Chapter 156. Flower (2)

Nam Geon and the Tang Clan guy showed a startled reaction.

“H, how did you do that, hyung-ah?”

“What kind of magic is that? Since when did you also learn exorcism?”

But I had no time to explain anything to them.

“Focus!!”

I had to fly my body and swing my sword continuously while nagging them.

After cutting the crimson line connected to the corpse again, an ominous sight came into view.

As the corpse crumbled, the energy that had been in the corpse scattered into the air.

But soon, the crimson flow in the air congealed, and a corpse rose up again.

It was the same face as the corpse I had just cut down.

“Damn it.”

In the end, it only reduced the consumption of internal energy and stamina. The method of cutting the lines was not a panacea.

I looked around with my second eye wide open.

There was no end to this. I had to find a life gate somehow.

Then, a terrifying sight came into view.

In the back, there was a place where the crimson flow had congealed together.

Just by looking at it, an ominous energy was surging to the point of sending shivers down my spine.

I knew instinctively.

That place was the Emerald Crossing River.

The fact that the assassins had lured us there, and the shaman who was there, it seemed the Emerald Crossing River was the center of this formation.

In the end, it meant that I just had to go there and break the formation.

But that was a bad move.

Because the congealed crimson flow looked like a pit of hell.

But I couldn’t just endure being trapped in the formation.

While I was contemplating whether to risk my life and go there, a peculiar point caught my eye.

The center of the formation, where an enormous amount of crimson energy was surging.

From there, crimson energy was constantly flowing out.

At a glance, it seemed that the energy was flowing out randomly, but among them, there were four streams of flow that were particularly eye-catching.

Unlike the other streams that spread out thinly like threads, they were quite thick flows.

Looking at those flows, although they were winding here and there, they were extending towards the four cardinal directions: east, west, south, and north.

A possibility came to mind, so I sent a Sound Transmission to my companions.

– From now on, follow me closely!

And then I took a step, following one of the four streams of flow I had just confirmed.

My companions also followed me closely with their mouths shut.

After clenching my teeth and following the thick flow of the stream for a while.

A strange sight came into view.

Amidst the crimson flow filling the area in all directions.

A single will-o’-the-wisp was stealthily approaching us.

I pretended not to know anything and continued to advance.

And the moment the distance with that will-o’-the-wisp became very close, I thrust the Master’s Blade towards it by surprise.

Crack!

A gruesome cutting sound echoed, and something appeared in the empty air. An assassin with his heart pierced by the Master’s Blade.

The guy didn’t let out any groans. Instead, he just coughed up blood with a choked voice.

“Cough…….”

For some reason, the assassin’s face looked familiar.

Was it the face of one of the residents who had lured us to the Emerald Crossing River a little while ago?

It wasn’t that.

After taking a step towards the corpse, I grabbed the corpse’s face and pulled.

At that, the skin was torn from his face.

A human skin mask.

It was the same face as one of the corpses I had killed in the formation.

“Not only did you kill all the residents, but you also peeled off their faces and wore them as human skin masks.”

I continued to advance, controlling my anger.

I cut the thread connecting the corpse and the formation and parried the hidden weapons that flew in stealthily from all directions.

After slaughtering the assassins who approached for an assassination attempt for a while.

We arrived near our destination.

Just by looking at it with my eyes, there was nothing special about it.

The surroundings were still all desolate land.

But the sight I saw with my second eye was different.

At the end of the crimson flow, crimson energy had ominously congealed.

But it was fainter than the one I had seen at the Emerald Crossing River before.

Also, about a dozen things that looked like will-o’-the-wisps were hiding around it.

A place guarded by assassins.

It seemed I had come to the right place.

“You all hold on here!”

After shouting that to my companions, I immediately unfolded my movement arts.

– Die!!

I advanced, swinging the Master’s Blade at the screaming, rushing corpse.

Perhaps because it was a place where energy was congealed, or because they had to protect this place, the number of corpses was considerable.

“Stop sticking to me!!”

“W, we will send you to the afterlife!”

The shouts of my companions fighting the corpses were heard from behind.

After leaving those shouts behind and advancing for a while.

The hiding will-o’-the-wisps stealthily approached me.

While cutting down the corpse, I unfolded the Azure Heaven’s Hidden Smile and shot a sword Qi towards the will-o’-the-wisp.

Slice.

Right after the gruesome cutting sound was heard, two daggers flew in simultaneously from the empty air.

