When they first encountered each other, Hyeok Ryeon-eung had said this: “I thought you were still using the Nine Deaths Squad as your disposable blade, yet you handed the entire intelligence network to some stray assassin girl from who-knows-where.”
“It’s because I arrived earlier than expected while you were dealing with deputy leader Soyo.”
Only then did Bu Eunseol, finally grasping what had happened before his arrival, flash a cold glint in his eyes.
“To kill me, you first had to cut off my eyes and ears.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Who Hyeok Ryeon-eung discovered was Soyo. She immediately activated the emergency signal system, and Leader So was the first to reach the scene.”
Piiii—!
A faint whistle, no louder than an ant’s footsteps, drifted from somewhere.
Yet to Bu Eunseol’s ears it rang clear as a bell.
‘Soyo!’
He knew instinctively that it was Soyo’s distress signal.
Paang!
In a single leap he soared into the air, unleashing his movement art at full power toward the source of the sound. The other captains, including Yoo Unryong who had been blinking in confusion, instantly followed.
Tsss-tsss-tsss… KRABOOM!
Bu Eunseol clenched his teeth and doubled his footwork with twelve-star internal energy. From his silently cleaving figure thundered an endless roar of lightning.
After racing for what felt like an age, he finally arrived at a dense bamboo grove.
There, a grey shadow lay collapsed in a pool of blood while a black silhouette pressed desperately on the wounded man’s stomach— So Jamyeong of the Nine Deaths Squad and Soyo.
“Soyo.”
“Save the Lord first!”
Soyo, hands still pressed against So Jamyeong’s belly, shouted.
“Hurry!”
So Jamyeong’s abdomen had been brutally slashed open; blood soaked everything, and intestines spilled out.
“He… he was protecting me…”
For the first time, tears fell from Soyo’s eyes that had always been frozen like the north wind.
Bu Eunseol pulled a sacred elixir from his robes, forced it into So Jamyeong’s mouth, then immediately poured in Ban-geuk energy.
There was no response.
He had lost too much blood; consciousness would not return.
“Leader So.”
Urgency seized Bu Eunseol’s heart.
Once more he gathered all his strength and circulated his inner energy.
A transparent aura surged from his body and began merging with his true qi.
The crystal-clear energy of water—the Crystal Divine Energy—was fusing with the Ban-Geuk Method.
Hummm.
As the pure Ban-Geuk Method and Crystal Divine Energy flowed in, a faint glow flickered across So Jamyeong’s body.
“Umm…” With a low groan, So Jamyeong opened his eyes.
Yet it was only temporary; the Ban-Geuk Method and Crystal Divine Energy had merely roused him for a moment. Massive blood loss and the fatal wound to his lower abdomen—no one could save him now.
“My Lord.”
So Jamyeong, barely conscious, smiled weakly when he saw Bu Eunseol.
“It has been a long time.”
“Leader So.” Suppressing the grief and anguish rising in his chest, Bu Eunseol poured in the Crystal Divine Energy once more with all his might.
“I am fine.” So Jamyeong gently grasped Bu Eunseol’s hand and shook his head.
“I am already done for. Do not waste precious true qi on me.”
“Leader So…” Bu Eunseol ground his teeth.
He no longer wished to lose those he cherished.
He no longer wished to sacrifice those around him.
Yet one by one, as time passed, they kept leaving his side.
“My Lord.”
So Jamyeong gazed at Bu Eunseol’s eyes, stained with pain, and offered a thread-thin smile.
“It seems I can no longer serve you.”
“Leader So…”
Bu Eunseol gripped his hand tightly.
“The three years I promised you are not yet over.”
He had sworn to So Jamyeong: within three years he would bring the entire Nine Deaths Squad into the light.
He would no longer let them live and die as nameless operatives.
“Do not leave me.”
Bu Eunseol bowed his head and pleaded.
“I still need you. So please… do not leave me…”
Deep compassion welled in So Jamyeong’s eyes.
The heir of the demonic path who feared nothing under heaven, whose talent in wisdom and martial arts none could match, who seemed cold, merciless, and indifferent to the world—
In truth, he was merely a young man overflowing with compassion in his heart.
“Hyeok Ryeon-eung… he must have grown impatient from repeated failures. He still believed you were operating the Nine Deaths Squad, Leader…”
Splash.
