The Terminally Ill Young Master of the Baek Clan

A shave-headed Shaolin monk, eyes wide open.

The eyes of Shaolin’s First Fist Jeong Myung and Yi-gang met.

“Please ensure no one can follow me.”

“Benefactor…!”

Yi-gang bit down on the Poison Resistance Bead again.

He could no longer speak.

Namgung Shin, who had collapsed, started to stir and move again.

Even while acting as if to throw his life away, his obsession with the Five Elements Divine Art did not end. What could have driven such a young talent to this extent?

While everyone was helplessly watching, Yi-gang stepped forward.

“Brother—!”

Baek Ha-jun cried out for his brother.

Yi-gang did not look back and accelerated his movement.

The form of the Cloud Treading technique and the secret art of light footwork combined.

On top of that, Yi-gang unleashed one star of the Heavenly Thunder Bell.

A faint blue aura briefly flickered in Yi-gang’s eyes.

Pipipipiping—

Was it because Namgung Shin had just passed this way?

The flying iron arrows and hidden weapons seemed less intense than before.

Yet, that didn’t make them any less threatening on this narrow path.

Hidden weapons thudded where Yi-gang had been standing.

He leaped up sharply.

Jumping amidst a shower of hidden weapons was not the best choice. Movement was limited in the air.

The mechanism set up by the Master of the Ghost Valley targeted Yi-gang, who had risen into the air, launching more hidden weapons at him.

Yi-gang maneuvered the meteorite sword in mid-air.

Tatatatatang—

An astonishing speed accelerated by Heavenly Thunder Bell.

Sparks flew continuously as the hidden weapons were deflected.

Yi-gang twisted his body in mid-air and landed.

His gaze turned to the opposite side, towards the gathered successors.

‘Tch.’

Yi-gang looked back and clicked his tongue.

「Look at that guy, not listening at all.」

‘No one was supposed to follow me.’

Moyong Jin was running towards the direction Yi-gang had come from.

However, he appeared to be biting down on something that looked like a Poison Resistance Bead.

If that was to be trusted, it wasn’t a very good choice.

Yi-gang himself was already experiencing burning eyes and a stinging sensation on his skin. The Poison Resistance Bead Moyong Jin found couldn’t possibly compare to the Tang Clan’s.

But there was no time to send Moyong Jin back now that he was already following.

Yi-gang quickly rotated his body and then crouched down.

The muscles in Yi-gang’s bent legs twitched and contracted.

The secret art of physical power, compensating for the lack of light footwork in his steps with enhanced leg power.

Whoosh!

Yi-gang, who shot forward, leaped the distance in a single bound.

And then once more, this time even farther.

The hidden weapons couldn’t keep up with Yi-gang’s speed and embedded themselves in the ground he had passed.

Far away, Namgung Shin, who was touching the corpse of the Five Elements Divine Lord, was getting closer.

Yi-gang raised his gaze to the upper left and then to the right.

On the walls of the vertical cave were things that could only be seen after climbing the stone bridge.

Strange carvings and uneven surfaces not visible as part of the mechanical devices.

Even while running, Yi-gang was thinking hard.

Only those knowledgeable in Qi Men Dun Jia could realize it, but Yi-gang sensed something about this place.

‘It follows the pattern of the Eight Trigrams.’

「Not the Five Elements?」

The Eight Trigrams and the Five Elements. The principles of the Five Elements were contained within the Eight Trigrams. The Eight Trigrams represented a broader concept. The Qi Men formations the Master of the Ghost Valley often used generally followed the shape of the Eight Trigrams.

The Eight Trigrams corresponded to the Eight Gates Escaping Technique.

It’s a principle commonly used in most Qi Men formations.

This place, too, was a formation designed according to the principles of the Eight Trigrams. Perhaps, if this formation had a name, it would be the Ghost Valley’s Corpse Poison Formation.

The Death Gate guaranteeing certain death was below. A deep pit spewing corpse poison.

The Open Gate where the formation started must be the gate through which the successors entered, and the Life Gate to escape through… was not yet visible.

There must be some trigger to create a gate to leave.

And the place where Yi-gang was heading towards, where the Five Elements Divine Lord lay…

‘…That guy.’

Yi-gang clenched his teeth.

Namgung Shin finally reached the corpse of the Five Elements Divine Lord.

His hands trembling, he touched the golden scripture of the Five Elements Divine Art.

Unable to stop him because he was biting the Poison Resistance Bead, Yi-gang instead kicked a broken stone fragment.

The stone fragment, the size of an acorn, flew and sharply struck Namgung Shin’s wrist.

As Namgung Shin turned his dazed face, Yi-gang had already approached closely.

“…!”

Yi-gang acted in silence.

When unable to wield a sword, the best way to overpower an opponent was certainly through grappling.

The Azure Forest’s Wisteria Hand grabbed Namgung Shin’s wrist.

