Chapter 308 - A Spark of Evil

The Jeondeung Sect.

It was a sect founded in Hwangcheon County five years ago by Oh Ilsik, the Lightning Saber, who had been active in Henan Province.

He had made more of a name for himself as an escort warrior than as a martial artist, so while he had begun with a martial arts hall, many who aspired to become escort warriors joined him, and at some point, he changed its name to a sect.

"What about Deung Gohyeon?"

The others had taken the same Exploding Blood Pill, but only Deung Gohyeon had turned into a demonic practitioner.

I had stopped them from trying to take the Hidden Blood Pill and waited for quite a while, but after that, none of the Jeondeung Sect warriors turned into demonic practitioners.

Then that meant there was something special about Deung Gohyeon alone.

"Deung Gohyeon was a disciple Oh Ilsik had kept with him from the very beginning."

"From the very beginning?"

"Yes. They say he took in a child who had been left alone after losing his parents during an escort mission. That is why Oh Ilsik cherished him especially."

"Is it true that Oh Ilsik was a disciple of that Qingcheng lay sect?"

The Dok-a Sword nodded.

"It is true that he was a disciple of the Wind Fragrance Sect. Originally, he failed to make much of a name for himself when he used a sword, but once he took up a saber, he even earned the title Lightning Saber."

Then had he begun using a saber after obtaining the demonic art?

At first, I wondered if something had changed because of me.

But after hearing the story, that did not seem to be the case either.

Oh Ilsik had already been active as the Lightning Saber before my regression, after all.

This was where my head started to get complicated.

In all the Murim Alliance reports I had seen, not a single one mentioned anyone in the Orthodox faction having learned a demonic art.

'Did they not know? Or did they hide it?'

If I was lucky, then some bastard who had learned a demonic art by chance had simply been unlucky enough to run into me, but if I was unlucky...

'It is horrifying just to imagine.'

As if being crushed by the Demonic Cult in the Orthodox-Demonic Great War were not bad enough, did that mean demonic practitioners had been hiding inside us too?

But what I still could not understand was that Deung Gohyeon himself had seemed unaware that he had learned a demonic art.

Just what the hell was going on?

"We have arrived."

At the Dok-a Sword's words, I lifted my head and saw a proper signboard.

"Jeondeung Sect"

Had they heard that Deung Gohyeon had been defeated?

The main gate stood wide open, and armed warriors were lined up in formation.

As I tried to enter, the Dok-a Sword grabbed me.

"Y-You intend to go in alone, sir?"

Why had this guy been speaking so politely to me since earlier?

I knocked his hand away and said,

"Then should I lead the Dok-a Sect disciples inside?"

"...!"

What is with him?

I had merely answered a pointless question, yet this vicious-looking bastard somehow looked moved.

"I-I will accompany you."

"Do as you like."

When we walked between the Jeondeung Sect disciples lined up on both sides and entered, a middle-aged man seated in a chair atop the platform stared at the Dok-a Sword with indifferent eyes.

"What... happened to Hyeon?"

"Heh heh. What do you think happened?"

For some reason, the Dok-a Sword answered in a villainous tone.

The middle-aged man... in other words, the one presumed to be Oh Ilsik, furrowed his brow.

"Is Hyeon dead?"

He looked utterly as if he had not expected that.

Only then did Oh Ilsik turn his head and look at me.

"... So it was not because of the Dok-a Sword that Hyeon died."

Though he had heard news that his cherished disciple was dead, for some reason, Oh Ilsik's face showed no emotion beyond annoyance.

"Who are you?"

The moment I saw Oh Ilsik's expression, I was certain.

"I am Jin Sowoon."

That bastard knew about the demonic art.

#

"If you are Jin Sowoon... do you mean Jin Sowoon, the Black Flame Dragon?"

Oh Ilsik continued his questioning, still without smoothing his brow.

"I clearly heard you were the top student of the Murim Academy. Why are you with Underworld scum? Are you truly colluding with Underworld scum?"

First, I cupped my fist.

"There is something I would like to ask you first, Sect Leader."

