Tell Them We’ll Be There Soon. (1)

Who dared set fire to the Yin Yang Twin Monster’s house?

The Extreme Killer Five, who revered them, could not hold back their rage.

The eldest, Cheon Woo-hwan, teamed up with the youngest, Cheon Woo-jin, to search the rear mountain.

“Hyung. Leaving the main road, do you really think they’d run toward the back hill? Aren’t we just wasting our time?”

Cheon Woo-jin thought they were doing something pointless.

But the seasoned Cheon Woo-hwan thought differently.

“Now, kid. Think like those bastards. There are only two ways out of Ho County, right? Which way would you take?”

“Hmm. Wouldn’t the Han River direction be better? If they took a boat on the river…”

“You confident they’d get there safely? Without being caught?”

“Not necessarily…”

Cheon Woo-hwan glanced at the sky and pointed with his index finger.

“Do you see that black dot up there? What do you think it is?”

“C-could it be the Yin Monster, great warrior?”

“That’s right. You still think they’d run after seeing that?”

The Yin Monster swept the area from the sky with inhuman sight, searching. Her gaze was like a hawk’s, scouting for prey—ready to dive on anything that looked suspicious.

“Just seeing that gives me goosebumps. It’s terrifying.”

“You still want to take the road? With that pathetic light-footwork of yours? You’ll have your head split open in no time.”

Only then did Cheon Woo-jin nod as if he understood.

“Yeah, you’re right. The trees will hide them well here.”

“Of course. Do you know why the Extreme Killer Five have survived this long? Because of this brother’s sharpness.”

“As expected. Amazing.”

Puffed up, Cheon Woo-hwan pushed through the bushes at the front and advanced without hesitation.

“By the way, where the hell did those rat bastards hide?”

No matter how much they searched, they couldn’t find a trace.

Soon, the youngest’s grumble came from behind.

“Hyung, haven’t we gone too far? The Yang Monster said not to go beyond thirty meters.”

“Search a bit more.”

“At this rate it’ll be hard to get back.”

Then Cheon Woo-hwan, who led the way, suddenly pricked up his ears.

He’d heard a noise from somewhere.

“Shh. Stay still.”

At his whisper, Cheon Woo-jin also held his breath.

After a moment their expressions turned serious.

“Hyung. Did you just hear laughter?”

“You heard it too? Follow quietly.”

They crept forward toward where the noise came from. The closer they got, the clearer it became: voices and laughter.

They needed to eavesdrop on what they were saying first.

They stopped, crouched, and listened.

“Hahaha! I really feel relieved.”

“Indeed. Those Yin Yang Twin Monster bastards must be turning inside out by now, right?”

“But are we really okay?”

“What’s the problem?”

“They haven’t even gotten permission from the Alliance yet.”

“The result’s good, so it doesn’t matter. We’ll probably get a reward. We landed the first blow on those evil bastards.”

Most of the voices sounded young. From their conversation, Cheon Woo-hwan could piece the situation together.

While Cheon Woo-hwan toyed with his sword, he received a qi voice from the youngest.

• “Hyung, I think those guys are definitely the ones. Quickly call the great warriors.”

• “No. We’re already too far; they won’t hear a horn even if we blow one.”

• “Then what do we do?”

• “What do you mean, what do we do. This is a perfect chance to prove ourselves to them.”

They wanted the Yin Yang Twin Monster to acknowledge their worth. But Cheon Woo-jin felt uneasy and hesitated.

• “Are you sure? There seem to be five of them.”

• “Who are we? You’re not going to be scared of some minnows, are you?”

The opponents were the Murim Alliance’s young late-stage practitioners. There was no reason for the experienced Extreme Killer Five to be afraid—even if it was five versus two.

• “No, hyung. Lead the way.”

• “I’ll handle it. If anyone tries to run, you break their legs.”

Pushing through the underbrush and approaching a bit more, their hideout finally appeared.

It was a flat basin nestled beneath towering trees. Five young martial artists were resting there, all wearing the same light armor tinged with blue.

They’re members of the Murim Alliance, Cheon Woo-hwan thought, scanning the warriors’ identities by their weapons, hilt ornaments, hairstyles.

“The two on the left are from the Southern Edge Sect. The one in the middle carries a Tang family hidden blade… Huh, there’s even a bhikkhuni among them.”

Could skilled warriors really have gathered to commit this deed? Sometimes overeager rookies, blinded by pride, made a mess and met a bloody end. There was no need to verify further.

“You damn bastards. You had the nerve to set fire to the Yin Yang Twin Monster’s house!?”

At Cheon Woo-hwan’s appearance, the five turned pale. They never dreamed their plot would be exposed.

Flustered, they scanned the trees for the Yin Yang Twin Monster.

Then the one in the very center spoke.

“Only two of you?”

“What, you wanna try? Do you not know who I am?”

Cheon Woo-hwan frowned and advanced slowly toward him. But the Murim Alliance members did not step back.

“We know full well. That’s why we’re asking.”

“What did you say? You insolent brat…”

He cut off his words and twisted his torso. He’d thrown a hidden blade while the other was off guard.

But Cheon Woo-hwan wasn’t someone to be fooled by such a sloppy trick.

Whoosh—! A shuriken whirled past in front of his chest. It was a precise hidden-weapon attack; had he been careless, it would have caused serious injury.

Furious, he shot toward the attacker like a spear. His speed overwhelmed the young warriors. The slap of Cheon Woo-hwan’s palm against the man’s cheek rang out, and the man went down.

