Chapter 37

Chapter 37: The Passing Wind Is Not Always Warm (3)

Killing intent welled in Gyeong-cheon-saeng's eyes.

"Insolent!"

In all his years roaming the martial world, he had never encountered anyone who spoke with such arrogance as Dam Ho. Every man who saw him bowed his head and desperately tried to curry favor.

Yet Dam Ho was trampling Gyeong-cheon-saeng's pride without mercy.

"How dare a lame wretch like you—"

At the very moment Gyeong-cheon-saeng's killing voice emerged—

BOOM!

Suddenly, a thunderous roar erupted.

Behind it, someone transformed into a crimson blur flew past Gyeong-cheon-saeng.

The figure tumbled across the ground for over ten zhang before coming to rest—a junior that Gyeong-cheon-saeng had always valued.

Though he had worked in the shadows, his talent was exceptional and his character good. Gyeong-cheon-saeng had quietly taken note of him.

The vitality that had once animated his face was gone. His once-bright eyes had long lost their focus.

Even in death, a look of bewilderment was frozen upon his face, for at the final moment, he still did not understand why he had to die.

"What?"

BOOM!

At the very instant confusion appeared on Gyeong-cheon-saeng's face, another thunderclap exploded.

"Aaagh!"

Another scream echoed, trailing behind. Yet another life extinguished without grace.

Death rained down like a storm.

"What?"

Gyeong-cheon-saeng's eyes witnessed his subordinates flying backward like cannonballs. In the space they vacated stood Dam Ho and his fist.

More fist than fist, Dam Ho's hand resembled a blunt nail. Each time it thrust forward, his subordinates were sent spraying blood as they perished.

The Charging Step that shattered fortress walls.

The Fortress Breaking Punch that struck in concert.

Two terrifyingly simple movements, repeated endlessly. Yet none of Gyeong-cheon-saeng's subordinates could withstand a single exchange.

Crack!

Those who tried to block with their forearms had their bones shattered. Those who tried to block with their legs had their leg bones pulverized.

BOOM!

"Kuargh!"

A martial artist whose chest was caved inward flew away with a devastating scream.

Dam Ho was a calamity.

Unstoppable. Unresistable.

At least for the martial artists present, he was no different from the Reaper of Death.

"Uwaaah!"

The martial artists scattered like locusts, leaping left and right to avoid Dam Ho. But no matter how they moved, death found them as though fated.

KRAKOOM!

A single Fortress Breaking Punch sent three martial artists flying, their bodies reduced to pulp.

"Stop!"

At last, Gyeong-cheon-saeng could bear it no longer. He drew his sword with lightning speed and lunged at Dam Ho.

Tsss!

Heat haze rose from his blade, and a brilliant sword aura coalesced.

Chasing Soul Flashing Dance.

That was the name of the technique he unleashed.

It was a technique as swift and devastating as its name suggested. Gyeong-cheon-saeng believed this single move would not kill Dam Ho, but at least halt the slaughter.

'His left leg is his weakness.'

Dam Ho was terrifyingly strong. But he too had an undeniable weakness—his injured left leg.

His sword aura targeted Dam Ho's left leg.

Like a swallow skimming the water's surface, Gyeong-cheon-saeng's body lowered贴近 the earth, closing the distance to Dam Ho.

Whoosh!

The sword swept in low, matching the depth of his bent waist. As venomous and precise as a serpent's strike, secretive yet razor-sharp.

'Got him.'

A gleam of triumph lit Gyeong-cheon-saeng's eyes. The sword was an instant from severing Dam Ho's ankle. He was certain Dam Ho could not evade.

At that moment, Dam Ho's left leg lifted slightly. Gyeong-cheon-saeng's blade whistled through empty air beneath his foot. In that same instant, Dam Ho brought his foot crashing down with tremendous force.

BOOM!

"Kuh!"

A pain-laced groan escaped Gyeong-cheon-saeng's lips. His eyes widened in disbelief.

His sword was pinned beneath Dam Ho's foot. The impact had torn the glove on his sword hand, and blood trickled down.

Gyeong-cheon-saeng channeled his internal energy to wrench the pinned sword free. But the blade would not budge, as though pressed beneath a mountain.

'Impossible…'

The moment Gyeong-cheon-saeng raised his head at the incomprehensible pressure transmitted through the blade, Dam Ho's knee filled his entire field of vision.

BOOM!

"Kuh!"

The unexpected, devastating impact snapped Gyeong-cheon-saeng's head backward. His nose was crushed as though struck by an iron hammer.

"Yi!"

With a strangled cry of pain, Gyeong-cheon-saeng released his sword and attempted to fight barehanded.

BOOM!

Dam Ho's knee struck his face once more.

Crack!

Gyeong-cheon-saeng felt his facial bones shatter entirely, accompanied by the sound of a melon splitting.

No scream escaped. Dam Ho's knee had struck again before he could.

Splat!

Blood sprayed in all directions. Mixed within it was a white, tofu-like substance.

Gyeong-cheon-saeng's body crumpled.

His subordinates held their breath. Disbelief flickered across their faces.

Three knee strikes, and Gyeong-cheon-saeng's life was extinguished. His face, rolling across the ground, was so pulverized that its original form was unrecognizable.

Gyeong-cheon-saeng was not the kind of man who died so easily.

He had been among the top ten experts of the Mountain Lodge. The number of martial artists who had perished by his hand exceeded a hundred.

Such a master had lost his life without even properly unleashing his martial arts. A horror they had never once imagined had unfolded before their very eyes.

Dam Ho's cold gaze turned upon them.

