“Wait. Stay here.”
As Bu Eunseol prepared to venture deeper into the tree line, Yu Hwa-ryeong stepped into his path, blocking his advance.
I will chase them down and assess the situation; it is better for you to remain in the village.
The message was conveyed via sound transmission. Yu Hwa-ryeong evidently feared they might lose the trail of the Thousand Sword Society’s nemesis if Bu Eunseol abandoned his post. Understanding the logic, Bu Eunseol turned back, having no other choice.
But the silence was wrong.
To Yu Hwa-ryeong’s astonishment, the villagers who had entered the woods moments before had vanished, as if evaporated into thin air. He scoured the immediate area, tearing through brush and circling trees, yet not a single footprint or broken twig remained.
Was I bewitched by a ghost?
A chill ran down his spine. He hastily returned to Bu Eunseol.
“Let us go together.”
Zip.
The two men unfolded their lightness arts, plunging into the forest in a single, coordinated breath.
They moved like phantoms, but the men pulling the cart were nowhere to be found. They ventured deeper, widening their search radius, but the result was the same: absolute emptiness.
They cannot deceive my senses.
Bu Eunseol’s hyper-senses could detect the friction of a falling leaf from a hundred jang away. How could a group of people vanish instantly in a forest only a short distance away?
After a moment of deep contemplation, Bu Eunseol muttered, “It seems a formation mechanism has been installed nearby.”
It was impossible for commoners ignorant of martial arts to deceive the senses of a master and disappear without mechanical aid.
“That is possible.”
Yu Hwa-ryeong, experienced in the treacherous ways of the Gangho, narrowed his eyes and began to inspect the surroundings. Yet, he could find no faint friction of operating gears, nor the telltale spiritual residue of a formation laid with Silver Shadow Stones.
“Nothing. They have completely disappeared.”
Just as Yu Hwa-ryeong was about to shake his head in defeat—
Hum.
Accompanied by a low vibration that only he could feel, a white haze bloomed within Bu Eunseol’s irises.
Reaching out to touch the faint disturbances in the dust, he began walking forward, his head tilting as he scanned the unseen layers of the world. He was utilizing the Spirit Communion of the Empty Mind, the supreme sensory realm of the Way of the Beast, to track the echoes of their presence.
“Here.”
Bu Eunseol finally halted in a wide clearing deep within the forest.
“They disappeared from this very spot.”
“How can that be?”
Looking around the empty space, Yu Hwa-ryeong wore a hollow smile. “For that many people to vanish all at once, they would have had to soar into the sky or…”
“Correct.”
Bu Eunseol nodded, casting his gaze downward.
“They must have sunk into the earth.”
In the same breath, he unleashed the Thousand Pound Drop.
Boom.
As his immense internal energy crushed down, the earth groaned. A square section of the forest floor shuddered and sank, revealing a dark aperture with a heavy metallic clank.
“Incredible…”
Yu Hwa-ryeong gaped. Upon closer inspection, the hole revealed an artificially constructed passage, a throat of darkness swallowing the light.
“To think they built a mechanism of this scale deep in the mountains.”
The passage looked like the maw of hell itself. Yu Hwa-ryeong craned his neck, trying to glimpse the bottom, but the shadows were absolute.
“I cannot fathom where this leads.”
“We will know once we descend.”
“Then I shall take the lead. We do not know what lies ahead.”
Fearing Bu Eunseol might be injured, Yu Hwa-ryeong quickly stepped to the front.
“Wait.”
Bu Eunseol stopped him with a raised hand. Plucking a single leaf from a nearby branch, he flicked it toward a giant tree some ten jang away.
Thwack!
With a dull thud, the leaf embedded itself stiffly into the trunk of the distant tree, sinking into the bark like a steel shuriken. It was an astonishing display of the Scarlet Foliage Petal Flight technique.
“Come out.”
Bu Eunseol spoke in a low voice.
