Chapter 138

The children’s names were Soma, Guian, and Eun-yo, respectively.

They had all been kidnapped from nearby villages and forcibly turned into Arang.

Despite being well over ten years old, Soma looked to be only about seven or eight. His clothes were baggy, and he wore no shoes, making him look like a beggar. But his face was peculiar.

He had what one would call a smiling face.

His eyes were curved like half-moons, and a smile lingered on his lips. While it might be natural for a child to always be smiling, it didn’t suit a child like Soma, whose humanity had been destroyed.

Strangely, seven rings hung around Soma’s neck. The iron rings clinked against each other, making a sound every time Soma took a step.

Behind Soma, Guian and Eun-yo moved.

Guian’s eyes were entirely pitch-black. The irises had always been large, but after Darkness removed the limits of his brain, his entire eyes had turned black.

Eun-yo was a blind girl.

She was originally fine, but after being operated on by Darkness, she suddenly lost her sight.

Despite suddenly losing her sight and living in a world of only darkness, Eun-yo showed no emotional turmoil whatsoever.

The monks of the Small Thunder Sound Temple looked at the three children with puzzled expressions.

When Darkness’s order was given, the children scattered among the monks.

Guian scanned the monks, his completely black eyes flashing, while Eun-yo moved, her ears and nose twitching.

Soma followed behind them, constantly muttering something.

Blood Buddha watched the three children with an intrigued expression.

Darkness approached Blood Buddha and spoke.

“Judging by his actions so far, the bastard is definitely hiding among us.”

“I suppose so.”

Blood Buddha nodded his head.

“Even at this very moment, he must have stolen someone’s identity and is watching us.”

“So?”

“That is his weakness.”

“Weakness?”

“Because he has never failed until now, his confidence is at its peak. No, I should say it’s arrogance. The arrogance that he will never be discovered.”

“Keep talking.”

“That will be his downfall. He must have entered this place thinking he would never be discovered under any circumstances. But now, all the doors to the outside are blocked, and all the Experts of the Small Thunder Sound Temple are gathered inside. Where in All Under Heaven could there be a more perfect trap? As long as we find out his identity, he has nowhere to Escape.”

An Assassin is fearsome because he hides his identity and attacks from the shadows. An Assassin whose identity is revealed in broad daylight was no longer a being to be feared.

“Are you saying those children can reveal the Assassin’s identity?”

“Hehe! Out of ten children, only those three survived. And each of them has had one talent enhanced.”

“Hmm!”

“The one named Guian can see flows.”

“Flows?”

“Strangely, he became able to read the flow of Qi. Our temple’s Martial Arts have a unique flow of Qi, and he became able to read it.”

“So?”

“No matter how much that Assassin bastard disguises his appearance, he won’t be able to mimic the flow of Qi contained in our temple’s Martial Arts.”

“Of course!”

Blood Buddha slapped his own thigh.

At his reaction, Darkness continued with a triumphant smile.

“That girl’s ability is also formidable. In exchange for losing her sight, her other senses, including her hearing, have developed abnormally.”

“So?”

“When a person lies, various physical signs change. The heart beats faster, the body temperature rises, or they sweat. That girl can detect such signs.”

“That is truly remarkable. So, we can use the one named Guian to identify the Assassin with a different Qi flow, and have the girl named Eun-yo determine the truth.”

“That is correct.”

“Then what is the role of that one named Soma?”

“His Killing Intent has greatly amplified. I don’t know what his true ability is, but right now, his mind is filled with nothing but the thought of killing someone.”

“Is that so? A rather useless ability.”

Blood Buddha instantly devalued Soma’s ability.

Among those who belonged to the Small Thunder Sound Temple, there was no one with weak Killing Intent. This was because Killing Intent was something that naturally increased as one learned the Martial Arts of the Small Thunder Sound Temple.

Darkness had nothing to say to that.

He, too, had not yet fully grasped Soma’s abilities.

