Chapter 181

Chapter 181: The Winds of Chaos Blow from the North (3)

Dam Ho's eyes were as deep and dark as Geom-yul-cheon's. So impenetrable that one could never read what lay beneath.

"Geom… yul-cheon?"

It was a name he had certainly heard before, somewhere. But he could not readily recall where.

Watching Dam Ho's face as he seemed to search his memory, Geom-yul-cheon wore an expression of interest.

"You know of me?"

"Perhaps."

"How intriguing. There are fewer than ten people in the world who know my name."

His expression was leisurely, his tone soft, as though he had come for a casual stroll. To an outsider, the atmosphere might have seemed friendly enough to mistake them for close acquaintances. But the aura emanating from his body was anything but gentle.

In that instant, a memory flashed through Dam Ho's mind.

"Heaven… Vault Jade."

The place where he had been imprisoned for twelve years.

A single line of text carved into its walls.

[Geom-yul-cheon, here buries his friends.]

He had gazed upon those words for twelve years, so the memory remained vivid.

In that moment, a crack appeared in Geom-yul-cheon's previously composed face.

"You were in the Heaven Vault Jade?"

"You lost many friends there."

Geom-yul-cheon nodded.

For a brief while, as he sifted through old memories, his gaze sank to unfathomable depths. Long-suppressed memories resurfaced with startling clarity.

"Some ten years ago, I heard the Heaven Vault Jade collapsed. I also heard that a young Taoist of the Mount Hua Sect failed to escape in time and was buried beneath the rubble."

"……"

"So it was you."

Dam Ho and Geom-yul-cheon's gazes met in midair.

Dam Ho's eyes rippled. The turbulent light in them was so ferocious that an ordinary man would not dare meet it head-on. Yet Geom-yul-cheon showed not the slightest flinch.

"That must have been difficult. I know from experience—the life inside the Heaven Vault Jade is far from easy."

"……"

"There is no need to be so wary. I am not your enemy. At least, not now. In fact, I should be grateful to you. Thanks to you and the Divine Physician, I am about to be restored."

"……"

"My youngest is about to awaken. Now that the Divine Physician has succeeded in his recovery, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief."

"The Rebirth?"

"I had him take a rare elixir called the Five Yin Divine Pill beforehand. It would have been useless while he was still in a weakened state, but now that his meridians have been restored, it will produce the fullest effect. That he has been reborn is something even I did not expect."

"You used Jong Ri-yeon."

"It was the only way. If I wished to save the youngest."

"Do you care for him deeply?"

"He shares no blood with me, yet he is no different from my own flesh and blood."

"He must be from the Heaven Vault Jade as well."

At Dam Ho's words, Geom-yul-cheon's brow twitched slightly. But he admitted it readily.

"That is correct!"

"There appear to be a few others as well."

"……"

This time, it was Geom-yul-cheon who fell silent.

Dam Ho asked again.

"Is Eum Yu-gyeong among them as well?"

"Ha! I underestimated you. You are truly perceptive—to connect even Yu-gyeong to this."

"Is that right?"

"It is! She is my most fervent supporter."

"There was also a man called Shin Mu-wol."

"Ha! Blast it! You've turned my pockets inside out. That is correct! He is the third. I told them to be careful."

Geom-yul-cheon scratched his head vigorously with his large hand, muttering complaints.

Dam Ho's gaze sank deeply.

Eum Yu-gyeong, Shin Mu-wol, and Myeong-cheon—all followed Geom-yul-cheon. None among them was ordinary.

"What are you, the leader of the Demonic Cult?"

"I am not! If anything, I am one of those who despise the Cult Leader."

"Why?"

"Because I do not wish for chaos to engulf the world."

"You are not asking me to believe you, are you?"

"Whether you believe me or not is of no consequence. As I said, time will bring you to believe regardless."

"How absurd."

Geom-yul-cheon's gaze darkened.

He had detected the rough killing intent contained in Dam Ho's voice.

'He truly is a beast.'

When Eum Yu-gyeong had told him about Dam Ho, he had thought some of it was exaggerated. But facing him now, Dam Ho's presence was even more savage and menacing than the stories had suggested.

"Whether you believe me or not changes nothing. As I said, time will make things clear."

"You will not be given that time."

Crack!

Dam Ho stepped toward Geom-yul-cheon.

The roof tile beneath his foot shattered like dust.

Scrape! Thud! Scrape! Thud!

Dam Ho dragged one foot as he approached. An unbearable pressure, as if plunging into the depths of the sea, crushed down upon Geom-yul-cheon's entire body.

Geom-yul-cheon's expression shifted subtly.

'Just as I heard.'

He did not know how Dam Ho had attained such strength from within the Heaven Vault Jade. But his power surpassed anything Geom-yul-cheon had imagined.

'Can I manage in my current condition?'

Geom-yol-cheon briefly assessed his own state.

Dam Ho's savage killing intent made his skin feel as though it were being gouged with an awl. Even for Geom-yul-cheon, this was the first time he had experienced such killing intent.

It made his flesh tremble more than facing Shaolin's One Hundred and Eight Arhat Formation.

'If it is this man…'

Geom-yul-cheon's eyes gleamed.

It felt as though a single ray of light had pierced the darkness where no exit could be found.

Having steeled his resolve, Geom-yul-cheon gripped the saber hanging at his waist.

Shing!

The smooth blade revealed itself in the darkness. It was a weapon crafted by a renowned master with painstaking care. The saber had no name. What mattered to Geom-yul-cheon was not the name of the blade, but whether it was sturdy enough to withstand his internal energy.

Thud!

