CHAPTER 376: SUPREME ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE, PALE BLOOD HAND (1)

Yi-gang was inwardly flustered.

The fact that he had to go all the way to the main base of the Demon Cult with the others was not something he wanted.

Even if he himself posed no problem, he couldn’t trust the behavior of Dam Hyun, Go Yo-ja, and especially Gal Dong-tak.

Wasn’t the risk too great?

Of course, no matter what he thought inwardly, none of it showed on his face.

Putting on an expression that might have been worn by a wandering martial artist, he said to the overseer,

“We can go on our own.”

“Why would you? The road isn’t exactly smooth. Just go with them while you’ve got horses and wagons for escort.”

Yi-gang tried to refuse again, but the overseer gave him no room.

“Stop saying useless things and just go with them.”

It was a tone that would brook no argument.

Yi-gang closed his mouth for the moment and followed the overseer.

There, the wandering martial artists were scattered about, resting.

“Introduce yourselves, and once you’re ready, head out immediately.”

Having said that, the overseer promptly left.

The wandering martial artists crowded around Yi-gang’s group who were now left standing alone.

Did these wandering martial artists recognize Yi-gang, or more precisely, Death Blade?

“My name’s Drunk Sword, squad leader of Unit 110. Nice to meet you.”

That didn’t seem to be the case.

There were an overwhelming number of wandering martial artists affiliated with the Demon Cult, and true to their nature, they lacked both communal living and a chain of command.

Yi-gang exchanged greetings with Drunk Sword, the squad leader of the martial artists already present.

“Death Blade.”

“…That’s a name I’ve heard before. Are you the one who caught that big guy? Just one?”

“He’s an executive of the Thirty-Six Forts Of Green Forest.”

A surprised expression appeared on Drunk Sword’s face.

He even seemed slightly intimidated.

To the wandering martial artists who usually rounded up mere civilians, an executive of the Thirty-Six Forts Of Green Forest was indeed a major catch.

“We brought in three. Those guys tied up over there. Heh.”

Drunk Sword pointed with a chuckle to a roughly made wagon that looked like a makeshift prison.

Inside were three young men, bound hand and foot.

“There were originally four, but one tried to escape, so we killed him. A shame really, since that means less bonus.”

Pretending to be friendly, Drunk Sword suddenly stiffened when he saw Yi-gang’s face.

It was because of Yi-gang’s icy gaze.

“…Ah, seems you’re not interested. Just wait here a moment…”

Drunk Sword quietly slipped away.

Yi-gang kept his arms crossed, his expression unchanged.

His imposing presence made the other wandering martial artists cautious.

Into Yi-gang’s ear, the sound of Dam Hyun and Go Yo-ja’s voice transmission reached him.

—Pompous bastards.

—You’re doing a fine job keeping your face straight.

They would have to stay with these wandering martial artists for the time being.

If they could establish dominance early and keep things quiet, that would be ideal.

It was better than striking up fake conversations and raising suspicions about their identity.

—Someone might recognize you.

That was Dam Hyun’s warning.

They had interrogated Death Blade and the other wandering martial artists, extracting even the smallest pieces of information.

Yi-gang had thoroughly studied the life of the wanderer known as Death Blade by cross-referencing the testimonies of all three captives.

And that wasn’t all.

He had memorized everything, from personal relationships to even the tiniest habits.

For example, his habit of mixing side dishes and rice together before scarfing it down.

Or how, when in a bad mood, he’d glare and rage, but become submissive in front of superiors.

And how he would easily throw punches at those below him.

Even so, there were bound to be some holes in the act.

At that moment, someone Drunk Sword had brought along was startled at the sight of Yi-gang.

“D-Death Blade!”

The wandering martial artist was pointing a trembling finger at Yi-gang.

His mouth hung open, and his eyes were visibly shaking.

When Yi-gang narrowed his eyes, the man quickly added in panic,

“…Brother!*”

Yi-gang pressed his lips tightly together.

He couldn’t immediately recognize who the man was.

Drunk Sword looked back and forth between Yi-gang and the man, confused.

“What, Pale Blood Hand, do you two know each other?”

It was the first time Yi-gang had heard the name Pale Blood Hand.

Contrary to the fierce name, the man had the look of a scurrying rat.

After glancing around nervously, he stepped forward to greet Yi-gang.

He respectfully clasped his fists in salute, then shouted like he was being scolded.

“I-I’m sorry!”

Then he tightly shut his eyes and stood still.

