Chapter 126
“…Vice Leader. This isn’t the time for such nonsense.”
Dang So-cheol, who had been carefully observing the situation, spoke up.
“Listen. The Lord of the Northern Sea Ice Palace and his wife are interfering with our plans.”
Dang So-cheol had even dropped the flattering title of “my daughter.”
“First, we need to take care of the Lord and his wife, don’t you think?”
“Our plans?”
At Dang So-cheol’s brazen prompting, the Vice Leader tilted his head in confusion.
“Well, I came here to discuss the direction of our friendship.”
“Can’t that wait until after…!”
Dang So-cheol, who was growing agitated, pressed down his emotions.
The situation was unfavorable for him.
Not only were Yerin and Doyul standing before him, but the Vice Leader was not particularly friendly toward him either.
‘Damn it, where did this leak come from?’
The Vice Leader’s mention of friendship indicated he might be planning to sever ties with the Blood Cult.
But how?
He had been as cautious as possible to keep his true intentions hidden until now…
Swallowing dryly, Dang So-cheol carefully continued speaking.
“There are priorities in our dealings; we can clear up this misunderstanding gradually through conversation…”
“Is that so? Priorities,”
The Vice Leader said, stroking his chin, his eyes shining with interest.
“If that’s the case, then what’s most important to you, Dang So-cheol, is, of course, the vision of the clan?”
Caught off guard by such an absurd statement, Dang So-cheol’s face momentarily reflected his confusion.
“Well, that’s certainly true, but…”
“It seems that the reason you’re trying to fend off the joint attack from the Lord and his wife is to protect that vision, isn’t it?”
As he spoke, the Vice Leader smirked.
“However, about that precious vision…”
Deliberately drawing out his words in a voice full of amusement, he continued, “It doesn’t seem to be in good shape.”
“What?!”
Dang So-cheol’s eyes widened in disbelief as he suddenly looked down.
At that moment, his pupils dilated in shock.
“A, what is this…!”
A large crack had formed in one of the jars.
Thick, dark liquid was oozing out through the web-like fissures.
“No!”
Dang So-cheol hurriedly opened the lid.
A bubbling sound echoed loudly.
‘That appearance…’
In an instant, Yerin’s eyes sharpened.
Inside the jar, the thick, black liquid was boiling violently.
The ominous force of the boiling was so intense that some of the liquid splattered out visibly.
“…What the hell is that?”
Doyul asked in a horrified voice.
Yerin, unable to take her eyes off the jar, answered, “The stabilization of the poison has failed.”
“Failed stabilization? What do you mean by that…?”
“The fundamental principle of poison creation is to combine various toxins to produce the most potent poison. However…”
Yerin narrowed her eyes.
“That liquid isn’t combining; it’s rejecting each other.”
“That means the creation of the poison has failed?”
“Yes. At this rate, it’ll be hard to achieve the desired effect of the poison. Of course, the inherent toxicity from the toxins and venom will still exist, but…”
Yerin declared coldly, “What Dang So-cheol wanted—the ‘perfect poison’—has already failed.”
And then…
Crash!
With a sharp sound, the jar shattered into pieces.
The thick black liquid poured onto the floor.
“Oh no!”
Without hesitation, Yerin and Doyul both hurled their icy daggers.
The daggers embedded themselves into the ground where the liquid spilled.
From the spots where the daggers struck, the ground, including the spilled liquid, began to freeze rapidly.
The Vice Leader watched the scene with interest.
“A temporary measure to prevent the poison from spreading? Well, that’s quite admirable.”
“What… What on earth is happening?!”
Dang So-cheol’s eyes were wide with disbelief, and he shouted in desperation.
He then turned sharply to the Vice Leader.
“Is it you?!”
“What?”
The Vice Leader blinked in confusion.
Dang So-cheol’s eyes had turned red with fury.
It was a sign of entering a state of madness.
“It’s you… You who have interfered with my vision!”
Yerin looked at Dang So-cheol with a tense expression.
Regardless of his nature, Dang So-cheol was the leader of the prestigious Dang Clan in the Five Great Families.
‘If Dang So-cheol goes berserk in this state…’
There would surely be catastrophic consequences in the area.
However, the Vice Leader showed no signs of caution in response to Dang So-cheol’s unusual demeanor.
“Oh, really. How noisy.”
He even leisurely scratched his ear, grumbling softly to himself.
“Just like father and son…”
“…Son? Could it be!”
Dang So-cheol stood rigidly in place.
Then, he instinctively raised his voice. “What have you done to Yejun?!”
“What have I done?”
