Chapter 387: Shadow of the Yin God (1)
The man’s complexion was pale.
Not simply to the level of a sick person, but pale as if he had become a corpse. It was a complexion that gave such a strong sense of heterogeneity that any person would feel a sense of incongruity.
He was tall and his body was thin. He had an impression similar to an old dead tree hit by snow in the middle of winter.
However, excluding that, his impression was surprisingly ordinary.
People call the continent the Central Plains, but countless ethnicities live in this land of the Central Plains as well.
Surprisingly, the man’s face had an appearance that could be seen in the face of any ethnicity. It didn’t mean he looked like someone from the Western Regions, but rather an appearance one felt like they had seen once while walking on the street.
He took off his top, but his bottom was adorned with colorful silk. He wore a gold necklace studded with a lot of unknown jewels, and he wore rings on all ten fingers. Naturally, each ring was also studded with a lot of jewels.
Unlike his impression, his clothing and accessories were extremely colorful.
A bizarrely pale skin color, an extremely ordinary appearance, and burdensomely colorful clothing and accessories.
That bizarre combination strangely fit with the man’s mysterious qi flow. It would be hard to see a person like this anywhere under heaven.
The man, who had been staring out the window for a long time, opened his mouth.
“Have you still not caught the master of the Twin Blade Sect?”
It was a pleasant voice to hear.
At the man’s question, a handsome youth who looked not even twenty years old bowed his head.
“We are tracking him. However, since his location has been captured, it is considered that we will be able to hunt him down and kill him before today passes.”
“Hmm, you all worked hard.”
The man turned his body.
Chiririring.
The gold threads attached to his bottom, and the jewels connected to the gold threads bumped into each other and made a clear sound.
“If even the Twin Blade Sect is cleaned up, is only the Eun Clan left after that?”
“That is correct.”
The man, Hong Gwan, smiled faintly.
Although he had an extremely ordinary appearance, perhaps because his complexion was pale, eeriness oozed out even from a small smile.
“If we clean up to there, the rest will collapse on their own. You have worked hard all this time.”
“No. The Night Lord worked harder.”
Night Lord.
The Night Lord meant the lord of the night. In the assassin world, it served as a compliment sent to the best assassin.
The strongest assassin of the Murim. A person who had never engraved his name in the bright place of Murim history, but the worst Reaper of the Jianghu whose existence was known only to a very small number of bigshots in the underworld.
The title attached to the Yin God for generations was exactly the Night Lord.
Chiriring! Chiriring!
Walking lightly and sitting on a chair, Hong Gwan rested his chin on his hand.
“It has only been three months since I saw you, but your skills have improved further in that meantime.”
“Thank you.”
“The balance between the Yin Cold White Type and Yin Fire Red Type is being maintained well. If you now combine the two martial arts into one and reach the Yin Emperor Realm, even the sect leaders of the Nine Great Sects will find it difficult to avoid your demonic hands.”
The handsome youth silently bowed his head.
Hong Gwan’s smile deepened.
“Are you dissatisfied?”
“……No.”
“Would I not know your heart. However, your achievement is ten years faster than me, your master. Considering that I too was called a rare genius by the previous generation, you can be said to be the greatest talent in the history of the Yin God.”
“……”
“So do not be hasty in your heart, and try to unravel them slowly one by one. The time right before rising to the Yin Emperor Realm is exactly when the Qi of Fire and Cold fluctuates the most. If you make a mistake, you will lose everything you have gained so far.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“Yes, then it is fine.”
His voice was incredibly warm. Even a bigshot called the peak of the assassin world was still a person?
However, unlike his voice, Hong Gwan’s eyes looking at the youth were terribly indifferent. They were extremely hard, as if looking at an object rather than a person.
“Once you catch the Twin Blade Sect Master, come back and put your effort into training. You have worked hard all this time.”
“Yes, Master.”
“You may step back now.”
“Yes.”
The handsome youth bowed and left the room.
“……Hmm.”
Leaning his body against the chair in an arrogant posture, Hong Gwan looked up at the ceiling.
