Chapter 1185

“Good. Nothing’s wrong with him.”

At the Slaughter Saint’s first words after examining Jin Taekyung, Jeok Cheongang spoke, his face grim.

“Are you sure?”

“I guarantee it.”

“That’s what you told me about three shichen¹ ago.”

“Have a little faith. The medicine just took longer than expected to spread through his system.”

“It’s hard to trust you. Things nearly went wrong because of some quack’s careless guarantee.”

Their eyes met. The air seemed to tighten between them.

After a brief silence, Jeok Cheongang let out a quiet sigh.

“I went too far. I apologize.”

“No need. I understand how you feel.”

The Slaughter Saint truly didn’t mind.

He had spent half his life as an assassin and the other half as a physician. Treating more patients than he could count had taught him more than medicine.

It had taught him about the heart.

He had come to understand the hearts of the sick, and of those closest to them who watched and shared their suffering.

That was why he knew better than anyone that the man before him was not the great martial artist known as the Fire King. He was Jeok Cheongang—a man whose Disciple lay unconscious before them, a member of the patient’s family.

Besides, I failed to give him enough reason to trust me as a physician.

With that thought, the Slaughter Saint quietly studied Jin Taekyung’s face. He had already lost consciousness.

And at the same time, he remembered the terrifying strength and speed Taekyung had displayed moments ago.

Everything was perfect. The medicine I prepared, the time it would take to work.

The fasting pill Taekyung had taken was the Slaughter Saint’s masterpiece, painstakingly made with the Myriad-Poison Ring in mind.

At first, it was nothing more than an ordinary fasting pill. But once its effects began to spread, slowly, over more than three shichen¹, that changed.

It would paralyze the limbs, cloud the mind and Qi Sense, and even disperse internal energy. The Slaughter Saint had been certain that no Supreme Peak master could easily withstand it.

He had thought even he would be in trouble if he took it without knowing what it was.

Then how did this brat…?

His gaze lingered on Taekyung.

Was it his imagination, or did his back still tingle where the fierce wind from Taekyung’s fist had swept past? A faint doubt came with the sensation.

Had that truly been a blow delivered with all his strength?

“…Perhaps.”

The word slipped out before he realized it.

Jeok Cheongang gave him a questioning look. Realizing his mistake, the Slaughter Saint shook his head at once.

“It’s nothing. I was thinking about something.”

“Could it be…?”

“Rest easy. I’ve told you more than once: there’s nothing wrong with your Disciple. He’ll wake within two days at the latest.”

He watched Ju Hwaran and Hyuk Mujin support Taekyung as they moved him away, then added, “And by the time he wakes, we’ll be somewhere out there.”

Jeok Cheongang turned toward the window.

Beyond a world where even the stars had vanished, the immense Tianshan Mountains rose through the darkness like a monster from myth. They had stood there a thousand years ago and looked as though they would stand for another thousand.

But the Lord of Heaven, crouched somewhere in those mountains, was the true monster—a being worthy of being called an abyss. Defeating him would mean staking the fate of all under Heaven.

“I can’t tell if this was truly the right choice,” Jeok Cheongang murmured.

“You know as well as I do. This isn’t the best choice, or even the second-best. It’s only the lesser evil that barely lets us avoid the worst—and the only choice left to us now.”

He was right. They had come too far to speak of the best choice.

Neither the Imperial Army nor the Murim Alliance had arrived by the agreed date. Only one path remained before them.

And it was one of several possibilities they had considered even before leaving Qinghai.

If no one arrives by the appointed date—if, by some chance, that happens…

Jeok Cheongang remembered the Sword Saint, Mae Jonghak, speaking quietly at their secret meeting in the dim light before dawn.

“Leave this place and go to Tianshan. Without a moment’s hesitation.”

“Leave? Are you serious?”

“If things went wrong despite following a plan devised by the strongest martial artists and wisest strategists under Heaven, what more is there to say? The Son of Heaven has already agreed.”

