Chapter 210: The Wind Constantly Shakes the Trees (1)

Translator: Ash
Sage Hyeon-so lay unconscious. His entire body was densely covered with silver needles.

"It's done."

Jong Ri-yeon muttered as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.

The great technique was successful. Sage Hyeon-so had fallen into a state of light sleep, and his metabolism had noticeably slowed. This should buy enough time for treatment.

"Good job, Jong Ri-yeon."

Hae So-wol, who had been watching everything, finally spoke.

While Jong Ri-yeon was performing the great technique, Hae So-wol had been standing guard. She knew well how much effort Jong Ri-yeon had put into it.

"We've only bought time for treatment. If we make a mistake, it's still dangerous."

"If it's you, Jong Ri-yeon, I'm sure you can treat him."

"I'll do my best. If we can't save him, that person's anger will pierce the heavens."

"Then the world will face disaster."

"Indeed!"

The two women nodded simultaneously.

Aside from Sage Hyeon-so, they were the ones who understood Dam Ho the best in the world. They could clearly foresee Dam Ho's actions afterward.

In that sense, the two women felt a strange sense of kinship with each other.

At that moment, Dam Ho opened the door and entered.

"How is it?"

"We succeeded in inducing a state of light sleep."

"Really?"

Dam Ho looked at Sage Hyeon-so.

Sage Hyeon-so's brow was deeply furrowed, as if he were having a bad dream. Seeing him like that pained Dam Ho.

"Can Master hear me?"

"No one knows. He might be able to, or he might not. We'll only know when he wakes up."

"Is that so?"

Dam Ho's eyes hardened at Jong Ri-yeon's answer.

Dam Ho sat in front of Sage Hyeon-so.

"Master."

Of course, there was no answer from Sage Hyeon-so. But Dam Ho continued to speak.

"You must wake up. If you don't wake up… I will never forgive."

Dam Ho's voice was very low and quiet, but the meaning behind it was heavy.

Hae So-wol shuddered. Her face was full of tension.

At that moment, Jong Ri-yeon grabbed Dam Ho's hand.

When Dam Ho looked at her, Jong Ri-yeon smiled.

"Calm down. You don't doubt me, do you?"

"……"

"I am Jong Ri-yeon, the divine doctor. No matter how long it takes, I will definitely cure Sage Hyeon-so. I promise on my name. Do you still not believe me?"

"I believe you."

"Good! Blessed are those who believe."

Jong Ri-yeon laughed playfully.

Dam Ho stared at Jong Ri-yeon's face. Jong Ri-yeon's face turned slightly red, but she did not avoid Dam Ho's gaze.

Hae So-wol quietly watched the two and shook her head. She knew well what the subtle light in Jong Ri-yeon's eyes meant.

She was a warrior. One of the nine strongest in the latter stages, and she had a desire to reach the pinnacle as a swordsman.

To her, Dam Ho was an ideal as a warrior and a huge wall she wanted to overcome someday. She couldn't treat Dam Ho with pure feelings like Jong Ri-yeon.

Hae So-wol quietly got up and went outside. Her face was full of mixed emotions.

After a long time, Dam Ho also got up. When he went outside, the children, including Ha-young, gathered around.

"Brother!"

"Big brother!"

The children's faces were full of anxiety.

Dam Ho looked at each of their faces. They were children whom Sage Hyeon-so loved dearly.

"Master will be fine."

"Really?"

"Yes! He's just very tired and sleeping deeply. So don't worry and wait."

"Okay."

"Hayoung will also wait quietly for Grandpa to wake up."

The children nodded with bright eyes. Dam Ho patted each of their heads and went outside.

The long night was ending, but the darkness in Dam Ho's heart did not lift.

At that moment, someone came running quickly.

"Hey!"

The man shouting at Dam Ho was Cho Yeon-woon. His face was full of urgency.

"I found out."

"……"

"I found out the identity of the man you killed."

He held a portrait of the man Dam Ho had killed.

Dam Ho's eyes lit up.

"Who is it?"

"His name is Jo Yeon-sang. He is the deputy leader of Dragon Sword House, a sect based in the nearby Xing County.. He volunteered to come to Shouzhou."

Cho Yeon-woon revealed what he had found out to Dam Ho.

"Dragon Sword House?"

"Yes! It's a small sect, but it's quite reputable in the Xing County area. That's why the Murim Alliance accepted them."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! I confirmed it several times."

