Chapter 84

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Translated by Seoulbound

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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I sensed the presence beyond the main gate, which was eerie with blood splattered on it.

‘Various waves of energy.’

Presences overflowing with individuality were felt beyond the branch’s main gate.

All of them were clear and bright.

“It doesn’t seem to have been occupied by the Blood Cult crowd.”

It was just as Immortal Mang-won said.

Even so, what was peculiar.

“Why is there no one guarding it?”

Although it was dark with thick fog, it was still broad daylight, not yet past the hour of the Horse.

A sky worthy of the land where ‘the sky has no three days of clear weather.’

Normally, guard warriors would not be stationed at such a time, but by any standard, the main gate was splattered with blood. Even though it was natural for there to be guarding personnel if there had been a fierce battle, the fact that no one was guarding was peculiar.

“We will find out once we go in.”

As Senior Brother Myeong-jin said, deciding to learn the circumstances gradually, we opened the main gate.

In an instant, the flow of true qi running through the entire branch shook.

And the signs of people began to form toward the main gate.

They moved after perceiving our presence.

Since we had entered through the main gate grandly, it was a matter of course.

So among those who approached like that, there was a welcome face.

“Young Brother Yeon! My brother-in-law!”

The one who had a wary face but smiled upon recognizing me.

The third young master of the Sichuan Tang Clan, Tang Jong-hyeok, was looking at us while holding a basket of medicinal herbs.

The giant middle-aged woman standing behind him opened her mouth.

“Are they people you know?”

“They are people from Wudang Sect’s True Martial Pavilion.”

“Wudang Sect!”

The face of the middle-aged woman, who had seemed wary, also relaxed.

As if only now seeing it, she closely examined our attire. She nodded upon seeing the Black Pine Gate pattern drawn on the hem of our robes, and then her gaze suddenly landed on me.

“Could it be?”

“Yes. It is Wudang Sect’s Bringer of Chaos, Young Hero Yeon Baek-jung.”

The aura of the giant middle-aged woman who looked at me with new eyes was familiar.

‘Zhenzhou Yan Clan.’

Although her strong and fierce wave of energy, similar to that of Young Hero Yan Jong-hak with whom I had shared life and death in Group Bing at the Murim Alliance, was impressive.

‘But she is not as strong as the elders on the mountain.’

If judged only by the amount of accumulated energy, it was at the level of the Nascent Soul Stage, which was the realm of my martial uncles and grand-uncles of the Won generation who held elder positions, or perhaps even higher, but she lacked purity.

In addition to her aura, I estimated her routine through her torso and muscle quality.

‘A martial art that exerts domineering power with a long torso and solidly built muscles in addition to the amount of internal power.’

Added to that thought, the giant battle-axe slung over her back caught my eye. The name of the ultimate skill that vibrated the Hunan martial world naturally came to mind.

‘Heaven-Pressing Axe.’

The Yan Clan’s external fist arts ranked right behind the Shaolin Fist.

It was not only fist arts.

Among the external training, their spear and axe studies were counted as the absolute best under heaven.

A female master wielding an axe.

Naturally, their number was not many.

“I greet the Moon-Breaking Rakshasa, Heroine Yan Song-hwa.”

When Senior Brother Myeong-jin recognized her identity first and clasped his hands in greeting, the Moon-Breaking Rakshasa clasped her hands in return and replied.

“I welcome Wudang Sect’s esteemed guests! I am Yan Song-hwa, currently in charge of the Murim Alliance’s Guizhou branch.”

“I am Myeong-jin of the True Martial Pavilion’s Greedy Wolf Unit.”

“I am Myeong-hun.”

“I am Yeon Baek-jung.”

“I am Mang-won.”

“Lord of the Hyeoncheon Pavilion!”

Immortal Mang-won was the eldest even within the Won generation.

He was at the very top of the martial world’s seniority.

Furthermore, we were the reinforcement army that had come upon request from the struggling Guizhou branch.

No matter how in charge of the branch Yan Song-hwa was, she could not treat us carelessly.

“This way.”

Yan Song-hwa and Tang Jong-hyeok personally guided us to the branch’s inner courtyard to provide lodging.

They said that hands were extremely short.

True to those words, a significant number of the people visible as we passed by were seen with bandages wrapped around various parts of their bodies or with gold sore ointment applied.

Senior Brother Myeong-jin, who read the traces of fierce battle, asked gently while walking behind.

