Chapter 234

“Ouch!”

As he pulled out the Ghostly Rain, Hong Ye-seol let out a sharp scream.

The sight of her trembling like a sparrow caught in the rain would have naturally evoked pity in any onlooker. But Pyo Wol knew well that this was Hong Ye-seol’s disguise.

This was a woman who hadn’t screamed once despite being stabbed twice by the Ghostly Rain. It was unlikely that someone like her would succumb to the mere pain of having a flying dagger pulled out.

“It hurts. To put two holes in a woman’s body. How are you going to take responsibility for this?”

Hong Ye-seol asked, thrusting her punctured shoulder toward Pyo Wol.

For a moment, her unique scent of wild chrysanthemums stimulated Pyo Wol’s sense of smell. But Pyo Wol answered without a single change in his expression.

“If you feel wronged, I can end your life right now.”

“Such harsh words from such a handsome face? Don’t you know a joke when you hear one?”

“I’m not foolish enough to readily accept an assassin’s joke.”

“Tch!”

“Now talk. What is his identity?”

“Lee Yul! He’s Daoist Master Seol’s Steward. The reason Daoist Master Seol has expanded his power so much recently and returned to Runan is all because of his influence.”

“You mean he’s the one with the real power?”

“That’s right. I don’t know his true identity, but he possesses an incredibly cold and calculating mind.”

“You don’t know his identity?”

“Our Union has been looking into him, but we haven’t been able to grasp his true identity yet. However, he sometimes hires our Union’s assassins.”

“What kind of requests did they carry out?”

Hong Ye-seol answered while applying hemostasis to the wound on her shoulder.

“I can’t know that much. I don’t know if you’re aware, but the assassins of the Hundred Wraith Union are instructed to operate individually. The only person who knows exactly what missions other assassins are carrying out is the Union Lord.”

“Is this the first time you’ve received a request from Lee Yul?”

“That’s right. Until now, he mainly hired lower-ranked assassins, but this is the first time he’s hired me. That’s how important what’s happening here is to him. You can tell just by the fact that he hired his most trustworthy assassin.”

“For someone like that, your lips are quite loose.”

“Because he violated the terms of the contract first. It’s an unwritten rule in our world that when you hire one of the Ten Blood Assassins, you can’t hire other assassins without prior notice. He knows that too. But he made a contract with other assassins behind my back. That’s an insult to me.”

A chill crept into Hong Ye-seol’s eyes.

Like any martial artist, assassins also had their pride.

Among them, the pride of the Ten Blood Assassins, who belonged to the upper ranks, was beyond words.

Hiring another assassin after already hiring one of the Ten Blood Assassins was an insult to her.

Without any prior notice, Lee Yul had made a contract not only with Hong Ye-seol but also with the Red Lotus Four Ghosts. This was a clear sign of disrespect toward Hong Ye-seol.

Since Lee Yul had violated the contract terms first, Hong Ye-seol felt she no longer had to abide by the confidentiality clause.

If Lee Yul had respected her, she would have kept the secret until the moment of her death.

Hong Ye-seol’s philosophy was to return the same treatment she received.

Hong Ye-seol said.

“I’ve told you everything I know.”

“There’s no substance to it.”

“That’s because our relationship only goes that far.”

“Are you going back to Snow Blade Sword Manor?”

“You’d kill me if I did, wouldn’t you?”

“…”

“I understand. I would do the same. There’s nothing more foolish than leaving a future threat. I plan to terminate my contract with Daoist Master Seol. Since he violated the contract first, there won’t be any problem. But don’t let your guard down. Knowing his disposition, even if I terminate the contract, he’s sure to call in others.”

Most martial artists in the Jianghu despised assassins. But there was a minority who thought of assassins as useful tools and utilized them well.

Lee Yul was one of those few.

It was unlikely that he would stop using assassins just because Hong Ye-seol had pulled out. He would surely find a way to bring in someone with abilities similar to hers.

“What kind of person is the Hundred Wraith Union Lord?”

“That wasn’t part of our deal. So I can’t tell you.”

Hong Ye-seol winked one eye.

Although she was still under Pyo Wol’s threat, she felt no fear.

It was because she had already figured out what kind of person Pyo Wol was.

He was certainly a terrifying man.

She knew that just from how he had subdued her in an instant.

