****
While Sima Geon and Cheol U were sweeping away Chief Patrol Neung Wi and his men, a group of people was stealthily climbing the mountain.
Their number was exactly twelve. They wore deep blue martial robes with white dragon headbands embroidered on them. They were none other than the warriors of the Nangong Family, who had moved out in secret at the request of the Flame Flower Escort Agency to strike the Gold Tiger Stronghold.
"Once we cross that hill, the Gold Tiger Stronghold will come into view."
Escort Leader Ho Yu-gon pointed to the hill overgrown with thorny vines.
The Flame Flower Escort Agency had wanted to send their own escort leaders and escorts as support, but the Nangong Family, aiming for a swift subjugation, requested someone who could guide them to the stronghold as quickly as possible instead. Thus, Ho Yu-gon, the swiftest-footed among the escort leaders, had been selected.
"Ugh, more thorny vines?"
Nangong Min, who had been pioneering the path at the front alongside Ho Yu-gon, let out a sigh.
"I'm sorry. To avoid the bandits' eyes and take the fastest route, the path has ended up being rough."
Nangong Min quickly waved his hand at Ho Yu-gon's apology.
"Haha! I was joking. What's a little rough terrain when we're off to catch bandits? This is nothing."
Ho Yu-gon bowed his head with a sheepish expression at Nangong Min's quick words.
The elderly man who had been eyeing Nangong Min sternly spoke gently to Ho Yu-gon.
"Forgive him. He's still young."
"Not at all."
Ho Yu-gon shook his head as if it were absurd.
As Ho Yu-gon stood there flustered with embarrassment, Nangong Gyeong withdrew his gaze and looked around.
"Keep this in mind. Our initial goal was to subjugate the Gold Tiger Stronghold bandits, but that's no longer the case. As you've all heard, the families of the Zhu Hai Escort Agency are being held captive there. Given their behavior, there might be other prisoners as well. Subjugation is important, but our top priority must be the safety of those captives. We cannot act recklessly and put them in danger."
"Yes."
The Nangong Family warriors replied in unison.
Satisfied, Nangong Gyeong nodded lightly and turned his gaze to Ho Yu-gon and Nangong Min.
The two, who had been standing dazed, snapped to attention and began hacking away at the thorny vines with their arm-thick swords.
How much time passed like that?
"Hold."
Sky-Gazing Old Sword Nangong Gyeong halted Ho Yu-gon and Nangong Min, who had been deeply focused on the task.
With a grave expression, he scanned something intently, then suddenly drew his sword. Taking over for Ho Yu-gon and Nangong Min, he began cleaving through the thorny thicket.
Each flash of his sword created a path wide enough for three or four men to walk shoulder to shoulder.
The thorns were gone, but the path was still treacherous. Still, it was incomparable to the trail Ho Yu-gon and Nangong Min had blazed. Of course, there was a difference: while Nangong Gyeong swung his sword freely, the two had moved as quietly as possible to minimize noise.
"What is it, Little Grandfather?"
Nangong Hwang, the Nangong Family's eldest grandson and acknowledged as the foremost of the Jiangnan Seven Dragons, approached and asked.
"A fight broke out ahead."
"A fight?"
Nangong Hwang asked in surprise.
"Yes. It seems to have ended already."
"Did someone else move out besides us? It sounded like the Zhu Hai Escort Agency asked for help from various places."
"Who knows. But..."
Nangong Gyeong trailed off, recalling the unpleasant aura he had sensed at the end.
"We need to hurry."
Showing a hint of impatience unlike before, Nangong Gyeong began blazing the trail even faster.
Watching Nangong Gyeong advance without hesitation, not only Nangong Hwang but even the other family members who had somewhat lightly regarded the subjugation of the Gold Tiger Stronghold could no longer hide their tension.
Moments later, the Nangong Family warriors passed through the thorny vines and were horrified by the gruesome corpses strewn about.
