A special closed building located deep in Cheonmu Palace’s laboratory.
Inside, nurous equipnt and items were placed on the magic circle, trembling faintly, and a huge flow of power flowed out.
“Ugh….” The energy of purification that filled the entire room perated the body of the pale man lying in the center.
It was Rongcheng, director of the Heavenly Army Research Center. Then, the transparent chain entwined around the dark orb ca out of Rongcheng's body, leaving cracks everywhere.
Pacan! The chain broke and the black orb reappeared into Rongcheng's body. After a while, the lights ca on in the darkened room, and dozens of researchers and Geom Hu entered. “Rongcheng. Are you conscious?”
“Ugh… Yes." Rongcheng staggered to his feet, and the researchers imdiately ca to him and held him, while Geom Hu watched calmly.
“Effect?” At Geom Hu's question, Rongcheng looked down at his hand. It was a sensation that could be felt clearly at the fingertips. Rongcheng replied with his body trembling at the fullness he hadn't felt before. “It is available again. thank you!"
He didn't really like Geom Hu, but this ti Rongcheng also bowed his head and expressed his gratitude. This was because a considerable amount of capital was consud to gather equipnt and materials related to purification in order to solve this terrible curse that was presud to have been left by the first White Lotus master.
“Yes. I'm glad it's resolved. Let the research recede for two days and then resu.”
"All right."
After leaving those words, Geom Hu went outside with the attendant, and Rongcheng let out a sigh. ‘I lived because there were only idiots around.’
If there were any manpower to replace him, Geom Hu would have treated him instead of treating herself and appointed a new research director. Breathing a sigh of relief that his life was saved, Rongcheng looked at the destroyed equipnt and materials around him. “A curse that can only be lifted with such equipnt. What a complete asshole…” Rongcheng muttered nervously as he imdiately straightened his clothes, then looked at the researchers. “I’ll take a rest outside for two days, so take care of it thoroughly. Okay?"
"Yes. All right!"
Rongcheng, who heard the researchers' answers, moved outside the special closed building in a matter of days. From there, he heard a very faint sound of chains that he couldn't hear.
* * *
Tae Heo-mun’s underground workshop.
Normally, it was a place where disciples of 8 stars or higher could use it freely and hone their skills, but today a sign saying that it could not be used was hung, and everyone left.
Deep inside, Kang Yoo-sik was performing a newly created magic formula in front of Tao Fei and Tao Lan.
“… … .”
“… … .”
Tao Fei’s jaw dropped at the change unfolding before his eyes, and Tao Lan's normally expressionless face had been broken. ‘Oh, how could this happen….'
‘This… … It’s impossible…’ As a first-generation hunter, Tao Fei had gone through a lot of hardships while going through fierce battles. And Tao Lan had impressed countless people with his outstanding talent since he was born.
The two of them wouldn't be surprised by a few phenona, but this ti there was nothing they could do about it. A circle made of special patterns had begun to float up into the sky and rotated around with Kang Yoo-sik at the center. As dozens of circles moved individually, the afterimages remained in the form of spheres, scattering waves of mysterious magic.
It looked amazing from the outside, but the real value of this technique was the scattering waves.
“Please begin.”
“Ah, got it. Ran.”
"Yes." At Kang Yoo-sik's signal, the two took out their amulets and threw them in all directions, and at the sa ti, dozens of different techniques appeared throughout the practice room. There were very basic techniques, and there were also large-scale techniques that could be completed after several days of preparation.
Kang Yoo-sik glanced lightly at the countless number of magic tricks and snapped his fingers. In response to the signal, the patterns rotating around them each emitted light and rotated faster, and at the sa ti, dozens of magic waves had begun to be scattered.
As soon as a special pattern ca to mind, it perated into the interior. All the magic techniques unfolded inside the training room lost their light and were canceled, and Tao Fei made a ridiculous expression at the sight. ‘No way… Really unlocking all of that….’
Among the techniques just perford, there was also a special technique that was ‘difficult to dispel’ to confirm the completion of lion purification. Although it had no special power, it was a special technique that was several tis more difficult to dispel than any large-scale technique.
However, Kang Yoo-sik's magic formula dispelled them casually. “Let’s go last.”
“…I get it. Back away.” Tao Lan stepped back to the corner of the training room, and Tao Fei, who confird that, reached into his puffy sleeves and took out the Baguaro he brought with him.
“Don’t start.” When Tao Fei put magic into the Eight Trigrams, a huge Taegeuk appeared on the floor, and the patterns of the Eight Trigrams appeared one by one on the outside. Before liberation, the power possessed by the Palgwae was to amplify magic power through the attributes of the Taegeuk and the Palgwae.
And furthermore, there were equipnt that offset mana. Therefore, directly offsetting the power of the Eight Trigrams was the completion stage of Tao Fei's purification of the Four Quarters.
