Chapter 116

Chapter 116: The One Who Walks Alone—The Solitary Path (1)

Two rumors swept across the realm.

The first concerned the Demonic Cult's intrusion into the gathering of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families.

The Demonic Cult's reappearance sent shockwaves through the martial world.

Though they had vanished from the world for decades, the terror they inspired remained deeply etched in people's minds. The news of their return stimulated that primal fear.

Their martial prowess, displayed when they had crashed the gathering, was nothing short of terrifying.

Among the fallen was Elder Yu Jin-sang of the Diancang Sect, along with countless others. The power displayed by the one known as the Golden Demon Lion was beyond belief.

He was a supreme master who wielded ki energy at will.

None of the masters who had attended the gathering could match him. Not even Sage Cheong-heo of the Wudang Sect.

People despaired at the Demonic Cult's return.

Now that they had revealed themselves, a full-scale invasion was only a matter of time. As they had in the past, they would once again drench the Central Plains in blood.

As the Demonic Cult's invasion drew closer to reality, people trembled in fear.

It was in this climate that the second rumor spread.

It concerned the Fist Demon, Dam Ho.

The rumor flew like wildfire: the Demonic Cult forces that had crashed the gathering and committed massacre had been routed by Dam Ho alone.

The Fist Demon—also called the Divine Stronghold Blood Sage.

Not a single rumor about him was ordinary.

In the Divine Stronghold, he had annihilated the Western Heavens Mountain Manor. In the martial world, he had killed the sect leader of the Xingshan Sect. And now, he had stood against the Demonic Cult intruders at the Azure Sun Sword Sect.

People were deeply confused by his unpredictable movements. But one thing was certain.

He was not a member of the Demonic Cult.

That alone brought people a sigh of relief. If he had been a Demonic Cult member, it would have been a catastrophe of the highest order.

Amid this, a quiet rumor began to spread: the Fist Demon was, in fact, a disciple of the Mount Hua Sect. People were curious about the truth, but the Taoists of the Mount Hua Sect, and even the disciples of the Nine Great Sects, kept their lips firmly sealed.

The events at the Azure Sun Sword Sect were, from the perspective of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, an inescapable humiliation.

The humiliation suffered by the Zhongnan Sect was particularly disgraceful. Rumors circulated that the Zhongnan Sect was harboring a grudge against Dam Ho.

But given the current state of affairs, they could not show it openly.

The one who walked alone, compromising with no one.

Perhaps that was why his martial arts came to be called the Solitary Path.

Dam Ho had thus become a legend.

After the Demonic Cult's reappearance, the formation of the Martial Alliance accelerated rapidly.

No one questioned the need for the Martial Alliance anymore. It had to be created.

Not only the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, but sects from all over began voluntarily offering to join.

The establishment of the Martial Alliance proceeded immediately.

First, the Azure Sun Sword Sect voluntarily donated its site.

A hill overlooking Dongting Lake—it was a truly optimal location. As if they had been waiting, the Eun Family Guard donated the initial construction costs.

The Medical Virtue Sect dispatched support personnel, and martial artists from across the Central Plains gathered to join the Martial Alliance of their own accord.

The Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, along with numerous other sects, dispatched large numbers of elite fighters.

As the Martial Alliance's establishment was progressing smoothly, Dam Ho vanished from Azure Sun without a trace.

Countless people tracked Dam Ho's whereabouts. But his trail was not found. Still, people stubbornly pursued any trace of him.

The Fist Demon, Dam Ho, was worth pursuing.

Whatever anyone said, he was the current eye of the martial world's greatest storm. Depending on the choice he made, the entire situation of the martial world could shift dramatically.

Not only the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, but the entire martial world was watching his movements.

"So a Martial Alliance is being established at Azure Sun?"

"That is correct."

"That is not good."

At his subordinate's answer, a man in his early fifties frowned.

A long scar, as though carved by a blade, ran across his left cheek. It gave him an exceedingly sinister appearance.

At his waist hung a large wolf saber. The handle, worn smooth by years of use, gleamed with the patina of long handling.

Ordinarily, once a man passed fifty, no matter how fierce he had been, his gaze would soften somewhat. But this man was different.

Even past fifty, the undying flame of fierce ambition burned in his eyes. It made his countenance all the more intense.

The man's name was Cho Yun-san.

His true identity was the stronghold lord of the Black Water Fortress, one of the Green Forest's Eighteen Fortresses.

In the Green Forest, his epithet was the Mad Blood Wolf Lord.

When he first entered the Green Forest, no one paid him any attention.

Every year, countless people entered the Green Forest, and many died. It was a savage place—a land of survival of the fittest.

The weak could not survive, and even the strong, if they let their guard down, could not guarantee the next day.

Cho Yun-san had started at the very bottom of the Green Forest, in the small mountain fortress of Black Water. But before long, he had distinguished himself like an awl poking through a sack.

Where he shone most was in the very thing that defined the Green Forest—robbery. He raided trading caravans and escort agencies, seizing enormous quantities of wealth.

He quickly caught the eye of the stronghold lord and soon became his most trusted aide. A few years later, he became the lord of Black Water Fortress.

After Cho Yun-san became stronghold lord, Black Water Fortress grew and grew. It expanded its power terrifyingly, eventually earning a place among the Eighteen Fortresses that represented the Green Forest. That had been a few years ago.

An ordinary Green Forest bandit would have been satisfied at this point. But Cho Yun-san's ambition was vast.

He was not content to be merely one of eighteen stronghold lords. He wished to become the supreme leader of the Green Forest.

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, his ultimate goal was to become the Green Forest's supreme leader.

Cho Yun-san walked to the window.

The panorama of Black Water Fortress unfolded before his eyes.

A massive log fence encircled the grounds, with over twenty mountain strongholds huddled within. There was a large open ground where hundreds could gather at once, and a well that never ran dry even in the most severe drought.

This was a natural fortress. And it was the place Cho Yun-san had cultivated with painstaking effort for over a decade. Over a thousand Green Forest bandits resided here at all times.

With this level of force, Black Water Fortress could certainly be counted among the top ranks even within the Eighteen Fortresses.

Cho Yun-san murmured, "To topple the supreme leader, I need a powerful faction."

Black Water Fortress was strong, but the Overlord Fortress, led by supreme leader Hwang Gyeong-mun, was stronger.

As long as the Green Forest's greatest masters remained stationed at the Overlord Fortress, there was no way to bring it down through conventional means.

"That's why I must capture that girl. If I can take her hostage, I can certainly shake that old man."

"But that girl is protected by Muk Il-gwang, said to be the strongest master of the Dragon Ascension Guard. No ordinary force could even get close to her."

"That's why we must use our heads."

At his subordinate's words, Cho Yun-san's eyes glinted sharply. It was the wild, mad light that matched his title—the Mad Blood Wolf Lord.

"She is in Azure Sun, you said?"

"Yes."

"And a Martial Alliance is being built at Azure Sun?"

"That is correct."

"Hmm!"

Cho Yun-san stroked his chin.

His mind raced furiously.

Soon, a plan came to him.

"Isn't there a vice stronghold lord near Azure Sun?"

"Yes! He is out monitoring the movements of the Mount Hua Sect's Taoists."

"Deliver my letter to the vice stronghold lord and tell him to go to Azure Sun."

"Understood."

The subordinate answered without a moment's hesitation.

Cho Yun-san's eyes glinted coldly.

'I should have killed that girl back then.'