I dodged the dagger aiming for my neck by slightly twisting my upper body, and I swung the Master’s Blade at the dagger flying towards my heart.

The Master’s Blade cut through that dagger in one go.

Slice.

Furthermore, it cut down the body of the assassin who was hiding in the formation.

Slice!

Blood spurted from the empty air, and the corpse of an assassin with his lower abdomen pierced popped out.

In the meantime, daggers were flying in from the left and right.

A new trajectory was embroidered in the air.

It was a hidden weapon thrown by the other assassins, aiming for the gap between the three assassins who were thrusting their daggers from the front, left, and right.

I unfolded the Moonlight Coiling Sword to block the daggers and the hidden weapon at the same time.

The assassins who had approached me and thrust their daggers were trying to retreat in a hurry.

I dealt with the assassin in front of me by swinging the Master’s Blade directly, and I shot a sword Qi at the one on the right, aiming for his vital point.

It was a countermeasure possible because I could see the energy flowing in their bodies with my second eye.

On the contrary, if I didn’t have my eyes, I wondered if I would have collapsed and died from exhaustion while fighting those damn corpses endlessly.

After cutting down the assassins with the help of my eyes’ power several times.

Slice.

After dealing with the last assassin, the end of the flow was right in front of me.

Funnily enough, although I had only moved a few zhang, my companions were nowhere to be seen.

Instead, my second eye could see it. The scene of my companions’ internal energy moving here and there in the back.

Ignoring the corpses rushing at me, I raised the Master’s Blade.

I drew internal energy from my Dantian as I found it and sent it into the Master’s Blade.

Following the principle of the third form of the Sun Moon Infinite Sword, One Sun, Ten Thousand Lights, a fierce sword silk swirled.

I brought down the Master’s Blade towards the place where the ominous energy was surging.

There was no special sound. Instead, a strong repulsive force was felt through the hand holding the Master’s Blade.

I continued to push in internal energy and pushed with all my might.

The repulsive force was torn to shreds, and the congealed energy scattered wildly in all directions.

The desolate land and the blood-red sky disappeared without a trace, as if they were an illusion.

A frown naturally formed on my forehead.

The place where I had brought down the Master’s Blade.

Perhaps because of the aftermath of One Sun, Ten Thousand Lights, the ground there had exploded.

And under the exploded ground, about a dozen corpses were buried.

Not only were their faces all skinned, but their entire bodies were covered in cuts and ominous characters were carved into them, a hideous sight.

Nam Geon’s voice was heard from behind.

“Huh?”

When I turned my head, I saw my companions covered in wounds.

Should I call it a relief? It seemed there were no serious injuries yet.

“Th, the ghosts are gone! Th, they’ve gone to the afterlife!!”

While Nam Geon was greatly rejoicing, the Tang Clan guy was checking the condition of the two Senior Sisters.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

“I’m fine too. More importantly, how are you, Senior Brother?”

Senior Sister Baek Hyang asks, looking at me.

“I’m fine.”

“Then what do you plan to do now? It seems only the formation in this area has been dispelled.”

As the Tang Clan guy said.

The area where we were had returned to its original scene.

A few shabby pavilions were visible nearby, and the sunset-colored sky was visible as the sun was setting.

But beyond that, a blood-red mist had settled, blocking the view.

Only one place, the path leading out of the village, was wide open.

I started walking towards the outside of the village with my companions.

Right after completely escaping the range of the formation’s influence, I turned around.

“Let’s enter the village again.”

It wasn’t because of Hwangbo Ak, who was still in the formation.

They were madmen who had not only slaughtered all the innocent residents but also torn off their faces to wear as human skin masks and used their corpses for wicked shamanistic spells.

I had no intention of sending them back alive.

“We will go to the same place as before. That formation is maintained by five strongholds.”

After destroying the four strongholds in the east, west, south, and north, it seemed highly likely that the formation would disappear.

Even if it didn’t disappear, only the central Emerald Crossing River would remain, so its power would be much weaker.

The reason we came out of the formation was to find it more easily.

Since we had first destroyed the southern stronghold, we went around the outside of the village and ran towards the eastern stronghold.

After explaining the plan to my companions and running for a while.

Suddenly, the blood-red mist that was enveloping the village scattered.

While I was hesitating at the unexpected situation, Senior Sister Baek Hyang opened her mouth.

“Perhaps they thought we had escaped and dispelled the formation?”

