Chapter 63 – The Shadowless One (4)

In truth, holding her like this was the only way to feel her presence; it was no exaggeration to say she had almost none. She was clearly employing some special technique.

“How did you know I would come here? No, more importantly, how did you know I was the Shadowless One?”

The Shadowless One spoke in the same young man’s voice as before. She had to ask. It hadn’t even been a day since they met, so how could Yu-jin possibly have figured out her identity and intentions and been waiting for her like this?

“Let’s just call it a hunch. My intuition told me someone was after my things.”

The Shadowless One’s face contorted at Yu-jin’s playful words. There was no way she could be satisfied with such an answer.

In the entire several-hundred-year history of the Shadowless Sect, not once had a member’s identity been exposed. Yet here she was, caught by someone, even if she was in disguise.

There was no way a woman who had suffered such a disgrace could accept Yu-jin’s vague explanation.

“In that case, I’ll have to force you to speak…”

The Shadowless One couldn’t say another word. An immense killing intent washed over her body.

A longsword, two daggers, and a set of fingers were now at her neck. The four women had completely surrounded her.

They were all naked, but the Shadowless One had no time to register that. She instantly realized that three of the women, excluding one, were her equals or even stronger, and that they could easily take her life if they so wished.

‘And on top of that, the Ice-White Water Dragon Sword…’

Seeing the Ice-White Water Dragon Sword in Na Ye-jin’s hands, the Shadowless One was at a loss for words.

A group that possessed two of the Twelve Treasures, which everyone coveted. The Shadowless One realized these were no ordinary people and clenched her teeth.

Yu-jin, noticing her expression, spoke with a slight sneer.

“Huhu, you should abandon any thought of overpowering me. Of course, even if you did try, you wouldn’t stand a chance.”

As he spoke, Yu-jin revealed a fraction of his power. The entire room began to shake, unable to withstand his might.

Only then did the Shadowless One see a glimpse of Yu-jin’s hidden side. The formidable power concealed within his body was something she could not dare to handle.

‘A direct confrontation is impossible.’

The moment they clashed head-on, her head would surely fly. In this situation, the wisest course of action was to escape. And she considered escaping to be her greatest skill.

“Taking the Ink Dragon Sword from you will be difficult. As will taking the Ice-White Water Dragon Sword from that woman. I shall withdraw for today.”

At her words, Yu-jin laughed in disbelief. How could she possibly escape when he had her in such a firm grip?

But then, something astonishing happened. While still in Yu-jin’s grasp, the Shadowless One’s body slowly began to fade, as if melting into thin air. A moment later, she reappeared some distance away from Yu-jin and his companions.

“Surprised? You should have known why the Shadowless One is called ‘Shadowless’.”

The Shadowless One spoke with a semblance of composure, but her condition was far from ideal.

The technique she had just used, the Formless Being, was a martial art that momentarily removed the human body from the axis of the world, completely erasing its physical substance.

However, the backlash was immense. Even though it lasted for only an instant, performing it once had exhausted her body.

Just then, Eun Seol-rin lunged at the Shadowless One with incredible speed.

*Swish!*

But Eun Seol-rin’s attack only cut through empty air. Astonishingly, the Shadowless One had moved even faster than Eun Seol-rin, evading her dagger strike. In an instant, she was standing by the wide-open window, looking back at them.

“I will return and take your treasures.”

With those words, the Shadowless One concealed herself with her Concealment Arts and ran at a speed far exceeding that of sound.

Eun Seol-rin then reached out, using her energy to lift a cloth and cover her body, and chased after the Shadowless One without even waiting for Yu-jin’s permission. This was a matter of pride for her as the King of Assassins.

And so, the two began a terrifyingly fast pursuit.

“Do you think she can catch her?”

Na Ye-jin was also highly confident in her own movement technique, but she had no confidence she could keep up with the Shadowless One’s.

That was not a movement technique a human could perform. However, knowing how fast Eun Seol-rin was, she asked Yu-jin just in case.

Yu-jin watched the fleeing Shadowless One with a bitter smile before answering Ye-jin’s question.

“Well, that’s hard to say.”

Since meeting Yu-jin, she had continuously increased her internal energy, and with that increase, she had developed her martial arts and other skills.

Therefore, Yu-jin was confident that even the Shadowless One couldn’t easily shake Eun Seol-rin’s pursuit.

However, he was skeptical about catching her. After all, for a thief, running was their lifeline.

“Well, let’s wait patiently. Shall we make some love in the meantime?”

At Yu-jin’s words, the three women shook their heads in unison. They were already completely exhausted. Yu-jin simply smiled at their reaction.

* * *

The lightness skills of the two were truly astonishing. Despite running faster than sound, they created neither a shockwave nor a sonic boom.

The Shadowless One fled with all her might, and Eun Seol-rin pursued with all of hers. A battle of pride between a thief and an assassin was unfolding through their lightness skills. It was a first in the history of the martial world.