"Sect Leader, is it... You glare at me as if you want to kill me, yet offer courtesy?"

"Please understand my eyes. I cannot control my emotions right now."

As expected, his expression did not waver in the slightest.

"Very well. What question is so important at this crucial moment?"

I stared straight into his eyes.

"Did you truly send Deung Gohyeon to the Dok-a Sect because you were certain he would win?"

The killing intent faintly spreading from Oh Ilsik told me that his skill surpassed the Dok-a Sword's.

Someone of Oh Ilsik's level should have had the eye to judge the difference between the Dok-a Sword and Deung Gohyeon.

Even so, it was hard to understand why he had sent Deung Gohyeon to the Dok-a Sect with only a small number of men.

"I did not send him. That child Hyeon went on his own."

He simply let a child like his own, whom he had first taken in, walk into death?

Was this how he intended to slip away?

"Even though you knew Deung Gohyeon would die?"

"Hyeon... died?"

"Yes."

"Did you, by any chance, kill him?"

For the first time, Oh Ilsik's gaze turned fierce.

"You had best answer carefully. It may not be direct, but I have ties to Qingcheng."

That was not easy to believe.

If he was something like a lay disciple of a Qingcheng lay sect, then he was practically a stranger.

But what he was relying on was probably the fact that, one way or another, he had a connection to Qingcheng.

Whether or not he had ties to Qingcheng, I was certain now anyway.

"I wonder. You are the one who had best answer carefully, Sect Leader."

Now his expression finally faltered a little.

"I saw something peculiar in Deung Gohyeon."

Oh Ilsik had known.

He had known that Deung Gohyeon, who had learned a demonic art, could never lose to the Dok-a Sword.

That was why he had not stopped him even when he entered a deathtrap.

What he had failed to predict was...

"Something peculiar?"

Me.

"Let me ask one more thing. Did you pass on the martial arts you taught Deung Gohyeon to others as well?"

For a brief moment, I saw the corners of Oh Ilsik's eyes tremble.

"What... are you talking about?"

"The fact that you did not stop Deung Gohyeon, who lacked sufficient skill, even when he attacked the Dok-a Sect, must mean you had something you trusted, yes?"

Without taking my eyes off Oh Ilsik, I spoke in a low voice.

"Was it a demonic art?"

"..."

Oh Ilsik's expression did not change.

A heavy silence continued for a long while.

And then.

"... Haha!"

For the first time, Oh Ilsik laughed.

It was a dry laugh, with eyes that did not smile.

"I heard the child named Jin Sowoon was so cunning that he was no less than an Underworld rat, and that was why he was given the title Black Flame Dragon. It seems that was tru..."

"Shut up!"

At that moment, the Dok-a Sword suddenly shouted.

"The Black Flame Dragon is not that kind of person!"

Who are you to suddenly step forward...?

When I shoved him back in utter disbelief, the Dok-a Sword retreated behind me, huffing.

Oh Ilsik opened his mouth again.

"I see... You intend to cover up Deung Gohyeon's death with a forbidden art?"

He spoke as if he had seen through every move of his opponent.

"You did not become the top student of the Murim Academy by luck. You truly are clever, I must say."

His praise was not particularly pleasant.

"But... do you think such a thing will truly work?"

"Evidence has already come out from Deung Gohyeon, so please stop worrying about my safety. Let us talk about you, Sect Leader. How did you learn the demonic art?"

"How amusing. A pillar supporting the Orthodox Murim lowers himself to hiding his own shame by making false accusations."

"You have no intention of talking."

I held my hand out to the Dok-a Sword standing behind me.

"Yes?"

No, why is he so slow on the uptake?

"Give me the remaining Exploding Blood Pill."

"Ah, yes. You should have said so."

Why is this bastard so long-winded?

I showed the Exploding Blood Pill I received to Oh Ilsik and demanded,

"Would you mind trying this?"

"... Every single thing you do is ridiculous."

Oh Ilsik let out a sneer and rose.

"Did you all hear? That man says he will falsely accuse our Jeondeung Sect and annihilate us."

Then.