The forest remained silent.
“Hmph.”
This time, Bu Eunseol plucked two leaves. Without hesitation, he fired them toward the dense canopy of the giant tree.
Clang!
With a clear, metallic ringing, the leaves were deflected mid-air.
Rustle.
A figure clad in black, face obscured by a cloth, descended from the branches. The stranger was not tall but possessed a solid build with limbs as thick as logs; on the surface, they appeared to be a man who had mastered significant external martial arts.
“Your senses are impressive.”
The black-clad figure’s voice was low and raspy, deliberately modulated to mask its true timbre. The figure glanced at the dark passage and sighed.
“To think it was a mechanism detecting weight. No wonder I couldn’t find it until now.”
Bu Eunseol stared intently at the figure. Then, a spark of realization crossed his eyes.
“You are the physician who was treating patients in the village.”
“What?”
The figure blinked, then let out a scoff. “Me? A physician?”
“You stuffed padding inside your clothes to hide your true form.”
Bu Eunseol crossed his arms. “You would have been better off just wearing larger clothes.”
Staring into Bu Eunseol’s eyes, which held the weight of absolute certainty, the figure sighed, resigning to the inevitable.
“How did you know?”
It was the clear, ringing voice of a woman.
As Bu Eunseol exposed her identity, she began tearing out the bundles of cotton she had stuffed beneath her tunic.
“No one has ever seen through this disguise before.”
True to her profession, she hadn’t simply stuffed cotton in; she had sculpted the shape of muscles anatomically. Visually, there was no awkwardness whatsoever.
“With that volume of muscle, you should weigh at least a hundred and sixty catties. Yet your footsteps were remarkably light.”
Narrowing his eyes, Bu Eunseol gestured to the figure’s legs.
“Furthermore, if you truly possessed such a physique, your stride would have been much wider due to the interference of thigh muscles.” He glanced at the cotton balls she had discarded. “However, your gait and posture were that of someone weighing little more than seventy catties. The only person in that village who showed signs of martial arts training and fit that weight class was the physician.”
“Hearing you talk about sixty catties and seventy catties, I feel like a piece of meat on a butcher’s block.”
Laughing at the absurdity, she looked back and forth between the masked Bu Eunseol and Yu Hwa-ryeong.
“Well, judging by that keen observation, you’re no nameless soldier. Who are you two?”
“You do not need to know.”
When the cold answer returned, she looked blank for a moment, then smiled confidently.
“Good. I had no intention of revealing my identity to you either. Let’s agree not to ask each other.”
Flutter.
At that moment, a small leaf drifted down onto Bu Eunseol’s head. It was the very leaf he had fired using the Scarlet Foliage Petal Flight technique, which she had deflected.
The leaf bore a microscopic hole pierced through its center, invisible to the naked eye.
“So, you are of the Needle King’s family.”
At Bu Eunseol’s mutter, the woman’s eyes widened behind her mask.
“How did you know my identity?”
When Bu Eunseol didn’t answer, she straightened her hand like a blade, tension radiating from her stance.
“Answer me. Now.”
Sharp momentum flowed from her body, a threat made manifest. But Bu Eunseol remained unresponsive. She possessed outstanding prowess for her age, but to Bu Eunseol, who had entered the Supreme Heavenly Realm, it looked like nothing more than child’s play.
“I am curious as well. Why not just tell her?”
As the atmosphere turned hostile, Yu Hwa-ryeong stepped forward to mediate. “Besides, isn’t the Needle King’s family known for treating the sick for free and doing many good deeds?”
Bu Eunseol exhaled a low breath.
“The weapon.”
“Weapon?”
He held up the leaf. On the surface was a microscopic puncture. It was small enough that one could barely see it even by holding it up to the light, but to Bu Eunseol, who had mastered the Way of the Beast, it appeared as large as a cavern.
