The Black Sangbang Raid Incident
The black whip, writhing like a living dragon, lashed violently toward Seolpung.
It was as fierce as a dragon striking with its tail.
Yet even in this moment, Seolpung had not made up his mind.
In his memory was forever branded the image of his mother, weeping as she breathed her last when he was a child.
Afterward, having lived only with his grandfather deep in the mountains for so many years, women to him were no different from that memory of his mother.
And so, dealing with women had always been difficult for him.
To raise his hand against a woman was something he could hardly even imagine.
At least, not until now.
But Seolpung also knew.
One day, he would face a woman as his enemy. If at that time he could not bring himself to act, he might cause the death of his comrades.
As the black whip came crashing toward his body, Seolpung squeezed his eyes shut.
Then, flipping like a cat, his figure vaulted lightly over the whip.
Paaang!
When the whip struck the earth in vain, the corners of Ya Unhyang's lips curved up.
"Oh?"
With her smile, the whip's movements grew fiercer and more violent.
The black dragon coiled around Seolpung struck with its tail from every direction.
Chwaaak!
Chwaaak!
But Seolpung's movements, eyes still shut, grew ever swifter.
Like a cat darting through the underbrush, he flipped and twisted, turning every one of her strikes to nothing.
Then, Ya Unhyang's eyes, now fully awake from their usual languor, gleamed brightly as she cried in excitement,
"Marvelous! Then take this as well!"
Her wildly thrashing whip suddenly split into five.
At its height, this art created nine shadows—Supreme Technique, Nine-Tailed Fox.
Five whips rained down on Seolpung from all sides.
Just then, his hunched figure vanished.
Papak!
He had burst forward at a speed no ordinary martial artist's eyes could follow.
In the blink of an eye, Seolpung's figure became a streak of light, charging straight before Ya Unhyang.
"Hmph!"
But Ya Unhyang only scoffed.
People thought she was weak in close combat because she wielded a long whip, but in truth her dagger skills were no weaker.
Already prepared, she whipped out the dagger in her left hand like lightning to slash at Seolpung as he closed in.
But Seolpung struck first.
At some point, he had palmed a hidden weapon and flung his hand toward her.
Hwaaak!
"A hidden weapon?!"
Startled, Ya Unhyang hastily raised her dagger before her body to block.
But nothing flew.
"What?!"
It was a feint.
The instant she realized she had been tricked and tried to swing again, Seolpung was already within her guard, catching her dagger with a hand wrapped in force.
Ya Unhyang ground her teeth.
She could not lose so easily.
"Eek!"
Her dagger twisted with deft precision, trying to slip past his hand and stab him.
But just as the blade managed only to slice his mask, Seolpung's fingers had already pressed firmly against the vital point in her neck.
Tak!
Ya Unhyang's eyes went blank.
To be subdued so effortlessly, without even being killed—this was complete defeat.
In her dimming vision, the last thing she saw was Seolpung's unmasked face, revealed where the dagger had torn his mask.
Then she lost consciousness.
Seolpung, who had subdued her, wore a troubled expression.
Of all things—he had shown his face.
Seonu Jin had warned him again and again: if his face was ever exposed, he must kill without fail.
Had he intended to kill her from the start, this would never have happened.
But in choosing to subdue her instead, he had revealed his face, and now by that logic he was bound to kill her.
Darkness clouded his vision.
Yet after some hesitation, Seolpung resolved not to kill her.
Had she not spared the prisoners earlier?
He could not bring himself to kill a woman who had chosen not to kill others.
Telling himself it was not because she was a woman, he carefully laid Ya Unhyang down in a soft empty cell of the dungeon, then hurried away.
Meanwhile, Bisa-yeong, upon arriving at the warehouse, immediately knew he had found the right place.
Three men were surrounding a woman, attempting to violate her.
Beside them, a girl in her mid-teens—likely her younger sister—was bound tightly with rope, screaming and weeping.
"Stop this instant! You beasts! I said stop!"
But the men only chuckled.
Two of them pinned down the older sister while the third, grinning, began to lower his trousers.
"Khehehe! Tonight I'll have a special treat!"
"Hurry it up! We're waiting our turn!"
"Don't worry. That rabbit won't last long anyway. Hahaha!"
The woman's eyes filled with despair as the leering man lowered his pants—
But then, furious, Bisa-yeong streaked in like a shooting star.
