Chapter 114: It's Been a While Since We Met, But My Heart Isn't What It Used to Be (2)

Skid!

The Golden Demon Lion's body was sent sliding back more than ten zhang.

The golden mask was covered in spiderweb-like cracks, looking as though it might shatter at any moment.

Behind the mask, the Golden Demon Lion's expression had completely changed.

At the critical moment, he had deflected Dam Ho's attack. No—he thought he had.

But the power contained in Dam Ho's fist was truly terrifying, delivering an enormous impact to the golden mask that shielded his face.

His head was ringing, and a piercing tinnitus assaulted his eardrums.

This was the first time such a thing had happened.

Whoosh!

In that interval, Dam Ho's second and third strikes flew in succession.

Not a single word had been spoken.

There was no warning.

From the moment he identified an enemy, Dam Ho moved to annihilate the Golden Demon Lion.

The Fortress Breaking Fist was deployed.

Bam!

The Golden Demon Lion's body was helplessly driven backward.

He did not even dare deploy ki energy. To manifest ki, he would need to draw upon his internal energy.

For a master of his caliber, the time it took to draw a single breath would have sufficed. But Dam Ho did not even grant him that moment, pressing his assault relentlessly.

Whirr!

Dam Ho's leg descended from above, tracing a peculiar arc through the air.

It was the Bouncing Demon Kick.

Bam!

The Golden Demon Lion crossed his arms to block Dam Ho's attack.

"Kuh!"

One knee buckled, and his waist bent.

Dam Ho's body spun in place, and once again his leg lashed out like a whip.

It was the Blood Heaven Kick—the peerless technique of the Iron Blood Overlord Wu Gyeong-pae, who had dominated an era a hundred and twenty years ago with a single kicking style.

Bam!

The Golden Demon Lion's head snapped backward.

Fragments of the shattered golden mask scattered in every direction. It was only because he had barely managed to turn his head that he avoided having his skull caved in.

His disheveled hair covered his face.

And upon the Golden Demon Lion, Dam Ho's foot descended once more.

It was the Bouncing Demon Kick.

Dam Ho alternated between the Bouncing Demon Kick and the Blood Heaven Kick.

Caught in Dam Ho's storm-like relentless assault, the Golden Demon Lion could not find an opening to counterattack and was driven backward.

"Golden Demon Lion!"

The First Infernal Judge could not stand by any longer and stepped forward to aid the Golden Demon Lion.

Bam!

His punch struck Dam Ho squarely in the back.

Dam Ho, caught off guard by the sudden blow, coughed up blood. Even though the impact rattled his organs, Dam Ho did not so much as blink.

Whoosh!

Dam Ho's counterattack came immediately, aimed at the First Infernal Judge.

A fist that lashed out like a whip—the Single Yang Strike—smashed into the First Infernal Judge's shoulder.

Crack!

"Kuh!"

The First Infernal Judge staggered and retreated.

In that moment, the air rippled.

Dam Ho instinctively ducked his waist.

Shoom!

In an instant, a wave of heat swept past his back. The Golden Demon Lion's ki energy had grazed him.

"Phew!"

A sigh of relief escaped the Golden Demon Lion's lips.

The First Infernal Judge had bought him a split second, granting him the opening to launch his ki energy.

But through his disheveled hair, the expression visible on his face was not one of satisfaction.

His blood ran cold.

His heart was still pounding violently.

Dam Ho's attacks had far surpassed his expectations.

Dam Ho could be felt radiating murderous intent.

Deep within his black eyes, a terrifying killing intent was clearly directed at him. He had identified him as someone who must be killed.

A pure monster armed with vengefulness and merciless violence, one who would never let go of anyone who provoked him.

Such a man stood before him.

Shudder!

Goosebumps covered his entire body.

'To think such a person exists under heaven.'

At that moment, Dam Ho charged at him again.

No negotiation or conversation was necessary with this man.

They had struck first. He was simply returning the favor.

