Chapter 37

Tearing Flesh.
Taking blood.
The sight of the sword in front of the horror of death.
The sight of facing the sword before the horror of death.
The memories flashed through my mind like a lantern, dominating my entire body and accelerating my beating heart.
“There are hundreds of people who live without losing their lives because of me, and dozens of others who have carried out operations safely because of my uncaring rampage. ”
He could boast that he had never been at ease.
So it’s life and death.
The blue sword qi bent and twisted in an odd direction in thin air. I stepped on the infinite steps with Namgungshun’s energy.
I had to get close before I used up all my energy. I gathered my last bit of energy.
Clang!
The tip of the sword hovering in front of me aimed for my heart. I instinctively rotated my body to advance, and even as I did, a handful of flesh flew off my side.
I slowed. Slowed to a crawl. The thunderbolt energy that fed my veins and arteries was rapidly drying up.
The energy that had once filled his body was gone.
“Fufufufu, why didn’t you listen to me?”
Before I could even react, the tip of Nangong Shun’s sword dug into my right breast. There was no mercy in the tip of the blade.
The cold metal sliced through my flesh with ease.
“Even now…….”
“Stupid.”
I hissed and bared my teeth at the one who still held a grudge against me. I lifted my hands and gripped the sword with both hands as it dug into my right breastbone. A fiery aura heated my entire body.
Before he could react, I reached out with both hands and grabbed his wrists by the blade.
He couldn’t escape.
“You’re crazy!”
“Black Tiger.”
Nam Gung Soon’s eyes widened.
His body jerked at the ominous aura that was digging into his back, and he raised his left hand to steady himself.
Poof!
I took a step forward and grabbed Nam Gung-soon’s entire body in a hug, and no matter how much he tried to move, he was immobilized. I was literally pinned down.
Kwazizik.
At the same time, a flesh-piercing aura.
It stabbed Nam Gung-soon in the back of the neck, pierced his heart, slashed his wrist holding the sword, and ovulated Myung-chi.
But somehow, even though he was critically wounded, he did not die as if it were a long time coming.
It was not an instant death, but a moment of dying slowly, tasting pain.
“……I won’t kill you right now, because this is the time for the killing.”
Nam Gung-soon no longer has the strength to lift a finger.
“Kill, not exterminate…….”
Even as his strength was draining out of his body, he felt the chill from Black Lake’s dagger. Even as his consciousness faded, he realized that it would be better to die.
And then he felt the pain of the Black Tiger’s touch cut through his flesh.
Square, square.
With each stroke of the dagger, Nam Gung-soon’s skin peeled off, piece by piece. His eyes were as dull as a fisherman’s gaze as he watched his catch.
For the first time, Nam felt the terror of death.
“…… billion.”
Poof!
The sinister aura that penetrated Nam Gongsun’s dantian mercilessly cut through his body. The helplessness felt by a martial artist who had mastered martial arts when he became a killer.
He was determined to make this man suffer the most in the world, even if it meant taking the place of the dying Grand Duke.
“……That’s enough, Black Ho, that’s enough.”
The shadow behind him blocked her touch.
* * *
In a place where only murderous intentions prevailed.
Faced with Nam Gung Soon, he realized he was like a mouse before a cat.
He felt like a mouse before a cat, and his entire body relaxed.
When was the last time she had shouted out that she was the chosen disciple of the iron-blooded An Baek.
That’s why he was always full of pride. He was always stiff and rigid.
He didn’t care about the Grand Duke of the Southern Palace, he didn’t care about the Xiao Clan, he didn’t care about the clan rivalry.
Donghui inwardly thought that if he had used his inner strength, he would have defeated the Grand Duke in the sword festival.
He did.
I had to take a step back from the scene unfolding before my eyes. Donghui hid behind the Grand Duke and Black Tiger as they fought with invisible swords and ruthlessness.
If he wanted the Grand Duke so badly, he could compromise and negotiate.
“Stop it, stop it! You’re wasting your innate power!”
I poured out my life force, even if I thought I could survive.
It was ridiculous. I’m fighting to the point of gnawing on myself. If I continue like that, even if I win this fight, it will be a victory with a wound.
“The Grand Duke has risked his life. He hasn’t changed his mind, so I can only accept his will. ”
Hearing Black Ho’s words, Dong Hui froze. His attitude was different from his own. He blushed at the sight of his own backwardness.
Compared to them, Dong-hwi felt like a coward.
Kang Woo-moon threw himself at me and ran to find An Baek.
Black Ho joined forces with the Grand Duke and exchanged blows with that demon.
Only himself.
Only he was powerless to do anything.
Even so, Dong Hui’s gaze remained fixed. On the Grand Duke’s figure.
Each of the Grand Duke’s attacks met Namgungshun’s, and he had to strain his eyes several times to see what would happen. Day by day, he improved. He didn’t hesitate and didn’t dodge at every critical moment.
Kuluk!
And the boy who had been pouring out his life force had given up his flesh.
