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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Ghost Sword Manor (2)
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Yang Yeon-hwa, having stormed out after arguing with her father.
As always, she left Ghost Sword Manor behind and headed to an inn near Dome Green Mountain.
With no friends left, no one to understand her heart, this was the only way to soothe her loneliness and sorrow.
"Hic... sob."
She ordered a bottle of liquor without any food and was sipping it while sniffling.
How could Yang Yeon-hwa possibly want to drive a wedge into her father's heart?
She, too, loved her father and Ghost Sword Manor; those were words spoken out of that very affection.
'Our manor is struggling, and we don't even know where my brother has gone.'
More cruel than the crumbling reality was the disappearance of her one and only brother.
At least if Ghost Shadow Sword Yang Hui-gun were still around, they wouldn't have been pushed to the brink by Fine Sword Sect.
Yang Hui-gun's skills were at the pinnacle, renowned even in the barren lands of Yoneung Province, and many young members of the Yang Clan had gathered, admiring him.
'Brother hasn't returned, and the clan's youths are fleeing into the night every day.'
Starting from that disappearance, Ghost Sword Manor had been on a path of steady decline.
Yang Yeon-hwa truly worried about Ghost Sword Manor and wanted to protect it, but the more her resolve grew, the more the reality turned into a cesspool.
As she shed tears helplessly and drowned them in liquor, who was it that said misfortune comes all at once?
"Well, well, who do we have here?"
"Isn't this Yang Yeon-hwa, the greatest beauty around Dome Green Mountain?"
"Such a shame for a woman like her to waste away in a crumbling dump like Ghost Sword Manor."
Coincidentally, the main enemies threatening Ghost Sword Manor, swordsmen from Fine Sword Sect, swarmed into the inn.
So many of them poured in that the quiet inn, late at night, was packed solely with Fine Sword Sect members.
'Oh no!'
Yang Yeon-hwa, mid-tears, spotted their uniforms and realized her mistake.
This inn was in the opposite direction from Fine Sword Sect, so she thought they rarely came here—never dreaming she'd run into them.
Even more shocking was,
'Their numbers... one, two... a whopping thirty!'
They had come to the inn with an unusually large group.
Yang Yeon-hwa felt the alcohol burn off at the sight of far more Fine Sword Sect swordsmen than expected.
No matter how skilled she was, taking on thirty alone was impossible.
"Heh heh heh, looks like you've been dumped. Come over here."
"Nights in Yoneung Province are long and cold. Let me comfort you."
"Why not ditch that pathetic Ghost Sword Manor and marry into our Fine Sword Sect?"
The Fine Sword Sect swordsmen approached, toying with Yang Yeon-hwa.
Normally, they'd just make crude jokes and keep their distance.
But tonight, the mood was exceptionally rough and strange.
"What is the meaning of this? Even if our manor and Fine Sword Sect aren't on good terms, this is outright rudeness in an inn!"
Yang Yeon-hwa shouted.
No matter the bad blood between the two factions, Fine Sword Sect claimed to be an orthodox sect—they couldn't openly harass and subdue her without crossing a line.
"Heh heh heh. You have no idea."
"Why do you think we came all the way to this far-off inn?"
"We're the support squad backing the raid on Ghost Sword Manor. You know what that means, right?"
At those words, Yang Yeon-hwa's face went blank from shock.
"What?"
"By now... our raid squad has probably reached the manor."
Inconceivably, on the very night she was away, Fine Sword Sect's raid had begun.
"N-No, that's impossible!"
Sometimes reality is crueler than novels or plays.
Caught in this unexpected twist, Yang Yeon-hwa was overwhelmed by an uncontrollable guilt.
Especially haunting was her last conversation with her father.
She had hurled words at him she could never take back, and now she might never see him again.
"It's probably fallen by now."
"Pathetic Ghost Sword Manor's history ends today."
"So, forget Ghost Sword Manor and come to our Fine Sword Sect..."
Yang Yeon-hwa's mind reeled in turmoil, unable to compose herself.
Just as she teetered on the edge of collapse, a miracle arrived.
"Who dares insult Ghost Sword Manor?!"
A vast, earth-shaking Lion's Roar echoed as if overturning heaven and earth itself!
💥 CRITICAL HIT! 💥
All Fine Sword Sect Members' Heads Explode!
30 Swordsmen Instantly Slain – Not a Single Survivor
This bizarre scene had once happened to North Sword Sect warriors in the past.
"Wh... who are you?"
Suddenly faced with this unreal massacre, Yang Yeon-hwa asked half in doubt, wondering if she was possessed by a fox spirit or ghost.
"I am Gunryong."
"Gunryong?"
Yang Yeon-hwa tilted her head, her face showing unfamiliarity.
"Gunryong! We're alone now, so you can reveal your true identity."
Sogang, who had been behind the Heavenly Demon, piped up.
They had agreed at North Sea Ice Palace to hide from the Murim Alliance for now, building power while operating under the alias Gunryong.
"Knew it."
Grinning broadly as if he'd expected as much,
"I am the Heavenly Demon."
"...What?!"
Yang Yeon-hwa couldn't believe it.
But thinking it over, one thing came to mind.
'Oh my god! He looks exactly like that portrait!'
Loyal Ghost Sword Yang U-ryang had a meticulously drawn portrait of Heavenly Demon Gunryong, passed down through the Yang Clan generations.
Moreover, few in the world could slay thirty warriors with a single Lion's Roar.