What the Golden Demon Lion's identity was, or what purpose had brought him here—Dam Ho did not care in the slightest.

The single thought in his mind:

'I'll kill him.'

The terrifying murderous intent that erupted from Dam Ho's body seized the entire area.

The Golden Demon Lion launched ki energy in rapid succession. But Dam Ho dodged each one by a hair's breadth.

And yet, he did not slow his charge toward the Golden Demon Lion.

Ki energy was lethal even from a mere graze.

Anyone who faced ki energy could not help but shrink back. Had not Sage Cheong-heo of the Wudang Sect pushed himself to deploy sword ki precisely because of this?

Only ki energy could stand against ki energy.

This was a long-held axiom of the martial world, an unchangeable truth. Therefore, one who faced ki energy could not help but tremble in fear and shrink back without realizing it.

But for Dam Ho, such martial world conventions did not apply.

Dam Ho believed in himself.

In his martial arts. In his body, which had been trained to the extreme.

His concentration reached its peak.

Whoosh!

Once again, the Golden Demon Lion launched ki energy.

Long and whip-like, the beam of ki energy targeted Dam Ho's chest.

There was nowhere to dodge, nowhere to retreat.

And Dam Ho had no intention of dodging.

The internal energy accumulated through the Dark Soul Heart Method condensed into his fist. In an instant, a silver glow enveloped his fist.

The Silver Net Hand was activated.

Dam Ho swung his fist without hesitation.

Boom!

The ki energy was deflected, and Dam Ho's body shook violently.

Blood flowed from his nose and mouth.

He had deflected the ki energy, but suffered serious internal injuries in the process. But Dam Ho did not stop.

Dam Ho's appearance was that of a fiend from hell.

Fear flickered in the Golden Demon Lion's eyes.

He had fought countless martial artists, but Dam Ho was a type he had never encountered before.

"Hmph!"

The Golden Demon Lion retreated.

In that gap, the Blood Chain Demons filled the space.

"Out of my way!"

The Blood Chain Demons naturally did not retreat. They clung stubbornly to Dam Ho.

In that interval, the Golden Demon Lion and the judges withdrew.

The Golden Demon Lion shouted urgently, "We're pulling back!"

"But…"

"We've accomplished our primary objective."

The Golden Demon Lion glanced at Sage Cheong-heo and the others.

They were watching the battle between Dam Ho and the Blood Chain Demons with blank expressions. Having shown them this much, there would be no more doubts in their minds.

'That level of martial power, though? Could it be connected to the Four God Children?'

An old, forgotten legend flickered in the Golden Demon Lion's mind, and he trembled slightly. If his guess was correct, this was something that could never be ignored.

The Golden Demon Lion and the judges leaped away.

Those who had been battling Dam Ho aside, the rest followed behind them and departed from the Azure Sun Sword Sect.

But Sage Cheong-heo and the orthodox martial artists, who should have blocked their escape, were too preoccupied with the battle between Dam Ho and the Blood Chain Demons to intervene.

Kaboom!

At that moment, a series of explosions erupted.

The Blood Chain Demons surrounding Dam Ho burst apart one after another like fireworks.

Flesh flew, and shattered bone fragments scattered in all directions. The sight of broken organs raining down like a downpour caused several people to vomit.

"Ugh!"

"He—he's not human!"

A scene of indescribable horror lay before them.

The Blood Chain Demons, who had instilled terror in the orthodox martial artists, were now rolling on the ground in grotesque ruin.

All of it had been caused by a single person—Dam Ho.

Trampling over the corpses of his enemies, bathed in their blood, Dam Ho's figure was the very embodiment of death itself.

Dam Ho glared in the direction the Golden Demon Lion and his cohorts had vanished.

Though he had killed so many Blood Chain Demons, his killing intent had not subsided in the slightest.

The others watched Dam Ho in awed silence, unable to speak.

A suffocating silence settled over the estate.

