only one person am I letting go. You're not included in that."

"Urgh!"

At Dam Ho's fierce words, Divine Fire Hall martial artists trembled.

Everyone thought emotionally that Dam Ho didn't have that much strength left. But their bodies were different. The moment they heard Dam Ho's voice, their strength drained away and they only wanted to flee this place.

Dam Ho's terror was dominating their minds and bodies.

"Ahhh!"

"Flee!"

At that moment they ran without looking back. Their appearance flying in all directions at once was like a swarm of locusts.

Before the terror of death, neither dignity nor stubbornness mattered. They scattered in all directions to survive.

Yo Sa-ran shook her head slightly at the sight.

Dam Ho didn't pursue them. Whether he wouldn't or couldn't move was unclear. But it was proof that his lingering presence was dominating the area.

'Truly a living disaster. How many more of our cult's martial artists will die at his hands in the future?'

The Demon Cult had already crossed a bridge of no return with Dam Ho. As long as Dam Ho lived, they would certainly repeat endless clashes. She couldn't even imagine how many would die in that process.

An endless disaster.

That's what Dam Ho was to Yo Sa-ran.

In her view, now was the best opportunity to kill Dam Ho. If they missed this opportunity, who knew when they'd get such a chance again. But Divine Fire Hall's martial artists had fled in terror, and she herself had barely saved her life due to Dam Ho's mercy.

'Surely… heaven hasn't abandoned the Divine Cult?'

Yo Sa-ran shook her head and took a step.

Each retreating step felt heavier than a thousand pounds. Wherever she stepped, red blood drops fell.

Thus she moved away leaving her traces, and Dam Ho silently watched her go.

Drip!

Finally, when Yo Sa-ran's form could no longer be seen, fresh blood flowed from Dam Ho's mouth. The internal injuries he had suppressed and suppressed again had greatly worsened.

As Yo Sa-ran suspected, Dam Ho's physical condition was too poor to move. His organs were severely damaged, and his internal injuries were serious. Some bones were broken, and many muscles were ruptured.

Though he was damaged and injured to the point that breathing in this state was miraculous, Dam Ho wouldn't show weakness even if he died.

The martial world was a place where showing even slight weakness would get you devoured. It wasn't lenient enough for those who lost in the battle of spirit to survive.

His vital energy was boiling madly. Like a pot about to overflow, his dantian and heart meridians were shaking dangerously. But Dam Ho trusted Dark Soul Cultivation Method and entrusted his body to it.

At that moment Dark Soul Cultivation Method began to move.

It started calming the shaking vital energy, stabilizing the weakened dantian as if cracked, and healing Dam Ho's internal injuries.

Dam Ho stood blankly while entrusting his body to Dark Soul Cultivation Method. While he was operating his energy like this for a while, someone quietly approached him.

'Brother!'

The one who appeared leading a black horse was precisely Bang Jin-bo.

After hiding the Namgung brothers in a safe place, he had come looking for Dam Ho. Though it wasn't outside Anhui Province as he had promised Dam Ho, it was safe from people's eyes, so he could say he had kept half the promise.

Bang Jin-bo immediately recognized Dam Ho's condition.

Instead of calling out to Dam Ho, he drew his main sword and began guarding the surroundings.

Dam Ho's energy operation ended quite some time later. Until then, Bang Jin-bo guarded Dam Ho's side like a statue.

***

Silver Treasure Escort Agency's merchant group entered Yueyang without any problems. Eun So-cheong, who had entered Yueyang's bustling district, looked around for a moment then fixed her gaze on one place.

"Mm!"

Eun So-cheong's eyes became serious.

Cho Yeon-woon, who noticed her change, quietly approached.

"What's wrong?"

"It's Divine Flower Merchant Group."

On the large mansion's signboard that Eun So-cheong was looking at, the four characters "Divine Flower Merchant Group" were clearly written.

"Divine Flower Merchant Group? You mean the one that's supposedly the Demon Cult's outer court?"

"That's right."

Eun So-cheong quietly nodded.

It was Divine Flower Merchant Group, called the world's greatest merchant group. Divine Flower Merchant Group was the goal that all merchants and merchant groups absolutely wanted to surpass, and the same was true for Silver Treasure Escort Agency.

Though Silver Treasure Escort Agency was known to have the greatest wealth in Hunan, it was far short of Divine Flower Merchant Group. Countless businesses had been frustrated by Divine Flower Merchant Group's enormous wealth, and there were even regions where progress was completely blocked.

To Silver Treasure Escort Agency, Divine Flower Merchant Group was a wall of despair and an obstacle that absolutely had to be overcome. Eun So-cheong had also watched Silver Treasure Escort Agency be frustrated by Divine Flower Merchant Group several times.

