Chapter 94: Foretelling of Upheaval
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Mun Bin belatedly realized.
The fact that a massive amount of some energy was squirming inside Divine Wind’s body, which was WHOOSH! expelling air from its nose and mouth.
‘No way…!’
The moment he sharpened his energy sense, the power that Divine Wind possessed was clearly felt for the first time.
Truly a vast amount of energy.
An amount that an ordinary martial artist couldn’t even dream of.
It was large.
Like surging waves.
It was hot.
Like the summer sun.
A stinging chest pain invaded because he had operated internal cultivation to heighten his energy sense.
It was the effect of internal injury.
But he didn’t care.
Rather, the surprise even made him forget that pain.
Having stored his internal cultivation again, Mun Bin was convinced that what had just powerfully touched his energy sense was Yang Vital Energy.
A powerful force like sunlight… By his estimation, it seemed to have reached at least the level of a first-rate master.
He had been quite puzzled when the horse first displayed brute force similar to a tremoring stomp across the air, and now he finally understood completely.
The heavy tremors and wind pressure that had covered the arena at that time had been purely from its inherent internal energy.
For Mun Bin, it was repeatedly bewildering and shocking.
What was it?
There was no way a horse had learned a mental technique like an ordinary martial artist and accumulated vital energy in its body.
Divine Wind’s figure, wrapped in white currents, evoked the Nimbus clouds that heavenly immortals supposedly rode.
Enviable.
For some reason, he wanted it.
Where had he obtained it?
Well, it didn’t seem like a horse that could be bought no matter how much money one had.
‘Most likely a rare spirit creature in the mortal world. No wonder its whole-body muscles looked unusually overdeveloped from the start…’
While Mun Bin kept sticking out his tongue internally, Seop Pyo glanced at his face with a sidelong look and silently smiled.
Because the memory of the day Cheol Ryu-heun had visited with Divine Wind suddenly passed through his mind.
At that time, the absurdity he felt when he realized through sharp energy sense that the Yang Vital Energy was held not by a person but by the horse was truly…
Soon, Mun Bin straightened his expression and said.
“A horse that devours ginseng – I’m seeing this for the first time in my life. I have heard stories that occasionally among legendary famous horses, some that enjoy eating meat appear.”
At that, Seop Pyo said in a quiet voice.
“After eating medicine recently, its constitution changed and it came to have such a luxurious appetite.”
Medicine? No, what medicine?
The horse’s constitution changed?
Good heavens, no matter what…
Wait, he couldn’t mean something like Bone Replacement and Marrow Cleansing?
Thus Mun Bin’s curiosity in his head grew, but since not only Seop Pyo but even Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk seemed disinclined to speak, it was hard to ask.
‘Well, unless Sect Master Cheol personally tells me… I’ll just accept it as is.’
If he were to learn the inside story – that an ordinary horse had consumed a Thousand-Year Divine Ginseng called the Triple King and then reached this state due to the mysterious penetration method of ancient martial world – what kind of shocked reaction would he have shown?
CRUNCH-CRUNCH, CRUNCH-CRUNCH…
While Divine Wind deliciously chewed and swallowed the last ginseng root, Cheol Ryu-heun gripped the rope connected to the Thousand Snake Gang group with both hands and pulled hard to snap it.
SNAP-!
Mun Bin’s gaze rested again on the Thousand Snake Gang thugs’ side.
None of them were moving.
Because earlier when Divine Wind had fallen from the air down to the garden floor, all dozen-plus of them had received great shock and were still unconscious.
Among them, one figure stood out notably.
Vicious Snake Four Swords Geum Ja-jeom.
The state of him, who had been pushing forward an ambitious plan relying on the martial power of Jeo Gyeom, said to be in the top ranks of the Hunan region, was currently in such a condition that one couldn’t bear to look at it with open eyes.
A facial fracture injury with his nose twisted out of shape, a large penetrating wound on his left shoulder, and deep cut wounds in the middle of both wrists – moreover, on his left wrist, a sharp blade was driven in, broken in half.