Xing County was only a few hundred li from Shouzhou.

Dam Ho walked towards the stable. Cho Yeon-woon hurriedly stopped him.

"Friend. Are you planning to go to Xing County right away?"

"……"

"You don't have to go. The Shouzhou branch will send an investigation team soon. Leave it to them, and they'll find out the truth."

If Dam Ho went, there would surely be a bloodbath.

Cho Yeon-woon, knowing this better than anyone, tried desperately to stop him. But he couldn't stop Dam Ho.

Dam Ho mounted Black Ghost and left the Shouzhou branch. With Black Ghost, he could reach Xing County in half a day.

Cho Yeon-woon also hurriedly mounted his horse and followed Dam Ho.

Dam Ho arrived at Dragon Sword House three hours later.

Dam Ho's face hardened as he arrived at Dragon Sword House. Cho Yeon-woon, who arrived later, had a similar expression.

"This can't be!"

Dragon Sword House was on fire. The huge flames were engulfing the entire sect.

"Fetch more water."

"What a mess! Hurry up. If we're not careful, the whole village will burn."

The villagers were pouring water with buckets to put out the fire, but it was not enough.

"What is this?"

While Cho Yeon-woon muttered in disbelief, Dam Ho walked towards the burning Dragon Sword House.

"Hey!"

By the time Cho Yeon-woon came to his senses and called out, Dam Ho had already disappeared into the raging flames.

The fierce flames that seemed to engulf everything couldn't harm Dam Ho. The powerful energy emanating from Dam Ho's body pushed the flames away.

Dam Ho walked through the burning Dragon Sword House. He saw corpses engulfed in flames everywhere.

Dam Ho knelt on one knee and examined a burning corpse.

The flames reflected in Dam Ho's eyes, making them glow red.

"Silencing witnesses."

A cold voice flowed from Dam Ho's mouth.

The corpse had clear wounds from a sword or blade.

Someone had killed them and set the fire to destroy the evidence.

There were no survivors in Dragon Sword House.

Jo Yeon-sang's family, who had led the group that attacked the Shouzhou branch, had long been cold corpses. Jo Yeon-sang had desperately wanted to protect his family, but his wish had been shattered by others.

Someone had attacked this place before Dam Ho and destroyed all the evidence. Finding evidence linking Dragon Sword House to the attackers in these fierce flames was impossible.

Dam Ho stood up.

There was no reason to stay here any longer. He went outside. Cho Yeon-woon, who had been waiting anxiously, hurriedly approached.

"Are you okay? The Demonic Cult is truly a place that shouldn't exist. They kill their own allies to cover their tracks."

"Are you sure it's the Demonic Cult?"

"Isn't the evidence clear?"

"Is it?"

"It's definitely the Demonic Cult! Jo Yeon-sang even called himself a Demonic Cultist."

Cho Yeon-woon answered confidently.

Dam Ho turned to look at the burning Dragon Sword House.

"Those who believe in the Demonic Cult never call themselves Demonic Cultists."

"What?"

"They call themselves followers of the Divine Cult."

***

About a hundred li east of Shouzhou, there was a small hill. On the hillside, there was an abandoned shrine dedicated to Guan Yu, a general of the Shu Han*.

(T/N- *A reference to The Three Kingdoms Era)

In the past, there was a village below the hill. The villagers used to hold rituals at the shrine and pray for Guan Yu's protection. But one day, the village was swept away by war and disappeared without a trace, and the shrine was abandoned and forgotten.

Inside the shrine, there was a statue of Guan Yu. The huge statue, about three jang* high, was worn by the passage of time, barely maintaining its shape. But its imposing presence was still formidable.

(T/N*- 1 Jang= 3.03m)

A man wearing a golden mask that covered his entire face was sitting on top of the statue.

The man in the golden mask exuded an overwhelming aura.

At that moment, a group of people entered the shrine.

After briefly surveying the interior, they knelt on one knee when they saw the man in the golden mask.

"Il Yeomra greets the Forbidden Demon Envoy."

"The Blood Ghosts greet the Forbidden Demon Envoy."

Their loud voices echoed inside the shrine.

The Forbidden Demon Envoy looked at Il Yeomra and the Blood Ghosts.

"How did it go?"

"We have removed all our connections."

"Did you leave any traces?"

"Of course not."

