Chapter 147: A Lantern In The Darkness (2)

A greatly respected elder of the Murim Alliance.

Namgung Yu-baek, known as the Emperor King Sword, possessed strong martial arts fitting his status and was renowned for his righteousness that did not tolerate evil.

During the exploration of the Five Elements Tomb, he set up a camp on the Great Separation Mountain and stayed there.

The fact that the Vice Leader personally endured the morning dew and lived in the mountains was enough to earn the respect of the alliance members.

Hundreds of martial artists under the Murim Alliance were guarding the path to his location, so there was no need to guard his camp, given he’s a Supreme Peak master.

Yet, on that night, the vicinity of Namgung Yu-baek’s residence was unusually quiet, not even an ant in sight.

This must have been possible due to his order to keep people away.

Indeed, a secretive conversation was taking place in the camp.

“What are you talking about? To stay back?”

“Exactly that. There’s no reason for you to remain here, is there?”

The All-knowing Master’s face turned red with anger.

If his opponent had not been the Emperor King Sword, he would have already shouted in his temper.

“Why wouldn’t there be a reason? I have been waiting for this day…”

“It’s not that you should disappear forever. Step back, and when the time comes, we will call you. That’s what I mean.”

“To find the legacy of the Master of the Ghost Valley. Haven’t I followed all your instructions?”

The name that came out of the All-knowing Master’s mouth was not the Five Elements Divine Lord, but the Master of the Ghost Valley.

It was a startling statement, but Namgung Yu-baek’s expression remained unchanged.

“Taking on the role of a judge for the young ones, manipulating the hidden treasure map, using up a Treasure to forge a mere gem…”

Namgung Yu-baek, who had been looking only at the documents on the desk, raised his gaze.

The All-knowing Master instinctively shut his mouth.

“Loose lips.”

The gaze of a Supreme Peak master, especially one who had reached that level decades ago, had its own power.

The All-knowing Master felt as if he was choking and at the same time, he saw an illusion of his body being torn to shreds.

“…”

“Stay away for now.”

Namgung Yu-baek turned his attention back to the documents.

Only then could the All-knowing Master breathe roughly.

His back was soaked with cold sweat.

“Please make sure to send me a message right away.”

Saying this was his last shred of dignity.

As he left the camp, someone who had been waiting greeted the All-knowing Master. This person had not been there when he entered.

“I will guide you on your way.”

It was a member of the Extermination Pursuit Squad.

Those who were most strictly against the heretics within the Murim Alliance.

The All-knowing Master and his group were aware that these people were the Vice Leader’s confidants.

After all, the Vice Leader himself had been the leader of the Extermination Pursuit Squad decades ago.

“Bow your head and follow me, please.”

“…Alright.”

The All-knowing Master kept his head down so his face would not be visible.

On the path led by the Extermination Pursuit Squad member, they hardly encountered anyone. It was surprising, considering there should be many guarding the Five Elements Tomb.

Though they did encounter a few people on the way, no one obstructed the member of the Extermination Pursuit Squad.

As he left the Great Separation Mountain, the All-knowing Master was lost in thought.

One day, Namgung Yu-baek had reached out to the All-knowing Master first.

It was not long after the discovery of the hidden treasure map of the Five Elements Tomb.

The All-knowing Master, already having a relationship with Namgung Yu-baek, received his request. It was to manipulate the contents of the hidden treasure map.

What was inside it, and who had designed it. He changed nothing else but deleted just that information.

The desire to monopolize information was the same for the hypocritical orthodox martial artists. Thus, the All-knowing Master did not question Namgung Yu-baek’s instructions.

But now, Namgung Yu-baek seemed suspicious to him.

‘…What is that old man thinking?’

The All-knowing Master’s relationship with him had not been bad.

Their desires did not conflict with each other.

Namgung Yu-baek wanted to obtain the legacy of the Five Elements Divine Lord to revive the Namgung Clan. The All-knowing Master desired the legacy of the Master of the Ghost Valley.

‘I knew the Namgung Clan was in decline, but…’

Though unknown to the world, the All-knowing Master had come to know a little about the darkness of the Namgung Clan.

Namgung Yu-baek probably didn’t know that the All-knowing Master was aware of their secrets. It was truly found out by a series of coincidences.

There was a secret in the martial arts of the Namgung clan. He was more convinced of this when he saw Namgung Shin, a young child.

“This is as far as I go.”

The Extermination Pursuit Squad member stopped.

The All-knowing Master looked puzzled.

The guidance was shorter than he thought. They were still within the boundary of the Murim Alliance.

As if to answer his question, the Pursuit Squad member added, “If you continue down that valley, you’ll be able to leave.”

“…Alright.”

The All-knowing Master stared at the member for a moment and then nodded his head.

Then, the Extermination Pursuit Squad member turned back in the direction they came from and disappeared.

The All-knowing Master hesitated for a moment before starting to walk.

A field of flowers spread out all the way to the dark valley in the distance.

