Chapter 319

Yeong-woon and So-min were heading to the Martial Alliance when they heard the tragic news and returned to Chongqing.

Several martial artists from Zhongnan Sect and orthodox sects in Chongqing were already at the scene.

However, since Zhongnan Sect was controlling the scene, they couldn’t approach any further.

Yeong-woon and So-min requested.

“Please let us through! We belonged to the same Marvelous Youth Squad as Brother Pyo.”

A Zhongnan Sect disciple shook his head with a troubled expression.

“You cannot go near.”

“Please let us in! We need to confirm if it’s really Brother Pyo!”

“It’s dangerous because poison has spread. It’s very potent. We can’t approach nearby.”

The moment they heard the word poison, Yeong-woon and So-min’s faces turned pale. Zhongnan Sect martial artists were blocking access across nearly ten zhang.

Yeong-woon and So-min craned their necks as much as possible to examine the situation inside.

The scene of a thick pine trunk exploded, blood and organs scattered everywhere, and… someone’s corpse with the waist missing and upper body separated.

Anxiety that rose from their spines reached the top of their heads.

“We must confirm. We must confirm!”

Someone answered Yeong-woon’s cry.

“It is indeed Pyo Sang-guk.”

It was a martial artist from Zhongnan Sect in his fifties.

He was the only one standing inside the controlled area.

With crescent-shaped eyebrows and eyes so small it was hard to tell if they were open or closed, drooping eye corners and gently raised mouth corners and cheekbones, he had an overall impression of smiling warmly. Because of this, he seemed to have an expression that didn’t match the current situation at all.

Zhongnan Sect’s master, Benevolent Hero Bulgi.

How great a martial artist he was could be understood just by seeing him standing in the poison zone where others couldn’t approach.

“Benevolent Hero senior…”

Yeong-woon cupped his fists with trembling hands.

Benevolent Hero Bulgi nodded at Yeong-woon while holding a plain long sword behind him with both hands as if clasping them behind his back.

“You must be Yeong-woon from Wudang Sect.”

“Is, is that corpse there… really Brother Pyo?”

“That’s right.”

“Brother… Pyo…”

Yeong-woon stood dazed, and So-min sat down while covering her mouth.

They couldn’t believe the fact that Pyo Sang-guk was dead.

So-min shook her head.

“It can’t be. It can’t be. It can’t be Brother Pyo. I can’t believe it.”

Benevolent Hero Bulgi shook his head watching So-min who couldn’t accept it.

“Pitifully… it’s natural to find it hard to believe. Anyone would feel that way.”

At Bulgi’s comforting words, So-min finally burst into tears.

Yeong-woon swallowed dry saliva and asked.

“Was it Poison Dragon’s doing?”

“It appears so.”

Bulgi took a few steps toward the corpse then stopped. He maintained a distance of five or six steps from Pyo Sang-guk’s corpse.

Near Pyo Sang-guk’s corpse, birds and beasts were also dead.

“Flying birds fell and died, and mountain beasts that caught the scent while passing also died. This scattered everywhere must be Asura Blood, Poison Dragon’s poison.”

“Why…”

Yeong-woon also couldn’t believe it.

“But the technique is different. Poison Dragon uses Soul Seizing Thread and Asura Blood. This kind of internal energy technique isn’t Poison Dragon’s method.”

“Well, you could think that way too.”

“I know from watching beside him. Brother Jin isn’t that kind of person.”

“Brother Jin?”

Bulgi’s eyebrows slightly frowned. But they soon relaxed as Bulgi nodded.

“Right. That’s possible.”

“Senior! Though it may be presumptuous, there must have been circumstances.”

“Circumstances… you could think that way. Perhaps because you’re from Wudang Sect, your heart is generous.”

“Senior, that’s not what I meant…”

“It’s fine. That’s possible.”

The Benevolent Hero nodded and said.

“But questions remain. Poison Dragon met with Yangtze River Sword Sect before Sang-guk died. Could that really be a coincidence?”

