"What will you give me if I can safely get Lee Jeong-gyeom out of Yoseong?"
'!?'
At my sudden question, Baek Hyang-muk frowned and stared at me.
It seems my words didn't quite hit home.
Staring at me intently for a moment, Baek Hyang-muk finally spoke.
"....Are you saying you can truly eliminate the Yoseong from that child?"
I nodded in response.
If it's a case of being possessed by the Baek (魄) of the Fearsome Killing Sword, then with the divine power of Cheon-gwon (천권), which can control thoughts (念), I should be able to return him to his original self.
After all, I could just absorb the Baek attached to Lee Jeong-gyeom.
"They told me the same thing too."
"But I assure you, this method is far safer."
At the very least, it's better than Hwanmadok (환마독, Demon-Corrupting Poison).
With that, one isn't freed from Yoseong, but rather becomes controlled by it.
Baek Hyang-muk looked at me, seemingly lost in thought.
Then he finally opened his mouth.
"Seeing the many mysterious things you, successor of the Sword Immortal, have shown so far, I don't believe it's just talk."
"So what will you do?"
"If you truly can remove the Yoseong from that child, then as long as it doesn't stray from the righteous path, I'll grant you anything."
"That kind of answer is too vague."
After all, what counts as the 'righteous path' is ultimately determined by people.
At this, Baek Hyang-muk raised his eyebrow.
His expression seemed to say:
— Is this guy really a successor of the Sword Immortal?
Sodam Sword giggled.
More or less, it seemed about right.
Still, even if I'm the Sword Immortal's successor, I've never officially joined the Daoist order.
I have the right to live how I want.
After a brief silence, Baek Hyang-muk finally said:
"Very well. As long as it's not something like indiscriminate slaughter of righteous sect members, I'll grant what you wish."
He was subtly criticizing me for killing Murong Soo, the head of Hwangryongdang, and the young elites.
Clearly, he's still very uncomfortable about that matter.
To that, I replied sharply:
"I did it to counter their threats. But your disciple has killed far more people in cold blood."
At that, Baek Hyang-muk fell silent.
How funny it is, trying to beat me in an argument when you have more flaws yourself.
In the end, Baek Hyang-muk had no choice but to promise to grant me whatever I wanted.
"A wise choice."
"....If it means I can heal my disciple, I will endure anything as his master."
But I'm not a doctor, and 'healing' is a bit…
Ah!?
Suddenly, something flashed through my mind.
It was the All-Purpose Divine Physician (만사신의).
While most of my other doubts had been resolved, I still couldn't understand why the All-Purpose Divine Physician carried the Jade Medallion of Killing-Heart Desperation (살흉 절심의 각패).
Was there ever a time that Killing-Heart Desperation had been injured or had the need for such a thing?
Neither the original wielder of the Fearsome Killing Sword nor Lee Jeong-gyeom had any such connection.
"Why the sudden silence?"
Baek Hyang-muk asked, puzzled by my furrowed brows.
I stared quietly at him and recalled what Baek Hyang-muk once said:
[The personality trapped by Yoseong was still alive, regathering strength and waiting for the right time.]
From that, one doubt arose.
Let's say everything that happened was caused by the personality under Yoseong's influence.
Baek Hyang-muk said he didn't remember when Lee Jeong-gyeom's personality had changed.
But it wasn't just a brief switch—during that time, he committed mass slaughter, even murdering another one of his masters.
And yet he never questioned those missing memories?
I asked Baek Hyang-muk:
"Has Lee Jeong-gyeom ever questioned himself or asked anything about his own actions?"
"What do you mean?"
Baek Hyang-muk's expression stiffened as he realized what I was getting at.
"Back then, the All-Purpose Divine Physician had the Jade Medallion of Killing-Heart Desperation. I didn't think much of it at the time, but isn't that strange?"
At that, Baek Hyang-muk's pupils trembled.
Ignoring it, I pressed on.
"What if Lee Jeong-gyeom sought out the All-Purpose Divine Physician and asked him to block the effects of Yang Internal Energy techniques (Yang-ui-shin-gong) or took some preventative measure?"
In a trembling voice, Baek Hyang-muk said:
"You mean the child has always been under the control of that Yoseong-possessed personality?"
