Midnight Raiders (2)
Dangbaek examined Cheol-woo with a cautious gaze.
Despite standing calmly before more than thirty opponents, there was no discernible aura about him.
That was what troubled Dangbaek even more. It was because he sensed that this composure was not mere bluster, but absolute confidence.
'He's a master. And an extraordinary one at that.'
As the shadow of the Yeongho Jung, Dangbaek had encountered countless masters around the Yeongho family and beyond, and he instinctively knew that Cheol-woo was no ordinary expert. But it was already too late to turn back. Even if he tried to retreat now, it didn't seem like they would let him go peacefully.
Dangbaek's gaze shifted to Hwan-su and the others, who were waiting only for his command. There was no need for words.
"Attack!"
At the sharp shout, Hwan-su's sword shot toward Cheol-woo's heart.
With Hwan-su leading the charge, the Black Bull Squad, which had surrounded Cheol-woo and Sima-Jian, launched their attack all at once.
As attacks poured in from all directions, Cheol-woo let out a soft chuckle and reached out his hand toward Hwan-su's sword, which was thrusting straight at his heart.
At Cheol-woo's action—akin to suicide—Hwan-su felt a flicker of doubt, yet he poured even more strength into his thrust.
The sword that had been advancing with great momentum suddenly stopped in midair.
"This is insane…"
Hwan-su stared in shock at the sword caught in Cheol-woo's bare hand.
It was a blade honed so keenly that merely grazing it would slice through anything. He had never even imagined that a human hand, clad in nothing but flesh, could withstand it.
Clang!
With a sharp metallic ring, the blade caught in Cheol-woo's grip snapped cleanly in two.
Snatching the broken blade, Cheol-woo reached toward Hwan-su's face.
'No!'
Hwan-su's eyes bulged as if they would tear apart.
Cheol-woo's left hand was already clamped around the back of his neck.
Attacks flew in from all sides to save Hwan-su.
Ignoring the rain of blows entirely, Cheol-woo drove the broken blade all the way into Hwan-su's face.
Hwan-su's body, which had been thrashing desperately to escape Cheol-woo's grip, went limp as the shattered blade burst out through the back of his skull.
In the meantime, swords aimed at Cheol-woo swept across his entire body.
Not a single attack managed to cut even a thread of his clothing. The Overlord Blood-Riding Qi (Ink Asura True Energy) protecting his entire body deflected everything.
The Overlord Blood-Riding Qi left behind by the Immovable Master did not possess offensive power as great as the Ink-Steel Asura Qi (Ink-Black Asura Energy) that Sima-Jian had obtained through a fortuitous encounter at the Ghost Gate family. Still, as a defensive energy, it was astonishing—so formidable that it was hardly inferior to any martial art, and not even much weaker than the Ink-Steel Asura Qi itself.
Cheol-woo looked down disdainfully at the Black Bull Squad, who were retreating in terror.
"Tsk, tsk. You sure put on a convincing act, but this is all you've got? One of your comrades just died—shouldn't you be charging in like your lives depend on it? Pathetic vermin."
Cheol-woo irritably hoisted Hwan-su's limp corpse and hurled it toward the retreating Black Bull Squad.
"Here. A present."
After throwing the body, Cheol-woo lightly clenched his fist and swung it powerfully.
The moment a bluish fist-force struck Hwan-su's corpse, the body exploded like a firecracker.
Bones and flesh scattered in all directions, transforming into terrifying hidden weapons that swept through the Black Bull Squad.
"Kraaaah!"
"Aaagh!"
With screams erupting everywhere, their spilled blood turned into a red mist that filled the bamboo grove.
An overwhelmingly unimaginable display of power.
As the Black Bull Squad was utterly crushed, unable to even think of resisting Cheol-woo's might, Dangbaek—who had tried to circle around to the left and attack from behind—also found himself in a dire situation.
So focused was he on Cheol-woo, whose dreadful presence dominated everything, that Dangbaek made the fatal mistake of momentarily forgetting about Sima-Jian.