“Looking at the main gate, it seems there was an attack last night as well.”

Tang Clan’s Third Young Master, Tang Jong-hyeok, let out a small sigh and nodded.

“Since we are dealing with blood ghouls, it is a war every night. Moreover, our fellow comrades who are accustomed to fighting ordinary unorthodox martial artists are suffering. Because the martial arts of ordinary blood ghouls are on a completely different track from ordinary unorthodox and demonic martial arts.”

At those words, the incident at Ado came to mind.

The tactics of the blood ghouls of the Phantom Shadow Bloodline, who rushed forward as if it did not matter if they gave up an arm or a leg while only guarding their heart and neck areas, were.

‘Would be shocking to them.’

Because the sight of a severed arm attaching itself with blood serving as a bridge at the moment one thought they had cut off the enemy’s arm and subdued them was not something easily imagined.

“Furthermore, a significant number of those who were struck by the blood ghouls’ claws or fangs are suffering from high fevers, so treating them is no easy task. Some fellow comrades were captured during the attacks, making it hard to even verify whether they are alive or dead.”

Tang Jong-hyeok, who was well-versed in medicine as a member of the Tang Clan, said he was managing the branch’s wounded.

At Tang Jong-hyeok’s words, Yan Song-hwa, who was walking in the lead, added without even turning back.

“There is nothing to feel sorry about. Those who claim to be from the Nine Sects and One Association, from prestigious sects, are usually like that. Relying only on their sect’s martial arts without any skills tempered by real combat, they died in a foreign land. Ah, of course, I am not saying Wudang Sect’s esteemed guests are like that. I too have heard a lot about the reputation of the True Martial Pavilion and know it well.”

Immediately after her words, Tang Jong-hyeok’s sound transmission was heard.

[Though she speaks like that, she is someone who cares for the branch members more than anyone else. The wound on her arm is also an injury she sustained while saving a young disciple in yesterday’s fierce battle. She is speaking so harshly out of pity, so please do not take it to heart.]

At Tang Jong-hyeok’s sound transmission, we nodded slightly.

The dark red bloodstains spreading over the bandages wrapping the arm of Yan Song-hwa, who was walking in the lead, caught my eye. The scene where even a high-class expert of the Yan Clan suffered injuries.

This was the current Jianghu.

But what was puzzling.

‘Are the blood ghouls here powerful to that extent?’

Guizhou was a place no different from ten thousand li away from the Tianshan Mountains, which was the headquarters of the Blood Cult. Originally, a sect’s power was bound to weaken the further it was from its base. Yet, looking at the appearance of the struggling branch members, I somehow thought that they were different from the blood ghouls I had faced before.

“Is the number of blood ghouls large?”

At my question, Tang Jong-hyeok shook his head.

“The number is not that large.”

“Then why are there so many wounded?”

“First of all, the number of believers who follow the Blood Cult is large, and…”

“If they are believers…”

“Those who offer blood to the blood ghouls. They are the guys called blood pouches. They are not at the level of ordinary cultists. They are more difficult to deal with than most unorthodox masters. Unlike the blood ghouls, they are troublesome in a different way.”

Blood pouches.

Among them, they were said to be called the Blood-Offering Unit.

I had heard during a True Martial Pavilion mission that they practiced a bizarre, evil art that used their own essence blood as internal power.

They said that the more they practiced the evil art, the thicker the concentration of their blood became, and they offered that thickened blood to the blood ghouls.

Therefore, blood pouches.

They were called blood pouches.

Since it was said that blood ghouls became stronger in their authority the more they drank blood.

It was natural that the more blood pouches there were, the stronger their power became.

Added to that.

“The blood ghouls settled here have thick skin. Even a scratch won’t form from the sword of a warrior who has not reached the unity of body and sword.”

At those words, Immortal Mang-won spoke immediately as if reminding himself of something.

“It seems the blood ghouls that entered Guizhou are those of the Vajra Bloodline.”

At those words, Yan Song-hwa, who was walking in the lead, expressed her agreement.

“We think so too. With skin like steel, the internal heavy palm methods of shallow attainment did not even work. There was even one that bounced off my Heaven-Pressing Axe.”

‘The Heaven-Pressing Axe?!’

The Heaven-Pressing Axe’s internal power of Moon-Breaking Rakshasa, which I had read earlier, was domineering. If they could bounce off even such axe training, they were showing a bloodline ability completely different from the blood ghouls of the Phantom Shadow Bloodline.

