Chapter 22

One

'This is beyond what I expected.'

This was the first thought that came to Yushinyun's mind after all the battles had concluded.

The combat performance of the skeletons he had made into first-class warriors far exceeded his expectations.

These skeletons were on a different level from the third-class or second-class warrior skeletons.

Before the battle began, he had examined the enemies' martial arts levels, which seemed similar to those of the skeletons, so he had expected a match.

However, once the battle started, they displayed an overwhelming disparity and easily secured victory.

Was it because the combination of dark mana and inner energy triggered an unknown enhancement effect?

The skeletons' martial arts seemed to show a level of destructive power one step higher than their previous levels.

And among them,

'...Was it a swordsman? The destructive power is unbelievable.'

Yilang's martial arts were beyond imagination.

Yushinyun whistled as he saw the large crack created by the peak swordsman skeleton.

'Twelve Thunder Swords. And the Thunder Power Technique.'

After witnessing the destructive power of the high-level martial arts of a swordsman, he realized that the fortuitous event that had come to him was far more valuable than he had anticipated.

'Yes, the summoning skills are now on the right track at this rank, and it's time to step onto a new path.'

His mindset changed.

He thought about really learning martial arts properly as soon as he returned to the escort agency.

However, as mentioned earlier, that was not something he needed to do immediately.

He then extended his hand toward one side.

Whoosh!

With a beam of light, the last remaining body of Gunan Sheng gradually disappeared.

'Indeed, turning the enemy into my own is the most convenient method.'

With the battle over, it was time to reinforce his forces.

[A new summon has been added to your subordinates.]

[You have obtained the Skeleton Assassin, 'Peak Assassin'.]

Yushinyun rejoiced as he confirmed the system message that appeared before his eyes.

'Great. I've gained another peak warrior skeleton.'

Moreover, by a stroke of luck, the martial arts that Gunan Sheng possessed matched well with the new 'Assassin' class.

Yushinyun then dismissed all the skeletons who had completed their mission.

'Phew, now I can breathe a little easier.'

He thought this as he caught his breath, for the simultaneous consumption of inner energy and dark mana to maintain the summoning was starting to become burdensome.

'Now, what's left is...'

He turned his head.

Startled.

The remaining Jinmihuo twitched and jumped in surprise.

Seeing her, Yushinyun's eyes, which had been full of vitality, suddenly turned as cold as ice.

Thud, thud.

He began to approach her.

To Jinmihuo, it felt as if a grim reaper was approaching with a death warrant in hand.

'Why! Why can't my body move!'

Despite her desperate struggle, her feet remained rooted to the ground, as if glued to the floor.

However, it wasn't just out of fear.

Yushinyun had already used the 'Shadow Shackles' skill on her, which had the effect of restraining the enemy.

'You didn't tell me this mission would be so dangerous!'

Although many people had tried to stop her from leaving the manor, she had ignored them and left.

Her mind went blank, but she clung to her consciousness with determination.

'No, it's not over yet. I still have one move left.'

She thought this as she gently stroked her arm. At the same time, she composed her expression and began to act.

"...Brother Yushinyun, I was deceived by You Jinshang. How could I ever try to kill you?"

Yushinyun was speechless at her natural and smooth lie.

"We, we were in love, weren't we?"

He stared at her without a word.

His eyes were indifferent, as if looking at a bug or filth.

'How dare you, how dare you do this to me!'

She felt her blood boil at the same cold, condescending look she always gave to insignificant people.

However, she endured it to find a moment of Yushinyun's complacency.

"We can start over. It's not too late, even now."

She reached out to Yushinyun with a subtle hand gesture.

But contrary to her expectations, Yushinyun's words were completely different.

"Are you still torturing vagrants?"

A secret that no one except her father knew.

Jinmihuo's eyes trembled as if an earthquake had struck.

"How... how do you know... Huh!"

She quickly closed her mouth.

Realizing her fatal mistake, she quickly thought of a plan.

'I have to kill this guy. Even if I survive here, if my secret is revealed, I'm finished.'

In the next moment,

"Die!"

Swoosh!

From the hidden sleeve on her right arm, a purple poison mist was sprayed at Yushinyun.

The poison mist hit Yushinyun's face directly without him having a chance to dodge.

The hidden sleeve was a secret weapon given to her by the head of the Jin family for self-defense.

The poison hidden inside the sleeve was a deadly poison that could cause fatal injuries even to a first-class warrior.

"Ha ha ha! You fool! Watch your face melt, hah!"

Jinmihuo suddenly groaned, thinking her counterattack had succeeded.

Yushinyun had her by the throat, and she was struggling.

'How... how did this guy...?'

Yushinyun's face showed no change from his usual appearance.

The deadly poison had no effect on him.

Yushinyun's face was filled with a mocking smile.

'Do you know what rank my poison resistance skill is at, you fool?'

Due to the poison aura from the corpses that accumulated automatically when he extracted qi, his poison resistance skill had already reached B+ rank.

The poison from Jinmihuo was not weak, but it was far from breaking through the skill's defenses.

With a bluish complexion from lack of breath, she struggled to speak in a pleading voice.

"Ugh, b, brother."

"......The only thing I like about this world is..."

However, Yushinyun did not show mercy to his enemies.