Phuak!
In an instant, his blade took the man's head.
The other two cried out in shock.
"Kang Ga-ya!"
"Wh-what?!"
They released the woman and scrambled back, reaching for their weapons.
But as the foremost disciple of the Flying Sect, Bisa-yeong's speed was far beyond them.
Even as one reached for his weapon, Bisa-yeong's blade slashed diagonally, cutting him in two.
Phuak!
"Gaaaah!"
"Yi Ga-ya!"
As the second fell, Bisa-yeong turned to the last. The man was already glaring in fury, blade drawn.
"You bastard! How dare you!"
Bisa-yeong clicked his tongue.
"Tch!"
He was anxious.
Thanks to Bae Jong-gwan's commotion at the front gate, the warehouse was isolated—but he had made too much noise already.
And the stance of this last opponent was no ordinary one.
"Haaaap!"
At the tip of the man's blade, a hazy mist shimmered.
Blade Qi.
"Damn it—he's a first-rate warrior!"
Bisa-yeong cursed inwardly, using his Thousand-Wind Footwork to deflect the incoming strikes.
Judging by his level, the man was no higher than first-rate low-tier, so it wasn't immediately dangerous.
But Bisa-yeong needed to finish quickly to rescue the sisters—this was a troublesome delay.
The man, slashing in a storm, realized Bisa-yeong was still untouched and sneered.
"So—you can't form Blade Qi. Quick footwork alone, you're nothing but a second-rate hack."
Bisa-yeong ground his teeth.
He had no rebuttal.
His inner force had already surpassed forty years' worth—sufficient for mid-tier first-rate in raw strength.
Yet no matter how hard he trained, he could never manifest Blade Qi.
Like a mirage, the realm of Sword and Blade Qi remained forever out of reach.
The man, failing to catch him, stopped chasing and instead raised his voice.
"An intruder! There's an intruder in the warehouse!"
Bisa-yeong's heart sank.
This could ruin everything.
Of all places, why here, where he had just found the Living Corpse Monster's daughters?
"You bastard!"
Desperate, Bisa-yeong lunged. He could not let everything be ruined because of him.
The man, as if waiting for it, slashed back, clearly aiming for this moment.
Chaang! Chang! Chang!
Blade clashed with blade again and again.
The gap between first-rate and second-rate was not only Blade Qi.
It was the mastery of internal force to wield such Qi, and the augmented strength, speed, reflexes, and senses it brought.
As wide a gulf as between a cat and a lynx.
Yet Bisa-yeong felt no such disparity.
In speed, strength, and skill, he was not outmatched at all.
He realized then: compared to the leaders he had fought before—Seonu Jin, Lady Cheong-yeon, or Lady Na—this man's skill was crude.
At last, a smile spread across Bisa-yeong's face.
At this level, even he could prevail.
With renewed confidence, his Flying Sect Blade Arts, driven by his Swift Mind Technique, grew faster and faster.
The Flying Sect's style, famed for its speed, consisted of rapid cuts.
But speed alone could not overcome an opponent.
Even the fastest strokes could be read if repeated—thus, for those who relied on speed, variation of tempo was key.
Yet now Bisa-yeong abandoned control altogether.
Immersed in the fight, he unleashed a torrential downpour of cuts.
Chachachachacheng!
Faster, ever faster—
As if chanting a spell to himself.
The man, overwhelmed by the accelerating storm, finally screamed a desperate kiai.
"Uwaaaaaah!"
In that instant, Bisa-yeong's blade pierced through his defense at its fastest yet, carving across his body.
Shaaaak!
At the blade's tip, a faint inch of Blade Qi shimmered.
"Haa… haa… haa…"
Panting, stunned, Bisa-yeong froze, blade still extended.
Behind him, the man's chest split wide, blood spraying as he collapsed.
Phuaak! Thud!
"Ha… haha… hahaha. So this is Blade Qi."
Bisa-yeong laughed.
The sensation of his inner force coursing all the way to his blade was a thrilling ecstasy.
Then suddenly, the bound girl cried out.
"Hero! Please, help us!"
Startled back to his senses, Bisa-yeong quickly cut their ropes and asked,
"Are you the daughters of Hero Ma, the Living Corpse Monster?"
"Yes! I'm his daughter! And my brother—he's a man!"
