Swordless Demonic Path

Chapter 129 : Cutting the Net

Whoosh!

Ma Ryong, sensing death, threw himself backward with all his might. The only thought that dominated his mind was that he had to escape.

'I'm going to die.'

But he had to stop before the vastness of nature. A cliff and a sea of dense fog unfolded before his eyes.

"Heok! Heok!"

Ma Ryong, breathing heavily, looked left and right and discovered the fallen bodies.

They were all wearing masks, his and Faction Leader Seo's subordinates.

Drip!

Cold sweat flowed down his face and back. In just a few breaths, Ma Ryong's entire body was soaked. He turned around at the sound of footsteps from behind.

When did he appear? Jin Sa-wol was standing two zhang in front of him.

For Jin Sa-wol, a distance of two zhang was a range where he could kill his opponent just by extending his hand.

"Why did someone like the Lord of the Ghost Spirit Valley come here? You must have many subordinates."

"It is Cheon Woo-rin's order."

"So you've become Cheon Woo-rin's dog."

Jin Sa-wol smiled without realizing it.

"To become a mere dog, you killed Hyung-wook and tried to kill your master."

"Shut up!"

At Jin Sa-wol's dismissive words, Ma Ryong's anger surged. But he couldn't move rashly.

"Don't act like you know when you don't even know how I've lived! A dog? I don't care if I become a dog if it means becoming strong. What's wrong with that? Isn't it natural to want to get ahead by siding with the right person?"

"So, have you become strong?"

When Jin Sa-wol asked, Ma Ryong shut his mouth like a mute who had eaten honey. He had nothing particular to say about how strong he had become.

Right now, he just desperately wanted to live.

'I must live.'

Only that thought filled his mind.

It was the position of Lord of the Ghost Spirit Valley, which he had obtained by killing his comrades and even Hyung-wook. Because it was a position he had gained with difficulty, he wanted to lose it even less.

Thrust!

A small hole was pierced in his right shoulder.

"Keuk!"

Ma Ryong briefly looked at the sword held in Jin Sa-wol's hand.

'When did he move?'

He hadn't even seen it, but Jin Sa-wol's sword had stabbed his shoulder.

There was no slight movement from the shoulder, no sound, and no form.

A formless sword.

Ma Ryong gave an awkward smile and said.

"Weren't we comrades who ate from the same pot? Why don't you open a path for me to live, for old times' sake? Having the Lord of the Ghost Spirit Valley as an ally will surely be of great help."

"Are you saying you'll betray the cult?"

"It's not betrayal, but a rational choice."

At Ma Ryong's answer, Jin Sa-wol shook his head.

"It's for old times' sake that I'm having this pointless conversation with you right now."

Swish!

As Jin Sa-wol's shoulder shook slightly, Ma Ryong's eyes widened and he jumped backward.

Ma Ryong leaped off the fog-filled cliff and shouted.

"If I'm to die by your hands, I'd rather choose suicide! You damn little brat! Even in the afterlife, I will definitely kill you!"

Whoosh!

As Ma Ryong was about to fall off the cliff, small lights, like hidden weapons, quickly dug into his back and legs.

Thwack!

"Kraaak!"

With a final scream, Ma Ryong's figure disappeared into the fog, and Jin Sa-wol made a disappointed face.

Because Ma Ryong had made an unexpected choice, the sword energy had only grazed his side and leg. He had avoided a fatal wound.

Splash!

"Did I hear the sound of water?"

Ma Ryong had jumped into the water to live, not to die.

Plunge!

Ma Ryong, who had entered the water, endured the pain that struck his entire body and poked his head out of the water.

"Heok! Heok!"

Ma Ryong looked around the fog-filled area and then moved forward.

He couldn't see an inch ahead because of the darkness and fog, but it seemed the edge wouldn't be far.

Sure enough, he soon reached the cliff.

Ma Ryong followed the cliff, looking for a place to climb up.

