Chapter 1840 – Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1840. This Is Why It’s Not Fun. (5?) ❀ ❀ ❀

The Blood Palace Lord’s narrow eyes could be seen through the bandages covering his face. His gaze was fixed on the one running a half step ahead.

‘Jang Ilso.’

The one whose white robes were dyed dark red with blood.

What exactly was inside that man’s head? What kind of thoughts allowed him to commit such absurd acts so effortlessly—and even succeed?

“Ryeonju.”

At the Blood Palace Lord’s call, Jang Ilso slowly turned to look.

The moment their eyes met, a chilling sensation ran down the Blood Palace Lord’s spine. Fear wrapped around his entire body. But this fear was different from what he felt when facing ‘him’. This wasn’t terror caused by overwhelming power—it was an instinctive dread, the kind one feels when confronted with the unknown.

Unconsciously, the Blood Palace Lord lowered his head.

Jang Ilso stared at him for a moment before turning away. Then, he lowered his gaze to the small dagger in his hand.

It wasn’t entirely worthless, but ‘crude’ was certainly a fitting description. He slowly scraped the blood off the blade with his fingernail.

‘....Tang Gunak.’

Jang Ilso’s eyes darkened. 

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Crunch!

Tang Gunak blankly stared at the dagger lodged in his chest. Jang Ilso twisted his lips into a smile.

“It’s a gift. Do you like it?”

He asked, but Tang Gunak remained silent, his gaze fixed on the dagger. Jang Ilso let out a sneering laugh.

“The day the Tang Family fell, an eccentric old man gave me that. Should I call it a keepsake? Isn’t that amusing?”

Tang Gunak’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“Did that old man know his keepsake would pierce your heart? Did he ever imagine that the last thing he left behind would be used like this? Even if he did… do you think he still would’ve handed me that ridiculous dagger?”

“…….”

“No matter what he wished for, I’m sure this wasn’t it… Don’t you think? Hahaha.”

Jang Ilso slowly ran a hand over his face, his expression twisted with both amusement and disgust.

“This is why I hate sentimental nonsense. Fate, sincerity, the path… all those trivial words crumble so easily with just a single whim of man.”

That old man must have wanted Jang Ilso to feel something through this dagger. But Jang Ilso’s response was to drive it into Tang Gunak’s chest instead.

And that old man—would he regret it? Would he weep?

Though he was long dead, Jang Ilso couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of what kind of face he might have made if he had seen this moment.

“At least there’s one comfort. You get to die by the weapon your proud family made. Think of it as my final courtesy.”

Jang Ilso smiled, his tone gentle and friendly.

“After all, we had that much of a connection, didn’t we?”

Twitch.

At that moment, Tang Gunak’s unmoving hand slowly reached for the dagger lodged in his chest.

Jang Ilso, watching intently, narrowed his eyes.

“Poison King?”

Pluck.

Tang Gunak pulled the dagger out. His muscles, previously paralyzed, loosened, leaving a small hole in his chest. Blood gushed from the gaping wound.

“Tsk.”

Jang Ilso clicked his tongue. Pulling it out would only hasten his death—he must have known that. Did he want to die faster that badly?

Was it pride? Or did he just want to keep up appearances even in death? Either way, how pathetic.

However, Tang Gunak's next action was beyond Jang Ilso's expectations.

Instead of tending to his fatal wound, he simply stared at the dagger in his hand. It was almost like admiration—or as if he had been completely entranced, as if that crude weapon were some ancient treasure.

“…Here…”

“Hmm?”

A glint flickered in Jang Ilso’s eyes.

“It was here. Here all along…”

Tang Gunak stared at the dagger and let out a quiet laugh.

His great-uncle, a craftsman who had reached the peak of his art, had left behind this final masterpiece—yet it was nothing but a crude, unsightly weapon.

And yet, that was precisely why he couldn’t look away.

“Of course. No wonder I could never find it…”

He let out a dry chuckle, his shoulders trembling.

