âWell, I have something to sayâ¦â
Namgung Su-a stepped into the room. Chun-bong, who had been checking Seo-junâs luggage to make sure he packed properly, lifted her head slightly.
âUnni?â
âAh, Geum is here too?â
âYeah. Why? Whatâs up?â
âNo, itâs nothing like thatâ¦â
Namgung Su-a smiled bashfully and gently grabbed Seo-junâs sleeve.
âHuh.â
But her smile wasnât the same as usual. It had a hint of disappointmentâno, more like she was slightly pouting.
âI figured youâd forget about the wish again.â
âAh.â
Seo-jun couldnât help but marvel at his own memory. Even a goldfish wouldâve remembered this by nowâ¦!
âSo Iâll just use it myself.â
âWhat?â
âWhy? Got a problem with that?â
Seo-jun didnât dare claim ownership over the wish.
âNopeâ¦â
In the blink of an eye, what had definitely been his wish was transferred to someone else.
As Seo-jun pouted, Namgung Su-a giggled.
âThen Iâll use it now?â
âSure. What are you gonna use it for?â
Honestly, most things didnât even need a wish. If she just asked, heâd probably do it. What kind of wish needed this much buildup?
Seo-jun stared at Namgung Su-a, and she suddenly grabbed his collar.
âWhat theâ¦.â
He felt like his collar was getting grabbed more often these days.
Was this really okay? While Seo-jun hesitated, Namgung Su-a leaned in closer.
âClose your eyes.â
âHuh?â
âForget it if you donât want to.â
Before their lips touched, her chest pressed lightly against his. The soft, evolved sensation gently squeezed Seo-junâs chest.
âHnghâ¦!â
And then, their lips met. Seo-junâs eyes widened as his lips were stolen while wide open.
Chun-bong, who had been watching, also dropped her jaw.
âUhâ¦?â
But why did the kiss last so long? Namgung Su-a squirmed, Seo-jun panicked and stepped backâ
Each time Namgung Su-aâs hand brushed against his body, Seo-jun flinched.
Eventually, Seo-jun backed up against the wall, and Namgung Su-a pinned him with her arms. A wet, sticky sound escaped between them.
âWhat, what the hellâ¦!â
Chun-bong jumped up.
I meanâher tongueâ! And her hands were evenâ!
Chun-bong froze, unable to do anything as the long yet short kiss finally ended.
Namgung Su-a licked her lips, now glistening with saliva, and gave Seo-jun a seductive laugh as she looked at his dazed expression.
âThanks for the wish. Next time⦠Iâll be waiting, okay?â
Neither Chun-bong nor Seo-jun could say a single word. Only Namgung Su-a left the room humming a cheerful tune, completely satisfied.
âW-whatâ¦.â
What the hell just happened? Chun-bong couldnât process reality.
Was that⦠an adultâs kiss?
Chun-bong couldnât possibly keep up. How could they do something like thatâ¦?
Thudâ
Eventually, Chun-bongâs brain overloaded, and she collapsed to the floor.
Seo-jun, who had been sitting blankly, also followed suit and slumped down.
âWowâ¦â
Seo-jun had become an adult.
Seo-jun sat in a daze for a while before finally leaving the Namgung household.
Things had gotten a little weird at the end, but he made sure Chun-bong and Namgung Su-a had entered seclusion before saying goodbye to the others.
âSeriouslyâ¦.â
His perspective had expandedâa mature Seo-jun soared into the sky using the Mixed Origin Sun and Moon Art.
Honestly, he couldnât even fully process what had happened. Namgung Su-a hadnât seemed too used to it either; their teeth had bumped a few times.
He wasnât entirely sure what it was, but it felt⦠good.
Especially when her hands had wandered to strange placesâ¦. A strange sensation prickled his nerves like goosebumps.
âNo wonder people always say to be careful around women.â
Liquor, gambling, women. Werenât those the three things to avoid?
Honestly, compared to liquor and gambling, women didnât even seem that dangerous.
Apparently, the ancestors had plenty of hands-on experience to make such warnings credible.
BOOMâ!!
Seo-jun flew toward his first stop, Hanam, deep in thought.
âWhat am I even supposed to do now?â
Two flowers in each hand? That sounded nice, but flipping it around, wouldnât that just make him the ultimate bastard?
Polygamy wasnât exactly rare in the martial world, but⦠was that really a relationship that could stay healthy?
ââ¦Heh.â
In the end, Seo-jun gave up on thinking. Whatever. Things would work out somehow.
Honestly, it seemed easier to empty his mind and just focus on swinging his sword.
BOOMâ!!
Seo-junâs figure sped through the skies even faster.
****
A grand journey through Anhui, Henan, Shaanxi, and Gansu.
Seo-jun marveled at his own foresight as he soared across the sky using the Mixed Origin Sun and Moon Art.
BOOMââââââ!!
Several days passed, and before he knew it, he had entered Qinghai Province.
He occasionally landed to make sure he was heading in the right direction, and fortunately, he hadnât veered off course yet.
Stopping briefly in Xining, the provincial capital, Seo-jun decided to check on the Kunlun Sectâs situation.
âSo, youâre saying things have gotten pretty tense lately?â
âExactly. Even merchants wonât go near there these days.â
So that was the situation.
Disguised as Baek Seo-jun, he wandered around Xining, sampling its specialty dish, niangpi.
It tasted⦠okay. Kind of like mung bean jelly.
