The Lazy Young Master of the Jin Clan

'Has he truly gone mad?'

Even with his master's corpse laid before him, Jin Sohyeon had never lost his composure. Had he finally lost his mind?

Jeokmyeon, reflecting on his past of betraying Hao Sect and clinging to Jin Sohyeon's side, lowered his posture and wrapped both arms around his head.

"Summon Ma Seongun."

"Wait, wait...!"

Ok Myeon, who had been crouching similarly to Jeokmyeon, stretched both hands forward and shouted.

"Sending a message to the Blood-Sucking Sword Demon is not an easy task!"

"So?"

"It requires time."

"How much?"

"Even using the fastest messenger birds, it would take a week... no! At least five days!"

"How am I supposed to trust you?"

Jin Sohyeon's voice, with almost no inflection, was so cold that one could not discern his true intentions.

Ok Myeon rolled his eyes and mind frantically for the survival of himself and Hao Sect.

"This is..."

Ok Myeon raised his hand from beneath the table where he had hidden it, hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

"It's an iron poison pill containing the Formless Killing Poison. Originally, I had been preparing it for use in the final moment."

Then he placed the iron poison pill on the table.

"Look, I will give up this iron poison pill that can take your life. You don't need me to explain what this means, do you?"

Jin Sohyeon's eyes turned toward the iron poison pill placed on the table.

"It is a poison that even the Shadowless Ghost Blade could not evade."

The moment Ok Myeon finished his explanation, the iron poison pill on the table was sucked into Jin Sohyeon's grasp.

'Bieunggaek tried to perish together with mutual destruction but was poisoned... but he won't know that.'

Bieunggaek had not failed to evade the iron poison pill; rather, because he attempted mutual destruction, he had not tried to avoid the poison in the first place.

However, since Jin Sohyeon would not know this fact, simply presenting the iron poison pill created room for negotiation.

Or so he thought.

"I thought so."

A bitter and regretful smile crossed Jin Sohyeon's lips.

He had been curious about why Bieunggaek had not escaped from the Blood-Sucking Sword Demon all this time.

With his escape technique, he should have been able to evade even the number one martial artist under heaven.

But Bieunggaek had chosen to kill the Blood-Sucking Sword Demon rather than flee.

"You all imprisoned my master like a beast and tried to kill him."

"We had no choice! Bieunggaek was a spy who deliberately infiltrated to extract information from Hao Sect, and the punishment that followed..."

Crack!

At the sound of the iron poison pill being crushed, Jeokmyeon and Ok Myeon turned their backs and fled in panic.

'It's going to explode!'

The iron poison pill, designed to burst from even minor impact, could not withstand Jin Sohyeon's grip strength and was crushed.

At the same time, the poisonous qi of the Formless Killing Poison spread in all directions.

'This madman! We're all dead!'

Jeokmyeon squeezed his eyes shut, and Ok Myeon accepted death with resignation.

But death did not come to them.

They did not even feel the poison.

Ok Myeon, who had opened his eyes slightly, looked around in confusion.

And at that moment, he witnessed an astonishing sight.

Ssshhhhh!

The poisonous qi of the Formless Killing Poison that had spread into the air was being sucked into Jin Sohyeon.

"Phew."

After absorbing all the poisonous qi of the Formless Killing Poison, Jin Sohyeon placed the now-empty iron poison pill back on the table.

"This can kill me?"

"..."

Ok Myeon could not believe the situation before him.

'The Formless Killing Poison is real. Then... could it be that he has achieved Immunity to All Poisons?'

It would be impossible unless the legendary realm of Immunity to All Poisons actually existed.

The toxicity of the Formless Killing Poison had already been confirmed through numerous experiments and Bieunggaek's death.

'Could it be! Does he have a constitution similar to the Blood-Sucking Sword Demon?'

As far as Ok Myeon knew, Ma Seongun was the only one who had survived poisoning by the Formless Killing Poison.

But today, Jin Sohyeon not only withstood the Formless Killing Poison before his eyes but had also absorbed it.

"Is there anything else?"

"..."

When Ok Myeon remained silent like someone with his mouth full of honey, Jin Sohyeon approached him with sword in hand.

The blade scraped against the ground, producing an eerie metallic sound.

As the metallic sound grew closer, Ok Myeon's heartbeat grew louder.

"Ok Myeon."

Jin Sohyeon stopped before his eyes.

"I heard you were the first branch leader of Hao Sect. Your loyalty must be extraordinary."

'He knows much about me. That bastard Jeokmyeon must have told him everything.'

Ok Myeon bit his lower lip but could say nothing.

The pressure felt as if his neck could be severed at any moment.