“……”

To Jang Ilso’s eyes, Tang Gunak somehow looked… relieved.

Perhaps it was a ridiculous thought.

Then, suddenly, Tang Gunak tossed the dagger toward Jang Ilso.

Clink.

Jang Ilso, having instinctively raised his guard, easily caught the dagger in midair. No internal energy was imbued in the throw—its meaning was unclear.

“Take it.”

Tang Gunak’s calm voice pierced Jang Ilso’s ears.

“It belongs to you.”

Jang Ilso remained silent, gripping the dagger tightly as he stared at Tang Gunak.

Tang Gunak complexion was deathly pale—he wouldn’t last much longer, even without any further intervention.

And yet, it was strange.

This was Tang Gunak. There was no way he didn’t understand the weight of what had happened here. He had fallen, and Jang Ilso stood over him. He knew exactly what that meant.

And yet, how could he remain so composed?

“Hmph.”

It was irritating. A subtle annoyance crept into Jang Ilso’s voice.

“Oh my, oh my. Have you lost your mind?”

“…….”

“Well, it’s not like I dislike bravado. If you’re going to die anyway, keeping your head high until the end is better than going out disgracefully. But… if you overdo it, it just becomes pathetic.”

His mockery was blatant, without even the pretense of tact. But Tang Gunak didn’t react. He simply continued to look at Jang Ilso with that unreadable gaze.

“What do you see?”

“What?”

“What do you see in that dagger?”

Jang Ilso lowered his gaze slightly.

No matter how many times he looked, this dagger remained crude and ugly.

Its sharpness and durability were strangely exceptional, but that was all.

It wasn’t anything special—not to Jang Ilso, at least.

He had carried this dagger with nothing but the malicious intent to one day drive it into Tang Gunak’s chest. It was never something that held any real meaning for Jang Ilso.

And yet, what was he supposed to see in this toy-like object?

“My great-uncle… was a craftsman. But he never learned martial arts.”

“…….”

“In other words, he spent his entire life making weapons for others.”

A flicker of curiosity passed through Jang Ilso’s indifferent gaze. Why was he suddenly rambling about such things?

“That dagger carries a message for me. And for you as well. I have heard its words. Have you?”

“Stop talking nonsense…”

“You don’t understand.”

Tang Gunak interrupted, cutting Jang Ilso off.

“If you don’t understand, you will lose. Paegun.”

Jang Ilso’s face hardened coldly.

It was difficult to dismiss Tang Gunak’s words as mere curses from a dying man, because his voice carried a force and conviction that exceeded him.

Tang Gunak met Jang Ilso’s gaze with calm finality, as if he had said everything he needed to. The moment Jang Ilso saw that face, an inexplicable sense of irritation welled up within him.

“Hmph.”

Jang Ilso let out a low nasal sound and smiled faintly.

“So?”

Then, in an instant, his face twisted like that of a demon.

Baang!

A surge of internal energy struck Tang Gunak. He couldn’t even scream before he was sent flying, coughing up blood.

“A dying man sure talks a lot.”

Jang Ilso scoffed and turned away without hesitation. Yet, for some reason, an unpleasant taste lingered in his mouth.

He forced himself to keep his gaze forward, resisting the urge to look back. His grip tightened around the dagger in his hand. 

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Grip.

Jang Ilso’s fingernails pressed against the unyielding surface of the dagger.

‘That’s ridiculous.’

What could he possibly see in a mere dagger? It was nothing more than the delusions of a dying man.

Jang Ilso tried to throw away the dagger away without any regret. But he couldn’t do it in the end.

Biting the inside of his cheek, he irritably shoved the dagger back into his robes. It settled heavily, its weight somehow more noticeable than before.

“Ryeonju.”

At that moment, the Blood Palace Lord’s voice rang out again.

Suppressing the instinctive surge of bloodlust, Jang Ilso lifted the corner of his mouth into a smirk.

“Speak.”

“What do you plan to do?”

