Chapter 74: Hwa Myeong-oh and Gu Chil

Gu Chil.

No—Doom/Wielding Ghost Commander, Byeok Cheon-un.

Myeong-oh stared at him blankly, not expecting to run into him again in a place like this.

“How did you get here?”

“You think I wouldn’t know about the Hidden Diagram Formation?”

The Hidden Diagram Formation

 was a single-person concealment formation taught within the Divine Ghost Unit.

“Senior Byeok…”

“I’m Gu Chil now.”

“What a ridiculous name…”

“What was that, punk?”

Thwack!

A stone flew from above the pit and smacked Myeong-oh squarely on the forehead.

It didn’t contain any Internal Energy or anything like that, so it just made her skull rattle a bit.

“I saw it. All your subordinates outside are dead.”

“Are you mocking me?”

“Yeah.”

Grit.

Myeong-oh’s teeth clenched audibly.

It was an honest answer, but that didn’t stop her temper from flaring.

“You trained them well. From the four I fought in the Teahouse, I could tell they weren’t half bad.”

Gu Chil recalled the Lions of Underworld King who had cornered him.

There was a gap in skill level, sure, but the techniques they used bore a striking resemblance to those of the Divine Ghost Unit.

“But picking the wrong master was your mistake. You wasted men who had limitless potential for the future.”

Myeong-oh bit his lip.

The Underworld King’s Unit, being an assassination squad, barely numbered over thirty.

And yet, they’d clashed with upright orthodox martial artists who had undergone straightforward training—and the result had been predictable.

“So you’ve come to finish me off, haven’t you, Senior?”

Myeong-oh subtly prepared herself for battle.

“I may be exhausted, but I won’t lose to an injured man.”

In the previous ambush, Gu Chil had sustained a serious injury to one of his arms.

No matter how legendary a killer he was, showing up alone without the Evil Overlords of Heaven was clearly reckless bravado.

“I’m not here to fight.”

“…Then what?”

“Surrender. If I speak to the Young Master, I can conceal your identity. Even that bastard Cheon Joo-myeong wouldn’t be able to touch you then.”

Myeong-oh sneered.

“You’re really a pushover, Senior. The fact that you’re still holding your hand out to me means you haven’t changed at all.”

If he’d delayed even a bit longer in Teahouse, she wouldn’t have gotten away with just an injury. And yet, Gu Chil was still offering his hand to her.

“Hey.”

“Seeing how well you’re living under the Jin Clan… your words must be true.”

Sensing something off in her tone, Gu Chil quickly warned her.

“Myeong-oh, don’t do anything foolish.”

“Even looking like this, I’m not ready to let go of my need for revenge. That’s what’s kept me alive until now.”

That one emotion, still burning in her chest. If she let it go, she’d be nothing more than a living puppet.

Myeong-oh suddenly sprang from the pit and stepped out.

Gu Chil frowned when he saw the small syringe in his hand.

“What is that, a syringe? Poison?”

“Could be. Or not.”

“Don’t joke around. If the Evil Overlords of Heaven show up, I really won’t be able to protect you!”

“Let me give you a question.”

Ignoring his words, Myeong-oh continued speaking.

“Yin-Yang Fist Demon Jan Hyeol, Colorful Flower Lord Myeong Yuryang, and seven top-tier masters supporting them. And finally, the Second and Third Orders. If they clash with the remaining forces of the Evil Overlords inside the ruins—what do you think will happen?”

“What do you mean, what’ll happen? Your side’s going to get wiped out!”

Even factoring in the two Extreme Martial Masters, that force was formidable, but they were up against the Yaksha Heavenly Blade Unit and another Extreme Martial Master, Wang Cheongeol. A frontal confrontation would never go in their favor.

“Then why do you think they’re still trying to pick a fight? That’s the riddle I give you, Senior.”

“No way…”

Gu Chil’s face hardened as he slowly answered.

“Because… there’s a chance of victory?”

“Correct.”