Yi-gang remained silent.

He had nothing to say. He simply had no idea what was going on.

Dam Hyun and Go Yo-ja were also caught off guard.

—What the hell? Who is that guy?

Yi-gang couldn’t respond.

The name Pale Blood Hand hadn’t come up during the interrogation.

As Yi-gang remained silent, Pale Blood Hand, who had been tightly shutting his eyes, cautiously opened one.

“Brother…?”

Were Pale Blood Hand and Death Blade close?

If so, his name would have certainly come up during the interrogation.

Then why had this man apologized so earnestly in front of Death blade?

Though the full story was unclear, it was obvious that letting this continue would arouse suspicion.

Just as Dam Hyun, who had been watching, was about to step in somehow—

Yi-gang’s reaction came suddenly and unpredictably.

He shot out his fist like lightning and struck Death Blade in the face.

Thwack!

Pale Blood Hand rolled across the ground, clutching his face.

Even Dam Hyun flinched and turned to look at Yi-gang.

Was this a desperate attempt to cover things up by starting a fight?

It was too gentle to be called an act of desperation.

If Yi-gang had truly meant it, that one strike would’ve sent the wandering martial artist to the afterlife.

As proof, Pale Blood Hand, who had rolled across the ground, still had enough breath to talk.

“Ugh, I’m sorry, brother! I’m really sorry!”

Then he curled up and covered his face. He looked used to getting beaten.

Seizing the opportunity, Yi-gang began beating Pale Blood Hand relentlessly.

“I’ll pay it back! I swear I will! I’m sorry I ran that time! Urgh!”

“You little bastard!”

“Gah! But I didn’t run this time, I stayed put, didn’t I? Urgh! I really can pay it back this time!”

Dam Hyun, who had been about to step forward, quickly backed off.

Pale Blood Hand kept spouting various things as he was beaten.

It was now clear that there had been some kind of debt between him and Death Blade.

Pale Blood Hand must have run off without repaying, only to run into him again now.

“How much are you going to repay me!”

“Ninety nyang… I’ll pay you ninety nyang!”

“Make it an even hundred!”

While beating Pale Blood Hand, Yi-gang even managed to extract the exact amount.

Even the wandering martial artists, who had been startled, began chuckling at the absurdity of the situation.

“Huff, whew. Still, lucky for you. With your next bonus, you can finally pay it back, right?”

“S-sob… Yes, I will.”

Only then did Yi-gang stop beating Pale Blood Hand.

Watching this, Dam Hyun thought to himself,

‘What a ruthless bastard…’

At first, he suspected that Yi-gang had snapped and thrown a punch in anger.

But most likely, it was a quick improvisation based on the idea that Death Blade was known to be hot-tempered and violent.

And it had worked brilliantly.

Of course, Yi-gang had also been tense.

Throwing that punch wasn’t purely his idea.

「Well done!」

‘I was a little nervous.’

Surprisingly, the one who advised him to throw the punch was none other than Zhang Sanfeng.

「Wandering martial artists are the type who respect the hierarchy of strength more than anyone. It was a fine improvisation…」

「Utterly pathetic.」

And the voice muttering like he’d just bitten into something bitter was the Heavenly Demon’s.

「To think such people are my followers…」

According to the Heavenly Demon, things weren’t like this 300 years ago.

Back then, there weren’t people among his followers who were like these Low Down riffraff.

「Times have changed. Even your own group, Zhao Guang, ended up degenerating like that.」

There was no response from the Heavenly Demon.

「Looks like he’s annoyed. Haha!」

As if he had won the exchange, Zhang Sanfeng was quite pleased.

It seemed his personality had changed a bit while residing inside the Heavenly Demon Plaque.

That afternoon, Yi-gang and the wandering martial artists set out on their journey toward Sky Shattering Island in Xinjiang.

The distance to Sky Shattering Island from here was even farther than the road leading to the Murim Alliance in Henan.

They would have to keep a steady pace if they didn’t want to arrive late.

And thanks to the earlier show of dominance before departure, Yi-gang was able to travel in relative peace.

Just like that, seven days and nights passed since the journey began.

Whenever the group took a break, Go Yo-ja shared information about the Demon Cult.

—The structure of the Demon Cult is quite unusual, probably because their scale is too large to be considered a mere sect.

Go Yo-ja, having come from the Kunlun Sect, which had the most contact with the Demon Cult, knew a lot.

