The Undefeatable Swordsman

Chapter 196. Eight Years of Hardship and Suffering (17)

Squelch!

Soon, Hye-Ryeong’s sword pierced the Blood Devil’s heart.

“This is the Iron Sword Baek Family’s sword.”

The Blood Devil’s eyes flew open as he fell to the ground.

Immediately, Do Mu-Sang, who had been hiding to attack at any moment, appeared.

“Dear, your cultivation has improved. Have you... broken through that wall?”

Before Woo-Moon and his grandfather returned to the family, the Baek Family’s strongest expert was a woman—none other than Hye-Ryeong. She was at the very peak of the Transcendent realm, only a single step from the Absolute realm, and yet that single step had been impossible to take for many years now.

Hye-Ryeong smiled bitterly at her husband’s question.

“As if it was that easy. I was able to glimpse over that wall during this time in prison, but as for breaking through... who knows if I’ll be able to do it in my lifetime?”

Ju-Ryeong picked up the Blood Devil’s sword and held it tight. “Unnie, congratulations on reaching the Absolute realm.”

“Mother, congratulations on reaching the Absolute realm!”

“How could you congratulate me on reaching the Absolute realm when I could barely see it? Don’t be like that. I’ll get embarrassed.”

“Let’s go now, dear. We’ve been in here for too long,” Do Mu-Sang said.

“Yes, we should.”

Led by Ju-Ryeong, the group walked out of the prison.

Squinting for a moment due to the bright sunlight, Ju-Ryeong arrived above ground just in time to meet face to face with Ye-Ye and the other elders for the first time in a while.

Ye-Ye, who had been the first to react and move to block the attack of the Blood Devils, had lost to the Blood Devils’ strange techniques and had been forced to fall back with internal injuries.

Ju-Ryeong smiled coldly.

“You’re a little late,” she said.

Baek Ye-Ye looked at Ju-Ryeong with a face filled with complex emotions, then bowed her head slightly.

“Still, I’m glad to see you’re safe.”

“You’re definitely better than your father. No, you are truly a great talent.”

Right as Ye-Ye was about to respond, Ju-Ryeong stopped her.

“We’ll go back in once this is over.”

As Ju-Ryeong walked away, Ye-Ye felt a strange sense of defeat. At the same time, a sense of relief washed over her.

When Ju-Ryeong and the others emerged from the prison, the Baek Family was a complete mess.

Blood was splattered everywhere, and the small group of Blood Devils were freely moving around and committing massacres.

While the Baek Family martial artists were all furious and rushed to fight the Blood Devils in front of them, they only added to the casualties.

Seeing her family members in that sorry state, Hye-Ryeong’s face distorted.

“You pathetic bastards! What are you doing?! Gather in one place as a unit, and flee no matter what if you encounter the enemy with less than ten people!”

All the Baek Family members were startled by the sudden sound of Hye-Ryeong’s voice. However, the years of respecting her orders to the letter were truly well ingrained in their flesh and bones. They immediately reacted as if she had never been imprisoned.

“Lion Fang Squadron Captain! Move toward the left and then head to the rear!”

“Iron Sword Ferocious Strike Battalion! Have you forgotten what the words “Ferocious Strike” mean?! Stop acting like fools and attack the enemy directly in front of you! Eagle Talon Squadron, climb the pavilion next to you and shoot them with your bows!”

Hye-Ryeong’s mouth issued orders without pause.

As she commanded, her husband, Do Mu-Sang, and the other members of her immediate family went to get weapons that they could use.

“All of you, stop using your sword techniques! Just watch your opponents’ blades and use your sword accordingly! Focus only on speed, not power!”

No one among the Baek Family had uncovered the complexities of the Blood Devils’ sword technique yet.

Moreover, none of them could use the Formless Sword like Hye-Ryeong, either.

However, Hye-Ryeong still ordered them to abandon their sword techniques.

Since the sword style of the Blood Devils was a perfect counter to their own, if they were to use their normal techniques and combinations, they would likely get caught up in the opponents’ unpredictable attacks and grow even more flustered.

Even if they didn’t understand the sword technique, it would still be easier to just react after simply watching the Blood Devil’s movements than to try to counter with the rigidity of the more powerful sword techniques they had learned.

