“Hahaha! Today is your death day!”
The Sword Cloud expanded, shattering the incoming debris into fragments. At the same time, the twin elders leaped into the air, swinging their swords in unison. The atmosphere buzzed and trembled fiercely as their martial arts ignited the surrounding air.
Heavenly Wind Sword Art[1].
One of the Namgoong Clan’s supreme techniques. Though less famed than the Azure Heavens Boundless Sword Arts or the Emperor Sword Form, it was still a peerless martial art. True to its name, it commanded the wind.
Whoosh!
A whirlwind of Sword Qi Sea surged forward with ferocious speed. While not pure sword energy, the vast and intense vortex of Sword Qi Sea was nearly impossible to block, even with sword energy. It didn’t strike a single point but ravaged a wide area—that was the defining trait of the Heavenly Wind Sword Art.
“We admit you’re faster than us.”
“But what will you do without space to move?”
Exactly. The twins had come here with resolute determination to capture Thieving Phantom. With her granddaughter cradled in her arms, she was in a desperate, life-or-death situation.
If I draw on my innate qi here… will I have enough to last the rest of the journey?
Despite the chaos, Thieving Phantom analyzed her predicament with icy calm. Shaking off the two elders was difficult but possible. The real question was how much inner energy she’d expend and what injuries she’d sustain in the process.
Could she still save her granddaughter?
Her only remaining kin.
My poor child…
In the past, an epidemic had stolen Thieving Phantom’s daughter and son-in-law. She had hidden her identity as the martial world’s greatest thief from her daughter, wishing for her to live an ordinary life. She’d even settled her in the safe, bustling capital.
But the capital wasn’t immune to plague. An epidemic born in the slums had claimed her daughter and son-in-law.
Since then, Thieving Phantom had raised her granddaughter alone, even abandoning her activities in the martial world. For nearly a decade, no one in the martial world had laid eyes on her.
And now, this.
Even if I must burn my life away… I’ll save my child.
It was fine. If she could save her granddaughter, she’d gladly die. Her body was merely a shell to be cast aside once her granddaughter was safe—an atonement for her daughter and son-in-law, and the very purpose of her martial prowess.
As she resolved to ignite her life force, a young, resonant voice cut through the air.
“Wearing the guise of righteousness while acting so despicably.”
From the sky, a small black sphere plummeted.
“Hypocrites… but I won’t kill you.”
The figure who dropped the sphere wore black martial robes and a white mask, a large blue hawk perched on his shoulder. But the Twin Dragon Dual Swords paid no heed to his strange appearance—their widened eyes were locked on the falling black sphere.
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Arts!”
“The cursed Heaven-Shattering Void Strike has appeared!”
Having clashed with minor cult leaders of the Demonic Cult in the past, they recognized it instantly.
Boom!
“Damn it!”
“Evade!”
The Heaven-Shattering Void Strike began to devour everything in its path. The massive whirlwind of Sword Qi Sea from the Heavenly Wind Sword Art vanished into it without a trace.
Seeing this, Thieving Phantom didn’t hesitate. She immediately employed Void Treading, escaping the battlefield by sprinting through the air. But the technique drained her inner energy rapidly, forcing her to descend toward the ground.
Once her feet touched land, who could catch her?
The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is here! I need to escape now!
Just then, a colossal explosion erupted behind her.
Boom!
The searing pressure against her back defied imagination. The shockwave evoked memories of her encounter with the Heavenly Demon. The Heaven-Shattering Void Strike—those black spheres he’d tossed with playful ease—were harbingers of utter destruction, embodiments of a god of ruin.
Thieving Phantom had never heard of a minor cult leader wielding such power. Her instincts screamed at her to flee with every ounce of strength she had.
The moment her feet hit the ground, the scenery shifted in an instant. The port vanished, replaced by a landscape of jagged cliffs.
She knew exactly what this was.
The Bewildering Soul-Reversing Formation[2]! The Namgoong Clan set this trap too…
As the realization struck, someone approached, walking through the air. Though the sight was astonishing, she knew it was an illusion and focused on the figure.
A strikingly handsome young man, his pale blue eyes glowing faintly. A gentle smile played on his lips, disarming those who saw it.
She recognized him at once. Even while consumed with stealing the Blood Poisonous Pearl for her granddaughter, she’d heard of him.
Jin Cheonhee, the Blue-Eyed Mad Doctor.
“It’s an honor to meet the renowned Shadowless Divine Thief. I am Jin Cheonhee, Minor Pavilion Master of the White Dragon Medical Pavilion.”
