SERIES: Returning to the Dark Moon
Chapter 7. Inner Demon
As I left Elder Un behind, Hwapyeong, who had been standing there fidgeting like a dog that needed to go, asked me.
“So, what happened? Did you get the money? Hey, I heard you hit up the Golden Sword Merchant Guild too? The guild master's attendant came running over to tell me. Wow, that Seo Hyowon is famous for never taking a loss. You've got some skills, huh?”
“Hwapyeong. No matter what, I'm not giving you any money.”
“Wow, he's not falling for it. You're a tough one. Seriously. You cheap bastard, I should've known when you came to the gambling den and scraped together every last coin before leaving.”
I chuckled and ended up handing Elder Hwa's slush fund over to Hwapyeong. It's not like I had any particular use for it right now.
Though that might change later.
After he took the money with a grin, I smacked him on the back of the head for no reason. *Thwack!* The clear sound echoed like a wooden temple block.
“Don't spend too much of that. And before you go, give me a bottle of liquor. That Elder Un guy is a bit strange, so check in on him occasionally to make sure he's okay, got it?”
“Why the hell did you hit me? Ah, my good customer. Trusting a cat with a fish, are we? Aren't you staying the night? I'm sure the place outside is crawling with beggars.”
Crawling with beggars outside. They must be Elder Hwa's disciples. I expected as much.
Damn beggars. They must have nothing better to do, they're so damn quick to move!
Hwapyeong, grumbling and cursing under his breath, brought a bottle of liquor and tossed it to me. I caught the white bottle lightly and drank straight from it
Cheap stuff, as expected.
The buzz in my head kept egging me on. *Kill Elder Hwa right now. Overthrow the Beggars' Sect...*
‘Not a chance. Don't even think about it.’
Throughout history, liquor has been a friend to all. But to me, right now, it was like an enemy. I could use my internal energy to purge the alcohol from my body, but.
What would be the point of drinking then?
Looking at myself objectively, I was a complete madman. Come to think of it, I'd never met a peerless master who was completely sane.
As I was about to leave the gambling den, I glanced back at Hwapyeong. The rude bastard was giving me the middle finger.
That's an insult I learned from the Far East, you country bumpkin.
It was the same gesture I'd given Baek Cheon at the very end.
“…Do I seem different? Everyone I meet keeps asking.”
“Ah, did you get a girlfriend or something? Different? Looks like a dumbass just became a bigger dumbass. If you have time for that crap, you should be swinging your sword to stay alive.”
I guess there's no need for pleasantries between us, huh?
And so, as deep darkness fell, I left the gambling den
The night sky, where the moonlight shone down mercilessly.
From his perch in a tree, Seonchil, Elder Hwa's first disciple, watched the Heir emerge from the gambling den through the Cloud Flower Pavilion.
His cheeks were flushed as if slightly drunk, and he swung his arms about as if constantly performing the Drunken Eight Immortals Steps. A common drunkard you might see wandering the streets
‘Is he insane?’
Does he even know what kind of situation he's in? If he did, he wouldn't be so leisurely drinking himself silly.
He and the other disciples of Elder Hwa were lying in wait here, targeting the Heir. Did the Heir really get the ledger from the gambling den?
“Senior Brother, could even the Heir have pulled it off? How could he get past that Elder Un? He's one of the top ten masters in the Sect.”
Behind him, from the forest of countless trees, others holding worn-out swords, clubs, and long staffs asked Seonchil the same question.
“I think our master misjudged this time. He seems to have been taken in by the Heir's antics. Look at that pathetic state. Did he even meet Elder Un?”
Realistically, killing the Heir is impossible. There's no justification for it. For talking back to Elder Hwa?
the Heir's position is higher than an Elder's. Unless it's the Grand Elder or the Sect Leader, restraining him is difficult.
‘That's why we're taking him to the Grand Elder.’
To the true right hand of the God of War, the one who will end this false peace.
And in that moment, Wangcho's head turned toward Seonchil, and the Heir's eerie, silver eyes pierced right through him.
Simultaneously, the Heir's body blurred, and suddenly, a sword glinting in the starlight appeared right before his eyes.
“Fuck.”
*Shhhk!*
With that short last word, Seonchil's body collapsed.
The familiar feeling of the cut traveled up the sword. The blood that spurted out soaked his worn hemp clothes, adding a layer of crimson paint..
The nauseating smell of blood tickled his nose. He clutched his spinning head and swung his sword through the empty air, and another figure fell lifelessly from a tree.
Spreading his senses, he could feel the trees all around him filled with sword-wielding monkeys. He could also feel their emotions, stained with tension and fear.
“Heh, up in the trees, you all look just like monkeys. A monkey's butt is red, red is an apple, apples are tasty... Ah, but I'm not a big fan of apples.”
Instantly, I kicked off the branch of the tree I was on and leaped to the next.
The trembling Igyeolgae swung his club at me wildly, and I thrust my fist through an opening in his sloppy staff work.
“Keoheok!”
I looked down at the beggar as he fell like a wilting flower, spitting a spray of red blood from his mouth.
After dodging the spear thrust by the Tri-Knots Beggar who had climbed onto my tree, I immediately used the Beggars' Sect's Calling Branch Sword Art to sever his arm and kick him in the stomach, sending him flying.
The spear he dropped began to fall slowly toward my feet.
