Chapter 423

Chapter 423 – Finding a Path of Life in the Path of Death (2)

Eun So-cheong opened her mouth with difficulty.

"Sister, how did you come here?"

"Still, since I'm the one mediating, I had to come out myself."

"But…"

"Did you properly load the salt? I shouldn't need to check it myself, right?"

"Ah, yes! I brought out all the salt that was in Silver Treasure Escort Agency."

"That's fortunate. Thanks to this, my reputation will be preserved. Thank you!"

"Oh, not at all. It's just business anyway."

"Right! Business is just business."

Won Seol-hwa looked at the dozens of carts lined up behind Eun So-cheong with a meaningful smile. The carts were fully loaded with salt and guarded by the merchant group's martial artists.

"Just looking at them makes me feel secure. To bring so many escort martial artists."

"It's our first deal with the Divine Cult."

"True! Until we put the goods in the warehouse and receive payment, it's entirely Silver Treasure Escort Agency's responsibility. Good mindset. Little sister will surely be able to grow into an excellent great merchant."

The smile on Won Seol-hwa's lips deepened.

"Thank… you."

"I really hope we can see each other for a long, long time. Getting along well, that is."

"That's what will happen."

"Right! That's what will happen. Well then, shall we go inside now? I've kept the people inside waiting too long."

"Yes!"

Won Seol-hwa lightly waved her hand toward the warriors guarding the main gate. Then the massive main gate opened with a heavy sound.

It was like a giant monster opening its maw to welcome them.

Eun So-cheong momentarily stopped breathing and swallowed dry saliva. Even for her, who had more than ordinary composure, this was a tense moment.

The same was true for previous generation martial artists like Jang Jin-myeong.

Even for them, who had experience striking the Demon Cult's main base decades ago, this moment was providing unbearable tension.

'Still, thanks to that child, we can easily enter the Demon Cult's main base. Fortunately.'

The effort and sacrifice they had poured into infiltrating the Demon Cult's main base during the first Righteous-Demon War was indescribable.

Compared to that time, now was no different from walking on a silk road. All of this was thanks to Eun So-cheong and Silver Treasure Escort Agency. Jang Jin-myeong was grateful that this young girl before his eyes had brought such great fortune.

Jang Jin-myeong sent sound transmission to the previous generation suicide squad martial artists who came with him.

―Everyone prepare thoroughly. The moment we enter the inner fortress, we must move like lightning to deal with our targets. We must relentlessly pursue them and escape without giving them time to breathe. Whatever sacrifices there may be, we must complete the mission.

The main targets were naturally the Cult Leader Cheok Gwan-hyeol and other Demon Cult leaders. Through intelligence activities so far, their locations and movement patterns had already been identified.

At Jang Jin-myeong's sound transmission, the previous generation martial artists nodded slightly without showing it. They were confident having constantly coordinated with the young martial artists throughout the journey from Mount Song's Martial Alliance to here.

Suddenly So Bo-won looked around.

Her vision filled with the faces of young martial artists filled with determination.

Eyes shining with righteousness, faces filled with resolve were embedded in her pupils.

'I'm sorry.'

She couldn't lift her head, feeling like she was doing something wicked to that shining youth and righteousness. But So Bo-won pressed such inner thoughts firmly down in her heart.

Meanwhile, the merchant group was passing through the outer fortress. Demon Cult martial artists could be seen standing guard strictly everywhere. But no one stopped the merchant group passing through with Won Seol-hwa.

Rather, they were opening doors on their own so Won Seol-hwa could pass quickly. Thanks to this, they could easily enter the inner fortress.

"This way."

Won Seol-hwa pointed at a large warehouse with her finger. Twenty warehouses that looked even larger than decent pavilions were visible. With just the supplies inside them, the martial artists at the Demon Cult's main base could live for at least half a year.

'Hmm!'

Before the tremendously enormous scale of warehouses and stockpiled supplies, the young martial artists participating in the suicide squad unconsciously let out admiring sounds.

"Move the carts this way."

Won Seol-hwa pointed at one of the warehouses with her finger.

The warehouse she pointed to was the largest among the twenty warehouses. In front of the warehouse, workers were waiting to move cargo.

Eun So-cheong and the merchant group slowly moved toward the warehouse.

