Chapter 24
The main gate of Iron blood Fortress, the base of the Unorthodox Alliance.
“Young hero, are you really going?”
“Would I have come all the way here if I wasn’t?”
“Inside, there is really one of the Twenty-Four Masters. Not to mention over a hundred warriors.”
Despite Yang Jin-tae’s worries, Eunho walked straight towards the main gate.
Two gatekeepers blocked their way.
“Who are you?”
Without a word, Eunho threw a punch.
The gatekeeper, hit by Eunho, fainted without knowing what had happened.
“I’m tired of gatekeepers.”
There was no need for conversation.
“Be careful, young hero. The entire Iron blood Fortress is protected by formations….”
Bang-!
The main gate shattered under Eunho’s kick.
“When attacking an enemy camp, the most important thing is to establish dominance. What did you say?”
“Nothing….”
“Let’s go.”
Eunho walked into the fortress without hesitation. He knocked down anyone who tried to stop him and even those who were too scared to attack.
“Intruder! Kill… Ugh!”
Eunho didn’t even draw his sword.
He just used telekinesis to throw the warriors away.
As they went deeper, the level of the warriors increased.
“For a thieves’ den, it’s quite large.”
“Young hero, the Unorthodox Alliance is not just simple thieves. Along with the Green Forest, they are the core of the unorthodox faction….”
“If they live off the backs of those who aren’t martial artists, what else are they but thieves?”
The real thief, Yang Jin-tae, gave up on speaking further.
As they continued deeper, they saw a large hall and a wide plaza in front of it.
The plaza was filled with warriors from the Unorthodox Alliance.
“To have a plaza inside the fortress. The Lord of the Unorthodox Alliance must be very wealthy.”
Yang Jin-tae was speechless.
‘And he himself is the young lord of the Cheonhajang…’
To Yang Jin-tae, Eunho was an enigma.
His unrestrained words and actions didn’t seem like those of a nobleman’s son, and his martial prowess was extraordinary.
“I have business with the Lord of the Unorthodox Alliance. Anyone who blocks my way with a sword will die.”
Yang Jin-tae clicked his tongue.
It was hard to believe that someone facing over a hundred warriors could act like this.
At that moment, a slender middle-aged man emerged, parting the gathered warriors.
“Boy, do you know where you are to be so arrogant?”
Yang Jin-tae’s face hardened as he recognized the man.
“M-Muk Hyeol-geum!”
He was Cheol Mu-seong’s right-hand man, the second-in-command of the Unorthodox Alliance, and a master of the highest level.
Yang Jin-tae’s legs trembled.
Facing him made the reality of attacking the Unorthodox Alliance’s main base sink in.
“Isn’t that Jin-tae?”
His low voice was filled with killing intent.
Yang Jin-tae closed his eyes tightly.
“Heh, you’ve lost your mind. Did you come here trusting the guy next to you?”
Eunho answered instead.
“You talk too much. I’m here to meet the Lord of the Unorthodox Alliance. If you’re going to interfere, do it quickly.”
“Crazy fool. Kill him.”
At Muk Hyeol-geum’s command, the warriors swarmed Eunho like a pack of dogs.
Their numbers and momentum seemed ready to swallow Eunho and Yang Jin-tae whole.
Thud.
Sounds of impacts were heard everywhere.
Crack.
The sound of bones breaking echoed.
“What?”
The warriors were bewildered.
They expected that anyone who dared to invade this far would be a master.
But they never thought they would lose.
This was the main base of the Unorthodox Alliance, and they were its elite.
No matter how skilled, being surrounded by over a hundred elite warriors should have been impossible to overcome.
But their expectations were completely off the mark.
Thud, crack, splat.
With a light swing of his fist, the warriors’ ribs were broken, or their jawbones shattered, leading to their deaths.
“I said I would kill you.”
The more they attacked, the faster the number of warriors decreased.
The warriors began to hesitate in the face of Eunho’s extraordinary martial prowess.
Muk Hyeol-geum, watching this, shouted.
“What are you doing! Go and fight! Do you want people to say you’re worse than Namman’s beasts?”
The warriors were at a loss, glancing between Muk Hyeol-geum and Eunho.
When they didn’t move, Muk Hyeol-geum grabbed a sword from a subordinate and beheaded him.
Thud.
The warrior’s head rolled on the ground, separated from his body.
“Those who are too scared to fight can’t be called the elite of the Unorthodox Alliance. I’ll personally behead you.”
Suddenly, Eunho’s gaze turned to Muk Hyeol-geum.
“Why aren’t you attacking?”
Muk Hyeol-geum stared at Eunho with a steely gaze.
Without a word, he drew his dark-colored sword.
The sharply polished blade gleamed.
Even he had to acknowledge that the young man before him was an incredible master.
“Impressive for someone so young. Are you at the peak level?”
