‘She’s going to drink her blood.’ Yu Cheongrim bit his lip and reached into his robe.
No matter how he tried to focus, his vision was foggy, as if in a dream, his body sluggish.
‘This will have to do.’ He pulled out a small tube—the Firecracker Demon Flame Bomb he’d used to escape Baek Unsaeng and the Martial Alliance.
‘Please!’ As he struggled to twist the tube’s end,
“Pointless,” the Black-and-White Witch said in a grotesque voice, suddenly appearing before him.
‘She wasn’t even looking this way. How…?’ Yu Cheongrim’s eyes widened in shock as she slowly grabbed his fingers.
Sizzle.
As her fingertips touched him, flames sparked from his five fingers.
Pain surged, as if his bones and veins were melting.
“Ughhh,” Yu Cheongrim groaned in agony.
Boom!
A thunderous sound erupted as immense fist force descended from the sky.
“Hmph,” the Black-and-White Witch scoffed, staring at the falling force resembling a massive meteor, and swiftly moved ten yards away.
Crash!
The ground where she stood was torn apart, dust billowing everywhere.
Thud.
A massive figure landed before Yu Cheongrim.
It was So Okrim.
“You disloyal punk!” she strode forward, raising her fist at him. “I secured an escape route and waited, but you couldn’t even wait and ran off?”
“Heroine… So,” Yu Cheongrim mumbled.
“Why are your eyes so wide? Scared of getting beaten?” Unaware of his mental confusion, she waved her fist a few times before lowering it. “Fine, we’ll deal with you later.”
Rubbing her fists, So Okrim turned to the Black-and-White Witch. “How many times are you going to mess with me?”
“…”
“What’s with that flowing hair? Move it aside so I can see your face.”
The Black-and-White Witch stared at So Okrim, slowly curling her lips. Instantly, the world seemed to darken, and strange energies flooded So Okrim’s mind.
“What are you staring at?” So Okrim’s expression turned odd as she approached.
Her head spun, and nausea churned in her stomach, rising to her throat.
“You’re resorting to poison now?” Though the Black-and-White Witch made no move, she had secretly unleashed a potent sedative poison, clouding So Okrim’s mind.
Sizzle.
So Okrim swiftly expelled the poison with her poison-dispersing technique, clenching her fists. “Ready to fall?”
She thrust a fist at the Black-and-White Witch. “Take this!”
***
A moment before So Okrim unleashed her fist technique on the Black-and-White Witch, Bu Eunseol was racing toward the southeast forest where Yu Cheongrim and So Okrim were.
“Let’s split up and go separately with a time gap.” Bu Eunseol had suddenly proposed this to So Okrim, sensing something amiss.
“Alright.” Seeing the glint in his eyes, So Okrim nodded, realizing he had a plan, and left first, following Yu Cheongrim’s trail.
‘Something’s off,’ Bu Eunseol thought, his gaze darkening as he looked in the direction So Okrim had gone.
His mind was filled with an inexplicable unease.
‘The Black-and-White Witch couldn’t be using a clone technique.’
The initial unease came when he and So Okrim first chased her.
As they pursued at high speed, the Black-and-White Witch’s body suddenly split into two and vanished.
Splitting one’s body in two was impossible.
Though the martial world had unique techniques and sorcery called witchcraft, he had initially considered it just a peculiar method.
But clashing with her briefly amplified that unease to an undeniable level.
Her severed hair being absorbed into her body, her undetectable high-speed movements despite his heightened beastly senses, and her ability to evade both him and So Okrim right before their eyes—it wasn’t within the Heavenly Realm’s capabilities.
‘If her prowess had surpassed the Heavenly Realm, she could have killed me and So Okrim instantly without fleeing.’
If she were a peerless master of the Supreme Realm, she wouldn’t need to escape; a flick of her finger could have killed them both.
Yet, despite displaying overwhelming prowess, she chose to flee.
This meant her actual power was less than it appeared.
‘She’s showing hallucinations.’ Bu Eunseol shook his head after a moment of thought.
If everything the Black-and-White Witch had done was a vivid hallucination, she was using a powerful mind-control technique with just a glance.
‘That can’t be.’ Only one person in the martial world had reached such a pinnacle in mind-control arts.
And that person was a man, not a woman.
Yet, the Black-and-White Witch’s body, unleashing powerful forces with zither-like finger movements, was undeniably female.
‘I’ll find out by facing her.’ After about half an hour, Bu Eunseol leaped into the air, shooting toward the southeast where So Okrim had gone.
***
“Damn it!” So Okrim wiped the sweat from her forehead, her expression one of dismay. “Her martial arts surpass mine?”
Unleashing another powerful fist technique, she roared like thunder, “Nonsense!”
Boom!
Her fist force spread dozens of yards, enveloping the Black-and-White Witch tightly.
Yet, it passed through her body harmlessly.
“Fine!” Crack.
A fierce light glowed from her fists.