It was an ability specialized in defense.

“You can stay here for the time being.”

Tang Jong-hyeok, who guided us, greeted me with a nod, then headed back to the wounded with the medicinal herbs.

After Tang Jong-hyeok left, the remaining Yan Song-hwa let out a small sigh and spoke.

“As you saw when entering, the branch is heavily shorthanded. The situation has worsened further than when we first requested reinforcements.”

She paused her words for a moment, then spoke as if having made up her mind.

“I heard that in the Blood Selling Cult that the Wudang Sect swept away, there were also a significant number of blood ghouls with strong abilities. Furthermore, I heard that some of your sect’s disciples who participated in the last Murim Alliance meeting even directly faced a blood lord of the Dawn Sky Blood Cult. Even if they struck him down through a joint attack with the Namgung Clan’s Affectionate Swordsman, repelling a blood lord of the Blood Cult’s bloodline is no ordinary feat. My expectations for Young Hero Yeon are high. Therefore.”

Yan Song-hwa continued while looking at me.

“Therefore, I would like to make a proposal. Do you have any intention of achieving merits?”

Her words meant.

A request to step forward for the sweep of the branch.

“Due to yesterday’s attack, it is a situation where we must launch a counterattack to save face. If things continue like this, the morale of the Blood Cultists will keep soaring to the sky.”

Yan Song-hwa’s words were correct.

Moreover, she said the enemy was scattered.

Because their purpose was to expand the cult’s influence throughout the Guizhou region, their forces were not concentrated in one place.

She said that in the midst of that, the attacks that had been occurring sporadically were carried out in earnest last night.

There was a need to break the momentum of the Blood Cultists.

“It is a mission that must be started in the day and finished before the sun sets. Because when the sun goes down, the blood ghouls swarm out. Even if their numbers are not large, the abilities of those guys who have drunk blood are unusual.”

In the first place, ever since descending from the mountain.

While having the thought of completing my sword by slaying the blood ghouls, I also held a desire to stop the violence of the evil cultists.

There was no reason to refuse.

Rather, I wanted to take the lead first.

“Of course.”

My senior brothers and I readily nodded our heads.

Of course, Immortal Mang-won did not like it very much.

“Yes. I cannot tell you to run away after coming all the way here. As an elder.”

Although the signs of wanting to pull me back immediately were clear, Immortal Mang-won just nodded and set out on the mission with us.

**

Sky has no three days of clear weather.

Land has no three li of flat ground.

People have no three cents of money.

It meant that the sky did not have three consecutive clear days, the land did not have three li of flat terrain, and the people did not even have three cents of money.

It was a phrase commonly used since ancient times to describe the Guizhou region.

Just like those words.

The believers who arrived here at the ‘Paradise’ were vagrants who had lived by digging in the dirt in mountain valleys without even three cents of money.

Since they had no money, the majority of the people groaned and died when they fell ill.

Even the government did not pay attention to the infertile Guizhou region.

Was that all?

Saying it was a land of all kinds of barbarians, the place people pointed their fingers at was right here, the Guizhou region.

While being ignored by outsiders like that, or falling ill from destitution.

‘They’ appeared.

Those who walked the night, sharing youthfulness, immortality, and wealth.

The ‘nobles’ of the cult proved their ‘immutability’ by striking off and reattaching their own arms.

They healed the sick by bestowing their own blood upon them.

It was from then on.

The people generously dedicated their everything to them.

Their property.

Their families.

Even their own blood.

-I want to drink the blood of a young child.

At that single word, the children who used to play in the village disappeared.

And just in time, last night.

The noble who returned after fighting a fierce battle spoke again.

Saying that he wanted to drink the blood of a young child.

However, it was already a ‘Paradise’ where the seeds of children had dried up.

Where could they obtain a child?

Before those who were searching with wide eyes while holding swords, the desired person appeared.

It was a Taoist boy staying somewhere between a boy and a young man.

“Strike!”

They were those who had been tempered by the ‘holy war’ that followed the appearance of the ‘nobles’.

Because they were those who had even killed the warriors of the orthodox prestigious sects, killing a single young Taoist boy was no trouble at all.

They thought so.

However.

The Taoist boy drew his sword.

They could not help but stop their steps forward.

Because heavy gravity began to press down on their shoulders.