Paaat!
Bu Eunseol soared into the sky and soon landed where the assassins had gathered.
Ziiiing.
As though preparing for his attack, the assassins maintained a meticulous formation and created an enormous aura shield.
Slash, slash, slash!
The moment Bu Eunseol swung his sword...
The formation scattered, and the assassins' blood and flesh began spraying through the air.
The moment he unfolded the Void Extreme Realm, their formation collapsed, and he began cutting them down in an instant.
The Empress Dowager seemed to have prepared for the power of the Realm of Destruction and Extinction, assembling assassins who had all cultivated exceptional martial arts and secret techniques.
"Aaargh!"
"Urgh!"
Yet they fell helplessly, unable to block even one stroke of Bu Eunseol's sword.
No, they could not even move their bodies properly.
The moment they faced him, his eyes blazing a sickly yellow as he swung his sword...
Their bodies stiffened as though invisible hands had seized all four limbs.
Paaat!
Some had their limbs torn clean off. Others had their heads ripped away. Still others spilled all their entrails onto the ground.
The assassins were swept helplessly from side to side like fallen leaves rolling across the earth, dying where they fell.
Slice! Thud!
Flesh was sliced apart, and blood sprayed in every direction.
Bu Eunseol's movements grew increasingly brutal.
He did not merely sever their throats.
Like a butcher dressing meat, he separated bone from flesh, tore away limbs, and made their entrails spill out.
"Grandfather..."
Every time he killed an assassin...
He seemed to see his grandfather before his eyes, drenched in blood after saving people, only to be condemned by them.
"Why did you save those fools?"
Flames surged within his chest.
"Why did you live your entire life beneath such a filthy stain upon your name?"
It felt as though all the blood in his body had evaporated, replaced by something black.
Slaaash!
Every time blood sprayed into the air, relief spread through his bones and ecstasy swelled within him.
Before he knew it, he was no longer killing the assassins for the sake of the common people.
He simply wanted blood.
Thud, thud.
In the end, less than a quarter-hour passed before every assassin was slaughtered.
Drip, drip.
Blood dripped steadily from his crimson-soaked clothes.
Anyone who knew him would have found the sight utterly incomprehensible.
No matter how furious he was...
How could someone so cold and rational employ methods this cruel?
"Haaa."
He nearly burst out laughing.
It was exhilarating.
He had been suppressing it for so long.
Perhaps it had begun during the Ten Demon Warrior contest.
From the moment he was ordered to kill the others and survive for no reason at all.
From the moment he saw boys who were complete strangers stabbing and cutting one another with sharpened weapons.
The killing intent that threatened to erupt, the demonic energy that strained to explode, the desire to soak himself in blood...
He had suppressed them all this time.
But now that he had tasted blood to his heart's content...
He felt as though he had risen above the clouds, as though a blocked meridian had burst open in a rush of ecstasy.
In truth, the energy obstructed by the Zhanlu Sword had begun flowing again, and the countless wounds across his body had healed to some extent.
Clench.
Drawing a deep breath, he suppressed the demonic energy and killing intent threatening to erupt.
'The Empress Dowager's schemes mean nothing. I need only sweep them away.'
When he thought about it, it did not matter what scheme the Empress Dowager employed or how meticulous her calculations were.
He merely had to sweep everything away.
Craaack.
The ground beneath his feet sank, and enormous cracks spread outward in every direction.
Booom!
Unfolding the Land Flight Technique, Bu Eunseol drew upon his internal energy once more and shot even higher, like a streak of black comet light.
After piercing through the clouds, a vast expanse of sky opened before his eyes.
The cold wind whipped his robes violently. The killing intent threatening to burst free gradually subsided, and clarity returned to his mind.
But the demonic energy and madness boiling within him still had not been dispelled.
He immediately changed direction and headed for Majeon.
When he drove his movement technique to the limit and shot forward, the distant outline of Majeon emerged from the darkness.
He slowly descended to the ground, then swept rapidly past Majeon's outskirts.
He moved so quickly that even the guards keeping watch in his direction failed to notice him.
Zzzt.
Countless formations covered Majeon, preventing anyone from entering through the sky-treading flight art.
But they could not obstruct Bu Eunseol.
Whirl!
As the Suppressed Demon Pavilion drew near, he briefly landed upon a roof.
The moment his foot touched down lightly...
"...!"
As though reacting to that faint sound, the warriors of the Death Shadow Corps all raised their heads at once.
By then, however, Bu Eunseol had already entered the building.
'They are training properly.'
Even in Majeon, few masters could detect a trace as faint as his.
But the Death Shadow Corps warriors...
Kept their super senses open at all times and never relaxed their vigilance.
After passing through the familiar corridor and reaching the office, he heard hurried footsteps from within.
The door flew open, and Yoo Unryong rushed out in alarm.
"Are you all right? You were somewhat later than I expected."
His face was filled with relief and concern.
"The Empress Dowager obstructed us so thoroughly that we could not determine your route."
The Empress Dowager had anticipated Bu Eunseol's path and stationed exceptional intelligence agents along it.