Before he could finish, crimson blood poured from So Jamyeong’s mouth.
“I already know. Say no more.”
“Please… take good care of the men, my Lord.” So Jamyeong’s eyes grew dim, as though the last of his life had ebbed away. “And when the great undertaking is complete… please bring them into the light. So that they no longer die as nameless operatives.”
Even in his final moments, So Jamyeong worried for the men who risked their lives on missions.
“I understand. I promise.”
“Still… I am glad I could see the Lord’s face one last time.”
“Leader So…”
“Even from above… I will watch you sweep across the world.”
So Jamyeong looked upon Bu Eunseol with a radiant smile, as if blessing his future.
Then, gently…
His eyes closed forever.
***
So Jamyeong’s funeral was conducted with the highest honors Majeon could bestow.
Though he had been the leader of the Nine Deaths Squad—a secret unit Majeon never officially acknowledged—his spirit tablet bore the rank of Vice-Lord of the Martial Soul Command, the supreme oversight body of Majeon.
So Jamyeong, whose name had never appeared on any official Majeon roster, was finally able to die bearing the title of a high-ranking member of the Martial Soul Command.
Shaaa…
As if heaven itself mourned his death, a cold, sorrowful autumn rain fell.
Bu Eunseol stood like a stone statue beside the grave, staring at the fresh mound.
Originally a master from the Extreme Slaughter Sect, he had joined the Nine Deaths Squad seeking the vast sums needed to cure his lover who suffered from severed meridians.
He completed missions like a madman and gathered the money within three years, yet in the end he could not save her.
Afterward, he lost the will to live and tried to leave the martial world.
But by then he had already grown accustomed to the life of staking his life on missions with the Nine Deaths Squad.
In the end he returned and continued taking jobs.
Time passed, and before he knew it, he had become the leader responsible for all the men.
‘So you wanted to let them all retire…’
Most who joined the Nine Deaths Squad, like the old So Jamyeong, desperately needed money.
Among martial artists, only the tiny handful chosen by heaven—who stood above the world—lived without worrying about wealth.
Those with middling skill never touched real money until the day they died.
Some among the Nine Killers did join for personal glory or the thrill of killing, but the majority did it for impoverished families, to send money to the beggar villages they once called home, or—like So Jamyeong—to save a sick lover or kin.
And no one understood their hearts better than So Jamyeong. He wanted them to earn their fortunes quickly and retire.
Yet only a scant few ever achieved that goal and left. Most died on missions.
‘In the end, they die without even a name?’
Watching operatives perish under code names alone, So Jamyeong made a vow.
He would give them a proper affiliation.
To those who flung themselves into the fire like moths for money, he would at least grant them a registry, a place in the light.
“Were you in such a hurry?” Bu Eunseol murmured in a low voice toward the grave. “You said you would create a registry for the men—why are you the first one lying here…?”
‘I’m sorry, my Lord. Somehow I ended up taking the first spot among the men!’
It felt almost as if So Jamyeong’s cheerful joke echoed from the mound.
“I’m sorry.” Soyo, standing beside him, spoke softly. “If my movement art had been faster… if I hadn’t been caught by that man…”
Hyeok Ryeon-eung still believed Bu Eunseol’s secret unit was the Nine Deaths Squad.
He naturally assumed the person constantly at Bu Eunseol’s side carrying out missions was So Jamyeong.
But the one fulfilling that role was Soyo.
In the end Hyeok Ryeon-eung tracked Soyo down to kill her, and So Jamyeong—who detected her emergency signal first—fought him desperately to buy time.
He could not withstand Hyeok Ryeon-eung’s martial arts and received the fatal wound.
“It is not your fault.”
Bu Eunseol answered in a low voice.
“He cherished the men. And he was happy teaching them.”
When Mu Heon took command of the Death Spirit Corps, So Jamyeong voluntarily stepped down and became an instructor for the operatives.
It was thanks to his teaching that Soyo could now serve as deputy leader of the Death Spirit Corps.
And So Jamyeong would surely take immense pride in having saved Soyo’s life with his own.
“Let us go back now.” Bu Eunseol looked toward the Death Shadow operatives standing at a distance.
They too burned with rage at So Jamyeong’s death.
