Chapter 233 The Demon Slayer Six-Combination Sword Technique and the Lower Moon-Holding Technique – Part 1

Chapter 233: The Demon Slayer Six-Combination Sword Technique and the Lower Moon-Holding Technique – Part 1

Muk-rang asked.

– To encounter enemies from three directions at once? How peculiar. What do you intend to do now?

It was exactly as he said.

Judging by their expressions, they didn’t seem to have planned this together, yet it was astonishing how they could all converge at once like this.

Moon turned his head to look at the other members of the group, and everyone’s expressions had darkened.

They seemed to be feeling the pressure, as if surrounded on three sides.

But unlike the others, Seon Woo-jin’s expression wasn’t dark at all.

He swept his gaze over the enemies in both directions—the Ha Won-dal faction and the Six Harmonies Sword Masters of the Hyeongsan Sect—and chuckled softly.

Then he said to Mok Rang.

‘It’s a peculiar moment, but… aren’t they also on our side?’

– Hmm?

Seon Woo-jin first addressed Yeon Tae-jin, the Ha Won-dalgi.

“You said your name is Yeon Won-dalgi, Senior Yeon? I’ve heard the rumors. That you enjoy fiery battles. I too have long wanted to engage in a fiery contest with Senior Yeon. But as you can see, the situation has come to this. What do you say? With the Hyeongsan Sect here like that, will you give up?”

On the surface, it was a very polite question.

But his expression was anything but.

Seon Woo-jin asked her with a sneer, as if to say, “Do you really think someone of your skill could stand up to the Hyeongsan Sect?”

Then Yeon Tae-jin, famously hot-tempered, flared up and shouted.

“What the hell?! I got here first, so of course I go first?! Tell the latecomers to wait!”

It was exactly the reaction he’d expected.

Seon Woo-jin silently applauded her in his mind and addressed Yookhap Sword Master Woon-dang, who had seemed incredibly arrogant from the very first impression.

“Senior Yeon has no intention of yielding, I see. Then the Hyeongsan Sect will just have to wait.”

Needless to say, he accompanied his words with a sneer that seemed to dismiss his opponent.

Wun-dang’s eyes narrowed as he declared firmly.

“No one can make our Hyeongsan Sect wait.”

Seon Woo-jin silently cheered inside.

The situation was unfolding exactly as he had imagined.

He glanced sideways at Yeon Tae-jin.

Having heard Un-dang’s words, Yeon Tae-jin glared at him with eyes narrowed like slits.

But he couldn’t bring himself to immediately refute those words.

His temper seemed ready to explode, but even reckless Yeon Tae-jin felt the weight of the Hyeongsanpa name.

So, Seon Woo-jin decided to take the anger upon himself instead.

He snorted in disbelief and shouted angrily at the Hyeongsanpa.

“How utterly arrogant! What makes the Hyeongsan Sect so great that they dare to disregard Senior Yeon?! Have you never heard that Senior Yeon is a strong candidate to succeed Senior Son Eun-sang, the Demon of the Red Lotus, in the future?!”

“What?!”

At those words, Yun-dang of the Hyeongsan Sect showed a slight look of fluster. Even he found the name of the Demon of the Red Lotus, Son Eun-sang, somewhat daunting.

But he soon scoffed and shouted.

“I’ve never heard such nonsense! And even if it were true, it wouldn’t change a thing! No one can make the Hyeongsan Sect wait!”

It was only natural that he had never heard such talk before.

In fact, Seon Woo-jin hadn’t heard such talk either.

But having already lived one life, he had heard other news.

The fact that Yeon Tae-jin, who had followed Son Eun-sang in his past life, eventually quit his position as head of the Ha Won-bang and ended up following her around.

Seon Woo-jin glanced at Yeon Tae-jin’s expression.

He could easily see her face was now filled with joy and emotion.

She murmured, as if in a trance.

“Me… a strong candidate to succeed Senior Son?”

Seon Woo-jin answered with a serious expression.

“That’s what I heard. Did I mishear?”

Yeon Tae-jin hastily shook his head.

“No! That can’t be! You definitely heard correctly! I am Yeon Tae-jin, the Moon Chaser who will succeed Senior Son, the Demon of the Moon!”

Seon Woo-jin smiled faintly and said to her.

