Chapter 156

Pyo Wol blinked.

The words were so out of the blue that it took him a moment to accept them as reality.

“Jin…… Geum-woo?”

“Yes! According to the agency head, Jin Geum-woo…… the iron tower man, has been killed.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t know for sure yet. I called for you, Orabeoni, without even having time to confirm if the rumor is true.”

Eun-yo’s voice trembled.

During their escape from the Small Thunder Sound Temple and their journey to Chengdu, Jin Geum-woo had taken great care of her and the children.

Until then, Jin Geum-woo and the children had been complete strangers. Yet, Jin Geum-woo had shown them baseless kindness.

Eun-yo knew that, at the very least, there were no calculations behind his actions.

Soma, too, just blinked his large eyes in disbelief.

It was Pyo Wol who broke the silence.

“Did you say the agency head is in the next room?”

“Yes!”

Pyo Wol stood up and headed to the next room.

Eun-yo and Soma just watched him go.

His expression was no different from usual. But at this moment, the two of them felt a terrible fear.

‘He’s different from usual!’

‘Hyung-ah!’

Both of them had been abused in harsh environments for so long that they had lost the emotion of fear. But even they felt a dreadful terror at the change in Pyo Wol’s atmosphere.

Screech!

Pyo Wol opened the door to the VIP room and entered.

“Hmph! Who are you?”

“How dare you be so rude?”

The guest who had been talking with the head of the Great Wall Escort Agency frowned.

It was because a stranger had suddenly entered.

The guest was one of Chengdu’s powerful figures.

He held the power to annihilate a clan overnight with a single word.

“Who are you to dare barge in like this? If you can’t explain yourself, I will annihilate both your family and the Celestial Fragrance Pavilion.”

“Pyo Wol!”

“What?”

“My name is Pyo Wol.”

“Huk!”

In an instant, the guest’s face turned deathly pale.

There was not a single person of power living in Chengdu who did not know that name.

The Reaper of Chengdu.

The one who single-handedly made the Qingcheng Sect and Emei Sect become Closed-off.

No powerful figure in Chengdu could dare compare to that name.

If the gap had been smaller, they might have tried to recruit him, but the disparity was so immense that they didn’t even dare to think of it. That was Pyo Wol.

Even if they didn’t know his face, everyone knew his name.

Pyo Wol pulled down the scarf covering his face and sat down.

Instantly, the guest froze like ice.

The moment he saw the face more beautiful than a woman’s, he realized that this was the real Pyo Wol.

‘My god! Why is the Reaper here?’

Winter was still a long way off, but his body trembled like an aspen tree.

If only he could turn back time, he wanted to go back to a moment ago and smash the mouth that had been spouting nonsense.

To dare threaten the Reaper.

If he so wished, his life and the lives of his family would no longer be of this world.

He didn’t dare open his mouth, merely prostrating himself and waiting for Pyo Wol’s judgment.

The head of the Great Wall Escort Agency looked at the guest with a puzzled expression. But he, too, had been through thick and thin, and he noticed that the beautiful man before him was no ordinary being.

He bowed his head politely and spoke.

“Did you say you are…… Great Hero Pyo Wol? What business brings you to this room?”

“Jin Geum-woo!”

“Pardon?”

“Did you say he is dead? Is it true?”

“So that’s why you’ve come. It is true.”

“Is it…… really?”

“Yes! I can stake my life on it. It is certain.”

“How…… did he die?”

“That, I do not know. The Jin Clan of Mount Tianjung is being very hush-hush about it. They, too, are flustered by Young Hero Jin’s sudden death. My Great Wall Escort Agency only found out because we have been doing business with the Jin Clan for a long time; other Sects do not yet know of this.”

The head of the Great Wall Escort Agency revealed everything he knew. But Pyo Wol was no longer listening to him.

‘So he’s really dead?’

For some reason, his chest felt tight.

Pyo Wol stood up and went outside.

“Hyung-ah!”

Soma approached Pyo Wol’s side.

“Let’s go home.”

“Is it true? Is the iron tower hyung-ah really dead?”

“It seems so.”

“Who killed the iron tower hyung-ah? Huh? Tell me. I’ll kill that bastard.”

Soma thrashed about.

Over his innocent face, the image of a bloodthirsty yaksha was cast.

“Huk!”

“Keuk!”

The customers who had been enjoying their drinks were startled by the killing intent emanating from Soma and had seizures.

Pyo Wol took Soma and returned to the Red Pine Manor.

Even after returning to the Red Pine Manor, Soma could not contain his anger and continued to rampage.

Pyo Wol left Soma alone, entered his room, and opened a drawer.

In the drawer were a dozen or so unread letters.

All dozen letters began with the same phrase.

[To my dear friend…….

It has already been two months since I returned from Tibet with you. In that time, I have traveled to many places.

Among them, Yunnan is particularly memorable.

I don’t think I will ever forget the memories from Yunnan Province.

There…….]

Jin Geum-woo was boasting about what he had experienced in Yunnan Province and how he had overcome the dangers.

Pyo Wol read another letter.

[To my dear friend…….

……I am still chasing them. But their movements are truly mysterious, and I cannot even see their tails.

Am I really chasing a mirage?

I’m starting to get tired.

But I must press on.]

Pyo Wol opened another letter.

It was a letter whose seal had not even been broken.

[To my dear friend…….

……I have yet to see even the tail of the Nine Dragons, let alone its head.