Myeong-gyeong, who had been staring at Dam Ho, suddenly looked at his own palm.

He had clenched it so tightly that his fist was flushed red. And his palm was drenched in sweat.

His body was trembling without his knowledge.

Myeong-gyeong had become a disciple of Sage Hyeon-geom and believed himself afraid of no one. But this monster before him inspired a fear he could not explain.

He could smell blood on him.

Whether it was because he was drenched in the blood of his enemies, or whether it was something that emanated from him naturally, the scent of blood刺激d his senses.

'I'm not even on his level.'

A slight tremor ran through Myeong-gyeong's shoulders, and the same was true for the others.

Everyone was struck speechless by Dam Ho's might.

Just then—

"Ah… Uncle."

Eun So-cheong broke the silence.

Only then did Dam Ho ease his killing intent.

Dam Ho walked toward Eun So-cheong.

One foot struck the ground, the other dragged behind.

Only then did the people realize that he was lame.

The epithet that surfaced in their minds:

"Divine Stronghold Blood Sage."

"The Fist—he is the Fist Demon."

The most commonly heard title since they entered Hunan Province.

They had not fully believed the rumors. No—they could not believe them.

Rumors were naturally exaggerated and magnified.

No matter how strong Dam Ho was, he was merely a junior generation martial artist. That was what most people had thought. But now they knew otherwise.

The rumors had not even captured half of Dam Ho's true terror. The horror of seeing him in person was beyond imagination. Only those who had witnessed it firsthand could truly understand.

While everyone was overwhelmed by Dam Ho's presence, unable to even breathe freely, Sage Cheong-heo stepped forward.

"That…"

But before he could speak, another voice came first.

"Cheong… gyeong."

It was Han So-yu.

Her eyes were trembling.

"You are Cheong-gyeong, aren't you?"

Han So-yu stepped forward.

"So-yu!"

Hyeon-mu Sage tried to stop her.

He had no idea why Han So-yu was behaving this way.

'Cheong-gyeong? Didn't he die long ago?'

It was a name that had been much spoken of even within the Mount Hua Sect.

The lame disciple taken in by Sage Hyeon-so.

The leadership of the Mount Hua Sect could not accept such a lame disciple and had ostracized him.

Despite being a First Generation Disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, he had been denied proper treatment and subjected to contempt. That was Cheong-gyeong.

But he was dead. Twelve years ago.

Was that not why Sage Hyeon-so, heartbroken, had chosen seclusion?

'But Cheong-gyeong is alive?'

That the monstrous figure before them was Cheong-gyeong—Hyeon-mu Sage thought Han So-yu must be mistaken.

'No. So-yu must have seen wrong.'

The same was true for Won-yul, a Second Generation Disciple of the Mount Hua Sect.

"Cheong-gyeong Martial Uncle? That's impossible."

He, too, knew Cheong-gyeong.

They had met several times when he was sent on errands, and they had even spoken. He knew his face well.

The Cheong-gyeong he knew did not possess such overwhelming dominance or radiate such terrifying aura.

"No. That's not…"

In that moment, Dam Ho's lips parted.

"It's… been a while, Martial Sister."

The rough, hoarse voice that echoed through the hall made the Mount Hua Sect disciples stagger.

"Ah!"

The dead had returned to life.

Jin Ja-gang was neither a physician nor someone with actual experience in prescribing medicine.

That said, there was no other option available. He had to treat Mr. Jang using only the knowledge he possessed.

Jin Ja-gang sighed at the self-reproach he felt as a successor of the Medicine Sect.

How could he even claim to be a successor of the Medicine Sect in this state?

‘Still, there must be a way.’

Jin Ja-gang continued to devise methods. He recalled the medicinal herbs used for boils.

