“Pathetic.” Bu Eunseol looked down at Tang Saheon, who was clutching his stomach, his face etched with disappointment. “You’re neither skilled with a sword nor adept with hidden weapons. What have you been training all this time?”
Stung by the insult, Tang Saheon gripped his sword again, but his eyes had already dimmed like extinguished embers. He’d been struck in the stomach by a bare fist, no less. Realizing the vast gap in skill between them, his fighting spirit had completely vanished.
This young man is in a higher realm than me?
Even the most talented young prodigies typically reached the early stages of the peak realm in their early twenties. But Bu Eunseol’s skill clearly surpassed the peak, approaching the mid-levels of transcendence.
“Don’t worry. I can’t kill someone with the Tang surname within the family,” Bu Eunseol said calmly, looking at the trembling Tang Saheon. “No need to shake like that.”
“Me? Shaking?” Tang Saheon protested, staring down at his quivering body. “This can’t be!”
In a desperate outburst, he summoned every ounce of his inner energy. His muscles doubled in size, and a fierce white light flashed in his eyes.
Primordial Vital Energy.
He had unleashed the powerful vital energy inherent in the human body from birth.
“If you dodge this, I’ll admit defeat!” Tang Saheon declared, preparing to use his life force for an ultimate, lightning-fast strike.
Let’s test how far Swift Beyond Shadow can go.
Bu Eunseol had initially planned to counter Tang Saheon’s swift sword with his Radiant Sword Technique. But seeing Black Leopard watching the fight with fervent eyes, he decided to evade using Swift Beyond Shadow instead.
Whoosh!
Tang Saheon’s sword, fueled by Primordial Vital Energy, was like light itself. It struck without any preparatory motion or hint of its execution.
Shimmer.
At that moment, Bu Eunseol’s form blurred.
Mastered to its peak, Swift Beyond Shadow could cover ten thousand li in a day and shift positions ninety-nine times in place—a supreme movement technique now unleashed.
“No way.” Tang Saheon’s swift strike stopped an inch from Bu Eunseol’s throat.
In less than a breath, Bu Eunseol had shifted positions eighty-two times, narrowly escaping the strike’s range.
“Ugh…” Having poured everything into the attack, Tang Saheon began to age rapidly.
By expending his Primordial Vital Energy in one burst, he had completely depleted his inner energy.
“Foolish attempt,” Bu Eunseol said, clicking his tongue as he looked down at the panting Tang Saheon. “Inner energy should be used freely, drawn and released at will. Using Primordial Vital Energy for a swift strike makes recovery impossible. Why use such a technique?”
Such swordsmanship defied the principles of martial arts. Tang Saheon had used it for mutual destruction, but having missed and exhausted his energy, he could no longer be a martial artist of the Tang Family.
“A frog in a well,” Bu Eunseol remarked.
Gasping for breath, Tang Saheon turned away limply. With his power gone, retirement from the martial world was all that remained.
“You can’t just leave,” Bu Eunseol said.
“You want my head?” Tang Saheon asked hollowly.
Bu Eunseol shook his head. “Then why call me back?”
“You’re high-ranking enough to know,” Bu Eunseol said coldly, staring at Tang Saheon’s haggard face.
“Tang Bi’s next pawn.”
***
Crash!
Tang Bi’s rage was no longer confined to furniture. He smashed walls and pillars in Suyun Pavilion, roaring, “Send the Poison Extinction Squad!”
“That won’t do, Young Master,” Tang Sa-un said, shaking his head. “The main force is your personal guard. Their strength must not be compromised.”
“Don’t make me laugh! Tomorrow, Tang Gon returns!” Tang Bi had already lost two capable men due to this affair.
If he left Bu Eunseol alone, he’d have stirred trouble only to lose valuable allies.
“It’s already done! We must kill him before Tang Gon returns!” Though volatile, Tang Bi’s instincts were sharp.
He knew intuitively that if Bu Eunseol stayed by Tang Gon’s side, the future was uncertain.
“Understood,” Tang Sa-un said, biting his lip and bowing. “But not with the Poison Extinction Squad.”
“What do you mean?”
“We must ensure his death this time.” Tang Sa-un looked directly at Tang Bi. “Young Master, gather all the Outer Court warriors and surround Cheongyang Pavilion.”
“Surround it?”
“Yes,” Tang Sa-un said grimly, eyes wide with resolve. “And I’ll go in with the Poison Extinction Squad.”
***
The Next Day
Tang Bi summoned all his Outer Court warriors, encircling Cheongyang Pavilion and Bu Eunseol’s annex.
The official pretext was, “The man Tang Gon brought is plotting against the family.” If Tang Gon were present, he’d have reported to Tang Pae or disrupted the Inner Court to stop this.
But Bu Eunseol merely smiled, as if watching an amusing play, staring out the window.
Swish.
The Outer Court warriors moved swiftly, forming the Great Celestial Net Formation, rivaling Shaolin’s 108 Arhat Formation, completely sealing off Cheongyang Pavilion.
Creak.
As the encirclement was complete, Tang Sa-un, clad in blue, led the Poison Extinction Squad with a solemn expression. “Bu Eunseol, come out!”
Creak.
The annex door opened, and Bu Eunseol, with his ink-black sword slung across his back, stepped out alone.
“Quite a crowd,” he said, smiling warmly despite being surrounded by the Poison Extinction Squad wielding venomous blades.
