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Surprise escaped from the mouths of the sect members as they watched the poisonous smoke being sent into the air.
It had almost become dangerous, but everyone focusing on me was probably because I had prevented it.
Something was strange.
-What are you doing? Show off that confidence and raise your sword up.
Short Sword made me smile as she said this, and I raised my sword. The sect members then cheered.
“Woahhhhh!!”
As of this moment, there were no more factions. The ground shook as the many members gathered here cheered. Everyone looked at me as if I was a hero.
Hae Ack-chun stuck his tongue out and said,
[You, what happened the whole time you were away?]
[There was a small thing.]
[What? If this is a small thing, then what is a big thing for you?]
I shivered at his tone. It felt sweet. For the first time, he even seemed pleasant.
[Hehehe, I was the one who taught you, but even I don’t know. Maybe this is how it would feel if the South Heavenly Swordsman returned to life.]
Hae Ack-chun, my teacher, called himself the South Heavenly Swordsman’s rival.
Since he understood the sword technique better than anyone else, he must have been able to see through my technique just now.
“Haa, that was so cool, young lord!”
Sima Young came to me with a big smile. I was the one showing off my confidence, but she was the one feeling proud.
“Still, do not overdo it. I was surprised.”
It might feel like that’s her job now. In the distance, among the sect members, I spot Song Jwa-baek, whose mouth is open in shock.
When I looked over at him, he turned away in embarrassment.
-Cute. Now he cannot even talk about rivals or things like that.
The gap was now simply too large. However, he seemed to have put in a lot of effort in the past two months. Unlike before, my qi reserves had significantly increased, and I was reaching the highest realms. With a little bit of support to reach enlightenment, I could probably go higher.
‘It looks like the reputation of being called the Black and White Twins didn’t come out of nowhere.’
“Huh.”
A snort came from a short distance away. When I turned towards it, I saw Baek Hye-hyang with her arms crossed.
I sensed a strange fighting spirit in her eyes.
That was really just like her.
Actually, she, who didn’t lose by much against Mu Ack, who was one of the Five Great Evils, wouldn’t be discouraged fighting against me even if my martial arts increased.
I then could hear someone’s voice.
“Kuaauk… you… you…”
The one who uttered those bitter words was Gu Jae-yang. His Poison State had been released, and he was covered in blood and sword marks all over his body.
With how cut up his muscles were, he wouldn’t be able to move his body even if he wanted to.
-It doesn’t have that unusual resilience.
That seems to be it. That was rather fortunate.
If it wasn’t for that, we would need to interrogate him, and there would be no chance he would do anything.
The Blood Leader, Gu Jae-yang, spat out blood and spoke.
“You… look at what you did! Cough.”
“Huh! I see that your mouth is still alive.”
Hae Ack-chun strode towards him. Gu Jae-yang still had a terrifying smile even while hidden in the shadow of the giant.
“Now, there is no way the Blood Sect will survive. Ghastly Monster. If only you stayed still, at least you would have been fine.”
“So what about it!”
Pak!
“Kuak!”
Hae Ack-chun grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up. The old man was dangling from the hands of Hae Ack-chun. Even though he didn’t have the strength to resist, he laughed to intentionally provoke him.
“Just spill it all out. Is that golden-eyed man behind you?”
“Haaa… haaa…”
“Speak! If you tell us about those behind you, your life will be saved in the name of our old relationship.”
“Haa… it isn’t necessary. Just kill me.”
He wasn’t afraid of death at all. Those were rather incomprehensible words.
“Do you think this is the end? Ghastly Monster. Kekeke.”
“You have changed. Gu Jae-yang. If the former sect leader was alive, he would have cut open your stomach and soaked himself in your blood.”
“What are you doing speaking about the dead? You stupid fool.”
“Who is stupid!”
Puak!
“Kuak!”
Gu Jae-yang coughed in pain from Hae Ack-chun’s punch.
Still, his will wasn’t broken at all.
“What shit.”
“This guy needs to be hit more….”
“If I had let that girl, Baek Ryeon-ha, become the leader, then none of this would have happened. Because of this, I chose to walk the path of death, so I will regret it forever…”
Clench!
“Kuak!”
“What are you doing!”
Hearing Hae Ack-chun’s urgency, Gu Jae-yang laughed viciously and tried to bite his tongue. It seemed as if he was trying to kill himself.
Hae Ack-chun hurriedly sealed his blood points. The tongue became stiff, and Gu Jae-yang’s body became still as if stunned.
“You damned fucking bastard.”
Hae Ack-chun stuck out his tongue. Baek Hye-hyang came up to him and said,
“Look, Fourth Elder. He’s a caught fish anyway. Whether we pull out his nails or use a hot iron, we can get his mouth open. Let’s deal with other urgent matters first.”
“Right, my lady.”
Thud!
As if acting in agreement, Hae Ack-chun set Gu Jae-yang down. The warriors of the sect came over and dragged him to the side.
“All the blood he spills is poison, so be careful.”
“Huh!”