Thuk!

As soon as he said that, Myeong-oh stabbed the syringe into her own neck.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing?!”

“If you’re here, that means your master, the Young Master of the Jin Clan, is here too. Which probably means that damn woman is also around.”

Her original objective may have changed, but Myeong-oh’s initial goal had been to steal the Jade Green Heavenly Net Divine Sword held by Baek Sang-ah.

“With some luck… I might even catch both rabbits I’d given up on.”

“Damn it! Is revenge really worth all this?!”

“There she is! A minion of the Demonic Cult!”

At that moment, five martial experts from the Evil Overlords charged in from behind Myeong-oh.

Their uniforms identified them as members of the Yaksha Heavenly Blade Unit.

“Senior, earlier you asked me what this tool was, right?”

Her breathing began to grow ragged. Blood vessels popped all over her body, and her eyes turned bloodshot red.

“Myeong-oh, you—!”

Gu Chil unconsciously took a step back.

He had suspected it wasn’t just a suicide device, but the aura radiating from Myeong-oh’s entire body was far from normal.

“This is… the power of a god.”

Crack! Crackle!

Suddenly, Myeong-oh’s joints twisted grotesquely.

Her voice too started to shift—scraping like metal against metal—gradually shedding all trace of humanity.

Her body began to stretch.

Arms, legs, torso—all slithered like tentacles.

From a little over five feet tall, she now loomed over Gu Chil, reaching eight… no, nearly nine feet.

Through lips stretched unnaturally wide, an eerie voice came out.

“I joined this organization… because it offered the greatest chance… for revenge.”

The members of the Yaksha Heavenly Blade Unit, charging in, recoiled at the sight of her.

“A… a monster!”

“Don’t flinch! We’ve faced plenty of monsters inside these ruins, haven’t we?!”

And it was true—they had fought dozens of monstrous beings while navigating these ruins.

Compared to those creatures’ sheer intimidation, the current Myeong-oh looked frail and pitiful.

“Kill it!”

The squad regained their fighting spirit and lunged at Myeong-oh all at once.

“Run, you idiots!”

Gu Chil shouted.

Paat!

Myeong-oh’s arm, now elongated like a whip, sprouted small, saw-blade-like protrusions.

As her arm carved through the air in a curve, the swords of the masters enveloped in sword qi were severed without resistance.

“W-What?!”

Their panic lasted only a moment.

Within a dozen seconds, they no longer had the luxury to be shocked—they were all decapitated.

Chwarururuk!

“W-What kind of nonsense is this?!”

Gu Chil was horrified.

To destroy sword qi with such force?

Even though there were no top-tier masters among them, Myeong-oh’s performance had been so fast and precise that even Gu Chil himself would have struggled to avoid it.

“You… you…! Did you really sell your soul to a demon?!”

It was all Gu Chil could say.

That’s how utterly unrecognizable Myeong-oh’s transformation and divine aura had become.

“Heh, hehe…”

Myeong-oh licked the blood off her blade and looked at Gu Chil with eyes soaked in madness.

“You saw it, didn’t you? My… power.”

“How can you call that your power? Can you even go back to normal?!”

Myeong-oh shook his head.

Unlike a ‘compatible one,’ she could no longer return to her former self until his entire life force was depleted.

“Senior… we call this… Awakening.”

“Awakening?”

“If a mere assassin like me can do this, then if an Extreme Martial Master takes this form…”

“……!!”

“They’ll all die.”

As much as he didn’t want to believe it, if Myeong-oh’s words were true, that outcome was highly likely.

Even if their side had an Extreme Martial Master like Pa Ga…

“If only I could’ve unleashed this power on that bastard…”

*Drip…*

Tears of sorrow flowed from Myeong-oh’s eyes.

“What a shame…”

“Myeong-oh!”

Shrrk!

With a shout toward Myeong-oh, Gu Chil drew the sword from his back.

Recognizing the weapon, Myeong-oh’s eyes twitched slightly.