---
At the same time.
A masked man was darting through the forest, carrying someone slung over his shoulder.
He stopped in a secluded area, checked the surroundings with his qi sense, then gently set the person down.
That person was none other than Lee Jeong-gyeom—the disciple of Baek Hyang-muk and heir of Cheongryongdang.
The masked man pulled something out from his sleeve.
It was a set of long acupuncture needles coated in a sticky liquid.
'Let's begin.'
He sat Lee Jeong-gyeom upright and attempted to insert the needles into his head's acupuncture points.
But right then—
Snap!
Someone grabbed his wrist.
It was Lee Jeong-gyeom himself.
The masked man's eyes narrowed.
"You… how did you undo the acupoint seal?"
Craaaack!
Without a word, Lee Jeong-gyeom tried to twist the masked man's wrist.
"You insolent—!"
The masked man struck toward his back.
Lee Jeong-gyeom pushed against the ground with his palm and flipped backward a full length.
Spinning mid-air, he launched a kick toward the masked man's head.
Thwack-thwack!
But the masked man easily blocked the kick and even countered.
Dozens of afterimages flashed from the masked man's dazzling palm techniques.
Lee Jeong-gyeom retreated quickly using footwork to widen the distance.
'This guy… even without a sword, he's this skilled?'
The masked man could feel Lee Jeong-gyeom's martial power was at a transcendental level, but still manageable.
Yet he had blocked and dodged every move.
'Then how about this?'
The masked man dashed forward in a blink.
With lightning speed, he thrust a strike directly at Lee Jeong-gyeom's face.
It was so fast that dodging it should've been impossible.
Yet—just before the strike landed, Lee Jeong-gyeom slightly tilted his head back and narrowly evaded it.
'This brat…?'
As if he had known the exact moment it would hit.
Seeing the icy, sharp gaze fixed on him, the masked man felt chills crawl over his skin.
He instinctively jumped back to gain distance.
'Could it be…?'
Just as that thought struck him, Lee Jeong-gyeom suddenly charged straight at him.
***
I nodded at Baek Hyang-muk, who had reached the same conclusion.
Baek Hyang-muk, seemingly mentally shaken, even staggered a little.
To him, I spoke as if trying to console him.
"It's not certain."
"What do you mean by that?"
"We can't be sure that the Deadly Spirit Plaque obtained by Mansashinui was necessarily obtained from Lee Jeong-gyeom."
The only one who knew the exact truth was Mansashinui.
Depending on when he obtained the plaque, it could have belonged to either the first or second generation of Jeolshim.
But there was really no need to verify it.
"Besides, even if he's been possessed by that personality all this time, it doesn't change anything. If we remove the evil spirit, he should return to his original self."
Baek Hyang-muk, who had been frozen in shock, spoke.
"Is that really possible?"
"If we remove the evil spirit."
As long as we absorb only the baek (魄), he should return to normal.
The only concern was that, having been possessed for so long, he might no longer be in his right mind.
We'd have to wait and see.
Looking at me, Baek Hyang-muk spoke with a voice full of resolve.
"I'll trust you."
If I don't live up to that trust, I'll deeply disappoint him.
Then Baek Hyang-muk frowned and said to me:
"Ah!"
"What's wrong?"
"We should hurry. They might change their plans and go after Jeong-gyeom sooner now that they think the old man is dead."
"I see."
He had a point.
With that, I pulled out the all-purpose pocket from inside my robes and reached in.
What I retrieved was the Namcheon Iron Sword.
Baek Hyang-muk's eyes widened in amazement, as always when he saw it.
Since I was returning to the Murim Alliance, I had to return as the Small Sword Immortal.
'Namcheon.'
—Understood.
The Namcheon Iron Sword floated in the air for flying sword movement, revealing the blade.
I stepped onto the sword.
Then I said to Baek Hyang-muk:
"We need to hurry, so I'll go first."
"Understood."
As soon as he replied, I soared into the sky on the Namcheon Iron Sword.
It was far faster than using lightfoot techniques.
A master of Baek Hyang-muk's level would be able to catch up before long, even if not by flying sword.
Whoosh!
I flew at a tremendous speed through the night sky.
In less than a quarter-hour, I could already see the Murim Alliance fortress and nearby villages in the distance like tiny dots.
