CH 180

The object that penetrated Hwa Yu-cheon’s foot was a pointed bamboo. A bamboo that is cut diagonally at its tip could already be considered as a sharp weapon.

On the ground where Hwa Yu-cheon stepped, numerous sharpened bamboo sticks were planted.

“Sect leader!”

“Who set up these traps?!”

Hwa Yu-cheon’s subordinates became worried and ran towards him.

“Keugh!”

“Argh!”

But they, too, screamed and rolled on the floor. 

Similar to Hwa Yu-cheon, their feet became covered in blood. The same bamboo traps were installed everywhere, not just near Mae Bulgun’s corpse.

“What kind of madman…”

Hwa Yu-cheon looked around with wide eyes.

His face had long since been twisted. 

It was such a simple trap that even a child of five or six could set it up. But it was also just as effective. Five or six warriors, including Hwa Yu-cheon, were already injured. 

Those warriors were all Hwa Yu-cheon’s subordinates. Worried about Hwa Yu-cheon’s safety, they came running towards and suffered tremendous injuries.

They don’t know who set these traps, but the mastermind must have a vicious mind.

It looked like a simple trap, but the level of installation was high.

“Everyone, stay where you are! There may be other traps!”

Hwa Yu-cheon raised his hand to stop his subordinates from trying to approach him.

Having already seen what happened to those who went first, his subordinates obediently followed his orders.

Hwa Yu-cheon carefully pulled out the bamboo that had penetrated his foot.

“Keugh!”

His expression contorted in agony.

There was a large hole in the back of his foot where the bamboo was removed. The wound was so big that he thought he would not be able to stop it from bleeding even by applying pressure. 

Hwa Yu-cheon hurriedly tore off his sleeves and wrapped them around his feet. Blood still continued to flow out. But he couldn’t do any more treatment than this. To treat his injury properly, he had no choice but to see a doctor. 

But since he has yet to get his hands on the sword, Gongbu, he couldn’t just go back.

If he goes back like this, their sect’s barely earned reputation will fall to the ground, and the Heavenly Silver Marketplace will be pushed back by the Bamboo Sea clan.

They have come too far for them to go back.

Whether it becomes porridge or rice1, they had no choice but to go all the way.

“I don’t know what kind of guy he is, but once I get my hands on him, I’ll make him beg me to kill him.”

Hwa Yu-cheon stood up, gritting his teeth. 

But then all of a sudden,

“Geurgh!”

A warrior who was standing in the middle was carried up into the sky like a fish caught on a fishing line.

Everyone saw what had happened.

The sight of a person being carried up into the sky was so shocking that everyone was momentarily speechless.

The one who broke the silence was the sect leader, Hwa Yu-cheon,

“What are you doing? Hurry up and find him!”

“Ah!”

“Y, yes!”

Only then did the spirits of the warriors come back.

They moved to find the man who had just been snatched. But their movements were as slow as a turtle.

They were the Heavenly Silver Marketplace warriors, who always showed an orderly appearance  whenever they were with Hwa Yu-cheon, but at this moment, they couldn’t. 

They were too confused. 

They haven’t been able to catch a glimpse of Mok Gahye, yet so many things have already happened in such a short time. It was too much for ordinary warriors to handle.

Anxious expressions could be seen on the faces of the Heavenly Silver Marketplace warriors. Their eyes would look around nervously, and their hands would tremble as if they had a tremor.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and look for him!”

They eventually moved in a hurry after hearing Hwa Yu-cheon’s shout.

Hwa Yu-cheon was angry. And at the same time confused.

Contrary to his expectations, their situation was heading for the worst. The threat of an unknown enemy had scared his subordinates too much.

‘Who the hell is he? Why is he after us? Is he hired by the Bamboo Sea clan?’’

In an instant, countless thoughts passed his mind.

The unknown enemy was indeed cunning. He knew how to stimulate fear among his men.

By concealing his presence, the enemy maximized the fear felt by Heavenly Silver Marketplace warriors. 

The solid bond the Heavenly Silver Marketplace had so far collapsed like a sandcastle in the face of the fear he created.