Just as Dangbaek used his secret footwork, the Shadow-Smoke Step, to slip in and aim for Cheol-woo's flank, Sima-Jian—who had been watching indifferently—casually stretched out his foot.
Even if he had done nothing, Cheol-woo would never have fallen to Dangbaek. Rather, Dangbaek was far more likely to be reduced to a lump of flesh by Cheol-u's counterattack.
But Sima-Jian had a few things he wanted to confirm about the situation, and so he could not simply let Dangbaek die.
"Kgh!"
A short scream burst from Dangbaek's mouth as his body, which had vanished like smoke, reappeared.
True to being the leader of the Black Bull Squad, his reaction was swift.
The instant pain struck, he twisted his body like lightning and thrust out his sword.
A streak of light shot toward Sima-Jian.
Sima-Jian, who had stomped down and shattered Dangbaek's ankle, flicked his finger with an amused expression in response to the rapid counterattack.
Clang!
The sword flying toward his neck collided with his finger, letting out a sharp metallic cry.
The shock traveled through the blade, up the arm and shoulder, violently shaking Tang Baek's body.
Unable to withstand the impact, Dangbaek dropped his sword and stared at Sima-Jian with a vacant expression.
Picking up the fallen sword, Sima-Jian drove it down into the top of Dangbaek's foot.
The movement was slow, yet Dangbaek could not react at all.
"Kyaaaah!"
A scream tore from Dangbaek's mouth as he failed to endure the pain.
Concerned that the noise might interfere with his younger sibling's treatment, Sima-Jian took measures to prevent the sound from spreading. He waited until Dangbaek had screamed his fill, then, as the cries subsided, asked quietly,
"Where did you come from? And what were you after here?"
"Who… who are you?"
At Dangbaek's counterquestion, Sima-Jian frowned slightly and shifted the sword embedded in his foot.
As pain split his foot apart, Dangbaek's mouth fell wide open.
No scream escaped.
With bloodshot eyes, Dangbaek clenched his lips tight and glared at Sima-Jian.
"Who… are you, you bastard… khk!"
Sima-Jian moved the sword again, sealing Dangbaek's mouth, then stepped back and said,
"I ask the questions. You just answer. What were you after here? Cheongsim Clinic? The Hwalseon Medical Family? Or the Azure-Clear Stone Oil?"
As he asked each question and observed Dangbaek's reactions, Sima-Jian did not miss the momentary flicker in his eyes at the words "Azure-Clear Stone Oil."
"So it really was for the Azure-Clear Stone Oil."
Tang Baek lowered his head and fell silent.
"Not many people should know that I obtained the Azure-Clear Stone Oil. Where did you hear it? The Water Dragon—"
Sima-Jian let out a soft chuckle and shook his head, recalling how the Thousand-Kill Guild had targeted the Azure-Clear Stone Oil on his return from Hangzhou to Shaoxing.
"If even back-alley thugs knew about it, calling it a secret was a joke from the start."
"You obtained the Azure-Clear Stone Oil? Th-then… are you Sima-Jian?"
Dangbaek jerked his head up and asked in a trembling voice.
"Judging by the fact that you even know my name, the information must have leaked properly. Yes. I am Sima-Jian."
At the name Sima-Jian, Dangbaek's face turned ashen, like a rotten potato.
'I really did something unbelievably stupid.'
He bitterly regretted that, while he had confirmed only that the Thousand-Kill Guild had been defeated by members of the Hwalseon Medical Family, he had conducted absolutely no investigation into Sima-Jian himself.
'To think I looked down on these monsters just because they ran a butcher shop.'
From the start, the fact that people wealthy enough to purchase the Azure-Clear Stone Oil were running a butcher shop was suspicious in itself.
Normally, he would have questioned it without fail, yet he couldn't understand why he had dismissed it so lightly this time.
"I've answered your question, so now you should answer mine. Where are you from?"
At Sima-Jian's calm tone, chills ran through Dangbaek's entire body.