Despair flashed in Donghui’s eyes as he looked on in admiration. The boy’s skin was so thin that it was pierced, mashed, and cracked like tofu by the tip of Namgungshun’s sword, but he didn’t give up his body.
“……damn.”
Looking at his flailing legs, Donghui clenched his teeth.
Please, move.
Move.
Raise the sword.
Swing the sword again.
Do something to help.
Trembling, Donghui felt so pathetic that he couldn’t help himself.
He slapped his thighs. Please move.
Then.
His legs moved when he saw the Grand Duke collapsed under Namgungsoon’s sword.
I threw myself at him and caught him before he collapsed. I couldn’t let him lie on the cold ground.
“Grand Duke…….”
“Fufu. You’re pathetic. Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I’m sorry……. My, I’m so helpless…….”
“Forget it. You’ve just appeared in front of Kang Ho.”
Hearing those words, a lump rose in Donghui’s throat.
The Grand Duke was also a powerhouse.
He was younger than him, but he was still brave enough to face him.
“I’m a little tired. I’m going to sleep.”
Donghui’s despair rose to the surface again. I can’t let him sleep like this, it will lead to his death.
What should I do?
While he was thinking, Anbaek appeared. Without saying a word, An Baek’s hands simultaneously pierced through various parts of the Grand Duke’s body. His blood immediately stopped flowing.
“Uncle.”
“Keep your eyes open. When you wake up, everything will be in order.”
“Thank you.”
After saying that, An Baek turned around and spoke to the dazed Dong Hui.
“Don’t cry. Donghui, you’ve been through a lot.”
“Yes, Master…….”
“I’m sorry.”
Ahn Baek touched the top of his head.
Donghui stopped crying.
He cried.
It was the helplessness of a young man facing reality.
It was the cry of a frog in a well escaping the well.
* * *
“……That’s enough, Black Tiger, that’s enough.”
“No.”
The voice from behind, and its owner, was covered in blood. Carrying a gaping wound on his back, An Bai tore off his clothes and tied them around the fallen Grand Duke.
“Think of …… your priorities, don’t you think that even the time you spent arguing with him was a waste?”
At that, Black Ho chewed his lower lip and shook his head.
“I will do so. Where should I go?”
“Wait a minute.”
An Baek urged.
“Give me what you have, if you have it. I think I could use your help at this level.”
Black Lake, Kang Wumen, and Dong Hui shook their heads at Najik’s words as they stared up at the uninviting tree. Their mouths dropped open when they saw two people appear.
It was a familiar face.
Recalling that these were the five men who had served the Southern Palace Mu Baek in the Sword Order, Black Lake, Kang Wumen, and Dong Hui felt goosebumps rise.
They hadn’t seen him once on their journey here.
Anbaek recognized them at a glance. He recognized her at a glance.
“…… is also a swordsman. I already knew that.”
“How could I not know? I couldn’t sleep because of the noise.”
It was Pyo-young and Pyo-il.
“……I didn’t think the Grand Duke would throw himself on the sword like that.”
“I also had a desire to keep seeing him in his amazing position.”
As he spoke, he took out a golden spear pill and a few small reishi pills from his bosom. It was a sincere gesture of apology for not acting sooner.
“These will help you recover. Take them once a day.”
An Baek was handed the best quality golden spear pills and elixirs. An Baek nodded in agreement. Pyo-young’s eyes traveled past the Grand Duke to the writhing Nam Gung-soon.
“Hand over …… to us. He’ll be difficult to kill anyway.”
The elder of the Namgung family was directly targeting the Grand Duke. It wasn’t a pleasant story to hear, and it certainly wasn’t a pleasant picture to look at.
“Let’s do it.”
An Baek nodded, and Pyo-young drew his fingertip across the dying Namgungsoon’s blood. The lightning touch stopped the bleeding.
“……Don’t think of dying a horrible death.”
The blood drained from Nam Gung-soon’s face, and Pyo-young and Pyo-il quickly disappeared with him.
“Wu Wen and Dong Hui, go to the Southern Palace’s branch in Jiangsu Province and ask for help. Prepare a carriage and have horses, food, and councilors prepared in advance.”
With that, An Bai carried the Grand Duke on his back.
“As soon as the Grand Duke’s mobility is restored, I and Black Tiger will head there.”
“Yes! I understand.”
“Yes, Master.”
The two young men disappeared, and Black Tiger gathered the bodies of their attackers together and burned them. He erased the traces.
“……I shouldn’t be so relaxed, I’ve lost my touch after being out for so long.”
At An Baek’s pensive words, Black Ho spoke up.
“Why don’t you ask me?”
“Because you’re a killer? Everyone has their secrets and buried things.”
An Baek shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “Whatever. Then, looking at the Grand Duke sleeping soundly on his back, he spoke up.
“If it were him, he would have said so.”
At that, Ebony Lake gulped. Yes, that’s the kind of person he is.
A man who doesn’t care about his past.
And he believes in himself without limits.
He burned himself to a crisp with his tiny body.
Burning himself to the ground and sacrificing his life for his people.
Rest in peace. Grand Duke.
I will protect you.
I will no longer hide from you.