Looking at it, his life as a martial world person was over.
The bones and energy meridians of both hands had clearly been severed.
For someone claiming to be a swordsman, those were areas that should absolutely never be damaged.
Even if the wounds healed going forward, swinging a sword would be impossible.
‘Tsk… He should have abandoned his attachment and given up when White Snake Twin Swords died in that state to begin with. Though it’s something that happened because he didn’t know Sect Master Cheol’s true power was this outstanding.’
Who could have predicted?
That before the martial power of Cheol Ryu-heun and his party, all the unorthodox masters gathered here would be killed in battle…
STEP.
The moment one of Cheol Ryu-heun’s feet was placed on the stirrup, Mun Bin spoke with a meaningful gaze.
“Sect Master Cheol, please don’t worry about the Thousand Snake Gang from now on.”
He meant that once he had the full authority of Dark Hall in his hands soon, he would exert pressure on the Thousand Snake Gang side and firmly discipline them so they wouldn’t be a nuisance anymore.
But the words Cheol Ryu-heun actually uttered were different from that expectation.
“It’s already all been dealt with.”
“Pardon?”
“As of today, it’s completely finished. The snake den.”
“…!”
Mun Bin rolled his eyes briefly, then quickly grasped the true meaning.
“Ah, I see! The government forces have already raided that place…”
“Yeah.”
“…!”
“If you’re curious about anything, listen when those personnel come later.”
Cheol Ryu-heun immediately stepped on the stirrup and mounted Divine Wind’s saddle.
Now it was time to leave.
Mun Bin, watching that sight, wore a faint smile.
Though he had situationally been placed in a relationship where he had no choice but to repay the grace of having his life saved, it was because the attitude of Cheol Ryu-heun, who was leaving and fully entrusting the aftermath to him, gave him a feeling of being trusted.
Honestly… It felt good.
The fact itself that a person he was meeting for the first time was expressing trust.
Perhaps he felt that way even more because of Jeo Gyeom’s evil deeds that had made their master-disciple relationship meaningless.
“Sect Master Cheol. Though our martial world affiliations are different, since you trust me like this and entrust the remaining work to me, a sense of responsibility wells up…”
Cheol Ryu-heun abruptly cut off those words.
“Trust? What trust?”
“…?”
Mun Bin’s flustered expression.
It was completely the opposite of the answer he had been secretly hoping for.
What followed was even more disconcerting.
“It’s bothersome, so I’m just making you do it.”
“Uh… well…”
“Don’t prattle while getting lost in useless sentiment.”
“…”
“Do the cleanup well as I instructed. Unless you want to end up like that.”
Having said that, Cheol Ryu-heun indicated Geum Ja-jeom with a chin gesture.
“…!”
Mun Bin was dumbfounded.
Is, is he really from the orthodox faction? He’s almost worse than someone from the unorthodox faction? No, with that disposition, he’s practically the same as the ruthless demonic path…
He was genuinely grateful for saving his life, but a foreboding feeling that he might be harassed by him this way and that going forward raised its head.
What could he do about it?
It was already spilled water.
Cheol Ryu-heun swept his long hair back and tied it firmly again with a string, then spoke to Mun Bin as if giving an order.
“Anyway, once you go to Dark Hall and sort out the work, send word.”
At that, Mun Bin bowed his head and showed a courteous manner.
“Yes, Sect Master Cheol. I shall keep that in mind. I plan to create a plausible justification and handle it as quickly as possible, so please wait just a little.”
It hadn’t even been one shichen since he first saw Cheol Ryu-heun, and the posture of addressing a superior as a subordinate was now coming out too naturally.
Well, for him, since things had come to this point, he had no choice but to maintain an attitude as if serving a great senior.
Cheol Ryu-heun knew the very sword art essence that even the direct disciple of Evil Emperor Yul Cheon from six hundred years ago couldn’t fully inherit, that supreme, strongest one.
That meant he was no different from an inheritor who had appeared across the ages.
Furthermore.
