Chapter 33
Trap (1)
The sun had risen, yet the back alleys of Hangzhou remained shrouded in darkness.
Moreover, this was a forbidden area—one that even those who lived in these back alleys never passed through.
"Tsk."
In such a place, someone clicked his tongue as he suddenly revealed himself.
It was the Third Elder.
"So I lost him."
The Third Elder came to a stop.
This was the very spot where Cheon Muyang had cleaved a man consumed by demonic energy—along with the entire building.
"Lucky you, Eldest Young Master."
Yet, as if nothing had ever happened—
Not a single piece of debris remained.
It was as though the building itself had never existed.
"Still, the Eldest Young Master doesn't know this yet—Cheon Clan has already fallen into an abyss from which there is no return."
With a sinister smile,
The Third Elder walked to where the building had once stood.
The area was covered in soil, but he paid it no mind as he knelt and thrust his hand into the earth.
Wuuung!
He grasped something.
It was a dark crimson stone.
Its surface had been polished smooth—so much so that it would not have been strange to call it a gem.
"Khehehehe."
Holding the stone, the Third Elder wore a grotesque smile.
As though handling a precious elixir, he tucked the stone into his robes and soon left the area.
Whooosh!
A wind blew across the silent land.
The lives that had perished here were buried beneath the soil, just like that.
***
Cheon Muyang left Hangzhou.
On the road to the Cheon Clan,
A question arose.
'Why would the Wolf king go to the Cheon Clan?'
It occurred to him that this might be related to the reason the Wolf king had come to Hangzhou in the first place.
'Think. Around this time… something happened, didn't it?'
Anonymous becoming Cheon Muyang's guard was an event that would occur five years later.
Which meant that right now, he had been training intensely under Cheon Wigang and Cheon Seonhak.
'Ah…!'
A memory suddenly surfaced.
One day, Cheon Wigang had abruptly left the clan.
'And when he returned a few days later… he was suffering from severe internal injuries.'
It was right around this time.
When Anonymous had asked what had happened, Cheon Wigang brushed it off as nothing—but still.
'If that was… a duel with the Wolf king?'
It made sense.
The Wolf king was also an absolute master who had reached the realm of Hwagyeong. Even for Cheon Wigang, victory would not have been guaranteed.
Step!
Cheon Muyang halted.
"Lord?"
"Not the Cheon Clan."
If that assumption was correct—
From the beginning, the Wolf king would have intended to meet Cheon Wigang.
"Yes?"
"Not Cheonmok Mountain. Makgan Mountain."
Cheonmok Mountain lay near the Cheon Clan.
It was not a suitable place for a duel.
That left only one possibility—Makgan Mountain.
Whip!
Cheon Muyang turned his head.
Not west, but north.
"We're going to Makgan Mountain."
"Yes."
Without offering any further explanation, Cheon Muyang dashed toward Makgan Mountain.
Neung Ryeoun and Cha Myeonghak simply followed behind him.
***
Geumsan was troubled.
Because of the Wolf king traveling with him.
He had expected it, but the Wolf king was even more willful than anticipated—and a man of unshakable convictions.
"Wolf king, please listen to what I—"
"You're noisy. I've got my own information network too, you know."
"It's all a misunderstanding—"
"A misunderstanding, my ass. You think I wouldn't know that behind those Black Merchants stands the Cheon Clan?"
The Wolf kingground his teeth.
Seething with rage, he slammed his blade into the ground.
"And you too."
"Ghk!"
"Aren't you one of those Black Merchants?"
"That's the misunderstanding I'm talking about—"
"Then why were you at that place?"
"Th-that is… explaining it would take quite a long time."
The Wolf king's murderous aura wrapped around Geumsan.
"Shut up. The only reason I'm not killing you is because I need a witness. So if you don't want to die, you'd best keep that mouth of yours shut."
"...!"
Geumsan realized that no matter what he said,
The Wolf king's resolve would not change.
'He's seriously misunderstanding everything…'
When lies are mixed into the truth,
Even the lie becomes truth.
It wasn't the Cheon Clan that was connected to the Black Merchants, but the Elders' Council—
Yet broadly speaking, that still meant the Cheon Clan.
Thus, the lie had effectively become the truth.
"It's nice and quiet."
The Wolf king cast a deep smile as he looked at Makgan Mountain looming nearby.
"You won't disappoint me, will you?"
