CHAPTER 35: CHAPTER 34: DECEIVER’S GAMBIT

"You really think it ends here?" Do Giseon’s voice carried a strange quality, like an echo that came from somewhere deeper than his throat. Blood continued to flow from his wounds, pooling on the black marble beneath him, yet his eyes held a gleam that spoke of secrets still unspoken.

Jinmu kept his sword steady, the blade pointed directly at the fallen First Blade’s heart. Something felt wrong about this moment, though he couldn’t quite identify what was triggering his unease. Do Giseon had been defeated decisively, his techniques overwhelmed by Grandmaster-level power that transcended normal martial understanding. Yet the man’s demeanor suggested victory rather than defeat.

He’s too calm. Too controlled. Someone who’s been beaten this badly should be desperate, angry, or at least showing some sign of genuine distress. Instead, he looks... satisfied?

"It ends with you in chains," Jinmu replied carefully, his enhanced senses scanning the chamber for any signs of hidden threats. "Your conspiracy is exposed, your allies are captured or dead, and Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu will be restored to his rightful position. Your revolution dies with your defeat."

Do Giseon’s laughter filled the Supreme Chamber, a sound that seemed to bounce off the stone walls with unnatural resonance. "My defeat? Oh, my naive young friend, you understand so little about what you’re truly facing. Did you really believe that someone who spent years planning the overthrow of the Five Great Mountain Sects would be so easily undone?"

The wounded man struggled to his feet with obvious effort, his movements labored but determined. Jinmu prepared to strike again if necessary, but something in Do Giseon’s posture made him pause. There was no tension of someone preparing for combat, no gathering of ki for a desperate final technique. Instead, there was the calm confidence of someone who still held cards that hadn’t been played.

"You have impressive power," Do Giseon continued, wiping blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. "That technique integration, the breakthrough to Grandmaster level in the middle of combat... truly remarkable. But power without understanding is just destruction waiting for direction."

"Understanding?" Jinmu asked, though he kept his guard up and his attention focused on potential escape routes. "What could you possibly understand that I don’t?"

"The nature of sacrifice," Do Giseon said softly, his eyes focusing on something beyond Jinmu’s shoulder. "The willingness to give up everything, including one’s own life, for the sake of a greater vision. You fight to preserve what exists, but preservation requires no sacrifice. Creation, however... creation demands everything."

Before Jinmu could respond to this cryptic statement, Do Giseon raised his hand with deliberate ceremony—DEATH MIRAGE SUBSTITUTION.

The forbidden technique activated with terrifying precision.

The effect was immediate and horrifying. Do Giseon’s body began to shimmer like heat distortion over summer pavement, his solid form becoming translucent and insubstantial. The blood that had been flowing from his wounds evaporated into red mist, and his wounded flesh took on the appearance of smoke given temporary shape.

This isn’t possible. I struck him with Grandmaster-level techniques. I felt the impact, saw the wounds, watched him bleed. How can he be an illusion?

"You see," Do Giseon’s voice continued, though it now seemed to come from multiple directions simultaneously, "the Death Mirage Substitution is a forbidden technique from the ancient Shadowmoon Valley archives. It allows the user to transfer their consciousness to a prepared vessel while leaving behind a perfect duplicate that can think, feel, and even die in their place."

The implications hit Jinmu like a physical blow. If Do Giseon had been fighting as a duplicate, then everything they had just experienced was essentially meaningless. The real First Blade was somewhere else entirely, probably watching the entire confrontation through whatever mystical connection linked him to his substitute.

"The duplicate experiences everything as if it were real," Do Giseon’s fading form explained, his body now little more than wisps of smoke shaped into human outline. "It believes itself to be the original, fights with genuine conviction, and dies with authentic fear. But its death means nothing to the true self, who remains safely elsewhere."

Jinmu lunged forward, his consciousness flowing into the piercing strike—VOID HEART PIERCING.

His blade passed through empty air as Do Giseon’s form dissolved completely.