The other four drew their weapons at once.

Clink—! Clink—!

“Oh ho. You intend to resist?”

Although outnumbered, Cheon Woo-hwan did not waver; there was no reason to fear these rookies.

Cheon Woo-jin approached the fallen Murim Alliance member and asked, “Hyung. Can I kill this crazy bastard?”

“Wait. We’ll drag them alive to the great warriors.”

They did not intend to waste time. As Cheon Woo-hwan twisted his sword in his grip, a black shadow fell like an arrow from a nearby tree.

Startled, he instinctively raised his sword. A groan escaped him—he’d prevented the sneak attack, but his posture was unstable and his wrist had been injured.

“Are you okay, hyung?”

“W-who the hell is that guy?”

They’d thought there were five assailants, but one more had been hiding. That was why the Murim Alliance warriors hadn’t fled. Looking closely, it was Nam-hae, the great disciple of the Southern Edge Sect they’d seen at the inn; his skill and experience far surpassed the others.

“Cheon Woo-hwan. I’ve been wanting to catch you anyway.”

Cheon Woo-hwan rubbed his aching sword hand with his left.

“You cowardly bastard. You dare launch a sneak attack…”

Nam-hae sneered with a relaxed expression.

“Ha ha. This is really funny. To be called cowardly by the Extreme Five.”

“You must be amused. The Yin Yang Twin Monster warriors are looking for you.”

“So what? At this distance the Yin Monster won’t hear your screams. You’ve gone in too deep.”

A moment’s complacency made the situation difficult. While he faced Nam-hae, the other Murim Alliance members trained their weapons on the youngest, preventing interference in the duel.

Cheon Woo-hwan’s expression darkened as he tightened his grip on the sword.

Decide it in one strike, he thought. If he could bring Nam-hae down, he could handle the rest.

“I’ll show you the Southern Edge Sect’s Falling Clouds Sword Technique. But can you block it with that wrist?”

“Shut up and come already.”

They glared at each other, lowered their stances. Tension stretched between them like two drawn bows.

Cheon Woo-hwan prepared his secret finishing move but felt uncertain; his wrist throbbed as if a bone might break.

The odds were thirty percent. That was enough to risk a decisive strike.

He saw lethal vigor gather around Nam-hae’s blade; Nam-hae too seemed ready to use a one-strike killing technique. Both waited for an opening.

Then the silence was broken by the sound of someone swallowing dryly.

Gulp—!

That was the signal.

As if on cue, Cheon Woo-hwan and Nam-hae shot at each other like arrows. Suddenly a bright flash flared, momentarily blinding everyone.

Strangely, it wasn’t the sound of cutting or stabbing but the thud of a punch or kick striking a face.

“Guhk!!”

With a choking groan, Nam-hae’s body was hurled away like a kite snatched by the wind. He only stopped after his back slammed against a tree fifteen meters away.

What on earth had happened?

A moment later everyone learned the reason and gaped in astonishment.

The Murim Alliance warriors had turned ashen. The enraged Yin Monster frowned and glared at them.

Cheon Woo-hwan moved to Yu Seol’s side and spoke, pointing as he talked.

“The guy smashed into that tree was in charge of everything, and those arrogant bastards set the fire together.”

After speaking, Cheon Woo-hwan signaled to the youngest. Cheon Woo-jin dragged the foaming, sprawled Nam-hae over to them. His half-dilated pupils weakly stared at Yu Seol, his eyes filled with unmistakable terror.

Yu Seol grabbed Nam-hae’s collar with her left hand and asked, “Why did you do it?”

What could justify burning someone else’s home? Everyone fell silent.

Furious, Yu Seol pulled her right fist back behind her shoulder.

“Why did you do it!!!”

If that fist landed, his head would be crushed. Nam-hae gave up resisting and squeezed his eyes shut.

The Murim Alliance warriors watching were no longer in their right minds.

“Kneel, you cowardly runaway bastards!”

At Cheon Woo-hwan’s command, the five alliance members dropped to their knees simultaneously.

A presence of an entirely different dimension filled the clearing. Pride couldn’t be maintained before it; instinct overrode reason.

The Yin Monster trembled with her clenched fist, hesitating whether to strike.

“Sss…”

“Kill him quickly, warrior. He’s not worth sparing.”

While Cheon Woo-hwan tried to restrain the Yin Monster, someone stepped through the air toward them.

It was Yu Jinsan, who had heard the commotion belatedly and rushed over.

“Step back. Grandpa will handle this.”

Yu Seol, still fuming, stepped back huffily—deciding to leave it to her grandfather.

But what Yu Jinsan did next no one could have predicted.

“I’ve confirmed it, that’s enough. I’ll let you go—everyone return.”

Cheon Woo-hwan asked in disbelief, “G-great warrior? What do you mean by that?”

The Murim Alliance members were just as surprised. They had set a house on fire, and yet he was letting them go?

Everyone had misunderstood Yu Jinsan’s true intention.

“Return to your respective sects and tell them clearly: the Yin Yang Twin Monster will come soon.”

At his words, the alliance members panicked in terror.

Moreover, the Southern Edge Sect had already been harshly dealt with by the Yin Yang Twin Monster before—one of the most humiliating incidents in the sect’s history.

Nam-hae wailed and cried out, “N-no! Please take only my life, but don’t touch my sect!”

Yu Jinsan turned his back as if he didn’t even want to hear it.

Yu Seol looped her arm through her grandfather’s and cast them a quick, cold glare.

“Hmph!”