‘I heard that white tribulus, the fruit of the tribulus plant, can be used, but that’s a medicinal herb that grows by the seaside… Among the medicinal herbs I can obtain now…’

Jin Ja-gang decided to try using the herbs that go into the Three Yellows and Gypsum Decoction. He could also use a prescription called Small Indigo Clearing Decoction, but that required expensive specialized medicinal materials like ginseng or dried licorice that takes a long time to prepare. With the Three Yellows and Gypsum Decoction, he could obtain most of the materials from the mountains.

‘Ephedra, gardenia fruit, gypsum, coriander, scutellaria…’

Fortunately, these were commonly used medicinal herbs. He recalled memories of cultivating and growing many of them at Hundred Flower Valley.

Reciting the names of the medicinal herbs he needed to gather, Jin Ja-gang climbed the mountain again.

* * *

Martial Arts Alliance Huguang Branch.

In the sect leader’s office of the Azure Dragon Great Sword Pavilion, known as Huguang Province’s greatest combat organization.

Mang Ryo had returned there like a triumphant general.

In the sect leader’s office, Baek Li-jung, the leader of Azure Dragon Great Sword Pavilion, and the strategist Sim Hak were waiting.

When Mang Ryo entered, Sim Hak rushed over like lightning and secured the door.

Then he suddenly shouted at Mang Ryo, who was smiling contentedly.

“What kind of way is that to handle affairs!”

“Hmm?”

Mang Ryo looked at Sim Hak with strange eyes and shook his head left and right.

“I rushed here as soon as the Poison Valley affair ended. As you can see, both my legs are inconvenient, so I’m tired. Let me sit down first.”

“Please, do so!”

While Baek Li-jung and Sim Hak remained standing, Mang Ryo sat at the table and leisurely poured and drank tea.

“Now, strategist, why are you so angry?”

Sim Hak wasn’t officially in the position of strategist assisting the sect leader. Azure Dragon Great Sword Pavilion was a combat organization that didn’t require a strategist.

However, Sim Hak was Baek Li-jung’s longtime confidant. He knew most of the information that Baek Li-jung knew. Therefore, Mang Ryo called Sim Hak “strategist” as a gesture of respect.

But even with such consideration, Sim Hak’s anger didn’t seem to subside.

“How could I not be angry? What are we supposed to do now that you’ve completely stirred up Yunnan! It’s not just stirred up – you’ve killed absolutely everyone!”

“Is that a problem?”

Mang Ryo raised both hands with an expression of not understanding.

Sim Hak continued shouting.

“Even if you’re going to prune branches, you should leave some roots. If you cut away all the roots too, how are we supposed to handle the aftermath? No matter what, the poison sects were still factions that had joined our alliance. Moreover, you’ve massacred all the leaders of Yunnan’s righteous factions too… Ah! I’m so frustrated I can’t even speak!”

“Oh my, I still can’t fathom my strategist’s deep thoughts.”

“Don’t be sarcastic! Don’t you know that when this news spreads within the alliance, the opposition faction will seize on this matter? We’re managing Yunnan, aren’t we? It’s obvious they’ll demand accountability for how we managed things that such a large-scale disaster occurred!”

“Well… that would be the case. We certainly should take responsibility for not managing properly.”

“That’s exactly what I’m talking about! You burned down the whole house just to catch one limping man! How on earth did you kill all the poison sect members and Yunnan righteous faction leaders? I heard nearly a hundred righteous faction members gathered!”

“Didn’t I say I didn’t do it?”

“What, what?”

“The limping one killed them all. When I arrived, he had already killed almost everyone. I just dealt with some trivial remnants.”

“Ha, haha. Was the limping one really that… strong?”

“I don’t know if he was strong, but he was certainly cunning. He applied poison to the main hall’s roof, so when it rained, everyone underneath died from poisoning.”

Sim Hak seemed surprised and blinked before asking.

“So… what happened to the limping one? Did you catch him?”

“I caught him but let him go.”

Sim Hak’s mouth fell open.