"Hmm!"

The Forbidden Demon Envoy leaped down from the statue. He landed softly and walked towards Il Yeomra and the Blood Ghosts with his hands behind his back.

A calm voice flowed from behind the golden mask.

"What about him?"

"He headed to Xing County."

"As expected."

"I didn't think he would find Dragon Sword House. If we had been a little slower, he would have found the connection. He's truly remarkable."

"Indeed. If he weren't, we wouldn't have had to run away with our tails between our legs."

"Run away…"

"Huh! Isn't it true? We retreated after being defeated by the Fist Demon in the Murim Alliance."

"That was a strategic retreat."

"Don't get too worked up. I'm just saying."

The Forbidden Demon Envoy chuckled. His tone was soft, but there was a strong sense of killing intent.

The Forbidden Demon Envoy had never known failure in his life. The first person to make him taste defeat was Dam Ho.

He still vividly remembered the moment when his mask was shattered by Dam Ho. If it had been a little deeper, his head would have been crushed.

"He must not leave Shouzhou. He must clash with the Demonic Cult."

"Of course. That's why we moved the hidden agents we've kept secret until now. He will fight the Demonic Cult without hesitation. He's running wild now, but he will eventually fall, covered in blood."

"Don't underestimate him."

"What?"

"He may seem reckless like a boar, but he's extremely cunning. If you show even a moment of weakness, he will surely exploit it."

"Surely not…"

"It's not surely. His actions so far prove it. Be extremely cautious."

"I understand. I will keep that in mind."

Il Yeomra bowed his head.

The Forbidden Demon Envoy turned to look at the statue of Guan Yu.

"The time for the Heavenly Evil to spread its wings is near."

At that moment.

"Forbidden Demon Envoy."

A familiar figure suddenly ran into the shrine. It was Ilyeomra.

"What is it?"

"We have a pursuer."

"A pursuer?"

"It's him."

"Really?"

As the Forbidden Demon Envoy's eyes filled with killing intent.

Bang!

A black shadow broke through the wall of the shrine.

Jin Ja-gang practiced Blazing Twin Phosphorus Palm continuously, losing track of time.

When he first circulated internal energy through the yin meridians, his body rapidly became cold. His teeth chattered and his shoulders shivered. As his body grew cold, hot sparks ignited from the most sensitive Baihui point on the yang meridians as a reaction. Jin Ja-gang hurriedly pulled the yang energy down below his head to avoid fire deviation and extinguished the yin energy.

Then he circulated yang energy through the twenty-eight meridians in the order of floating, hollow, slippery, solid, wiry, tight, and surging. By blocking the meridians heading to his head and circulating yang energy only within his body, his body quickly heated up unlike before.

Heat rose, his skin reddened, and a flush appeared on his face.

Whoosh.

Hot breath escaped.

Two rotations, three rotations… ten rotations.

Each time the wheel of yang energy turned through the yang meridians, he felt a burning sensation as if being branded with hot iron. The slightest mishandling that let it leak sideways made him fear his body would burn up.

“Urgh!”

His body became too hot and pain came as if his flesh was cooking red. The wildly raging wheel of fire was a different kind of beast from the previous wheels.

Jin Ja-gang, who already couldn’t use the qi and blood of his left side and whose right side’s qi and blood were weak, found it increasingly difficult to endure. He needed to circulate yang energy until sweat turned to steam and rose, but his body couldn’t withstand it.

Jin Ja-gang pressed his right thumb and middle finger together and flicked his fingers.

Snap.

A faint wisp of steam rose and disappeared.

Still, he couldn’t give up here. Jin Ja-gang raised yang energy again and tried incorporating the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique into the yang energy.

Fortunately, the mysteries of the Toad Technique, optimized for handling beasts, took hold without resistance. However, he couldn’t succeed in one try.

After dozens of attempts, Jin Ja-gang became able to control yang energy according to the mysteries of the Toad Technique. The wheel of fire turned much more stably than before while burning at an even higher temperature.

The wheel of fire that couldn’t even complete twenty rotations before now surpassed one hundred rotations.

Whiiiing!

A hot fireball was rotating inside his body.

“Krgh!”

Unable to bear the pain, Jin Ja-gang let out a groan and pressed his hands to the floor.

“Huff, huff!”

White smoke rose from Jin Ja-gang’s mouth. His sweat had dried and salt was embedded in his skin.