Hye-Ryeong’s judgment was correct.

At first, they had a harder time compared to when they were using their sword techniques. However, as time passed, they gradually began to counter the Blood Devils’ attacks.

However, even if they knew how to deal with their opponent’s sword techniques, the Blood Devils’ cultivations were still far higher. So, even with their newfound knowledge, they still continued to suffer damage.

Ju-Ryeong signaled to her group to decide where each of them should go as she herself flew forward to attack the devils.

Ju-Ryeong, Hye-Ryeong, Do Mu-Sang, Jeon Yun-Seong.

All four of them were Transcendents.

If they hadn’t committed such evil deeds and had been imprisoned, they would have been able to stop the demons without much damage. The fact that their most powerful members were imprisoned was why the Baek Family had suffered so much at the hands of just ten Blood Devils.

After a little more time had passed, all the devils except for one had been eliminated.

The last remaining devil, one who had been fighting ten elders simultaneously, suddenly leaped upward, kicked the eaves of a pavilion, and flickered into existence in front of Hye-Ryeong.

‘An Absolute Master!’

Hye-Ryeong’s body stiffened with tension, her brain spinning at high speed.

How many of the Transcendents in the Baek Family could make a move at the moment? Was the opponent one who had only just broken into the Absolute realm, or was he a full-fledged master at the peak of the realm?

Although she had taken down many of the Blood Devils, she hadn’t even realized that one of them was an Absolute Master.

That was how thoroughly the opponent had hidden himself.

A laugh escaped the mouth of the vice blood demon of the opposing Blood Devils, the Left Devil.

“Hehehe. I only came to say hello today, so I guess I can’t play as much as I please.”

Hye-Ryeong fully focused on him, unable to move even a single fingertip.

If she wasn’t careful, the Baek Family could be finished right here and now!

Do Mu-Sang, who saw her crisis from a little distance away, kicked the ground with both feet and spun his spear, flying forward like a ballista bolt.

“Dear, let me take him, move back!”

Do Mu-Sang was the current Sect Master of the Cyclic Spear Gate, a martial sect that only ever had a single master and disciple at one time!

The Vortex Spear he unleashed to save his beloved wife spun toward the Left Devil like a fierce whirlwind.

“The husband of the heroine. Keke, you should be enough for a greeting.”

The Left Devil’s empty gaze flashed with murderous intent.

Suddenly, chills rushed down Hye-Ryeong’s spine.

“No, don’t!”

“Blood... show me your blood! Keuhaha!”

With a smirk, the Blood Devil moved his sword once, generating a bloody sword blast that shattered the vortex. Then, countless lines of blood seemed to be drawn all over Do Mu-Sang’s body as thousands of strands of sword qi exploded outward.

Do Mu-Sang looked at Hye-Ryeong.

“Dear... “

With this final word, he began to fall apart into chunks of flesh, starting from his feet all the way up to his mouth.

His body turned into thousands of pieces of flesh and blood that simply dropped to the ground.

“FATHER!!”

The guttural scream of a young man echoed through the air, and tears flowed from the eyes of Hye-Ryeong—someone famous for being cold and emotionless—as venom and thirst for vengeance filled every corner of her body and soul.

“YOU DEMON!”

Her qi exploded as she bolted forward. However, the Left Devil let out a strange roar and used his movement art to flee.

“I’ll be back in an hour to kill you all. Make sure you struggle! Run away if you can! Hahahaha!”

Hye-Ryeong knew she couldn’t chase after the Left Devil as she hadn’t reached the Absolute realm yet. Eventually, she stopped, even tripping Do-Gun as he was trying to run past her.

Thud, thud, thud!

Do-Gun rolled on the ground. With bloodshot eyes, Do-Gun suddenly stood up and glared at Hye-Ryeong.

“Why are you stopping me, Mother?! We have to go after that beast to avenge Father!”

Smack!

Hye-Ryeong slapped Do-Gun on the cheek, her face red with anger.

“First, we have to think of a way for the Baek Family to avoid destruction! How do you think a brat like you can win against an opponent that killed your father like he was nothing?! Are you planning to end the lineage of the Cyclic Spear Gate, which was everything to your father, with you?”

