Chapter 1: Prologue
Chapter 0 – Prologue
Since I was about to kick the bucket anyway, I might as well argue my case.
What on earth did I do so wrong?
Heavenly Great Killing Star.
The Martial Alliance, whom I could not hate enough even if I chewed them to pieces, branded me as such.
They claimed I was born under the Heavenly Killing Star.
That was from even before I was old enough to hold a blade in my hands.
This simply meant they were determined to drive me out as a public enemy of the Martial World and trample me to death.
In the end, I fought them while running away my entire life.
But now, even that tedious fight was at an end.
A long spear pierced my flank, five arrows were lodged in various places across my body, and my back was slashed long diagonally with blood pouring out.
Whoosh.
The oncoming wind reeked of blood.
A mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
There was not a single person intact around me.
Only corpses with limbs torn to shreds, making them difficult to even recognize.
Yes, I killed them all.
An old man approached, stepping through those corpses.
The Martial Alliance Leader, who grew a white beard down to his chest, wore a regretful expression.
But I knew.
Within the belly of that old geezer wearing a benevolent mask, about a hundred sly snakes coiled.
“How could your hands be so cruel? With this, how can the deceased rest in peace?”
“Cough, cough! Bullshit…! Are you looking for dignity even in corpses? Once you die, it’s all the same anyway. Whether you die with a hole in your head or die with your limbs torn apart, it makes no difference. Ah, should I make both for you, geezer? Since you are the Martial Alliance Leader, with a slightly more special feeling.”
When I sneered even while drenched in blood, the Alliance Leader gave a bitter smile and slowly shook his head.
“If not for your First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes, it would have ended long ago. The innocent sacrifice was great.”
“What? Pfft, kuhahahaha!”
As I burst into wild laughter toward the sky, the Martial Alliance Leader stared at me blankly.
Only after a long while did I stop laughing and barked.
“You’re talking absolute nonsense, old geezer. If not for the First Sight Skill-Breaking Eyes in the first place, would you bastards have driven me out as a public enemy of the Martial World?”
“My word, anyone listening might misunderstand. You are being judged today because of the slaughter you have committed so far. The crime of murdering numerous renowned figures of the Jianghu, starting with the Family Head of the Hebei Paeng Clan long ago, the crime of instigating wicked people to disrupt the order of the Jianghu, and abandoning righteousness…”
“Heh. Bullshit. Try covering the sky with your palm, Alliance Leader. You have the order completely reversed.”
“As expected, you have no intention of repenting. But your slaughter ends today. You might have run wild all this time not knowing how high the sky was, but now you must have realized that there is a heaven above heaven.”
“You gathered thousands of people just to kill me, and yet you’re talking crap about a heaven above heaven.”
Catching my rough breath for a moment, I continued speaking.
“The only martial artist I ever recognized… was Namgung Seon. She was the first and the last.”
“Are you talking about that wench who fell in love with you and forgot her duty?”
“You despicable bastards. Even though she was a woman, you once revered her as the number one dragon of the land, yet your attitude flips like the palm of a hand. Ptooey!”
The Alliance Leader sighed with a feigned expression of regret.
“It was a lamentable thing for the Namgung Clan as well. To lose such a born martial genius so vainly.”
“I’m sick of your bullshit. The reason she fell ill and died must have been because you bastards maliciously condemned her, causing her anger to worsen.”
I gritted my teeth and glared at the Alliance Leader.
Even if I were to die soon, I would at least drag that old geezer down to hell with me.
However, the Alliance Leader smiled broadly as if remembering something.
“Now that I think about it, fate is indeed whimsical. Did you know that the child that wench gave birth to died three days ago? I received an urgent report today.”
Focusing all my internal energy into the Yongcheon acupoint, I flinched.
“What kind of bullshit is that again?”
“Oh, did you not know? That Namgung Seon had a son who carried your blood.”
What was this about?
She had a child? And my son at that?
There was no way.
Suddenly, my mind became complicated, and the Alliance Leader wore his usual disgusting smile.
“Aren’t you going to meet each other in the afterlife soon anyway? Ask him the details yourself. It will be a family reunion after all.”
“What kind of bullshit is…!”
The moment I let out a roar, the Alliance Leader’s hand dropped down.
A hand signal.
Swooooosh.
In an instant, the shadow of death covered the sky in black.
Swoosh, thud! Thud, thud, thud…!
“Keugh!”
Solid iron arrows lodged into my entire body, including my heart.
Damn it…!
Heavenly Emperor. Not this at the very end!
My son?
To think I had a son whose face I had never even seen!
Furthermore, that son already died?
Let me argue this again.
What on earth did I do so wrong?
Do I really deserve to receive heaven’s punishment to this extent?
Shouldn’t you have at least let me see my son’s face once?
Damn it, Heavenly Emperor! Heaven! Gods!
If you also had a conscience, shouldn’t you have given me at least one proper chance to live!
Damn it…
‘My body slowly tilted.
Thud!
The hard ground struck my face.
Step, step…!
I saw the feet of the Alliance Leader approaching me as I lay fallen.
Soon, the mean smile of the bastard who took off his mask spread blurrily before my eyes.
“In your next life, I pray you are born ordinarily and perform only good deeds. Jin Cheon-rang.”