After going a little further, he saw a rock jutting out. Ma Ryong climbed onto that rock, took out the golden wound medicine from a bamboo tube, stopped the bleeding, and tied a cloth around the wound.

Slosh! Slosh!

The sound of the lake water hitting the rock sounded like the melodies he used to hear in the brothel.

"Hooo. I don't know why I left the valley to suffer like this."

Ma Ryong let out a deep sigh and leaned his back against the cliff. If he got out of here alive, he planned to never forget today's events and take revenge.

"That little brat. What on earth did he eat to become so strong? Did he obtain some kind of fortuitous encounter? Did he get it here?"

Ma Ryong clenched his fists and imagined tearing Jin Sa-wol to pieces.

Swoosh!

Just then, someone appeared next to him.

Ma Ryong, feeling the presence, turned his head and his eyes widened.

"Hiek!"

He saw Jin Sa-wol standing there like a ghost.

Jin Sa-wol grabbed Ma Ryong's shoulder and said.

"If you had gone far, I wouldn't have been able to find you, but thankfully, you didn't go far."

Jin Sa-wol knew a few places around here where one could take shelter. Ma Ryong had climbed onto one of them.

"If it were me, I would have clung to even a rotten tree and fled further."

"Don't you know that if you stay in the water with this much blood coming out, you'll die before long?"

Ma Ryong replied, clicking his tongue. His voice was calm, as if he had given up on life.

Complex emotions constantly tormented him, but as he foresaw death, all his anger vanished.

"The reason I killed Hyung-wook was because that old man, blinded by greed, killed Master Na. I couldn't forgive him."

"I see."

Jin Sa-wol replied in a dry voice. In truth, it wasn't something he was very curious about.

Ma Ryong spoke again.

"You may not know, but the reason I stopped chasing you and Na Hyeon-gi that day was out of loyalty to the Na family. The last of my loyalty."

There seemed to be no falsehood in Ma Ryong's face as he spoke of loyalty.

"Is there a reason to kill me?"

Ma Ryong asked, looking at Jin Sa-wol's face. His face was still unpleasant to Jin Sa-wol.

It was a face that held no good memories.

Jin Sa-wol removed his hand from Ma Ryong's shoulder and said.

"If you follow this wall straight to the east, a small path will appear. Follow that path down, and a valley will appear. If you exit the valley, you will escape from here."

Whoosh! Plunge!

Ma Ryong's figure quickly disappeared into the water.

"Gasp! Gasp!"

Splash!

Ma Ryong, who came out of the water, gasped for breath and swam hastily. He had to get out of Jin Sa-wol's sight before his mind changed.

'You foolish bastard. The grace you've shown me today, I will repay a hundredfold later. I'll make you regret it. Kehehe!'

Ma Ryong swam hard and continued to move along the cliff.

Splash! Splash!

At the sound of water from afar, Jin Sa-wol shook his head.

"I wasn't finished with my story yet..."

If he had listened to the end of the story and then fled, his chances of survival would have been much higher. But unfortunately, Ma Ryong was in a hurry to escape without hearing all of what Jin Sa-wol had to say.

"If you meet people, you will die. If you avoid people, you will live."

Jin Sa-wol muttered and jumped upwards.

* * *

Swoosh!

Ma Ryong, who had entered the forest, moved along the forest path with a tired face and entered a deep gorge when he saw one.

As he slowly walked along the path of the gorge, he saw a light.

The sound of people talking in low voices reached his ears.

Ma Ryong hid himself in the darkness and approached.

"When we go down, will you go to the cult?"

"I must return to my family first, then go to the cult."

At the mention of the cult, Ma Ryong felt relieved for the time being.

In Ma Ryong's eyes, he saw Dokgo Hyeon's face illuminated by a small campfire.

Swish!

As Ma Ryong showed himself, Dokgo Hyeon drew his sword.

Shing!

