Swordless Demonic Path

Chapter 119 : I Make the Trap

'How? Or was he already up there?'

Jin Sa-wol opened his ears and focused his senses.

The strange feeling he had felt a while ago had already disappeared.

Jin Sa-wol looked around as the opponent escaped his senses. The thick fog had dulled his senses and he had missed him.

'At least the pavilion master of Hwahwaru seems to have come. Or a high-ranking assassin from Ghost Spirit Valley. If not, then Hao Mun?'

It was the group with the highest possibility right now.

"Is it because of the fog?"

Jin Sa-wol muttered and looked at Dokgo Shin-wi.

"What's wrong?"

"It seems there are birds that like the night."

"What a surprise."

Since Dokgo Shin-wi had not felt anything, he stroked his beard and spoke again.

"Even if they are birds that like the night, they won't be able to move because of the fog."

"It doesn't matter."

Hook!

Jin Sa-wol's figure became a dot and then disappeared into the fog.

Dokgo Shin-wi said to Dokgo Hyeon.

"Don't move."

"Yes."

"If you move unnecessarily in this fog, you can become a target for the enemy."

"I will keep that in mind."

"I will practice my breathing, so guard me."

"Yes."

Even though the situation was flowing strangely, Dokgo Shin-wi practiced his breathing.

Dokgo Hyeon stood like a stone statue in front of Dokgo Shin-wi. His ears also focused on the surrounding sounds.

* * *

There was a narrow space between the cracks of the split cliff. The place was full of darkness, so it just looked like a simple shadow was cast.

As the narrow gap was filled with fog, it wriggled for a moment. A moving sound was also heard from another narrow gap right above.

But that was only for a very short time.

Shwaa! Slap!

The sound of water rushing like a wave was heard from below.

-Who died?

-I don't know. I can't see because of the fog.

-I know that too. The voice?

-I can't hear because of the wind and the sound of water.

-You useless bastard.

A man and a woman were exchanging telepathic messages in the gap.

A short while later, the sound of hitting a wall was heard.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

The sound gradually approached the two. The interval of the sound was constant, so it seemed as if they were walking in step.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Although they could not tell how close they had come because of the fog, the two who were hiding in the gap of the wall were sweating. It was a situation where they could not even move.

The two contemplated countless times in their minds whether to move or not.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack-thwack!

As the constant sound suddenly became faster as if it were rushing forward, the two who were hiding held their breath.

Thwack!

The sword that had pierced the wall stopped half a zhang in front of them and then turned and moved away. It was because of the water.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Although the sound of a moving presence was heard, the two did not move.

-You scary bastard. I almost peed my pants.

-I'm already a little wet. Your face?

-You dirty bastard. I didn't see. He's a guy with good senses.

The two were frozen, unable to move, knowing that they were in a dilemma.

In that instant, a 'thwack!' sound and the sound of a heavy rock falling echoed from a place not far away.

Thump! Thump!

It was a sound caused by other people who were hiding.

* * *

Whoosh!

Jin Sa-wol, who was moving, chasing the sound of breathing, let out a deep breath and appeared next to Dokgo Hyeon.

Dokgo Shin-wi opened his eyes just in time.

"Is there no one?"

"I found two. It was Hwahwaru and Ghost Spirit Valley."

"Only two?"

"I don't know."

It was Jin Sa-wol who would have answered that there were none if there were none. The fact that he didn't know was the same as saying that there were more.

"You seem to have become sensitive."

"I think so."

"If you have doubts, you should be careful."

"Yes."

Dokgo Shin-wi, who had heard Jin Sa-wol's answer, muttered with a face full of disappointment.

"Was it a wasted effort? It's just ruins."

"Kang Hang said there is a secret warehouse here. He said the treasures of the esoteric sect are there. We have to look for it."

Jin Sa-wol told the disappointed Dokgo Shin-wi about the secret warehouse.

"If it's true, it's worth looking for. It's not a lie, is it? Kang Hang has a girlish side, so he deceives people well."

"The esoteric sect members also mentioned a secret warehouse. It's highly likely to be true. I have something I'm curious about."