In that instant, Dam Ho kicked off the roof tiles.

The force of the impact caused the ceiling of the mansion beneath his feet to collapse entirely.

Crash!

A storm surged inward.

The veins on Geom-yul-cheon's hand bulged as he gripped the hilt.

"Hyah!"

Whoosh!

Geom-yul-cheon's saber cleaved through the air.

Blood Slaughter Rain.

A technique that had once toppled Shaolin's legendary One Hundred and Eight Arhat Formation now unfolded toward Dam Ho.

Crash!

Sword energy rained down like a downpour.

In that instant, Dam Ho's body blurred. His protective shield had activated. Like the wings of a beetle, his body trembled violently.

And upon that trembling form, the rain of sword energy poured down.

Th-th-thud!

Dam Ho's body shook violently.

His hair became disheveled, and blood burst from his nose and mouth. His eyes, ruptured capillaries rendering them a deep crimson, looked as though they might burst at any moment.

The sword energy that struck Dam Ho directly was deflected or dissipated. The energy had been blocked, but the physical impact accumulated within his body.

His organs resonated, and his qi and blood surged. Yet Dam Ho did not stop his charge.

Breaking through the rain of sword energy, Geom-yul-cheon came into view.

The Fortress Breaking Fist was unleashed.

Geom-yul-cheon bit down hard on his lip.

It was too late to dodge.

'Can I withstand it?'

The saber in his grip was on the verge of breaking. But Geom-yul-cheon had no choice.

He swung the blade with everything he had.

Dam Ho's fist and Geom-yul-cheon's saber collided.

BOOM!

In that instant, the compressed air burst outward with a deafening report.

The storm that swept in all directions demolished the mansion and devastated the area.

From the dust that rose in thick clouds, Geom-yul-cheon's voice echoed.

"Friend! We shall meet again."

Immediately after, Geom-yul-cheon soared over ten zhang into the sky. Rising like a divine dragon, he then sliced through the air like a meteor and vanished in the blink of an eye.

Dam Ho stood with clenched fist, watching him go.

Blood dripped from his hand, and at his feet lay the shattered fragments of the saber.

Geom-yul-cheon's saber had failed to endure Dam Ho's Fortress Breaking Fist and had broken.

Pssss!

Intense heat radiated from Dam Ho's entire body, and his eyes blazed with ferocity.

The power displayed by the two men in this place was truly matched.

Just as Dam Ho had not revealed everything, Geom-yul-cheon had not fought at full strength either.

If one had to call it, it would be a draw.

After gazing for a time at the place where Geom-yul-cheon had vanished, Dam Ho turned and walked toward Myeong-cheon's house.

The area where Dam Ho and Geom-yul-cheon had clashed was devastated as though a thunderbolt had struck. Nearly a dozen mansions had collapsed, raising only clouds of dust.

With this level of destruction, everyone in the vicinity should have perished. Yet strangely, no corpses lay among the rubble.

Myeong-cheon's house was also half destroyed. The walls had collapsed, exposing the interior.

Dam Ho entered and found Jong Ri-yeon lying on the floor. Fortunately, she appeared uninjured.

When Dam Ho gently infused her with internal energy, Jong Ri-yeon's long lashes fluttered, and she soon regained consciousness.

After looking about in confusion for a moment, Jong Ri-yeon surveyed the devastation around her and gasped.

"How… how did this happen?"

"Where is Myeong-cheon?"

"What?"

At Dam Ho's question, Jong Ri-yeon could only blink, momentarily unable to answer.

Her memory returned.

"The old man suddenly apologized and pressed a pressure point…"

"So that is what happened?"

"What do you mean?"

Dam Ho rose to his feet.

Nowhere in the house could he find Myeong-cheon or the old man. They had already vanished.

From the beginning, Geom-yul-cheon had never intended to fight Dam Ho in earnest. He had merely been buying time for Myeong-cheon and the old man to escape.

Dam Ho dragged his foot and searched through the rubble of nearby collapsed houses. But he found no corpses anywhere. They had been empty from the start.

'Had he purchased the entire area and kept it vacant?'

Geom-yul-cheon was astonishingly meticulous.

By buying every house in the district, he had perfectly shielded Myeong-cheon from outside eyes. That was how important Myeong-cheon was to him.

Dam Ho looked at Jong Ri-yeon, who was staring blankly at her surroundings.

"What on earth…?"

For Jong Ri-yeon, this must have been like a bolt from the blue.

"How did you come to know Myeong-cheon? Who is he?"

"I… I don't know. My master simply said he was someone who had to be treated at all costs."

"And where is your master?"

"She… passed away some years ago."

A deep furrow formed between Dam Ho's brows.

"Myeong-cheon's treatment was mostly devised by my master. I asked about their relationship, but she never gave me an answer."

Come to think of it, her master had been a most enigmatic woman. She possessed medical skills that reached the heavens, yet nothing was known of her background or origins.

She had even kept her identity entirely hidden from her sole disciple, Jong Ri-yeon.

"My master wanted me to live freely. That is why she never told me anything about her past. She said that if I knew, I would become entangled in karma…"

In other words, she knew nothing at all.

Dam Ho could see from Jong Ri-yeon's expression that everything she said was the truth.

In the end, he had been thoroughly outmaneuvered by Geom-yul-cheon.

"How interesting!"

Dam Ho growled.

His gaze turned to the place where Geom-yul-cheon had vanished.

Geom-yul-cheon had already disappeared and was nowhere to be seen, yet in Dam Ho's eyes, his figure seemed vividly present.

Their bond was only beginning.

He felt this with absolute certainty.