Chapter 127
Snap!
The first to sense the strangeness was the foot planted on the ground.
A tremendous rumble emanated from the earth.
Doyul’s eyes widened in shock. “Madam, look at those people over there…!”
A withered hand suddenly shot out from the area where the jar had been located, sealed off by golden strings and talismans.
Simultaneously, a group of people poked their heads out, beginning to crawl out one by one.
“Ugh… Ugh…”
“Grrr…”
Strange sounds, barely resembling human voices, escaped from the mouths of the people.
Covered in black, poisonous mud dripping from their bodies, these individuals were like weapons capable of killing.
Moreover, there were at least a hundred of them.
‘Can we even call them people?’
Yerin felt a sense of doubt.
There was no sign of vitality in them.
Rather, they were…
‘Corpses resurrected from death.’
At that moment, the Vice Leader spoke in a bright tone that was completely out of place for the situation.
“How is it? Surprised?”
He acted like a child playfully tearing the wings off a dragonfly, his innocence starkly contrasting with the horrifying reality.
“The ingenuity of our sect is indeed remarkable, but ‘humans’ are difficult materials to acquire.”
Yerin and Doyul gazed in horror at the group that had once been ‘human.’
They bore no resemblance to one another.
From clothing to gender, appearance, and age, everything was different.
The only commonality among them was that they all awaited the Vice Leader’s command.
…Like well-trained dogs.
Meanwhile, the Vice Leader continued speaking.
“Besides, what do you believe in Dang So-cheol, and would you support him without even a safety measure?”
The Vice Leader spread his arms wide with a satisfied expression.
“Well, seeing Dang So-cheol betray us like this, it seems my judgment was correct, doesn’t it?”
“What do you mean…?”
Yerin’s voice trembled slightly.
“Are you saying those people… were once alive?”
“Of course! It would be too wasteful to use them solely for making poisons that are bound to fail, right?”
The Vice Leader nodded enthusiastically.
“You should be thanking me instead.”
“Thanking you?”
“Yes. They were useless worms when they were alive, but now they have been given the honor of sacrificing themselves for our sect, even in death!”
Yerin and Doyul’s eyes shook violently.
They gritted their teeth as they stared at the mass of corpses.
Among them, a woman with a noticeably swollen belly caught Yerin’s attention.
That woman was none other than…
“My God… you crazy bastard.”
Yerin couldn’t help but curse.
She recognized her as the woman who had sobbed uncontrollably, begging to find her husband.
The woman’s empty eyes stared blankly at Yerin.
There was no sense of reason; her gaze was that of a beast who had lost its mind.
At the same time, the Vice Leader called out to the corpses in a gentle voice.
“Hey, kids.”
All the corpses fixed their gaze on the Vice Leader.
It was a grotesque sight.
He gestured toward Yerin and Doyul.
“Devour them.”
As soon as that command was issued, the mass of corpses bared their fangs.
“Grrr…”
“Gaaaah!”
They lunged at the two of them with wild abandon.
Doyul, swinging his sword to fend off the attacks, frowned at the stench of poison emanating from the corpses.
“Be careful! They’re highly toxic!”
“I know, be careful yourself, Doyul!”
Nodding, Yerin charged through the swarm of corpses, intending to break them apart one by one.
‘Though the speed of these corpses isn’t fast…’
Yerin quickly assessed the situation.
The bodies tainted with poison were threatening enough, especially given their overwhelming numbers.
In contrast, there were only two of them—Doyul and Yerin.
The corpses clawed and snapped at them indiscriminately.
Yerin flinched as she deflected an attack.
‘Wait, this energy…?’
She felt her inner energy dissipate the moment the corpse’s nails brushed against her.
‘Could it be Mountain Poison?!’
Mountain Poison.
A toxin that temporarily scatters one’s inner energy.
Although it didn’t last long or directly threaten life, it was deadly for martial artists whose inner energy wasn’t deeply cultivated.
In battles where life and death were on the line, especially in situations like this.
‘With our level of skill, Doyul and I could expel the poison before it fully took effect. But—’
Even a single moment of scattering inner energy could lead to death.
Moreover, Mountain Poison was commonly used by the Dang Clan, symbolizing their sect.
Although the Dang Clan had gained a fearsome reputation for their poison, the fact that the Blood Cult was utilizing the Mountain Poison was proof of how deeply entangled Dang So-cheol and the Blood Cult had become.
Yerin gritted her teeth.
As she widened the distance to evade attacks, she shouted a warning to Doyul.
