Chapter 249 – Punishment, Fate (6)

The Radiant Demon Wing surrounded a bed draped in blue silk. It was the most luxurious and spacious room in the inn’s private annex.

A painting of the Ten Symbols of Longevity, brought by Baek Mi-ryeo and Hyeon Won-chang, adorned the space with an antique charm—featuring the sun, mountains, white cranes, and turtles.

They gazed silently at Jeong Yeon-shin, who slept more soundly than ever before.

His face was serene.

His thick, neat eyebrows remained still. Unlike his gracefully prominent nose, his lightly closed lips lacked color, appearing pale.

The sight of the boy asleep was strikingly beautiful, yet it was hard to discern the vigor of the Radiant Demon Wing Leader in him.

Only in unconsciousness did his age-appropriate features fully reveal themselves. Such was the nature of an unparalleled supreme master.

Baek Mi-ryeo, her eyes sharp, parted her lips.

“He overdid it.”

“Indeed.”

Cheong Myeong replied with an expressionless face.

Baek Mi-ryeo’s slender fingers brushed back the hair near her ears.

“Ghost White Divine Sword’s caliber was too high. For a newly appointed black-rank to defeat an elder overseer of Tyrant Sword Sect was no ordinary feat. It’s an achievement worthy of the name.”

“For a second black-rank mission, it’s more than enough. The rewards will be staggering, won’t they? Xiangyang is quite far, but once word reaches the main fortress, everyone will be in an uproar.”

Hyeon Won-chang joined the two seniors’ conversation, adjusting the heroic headband between his brows.

“I hear he hasn’t even claimed the rewards from the last mission. I wonder what all this accumulation will bring.”

“Why are we talking about other things? The squad leader’s collapsed.”

A voice with a completely different tone interjected. It was Lazy Flame Dragon, standing with arms crossed in a corner, his words blunt. The shadows beneath his eyes were unusually dark.

The Radiant Demon Wing members did not respond. They couldn’t help but harbor ominous speculations.

Their squad leader had once spoken of his lifespan. They couldn’t shake the doubt that perhaps he had miscalculated it.

Even considering the varied aftereffects of battles between masters, it lingered.

Lightning Genius lived a sharply limited life.

The heavens, having cut his lifeline short, had granted him boundless talent. Though Lazy Flame Dragon’s situation resembled Jeong Yeon-shin’s, the scale and nature of their manifested talents differed.

There was no time to seek counsel. He was, after all, ignorant of such matters.

“Wouldn’t it be better to talk about something positive rather than just watching him lie there limp? He might hear it and wake up sooner.”

Cheong Myeong said with a faint smile.

A brief silence fell. The chirping of a winter cuckoo outside the window grew louder.

Had it failed to migrate south? It seemed to symbolize Radiant Demon Wing’s plight. The absence of a supreme master was keenly felt.

From a conqueror’s position, they were now surrounded by the domain of evil factions.

Fan Dragon Zhuge Xian had left before the regional magistrate arrived, saying he needed to report the events to the Hanzhong Martial Alliance swiftly.

Sword Dragon Wi Ji-myo-hwa remained at Jang Ki-il’s Little White Sect, a secular branch of Zhongnan.

Only Radiant Demon Wing remained.

Soon after.

Baek Mi-ryeo’s lips moved slightly.

“We’ll secure Zhongnan disciple Jeong Hye’s safety.”

“Is that the right move? Just us? Shouldn’t we focus on the squad leader first? This isn’t some seven great sects nonsense—it’s facing the Thirteen Evil Sects head-on.”

Lazy Flame Dragon, hands clasped behind his neck, asked languidly.

Cheong Myeong, glancing at Jeong Yeon-shin’s face, rose from his seat.

“We don’t know when our squad leader will wake. There’s no guarantee his niece is still detained only in Shaanxi. We have to try. We can’t just discard the clue we worked so hard to obtain.”

“We’ll need to strike and retreat somehow.”

Hyeon Won-chang muttered.

***

Read only at nineheavens.org

Translated by Nine Heavens!

https://discord.gg/XC9DTsTQ9Z

***

A manor backed by towering mountains.

The plaque above the gate bore the bold inscription “Zhongming Escort Agency.”

Countless people and goods moved through it.

The bustle was just as loud.

The sounds of wheels from various carts and carriages rolling over stone paths, the clattering of wooden frames, and the footsteps of hundreds of warriors and laborers in well-made leather boots filled the air. It belied the famine entirely.

“…”

Yet no voices rang out. Everyone remained silent.

The natural silence felt oddly unnatural as they carried loads, wrote manifests, entered the manor, or left without even stepping over the threshold.

It was the Shaanxi branch of “Yu Ling,” disguised as an escort agency.

Among the Thirteen Evil Sects, it handled the most information. The widely accepted view was that it should be regarded as a Hao Sect with the might of a major sect.

In silence, they laid bare the depths of the martial world and manipulated its currents to their will.

Rumors even circulated that it was the Yu Ling Leader who had incited the Tyrant Sword Sect Leader to annihilate Zhongnan Sect.