Especially one so young and innocent-looking—virtually none. Thus, the answer was clear.
"Yang Yeon-hwa, descendant of the Loyal Ghost Sword Yang U-ryang, first manor lord of Ghost Sword Manor, greets you!"
Stunned, Yang Yeon-hwa hastily bowed to the Heavenly Demon.
"Ha ha hat! U-ryang's features really linger on? Amazing, truly amazing!"
The Heavenly Demon felt rewarded for his mad dash from North Sea Star City, beaming with joy.
Upon hearing from Ice Palace Lord Seol Tae-chong that Ghost Sword Manor was in crisis and declining rapidly, he had grabbed Sogang and rushed here.
The long distance from North Sea Star City to Yoneung Province was no issue for the First Heavenly Demon's lightness skill.
Still tired and hungry, he stopped at a nearby inn for rest—only for this to happen.
'To meet U-ryang's descendant right upon arrival.'
The Heavenly Demon believed this connection was no coincidence.
For some reason, it felt like Yang U-ryang, who had waited a lifetime for him, had arranged it.
"Delighted to meet you!"
As he warmly regarded Yang Yeon-hwa, who resembled Yang U-ryang so much, something suddenly struck her.
"Oh right!"
Yang Yeon-hwa recalled the info she'd overheard just before the Heavenly Demon wiped out the Fine Sword Sect members.
Fine Sword Sect's raid on Ghost Sword Manor had begun.
"Heavenly Demon! Please help our Ghost Sword Manor. Their vanguard is raiding it."
She pleaded so earnestly that even the shock of the First Heavenly Demon's revival faded.
Smoothly,
As she prostrated herself, the Heavenly Demon lifted her without touching her, using profound inner energy, and spoke.
"Ghost Sword Manor is like U-ryang's will itself. If anyone seeks to destroy it..."
🔥 FURY IGNITED 🔥
...he clenched his fist in blazing rage.
"I will erase them entirely from this Central Plains land."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Today marks the end of the Yang Clan—remnants of the Demonic Cult—and Ghost Sword Manor."
Declaring this was Flash Fine Sword Go Jin-taek, a top expert of Fine Sword Sect and one of Yoneung Province's promising young talents, leading his forces.
Fine Sword Sect, established right next to Ghost Sword Manor, was the rising star sect in Yoneung Province.
"We have the justification. Ghost Sword Manor was born from filthy deals with Demonic Cult scum. So today! We officially annihilate Ghost Sword Manor and claim Dome Green Mountain as Fine Sword Sect's domain!"
Waaaaah!
Ahead of the expedition to destroy Ghost Sword Manor, Go Jin-taek's bold declaration drew roars from his troops.
"Charge!"
With Go Jin-taek's valiant cry, they marched on Ghost Sword Manor.
Dome Green Mountain was steep and rugged, a natural fortress, but since the heir's disappearance, Ghost Sword Manor had seen many nighttime deserters and couldn't utilize it properly.
Kwaaaang!
Thus, their defenses crumbled under Fine Sword Sect's assault, the entrance line breaking immediately.
'They really came.'
Manor Lord Shadowless Sword Yang Dae-un despaired at Fine Sword Sect's raid.
Even more painful was worry for his only daughter, Yang Yeon-hwa, who had descended the mountain.
Yang Dae-un was manor lord before father.
He wanted to find her, but the manor's survival came first.
'Our manor has fewer than fifty, including children and women.'
In contrast, Fine Sword Sect's punitive force consisted of over sixty young, trained warriors.
"Fine Sword Sect mobilized nearly their entire force."
Shadowless Sword Yang Dae-un lamented, watching them swarm like a tide.
Utterly outnumbered and outmatched.
He wondered if his daughter's words were right—abandon the manor, forsake the precepts, and flee.
"Aaaah!"
Under Fine Sword Sect's raid, Ghost Sword Manor couldn't counter properly; young fighters were already dying or gravely wounded.
Yang Dae-un could hesitate no longer.
"Today, we uphold our great first lord's precepts... and defend this sacred ground of Ghost Sword Manor. All advance!"
Sensing no path left, Yang Dae-un resolved: better a glorious end after slaying one more invader than a pathetic death captured.
"Charge!"
Led by Yang Dae-un, the remaining Yang Clan warriors of Ghost Sword Manor gathered—like eggs against a rock.
Everyone knew it wouldn't last: Yang Dae-un, Ghost Sword Manor, even Fine Sword Sect.
"Haat!"
Yang Dae-un led the scant forces in a desperate struggle.
Though aged, past his prime, weaker than heir Yang Hui-gun, his first-rate skill held.
Regrettably, the limit came in a blink.
Waaaaah!
Fine Sword Sect's tidal assault, plus Flash Fine Sword Go Jin-taek's leisurely gaze from the rear.
Under these dire conditions, Yang Dae-un staggered.
"Tch!"
Even the bold Yang Dae-un crumbled before numbers, on the verge of capture.
Just as Ghost Sword Manor's history seemed set to end pathetically,
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡
Yama's Hook Prison
Gigantic sword beam engulfs Fine Sword Sect forces
A colossal sword beam, inhuman in scale, miraculously swept in, blanketing Fine Sword Sect's troops.
The figure Ghost Sword Manor—from first lord Loyal Ghost Sword Yang U-ryang onward—had awaited desperately for so long.
"Who dares attack Ghost Sword Manor?"
The First Heavenly Demon Gunryong had arrived.