That smile sent a chill of foreboding through Tang Sa-un.
This isn’t good. But he was already riding the tiger’s back—there was no turning back.
“Bu Eunseol! According to recent intelligence, you…”
“Spare me the theatrics,” Bu Eunseol interrupted, giving Tang Sa-un a weary smile. “This ends in blood, doesn’t it?”
“You resist?”
“Of course.”
Bu Eunseol’s playful tone infuriated Tang Sa-un, who shouted, “Fine! Poison Extinction Squad, form the Death Soul Poison Net Formation!”
The Death Soul Poison Net Formation, a deadly technique of the Poison Extinction Squad—one of the family’s most elite forces—sealed the enemy’s movements and enveloped the space with the Tang Family’s prized poison, Blue Shadow Serpent Scale.
“Argh!” But before the formation could take shape, a scream rang out.
A torrent of poisoned needles rained from above.
“On the roof!” Tang Sa-un shouted.
There stood Black Leopard, clad in black, with a circular device on his back, unleashing the family’s specialized Chain Bullet Needle Launcher.
“How does he know the weakness of the Death Soul Poison Net Formation?”
The formation relied on ground positions and poison to subdue enemies, leaving it vulnerable to attacks from above. Hundreds of needles from the launcher overwhelmed the squad, disrupting their positions.
“Break the formation!” Tang Sa-un yelled.
Bu Eunseol smirked. “You should’ve done this before sending Tang Saheon.”
Tang Sa-un’s jaw dropped as realization hit. “Did Youngpung Master reveal the formation’s weakness?”
“It’s not even a secret. To safely handle a poison like Blue Shadow Serpent Scale with so many people, you need to secure positions first,” Bu Eunseol said coldly, drawing his ink-black sword.
“Let’s end this.”
Whoosh! His chilling sword aura pierced toward a squad member’s throat.
Clang!
The squad, trained rigorously for a decade, were all elite. Yet none could block Bu Eunseol’s single strike.
Clang!
Tang Sa-un drew his dagger, parrying an attack meant for a squad member.
Ugh.
But the force in Bu Eunseol’s sword was so overwhelming, it felt like the ground was crushing him.
“Heavy sword technique?”
“You know it well,” Bu Eunseol said, suddenly spinning his sword in the air, redirecting incoming hidden weapons.
He was using the Heavenly Tyrant Sword Momentum.
He’s a sword demon!
Within two breaths, two more squad members fell, blood spraying. At this rate, the entire squad would be down within moments.
No choice. Tang Sa-un’s eyes gleamed.
Outside, he’d be helpless, but this was the Sichuan Tang Family’s domain. No matter how skilled Bu Eunseol was, there was a way to kill him.
No choice.
As Tang Sa-un reached for something small in his robes—
Boom!
“What is this?!” With a thunderous roar, the gate shattered, and a gray figure strode forward.
It was Tang Gon, who had mastered the secret technique in three days instead of the expected four.
“Tang Sa-un!” he bellowed sternly.
He had always been kind and respectful to everyone in the family, never speaking down. But now, he glared at Tang Sa-un with the ferocity of a beast, his killing intent blazing.
“Third Young Master,” Tang Sa-un stammered.
“Silence!” Tang Gon roared, glaring at Tang Sa-un and the squad. “You call me Third Young Master, yet you surround and attack my friend in my residence for no reason?!”
“…” Tang Sa-un was speechless.
Tang Gon swept his gaze over him and the squad, saying in a low voice, “I’ll report this directly to Father!” Tang Sa-un couldn’t hide his shock.
Not from fear of punishment, but because Tang Gon had called Tang Pae “Father”. He had always referred to Tang Pae as “Patriarch” due to his status as a concubine’s son. But now, having officially returned from the vault, he had shed his inferiority complex entirely.
“Get out. I don’t want to see you,” Tang Gon said.
Tang Sa-un bowed silently and retreated with the squad.
“…” Tang Gon’s lion-like ferocity softened into his usual gentle expression.
“You went through a lot,” he said to Bu Eunseol, sighing with a contrite look. “I knew Tang Bi was ruthless, but to do something this outrageous…”
“Third Young Master,” Black Leopard said, hopping down from the roof.
Tang Gon patted his shoulder proudly. “You did well too.”
“Don’t worry about it. It was nothing,” Bu Eunseol said, sheathing his sword as if it were no big deal. “And let Tang Bi be. His influence has already weakened significantly from this.”
“Weakened?” Tang Gon blinked.
Black Leopard whispered, “The second young master sent assassins after Young Master twice. When that failed, he resorted to this.”
“Twice?”
“Yes. After failing so spectacularly today, he’s likely lost much of his support.” Bu Eunseol’s prediction was spot-on.
Rumors spread that Tang Bi had sent assassins three times while Tang Gon was away, causing his supporters to dwindle rapidly. The loss of half the Poison Extinction Squad further weakened his faction. As a result, Tang Bi locked himself in Suyun Pavilion, refusing to leave.
Another change emerged: factions began forming to support Tang Gon.
“What brings you here, Master Pyo?” Tang Gon asked.
Across the table sat an elderly man with neatly combed white hair—Tang Pyo, the master of Sumi Hall and a family elder.
“I want to support you as a candidate for lesser patriarch,” Tang Pyo said.
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