Namgung Shin, intoxicated, had his arm twisted absurdly. Hitting his chin on the ground, he let out a groan of pain.

「Yi-gang! This… crazy bastard!」

The curse of the Blue-Eyed Mad Demon was not directed at Yi-gang.

Yi-gang too realized the anomaly.

Red blood started to spread from Namgung Shin’s clothes.

He invoked a martial art similar to the Heavenly Thunder Bell.

The one who embedded the Blue Eye Gem in his body was using his own body destruction to borrow the strength of the mystics.

Namgung Shin, half a corpse already, broke free from Yi-gang’s grip.

He hurled himself towards the Five Elements Divine Art.

Yi-gang clenched his teeth and grabbed Namgung Shin’s ankle again.

Namgung Shin’s reaching hand forcefully struck the ground.

But no matter how well preserved the corpse of the Five Elements Divine Lord was, it was still a mummy centuries old.

The golden scripture of the Five Elements Divine Art, which had been resting in its embrace, rolled and fell.

Namgung Shin somehow managed to pick it up.

‘Damn it…!’

Namgung Shin seemed not to have heard it, but Yi-gang clearly did. There was a distinct sound of something clicking into place.

Yi-gang didn’t care what happened to the Five Elements Divine Art.

He raised his head, vigilant for any possible changes.

And then there was Namgung Shin, already out of his mind.

He held the golden scripture and returned to the stone bridge.

Blood dripped from his hands and feet, and also from his eyes and nose.

Through his blurry vision, he saw the narrow and long stone bridge.

And also Moyong Jin, running towards him with an enraged face.

‘You son of a—!’

Moyong Jin would have wanted to shout.

What he had in his mouth wasn’t a proper Poison Resistance Bead, but a makeshift one made from crushed herbs with detoxifying properties.

Behind Moyong Jin, who was holding his breath, the stone bridge was collapsing. This had started happening since the golden scripture fell from the body of the Five Elements Divine Lord.

To avoid falling, he was running with all his might.

‘Move!’

Namgung Shin, blocking the path, stood there dazed, looking like he had lost his mind.

Moyong Jin clenched his teeth and steeled his resolve.

Yi-gang had made a promise when he encouraged Moyong Jin to join the exploration team.

‘Your weakness.’

It was to reveal Namgung Shin’s weakness.

And after entering the Five Elements Tomb, Yi-gang did indeed share that weakness.

Although it was more trivial than expected.

‘Hit the chest area, umm… probably the solar plexus. Aim there.’

‘The solar plexus?’

‘One hit might just knock him down.’

The solar plexus was a vulnerable spot in humans. Moyong Jin didn’t believe Yi-gang’s words.

But now, instinctively, he swung at the solar plexus of Namgung Shin, who was blocking his way.

Thump.

It wasn’t very strong, just enough to push with a palm.

“Gurk.”

But Namgung Shin made a strange noise and was pushed away like a paper doll.

Moyong Jin was startled by the hard sensation he felt in his palm.

Namgung Shin was already completely unconscious.

Koogoo-goong—

The problem was that the stone bridge connecting their location had completely collapsed.

Yi-gang, Moyong Jin, Namgung Shin, and the mummy of the Five Elements Divine Lord.

The four of them were isolated, as if trapped on a remote island.

Moyong Jin looked up at Yi-gang and shouted, “Uh, uhh!”

‘What do we do! How can we handle this!’

That was the meaning.

Unable to open his mouth, he couldn’t send a telepathic message either.

Yi-gang calmly tried to soothe Moyong Jin.

“Uhh.”

Naturally, Moyong Jin couldn’t understand.

Yi-gang could only point downwards with his finger.

And then.

The successors, who had been observing the entire scene.

Among them, a few really lost it and went berserk.

Baek Ha-jun was the most affected.

No one knew that he, often called Iron-blooded for not showing emotions, could ever get so agitated.

Luckily, he didn’t draw his sword from its sheath.

But he didn’t hold back, striking the arm of the person blocking his way.

Kwaang—!

Jeong Myung winced.

The pain in his arm was extraordinary. The skills of the Iron-blooded Genius were even more formidable than Jeong Myung remembered.

But he couldn’t step aside here. Having already lost Moyong Jin, he couldn’t let Yi-gang’s brother get away too.

Above all, the stone bridge was already collapsing.

He took a deep breath and shouted with his inner strength.

“Calm down!”

“Move!”

“What are you trying to do!”

Yi-gang was on a pillar in the middle of the vertical cave, standing alone.

With the path to that spot collapsed, there was nothing more to be done. Baek Ha-jun must have known this too.

“Anyway, we have to climb the walls…”

“Soon, this place will collapse too.”

“Kuk, move!”

The vibration, as if the earth itself was shaking, didn’t end even after the stone bridge collapsed.