It was a rather reasonable inference, but it didn’t seem to be the case.

“Then shouldn’t the assassins appear?”

The formation was dispelled, but there were no one chasing us.

Moreover, if I looked closely, a blood-red mist was still gathered in the distance.

While I was wondering what was going on, a familiar voice was heard.

“Hahaha! I can finally see you, you damn assassins!!”

It was the voice of Hwangbo Ak, who had run out alone.

Absurdly, the direction from which his voice came was our destination.

The place where the red energy was congealed in the east.

Just in case, I unfolded my movement arts at full power.

Beyond the wide-open view, after dodging the dilapidated village pavilions or even using Controlling Qi to Soar to jump over them several times.

“Let’s die!!”

The figure of Hwangbo Ak, shrouded in hostility, fighting the assassins, was visible.

“That madman.”

Hwangbo Ak was completely covered in blood.

“Kuhahaha! Now this feels like a fight!”

And yet, he was shouting happily, and a pit was dug next to him.

When I enhanced my vision to look, a scene similar to the place I had destroyed with One Sun, Ten Thousand Lights was unfolding.

It was a pit where horribly disfigured corpses were buried.

That madman had not only run amok alone but had also destroyed a stronghold on his own.

But I couldn’t just be surprised by his antics.

Pat!

After running at full power, I swung the Master’s Blade continuously at the assassins who had stuck to him.

My companions had also joined in by now and were starting to push back the assassins.

After dealing with the assassins, Hwangbo Ak collapsed on the ground.

“Hah. Hah. What took you so long!”

“I was late because I was breaking the formation. More importantly, how did you know?”

“Know what?”

“The fact that this place is a stronghold of the formation.”

“What are you talking about? This was a stronghold?”

“……Then how did you get here?”

“How did I get here, I just beat up any corpse or assassin I saw and ended up here.”

He added with an expression that said he didn’t understand.

“What’s the point of taking the long way around when you can just beat up everything in sight.”

A hollow laugh naturally escaped.

It was nothing short of crazy talk.

If we were even a little apart, we would disappear from sight.

In other words, most of what was visible within that formation was a hallucination.

If one moved while relying on their sight, their direction would inevitably change continuously.

The possibility of reaching a stronghold by blindly chasing enemies was almost non-existent.

Looking at the collapsed Hwangbo Ak, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

A body as sturdy as Nam Geon’s. A spiritual herb he had luckily picked up. The incident where he had survived being betrayed by the Nine Dragons Fortress Leader.

And on top of that, today’s incident.

Perhaps that guy was born with heavenly luck.

The fortune and luck to live a long and healthy life.

While I was letting out a hollow laugh, the Tang Clan guy quickly came over, checked Hwangbo Ak’s condition, and then sighed.

“Hah. The wounds are the wounds, but the poison is the problem. We have to draw out the poison and detoxify him right now.”

The Tang Clan guy, who said that, quickly began to treat Hwangbo Ak.

After watching him for a moment, I gave an order to my companions.

“You stay here and continue to treat this person. Senior Sister Baek Hyang, you stand guard for the two of them. Nam Geon, Senior Sister Choyeon, you two follow me.”

I had to destroy the rest of the formation and completely clean up the Red Moon Falling Flowers bastards.

Hwangbo Ak, who was in the middle of being treated, suddenly tried to stand up.

“Wh, what are you doing!?”

Ignoring the Tang Clan guy’s shout, Hwangbo Ak grinned.

“Aren’t there stronger ones left? I’ll go with you. A wound like this is nothing.”

“The wound is not the problem, the poison is the problem!!”

“Hmph. Poison can be overcome with grit.”

For some reason, the Tang Clan guy looked back and forth between me and Hwangbo Ak and shook his head.

It seemed he was asking me to stop that guy.

“It seems you’ve already enjoyed the life-and-death battle you wanted enough?”

At my question, Hwangbo Ak turned his head and then spit out a bloody phlegm on the ground.

“Ptooey. It was terribly boring. The sneaky assassins are no fun to fight.”

“If so, all the more reason to stay here and get treated. The rest of the enemies are all those sneaky and boring assassins.”

“Th, that’s right, bandit hyung-ah! A, assassins are sneaky!”

When even Nam Geon agreed with my words, Hwangbo Ak let out an exclamation of admiration.

“Ah! So they were all assassins after all!”

Only then did he let go of his lingering attachment and sat down on the ground again.

He was truly a madman.

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