In his eyes, there was no triumph at having defeated Gyeong-cheon-saeng, no joy of the victor dominating the situation.

Only killing intent churned within those fiercely burning pupils.

Through his lips, a rough, hoarse voice emerged.

"In the end, you failed to prove it."

"Ugh!"

"That your lives were worth living…"

As Dam Ho's voice echoed, the terror of the survivors reached its peak.

"He's a demon!"

"Run!"

The survivors scattered in every direction. But not a single one escaped.

Caw! Caw!

Countless crows circled overhead, singing their song. But not one descended to the ground.

Upon the death-soaked earth, only a single man stood.

Drenched entirely in blood, that man was Dam Ho.

They never revealed their employers, even unto death. Dam Ho, not particularly curious, had not asked.

They cursed Dam Ho.

That he would never be forgiven.

That heaven would send down divine punishment.

It did not even amuse him. This was not a fight he had started. It was a fight they had chosen. Dam Ho had no intention of avoiding any battle.

Dam Ho gazed upon the devastation he had wrought. He felt no guilt. Instead, he was afraid.

Afraid of himself, for remaining so calm even after producing such carnage.

It felt as though he had become something other than human.

At that moment, something glinting caught Dam Ho's eye. It lay rolling near the thoroughly pulverized Gyeong-cheon-saeng.

The object Dam Ho picked up was the Myoan Stone—the very one he had given to Cho So-gwang, master of the Silver Lotus Trading Company.

A rare treasure seen but rarely in the world had circled back to him once more.

Dam Ho had the thought that this stone might be a cursed object that brought death in its wake. Everyone who had possessed it besides himself was dead.

The Myoan Stone in his palm glowed with an eerie light.

Dam Ho stared at it briefly, then tucked it into his robes.

***

Western Heaven Mountain Lodge had established its nest beneath Bogda Peak, the easternmost summit of the Tianshan Mountain Range.

It had been five years since Western Heaven Mountain Lodge first settled beneath Bogda Peak. In its early days, it had the feel of a modest mountain lodge as its name suggested, but over the span of five years it had grown rapidly, now exuding the aura of a martial sect.

Western Heaven Mountain Lodge concealed as many secrets behind its high walls as it had stones. Who was its master, what was its strength, and what purpose had led to its establishment—these were all mysteries.

The moment Western Heaven Mountain Lodge was etched into people's minds as a martial sect was three years ago, during the Blood Sand Wind uprising.

The Blood Sand Wind had been a bandit horde that terrorized the desert. Its scale was incomparable to the Blood Wolf Corps.

They attacked merchants crossing the desert, plundered their goods, and carried out massacres, drenching the region in terror.

Hundreds of people were killed and tens of thousands in gold stolen.

Unable to endure it any longer, several powerful sects of Xinjiang united to launch a campaign of suppression. But they were annihilated instead. Emboldened, the Blood Sand Wind roamed the desert and grasslands as though they were their own backyard.

Merchants' journeys were severed, and no one wished to trade with the Western Regions.

It was then that the martial artists of Western Heaven Mountain Lodge stepped forward. They deployed their full might and quelled the Blood Sand Wind that had been sweeping the desert.

Having subdued the Blood Sand Wind, Western Heaven Mountain Lodge instantly rose as the new powerhouse of the Xinjiang martial world. Their influence expanded daily, and in the end, they had established themselves as one of the top three forces in Xinjiang.

All of this had been accomplished in a mere five years. It was a feat that even the great sects of the Central Plains would have struggled to achieve across multiple generations.

Western Heaven Mountain Lodge remained still, yet people came to them endlessly. Some came with commissions, some with grievances, and some seeking to forge connections.

The gates of Western Heaven Mountain Lodge stood open for all such visitors.

"What brings you here?"

The gatekeepers inquired about their purpose of visit.

Though they were mere gatekeepers, the aura emanating from their bodies was extraordinary. The visitors could not conceal their awe at the powerful presence that drew exclamations of "Truly, Western Heaven Mountain Lodge!"

In the long queue that had formed to enter Western Heaven Mountain Lodge stood one man and one woman. The all-black-clad old man and the striking beauty were Heuk-no and Sim Ok.

The two stood in the middle of the line, waiting for their turn. Their appearance did not differ significantly from the others. The gatekeepers paid them little attention.

Sim Ok surveyed Western Heaven Mountain Lodge with keen eyes. But discerning anything from its outward appearance, enclosed behind high walls, was nearly impossible.

A wall roughly two zhang high surrounded the entire estate. It resembled a fortress more than a manor.

Sim Ok exclaimed in admiration.

"Impressive. If only we had such a proper wall. It would look much better too."

"A high wall means there is much to protect. We do not have so much to protect."

"That's the problem. We're no different from beggars."

Sim Ok scoffed.

"It's all the Lord's frugality…"

"So that just means we're beggars, doesn't it?"

Sigh!

Heuk-no let out a deep sigh.

Their turn came. The gatekeeper asked.

"What brings you here?"

"I've come to see the Lodge Master."

"The Lodge Master?"

The gatekeeper's eyes gleamed. Sim Ok did not miss this change.

'As expected!'

The flash of light in his eyes in that instant was not something an ordinary gatekeeper should possess.

The gatekeeper asked again.

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No."

"Without an appointment, you cannot see him."

"Is that so? Then at least pass along this message: A guest has come from the Blood Scale killing curtain."

"Did you just say the Blood Scale killing curtain?"

The gatekeeper's expression changed completely.

"That's right! I am Sim Ok, the young master of the Blood Scale killing curtain."

A smile played upon Sim Ok's lips.