Burning
How many corpses could be hidden in that pit? Because of this trap, Lord Iryong did not combine forces with the Unyu Association and did not flee like his subordinates.
After pressing down on the teacup again and twisting his wrist, the cup turned with a clatter.
Then, with a scratching sound that tickled the ears, the garden began to sink in various places, while some pillars shot up.
It was as if the entire garden floor had transformed into a Go board, with black and white stones laid out.
The white stones were places one could step on, while the black stones were the pits of doom.
The places to step and the places to avoid were mixed chaotically.
Upon seeing this, I guessed that even the spots that looked like "white stones" would have traps hidden among them.
Only that guy would know which ground was safe to step on.
Lord Iryong said, "This is just right. Now, let’s see what you’ve got."
I stepped back and smiled slightly.
"You crazy bastard, now I understand why you were less famous than Daenachal."
Lord Iryong looked at me.
"What good is fame?" "After trapping people in this pit for forty years, it seems no one knew about you. You must have eaten, drunk, and slept on the corpses you killed. Now I understand why your face is so pale. Is the Jianghu really that terrifying?"
Lord Iryong smiled.
"You speak useless words."
"I've seen many like you. Digging traps and not being able to escape from them like a coward. Not hunting like a beast, nor competing with the strong in the world. You must have spent your life rotting away, burying your subordinates, burying friends, and burying those who went against your will. Every time the pit opens and closes, the stench of rotting corpses fills the air. It’s a pity for Daenachal."
"What of the dead?" I looked around the mountain lodge.
"That guy probably studied this lodge to kill you. It seems you didn’t show any openings."
At my words, Lord Iryong smiled with a strange expression.
His naturally pale complexion made him look like a ghost laughing.
Lord Iryong said, "That's right. Daenachal also didn’t show me any openings."
"So you were kindred spirits, huh?" As I kept stepping back, Lord Iryong revealed his sparse teeth.
"Where are you running to?" "I’m running away because this place is disadvantageous. You foolish bastard. Asking pointless questions."
Lord Iryong extended his hand with a pleased expression.
"The exit is not that way."
When I turned around, I saw only vines where a path should have been.
It seemed like a simple trick, but in any case, there was no exit as Lord Iryong said.
If I had entered with all my troops, more than half would have died here.
"An interesting old man. Have you learned some tricks? Are you perhaps imitating the old Guiguzi?" "How does a young man know about Guiguzi?" I may look young, but I am older than I appear.
In short, I have a youthful face bestowed by heaven.
It sounded too ridiculous to say out loud.
Guiguzi was a figure from the Warring States period, a reclusive genius in the Jianghu.
To some in the Jianghu, he is the origin of the mechanisms and strategies.
His nickname is derived from the Guigu Mountain Lodge where he lived in seclusion.
There is a fact about Guiguzi that only I know.
The person who founded the Jinju Sooyogong, Giseongja, despises Guiguzi the most.
Guiguzi wrote a book titled "Guiguzi."
In that book, it says to gain trust from the other party and maintain a close relationship.
Seize the weaknesses of those who have become close and hold them so they cannot escape.
At first glance, it seems like a way to navigate society, but in the strange mindset of Jianghu people, this is not just a social skill; it aligns perfectly with what Lord Iryong is doing now.
Of course, this old man is not a direct descendant of Guiguzi.
Many in the Jianghu have been influenced by the actions, words, books, and thoughts of ancient figures.
I revealed a secret to Lord Iryong.
"Hey, you trashy old man who is a distant descendant of Guiguzi. Unfortunately, among my spiritual teachers, there is one who despises reclusive Guigu disciples like you."
Lord Iryong replied, "Is there such a person?" "His name is Giseongja; I wonder if you’ve heard of him, you ignorant old fool."
"This is the first I’m hearing of it."
"What I mean is, I have learned the martial arts he created for dealing with people like you. When the cunning rabbit has three burrows, deal with them mercilessly with the true fire of Samadhi. How curious that you fell into the trap of someone like me."
The clever rabbit digs three burrows.
Giseongja instructed to burn all three.
Thus, the martial art created is called Yeomgye.
I smiled slyly as I prepared the incense of Yeomhwa.
Sensing something ominous, Lord Iryong hopped around like a rabbit, stepping on the white stones.
I pulled him away from the table, then collected the Yeomhwa incense and moved around the garden, inspecting the area.
"While preparing your finishing move, it’s only right to wait..."
I couldn’t finish the thought, ‘...isn’t that the way of Jianghu?’ because I was too busy.
Lord Iryong swung his staff with a snake's head, chasing after me.
Where on earth did that weapon come from? And why a snake's head? A mere snake isn’t frightening.
But for a Jianghu person to attach a snake's head to the end of a staff means not to underestimate me.
In short, the snake's head on the staff is poisonous, so it’s a warning not to mess around.
So, it’s wise to be cautious at such times.
I stepped on stones like stepping stones and eventually drew out the Heukmyo and struck Lord Iryong's staff.
Clang! However, the staff and sword did not clash busily as usual.
There were pits in between.
I stepped on the white stones while preparing my mind.
Sure enough, when I stepped on a seemingly intact white stone, a hidden trap sprang out, targeting me.
Wham! As I deflected the trap with Heukmyo, a staff came flying at the back of my head.
In the end, as I leaped over three or four white stones to step on flat ground, this time my right foot sank down.
It seemed to be a trap disguised as a white stone.