As the large warehouse got closer, Hae So-wol frowned deeply at an ominous premonition whose identity she couldn't know. She glanced at So Cheon. So Cheon was also feeling something similar to her and had raised all his senses to high alert.

The same was true for previous generation martial artists including Jang Jin-myeong. They too felt an unknown sense of discomfort.

Then Won Seol-hwa turned around and looked at Eun So-cheong.

"Do you remember what I said earlier?"

"What do you mean?"

"That I hoped we could see each other for a long time."

"Yes! I remember."

"I'm sorry!"

"For what?"

At Eun So-cheong's question, Won Seol-hwa's lips curled up and her eyes gleamed eerily.

She bared her white teeth and said:

"It was all a lie. I don't want to see you for a long time. Silver Treasure Escort Agency either."

"What do you…"

"What do I mean? I mean this."

Won Seol-hwa raised her snow-white hand.

Creak creak creak!

The doors of the warehouses surrounding the merchant group opened all at once. Through the open doorways, martial artists standing in formation were visible.

Seeing this, Jang Jin-myeong shouted:

"It's a trap!"

Only then did Eun So-cheong realize the true nature of the ominous feeling that had been pressing upon her until just moments before. They had been waiting for them with full preparations already in place.

Then a man in his early forties wearing a blue robe walked out from inside the warehouse.

At the appearance of the man with impressively pale skin as if he had never seen sunlight in his life, Won Seol-hwa bowed her head.

The man was precisely Sang Han-cheon, the Demon Cult's Military Advisor. With his appearance, Demon Cult martial artists who had been hiding and waiting inside the warehouse came pouring out.

Sang Han-cheon looked at Jang Jin-myeong and others with a chilly gaze.

"You shouldn't have been in such a hurry. Thanks to that, I had to wait quite a while in that stuffy place."

"Are you Sang Han-cheon?"

Jang Jin-myeong glared at Sang Han-cheon with frightening eyes.

"Ho! Seeing that you know me, you must be quite advanced in years yourself."

"My name is Jang Jin-myeong."

"Thousand Man Great Enemy Sword?"

"That's right. I am precisely Thousand Man Great Enemy Sword Jang Jin-myeong."

Jang Jin-myeong took off the hat he was wearing on his head and let out a lion's roar. Using his lion's roar as a signal, those disguised as the merchant group threw off their cumbersome clothing.

A subtle killing intent appeared in Sang Han-cheon's eyes.

"A bigger fish than I thought has graced us with his presence. Who would have thought it would be Thousand Man Great Enemy Sword? Surprising that you're still alive and not dead yet."

"With the Demon Cult bastards keeping their eyes wide open and living, how could I die?"

"Excellent. The number of our cult's brothers killed by you is beyond counting, so I can take that revenge this time."

"Hmph! Ridiculous talk. This time I get to take the head of the Demon Cult's Military Advisor – how could this not be called good fortune?"

Jang Jin-myeong's eyes flickered. In his pupils that seemed to have ghostly flames rising, hatred toward the Demon Cult was contained.

Swish!

He drew his sword and shouted:

"I'll buy time, so everyone complete your respective missions unto death!"

Jang Jin-myeong didn't wait for an answer and charged toward Sang Han-cheon.

Sang Han-cheon was no different from the Demon Cult's brain. If he was killed, the Demon Cult would lose direction and drift.

Thud thud thud!

In just three steps, Jang Jin-myeong shortened the space and charged right up to Sang Han-cheon's nose.

Zing!

His sword sang.

Befitting the epithet Thousand Man Great Enemy Sword, his swordsmanship was frighteningly powerful.

The air split and powerful wind struck Sang Han-cheon. But the sword wind Jang Jin-myeong created had its flow completely cut off before it could even reach Sang Han-cheon. A middle-aged martial artist beside Sang Han-cheon had swung his sword to neutralize it.

"If it's Thousand Man Great Enemy Sword, he's worthy to be this body's opponent."

His name was Gang Wi. One of the Demon Cult's Four Great Commanders, Lightning Magic Sword was precisely his epithet.

Whoosh!

His sword split space.

Clang clang clang!

Jang Jin-myeong's sword and Gang Wi's sword collided in mid-air, sparking. Jang Jin-myeong tried to avoid Gang Wi and kill Sang Han-cheon, but his path was repeatedly blocked by Gang Wi.