Having already seen the sword of Cheon Clan's eldest young master, Cheon Muyang, the Wolf king's expectations were high.
Crack!
Crack, crack!
Rolling his neck, wrists, and ankles to loosen up, the Wolf king's competitive spirit was already blazing.
"Let's hurry."
Geumsan felt like he was walking toward his grave.
Thus, the Wolf king and Geumsan arrived at Makgan Mountain.
"There."
From the moment he stepped into the foothills, the Wolf king seemed excited.
He could feel the vibration of a sword calling out to him.
"You there. Don't run—stay and watch. Got it?"
"Y-yes."
Geumsan felt conflicted.
'Does he just want to fight… or is he here to pass judgment on the Black Merchants? I can't tell at all.'
Maybe it was both.
"Too much trouble. Let's take a shortcut."
Hoo-woong!
The Wolf king casually swung his blade.
Each swing carved out a path.
He cut through the undergrowth and pressed forward.
When there was nothing left to cut—
"So you are the Wolf king?"
The Wolf king came face to face with Cheon Wigang.
It was a perfectly open clearing.
Swinging his right arm loosely, the Wolf kingleveled his great blade.
Chak!
"I am the Wolf king."
"...!"
Geumsan covered his mouth.
The boundless fighting spirit erupting from the Wolf king's entire body was overwhelming.
"To meet the renowned head of the Cheon Clan, whose name shakes the martial world—this is an honor."
The Wolf king provoked him with his whole being.
Twitch.
Muscles that looked ready to burst bulged across the Wolf king's body, as if he might charge at any moment.
Seeing this, Cheon Wigang's own aura flared.
"Conversation can wait until after."
Cheon Wigang's firm resolve was like an iron fortress.
"Oh?"
A strange light entered the Wolf king's eyes.
Worthy of his reputation.
"I'm glad we understand each other."
Shiiing!
The Wolf king's great blade moved.
It carried the weight of a moving boulder—yet it was anything but dull.
'A tree branch?'
To Geumsan, watching from nearby, the great blade looked no different from a branch.
The blade advanced lightly.
With a sharp sound that tore through the air, it lunged toward Cheon Wigang.
"A fine blade."
Yet Cheon Wigang did not retreat.
His sword—far thinner and slimmer than the Wolf king's great blade—moved straight forward.
Kwaaaang!
Sword and blade met at a single point in midair, and the resulting thunderous roar shook the entirety of Makgan Mountain.
Kang, kaaang!
Light yet heavy—
An unbroken flow of sword and blade continued.
"Ah…"
Though Geumsan had never learned martial arts, he could still feel it.
'This is a fierce battle of wits.'
The fact that the exchange never broke—
Meant that both men were perfectly reading each other's thoughts.
Kaaang!
The instant that balance broke,
The flawless exchange would shatter.
In mere moments, they traded hundreds of blows.
The Wolf king, who had been pressing relentlessly, could not help but admire the iron-wall defense that never yielded.
'So this really is the Cheon Clan's Iron Wall…'
Ordinarily, once someone became the head of a clan, they could not help but neglect martial arts .
Thus, the Wolf king had assumed he would hold the advantage—but Cheon Wigang was different.
'Perfectly evenly matched.'
Tingle.
The hairs all over his body stood on end.
The Wolf king had always loved this sensation.
Having lived his entire life on the boundary between life and death, clashing with the strong was as natural to him as breathing.
"Let's see…"
Boom!
The Wolf king's flow changed.
"Let me see if you enjoy a chaotic brawl as well."
He forcibly twisted the meticulously maintained rhythm.
"...!"
A completely different kind of blade rushed in.
Yet Cheon Wigang did not step back.
The title of Iron Wall was not one granted to those who retreated.
Kwa-ga-ga-gaang!
The surrounding area was utterly devastated.
The ground split apart.
The sky seemed to collapse.
Between heaven and earth, there were only the two of them.
Drip.
Drip, drip.
Blood fell onto the ravaged land.
The Wolf king's smile deepened.
"Khehehe. This really is fun."
Pain twisted through his internal organs, but it was familiar to him.
"Hmm…"
Cheon Wigang was bleeding as well.
The pain, felt after so long, was strangely welcome.
'How long has it been?'
The clash with the Wolf king stirred the blood of a warrior that had been hidden behind the Iron Wall.
"Come."