“There are countless strange weapons in the Murim, but the only clan that uses needles thin enough to pierce a flying leaf without tearing it is the Needle King’s family.”
“But that is strange,” Yu Hwa-ryeong countered. “Even if she uses those martial arts, how did you know she was a direct family member and not just a disciple?”
“The Needle King’s martial arts originate from medical theory, so they cannot be mastered in a short time. In reality, all disciples under that lineage are renowned healers.”
Bu Eunseol stared into the young woman’s eyes.
“However, to possess such outstanding medical skills at such a young age, and to use the family’s secret arts so freely… one must be of the bloodline.”
“Not only observation, but your insight is extraordinary.”
With her identity completely exposed, she whipped off her mask. A clean, elegant face, reminiscent of morning dew, revealed itself under the moonlight.
“That’s right. I am Jongri Sayu.”
Jongri Sayu. She was the granddaughter of Jongri Sahyeon, known as the Needle King among the Four Gods and Seven Kings.
She was known to have inherited both the Needle King’s martial arts and the essence of his medical skills, earning her a formidable reputation in the Gangho. In particular, she bore the nickname Herbal Spirit for her ability to create effects rivaling spiritual elixirs by combining ordinary herbs.
“Now it’s your turn,” Jongri Sayu demanded coolly. “I revealed my identity openly, so isn’t it proper procedure for you to reveal yours?”
When Bu Eunseol remained motionless, Yu Hwa-ryeong gathered his hands together in a placating gesture.
“I am Yu Hwa-ryeong, a disciple of the Thousand Sword Society.”
“Thousand Sword Society?”
Jongri Sayu raised an eyebrow. The Thousand Sword Society was a faction that had enjoyed prosperity in the past, but now it was famous in name only. It was a place that hardly engaged in Gangho activities.
Thousand Sword Society…
Assuming Bu Eunseol was also a disciple of the same sect, she snorted. “Hiding your identity as if you’re from some legendary place.” She sighed. “How did the Thousand Sword Society know to come here?”
“We didn’t know. We simply… came after hearing information that a Great Enemy of our Society was in this vicinity.”
“Great Enemy?”
“Correct. While searching, we discovered suspicious individuals, chased them, and accidentally found this passage.”
“Who is this Great Enemy?”
“I cannot reveal that.”
Though he wore a mask, Yu Hwa-ryeong’s eyes were full of righteous spirit, and his voice betrayed an upright character. Furthermore, although the Thousand Sword Society was historically ambiguous, they were known to walk the Orthodox path while researching martial arts.
“Hmm. An enemy, an enemy…”
As if her guard had lowered, Jongri Sayu shrugged, a subtle smile playing on her lips. “Is that person perhaps an official of the government?”
“How did you…”
When Yu Hwa-ryeong gaped in shock, she nodded. “It seems we are chasing the same person.”
Judging by her tone, she had been tracking a government official for a long time.
“Who on earth are you looking for?”
At Yu Hwa-ryeong’s question, Jongri Sayu’s expression darkened.
“A long time ago, my family discovered that there was a force intentionally creating plagues using Tuberculosis Worms.”
“Intentionally releasing them to cause plagues? Is that possible?”
“If it’s the government, it’s not impossible.” She spoke with a firm voice. “Unlike medical or poison clans, the government won’t be branded as a public enemy of the Murim, and there’s no one to stop them.”
Yu Hwa-ryeong’s eyes widened. The reason that devil appeared in every region where a plague broke out… Was it to research plagues?
“Well, we’ll know the exact truth once we go inside.”
Pulling her mask back on, she looked at the dark passage.
“Since our goals seem to be the same… let’s cooperate for a while.”
The passage leading underground continued endlessly.
Even while walking down the path dyed in darkness, Jongri Sayu showed no hesitation or fear.
I don’t know if she’s fearless or just overconfident.