The Demon Cult's Four Great Commanders were not gained for free. They were honorable positions seized through countless death struggles. Gang Wi's martial arts were that frightening.

The two fought almost evenly matched.

Meanwhile, the suicide squad began to move.

The group led by Heavenly Wolf Guest Gu Ui-jin rushed toward the inner part of the inner fortress, while the group led by So Bo-won moved in the opposite direction.

"Block those bastards!"

"Pursue them!"

Demon Cult martial artists chased after them.

Sang Han-cheon watched all this spectacle with his hands clasped behind his back.

"The mice that entered the trap still haven't grasped the situation, it seems."

The Demon Cult's main base was a place he had designed and created with painstaking effort. For Demon Cult members it was an incomparably comfortable nest, but for their enemies it was a land of despair full of death traps.

"Wahhh!"

"Kill the Martial Alliance scum!"

"How dare they set their dirty feet in our cult's sacred ground – I will never forgive them!"

Demon Cult martial artists furiously pursued the suicide squad.

Terrifying killing intent surged and whirled through the Demon Cult's main base.

"Ahhh!"

Exposed to tremendous killing intent, Eun So-cheong's face turned pale white.

She was completely exposed in the middle of the battlefield. Since everyone in the suicide squad had their hands full, no one could pay attention to her.

There was a woman walking toward Eun So-cheong. She was precisely Won Seol-hwa.

"You should have chosen your side well. How dare a merchant group based in Hunan Province help the Martial Alliance? Did you find our cult that laughable?"

"Aren't you the one who should be ashamed? Don't you see that countless people are suffering because of the Demon Cult?"

"Who says they're suffering? Didn't you see the faces of people in Yueyang? Was there even a trace of painful light on their faces? They don't care who controls Yueyang anyway. Do you know why? Because no matter who rules this place, there's no big change in their lives."

"That's…"

"That's how they naturally come to accept us, and this place becomes our solid territory. Of course, the real change will begin after that."

"Ugh!"

"Of course, you won't get to see such change. As I said before, I don't want to see my little sister for very long."

At that moment, a man appeared from behind Won Seol-hwa.

His name was Yoon Sa-il. He was an outer hall master of Divine Flower Merchant Group and a martial artist with the epithet Poison Heart Asura.

Befitting the epithet Poison Heart Asura, his methods were extremely cruel.

Yoon Sa-il approached Eun So-cheong. His purpose was clear – to take Eun So-cheong's life.

Seeing Eun So-cheong hesitantly backing away, Won Seol-hwa smiled even more coldly.

"Obediently accept death, wench!"

Yoon Sa-il rushed at Eun So-cheong and spread his palm wide.

Whoosh!

Terrifying palm force rushed toward Eun So-cheong like a tidal wave.

'Jin-bo!'

Eun So-cheong couldn't dare think of dodging and thought of Bang Jin-bo's face. At this moment, she wanted to see him desperately.

That's when it happened.

"So-cheong!"

With a sharp shout, someone leaped between Eun So-cheong and Yoon Sa-il. The woman with a slender figure was precisely Hae So-wol.

Swoosh!

Like a salmon swimming upstream, her sword relentlessly cut through Yoon Sa-il's palm force and penetrated.

"What!"

Yoon Sa-il was greatly surprised at his palm force being destroyed so easily and tried to retreat, but Hae So-wol's movement was several times faster than his expectation.

Slash!

Hae So-wol's sword instantly cut off Yoon Sa-il's right hand.

Blood shot up like a fountain from the severed wrist.

"Ahhhhh!"

The moment a desperate scream burst from Yoon Sa-il's mouth, Hae So-wol stabbed her sword into his heart.

That was Yoon Sa-il's end.

"Tch!"

Seeing this, Won Seol-hwa quickly retreated.

Hae So-wol also didn't attack further and withdrew. Her purpose was not to kill Won Seol-hwa but to protect Eun So-cheong.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes!"

Hae So-wol quickly embraced Eun So-cheong's slender waist and lifted her body into the air. So Cheon followed behind them.

Boom!

"Argh!"

"Die!"

Loud crashes along with shouts mixed with killing intent and malice echoed everywhere.

In the midst of it all, Sang Han-cheon alone was smiling.

"Struggle all you want. This place will become an inescapable hell for you." ​