"Fascinating technique, isn’t it?" The voice now came from behind him, near the chamber’s entrance. Jinmu spun around to see a new figure stepping out of the shadows, identical to the Do Giseon who had just disintegrated but unmarked by any wounds. "The original was developed by unorthodox cultivators who understood that the greatest weapon is not strength, but deception."

The real Do Giseon stood with perfect posture and uninjured flesh, his robes pristine and his sword still sheathed. Everything about his appearance suggested that he had been observing the battle rather than participating in it, which meant that Jinmu’s victory had been against nothing more than an elaborate puppet.

He’s been watching the entire time. Learning my techniques, analyzing my capabilities, studying my combat patterns. While I thought I was winning, he was gathering intelligence about everything I can do.

"You’re probably wondering how long I’ve been using substitutes," Do Giseon said conversationally, as if they were discussing the weather rather than the revelation of an impossibly sophisticated deception. "The truth is, you’ve never actually fought me. Not once. Every encounter we’ve had has been through intermediaries of one kind or another."

Jinmu’s mind raced through their previous confrontations, searching for signs that he had missed. The poisoning of Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu, the coordination with the Crimson Flow Blade Union, the manipulation of the Twelve Blades, even the conspiracy against the tournament itself. How much of it had been carried out by the real Do Giseon, and how much by his duplicates?

"The beauty of the Death Mirage Substitution," Do Giseon continued, beginning to pace around the chamber’s perimeter, "is that it allows for perfect commitment without actual risk. My substitute fought you with absolute conviction because it genuinely believed it was me. Its fear, its anger, its desperation at the end... all completely authentic. But ultimately meaningless."

"Why?" Jinmu asked, though he kept his sword ready and his attention split between Do Giseon and the chamber’s various exits. "Why reveal this now? You could have maintained the deception indefinitely."

Do Giseon smiled with genuine warmth, as if Jinmu had asked exactly the right question. "Because the deception has served its purpose. I needed to understand your capabilities, your limitations, your tactical preferences. The substitute provided that intelligence while keeping me safely removed from actual danger."

The sound that followed Do Giseon’s explanation was barely audible, like the whisper of silk against stone. But Jinmu’s enhanced senses caught it immediately, and his blood ran cold as he recognized what it meant. The faint scraping wasn’t natural settling of the ancient chamber. It was the activation of hidden mechanisms.

"You might want to check on Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu," Do Giseon said casually, nodding toward the stone platform where the weakened Grandmaster still sat in meditation posture. "Time is about to become quite precious."

Jinmu’s gaze flicked toward Hyeon Ryu and immediately spotted the problem. Small paper talismans had somehow been attached to the platform’s base, their surfaces covered with intricate symbols that pulsed with barely contained energy. Explosive talismans, placed with surgical precision to maximize damage to anyone sitting on the platform.

When did he place those? How did I not notice them being activated? Unless...

"The substitute wasn’t just gathering intelligence," Jinmu realized aloud, his voice tight with growing urgency. "It was positioning those talismans during the fight. While I was focused on combat, it was preparing a trap."

"Very good," Do Giseon said approvingly. "You learn quickly. Yes, every movement of the substitute, every dodge and counter-attack, was designed to place it in positions where it could discretely activate prepared explosives. You thought you were winning a battle, but you were actually being maneuvered through an elaborate setup."

The pulsing of the talismans was growing brighter and faster, indicating that their activation sequence was nearing completion. Jinmu estimated perhaps ten seconds before they detonated with enough force to kill a weakened Grandmaster, even if that Grandmaster was Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu.

"Choose carefully," Do Giseon said, his tone conversational despite the deadly ultimatum he was presenting. "You can pursue me and potentially prevent my escape, or you can save Hyeon Ryu’s life. But you cannot do both. The explosives will detonate long before you could neutralize them and still catch me."

He’s right. The talismans are too close to completion for me to disrupt them safely and still have time to stop his escape. But if I let him go, how many more people will die as part of whatever larger plan this has all been building toward?

