Chapter 83

## Chapter 83. Rather Us

Muyeong couldn't believe the reality unfolding before his eyes.

"It's unbelievable..."

Cheonyeong was the information and assassin organization he had nurtured for over ten years.

Although it was unknown in the martial world due to being a palace organization, he had always been proud that its capabilities were on par with the three major assassin organizations of the martial world.

Yet, the assassins of Cheonyeong were being slaughtered by a single man.

Swoosh!

An assassin's body split in half. From his left shoulder to his right waist, his insides and blood gushed out.

Thud!

Baek Su-ryong kicked the corpse, pushing it towards another assassin who was charging from the side.

The assassin's movements froze as his view was blocked.

In that moment, Baek Su-ryong, like a bolt of lightning, pierced through both the corpse and the assassin.

Pierce!

The assassin, whose abdomen was pierced, slightly opened his lips and shot out a poisoned dart. As an assassin trained to the extreme, he managed to launch a hidden weapon even in his dying moments without screaming.

However, Baek Su-ryong simply tilted his head to the side, easily dodging the dart.

At the same time, he pulled his sword to the side, completely severing the assassin's waist, and turned to extend his left palm towards another assassin falling from the ceiling.

Thud!

With a sound like a drum exploding, the assassin who had fallen from the ceiling was slammed into the wall.

Baek Su-ryong, who had caught the sword dropped by the assassin with his left hand, muttered to himself.

"Hmm. It's been a while since I used dual swords."

A short while later, the assassins facing him shouted inwardly.

'Don't lie!'

Despite claiming it had been a while, Baek Su-ryong wielded the dual swords with such skill that the distinction between left and right was meaningless.

The bloody sword qi danced around him.

The sight of Baek Su-ryong performing a sword dance with dual swords was so beautiful it could make one lose their breath.

However, with each continuation of the sword dance, someone's limbs were severed, and the room was filled with the overwhelming smell of blood.

When the assassins momentarily stopped their attacks, Baek Su-ryong smiled and looked at them.

"Assassins are only scary when you don't know they're coming. Once you know, they're nothing. Now, it's my turn."

And he charged.

Surprisingly, not a single drop of blood had stained his clothes.

Muyeong, seeing this, muttered to himself.

'This man... His martial arts are impressive, but he is also accustomed to killing.'

Even the most hardened martial artists from the dark side would feel disgusted when bodies piled up and the smell of blood permeated the air.

But this man's expression showed no change.

He was more insensitive to killing than the assassins and wielded his sword without a moment's hesitation. It even seemed like he was enjoying it.

'Where did such a monster come from...'

Muyeong gritted his teeth and summoned the Dark Shadow Stream.

If he continued to waste assassins, the very existence of Cheonyeong would be at risk.

Swish...

Muyeong's body gradually blurred as it blended into the surroundings. At the same time, he sent a mental message to the other assassins.

[Create an opening. I'll finish him.]

[Understood!]

Assassins, prepared to die with their mission, attacked Baek Su-ryong simultaneously from all directions, including the ceiling.

The space was too cramped, and their attacks interfered with each other, but the assassins didn't care.

After all, they were just bait; Muyeong would finish the job.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

Knives pierced the foreheads and hearts of the assassins who had forced their way into the narrow space. But they completed their mission to the end.

Crack...

Even as they died, they grabbed the blades with their hands, obstructing Baek Su-ryong's view.

Through the opening they created,

Muyeong slipped in like a ghost.

"Be careful! The other assassins' attacks are just bait!"

Heukyeong shouted, her eyes wide open.

While Baek Su-ryong was fighting the assassins, she hadn't just stood there with her eyes closed. She had focused her mind and freed her own meridians.

Now, as she stood up, she shouted.

"The real attack is from Muyeong!"

"It's too late."

Swish.

Muyeong's blurred form reappeared behind Baek Su-ryong.

He plunged his sword into Baek Su-ryong's back and laughed coldly.

"It's over."

The torn blue robe fluttered in the air, but Baek Su-ryong was nowhere to be found.

"It's over?"

"!!"

Muyeong, his eyes wide open, quickly turned his body and extended his left arm.

Baek Su-ryong, who had shed his robe, stood there.

"This is the end."

Crack!

Baek Su-ryong grabbed Muyeong's left arm and bent it in a direction it couldn't bend.

But even with his arm broken, Muyeong didn't give up. Instead, a venomous smile appeared on his face.

"Heh. You fell for it."

Extending his left arm first was Muyeong's trap. While his left arm was being bent, his right arm, which moved a beat later, aimed for Baek Su-ryong's chest.

Heukyeong screamed and ran over.

"Be careful! Muyeong's right arm is...!"

At that moment, a "click" sound came from Muyeong's right arm.

His palm opened, and dozens of poisoned darts were launched.

"See if you can say you knew about this in advance!"

This was Muyeong's last trump card!

Muyeong had no doubt about his victory.

In a short while, Baek Su-ryong would be a corpse riddled with dozens of holes from the poisoned darts.

But Baek Su-ryong's voice, which came again, plunged Muyeong into despair.

"Prosthetic arm? Of course I knew. I didn't know it was poisoned darts, though."

With a mocking laugh, Baek Su-ryong's figure blurred again.

'Afterimage!'

Crack!

The afterimage dispersed, and the poisoned darts that had pierced through the afterimage were all embedded in the wall.

Swoosh!

Baek Su-ryong, who had moved to Muyeong's side, cut off his prosthetic arm from the shoulder. Muyeong, losing his balance, staggered.

Thud.