“I’m at the transcendental level.”
Muk Hyeol-geum let out a bitter laugh.
The transcendental level was known to be beyond the supreme level.
No one in the current martial world had reached it, and it was said that no one had even seen it.
“They say that throughout history, fewer than five people have reached the transcendental level. Are you saying you’re above the Twenty-Four Masters?”
Eunho nodded calmly. “That’s right. I was quite disappointed too.”
“Are you insane? Ah, you must be crazy to have come here alone.”
“I’m not alone.”
Eunho looked at Yang Jin-tae.
Everyone’s gaze followed, focusing on Yang Jin-tae.
“Yang Jin-tae, you! Do you think you can survive after betraying the Unorthodox Alliance?”
The roar of the Black Blood Sword struck Yang Jin-tae’s ears forcefully.
Yang Jin-tae was filled with fear but soon shook his head from side to side.
The situation was already like spilled water.
Staring straight into the eyes of the Black Blood Sword, he spoke.
“I came with a master of the Profound Realm, what is there to be afraid of!”
“Huh.”
It was clear that both this guy and that guy were crazy.
“You thief. I’ll kill you soon.”
“Hong, if you want to kill me, you’ll have to kill this person first!”
Eun-ho looked at Yang Jin-tae as if he couldn’t believe it.
Since when were they so close?
“Don’t worry. I’ll kill both of you nicely.”
He adjusted his stance with the Black Blood Sword low.
His black sword blade leveled with the ground, aiming at Eun-ho, and the murderous intent that had been surging through his body began to imbue the sword.
“I’ll end this in one strike. Black Line Sword!”
“Why do you announce the name of your technique?”
Despite Eun-ho’s sarcasm, the Black Blood Sword’s blade shot forward just like its name.
His body flew low as if it would become one with the ground, aiming for Eun-ho’s neck.
The figure shot like lightning soon collided with Eun-ho.
The Black Blood Sword’s eyes wavered. Eun-ho had clasped his hands together as if in prayer and caught the blade.
Bang-!
The recoil from the tremendous speed caused a gust of wind to burst behind Eun-ho.
Eun-ho’s hair fluttered in the wind.
A brief silence fell over the scene.
“…Blocked it? With his hands?”
Moreover, the sword caught by this damned guy showed no signs of coming loose.
“Oh, come to think of it, I didn’t bring a sword. I’ll borrow one.”
As he spoke, a small dagger that had been in Yang Jin-tae’s possession floated into the air.
“Eun-gong, with such a dull blade… what…?”
Yang Jin-tae doubted his eyes.
A white glow began to envelop the dagger floating in midair.
Although it was the first time seeing it, it was clear that it was sword energy.
The dagger imbued with sword energy shot straight through Muk Hyeol-geum’s neck.
It was different from simply using energy to move objects.
Sword Control with Qi (以氣馭劍)!
It was known that one could freely control weapons with intent and even imbue them with sword energy or sword aura.
This technique, symbolic of the Supreme Realm, was Sword Control with Qi.
Muk Hyeol-geum, with his neck pierced, fell to the ground.
Thud.
Due to his slender build, it didn’t make a loud sound.
Thus, one of the top masters who had dominated the martial world met a futile end.
Muk Hyeol-geum’s corpse couldn’t even close its eyes, as if it had seen something unbelievable.
Yang Jin-tae was no different.
He recalled that Eunho had referred to himself as being in the Profound Realm earlier.
“Could it really be the Profound Realm…?”
Eunho, looking at Yang Jin-tae, spoke.
“Oh, was that an important sword?”
Yang Jin-tae shook his head vigorously.
“Y-Young hero, please take it.”
“Why would I take that? There’s something better.”
Eunho picked up the black sword and swung it a few times in the air.
“Not a bad sword. Let’s go.”
With the sword hanging down, Eunho slowly headed towards the inner hall.
No one there could block his path.
Yang Jin-tae, with a bewildered expression, followed behind Eunho, walking through the path cleared by hundreds of warriors.
At the end, there was a huge door, and Eunho could sense it.
Inside was Cheol Mu-seong, and it seemed he also sensed someone approaching.
Bang!
Just like he had broken the main gate, Eunho kicked the door open.
As expected, Cheol Mu-seong was there, along with the bewildered warriors of Namman.
“What a dirty look.”
That was Eunho’s first assessment upon facing Cheol Mu-seong.
His expression crumpled.
The warriors of Namman also had some sense.
At least they knew that Eunho was their enemy.
They drew their swords and unleashed the beasts.
The beasts would immediately pounce on Eunho and tear his throat out.
The beasts of Namman were different from ordinary ones. They were much larger and far stronger.
They had been raised and trained that way for hundreds of years.
Growl~!
The beasts bared their teeth fiercely at Eunho.
The warriors of Namman pointed at Eunho and shouted.