It was a colony of yellow flowers named Yellow Thorn Rose.

The moon was bright.

The yellow petals of the Yellow Thorn Rose shone palely, perhaps due to the moonlight.

The fragrance of the flowers was so intense it was almost dizzying.

However, the All-knowing Master could not enjoy this atmosphere.

He tensed up, his right hand still in his pocket.

When he reached the middle of the flower field, he abruptly stopped.

“…I didn’t expect you to find me so quickly.”

The response came from behind.

“You’ve had a hard time, the All-knowing Master.”

Turning around, Namgung Yu-baek was standing there under the moonlight.

He made no effort to conceal his presence.

The All-knowing Master clenched his teeth.

“Are you planning to exterminate me?”

“It’s more like abandoning a pawn after use.”

It meant that the All-knowing Master’s usefulness had ended.

The All-knowing Master frowned, not removing his hand from his pocket.

It was because he couldn’t understand Namgung Yu-baek’s thoughts.

“Have you gone mad? Without me, you also won’t be able to get what you want.”

“…”

“The Master of the Ghost Valley wouldn’t have designed the entry to the tomb to let the intruders easily escape. Without my skills, it would be difficult for them to return.”

The All-knowing Master said this, glancing around, looking for a way to escape.

But at Namgung Yu-baek’s response, the All-knowing Master shivered.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“…Y-you can’t be serious.”

Namgung Yu-baek seemed unconcerned, as if he had no intention of drawing his sword.

“Are you planning to let the successors die? Among them is your nephew, a Namgung!”

“…”

“No, were you planning to kill them all from the beginning…?”

Namgung Yu-baek didn’t answer, but his silence seemed like an affirmation.

“You’re insane, completely insane. Do you think the major sects will stay quiet? Are you trying to dismantle the Murim Alliance?”

“That won’t happen. The unity of the Murim Alliance will only become stronger.”

The All-knowing Master was no fool.

Realizing Namgung Yu-baek’s true intentions, he muttered to himself with a pale face.

“…You’ve already created a culprit. Are you planning to frame it as the Unorthodox Union’s doing?”

“Are those your final words?”

The All-knowing Master forced a smile.

“You underestimated me too much.”

In his possession, he had something far more powerful than the Three Ghosts Bronze Cauldron.

A weapon smeared with the lethal poison of the Five Poisons Sect, barely acquired.

With this weapon, capable of killing an ordinary martial artist instantly, he was confident he could stop even Namgung Yu-baek, a Supreme Peak master, if he used it correctly.

After buying some time, he could use another hidden move…

The All-knowing Master turned the cogwheel of the weapon in his pocket and opened his mouth.

First, he needed to catch his opponent off guard.

If he threw a statement that could shock Namgung Yu-baek…

“You filthy man. Shamelessly using the methods of a….”

He intended to throw the hidden weapon while speaking.

However, his hand did not move.

“…Heuk.”

Instead of a voice, only bloodied breath came out of his mouth.

His vision spun, and he saw the Yellow Thorn Rose flowers.

And then, his own headless body.

He caught sight of Namgung Yu-baek’s back as he sheathed the sword he had drawn at some point.

That was the All-knowing Master’s end.

Thud—

The All-knowing Master’s head fell into the flower field and disappeared.

His headless body, with his right hand still in his pocket, fell forward, spewing blood.

Namgung Yu-baek turned around.

“…As you said, the blood of the Namgung has become tainted.”

Namgung Yu-baek had already resolved to stain his hands with blood.

“I will make the Namgung great again. And the stagnant, rotting Murim too…”

Before long, a storm of blood would sweep through Jianghu.

And the trigger would be the deaths of the successors who entered the Five Elements Tomb.

Contemplating the weight of the sins he was about to commit, Namgung Yu-baek walked under the moonlight.

Not even the full moon, illuminating the vast Central Plains, could light up the hell designed by the Master of the Ghost Valley underground.

When twenty-six people entered, this cramped space truly became hell.

The bright shining night pearls now only flickered briefly, revealing the horror.

Flicker.

For a moment, the night pearls glowed.

Blood-soaked martial artists appeared.

Among them was a shaven-headed monk, Shaolin’s First Fist Jeong Myung, his hands also stained with blood.

With a contorted face, he shouted, “Put down your weapons! What are you doing!”

Shaolin monks did not lightly break the precept against killing. Jeong Myung subdued the martial artists brandishing swords in the darkness with his Vajra Fist. But others could neither do so nor refrain from it. Murder was rampant.

When the space brightened, the martial artists stopped their swords.

But when darkness fell again, Jeong Myung’s cries dissipated into thin air.

Clang- Crash!

“Aaahhh!”

“L-let go!”

“I will cut down anyone who comes closer. I warned you… Ugh!”

Once more, the sound of clashing swords and screams filled the air.

The term Asura’s battlefield could not be more fitting.

Yi-gang leaned against the wall, gasping for breath.