If he did not grant them vengeance, they would desert Majeon and hunt Hyeok Ryeon-eung themselves.
‘Wait just a little longer, Leader So.’
As he turned away, Bu Eunseol cried out in his heart.
‘I will soon return bearing Hyeok Ryeon-eung’s head.’
A scorching aura blazed from his coldly turning body.
All future plans were now suspended. He would first sever Hyeok Ryeon-eung’s neck.
***
Hwanu Pavilion.
Once a place that aided crippled or homeless injured martial artists, but as the world grew harsher and benefactors vanished, it fell to ruin, becoming a desolate, forsaken gate no one visited.
Creak…
From beneath the pavilion, a hidden passage opened, and a black shadow emerged.
A giant elder with a bear’s frame, a tiger’s waist, and a lion’s fierce eyes.
It was Hyeok Ryeon-eung.
“Hmm.”
His bulging eyes narrowed as he gazed at the pouring rain.
“He has grown too large.”
Staring at the falling drops, he recalled the swordsmanship Bu Eunseol had unleashed.
It had reached the gentle yet extreme realm of the Heavenly Sword, leaving not a single flaw.
Immensely powerful, and—terrifyingly—still incomplete.
When the time came, that sword art would be like a coiled dragon meeting rain and clouds—soaring without limit.
“It cannot be helped.” Hyeok Ryeon-eung sighed.
Stripped of his title as Dharma Demon Reverend, he could no longer move the Emissaries or command Infinite Realm forces.
“He will have planted hands inside Majeon too, so he will not leave any opening for the Soul-Seizing Spirit Words.”
Capturing Bu Eunseol’s subordinates to force mutual destruction had been his finest strategy—one that could never fail. Yet Bu Eunseol had seen through it in advance and devised a secret method for every Death Shadow warrior to break the Soul-Seizing Art.
Entering Majeon again now would only let them track him.
“Then I have no choice but to shatter that vaunted authority first.”
Hyeok Ryeon-eung had operated in Majeon long before Bu Eunseol was even born. Though he had left, he knew the organization’s nature and structure like the back of his hand.
“That boy has many enemies inside Majeon.” A sinister smile curled his lips. “If I cannot cut off your limbs directly, I will sever your staff of power.”
No matter how outstanding the man, swallowing the colossal alliance that was Majeon required time.
And those who bent but never broke always had many enemies.
Hyeok Ryeon-eung intended to snap the staff of authority Bu Eunseol grasped.
“You may look forward to this, Bu Eunseol.”
Muttering low, hot light flashed in Hyeok Ryeon-eung’s eyes.
“After I finish you, I will return to the Infinite Realm.”
For decades he had been a pillar of Majeon, royal tutor to the Prince of Wei, and the Dharma Demon Reverend who moved the world from the shadows.
No matter how Bu Eunseol reorganized the Death Shadow Corps or created a new secret intelligence network, no matter that he now held the seat of Martial Soul Command Lord…
He could never escape Majeon’s framework, nor defy its laws.
That, Hyeok Ryeon-eung knew all too well.
***
Suddenly, strange rumors began circulating inside Majeon.
“The Martial Soul Command Lord has long been operating a secret unit to spy not only on the righteous sects but on Majeon itself and the Ten Demonic Sects.”
That much was natural.
For the head of Majeon’s oversight body to not secretly monitor Majeon and the Ten Demonic Sects would be dereliction of duty.
“Shockingly, the Martial Soul Command Lord is connected to the Martial Alliance. That is why he constantly watched the Ten Demonic Sects.”
But the rumors did not stop there—absurd new tales spread.
That he was in close collusion with the Martial Alliance.
“That ever since he arrived, the Ten Demonic Sects have crumbled and weakened, have they not?”
They were rather far-fetched rumors.
True, Bu Eunseol had somewhat diminished the power of the Ten Demonic Sects. But that had happened during the power struggles that naturally arose as he solidified his position as successor, or because those gates walked the path of self-destruction on their own.
Moreover, given time, Bu Eunseol would naturally become the master of Majeon.
Why would he need a honeymoon with the Martial Alliance?
“Just baseless gossip.”
Most demonic artists did not believe the rumors at all.
They were simply too ridiculous.
Yet soon, something shocking occurred.
The wild rumors inside Majeon became reality.