"…Hm?"
Bisa-yeong blinked, uncomprehending.
"…What did you say, young lady?"
The girl repeated,
"I'm the only daughter! That one is my brother—he's a man!"
"…Huh?"
Looking again, the person he had thought was the sister was in fact a strikingly beautiful… man.
Slender frame, delicate features that looked entirely feminine—but his clothing, and the flat chest revealed by his torn upper garments, left no doubt: he was a man.
Bisa-yeong, stunned, asked,
"Wait, then those bastards earlier…?"
The "older brother," voice small with embarrassment, replied,
"They said I looked pretty… that it would be something different…."
"…Ugh."
Clutching the back of his neck, Bisa-yeong regretted how easily he had killed them.
But unfortunately, there was no time to dwell on it.
"You two—can you use light footwork? We must escape at once!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
The sound of many footsteps was already rumbling toward them.
We all managed to escape the Black Sangbang safely and regroup at the remote temple that had been our rendezvous point.
It seemed the captain had worried about Bisa-yeong, so he had already joined with him and come along together.
The first thing I did was look at Bae Jong-gwan, whose upper garments were shredded with countless cuts, and asked anxiously,
"Jong-gwan, you worked hard. Are you hurt? Judging by your clothes, it looks like you went through something rough."
I regretted having given him such a difficult role.
But Bae Jong-gwan only laughed heartily.
"Hahaha! Don't worry. One of their officers was curious about my external arts, so I just gave him a little demonstration. Judging by his eyes, I think he fell completely in love with my strength. Wahahaha!"
…Seems I worried for nothing.
Then I turned to the so-called daughters of the Living Corpse Monster—who were, in fact, a son and a daughter.
The pretty-faced son still wore a dark expression, clearly shaken, while his sixteen-year-old sister, though emotional, still held herself with composure as she thanked us.
"Thank you for saving us. Both my brother and I were about to suffer something terrible. When we heard Father had abandoned us, we thought everything was over…."
But as she spoke, her eyes welled with tears again.
"Young lady…"
I hesitated, not knowing how to comfort a girl so young, but Bisa-yeong spoke up.
"Your father is truly an extraordinary man. To endure even his children's resentment in order to save them."
The girl looked puzzled.
"…What do you mean?"
"He refused to exchange you for the elixirs, and even put a bounty on the elixirs themselves. We were only able to save you because of that. He made Master Go Ju-yong believe you were worthless, forcing him to throw all his strength into capturing your father. Isn't that right, Jin?"
Sometimes, I had to admit, Bisa-yeong could sound admirable.
Too rarely—that was the problem.
I nodded, backing him up.
"That's correct. Had your father agreed to exchange the elixirs for you, he would have been captured as well. And then, to keep you alive, he would have been forced to spend the rest of his life imprisoned by the Black Sangbang, refining elixirs for them."
At that, the son suddenly lifted his head.
"S-so… you're saying Father did it on purpose, to save us?"
Bisa-yeong replied bluntly,
"Don't ask us. Ask yourselves. Is your father the kind of man who'd throw away his children over a handful of elixirs?"
The siblings exchanged glances, then shook their heads fiercely.
"No, never."
"Of course not. Elixirs can always be made again. Then…"
It seemed their despair had not been from the ordeal itself, but from believing their father had abandoned them.
Now that they understood the truth, their faces brightened visibly. The son bowed deeply.
"Thank you! If not for you, we would have died foolishly, never knowing Father's intentions. It was so simple—thank you, truly!"
"Yes, thank you so much! How can we ever repay this debt…?"
At last the girl broke down, sobbing into her brother's arms.
Clearly, she had been under terrible strain.
Watching with satisfaction, Bisa-yeong suddenly asked me,
"So, shouldn't we go rescue the Living Corpse Monster himself now?"
Captain Seolpung laughed and agreed.
"Indeed. Seeing this makes me want to free him all the more."
Their eagerness stirred me too.
But first, there was something else to take care of.
I led the siblings aside to rest, then dropped the massive bundle I had carried with a thud before the others.
"Before we go, let's take a look at this."
Their eyes immediately fixed on it with curiosity.
"I've been wondering myself. What did you bring?"
"Yes, I was curious too. A bundle the size of your body—did you kidnap someone?"
Grinning, I opened it at last.
Their eyes and mouths flew open.