She was preparing to use the Emperor’s Final Fist Technique, Dual-Severed Galaxy Strike, which destroyed everything in its path.
“If you block this, I’ll admit defeat…” As she gathered her full energy, a flash sparked in her mind.
‘No scent?’ So Okrim had an innately sharp sense of smell.
When using Dual-Severed Galaxy Strike, all air within ten yards was drawn into her palms. Thus, she could always detect the subtle body scent of her enemies.
But the Black-and-White Witch, standing before her, emitted no scent at all.
‘That’s it!’ So Okrim realized everything she saw was an illusion.
She halted Dual-Severed Galaxy Strike and glared at the Black-and-White Witch.
Though she stood tall before her, a faint scent came from elsewhere. The figure before her was an illusion; the real Black-and-White Witch was watching from another spot.
‘A hallucination I couldn’t sense…’ So Okrim bit her lip.
There was only one way to break such a terrifying mind-control technique.
“Alright!” she shouted, resolute.
She slammed her fist into her own face.
Pow!
With a loud crack, her cheek swelled.
“Ptooey.” Spitting blood, her blurry eyes regained their radiant gleam.
She saw the real Black-and-White Witch watching from ten yards away.
“Your martial arts are impressive,” the Black-and-White Witch said in a sinister voice. “Not only sensing this ancestor’s illusion but harming yourself to break it.”
The androgynous voice carried admiration.
Referring to herself as “ancestor,” she was likely older and deeply skilled.
“I’ve made countless enemies die in hallucinations, but no one has broken free as ignorantly as you,” she said, admitting her technique was an illusion.
This meant she was confident So Okrim couldn’t escape it—or that she could kill her even if she did.
“So that’s it,” a low voice echoed from a distant tree.
Whoosh.
With a sharp sound, a gray shadow landed before the Black-and-White Witch.
It was Bu Eunseol.
“I suspected, but to think you’re truly the Black-and-White Witch.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“The Illusion King,” Bu Eunseol said coldly. “I don’t understand why one of the Seven Demon Kings is doing such grotesque things.”
The Illusion King, Sa Okcheong.
He was the last of the Seven Demon Kings to earn that title.
Around the same age as Gu Hongcheong, he should have been among the Ten Elites of the Demonic Path. But he rarely appeared in the martial world, and his reliance on mind-control arts prevented proper recognition.
Twenty years ago, at the Flying Hero Bridge, he used mind-control to make righteous heroes self-destruct. He then killed the Sword King, Danmok Cheonseung, single-handedly, earning his place among the Seven Demon Kings.
‘The Illusion King is a headache,’ So Okrim thought, frowning as she overheard.
His mind-control arts were unparalleled, not just showing hallucinations but making reality and illusion indistinguishable, weakening mental and physical abilities.
“Me, the Illusion King?” the Black-and-White Witch scoffed, reverting to a feminine voice. “Isn’t he a man?”
“He’s a man, but also a woman,” Bu Eunseol said, calmly observing her. “You’re a yin-yang person.”
A yin-yang person, possessing both male and female energies, also called half-yin, half-yang. They have both male and female traits, with appearances distinctly male or female.
Unless they undress or reveal it, no one can tell.
“What nonsense?” Her voice turned high-pitched, like a young girl’s.
Her aura grew more seductive, her moonlit figure more voluptuous.
“Do I look like a yin-yang person?”
“Yin-yang people possess both male and female traits,” Bu Eunseol said with a confident smile. “At first, I thought you were just a courtesan. Only a courtesan has such ingrained mannerisms, not something mimicked briefly.”
He continued in a low voice, “But a courtesan-born master periodically causing chaos in the martial world, evading countless pursuits without revealing her identity, name, or martial arts? No matter how skilled, that’s difficult.” Pausing, his eyes blazed like torches. “Your insistence on a bizarre, witch-like appearance was to emphasize your femininity. Changing your gender entirely makes tracking impossible.”
“What are you talking about?” she said.
“You likely lived as a female child courtesan for a time. Realizing you were a yin-yang person, you freely switched genders, didn’t you?”
Silence fell.
“You’re clever, but also foolish,” the Black-and-White Witch—no, Sa Okcheong, the Illusion King—nodded, acknowledging it. “Knowing I’m the Illusion King, why don’t you flee instead of staring at me?”
His eyes burned red, and a dark haze rose.
Bu Eunseol scoffed, “Not everyone with open eyes is truly seeing.”
Shing.
Drawing his black sword, he unleashed the Meteor Chasing the Moon Form, swiftly striking at Sa Okcheong’s neck.
“Hoh,” Sa Okcheong stepped back, slightly surprised.
Bu Eunseol’s eyes lacked focus. Noticing this, Sa Okcheong nodded. “I see. You sealed your vision by striking the Seungeup Point.”
Bu Eunseol, trained in beastly senses, had reached the highest stage, Mind's Eye.
Even blind, he moved as naturally as if he could see.
