Free Web NovelThe woman gave a smile whose meaning was unclear. She did not plead her innocence nor confess that she was a cultist, but instead spoke in a gentle voice.
"Not only Honghae Pavilion, but all the cultists in the area have been summoned to the inn, so Honghae Pavilion is safe."
"If I am here, it will no longer be safe. Why did you call me?"
"They say that since the Heukcheon Amgui saved my child once, I should save someone else’s child once as well."
A warm energy was felt from the woman. A warmth different from killing intent spread outward. The woman was watching all directions in vigilance. Through qi, not words, Sohwa sensed that the woman was prepared to fight someone else, not her.
"Are the cultists in the inn a force the Heukcheon Amgui should worry about?"
"Truthfully, I have not been in Wuhan long, so I do not know well myself. But judging from how the other cultists treat them, they seem to be fairly high in rank. And now that the Heukcheon Amgui has grown older, fighting while carrying a burden must be hard, so I removed one burden for him."
Sohwa asked to confirm what the woman knew about the Blood Cult’s organization.
"Do you know about the Blue Blood Hall and the Red Blood Hall?"
The woman’s face remained calm, but her inner energy surged.
"You do not know?"
"Hm. They did seem to have divisions among themselves, but I do not know the names of their organizations."
Whether it was sincere, her inner energy soon settled. Sohwa quietly turned her head toward the window.
Even though the Heukcheon Amgui had gone inside, no sound came from the inn. As if trapped by a formation, all qi inside had been sealed. Even if someone were to die inside or a battle erupted, outsiders would hardly know.
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The sound of trees brushing against one another came with the cold river wind.
"Do you perhaps know where the Young Clan Head is being kept?"
"The Young Clan Head will be safe. If they meant to kill him, they would not have taken him away in such a complicated manner."
Sohwa also considered Namgung Jin a gift and a threat to coerce Namgung Hyun.
Staring at the inn from which she could sense nothing, she asked again.
"Do you know where they hide people?"
After a brief silence, the woman answered.
"I understand there is a storage shed for wine behind the lodgings. They say no employees are allowed inside, so it is suspicious. Though I cannot say for certain that the Young Clan Head is there."
"Thank you."
She had learned everything she needed. The identity of the Hao Sect face stationed in Hubei, and the fact that Blue Blood Hall cultists were gathered inside. Sohwa had seen in the Northern Sea what the Red Blood Hall bastards became after receiving the Blood Demon’s blood. There was no way these Blue Blood Hall cultists did not know who the Heukcheon Amgui was, yet instead of fleeing, they had lured him into their den. Seeing how full of confidence they were, she could guess what they had received from the Blood Demon.
Sohwa grabbed the window frame and checked the height.
Crunch.
As she stepped back several paces, the Hao Sect woman rushed toward her.
"That is dangerous...!"
Tap.
Before the woman had time to stop her, Tang Sohwa disappeared out the window.
Landing on the roof that covered the second-floor window, Sohwa opened the window and climbed inside. And absurdly, she immediately closed it.
The Hao Sect woman stared at the closed window and let out a hollow laugh.
"...Now I see why someone so quiet is called the Heukcheon Amgui."
With bitter eyes, she gazed at the building, but she did nothing. Even coming this far had taken great courage, and it was an action she could not avoid being scolded for by her Sect Master. She had done everything she could. All she could do now was hope the Heukcheon Amgui was not truly old and would not die this time either.
***
The river wind was unusually fierce that night. A small ferry tied in front of the inn rocked violently, making loud noises.
Tang Min stopped walking in front of the inn. Through the door he felt the presence of many people. What bothered him was not the warmth unique to humans but killing intent. Even if it were not Tang Min, any martial artist sensitive to inner energy would have noticed that the inn was full of assassins.
Tang Min became certain that the owner who had cleared the surroundings was a Blood Cult bastard. It meant the Blood Cult had infiltrated Wuhan deeply enough to control its streets.
His darkening gaze lifted upward. A heavy energy descended from above. The higher the floor, the denser the energy became. It seemed these Blood Cult bastards excelled at long-range attacks. Most likely their specialty was hidden weapons.
That did not mean the first floor was empty. Though far from the door, killing intent had pooled in the direction of the Yangtze River.