“So he still remembers.”
Hong Gwan knew. That his eldest disciple had broken the secret art of Soul Subjugation that he had personally cast.
There are also various secret arts in Soul Subjugation arts. Simply put, there are those that make a person an idiot or drive them crazy, but high-level Soul Subjugation arts can selectively erase only the memories the caster wants.
The Soul Subjugation art Hong Gwan inflicted on his disciple was exactly like that.
‘He was truly a coveted talent.’
The one who killed the eldest disciple’s family was himself.
Originally, Hong Gwan tried to kill the eldest disciple as well. But realizing that the eldest disciple’s bone structure and talent were incredibly great to the point he had never seen before, he kidnapped him as he was, cast the Soul Subjugation art, and made him his disciple.
Thinking he would raise him into the Reaper of the Central Plains in the future and make him one of the Evil Kings of the Evil Lust Cult.
“Then again, how many things in the affairs of the world go the way I want. Tsk, I guess the guy didn’t have a connection with Evil Lust.”
Hong Gwan shook his head and smacked his lips.
It was then.
‘……’
Hong Gwan’s eyes immediately became sharp.
“Reveal yourself.”
“……”
“Do you want to play ghost? In front of me of all people?”
“……Hmm.”
Exactly where and how did she come in.
Behind Hong Gwan’s back, a woman revealed herself from within a deeply cast shadow.
Unlike Hong Gwan’s pale skin, she was an impressive beauty with moderately tanned skin. Like Hong Gwan, she was tall, but her body was curvy, and her attire was extremely simple.
Hong Gwan spoke without even turning back.
“You picked up a bad habit while I wasn’t looking.”
“That is what I should say.”
Flap!
Flapping her clothes, the woman who went to the opposite side of Hong Gwan sat down with her legs crossed.
“Your skills seem the same, but there was a very brief hesitation. I guess the water of the Central Plains is really good? You aren’t as sharp as before.”
“Did you cross thousands of li just to spew such nonsense?”
“Nonsense? If you hear my words as nonsense, you really have become much duller. You weren’t like that in the past.”
The woman laughed as if it was amusing.
It didn’t look particularly intentional, but the action of gently fluttering her hair with long fingers looked terribly seductive.
“Just because bug-like bastards praise you as the Yin God or the Night Lord, did you forget your roots?”
Murderous intent flashed in the eyes of Hong Gwan, no, Yelu Jeok’s eyes.
“You better watch your mouth, Xiao Fang.”
“That’s a relief. You didn’t forget my name.”
Xiao Fang looked around the room.
“Ho-oh, it’s incredibly colorful? I heard you wield power that the Emperor of the continent wouldn’t envy, and you decorated the whole room with gold.”
“……”
“But you know, right? The gold in this room, of course the jewels you are wearing, the clothes, and even your life belongs to Evil Lust.”
Yelu Jeok’s corners of the mouth rose.
“You didn’t come all that long way to check my faith, did you?”
“Of course I did. But it’s also a problem that is just as important. You shouldn’t be tainted by the miscellaneous things of the continent and forget the main cult, right? There is no bastard who stayed on the continent for as long as you.”
“It is an order that came down from the higher-ups. No matter how much you are considered one of the next Evil Kings, are you at the level of challenging the orders that came down from the Great Cult Pavilion?”
Xiao Fang’s eyes became sharp.
The Great Cult Pavilion was exactly the place where only the highest-ranking executives of the Evil Lust Cult could go in and out.
An order issued from there was practically no different from an order from god. And an order from god was also an order from the Cult Leader.
In other words, Yelu Jeok was asking Xiao Fang if she was so great as to get involved in the Cult Leader’s order.
It was an issue where immediate execution for treason could be decided if she misspoke even a little.
Xiao Fang spoke in a sunken voice.
“I will explain the reason why I came here.”
“You aren’t answering. I will ask again. I asked if you were a great existence enough to even challenge the orders that fell from the Great Cult Pavilion.”
