Chapter 322 The Wounded Tiger-1

Chapter 322: The Wounded Tiger-1

“Uuuuuu…”

Wei Jung-guk began to tremble violently.

This couldn’t be happening.

The disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect, whom he had raised as the great sect and nurtured as the rulers of Honam Province.

How could they dare look at him, their sect leader, with such eyes?!

He could not possibly accept this reality.

Then, finally losing his reason, Wei Zhengguo shouted convulsively.

– Lies! It’s all lies! Nothing but slanderous nonsense meant to frame me! Attack! All disciples of the Xingshan Sect, attack! Wipe out those who seek to slander me, the one who built Xingshan’s greatness!

His voice, filled with all his inner strength, boomed out.

His powerful voice boomed through the entire space, echoing over a hundred paces away.

Yet at the same time, that voice was also profoundly hollow.

Not a single disciple of Hyeongsan obeyed his command.

Far from obeying, they now merely glared at Wei Zhengguo with even more contemptuous eyes.

Seeing the Hyeongsan faction warriors standing completely still, Wijeongguk suddenly snapped to attention as if doused with cold water.

He had come to realize the cold reality that his words no longer held any sway.

But even so, he couldn’t let go of his lingering attachment.

He looked around at his disciples with eyes filled with betrayal and shouted again.

– You, you, ungrateful bastards… What are you doing?! Can’t you hear my command?! I am your Grandmaster! This is your Grandmaster’s command!

It was then.

The Heavenly Immortal shouted with blazing eyes.

“Wrong! You, who turned your own disciples into sacrificial lambs, are no longer the sect leader! How can one who sacrifices his own disciples for personal gain ever be a sect leader?!”

Then he shouted at the martial artists of the Xingshan Sect.

– All Hyeongsanpa warriors, clear the path! Let those who sowed the seeds of hatred reap what they have sown!

Hearing this, the Hyeongsanpa warriors exchanged startled glances.

But soon, they adopted resigned expressions and began moving to the left and right, making way.

It was a path for Seolpung and the warriors to pass through.

Upon witnessing this scene, Seon Woo-jin bowed deeply to Qing Gong Zhenren in gratitude.

“Thank you, Elder.”

This situation was precisely what Seonwoo Jin had requested of the Qinggong Immortal before arriving here.

But just because he’d been asked didn’t mean it was something he could easily do.

The martial artists of the proud ancient sects, no matter how grave the crime, refused to hand over their own disciples to members of rival sects.

They would administer punishment themselves, settle matters internally even if it meant execution, but they never allowed members of other sects to interfere.

And this was Wei Zhengguo, the sect leader himself.

Therefore, under normal circumstances, no matter how grave his offense, they would never have permitted anyone to lay a finger on him.

Even the Celestial Immortal Qing Gong had been unable to give an immediate answer when Sun Wujin made his request.

Then, in response to Seonwoojin’s gratitude, Cheong Gongjin made a bitter expression and replied.

“We’ve done almost nothing to get us this far. How could we possibly claim rights or assert pride? Consider this our repayment for the Master’s grace in enabling us to stop that wretch.”

Hearing this, Seonwoo Jin bowed deeply to him once more.

Regardless of the reason, it was only right to express gratitude to the one who had made that difficult decision.

Meanwhile, Seolpung and the warriors began striding majestically toward the path opened by the Hyeongsanpa warriors.

Through the open path, the figure of their unforgettable enemy, Wei Zhengguo, came into view.

The Half-Brotherhood members clenched their fists tightly and muttered.

“Wei Zhengguo…”

“At last…”

They could feel something hot welling up inside their chests.

The moment of vengeance they had longed for even in their dreams was now approaching in reality.

The one thing that had been their sole hope for so long was about to be fulfilled.

Meanwhile, Wei Zhengguo glared at the Xingshan faction warriors who had opened the path for him, as if he could devour them with his eyes.

His gaze alone could kill; it was a look so filled with murderous intent that he might have killed dozens of times over.

But he quickly cooled his head.

Though momentarily stirred, he too was a hero of his generation; he could not lose his reason even in such a crisis.

He suddenly glanced at Sun Wu Xi, who stood expressionless behind him.

Even amidst all this, she remained standing behind him, maintaining an inscrutable, expressionless face.

‘Even in this situation….’

Woo Jung-guk realized that her expressionless face, which had always excited him, was somehow irritating him at this very moment.

The fact that she wore that expression even in the face of his crisis made him feel betrayed by her.

Wei Jung-guk hesitated for a moment.

‘Should I kill her?’

Given the uncertain future, it seemed like the right decision.

The thought of her being the only survivor and being sent to another man was utterly unimaginable.

But on the other hand, he hesitated.

Killing her somehow felt like admitting defeat.

He hadn’t even lost yet, but the moment he killed her, it felt like defeat would be sealed.

So, after a moment’s hesitation, Wei Jung-guk finally turned his head away from her.

The situation wasn’t completely over yet.

At least, that’s what he wanted to believe.

Then he decided to try everything he could do right now.

He turned his head toward Jikwang Jin-in, who stood beside him with a dazed expression, and said.

“Take the Blood-Piercing Pill.”

Zagwang Jin-in recoiled in shock and retorted.

“Yes, yes?!”

At that moment, Wei Zhengguo’s eyes narrowed.

Simultaneously, Jaguang Jinren felt a tearing pain in his stomach and was forced to vomit blood.

“Gah!”

Zagwang Jin-in collapsed instantly, writhing in agony and clawing at the ground.

“Guh!”