In this way, she had prevented the Death Spirit Corps from tracing his movements.
"Various things happened."
His entire body was drenched in blood.
But Bu Eunseol made no effort to explain every detail of what he had endured.
Yoo Unryong wanted to ask what had happened, but when he saw the gravity of Bu Eunseol's expression, he quickly changed the subject.
"The Empress Dowager took the bait, just as planned."
Yoo Unryong continued rapidly, his expression brimming with confidence.
"After putting every member under Won Semun and Jo Namcheon through brutal training in Suzhou... a rumor suddenly spread that a treasure map left by the Heaven-Severing Demon Blade had been discovered at the Yangguan Branch."
From the moment the Empress Dowager moved against not only Princess Hwijeong but Yeon Soha as well...
Yoo Unryong...
Had guessed that she would target not only the women connected to Bu Eunseol, but also his subordinates and friends, one after another.
That was why, when Bu Eunseol entered the Divine Maiden Palace...
The two of them had discussed the matter and deliberately sent Won Semun and Jo Namcheon to train near the Yangguan Branch.
As relentless as the Empress Dowager was...
She would never pass up a chance to attack the captains who could be called the Martial Soul Command Lord's right arms.
"The Heaven-Severing Demon Blade's treasure map."
Bu Eunseol's eyebrow twitched.
Treasure maps had served as sparks for conflict throughout the generations.
Secret manuals and spiritual medicine.
They were things martial artists would risk their lives to obtain.
However, the present martial world had entered an age of information warfare, and every major power operated an exceptional intelligence organization.
There were almost no circumstances in which a treasure map could suddenly appear from nowhere.
Yet the treasure map of the Heaven-Severing Demon Blade, whose whereabouts had remained unknown for centuries despite the countless rumors surrounding it...
Had suddenly appeared near a barren branch in the distant vicinity of Jade Gate Pass?
"It is certainly the Empress Dowager's doing."
"Indeed. Contrary to our expectations, however, more than several thousand martial artists gathered there in an instant. They are apparently struggling to defend the branch."
Yoo Unryong shook his head.
"I truly had no idea she could move so many martial artists in so little time. At this level, it would be no exaggeration to call her the Supreme One of the Martial World."
Then he continued confidently.
"For now, I have dispatched Wi Cheongyeong and the Soul-Pursuit Corps to assist them. In the meantime, we need only use the Death Spirit Corps to secure proof that the Empress Dowager mobilized those martial artists."
"No. That will not work."
At that moment, Bu Eunseol shook his head.
"We misjudged the Empress Dowager's capabilities."
While returning to Majeon...
He had gained a clear understanding of who the Empress Dowager was and how she handled matters.
She would sooner slaughter every person involved...
Than leave behind a shred of evidence.
"What do you mean by that?"
"No matter how thoroughly we investigate, we will never find proof that the Empress Dowager incited those martial artists."
Only then did Yoo Unryong realize that Bu Eunseol's gaze had become far fiercer than before.
"What in the world happened?"
"I will explain later."
Bu Eunseol turned away as he spoke.
"One thing is certain. Won Semun and Jo Namcheon cannot survive the Empress Dowager's scheme alone."
Crack.
The moment he recalled the Empress Dowager's face, the killing intent he had barely suppressed surged outward once more.
Craaack.
The surrounding air froze in an instant, and Yoo Unryong, standing nearby, felt a suffocating pressure.
"Then what are you planning to do?"
"I need only kill them all."
"What?"
A cold, twisted smile appeared at the corner of Bu Eunseol's mouth.
"Then they will never touch anyone around me again."
Like a Covenantor of the Sacred Domain, the Empress Dowager...
Relentlessly tormented those surrounding anyone who defied her will until they finally submitted.
The surest response to such a method was to slaughter everyone who dared reach out, without exception.
If the harm they inflicted was returned to them without end, they too would eventually have no choice but to withdraw.
"Wait."
Yoo Unryong hurriedly blocked Bu Eunseol's path.
"You are not wrong, but if you kill every last one of them, the reputation you have built until now..."
"I will finally become Majeon's true successor."
Cutting Yoo Unryong off, Bu Eunseol spoke resolutely.
"Until now, I have acted not like Majeon's successor, but like some renowned righteous hero. To someone like the Empress Dowager, those actions must have looked like an obvious weakness."
"..."
"I am Majeon's successor. Why should I worry about slaughtering people who lost their reason over a treasure map, swarmed one of Majeon's branches, and attacked it?"
Yoo Unryong had nothing to say.
Bu Eunseol was right.
His martial prowess had risen without limit, but as his activities in the martial world increased, a fatal weakness had gradually emerged.
Chivalry and affection.
Though a demonic path practitioner, he aided the weak like a renowned righteous hero under heaven and punished the forces of evil.
He also protected those around him fiercely, even if doing so meant suffering wounds himself.
Such conduct might earn him respect and awe from martial artists of both the righteous and demonic paths, but it contradicted his position as Majeon's successor.
In the end, his own convictions had bound him with countless restrictions.