“Hmm?”

“I understand what you were aiming for. Just pulling this off was already impressive. But you know, don’t you? This force alone isn’t enough to completely bring them down.”

“……”

“At best, you’ve cut them down by half. Isn’t that right? That alone isn’t enough to turn the tide of war.”

Even the Blood Palace Lord had to acknowledge that Jang Ilso’s move was remarkable.

However, it wasn’t enough to completely overturn the situation. And if they aimed for another strike, the sacrifices on their side had already been too great. No matter how impressive, wasn’t it ultimately a futile move?

Jang Ilso softly asked in return.

“Is that what you think?”

“Isn’t it?”

“You’re right.”

Jang Ilso’s agreement made the Blood Palace Lord’s face stiffen. Then what was he thinking…?

But at that moment, Jang Ilso’s eyes curved into a crescent moon.

“But why should I be the one worrying about that?”

Jang Ilso stopped walking. Naturally, the Blood Palace Lord also came to a halt.

“What do you mean?”

“I meant exactly what I said. Why should I be the one to worry about it?”

“No, that’s ridiculous—”

Crack!

Suddenly, Jang Ilso’s hand moved like a venomous snake, seizing the Blood Palace Lord’s throat.

“Ugh!”

The grip was strong enough to snap his neck at any moment. His eyes widened in shock, teeth clenched, as his body was lifted off the ground.

“Ugrrk…hh...”

“I think there’s someone else who should be worrying about that. Don’t you?”

It was an unforeseen ambush, executed without hesitation.

The Blood Palace Lord’s body trembled—not from pain, but from something else entirely.

“R-Ryeonju… Why…?”

“Why?”

Jang Ilso’s eyes gleamed with a sinister light, and fear washed over the Blood Palace Lord’s face.

‘This… this lunatic…!’

If Jang Ilso willed it, his neck would snap in an instant. And knowing him, he wouldn’t hesitate to do it.

“You know why, don’t you?”

“Ugh…”

“You know exactly why I’m doing this.”

The Blood Palace Lord’s pupils trembled violently, as if shaken by an earthquake. Jang Ilso smiled coldly.

“I don’t even hate rats. Watching them struggle to survive can be entertaining in its own way. But if that rat starts lifting its head too high, then things change. A rat should act like a rat. Don’t you agree?”

A shiver ran down the Blood Palace Lord’s spine.

He knew it.

Jang Ilso knew of his betrayal.

But why now?

The Blood Palace Lord had suspected that Jang Ilso might have caught on, but he hadn’t expected him to act now. Wasn’t killing him at this moment a reckless move?

“What do you think? If I snap your neck right now, do you think that would change anything?”

“W-What…?”

“No, I’m certain it will.”

Jang Ilso grinned.

“It absolutely will. I guarantee it.”

“Keugh…!”

Jang Ilso tightened his grip even more, not just aiming to break his neck but to rip his head off entirely. The Blood Palace Lord’s cervical spine groaned under the pressure.

“So just die quietly. Betrayal comes at a cheap price, doesn’t it?”

The madness flickering in Jang Ilso’s eyes made the Blood Palace Lord feel light-headed.

How else could he describe this? If not madness, what was this overwhelming aura that threatened to consume everything?

Under the growing pressure, his breath came out in ragged gasps, and blood dribbled from his lips.

Jang Ilso was about to apply the finishing force when—

“Interesting.”

A heavy, unfamiliar voice cut in.

Jang Ilso’s eerie, glowing eyes snapped to the side. Someone he had encountered in the past had silently approached.

“Are you saying that the one who should be worrying… is me?”

Jang Ilso’s lips curled as he narrowed his eyes.

“Huh, it seems you couldn't hide like a rat until the end?”

“……”

“Well then, let’s at least acknowledge our reunion. After all, we’ve met before, haven’t we?”

Heavenly Executioner, his eyes brimming with murderous intent, glared at Jang Ilso with a cold smile.

Next Chapter

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