Emperor’s Sword [EN]: Chapter 67

Sometimes, even being surrounded by many people doesn’t offer much comfort. This was one of those times.

The sound of a bamboo flute, carried by the moonlight through the stillness of the night, resonated like the low wails of a soul, piercing the heart. Startled by the sudden night breeze, they would brace themselves, only to find a thick fog obscuring their vision. Without a chance to feel each other’s presence, they were led into a mysterious realm, each forced to bear their fear alone. Even with companions nearby, they were unable to acknowledge them. It was as if the past horrors were the work of mischievous spirits, untouched by human hands, and the current situation only confirmed it, etching itself into everyone’s minds.

Namgung Hwan shouted,

“Everyone, stay sharp! If anyone loses focus, my sword will be the first to stop their heart.”

His words were also meant to rouse himself. He, too, was beginning to suspect that this situation was caused by some supernatural phenomenon.

*Pee-lee-lee-lee*

The flute’s sound was incessant. They couldn’t tell where it was coming from, or even if it was truly a flute. Listening to it, they were startled to find themselves forgetting their own existence.

The fog grew thicker, and this time, a new sound rose above the flute’s melody.

“Hehehehe…”

The faces of the Five Lotus Society warriors paled, and some began to tremble.

“Damn it… What kind of prank is this? Show yourself! How dare you cause such chaos in this place?”

Namgung Hwan shouted, channeling his inner energy, but it seemed unable to stop the frantic pounding of his heart. The fog seemed alive. It moved as if it had its own thoughts and intentions, weaving through the warriors and gradually closing in.

“Ugh… ugh…”

A warrior, whose identity was unknown, began to sob. The fear-stricken warrior tried to shake off the fog that was rising up his body, but it was futile.

“H-how can this be?”

Namgung Hwan couldn’t close his gaping mouth. He had never seen or heard of such a bizarre event, which only amplified his shock. As one of his subordinates went berserk, his clothes began to tear, and thin lines of blood started to appear all over his body. It was as if the blood inside him was tearing through his flesh on its own. Soon, all his clothes were shredded, and his skin began to crack.

*Puh-whack!*

Like stepping on a frog’s belly, the pressure eventually caused its insides to burst out, the subordinate’s organs oozed out through the cracks. No one could survive in that state.

“This is… impossible…”

Namgung Hwan could only stare blankly at the scene. But he didn’t have the luxury to do so. The events were happening simultaneously in various places, and he couldn’t focus. The screams they were letting out were rapidly stripping away his composure.

“Aaaah!”

“Guh-erk!”

The sight of bodies being torn apart and killed by the unknown fog was something he couldn’t possibly attribute to human actions, no matter how hard he tried to convince himself. Nevertheless, he had to do something. At least in this situation, he was the only one who was expected to take action.

“Stop!”

The words, directed at no one in particular, burst from his lips. He immediately drew his sword and thrust it into the fog. It was useless. No matter how much he stabbed the fog, he couldn’t feel anything touching his sword. It was obvious, yet he couldn’t accept it. He had never heard of ghosts taking human lives in such a way, even in his childhood, and he refused to believe it.

“Hundred Sword Severing Flow!”

Namgung Hwan’s sword emitted a sword aura, cutting through the black fog.

*Spat!*

The fog clung to the sword, shaking and scattering itself. It was still useless. It was a wonder he wasn’t going insane. He was constantly fighting the urge to gouge out his own eyes.

After the sacrifice of a dozen men, the fog began to move towards a certain direction. The scene was now clear, revealing the traces of those who had died, but no one tried to clean it up, nor did anyone take any sudden actions. They just stood there, blankly.

“Damn it!”

Namgung Hwan said, and then leaped in the direction the fog was flowing.

★ “Screams? Someone has come.”

Namgung Hwi’s words made everyone’s faces harden. They didn’t know what was happening outside, but it was clear that there was an enemy invasion. The women were gathered on one side of the main hall, numbering over a thousand. Many of them were martial artists, but their skills were insignificant in the current situation. Some might have reached the level of top masters, but they were nothing compared to the leaders of each sect stationed in the main hall. So, they could only stand back and watch.

“Aaaah!”

The scream made everyone look at each other. This one was closer. For a while, screams followed one after another, and soon they began to be heard right in front of the main hall. After some time, black smoke began to seep through the cracks of the main hall’s doors. The masters who saw it were momentarily at a loss. It was fog. It was a bit thicker than usual, but it was definitely fog. Namgung Hwi, who had been carefully observing it, shouted,

“That’s not fog! That is… Could it be that it has reappeared?”