Jinmu’s enhanced consciousness could perceive multiple potential futures branching out from this moment. In some, he pursued Do Giseon and succeeded in capturing or killing the real conspirator, but Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu died in the explosion, leaving the Mugang Martial Pavilion leaderless and vulnerable. In others, he saved Hyeon Ryu but Do Giseon escaped to continue whatever machinations had driven him to this point.

Neither option was acceptable, but that was clearly the point of the trap. Force him to make an impossible choice and ensure that Do Giseon benefited regardless of what decision was made.

"Seven seconds," Do Giseon announced helpfully, beginning to back toward what Jinmu now recognized as a concealed passage in the chamber’s rear wall. "I do hope you choose wisely. Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu is one of the few truly honorable leaders left in the orthodox world. His death would be... unfortunate."

The casual way Do Giseon discussed potential murder while retreating toward his escape route crystallized Jinmu’s decision. Whatever larger threat the First Blade represented could be dealt with later. Right now, an innocent man’s life hung in the balance, and that took priority over everything else.

His enhanced consciousness flowing into transcendent movement—TRANSCENDENT VOID STEP.

Jinmu materialized beside the stone platform in an instant, his form blurring through dimensions that physical law suggested shouldn’t exist.

He poured his Grandmaster-level understanding into multi-dimensional barriers—SHADOW CROWN MANIFESTATION.

The defensive technique wrapped around both himself and Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu, forming a protective cocoon that existed partially outside normal space.

The explosion, when it came, was everything Do Giseon had promised and more. The Supreme Chamber filled with light bright enough to burn the eyes of anyone foolish enough to look directly at it, while sound loud enough to shatter stone reverberated through the mountain itself. The ancient black marble cracked under forces that could have leveled entire buildings, and the air filled with debris moving at velocities that turned pebbles into deadly projectiles.

Through it all, Jinmu’s defensive technique held, protecting both occupants of the stone platform from the fury that raged around them. But maintaining such comprehensive protection against such overwhelming force required every bit of his Grandmaster-level capability, leaving him unable to pursue Do Giseon or even confirm whether the man had successfully escaped.

When the explosion finally faded and the debris settled, the Supreme Chamber looked like a battlefield from some ancient war. The walls were scarred with blast marks, the floor was littered with chunks of broken marble, and a fine coating of stone dust covered everything like ash after a fire. But Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu was alive and uninjured, his meditation posture undisturbed despite the chaos that had erupted around him.

"Thank you," Hyeon Ryu said quietly, his voice carrying the warmth of genuine gratitude. "I felt the explosives activate but was too weakened to defend myself adequately. Without your intervention, I would certainly have died."

Jinmu dismissed the defensive technique and immediately turned his attention toward the rear of the chamber, where Do Giseon had been retreating before the explosion. As he had feared, there was now a gaping hole in the wall that revealed a passage leading deeper into Mount Mugang’s interior.

He’s gone. Probably had several more minutes of head start while I was dealing with the explosion. By now, he could be anywhere in the mountain complex, or even outside it entirely.

"Do not blame yourself," Hyeon Ryu said, apparently reading the frustration in Jinmu’s posture. "You made the only choice that a person of honor could make. Saving an innocent life will always take priority over pursuing vengeance against the guilty."

"It wasn’t about vengeance," Jinmu replied, though he continued to stare at the escape route with obvious regret. "It was about preventing whatever comes next. Do Giseon wouldn’t have gone to these lengths just to escape. This was all setup for something bigger."

As if summoned by his words, Do Giseon’s voice echoed from the hidden passage, projected by some technique that allowed it to carry clearly despite the distance that must have opened between them. "You’re absolutely correct, of course. This is merely the first movement in a much longer symphony."

The voice was growing fainter, indicating that Do Giseon was indeed putting significant distance between himself and the Supreme Chamber. But his words carried clearly enough for both Jinmu and Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu to understand their implications.

"The Mugang Martial Pavilion was always the smallest piece of the puzzle," Do Giseon’s distant voice continued. "Important for its strategic position and its resources, but hardly the ultimate objective. You’ve won a single battle, but you don’t even understand the scope of the war you’ve become involved in."