‘What kind of woman is she?’

It wasn’t something the Shadowless One should be thinking, but Eun Seol-rin was truly tenacious and fast. The Shadowless One was flustered, never having imagined a martial artist could pursue her with a movement technique.

Although there was some distance between them, she couldn’t widen the gap any further.

The Shadowless One had no choice but to draw out more of her true energy, doubling her speed and infusing her muscles with power. She became even faster.

But Eun Seol-rin didn’t let up, relentlessly continuing the chase.

“Ah, seriously!”

The Shadowless One had to shake off this leech stuck to her back, no matter what.

In the history of the Shadowless Sect, not a single Shadowless One had ever lost a chase and been caught. And she did not want the disgrace of becoming the first.

“Die!”

The Shadowless One twisted her body and unleashed a palm strike. A formless, soundless palm energy shot toward Seol-rin at incredible speed.

But Seol-rin generated a blood-red aura, slicing the palm strike in two. The perfectly bisected energy shot off to the sides, pointlessly destroying the ground.

Unlike the Shadowless One, who had only just dipped her toes into the Transformation Realm, Eun Seol-rin was a complete master of it. The difference might have been only half a step, but to the Shadowless One, it felt immense.

“What kind of damned leech is she!”

Furious, the Shadowless One unleashed a flurry of palm strikes, but Eun Seol-rin smoothly cut through them all. And while the Shadowless One was attacking, she managed to close the distance, even if only slightly.

As they raged on, the two soon found themselves passing through a quiet mountain in Sichuan. The Shadowless One thought she would have an advantage in the mountains, but she quickly realized her judgment was flawed.

Seol-rin nimbly and effortlessly leaped between cliffs and over valleys, continuing her pursuit.

‘Brute force won’t work, and the distance is closing…’

Realizing she couldn’t beat Rin in either strength or speed, the Shadowless One clenched her teeth. But unleashing those palm strikes had drained much of her internal energy, and at this rate, she would surely be caught.

‘I didn’t want to use this.’

But as things stood, capture was certain. Gritting her teeth, the Shadowless One unleashed her hidden secret art.

*Woooong!*

A hum resonated as if space itself was distorting. The Shadowless One began to move so fast it was as if she were leaping between spaces, and in an instant, she vanished from Eun Seol-rin’s sight.

Eun Seol-rin stopped, a look of disbelief on her face as the Shadowless One completely disappeared from her vision.

“I thought I had her, and she pulls a stunt like that… The next time I see her, I won’t let her off so easily…”

Eun Seol-rin muttered coldly, then launched herself back toward Yu-jin and the others.

* * *

“I’m sorry, Master. I let her get away.”

Eun Seol-rin, seemingly drained of energy, bowed her head and apologized to Yu-jin.

“It’s alright. I think I understand why the successive Shadowless Ones claimed their lightness skills and movement techniques surpassed even the Heavenly Demon’s. I can’t dare say my Flying Heaven Dance is faster than the Shadowless One’s technique. I mean, they say the first Shadowless One could leap through space itself.”

Eun Seol-rin nodded at Yu-jin’s words. The final burst of speed the Shadowless One had shown was so fast it truly seemed like she had leaped through space, though she hadn’t actually performed a spatial jump.

“This is troublesome, though. I’m sure she’ll be back, but I don’t know how she’ll come.”

Yu-jin, who had learned firsthand that the Shadowless One couldn’t be caught just by being prepared, could only manage a bitter smile.

It seemed the game of cat and mouse between them would continue for some time. But that was that. Yu-jin removed the cloth wrapped around Eun Seol-rin’s body.

“Chasing her is one thing, but you must be punished for acting rashly without my permission, right?”

For the already exhausted Eun Seol-rin, it was like a death sentence. She frantically looked toward the other women.

But Ye-jin and So-un just smirked and quickly turned away. Seol-rin then looked at her only disciple, Ran, with a face on the verge of tears. Ran met her gaze, then lowered her head and hastily turned away like the others.

“Ran… you… too…”

Eun Seol-rin looked utterly shocked, as if she couldn’t believe her beloved disciple would betray her like this. Regardless, Yu-jin pulled Eun Seol-rin’s arm, laid her down, and thrust his member into her flower.

And that day, for the first time in her life, Eun Seol-rin nearly died from making love.

* * *

The Shadowless One wore a frown. She wanted to steal the Ink Dragon Sword and the Ice-White Water Dragon Sword, but she couldn’t think of a way.

She had no confidence in a direct confrontation, nor was she confident she could steal them in secret.

As she was a beautiful woman, she could have used her body to seduce him, but the Shadowless One didn’t even consider that option.

She had no confidence she could subdue Yu-jin before having to accept his member. Moreover, her chastity was something she could not bring herself to abandon; it had to be protected at all costs.