He exclaimed in surprise, but his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door being kicked open.

*Bang!*

It was Namgung Hwan. He still held his sword in his hand. He quickly moved to block the fog.

“Hwan, step aside.”

Namgung Hwi called out to his younger brother. However, Namgung Hwan didn’t budge, only staring at the unpleasant fog.

“What on earth is that?”

Lightning Sword, the leader of the Jeomchang Sect, asked, watching the fog swirling and gathering in one place.

“That is… the legendary Black Blood Demonic Art.”

“Black Blood Demonic Art?”

“Could it be…”

Some didn’t know, while others exclaimed in recognition.

Black Blood Demonic Art!

It was considered the most bizarre martial art in the history of the martial world. There was a special story behind its name.

Yu Ma (Flowing Demon) So Dok Cheong (Burning Poison Clear)!

He was the most unique among the demons who had appeared and disappeared in the martial world. Like most demons, he had a very unfortunate childhood. Would you believe that he had two fathers and two mothers? How could parents be two people each? But he had a truly bizarre story.

His biological mother had two men. They were best friends and loved the same woman. They hid it from each other. One night, So Dok Cheong’s biological mother met one of them late at night. Of course, it was at the man’s request. She went to the meeting place without any thought, and the man confessed his love. She had already set her heart on his friend, so she coldly refused. Of course, it was a common occurrence for young men and women, but it was not a common occurrence for her.

The man forced himself on her, and then turned away coldly, sneering. But it didn’t end there. The other man, who had seen the woman he loved coming out of a secluded place with his friend at a certain time interval, grabbed her after his friend disappeared. And he also raped her, as she was crying. It was an unbearable fate for her.

After that, the two men took turns harassing her, and she eventually became pregnant and gave birth to Yu Ma.

The three of them began a strange cohabitation. One woman and two men. The two men would often leave the house at regular intervals, and each time, the other man would take over the house.

Then one day, a man who had been gone for six months appeared with a woman. Eventually, two men and two women lived together in one house.

The problem was who Yu Ma’s biological father was. After that, neither of the two women had children. So, the two men claimed to be So Dok Cheong’s father, but there was no way to prove it.

Even Yu Ma’s biological mother didn’t know! Eventually, their complicated life began, and So Dok Cheong was already over eight years old. Until then, their life was relatively smooth.

That winter, when it snowed heavily and the entire land was covered in white, Yu Ma’s biological mother passed away. After that, the new woman took on the role of Yu Ma’s mother. Even then, the two men were still claiming to be his biological father. The problem started after that.

The woman had been very kind to So Dok Cheong when his biological mother was alive, but after his biological mother died, her attitude changed drastically, and she began to abuse him severely.

It was too harsh for young So Dok Cheong to endure. The two men who had claimed to be his father began to do everything they could to please the woman, despite her abuse of Yu Ma. Eventually, they began to argue that they were not Yu Ma’s biological father, and they tormented Yu Ma even more than the woman did. It was a situation where three adults were tormenting the young So Dok Cheong. Eventually, Yu Ma So Dok Cheong, unable to bear it any longer, waited for the snow to melt and ran away from home when the warm spring came.

And from then on, his life as a wandering vagrant began. He was very unlucky, and he was treated coldly everywhere he went, and he was only used by everyone. A flower of resentment began to bloom in young Yu Ma’s heart, and when he grew up, it had grown so large that he cursed the whole world. He traveled through the Western Regions, India, Daewol, Naman, and Dongyeong, learning various evil arts, demonic arts, and bizarre arts, and then he came across something called the Black Blood Demonic Art.

The Black Blood Great Method, a heretical demonic art that was even forbidden in the demonic path, involved soaking infants less than 100 days old in five kinds of poisons, extracting only their essence. Once 100 infants were used, the poison itself would be imbued with spirituality and demonic energy. By absorbing it through the pores of the body and practicing the unique mind method of the Black Blood Great Method, the body would be filled with black blood in less than three years. This was the Black Blood Demonic Art.