The Vice Leader sighed deeply before breaking into a wide smile, revealing his pearly white teeth.
“I did it like this.”
“Gah!”
In an instant, Dang So-cheol felt a wave of agony wash over him.
“What… what is this…?”
He reflexively looked down at his chest.
A dagger had been plunged into him.
“Oh, you managed to twist your body and block the attack to your heart, huh?”
The Vice Leader praised him with a round mouth.
“Still, your skills are inferior to your son’s.”
Dang So-cheol staggered back a few steps, his gaze filled with pain and horror as he glared at the Vice Leader.
“Still, out of respect for the time we spent as friends…”
The Vice Leader concluded in a bright voice, “I’ll send you off just like I did your son. What do you think? Grateful?”
“You crazy…!”
Dang So-cheol gritted his bloody teeth and swung his large sleeves.
Swaack!
Needle-thin darts rained down like a shower.
However…
“Is this all you have to attack me with?”
Chuckling, the Vice Leader swung his sword once, scattering all the darts.
“The pillar of justice, the Five Great Families, will surely tremble.”
The Vice Leader, standing in front of Dang So-cheol, felt as imposing as a mountain.
The instincts of a warrior whispered to their master.
‘There’s no chance of winning.’
In truth, the fact that Dang So-cheol had just thrown those darts was a desperate act stemming from his instinctual awareness of imminent defeat.
But now that even that last-ditch effort had failed, he had no options left.
Staring blankly at the Vice Leader, Dang So-cheol slowly moved his lips.
“Our… vision…”
“What a foolish idiot you are!”
The Vice Leader showed no intention of hiding his disdain.
In the eerie silence, only the sound of his mocking laughter echoed clearly.
“A perfect poison with no antidote!”
Thud!
With his legs giving way, Dang So-cheol knelt and collapsed.
The Vice Leader looked down at him with pitying eyes.
“Did you really think such a poison could exist in the world? The Dang Clan’s ability to control poison is already outdated.”
“Vice Leader, you…”
“Really, the fact that you tried to take our clan’s vision, which you should have developed on your own…”
The Vice Leader finished with a mocking tone, “Only proves that the Dang Clan is no longer the clan it used to be, losing all its honor.”
“…”
Dang So-cheol didn’t respond to the insult.
No, to be precise, he couldn’t respond.
With his last breath, Dang So-cheol slumped silently to the ground.
“Tsk.”
The Vice Leader clicked his tongue and looked up at Yerin and Doyul.
“He said the Lord and his wife of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, right?”
“…”
“…”
Yerin and Doyul quietly met his gaze.
They were already on high alert, prepared for the Vice Leader to launch a sudden attack.
“Sorry for the late introduction. I assume Dang So-cheol was already babbling about me being the Vice Leader or whatever…”
The Vice Leader exaggeratedly performed a bow to the two of them.
“I may not be much, but I hold the first position as the Blood Demon’s servant.”
“…What on earth.”
A restrained voice slipped from Yerin’s lips.
“What on earth do you want to achieve by committing such a horrific act?”
“Hmm, you want to know what we seek?”
The Vice Leader tilted his head, clapping his hands together with a loud clap.
“If it were my original temperament, I would have torn that mouth apart for daring to question me.”
“…”
“However, you are a daughter who lost her father at my hands. I should at least show you a modicum of respect, right?”
Yerin did not respond.
Her frustration boiled over at his nonchalant demeanor.
Nevertheless, the Vice Leader continued happily.
“Our goal was the Dang Clan itself.”
“Why the Dang Clan?”
“Well, if we’re going to achieve our long-standing desire, we should at least bring down one pillar of justice, right?”
The Vice Leader shrugged lightly.
“Then it would be a little easier to fulfill our long-standing wishes, wouldn’t it?”
“…What is your long-standing wish?”
The Vice Leader looked at Yerin as if she were a fool for asking such an obvious question.
“You’re really asking something so obvious? Our wish has always been the same.”
The Vice Leader shouted in a frenzied voice.
“The return of the Blood Demon!”
The return of the Blood Demon?
Yerin was astonished.
The transcendent is mentioned only in the legends of the Blood Cult. Why is it being brought up here and now?
Throughout the long history of the martial world, and even in the ‘original’ work Yerin had read.
“The Blood Demon has never actually existed!”
Just then, the Vice Leader’s expression turned bored as he spoke again.
“Well, I think I’ve shown you enough courtesy by now.”
The Vice Leader alternated his gaze between Yerin and Doyul, then stretched his lips into a wide grin.
“Now you two can die.”
With that declaration, the Vice Leader snapped his fingers.