Divine Flower Merchant Group was truly riding high, and Silver Treasure Escort Agency had to watch. At the time, she thought it was simply because Divine Flower Merchant Group was skilled. But when the Demon Cult brought down the Martial Alliance's main base and took Yueyang, Divine Flower Merchant Group's true colors were revealed.

People couldn't help but be shocked at their revealed identity.

Demon Cult's outer court.

Divine Flower Merchant Group, which everyone had known only as a pure merchant organization, was actually a merchant group created by descendants of the Demon Cult. Using the last wealth of the Demon Cult that had fallen after the first Righteous-Demon War, they created a merchant group and increased their wealth.

Having received the Demon Cult's support, they rapidly expanded in a short time and could grow into the world's greatest merchant group. In that process, countless merchant groups suffered great damage and had to shed tears of blood.

At the time she couldn't understand why Divine Flower Merchant Group was so powerful, but now she could see.

"No wonder we were bound to bleed competing without knowing the Demon Cult was backing them."

"You must have suffered a lot of damage. There's resentment in your voice."

"There probably isn't a single merchant group in the world that doesn't have bad blood with Divine Flower Merchant Group."

"That much?"

"Yes! They grew like that even when the Demon Cult had fallen, so now that the Demon Cult has taken control of southern Central Plains, we can't even predict how much they'll grow. To truly defeat the Demon Cult, we absolutely must bring down Divine Flower Merchant Group."

"Why do you think that?"

"Organizations or sects without financial backing cannot exist. Especially huge sects like the Martial Alliance or Demon Cult consume enormous funds. No matter how faithful the Demon Cult's believers are, if funding dries up and food becomes scarce, defections will increase accordingly."

"Aren't you underestimating the power of faith too much?"

"There's no faith greater than eating abundantly. It's hard to expect loyalty from the hungry."

At Eun So-cheong's clear words, Cho Yeon-woon found himself at a loss for words.

Unlike martial artist Cho Yeon-woon, Eun So-cheong viewed the world from a merchant's perspective. It was a viewpoint Cho Yeon-woon found hard to understand, but he couldn't say he didn't comprehend it.

"Divine Flower Merchant Group is truly the backbone of the Demon Cult."

It was when Eun So-cheong made this assertion.

Creak!

Divine Flower Merchant Group's gate opened and a group came outside.

Interest appeared in Eun So-cheong's eyes. Because there was an unexpected person at their head.

A woman whose noble bearing wrapped around her entire body like silk, yet with a somehow cold atmosphere – she was precisely Won Seol-hwa, Divine Flower Merchant Group's young leader.

Interest appeared in Won Seol-hwa's eyes as she came outside with her companions. She too had spotted Silver Treasure Escort Agency's flag.

Won Seol-hwa's steps headed toward Silver Treasure Escort Agency's merchant group. ​

When Jin Ja-gang caused chaos with Soul Seizing Thread, Yeong-gwi disguised herself as an unorthodox sect warrior and hid in the procession.

And she traveled on their boat.

‘Where are they going?’

She thought they would flee far since they were discovered, but the boat was only going upstream against the river. This would actually lead toward the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, passing through Sichuan toward Yunnan.

‘Why do they keep going upstream?’

Yeong-gwi wandered around the boat gathering as much information as possible. But ordinary warriors knew less than expected. They just moved as ordered from above, with upper-level information almost completely blocked.

She could only move around in the cabin below deck, and except for sailors, no one was allowed on deck.

Yeong-gwi tried to slip up to the deck but was stopped by an unorthodox sect warrior guarding the stairs.

“Hey, where are you going?”

“I’m feeling seasick and want to get some air. Can’t I just get a little air and come back?”

“Want to get buried together when the sailors ask questions for wandering around? And if you have energy to wander, go wash yourself. Look at those blood clots from not washing. Ugh… seeing blood reminds me of that crazy Poison Dragon and it’s scary.”

“Ow, this is killing me. How much farther do we have to go?”

At Yeong-gwi’s question, the warrior’s eyes slightly squinted.

The warrior looked Yeong-gwi up and down. Yeong-gwi slightly lowered her head and turned her face away.

“But you… turn your head this way and wipe off some blood. I don’t think I’ve seen your face around here?”

“No. I don’t feel well so my face is a bit…”

“I don’t think so?”

The warrior wondered and kept trying to see Yeong-gwi’s face.

Yeong-gwi wondered if she should kill the warrior and hide. But not yet. Even if she was in danger, she had to find out where this boat was heading.

Hoooooo!

Then the sound of a horn came from the deck.

“Huh?”

The warrior was startled.

“Seems we’ve reached the rendezvous point. Hurry back to the cabin!”