A cold blade was suddenly pressed against Muyeong's neck.

"Are you done? I need to get back before the afternoon exam."

With the overwhelming skill gap, Muyeong had no choice but to kneel.

* * *

"You're the Chancellor?"

Baek Su-ryong, who had heard the whole story from Heukyeong, opened his mouth wide.

He had guessed that Gongsun Shou had a significant status, but he never imagined it would be the Chancellor.

The Chancellor, after all, was the highest authority in the country, second only to the Emperor.

"Did... Did I make any mistakes in the past month?"

"Shall I start from the first day?"

"Ah, ahem!"

Heukyeong smiled at Baek Su-ryong, who cleared his throat.

She wondered if this man, who had just been cutting down assassins with a blank expression, was really the same person.

But Heukyeong's expression soon hardened again.

"Sir is in danger."

The palace's information organization had been mobilized to kill Gongsun Shou.

They had stolen the secret letter exchanged between the Emperor and Gongsun Shou and had colluded with treacherous officials who feared the Chancellor's return.

'Muyeong tried to persuade me to kill Sir and make it look like a natural death. But...'

Would the palace's power-hungry officials have relied solely on Cheonyeong for such a significant task?

Would they have taken such a gamble, knowing they could be wiped out if they failed?

Heukyeong's worries were not unfounded.

"Kuk kuk... Now I see who you are. Baek Su-ryong. The martial arts instructor who taught the Chancellor some useless wind..."

"Who said it was useless wind? Sir came to me first and asked me to teach him."

Baek Su-ryong corrected the facts, but Muyeong wasn't interested in what he said.

"Heh. I never thought you'd be such a high-level expert... My mistake was to only guard against Heukyeong."

"Did your assassins come to kill Sir all by themselves?"

Heukyeong's eyes flashed, but Muyeong smiled.

"I wish it were that simple... But the power-hungry officials in this country are not fools."

"Indeed...! Who else was mobilized?"

Heukyeong, now more urgent, grabbed Muyeong's collar.

However, there was no fear in Muyeong's eyes.

He knew that even if he survived here, he would ultimately die.

"All three major assassin organizations of the martial world were mobilized."

"!!"

Muyeong was telling Heukyeong the truth to plunge those who had ruined his plan into even greater despair.

"Heukyeong. My proposal was the most peaceful way for the Chancellor to die. Do you think the assassins from the martial world will show the same consideration? They will stop at nothing."

"..."

"Now that I've failed, it means the Chancellor has learned of the threat. Kuk kuk. The power-hungry officials in the palace have no choice but to kill the Chancellor before the Emperor finds out. If they fail, they will die...!"

"..."

"Now do you understand the situation? Even if I hadn't joined them, the Chancellor was destined to die. Stupid girl. If you had just listened to me...!"

Slap!

Muyeong's head turned to the side. Baek Su-ryong, shaking the blood off his fist, muttered.

"Damn, got some blood on me."

While blood streamed from his nose, Muyeong glared at Baek Su-ryong and cursed.

"Soon, the assassin organizations will learn of my failure and move. The Chancellor will never survive today. And neither will you!"

Muyeong laughed maniacally, then suddenly roared.

"The head of this branch will be beheaded, and the Blue Dragon Academy will be burned down. Since the Chancellor is dead, someone must take responsibility. Who do you think the officials will target? The old man over sixty who taught martial arts, the academy that accepted him, and the government that ignored it... It's a very simple matter! Hahaha!"

Muyeong's mad laughter echoed in the room filled with corpses and blood. Realizing he had no chance of survival after failing his mission, he had gone mad.

"I heard your last words."

Swish.

With one stroke of Baek Su-ryong's sword, Muyeong's head was severed.

"So."

Baek Su-ryong, glancing at the head rolling on the floor, asked Heukyeong.

"The situation seems more serious than I thought. What do you plan to do?"

If the Chancellor died, the Blue Dragon Academy would be burned down, and everyone involved would be captured and killed.

Even in the worst-case scenario, escaping was not a problem, but all his foundations were here.

"Can we trust the government troops?"

"In this situation... There's a high chance they've already been turned to the other side."

"Is there a place where Sir can hide?"

"The places I know have already been identified by Cheonyeong."

Baek Su-ryong sighed softly.

"So, we can't trust the government, and there's nowhere to hide. Is there a way to secretly contact the palace?"

"It's possible, but it will take time for them to realize the situation and take action."

"How much time?"

"A few days at most..."

In other words, they had to protect Gongsun Shou from the assassins' threats until then.

It was a desperate situation, but Baek Su-ryong surprisingly nodded calmly.

"Let's do our best. Let's talk while we leave this place."

The two quickly left the building, discussing their plan.

"We need to stop the Blue Dragon Academy's entrance exam. First, we need to secure Sir's safety..."

"Wait a moment."

After a brief moment of thought, Baek Su-ryong spoke again.

"Let's continue with the entrance exam."

"What? Expose Sir to so many people?"

Heukyeong objected, but Baek Su-ryong had a different idea.

"If we wrap Sir up tightly and protect him, the assassins won't easily attack. Instead, they'll use all sorts of dirty methods."

Poison, hidden weapons, explosives, and taking acquaintances hostage to threaten him.

Several methods were already forming in Baek Su-ryong's mind.

"Better to limit their options."

It was a thought that Heukyeong couldn't imagine, something only Baek Su-ryong could come up with.

"Use Sir as bait to draw the assassins in, and we'll hunt them down."

As he said this, Baek Su-ryong's eyes shone like a predator's, ready to pounce on its prey.