“Things are turning a bit strange.”
“If you don’t answer, I will report you to the higher-ups for treason.”
“The Divine Fire Cult was hit.”
“……?!”
Yelu Jeok’s face stiffened.
“……What did you say?”
“The peak masters of the Divine Fire Cult side who had seized the military administration of Henan Province were swept away by the peak masters of the Murim Alliance. The Divine Fire Cult side didn’t announce it properly, but it seems at least five or more of the Martial General rank alone have died. Among them, they are guessing that two or more high-ranking Martial Generals are included.”
“……!!”
Yelu Jeok’s face stiffened even more.
The Eighteen Martial Generals of the Divine Fire Cult were bastards whose martial arts were truly not to be underestimated. To say it openly, they were strong people who didn’t lack even compared to the Martial Generals of the Evil Lust Cult, and especially the 1st Martial General was a true peak master who had the realm of a Demigod Apostle right in front of his eyes.
“……I heard that the 1st Martial General Beon Jak participated directly as the leader in the Henan infiltration?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s right? Did you hear my words properly? I said Beon Jak. Even if you or I fought him, it would be hard to discuss victory or defeat, and that Beon Jak was with them as the leader.”
“I know.”
“But you say they were hit?”
“Beon Jak survived. His subordinate Martial Generals died.”
“Isn’t that saying the same thing? Beon Jak is strong. He doesn’t lack much in commanding ability either. But how could he be hit by the Murim Alliance, those miscellaneous things?”
“Regarding that matter, the Divine Fire Cult side is keeping their mouths shut, so we can’t know. The important thing is that among the Martial Generals, only Beon Jak survived.”
“……!”
“However, there is something strange.”
“Something strange?”
“The Divine Fire Cult didn’t provide all the information, but…… they didn’t seem to think it was a very big problem.”
“What?”
“……”
“You said at least five or more of the Eighteen Martial Generals died. But it’s not a big problem?”
“At least on the outside it is. It’s not just me. My master also said he felt that way.”
Yelu Jeok couldn’t understand it at all.
‘What kind of situation is this?’
Xiao Fang said.
“It’s fine. The important thing is not the Divine Fire Cult. It’s us.”
“……”
“Recently, you’ve been alienating the White Path sects in this southern region and draining the power of the Orthodox faction, right?”
“Because it was an order from the higher-ups.”
“Yes. The problem is, how the Murim Alliance, which killed the Martial Generals of the Divine Fire Cult, will view the situation here.”
“……!!”
“It would be different if it was after the Divine Fire Cult had completely settled in Henan, but right now it is dangerous. The Murim Alliance will dispatch intelligence agents. In the worst case, they might even send a true skilled person.”
“A skilled person.”
“Ah! The Divine Fire Cult told us this.”
Tension rose on Xiao Fang’s face.
“Among those who fought the Martial Generals, there were no strong people of the Saintly Heaven.”
Yelu Jeok was greatly surprised.
At the death of the Martial Generals, he thought unconditionally that strong people of the Saintly Heaven had been thrown in. It had to be so. Because unless they were strong people of that level, they wouldn’t have been able to beat down the Martial Generals commanded by Beon Jak.
But they weren’t?
“That’s why it’s more dangerous. Because they were hit even though they weren’t strong people of the Saintly Heaven level. That means……”
“Does it mean those bastards know well about us?”
“The higher-ups are seeing it that way.”
“……”
Xiao Fang, who was staring at Yelu Jeok who only kept his eyes wide open without speaking, relaxed her posture.
“I will stay here for about three months. Because the stragglers of the Murim Alliance might catch the scent and come. If a peak master who is hard to ignore comes, wouldn’t you alone not be enough then?”
Yelu Jeok couldn’t firmly deny those words. The Eighteen Martial Generals must have been hit like that too.
However, as the Yin God and Night Lord of the Central Plains, he could say these words.
“Don’t worry.”
Ttudududuk!
All ten rings broke on the strongly clenched fist.
“Because the rats I control have grasped the entire southern region.”