"What is it?"

"Who killed the esoteric sect master?"

When Jin Sa-wol asked, Dokgo Shin-wi recalled the memory of the day the esoteric sect master got killed.

"It was Jo Han-yu and my older brother. And there was also the Ice Palace Master and the Tang family head. Two of them are already dead. Besides them, there were many others. Hmm... Cheon Yu-myeong was also there."

Dokgo Shin-wi, who was mentioning Cheon Yu-myeong, stroked his beard and then had a hardened expression.

"Come to think of it, Cheon Yu-myeong's martial arts have improved rapidly since he came back from the esoteric sect. At that time, I thought he had simply grown, but now that I think about it, I wonder if he got a lucky chance at the esoteric sect."

"Perhaps the Cheon Cult Leader took the martial arts of the Three Emperors."

As Dokgo Hyeon opened his mouth, Dokgo Shin-wi nodded, as it was a plausible statement.

Jin Sa-wol also left that possibility open.

Dokgo Shin-wi asked.

"But why do you ask about the death of the esoteric sect master?"

"I was just curious."

"Although there were several people who directly killed the esoteric sect master, it can be said that the martial world destroyed the esoteric sect."

"Yes."

Jin Sa-wol answered and then looked around and said.

"I have to find the secret warehouse."

"You should. It's better to find it quickly. The main force of the Demonic Cult will come tomorrow at the earliest. And the leader of the main force is Cheon-ryong-in, Yuk Sam-yuk."

Yuk Sam-yuk was one of the ten great masters of the Demonic Cult. And he was called one of the four great guardian demonic gods, and he was the older brother of the Yuk family head.

At Dokgo Shin-wi's words, Jin Sa-wol's expression hardened and he disappeared into the fog.

* * *

Although it was past the hour of the rat, the fog that had covered the lake was still flowing.

Ten men in black, wearing masks, were standing in front of the cliff where the main building was.

They were the Flower Ghosts of Hwahwaru and the Slaughter Ghosts of Ghost Spirit Valley.

They were standing in groups of five, and they were discussing how to cross the lake.

"Let's get some wood and cross the lake."

It was an opinion to get a log and cross. Since one was not enough, two were needed.

It was the most realistic of the opinions that had come out so far. Although there was fog, they had to do it.

"The two who went out as scouts haven't come back yet. How about we wait a little longer?"

"Do you think they'll come back through this fog?"

The two masked men looked at each other's faces. As they had said, there was no news from the two who had gone out in the evening. Originally, they should have come back and reported by now.

Swish! Thump!

As the sound of wind and footsteps were heard from below the cliff, the masked men instinctively looked down as if they were drawn by a magnet.

Thump! Flutter!

In that instant, a huge bird pierced through the fog and soared into the empty air. The bird, which was spreading its two arms, looked quite large.

"Ugh!"

"Hmph!"

The moment they realized that the bird was a person, a sword appeared in front of their eyes.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

As the sword shadow pierced their faces, the bird folded its wings and passed over the heads of the masked men and landed on the ground.

It was Jin Sa-wol who had crossed the lake.

Thump! Thud!

As the ten masked men fell to the ground at once, Jin Sa-wol took off their masks.

Five of the ten were men, and five were women. They all had sword wounds on their foreheads.

Jin Sa-wol, who was crossing the lake through the fog, was drawn by the sound of people's voices and flew to them.

The moment he saw them wearing masks, he instinctively moved his sword. It was an instinctive action.

Jin Sa-wol confirmed everyone's death, then took one of the masks and turned his body and headed for the main hall.

Crossing the lake was not very difficult for Jin Sa-wol. He had come several times when he was young, and not much had changed since then.

Also, he already knew the location of the secret warehouse that Kang Hang had mentioned.

A warrior of the Black Dragon Faction, who was patrolling, was seen in front of Jin Sa-wol, who was heading for the main hall. The two saw Jin Sa-wol, but they did not think he was an enemy.

Since it wasn't just the Black Dragon Faction here now, they couldn't know everyone's face.

The patrol was just a formality.