Few could speak within Zhongming Escort Agency.

Only the branch leader, doubling as the agency head, and a handful of subordinates had that privilege.

A room as bright as if bathed in sunlight, despite being the agency’s core.

It lay beneath the glow of hanging lanterns. Five people sat around a single map. Each exuded faint energy waves.

Masters who had trained in secret techniques, wielding silent sword energy even in fierce battles. They were Yu Ling’s elite.

“There’s a rumor that a dragon ascended from the coast of Honghua Prefecture in Fujian.”

[TL Note- I’m not sure which place is this reference to. While Fujian Province exists, there’s no place called Honghua.]

A subordinate clad in black reported.

“Isn’t the martial world’s take different?”

“Yes, though it’s hard to accept as human strength, they say it seemed like some explosive force. As if a god of monstrous power truly existed.”

“Think of the Ming’s founding. The sect leader said there’s little exaggeration in the ‘Great Ming Chronicles’. Anything can happen in this world.”

“They say the coastal docks are under imperial control. It looks like they’re waiting for someone…”

“It must be a Desolate Fortress master. The imperial family’s peerless experts don’t meddle in rough affairs. For an event of that scale, it’d be a purple-rank… but the only purple-rank left in Desolate Fortress is the Divine Sword Group Leader, right? Though he’s currently… well, their branch over there will figure it out.”

A middle-aged man in a yellow merchant robe rambled. Yet no one found him laughable. The tension only thickened.

Wei Ke-xiang, Shaanxi’s top demon.

He was Yu Ling’s Shaanxi branch leader.

After slaughtering hundreds of commoners seeking farmland beyond their villages, he became known as the foremost demon of this fertile land.

With his bizarre martial arts, he evaded even Desolate Fortress’s pursuit teams effortlessly.

A practitioner of demonic arts distinct from the Ming Cult’s Xinjiang lineage. Colorless energy waves flickered constantly from his still form, a perpetual shimmer.

A power surge unleashed only within Zhongming Escort Agency, it proved a strength akin to a mountain deity.

“By the way.”

He spoke again.

“I hear Tyrant Sword Sect’s sword lunatics are picking fights over trivial matters.”

At that, a woman beside him smirked. She wore a green jeweled sword at her side, just like Wei Ke-xiang.

“You mean that kid you took in? The little one with the stunning looks… what about her?”

“Her talent and origins are extraordinary, so I took her as a disciple.”

The woman nodded at Shaanxi’s top demon’s reply.

“Of course that’s how it should be. The last disciple taken in by the Zhongnan Sword Immortal in his twilight years… what other reason would that fearsome old man have for disrupting the hierarchy? The kid’s intellect must be exceptional. As long as you don’t devour her, she’ll grow into a useful master. Didn’t you carry her out when you broke through the Plum Blossom Sword Formation for that very reason?”

“That’s not all.”

“Then what?”

“Her uncle. There’s a god of monstrous power in Desolate Fortress, isn’t there? I was skeptical even after receiving intel from headquarters, but he openly appeared in nearby Hanzhong and dominated the Alliance-Opening War. Not even twenty years old.”

The woman shook her head.

“If it’s about the Radiant Demon Wing Leader, I’m getting tired of it. It’s been the talk of Shaanxi for more than a day or two.”

“He’s different from Ming Cult’s young leader. It’s not something that should be possible. It’s enough to raise questions about that bloodline. Even I feel it. Never mind that Henan’s Jeong Family was once a third-rate martial family. The sword lunatics claiming ownership late makes sense. Before being my disciple, she’s a captive, isn’t she?”

“With Shaanxi’s top demon holding her close, isn’t that settled? Few places in the world are safer than that.”

“You’re right.”

Suddenly, Wei Ke-xiang, in his yellow robe, drew his sword upward. The orange glow of the lantern on the wall surged along the blade, only to shatter with the ceiling under the force of his sword energy.

A thunderous crash!

“I knew something felt off!”

A handsome young man sprang from the ceiling. His steps, using the sword energy as a foothold, were extraordinary.

Traces of a noble family’s teachings shone through, refined techniques evident in his free movements.

“Jade Algae Heavenly King Step. That wastrel from the Hwangbo Clan, huh. I thought a rat was eavesdropping.”

Wei Ke-xiang, Shaanxi’s top demon, muttered.

In an instant, his subordinates and the woman scattered, crashing through the walls in all directions. They anticipated the aftermath of his single step.

He lifted his foot calmly from where he stood and brought it down. Dark currents streamed from his sole.

Heavenly Tomb Demon Technique—Sovereign Rule.

A heavy step.

The moment his leather boot touched the ground, the surroundings turned pitch black.

There was no explosion. The structures in all directions turned to ash and collapsed in an instant. The range was absurdly vast.

Through the swirling gray dust, the mountain landscape outside emerged. It was an energy wave akin to a supernatural feat. Worthy of being called divine might.

Wei Ke-xiang tilted his head upward.

