Chapter 570: Survived Thanks to That Imagination
Lee Ahn conveyed her honest feelings to Geom Mugeuk.
―I’m afraid I might mess things up if I handle it my way.
It was Geom Mugeuk who knew her better than anyone else. If left alone, she would have handled matters better than anyone, without a hint of fear. But now that the Young Cult Leader was watching her, it became a burden. The pressure to perform well was surely weighing on her too.
―Lee Ahn, what was your weakness again?
―Even in such an urgent situation, wouldn’t my weakness be this pretty face of mine and this carelessness that wants to joke about it?
―Nine tails and carelessness don’t quite go together, do they?
―Then what do you think my weakness is?
Lee Ahn was curious to know what Geom Mugeuk thought her weakness was.
―Your weakness is me.
Caught off guard by the unexpected answer, Lee Ahn was startled.
―You mean, Young Cult Leader?
―Yes, it was me. The sense of duty and self-sacrifice to protect me—those were the greatest weaknesses in your life.
Lee Ahn’s eyes trembled slightly as she looked at Geom Mugeuk. She knew it too. That was why Geom Mugeuk had taken her off guard duty and appointed her as the Tenebrous Ghosts Corps Leader. Of course, that was merely Geom Mugeuk’s stance.
‘The sense of duty to protect the Young Cult Leader has always been the driving force of my life. And that hasn’t changed much even now.’
Geom Mugeuk’s voice transmission continued.
―The second weakness was your lack of internal energy. But that has been resolved. The third was experience, but since you’ve been operating independently recently, I believe you’ve made up for much of it.
Geom Mugeuk understood that what Lee Ahn needed now wasn’t a clue on how to handle the current matter. So what if she made a mistake? So what if she took a roundabout path? He was there to protect her. That alone would be a great learning experience for her.
What she truly needed now was this.
―Do you know how strong you are?
With her weaknesses compensated for, she had reached great mastery of the Soaring Sword Art.
―How strong am I?
Geom Mugeuk's gaze turned toward Pyo San standing in the distance, then to Bang So.
―Those kinds of people aren’t even worth comparing. The Seven Instructors of Golden Dragon Martial Hall? Senior Instructor? Comparing them is just underestimating the Soaring Sword Art.
Even those she hadn’t yet met were already beneath her.
―If I were to speak of your strength, I’d have to ask this instead.
Geom Mugeuk paused briefly before continuing.
―How many sword forms would it take you to kill the Golden Dragon Hall Master here?
She hadn’t yet fought against true masters, so she didn’t know her own strength. The stronger her opponent, the more clearly she would understand how strong she was.
Geom Mugeuk instilled in her the greatest confidence he could.
―Lee Ahn, this martial world is now yours.
For Lee Ahn, that was allowed. She was not someone who would grow arrogant in any situation.
Lee Ahn’s pupils trembled. It must have been the first time in her life she’d heard something like that.
―I already can’t take the pressure here. How much would it be for this martial world?
The fact that she could joke meant her tension had finally eased.
Lee Ahn nodded as she looked at Geom Mugeuk. Her gaze said it all.
‘Yes, Young Cult Leader. I’ll give it a try.’
While the two exchanged words through voice transmission, the instructor, Pyo San, had already begun pairing people up for the sparring duels.
As expected, Geom Mugeuk was paired with Lee Ahn, and Bang So was matched with Seo Jin.
Geom Mugeuk had no doubt.
‘So he really intends to kill.’
Bang So, who had killed Im Hyeon, just happened to return today, and just happened to be paired with Seo Jin. There was no way such coincidences were truly coincidental.
If the duel proceeded as is, Bang So would undoubtedly kill Seo Jin. Unless she used Ghost Art from the beginning, Seo Jin’s current martial skills weren’t enough to match his.
‘Lee Ahn, what will you do?’
He thought she would find some excuse to switch partners and face Bang So herself.
But for some reason, Lee Ahn just watched in silence.
“Structured sparring consists of three stages: attack, block, and counterattack. New recruits who haven’t learned yet, follow along with the demonstration!”
The ones demonstrating were the most senior members of the White Dragon Class, Yu Gwang and Gyo Seok.
“Be careful not to hurt each other and begin!”
Yu Gwang and Gyo Seok began their structured sparring.
They blocked thrusts aimed at predetermined targets, then switched roles as the other launched their attack. Sword met sword in a fluid, rehearsed exchange.
