Chapter 7: A Needle in the Pocket Always Finds Its Way Out
About two months had passed.He wasn't finished yet.But for someone who once stood at the peak of Murim, two months were worth more than two years for an ordinary person.
Still, he had no intention of stepping forward.He wasn't fully ready, and reckless action would only draw unnecessary attention.
But then—
Dududududu—
The ground shook.Dust clouds rose.A gang of horsemen stormed into the village.
Bandits.
Ordinary people would panic and flee at the sight of them.But Seung-chan simply waited for them to pass.He wasn't looking for pointless fights.
However…You can't keep a needle hidden in your pocket forever.
"Hey, you."
A rough voice called out to Seung-chan.One of the bandits grinned with a nasty sneer.
"Why's a brat like you carrying a sword? Hah!""…""Do you think you're some Murim master with that cheap blade?"
Seung-chan spoke quietly.
"Move along."
Just one sentence.But that seemed to aggravate them even more.
A bandit rushed at him, drawing his sword for a diagonal slash.
Or at least, it felt that way.
In that instant,
Seung-chan's body had already slipped aside.His sword was suddenly in his hand.
"…What the—?"
The bandit's eyes widened.But he didn't have time to be surprised.
Swish—
A wrist flew off.
Blood drew a perfect arc in the air.
"AAARRGH!"
The bandit screamed.But Seung-chan's face didn't change.
"Once a sword is drawn, there's no stepping back."
The fight had begun.
Chapter 8: One Versus Many
Even among Murim's seasoned fighters, most are strong in one-on-one duels; facing many at once is a different story.After all, martial techniques were developed for single combat.
But that's true for ordinary Murim people.Seung-chan was different.
Cheng!Gah!
Some collapsed to the ground.Some screamed.
But Seung-chan was mistaken.He was not Lee Hyeon-do anymore.His old body was gone; here, he was 'Seung-chan' in a new form.
He dodged incoming blows the way he always had, but something felt off.What he once would have evaded with perfect timing, his new body responded to just a bit too slowly.
Slash—The tip of a sword grazed his arm.
A hot pain spread along his arm.His fingertips tingled.
'So this is… my current self?'
A spear came from behind.Seung-chan twisted, extending his sword by reflex.The spearhead grazed his side.
Immediately, a dagger came from the opposite side—At the same time, a hammer flew toward him from the front.
An attack from both sides.He had two options:
Dodge the dagger and get hit by the hammer.
Dodge the hammer and get stabbed by the dagger.
But… he chose a third path.
"Haaah!"
His sword flashed like lightning.First, he cut the wrist of the one with the dagger.
"Gah!"The dagger spun through the air.
As the hammer closed in, he flipped his sword and blocked with the hilt.
Bang!
A powerful shock ran up his arm.
His wrist tingled.
This was his reality now.If he were still Lee Hyeon-do, he would've cut through the hammer itself.But now… that was impossible.
He looked up.
The remaining bandits were stunned.'This guy—his movements are different than before.'Their eyes changed.
From this moment on,for survival—
Seung-chan began to hunt them.
Chapter 9: The Matter of Morale
Honestly, the bandits still had the upper hand.But the tide was turning.
Their morale had collapsed.
They were a group, but their unity was weak.One man fell, two others stepped back.Two died, four lost their nerve.
Fear spreads quickly.Victory often starts in that gap.
"…Don't fall back."
A deep voice rang out.Everyone flinched.
"If you retreat, I'll cut you down myself."
A bushy beard, scars all over his body.This man was no ordinary bandit.
He was the bandit chief.A man who'd lived decades with blood on his hands.He stepped forward, wielding a massive blunt weapon.
"Can't believe you're struggling with just one guy."He muttered, and the bandits flinched.Finally, they picked themselves up.It was clumsy, but a coordinated assault began.
The blunt weapon swung.Seung-chan leaped away.
The wind split, the earth caved in where the weapon landed.
The bandits closed in—from the front, the sides, the rear.Their encirclement grew tighter.It was suffocating.
At that moment—
Something snapped inside Seung-chan's mind.
A blood-soaked past.A moment when only killing intent remained.
Who he used to be.
Before reaching the peak of Murim,when he was once called "the mad one."
That old instinct awakened again.
He grinned.Like a wolf hunting a rabbit.
His eyes changed—those of a hunter.
Chapter 10: A Man Stained with Blood
Blood oozed from wounds all over Seung-chan's body.From tiny scratches to deep gashes, he was becoming covered in scars.
But—
Much more blood was spilling all around him.
The ground was painted red,limbs lay scattered,bandits fell screaming.
That blood was not his own.
"…What the hell is that…?""Is he human? No… he's a monster."
The surviving bandits stared at Seung-chan and retreated.In their eyes, he was no longer human—
but a blood-drenched fiend.
His clothes were soaked with blood,his blade drank endlessly of fresh blood.
"Aaaagh!"One terrified bandit tried to flee,
Swish!
Seung-chan's sword brushed the man's nape.Blood gushed like a waterfall.The bandit clutched his throat and collapsed.
Seung-chan's eyes glinted red.He caught his breath and slammed his sword into the ground.
Thud!
His face, splattered with blood.His hands, his sword, steeped in it.
"As long as I live,none of you will leave here alive."
Once,some called him "the mad one."
Now,he was returning to that state.
Chapter 11: The Edge of Madness and Slaughter
The terrified bandits retreated.But one man stood his ground—
the bandit chief.
"Don't fool yourself into thinkingbeing covered in blood makes you strong."
The massive blunt weapon sliced through the air.Seung-chan twisted aside.
Bang!
The weapon struck the earth; dust exploded.That wasn't mere brute force.
It was an attack powered by naegong.
"Good."Seung-chan grinned, a cold smile on his bloodstained face.
"Now it's worth fighting."
The bandit chief hefted his weapon again.But his hand was trembling.
What Seung-chan saw wasn't the weapon—
but the man's life.
Killing intent—it began to strangle the chief.