He looked at Wei Zhengguo with eyes filled with disbelief and agony, barely managing to open his mouth.

“Zi… Zhang Wen…”

But those were the last words he could utter.

He had stopped moving, his head drooping as he coughed up blood once more while speaking.

“Gah!”

He was dead.

The other elders watched the scene with horrified expressions.

Everyone knew why he had died.

His intestines had melted away due to the Goe that had moved within his belly.

But even knowing the cause, they couldn’t comprehend the situation.

At this critical moment when every fighter was desperately needed, how could they have killed Master Jangguangjin so easily?

They simply could not believe it.

At a time when we desperately needed to bolster our strength, killing a peerless master like Jang Gwang-jin? It felt like the sect leader had gone completely mad.

But regardless of whether they thought that or not, their turn came around immediately.

Wei Zhengguo now surveyed them as he spoke.

“All of you, take the Blood-Boiling Pill.”

“!”

That was the one thing they never wanted to hear.

The very words they had been praying to the heavens to avoid since earlier.

But it seemed the heavens had no intention of granting their wish.

And they had no choice.

If they didn’t want to die like Jaguang Jinren, they had to eat it immediately.

All the elders hastily stuffed the Blood-Sucking Pill into their mouths and swallowed it.

In that instant, they suddenly felt they might understand why the Ruling Council had sacrificed the Self-Illuminating Immortal first.

‘He created a scapegoat to force our compliance!’

Had he not killed one first as an example, no one would have obeyed his orders, which clearly spelled ruin.

They all probably thought they could just hold out a little longer.

At a time when every man counts, they wouldn’t recklessly sacrifice themselves.

Therefore, the ruling faction had preemptively struck first, killing one person before they could even entertain such thoughts.

To demonstrate that anyone who disobeyed their orders could be killed immediately…

He truly was a terrifying man.

‘Besides, among us, the late Master Jangjin had the weakest martial arts skills. That’s why he was chosen first.’

Once I realized that fact, I suddenly felt regret, wondering, ‘Wouldn’t it have been okay if I’d just held on a little longer?’…

But it was too late to think about that now.

Besides, I didn’t even have the mental capacity for such thoughts anymore.

Their minds were growing hazy.

They stared blankly at their own bodies, feeling the immense energy surging within them.

Somehow, amidst this dazed feeling, their breath was growing short.

“Huuu! Huuu! The energy, the energy is surging!”

“Such profound energy!”

They hadn’t even consumed the Blood-Boiling Pill for long, yet already their bodies were burning hot and the energy was surging.

A powerful force unlike anything he had ever felt before.

At the same time, his mind was gradually being consumed by excitement.

They didn’t notice it, but their eyes were now bloodshot, red as if drenched in blood.

With eyes reddened like demons, gasping for breath, they resembled wild beasts more than martial arts masters.

Wei Jung-guk gave them a cold, bitter smile and commanded.

“Stop them.”

Eight supreme masters simultaneously turned their eyes, now wild with madness, toward Seolpung.

Then, chuckling, they began walking toward them.

Each of them radiated an aura as powerful as if they were one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals.

Seolpung and those around him could immediately sense their intensified aura.

And seeing their bloodshot eyes, they could guess what had caused this change.

Jin So-eun, standing near Seolpung, murmured in a pained voice.

“Blood-Boiling Pills! They’ve taken the Blood-Boiling Pills!”

As someone from the Guangdong Jin family, where every disciple carried the Blood-Boiling Pill, she was the first to recognize it.

Then, Yeon Tae-jin snorted derisively and said.

“Making one last desperate attempt, huh? But no matter how much a cat struggles, it’s still just a cat.”

Her words drew snickers from those around her.

They all shared her view, believing the outcome was already decided.

But Jin So-eun alone did not laugh at her words.

As mentioned earlier, since everyone in the group was a member of the Guangdong Jin Family, who carried the Blood-Stained Sword, she knew its terror better than anyone else.

Jin So-eun shook her head and warned.

A cat struggling might only become a wildcat, but a leopard struggling could become a tiger. The Bloodlust Clan’s martial arts are like a chain reaction—the higher their skill, the greater the surge in power. Moreover, the fact they consumed that means they’re prepared to die. They might not be cornered rats, but wounded tigers. Even a cornered rat can bite a cat—let alone a tiger… You absolutely must not let your guard down.”

The group stiffened at her grave words.

Those close to Seolpung, who knew Jin So-eun’s martial prowess well, understood how terrifyingly formidable that seemingly kind and gentle young woman truly was.

Therefore, they could not take her words lightly.

But the Banhyung members were different.

They had never witnessed Jin So-eun’s martial prowess, and they were already in no state to hear such words.

Their heads were already boiling over with burning vengeance.

One impatient member of the Ban-hyeong Society snorted derisively.

“Hmph! What if they’re tigers? What if they’re lions?! We’re not afraid! Master Seol, don’t try to stop us now! We can’t hold back any longer!”

The other members of the Half-Demon Clan joined in.

“Right! As Master Seol said, we can no longer avoid all-out war, can we?! So at least let us take revenge on that bastard with our own strength!”

“Right! Let us take revenge with our own hands!”

“Issue the attack order immediately!”

They were now like a volcano on the verge of erupting.

If I tried to stop them any longer, it felt like they would just explode.

Flustered, Seolpung looked at Jeong Sosang, the leader of the Banhyunghwe.

But Jeong So-sang was just as flustered.

No, now he too looked confused.

The impulse to take revenge with his own hands was battling his cold, rational mind.