It was only natural, since I was flying in a straight line over the mountains.
I thought I'd arrive soon—but then I had to stop.
'Namcheon. Stop.'
—What's wrong?
The sword halted immediately at my command.
I lowered my head and looked down.
An intensely sharp energy was openly exuding murderous intent toward me.
Looking down, I saw a small human figure.
'He noticed me.'
That small figure below had deliberately revealed their energy, as if to let me know they were watching me despite my high altitude.
If it were ordinary energy, I might've ignored it—but this was no ordinary energy. It was powerful enough to rival a superhuman.
Someone like that emitting hostility—I couldn't just pass by.
'I have to go down.'
—Understood.
Riding Namcheon, I flew down toward the figure.
When I got close enough, I jumped off the sword.
A silhouette sat on a rock, arms crossed.
The clouds parted, and the moonlight revealed the figure's face.
"Lee Jeong-gyeom."
It was none other than Lee Jeong-gyeom.
Though I didn't show it outwardly, I was shocked inside.
I couldn't believe how he had hidden such strong energy all this time.
He was nothing like his usual drowsy, lazy self.
Now, he was sharp and dangerous.
I said to him:
"You've done a good job hiding yourself."
At my words, Lee Jeong-gyeom scoffed.
He was completely different from the man I used to know.
At the very least, it was clear he was now overtaken by the baek of the Murderous Sword.
Lee Jeong-gyeom said to me:
"Thanks for coming outside the fortress and away from prying eyes."
"You talk like you were waiting for me."
"I was. You can't imagine what it feels like to be ignored for so long."
"Ignored?"
He chuckled at my words and said something cryptic.
"The time is ripe, and your usefulness has ended. Now die."
Pop!
Before he even finished speaking, his form blurred and appeared in front of me in an instant.
He thrust his sword finger toward my forehead at incredible speed.
The air seemed to tear, ready to pierce through everything.
But—
Clack!
His sword finger stopped just short of my forehead.
I had grabbed his wrist.
Boom!
Even though I caught it, the energy in his attack was so powerful that a fierce shockwave erupted around us, snapping and shaking nearby trees.
Crack! Boom! Boom!
'How could he hide this kind of power?'
It was unbelievable.
In terms of pure energy, he surpassed even Baek Hyang-muk, who had crossed the threshold of a superhuman.
How had he hidden it?
Even with heightened energy perception, this didn't make sense.
Then it happened.
'What?'
The energy in his arm began to dissipate.
As it weakened, he tried to break free and thrust at my forehead again.
I knocked it aside with my left hand and leapt back about five steps.
'Wasn't that the Murderous Sword's ability?'
He wasn't even holding a sword.
Then how did he dispel the energy?
As I pondered this, he taunted:
"If that's all you've got, I'm disappointed."
"You sure sound confident."
"Use your full strength. Otherwise, one small slip and you'll die."
Rooooar!
A monstrous killing intent burst from him.
It was the first time I'd ever felt murderous intent so tangible and real.
In an instant, he charged and unleashed a flurry of strikes.
Even without a sword, the sharp energy in his sword fingers made it feel like a master sword technique.
Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh!
His bladeless strikes tore through the air with overwhelming force.
As Baek Hyang-muk had described, there wasn't a single opening.
So I used Pungyeongbo (Wind Shadow Step).
Swish!
My form scattered like mist and reappeared behind him.
Noticing this, he spun and countered immediately.
But my sword finger was faster.
Whoosh!
Aiming for his chest rather than the forehead—it would be fatal otherwise.
"Hmph!"
He quickly grabbed my wrist with his left hand, just as I had done.
Once again, the energy in my sword finger began to dissipate.
He grinned.
"Now you've learned touching me is poison."
"Then try dispersing this too."
"What?"
Before he could finish, I formed a fist with the hand holding him and struck forward with full force.
He tried to disperse the energy.
But his expression twisted in shock.
"Damn…"
Still holding his wrist, my punch slammed into his chest.
Boom! Crash! Crack! Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!
His body flew like a cannonball, smashing through dozens of massive trees.
Sodam Sword, surprised, asked me:
—What did you do?
What do you mean, "what did I do"?
I didn't hold back and hit him with everything I had.