Nangong Hwang rushed over to inspect the bodies, then turned with a hardened expression.
"There's a Green Forest mark on the sleeve."
"Gold Tiger Stronghold bandits?"
Nangong Gyeong asked.
"I'm not sure."
"I don't know what's happening, but we need to hurry..."
Nangong Gyeong suddenly fell silent. Noticing his gaze fixed on a relatively small elderly man lying at an angle, Nangong Hwang cautiously asked.
"Do you know him?"
"Gu-san... Cho-ja."
Nangong Hwang tilted his head at Nangong Gyeong's mutter. It sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite recall.
"Pung Yosang, an elder of the Green Forest. Narrow-minded and cruel, but his skills are considerable. I'm really curious who did this to him."
"Looks like the work of a peak realm expert."
Nangong Hwang continued, examining the wounds on Pung Yosang's body.
"And it seems he was finished in a single blow."
"To take down someone of Pung Yosang's caliber in one strike. Even more intriguing."
Nangong Gyeong turned toward the Gold Tiger Stronghold and shot forward without another word.
"Little Grandfather!"
Despite Nangong Hwang's startled cry, Nangong Gyeong paid it no mind.
"Hurry and follow!"
With Nangong Gyeong vanishing in the blink of an eye, the flustered Nangong Hwang gestured urgently. Even as he did, Nangong Gyeong's figure rapidly receded.
"Hm."
A short groan escaped Nangong Gyeong's lips as he passed through the collapsed main gate.
Crossing what appeared to be the wall separating the outer and inner compounds, over a dozen corpses came into view.
The bodies, scattered in all directions, all had their heads smashed or chests crushed.
"These were done by that same person."
Recalling the wounds on Pung Yosang's body, Nangong Gyeong unwittingly took three deep breaths—a habit when excited or tense.
Mid-breath, Nangong Gyeong froze.
"Hah!"
A hollow laugh slipped from his mouth.
He realized he was quite wary of this unknown assailant. At that moment—
"Kuaaaagh!"
A sudden scream shook the Gold Tiger Stronghold, and Nangong Gyeong's body reacted instinctively.
With each leap, his body covered seven or eight zhang.
Racing like the wind, Nangong Gyeong spotted three figures at the edge of the woods: a massive man, one exuding an icy aura, and a middle-aged man writhing in agony at his feet.
The scream came from the middle-aged man, who rolled about madly, shrieking as if thrown into a vat of boiling oil.
Sensing intuitively that the man was the stronghold leader, Nangong Gyeong shouted urgently.
"Stop!"
Though their original goal had been to subjugate the Gold Tiger Stronghold, rescuing the kidnapped now took precedence. To do that, they first needed to learn the captives' whereabouts.
Having seen no survivors on the way here, the leader might be the only bandit still alive.
Sima Geon and Cheol U, who had been brutally crushing No Geuk under old grudges compounded by recent ones, turned their heads simultaneously.
"What's this old geezer?"
Cheol U scowled, turning toward Nangong Gyeong and striding forward.
To Cheol U, Nangong Gyeong was already lumped in with the Gold Tiger Stronghold bandits.
Cheol U swung his fist at Nangong Gyeong without hesitation.
A blade-like gale followed the punch's trajectory, engulfing him.
Caught off guard by the sudden attack, Nangong Gyeong drew his sword in a diagonal slash.
A single thread of sword qi erupted from his blade, clashing against the oncoming storm.
It wasn't his full power.
Nangong Gyeong figured blocking the attack at an appropriate level would suffice.
Though anger rose at the unprovoked assault in this unclear enemy-ally situation, he didn't yet see the man as a foe.
He assumed it was just a slight misunderstanding.
And he had confidence.
Even if the opponent was the powerhouse who felled Pung Yosang, he could handle it.
That confidence shattered in an instant.
The sword qi split the gale—or so it seemed.
It dissipated harmlessly at the gale's edge, while the storm surged even stronger toward Nangong Gyeong.