"Choose. What are you trying to protect—is it Hao Sect or the Heretic Path’s Alliance?" 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"What... Do you mean?"

"What I need is Ma Seongun."

"Ma Seongun..."

Unlike before, Ok Myeon hesitated and wavered, and Jeokmyeon found himself inadvertently admiring Jin Sohyeon.

'Did he plan to coerce Ok Myeon with this from the beginning?'

Jeokmyeon had thought Jin Sohyeon was driven mad by revenge, the way he had embedded a sword into the ceiling as if he would kill everyone at any moment.

But it was an intentional act.

By making Ok Myeon realize that his true purpose was Ma Seongun, he had created conflict within him.

Ok Myeon was the most loyal among the branch leaders.

He would willingly sacrifice his life for Hao Sect, so Jin Sohyeon had instead used this against him.

Solely to find Ma Seongun.

"Will you really leave Hao Sect alone?"

"If you help me find Ma Seongun."

"Then I will ask in return. How can I trust you?"

"That's a ridiculous question."

Jin Sohyeon, standing before Ok Myeon, brought his sword to the base of his neck.

When the cold metal touched his throat, Ok Myeon's muscles involuntarily contracted.

"If that weren't the case, I would have no reason to keep you alive until now."

"I understand. I will cooperate... so please lower your sword."

When Jin Sohyeon lowered his sword, Ok Myeon studied his expression before retrieving a blackened bamboo tube from a safe beneath the table.

"This is black bamboo used to send messages to the Heretic Path's Alliance."

"Can you contact the Heretic Path's Alliance with that?"

"No, listen without suspicion, for I am speaking only the truth and not trying to deceive you. Hao Sect cannot directly reach the Heretic Path's Alliance. This black bamboo is merely a kind of pass that connects to the Messenger Pavilions of the Heretic Path's Alliance scattered throughout the Central Plains."

"So all Hao Sect can do is send messages through the black bamboo?"

"Yes. I cannot be certain, but to reach the Heretic Path's Alliance, you would need to go through at least five Messenger Pavilions. It is not a matter of distance... but security."

"More thorough than I expected."

"It is not for nothing that the Heretic Path's Alliance is called the most dangerous organization in the dark path. Even the legendary Bright Cult of the past could not protect Xinjiang and was destroyed, but the Heretic Path's Alliance has not. They have never revealed their true form until now."

Yet the influence the Heretic Path's Alliance wielded in the Central Plains was truly tremendous.

The entire dark martial world, with no visible form, followed the Heretic Path's Alliance.

Jin Sohyeon accepted the black bamboo that Ok Myeon offered and tucked it into his robe.

"By now, the Heretic Path's Alliance must know that I am still alive."

"The Blood-Sucking Sword Demon knows, so probably..."

"All the better. Then Ma Seongun will come looking for me."

If he does not come.

Then I will go find him.

And.

I will sweep away Ma Seongun and the Heretic Path's Alliance cleanly.

This was the third and final step Jin Sohyeon had planned.

And for this, he needed Hao Sect.

"First..."

Before Jin Sohyeon could say anything, a sudden bell began to ring.

Dong dong dong dong!

At the loud ringing, Ok Myeon's head snapped up.

"This sound is...!"

"What is this sound?"

When Jin Sohyeon asked cautiously, Ok Myeon spoke breathlessly.

"It is the emergency bell! It means the main headquarters is in crisis... but who on earth!"

As Ok Myeon hurried to assess the situation, Jeokmyeon approached quickly and hid his body behind Jin Sohyeon's back.

"Did you do this, Great Hero?"

"No."

This was a situation Jin Sohyeon had not anticipated.

Who could be threatening Hao Sect, an organization that operated in the deepest shadows?

As Jin Sohyeon and Jeokmyeon observed to understand the situation, Ok Myeon began to urgently read the parchment he received through a long iron tube connected to the outside.

After confirming a total of five parchments in succession, Ok Myeon's body trembled.

Soon his eyes glared at Jin Sohyeon.

"You... deceived me?"

The emotions in Ok Myeon's eyes were anger and betrayal.

But Jin Sohyeon was equally ignorant of the situation.

"What is happening?"

"Stop playing dumb! Right now... the network connecting Hao Sect's branches is being severed one by one! Do you understand what this means!?"

"Someone... is attacking Hao Sect's branches?"

"Damn it! Yes!"

According to the information received, the network connecting Hao Sect's branches was severed at almost the same time.

It meant that Hao Sect's branches were being attacked simultaneously.

"You confused me and now Hao Sect's branches are being attacked! I was a fool to trust you, Jin Sohyeon!"

Witnessing Ok Myeon's rage, Jin Sohyeon realized that his second planned step had gone awry.

