Chapter 211
A massive mountain stronghold stood deep in the mountains.
Known as the White Bone Stronghold (白骨寨), it was a source of terror to anyone traveling the nearby mountain roads.
The government and the local clans had attempted to suppress it several times, but every attempt ended in failure.
Not only was the stronghold large, but it was also situated so deep in the mountains that its location was difficult to determine.
Yet now, astonishingly, the place had become a sea of blood.
“Damn it! There isn't a single person here I can use as material!”
A man spat an irritated curse amid the corpses piled up like a mountain.
The one-eyed man had an extraordinary presence from the moment one laid eyes on him.
Black energy continued to surge behind him.
Hearing the man's curse, a middle-aged woman soon approached his side.
“Aren't you being too impatient?”
“Impatient?”
The man glared at her words.
“Thanks to those damned Heavenly Ghost Corps bastards, an entire Ghost Den (鬼窟) that I spent ages creating has vanished. The damage to the demon soldiers and even the seeds there is enormous.”
“Hmm. That's true. I still can't figure out how those bastards found the place.”
“In a few days, ‘they’ will issue the summons. We need to replenish at least one person before then, if possible. If they become angry, we're as good as dead.”
Some idiots acted as though becoming one of the Sixteen Demon Generals meant they had achieved everything, but they had no idea what they were talking about.
The Sixteen Demon Generals were treated as nothing more than expendable tools within the organization.
They needed to maintain a sense of crisis, knowing they could be replaced at any time.
“Besides, two of the Sixteen Demon Generals were taken out because of that incident.”
At the woman's words, the middle-aged man's expression hardened further.
“Don't worry. Everyone understands the situation and is hurrying here as quickly as they can.”
“Has Crimson Yaksha still not contacted us?”
“That guy always does as he pleases. Besides, he only recently rose to become one of the Sixteen Demon Generals.”
“We can't afford another gap in our forces.”
At the man's words, the woman shrugged as though she couldn't understand his concern.
“What are you worried about? Unless we run into two or three of the Twelve Supreme Venerables or captains of the Heavenly Ghost Corps, there isn't really anyone who can do anything to us. The so-called Ten Great Experts are no different. Unless they come charging in by the dozens like they did that day, do we really need to worry?”
“Hmm.”
She was clearly right. But why?
Why did he still feel so ominous?
The one-eyed man continued gazing at the darkening sky with an uneasy expression.
***
“Come again!”
“Thanks for the meal, boss.”
Yeo Un-hwi and the Four Guardians had just left the inn.
The night sky had deepened, and the moon was unusually bright tonight.
It had been an exceptionally enjoyable time.
Yeo Un-hwi had enjoyed himself as well, but more than anything, the Four Guardians' faces were brighter than ever.
Their mad dash all that way had been worth it.
Yet instead of returning to the Peng family estate, they were walking in an entirely different direction.
Why?
Before long, they arrived at a deserted clearing.
“This place should do…….”
Yeo Un-hwi glanced over his shoulder and spoke.
“Why don't you come out now?”
Then,
“Oh-ho.”
A savage aura exploded from far away.
At the same time, a group emerged.
“It's impressive that you noticed us even though we hid our auras perfectly.”
The man had bizarre black sclera and crimson irises.
It was obvious at a glance that he was the leader of the group.
He stroked his chin and spoke.
“What a shame. I thought we'd found one of the Heavenly Ghost Corps' branches this time.”
That was why they had been quietly following Yeo Un-hwi and the others.
If that had not been their purpose, they would have stormed into the inn without waiting.
But to think they had been noticed before even reaching their destination. Not bad.
“Did you say the Heavenly Ghost Corps?”
At the mention of the Heavenly Ghost Corps, Yeo Un-hwi's eyes widened slightly.
Seeing that, Crimson Yaksha lifted the corner of his mouth, thinking he had guessed correctly.
“Oh dear. If you have business with them, I'm afraid you've got the wrong address.”
“Heh heh. You're going to pretend you don't know?”
Crimson Yaksha let out an unpleasant laugh.
“But whatever. It doesn't matter. We can find that out bit by bit from here on. Tracking Demon Hound.”
“Yes.”
At the call, a man with a grotesquely large nose stepped forward.
Crimson Yaksha asked the hideously ugly man,
“Which one of them is it?”
“Sniff, sniff. It's definitely that one over there.”
The Tracking Demon Hound sniffed the air, then pointed at Yeo Un-hwi.
“Oh-ho. I see. So that's how it is. As expected……”
Crimson Yaksha soon looked at Yeo Un-hwi with interest.
There was something about the man that strangely drew the eye.
“You there, the good-looking one. You must be the one who handles bombs, right?”
“Bombs?”
“Yes. I'd like to hear your story. Just what kind of bomb did you use to defeat the Poisonheart Five Ghosts?”
Yeo Un-hwi tilted his head in puzzlement.
The Poisonheart Five Ghosts had to be the men who had chased the young woman said to belong to the Heavenly Ghost Corps.
But what did he mean by a bomb?
What in the world was he talking about?
While Yeo Un-hwi was completely baffled, Crimson Yaksha shrugged confidently.
“Ah. Of course, you'd best not think of using it on me. If I hadn't known, it might have worked, but now that I do, it will never work on me. Still, it was impressive. To think it had enough power to leave half a mountain in that state.”
