This happened before Ma Chul chased Gou Yangqian to the secret chamber.
Inside the room, with his hair in disarray and the room in chaos, Nan Gong Tianjun, the brain dragon of the Nan Gong family, was screaming with one arm tightly bandaged.
“F*ck... F*ck!”
Every time Nan Gong Tianjun screamed and caused a commotion, something would break, and the servants nearby would shudder.
As soon as Nan Gong Tianjun regained his senses, he was overwhelmed by uncontrollable anger.
“B*stard... He must have used some kind of trick.”
There was no other way to explain it.
What was his name again? Gou Qianye or Gou Jieye?
The Tang Bing Zhan Hui only involves direct blood relatives.
If the situation didn't allow it, he wouldn't come, and he certainly wouldn't send a collateral relative.
This was an unwritten rule among the families.
The Gou family was known for the Huo Xie and Jian Feng families.
I heard that among Huo Xie's children, there is one male, who must be him.
Grinding his teeth, Nan Gong Tianjun clenched his jaw.
‘What kind of trick did he use?’
At first, it was just that he didn't like him.
The fact that he had been traveling with his sister for a few days also didn't sit well with him.
Unconsciously, the guy was receiving attention from his sister, which he didn't like.
He was an outstanding martial artist, Huo Xie, and though he didn't like him, he was chosen as the most promising disciple of Jian Feng.
His martial arts were mediocre, and he didn't have much to offer.
Yet, he had a lazy look and a condescending gaze, which he found annoying.
So, he just wanted to give him a little trouble.
To teach him his place.
Was he really so careless? Did he need to take him seriously?
No, that's why he was careless.
But just that shouldn't have been enough for him to lose.
To end up like this, it was unbearable.
Nan Gong Tianjun was certain.
“It was a trick...”
What kind of trick? How? It didn't matter.
If not, he would make it right.
The pain in his still aching crotch only fueled his anger.
“Ma Chul.”
“Yes, young master.”
Ma Chul immediately composed himself at Nan Gong Tianjun's call.
If he called him like this, there was only one reason.
The same command he had given hundreds of times before, would it be any different this time?
Nan Gong Tianjun asked.
“What’s the plan?”
A short question, but it contained a lot.
Ma Chul couldn't answer easily.
The situation wasn't good.
The guards of the Gou family were more skilled than expected.
Among them, one unnamed young man stood out. He must be a direct guard.
His skills were on par with the brain dragon, Nan Gong Tianjun.
It was puzzling how such a skilled person hadn't become well-known.
Of course, the Gou family was particularly secretive in this regard.
Compared to himself, a peak martial artist, he would lose about 20 out of 100 times.
To break through and bring or deal with Gou Gongzi in such a short time was almost impossible.
“Ma Chul.”
Nan Gong Tianjun urged Ma Chul for an answer.
Though his master always acted mature and kind, Ma Chul saw that Nan Gong Tianjun was more like a child who couldn't accept things not going his way.
Like now.
Gulp.
A strange pressure tightened around Ma Chul's chest.
This was due to the restriction he received upon joining the Nan Gong family.
In exchange for easy access to martial arts and elixirs and living under the Nan Gong name, he had to be loyal to the bloodline.
Even though he reached the peak level more easily than others, he still chose to be a guard for the bloodline.
As the pressure tightened, Ma Chul swallowed and barely managed to answer.
“...I will look into it.”
The pressure that had been building up suddenly disappeared.
Nan Gong Tianjun smiled at Ma Chul's answer.
Then he patted Ma Chul's shoulder.
“I always trust you, Ma Chul. I’m sure you’ll bring good news this time too.”
“...Yes.”
The situation wasn't good.
He had answered, but could he really do it?
The opportunity came sooner than expected.
The target, whom he had been secretly watching, left the Tang family alone in the early morning.
Before becoming a guard, Ma Chul was skilled in stealth, so he was confident in his abilities.
How much effort would it take to deal with just one young master?
‘Why is he leaving alone at this hour?’
This was the biggest mystery to Ma Chul.