—At the top of the Demon Cult stands the cult leader, Cheon Mu-do, Sun Moon Divine Demon. They say he’s the current strongest in Murim, a man who has reached the Absolute Realm. But in truth, no one really knows for sure.

—No one knows?

—The cult leader has never once left Xinjiang. It’s just that, as the top figure of a group that worships supremacy of strength, it’s assumed he must be that powerful.

Was the current cult leader, the Sun Moon Divine Demon, truly stronger than the Cardinals of the Evil Cult?

It was uncertain, but hard to imagine.

Yi-gang had faced Mang-hon, one of the Cardinals, in Potala Palace.

Though he had managed to take his life somehow, it hadn’t been because of Yi-gang’s own strength.

Without the sacrifice of the Dalai Lama and the lama monks, Yi-gang wouldn’t have even dared to face him.

Even if it was the Demon Cult’s leader, it was unclear whether he could win in a one-on-one fight.

「If he calls himself the cult leader, he better at least be that capable.」

The Heavenly Demon interjected with a mocking laugh.

Though the Heavenly Demon wasn’t friendly toward Yi-gang, he wasn’t openly hostile either.

He would insert comments like this whenever he pleased.

And every time he did, Zhang Sanfeng would chime in as well.

「Impossible. Even if Demon Cult leaders are strong, they can’t reach that level. The Cardinals are beings so ancient and powerful they’re bound by the laws of causality.」

「Hmph.」

When Zhang Sanfeng pointed that out, the Heavenly Demon snorted and fell silent.

Yi-gang asked as if to confirm.

‘Then can you, the Heavenly Demon, defeat a Cardinal?’

「Ha, that’s not even worth answering.」

The Heavenly Demon scoffed as if the question were absurd and vanished.

At the very least, it didn’t seem like he was dodging the question because he couldn’t win.

A voice pulled Yi-gang out of his thoughts.

“Uh, Brother Death Blade.”

Yi-gang quickly scrunched up his face and turned around.

There stood Pale Blood Hand, still bearing a bruise near his eye.

“What!”

Death Blade used to deliberately scratch his throat to make his voice coarse, and Yi-gang imitated it perfectly.

Pale Blood Hand bowed obsequiously and handed something over.

It was a gourd bottle.

“I found some liquor my little brothers had stashed away. I brought it for you, brother.”

Yi-gang had no desire to drink in a place like this.

But for now, he let out a hearty laugh and took it without hesitation.

“Sucking up, are we? Well, I’ll take it anyway.”

Death Blade was a man who couldn’t resist alcohol.

There wasn’t much liquor in the gourd.

Yi-gang downed it all in one go without pause.

“Ugh, what are you standing around for? Get lost.”

Even the grumbling at the end made him seem exactly like the real Death Blade.

Pale Blood Hand quickly bowed his head.

“Please get some good rest, brother!”

Though his face wore a big, silly grin, his expression hardened the moment he turned around.

‘That bastard.’

Outwardly, he showed respect and acted politely, but he actually wasn’t close to Death Blade at all.

He had only borrowed forty nyang of silver due to an urgent matter.

But with interest piling on, the debt had doubled not long ago.

The last time, Death Blade even threatened to gut him if he didn’t pay up.

Pale Blood Hand had planned to leave Sky Shattering Island and earn money elsewhere, but of all places, he had to run into him here.

Considering there were over three hundred wandering martial artists dispatched, it was truly terrible luck.

“Did everything go well, Brother?”

When he returned to the Buddhist temple where they were staying, his younger brothers asked him.

Pale Blood Hand, who had been humiliated in front of them, bore deep resentment toward Death Blade.

“He didn’t even say thank you, that bastard. I hope he gets diarrhea.”

The liquor he gave Death Blade was slightly spoiled.

Half of it was out of spite, hoping he’d get stomach cramps, and the other half was a feeble attempt to earn favor.

Pale Blood Hand plopped down on the floor of the Buddhist temple.

“But… something feels off.”

“What does?”

“That bastard Death Blade used to be way more vulgar… but now he’s a little less vulgar.”

Pale Blood Hand spoke in an oddly serious tone.

“You know how his burp used to go, like ‘bwuoooorg!’? He thought loud burps were manly. But today, it was just a quiet ‘bwuup’ and that was it.”

“…Pffft!”

Pale Blood Hand’s younger brothers burst out laughing.

Even the serious Pale Blood Hand eventually let out a snort.

“Anyway… I really ought to just kill that bastard.”

One of his brothers chuckled and nodded.

“There’ll be a chance eventually.”