Chapter 11
Hmm.
Even as night fell, the great city of Sichuan still shone brilliantly with light.
Yeo Un-hwi had just arrived there.
From Sodam Village to Sichuan.
It was a distance that would take ordinary people over three days of walking, but for Yeo Un-hwi, who had mastered the Heavenly Martial Divine Art, it wasn't far at all.
The lightfoot technique of the Heavenly Martial Divine Art was especially known for minimizing internal energy consumption while allowing for incredible speed.
To Yeo Un-hwi, Sichuan might as well have been the neighboring village.
Currently, Yeo Un-hwi's Heavenly Martial Divine Art was at the 2nd level.
As his mastery of the Heavenly Martial Divine Art increased further, even Yeo Un-hwi himself couldn't easily gauge how much his lightfoot skills would improve.
It seemed not impossible that the entire Central Plains might truly become like a neighboring village to him.
And so he had arrived in Sichuan in one breath.
Now, Yeo Un-hwi stood at a high vantage point overlooking the entire cityscape of Sichuan.
The wind blew fiercely at that unobstructed height.
But while Yeo Un-hwi's clothes fluttered, the strong winds couldn't shake him in the slightest.
After gazing down for a long while, Yeo Un-hwi's eyes suddenly narrowed as if spotting something.
"Well then, shall we go?"
As soon as those words left his mouth, Yeo Un-hwi's form vanished from that spot.
The place he had been standing was now empty.
Not a single trace remained of anyone having been there.
Thwack, thud, smack, wham!
Terrible sounds echoed through the street.
While drunken brawls were a common sight late at night, this was no ordinary drunken fight.
It was a one-sided beating.
"Urgh... I'm sorry. Please, please spare my life..."
A man whose face and entire body had been beaten to a pulp begged and pleaded through tears and snot, but it was of no use.
Tang Gu-hwi, his hands covered in blood, shook his head.
"No, no. There's no need to beg like that. I'm not doing this because you accidentally bumped into me or anything. Okay?"
Tang Gu-hwi raised the corners of his mouth with a chilling gaze.
The sight sent shivers down the spines of those watching.
Even his subordinates didn't dare to intervene, only able to stand by and watch.
They knew well why Tang Gu-hwi was so enraged.
On a day like this, no one could stop the Young Master.
Except for the Family Head.
"I just needed somewhere to vent the anger inside me, that's all."
"W-What do you mea- Urk!"
As if that anger hadn't been fully vented yet, Tang Gu-hwi held out his hand to a subordinate.
The subordinate immediately placed a flying dagger in his outstretched hand.
Shing.
Tang Gu-hwi grabbed the fallen man's leg.
Then he flashed a vicious grin, his eyes gleaming.
"Let's just think of it as you having really bad luck today. Heheh."
"N-No, please don't..."
Slash.
Without hesitation, Tang Gu-hwi sliced through the tendons of the leg he was holding.
Blood immediately spurted out like a fountain.
"Guh, guaaaaaaah! My leg, my leg!"
The man's screams echoed through the street.
'My god...'
Those watching trembled in fear at the sight.
How could a person do such a thing?
But no one dared to intervene.
If they did, who knew what kind of wrath would befall them?
At some point, the Sichuan Tang Family had ceased to be a prestigious martial arts family that brought glory to Sichuan and pride to its people. They had become an object of terror, frightening to even think about.
The problem was Tang Gu-hwi's vicious behavior, which had fully emerged after the Family Head of the Sichuan Tang Family, Poison Rain Tang Jin-woo, entered closed-door training.
Moreover, the fact that Tang Gu-hwi was the Young Master of the Sichuan Tang Family filled the people of Sichuan with despair.
His position as Young Master meant that in the not-too-distant future, Tang Gu-hwi would become the master of the Sichuan Tang Family.
The future of Sichuan seemed utterly bleak.
Tang Gu-hwi had become an existence of fear and despair for the people of Sichuan.
And today, another unspeakable atrocity was added to his list.
Despite the late hour, this horrific news spread throughout the city of Sichuan.
Some time later,
"Who on earth was it? The wretch who put the Young Master in such a mood."
"Just say the word. If it's the Young Master's request, I'll bring you the head of anyone."
On the highest floor of Cheonghwaru.
Two elderly men, one with black hair and one with white, sat on either side of Tang Gu-hwi.
"I'm truly reassured to hear such words from you two seniors."
Tang Gu-hwi lightly cupped his fists in respect.
The men his eyes beheld may have been elderly, but their massive builds and muscular frames exuded an extraordinary aura of pressure.
The Black and White Twin Devils.
These Demonic Leaders were infamous even in the Central Plains, and their combined attacks were said to be among the most formidable in the martial world.
But the reason for the Black and White Twin Devils' notoriety lay elsewhere.