Whirled into the gale in a flash, Nangong Gyeong was pushed back several steps, swinging his sword repeatedly before finally escaping its grasp.
"You dodged that? Not bad, old man."
Cheol U looked surprised at Nangong Gyeong nullifying his attack, but he soon calmly assessed him and nodded.
"I see. You're no ordinary old timer."
Confirming the aura emanating from Nangong Gyeong was on a level incomparable to Pung Yosang's, he flashed a bright smile.
For Cheol U, who roamed blood-soaked battlefields daily for the Demon Cult's unification, peaceful days were a longed-for happiness, yet sometimes brought boredom—especially after Sima Geon's jab about his skills declining.
The prospect of a proper fight after so long set his blood boiling and heart pounding.
As Cheol U's aura surged to an incomparable ferocity, Nangong Gyeong had no choice but to rethink his approach.
It had been just a few exchanges, neither at full strength, yet he'd been overwhelmed.
The issue was the opponent hadn't gone all out either.
He couldn't gauge the outcome if they clashed at full power.
A nagging thought crept in: he might lose. Words that would horrify those who knew him, but that's how Nangong Gyeong felt.
Discarding his underestimation, he grew serious.
Soaring Heaven Single Qi Art enveloped his dantian, flooding his body with immense inner force.
As he assumed the starting stance of the Azure Cloud Twelve Swords—Nangong Family's signature swordsmanship, one of the Three Great Sword Arts of the Orthodox Factions alongside Wudang and Huashan—Sima Geon's eyes gleamed.
Fierce and sharp aura, yet filled more with pure vitality than killing intent. Fundamentally different from the Demonic Path sword arts they'd faced.
"Be careful. This one's no pushover."
Sima Geon warned quietly. Cheol U whipped his head around.
"Careful? You're joking."
Sima Geon chuckled at Cheol U's incredulous look.
He'd momentarily forgotten what a monster Cheol U was, intoxicated by the opponent's presence.
"Sorry. My mistake."
Cleanly admitting his error, Sima Geon glanced at No Geuk, who was on the verge of death from pain.
At the utter indifference, Nangong Gyeong was dumbfounded. But the overwhelming presence of Cheol U approaching with light taps on his fists was too potent to rattle his composure that much.
As Cheol U's massive frame charged, the comparatively diminutive Nangong Gyeong's sword swirled gracefully.
A punch that could pulverize diamond collided mid-air with the vivid blue sword gang from his blade, erupting in a thunderous blast.
That was the beginning.
Realizing Cheol U's protective gang qi and fists were far stronger than expected, Nangong Gyeong focused on exploiting gaps rather than direct clashes, while Cheol U ignored the attacks and swung relentlessly.
The myriad variations and traps hidden in those seemingly simple punches even startled the battle-hardened veteran Nangong Gyeong.
It was only natural. Though Nangong Gyeong's years in the martial world dwarfed his, Cheol U had accumulated real combat experience daily on a knife's edge, enough to disregard mere time.
Whoosh!
With a heavy whoosh cutting the air, a mighty gang qi flew toward Nangong Gyeong, who had been retreating.
It was the first form of Heaven Collapsing Three Strikes—Heaven Collapse Fall—compressed from the Overlord Sixteen Fists chain attack.
Deeming it unavoidable, Nangong Gyeong gritted his teeth until they bled and moved his sword.
Clearer and brighter than ever, his sword light clashed head-on with Cheol U's fist gang.
Amid the whirlwind of violent clashes around them, a sharp scream burst out.
Nangong Hwang, who had arrived at the battlefield and watched with blood-draining tension, let out a pained groan.
Unlike Cheol U, who arrogantly cracked his neck side to side, Nangong Gyeong spewed crimson blood and was sent flying pathetically, tumbling ass-over-end several times.
As he slowly rose leaning on his sword, extreme disbelief etched Nangong Gyeong's face.