Chapter 38

Part 13:  The Demonic Path of the Underworld (5)

“You bitches…!”

Geumju staggered unsteadily, but the killing intent contained in her voice was enough to make one’s hair stand on end.

“Tell me how to get out of this back alley right now! If you do not…!”

“Back alley?”

Se-ah asked back without realizing it.

“Yes! This damned back alley! There is no end to it! I have to get out before that thing comes…”

Jeong-ah spoke to Se-ah, whose face was filled with confusion.

“She is not in her right mind. Her entire body has already been corroded by Master’s energy.”

“Corroded by his energy?”

“Yes. It seems she is perceiving this place as some kind of back alley.”

At the sight of the sisters conversing, Geumju screamed as though having a fit.

“What the hell are you two babbling about among yourselves?!”

Even while staggering, she began striding toward the sisters.

As she drew closer, Se-ah was able to see her appearance in detail, and her expression twisted.

Geumju’s disheveled hair had been torn away in patches, scalp and all, as if clumps had been ripped out.

One of her ears was torn, blood trickling down from it, and the blood vessels in her eyes had all burst, leaving them violently bloodshot.

Every bit of exposed skin had turned pitch-black, like the skin of a corpse, and veins bulged and writhed over it.

“I will kill you all!”

A ferocious aura flowed from her in waves.

Feeling that aura, Se-ah realized that the one before them was a martial artist.

It was not the kind of inhuman presence she had seen before.

And her condition was clearly abnormal.

But even so, compared to an ordinary person, was a martial artist not practically a superhuman?

“Step back, sister.”

The one who stood in front of Se-ah was Jeong-ah.

She took something from her breast pocket and slipped it onto her hands.

“Jeong-ah, that is…?”

Jeong-ah raised what she had put on.

It was a pair of gauntlets reinforced with leather, iron wire, and small iron plates.

“I borrowed them from the young lady I saved from the barrier before meeting you, sister.”

Jeong-ah calmly explained.

“No, this is not the time for that! We have to get out of here at once…!”

Her words could not continue.

That was because Geumju, her face wearing an expression like a demon, had lunged at them.

There was not even time to react.

The moment Se-ah thought she had briefly lost sight of Geumju, Geumju was already attacking Jeong-ah from behind.

What Se-ah could see the next instant was Jeong-ah grabbing Geumju’s arm, which had shot out over her shoulder, with both hands.

“Hap!”

Before the short, sharp shout could even fully echo through the cave, Geumju’s body was slammed into the floor.

It was a picture-perfect shoulder throw.

“Kuhak…!”

Black-red blood burst from Geumju’s mouth.

“J-Jeong-ah, your internal energy…?”

Jeong-ah let go of Geumju’s arm and stepped back.

“No.”

She looked down coldly at Geumju, who was coughing and unable to breathe properly from the impact.

“I am only borrowing the power my eyes possess for a short while.”

Then she spoke to Geumju.

“How long do you intend to keep lying there?”

“You… you dog-like bitch…!”

Geumju drew up her internal energy and launched herself from the spot, pouncing at Jeong-ah as if fired from a bow.

However, her two hands stopped in midair before they could reach Jeong-ah.

Jeong-ah’s elbow, which had slipped beneath those hands, was buried squarely in Geumju’s solar plexus.

“Cough…!”

Geumju vomited blood from the impact that seemed to pierce through her organs.

Even as the blood poured over her, Jeong-ah did not so much as blink, glaring at Geumju.

A golden light flashed in her pupils.

Jeong-ah’s opposite elbow shot straight upward and struck Geumju’s jaw.

Fragments of broken teeth flew from her mouth, and she was flung backward, crashing into the corner of the passage.

Geumju, embedded in the corner, showed no sign of getting up.

But Jeong-ah merely snorted at the sight.

“I can see that you are still perfectly fine…”

Jeong-ah raised both gauntleted hands in front of her and took her stance.

“I would appreciate it if you did not waste time unnecessarily. There is still much I have left to repay you for.”

At those words, Geumju, who had been lying face down and preparing a surprise attack, staggered to her feet.

“You…!”

The sound of teeth grinding came from her mouth.

“I will kill you!”

Geumju’s left hand shot toward Jeong-ah like a living snake.

It was that strange martial art whose trajectory could not be predicted.

But Jeong-ah “saw” that unpredictable trajectory.

Sparks flashed from her gauntlet, and Geumju’s attack was deflected.

At the same time, Jeong-ah’s other gauntlet was buried in Geumju’s abdomen.

“Kuaaaah!”

However, Geumju protected her abdomen with internal energy and poured a barrage of consecutive attacks at Jeong-ah.

Sparks flew in every direction, and sharp roars echoed continuously through the cave.

“Kugh…!”

After exchanging dozens of moves in an instant, the one who let out a groan filled with pain was Geumju.

On her face, along with extreme agony, a question surfaced.

‘How…?!’

Through the dozens of exchanges, the girl before her had deflected every single one of her attacks.

And at the same time, she had accurately landed more than ten punches.

Though, since they were attacks without internal energy, they could not become fatal blows.

‘A mere maid…!’

She could not believe it.

The opponent had clearly been nothing more than an ordinary woman until just a few days ago.