The important place was the entrance of the stairs where the orthodox martial artists who had been defeated and had run away had gone down.

Dozens of warriors were guarding that place.

Jin Sa-wol moved his sword at the two warriors of the Black Dragon Faction who were passing by. A sharp silver light appeared for a moment and then brushed past the necks of the two.

They fell to the ground without even knowing what had happened.

As a thick smell of blood flowed, a cold smile brushed past Jin Sa-wol's lips.

Jin Sa-wol put on a mask and opened the door of the main hall. In his eyes, he saw numerous Demonic Cult members sleeping, scattered.

* * *

Two people were sitting in the forest of the garden, far from the main building of the esoteric sect.

They were Jo Geom-ok and Son Ae-hwa.

Although they were on the second floor, they had been driven out by the Demonic Cult members and had hidden in the forest.

Since both were skilled in hiding, they were not caught.

Son Ae-hwa was surprised that Jo Geom-ok's movements were so nimble, as she did not know that she belonged to the Shadowless Squad.

She suspected that the Wudang Sect was also raising assassins.

Jo Geom-ok was sleeping, leaning against a tree in a familiar posture. Son Ae-hwa was also sleeping a little away, spending a quiet night.

But at the clamorous sound, the two opened their eyes at the same time.

"It's an enemy!"

"Kraak!"

The scream echoed from the main hall. The two's gazes turned to the main hall.

Mun-gang and No Seo-pung, who were sleeping on the second floor of the main hall, were tired.

They had to fight the orthodox sect all day.

Yesterday, they had suffered at the Musalgwan, and today, they were harassed by the orthodox sect, so they couldn't help but be tired.

The two, who had lain on the bed, fell asleep immediately.

If the two, who were masters of the peak, were so tired, how much more so would their subordinates be? Numerous Demonic Cult members were rolling around like luggage and sleeping in the wide main hall.

The one who had gone to bed last, after confirming that his subordinates were asleep, was the Black Dragon Faction Master, Ja Cho-je.

"Today was so hard."

Ja Cho-je let out a sigh, lay on the bed, and closed his eyes. Sleep quickly took him, and a short while later, he opened his eyes at the sound of a scream.

"Kraaak!"

"It's an enemy!"

"It's an assassin!"

At the loud shout that echoed from the main hall, Ja Cho-je quickly got up. Mun-gang and No Sa-pung from the next room also jumped down to the first floor.

Thump!

"Ugh!"

The masked man who had pierced the door of the main hall immediately ran to the back garden.

"He's running away! Chase him!"

"The enemy is one! Hurry up and chase him!"

Thump-thump-thump!

Hundreds of Demonic Cult members and the members of the Black Dragon Faction began to run to the back garden.

Jin Sa-wol, who was wearing a mask, was running about three zhang in front of them.

Papapat! Thump-thump!

Since it was a distance of three zhang, it seemed as if he would be caught at any moment.

Jin Sa-wol, who turned his head, saw the Demonic Cult members who were full of anger, and then, as he reached the end of the cliff, he jumped into the fog like an arrow.

The Demonic Cult members who were chasing him closely opened their eyes wide when they felt that their feet were empty.

"Shit!"

"Uwaaaak!"

"Damn it! Uwaaaak!"

Thump-thump-thump!

"Stop! Stop!"

"It's a cliff!"

Thwack! Thwack!

"Ugh!"

The Demonic Cult members who were running in front could not overcome the force pushing from behind and fell.

If they suddenly stopped in front, the person who was closely attached behind could not help but collide with the person in front.

"Everyone, retreat!"

As No Sa-pung shouted, the Demonic Cult members retreated from the cliff.

"Where is the assassin?"

"He jumped from here."

As a subordinate who was nearby answered, No Sa-pung looked at the lake full of fog.

But no matter how much he looked, there was no enemy. Just then, a sword light flashed from behind the subordinates.

"Kraak!"

"Ack!"

At the same time as the screams erupted, No Sa-pung's figure jumped over the heads of his subordinates.

In his eyes, he saw a masked man.

(End of Chapter)