âHow lonely.â
After paying for the half-eaten dish, Seo-jun visited Qinghai Lake.@@novelbin@@
Heâd heard it was the largest saltwater lake in China, but really, it was just a big lake. He dipped a finger in and tasted itâslightly salty.
After about five minutes of sightseeing, he resumed his journey, activating the Mixed Origin Sun and Moon Art again.
With the ridiculous size of the central region, crossing Qinghai Province took quite some time.
When he finally arrived at the southwestern edge, near the Kunlun Mountains, the first impression was⦠striking.
âWhat a mess.â
Kunlun wasnât just a mountainâit was a massive range. No joke, it was enormous.
From his position in the sky, Seo-jun could already see battles erupting in parts of the range.
âLetâs see⦠If I sense demonic energy, those are the enemies, right?â
Demonic energy felt almost too familiar at this point, so he sometimes got confused. But for now, his allies were the orthodox sects.
Rumbleâ!
Seo-junâs Qi flared, preparing the Mixed Origin Sun and Moon Art.
Target confirmed. Firing sequence initiated. Wind direction? Who cares. System all green. Three, two, one. Launch!
BOOMââââââ!!!
The living missile crashed into Kunlun.
*****
The clashes between the Kunlun Sect and the Demonic Cult grew fiercer by the day.
Realistically, the moment the Demonic Cult sent an army to Kunlun, it was already a war.
For the orthodox sects, who were already dealing with the Black Lotus Sect, this was adding fuel to the fire.
Kunlun had no choice but to rely on minimal reinforcements while holding back the Demonic Cultâs forces alone.
âCharge! Donât let them take this ridge!â
âWAAAAAHââââ!!â
Kunlunâs martial artists rushed forward, and Elder Pungwol drew his sword, veins bulging on his neck.
âCut down those bug-like demons! Tear them to pieces!â
He didnât just talk bigâPungwol charged forward, unleashing the Cloud Dragon Eight Techniques.
Swishâswishâswishâ!
His movements shifted eight times midair, tracing mysterious paths.
âBlock them!â
âYes, sir!â
Hong San, the Iron-Masked Demon, commanded the Demonic Cult forces. His subordinates raised their shields, forming a wall.
âDamn itâ¦!â
Pungwol gritted his teeth and gripped his sword.
This was what made the Demonic Cult terrifying. They functioned as a single army under the Heavenly Demon, abandoning individuality.
Each soldier mastered only one skill based on their roleâshield bearers specialized in defense, archers in archery, and spearmen in spearmanship.
Unlike the orthodox sects, which were alliances of various clans, the Demonic Cult operated under a unified structure, enabling such tactics.
Did that mean the Demonic Cult lacked experts? Far from it.
While their army focused on numbers, they still had plenty of demonic techniques and bizarre martial arts practiced by powerful demon lords.
âGet out of my wayâ¦!â
Pungwol swung his sword.
CRASHâ!
The Supreme Void Dragon-Slaying Sword shattered the shield wall.
BOOMâ!
The massive impact sent shield bearers flying in all directions.
âUghâ¦!â
âAckâ¦!â
Even as their limbs were torn apart, all they let out were suppressed groans.
Just as Pungwol clicked his tongue, Hong San issued another command.
âArchers, fire.â
SHHHHHââââââ
A hail of arrows filled the air. Pungwolâs eyes flashed.
âEnough of these games!â
Arrows? Sure, they were dangerousâespecially when fired by elite archers who had trained their entire lives.
But that was it. Battles were ultimately decided by the strongest fighters.
Swooshââââ
Pungwolâs sword swept through the rain of arrows, deflecting them all.
Yet Hong San smirked.
âGames? Hardly.â
Thudâ!
Stray arrows struck Kunlun disciples and Demonic Cult soldiers alike.
Meanwhile, Hong San closed in on Pungwol.
The single move Pungwol used to block the arrows was enough to tip the scales in an expert duel.
âYou demonic bastardâ¦!â
Pungwol clenched his teeth and prepared to take the hitâ
Rumbleâ!
Something fell from the sky.
The speed was so overwhelming that even Pungwol and Hong San, focused entirely on each other, couldnât react in time.
BOOOOOOOMââââââ!!!
Dust exploded into the air, rising high enough to blot out the sky.
Pungwol burst into laughter.
âHeavenâs judgment! Even the heavens canât stand the sight of you!â
Debris rained down like a storm. Pungwol swept his sleeve, clearing the dust.
âLetâs seeâ¦â
A massive crater lay before him.
Hong San was utterly obliterated, not even leaving a trace.
At the center of the crater stood a man.
Haaâ¦
With his exhale, the air froze.
Crackleâ!
Frost spread across the area, and Pungwolâs face stiffened.
âHeavenâs judgment, my ass. Has the Primordial Heavenly Master lost his mindâ¦?â
The man spread his arms, and his sleeves unraveled into dozens of threads.
Shudderââââ
Pungwolâs voice cracked as he screamed.
âRun! Get out of thereâ¦!!â
Ssshhhhââââ
The manâs arms moved, and dozens of Qi-infused threads followed.
Pungwol could only gape at the aftermath.
âW-what the hell⦠is that monsterâ¦?â
It was too much to be the result of a single motion.
Slashââââ
The entire area was diced into hundreds, no, thousands of pieces.
The Demonic Cult soldiers were reduced to chunks of flesh, while rocks, trees, and earth turned into a grotesque soup.
Ssskâ
The threads reformed into sleeves.
The man looked over his handiwork and met Pungwolâs gaze.
âLooks like Iâm lucky today.â
Baek Seo-jun smiled.
âPlenty of scum to kill.â