I unleashed a blast of energy from my palm to the ground.
As Lord Iryong swung his fluttering robe, dozens of needles surged from beneath my feet.
They say old ginger is spicy...
I also pulled out my robe as if tearing it and swung it.
The mass of traps and innocent robes collided and fell into the pit together.
In the next life, may they be born as clothes to wear when meeting a good master.
Suddenly, a raging fire of anger surged in my chest, and the Heukyeomgye within me writhed. ‘You’re dead.’ No sharp plan came to mind. ‘You’ll be dead soon.’
I remembered the positions of the white stones that seemed safe to step on.
Normally, my memory isn’t particularly good, but when my life is threatened like this, I have a remarkable ability to remember.
The human mind is mysterious; sometimes, after taking a hit, one’s memory improves.
Why that is, I don’t know in detail.
My appearance of running away from an old man was ugly, but to eliminate variables, I approached the fight with a calm mind.
Already, three pillars had sunk down, and two traps had flown out.
It would be troublesome if Lord Iryong forced my position while he was aware of which were traps, so I decided to take the first hit.
After a while, I subtly allowed him to track me before turning back to confront Lord Iryong again.
I had already grasped the traps around me.
Now, the next thing to be cautious of was poison.
I suddenly thought of the old Jianghu.
It seemed he had been diligently training with his weapon, as he swung the heavy iron staff quite well.
To be honest, even if we weren’t fighting in this lodge, none of my subordinates seemed capable of defeating Lord Iryong.
I intentionally wrapped the Yeomgye around Heukmyo, sending fire demons to various places in the lodge whenever Lord Iryong tried to evade.
When a person has no particular strategy in mind, they tend to think, ‘Well, something will work out.’ When Lord Iryong saw me starting to burn the outskirts of the lodge with the Samadhi technique, he couldn’t hide his anxious expression.
"Are you trying to die together?" I seized the moment when Lord Iryong opened his mouth and swung Heukmyo fiercely.
Until then, if I had injected five portions of my energy into Heukmyo, from the moment Lord Iryong spoke, I raised it to seven portions.
I still kept three portions in reserve.
Even so, Lord Iryong’s staff began to slow down.
As I stood firm on a single white stone, Lord Iryong would have no choice but to draw upon his next technique.
That would probably be poison.
I was ready to force him to use poison and counterattack.
The moment Lord Iryong judged that deflecting Heukmyo was difficult, he pressed somewhere on his staff and swung it wide in front of him.
A green poisonous mist spread before my eyes.
At the same time, Lord Iryong retreated to where the table was...
I extended my palm forward and unleashed the Absorbing Technique, swirling the mist of poison that had scattered into a vortex.
Whoosh! At the same time, I wrapped a wind around Heukmyo and sent the compressed poison towards the pit as if peeling an onion.
Just then, when Lord Iryong struck the table... astonishingly, large spear-like spikes shot up from every pit, rising into the air.
Boom! If I moved to avoid the poisonous mist, it was a linked technique that would finish me off with the mechanisms.
I looked at the spears that had suddenly shot up around me in astonishment and muttered, "That’s quite vicious. I’ll commend you."
When Lord Iryong’s linked technique, which he thought was a decisive move, failed completely, he finally showed a dazed expression. "......"
I sheathed Heukmyo with the calmness of someone whose fight was over, then drew it again like a lightning strike to unleash my energy.
Wham! Startled, Lord Iryong gripped his staff with both hands to deflect my energy.
Boom! I raised Heukmyo again and poured my energy vertically.
Each time Lord Iryong deflected my energy, his old, pale face trembled violently.
I raised Heukmyo again and said, "Is this the end? Nothing more? Think quickly. You’re going to die soon."
"Oh, come over here."
"That’s not happening. From what I’ve gathered, this is the safest place."
I unleashed my energy again.
I poured out energy thirteen times in a row from my position, and Lord Iryong, who had no room to turn his back, blocked them all.
Occasionally, Lord Iryong shouted for me to come over or to fight face to face, hurling insults and provocations, but I couldn’t hear any of it and continued to swing my sword.
After blocking the seventeenth energy blast in succession, Lord Iryong finally lost his balance while gripping his staff.
I hurriedly poured energy towards the rising Lord Iryong.
Pow! Finally, I saw blood gushing out.
Pow! This time, one hand gripping the staff fell to the ground.
Then, his arm flew off, and the other arm followed suit, landing in the energy.
When Lord Iryong, having lost both arms, knelt down, I sent energy towards his knee as well.
Pow! I watched Lord Iryong's expression, then sheathed Heukmyo and wrapped Yeomhwa around my index finger.
I focused intently, ensuring that this Samadhi technique would take the form of real flames.
I also compressed the energy of Yeomgye as much as possible.
Lord Iryong was saying something to me with a face full of despair, but I couldn’t hear him well as I was deeply focused.
With the flame completed at the tip of my finger, I sent it towards Lord Iryong with the lightest of movements.
Then, I watched as his expression changed interestingly with each passing moment.
This must be the expression of facing death.
As the flame danced and flickered, it reached Lord Iryong's body, which was trying to flee, and a pillar of fire shot up vertically as if a fire dragon was ascending.
Whoosh! I crossed my arms and watched the fire dragon's dance for a moment.
The flames were truly beautiful.
I gazed at Lord Iryong engulfed in flames and murmured softly, "…It’s burning."