Lazy Flame Dragon’s form was fully exposed in the gaping sky. He had planned with his Radiant Demon Wing comrades to draw the enemy supreme master’s attention.

While Cheong Myeong and Hyeon Won-chang, swift with their movement techniques, searched for Jeong Hye, he would hold out, even briefly.

He had deliberately made his presence known. A comrade had been spotted from afar. If he couldn’t pin down Wei Ke-xiang, it would all be over.

“Intruders! At least twenty!”

“They’re strong! Don’t clash blades recklessly!”

More Radiant Demon Wing masters stormed in. The manor’s walls crumbled, and metallic clangs echoed. The raid commenced in a flash.

“Some decently strong ones… dared to trespass where they shouldn’t.”

Shaanxi’s top demon raised his sword and spoke.

“Die.”

***

Jeong Yeon-shin grasped the situation the moment he awoke.

He had collapsed from overexerting his opened upper dantian. The crown point at the top of his head was directly linked to the blood flow in his mind.

Having scrutinized every detail of a seasoned supreme master like Ghost White Divine Sword without time to adjust to his newly devised eye technique, it was no wonder his head bore an immense burden.

“Losing consciousness once in the martial world speeds everything up.”

He recalled being carried by the Desolate Fortress Lord at Blood Flame Sect’s main base.

Jeong Yeon-shin rose belatedly and stepped outside.

He brushed off Shin So-bin and Kang Chang-mu, who had been tending to him by the bedside, and learned of recent events through their accounts and a prompting glance.

He dashed out immediately.

A fierce whoosh!

A powerful gust wrapped around his thighs. The colorless energy waves of the Wind Body movement technique surged more violently than ever.

Though he hadn’t yet created a formal lightness skill, it transformed into tremendous propulsion. He instinctively adjusted his body movement into a running technique.

A sharp crack!

The ground pushed firmly beneath his feet. Ignoring the accumulated pain throughout his body, Jeong Yeon-shin sprinted relentlessly.

Even as his body began to convulse, his speed didn’t falter, not even climbing the mountain. The faint dawn sunlight gradually brightened.

It was called Huiling Mountain in Fengxiang Prefecture. As a black-rank of Desolate Fortress, he had memorized its detailed geography.

“There.”

His vision opened wide between the mountain ridges.

Smoke rose in several plumes from a manor nestled in the mountains.

It seemed to be Yu Ling’s hideout. Unfamiliar warriors clashed in life-or-death struggles with his familiar comrades. The fighting was fierce across the area.

Boom! Thud!

The air trembled. It was the collision of explosive energy waves. A blade dance rivaling a sect war unfolded. White energy bursts of the Radiant Arts Technique erupted everywhere.

It was already a battlefield. He prioritized assessing the situation.

Jeong Yeon-shin first sought out the overwhelmingly powerful energy wave.

A swordsman in a yellow robe was relentlessly overpowering Radiant Demon Wing masters.

He stood over six feet tall. His pitch-black eyes brimmed with arrogance.

He swung his sword with playful flicks of his yellow sleeves, the energy waves from the blade carving deep furrows like a compressed typhoon.

Despite being surrounded by over a dozen blue-rank masters like Baek Mi-ryeo and Cheong Myeong in a rotating battle, they were steadily pushed back. The ground rumbled as if struck by an earthquake.

At their side, Lazy Flame Dragon lay unconscious at the feet of two white-clad warriors. One was Zhuge Qing-ya.

The moment they got in his sight.

A heavy step.

Jeong Yeon-shin stood next to Lazy Flame Dragon’s head. He endured the sharp internal and external injuries gripping his body.

He reached with his left hand toward Lazy Flame Dragon’s chest. His arm blurred momentarily. In the realm of supreme masters, he snatched a cluster of flowers and pulled it back.

Zhuge Qing-ya, standing nearby, showed a rare look of panic.

“Squad Leader…?”

Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t respond.

He held a bright red poppy and bit into it. The crimson petals crushed between his lips.

Glaring at the enemies now before him, he slowly chewed even the stem.

With inner energy, he stirred his stomach’s vigor. The Luminous Wheel Technique’s power spread the drug’s effects instantly. A sensation like being enveloped in clouds was intensely addictive.

Jeong Yeon-shin thought to himself. So this is what it feels like.

“Spread out to the sides. When I break through the center, widen the penetration path. Leave Lazy Flame Dragon be.”

Lightning Genius, the Radiant Demon Wing Leader, spoke through gritted teeth. The trembling in his sword-wielding right hand gradually ceased.

Conversely, the black hem of his robe began to flutter as the energy waves of the Wind Body movement technique enveloped him.

The energy streams flowing from his body swirled endlessly like sword energy.

“Just one step to him.”

In that moment, the surrounding air rippled. The enemies, charging toward this new foe, faltered.

Jeong Yeon-shin bit into another poppy petal between his lips. The surroundings briefly fell silent.

He looked utterly possessed. An overwhelming combat stance began to spread stillness across the battlefield.