“Pardon?”

“And red and blue flowers are blooming on Sang-guk’s body. Tell me, isn’t this Red Extinction Flower, a poisoning symptom of Asura Blood?”

Red Extinction Flower!

Yeong-woon could no longer say anything. Red Extinction Flower was the most direct evidence of Asura Blood.

So-min said through tears.

“Young Master Jin isn’t that kind of person.”

“That’s possible. But from what I see, it seems to be Poison Dragon. Looking at the irregular bloody footprints, the culprit was limping.”

Yeong-woon suddenly remembered something and said.

“You said Asura Blood was scattered everywhere? Brother Jin doesn’t use Asura Blood that way!”

“That’s right. That’s possible. But this is a kind of warning.”

“A… warning?”

“He deliberately revealed that he killed him.”

“Is there a reason to deliberately reveal that…?”

Yeong-woon started speaking but couldn’t properly finish his words after seeing Pyo Sang-guk’s gruesome corpse.

“Poison Dragon conveyed what he wanted to say to us through Sang-guk.”

“What did he say?”

“Before dying, Sang-guk released a messenger bird to inform about Poison Dragon. By killing Sang-guk, it’s a warning not to interfere with his affairs. No, at this point, it’s not a warning but a declaration of war.”

“Senior! We know enough about Brother Jin too. If he had such intentions, he would have killed us too…”

At that moment, Bulgi’s figure suddenly disappeared.

With a whoosh of wind, Bulgi appeared in front of Yeong-woon.

Bulgi’s thin eyes, which had been in a smiling expression, opened to reveal bloodshot eyes.

Chilling killing intent was emitted.

Bang!

Yeong-woon was hit in the chest by palm wind and tumbled backward. Bulgi had suddenly thrown a palm strike while keeping his hands behind his back.

“Ugh!”

Yeong-woon spat out a clump of blood. It wasn’t just to frighten him but contained killing intent!

So-min hurriedly supported Yeong-woon. Yeong-woon looked up at Bulgi with an incredulous expression while bleeding.

“Se, senior!”

Coincidentally, both Yeong-woon and Bulgi used the character for benevolence (仁) in their nicknames, but their contents were completely different.

Bulgi was famous for not saying unpleasant things to others. However, once he acted, no one could stop him. He finished off anyone, regardless of who they were.

Therefore, those who knew Bulgi naturally became respectful in front of him. Bulgi became the Benevolent Hero precisely because he originally had no reason to get angry.

He was different from Yeong-woon, who was naturally kind-hearted.

But Yeong-woon persisted until the end.

“I will investigate! I swear on Wudang’s honor to find out what happened…”

“You could say that. You could say such things.”

Bulgi said with bloodshot eyes.

“But Poison Dragon joined hands with Yangtze River Sword Sect and scattered Asura Blood all over Sang-guk’s corpse. What more confirmation is needed? Do you see Zhongnan as so laughable that we’d stay quiet even after being treated like this?”

“That’s not it!”

“That’s possible. Well, you could think that way. But you know what? What you just said reminded me.”

Bulgi revealed killing intent with his seemingly smiling lip shape and said.

“You’re from Wudang Sect, right? Which belongs to Yangtze River Sword Sect.”

Bulgi rushed again and kicked Yeong-woon. So-min bit her lips tightly and blocked the way with her body. Bulgi grabbed So-min’s shoulder with one hand while holding his sword behind his back with the other. So-min interfered by blocking Bulgi’s hand with Grappling Technique.

Bulgi kicked So-min’s knee hollow and pressed her nape to subdue her, then spun her around and pushed her aside. So-min tried to resist with Thousand Pound Drop technique, but Bulgi cleverly shook So-min back and forth to make her lose balance and simply pushed her away. So-min staggered backward and sat down.

With the interference gone, Bulgi immediately ran and kicked Yeong-woon.