The three children carefully moved through the monks.

Guian scanned the monks one by one with his pitch-black eyes, and Eun-yo carefully followed behind Guian.

Lastly, Soma laughed, jingling the seven rings around his neck. Despite Soma’s innocent-looking appearance, not a single monk smiled.

Finally, all three hundred Mara Blood Monks had been checked.

At least in Guian’s eyes, the Assassin was not hiding among them.

The Mara Blood Monks let out sighs of relief.

“Phew! As expected, he’s not among us.”

“Even he wouldn’t dare to Infiltrate our ranks.”

Blood Buddha gestured to the Mara Blood Monks.

The Mara Blood Monks quickly retreated and guarded the exits of the Great Hall. Now that there were only a few suspects left, they intended to completely Blockade the Escape routes.

“Not here, and not this one either.”

Guian scanned the remaining people at a rapid pace.

There were truly only a few left now.

Those who had passed Guian’s inspection watched the remaining people with tense eyes. And they prepared to attack at any moment.

‘He’s cornered. There’s no way out for him.’

‘I will definitely kill him and avenge my comrades.’

The monks burned with resentment toward the Assassin.

They were monks who had been on edge because of the unseen Assassin. Their grudge against the Assassin was just as great.

It was then.

“What?”

“He’s not here.”

The monks let out a collective sigh.

The last remaining monk had passed Guian’s inspection.

Now, the only ones left were Blood Buddha and the Blood Thunder Ten Monks.

It was impossible that they had been replaced.

The monks looked at Guian and the children with eyes of disbelief.

“Is there something wrong with his eyes?”

“Maybe he’s not in here?”

The monks began to murmur.

As their agitation grew, Blood Buddha furrowed his brow.

He asked Darkness.

“Is it possible he’s not inside?”

“That’s impossible. He is definitely in here.”

“Then are you saying he’s one of us?”

Killing intent tinged Blood Buddha’s voice.

The Blood Thunder Ten Monks looked at each other with expressions of disbelief.

A moment later, they glared at Darkness.

“Do you dare to suspect us now?”

“It was a mistake from the start to entrust the identification of the Assassin to such brats.”

“Hmph! We shouldn’t have trusted the words of an outsider.”

Despite their accusations, Darkness did not waver.

‘Filthy old men! You think I’ll be intimidated by that?’

Darkness was already backed into a corner anyway.

He had nowhere left to retreat.

“It will only take a moment. If he is not among you, I will gladly accept my punishment.”

“Still?”

“Honestly!”

Just as the Blood Thunder Ten Monks were about to get angry at Darkness’s unyielding attitude.

BANG!

“Everyone, silence!”

Blood Buddha slammed his large hand on the dais.

The hall fell silent.

Blood Buddha looked at the Blood Thunder Ten Monks and said.

“There will be no exceptions. Everyone will be verified by those children.”

“We will obey your command.”

“Yes! Blood Buddha!”

The Blood Thunder Ten Monks instantly quieted down.

No matter how much they disliked Darkness, they could not disobey the order of Blood Buddha, the head of their order.

Guian finally stood before the Blood Thunder Ten Monks, and everyone in the Great Hall held their breath and watched him.

Guian looked at the Blood Thunder Ten Monks one by one, with Eun-yo and Soma following behind.

Suddenly, Guian stopped in front of someone.

It was Myeong-ak.

Myeong-ak was one of the Blood Thunder Ten Monks, known for his hot temper and powerful Martial Arts, and was perceived as a tyrant by the Disciples.

Guian kept tilting his head as he looked at Myeong-ak, as if something was strange. Eun-yo, too, frowned deeply.

At that moment, Soma, who had been quietly following behind the two children, stepped forward.

Soma looked at Myeong-ak with his characteristic beaming face.

“It’s you, big brother! Right?”

“……”

“It is you, big brother!”

“What is your name?”