From his experience, opponents who were this composed and resolute were far more terrifying than those who relied on threats.
"It seems you don't feel like answering, but well… it doesn't really—"
As Sima-Jian continued speaking with a cold smile, his expression suddenly changed completely.
He quickly reached out and clamped a hand over Dangbaek's mouth, but it was already too late.
Dangbaek's body began to convulse violently, and blood started pouring from his seven orifices.
Sensing instinctively from Sima Jian's tone and demeanor that he was in danger, Dangbaek had bitten down on the poison hidden in his mouth.
Realizing there was no way to stop Dangbaek's death, Sima Jian hurriedly turned his head away.
"Don't kill them all. Leave a few alive—"
Sima Jian couldn't finish his sentence.
Cheol-woo was strolling over, having wiped out every last one without leaving a single survivor.
"Boss, these guys were way too weak. They looked the part, but they're nothing special. They were dressed kind of like those Black Heaven Gang (Dark Heaven Gang) bastards, so I had some expectations, but the gap in skill is ridiculous… Why? What's wrong, boss?"
Cheol-woo stopped when he noticed the unusual expression on Sima Jian's face.
"Are they all dead?"
"Of course. Even if I wanted to spare them, I couldn't. They were just too fragile."
Cheol-woo shrugged with a grin, then looked at Dangbaek lying collapsed at Sima Jian's feet.
"Is he dead?"
"Yes."
"Did you manage to get anything out of him?"
When Sima Jian shook his head weakly, Cheol-woo couldn't hide his surprise.
"You laid a hand on him and still got nothing? In a way, that makes him pretty impressive."
"He killed himself before I could do anything. I was careless. I didn't even notice he had poison in his mouth."
As Sima Jian sighed, reproaching himself, Cheol-woo chuckled and pointed toward Cheongsimwon.
"Your attention was completely over there, so it's only natural. Still, he really was the leader. To kill himself just to protect his secrets… That said, it's a shame we couldn't find out who's behind this. You never know when flies might come buzzing around again."
"There won't be any flies," Sima Jian said coolly. "After tonight, the Azure Purity Stone Oil won't exist anymore. But if they do show up…"
His indifferent gaze settled on Dangbaek, who had bled from all seven orifices, writhed in agony, and then died.
"…they'll end up like that."
"Heh heh heh! Still, having flies buzz around doesn't sound all that bad. It'd be a bit of excitement in an otherwise boring life."
As Cheol-woo snickered, Sima Jian shot him an annoyed look.
"A boring life? Excitement? After seeing that much blood, you want to see more?"
"No, it's not exactly like that…"
"I really hate it when this peaceful life gets disturbed."
"Me too, actually."
Cheol-woo let out an awkward laugh, and Sima Jian scoffed.
"Lies you don't even mean."
"No, really. This time I mean it."
"Enough!"
Sima Jian cut him off.
"Clean this place up properly. If people see corpses scattered everywhere like this, they'll panic."
"Here?"
Cheol-woo asked in alarm.
"Were you planning to just leave it like this?"
"Not exactly, but how am I supposed to deal with all of this by myself…?"
Cheol-woo scratched the back of his head as he looked around at the devastation.
More than half of the bodies had been torn apart beyond recognition, and not a single one of the remaining corpses was intact. Their spilled blood had soaked the ground and all but dyed the entire bamboo grove red.
"And whose fault is it for making such a mess? You could've handled them properly and cleaned things up neatly. It would've saved a lot of trouble."
"You're the one who's always said that even when catching a rabbit, you should give it your all, boss," Cheol-woo protested with a wronged expression.
"I said give it your all, not turn them into slabs of meat hanging in a butcher shop. Quit the nonsense and just get it done."
Glaring, Sima Jian turned and walked away.
Cheol-woo stared blankly at Sima Jian's retreating back, then let out a sigh so deep it seemed the ground might cave in.
"Haa… when am I ever going to finish this…?"
Despite his dejected expression, his heavy feet were already digging into the earth.