The scariest thing of all is that they have yet to see his face even if the situation got to this point.

“Come out! Don’t be a coward!”

Hwa Yu-cheon, who could not stand the situation any longer, roared.

The trees in the Dead Forest shook at his cry, and the warriors of the Heavenly Silver Marketplace covered their ears in pain.

It was then.

A black shadow was cast behind Hwa Yu-cheon’s back. It appeared from behind the tree where Mae Bulgun was stuck in.

Even though there was a person right behind him, Hwa Yu-cheon failed to notice his presence.

The black shadow was Pyo-wol.

After Hwa Yu-cheon’s cry, everyone looked away. They deliberately did not look in his direction to avoid being a target of Hwa Yu-cheon’s wrath.

Pyo-wol stretched out his hand.

A single strand of the Soul-Reaping thread was stretched out like a snake. He then use it to dug into Hwa Yu-cheon’s Dazhui acupoint.

Puk!

‘Keuk!’

Hwa Yu-cheon felt a tingling pain at the back of his neck before his whole body went numb. He tried to scream, but his body was paralyzed. 

He couldn’t move at all. 

The only thing Hwa Yu-cheon could move was his two eyes.

He rolled his eyes and looked at his subordinates. However, all of his subordinates had their backs turned away from him, so they had no idea what he was going through.

‘Oh my god!’

Fear came rushing in.

He didn’t know it would be this scary to have no one notice what’s happening to him despite having so many of his subordinates around him.

It was only then that Hwa Yu-cheon realized that the unknown enemy had intended all of this.

By displaying Mae Bulgun’s body and installing traps nearby, the unknown enemy made it impossible for them to make rational decisions. This is because of the caution and fear instilled on them.

Then when the enemy managed to successfully distract them when he snatched one of his subordinates by using some invisible equipment, he subdued Hwa Yu-cheon.

The entire process was horribly smooth, which made Hwa Yu-cheon feel goosebumps. 

If he had seen this spectacle from the outside, he would have applauded the enemy’s work generously.

But the problem is that he was the victim.

The Heavenly Silver Marketplaces warriors were scattered around him, yet no one knew that their leader had already been suppressed. 

This made him feel terrified beyond reason.

Sueuk!

A hand came from behind his neck.

He was impressed with the white fingers that had no blemishes. It was a hand so beautiful that it could be said to be a woman’s delicate hands. 

The smooth white hand grabbed Hwa Yu-cheon’s chin.

‘Please save me!’

Hwa Yu-cheon wanted to scream. However, his voice could only linger in his mouth and not escape. 

Tears welled up in Hwa Yu-cheon’s eyes.

He did not want to die without knowing the reason why or die without seeing the enemy’s face who was threatening his life.

His goal was just around the corner, so he refused to die like a dog.

However, Pyo-wol did not care about Hwa Yu-cheon’s wishes. 

Crunch!

As Pyo-wol applied strength to his hands, Hwa Yu-cheon’s neck easily snapped to the side. Hwa Yu-cheon’s head was turned towards a direction that was not possible under any normal circumstances.

Only then did Hwa Yu-cheon see the person that took his life.

A face more beautiful than a woman’s.

‘The devil!’

That was the last sight Hwa Yu-cheon saw in his life.

Pyo-wol disappeared after leaving the dead body of Hwa Yu-cheon on the floor silently. 

It wasn’t long before the Heavenly Silver Marketplace warriors noticed Hwa Yu-cheon’s death.

“AHHH!”

“T, the sect leader has died!”

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“What’s happening?”

Yeo Hwa-young couldn’t hide her puzzled expression.

She was prepared to make some sacrifices when she entered the Dead Forest. 

It was not a  difficult decision to make since if they were pushed back by the Heavenly Silver Marketplace any further than this, the existence of the Bamboo Sea clan could not be guaranteed.

So she focused all their strength into the Dead Forest, and clashed with the Heavenly Silver Marketplace warriors everywhere.

Because of that, the whole of the Dead Forest was in an uproar as if it were on fire. 

But at some point all the noise went away.

The sound of warriors clashing and the swearing that erupted from their mouths had all disappeared. It was as if the sound had been erased from the world.

