Chapter 197

Haa... Haa.

Pain surged through him, and his mind swayed in and out of clarity.

Suppressing the rising surge of internal energy, he clung to consciousness.

He was wounded, yes—but no limbs had been severed.

More importantly, the pain itself meant that his senses weren’t yet dead.

He had not only faced a Mythic Realm opponent as an Ogijo-tier martial artist—he had suppressed him.

And this experience would surely serve him again in the future.

It wasn’t a bad outcome.

Unhwi loosened the hand gripping Gok Jinbung’s throat.

The man collapsed to the ground.

Before the Juche or No Cheonmyeong could even speak, Unhwi gathered all the strength into his right foot and stomped down.

BOOOOOOM—!!

“Guh—Haaaargh!!”

Gok Jinbung’s agonized scream and the chaotic dispersal of his internal energy signaled one undeniable truth:

The total destruction of his dantian.

In that instant, Gok Jinbung’s life as a martial artist came to an end.

“Hyun... Seollin!!”

A bellow erupted from the side, and Cheonji Qi surged to crush Unhwi.

But—

BAAANG—!!

It was instantly dispersed.

“What the hell did this bastard eat wrong today? Why all the noise?”

“Step aside.”

“No thanks.”

Unhwi let the banter between No Cheonmyeong and Juche pass through one ear and out the other.

Silently, he stopped the bleeding in his shoulder and pulled out a few Shinsam Pills from his inner pocket, tossing them into his mouth.

Lately, the repeated injuries to his right arm had felt ominous—but first, he had to deal with what was in front of him.

“Senior No.”

“Oh?”

“You weren’t a little late—you were very late.”

No Cheonmyeong smiled awkwardly.

“You brat. I showed up, didn’t I?”

“I’m grateful. Had you not...”

Unhwi paused briefly, then looked toward Juche.

“I might have died.”

Juche stood radiating uncontained fury. Unhwi quietly walked up to him.

No Cheonmyeong tried to block him with an arm, but someone else beat him to it.

“You mustn’t close the distance, Young Master...”

It was Commander Seong.

Apparently, No Cheonmyeong hadn’t come alone.

“When the Commander fights at close range, he leaves no openings. You mustn’t—”

“It’s fine.”

“...Young Master...”

Unhwi gently lowered Commander Seong’s arm and walked right up to Juche, who glared as though ready to kill.

“Why... did you kill my people?”

Until now, Juche had at least kept a formal air of respect toward him—but not anymore. If No Cheonmyeong hadn’t been here, he likely would’ve killed Unhwi.

Oddly enough, that was what irritated Unhwi the most.

“You really are a shameless bastard.”

“...What?”

“Juche, Captain of the Baekseol Wilyeongdan. Have you turned your back on Seolgung as well?”

“What nonsense—”

“If not, then it must simply be incompetence.”

Veins bulged on Juche’s forehead.

“Incompetence...? Me, incompetent?”

“If you're not a traitor, then what other word can explain this situation? Yeon Suon and Gok Jinbung delivered the very disciples they trained to the Thunderblood Demon Cult, laid the path for infiltrators to sneak into Seolgung itself, tracked the movements # Nоvеlight # of the Polar Descendants separately to ambush them from behind, and even waited for the right moment to topple Seolgung from within.”

He jabbed his index finger into Juche’s chest, right above the heart.

“And yet, you—sitting in the Captain’s seat—knew absolutely nothing. And you dare raise your voice before me?”

Around them, everyone stood stunned at the sight of a dying Ogijo martial artist scolding a Mu-geuk Hyeonsin-level master.

Juche, the target of it all, stared at Unhwi with a frosty, expressionless face.

After a long, deep breath, Juche finally spoke.

“I... lost my composure, startled by this incomprehensible situation. Sir Hyeon Seollin. Let me ask just one question.”

If one offers, one must receive.

Since he had raised his tone, it would have been proper for Unhwi to do the same—but he didn’t feel like indulging that much.

“Go ahead.”

“...Very well, I will. How do you intend to take responsibility?”

“Responsibility?”

“If you had solid evidence, you would have presented it to me. But you haven’t. That means you don’t. And yet, you placed further strain on Deputy Commander Yeon Suon, who is already in poor health, and you rendered our Chief Instructor—a man responsible for training our Wilyeongdan’s members—into a cripple.”

Unhwi silently stared at him.

“You have, without the Lord’s permission, torn the Wilyeongdan in half and made a complete mess of things—”

“That’s all you have to say?”

“...What?”

“How many, I wonder.”

“...What are you talking about?”

“How many of our Baekseol Wilyeongdan members were turned into Human Elixirs by those two pieces of filth?”

“Human... elixirs?”

It was nothing new.

This world was vast—filled with orthodox, demonic, and heterodox martial paths. And yet, all martial artists shared one thing in common: they benefited from elixirs.

The reason the Millennium Demon Sect maintained its monstrous reputation for so long could be explained by just one thing: elixirs.