In terms of martial world seniority, it meant all martial artists of this era were Cheol Ryu-heun’s infinitely junior.
‘Still… It’s regrettable to see him go.’
Mun Bin muttered so internally while forcibly suppressing the numerous questions swirling in his chest.
He had so many things he wanted to ask.
However, setting aside everything else, wasn’t Cheol Ryu-heun a benefactor who had saved his life, transcending orthodox-unorthodox factional logic?
To keep prying while going against his mood would be disrespectful.
Now was a time to endure.
After all, since they had formed a precious connection through today’s events, there would be another opportunity to have conversations related to the various questions in his heart.
When Cheol Ryu-heun gripped the reins, Yeop Hwon and Hyeop Mu-geuk quickly attached their backsides to the seats behind him.
At that moment, Seop Pyo, who was standing nearby, casually said.
“Are you really fine not looking into it further?”
It was a question about the unidentified young male and female masked persons.
At that, Cheol Ryu-heun silently turned his head and looked down at his face beside him.
An unconcerned, emotionless, insensitive… and therefore more expressionless face.
Suddenly, Seop Pyo was gripped by an ominous premonition.
A feeling that something unpleasant to hear was about to pop out.
Sure enough, a blunt voice reached his ears.
“If you’re not going straight home and want to help, then help properly. What’s that? Letting them escape. Tsk.”
Seop Pyo felt indignant.
‘Urk…!’
I didn’t know that young masked fellow’s martial prowess level would be that outstanding either!
But Cheol Ryu-heun poured oil on the fire.
“Go back and improve your martial arts skills a bit. You’ll have time to spare anyway. And stop waving around worthless tree branches.”
Seop Pyo, feeling indignant again, unknowingly clenched his fist.
‘Th-that…! If you can’t say good work, at least…!’
Who could babble such things to the legendary figure of the previous generation’s martial world assassin path?
“What, am I wrong?”
“Par… don?”
“I’m saying flies keep swarming around because you’re a shit swordsman. See, today one more attached itself.”
He meant the masked woman carrying the sickle-chain.
While Seop Pyo was dumbfounded, Cheol Ryu-heun WHIP turned his head and spoke indifferently.
“Anyway, young folks these days don’t put in effort.”
Simultaneously, Divine Wind stored the white currents, then CRASH! smashed the floor and galloped off toward the forest path outside the manor.
TU-DU-DU-DU… TU-DU-DU-DU… TU-DU-DU-DU…
Seop Pyo, hearing the rapidly receding hoofbeats, explosively emitted a gaze full of rage.
Damn stubborn old geezer!
Drop dead on the way!
Never appear before me again!
Damn it, just burn that diary and be done with it!
Having internally spewed curses, he soon let out a long, deep sigh, then deployed his unfathomable Space Concealment Stealth Technique and quietly vanished like a ghost.
Seeing that, Mun Bin’s head spun again.
What, that!
It was unreal.
Both the horse’s rapid lightness technique and the old man’s transparent concealment technique…
Though there were several eccentric masters famous for appearing and disappearing unpredictably in the current martial world, this was the first he’d heard of a method that concealed the body in such a way.
He had heard somewhere that the Sect Master of Mount Huang Sect, one of the Nine Great Sects, had reached the supreme and peerless level in lightness technique and concealment studies, able to freely pass through gaps the width of a single sheet of paper… The skill of the unknown old man who had just vanished seemed no less than that.
Anyway, he didn’t know how many times he’d been surprised today.
He lightly pinched his cheek.
“Ow.”
It stung.
This was unmistakable reality.
Not seeing phantoms.
Mun Bin cast a dazed gaze for a moment, then gathered his thoughts and considered.
‘Before long, great upheaval will occur in this martial world.’
Yes, surely…
Regardless of orthodox or unorthodox faction, it was only a matter of time before the martial world was overturned.
By the wondrous Cheol Ryu-heun, for whom even the word genius was insufficient, and by White Peak Sword Sect, which had shown the possibility of revival.