“Demonic Soul Sword…”

A regulation weapon carried by every member of the Demonic Emperor’s Ghost Execution Unit. But when that regulation sword was drawn in real combat, it meant only one thing—

That the wielder was prepared to take the life of a comrade.

“As a former comrade and fellow warrior, I’ll be the one to take your life.”

“Heh, heh! Do you… really think you can?”

“Even if I can’t… I’ll make it happen. Damn it, I really didn’t want to use this!”

Gu Chil charged at Myeong-oh, erupting with fury.

As he dashed forward, his Demonic Soul Sword* became cloaked in black =sword qi*=.

But the feeling of this sword qi was completely different from the ordinary kind.

“As expected… Senior.”

Myeong-oh was in awe.

Lightless Sword Qi.

The highest state a killer could reach.

Sword qi that, when exposed to light, absorbed it rather than reflecting it—perfectly optimized for assassination. A secret technique of the Demonic Emperor’s Ghost Execution Unit.

But that didn’t mean she would show mercy.

She had already severed all ties and hesitation for the sake of revenge.

Chwarururuk!

The blade-whip that had slaughtered over a dozen members of the Yaksha Heavenly Blade Unit now bared its fangs toward Gu Chil.

‘Damn it, I can’t face it head-on!’

Two clones of Gu Chil appeared on either side of him.

A footwork technique said to rival those of orthodox sects!

“Phantom Mirage Triple Shadow Steps!”

Kwa-gwagwagwang!

Myeong-oh’s whip skewered both clones and struck only air.

Using that opening, Gu Chil’s true body surged toward him.

“Haaaah!”

*Chwarak!*

Gu Chil swung his sword with all his might.

And with that strike—Myeong-oh’s arm was severed.

“Gyaaaagh!”

She swung her remaining arm in desperate resistance, but the attack pattern was so simple and fast that it failed to injure Gu Chil.

‘Damn it.’

Gu Chil broke into a cold sweat, blaming himself.

‘I meant to take her head without pain…’

But the injury in one arm weakened his strength more than expected.

That delay had allowed Myeong-oh time to react.

“Huff… Still, taking an arm isn’t bad.”

If he could force this into a prolonged fight, he might have a chance. If lucky, the Evil Overlords might notice and come running.

But then—

“Do you… really think that?”

Myeong-oh’s split lips curved into a crescent shape, as if she’d heard Gu Chil’s muttering.

The chill down his spine was unbearable.

Chwarururuk!

“……!!”

With a grotesque sound, green liquid spurted from the severed shoulder—and a new arm grew out!

“N-No!”

Seeing Gu Chil’s reaction, Myeong-oh’s smile deepened.

“Told you, didn’t I? It’s the power… of a god.”

“What the hell kind of broken cheat is this?!”

Gu Chil’s mouth hung open, stunned for a full ten seconds before he came to his senses.

“Now, quietly… offer up your head, Senior.”

Once again, Myeong-oh’s arm whipped forward.

This time, with a trajectory wide and massive enough to demolish all terrain in its path, as if she intended to erase even his shadow clones.

‘D-Damn it!’

Gu Chil resisted with everything he had.

But even with all his skill, in this limited space, there was no way out.

The whip lashed in from all directions—there was no way to counter it head-on.

‘At this rate, I’ll be killed!’

Gu Chil clenched his teeth.

Myeong-oh had staked her life on revenge.

But he had faced her wrath with half-hearted resolve.

Of course he couldn’t match her.

‘In that case… I’ll stake my life too!’

Gu Chil raised his thumb and moved it toward his heart.

Just then—

“Gu Chil.”

“Huh?”

At the sound of a familiar voice behind him, Gu Chil reflexively answered back.

And then—

Flash!

“Huh?”

He blinked—and in that brief moment, Myeong-oh’s head was flying through the air.

“Wha…?”

Even Gu Chil blinked in disbelief at the surreal scene that had just unfolded.

“Y-Young Master?!”

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