He finished his words in a low voice.

"...that I don't have to care about the law when killing scum like you."

Whoosh!

The moment he saw the surge of energy from Yushinyun's body,

'No, no!'

She sensed her end.

Yushinyun extended a finger like a bolt of lightning and poked her body, then immediately used a skill.

"Accelerate Decay."

The moment he finished speaking, the dark mana surrounding Yushinyun poured into Jinmihuo's body.

The next moment,

'Ugh!'

Jinmihuo screamed in agony as intense pain coursed through her entire body.

The pain was so severe that the blood vessels in her eyes burst, but no sound came out of her mouth.

Yushinyun had pressed an acupoint.

'Pain! It hurts too much!'

She began to roll on the ground, her face a mess of tears, snot, and saliva.

The Accelerate Decay skill was originally used to destroy the corpses of large monsters, but Yushinyun often used it for other purposes.

Specifically, when he needed to torture an enemy.

The pain of living flesh decaying was incomparable to any other.

The most terrifying aspect of Accelerate Decay was that the caster could control the rate of decay.

Jinmihuo would die very slowly, experiencing pain a hundred or a thousand times worse than the torture she had inflicted on other victims.

'Ugh, ugh, kill... me.'

Jinmihuo, now a complete mess, begged for her life as she crawled on the ground.

Swoosh.

Yushinyun looked at her with no trace of sympathy.

He then removed the hidden sleeve from her arm and took it.

"I'll use this well."

He took out a wooden plaque and placed it in her clothes before turning his back on her coldly.

He quietly looked in the direction of the Baiyun Escort Agency.

And,

'Now, it's your turn, You Jinshang.'

He silently repeated these words to himself.

Two

"......What is the meaning of this?"

Despite You Jinshang's question, there was no response.

Guo Zhushan, the head of the Red Cloud Pavilion, and Xia Jian, the deputy head, who were gathered in You Jinshang's room, remained silent.

As the silence dragged on, You Jinshang's face turned red with anger, and he shouted.

"Why is no one saying anything! A few days ago, you said it was a mistake! Why is there no explanation now!"

A few days ago, the group from the Jin family, who were supposed to carry out the assassination, did not show up at the agreed time.

You Jinshang, who had replaced the guards with his own men and was fully prepared, spent the night wide awake.

Guo Zhushan and Xia Jian had explained that the Jin family must have made a mistake in their preparations.

However, today, an unexpected outcome unfolded.

A body was found on the road from Xiaoxing to Hangzhou.

It was the severely decayed body of a woman, as if it had been left for ten years.

The identity plaque found in the body's clothing revealed that the body was none other than Jinmihuo of the Jin family.

When this news broke, the head of the Jin family collapsed from shock and had not regained consciousness.

People were afraid to even speak of this bizarre incident, fearing they might be cursed.

However, You Jinshang was anxious for a different reason.

'They wouldn't bring their identity plaques with them on an assassination mission. The killer must have placed it there deliberately.'

What could be the reason for the killer to go to such lengths?

It was simple.

It was a silent threat, indicating that the killer knew exactly who the assassins were.

In other words, it was a warning from Yushinyun to You Jinshang.

His mouth felt dry with anxiety.

"Try to do something! Do something! If we don't, we really...!"

He almost blurted out, "We might lose the position of the national lord!" but his heart sank.

'I, I, to that pig!'

He bit his lips so hard that blood came out.

At that moment, Guo Zhushan, who had been watching You Jinshang with a mask-like expression, spoke in a whisper.

"......Young Master, stop worrying and go to the pleasure quarters today. Have a good drink."

Guo Zhushan's eyes, which had been calm, now glowed red.

You Jinshang's eyes became hazy, as if under a spell.

"......Yes, I need to have a drink."

He stumbled out of the room, dazed.

Once they were alone in the room, silence fell again.

Xia Jian cautiously spoke first.

"......I still can't believe it. I never thought Yushinyun would do something like this."

"......"

"Huh, it's really become a mess."

Guo Zhushan, who had been silent, responded in a low voice.

"A tangled rope can be cut."

Xia Jian was startled.

"......What do you mean?"

"What else could I mean?"

Guo Zhushan, who had been leaning back, spoke in a low voice.

"If a bug is hindering the grand plan of the sect, it must be eliminated, even if it means burning down a village."

"......!"

Xia Jian was shocked and looked into Guo Zhushan's eyes.

The eyes that had been calm now glowed with a bloodthirsty madness.

Xia Jian understood his superior's meaning.

Even considering the reduced power of the Baiyun Escort Agency, they intended to eliminate Yushinyun and his group.

'The Baiyun Escort Agency will soon be drenched in blood.'

Xia Jian couldn't help but smile slightly. He, too, was a man of blood.

At that moment, Guo Zhushan began to give specific orders.

"Have all the blood disciples in the underground prepare for the holy war. Once the date is set, we will act immediately."

"Understood!"

As Xia Jian was about to leave, Guo Zhushan added, as if he had forgotten something.

"Ah, and increase the intensity of the ritual being performed on Yushinyun to the maximum. It seems the effects are slowing down, as if he has developed resistance."

However, unfortunately, their plan was already off to a bad start.

Martial World Reincarnation Ranker