In the slightly slowed perception of time unique to martial arts masters, I could hear the spearman's screams of pain
The moment the rustling sound of footsteps on leaves struck my heightened senses, I grabbed the spear the Tri-Bond Beggar had dropped, held it in a reverse grip, and thrust it behind me.
*Gwajik!* The sound of bone being pierced rang out with exhilarating clarity. From the sound of it, it was a rib cage.
When I came to my senses, no one was approaching me anymore. They had surrounded me and were now just throwing hidden weapons and the like.
I had to laugh. Trying to kidnap the heir of the Beggars' Sect in the middle of the night?
And by fellow members of the Beggars' Sect, no less.
Once again, I was reminded that this was the true nature of the martial world. Whether they were holding temple blocks and chanting scriptures or holed up in the mountains claiming to cultivate the Dao.
In the end, they all stained their hands with blood and accumulated the karma of murder. It was all just a twisted form of self-comfort and brainwashing for their own actions.
To experience this Inner Demon, something I'd never felt in my past life, was a truly strange sensation. The very fact that I could recognize I was experiencing an Inner Demon was different from a typical case.
My entire vision was silver.
Is this Qi Deviation?
On second thought, this was just Daylight Over a Moonlit Night. It wasn't supposed to affect my vision, but this was the backlash from forcing my way into it.
“Where is Elder Hwa? Why isn't the great Elder showing himself? Ah, who's behind this? Elder Hwa isn't the type to orchestrate something like this. Is it the Traceless Divine Beggar?”
“What are you talking about? My Heir, have you gone mad?”
I wiped the blood from my sword on my sleeve. I lifted my creaking head to the sky, but there was nothing there.
No stars, no moon. Not even the God of War who once watched over the world.
I rubbed my eyes, which were growing hazy with drowsiness. When I opened them again, the sky wasn't dark but shining.
I could see figures all around, treading on leaves with the Art of Treading on Grass. Dozens of beggars were rushing toward me, emitting a pathetic amount of killing intent.
I didn't bother to respond and simply hopped down from the tree. I put the still-screaming spearman out of his misery by stomping on his head.
Furthermore, I identified the face of the man dropping straight down from the tree to plunge his sword into me and gave a bright smile.
“Flatfish. So you were still alive.”
I deflected Flatfish's sword, which was aimed at the crown of my head, by emitting my own sword energy.
As he lost his balance, his face contorted with hatred, I moved to cut his throat but stopped for a split second and thrust my sword behind me instead.
*Kaang!* My sword met the staff of some old man. His white beard fluttered about, and I instantly disliked the sight of him.
It was Seo Hwang, the Six-Knots Beggar and Elder Hwa's trusted subordinate. I remembered him having learned the Thirty-Six Routes of the Dog-Beating Staff Technique.
It was a rather tricky martial art, so the moment he swung his staff, I dove straight into Seo Hwang's guard.
As if he knew I would charge in, Seo Hwang retreated, maintaining his distance. A veteran of a hundred battles, is he?
He looked older than Elder Hwa, so his internal energy must be greater as well.
The trajectories of sword and staff intertwined chaotically, and for a moment, Elder Hwa's disciples aimed for my back.
I immediately spun around, cut off the arm of the man closest to me swinging a club, and unleashed a crescent-shaped wave of sword energy, separating the upper and lower bodies of Flatfish and the other disciples of Elder Hwa, reducing them to mere mortals
*Kwaaang!* An agonizing pain exploded on my back. It was Seo Hwang's staff.
My protective qi blocked it, but I couldn't deflect it all.
As I staggered and turned, Seo Hwang's ugly face, contorted with rage, flickered between red and white due to the Qi Deviation and Daylight Over a Moonlit Night.
“Has the world gone mad? Or have I? That's always the question. Seo Hwang, you old bastard, did you enjoy sucking up to Baek Cheon? But it won't happen like that. Because I'm the kind of person who can't stand to see others succeed.”
I closed my eyes for a moment, and when I opened them, I saw familiar faces. Seo Hwang, standing in the middle of those many faces, muttered, "Isn't he insane?"
I caressed the white sword at my waist. It was still pure white.
“Axe Devil of the Green Forest, Invincible First Strike, and Puppet Jade Lord—where is the Traceless Divine Beggar? To the esteemed leaders of the Dark Moon Society, and to the righteous heroes who have forsaken their sects, this humble beggar asks you.”
“…My Heir. Is it Qi Deviation? Your eyes are red and white. What have you done?”
I felt as if my qi and blood were being blocked. Why am I so reckless? Trying to stand alone in a ruined world was giving me a headache.
Ah, wasn't it just me and Baek Cheon in this world? What are all these pebbles?
I immediately lowered my stance and thrust my sword toward Seo Hyowon.
The sword qi scattering from my blade drifted around Seo Hyowon and me like starlight.
Instantly, my sword shatters Seo Hyowon’s staff and pierces his heart.
Sun and Moon Heavenly Art Swift Sword Style: Moonlight Flash. It was an instant kill.
A moment later, the hem of a black robe flutters, teasing my vision. I let out a laugh as I violently shook the hilt to flick the blood from the blade.
Because a hole had been pierced through the heart of the man who had, at some point, grabbed me by the collar. Thanks to that, my clouded mind began to clear.
“…Grand Elder, the Traceless Divine Beggar.”
The Vice-Chief, dead, his heart pierced by my fist technique.
And at the same time, unbelievable words flowed from his tightly clenched lips.
“Beggar God, do you wish to die?”
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