Chapter 54
The sight of the clan head writhing in agony, unable to even scream because his pressure points had been struck, spread fear among those who had surrounded the area.
The reason fear spread faster than anger was simple.
They knew just how powerful their clan head was—and at the same time, they had no loyalty strong enough to stake their lives.
“Are you all just going to stand around all day watching? What are you doing? Hurry up and throw down your weapons and bow your heads.”
“W-who in the world are you?”
Of course, not having blind loyalty didn’t mean that everyone was capable of rational judgment.
“Tsk, tsk.”
Does it really matter who he is right now?
Clicking his tongue at those still failing to grasp the situation, Cheon Mujin stepped toward the man who had dared to question him.
The moment his hand casually gripped the man’s shoulder—
“Ghhhk?”
“Oh? What’s this? Unexpected.”
After rousing the man’s inner energy with his own demonic force, Cheon Mujin’s eyes flickered with surprise when he felt internal energy that wasn’t tainted with demonic qi.
Since the clan head himself harbored an immense amount of corrupted qi, he naturally assumed that it would have spread little by little to his subordinates as well.
“So, you’ve been greedier than I thought.”
Cheon Mujin knocked the man out with a light strike to the chin and turned back around.
“Khrrrhh……”
The clan head staggered up again, drooling, his body trembling violently. Cheon Mujin smiled at the sight.
“Good. It wouldn’t do to end things so quickly.”
“You’ll regret this, brat…!”
With demonic energy raging through him, Clan Head Jeong placed his hand on his sword. Behind him, Geom Yujin readied herself to draw her blade at any moment, while Baek Yeonru, unable to withstand the pressure, instinctively shrank back.
Crazy.
Suppressing Clan Head Jeong—a man rumored to soon step into the realm of supreme masters—as if it were nothing, was unbelievable enough. But that wasn’t the main issue.
Annihilation of the clan…!
The words Cheon Mujin had openly hurled at Jeong echoed in Baek Yeonru’s mind.
Annihilation of a clan meant the family’s entire bloodline and name would be erased from existence.
To sever the line meant—
He’s going to kill everyone here?
Even if he was the great son of the Cheon family, could he really do such a thing? Without any tangible proof?
While Baek Yeonru wavered between panic and hesitation, something else struck her.
Wait. Cheon Mujin hadn’t moved in some time now. Even allowing for arrogance and composure, that was strange.
And then it hit her.
What did I see earlier?
She had clearly seen Cheon Mujin strike Jeong’s pressure point.
And yet the man had undone it in that brief moment with just the circulation of his own energy?
Realizing something was wrong, Baek Yeonru turned in alarm—and then she noticed the silence that had fallen over the area.
If the strange stillness wasn’t coming from Cheon Mujin, then—
“Gasp!”
Turning her head toward Jeong, she covered her mouth in horror.
“Khrrhhh…!”
A bestial growl.
Drool ran unchecked from Jeong’s snarling mouth, and his body was swelling unnaturally.
Had he forcefully ignited his latent strength? His grotesque transformation made one wonder.
“T-this is…!”
This was dangerous.
Baek Yeonru opened her mouth to shout a warning—
BOOM!!
A deafening blast and a fierce gust shook her entire body.
Quickly summoning her inner energy to regain sight, she saw clearly—
Cheon Mujin deflecting Jeong’s furious strike over his shoulder and driving his fist squarely into the man’s face.
That explosion of sound and force had come entirely from his punch.
Just how strong is he…?
So the intelligence that he was merely a first-rate master had been wrong after all.
Then again—he had slain a dragon-class beast. How could a mere first-rate warrior manage that?
As all these thoughts whirled through her mind—
CRACK!
Another sound—this one heavy and sharp.
Cheon Mujin had dodged Jeong’s rising knee and smashed his thigh with his elbow.
The sound of bone and flesh colliding sent chills down spines—but it was only the beginning.
CRACK! CRACK!
Jeong’s every strike whipped up violent winds, yet none of them so much as grazed Cheon Mujin.
Like a martial arts instructor easily evading the clumsy punches of an overexcited child, Cheon Mujin slipped past each one—except he retaliated with merciless blows into every opening.
How long did the fight drag on?
Bloodied and battered, Jeong’s fists grew sluggish.
The overwhelming ferocity that had seemed able to blow everything away was waning, until even ordinary martial artists could now see clearly how their clan head was being beaten down.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
When Cheon Mujin twisted his torso to evade and landed three consecutive punches to Jeong’s face, many could no longer bear to watch and squeezed their eyes shut.
From that moment on, Cheon Mujin focused exclusively on his opponent’s face, as though he had painted a target there.
His nose collapsed, lips split wide open, and countless teeth scattered onto the dirt.
By the time his ruined mouth could no longer contain the mixture of blood and spit—
“Hm? What, it’s already over? Sooner than I thought.”
Cheon Mujin’s fists stopped.
Wiping his blood-red knuckles on Jeong’s clothes, he lightly patted the kneeling man’s shoulder.
“That’s what happens when you rely on filthy power to advance.”
Muttering words few could understand, he turned away.
The moment he began striding toward them, Baek Yeonru flinched in fright, her body unconsciously curling in fear. But Cheon Mujin walked right past her without a glance.
And then—
“Subdue them!!”
At a beautiful voice, martial artists surged forth, moving as if on cue, and swiftly began to restrain the Jeong clan’s forces.