“Go and tear him apart!”
Eunho, who had been looking at Cheol Mu-seong, turned his gaze to the beasts.
“What is this…”
The warriors of Namman were shocked.
The beasts, upon meeting Eunho’s eyes, lowered their gaze and avoided eye contact.
Whimper…
They even started to whine in fear.
Even Cheol Mu-seong was greatly surprised.
Even to his untrained eye, it was clear that the beasts were scared.
Cheol Mu-seong shouted at the warriors of Namman.
“These beasts that even showed their teeth to me, why are they acting like this!”
But there was nothing they could do.
The warriors of Namman had never seen such a sight before.
“Why do you think? Because I’m scarier. Let me ask you one thing. Why do you keep causing trouble?”
Cheol Mu-seong glared at Yang Jin-tae with a look as if he were a fierce demon.
“Cheol Mu-seong. Don’t be so frustrating. It’s making me want to kill you. I asked why you keep causing trouble.”
Instead of answering, he raised his energy.
Rumble-!
The entire hall shook, and dust fell from the ceiling.
Yang Jin-tae, as well as the warriors of Namman, were overwhelmed by Cheol Mu-seong’s aura.
The twenty-four masters who stood at the pinnacle of the martial world.
The reputation of the Twenty-Four Masters began to feel real.
When Cheol Mu-seong extended his hand, a sword that had been placed to the side flew into it.
His sword was a Zhanmadao (斬馬刀), known for allowing even ordinary people to sever a horse’s thick neck in one stroke.
TL/N: 斬馬刀 Zhanmadao is a Chinese single-bladed anti-cavalry sword. It has a long handle and was primarily used during the Han Dynasty, with its popularity peaking during the Song Dynasty.
Essentially, it’s a type of long sword designed to be effective against cavalry.
True to its reputation, the massive blade of the Zhanmadao combined with Cheol Mu-seong to exude an overwhelming sense of intimidation.
Yang Jin-tae was honestly terrified.
It wasn’t just ordinary fear, it was enough to make him wet himself.
He felt a bit of regret.
It was as if his soul had completely left his body in the face of such overwhelming presence.
Eunho shrugged as he looked at Cheol Mu-seong.
“This isn’t bad either.”
Eunho matched the aura.
There was no need to hold back against someone like Cheol Mu-seong.
Boom!
The two auras clashed, producing a thunderous sound.
It seemed as if the hall would collapse at any moment.
The warriors of Namman were astonished.
“An aura equal to the 24 masters! How is this possible!”
The most surprised was Cheol Mu-seong himself.
‘Fools… equal?’
He could clearly feel it.
His aura was being devoured by Eunho’s aura.
“Cheol Mu-seong, are you really going to do this? I didn’t intend to kill you.”
It was a meaningless question, and Eunho knew it.
Someone of the 24 master’s level couldn’t run away in front of others.
Even for an ordinary warrior, pride was more precious than gold, and for someone of the Twenty-Four Masters, it went without saying.
Running away was absolutely…
“What?”
He ran away.
The overwhelming aura disappeared as if it had been washed away.
Cheol Mu-seong used all that aura to perform lightness skill.
He didn’t care about the gazes around him.
Starting from a back alley thug to becoming the leader of the Sa Pa Lotus Sect, Cheol Mu-seong knew better than anyone that survival was the most important thing.
“Young hero, he ran away…”
Yang Jin-tae finally collapsed, his legs giving out.
The warriors of Namman were speechless.
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Aren’t you going to chase him?”
Eunho shook his head.
“Not now.”
“Why not!?”
Why would he let Cheol Mu-seong go after almost catching him?
“It’s time to pick up Somi.”
“…Are you kidding? If you let Cheol Mu-seong go like that, what about Somi and everything else….”
Yang Jin-tae couldn’t finish his sentence due to Eunho’s fierce gaze.
Yang Jin-tae decided that, whoever Somi was, he shouldn’t mention her again in the future.
“It’s too late to chase him anyway. He ran away really fast.”
“…I have an idea where he might go.”
“Where?”
“He probably went to Nokwang. They’re quite close, and since he judged that you’re stronger than him, he would need someone to support him. Only another member of the Twenty-Four Masters could help him.”
“Oh.”
Eunho looked at Yang Jin-tae with newfound respect.
He had thought Yang Jin-tae was just a fool, but he was surprisingly logical.
“Good. We’ll visit him soon. I was planning to check out Inwangchae or whatever it’s called anyway.”
“?”
Yang Jin-tae was amazed at Eunho’s composure.
Was this really the attitude of someone who had just made an enemy of the Twenty-Four Masters?
At that time, the Four Kings didn’t know.
TL/N: the four kings should be leaders of the Unorthodox faction or the faction that isn’t with the murim alliance.
They couldn’t have imagined that Inwangchae would clash with the Cheonhajang.