War. He keeps using that word. Not conflict, not conspiracy, but war. Which implies organized opposition, multiple factions, and objectives that extend far beyond anything we’ve seen so far.

"The orthodox sects have grown complacent," the fading voice said, now barely audible above the settling debris. "Comfortable in their ancient hierarchies, confident in their traditional advantages. They have forgotten that strength unused becomes weakness, and that those who refuse to evolve inevitably become extinct."

Jinmu moved toward the passage, but he already knew it was too late. Do Giseon had clearly planned this escape route with the same meticulous attention to detail that had characterized the rest of his conspiracy. By the time anyone could mount an effective pursuit, he would be long gone.

"This has been educational," Do Giseon’s voice said, now so faint that Jinmu had to strain to make out the words. "Your power is remarkable, but power without perspective is just destruction waiting to happen. When we meet again, and we will meet again, you’ll have a better understanding of what you’re truly fighting against."

The voice faded to nothing, leaving behind only the echo of promises and threats that would undoubtedly prove prophetic. Jinmu stood at the mouth of the passage for several more minutes, listening for any sign that Do Giseon might have left additional surprises in his wake, but heard only the natural sounds of wind moving through stone corridors.

"He’s gone," Jinmu said finally, turning back to Pavilion Master Hyeon Ryu. "Completely gone. And he’s right about one thing – this was just the beginning."

Hyeon Ryu struggled to his feet with obvious effort, his body still bearing the effects of weeks of poison and captivity. But his eyes held the clarity of someone whose mind remained sharp despite his physical weakness.

"Help me search this chamber," the Pavilion Master said, gesturing toward the debris-strewn floor. "Do Giseon is too methodical to have left without ensuring we would find something. If he wanted us to understand that this was merely the beginning, he would have provided evidence to support that claim."

The search took nearly an hour, complicated by the destruction caused by the explosion and the need to move carefully around unstable sections of the chamber. But eventually, Jinmu’s enhanced senses detected something that didn’t belong among the scattered stone and twisted metal.

A scroll case, crafted from materials that had protected its contents from both the blast and the debris. It had been placed in a location where it would survive the explosion but would be easily found by anyone conducting a thorough search of the chamber.

He left it deliberately. Positioned it so we would find it after he was safely away. The question is whether what’s inside is genuine intelligence or another layer of deception.

"Open it," Hyeon Ryu said when Jinmu showed him the case. "Whatever Do Giseon wanted us to find, we need to understand his intentions."

The scroll inside contained a detailed map of the Central Plains, but not the kind of map that ordinary travelers would use. This one showed the locations of unorthodox sect strongholds, their estimated strength levels, their known alliances and rivalries, and their recent movements. More disturbing still, it included information about orthodox sect vulnerabilities, supply lines, and defensive capabilities.

"This is intelligence gathered over years," Hyeon Ryu said, studying the map with the eye of someone who had spent decades dealing with martial world politics. "The kind of comprehensive survey that would be necessary for planning... coordinated military action."

At the bottom of the map, written in Do Giseon’s precise handwriting, was a single line that made the scope of the conspiracy clear: "The Unorthodox Alliance formally declares the Age of Orthodox Dominance to be at an end."

"Alliance," Jinmu read aloud, the word carrying implications that stretched far beyond anything they had previously imagined. "Not just the Crimson Flow Blade Union. Not just a few corrupted officials. A formal alliance of unorthodox sects, working together toward a common goal."

Hyeon Ryu rolled up the scroll with hands that trembled slightly, whether from weakness or shock it was impossible to say. "We need to get word to the other orthodox sects immediately. If this map is accurate, if the intelligence is genuine, then we’re facing something unprecedented in the history of the martial world."

"A war between orthodox and unorthodox," Jinmu said, feeling the weight of that possibility settling over him like a heavy cloak. "With Do Giseon and his conspirators on the unorthodox side, armed with detailed knowledge of our weaknesses and our capabilities."

"Which means," Hyeon Ryu concluded grimly, "that everything that has happened here was just the opening move in a much larger game. And we’re already several steps behind."