The person who replied was a warrior who didn’t care about blood, but he at least gave it enough attention.
It seemed that even sealing his blood points wouldn’t stop the poison.
Seeing that Gu Jae-yang was now coughing up blood, even when touched by the hand, the poison from the blood was becoming smoke swiftly.
Baek Hye-hyang approached him with a stiff face, perhaps intending to end this. Then came a scream.
“KUUAAAKKKK!”
Baek Ryeon-ha was coughing up purple blood.
-Ugh, is she alright?
It didn’t look good. Her face was pale from the blood she had coughed up. Baek Hye-hyang and I then looked at each other.
“How did it go? First Elder.”
The First Elder, driving out the poison, frowned and said.
“The poison within the five major organs had been driven out, but the poison in her brain is not something that could be purged using internal qi.”
“The brain?”
“When I tried to completely drive out the poison qi, it became stimulated and spread. As a temporary measure, I had driven it to one corner, but…”
I guess it wasn’t completely purged.
If left alone, the poison could slowly spread through the brain.
Baek Ryeon-ha, who had been coughing out poison to the point of regret, began mumbling to herself with blank eyes.
“Why… why am I not getting anything? Why….”
She even shed tears,
“Baek Ryeon-ha…”
“I… I….”
Baek Hye-hyang called out to her, but she only continued to mumble. It was as if she didn’t realize who was around her.
“Stupid woman. The one who inherited the blood of Blood Demon is like this because of poison…”
Baek Hye-hyang scolded her, but her voice seemed so bitter.
Did she feel sympathy for her half-sister, who seemed so weak after their battle for succession? I was unsure what kind of poison this was or why it showed these symptoms…
-Didn’t they say it was the Illusion Demon Poison?
Right.
However, I am not an expert on poisons, so it was impossible for me to know about them in detail. Seeing how both Dan Wei-kang and Hae Ack-chun were also puzzled, it seemed that this was also something foreign to them.
“Miss!”
Han Baekha hurriedly approached and asked the First Elder in a worried tone.
“What is happening to my lady? Does the elder have any ideas?”
“There is no way I can do anything more. It looks like we’ll need to cure her with the help of a physician.”
Han Baekha bit her lips as she looked at Baek Ryeon-ha in despair.
It was perhaps all the more painful for her because they had lived together for 10 years.
“Blood Flower Troops.”
“Yes!”
She called for the women in white veils who came in from around the crowd. It was all made up of her disciples and followers. As everyone looked puzzled, she said,
“Since her condition is critical, stay with her. We will move to the sect member who is practicing medicine.”
“…yes.”
“And please guide the Third Elder to me.”
“What?”
Hae Ack-chun frowned at this request. She then pointed to the tied-up old man and said,
“Isn’t it impossible to stop him right now? Since the lady’s condition is critical, I will interrogate him to find a cure.”
She wasn’t wrong, but there was one thing that she overlooked.
“It won’t happen.”
Dan Wei-kang, the First Elder, refused her.
“Why?”
Baek Hye-hyang laughed.
“Hehehe.”
“What is the meaning of this?”
“Ei, Bloody Hand Witch. You wouldn’t be in the position to interrogate anyone right now.”
“Uh?”
Baek Hye-hyang spoke with a straight face.
“You are also a subject to be interrogated.”
“What!?”
Shh!
Baek Hye-hyang’s sword moved toward her neck. Thinking that something was wrong, Han Baekha tried to back away, but Hae Ack-chun blocked her path.
“Fourth Elder! What is this?”
“Bloody Hand Witch! Didn’t you say you were close to Lady Baek Ryeon-ha? Don’t think you could escape this by giving us an excuse that you didn’t know what was happening.”
Han Baekha was unable to hide her reaction to this absurdity.
Cause and effect.
She had continued to defend Gu Jae-yang in front of everyone in an effort to make it seem like Baek Ryeon-ha should become the next Blood Demon. Therefore, she could not avoid the possibility of interrogation by claiming she had no idea.
Han Baekha was shocked and shouted her denial.
“I really did not know! Do you think I, who served the lady since she was suffering from that horrid illness that made it impossible for her to learn martial arts, is the same as him?”
“Who was it that pushed Wonwhi and me into claims of legitimacy by that dog?”
Baek Hye-hyang spoke out.
Han Baekha had too many enemies here. Of course, if Baek Ryeon-ha had become the leader, she would have been able to do anything, but not anymore.
“First Elder!”
She called for Seo Kalma.
“Don’t you realize it, Second Elder? If it was only Lady Hae and me, do you think I would collude with someone else and do something to her?”
It was as if she was trying to get out by using him. However, Seo Kalma didn’t react positively to this.
“I am sorry, Bloody Hand Witch, but you went too far this time.”
“What do you mean by that!?”
Hae Ack-chun rushed to answer.
“Huh! Are you really asking because you don’t know? You have said too many lies. Didn’t you try to deceive all the sect members into thinking she recovered the Blood Demon Sword herself when she didn’t?”