Tears finally began to drip from Do-Gun’s eyes as he clenched his teeth.

“I’m sorry, Mother.”

Passing by Do-Gun, who was bowing his head, Hye-Ryeong went to where her younger sister, brother-in-law, and nephew were carefully picking up the pieces of flesh. Do Mu-Sang had been cut to pieces while he was in motion, so the bits were scattered everywhere. It was a gruesome task.

Crack!

Blood flowed from between Hye-Ryeong’s teeth.

“Leave him. The more urgent thing is to find a way to save ourselves right now.”

She called out to Ye-Ye, who was standing far away with a dark expression.

“Right now, we need to select four of our fastest warriors and send them out in all four directions.”

Ye-Ye immediately understood Hye-Ryeong’s intentions.

“Yes.”

Ye-Ye immediately turned around and gave orders for four warriors to run as far as they could using their movement arts in the four cardinal directions and escape the city. However, Ye-Ye and Hye-Ryeong, who were standing on the highest pavilion in the Baek Family and watching them leave, soon narrowed their eyes, their expressions hardening in a stone-like mask. The scouts were all turned to bits of flesh and bone before they could even leave Hefei.

They could have at least hidden themselves among the crowd and escaped if there were people walking around Hefei, but for some reason, no matter what commotion the enemy made, there were absolutely no people on the streets.

Considering all this, the imperial government definitely should have stepped in. However, the imperial government was silent.

The enemy had spread its net.

Most of the Baek Family planned to stay in their ancestral home and fight to the very end, while some were ordered to escape to prevent the lineage of the Baek Family from being severed. Yet now, it seemed neither path had anything at the end but death.

Half an hour passed as they debated their options.

“D-damn it. What should we do?” Dok-Du said.

However, no one responded to him.

The Song Family guards, including Ah Sam and Seol Jae-Hwa, silently cleaned their weapons.

Gwang Ryeok-Gwi and Rat were shivering under their blankets in fear. Dok-Du was just as terrified. Even now, thinking about the Blood Devils he had seen earlier made his stomach turn.

Just how did they kill the powerful warriors of the Baek Family like they were a joke and even relish in their blood?!

“Damn it! I should have run away a long time ago. I should have!”

They should have run away after Woo-Moon died. However, they had adapted to being warm and well-fed all the time while even being allowed to learn martial arts from the Baek Family. Naturally, they continued to make excuses and stay around, and now they were about to suffer for it.

“Rat, you bastard. I told you we had to run away!”

“W-who could have expected this, hyungnim? How could we have ever expected people to attack the Baek Family like this?” Rat replied, trembling.

The anxious Dok-Du chewed his fingernails.

However, no matter how he thought about it, there was just no way for them to escape.

He’d watched everything that just happened from a secret spot. Warriors with higher cultivations than he had run away in four different directions and then in sixteen different directions only to collapse to the ground, spewing blood.

‘If we’re going to die anyway...!’

Suddenly, Dok-Du flung open the door and ran outside, entering the room of the servants in front of him. Then, he went to a servant he had his eyes on, watching for some time, and confessed.

“We’re all going to die anyway! So, why don’t we sleep together just this once so we don’t have any regrets? Since we’re going to die anyway, why don’t we enjoy ourselves before we die?! I like you! What do you think?”

As the terrified servants looked at Dok-Du with bewildered gazes, a person suddenly appeared behind Dok-Du like a ghost and smacked him upside the head.

“You little brat, you haven’t changed at all. It seems I haven’t beaten you enough. My apologies. I will fix that soon.”

The moment he heard the voice, Dok-Du felt a shiver down his spine, as if lightning was piercing through him from his head to his feet.

‘That’s impossible! The Devil King?’

Dok-Du turned back with a pounding heart.

However, there was no one there.

‘What the hell was that? W-was... was that a ghost?’

He was horrified to think that the brat who had tormented him so much was following him even in death.

There was less than half an hour left.

The Left Devil’s deadline matched sundown.

Ye-Ye finally let out a gloomy sigh and lowered her head as she watched the sky slowly slip into twilight. Then, as she raised her head to look at the falling sun, Ye-Ye suddenly saw a person floating in the air.

“He... hey... what the...!”