His face too was splattered with blood. It was from someone who had lunged at him in the dark. He could only hope it was not someone he knew.

There were no wounds on his body, but the muscles, tensed and rigid, quickly became fatigued.

“What is this…”

It was an incomprehensible situation.

Still, weren’t only the elite successors of the orthodox sects gathered here?

Even if treasures lay before their eyes, even ancient treasures, it’s unthinkable that such chaos would ensue just because the pitch-black darkness concealed their true forms.

Once the chain of fights started, it was not easy to stop.

「Perhaps this is human nature after all. Those wearing masks of hypocrisy draw their swords without hesitation in the darkness.」

Rustle—

The water pouring from the ceiling did not stop.

In such circumstances, it was impossible to use light-emitting spells.

Sorcery was not omnipotent. Just as one could not light a candle in a downpour, in a place overflowing with water, it’s impossible to use fire-based spells.

This was evident by the fact that Yu Su-rin, a Taoist flower disciple, could do nothing.

“…Cough!”

Yi-gang strained his ears to find Baek Ha-jun or Yu Su-rin, but the noise from all around was too intense to locate them.

Even if he did find them, it would be difficult to converge amidst the darkness.

Yi-gang gripped his sword tightly as if his hand would break.

Thanks to his keen senses, Yi-gang was safe even in the darkness, but he couldn’t say the same for others.

「The time I spoke of has arrived quickly.」

In the darkness, the only thing visible was the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon.

Floating as a spirit, she smiled at Yi-gang.

「Lend me your body. I will kill the crazed youngsters for you.」

Was it because of the yokai blood? There was something sinister about the smiling face of the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon.

Possession would surely have repercussions, but in this darkness, she could subdue all the other successors.

Yi-gang was silent for a moment before asking, ‘What was it you were about to say earlier?’

How to act during such a time of mutual destruction. The Blue-Eyed Mad Demon was talking about that.

Yi-gang hadn’t fully heard her solution.

Noticing Yi-gang’s question, the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon laughed, revealing sharp fangs.

「You must become a lantern.」

A lantern.

She continued, 「Like the beacon at the ferry crossing guiding the boatman across the river. Like the lantern of a peddler crossing the mountain paths at night. Like the moonlight illuminating the dark night.」

Then, in the darkness, a blade rushed towards Yi-gang.

Yi-gang twisted his head to dodge it.

Clang!

What was embedded in the wall was a long blade.

Was it a hidden weapon? But how, in this darkness, who could have thrown it?

Yi-gang’s eyes flashed.

If it wasn’t thrown by a person…

「When your people are lost in darkness, make it visible from anywhere.」

The words of the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon seemed like a riddle but were undoubtedly helpful to Yi-gang.

「You must emit a bright light.」

“…”

Yi-gang pulled something out of his pocket and swallowed it immediately.

Soon, he felt a burning flame in his stomach.

A daring attempt he wouldn’t have made if he hadn’t consumed the cold White Lotus Moss just before.

He had ingested the Golden Flower Carp’s elixir prepared by Tang Eun-seol.

「To emit light, you must burn your body…」

The Yang energy, once harbored by an ancient spiritual creature, flowed through Yi-gang’s meridians.

Swoosh—

The water that had soaked Yi-gang’s body began to evaporate and disperse.

He recited a mantra.

It was an environment where sorcery couldn’t be used, but if he borrowed the Yang energy of the spiritual pill…

“…Eternal and unextinguished.”

「I couldn’t do it, so you must.」

Yi-gang’s eyes began to shine.

The Yang energy flowing through his meridians. Normally, he would be busy regulating it with breathing exercises.

In this rain-drenched underground.

In his mind, dizzy with intense heat.

Yi-gang finally ignited a small light of sorcery.

Fwoosh.

To others, it must have seemed like Yi-gang suddenly emerged from the darkness.

The light illuminated Yi-gang like a halo.

The spell’s flame flickered futilely due to the pouring droplets, but the fight paused for a moment.

In the ensuing silence, Yi-gang’s voice echoed, “I am Baek Yi-gang, the eldest son of the Baek Noble Clan, and a disciple of Yu Jeong-shin, the Azure Forest Grand Library Master.”

The martial artists silently listened to Yi-gang’s words.

His radiant figure likely remained etched in their minds.

“Those who trust and know me, come to me.”

Yi-gang did not mention that traps were being triggered.

Nor did he speak of hidden weapons flying through the darkness, killing people, and inciting more fighting.

“Put down your weapons. Just stand behind me.”

Flicker.

In the moment the light flashed on—

Figures leaped out amidst the tangled martial artists.

Baek Ha-jun, Yu Su-rin, Tang Eun-seol, So Woon, Moyong Jin.

Even Jegal Seon who had been hit by Yi-gang, the Flowing Cloud Flying Dragon, the Lightning Flash, and Shaolin’s First Fist Jeong Myung.

All of them stood behind Yi-gang.

Flicker.

The light went out again.

But this time, no shouts or screams were heard.

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