She cried out her denial at those words.
“Second Elder, Fourth Elder, didn’t I do that because we have no other choice but to do it in that situation? You sympathized when you thought the young lord was dead, so why are you saying different things…”
“Bloody Hand Witch”
I cut her off, and she turned to me with trembling eyes.
She was very aware of this reality. That was the fact of who was the closest to being the Blood Demon here and who had the right to kill her.
She calmed down and spoke calmly to me.
“Young Lord… I am not. Since you have managed to unravel this, you should know better than anyone that I had nothing to do with this?”
To that, I nodded, and her expression brightened at this. The others frowned and wondered if I was going to agree with her.
“The words of the Sixth Blood Star are correct. If she was with Gu Jae-yang, then she would be inclined to save her own life over getting the cure. What do we do then with our suspicions?”
[Are you insane?]
When I defended her, Baek Hye-hyang sent me a message.
[It is the truth.]
[Are you naïve or something? Have you lost it? If you don’t take that bitch down now, you and I will be the ones always having to deal with her. And you want to let her go?]
[Who is letting her go?]
Baek Hye-hyang’s eyebrows rose. She was about to find out what I meant.
Han Baekha looked at me like she was grateful.
“Young lord. I have no ill feelings toward you. If so, how would I have recognized you as the Blood Demon near the Yangtze river and tried to marry my lady to you?”
“Yes, yes. Sure. It must be for your loyalty to her.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“But there are things which we need to talk about.”
“Uh?”
Pat!
Saying that I narrowed the distance. Shocked, she tried to move back but could not with Hae Ack-chun behind her.
I placed my palm on her dantian.
“Teacher!”
“Sixth Blood Star!”
As she was in danger, the women in white veils tried to move forward. However, how would they dare to act in front of the elders?
“You all better stay still.”
They went still at the voice of Hae Ack-chun. Of course, not everyone was like that.
The Third Blood Star, who was watching this, shouted in surprise at my actions.
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“What are you trying to do?”
“Making her pay the price.”
“Price?”
It was natural for the Third Blood Star, who was unaware of what had happened to react like this.
This woman had crossed the line too many times. She then asked me with a trembling voice.
“… why are you doing this?”
“For your lady, you have done so many things, such as removing the hidden message to stop me from coming to the Blood Sect. Will you deny that?”
“T-that…”
She couldn’t even make an excuse.
She hadn’t expected to hear of this now.
Whisper.
“She got rid of the message that was left behind?”
“Why would she do that?”
Everyone went into an uproar at hearing those words, with most of the noise coming from those in Baek Ryeon-ha’s faction.
They all looked at her with shock. Hae Ack-chun, in particular, was irate.
“Blood Hand Witch! How dare you do something like this!”
He was ready to punch her at that moment.
“Teacher.”
I shook my head as if I was the one who should end this. Hae Ack-chun hissed and shut his mouth as if he was yielding to me.
So I continued talking.
“Some would say it was because of the poison, but you pushed me into an enemy despite my return. Would you deny this?”
“Y-Young lord….”
As the situation continued to deteriorate, Seo Kalma spoke up cautiously.
“Please, just once.”
He was one of those who knew just how much Han Baekha had acted out.
Seeing all this happen, he must have felt bad for having turned a blind eye to her actions. He bowed to me and said,
“Although her acts were excessive, it was caused by her loyalty to the lady she served for a long time, so this can happen when we…”
Before he could finish, Baek Hye-hyang spoke up.
“She had stabbed us in the back, but you want it all to be forgotten? I am sure you understand how discipline works. If it were me, I wouldn’t bear this risk.”
“…. I agree.”
“…!”
Han Baekha’s face turned pale. Her actions had been too much to simply say that it was caused by her loyalty.
She was a woman who would stab anyone in the back.
“Young Lord! I did… kuak!”
As soon as the pressure from my hand became stronger, she panicked and tried to use the Blood Jade Palm.
But before she could move her hand, Hae Ack-chun stopped her wrist.
Clench!
“F-Fourth Elder!”
“Huh! You brought this on yourself, so accept it.”
Unable to shake his grip off, she spoke in a pleading tone.
“Y… Young Lord, it will not happen again. I swear my allegiance, so please….”
Crack.
It was too late.
Before she could say anything else, my fingers shattered her dantian. Her face became contorted with pain.
I knew of that pain better than anyone, and even I had been unable to withstand it.
“KWAAAK!”
A scream filled with pain escaped from her mouth. She must have been trained in handling pain in her life as a warrior.
I then spoke into her ear.
“Stop with your allegiance bullshit. There is no place for someone like you in my Blood Sect.”
Han Baekha’s eyes trembled at my words.
“AHHH!”
There was nothing more to say. As I stood up, her face was flushed in pain.
“AHHHHHH! So Wonhwi! YOUUU!!!!”
Clench!
“Euk!”
Baek Hye-hyang grabbed her by the hair and then smiled.
“You must be lucky. I would have cut your tongue a few times if it were me.”