Is it really just my own delusion?

I’m no longer certain.

How wonderful it would be if I could see you at a time like this.

I still can’t forget the time we crossed the western highlands of Sichuan Province together.

I wonder if there was ever a time in my entire life when I was so free.

If I had my way, I would want to live like that from now on.

Free, without being bound by anything…….

Someday, when I retire from Jianghu, I want to cross the western highlands with you once more. And I want to duel to my heart’s content.

I can’t forget the night sky we saw then.

Are the children all well?

Soma, Guian, Eun-yo, I miss them all.]

Pyo Wol quietly closed the letter.

In his thirty years of life, they had only spent two months together.

But it seemed that the journey of just two months had been imprinted on Jin Geum-woo as a special memory.

Every letter mentioned the memory of when they went to Tibet together.

Pyo Wol muttered.

“He’s dead, you say? So futilely……”

The Jin Geum-woo in the letters was vividly alive, yet to hear he was dead in reality was unbelievable.

All this time, Pyo Wol had not only not read Jin Geum-woo’s letters, but he had never once replied. Yet, Jin Geum-woo sent letters to Pyo Wol whenever he had time.

Jin Geum-woo expected nothing from Pyo Wol.

He just calmly conveyed his current situation and feelings.

Perhaps he needed someone to whom he could openly confide his heart. That must be why he sent letters to Pyo Wol, even with Won Gayoung and Neung Sowoon by his side.

Pyo Wol carefully folded Jin Geum-woo’s letter and put it inside his robes.

His chest felt tight.

Except for the time he was trapped in the underground cavern, this was the first time his heart had felt so troubled.

It was as if a large stone was resting on his chest.

Pyo Wol already knew how to resolve this suffocating feeling.

Pyo Wol stood up.

As he came out, Soma quickly followed.

“Hyung-ah!”

Pyo Wol gave no answer. At that, Soma watched Pyo Wol’s expression.

‘He’s still scary!’

His face was no different from usual. But to Soma, it still felt frightening.

Soma clamped his mouth shut.

He knew instinctively that it was better to follow quietly than to speak at a time like this.

The place Pyo Wol headed to was Tang Sochu’s new workshop, built behind the Red Pine Manor.

Kkiiik!

As he opened the workshop door, a wave of scorching heat rushed out like a storm.

The heat was so intense that a single breath was enough to make one’s breath catch.

Clang! Clang!

Inside the workshop, Tang Sochu was in the middle of hammering.

It was unclear what he was making, but his entire body was drenched in sweat, suggesting he had been hammering for quite some time.

Pyo Wol and Soma sat on a chair and watched Tang Sochu.

Tang Sochu’s work finished one Shichen later.

“Oh, Hyung?”

Only then did Tang Sochu notice Pyo Wol was in the workshop.

“Are you done with your work?”

“Yeah! Why didn’t you say you were here?”

“I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“What’s wrong? Your expression is unusual.”

“I’m going out for a while.”

“Out?”

“Outside of Sichuan Province.”

“Why?”

“Jin Geum-woo is dead.”

“……”

“While I’m out, I’ll take care of something related to you as well.”

“Me? The Hundred Wraith Union?”

“We can’t stay in this ambiguous state forever.”

“Hoo! I keep putting a heavy burden on you, Hyung.”

“It’s not much of a burden.”

“Wait a minute.”

Tang Sochu went inside.

A moment later, he came back out with a black robe in his hands.

“Take this.”

“What is it?”

“It’s called the Dark Dragon Robe.”

“Dark Dragon Robe?”

“It looks like an ordinary robe on the outside, but I added a lining made of specially woven Silver Thread. It’s sturdy enough to block most swords and blades. Try it on.”

Pyo Wol put on the Dark Dragon Robe.

It felt a little stiff, but it was flexible enough not to hinder his movements.

“The outer fabric is dyed with five special dyes. Try infusing your Internal Energy into it.”

As Tang Sochu said, when he infused his Internal Energy, the color of the Dark Dragon Robe changed. This time, it was a perfect black.

“The color changes depending on the amount of Internal Energy you infuse, so you can use it according to your needs.”

“It’s fascinating.”

“That’s why some distant relative of the Tang Clan whose name I don’t even know is greedy for the Secret Transmission. It’s a technique the Tang Clan developed long ago but was discarded because it was deemed useless. But it’s perfect for you, Hyung, an Assassin.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ve also placed some small Hidden Weapons, including White Phosphorus Fire, inside the Dark Dragon Robe. Use them if you need to. This is all I can do for you, Hyung. I’m sorry!”

“This is more than enough.”

Pyo Wol patted Tang Sochu’s shoulder.

Jin Geum-woo was the first real man Pyo Wol had ever met. A true man who acted solely on his beliefs, without any calculation of profit or loss.

He had a light.

A light like the sun that Pyo Wol could never possess.

He had thought that light was dazzling.

That was why he felt he was not suited for it.

That was why he had pushed away Jin Geum-woo, who unreservedly called him a friend.

Because the closer he got to Jin Geum-woo, the more shabby his own darkness felt.

Still, he thought that someday he would be able to share his heart with Jin Geum-woo.

When the darkness within him subsided and his closed heart opened even a little.

But that would never happen now.

They had taken Jin Geum-woo away.

The only man who called him a friend.

Pyo Wol had not yet been able to call him a friend. And now, he would never have the chance.

‘Now, they will pay the price for my loss.’