“It’s Mountain Poison; be careful!”
“Understood!”
Doyul nodded and cautiously began to drive the corpses back.
Seeing him, Yerin stole a glance at the Vice Leader’s movements.
‘If the Vice Leader attacks now, we’re in trouble.’
Fortunately, the Vice Leader didn’t seem intent on launching a direct attack against them.
Instead, he merely sparkled with excitement as if enjoying a particularly entertaining show.
Thus, Yerin and Doyul steadily began to reduce the number of corpses.
One by one, the corpses fell.
However, no matter how capable Yerin and Doyul were of handling overwhelming numbers, the objective situation was still far from optimistic.
It wasn’t that the attacking corpses were particularly strong.
Rather, it was the poison that had permeated their bodies from being sealed in the tainted ground for so long, and…
‘…The Mountain Poison is far too deadly.’
Yerin chewed her lip.
Meanwhile, the Vice Leader, leisurely observing the duo’s struggle with great interest, spoke leisurely.
“This is entertaining.”
The Vice Leader’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Then, as a senior of the martial world, I must reward the two of you for your excellent achievements…”
Like a child cruelly stomping on an ant hill for amusement, his innocent yet brutal face revealed itself.
Once again, the Vice Leader raised his hand in a showy manner.
“What do you think, a fitting gift?”
‘What is he talking about?’
At that moment, Yerin’s eyes widened.
Snap!
The Vice Leader snapped his fingers.
The sound alone caused a sharp pain in her head as if infused with inner energy.
“Although I acted hastily, this creation is mine, after all…”
Observing the chaotic scene, the Vice Leader leisurely continued, “And it has the right origins.”
…He made it himself?
What did he mean by ‘having the right origins’?
Even as she hurriedly moved, Yerin felt a chill run down her spine at those words.
“Still, it shouldn’t be lacking as a gift for the two of you.”
“What do you mean by that?!”
“You’ll see. Now, I have to go!”
Waving his hand cheerfully, the Vice Leader vanished, leaving behind only a light-hearted farewell.
At that moment, someone charged at Yerin with a screeching sound.
The speed was impossible to achieve without martial arts.
Clang!
Their powerful arm, infused with inner energy, collided with Yerin’s sword.
Yerin gasped.
“Ugh!”
The inner energy wrapped around the arm was remarkably pure.
‘This is…’
No matter how strong they were, there was no way their arm would remain unscathed after colliding with a sword, yet the opponent didn’t even groan in pain.
Instead, like a beast, they leaped back and glared at Yerin.
Underneath the disheveled hair, their face emerged.
At that moment, Yerin realized what the Vice Leader meant by ‘having the right origins.’
Because before her stood…
“…Dang Yejun.”
With empty eyes, he stared blankly at Yerin.
This Dang Yejun had completely lost his intelligence.
More importantly,
‘That wound on his chest…’
The sword had pierced through his heart perfectly.
It was a fatal wound, one that even the legendary Hua Tuo couldn’t heal.
This meant that Dang Yejun was already dead.
“Madam!”
“I’ll handle Dang Yejun. Doyul, focus on managing the situation!”
Yerin’s voice was chillingly calm.
“…Understood.”
Doyul, though anxious, tried to calm himself and began to keep the corpses at bay.
It was exceedingly dangerous to intervene in a fight between skilled opponents.
Furthermore, although he was completely devoid of reason now, Dang Yejun had once been a powerful figure in the Dang Clan, trained with all manner of elixirs and martial arts.
And since they were who they were…
‘It’s better to leave this to the Madam.’
Doyul resolved to trust Yerin.
However, the malevolence of the Blood Cult made his heart tremble.
‘How can a person be born and commit such acts?’
Using the Mountain Poison, a symbol of the Dang Clan, and now standing in Yerin’s way as the corpse of Dang Yejun was a complete mockery and humiliation of the Dang Clan.
“Graaah!”
Dang Yejun bared his teeth and charged at Yerin once more.
Though there was no trace of martial arts in his movements, his actions were still powerful.
‘I have to ensure that these corpses don’t reach the Madam.’
Anxiety tightened around Doyul’s heart.
But Doyul alone couldn’t fend off dozens of corpses infused with Mountain Poison completely.
“Madam!”
“Don’t worry about me!”
As Yerin stepped back, she swung her sword wide.
“Graaah!”
“Gyaah!”
Doyul sighed in relief as he watched the corpses being pushed back.
But that relief was short-lived.
‘This situation isn’t good.’
Doyul’s expression turned icy.