“A-A-A… Advisor Mang! No, if you let him go… Hehe, we should have captured the beast who committed the massacre so we’d have something to say. Because of that one guy, things have come to this point…”

“Why would you kill bait? What in the world is better than live bait?”

“What bait? We’re about to die right now!”

Mang Ryo asked back with an expression of not understanding.

“If I came back with the beast as if I’d been waiting for it, wouldn’t that look even stranger?”

Sim Hak seemed dizzy and leaned on the table, sighing deeply.

“Starting tomorrow, the opposition factions will attack, and I don’t know how to explain this. I don’t know… I just don’t know…”

Mang Ryo laughed heartily.

“The Yunnan poison sects were always a thorn in our alliance’s side, and the small and medium factions weren’t even part of our alliance – they were insignificant things. Taking this opportunity to cleanly sweep them all away was actually good, wasn’t it?”

“We finally took over Azure Dragon Great Sword Pavilion… With the central headquarters right in front of us, I never dreamed we’d encounter such an unexpected huge obstacle here in Huguang Province…”

Going to the Martial Arts Alliance central headquarters in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, was the dream of all martial artists belonging to the Martial Arts Alliance.

Even Huguang Province was close to Jiangxi Province, but in terms of official positions, it belonged to local bureaucrats. It was like government officials wanting to go to the central bureaucrats in the Forbidden City where the emperor resided.

As Sim Hak lamented and kept sighing, Baek Li-jung comforted him.

“Strategist Sim, don’t worry too much. Rest today, and starting tomorrow, let’s devise countermeasures against the opposition faction’s offensive.”

“Yes, sect leader.”

Sim Hak kept sighing, then glared at Mang Ryo before leaving the room. Mang Ryo even waved goodbye to him.

Then he looked at Baek Li-jung.

He had planned to ask if he shared the same thoughts as strategist Sim Hak…

But looking at his expression, there was no need to ask.

Baek Li-jung was smiling with his eyes.

“Well done. I’ll praise you for this matter.”

Mang Ryo also grinned.

“Even though the opposition faction’s total offensive will begin tomorrow? The sect leader might be pushed back to Shandong or Hebei?”

“I’m really curious whether that could happen to me.”

“Kekekeke!”

Mang Ryo laughed loudly and said as if talking to himself.

“Poison sects and righteous factions that were part of the Martial Arts Alliance fought each other and mutually destroyed themselves… Then who would reap the fisherman’s profit from that?”

Baek Li-jung was still smiling while looking at Mang Ryo. Mang Ryo asked Baek Li-jung.

“What is the sect leader thinking? Evil factions? Demonic factions?”

“For now, evil factions would be better than demonic ones.”

“How pitiful! The fate of the evil faction members has been decided by the sect leader’s single word. They were just watching someone else’s house burn, but now they’ll be framed as the masterminds behind the Yunnan incident. Kekekeke!”

Mang Ryo praised Baek Li-jung until his mouth was dry.

“The sect leader’s foresight is truly amazing. Then I’ll prepare accordingly.”

Baek Li-jung also seemed excited and said something he normally wouldn’t say.

“You did very well this time, so if you need anything, I’ll provide it. What do you need?”

“Yunnan itself wasn’t particularly profitable for the alliance – it was originally just a useless frontier territory. However, since it’s an incident where everyone was massacred, the justification we can derive from it is very significant. So it would be good to have appropriately large bait.”

Baek Li-jung immediately said as if he had already been thinking about it.

“Would the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix be sufficient?”

“Three Dragons and Four Phoenix?”

That surprised Mang Ryo even more. It was a proposal beyond what he had imagined.

Three Dragons and Four Phoenix referred to the seven most promising young talents from the martial world’s most prestigious families. Geniuses who had grown up receiving all kinds of elixirs and secret martial arts from their families since childhood.

Their skills were remarkable, but the family names they carried were even more enormous. If they grew up without incident, they would become talents who would lead their families and the future martial world.

Therefore, each family tended to invest considerable effort in their growth.