SHING, SHING, SHING, SHING, SHING, SHING, SHING!

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

The Jeondeung Sect disciples on both sides drew their swords all at once.

Behind me, the Dok-a Sword stamped his feet at the murderous atmosphere.

"B-Black Flame Dragon, Young Master. What do we do now?"

What do you think?

We deal with them one by one.

Shrrrng.

When I drew the Red Light Sword, the Dok-a Sword's face turned deathly pale.

#

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!

Sabers and swords clashed, sending sparks flying.

Their hands should have hurt, but the disciples showed no sign of it at all.

"Die!"

I thrust out my foot at the man charging at me, reeking of killing intent.

THUD!

As he flew like a cannonball, two Jeondeung Sect disciples rushed in to catch him.

Perhaps because I had loaded the blow with a great deal of internal energy, they could not withstand it, and all three slammed into the wall side by side.

Such tear-jerking comradeship.

Since I still could not tell who had learned the demonic art, I turned the blade around.

That did not mean I was at a disadvantage.

Sometimes, the flat of a blade could hurt more than the edge.

SLASH, SLASH!

The Jeondeung Sect disciples collapsed, clutching wounds as if they had been struck by a sharp whip.

"Gather together!"

Soon, they formed a sword array and began rushing me.

Its shape imitated Qingcheng's, but it was a little different.

Qingcheng's sword arrays were characterized by freedom, flowing like the wind in accordance with the Qingcheng Sect's swordsmanship, but this one seemed to have a clearer purpose.

Rather than a sword array that balanced offense and defense, it seemed to focus more on attack, even at the cost of sacrifice.

'A sword array made from the start with sacrifice in mind, is it...?'

I wondered if such a sword array could even function properly.

"Argh! The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

But seeing a Jeondeung Sect disciple throw himself forward for someone else, it seemed to function properly enough.

'At the very least, they are better than Underworld mobs gathered from rabble.'

By the time I had incapacitated nearly twenty Jeondeung Sect disciples,

I suddenly felt something strange.

'Why do they feel no fear?'

Wondering if it was because I had not drawn blood, I deliberately attacked with the edge.

SLASH!

SLASH!

They were not grievous wounds, but the attacks should have been enough to make them feel their lives were threatened.

The marble floor of the Jeondeung Sect was quickly dyed with blood.

And yet.

"T-The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

The ones who fell,

and the ones who raised their sabers while watching them fall,

showed no intention of retreating at all.

But why do they keep shouting that fucking chant?

'Strange.'

People often think that once one learns martial arts, one ceases to fear the world, but in truth, it is the opposite.

Once you understand the level of your own strength, Jianghu becomes even harsher and more frightening.

But the Jeondeung Sect disciples had none of that.

Feeling something was off, I looked at Oh Ilsik, and with the same indifferent gaze as ever, he opened his mouth.

"Seeing that you do not use lethal techniques, you must be afraid of the consequences."

That demonic bastard.

I immediately kicked off the ground and charged at Oh Ilsik.

"What are you babbling about?"

But then.

Ffffft.

Oh Ilsik's figure was suddenly standing among the disciples.

"Though I may not have made my name through martial force, I am confident in my feet."

This bastard.

I immediately stepped with the Taiyi Eighty Thousand Divine Steps.

Ffffft!

Leaving five afterimages behind, I instantly chased him down.

While the Jeondeung Sect disciples swung their sabers at the afterimages, I closed to point-blank range and swung the Red Light Sword at him.

"Hup!"

The bastard grabbed a disciple by the hair and thrust him forward to block the Red Light Sword.

THUD!

The disciple who took the flat of the Red Light Sword with his head rolled his eyes back and fainted on the spot.

"T-The Jeondeung Sect... eternal..."

Meanwhile, Oh Ilsik poked his head out from the opposite side.

"Oh dear... Another precious disciple has fallen. At this rate, the Jeondeung Sect will be annihilated."

Along with Oh Ilsik's shout that sounded like a mutter to himself, the Jeondeung Sect disciples all began pulling pills from their robes.

"Insane..."