“Co!" Seeing Tao Fei activating the Eight Trigrams with all his might, Kang Yoo-sik cald down and moved the spell. Interpreting the flow of Taegeuk and the Eight Trigrams, the surrounding circles rotated, and eventually, a brilliant wave that shone in five colors along with intense light soared. And the mont the waves poured toward Tao Fei, who had done the activation…
Paang─ Along with the shock wave, the light of Taegeuk and Palgwae disappeared. The mysterious power of the Eight Trigrams that filled the entire training room disappeared, and Tao Fei, who was at the center of it, stared straight ahead with a blank expression.
Palgwae, which once incapacitated nurous monsters and demons on the battlefield… was defeated by a young man whose power had not yet been contracted, and even by a spell created in a matter of weeks!
“Whoa…” Kang Yoo-sik, who had finished the spell, let out a deep sigh. By applying White Lotus Dream, a base that could be applied to any spell was created, and the interference power of Black Lotus Bloom was then applied to fine-tune it. It was a circle that rotated around it that contained such a process and cross-verifying it with dozens of them to find a way to destroy it was the ‘four-person purification’ created by Kang Yoo-sik.
‘But it’s still immature.’ The effect itself was as intended, but the efficiency was very low. In particular, at the end, it was so ineffective that more than half of the magical energy escaped at once to offset the power of the Eight Trigrams, so that if it was wrong, it would have almost caused exhaustion.
‘Still, I think I know how to improve, so I can fix this right away.’ Kang Yoo-sik was busy chewing on the changes that occurred while offsetting the Palgwae Road. Tao Fei approached from the other side.
“Oh, how was it?”
“How was it?” To ask such a casual question after doing such a great thing. Tao Fei, who smiled bitterly at him, glanced at the Eight Trigrams in his hand and threw it away.
The Eight Trigrams floated into the air and naturally fell into Yoo-sik’s hand, and Tao Fei continued with a smile. "From now on, it's yours."
[Debtor ‘Tao Fei’s debt increases.]
[Debtor ‘Tao Fei’s debt grade rises to A grade. A list of collections will be added.]
Finally, the debt grade had risen to grade A, and Bagua had also been obtained. Kang Yoo-sik, realizing that he had been recognized for completing the Lion Purification, looked at it with a satisfied smile. "Thank you."
“No, I have to thank you. Because thanks to you, I can prepare for future disasters.”
Seeing Tao Fei talking in a aningful way, Kang Yoo-sik realized that an opportunity had co and looked at it. “Is the disaster the elder said about immortality being developed by the heavenly army?”
Tao Fei’s eyes then widened at Kang Yoo-sik’s question. "You….”
His reaction stated his surprise, but without doubt or fear. Thanks to his debt rating, Kang Yoo-sik appropriately introduced his situation to Tao Fei, who accepted him without any problems. He beca the successor of White Lotus and heard of the existence and purpose of the Heavenly Army, and was struggling to find a way to stop them.
Normally, it wouldn't be strange even if he doubted it a few tis, but Tao Fei agreed without a big conflict because of the debt and the trust he had built up over the years. “If you are enough, even the lord of the White Lotus Gate can be greedy… If I had been a little better, I would have seduced you into becoming a disciple.”
"You've had enough for now."
“The sound that ca out of my mouth… … Rather, does Ban Hye-young know about that?”
At Tao Fei's question, Kang Yoo-sik shook his head. "Nope. For now, we are keeping it a secret.”
"Right… He doesn’t seem very relaxed either….”
Tao Fei, who was muttering with a smile, adjusted her expression and looked at Yoo-sik. “So, are you guys figuring out or planning anything?”
“Currently, Cheonmu Palace is suspicious is regarded as a suspicious entity.”
“Indeed… Did you get a feel for him as well?” Kang Yoo-sik's eyes flashed as if he knew sothing.
“Do you have any proof that the Cheonmu Palace is cooperating with the Heavenly Army?”
“No. Unfortunately, there is no such thing.”
“Ugh. Are you sure?"
"Yes. If there was, I would have handed it over to the Sword Master.”
Apparently, it refused to even leave a trail for him to follow. ‘I can ask for cooperation, but a problem is finding an opportunity.’
Was there no decisive clue to drive the evasive Zhao Xinku? While Kang Yoo-sik was deep in thought, he could feel the chain moving with the tip of his index finger.
* * *
Late dawn. A man was running fast under the night sky full of dark clouds and the moonlight did not shine properly. "Ugh… Ugh…!”
There showed a pale face, as if utterly terrified, alongside the sound of heavy breathing. It would be greatly disrespectful to show this to others, but the man who ran, Zhao Xinku, forgot about that fact and hurriedly ran.
‘No, no, no. It can’t be.’
This was nonsense. There was no reason to get excited. Even as he brooded over it, Zhao Xinku looked ahead with eyes that could not calm down.
A natural park inside Cheonmu Palace. It was a forest without anything special, with part of the mountain dug out as it was, but it was different for him now.
[You broke your oath… … ]
[Did you have an affair…?]
[I will take my head… … ]
The dull voice of the master ca along with the sound of the bleak wind. Although he knew that all of this was just a hallucination, Xinku felt his whole body tremble. Really, at least every once in a while, the Sword Master tended to actually exist inside that forest.
“Huh…!”