However, Mang Ryo hadn’t thought as far as the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix because one of them was Baek Li-jung’s eldest disciple.

‘He’s willing to throw his eldest disciple as bait?’

Was this a test or was he trying to probe?

Moreover, why specifically mention the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix of martial families rather than the young talents of the Ten Great Sects?

When facing Jin Ja-gang, several would have to die.

Could it be that he hoped for the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix to be destroyed?

After thinking briefly, Mang Ryo shook his head. There was no need to use all of the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix. If he got carried away by unnecessary words and suggested sending out Baek Li-jung’s eldest disciple, his true intentions would be revealed.

“Three Dragons and Four Phoenix would be more than enough. Moderation is best in everything. One from the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix would be sufficient.”

Not specifically naming one of the Three Dragons and Four Phoenix meant leaving the choice to Baek Li-jung so as not to displease him.

Baek Li-jung smiled.

“I’ll choose one and send them.”

“I’ll use them well.”

Mang Ryo didn’t say he would use and return them.

Baek Li-jung’s smile deepened.

“You may go.”

It was a dismissal worthy of Baek Li-jung.

“I’m deeply grateful for the sect leader’s consideration.”

Mang Ryo bowed as he stood up. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked.

“Ah, may I ask one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

“Why do you keep such a thing as your strategist?”

He was referring to strategist Sim Hak.

Baek Li-jung’s answer was brief.

“Because I can know what ordinary people think.”

“Huh.”

Mang Ryo exclaimed in admiration.

“That’s an answer worthy of the sect leader. Only Sect Leader Baek in this world could give such an answer.”

Just as Mang Ryo was turning around, Baek Li-jung’s voice stopped him.

“I’ll ask one thing too.”

“What is it?”

Baek Li-jung gazed steadily at Mang Ryo.

“There were small movements in Sichuan. It seems Sichuan is paying attention to Yunnan’s affairs… There isn’t some other story I don’t know about, is there?”

This was exactly the kind of talk that would make Mang Ryo flinch.

The fact that Sichuan was involved in the poison sect massacre was something only Mang Ryo and Sichuan’s contacts knew, excluding everyone else.

But was Mang Ryo careless enough to reveal such matters openly!

Mang Ryo answered without any change in expression.

“Sichuan seems to have interest in Yunnan too. Or perhaps the poison sects asked Sichuan for some help. In any case, as far as I know, there was no Sichuan involvement in this incident.”

Baek Li-jung stared at Mang Ryo for a moment, then nodded.

“Then, I’ll see you again.”

Mang Ryo withdrew from the sect leader’s office with a mysterious smile.

Now it was time to bring Jin Ja-gang to the surface.

It might be somewhat harsh and a difficult ordeal for Jin Ja-gang.

But that was exactly what Mang Ryo had been hoping for.

That’s why he had torn open Jin Ja-gang’s meridians, even at the cost of losing about a third of his painstakingly accumulated internal energy.

No, to be precise, he had ripped them open.

* * *

Baek Li-jung soon summoned his eldest disciple.

“Master.”

Baek Li-jung’s eldest disciple and adopted son, Baek Li-gwon.

Eight feet tall with eyebrows drawn like rough brushstrokes, fierce but upright tiger eyes.

If one were to draw the image of a hero, Baek Li-gwon would be exactly that appearance.

At twenty-five years old, he was famous as a chivalrous warrior who upheld justice as much as Baek Li-jung, and his publicly known martial arts level was considerable. It was known that he had inherited Baek Li-jung’s true teachings and achieved five stages of his unique sword technique, the Heavenly Human Divine Sword.

However, in reality, he had achieved martial prowess far beyond what the martial world knew.

Heavenly Human Divine Sword, sixth stage extreme mastery.

Twice the difference from the fifth stage. It was already an incomparable level.

Of course, only Baek Li-gwon, his master Baek Li-jung, and a few sect officials knew this.

“Come here.”