He clasped his fists and bowed respectfully. But Thieving Phantom’s wariness only sharpened. This courteous young man had ensnared her in this formation!
“Jin Cheonhee, the Blue-Eyed Mad Doctor. I’ve heard of you. The cherished disciple of the Blood Scaled… no, the Divine Doctor White Dragon, aren’t you? Have you allied with the Namgoong Clan? The Divine Doctor White Dragon wouldn’t stoop to that. The Namgoong Clan… still owes him a blood debt.”
“Senior, there seems to be a misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding?”
“Yes. The Namgoong Clan has agreed to stay out of this matter. I negotiated it.”
“What?”
Thieving Phantom’s lips twisted into a scoff at the young man’s outrageous claim.
“Even with the Divine Doctor White Dragon backing you, you can’t force the Namgoong Clan to back off! They—”
“I wagered on their Great Azure Heavens Boundless Sword Formation and broke it spectacularly.”
Thieving Phantom’s eyes widened in shock.
“I ask only one thing of you, Senior Thieving Phantom: return the Blood Poisonous Pearl. In exchange, I’ll take responsibility for saving your granddaughter.”
“I… I can’t trust you. You sprang out like a demon to deceive me!”
“But Senior, your granddaughter’s life hangs by a thread. Even if you take her to the Medicine Sage of Hwaju Medical Pavilion… it’ll be hard to save her. I say this as a doctor.”
Thieving Phantom faltered, gazing into Jin Cheonhee’s earnest eyes. He’d trapped her in a formation yet claimed he’d save her granddaughter. Normally, she’d never trust him. The situation was dire, the stakes infernal. How could she believe someone who appeared like this?
Yet her instincts whispered that he was different. He said he wanted the Blood Poisonous Pearl, but her gut told her he didn’t care about it. There was another purpose.
As one of the Eccentrics among the Ten Heavenly Masters, she’d roamed the martial world long enough to read people. She’d seen eyes like his before—those who’d sacrifice their lives for righteousness or burn themselves out in loyalty to an emperor.
Just then, her granddaughter stirred faintly. Still unconscious, it was a reflexive struggle for life.
Thieving Phantom squeezed her eyes shut and said, “Save my granddaughter… please.”
“Leave it to me.”
Jin Cheonhee smiled gently.
***
“Look! That guy! He’s from the Demonic Cult, isn’t he?!”
“No, he’s from the mysterious single-successor sect, the Black Sword Sect. It just resembles the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts.”
“Argh! My blood pressure!”
“Uncles, are you alright?!”
“Let me go! I’ll get them…”
“But the Deputy Leader…”
“Ugh!”
The Twin Dragon Dual Swords, upon hearing the full story, ceased their aggression. The Deputy Leader, Namgoong Cheong, had faced the Great Azure Heavens Boundless Sword Formation against the Blue-Eyed Mad Doctor and lost.
Though the martial world hadn’t caught wind of it yet, the White Dragon Medical Pavilion’s branches already knew. The Hao Sect and Beggar’s Sect likely did too, and soon the rumors would spread.
Rumors that Jin Cheonhee had sworn brotherhood with the Demonic Cult’s minor cult leader. But they’d remain just that—rumors, not public discourse.
Why?
The White Dragon Medical Pavilion hadn’t committed any overt acts, and it wasn’t part of the Martial Righteous Alliance. Moreover, it had recently swallowed Jiangsu Province whole, its influence expanding at a terrifying pace.
Backed by the government, unorthodox sects had to abandon harassing civilians and stick to legal ventures like gambling and loansharking.
To a modern soul like Jin Cheonhee, it was distasteful, but it was reality. Gambling and loansharking were legal in the empire, though often laced with illegal dealings, mostly run by unorthodox factions.
In Jiangsu, those were vanishing one by one—a testament to the White Dragon Medical Pavilion’s growing might.
Turning them into enemies was impossible now. Even within the Martial Righteous Alliance, some factions were friendly with the pavilion: the Sichuan Tang Clan, Wudang Sect, and Namgoong Clan.
Thus, the Namgoong Clan, bound to the White Dragon Medical Pavilion by mutual interests, couldn’t publicly denounce Jin Cheonhee’s ties to the Demonic Cult.
Hence, the current scene: the Twin Dragon Dual Swords clutching their necks in mock collapse, Yeo Ha-ryoon calmly sipping tea, Thieving Phantom’s granddaughter lying on a bed with Thieving Phantom standing guard, and Jin Cheonhee solemnly taking her pulse. In the corner, Namgoong Woon and Namgoong Yeon sighed.
It was, in a way, a chaotic mess.