Standing still, Tang Min read their strategy through his aura sense. Hidden weapons were more advantageous when thrown downward, so there was no need for them to crowd the first floor. If they intended to prevent his escape, they should have hidden near the entrance to block his retreat. But the cultists were gathered far from the entrance.
It was not a standard tactical deployment.
‘There must be a door in that inner area.’
Whether it led outside or underground he did not know, but they seemed to have positioned defensive force in front of it.
Tang Min determined where Namgung Jin was being hidden. With the direction confirmed, there was no need to hesitate.
Tang Min opened the inn door.
Creak.
The heavy door made a chilling noise, but he paid it no mind and entered.
The inn’s structure was open to the ceiling at the center. The central space seemed to be a dining hall. Curiously, long black cloths hung down, dividing each floor.
Tang Min’s gaze rose slowly. Beyond the railing he saw corridors and doors. All were closed.
Studying the layout, Tang Min walked toward the central dining hall. As the shadow that had covered his head disappeared, his vision cleared.
The moment he fully emerged from the shadow, every door opened.
Whish. Whish. Whish.
Dozens of hidden weapons poured down like a sudden shower toward Tang Min.
Tang Min lightly flicked the darts he held in both hands.
Boom. Crash. Boom.
Crossing left and right, the two darts struck several of the falling hidden weapons. Since they were aimed at the same target, the subtle interference disrupted their paths, creating heavy friction.
Crash. Boom.
The hidden weapons that missed Tang Min ricocheted wildly, pushing one another aside.
The cultists grabbed new hidden weapons. In that moment, Tang Min moved. Because the cultists were on the upper floors, they could check his path.
Tang Min ran toward the inner part of the building. It seemed he was heading toward the back door that led to the storage.
A furious voice rang out from the third floor.
"Stop him!"
As if obeying the command, flying daggers and darts rained down immediately.
Tang Min tried to eliminate the cultists on the first floor first, but the movements of the upper-floor cultists were faster.
As Tang Min passed the table set in the very center, several hidden weapons had already grazed his body.
Slash.
Tang Min struck away the incoming hidden weapons with the edge of his hand. Leaping into the air, he landed on the central table. Reaching out, he spun rapidly. Energy filled his fingertips, making his long sleeves billow.
By disrupting the flow of air, the black drapes around him surged violently as if resisting.
Tang Min pushed out the inner energy he had been gathering in his lower abdomen. The swirling black cloths shot upward all at once.
Slash.
The spread-out cloths covered the sky like dark clouds.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The drapes, hardened by the resistance of the air, absorbed the impact of the hidden weapons.
The cultists panicked. Their vision was blocked, so the target could not be seen.
One impatient cultist approached the railing and stuck his head out.
"Where— guh!"
A flying dagger shot straight upward and pierced his jaw. The cultist’s body fell backward.
Thud.
The cultist next to him instinctively took a step back.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The sound of metal digging into flesh echoed from the lower floor. Like a disturbed beehive, hidden weapons swept through the second-floor corridor in all directions.
Slash.
By the time the billowing black cloths settled, the cultists on the second floor had been annihilated.
It had happened in an instant.
A brief silence followed. The cultists on the third and fourth floors backed away from the railing in tension. They sharpened their aura senses nervously.
A few traces of inner energy were felt at the back door on the first floor, but they were all allies. The energy was far too faint to be that of the monstrous Heukcheon Amgui.
A martial artist on the third floor broke into a cold sweat.
‘...Where did he go?’
At that moment, an overwhelming presence was felt from across the way. The cultist reflexively threw a flying dagger.
Boom.
The flying dagger bounced off a dart and struck his eye.
"Ugh!"
The cultist covered his face and collapsed. In the meantime, the sounds of bodies hitting the ground thudded in several places.
"Uaaagh!"
Screams struck the eardrums without pause.
The cultist pulled out the hidden weapon and held his breath as his body recovered. He felt the blood squirm from the two blood points connected to his Baihui acupoint. When the vibration around his eyes faded, footsteps approached again.
Crunch.
Sensing the presence, the Vice Unit Leader slowly opened his eyes. Blurry as they were, his recovering vision could distinguish shapes without difficulty.
At that moment, the Heukcheon Amgui leaped and stood atop the railing.
Thud.
The Vice Unit Leader lifted his head and fixed his gaze on the Heukcheon Amgui. In his sharpening vision, the Heukcheon Amgui’s cold face came into view.