“So I did hear correctly. In that case, it seems only natural to me that the Hyeongsan Sect should wait for you. For a sect like the Hyeongsan Sect to make you wait… well…”

With that, he clicked his tongue in disapproval. At last, Yun-dang and Yun-gyeong, the two leaders of the Six Harmonies Sword Sect, stepped forward with furious expressions.

“How dare you!”

“Do you look down on our Xingshan Sect?!”

Sun Woo-jin smiled faintly to himself.

Then he drove the point home.

“Why? Is it wrong to look down on the Hyeongsan Sect?!”

That remark finally made them explode.

“You bastard!”

“This is unforgivable!”

Shouting in rage, two squads of the Hyeongsanpa’s secret weapon, the Pasanjo, charged toward Seonwoojin.

It was a movement without the slightest error, as if a single person were moving.

Shuuuwaaah!

Then Seon Woo-jin stepped back like the wind.

He landed right beside Yeon Tae-jin, the leader of the Ha Won-dalgi.

“Senior! How about we each take on one group and fight them? The side that finishes them off first wins!”

Yeon Tae-jin sensed something had gone terribly wrong.

But it didn’t matter.

As the successor to the Demon of the Crimson Mist, Son Eun-sang, he couldn’t back down here.

Moreover, this was a duel he had long desired with In Parang—absolutely unavoidable.

Yeon Tae-jin shouted boldly.

“Fine!”

Then he immediately charged toward the seventh floor of the bankrupt building.

“Haah!”

Her crimson-hued fists, clenched like iron, shot toward the six-fold sword techniques like a meteor shower.

Seonwoojin’s sword was faster.

Seeing Yeon Tae-jin charging, Seon Woo-jin chuckled softly and took a step toward the fourth brother of the Pasan clan, who was rushing at him.

Swish!

The next instant, as if shifting his form, Seon Woo-jin’s figure appeared before Pan San Sa Jo’s leader, Yun-dang.

“!”

In that instant, Yun-dang saw a sword light slash through the air like a tearing cross.

Shwaaah!

Seon Woo-jin had hoped this surprise attack would allow him to easily take down his opponent.

His reasoning was that no matter how formidable the sword technique might be, striking before it activated would render it useless.

But the Sixfold Sword Technique proved far from easy to handle.

Although the commander, Wondang, clearly hadn’t reacted in time, the two Six-Combination Sword Masters flanking him had closed in, each swinging their swords to parry the Southern Cross Sword.

Clang!

Seonwoo Jin marveled once at their reaction speed, and marveled again at the heavy recoil he felt in his hands.

It seemed the activation of the sword’s power stemmed not from command but from the realm of instinct.

Moreover, the counterforce felt through the sword was anything but ordinary.

The sword power of these individuals, clearly at their peak, felt as heavy as that of supreme masters.

It seemed that while forming the sword formation, they also shared each other’s energy.

As the two who had parried Seonwoojin’s strike were flung backward, he saw another pair step forward in rotation, thrusting their swords. Hesitating briefly, he vanished backward like the wind.

Whoosh!

The very next instant, a sword strike from an inspector, its blade soaring over a man’s head, struck the spot where Seon Woo-jin had been standing.

Whoosh!

Had Seonwoo-jin parried the strike there, it would have been an attack aimed over his head.

Seon Woo-jin marveled inwardly.

‘Impressive.’

Muk-rang also agreed in an admiring voice.

– I see. Those six swordsmen are moving like the limbs of a single person. It’s like facing a sword-wielding octopus.

It was exactly as he said.

The leader, who assessed the situation and commanded the swordsmen, stood at the center like a head, manipulating the rest like limbs.

Seonwoo Jin did not charge in immediately. Instead, he began circling around them like the wind, waiting for an opening.

Sensing Seonwoo Jin was no pushover, the opponents also prepared for attack. Five swordsmen circled around their leader, Yun-dang, spinning round and round.

***

Meanwhile, Yeon Tae-jin’s situation in the Lower Assembly was not looking good.

Perhaps it was only natural.

If Seonwoojin’s surprise attack hadn’t worked, Yeon Taejin’s assault certainly wouldn’t.

Her furious attack, spewing crimson energy like a meteor shower, was all too easily blocked by the two swordsmen closing in from both sides of her squad leader, Yun-kyung.