Aha.
Only then did Yeo Un-hwi understand what Crimson Yaksha was talking about.
Apparently, he thought the place where the Poisonheart Five Ghosts had died and half the mountain had been blown away was the result of Yeo Un-hwi using an enormous bomb.
What a ridiculous man.
He simply believed whatever suited him, then said whatever suited him.
“Hah.” As Yeo Un-hwi let out a hollow laugh at the absurdity of it, Crimson Yaksha continued speaking as he pleased.
“Well? Don't you intend to talk?”
“…….”
“A taciturn one, are you?”
“I make it a rule to avoid unnecessary conversation whenever possible.”
“You can still remain so relaxed in a situation like this. Interesting. Very interesting.”
Hahaha.
Crimson Yaksha burst out laughing, even clapping his hands.
Then he abruptly stopped laughing, and a maniacal smile appeared on his face.
“Fine. It doesn't matter, does it? From now on, I can simply savor the sight of that pretty face of yours twisting in pain. By then, you'll pour out everything you know without me even having to ask. No one has endured that method except for the one standing over there. Of course, that one eventually broke too.”
Still chuckling as though he were having the time of his life, he pointed to a woman standing rigidly among his subordinates like a doll.
Her face was hidden beneath a hood, but she seemed strangely lifeless.
Yeo Un-hwi frowned and asked,
“Who is that woman?”
“Heh, are you curious? Then I'll show you. This is what she looks like.”
Crimson Yaksha roughly pulled off the hood the woman was wearing.
A woman with unfocused eyes was revealed, looking like a corpse that had lost its soul.
Yeo Un-hwi's eyes narrowed at the sight.
As though he were delighted by Yeo Un-hwi's reaction, Crimson Yaksha grinned broadly.
“She's my trophy. For now, I keep her around like a toy, just to show her off. Whenever the Heavenly Ghost Corps bastards see her, they go mad with rage. What about you? She must be a familiar face.”
No, of course Yeo Un-hwi did not recognize her.
But he thought he understood very well why the Heavenly Ghost Corps would go mad with rage.
Anyone would find it unbearable to see a former comrade, someone who had also been family, reduced to such a state.
No, even without knowing who the woman was, Yeo Un-hwi felt anger welling up inside him.
But at times like this, he had to remain calm.
Yeo Un-hwi let out a short breath, then turned his gaze toward the Four Guardians.
They, too, wore grim expressions, clearly taking a strong dislike to Crimson Yaksha.
“Well, as you can see, things have come to this. How about I see what you can do?”
“We are always ready. Just give us the order.”
“The others aren't necessary. Him.”
Yeo Un-hwi pointed at Crimson Yaksha.
“Leave him alive. I have a few questions to ask him.”
“Yes, my lord.”
When the Four Guardians nodded, Yeo Un-hwi slowly turned and sat down on a rock to one side of the clearing. He looked utterly relaxed.
“Huh?”
Crimson Yaksha stared at him in disbelief.
What in the world were these bastards talking about?
Did they even know who he was?
“Heh heh! It looks like they've all gone insane. Listen up. Tear the others to shreds, cut off that pretty boy's limbs, and bring him to me!”
Crimson Yaksha issued an order of his own.
His subordinates soon approached the Four Guardians, radiating savage auras.
They found the Four Guardians laughable because they could not yet sense any particular aura from them.
Even if they were from the Heavenly Ghost Corps, the only ones who needed to be treated with special caution were the captains.
As long as ordinary soldiers overwhelmed their opponents with numbers, there was nothing to fear.
“Heh heh. You should have run the moment you saw us. Though you would have died in the end anyway.”
“I'll punish you first for running your mouth without knowing your place.”
They were indeed soldiers of Black Darkness.
Every one of them reeked of blood.
Moreover, the power they exuded was beyond what ordinary martial artists could withstand.
But,
“Come here. I'll gouge out your eyes first. Heh heh.”
A man boasting absurdly massive muscles slowly reached toward Bai Hu's face.
Though he was no match for the Poisonheart Five Ghosts, he was still one of the strongest among Crimson Yaksha's subordinates.
BAAAAM!
The problem was that the four men and women standing before them were beings on an entirely different level from ordinary martial artists.
With a horrifying, ear-splitting sound, something flew through the enemy ranks and slammed into the rock right beside Crimson Yaksha.
“Huh?”
It was the huge man who had just reached toward Bai Hu.
A single blow had sent him flying a great distance.
His bloodied body trembled, then went limp.
His breath had stopped.
“Wh-what is this……?”
The soldiers of Black Darkness stared in bewilderment.
Just then,
“You said you would punish us. How amusing.”
“We were thinking the same thing.”
The space began to ripple violently.
And then,
Ruuuuumble.
Four enormous auras shot into the sky.
The auras of those who had seemed ordinary had completely changed.
The four men and women they had regarded as mere prey now stared back at them with frigid eyes.
“Let me tell you one thing.”
“No one in this world should ever dare to be rude to our lord.”
“Least of all in our presence.”
The soldiers of Black Darkness had been unbearably arrogant.
Yet before they knew it, the Four Guardians no longer appeared to them as prey, but as hunters.