Is it a trap?
If so, what kind of trap?
The only presence he could sense was the young man from the Gou family.
Why is this boy running and panting at such an early hour?
Where is he heading?
Ma Chul decided to watch a bit longer.
He was ready to act at any moment, so he wanted to satisfy his curiosity.
After walking and running for about an hour, they arrived at the middle of Jin'a Mountain, a short distance from the Tang family.
‘This far?’
There was nothing here.
‘This far...’
It was a perfect opportunity for kidnapping.
Quietly dealing with him would be better, but his master would prefer it this way.
Taking advantage of the moment when he was alone...
“Why are you hereee!”
Ma Chul, who was about to act, was forced to stop by the boy's shout.
Next to the boy, a girl had appeared.
‘When...?’
He had been checking the whole way.
He didn't sense anyone else near the boy.
Another person following? He would have noticed.
Even a normal girl like her.
‘...What is it? Is there someone else?’
A situation he could handle, but the boy had outstanding martial arts, though not beyond first-class.
And the girl, who seemed to be a servant, wouldn't make much difference.
Still, Ma Chul hesitated.
It was strange.
His senses were telling him not to act.
The two went down the mountain and entered a restaurant.
He eavesdropped on their conversation while they ate.
Gou Gongzi seemed to be looking for a white maple tree.
A white maple tree in mid-summer... What could it mean?
Suddenly, the girl turned around while eating.
Ma Chul's body twitched at her gaze.
Was it a mistake? For a moment, her eyes were definitely on him.
‘It’s a mistake.’
He had checked the girl's body, and she was just a normal person with no inner energy.
It must have been a coincidence.
Shaking off the eerie feeling, he thought.
In the meantime, the girl said she had seen the tree Gou Gongzi was looking for.
Gou Gongzi asked.
“Do you remember where it is?”
It seemed he had found something.
What Ma Chul saw next was unbelievable.
Climbing the mountain at night, they finally found the white maple tree, and then a staircase leading underground.
The walls were lined with countless luminous pearls.
An unknown secret chamber.
Inside, a giant snake-like monster.
Ma Chul couldn't understand the situation. Things happened too suddenly.
Was it a stroke of luck?
How did Gou Gongzi know about this?
In the end, it would turn out to be a good thing for him.
Everything would go back to his master, but he might benefit from the loosening of his restriction.
But.
What exactly was happening?
“Huff... Huff...”
Ma Chul clutched his cleanly severed shoulder, repeatedly using his inner energy to stop the bleeding.
‘Why won’t the bleeding stop?’
Despite pouring peak-level inner energy, the bleeding wouldn’t stop.
It was as if a dam had burst, and blood kept flowing.
When and how, and with what method could such a strike be delivered with a small dagger?
Ma Chul couldn't see even a hint of the girl's movements as she wielded the sword.
It was dangerous. He needed to escape immediately.
“Where are you going?”
A voice that seemed to pierce his heart made Ma Chul's eyes tremble.
His head slowly lifted.
Seeing the figure in front of him, Ma Chul couldn't breathe.
“I gave you many chances.”
The girl said.
Her words made Ma Chul's shoulder feel heavily weighed down.
The black hair he saw earlier was gone, replaced by radiant golden hair.
“What... What is this...”
“To help you recognize it, I even triggered your intuition.”
What was this?
The authority of an absolute being, capable of easily overwhelming a peak martial artist.
How could he describe it?
Ma Chul didn't know.
The aura the girl emitted wasn't inner energy.
Then, what should he call it?
“Why didn’t you run earlier?”
The girl asked, and Ma Chul struggled to respond.
“Who are you...”
“Someone you don’t know.”
“If you knew I was following from the beginning, why did you let me be?”
“I never let you be. I even showed you leniency.”
Only then did Ma Chul understand the inexplicable unease and intuition he had felt.
“Why...”
Ma Chul bit his lip.
The enlightenment of a martial artist, as described in legends, the reversal of aging (返老還童).
Could the person in front of him have reached that level?