"Th-this is?!"
"No way! Is that?!"
"Woooah! What is all this?!"
I chuckled, enjoying their reactions.
It was only natural.
I had cleaned out Master Go Ju-yong's storeroom.
I left the jewels behind and only took gold, since jewels would be easier to trace.
I grabbed every elixir that looked worthwhile.
Truthfully, what I most hoped to gain from rescuing the Living Corpse Monster was elixirs—but I had already far surpassed that goal.
Lastly, I had taken some fine weapons.
I first handed the captain a pair of arm guards.
"A gift. They're called Tiger Claws—seem to be modeled after the Blood Dragon Claws."
"What? Modeled after the Blood Dragon Claws?!"
The captain's interest was piqued.
The Blood Dragon Claws were the infamous weapon of Demonic Killer Mak Jong-gi.
Four long talons would shoot from his arm guards, terrifying even the most seasoned warriors.
For a martial artist who was already a threat barehanded, claws made him even more formidable.
The captain strapped them on, twisted his wrists—
Chaaang!
"Ohh!"
Four long claws shot from each hand, gleaming red as he focused his energy.
"With these, I can pierce or slash. I don't even need to smash demons apart—just slice them clean. Thank you, Jin. This is an excellent gift."
Next, I handed Bisa-yeong a saber inscribed with the name Danwol and a throwing dagger connected by fine silver thread.
He drew Danwol, its blade glinting coldly, and exclaimed,
"Ohhh! Magnificent! Thank you, Jin! But what's with this dagger?"
Smiling, I explained,
"I thought you might benefit from dagger techniques. You're already training in hidden weapons, right? This silver thread—whatever it's made of, even Sword Qi won't cut it. You might even be able to kill with just the thread."
"Oooh, that's great! But you're training hidden weapons too, aren't you?"
I grinned.
"Keke, I already picked one for myself."
"Heh, then I'll gladly accept."
Lastly, I presented Bae Jong-gwan with a great halberd.
Its shaft split into two clubs, and it weighed over a hundred pounds—the heaviest of the lot.
But Bae Jong-gwan only laughed awkwardly and shook his head.
"I appreciate the thought, Jin, but I need no weapon. My body is enough. What use are weapons to one who has trained external arts? Hahaha!"
I had expected as much.
But weapons weren't only about sharpness—they also gave reach.
And with his formidable physique but weaker grappling skills, reach could be invaluable for him.
Smiling, I countered,
"True, you don't need a weapon. But think about it. A giant like you, swinging this halberd like a storm—who would you remind people of?"
"Hm? Who?"
Glancing around the temple, I said,
"Guan Yu. General Guan of the Three Kingdoms."
"…General Guan?"
"Yes. Just imagine it. If Lady Cheon saw you like that…"
The eternal idol of warriors, Guan Yu—followed by Lady Cheon.
That double strike was too much for him.
"R-really? You think so?"
"Of course!"
I didn't mention he was more likely to remind people of Xu Chu or Dian Wei. Or that Lady Cheon's reaction was anyone's guess.
In any case, if it raised his survival chances, it was worth it.
As Captain Seolpung admired his Tiger Claws, he asked me,
"But what about you, Jin? Surely you didn't only bring gifts for us?"
Good men always assumed others were as good as themselves.
But I wasn't Captain Seolpung.
Smirking, I replied,
"Of course I picked something. One sword that captured me instantly."
I drew it—Black Wolf.
Its hilt and scabbard were pitch black, adorned with the snarling head of a wolf.
"Magnificent!" the captain breathed.
"Isn't it?"
But what I loved most was the blade itself. When I tested it on a boulder, it sliced it clean in two without even using Sword Qi.
A true warrior's friend and treasure—every one of us beamed, absorbed in our new weapons.
I was proud.
I thought to myself—Lady Na will be pleased too.
I had even set aside gifts for the women who hadn't joined us this time.
I couldn't wait to see their faces—especially Lady Na's.
Chuckling to myself, I clapped to get everyone's attention.
"All right, enough playing. Time to move! But first… shall we each take an elixir before we go?"
They chuckled at that.
My internal force was nearly at the threshold of one full cycle—the bare minimum to reach the pinnacle.
Before, I might have saved the elixirs, thinking it wasteful. But now, with more than enough, there was no reason to hold back.
It was finally time to fill my cycle completely.