“Hahaha!” Sa Okcheong laughed in an androgynous voice, nodding. “Clever. But you picked the wrong opponent.”
Sneering, he said calmly, “If blinding yourself could evade my mind-control, would I be called the Illusion King?”
As he spoke, Bu Eunseol smelled a sour scent.
A strange ringing shook his brain.
“Your energy is slowly depleting,” Sa Okcheong said.
Bu Eunseol felt his dantian’s energy vanishing.
The Soul-Seizing Spirit Words.
The highest form of mind-control, manipulating the mind with voice alone, was unleashed.
Sa Okcheong, recognizing Bu Eunseol’s formidable energy and prowess, also deployed the Illusionary Scent, a poison inducing vivid hallucinations with a single whiff, amplifying the suggestion.
“Your legs are bound by heavy shackles, slowing your movements,” Sa Okcheong said.
Clank.
Bu Eunseol’s ankles felt constricted, as if weighed by massive shackles.
Though no such thing existed, his body believed it was real.
Click.
But Bu Eunseol, unfazed, gripped his black sword. “Is that all?” Raising his sword calmly, he said in a low voice, “If you’re done with your illusions, come at me. I’m tired of waiting.”
“Hahaha!” Sa Okcheong burst into incredulous laughter.
Stopping abruptly, he said in a sinister voice, “You’re desperate to die.”
Whoosh!
Raising sharp claws, Sa Okcheong became hundreds of shadows, encircling Bu Eunseol. Even without sealing his Seungeup Point, distinguishing real from fake was nearly impossible.
As a claw shadow struck from an unseen angle toward Bu Eunseol’s neck,
Clang!
His black sword deflected the shadow instantly.
“Pathetic. Is this the level of the Seven Demon Kings?” Bu Eunseol said.
Sa Okcheong’s expression turned surprised.
Bu Eunseol was blind, his energy reduced to less than eighty percent, and under the suggestion of shackles. How could he counter the Shadow-Breaking Body-Staining Form so easily?
‘Does his energy exceed five cycles?’ Sa Okcheong thought.
The Soul-Seizing Spirit Words could reduce energy by about eighty percent. Pushing further would alert the body to the absence of energy loss, breaking the hypnosis.
Yet, the energy from Bu Eunseol’s claws surpassed one cycle.
Realizing Bu Eunseol’s energy and martial arts were beyond imagination, Sa Okcheong’s eyes gleamed strangely.
“You’re Bu Eunseol!” he exclaimed, recognizing the young heir of Majeon, a new-generation grandmaster who joined the Seven Demon Kings at a young age.
“Perfect! Perfect!” Sa Okcheong laughed grotesquely, nodding repeatedly. “If I take your head, they’ll accept me back!”
Bu Eunseol’s eyes flickered.
The Illusion King rarely appeared in the martial world, yet he spoke as if he’d long been part of some group.
“Die!” Sa Okcheong shouted gleefully, unleashing finger winds at Bu Eunseol.
Beyond mind-control, his true skills—the Blood Spirit Phantom Finger and Yin Dew Binding Hand—could pierce trees from a distance or rival Shaolin’s Dragon Claw Hand up close. Even without mind-control, his prowess was more than enough for the Seven Demon Kings.
Whoosh!
Dozens of sharp lines targeted Bu Eunseol’s vital points.
The Phantom Finger was so swift and thin, like hair, that defending was nearly impossible.
Swish! Swish!
Two sharp energy strands rose from Bu Eunseol, countering the Phantom Finger.
The Thirteen Guiding Energies, the ultimate technique of the Martial Emperor.
Unlike the Wishful True Binding, it required minimal energy, embodying the subtleties of righteous martial arts. Bu Eunseol predicted the Phantom Finger’s paths, using the Thirteen Guiding Energies to deflect the piercing attacks.
“Impressive!” Sa Okcheong exclaimed, closing the distance.
He had thought Bu Eunseol only excelled in swordsmanship.
To wield such intricate martial arts?
“But this is the end,” Sa Okcheong sneered.
Martial intricacy could defeat enemies only in the Supreme Realm. Beyond that, Heavenly Realm masters wielded overwhelming power, making equal energy essential for combat.
“No energy gap can be bridged,” Sa Okcheong said, raising one hand.
A massive shockwave, capable of eclipsing the sun, flashed in the air.
As Bu Eunseol tried to overcome the power gap with martial intricacy, Sa Okcheong aimed to crush him with raw energy.
“Die.”
Time seemed to freeze as a massive sphere surged toward Bu Eunseol.
It was a sudden attack exploiting the energy gap, too fast to evade.
As the light-wrapped sphere enveloped Bu Eunseol,
Boom!
A tremendous explosion sent energy flames dozens of yards, soaring into the sky.
As the dust and wind cleared, a towering figure emerged.
“Ugh,” a rough groan sounded.
Before Bu Eunseol stood a massive figure with arms outstretched.
It was So Okrim.
Comments