Watching her back as she led the way, a question flashed through Yu Hwa-ryeong’s mind. No matter that she had inherited the Needle King’s essence, was it wise to wander the Gangho alone chasing a force spreading plagues?
She isn’t alone.
She seemed to travel solo, but it was clear she was leading a covert force. After all, she was a scion of the Needle King’s family.
Finally, a faint light appeared in the seemingly endless tunnel.
Entering further, the tunnel opened into a vast space spanning over ten jang in height. The ceiling was densely studded with Night Luminous Pearls, casting a cold, artificial daylight over numerous buildings below.
It was truly a subterranean city.
If not for the stone sky, one might mistake it for a provincial capital.
“Ha, hah…”
Yu Hwa-ryeong burst into an exclamation. He prided himself on having traveled the Four Seas and Eight Desolations, possessing broader knowledge than anyone else, but he had never even heard a rumor of such a massive space existing beneath the earth.
What is that?
Hiding behind a building and scanning the surroundings, Yu Hwa-ryeong’s eyes flashed.
Martial artists moved busily everywhere, and in one area, corpses covered in cotton cloth were piled high. Among the dead, some emitted low groans, their chests heaving weakly.
What does it look like they are doing?
At Yu Hwa-ryeong’s sound transmission, Bu Eunseol shook his head.
I do not know either.
In truth, Bu Eunseol was equally shocked. He had experienced all sorts of bizarre things while working as an investigator, but he never expected such a scene to unfold beneath a desolate forest.
Jongri Sayu, however, didn’t seem surprised at all. She scanned the area with sharp eyes.
“Follow me.”
She moved nimbly between the buildings, heading deeper into the complex.
Finally, her steps stopped at a building where not only the gate but the entire structure flowed with a gleaming metallic luster. The iron gate was tightly shut, equipped with a special mechanism and bearing intricate patterns.
She took two golden needles from her bosom and began to trace the carvings. Discovering a small aperture, she inserted a needle and manipulated the tumblers with surgical precision.
Click.
With a heavy mechanical thud, the iron door groaned open.
She is used to infiltration.
Bu Eunseol watched her move without making a single sound. This was likely not her first time infiltrating such a facility. Perhaps she had even received professional training in espionage. That implied the Needle King’s family had been investigating this conspiracy for a long time.
“What on earth is all this?”
Yu Hwa-ryeong tilted his head as he stepped inside.
The interior was a cavernous hall where metallic walls stretched up to the ceiling, the breadth so vast it seemed to exceed three hundred jang.
Hundreds of bizarre structures stood densely packed, all draped in black cloth. Below them, black pipes snaked across the floor in a chaotic mess, connecting the structures like arteries. From a distance, it looked as if thousands of giant spiders were spreading their mechanical legs in all directions.
“Mmm.”
Gazing at this grotesque landscape, Yu Hwa-ryeong stepped back instinctively. In doing so, his foot caught the edge of a black cloth covering a nearby structure.
Swish.
The fabric fell away, revealing the horror beneath.
A glass coffin?
What had been covered was a transparent vessel. Inside, a sleeping woman was engulfed within colorful, pulsing flora.
“This is…”
Peering into the glass, Yu Hwa-ryeong’s eyes snapped wide.
Thick needles connected to tubes were driven deep into the sleeping woman’s veins. Blood was being siphoned out, pumped directly into the roots of the parasitic plants wrapping around her limbs.
“What kind of bizarre act is this?”
At Yu Hwa-ryeong’s shouted whisper, Jongri Sayu answered, her voice trembling with suppressed rage.
“It is a Human Flower.”
“Human Flower?”
A light of deep contempt burned in her eyes.
“By forcibly injecting human essence-blood into vegetation, they create artificial spiritual herbs known as Human Flowers.”
Yu Hwa-ryeong’s jaw dropped.
Cultivating spiritual herbs using living humans as soil? Was such a thing possible? And why was such an act, one that would incur the wrath of both heaven and earth, being committed here?