Woo Jeong-bong and Jo Geom-ok also drew their swords, and Son Ae-hwa sat on the wall above Ma Ryong's left head.

"Who is it?"

When Dokgo Hyeon asked, Ma Ryong collapsed to the ground and prostrated himself.

"I never thought I would meet the young master of the Dokgo family here. I am Ma Ryong, the Lord of the Ghost Spirit Valley. Under Cheon Woo-rin's orders, I was investigating the Esoteric Sect... Ugh!"

Ma Ryong vomited dark red blood while speaking.

Seeing that, Dokgo Hyeon approached Ma Ryong's side and said.

"The Valley Lord has seen something he shouldn't have."

"Pardon?"

Thwack!

Dokgo Hyeon's sword dug into the neck of Ma Ryong, whose eyes were wide open. Because it was at close range, Ma Ryong couldn't avoid it.

"All the same... Demonic Cult..."

Thump!

As Ma Ryong's body fell to the ground, Dokgo Hyeon pulled out his sword. And he stabbed Ma Ryong's heart again.

After confirming once more that Ma Ryong's breath had completely stopped, Dokgo Hyeon sheathed his sword.

"He was going to die anyway, why?"

When Woo Jeong-bong asked, Dokgo Hyeon shook his head.

"The guys from the Ghost Spirit Valley are all tenacious bastards. I've heard before that there are killing ghosts who move even after their necks have been pierced."

"Scary."

Woo Jeong-bong shrugged his shoulders and roasted the remaining dried meat over the campfire.

Jo Geom-ok's gaze turned to the entrance of the valley on the Esoteric Sect's side. It was where Ma Ryong had come from. And beyond that was Jin Sa-wol.

* * *

The cold wind of dawn was swirling in the wide basin of the fifth gate. Although it was dawn, the area around the fifth gate was filled with bright light.

Burning firewood and pine torches illuminated the fifth gate.

Fwoosh!

In the center of the wide open space, a large pile of firewood was burning. Not far away, Mun-gang was sitting in a chair.

The members of the Wind Blood Pavilion and Cheon Woo-rin's subordinates were resting inside the roofed houses, but Mun-gang was not.

Thump! Fwoosh!

Just then, a heavy sound echoed from the central main hall, and the eastern building where the guest rooms were gathered began to burn.

"Fire!"

"Don't make a fuss and everyone come out!"

"Which bastard started the fire?"

As the warriors of the Wind Blood Pavilion moved busily, Mun-gang ran towards the western building where Cheon Woo-rin was resting.

'Feint to the east, attack to the west.'

That's how it looked in Mun-gang's eyes.

* * *

Cheon Woo-rin was sleeping soundly.

To his left, a naked woman was lying. She was a Flower Ghost from the Flower Pavilion who had come with Cheon Woo-rin.

The Flower Ghosts not only attended to Cheon Woo-rin's nightly needs but were also tasked with guarding him.

There were ten of them, spread out around the first and second floors of the building.

Faction Leader Seo, wearing a mask, was sitting in the tea room with the chamber door half-open.

The area around the house was dark, and a thick scent of alcohol lingered in the room.

Dozens of blood-sucking threads spread out like a spider's web in all directions around Faction Leader Seo, who was sitting in a chair.

One of them shook faintly. It wasn't shaken by the wind, but an artificial shake.

If the wind had blown, several would have shaken at once. But now, only one shook.

Immediately after, the sound of the blood-sucking thread snapping echoed throughout the room.

"Annoying."

As a low voice echoed from the chamber, Faction Leader Seo turned her body towards the chamber like lightning. In her eyes, she saw a man with Cheon Woo-rin slung over his shoulder.

The man, whose eyes met Faction Leader Seo's, jumped out the window.

"Oh my? Uh, uh?"

Faction Leader Seo, with her eyes wide open, stared blankly at the window where the man had disappeared.

(End of Chapter)