Then they swallowed the Exploding Blood Pills without hesitation.

POP, POP, POP, POP, POP, POP, POP, POP!

At the same time the sounds of martial uniforms swelling rang out from every direction, those spewing white steam began charging in as if determined to die.

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

While shouting that fucking chant.

#

They were quite different from how they had been at the Dok-a Sect.

At the Dok-a Sect, they had clearly recognized the limit of one hundred forms themselves and attacked while regulating themselves.

But now.

"Raaaagh!"

"Die!"

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

The Jeondeung Sect bastards were now rushing in like madmen with no regard for their own safety.

THUD, THUD! THUD, THUD, THUD!

The Ten Thousand Transformations Invincible Fist unfolded, and with a single form, three men collapsed while vomiting blood.

But the bastards who had taken the Exploding Blood Pill simply wiped their mouths and repeatedly stood up again.

This time, I put in more force and broke their arms and legs.

CRACK! CRACK!

"T-The Jeondeung Sect!!!"

"The Jeondeung Sect is eternal!"

But instead of screaming, they shouted that fucking chant again and tried to get back up.

Fuck, seriously...

The difference in martial force was obvious, but their obsession gave me chills.

They were desperate.

As if they were burning their bodies to protect something more precious than their own lives...

'Protect?'

My eyes met Oh Ilsik's, who was standing leisurely among the disciples.

The bastard smiled.

"Why? Are you a little frightened now?"

He asked me while stroking the head of one of his disciples.

"Can you kill Orthodox martial artists with such a noble spirit?"

After saying that, the bastard hid himself among the disciples.

The moment I spread my senses to find him,

"Uaaaagh!"

A Jeondeung Sect disciple charged at me as if prepared to die with me.

After dodging the disciple's saber, I was about to throw a punch.

STAB!

Suddenly, a saber burst out through the disciple's stomach.

Because I twisted my body by a hair's breadth, I was not wounded, but the hem of my robe was torn in a long line.

An even more astonishing thing followed.

"Kuhuk! T-The Jeondeung Sect is eternal...!"

The disciple whose stomach had been pierced snapped his eyes open and swung the saber in his own hand again.

'... This bastard!'

I forced aside the saber chopping down as if to split my head and rolled across the ground.

A dry voice came from above my head.

"The top student of the Murim Academy using a Lazy Donkey Roll... The world truly has gone to ruin."

When I raised my head,

Oh Ilsik, having pulled his saber out of the disciple's stomach, was shaking his head.

He did not even glance at the fallen disciple.

The disciple, who had met death at his Sect Leader's hand, was still looking at Oh Ilsik desperately, as if obeying his master even in the moment of death.

"How about it? Why not quietly go back, even now, and live your everyday life?"

"Ha..."

This was absurd.

That footwork darting between the disciples.

The behavior that did not care in the slightest about sacrificing a comrade's life for his goal.

Even without seeing those black eyes, the evidence was certain.

The evidence that he was a demonic practitioner.

He showed me the sight of a demonic practitioner right in front of my eyes and told me to go back?

Sorry, but I have no intention of doing that.

I crushed the Exploding Blood Pill in my hand.

The Exploding Blood Pill, which had been formed into a pellet, turned to powder and scattered onto the floor.

"Yes. You thought well."

Perhaps the fact that I threw away the Exploding Blood Pill reached the bastard with a different meaning, because he smiled broadly.

I smiled back at him.

"Idiot. Keep dreaming."

"... Hm?"

"I threw it away only because I no longer need it."

"..."

Now that is an expression worth seeing.

Watching you act relaxed all this time was disgusting.

"Now that I have confirmed you are a demonic practitioner, I no longer need evidence."

"What do you..."

I immediately charged at him.

Nearly ten men blocked my way with their whole bodies, but so what?

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

Along with the sound of air bursting, the ten men who had rushed in were sent flying like cannonballs.

I did not know what he had done, but the Jeondeung Sect disciples treated Oh Ilsik as something more precious than their own lives.

Unfortunately, this was not the time to worry about their safety.

If I let Oh Ilsik escape here, there would be even more victims.