At that moment, Myeong-ak opened his mouth.

It was not the hoarse voice typical of an old man, but a calm voice.

Tadadak!

The Blood Thunder Ten Monks who were around Myeong-ak hastily stepped back.

“It’s him.”

“To think he was really disguised as one of us?”

The Blood Thunder Ten Monks were horrified as they raised their Internal Power.

Not only them, but everyone in the Small Thunder Sound Temple glared at Myeong-ak, no, at Pyo Wol, with eyes full of Killing intent.

Even with everyone’s Killing intent focused on him, Pyo Wol looked at Soma without the slightest movement.

“Soma!”

“You’re Ah-myung’s younger brother.”

“You… met my big brother?”

“With your father.”

“Are they… doing well?”

“So far.”

At Pyo Wol’s answer, Soma’s eyes trembled.

Soma was the younger brother of Ah-myung, whom Pyo Wol had met in the village he stopped by before infiltrating the Small Thunder Sound Temple.

A child who was kidnapped and turned into a monster while Ah-myung was out.

Soma lowered his eyes and muttered.

“That’s a relief. That they’re not dead.”

“……”

“Did Dad and big brother ask you to come? To save me?”

“No!”

“Then?”

“To kill them all.”

“All? Everyone here?”

“All of them!”

At Pyo Wol’s short answer, Soma frowned deeply.

The other children might have forgotten the existence of their parents, but for some reason, he still remembered them clearly. Perhaps it was because the memory of the moment he cut off his own father’s arm was too intense.

It was then.

“Show your true form, you rat!”

Darkness shouted, pointing his finger from beside Blood Buddha.

Pyo Wol looked at him with an expressionless face.

For a moment, Darkness flinched without realizing it.

The terror of the past had resurfaced.

Pyo Wol’s face changed.

From the old face of Myeong-ak to his original face.

When his pale yet beautiful face was revealed, everyone was astonished. They had never expected the Assassin who had terrified them to be so handsome.

But that was only for a moment. They soon came to their senses and once again radiated Killing intent.

“How dare you commit murder in the Small Thunder Sound Temple. We will never forgive you.”

“Tear him to pieces and kill him.”

They were poised to charge the moment Blood Buddha gave the order.

The Great Hall was filled with the Killing intent emanating from hundreds of Martial Artists.

No matter how great an Expert of Martial Arts one was, receiving the Killing intent of so many people head-on would make one’s heart stop. But even while receiving all their Killing intent, Pyo Wol’s expression did not change one bit.

At that moment, Blood Buddha opened his mouth.

“Kneel, Assassin!”

Wuuung!

His voice echoed inside the Great Hall. At that, many monks made pained expressions.

The formidable Internal Energy carried in his voice was piercing their eardrums and striking their brains.

Blood Buddha’s voice contained the power to overwhelm the spirit.

Even the Blood Thunder Ten Monks could not help but be affected by his voice.

But Pyo Wol’s expression did not change at all. Above all, he didn’t even spare a glance at Blood Buddha.

That sight further enraged the monks of the Small Thunder Sound Temple.

Kukuku!

The massive Great Hall began to vibrate from the Killing intent and Qi emanating from the monks. Still, Pyo Wol only looked at Soma and the children.

Soma asked.

“Big brother! Are you crazy? You’re going to kill all of them by yourself?”

“Why can’t I?”

“Crazy! You’re crazy.”

Just then, Eun-yo, who had been quiet until now, opened her mouth.

“It’s true!”

“What?”

“This Orabeoni! It’s true. He’s really confident.”

At Eun-yo’s unexpected words, Soma was at a loss for words for a moment.

He might not believe others, but if it was something Eun-yo said, Soma would believe it even if she said a stone tree was growing.

Suddenly, his expression turned serious.

“So you mean it’s true? You’re confident you can kill them all?”

“Yes!”

Soma smiled brightly.

“Then I’ll help you kill them.”