And yet…

“Uaaaaaah!”

She let out a monstrous scream and once more pressed Jeong-ah.

But it was of no use.

Even attacks in which she drew up all her strength, even attacks that aimed for blind spots and rushed in from behind, her opponent swept them aside as if they were nothing.

‘Those eyes…!’

The gaze of those eyes, flowing with an ominous golden light, seemed to read everything she did.

It felt as though no attempt could escape that gaze.

“Kuheok…!”

Having allowed another counterblow to her face, she widened the distance at once.

Jeong-ah’s breathing had become much rougher, but she sent a sneer toward Geumju.

“Have you given up already?”

Grind.

Geumju harshly ground her teeth.

The opponent’s weaknesses were undoubtedly that she had no internal energy, and because of that, lacked stamina.

If she kept taking her time and slowly cornered her like this, she was confident that she could beat that unlucky face until it died.

But if she did that, “that thing” would…

“…Someday, you will definitely kneel before me and beg me to spare you.”

For now, retreating was the correct answer.

“Someday, without fail…!”

She barely drew up her internal energy, which was scraping along the bottom, and kicked off the ground.

No.

She intended to kick off.

Had it not been for the countless white hands gripping her legs.

It was the sight of master and servant calmly exchanging words.

There was no ghost-fire, nor was he wrapped in that distinctive demonic energy. It was Yeon Sang-hyeon’s usual appearance.

Se-ah let out a small sigh of relief and greeted Yeon Sang-hyeon.

“Young Master.”

Yeon Sang-hyeon nodded to her.

“You have also worked hard. Your subordinates are waiting nearby, so you may be at ease.”

“Ah, thank you.”

Se-ah found it terribly strange that they were holding such a peaceful conversation.

There was far too great a gap between the appearance of Dark Heaven Venerable One and the current Yeon Sang-hyeon.

Moreover, with Geumju, who had been firmly bound to the floor beside them, screaming like a beast, the sense of dissonance felt even greater.

“Let me go right now! I will kill you! I will chew up every last one of you bastards!”

Yeon Sang-hyeon pretended not to hear and asked Se-ah,

“The fact that you came all the way here with Jeong-ah must mean you have something to say to me, does it not?”

Se-ah somehow forced herself to ignore Geumju’s voice.

“Yes, that is… so, my lord.”

She did not think she had shown him a particularly good side of herself, but she, too, was someone who had gone through all kinds of hardship in this world.

At her tone, Yeon Sang-hyeon gave a bitter smile.

“You need not force yourself to use an unfamiliar level of extreme politeness.”

Then he turned around.

“But before we have our conversation…”

Geumju was now pleading for her life.

“Please, please spare me just this once. I will never set foot in Luoyang again. From now on, I will only do good deeds in the world.”

Was it because, unlike Dark Heaven Venerable One, with whom conversation had seemed utterly impossible, Yeon Sang-hyeon was now conversing normally that her thoughts had changed?

“I was wrong. Please spare me.”

As Yeon Sang-hyeon approached, she begged even more desperately.

“Is that so? You will only do good deeds in the world from now on?”

“Yes, yes. Of course. Naturally. You will know if you watch me. O-or! You may even use me as a slave. I will do anything you command.”

Yeon Sang-hyeon laughed heartily.

He brought his face close to Geumju’s and asked in a low voice,

“Do you truly think that if you say that, I will spare you?”

At his words, Geumju’s face twisted terribly.

“You bastard!”

Her attitude changed in an instant.

“You have not forgotten, have you?! I am the owner of a Sword Clan Bronze Plaque!”

Yeon Sang-hyeon crouched down before her, rested his chin on his hand, and said,

“So?”

“If I die, the Sword Clan will definitely launch an investigation! When the owner of a Sword Clan Bronze Plaque dies, they are required to investigate no matter what!”

“That is true.”

“With your influence, you will not be able to cover up that investigation! The Sword Clan’s investigators and trackers will chase you!”

Yeon Sang-hyeon gave no answer and merely smiled crookedly.

Seeing that, Geumju thought her words were beginning to work.

“You have drawn too much attention in too short a time! If the Sword Clan is added to that, how long do you think you can endure without your identity being exposed?!”

She squeezed out every last bit of strength and spat out her final argument.

“The entire Sword Clan will hunt you! Your brothers, who see you as an annoying thorn, will personally come after you!”

The blood vessels swollen to their limit began bursting one by one.

“You will have to face the entire Sword Clan alone!”

Yeon Sang-hyeon answered calmly.

“Then let them.”

Her final scream echoed endlessly through the cave.

Jeong-ah merely watched the scene with a calm expression.

Se-ah’s face turned pale, but she did not look away.

And at some point, every sound stopped as if it had been a lie.

“Hm?”

Yeon Sang-hyeon smiled.

In that maw, hideous teeth revealed themselves.

“Whether someone chases me or not,”

In Geumju’s vision, Yeon Sang-hyeon’s face gradually came closer.

“All rotten things will eventually be eaten by me.”

His face drew even closer.

“Just like you.”

Red blood poured onto the floor like a fountain.

Geumju’s body jerked as though seized by a fit.

The sound of flesh being greedily devoured continued.