Now that the latch had been opened, there was no need to hesitate.

SLASH!

"Guuurgh!"

A disciple whose wrist had been severed screamed as he watched blood gush like a fountain from his wrist.

At least now he was no longer shouting that fucking chant.

From ahead came Oh Ilsik's flustered voice.

"D-Do you think you can take responsibility after doing such a thing?"

Yes.

Perhaps it might become a problem later.

Perhaps I might make an enemy of the Qingcheng Sect.

But so what?

Whatever price I had to pay, it would be better than letting a demonic practitioner escape here.

"So what, you dumbass!"

THUD, THUD, THUD!

At the same time, I sent three men flying with a single punch and closed to within a step of the bastard.

Oh Ilsik finally erased his confident smile and dodged with a stiff expression.

Ffffft!

I immediately fired a Great Yang Palm toward the place where the bastard would appear.

Three Jeondeung Sect disciples were caught in the palm force and sent flying, and Oh Ilsik, who had thrown his body forward, rolled across the floor as well.

"H-How!"

"The footwork you use is the Hidden Demon Ghost-Form Step. In the Hidden Demon Ghost-Form Step, the fifth step is designed to occupy the six directions."

"Hup!"

Just as the bastard was about to say something, I shot out the Flying Dragon Claw and wrapped it around his neck.

Then I immediately swung the Red Light Sword and cut off the bastard's right arm.

"Now. Absolutely do not show your demonic art! That way, after you die, I will end up in trouble. Understand?"

"... W-Wait, grk, grk!"

The bastard's face reddened as his neck was strangled.

At the same time, the blood rushed to one side, and a fountain of blood sprayed from his severed shoulder.

"Oh dear... Now you have only one hand left. Will they call you the One-Handed Mad Saber from now on?"

"Guuurk!"

The moment his breath was about to cut off, Oh Ilsik's eyes finally darkened black as obsidian.

A storm-like wave of qi erupted from the bastard's body, making him convulse.

I used the Thousand-Catty Drop and put weight onto his body.

For a moment, the bastard seemed able to breathe, but then his eyelids trembled as if he were choking again.

Meanwhile, the Jeondeung Sect disciples were all hurling themselves this way.

Rattle, rattle, rattle.

I immediately unleashed the Great Heaven Sword Technique and cut off the arms and wrists of the Jeondeung Sect disciples one by one.

Blood sprayed in every direction, and screams filled the Jeondeung Sect.

Now it was time to drive in the wedge.

"Dok-a Sword!"

"Y-Yes!"

"Stop them!"

"Yes?!"

From one side of the Jeondeung Sect, the Dok-a Sword, who had been facing four Jeondeung Sect disciples, began forcing his way over here.

I severed the tendons in both of Oh Ilsik's ankles and drove my fist into his Dantian.

BOOM!

The sound of something bursting rang out from Oh Ilsik's abdomen, and Oh Ilsik vomited up a bowlful of blood.

Then, after loosening the Flying Dragon Claw slightly, I said to him,

"You have lost your martial arts, but you can still live. Speak. Where did you get the demonic art?"

As the Flying Dragon Claw loosened and his breathing returned, Oh Ilsik panted harshly.

CRACK!

I smashed the bastard's kneecap and asked again,

"Oh Ilsik! Where did you get the demonic art?"

In that instant, the bastard's body shuddered.

"... De... de...mon... blessings."

Demon blessings?

Was there a region called Demon Blessings?

"What?"

The bastard's eyes returned to their original form.

Perhaps because his neck had been strangled and his blood vessels had burst, his entire eyeballs were crimson.

"The Heavenly Demon descends... ten thousand demons bow in blessing!"

Crunch.

Along with the bastard's shout, the sound of something breaking came from his mouth, and smoke rose.

I quickly stuck my hand into his mouth, but I had no choice but to pull it back because of the searing sensation.

In that brief moment, part of my skin had been stripped away.

Then Oh Ilsik's entire body began to catch fire.

"Fuck..."

It was the demonic fire I had seen so sickeningly often during the Orthodox-Demonic Great War.