It seemed like he could do it with just a little more…

It wasn’t time to give up yet.

“Again!”

Jin Ja-gang gritted his teeth and challenged again.

How many times did he challenge and repeatedly faint?

Jin Ja-gang continued rotating the wheel of fire until it became difficult to endure even with the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique. Finally, he reached the point where he thought his qi and blood had burned completely black, making his entire body seem like charcoal.

The sweat flowing from Jin Ja-gang’s body instantly evaporated and rose as steam.

Right now.

Jin Ja-gang concentrated all yang energy in his right hand and opened the blood points at the tips of his thumb and middle finger.

Flick!

Faint blue flames like will-o’-the-wisps could be seen.

Twin phosphorus.

Jin Ja-gang wrapped the two flames into his palm, made a fist, then opened it and struck the floor.

WHOOOM!

Tremendous heat exploded from the floor. The bandage binding his nail burned and tore away, and Jin Ja-gang’s palm print appeared darkly on the wooden floor. Parts of the wooden floor even warped.

In return, Jin Ja-gang’s palm developed blisters and his flesh was burned red.

Tang tang tang tang! Tang tang tang tang tang!

Then came nine knocks on the door.

Jin Ja-gang smiled with satisfaction on one side of his pained face.

After that, Jin Ja-gang sat in a comfortable position and slowly recovered his qi and blood.

Learning the method of operating the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique more than doubled the amount and frequency of internal energy he could use with Mad Blood Heaven Technique.

Now with one breath, he could exert more than twice the power as before, and could raise internal energy up to six times or more.

Of course, even so, he didn’t know how far he could go bare-handed against the Tang family’s monster-like masters. He could only do his best.

After recovering his qi and blood, Jin Ja-gang found the dried dust and rubbed it in his palm to crumble it finer. It was so light and fine-grained that when he held it in his palm and blew, the powder instantly spread and flew away.

Dust is naturally poisonous by itself. The older it gets, the more toxic it becomes. It mainly affects the lungs, making breathing difficult, and causes inflammation in mucous membranes of the eyes and nose, making them itchy.

This level of drying was sufficient.

The dust mixed with urine and collected was bubbling and boiling in its damp state. It smelled foul like aged manure, and toxic energy could be felt in the air.

Unlike dried dust, dust aged damp with urine acts toxically on the skin like fecal poison. It causes swelling and boils, makes the whole body itchy, and dulls movement.

Jin Ja-gang broke part of the bookshelf where books were inserted, split it finely, then made pointed wooden needles. He prepared various lengths from a couple of spans long like daggers to less than one span. He coated them with the urine-aged dust to make poison needles.

The only flaw was that without clothes, he couldn’t hide the poison needles.

Jin Ja-gang hid the wooden needles throughout the bookshelves.

He wrapped the dry dust in paper and stuffed it between the gaps in his ankle shackles.

He wanted to remove the shackles, but regrettably he didn’t yet have that ability. With no time, he couldn’t forcibly break his ankle to pull it out either.

“Whew.”

Though one day remained, there was no need to wait longer.

Preparations were complete.

Jin Ja-gang went to stand in the area closest to the entrance among the various rooms.

After raising internal energy with Mad Blood Heaven Technique, he guided internal energy according to the method of Blazing Twin Phosphorus Palm. Incorporating the Jade Void Nine Light Five Thunder Toad Technique, he protected his qi and blood more stably while generating maximum heat.

When he opened his right thumb and middle finger, two flame wicks ignited. Jin Ja-gang wrapped the flames into his palm, raised his hand forcefully, then struck the bookshelf.

WHOOOM!

The heavy bookshelf shook and old books tore and flew about.

Flutter flutter!

Oil-soaked books and ancient texts flew in all directions with black soot marks.

Sparks flew together. Paper fragments with flames transferred to them floated in the air.

Jin Ja-gang raised Blazing Twin Phosphorus Palm to its maximum once more.

He wrapped flames in his hand and struck the books inserted in the bookshelf with it.

WHOOOOM!

Flames squeezed out between his fingers.

Crackle.

Old bookshelf planks and the books inserted in them were vulnerable to fire. Flames began transferring instantly.

Jin Ja-gang picked up burning books and threw them in all directions. Fires ignited everywhere and smoke filled the air.

In Jin Ja-gang’s eyes watching this scene, flames also began reflecting and burning.