Yeong-woon, who was kneeling and prostrate, hastily blocked with his hands. He tried to fix Bulgi’s foot with Taiji Quan’s Grasping Hands and remove force from his body to deflect Bulgi’s attack.

Bulgi twisted his ankle. Yeong-woon’s hands spread apart and Bulgi’s toes penetrated between his hands.

Crack!

Ribs broke.

Bulgi immediately pulled back his toes and struck Yeong-woon’s chest with his heel. Yeong-woon couldn’t keep up with the changes that occurred in the blink of an eye.

Bang!

The force in the foot was considerable. Yeong-woon rolled more than ten times and fell.

Multiple ribs were broken and his organs were ruined. His internal injuries were severe.

Yeong-woon vomited clumps of blood several times.

“Se, senior…!”

Bulgi pointed his sword sheath at Yeong-woon, who couldn’t even get up.

“Go. I’ll spare you today.”

Yeong-woon couldn’t even think of wiping his face mixed with blood and saliva and shouted with all his strength.

“What are you saying! Wudang and Zhongnan Sect aren’t enemies!”

Bulgi hid his bloodshot eyes and returned to his original expression.

A seemingly smiling, benevolent expression.

However, his words were different from his expression again.

“From this moment, we are enemies.”

Yeong-woon was dumbfounded.

Bulgi, Zhongnan Sect, turned around as if they had been waiting.

* * *

“Zhongnan Sect has sent word that they wish to join the Righteousness Association.”

Sim Hak reported in a crawling voice. Behind him, he looked at Mang-ryo with an anxious expression.

“It really… happened as the advisor said.”

Mang-ryo chuckled and said.

“Zhongnan Sect was originally on the sword pavilion master’s side. If you just give them appropriate justification, they’ll all come.”

“Hmm. Well, Zhongnan Sect aside, I never thought Yangtze River Sword Sect would split so easily…”

All Mang-ryo had done was pressure Yangtze River Sword Sect’s member sects in the name of the Righteousness Association. With that, the Zhuge family, Murong family, Jiangdong’s Three Great Sword Sects and others moved from Yangtze River Sword Sect to the Righteousness Association.

“Even so, I don’t understand why those who followed Taoist Haewol would withdraw from Yangtze River Sword Sect.”

“Outwardly, we’re the ones following Taoist Haewol’s will. Not Yangtze River Sword Sect. Since Taoist Haewol has denied his relationship with Yangtze River Sword Sect, the justification for legitimacy actually lies with us.”

“But Taoist Haewol is still alive…”

“Only we know that Taoist Haewol is alive and well. The martial world doesn’t know. Rather than staying attached to the declining Yangtze River Sword Sect and getting beaten up, everyone’s watching the situation and moving with the tide.”

Mang-ryo looked at Baek Li-jung and said.

“Congratulations on becoming the trend.”

Baek Li-jung was cold.

“Still not enough.”

“Right. Then it seems it’s finally time for me to step forward. I was about to die from frustration all this time. Give me some useful and trustworthy, but expendable guys.”

Sim Hak waved his hands in panic.

“No, the one who tried to assassinate the martial alliance leader coming to the forefront to do what! I absolutely oppose that!”

Mang-ryo said calmly.

“Though we’ve become the trend, the sword pavilion master’s influence is still weak. Though he said he’d use force, there’s a lot of burden to use direct force. Soon there will be those who don’t know their place and act up.”

“Then what are you going to do?”

“Beat up those who don’t listen.”

“That’s exactly why you can’t do it!”

Baek Ri-jung cut off Sim Hak’s words.

“What’s your plan?”

Mang-ryo smiled.

“I’m going to create a following force for the Righteousness Association.”

Sim Hak looked at Mang-ryo incredulously.

Mang-ryo chuckled.

“Mad dogs have to run wild so people go ‘Oh my, it’s hot!’ and move to avoid getting burned. Since I’m already going crazy because of that damn Crimson Hero Group, I’ll probably be able to run wild like a proper madman.”