Yu Ma further developed and deepened the martial art and appeared in the martial world, which was the beginning of Yu Ma’s chaos. Nothing could stop him. Even the Nine Great Sects were no match for him, and the leaders of the demonic and evil factions, who had been boasting that the world was too small for them, had to bow their heads before him. Wherever he appeared, black fog always swirled around him, and when he harbored murderous intent, his opponents were always engulfed in black fog and met a miserable death.

When he began to gain notoriety in the martial world, he did something he had always put off, which was to kill the two men who might have been his biological fathers and their woman. He chained the three of them for 33 days, dragging them around, torturing and tormenting them. Eventually, the three of them died soon after, but Yu Ma still dragged their rotting, foul-smelling corpses around in chains.

“Is that really the Black Blood Demonic Art?”

Namgung Hwi nodded at the question from the leader of the Cheongseong Sect.

“Perhaps…”

If it was really the Black Blood Demonic Art, the situation was much worse than they thought.

Was there anyone among them who could confidently step forward and say they could subdue the Black Blood Demonic Art? Even the Five Lotus Society Leader, one of the Seven Wonders of the Martial World, couldn’t be sure. It might be the day that Namgung Hwi, the Azure Sky Divine Sword, suffered his first defeat.

★ The saying that blood flows to form a river must refer to a situation like this. The endless human wall, no matter how many she killed, brought her a sense of despair that she couldn’t overcome, and it quickly exhausted her. The weapons she had taken from those who blocked her path were used to pierce through their bodies, and then they were discarded. It was to reduce the consumption of her inner energy, as there were too many opponents to deal with using only her palm techniques, and it was an unavoidable choice because their momentum was fierce. For some reason, those who were blocking her were only low-level fighters, and no masters who could pose a threat to her were in sight.

‘Ah, it seems like I won’t be able to escape this place. Father, I’m sorry.’

She looked up ahead. She was already trapped in a perfect encirclement, and at least a thousand warriors were glaring at her with murderous intent, each holding their weapons.

It was a relatively large open space in the middle of the Hwaryong Forest. Like a hunting drive, she had naturally been led here by them. She felt like a clown being played by a well-written script, and she scolded herself, but it was useless.

*Whoosh!*

A gust of wind brushed past her clothes. The wind carried the scent of blood.

“Hoo… Let’s stop. Come out now. What are you waiting for?”

The low voice was clearly directed at someone, but no one answered.

“Deputy Commander Lee, why don’t you come out? I don’t care what you’re trying to enjoy, but I’d like to spit on your face one last time.”

“Hahahaha!”

*Whir-lee-lee-lick!*

As she had expected, he was nearby. Standing with his hands behind his back, looking dashing in front of Cheonhyang Okbong, was none other than Dokgo Hancheon, the former leader of the Martial Alliance and Deputy Commander of the Blood Demon Heaven.

“Sang Yeorak! I knew you were insidious, but now I see you’re worse than a dog or a pig.”

Sang Yeorak, as he was called, glared at her with a sinister smile.

“What are you talking about?”

“What sin have your subordinates committed that you’re pushing them to their deaths like this? Shouldn’t you have come forward from the beginning?”

“Heh, woman! Don’t get the wrong idea. Do you think you’re worthy of crossing hands with me? Now, enough talk. Hand it over. If you give it to me willingly, I’ll grant you a clean death.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but the only thing I’ll give you is curses.”

“Heh, is that so? Well, if I strip you naked, your true colors will be revealed. You must have hidden it somewhere on that fine body of yours…”

“Y-you… You’re not worthy of coveting it, Sang Yeorak. If you’re too greedy and don’t know your place, you’ll bring disaster upon yourself. If you want it so badly, take it!”

With those words, Cheonhyang Okbong leaped forward and charged at Sang Yeorak! She threw the sword she was holding at him with all her might. And then, a burst of palm energy followed!

Sang Yeorak slightly twisted his body to avoid the flying sword, and then extended one hand forward, casually meeting Cheonhyang Okbong’s palm energy.

*Thud!*

A cloud of dust, like the sound of a leather drum bursting, momentarily obscured their vision.

“Hmm.”

The result clearly separated the two. Cheonhyang Okbong, who had been charging forward, was pushed back to her original position and continued to be pushed back for a while, while Sang Yeorak only shrugged his shoulders. It seemed impossible to close the gap between her and Sang Yeorak at this moment, no matter what she did. He was definitely strong. The masters standing around him were also not to be ignored, but the one who gave Cheonhyang Okbong the greatest despair was none other than that one man.