* * *

Just as the sun was setting and all doors were being locked in the Tang Family Great Compound evening…

The scent of burning suddenly began wafting through the inner compound.

The first to realize something was wrong was Library Pavilion Master Tang Lim. White smoke began rising from various spots in the ground below the pavilion.

Underground was none other than the Library Pavilion.

Since only one day remained of the deadline given to Jin Ja-gang, Tang Lim found it hard to shake off anxious thoughts.

“What is this?”

Tang Lim rushed to the entrance of the Library Pavilion.

The warriors standing guard had gathered at the secret entrance of the Library Pavilion, looking anxious.

Smoke was continuously seeping through the cracks of the thick door.

“Wh… what…?”

Tang Lim’s eyes widened.

He didn’t know what had happened, but fire had broken out inside the Library Pavilion. And it had been burning for quite a while!

From the ground passage to the underground Library Pavilion was over a hundred steps, with triple barrier doors. Yet smoke was seeping all the way here, meaning fire had been burning for quite some time.

Because the Library Pavilion occupied a vast area, smoke was also rising from ventilation holes under the pavilions of the Family Business House and Phoenix Pheasant House.

Tang Lim broke into a cold sweat all over his body.

He even felt dizzy for a moment.

The numerous books in the Library Pavilion were about to burn. The history that had been with the Tang family would completely disappear.

Moreover, because the Library Pavilion was unfortunately underground, the bookshelves and books inside would act as kindling to burn even the pavilions of the Family Business House and Phoenix Pheasant House above.

This wasn’t something that would end with just Tang Lim being held responsible for poor management.

If the many documents and receipts in the Family Business House pavilion burned, the Tang family’s overall business would be damaged, and if the Phoenix Pheasant House burned, the materials needed to educate Tang family descendants would disappear.

Truly a fatal matter for the Tang family.

People were already rushing out from all directions in a panic.

“H-how could fire break out in the Library Pavilion…?”

They had placed nothing fire-related inside and even used expensive luminous pearls instead of flames for light!

At this moment, the only thing he could think of was Jin Ja-gang.

Tang Lim gritted his teeth and ordered the door to be opened.

They had to find the source of the fire and extinguish it.

“Water! Bring water!”

However, even entering through the door wasn’t easy. The passage was completely filled with smoke. Their eyes stung so much it was hard to keep them open, and breathing was agony.

The warriors and servants had no choice but to slowly enter while sprinkling water from the entrance.

They couldn’t just leave it like this.

Tang Lim covered his mouth with cloth soaked in water along with several warriors who had internal energy, sprinkled water on their bodies, then entered the passage carrying several buckets of water.

The heat intensified as they went down and opened doors. When they opened the final door to the Library Pavilion, the heat was even more severe. Black smoke poured out wildly and flames were attached upside down to the ceiling, surging.

The bookshelves near the entrance had almost completely burned to charcoal.

“Spray water!”

The warriors went back and forth many times spraying water, finally extinguishing part of the entrance area.

When Tang Lim used internal energy to examine inside, the fire was more severe at the entrance than inside. It seemed the entrance area was the ignition point.

But that meant it was likely intentional.

Tang Lim gritted his teeth and shouted.

“Go inside and see if that bastard is there!”

Tang Lim guarded the entrance while sending several warriors inside.

However, what came back shortly after were frustrated groaning sounds.

“Kuk!”

“Urk!”

In a state where they could barely see due to smoke, warriors were dying.

“This…!”

Tang Lim’s eyes blazed as he raised his internal energy and clenched his fists.

“You bastard! So you were the one who set the fire! Do you know where this place is! I’ll tear you limb from limb, into a thousand, ten thousand pieces. Come out now!”

“I know very well where this is. Didn’t you tell me yourself?”

Jin Ja-gang’s voice was heard approaching.

“Buddhist scriptures and ancient texts number thirty-five thousand volumes. Twenty-six thousand bamboo slips, eighteen thousand woodblocks, and five thousand five hundred martial arts books.”

The outline of Jin Ja-gang’s figure could be seen hazily in the smoke and flames. Jin Ja-gang was boldly standing about three zhang away, facing Tang Lim.

Jin Ja-gang spoke with mockery.

“But there weren’t any useful books among them, were there? When fire broke out, no one thought to find and move those precious peerless martial arts manuals first – instead you’re all looking for me.”