Chapter 106 : True Education (2)

Chapter 106: True Education (2)

Everyone, including Sewoon, had exited the room and was now moving through a labyrinthine passage.

Watching the Young Successors sharpen their senses in case he tried to harm Namgung Baek, Sewoon smirked beneath his mask.

‘Hook, line, and sinker.’

In truth, it was Sewoon himself who had played the villain to create this very atmosphere.

Before a common enemy, allies would inevitably unite as one.

At that moment, Yu Jinhak’s final words resurfaced vividly in Sewoon’s mind.

“After I’m gone, please take care of the next wave that will lead the coming generation.”

Indeed. The reason Sewoon had summoned them all to one place was to form a combat unit for a secret mission.

A unit known only to Yu Jinhak within the Murim Alliance, dedicated to gathering intelligence on the Blood Cult from the shadows and executing those involved.

No one in the Alliance aside from the Alliance Leader could command them, and when there was undeniable evidence of involvement with the Blood Cult, immediate execution was permitted.

And this combat unit, named and entrusted to Sewoon as its leader by Yu Jinhak, was—

The Jecheon Unit (齊天隊).

Like the Great Sage Equal to Heaven who aided the Tang Monk and brought peace to the world, this unit was meant to bring peace to the jianghu.

‘……To think I’d inherit this name.’

Sewoon had been stunned when he first heard it.

Because, in his previous life, this was the very unit that the Blood Cult feared most—and desperately sought to annihilate.

What’s more, the man who led the Jecheon Unit back then was none other than—

‘The Sword Star, Namgung Baek.’

Yes, the same Namgung Baek now standing before him.

Defying Namgung Myeong, who had splintered the Alliance and gone rogue, Namgung Baek had left his clan and led the Jecheon Unit under Yu Jinhak’s command. Through life-and-death missions, he became one of the greatest swordsmen of his era.

But when Yu Jinhak was assassinated, Namgung Baek took the entire Jecheon Unit underground and, years later, founded a new organization with like-minded individuals.

‘That was the Anti-Blood Alliance.’

One of the Three Alliance Leaders of the Anti-Blood Alliance:

The Sword Queen, Do Ha-yeong

The Heavenly Battle Divine Beggar, Jang Sopyeong

And finally…

The Thunder Wheel Sword Star, Namgung Baek.

Knowing his nature, Sewoon had named Namgung Baek as one of the core members of the unit.

Sewoon held full authority over personnel in the Jecheon Unit.

Even Yu Jinhak hadn’t expected the suggestion, his surprise clearly visible. Yet, he fully supported Sewoon’s decision.

Sewoon stole a glance at Namgung Baek’s expression.

With his mask removed, Namgung Baek’s face was clouded with heavy concern.

It wasn’t hard to guess why.

Drawing one’s sword against their own father—how could such a resolve come easily?

Even Sewoon felt a flicker of sympathy for him.

‘But that doesn’t mean I can go easy on him.’

He quickly steeled his heart.

In the coming war against the Blood Cult, even such sentiments would be a luxury.

Sewoon intended to show them the cold and brutal reality they would soon face.

Clack.

Just then, they arrived at their destination.

“…Where is this place?”

Surin blinked as she scanned the area.

It was an entirely different space.

At the center stood a massive martial arena, but what was truly astonishing was that the walls, ceiling, and floor were all surrounded by water gates.

It was clear at a glance that this place had been designed solely for training.

Thanks to the water gates acting as buffers and sound absorbers, it was unlikely that any noise or shockwaves would escape this space.

While the group was still marveling and glancing around—

Step, step.

Everyone’s eyes widened like lanterns.

Sewoon, without hesitation, stepped up onto the arena.

As the Young Successors’ gazes focused on him, Sewoon reached behind his back—

Thoom!

A heavy boom echoed throughout the chamber.

From beneath his blood-colored robe, a steel cudgel, roughly 120 centimeters long, revealed itself.

Everyone was startled.

Due to the Fist Qi, they had assumed he was definitely a fist practitioner, but suddenly a staff had appeared.

“A mad dog needs a club.”

Sewoon declared boldly, slamming the cudgel’s tip onto the platform.

Looking more like a trickster from the unorthodox sects than anything else, the Young Successors let out exasperated sighs.

‘He’s going to keep acting like that to the end.’

‘…Just why would the Alliance Leader appoint someone who doesn’t even grasp basic manners as a squad leader?’

Despite the Alliance Leader’s solemn orders, the more they looked at him, the more their anger bubbled to the point they thought it might kill them.

Among them, Ha-yeong managed to stay composed and spoke up.

“Haa… Then, we’ll discuss the order in which we’ll take turns fighting you and inform you—”

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

“…Pardon?”

Startled by Sewoon’s sudden comment, Ha-yeong faltered.

“Don’t act like idiots. Come at me all at once.”

Now, everyone was truly shocked.

There wasn’t even a hint of falsehood in Sewoon’s voice.

Jang Sopyeong blinked in disbelief.

“You’re saying… you’ll take all of us on at the same time?”

“Is there another meaning to ‘all at once’?”

“Well, if that’s the case, you should at least join up with that fellow over there—”

“He only knows how to use Lethal Sword Techniques. Well, if you lot want to die early, be my guest.”

