The wooden floorboards in the instructor's pavilion hallway creaked softly, a sound that to the untrained ear was merely a sign of the building's aging. However, to Yoe Choin, the sound was a frequency anomaly in the structure that should have been static.
"Gwi-Hyuk,"
Choin whispered without turning, his hand already gripping the hilt of the Black Iron Heavy Sword.
Without needing a verbal command, Gwi-Hyuk dashed like a shadow. However, the silhouette hiding behind the cracked pillar was faster. With one light, almost weightless leap, the figure broke through the wooden window and leaped onto the roof, its many tiles already hollow.
"Foreman! That's the 'Blood Shadow' step technique! He's from the Blood Sea Sect!"
the real Moen Kang Yo shouted in his inner space, his voice filled with burning rage.
"Give me the reins! I'll rip his heart out for daring to tread on Evernight soil!"
"Patience, Boss. If you hold them, you'll only destroy more roofs, won't you, dear?"
Choin replied, jumping after him onto the building.
"This roof is already completely unusable. Don't add unnecessary shock loads. Let's pursue it with mechanical calculations."
The world before Choin's eyes suddenly transformed into a stretch of blueprint lines. He saw every wooden joint of the sect pavilion, which was beginning to crumble. The intruder leaped from one roof to another with agility, but Choin didn't pursue him recklessly.
"Analyze target,"
Choi muttered under his breath as he continued running.
"Weighs around 65 kg, carrying Twin Blood Hooks that add weight. He always lands on the joints of the main pillars. Smart, but predictable."
Choi rotated his Qi flow, focusing energy into his leg muscles using a high-pressure distribution method. As a third-level Structure Realm practitioner, each step created a small boom that sent dust flying from the roof.
"Gwi-Hyuk! Take the left flank! Seal the escape vent in the rear warehouse area!"
Choin ordered.
Gwi-Hyuk nodded silently and disappeared into the darkness of the basement. This chase wasn't just a speed contest, but a field audit to see how far the intruder had penetrated their "renovated" defense system.
The intruder was cornered in a logistics warehouse area where the fence was already leaning. He stopped and turned around, sunlight glinting off the pair of blood-red twin hooks he held.
"Young Master Moen Kang Yo,"
the intruder said, his voice sounding like scraping metal.
"The news that you've risen from the dead is apparently not just a rumor. But what business does a mere trash have meddling in the affairs of the greater Demon Faction?"
"My business is to ensure that no intruders enter my premises without express permission,"
Choin said, lowering his heavy sword to the ground, creating a small crack in the stone floor.
"Tell me, what does the Blood Sea Sect want from this trash sect?"
The intruder grinned, spinning his Twin Blood Hooks at high speed.
"This sect may be trash, but its throne is a valuable asset. The Demon Empress hates any cracks in her plans, and we've only come to ensure they're completely sealed."
"He mentioned my mother again! Foreman, destroy him!"
the real Moen Kang Yo roared, triggering a blast of black Qi that sent Choin's robes flapping wildly.
"Alright, Boss. Time for a material compression test,"
Choin said.
The intruder lunged forward with a technique designed to tear through flesh. His double hooks aimed for Choin's neck and waist simultaneously. In Choin's eyes, the attack had a very sharp force vector but low mass.
"Earth-Splitting Demon Slash!"
Choin didn't block. He slammed his black sword vertically into the ground directly in front of the intruder. The effect was incredible. The vibrations from the pile driver-heavy sword rippled through the ground, disrupting the intruder's dynamic balance.
"Your footing is poor!"
Choin taunted as the intruder staggered.
Choin spun around, using the momentum of his sword to execute an "Eternal Night Storm Sweep." The flat of his black blade struck the intruder's side, sending him flying into a pile of rotting firewood.
The intruder collapsed, one of his double hooks snapping in two. He tried to crawl away, but the tip of Choin's black sword was already above his head.
"The job is done,"
Choin said coldly.
"Inform your Empress... that. The Evernight Gate is undergoing complete renovation. Anyone who attempts sabotage will end up as waste."
Choin glanced at Gwi-Hyuk, who emerged from the shadows.
"Deal with him, but spare his life. We need him to send a message."
Before leaving, Choin took a small knife and with the precision of an architect, he etched the character "ya" into the intruder's arm.
"A sign that the foreman has inspected the quality of their shipment."
Choin muttered as he walked away.
As they walked back to the main pavilion, Choin paused and glanced toward the student dormitory. There, he saw Jin-Pyo trying to execute the sword swing he'd taught him that morning, though his body was still trembling with exhaustion.
"Demon Boss, this sect has many external enemies,"
Choin thought to himself.
"But the biggest problem is still the termites within our own house."
"Elder Gong will likely make a move to stop us in the next few days,"
the real Kang Yo replied confidently.
"He won't let Classes 1 and 2 become your pillars of strength."
"Good,"
Choin grinned slyly under the moonlight.
"I've prepared a new Security SOP. Let's see if that rat can escape the audit trap I've set."