Then at some point, even the reports that came to her stopped. So she had no way of knowing the situation inside the forest.

Yeo Hwa-young looked at Ak Chusan without realizing it.

In face of a situation she was experiencing for the first time, she unknowingly relied on Ak Chusan. 

“A great force intervened.”

“Greater than you?”

“We will know once I face them myself.”

Ak Chushan’s voice was deep.

Yeo Hwa-young could only see the atmosphere and outward appearance of the Dead Forest, but a master like him paid more attention to the qi flowing inside the forest.

The Dead Forest is a place where numerous qi waves are entangled making it easy for anyone to feel confused. Because of that, even Ak Chusan could not clearly distinguish the qi flowing inside the forest.

But at some point, numerous qi began to escape the forest. Like a herd of deer being chased by a tiger, countless of qi popped out at high speed before disappearing. 

Even if those people encountered a real tiger, they wouldn’t be like this.

Something frightened the warriors of the Heavenly Silver Marketplace, making them flee.

“Do you have any guesses on who the person could be?”

“None at all.”

Ak Chushan shook his head.

Every muscle in his body stiffened.

It was proof that his body was tense.

“Take your subordinates and get out of the forest.”

“A, all of them?”

“Yes. Take them all out.”

“What about Gongbu?”

“Hwa-yeong! The sword is not important. If you stay here any longer, you will have to worry about the survival of your sect!”

“Is it that bad?”

“That’s how I feel.”

“I see.”

Yeo Hwa-young nodded.

Although it hasn’t been long since Ak Chusan was introduced to the Bamboo Sea clan, his reputation has long been well-known by everyone. He’s also the type of man who would never talk without any basis.

Ak Chusan was as arrogant as his reputation. And he had a cruel temper. Anyone would be able to tell his personality just by looking at what he did to Hwangbo Chiseung’s arm. 

He was never the type to let anyone go. 

So it was quite unusual for such a person to be so tense. This could only mean that something appeared in the Dead Forest that made him nervous.

It was clear that the Bamboo Sea clan’s power would not be of any help if even a warrior of Ak Chusan’s level was reacting like this.

The moment Ak Chusan mentioned of a great force, she thought of Pyo-wol. 

She didn’t know why, but she was reminded of his face.

Yeo Hwa-yeong pondered for a moment whether to tell Ak Chusan about the person she had been thinking of.

But she soon gave up on the idea. Because it was just her speculation.

She came down from the tree.

The warriors of the Bamboo Sea clan were all gathered under the tree. However, there were quite a few missing people. 

Even taking into account the deaths during the clash against the Heavenly Silver Marketplace, the number of missing people was too many.

The missing people were clear traces of the existence Ak Chusan spoke of.

Yeo Hwa-yeong bit her lip.

Although she was prepared to experience losses, this was far outside the scope she expected.

“Is this everyone?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Let’s get out of the Dead Forest.”

“Are we the only ones getting out? What about Lord Ak Chusan?”

“He said he’d stay here. We should get out of here.”

“But— okay.”

The subordinate didn’t say anything anymore and lowered his head.

Yeo Hwa-yeong led all of her remaining subordinates out of the Dead Forest.

Ak Chusan watched as Yeo Hwa-yeong and the Bamboo Sea clan warriors disappeared.

As their figures finally disappeared from his sight, Ak Chusan murmured,

“It’s been a while since something made my blood boil.”

His nickname as the Lion Sword was not given to him for nothing. Since he was so aggressive and brave like a lion, his peers gave him this nickname.

Even if the unknown enemy was strong, he had no intention of retreating.

He thought of himself as a lion.

No matter how much he gets hurt and bitten in the process, he’s sure that he will end up taking his opponent’s breath away.

He raised all of his strength.

Then, the situation around him became even more clearer.

As the warriors of the Bamboo Sea clan escaped, the Dead Forest became more silent. 

Except for one place.

Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!

There was a constant sound of weapons clashing.

There was still someone busy fighting.

To catch a big fish, he needs a big bait.

Ak Chusan flew towards the place where he could find his bait.

Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy the chapter~