Suppressed Demon Pavilion—Bu Eunseol’s office.
There, Punishment Hall Lord Yang Geung and his men surrounded Bu Eunseol.
“Martial Soul Command Lord. Do you admit to the crime of contacting the Martial Alliance Lord, leaking prior intelligence, and weakening our forces?”
Yang Geung, who never moved without ironclad proof, had come to arrest Bu Eunseol.
Without even waiting for an answer, he immediately ordered his subordinates.
“Seize every document in the Death Shadow Corps!”
“What is the meaning of this?”
“Martial Alliance Lord? What Martial Alliance Lord are you suddenly talking about?”
The captains of the Death Shadow Corps rose as they watched Yang Geung’s actions.
“Lord Yang. Show proper courtesy to the Martial Soul Command Lord and follow procedure.” Wi Cheongyeong stepped forward and spoke solemnly.
“Otherwise, we captains will not remain idle.”
If they dared search by force, the captains were ready to draw blades without hesitation. Yet strangely, Bu Eunseol merely watched Yang Geung’s actions with an indifferent expression, as if it concerned someone else entirely.
“My Lord! Are you truly going to let them do this?”
“We will drive them out right now!”
As Won Semun and Jo Namcheon raged, Yang Geung asked again.
“Martial Soul Command Lord, do you acknowledge these facts?”
Bu Eunseol, who had been watching lazily, finally opened his mouth.
“Even if I say no, you will not believe me.”
“Of course not.”
“Then you must have definitive proof.”
“Otherwise, how could we dare storm the Suppressed Demon Pavilion, the heart of the Death Shadow Corps?” Yang Geung replied coldly and drew a sheet of paper from his robes. “Based on evidence obtained by the Punishment Hall, the Chief Instructor has issued an arrest and detention warrant for the Martial Soul Command Lord.”
Placing the paper on the table, he continued in a soft voice.
“For the sake of the Command Lord’s dignity, we will not bind you. But should you refuse, regrettable incidents will be unavoidable.”
If even the Chief Instructor permitted detention, they possessed ironclad proof.
When Bu Eunseol gave no reply, Yang Geung spoke solemnly to his men.
“Escort the Command Lord to the Iron Prison at once.”
“Nonsense!”
Shiiing!
The hot-tempered Won Semun drew his twin swords.
“Dare to escort the Command Lord? I will escort you to the underworld first!”
As he truly seemed about to charge, Jo Namcheon held him back.
“Calm down! They have an arrest warrant! If you act like this, you only make things harder for the Lord!”
“To hell with calming down—are we supposed to just watch this?”
Step, step.
Meanwhile, Bu Eunseol rose from his seat and walked out following the Punishment Hall men.
“It is nothing serious. Do not worry—return to your duties.”
That was the only thing he left behind.
The captains who watched him go were utterly dumbfounded.
Finally, Jo Namcheon quietly asked Yoo Unryong, who stood calmly.
“Captain Yoo… the Command Lord is scheming something again, is he not? Right?”
They already knew.
That for some time now, Bu Eunseol no longer held meetings with all the captains—he consulted separately with Yoo Unryong.
The captains were not fools.
The sudden retirement and never-returned Myo Cheonwoo; that he had been the mole leaking Death Shadow information until now.
To prevent any similar incident or accidental leak from the Lords…
Important matters were discussed only with Yoo Unryong.
“It may be so.”
“‘May be’? What kind of answer is that?”
Yoo Unryong let out a deep sigh.
“The truth is, there was no consultation at all.”
“It was not discussed?” Jo Namcheon’s face instantly filled with alarm. “It is fine, Captain Yoo. You can tell us. We have the right to know anyway, do we not?”
“Exactly. Just tell us that it is part of the Command Lord’s plan.”
When even Won Semun pressed him, Yoo Unryong shook his head with a pained expression.
“It is not a planned move.”
His face heavier than ever, Yoo Unryong continued.
“And in the current situation—even if the Demon Emperor himself intervened, punishment could not be avoided.”
“What do you mean?”
“The issuance of an arrest warrant means the Chief Instructor and every high elder have accepted conclusive evidence.”
Watching the Death Shadow warriors turn pale, Yoo Unryong lowered his head.
“At this moment, in the entire martial world, there is not a single person who can save the Command Lord.”
Comments