"Jeokmyeon."

"Yes!?"

"The plan has changed. Are you ready to run?"

"Run? When are you telling me to run?"

"Now."

Jin Sohyeon threw the sword he was holding toward the ceiling.

Thud!

As the third sword embedded itself in the ceiling, the support pillars, already cracked like a spider's web, began to collapse.

"Ahhhhh!!"

As Jeokmyeon kicked through the door and began to run, Jin Sohyeon approached Ok Myeon and extended his hand.

"Jin Sohyeoooon!!"

"Be quiet."

Jin Sohyeon deployed the Maitreya Three Thousand Seas technique to suppress Ok Myeon, then hoisted his unconscious form onto his shoulder.

"Let's see."

From the moment he entered the underground headquarters, Jin Sohyeon had memorized the geography of this place in his mind. In an instant, he recalled the escape route and propelled his body forward.

The Shadowless Divine Steps, deployed to its extreme, left not even an afterimage.

In a flash, Jin Sohyeon crossed the underground headquarters, caught up with the fleeing Jeokmyeon, and ran toward the exit.

Rumble rumble rumble!

Once it began to collapse, the underground headquarters rapidly sank.

Dirt and debris poured down, and boulders the size of houses fell with heavy thuds.

"Ahead... ahead!"

Jeokmyeon despaired at seeing the exit blocked by boulders and debris.

"Cover your face."

"What!?"

"I said cover it!"

Jin Sohyeon threw the half-conscious Jeokmyeon toward the blocked exit.

"Ahhhhh!!"

Leaving behind the screaming Jeokmyeon, Jin Sohyeon forcefully kicked the jaw of a Hao Sect martial artist who had been waiting on Ok Myeon's orders.

Crack!

Without even a final cry, the martial artist flew away. Jin Sohyeon drew the sword from him and, channeling his inner power into it, threw it forcefully toward the blocked exit.

The blade, infused with blue lightning qi, passed over the Jeokmyeon who had been thrown first and struck the pile of earth and boulders blocking the exit.

Boom!!!

With an intense explosive sound like thunder, the blocked exit opened.

"Cough!"

Jeokmyeon, who had been rolling on the ground, opened his mouth wide at the sight of a large boulder falling above his head.

"I don't want to die... ahhhhh!"

At the critical moment, Jin Sohyeon appeared and caught him just before the boulder crushed him, then propelled his body forward.

Moving at lightning speed along the narrow exit, Jin Sohyeon frowned at the increasingly narrowing passage.

"Hnngh!!"

Channeling his inner power without restraint and flicking his feet, he advanced with a thunderous sound and explosive speed.

Unable to withstand the tremendous wind pressure, Jeokmyeon lost consciousness as Jin Sohyeon, carrying him, escaped through the exit just before the underground headquarters completely collapsed.

"Phew!"

Having escaped the underground headquarters, Jin Sohyeon walked to an open area and looked back.

"An earthquake!?"

"Evacuate! Hurry!"

As soldiers came out and evacuated the residents, a deep pit formed in the city.

Of course, no one who knew why the pit had formed was still there.

"Gwan O. Catch."

Jin Sohyeon threw Jeokmyeon to Gwan O, who had followed him from the collapsed exit.

Then Eumyu appeared.

"Who are you?"

"Don't pretend you don't know."

"...Was it you who killed my lord?"

"Your lord?"

After throwing Ok Myeon to the ground, Jin Sohyeon placed his foot on his head.

"Was your lord's mask white or jade-colored?"

"Nonsense! My lord is only White Face, the Master!"

"Then it doesn't matter if I kill this one."

As Jin Sohyeon's foot applied pressure, Eumyu quickly drew his twin blades.

Sensing the urgency in his face, Jin Sohyeon smiled coldly.

"I know that you are the person Ok Myeon planted with White Face. Eumyu."

"..."

"Don't ask how I knew. I find explanations tedious."

While posing as White Face, Jin Sohyeon had felt a sense of incongruity from Eumyu's actions many times, something that did not seem like that of a bodyguard. He had suspected that Eumyu was someone Ok Myeon had planted with White Face.

And his suspicion had now turned to certainty.

"Take this and follow me."

Jin Sohyeon kicked Ok Myeon away, and Eumyu quickly caught him.

"Follow you?"

"Yes. If you don't want to die."

Eumyu's deliberation did not last long.

From the aura Jin Sohyeon subtly emanated, he felt an immense gap.

With his shoulders now lighter, Jin Sohyeon returned to the Honggang to assess the situation.

When Jin Sohyeon arrived at the Honggang, his expression became complex.

"What is this now?"

(End of Chapter)