Everyone had already realized the situation.

“The Five Elements Tomb is collapsing. We need to escape immediately!”

This place, which had stood firm for hundreds of years, was now trembling.

From the cracks in the splitting walls, streams of yellowish mud began to seep out.

This was beneath the Great Separation Mountain.

It was clear that the underground water flowing beneath the mountain was causing the collapse of the Five Elements Tomb.

Drrr-drrr…

The roaring sound of the underground water could be heard from all around.

Just moments ago, a wall on the opposite side of the entrance opened up.

A staircase leading to the surface appeared. It seemed to be the way out.

“We must go.”

“…”

Baek Ha-jun, after glaring at Jeong Myung, who had blocked him with murderous intent, then turned to look at his brother and Moyong Jin in the distance.

They simply couldn’t give up.

If they fled, Yi-gang and Moyong Jin, isolated there, would have no choice but to die.

“I will stay here and…”

Just as he resolved himself to say this, Baek Ha-jun’s eyes widened in shock.

The others were also terrified.

Yi-gang had removed the Poison Resistance Bead from his mouth.

What he was about to do was obvious. Yi-gang shouted with the internal strength left in the breath within his chest.

“Go! You bastard!”

Baek Ha-jun, who had been thinking of ways to save Yi-gang and Moyong Jin, raised his hand in frustration and then yelled, “Don’t talk! The Poison Resistance Bead!”

“Benefactor! It’s dangerous! Put the Poison Resistance Bead back in!”

The others were the same.

Even Jeong Myung, who had been trying to stop Baek Ha-jun, shouted from the side.

Yi-gang kept shouting as if he couldn’t hear, “I’ll follow you! Just get out of here quickly!”

Baek Ha-jun’s face turned pale.

If they didn’t exit, Yi-gang seemed intent on continuing to shout. He didn’t want his brother to collapse from the poison.

Someone grabbed Baek Ha-jun’s shoulder.

Turning around, he saw Peng Mu-ah and Yu Su-rin.

“Let’s go.”

“…”

“Now is the time, we must go.”

Peng Mu-ah was also worried about Yi-gang.

But at least for now, she acted more maturely than Baek Ha-jun.

Yu Su-rin added her own words, “Senior will surely not give up until the end.”

It wasn’t a statement that Yi-gang would definitely escape.

But her words moved Baek Ha-jun.

He looked back at his brother one last time, then turned and began heading towards the exit.

Then, all the successors rushed towards the exit.

“Ugh, uuuugh!”

Moyong Jin flailed his hands.

It was a gesture for Yi-gang to put the Poison Resistance Bead back in his mouth.

The poison’s effects were still lingering. Even in the face of imminent death, the desire to escape poisoning was a human instinct.

“Hm.”

Yi-gang only bit the Poison Resistance Bead again after confirming that Baek Ha-jun and the others had run towards the exit.

And then he squinted his eyes.

‘I must have swallowed a bit.’

His chest felt like it was on fire. It would have been dangerous if the poison’s effect hadn’t lessened since the first time.

Namgung Shin, who likely ingested the poison, could die at any moment.

「What do we do now? If we die here…」

The Blue-Eyed Mad Demon spoke in a defeated tone.

Looking around in all directions, there was no way out.

Whoever would discover this place later would find three corpses alongside the Five Elements Divine Lord.

‘The Life Gate was definitely over there.’

But Yi-gang’s gaze was not one of surrender.

The definite exit among the Eight Gates was the staircase the successors had climbed. However, the way to survive wasn’t limited to the Life Gate.

Yi-gang walked steadily towards the Five Elements Divine Lord.

‘I’m sorry.’

Then, he boldly pushed the corpse aside.

Then, the ground where he had pushed the corpse revealed itself.

On the round disk, there were inscriptions in Sanskrit.

Ghost Gate

Among the Eight Gates, there was no such thing as a Ghost Gate.

Yi-gang grasped the edge of the disk.

Moyong Jin, his face red from holding his breath for so long, hurried over to help.

Pulling it with all their strength.

Whoosh—

The disk came off, revealing a dark, bottomless hole.

It was a hole of indeterminable depth.

Could it lead beneath the pillar they were on, to a pit of corpse poison?

But a cool breeze blew out from within. Somehow, it felt different from the rising currents of the corpse poison.

Yi-gang brought his face close to the hole and nodded.

Then he pointed down to Moyong Jin with his finger.

Moyong Jin had a look of ‘Are we going down there?’ on his face.

Instead of explaining, Yi-gang pushed the unconscious body of Namgung Shin into the hole.

Then he jumped in himself.

Moyong Jin tightly closed his eyes.

The surroundings were already collapsing, and staying here would mean eventual death from suffocation and poison.

There were no other options left.

“Uuuuugh!”

He followed Yi-gang and jumped into the hole.

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