Clang!

Her attack, which she had been confident in, was blocked far too easily, causing Yeon Taejin to flinch slightly.

“Huh?!”

But the real crisis came next.

The swordsmen who had parried her fist strike were flung backward, only for two other swordsmen to attack her in a seamless rotation.

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

At this point, retreating like Seon Woo-jin would have been the wise choice for Yeon Tae-jin.

But she did not retreat.

She gritted her teeth and, pushing herself to the limit, parried both swordsmen’s strikes with her twin blades right where she stood.

“Haah!”

Clang!

Then, in the very next instant.

Another sword flashed like a ray of light, stabbing down from above her head.

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

“!”

It was a shocking ambush.

Having already strained to block the previous strike, Yeon Taejin had no way to parry this one.

Gritting his teeth, Yeon Tae-jin had no choice but to resort to an emergency measure.

She let out a battle cry and unleashed her entire body’s energy.

“Haah!”

Whoosh!

Boom!

The crimson barrier that erupted from her body deflected the sword strike aimed at her head.

She had used her protective aura.

Yeon Taejin, who had barely managed to block the sword strike, had no choice but to retreat.

It seemed the defensive energy had consumed about a quarter of his inner strength all at once.

Grit!

Frustrated that the fight wasn’t going as planned, she gritted her teeth and looked ahead.

Before her, five swordsmen spun like tops around their leader, Yun Gyeong, circling back toward her once more.

***

Seon Woo-jin circled around Geomjin like the wind, looking for an opening.

But no matter how many times he circled, he couldn’t find an opening to strike.

‘Tricky.’

Of course, he could probably force his way in and create an opening somehow.

But to do that, he’d have to use other martial arts besides the Southern Cross Sword.

He could picture it: shaking the sword formation with ‘Opening Heaven’, then burrowing inward with ‘Heavenly Wind Scattering Leaves’, before widening the gap with ‘Circling Sword Mirror’ and ‘Emptiness is Form’…

But Seon Woo-jin decided against using that method.

As long as he was still acting as Inparang, he believed it was premature to reveal his true power.

So he briefly considered what he could do as Inparang.

Then, in that very moment.

A sudden thought flashed through his mind, and he couldn’t help but grin.

It was that mischievous grin of his.

Seon Woo-jin sent a silent message to Seol Pung, who was hiding nearby, and then to Son Dae-su, who was watching with a worried look. Then, suddenly, he launched a fierce attack toward the sword.

“Haah!”

Swoosh!

A dozen fiery crosses were drawn in the air.

The sword strikes were so powerful they could easily split rock.

But Yun-dang, controlling the Six-Combination Sword Formation, scoffed.

“Hmph! That’s nowhere near enough!”

Just as he said.

The Four-Sect Sword Master effortlessly parried Sunwoojin’s sword strikes and instead launched a counterattack, driving him back.

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Shwaaah!

“Guh!”

Seon Woo-jin hastily retreated, barely dodging the sword strikes pouring in from all sides like a hail of teeth.

But he couldn’t escape unscathed.

One slash had sharply grazed his leg.

Shwaaah!

“Ugh!”

In that instant, Wondang’s eyes flashed.

Though his clothes obscured the exact extent of his injuries, the way he staggered upon landing suggested he had taken quite a blow.

His overwhelming footwork had succeeded in binding the legs of his most formidable opponent.

Wondang roared with a savage laugh.

“Now! Go!”

Immediately, the Six Harmonies Sword Masters descended upon Sunwoo Jin simultaneously from all directions—left, right, above, and below.

They seemed determined not to miss this chance to finish him off.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

It was that moment.

Seonwoo Jin, his expression suddenly defeated, abruptly turned and began to flee.

“Damn it!”

Thud!

Witnessing that sight, Wondang’s expression froze in shock.

For Yun-dang, a disciple of the Hyeongsan Sect, it was unthinkable to turn his back and flee before the enemy when at a disadvantage.

He frowned and shouted.

“You worthless scum! Catch him! Don’t let him escape!”

Yun-dang and the other Hyeonsanpa disciples began chasing after the fleeing Seon-woo-jin.

Yet, the fleeing Sunwoo Jin couldn’t widen the distance between himself and them.