A shadow that looked like a person passed by with the sound of the bush shaking, and Zhao Xinku reflexively pulled out the sword from his waist in amazent. However, the shadows he had just seen disappeared without a trace, and Zhao Xinku looked around with shaky eyes. To be so frightened inside his own ho, Cheonmu Palace.
“Whoa… Whoa….” Zhao Xinku looked around in a cold sweat, caught his breath, and headed back to the place written on the back of the photo. An empty lot located in a corner of a natural park
He then looked around.
“You are late." A cold voice echoed from behind. Zhao Xinku was startled by the call and looked back at him.
“Ah, Kang Yoo-sik….”
Kang Yoo-sik looked at the sword in his hand, and at Zhao Xinku’s call with a mix of hostility and fear. “You have already drawn your sword. Are you trying to take the priest's head and bury their response?”
“Oh, no. This… Just….” Zhao Xinku, who tried to make an excuse about why he drew the sword, couldn't bear to speak. It was because to say that he drew his sword in fear when he saw his teacher's shadow in the swaying bush was practically the sa as confessing his cri.
Kang Yoo-sik looked at Zhao Xinku, who was unable to co to his senses at the sudden situation. "Ah. It was just a short eting, but I had viewed the Lord of Cheonmu positively. It was not simply because of their social status, but because they exhibited a strong will to achieve sothing.”
“….”
“However… The brother-in-law made a mistake that should never have been committed.” Kang Yoo-sik took out the photo from his bosom and held it forward. It was a photo of Zhao entering the interior of the wall surrounding Tenmu-gung, which was also placed in the main room of Tenmu-gung. An exquisitely photographed picture of him entering Heaven's laboratory was put out in front of him.
“….” Seeing the picture, Xinku Zhao bit his lip. The area where the entrance was located was lined with special magic tricks, making it impossible to take pictures or capture images. In other words, there was a high possibility that the photo itself was false, but the problem was that the place itself taken there was the entrance to the laboratory.
‘If that thing goes over to Master….’
Due to the nature of the Baekcheon Sword Master, he would cut down the wall right away to check it out, and he would find the passage leading to the research center very easily. In other words, whether the photo was real or not, it all ended the mont the location of the entrance was discovered.
‘First… I’ll have to buy so ti first. Then I should move the entrance to another place….’
He had been preparing for this situation from before, so he just needed to be able to pass this situation. "Ah. It seems there was so misunderstanding… ”
The mont Zhao Xinku desperately tried to overco the situation, Kang Yoo-sik lightly snapped his fingers before he could finish his words.
Cooong! A silhouette suddenly fell from a tree. It was difficult to see in the dark, but it wasn't too difficult for soone the size of Zhao Xinku.
“Rongcheng….” Director of the Research Institute. Seeing his entire body tied up and fainting, Zhao Xinku began to drain the blood.
From there, he realized that “Iza confessed everything. The picture I just showed you was also taken after disabling the magic camps around the forest.”
“….”
“Do you still have anything else to tell ?” At Kang Yoo-sik’s question, Zhao Xinku clenched his teeth and imdiately glared at him with twinkling eyes.
“It is the path you have chosen.” Zhao Xinku, who was holding the sword, sprayed blood, and Kang Yoo-sik looked at him calmly as he showed hostility.
‘Stupid.’ Zhao Xinku seed to think the only way to shut his mouth was to kill him, but in fact, this was the worst option. It was because, if he were to die inside this Palace, then he could only visit once due to the nature of the Sword Masters.
‘Of course, I’m not a real disciple, so I won’t co.’
Anyway, if one were to assu the situation of a disciple, it would be quite the wrong choice. If he were in that position, he would have first questioned the fact that he had summoned the Baekcheon Sword Master by himself without informing him.
‘It’s because I couldn’t shake it.’
He shook his mind with illusions and auditory hallucinations that applied the White Lotus illusion, and he continued to push himself to the limit. And through the reaction that ca out of it, he could vaguely realize why Zhao Xinku cooperated with the Heaven’s Army.
‘Wealth and power are just tools. The real goal is different.’
He didn’t know what the real goal is yet, but this was enough to be used as a chess piece in so cases. Kang Yoo-sik, who had firmly secured evidence of the usefulness of Zhao Xinku and that it could be used for real in the future, looked at him as he pointed a sword at him.
“I’ll secure it.” And Rongcheng, who was tied up, turned into a pure white teor.
Quaang! Rongcheng, which was thrown out with a thunderous advance, and Lao's spear, which deceived individuals with its appearance, were shot at terrifying speed. Realizing that he had been tricked, Xinku Zhao hurriedly swung his sword.
Keyng!
The arcane swordsmanship learned from the Baekcheon Sword Master. It was an absurd swordsmanship that one couldn’t help but feel defeated if they were to have seen it for the first ti.
‘Foolish.'
Lao Chang had seen that swordsman before. Pakan-!
“Cuck!”
The white teor-like burst of Deungkwon shattered the sword and struck Zhao Xinku in the abdon, and his consciousness was cut off just like that.
Cooong! Looking at Zhao Xinku, who had passed out on the floor, Kang Yoo-sik smiled brightly. “I’ll take you.”
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