Chapter 199

Chapter 199: Chaos Is a Swamp That Draws Everything In (3)

Sage Hyeon-so looked around with a troubled expression. Wherever he looked, he was enclosed by high walls.

The place he currently occupied was a small annex in a corner of the Shouzhou branch. Though it was called an annex, it had only one entrance and was enclosed by tall walls—a prison in all but name.

Sage Hyeon-geom had told him that if he stayed here with the children, the Mount Hua Sect's disciples would come the following morning to escort them to Mount Hua.

Until then, he was confined to this place. Though he had been told it was only for one day, his chest felt suffocating, as though he were trapped in a chicken coop.

"Grandfather."

Ha-yeong and the other children gathered around him like chicks seeking their mother hen.

"It is all right. It will be all right."

He was speaking to himself as much as to them.

At that moment, the annex door opened and someone entered. A look of tension appeared on the faces of Sage Hyeon-so and the children.

The young man, who appeared to be in his late twenties, was Cho Yeon-woon.

Cho Yeon-woon smiled and greeted the visibly tense Sage Hyeon-so and the children.

"I am Cho Yeon-woon of Baekjeon Pavilion. Your disciple, Dam Ho, is a friend of mine, so please do not be on your guard."

"Cho Yeon-woon?"

"That is correct. Dam Ho and I have been connected since our first days in the Murim."

"Is that so?"

The wariness vanished from Sage Hyeon-so's face.

"Welcome. Given the circumstances, I am suspicious of any stranger I meet."

"I understand. I would feel the same in your place."

"To think my disciple has a friend. Even seeing you before me, I can scarcely believe it. That child, making friends…"

"Ha ha! At first, it was not easy. As you know, he can be quite… difficult."

"Hmm! Ho does have that side to him."

"Don't I know it."

Cho Yeon-woon spoke with the easy warmth of someone greeting an old acquaintance.

He told Sage Hyeon-so everything—how he had met Dam Ho, their exploits in Akyang, everything he knew.

Sage Hyeon-so was utterly absorbed in Cho Yeon-woon's account.

The life of his disciple that he had not witnessed. He laughed and wept at Cho Yeon-woon's words.

Hae So-wol cast a brief glance toward the annex.

A considerable time had passed since Cho Yeon-woon entered. Yet he showed no sign of emerging. That meant there was much to discuss.

"Ahhh…"

A soft sigh escaped Hae So-wol's crimson lips.

Today, of all days, her heart felt particularly unsettled. She had thought to retreat to the training ground and swing her sword to her heart's content, but her concentration would not hold, and she gave up.

Spring had arrived, but the wind remained cold. As Hae So-wol drew her collar tighter and moved to walk—

Ssss!

A faint sound, inaudible but for the deathly silence, echoed through the air.

"What is this?"

Hae So-wol's expression hardened.

An ominous premonition assaulted her mind. Such feelings had never been wrong.

BOOM!

Immediately after, a sinister wave of energy swept through the Shouzhou branch. It carried power potent enough for even those with weak perception to feel.

"It's an ambush."

"The Demonic Cult! The Demonic Cult has attacked!"

Voices cried out in urgency from all around.

"Damn it! An ambush in the dead of night!"

"Move quickly!"

Martial artists who had been sleeping poured out in droves. Armed and furious, they rushed toward the main gate where the enemy had struck.

Hae So-wol, too, moved toward the main gate. Her face was set like stone.

In the cold wind, a thick killing intent lingered.

"It is going to be a very long night."

Shing!

She drew her beloved sword, Byeok-sang.

Upon reaching the main gate, she sensed the stench of blood. As expected, a fierce battle was underway between the Martial Alliance and the Demonic Cult near the gate.

In the darkness, it was impossible to count exactly how many had attacked. What she could discern was that their numbers were vast and their strength formidable.

The sight of Alliance martial artists falling, bleeding, told the story plainly enough.

"You wretched demons!"

"Kill them all!"

The desperate cries of the Alliance fighters echoed through the night sky of Shouzhou.

From the lowest-ranking fighters to the Shouzhou Branch Master, Gong Son-jung, everyone had rushed out to face the enemy.

Hae So-wol did not join the fray. Instead, she gazed into the darkness.

Behind the curtain of night, she sensed stronger presences waiting.

Their sinister breathing stimulated the back of her neck with ominous intent.

'The true enemy is back there. Everything else is merely bait to gauge our response.'

Hae So-wol tightened her grip on Byeok-sang when—

"Not bad."

From the darkness, a figure emerged.

In that instant, Hae So-wol had the illusion that the darkness itself was churning.

A middle-aged man with a hawkish nose, prominent cheekbones, and blood-red martial robes.

From his body emanated an indescribable aura of malevolence.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Deung Cheon-so. Have you heard of me?"

Hae So-wol shook her head. A vicious smile appeared on Deung Cheon-so's lips.

"A pity. But you will soon learn what kind of being I, the Blood Abyss Judge Deung Cheon-so, am. Ah, but you will not."

"Why is that?"

"Because you will die here. The dead can never hear rumors."

Deung So-wol treated her as though she were already dead.

Hae So-wol clenched her teeth and spoke.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Should I?"

"You should. My name is Hae So-wol."

"Ho! The Flower of the Sea, is it? One of the Nine Dragons happens to be here."