His legs were clearly impaired; he couldn’t display the overwhelming divine technique he had shown earlier.

Wondang gritted his teeth.

‘Exactly! We absolutely must catch him now!’

If they let him slip away this time and he regained his footing, they felt they would never be able to catch up to him.

Therefore, they had to capture him now, no matter what.

But even with his leg injured, Seon Woo-jin’s footwork remained exceptional.

The Four Sages of the Fallen Heavenly Sect struggled to close the distance between them.

That was when it happened.

A village suddenly came into view ahead of Yun-dang.

‘A village in a place like this?’

***

The Blood Alliance assassins began clearing the village only after Seonwoojin’s party had completely vanished from sight.

Though they felt a sense of emptiness at the realization that all their careful preparations had been for naught, waiting and repetition were, after all, all too familiar to them as water soldiers.

The assassins carried out their tasks silently, without a single complaint.

The first things they needed to clear away were the traps.

The assassins of the Blood Brotherhood began carefully collecting the hidden blades and poison scattered throughout the village, preserving them for future use.

Once all of those were gathered, their next task was to erase the village’s traces.

But then it happened.

Just as they had nearly finished clearing the traps, Seonwoojin’s figure reappeared in the distance.

And he was leading a group of warriors behind him.

– He’s coming back! He’s bringing six unmanned drones with him!

– He’s coming back!

– He’s coming back!

The urgent echoes of battle cries began to reverberate through the village once more.

Upon hearing this, Blood Union Leader Ha Ho, responsible for this operation, hastily issued an order.

– All assassins, cease your operations and return to your posts immediately! Hurry!

Sa Ho, who had given that order, rarely left his post at the inn to go outside and observe the man’s actions.

It wasn’t unheard of for someone who had passed by once to return, but at least he had never before brought a group of men behind him like that.

Something was definitely off.

‘Could he have truly figured out our true identities? Is that why he’s bringing reinforcements?’

Sa Ho chewed his lip, deep in thought.

‘Should I have ordered an attack instead?’

But his hesitation was too late.

At that moment, Seon Woo-jin, trailing six sword spirits behind him as he entered the village, swung his sword without hesitation.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Puhah!

“!”

A fountain of blood erupted in his wake.

The villagers, unable to offer any resistance, were dying, their blood spilling.

They couldn’t even scream.

“What… what is this?!”

Woon-dang, who had been chasing Seon Woo-jin, grimaced at the unimaginable atrocity committed by that man.

“Killing innocent civilians just to save himself?!”

But it was at that very moment.

Blood Union Leader Ha shouted with fury.

“Attack! Everyone attack!”

In that instant, the villagers—ordinary people just moments before—suddenly transformed and began swarming toward them.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

“!”

Wondang could only stare in horror.

Villagers were leaping at them from all directions, and hidden weapons were being fired from every angle.

This was because the Blood Lotus assassins, believing them to be allies of Seonwoojin, launched a full-scale attack.

As a result, they were receiving far more concentrated fire than Seonwoojin, who had swiftly passed by.

“What the hell?! What the hell is this?!”

Wondang couldn’t make heads or tails of what the hell was going on.

It seemed like the villain was killing innocent people. Then suddenly, those innocent people transformed into evil spirits and attacked them—a bizarre situation.

The cause and effect seemed utterly bizarre.

But figuring out the situation wasn’t as important as getting out of it.

Winding Hall gritted his teeth and shouted.

“Kill them all!”

Then the Six Harmonies Sword Masters began defending themselves while dispatching the assassins.

Ting! Shhah! Pwah!

Projectiles ricocheted from all directions, and blood spurted out.

Standing at the center of the battlefield, Un-dang watched the scene unfold and felt something was off about the situation.

Despite the immense chaos and slaughter unfolding, not a single scream or battle cry could be heard.

The villagers made no sound, neither when attacking nor even as they were dying.

Only then did Wondang realize who these people were.

‘They were assassins!’

And in that moment, he grasped something else.

The very one who had led them into this situation was nowhere to be seen.

“!”

He was gone.

Neither Seonwoojin nor the assassins fighting him were anywhere to be seen.

The bastard had pushed them into this place and escaped on his own.

Wondang spat out a furious cry.

“You bastard!”