“But—”

“This isn’t a sacrifice. It’s a choice for the sake of everyone. Whatever misfortune befalls us, we can still avoid the worst. We’ll have one move left.”

Do all that man can, then await Heaven’s will.

They had done all they could. Now they would wait for Heaven’s decree.

Mae Jonghak had spoken aloud those six characters etched in all their hearts. Jeok Cheongang distinctly remembered him smiling.

“Then I’ll see you in Tianshan.”

When morning came, they parted.

The Murim Alliance went west. The Imperial Army went east. And a single carriage carrying all their hopes went into the desert.

Every step of the operation had been kept secret against the possibility of spies.

By the time everyone realized Jin Taekyung’s group was missing, Mae Jonghak announced that they had already joined the Imperial Army and were on the move. The Imperial Army did the same.

Both forces pushed forward with all their might, constantly spreading false information to keep Dark Heaven’s eyes—wherever they might be hidden—away from the desert.

And so that, if the worst came to pass, they could serve as bait.

Now what they had feared had become reality.

What in the world happened?

Jeok Cheongang swallowed the question poised on his tongue.

He was not alone. Everyone there knew something had happened to their allies, but no one said it aloud.

What they needed now was courage and hope that wouldn’t die—not anxiety, deep and sticky as a swamp.

All we can do is keep going.

The plan had not failed yet.

Though events had gone awry, they would press on toward Tianshan. Their allies would arrive late, follow their trail, and join them.

It was a faint hope. For now, believing in it was the best they could do.

“We leave. Before it gets any later.”

At the sound of Jeok Cheongang’s heavy voice—

Fwoosh.

The candle that had flickered precariously as it lit the room finally went out.

Once the decision was made, everyone moved in perfect order.

Only Jin Taekyung had been kept in the dark. The rest of the group had already considered every possibility and accepted the reality before them, so not one of them hesitated.

In that respect, the two days they had spent in the abandoned town had been invaluable. They had recovered from their accumulated fatigue, and the horses, worn down by the relentless forced march and unable to go farther, could be turned into provisions.

“Drain their blood and store it in gourds. Make jerky from the meat. The terrain will be too rough for a carriage from here on, and if we set them free, they’ll starve to death anyway.”

“D-do we really have to go this far?”

“Why? Have you grown attached to them?”

“I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t. They may be beasts, but we’ve been together all this time. Look at their eyes. Don’t you see the tears welling up? It’s like they understand us.”

“I see. Then starting tomorrow, you can go hungry, Hyuk.”

“On second thought, my mouth’s watering.”

“…”

“What can they do about it? Their crime was being born beasts.”

It was a sorry end for the eight sweat-blood horses that had given them everything they could. Set aside the moral question, though, and it was a perfectly reasonable decision.

Just after midnight, the moment they set foot in Tianshan for the first time, they all sensed it.

What is this place…?

It was different.

The weight of the air. The way the wind moved. Everything.

The atmosphere had changed as though they had entered a world cut off from their own. A chill ran up their spines, along with the unsettling sense that they were trapped in a prison built like a maze, with no way out.

What a vicious aura.

Jeok Cheongang’s senses prickled. Even a pool full of corpses and poison would not feel this oppressive.

Then again, perhaps that was only natural.

Tianshan was the Land of Ruin that had harbored the poison called the Demonic for a thousand years.

And yet, it was also the final hill they had to cross.

They had rested. They had secured plenty of food. If they watched for dangers lurking somewhere in the thorny undergrowth, they would reach their destination before long.

We made it this far without being stopped. At least for now, that means we haven’t caught their attention.

Jeok Cheongang gazed into the dark forest.

Things were going badly, but that fact alone gave them reason to hope.

And the old master, with his beloved Disciple on his back, would break before he bent.

Step.

Jeok Cheongang took his first step, putting his weight behind it.

A strong wind blew from somewhere. All around them, dense gray branches swayed, waving at the unwelcome intruders.