It seemed impossible to escape this place if he decided to stop her. She gave up her last attachment to life. Once she decided to die, her mind became at peace. Strangely, the face that came to her mind at this moment was not her father, the Lion King, nor her brother, nor even Jizon. It was the face of her husband, the Mad Demon Lord. She felt like her heart wouldn’t ache so much if she could see him just one more time.

“Jaun! Just give it to me while I’m being nice. We have some history, so why would I oppress you? If you stop resisting and hand it over willingly…”

Cheonhyang Okbong Jaun interrupted him.

“Is this what you want?”

In her hand, she held the secret manual she had taken from her bosom, fully exposed to Sang Yeorak’s greedy gaze.

At that moment, the light of greed flowed thickly from the eyes of Musang Divine Sword Dokgo Hancheon, or rather, Sang Yeorak.

“Y-yes, if you give me that… I won’t kill you and will send you to the main heaven. Who knows? Maybe the Heavenly Lord will take a liking to you.”

“Shut up. Hahahaha! If you have the strength, try to take it. Did you think I would give it to you willingly?”

Sang Yeorak’s eyes darted around quickly. The opponent was the most skilled here, except for himself. So, the only one who could take the secret manual from her hands was himself. The problem was that she wouldn’t just stand there and let him take it. Sang Yeorak’s interest was solely focused on seizing the secret manual, so he had not been actively engaging her so far. His concern was that if Cheonhyang Okbong was pushed to the limit, she might destroy the secret manual.

[Jaun. If you give it to me, I will let you go. You can’t escape from here with it anyway. I promise. I will let you live and send you away.]

His telepathic message showed how desperate he was. Cheonhyang Okbong let out a ridiculous chuckle at his words.

“Hahahaha! You seem to be sweating bullets. You must be trying to monopolize it. Do you think the Grand Commander or the Heavenly Lord will allow that? What are you going to do about all these ears and eyes?”

‘That damned woman. She’s desperate to die.’

Sang Yeorak was the kind of person who would kill all his subordinates to silence them if he could get the secret manual.

He believed that if he obtained the Blood Shadow Lightning Sword Technique, he could surpass his senior brothers. That was why he was so impatient and anxious.

‘Foolish man. That’s your limit. You still don’t know that the Grand Commander is here.’

That’s right. The Grand Commander was definitely here. The Three Blood Wolves who had blocked her path were definitely direct subordinates of the Grand Commander.

Cheonhyang Okbong shook the secret manual in her hand and continued,

“This is an ancient demonic art that can stain the world with blood. Only those who are destined can see it. You are not its master.”

“What? Everyone, attack that woman!”

As she watched those who leaped forward at Sang Yeorak’s command, Cheonhyang Okbong smiled. As she held the secret manual with both hands, as if she was about to tear it apart,

“Stop, everyone stop… Didn’t I tell you to stop?”

Sang Yeorak’s desperate cry burst out. After hearing the Deputy Commander’s order, all the subordinates stopped as if they were lying, but some impatient ones had already reached Cheonhyang Okbong. They looked at Cheonhyang Okbong, feeling embarrassed.

*Thud!*

“Aaaah!”

Cheonhyang Okbong unleashed her palm energy and killed that guy. He was truly unlucky. He died, sending a look of unfairness to Cheonhyang Okbong. To die without even throwing a punch?

“Y-you… you… Hoo…”

As expected, Cheonhyang Okbong’s attitude was as he had anticipated. The Deputy Commander thought that as long as the secret manual was in her hands and he wanted to have it, Cheonhyang Okbong held the knife. But he couldn’t be dragged around by her either. If the opportunity arose, and if he could subdue Cheonhyang Okbong before she destroyed the secret manual… he thought that the opportunity would come at least once.

“Hahahaha, think carefully before you give an order. The moment you finish your words or the moment you make a move, this secret manual will turn into ashes. If you give up your greed, you can kill me right now.”

She kicked the dead Blood Demon Heaven subordinate in front of her. Then, the corpse flew straight towards the Deputy Commander.

*Puh-whack!*

Surprisingly, Deputy Commander Sang Yeorak used his fire technique to burn the corpse. The corpse, charred black and falling to the ground, filled the pupils of all the Blood Demon Heaven subordinates. As a leader of subordinates, he had done something he shouldn’t have done. But the Deputy Commander’s current state of mind didn’t allow him to worry about such things.