Regardless of conquest or domination, they were true demonism itself. Rather than struggle to obtain rare elixirs, they decided to make their own—and they found the easiest way to do it.

Something now considered utterly taboo in modern murim.

Human Elixirs.

Back then, the refined pill made by grinding down a human’s internal energy was called Indan (人丹). Today, they are known as Bloodstones (혈석).

The Do-Won, forbidden sanctuary of the Original Blood Sect, is said to contain mountains of those stones.

Unhwi had burned that place to the ground in his previous life—and Jeong Dochun, cult leader of the Thunderblood Demon Cult, was the greatest living master of Bloodstone refinement.

Also, the man whose head Unhwi had personally severed.

“The Chief Instructor and Deputy Commander could suppress all incoming reports from their subordinates. Those two, if they so wished, could do anything. Who died, who vanished—even leaking every internal secret of the Eternal Snow Palace and covering up the fact that it was leaked.”

“...”

“There’s so much they could do. And in all that, what the hell were you doing as Captain?”

“...”

“You should be thankful I called you incompetent. Because between being a traitor or being useless—being useless is the lesser evil.”

Juche’s eyes grew glacial, like the heart of the Eternal Snow Mountains—but Unhwi didn’t care.

“Anything else to say?”

“...I was incompetent...? Fine. I admit it. But then give me certainty. Not just me—convince all the members present that those two are traitors.”

Unhwi glanced around.

Every member of the Baekseol Wilyeongdan was gathered in this small building.

Nearly two hundred of them.

“If you can’t convince us all, then I will risk my life today to make Sir Hyeon Seollin pay for harming one of my men.”

A short laugh escaped Unhwi.

Before he could even speak—

Two of the many who had arrived with No Cheonmyeong stepped forward.

“We greet the Captain of the Baekseol Wilyeongdan.”

One voice was cold and low, the other soft like glass beads rolling across jade.

Juche turned to the two standing behind Unhwi.

“Sir Chasellin, Lady Bingselleong. I acknowledge your greetings, but this isn’t the time for pleasantries—”

“As the Head of the Binghae Province, and second son of the Polar Descendants, I speak. Though I arrived late and could not grasp the full situation, I heard every word spoken by Hyeon Seollin.”

“...”

“This is an unthinkably shocking event, but let me say just one thing: Hyeon Seollin is not someone who acts without reason.”

“You mean to say you’re taking his side?”

“You may take it that way if you wish.”

His older brother looked at him.

“As I said—Hyeon Seollin would never act like this without cause.”

The sister standing beside him echoed the words.

“I believe in Hyeon Seollin too. If Deputy Commander Yeon Suon and Chief Instructor Gok Jinbung really did betray us, there will be proof.”

It seemed they had shaken off all attendants and rushed here in person out of worry.

But arriving at the exact same time from different places?

Impossible.

More tellingly, behind them stood Yangcheol and Commander Seong, both looking troubled and tugging at their hair.

There was only one possibility.

Unhwi turned to No Cheonmyeong again.

A telepathic message flew straight in.

—You brat, you grateful yet? Huh? I nearly dislocated my joints dragging all those people here together. Just nod if you’re thankful.

Unhwi gave a subtle nod, then turned back to Juche.

“‘Convince us, or pay the price’...? That’s a fun proposal. Whether that’s some vain pride befitting a Martial God Five Realms master, or just a coward’s desperate bluff—I don’t know. But fine. I’ll convince you.”

As Unhwi turned to leave, Juche called out.

“It’s not a proposal. It’s a wager.”

“A wager?”

“I’ve said what I’ll take if I win. Now, tell me what you want if you win, Sir Hyeon Seollin.”

Unhwi glanced back and answered curtly.

“Nothing.”

“...Excuse me?”

“If anything—your loyalty.”

Without pause, he walked over to where the two vermin lay crumpled on the ground.

***

“Commander Seong.”

The one who may have felt more conflicted than anyone here approached Unhwi.

“...Yes, Young Master. You called?”

“Do you remember the conversation we had in the carriage, back when we left for the palace with Han Murin?”

Of course he remembered.

That day, Unhwi had drafted an entire book right there on the spot.

“If you’re referring to the Eternal Torture Codex... yes. I remember.”

Unhwi’s cold gaze fell upon Gok Jinbung and Yeon Suon.

“Execute Bone-Melted Soul Technique and Reverse Pulse Extraction Technique from it.”

Commander Seong’s mouth fell open.

He was ordering torture—right here, in public?

And on the Deputy Commander and Chief Instructor?

“...Young Master...”

“I know you’re a former member of the Baekseol Wilyeongdan.”

“...”

“And I know you learned directly from those two.”

Commander Seong stared at Unhwi with a conflicted expression.

“Normally, I would do it myself. But my body is like this now.”

“...”

“If it’s too much, you don’t have to. If I do it, I may not be able to control the intensity.”

His hesitation was brief.

Commander Seong had already resolved to follow Unhwi.

The doubt vanished from his eyes.

“I will do it.”

And so, right then and there—the torture of Yeon Suon and Gok Jinbung began.