Deung Cheon-so's gaze grew even more menacing. Hae So-wol flinched but did not retreat.

Deung Cheon-so approached her.

"If one of the Nine Dragons is here, that is more than enough as an offering."

"It will not be as easy as you think."

"Ho! Arrogant. Youth is a fine thing—full of vigor."

BOOM!

The instant Deung Cheon-so's powerful killing intent erupted, Hae So-wol was forced backward. Her face went pale.

'Strong!'

Deung Cheon-so radiated a might greater than any martial artist she had ever faced.

She sensed instinctively that she was outmatched. But that did not mean she intended to sit still and accept her fate.

As she steeled her resolve—

"What a fine child. But knowing when to retreat is also a strategy."

A cold voice came from behind Hae So-wol.

Thud! Thud!

Footsteps followed.

Turning in surprise, Hae So-wol saw a middle-aged man walking from within the Shouzhou branch.

"Ah!"

"I will deal with him. You help the others."

The face was as cold as ice, the demeanor to match. A man with the piercing aura of a drawn sword.

At his appearance, Deung Cheon-so's expression froze.

The newcomer radiated an aura far from ordinary.

Sage Hyeon-geom spoke to Deung Cheon-so.

"No one would call a wicked cultist righteous, yet here you are, bullying a child."

"And who are you?"

"I am Hyeon-geom of the Mount Hua Sect."

"Hyeon-geom? The Mount Hua's Greatest Sword?"

"That is correct."

"Ho! A worthy opponent has appeared."

Only then did a smile appear on Deung Cheon-so's lips. At last, someone of comparable stature had presented himself.

"Let us see what the Mount Hua's Greatest Sword is made of."

"You will not be disappointed."

Shing!

Sage Hyeon-geom drew his aged iron sword.

It was no divine weapon, its edge unremarkable, no extraordinary aura emanating from it. And yet it was chilling.

Deung Cheon-so also drew one of his three swords.

CHRRR!

Sage Hyeon-geom charged forward, trailing wind.

CLANG!

Sword met sword, and sparks erupted in the darkness.

A gust of wind swept through the surroundings.

"Hmm!"

Hae So-wol hastily retreated.

Deung Cheon-so and Sage Hyeon-geom—their martial prowess was far beyond her level. She could not hope to intervene.

Hae So-wol left them to their battle and sought a different opponent. She found one soon enough.

He was a young man who also used the sword as his weapon. More than five Alliance martial artists had already fallen to his blade.

"Ha!"

Hae So-wol charged without hesitation.

SHING!

Byeok-sang unleashed blue sword energy.

"Damn! What is this madness?"

Cho Yeon-woon's face twisted.

He had been in the annex conversing with Sage Hyeon-so when the commotion erupted.

He worried about his junior brothers and sisters and wondered about the safety of others.

Every fiber of his being wanted to rush out and confront the enemies. But Sage Hyeon-so and the children were civilians who knew no martial arts. He could not leave them defenseless and charge out alone.

"I must hold on."

He prayed only that his junior brothers and sisters were safe.

Turning, he saw the children huddled around Sage Hyeon-so, their terrified expressions vividly clear.

Cho Yeon-woon forced a smile for Sage Hyeon-so.

"Do not worry. I will protect this place."

"Thank you!"

"It is what I must do. There is no need for thanks."

Cho Yeon-woon raised his energy, preparing to respond to any eventuality.

At that moment—

SWISH!

A group of martial artists vaulted over the wall.

Cho Yeon-woon gritted his teeth.

"Anyone who scales walls in the dead of night is never up to good."

He unleashed the Eight Desolation Divine Fist.

CRACK!

"Ugh!"

"Kuh!"

The uninvited guests screamed and fell.

Though he dispatched three or four intruders in the blink of an eye, those who had scaled the wall far outnumbered them.

CLANG!

They drew their swords and charged toward Cho Yeon-woon and Sage Hyeon-so.

"Aaaah!"

"Scary! Grandfather!"

The murderous gleam in their eyes terrified the children into tears. Sage Hyeon-so pulled them close.

"It is all right. It will be all right."

"Waaah!"

The hall descended into chaos, filled with the children's cries.

"Tch!"

The sound of gnashing teeth escaped through Cho Yeon-woon's clenched lips.

"You think you can harm the children?"

He unleashed the ultimate techniques of the Eight Desolation Divine Fist in succession. Its devastating power forced the intruders to falter. Their leader cried out.

"Their weakness is the Taoist and the children. Subdue them first!"

Those not engaged with Cho Yeon-woon circled around to approach Sage Hyeon-so and the children.

"Damn it!"

Though he saw the maneuver, Cho Yeon-woon could not break free.

The enemies pressed upon him like a pack of wolves. Cho Yeon-woon was held in place.

In the interval, the martial artists who had reached Sage Hyeon-so and the children raised their blades.

SHING!

"Stop! You bastards!"

At that instant, the door burst open and a group of martial artists surged into the annex. They shielded Sage Hyeon-so and the children and met the intruders head-on.

"Junior brothers!"

Relief washed over Cho Yeon-woon's face.

The ones who had appeared were his fellow disciples of Baekjeon Pavilion, come to protect Sage Hyeon-so and the children.

Finally able to breathe, Cho Yeon-woon regarded the intruders with a grin.

"Son of a bitch! You are all dead."