Startled, Baek Yeonru whipped her head around and saw a woman who must have arrived at some point without her noticing.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“Eh, it was nothing.”
As Cheon Mujin brushed his hands, Jin Sohee pulled a cloth from her robes.
“You’re injured.”
“This’ll heal on its own once I wipe the blood off—”
Ignoring his protest, she took his hand, poured water over it, washed the wound, applied medicine, and bandaged it with deft swiftness.
“It’s just first aid. See a physician before it festers.”
“Yeah, I will.”
“We’ll handle things from here. You can go rest.”
“What’s the cover story?”
“Collusion with the orthodox factions. Thanks to you forcing the clan head into a rampage, the case will be simple to close.”
“Heh, just doing my part.”
Nodding, Cheon Mujin gestured to Geom Yujin and Baek Yeonru.
“Let’s leave it to the enforcement unit and head back. I’ll leave this to you.”
“Yes. Please return safely.”
With a bow, Jin Sohee passed by. Cheon Mujin smirked faintly at her retreating figure and strode out of the Jeong clan grounds.
“How should I understand what just happened, Young Master?”
“What else? We worked with the enforcement unit and resolved the matter cleanly.”
“…You provoked the clan head on purpose, didn’t you, to secure solid proof?”
“Exactly. He was hiding a strange energy inside him. I needed him to reveal it.”
Baek Yeonru fell silent.
For the Cheon clan to declare annihilation of the Jeong clan based solely on that energy meant that anyone harboring such power was already considered an enemy of Cheonma Fortress.
“May I ask why you brought me here today?”
“Oh, nothing much. Just a little advance payment, since I’ll probably have some requests for you later.”
Advance payment? That’s what he called this?
There were things in this world one was better off not knowing.
Suppressing a sigh, Baek Yeonru looked up—and flinched at the directness in Cheon Mujin’s gaze.
This was…
“…I’ll cooperate.”
“Good. I knew you were someone I could talk sense with. Ah, and feel free to spread word of what happened today. That’s part of your advance payment too. Of course, be discreet about the clan head’s condition. You know what I mean?”
“Of course.”
Nodding, Baek Yeonru glanced at Geom Yujin and added:
“I’ll make sure word reaches the Hong clan as well.”
Geom Yujin frowned at the unexpected remark, but Cheon Mujin burst into laughter.
“See? I like you. You’ve got a sharp eye for things.”
A few days later, after rumors spread far and wide that Cheon Mujin had annihilated the Jeong clan—
“…What’s with those bald heads?”
“Punishment training, apparently.”
“Ah.”
Several comrades who had been absent for a while returned, their heads shaven clean like monks.
Watching them from the training grounds, Yoo Hyeonhwa couldn’t help but chuckle.
“They don’t look too happy.”
“Well, at least they came back alive. That’s what matters.”
“That’s true.”
The laws of the Demonic Sect were strict.
Deserting one’s post was a serious crime, often punished by ten years or more in the dungeons. Most died in the process.
“Ouch, that must hurt.”
Watching the bald men bow with their heads pressed to the ground, Yoo Hyeonhwa shook her head.
That had to sting.
Time passed.
By the time sweat had soaked the backs of those bowing, Cheon Mujin finally arrived—together with Mu Pungdaeju.
Even without saying a word, their mere presence drew every eye.
That was because—
…Terrifying.
Cheon Mujin wasn’t concealing his aura at all.
The pressure felt like it was crushing hearts. Training stopped, silence descended.
Standing on the platform, Cheon Mujin swept his gaze over the halted grounds, then looked down at those with their heads pressed low.
“You all know why they’re being punished, don’t you? Neglect of duty. For a martial warrior, for a soldier, such negligence is a grave sin.”
His calm—no, cold—voice carried a chill that felt like it cut through skin. Some shivered.
“This is your one and only chance. This is the last mercy given to those of you who have risked your lives on the battlefield to uphold the sect. The comfort you’ve grown used to—warm beds, good food—this is the last time it excuses you.”
There would be no next time.
“Rise.”
At his single command, those bowing shot to their feet as though struck by lightning.
“I believe in you. And I believe you will also place your trust in me.”
“Yes, sir!! Absolutely!!”
Their thunderous voices echoed before his words had even finished.
“Good. From this moment, you will be assigned to the disciplinary unit. Uphold discipline without fail.”
“By your command!!”
“Also—Unit 13 will now serve as my direct escort.”
“Yes, sir!!”
At his signal, Unit 13 filed out of the training grounds behind him.
“Wow… How did those guys change so much?”
“Beats me.”
“Mm.”
Hearing the boisterous voices of the disciplinary unit, Yoo Hyeonhwa smiled wryly.
Every one of them had been hopeless cases before, and yet look at them now.
“Well, they did see it firsthand.”
“Hm? See what?”
“What happened to those who disappeared.”
“…Ah.”
Those who had never returned—not for negligence, but for betrayal.
Just witnessing their fate had been enough to make the others change like this.
What in the world did he do?
Curiosity surged, but Yoo Hyeonhwa dared not ask.
After all, there were truths better left unknown.
“Alright. The reason I’ve gathered you separately is simple.”
Smiling at those assembled in his office, Cheon Mujin declared:
“From now on, you will be my elite force. Prepare for external missions—we’ll be heading out within a few months.”