As the two drew closer, Yu Gwang whispered.
“Something’s about to happen.”
“Shh! Be quiet!”
“I’ve got a bad feeling.”
“Please!”
Even at the heart of that ominous feeling, the rehearsed movements continued.
Bang So was waiting for the perfect moment to kill Seo Jin. After killing her, he would immediately flee this place.
The higher-ups would handle the aftermath. With a fake corpse tossed off a cliff, the madman from the White Dragon Class would be written off as dead.
‘Goodbye!’
Just as he was about to kill her with his next move, Bang So’s eyes widened in shock.
Something was stuck to the back of his sword hand.
The moment he realized what it was, a scream escaped him involuntarily.
“Uaaagh!”
It was a large centipede, gleaming in garishly vivid colors. There was no mistaking it. He could even feel its sickening texture.
Bang So wasn’t the kind of man who would scream at something like a centipede—but it had happened too suddenly. And the moment he saw those colors, he instinctively knew: this centipede was lethally venomous.
In the next moment, his body hurtled toward Seo Jin.
‘What the hell is this?’
His body wouldn’t obey. An invisible force was binding and driving him forward.
“Uaaaargh!”
At Bang So’s scream, everyone stopped moving and turned to look at him.
To onlookers, Bang So appeared to be charging at Seo Jin, shrieking wildly. It looked for all the world like he had snapped, reliving past trauma in a fit of madness.
Swish!
Bang So’s sword grazed past Seo Jin’s face.
And in that exact moment—
Pook!
Seo Jin’s sword pierced his heart.
As Bang So tried to swing his sword again, Seo Jin yanked hers free and retreated backward.
Papapapak.
Blood sprayed in all directions as Bang So collapsed on the spot. Even in the moment of his death, he couldn’t understand what had just happened.
In his dimming, chilling gaze, the centipede that had clung to the back of his hand burst with a pop, scattering its multicolored glow in all directions. It was a sight visible only to him.
Several officials screamed. Those who had been far ran toward the scene; those who had been close retreated.
Of course, the one most shocked was Pyo San. When Bang So had first screamed and lunged, Pyo San had simply thought, Could he act this convincingly?
But in the end, Bang So had been killed so effortlessly by Seo Jin’s sword.
Pyo San stared at Seo Jin, his expression full of disbelief.
'Was she skilled enough to kill Bang So in a single strike?'
In truth, the centipede on Bang So’s hand had been a manifestation of Seo Jin’s Ghost Art.
Lee Ahn had sent a voice transmission to Seo Jin before the structured sparring began.
―Unit Leader Seo, can you make him scream using Ghost Art?
―Yes, I think I can.
Ghost Art of the Ghost Clan could show illusions of bugs crawling over one’s body—or even make it feel real.
The moment Seo Jin activated her Ghost Art, Lee Ahn used Void Telekinesis to hurl Bang So toward Seo Jin after subduing his body.
She believed she could pull it off—but she hadn’t been certain. If Geom Mugeuk hadn’t instilled confidence in her, she might never have attempted it.
There was also the final thread of faith—that Geom Mugeuk was watching.
In the end, startled by the Ghost Art and overwhelmed by Lee Ahn’s internal energy, he moved entirely under her control and lost his life.
Lee Ahn had turned their plan against them. They had intended to display Bang So killing Seo Jin in a fit of frenzy for all to see—but instead, Seo Jin was forced to kill Bang So in self-defense. It had become a justified stage for revenge—one the enemies themselves had unwittingly prepared.
“What on earth just happened?”
Pyo San asked Seo Jin, feigning confusion. No—he truly was bewildered.
Pyo San felt utterly cornered. He had only taken his eyes off the situation for a brief moment—yet that bastard had already moved to where the corpse was?
“There’s a coiled white snake!”
Then Lee Ahn spoke.
“Isn’t the organization that uses a white snake as its symbol in the martial world the White Snake Division?”
At the mention of the White Snake Division, murmurs spread among the officials. The White Snake Division was one of the most notorious mercenary groups in the martial world.
“Silence, all of you!”
Pyo San roared. The composure with which he had always addressed the officials had now shattered.
Pyo San walked over to Geom Mugeuk. Geom Mugeuk retreated, feigning a terrified expression.
“Who told you you could touch the corpse? Before the cause of death was even determined—who gave you that right?”
“Didn’t we all already see the cause of death?”
Pyo San’s expression hardened further.