It wasn’t just that his martial arts were strong; his mind, schemes, and even his ability to read people were at the highest level in the Jianghu. On top of that, poison didn’t work on him. But he had clear boundaries.

She couldn’t be sure what his standards were, but as long as one didn’t cross the line he had set, he wouldn’t use his killing methods without reason.

Hong Ye-seol straightened her clothes and stood up.

“If you have no more questions, I’ll be on my way. As you can see, my wound is severe, so I need to get it treated by a physician.”

“…”

“Bye!”

Hong Ye-seol gave Pyo Wol a little wave and then launched herself into the air, disappearing.

Pyo Wol stared blankly in the direction Hong Ye-seol had vanished.

“An organization united by necessity, but whose members act as they please, like grains of sand. So that’s what the Hundred Wraith Union is like.”

Hong Ye-seol had answered nonchalantly, but Pyo Wol was able to glean a considerable amount of information about the Hundred Wraith Union from her words.

The biggest piece of information was the nature of the Hundred Wraith Union.

The members of the Hundred Wraith Union carried out their requests independently and rarely exchanged information. Because of that, it seemed there was poor communication even among the members.

While the abilities of the individual members might be outstanding, when viewed as a single group, their organic unity and cohesion were, in fact, inferior to even a common sect.

On top of that, even the Ten Blood Assassins, said to be the best assassins of the Hundred Wraith Union, seemed to be unaware of each other’s recent activities. Above all, Hong Ye-seol spoke as if she didn’t care if the other Ten Blood Assassins or assassins died.

“I’ll know for sure once I capture the others.”

Although he hadn’t found out much about Lee Yul, this was a sufficient result.

By the time Pyo Wol returned to the Jin Clan, the night was already deep. Normally, all the lights would have been out by this time, but the Jin Clan was lit up brighter than ever.

Even while Pyo Wol was away, many people had entered the Jin Clan. There weren’t enough lodgings to house them, to the point that workers were building thatched huts late into the night.

The martial artists who hadn’t been assigned lodging had lit bonfires here and there and were having a drinking party.

Since sleeping outdoors was a part of their daily lives, they didn’t mind sleeping on the bare ground for a few days.

Although they had almost been greatly humiliated during the day because of the promissory notes brought by Jang Gwang-san and Sa Okyeon, thankfully Namgung Wol and Oh Ju-gang had stepped in at the right time to resolve it, so the morale of the Jin Clan had actually risen significantly.

Jin Si-woo had provided alcohol and food to boost their morale even further. Thanks to that, the Jin Clan had a festive atmosphere.

Just then, a small figure approached Pyo Wol’s side.

“Where have you been? I was looking all over for you.”

It was Jin Seol-ah.

Jin Seol-ah looked up at Pyo Wol with a pouting, angry expression.

“I had something to do.”

“What kind of something?”

“Something personal.”

“Hmph!”

At Pyo Wol’s indifferent reply, Jin Seol-ah snorted.

“The number of people has really grown.”

“A lot of them came in the afternoon, especially.”

“Where’s Si-woo?”

“He’s entertaining an important guest who arrived.”

“Who is it?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t tell me that much.”

Jin Seol-ah replied with a look of disinterest.

With so many people flooding in at once, Jin Seol-ah was slightly fed up.

Jin Si-woo couldn’t get away as he had to entertain important figures, but Jin Seol-ah didn’t want to get involved in such troublesome matters and was wandering around inside the Jin Clan by herself.

In this vast Jin Clan, she was wandering with nowhere to rest her heart.

Pyo Wol said to Jin Seol-ah.

“Can you tell me who entered the Jin Clan today?”

“Umm!”

After rummaging through her memories for a moment, Jin Seol-ah soon began to chatter excitedly.

Pyo Wol listened intently to her story.

Lee Yul looked at the men before him with an indifferent expression.

“What do you mean by that?”

“The Seventh Ghost has sent word that she will be forfeiting the Steward’s request.”

The men answering were none other than the Red Lotus Four Ghosts.

As if displeased by the Red Lotus Four Ghosts’ answer, a chill crept into Lee Yul’s eyes.

“Why?”

“She said to tell you that she is terminating the contract because the Steward violated the terms first.”

“Insolent!”

A muscle in Lee Yul’s jaw twitched.