It was because they used the forces under their command to engage in horrific money-making schemes - namely, human trafficking and drugs.
Even in the Dark Path, where any profitable venture was fair game, the Black and White Twin Devils were considered the worst of the worst, making even other Dark Path practitioners shake their heads.
How many people had shed tears of blood because of them? How many had ultimately taken their own lives?
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the numbers ranged from hundreds to thousands.
And now, Tang Gu-hwi was sitting with these infamous Demonic Leaders.
"First of all, thank you for the trouble of coming all this way, seniors. I'm also grateful that you understood my request to keep your identities hidden as much as possible."
The Black and White Twin Devils grinned at Tang Gu-hwi's words.
"It's nothing. We're flexible enough for that much. Isn't that right?"
"That's right! What does that matter? What's important isn't that, but money! Money!"
"Hahaha! Exactly. There's nothing in this world more important than money. That's right, that's right."
"You speak the truth."
Tang Gu-hwi nodded in agreement with the Black and White Twin Devils.
The reason Tang Gu-hwi had arranged this meeting today was precisely for that purpose.
For greater power.
The Sichuan Tang Family he would create in the future would not simply be one of the Five Great Families of the martial world, but aim for something even higher.
For that, more than anything else,
'Money. I need money.'
That's why he had decided to join hands with the Black and White Twin Devils.
The Black and White Twin Devils had also welcomed Tang Gu-hwi's proposal enthusiastically.
It was only natural.
They had not yet been able to extend their reach to Sichuan.
This was due to the existence of the Sichuan Tang Family and its Family Head, Poison Rain Tang Jin-woo.
Though they dealt with poisons, the Sichuan Tang Family was firmly part of the Orthodox Faction.
Like other Orthodox sects, they utterly despised practices that deceived and ruined people, such as drugs and human trafficking.
So they had kept a sharp eye out to prevent the Black and White Twin Devils' business from entering Sichuan. How could they even think of trying to enter Sichuan in that situation?
From the Black and White Twin Devils' perspective, they could only look on helplessly at the massive market that was Sichuan.
But now, of all people, the Young Master of the Sichuan Tang Family, Tang Gu-hwi, who was practically the next Family Head, had reached out to them first?
What could be more welcome for the Black and White Twin Devils?
It looked like they would be able to swallow up all of Sichuan without getting a drop of blood on their hands...
Heheh.
That was the reason they were grinning so broadly right now.
Tang Gu-hwi watched the Black and White Twin Devils laughing with cold eyes.
'Trash... But they certainly have their uses.'
Tang Gu-hwi downed his drink in one gulp and wiped the corner of his mouth.
Tang Gu-hwi had long believed that the distinction between Orthodox and Unorthodox didn't matter at all when it came to those who could become his strength.
He also thought it was right to use any means necessary to achieve what he wanted.
Only fools bothered with such petty distinctions.
Tang Gu-hwi believed that such superficial concerns could be dealt with after he had everything in his grasp, if they even mattered at that point.
Though he wasn't sure if such procedures would even be necessary once he had obtained everything.
That's why he had gone to great lengths to arrange this meeting, despite it being a place the Young Master of the Sichuan Tang Family, one of the Five Great Families of the Orthodox Faction, should never be.
Tang Gu-hwi wanted to use the Black and White Twin Devils' business to gain more money and power in Sichuan.
For that purpose, human trafficking and drugs were not a problem at all.
Someone else would do it anyway.
What was wrong with him being the one to do it?
In any case, he would eventually inherit the Sichuan Tang Family, and in the not-too-distant future, he would become the king of Sichuan.
No matter how talented Tang Mu-jun was!
And he would take the Sichuan Tang Family even higher.
Then, that bastard Tang Mu-jun...!
Just as Tang Gu-hwi's thoughts reached that point,
CRASH!
With a tremendous sound, the door to the room where Tang Gu-hwi and the Black and White Twin Devils were sitting was smashed open, and some figures came flying in.
"Urgh..."
Amidst a cloud of dust, the figures that flew into the room and rolled across the floor were warriors.
Upon closer inspection, they were clearly the guards who had been protecting the highest floor of Cheonghwaru.
"Hmm?"
Tang Gu-hwi's eyes narrowed at the sudden commotion.
Just then,
"I told you to move aside when I asked nicely."
Everyone's gaze turned towards the entrance.
There stood a man with his face hidden behind a black mask, slowly entering the room.
The man stopped a few steps short of the table in the center of the room and looked around.
Then,
"Well, well. What an absurd gathering we have here."
The masked man let out a dry laugh.
"Who the hell are you?"
In an instant, the room had been thrown into chaos.
All because of this mysterious masked man who had suddenly appeared.
"Me?"
The masked man's eyes curved at Tang Gu-hwi's words.
"I'm someone with some business to settle with you."