“Yes yes.”

Yeong-gwi slowly turned and walked as slowly as possible.

There was a thud as something hit the boat, then sounds of someone jumping onto the deck. Then Go Lu-bon’s and a middle-aged woman’s voices were heard.

“You came at just the right time, not late.”

“Hahaha, I thought I’d die to Poison Dragon, but came back alive?”

“Hmph, who would die to Poison Dragon? When I smashed Sword Empress’s limbs, Poison Dragon pissed himself and begged to spare her life.”

“Nonsense. Poison Dragon wouldn’t do that.”

It was Su Su-jin. She seemed to have fled in the opposite direction then rejoined.

But Su Su-jin soon said something strange.

“Do you truly believe Poison Dragon took no action and obediently retreated?”

“No action my ass! He cut our subordinates’ legs and it was chaos. He caused a rampage saying he’d kill people and horses!”

“So you left Poison Dragon alone and came.”

“I didn’t leave him alone… I made an exchange with Sword Empress, can’t you understand, tsk.”

“With what?”

“…?”

“What did you exchange with?”

“Well, that is… not killing people and not killing horses…”

“In the end, you were threatened by him?”

Go Lu-bon got angry.

“No! He begged me to spare her life!”

Su Su-jin frowned and asked.

“So what did you do? Those with severed legs?”

“I brought them all. Can’t kill them just because their legs were cut, it would hurt morale.”

Go Lu-bon answered proudly.

“He tried to kill them all but I stopped him midway so it ended at this level. Otherwise all the subordinates’ legs would have been cut and we couldn’t have brought the goods intact.”

Su Su-jin snorted.

“Gather all those whose legs weren’t cut.”

“What? Why.”

“There’s something to check.”

Go Lu-bon frowned and ordered his subordinate to gather everyone below deck.

Yeong-gwi pressed her ear to the cabin ceiling and heard all of Su Su-jin and Go Lu-bon’s conversation.

‘I’m discovered. She’s quick-witted.’

There were two masters who had subdued Sword Empress. If caught, she’d be helplessly captured. She feared not completing her mission more than being caught and killed.

Should she hold out to the end? Or…

A thought suddenly struck Yeong-gwi.

Yeong-gwi immediately left the cabin and headed to the stern.

Warriors passing by in the narrow ship corridor looked at Yeong-gwi strangely.

“Hey. Didn’t you hear to gather?”

Yeong-gwi didn’t even reply and hurried to the stern. The stern warehouse contained provisions. Looking at the amount of provisions, she could roughly estimate how far this ship was going!

Warriors gathered below deck.

Having rested in the ship for three days, except for the severely injured, there was no particular fatigue.

Go Lu-bon said listlessly.

“See. I told you there’d be nothing strange.”

Su Su-jin asked.

“Everyone came without exception, right?”

One warrior raised his hand and answered.

“One hasn’t come yet.”

“What?”

“He ran toward the stern and when I called him, he seemed in a hurry and just went.”

Go Lu-bon glanced at Su Su-jin.

“Must have needed to relieve himself.”

Su Su-jin ignored this.

“What’s at the stern?”

“Water and dry provisions and such.”

Su Su-jin immediately headed to the stern. Go Lu-bon and the warriors followed Su Su-jin.

The warehouse door was closed.

Su Su-jin opened the door and entered the warehouse immediately.

Simultaneously, a small splash was heard.

Nothing seemed wrong with the goods stacked in the warehouse, but in one corner there was a small hole big enough for a person’s head.

“Huh?”

Surprised, Go Lu-bon stuck his head out of the hole and looked around outside. Water bubbles and a human shadow were reflected on the water surface outside the hole.

“Damn it!”

Go Lu-bon angrily tore off the plank from the hole and threw it outside. Then he jumped out through the hole, stepped on the plank, leaped into the air, and shot palm force wildly.

Bang! Bang bang!

Water columns shot up from the surface and water sprays burst continuously.

Fish with burst bodies floated up from all directions.

Bang! Baang!

Go Lu-bon again stepped on the plank and leaped, shooting palm force ceaselessly as if to destroy the entire river.

The boat tilted and swayed.

“Step aside. You’ll capsize our boat at this rate.”

Su Su-jin raised energy in her hands, turning them white.

Then she gazed quietly at the water surface and extended her hand.

Crack!

Sharp energy shot out like an arrow and burrowed into the river water.

Soon after, blood spread in spots on the river surface, then scattered and disappeared.

“Missed. Cleverly sealed pressure points in the meantime.”

Go Lu-bon spun acrobatically in the air and came in grabbing the hole.

“Should we chase?”