Those convictions exposed a weakness that jackals could easily exploit...
Making an incident like this inevitable.
"Or do you dislike the thought of me becoming a true demonic path practitioner?"
Under Bu Eunseol's sharp gaze, Yoo Unryong gave an unexpected answer.
"No. Quite the opposite."
For the first time, he spoke with complete honesty.
"I have always wanted you to do exactly that."
"What?"
"In truth, when you briefly became cruel in the past, I was secretly pleased instead. Once you revealed such ruthlessness, your enemies would no longer try to lay traps that exploited your affection."
A smile formed on Yoo Unryong's lips as he looked at Bu Eunseol.
"Indeed, after that day, the Blood Cult abandoned all attempts to touch or provoke you again."
At the time, just like the Empress Dowager...
The Blood Cult had attacked the Divine Maiden Palace and attempted to abduct its Young Palace Lord in revenge against Bu Eunseol.
Unfortunately for them, it was the very period when Baekri Geomha's personality first manifested.
As a result, three thousand elite soldiers of the Blood Cult were reduced to rivers of blood in an instant.
After that day, the Blood Cult never again provoked Bu Eunseol or attempted any schemes against him.
They had seen with their own eyes what happened when someone touched the people around him.
"I do not care whether people point at you and call you a great demon or curse you as a Great Murder Star."
Taking a deep breath, Yoo Unryong continued.
"Are we not simply people running toward the goal we wish to achieve?"
"Do you mean that?"
"Of course."
Yoo Unryong smiled.
"Do as you please."
A true friend was like a spotless mirror that reflected the self.
No matter what form one took, even if one collapsed into a wretched state, that mirror would reveal it without turning away.
And if one could embrace that single mirror for a lifetime without ever shattering it...
Then one's life would be more successful and precious than anyone else's.
"Good."
Bu Eunseol wore the same smile as Yoo Unryong.
Then he released the killing intent he had suppressed for so long.
Craaackle!
The air inside seemed to freeze and condense, and it felt as though something unknown were strangling Yoo Unryong.
"While I am at it, I may as well rewrite the records."
When Bu Eunseol smiled, revealing sharp fangs, Yoo Unryong's smiling eyes went round.
"What records?"
"The bloody records set by that old man Jeok Bung and Lord Sado."
Two numbers immediately appeared in Yoo Unryong's mind.
Three thousand and eight thousand.
The Blood Demon Jeok Bung had once crushed three thousand members of the righteous faction to death merely because they criticized and insulted him.
And in the past, the Heavenly Demon Emperor had single-handedly wiped out an entire Martial Alliance combat division containing eight thousand elite troops.
"This time, I will make certain no one ever touches me again."
At that low murmur, which seemed to drip with blood, Yoo Unryong's face turned pale.
Merely standing beside him made it difficult to breathe.
The demonic energy and killing intent pouring from Bu Eunseol's body were tens, even hundreds of times stronger than Yoo Unryong had anticipated.
"W-Wait."
Yoo Unryong reached out.
If Bu Eunseol poured this madness-like power upon the countless martial artists gathered there...
He would earn the title of the worst great demon in the history of the martial world in a single stroke.
"Bu Eunseol, now that I think about it again..."
Boom!
Before Yoo Unryong could finish, Bu Eunseol had already burst through the window and soared into the sky.
"Wait! Listen to me!"
Yoo Unryong shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Do not kill all of them! Kill only a few! Just enough to make your majesty known..."
Blam!
But with a deafening explosion, Bu Eunseol became a streak of light and vanished.
"Why are you trying to break the records of old Jeok Bung and Lord Sado?"
He shouted the question, but no answer returned.
"Damn it!"
Yoo Unryong clutched his head.
Only now did he realize the nature of the Empress Dowager's final trap.
"If he becomes a Great Murder Star, he will no longer be able to stand with the Emperor."
Ordinarily, Yoo Unryong would have been delighted for Bu Eunseol to sever his ties with the Emperor.
But the Dragon-Phoenix Ring had altered part of the grand design they had pursued until now.
For a certain period, they needed to maintain their ties with the Emperor.
"When she summoned him to the Imperial Palace, the Empress Dowager must have grasped his nature."
She had surely...
Realized not only that tremendous demonic energy and killing intent lay hidden within Bu Eunseol, but also that they possessed the power to overturn the world.
And to make them erupt completely this time...
She had undoubtedly mobilized countless martial artists to attack the Yangguan Branch.
"Protector Tak! Deputy Corps Leader Soyo!"
Yoo Unryong shouted urgently.
But the one who came running at the sound was his aide, Woo Gwang.
"Neither of them has returned from leave yet."
"No! We have to stop him!"
Realizing his error, Yoo Unryong hurled the letter he held and his outer garment at Woo Gwang.
"Wait for me, Bu Eunseol!"
He unfolded his movement technique with all his might and flew into the distant sky.
"..."
With Yoo Unryong's outer garment draped over his head and the letter cradled in both arms, Woo Gwang could only stare after him with his mouth hanging open.
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