“Right now, the question isn’t whether I touched the corpse or not, but why the White Snake Division is here in the White Dragon Class, isn’t that what we should be finding out?”
Geom Mugeuk, though pretending to be scared, had said all he intended to. And he even threw in an absurd joke.
“We’re the White Dragon, not the White Snake, aren’t we?”
Pyo San glared at Geom Mugeuk and coldly spat out,
“Pack your things and leave the martial arts hall immediately! We have no use for someone like you!”
Just then, Seo Jin stepped forward.
“That is an unjust punishment.”
Lee Ahn also objected to the unfair treatment. For her, it was only natural to speak up.
Yu Gwang, who had drunk with them the night before, suddenly stepped forward as well.
“That is unjust.”
When Lee Ahn stepped up, he had unconsciously shouted as well.
Pyo San exploded.
“You three—pack your things too!”
Gyo Seok’s expression darkened. Yu Gwang had stepped up before he could stop him. Gyo Seok hesitated. Should he speak or stay silent? Yu Gwang shook his head, silently telling him not to intervene.
‘You punk! How can I not step up when you do that?’
Gyo Seok stepped forward as well. Though he did step in, he chose a different approach.
“They are my peers and merely spoke out of youthful impulsiveness. Please forgive them.”
None of the other officials dared to step forward in such a heavy atmosphere.
Pyo San’s rage boiled. Things weren’t supposed to unfold like this. Even if they got tangled, it wasn’t supposed to be this messy.
“Everyone, stand down and await disciplinary action.”
At that moment, someone appeared on the scene.
“What’s going on here?”
The person who arrived was none other than Yeon Baekjin.
Pyo San felt a deep urge to scream. Of course, he did not show it. Instead, he respectfully bowed and reported the situation.
“There was an incident during sparring training.”
“Again?”
At that moment, Geom Mugeuk shouted.
“There was a member of the White Snake Division in the White Dragon Class!”
Truly, Pyo San had to restrain himself from running up and stabbing Geom Mugeuk in the heart right then and there.
Yeon Baekjin glanced briefly at the fallen corpse. Even at the mention of the White Snake Division, he didn’t show much reaction. What drew his attention was the opponent.
“Who was he sparring with?”
Seo Jin stepped forward.
“It was me.”
Yeon Baekjin looked at her.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes.”
He asked nothing further.
Yeon Baekjin’s gaze then shifted back to Pyo San.
“Since this incident occurred during your class, you’ll be the first to undergo investigation. Come with me.”
Pyo San’s face stiffened. There was no way Yeon Baekjin had just happened to stop by. That made Bang So’s death much clearer now.
'So he helped them.'
It was a situation that could easily be misunderstood.
Yeon Baekjin, walking ahead, glanced back at Pyo San.
“Do you intend to defy my order?”
“Not at all.”
Pyo San quietly followed behind him.
The two passed by the assembled officials as they walked.
Yeon Baekjin’s gaze momentarily drifted toward Seo Jin.
Trailing behind, Pyo San glared only at Geom Mugeuk.
'That bastard stirred everything up!'
And that infuriating face of Geom Mugeuk’s, pretending to be frightened and averting his gaze, only made him more detestable.
'Just you wait!'
The two departed, and then martial artists who appeared to be Yeon Baekjin’s subordinates came to collect the corpse.
“See? I told you something was going to happen.”
At Yu Gwang’s remark, Gyo Seok dragged him away. Just thinking about how his conspiracy obsession would flare up again gave him a headache.
With that, the officials all dispersed, and only three people remained at the site.
Lee Ahn carefully spoke to Geom Mugeuk.
“This was the best I could do. With my limited imagination, I couldn’t think of any other way to deal with the one who came to kill Unit Leader Seo.”
To that, Seo Jin expressed her gratitude to Lee Ahn.
“Thanks to that imagination, I survived.”
“It was also the first time the Tenebrous Ghosts Corps worked together to defeat an enemy.”
The two women looked at each other and smiled.
This was the life Geom Mugeuk wished for Seo Jin—to live in the martial world with good people like Lee Ahn, sharing laughter. It was also why he had come this far alongside Lee Ahn.
“What will you do now?”
At Geom Mugeuk’s question, Lee Ahn seemed to ponder for a moment.
“In structured sparring, we learned this: attack, block, and counterattack. We blocked the attack, so…”
Lee Ahn looked toward the distant buildings of the Golden Dragon Martial Hall and said,
“Now it’s time to counterattack.”