The very act of a mere assassin daring to cite the terms of a contract and terminate it was an insult to him.

He had dealt with the Hundred Wraith Union numerous times, but this was a first.

“Does this happen often?”

“It is absolutely not common. However, in the case of the Ten Blood Assassins, they are granted autonomy by the Union Lord.”

“Meaning there will be no retribution from the Hundred Wraith Union.”

The Red Lotus Four Ghosts did not bother to answer.

Even within the Hundred Wraith Union, the Ten Blood Assassins received very special treatment. They were beings on a different level from them.

They didn’t want to make an enemy of her by speaking ill of her to Lee Yul.

If they had known Hong Ye-seol was here, they would never have accepted Lee Yul’s request.

Reading the atmosphere flowing between the Red Lotus Four Ghosts, Lee Yul let out a smirk.

“So, is there some loyalty among fellow assassins?”

“…”

“Well, fine! I’ll acknowledge it. Then, there shouldn’t be a problem with me requesting another of the Ten Blood Assassins, right?”

“That is correct.”

The Red Lotus Four Ghosts answered in one voice.

Lee Yul muttered.

“A mere assassin acts so high and mighty, not knowing her place.”

If he had his way, he would find Hong Ye-seol right now and subject her to death by a thousand cuts. No matter how much she was one of the Ten Blood Assassins, Lee Yul had the ability to find and kill her at any time.

It was just that the matter at hand was too urgent, and he had no spare attention to be diverted.

Lee Yul asked, as if he had just remembered something.

“You all chased that assassin too, didn’t you?”

“We did.”

“What is his level?”

“We don’t know his killing methods, but his stealth skill and light body art were superior to ours. We pursued him with all our might but still lost him.”

“Are there many assassins like that outside of the Hundred Wraith Union?”

“Absolutely not.”

The Red Lotus Four Ghosts denied it in unison.

“To have that level of ability without belonging to the Hundred Wraith Union? It’s certainly not a common occurrence.”

Lee Yul furrowed his brow.

He had already identified the individuals who had entered the Jin Clan.

He had identified any renowned martial artists or potential threats in the Jianghu in advance and prepared countermeasures. But nowhere in his list was there any information about the person who had infiltrated Snow Blade Sword Manor’s estate today.

“He’s no ordinary fellow. He must have figured out my intentions.”

Sending Jang Gwang-san and Sa Okyeon to the Jin Clan to humiliate them was a plan he had come up with on the spur of the moment. But his opponent had figured out his intention and had instead tracked Jang Gwang-san and Sa Okyeon to his inner sanctum.

He was clearly trying to confirm the identity of the person who had instigated the two.

It wasn’t just his killing methods or stealth skill that were formidable; his mind was brilliant as well. There weren’t many in the Jianghu who could think to that extent.

It was especially rare for an assassin’s mind to work so shrewdly.

“How did the Jin Clan manage to recruit an assassin of that level?”

Lee Yul found it unexpected.

The Jin Clan he knew was so rigid that they insisted only on frontal confrontations. If they had someone who could use their head like that, the task of bringing the Jin Clan to ruin would have been much harder.

“Could it be… him?”

He recalled the information that a formidable assassin had appeared in Sichuan Province.

The content had been so absurd that it had been pushed out of his interest.

“If the Jin Clan really did bring him in, then I’ll have to rethink my plans.”

He looked at the Red Lotus Four Ghosts.

They were undoubtedly top-class assassins. The very fact that they belonged to the Hundred Wraith Union proved that they possessed the highest level of skill in the Jianghu. But compared to that man, they seemed to be severely lacking.

He soon took out a brush, ink, and paper and began to write a letter.

It was a request letter addressed to the Hundred Wraith Union Lord.

After finishing the letter, he opened the window. Then he let out a long whistle. At that, a falcon flew like an arrow from somewhere in the night sky and landed on the windowsill.

The all-black falcon was a Thousand-Li Black Hawk, a mystical creature of the Hundred Wraith Union.

It was a mystical creature assigned only to a few VIPs like Lee Yul.

He tied the letter to the Thousand-Li Black Hawk’s leg. Then, the Thousand-Li Black Hawk flapped its wings and disappeared into the darkness in an instant.

Lee Yul muttered.

“To hunt an assassin, an assassin is most fitting.”