Chapter 55. Sword Demon: Fish Slicer 

“Heheheh! Greedy humans are trustworthy. Just feed their desires, and the rest is easy to control.”

Clack-clack! Clack-clack!

The man in the silver mask tugged the reins from the driver’s seat of the carriage and chuckled.

The carriage’s cargo area was covered with yellow fabric, from which a suspiciously salty scent seemed to emanate.

‘The Baekun Merchant Guild is useful. If they handle distribution, I can transport the salt all the way to Beijing.’

Following the Yangtze River and using the Grand Canal, the salt could be delivered swiftly to the emperor’s city.

Just imagining the Salt Gang’s product reaching the capital made him grin with delight.

“Hmph! Useless emperor. Isn’t it time you abdicated already?”

The masked man trembled with pleasure at the thought of mocking the Son of Heaven with mere words.

Just then—

“Hmm?”

He spotted a figure standing in the middle of the plain road.

It was a small-built young man dressed in black robes, wearing three swords at his waist, staring straight at him.

“…”

Clack-clack. Clack. Halt.

The silver-masked man narrowed his eyes and stopped the carriage.

A good man doesn’t come, and one who comes isn’t good.

If someone stands in your way and waits, they’re rarely there with good intentions.

“Who might you be?”

“A passing traveler.”

“If you’re just passing through, why not be on your way?”

“I’m a curious traveler, you see.”

“Oh? And what’s made you so curious?”

“That salty smell coming from your cart. Are you a fishmonger?”

“…Heh.”

The man in the silver mask laughed as the yellow cloth at the back of the carriage was thrown off.

Rustle! Whoosh!

A dozen wooden-faced warriors leaped out, surrounding the black-robed young man.

“Has your curiosity been satisfied?”

“Ah, I see. So you really are a fishmonger.”

“Hehehe! What a funny traveler you are.”

Flick! Slurp!

The masked man tilted his mask and licked his lips with a long tongue, murmuring,

“I wonder if you’ll still joke after being stripped and salted alive.”

“What the—? Are you a sodomite or something? Your voice did sound like a eunuch.”

“Heheheh!”

The masked man’s lips twisted in a grotesque grin—then he stopped laughing and gave a cold order.

“Kill him.”

Shing! Whoosh!

The wooden-faced men drew their swords and rushed forward.

Swish!

The young man flung off his robe, temporarily blocking one of them, who failed to notice the black longsword being drawn.

“One fish.”

Slice!

One of the wooden-faced warriors was sliced clean in half.

It was no different from a fish being butchered at a market.

‘…A boy?’

The masked man was shocked to see the one standing revealed wasn’t even of age.

But the next moment shocked him even more.

Zing!

The black blade surged with a blue aura, then swung like a whip with fluid grace.

Whoosh! Boom!

A gust of sword wind erupted, and the sharp pressure made the warriors flinch and pull back.

Clang! Slash!

One of them wasn’t fast enough. His yellow robe was torn, revealing wrinkled skin beneath.

Narrowing his eyes, the young man muttered,

“What the—salted fish? Looks like you’re heading on a long journey.”

“…A sword wind imbued with sword energy?”

The masked man was shaken by the skill shown.

To be at first-rate level at that age? That’s impossible for anyone outside of the top martial clans.

Moreover, producing sword wind—a technique involving inner energy—was incredibly difficult without specialized training.

Young and fair-faced. Multiple swords. Blue sword aura. If he’s in Hefei…

A shocking rumor crossed the masked man’s mind.

“Namgung Hoyeon, the Thunderclap Prodigy?”

“Oh, wow. The fishmonger knows my name?”

“…What’s a Namgung clan member doing here?”

The masked man quickly scanned his surroundings in alarm.

Seeing his reaction, Hoyeon shook his head and smiled.

“Relax. I’m alone.”

“…”

“It’s nothing big. I just got a new sword, and I wanted to test it out.”

“…”

“And what do you know? A fishmonger comes strolling by. I figured—what luck!”

Thunk.

He rested his new sword on his shoulder, speaking lightly, while the masked man muttered,

“…You really are alone.”

“I’m old enough to run errands by myself.”

“I don’t know if you’re foolish or just reckless. Maybe both. Either way, you die here.”

The masked man spoke firmly.

He couldn’t risk conflict with the Namgung clan.

He had to kill Hoyeon quickly, erase all traces, and flee.

“No capturing. Kill him.”

Whoosh!

The warriors charged again, five of them with yellow auras surrounding their swords.

“Let’s go, Heugya.”

―Ikuzo (Let’s go)!

A smile crept onto Hoyeon’s lips, and the black sword Heugya cried out excitedly.

‘Heugya matches well with the Heavenly Wind Sword Art.’

This was one of the Namgung clan’s advanced sword styles, a derivative of the Heavenly Wind Imperial Sword.

It was both a swift and a chaining style—twelve forms linked in continuous motion, producing endless sword wind.

‘Heavenly Wind: Beginning!’

Hoyeon unleashed the first move.

Vwoom!

The long black blade slashed through three of the approaching warriors in a single sweep.

Slash!

Two of them managed to cut through the sword wind with their aura—but one wasn’t so lucky.

Slice!

Blood gushed from his severed neck.

The wind turned from heavenly to bloody, forming a vortex.

‘Whirlwind Straight Line!’

Crash!

A spiral burst from Heugya and blasted forward, leaving claw marks on another warrior’s body.

‘Falling Leaves Scatter!’

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Heugya bent and twisted, spreading sword wind like autumn leaves.

Boom! Crash!