“Never mind. Be thankful we found out before reaching the hideout. That person doesn’t know where we’re going anyway.”

Su Su-jin smiled mockingly while looking at Go Lu-bon. Go Lu-bon couldn’t say anything and avoided her gaze.

“Of course, this matter will be reported to superiors as is. It’s not something to hide.”

* * *

“Huff huff…!”

Yeong-gwi crawled out to the riverbank.

Both ears were ringing from Go Lu-bon’s palm force, and Su Su-jin’s water attack had penetrated her lungs from behind, making breathing difficult.

But she had to move. Though she had learned only minimal information, she still had to report what she found.

Yeong-gwi bit her lower lip hard and got up.

Surprisingly, where Yeong-gwi had escaped was already the waterway Jin Ja-gang’s group had taken when going down to Guizhou.

Northern Heaven’s boat was going back up that same waterway.

* * *

A day after Jin Ja-gang, Taoist Master Bok-cheon, and Im Yi-yeon’s group returned to the Tang Family Main House, Yeong-gwi returned.

Tang Gwi-ok immediately convened a meeting.

All Tang family leaders including Jin Ja-gang gathered.

Everyone’s faces were dark.

The fact that Northern Heaven unorthodox sect was involved in this matter was revealed through Jin Ja-gang.

King of Hell Tang Qing had joined hands with Northern Heaven to take over the martial world, making things bigger.

Moreover, seeing they were still moving independently even after Tang Qing fell, they seemed to have no intention of stopping.

At this rate, the Tang family would be blamed for everything Northern Heaven unorthodox sect did.

Therefore, the clue Yeong-gwi brought was very precious.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the Tang family’s survival depended on it.

However, Yeong-gwi’s clue was very limited.

The clues she learned were only two.

The boat was going upstream on the Yangtze River, and based on the amount of provisions loaded on the boat, it was estimated they would go at least two days… at most four more days from Luzhou where Yeong-gwi escaped.

All the leaders stirred.

“Going upstream on the Yangtze River?”

It was hard to believe.

A map was spread on the table in the middle of the meeting room. One elder drew a circle for four days’ distance by waterway.

“If they go four more days at most, even considering wind and currents are opposite, they’d completely enter Yunnan. Or if they switch to other waterways midway, as you can see…”

The circle was drawn near Chengdu where the Tang Family Main House was located.

“Since they can’t be coming back toward where we are, we must see them as going to Yunnan. Yunnan.”

Others agreed with the elder’s words.

“Yunnan is far from the martial world. It seems suitable for hiding large quantities of supplies.”

“We must go to Yunnan immediately.”

The leaders repeatedly argued.

But Jin Ja-gang only silently looked at the map.

Tang Gwi-ok saw Jin Ja-gang thinking and asked.

“Does son-in-law have nothing to say?”

Jin Ja-gang was from Yunnan. He knew Yunnan’s terrain better than anyone.

Jin Ja-gang spoke.

“Yunnan’s terrain is rugged, making it unsuitable for hiding goods. Of course, conversely, it’s hard to find, so if you can hide something there, it’s hard to find.”

Tang family leaders frowned.

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“If they really entered Yunnan, we must dispatch personnel immediately. Time is urgent to go upstream on the Yangtze River and search all of northern Yunnan.”

Jin Ja-gang answered.

“Consider whether there’s reason to go all the way back to Yunnan to hide. It has no meaning except to hide secretly.”

“If hiding, naturally not being discovered would be priority, wouldn’t it?”

The leaders were bewildered, not understanding.

“Yunnan has treacherous mountains, so if the hideout isn’t on waterways but separated from them, tremendous effort would be needed to transport. You can’t move hundreds of thousands of geun of salt that way.”

“Then… you mean they piled salt at some storage area near waterways?”

“Impossible.”

At Jin Ja-gang’s words, the leaders were dumbfounded. He said it should be near waterways but that wasn’t possible.

“King of Hell knew there would be severe flooding this year. Knowing that, he wouldn’t have piled salt near waterways.”

“Ah…!”

The leaders finally understood. Someone trying to use floods wouldn’t pile salt by riversides where floods would occur.

“Then it’s strange. If not Yunnan, where on earth? According to your words, the information must be wrong.”

Jin Ja-gang fell into thought again.

If Tang Qing had decided to prepare a hideout for large quantities of salt, what would he have considered first?

It should be easy to transport and safe from floods…

Suddenly Jin Ja-gang realized there was the most crucial situation.

Floods!

That’s right.

Jin Ja-gang’s eyes opened wide.

He figured it out.

Jin Ja-gang pointed to the edge of the circle on the map, above Chengdu where the Tang Family Main House was located.

“Dujiangyan! It’s Dujiangyan.”