Chapter 75: Ambush

At that very moment, when everyone’s attention was focused.

Sewoon began to speak, bringing out the story he had prepared in advance.

“As you all know, I was born with Heavenly Punishment, and thus for a long time I was unable to achieve martial arts. Because of that, I turned toward merging sorcery with my blacksmithing, and in the process, I delved deeply into all kinds of ancient texts.”

“……!”

“Regrettably, among them, there were sometimes Forbidden Texts that contained sorceries which should never exist. Of course, whenever I discovered such things, I burned them immediately, however……”

“In the process, you mean you ended up learning such information?”

“……Yes, that is correct.”

Normally, such a statement could have caused problems.

But since the situation was too urgent, no one stepped in to question him.

“This is the Sorcery of Hyellato. It is an ancient sorcery that was banned and erased.”

“S-Sorcery?”

“Alliance Leader! Then all of this is clearly the work of the Heaven-Piercing Sect!”

“The Demonic Alliance, those damned bastards dare—!!”

“Silence, all of you!”

“!!”

When Yoo Jinhak raised his voice, the chaos immediately subsided.

The reason why the Elders of the Elders’ Faction were making such a fuss was simple.

If this truly was sorcery, then the only group capable of such a thing was none other than the Heaven-Piercing Sect, one of the Five Evils of the Demonic Alliance.

“A monster with the body of a fish and the wings of a bird, the Nao Fish (蠃魚), is a water demon that brings floods whenever it appears in a town. And the Mist Moon Blade (霧月刀) is a treasured weapon with the power to generate sinister fog.”

However, neither of those items by themselves had the power to create such a horrific curse.

“But if a hundred men and women are sacrificed, and the ritual is overseen by a sorcerer who has reached the level of a God-tier, then those two items would be defiled by Evil Qi and could create such a dreadful curse.”

“G-God-tier?”

“Then are you saying the Sect Leader of the Heaven-Piercing Sect has reached that supreme realm?!”

It was only natural for them to be shocked.

Sorcerers were divided into eight levels: Sun, Moon, Stars, and Celestial Deities.

The lowest was Sun-tier, the highest was Bright-tier.

But no one in history had ever reached Bright-tier. Even God-tier had only ever been reached by the founding ancestor of the Shrine Maiden Sect.

In terms of martial artists, it could be compared to the pinnacle of the Manifestation Realm.

While the Elders were distracted by the shocking claim that the Sect Leader of the Heaven-Piercing Sect had reached God-tier—

Yoo Jinhak quickly asked Sewoon.

“If you know the conditions for activation, then do you also know how to undo the sorcery?”

“To continuously activate and maintain this sorcery, four Cursed Objects must be installed throughout Kaifeng. However……”

“……There’s no way to locate them, is there?”

Sewoon nodded heavily.

At that, the faces of Yoo Jinhak and everyone else darkened.

If what Sewoon said was true, then swift searching and destruction were crucial.

But the domain of Hyellato that covered the sky was far too vast.

Even if the Murim Alliance deployed all its forces, by the time the four Cursed Objects were located, the civilian casualties would already be unimaginable.

“Alliance Leader! Wouldn’t it be best to request aid from the Shrine Maiden Sect right now, just as Young Lord Tang suggested earlier?”

“It is far too late! By the time word reaches Musan where the Shrine Maiden Sect is located, the damage will already be catastrophic!”

“Elder Ak, but what other choice do we have?!”

“Better that we pressure the spy Hwangbo Geon further and extract more information……”

The Elders threw out all sorts of opinions, while Yoo Jinhak listened and pondered.

But time vanished in an instant.

The moment was already approaching when he, as Alliance Leader, would have to make the final decision.

‘……How can I possibly save everyone?’

But no matter how much he racked his brain, there was no proper solution.

With no idea of the size or form of the four Cursed Objects scattered throughout Kaifeng, how could they be found and destroyed?

‘There’s no more time to delay.’

In the end, Yoo Jinhak resolved that even if it relied on sheer luck, he would unleash all forces to search for the Cursed Objects.

“Everyone, listen—.”

It was then.

Ssshhh!

Shhhhnk!

“-!!”

“What the—?”

Yoo Jinhak and the Elders were startled.

A strange sound rang out, followed by the release of ominous qi.

The source was close.

The disturbance was erupting from within the Azure Dragon Hall itself.

Everyone immediately leaped inside to investigate.

“-!!”

Sewoon was covering the interior of the Azure Dragon Hall with black threads.

---

While the Elders were arguing amongst themselves.

Sewoon too was desperately trying to come up with a way to resolve this crisis.

But just like Yoo Jinhak, he could find no proper method.

He had considered rushing to the Murim Alliance’s smithy and using the power of Divine Weapon Creation to forge Treasure Weapons imbued with the ability of ‘Detection’ to locate the Cursed Objects.

‘Damn it! But mass-producing enough Treasure Weapons for the entire search force to use—time is far too short.’

The more solutions he sought, the more painfully he realized their impossibility.

There simply wasn’t enough time left.

It was possible to forge Treasure Weapons with detection abilities.

But for such detection, they would have to be at least High-Grade Treasure Weapons. And even for Sewoon, it took no less than half an hour to craft just one.

And dozens of them would be required. By then, the situation would already have met a disastrous end.

In that despairing situation……

“-!”

Sewoon suddenly spotted a glimmer of light.

‘Wait—!’

His eyes fell on an item lying on the floor of the Azure Dragon Hall.

It was a Low-Grade Treasure Weapon that a subordinate from the Court of Justice had earlier brought from the smithy.

‘That’s right, I remember that one……!’

A blacksmith under his guidance had forged it as a practice sword.

And it indeed carried the power of ‘Sensing’.

Flash!