Three warriors with sword energy stepped forward, shattering the winds as they advanced toward Hoyeon.

Thunk!

Hoyeon rested the blade between his shoulder and upper arm—an iconic stance of the Heavenly Wind Sword Art.

Unlike typical vertical slashes from above, this style cut diagonally from the shoulder, allowing faster chaining at the cost of range.

It was this synergy with Heugya’s length that made it a perfect match.

‘Vertical slashes with a long blade like Heugya could dig into the ground, but this avoids that risk!’

Boom! Crack!

As he advanced with Ganbo footwork, Heugya darted from behind Hoyeon’s ear and lashed out.

The brilliant blue blade tore through the air and struck the warriors.

A whirlwind pressure attack—Mad Wind Pressure Break—crushed one warrior’s sword and sent him flying.

―Your technique resembles Kyokushin style!

Heugya praised Hoyeon for mastering its unwieldy form.

Thunk!

Hoyeon switched his grip—not like a sword, but like a spear.

This was only possible because Heugya’s hilt was more than twice the length of an ordinary sword.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Gripping the tip, Hoyeon spun his body, unleashing a tornado that swept the warriors.

Crack! Slice!

A warrior’s fingers were all cut off in the spinning wind.

Slash!

Switching to a short grip, Hoyeon stepped lightly like the wind and sliced a warrior’s chest with Clean Wind Sweep.

Another was cut like a fish’s belly with Wind Cloud Change.

Slice! Slice!

He made a cross slash like gutting fish, with Heavenly Wind Cross.

Slash!

With Wind Horse’s Thousand Strides, another warrior was crushed like being trampled by hooves.

Whistle! Thud!

Heavenly Wind Flowing Chant pierced another’s forehead like whispered poetry.

Clang! Slice!

The last who approached had his body split diagonally by Reverse Wind Turn.

Whoosh!

The final wooden-faced man stood alone in a sea of blood, watching in stunned silence as the wind returned to where it began—Heavenly Wind Return.

Slice.

―Puhaha! Just like before! No, even more refined! Looks like Namgung filled in your missing pieces!

As Heugya laughed, Hoyeon turned to the masked man.

“All your fish are chopped. Aren’t you coming?”

“…That’s odd. I heard the Thunderclap Prodigy used an overwhelming, explosive style.”

Despite his men being slaughtered, the masked man calmly observed Hoyeon.

“The Namgung skies are wide. There’s Azure Sky, Heavenly Wind, and Heavenly Thunder. Pick your flavor.”

“How arrogant. Then again, at your age and skill, I suppose you’ve earned it.”

Swish!

The masked man slipped his sleeve, revealing a white hand covered in frosty white energy.

“Still immature though. When you get to hell, tell them Dongmuoe sent you. The King of Hell will welcome you.”

“Hup!”

Boom!

Dongmuoe’s palm strike was blocked by Hoyeon’s diagonally-angled Heugya.

Crackle!

Frost bloomed across the blade, and chilling energy climbed into his body toward his heart.

‘Yin-attribute martial arts!’

Recognizing it, Hoyeon quickly circulated his Heavenly Thunder Imperial Art.

Zap! Crackle!

Electric energy surged through his body, dispelling the invading chill.

“Oho! So you bring it out!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Dongmuoe conjured dozens of palm shadows with glee.

Thud! Clang! Bang!

Hoyeon blocked each one, but his hand tingled from the penetrating yin energy.

Then—

“Heh!”

Thud! Slash!

Dongmuoe pushed away Heugya with his left and slashed with his right hand.

“Hup!”

Hoyeon twisted his body and narrowly avoided the blow, but Dongmuoe just grinned wider.

“Hehehe!”

Boom! Whirl!

Hoyeon leapt back with Rebo footwork and landed on the ground.

“Hmm?”

Then he noticed—his left arm was numb.

A deep slash had formed from wrist to elbow.

Crack!

Frost had formed over the wound, and inner circulation was impaired by the yin energy.

Zap!

Hoyeon burned his arm with Heavenly Thunder, staring at Dongmuoe’s hand.

From his fingers, a thin white thread—compressed frost energy—dangled.

“…Thread hand?”

“Heheh! Unlucky for you.”

Flick!

Dongmuoe flicked the thread like a snake’s tongue.

“You know, I heard you killed a top-tier master?”

“That was a fake. And we ganged up on him.”

“Hah! Baseless rumors. Just like the wind, eh?”

“You’re the strange one. With your level, you should be well-respected. Why grovel here like a dog?”

“You know nothing. I’m well-compensated.”

At that, Hoyeon’s eyes darkened.

Dongmuoe was at peak-master level—on par with Baek Jong-woo of Baekyak Mountain Manor.

And Hoyeon had neither Baek Seon-gang’s reinforcement nor the Iron Sword Unit now.

“…This is it.”

“Giving up? That’s boring. Where’s your earlier bravado?”

As Dongmuoe mocked him, Hoyeon suddenly plunged Heugya into the ground.

“I’ve gotten used to Heugya’s feel. Thanks for the practice, fishmonger.”

“…What?”

“I can’t give a proper gift, but I’ll show you something.”

Snap!

Hoyeon formed a sword seal with both hands, crossing them diagonally.

Woooo!

His upper dantian burned, and a rush of omnipotent power surged through him.

As he reveled in the sensation, red demonic energy began pouring from his eyes.

“Consider this an honor. It’s the first time in 300 years.”

Slash!

As Hoyeon raised his crossed arms—

The scattered swords on the ground rose as if greeting their master.

Mind-Sword Synchronization: Activated.