"Ha, of course. Now it's getting interesting."
The Wolf king had no intention of resting.
Grrrrk!
His great blade scraped against the ground as it surged forward once more.
Kuuuung!
The collision of two warriors who had reached the realm of Hwagyeong continued.
Perhaps because their concentration had reached its absolute limit—
Neither of them sensed the darkness gathering around Makgan Mountain.
***
Geumsan was the witness to this duel.
The duel between the two—so evenly matched that neither could dare seize the upper hand—was finally beginning to draw to a close.
Hoo-woong!
The cries of sword and blade intertwined.
In that instant, heaven and earth split apart.
A path ascending to the heavens opened.
Swords and blades filled that space, flying toward one another.
"...!"
Geumsan clenched his teeth.
Blood flowed from his lips.
It felt like the only way to keep himself from losing consciousness.
Kkadeuk.
'I have to endure...!'
He forced his eyes wide open and watched.
At that moment, Geumsan doubted his own sight.
'Why are there two swords?'
He saw two swords.
It was no illusion.
When he opened his eyes again—
Geumsan saw a single dragon ascending through the sundered heavens.
"Ah...."
At the same time,
Geumsan lost consciousness.
Thud.
His body collapsed.
The sundered sky slowly closed once more.
At its center, three people stood unmistakably present.
"You...."
"...."
The Wolf king and Cheon Wigang stared at the sudden intruder.
"Neither of you has a reason to fight."
It was Cheon Muyang.
"All of this... is a misunderstanding."
Trickle.
Blood ran from the corner of his mouth.
When beasts fought, if an interloper stepped in, instinct dictated that they would first join forces to kill the intruder.
And the Wolf king and Cheon Wigang surpassed the very category of beasts.
The fact that he hadn't died instantly was a blessing in itself.
"How did you...."
The Wolf king could not hide his astonishment.
Even if he hadn't used his full strength, it had been a blow sufficient to decide victory or defeat.
'You blocked that?'
Not merely blocked it—
Hadn't he even redirected Cheon Wigang's sword strike skyward?
Cheon Muyang smiled at the Wolf king.
"Didn't I tell you that day? That I wouldn't hold back either—so it'd be better for you to go all out."
"Insolent brat."
"Tch. The excitement's faded."
Cheon Wigang spoke casually, but inwardly he was shaken.
'He read it perfectly. That sword… it is the Cheon Clan's sword, yet not one I know.'
It felt as though his blade had been completely unraveled.
Otherwise, how could the flow of his sword have been twisted so naturally?
'It isn't Seonhak's sword either.'
That left only one conclusion.
'Is that… your sword?'
In the Heavenly Dragon Archive, Cheon Muyang must have obtained a new sky of his own.
'A sword I could never obtain.'
To grow stronger, Cheon Wigang had been forced to give up much—and compromise much.
The price he paid was a rigid way of thinking.
As the one who had to master the sword that would be passed down through the Cheon Clan, Cheon Wigang had never been granted a free sky.
He did not regret it.
But—
'If only I could have remained a pure martial artist....'
He suddenly wondered.
What kind of sky—
What kind of sword—
He might have obtained.
"But you say it's a misunderstanding. What exactly do you mean by that?"
"...."
Cheon Muyang, seemingly at his limit, finally sank to the ground.
"Hoo...."
Only after taking several deep breaths did he seem to regain some composure.
"Someone deliberately lured you to Hangzhou, Wolf king."
"Who? And why?"
"A lackey of the Demonic Cult, most likely. They probably hoped for mutual destruction."
"Khahahahaha. You sure spin your nonsense with conviction."
The Wolf king roared with laughter.
Cheon Wigang's gaze sank deeply.
This was not something he could simply dismiss.
"If it's nonsense or not, you can verify it yourselves."
"What did you say?"
Without even looking at the Wave King, Cheon Muyang spoke to Cheon Wigang.
"Family Head, this place is a trap."
"But didn't you say their goal was mutual destruction?"
Since victory between him and the Wolf king had not been decided, wouldn't that goal remain unfulfilled?
"If their goal is mutual destruction... then wouldn't it suffice to make it so?"
Flinch!
Only then—
Did the two of them realize.
That they could not sense a single living presence anywhere nearby.
"Do you understand now?"
After steadying his breathing several more times, Cheon Muyang forced himself back to his feet.
"You are already inside the trap."