The moment Sewoon realized this, he dashed into the Azure Dragon Hall.

Yes, forging anew would surely take too long.

‘But what if I approach it from an entirely different angle……!!’

Sssshhhh!

Flaaash!

Gripping the Low-Grade Treasure Weapon in one hand, Sewoon scattered Golden Bridle Qi throughout his entire body.

At that moment, dozens of strands of Heavenly Net lifted the sword above Sewoon’s head.

Shhhhnk!

Shhhk!

Countless strands scattered, reshaping the practice sword into a new form.

It was the ultimate mastery of the skill he had reached when he repaired Do Yecheon’s sword.

And right at that moment, Yoo Jinhak and the Elders arrived to witness the scene.

Chaaang!

At that instant, Elder Ak Ho drew the spear strapped to his back.

He looked ready to charge at Sewoon at any moment.

“What are you doing, Elder Ak!”

“Alliance Leader, can’t you see? He is openly using evil arts! That boy must be an agent of the Demonic Alliance!”

“Get a hold of yourself!!”

“……!!”

“Can’t you see that boy is staking even his very life at this moment?!”

Staking his life?

What could that mean?

When they stopped focusing on the scattering threads and instead looked closely at Sewoon himself, their eyes widened to the point of bursting.

“……!!”

“Th-That!!”

“He… he’s using Innate True Qi!”

Indeed.

The countless black threads writhing and fluttering like living things could easily be mistaken for sorcery.

But what was being emitted and consumed throughout Sewoon’s entire body was none other than the root of life itself—Innate True Qi.

Realizing this, Ak Ho let out a low groan and withdrew his spear.

But Sewoon was completely unaware of the tense scene around him, wholly engrossed in his work.

‘Just a little more, just a little more!!’

The ‘Sensing’ power that this Low-Grade Treasure Weapon possessed was merely a downgraded version of ‘Detection.’

It could trace the remnants of a martial artist’s energy but could not pursue the power of the mighty Cursed Objects.

That was why Sewoon focused his concentration on Golden Bridle Movement Technique.

Golden Bridle Movement Technique was a martial art of the will.

‘The Blood Massacre happened in Kaifeng instead of Sichuan because of my regression. That means I must protect them all—!’

Through the Treasure Weapon he had forged, Sewoon resolved to locate the Cursed Objects and save the innocent civilians. His firm and unwavering willpower—

Shhhhhaa!

Flaaash!

—pushed Golden Bridle Movement Technique past the wall of Five-Tenths mastery, reaching the realm of Six-Tenths.

And at that very moment, Divine Weapon Creation gained a new ability.

Shhhhhaa!

Flutterrr!

Dozens of threads once again swayed like the dance of celestial maidens, multiplying into hundreds.

Those threads elegantly wrapped around the Treasure Weapon.

Skkrrk! Skrrrk!

The once whole blade was neatly divided into one hundred pieces.

Not scraps of steel, but gem-like fragments that each retained the same ability.

This was the first newly awakened ability—Transformation.

‘Im-Impossible!’

‘……A L-Low-Grade Treasure Weapon?!’

‘It became a High-Grade Treasure Weapon—?!’

The Elders were struck speechless at the sight of the hundred fragments scattering soft, milky dawn light.

How could they not be shocked?

In an instant, a Low-Grade Treasure Weapon had turned into the equivalent of a hundred High-Grade ones.

But to Sewoon, this was only natural.

Because Golden Bridle Movement Technique at Six-Tenths mastery had unlocked its second ability—Enhancement.

The fragments had truly become High-Grade Treasure Weapons.

Each fragment now possessed the power of ‘Detection’ capable of pursuing the Cursed Objects.

‘……I was wrong.’

Yoo Jinhak thought as he gazed at Sewoon.

He had believed it would take a long time.

That the boy would eventually reach the position of Divine Craftsman.

But he was gravely mistaken.

There was no need for time.

Because the boy was already—

‘The Divine Craftsman of this era had been right here from the very beginning!’

Shhhhhhh!

Flutterrr!

At that moment, all the threads surged back into Sewoon’s body.

And simultaneously, his body staggered, about to collapse.

Flash!

Yoo Jinhak instantly moved to support him.

His pupils trembled as though struck by an earthquake.

‘……The Alliance owes you an immense debt.’

Sewoon had excessively consumed his Innate True Qi, leaving him with severe internal injuries.

Even breathing should have been difficult—yet, with a pale face, he still looked at Yoo Jinhak and said:

“…Haaah, haah… Please… hand these fragments to the entire search force. E-each one has the power to pursue the Cursed Objects……”

“……Worry not. I will see to it without fail.”

Even before Sewoon had finished, the Elders were already scrambling to gather the fragments from the ground.

Distributing the hundred fragments among the search captains would reduce the time required to find the Cursed Objects exponentially.

Though his body felt unbearably heavy, Sewoon let out a silent sigh of relief.

……But just then.

“Alliance Leader!!”

Someone rushed into the Azure Dragon Hall.

A low-ranking warrior of the Murim Alliance stumbled inside, panting heavily.

Yet his face was ashen, stricken with terror.

“What is it!”

“A-Attack! The enemy is attacking!”

“-!!”

Everyone was aghast.

They immediately assumed that not only had sorcery been unleashed, but the enemy had infiltrated Kaifeng and begun slaughtering.

“The enemy is rampaging inside the Blood Rain?!”

“N-No, that’s not it!”

The low-ranking warrior shook his head violently.

But why…?

At that very moment, Sewoon’s mind was struck by a memory.

“The entire Nine Dragons Four Phoenixes unit is being pursued after being ambushed by unknown enemies!!”

What surfaced in his thoughts was the mysterious smile of the Blood Demon he had seen before his regression.

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