When Jang Sopyeong pointed to Nameless, standing silently to the side, Sewoon cut him off without hesitation.

At Sewoon’s declaration, the Young Successors exchanged glances.

In a battle of life and death, none of them could match a fully mastered Transformation Realm opponent.

The difference in levels beyond the Transformation Realm was absolute.

However, if it was a duel, their side still had a fighting chance.

Starting with Do Yecheon, who had just stepped into the Transformation Realm, there were several others who had reached the upper tier of the Supreme Peak Master Level.

And if they added Surin of the Shrine Maiden Sect, who specialized in unique spell arts, and Tang Serin of the Sichuan Tang Clan, skilled in poisons and hidden weapons—

A spark of hope lit up in their eyes.

Originally, their goal wasn’t to win, but to make it clear that they were not to be underestimated.

But now… they felt they might actually be able to land a solid blow on that brazen man.

Just as the Young Successors' fighting spirit began to blaze—

“As your senior, I’ll graciously grant you the traditional courtesy of the Three Initial Techniques.”

Sewoon once again spewed mad nonsense.

To concede the First Three Moves was an act reserved for seniors with overwhelming skill who wished to impart a lesson to their juniors.

It meant that during the opponent’s opening three moves, they would only defend, refraining from any counterattacks or offense.

Grit.

Grinding his teeth loud enough to be heard, Successor Beggar Jang Sopyeong was the first to step onto the stage.

“Thanks for the courtesy. I’ll make sure you regret it.”

Following him, all nine stepped onto the martial arena.

Srrng!

Clang!

The Young Successors each drew their personal weapons from within their robes.

At that same moment, the nine moved in perfect sync, forming a battle formation.

Vanguard: Jang Sopyeong, Peng Daeho, Do Yecheon

Center: Nam Mujin, Namgung Baek, Do Ha-yeong

Rear: Seo Surin, Peng So-hye, Tang Serin

Though they had never fought as a team before, each one intuitively knew where they belonged on the battlefield.

Naturally so.

Each of them was a top-tier elite backed by the full support of the Nine Sects One Gang and the Seven Great Clans.

Ssskkkkt!

Though their formation wasn’t even a proper Combined Formation, the mingling of their energies stirred the surroundings with an unusual aura.

But Sewoon—

“I’ll say this only once.”

He calmly withstood a pressure that would’ve overwhelmed even the most renowned experts of the jianghu.

“If you don’t want to die—come at me with full force from the first move.”

Alone, he faced the oncoming wave of momentum head-on.

Sssssss!

Rrrrummble!

A ferocious force erupted from Sewoon’s entire body.

It was the same energy he’d used earlier when he shattered the water wall.

Since he couldn’t use Reverse Heaven Qi on the Young Successors, he had stripped most of the poison from the Divine Poison Qi, leaving only the Evil Qi, and then mixed it moderately with Innate True Qi.

Because of that, it was fundamentally closest to unorthodox martial arts, yet it still retained a faint trace of the clarity found in orthodox techniques.

Crack!

Sewoon gripped the cudgel with force.

From his lower dantian, the Divine Poison Qi surged into the cudgel rapidly.

Truthfully, Sewoon was under a lot of constraints fighting them.

With Tang Serin watching, he couldn’t use any of the Sichuan Tang Clan’s martial arts.

Everyone already knew his primary weapon, so he couldn’t use Heavenly Thread either.

With Surin present, he couldn’t deploy the Flawless Heavenly Garment of the Shrine Maiden Sect.

And since this wasn’t a fight to the death, he couldn’t use One Point Kill.

Therefore—

‘Ugh… I didn’t want to use this because it reminds me of that crazy woman…’

Sewoon pulled out a martial art he had sealed away.

A Divine Art he had received in exchange for giving a Divine Artifact to the Ice White Demon Lord, Seori.

Crackkkkkk!

The four-foot-long cudgel in Sewoon’s hand began to be coated in white frost.

This weapon, weighing 80 geun (roughly 50 kilograms), was forged from the leftover metal after melting down the Frozen Shackles.

As his weapon began to reveal its hidden form, the Young Successors’ eyes widened in shock.

‘…W-Wait. It wasn’t a cudgel?!’

‘That’s—!!’

The power of the Ice White Divine Art, said to be mastered only by the master of the North Sea Ice Palace, was seeping into the Divine Poison Qi.

And at that moment—

Craack!

Srrng!

A massive, wide crescent-shaped ice blade formed at the top of the cudgel.

What Sewoon held was not a cudgel.

It was an axe handle.

A colossal Great Axe, one that looked like it belonged to a giant from legend, had taken shape.

‘Even the Silver Moon Great Axe, said to be the Heavenly Demon’s relic, wouldn’t match the beauty of this Ice Axe.’

Thud.

Yet, Sewoon lifted the frozen Great Axe with shocking ease.

That surreal sight left the Young Successors momentarily dumbfounded.

But only for a moment.

Fwoooosh.

As cold air engulfed the surroundings in an instant, they finally snapped out of it.

If you don’t want to die—come at me with full force from the first move.

Sewoon’s last words echoed in their minds.

‘Within the Three Initial Techniques…!’

‘We have to take him down!!’

Bam!

Tatata!

And at that moment, the Young Successors—all nine of them—rushed at Sewoon with their full might.