LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 13 - The Smell of Blood
Chapter 13: The Smell of Blood
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By the time the sun reached its zenith, Byeok Taesan emerged from the pavilion.
He had spent the night absorbing the spiritual energy attached to the souls and used it to circulate the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art, reconnecting his severed meridians.
Now, the process was complete.
As he stepped out, all eyes from those gathered in front of the pavilion turned to him.
Cheon Kyungwan wore his usual calm and indifferent expression.
Yoo Seoyeon, however, looked at him as though staring at a beast.
Finally, the three men who attacked had faces that mixed astonishment and reverence, their expressions filled with awe and fear.
Byeok Taesan’s gaze landed first on the three ruffians.
“What’s this? You’re still alive?”
The color drained from their faces at his words.
Cheon Kyungwan replied nonchalantly, “They were still talking up until just now.”
Byeok Taesan’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the three men.
The men gulped nervously, their eyes pleading as they stared back at him.
After a moment, Byeok Taesan turned his gaze to Yoo Seoyeon.
Startled, she instinctively took a step back.
After all, she had heard the sounds from last night. It was only natural for her to be wary.
“Summarize it for me.”
“Pardon?”
“You heard it all night, didn’t you? Summarize it.”
Yoo Seoyeon’s face turned bright red.
“W-what are you talking about? Are you mocking me?”
Byeok Taesan tilted his head quizzically before letting out a short laugh as if he’d figured something out.
“What’s this? Are you finally starting to get tainted by the souls?”
The mention of being tainted by souls made Yoo Seoyeon bristle, but Byeok Taesan spoke again before she could retort.
“You must have heard all the nonsense those guys were spouting all night. Summarize it. Don’t tell me you just let it all go in one ear and out the other. That’d be really disappointing…”
Yoo Seoyeon’s face turned even redder.
She realized she had made a ridiculous misunderstanding.
The sounds she’d heard all night must have clouded her judgment too much.
Mortified, she quickly blurted out, “They’re people from the Crimson Dragon Sect!”
“That much I already figured out yesterday.”
Yoo Seoyeon took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.
“They’re just disposable underlings. The Crimson Dragon Sect picked them out because they were expendable.”
“That much is obvious. They don’t look as filthy as the rest of their lot.”
Though she didn’t fully understand what he meant by “not as filthy,” Yoo Seoyeon decided to continue speaking before she lost her train of thought.
“The identity of the man who came with them yesterday seems to be known only to the vice sect leader of the Crimson Dragon Sect.”
Yoo Seoyeon continued to organize and relay what she had heard from the men the night before.
While there had been a lot of chatter, most of it was useless nonsense.
However, when pieced together carefully, a few bits of information could be inferred.
Judging from the man’s skills yesterday, he was certainly not someone the Crimson Dragon Sect could afford to command.
In other words, another organization was backing the Crimson Dragon Sect.
The order they received was not to kill Byeok Taesan but to bring him to the Crimson Dragon Sect.
Their plan had been straightforward but effective: while the man held Cheon Kyungwan in place, the others would kidnap Byeok Taesan.
What they hadn’t accounted for was that Cheon Kyungwan’s skills far exceeded their expectations—and that Yoo Seoyeon was with them.
“They only intended to intimidate the Young Master, but… if they had actually succeeded in abducting him, things would have turned out differently.”
In other words, Byeok Taesan would likely have been killed.
If that happened, the Crimson Dragon Sect would face annihilation.
Moreover, anyone involved in the scheme would suffer significant repercussions.
“So, you think the Zhongli Clan is behind this?”
“It’s a reasonable assumption.”
Byeok Taesan nodded and turned to Cheon Kyungwan.
“What about you?”
For the first time in a while, an emotion appeared on Cheon Kyungwan’s face—discomfort.
He seemed genuinely troubled.
After some hesitation, Cheon Kyungwan slightly lowered his head to avoid Yoo Seoyeon’s gaze and replied.
“I don’t think it’s the Zhongli Clan.”
Byeok Taesan smirked.
“Alright, let’s head back. I need to eat and get some sleep.”
He began walking away with long strides.
Cheon Kyungwan quickly followed and asked, “What about them?”
Byeok Taesan glanced back.
The three men, pale and trembling, looked at him with pitiful eyes.
“Bring them along.”
Everyone let out a sigh of relief.
* * *
“Why do you think it’s not the Zhongli Clan?” Yoo Seoyeon asked.
Cheon Kyungwan hesitated.
“Surely, it’s not because you’re worried about hurting my feelings, right?”
It was true, but he couldn’t admit it.
Still, since she was pressing him, he felt compelled to answer.
“It’s because the Zhongli Clan wouldn’t act so openly.”
Yoo Seoyeon nodded in agreement.
“True…”
The Zhongli Clan was cunning.
While there was an undercurrent of ruthlessness, Yoo Seoyeon thought “cunning” described them better.
Such people wouldn’t act so brazenly.
Even if someone in the clan attempted such a plan, the others would intervene to stop it.
They would have used far subtler methods.
“So… does that mean someone is exploiting the situation?”
Which organization could both manipulate this situation and command a martial artist as skilled as the man who fled with his arm severed yesterday?
“There are countless possibilities.”
But when narrowing it down to groups with a motive for such a scheme, the number shrank significantly.
“The Golden Heavenly Alliance?”
Yoo Seoyeon’s expression grew increasingly complicated as her thoughts deepened.
* * *
When Byeok Taesan’s group returned to the Golden Wall Merchants, Soso was startled.
Not only had the group grown in number since they left, but the three unfamiliar men looked utterly disheveled.
“Young Master, you’re back?” she asked hesitantly.
“Yes.”
“And those men behind you are…?”
“You said you needed workers who could handle physical labor.”
“Pardon? When did I…?”
Soso stopped mid-sentence and looked at Cheon Kyungwan.
She recalled mentioning to him in passing that they could use more workers but hadn’t expected him to relay it to Byeok Taesan.
Soso’s expression grew strange.
She was surprised that Cheon Kyungwan had remembered her casual remark and relayed it to Byeok Taesan, and even more surprised that Byeok Taesan had remembered and gone out of his way to bring laborers.
However, the truly shocked ones were the three men who had been designated as workers.
They were from the underworld and had no desire to perform menial tasks in a place like this.
Byeok Taesan turned to them and pointed at each of them with his finger.
“Black One, Black Two, Black Three.”
“Pardon?”
“That’s your name from now on.”
“What? That’s—”
Byeok Taesan smirked, but the smile felt terrifying.
The three men gulped nervously.
“You should get new names, shouldn’t you? After all, you died and were reborn.”
They understood the implication and began nodding their heads fervently.
“Of course! From now on, I’m Black One.”
“That’s an excellent name!”
Byeok Taesan turned to Soso and said, “You heard that, right? Call them that and make them work as much as you like.”
Soso’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Th-these people? Me?”
At a glance, they looked like people who could easily overpower others with brute strength—and their demeanor seemed equally rough.
How could she possibly command such men? She worried that she might end up serving three new masters instead.
“Well, I suppose they might not listen. In that case, they’ll die, but it’d be annoying if they made trouble before that.”
“Wh-why would you say such frightening things? We will absolutely obey the lady! If she commands us to die, we’ll pretend to die! Please believe us!”
“I’d sooner trust a dog than you.”
Byeok Taesan motioned for them to follow him and walked into the pavilion.
Black One, Black Two, and Black Three followed quietly, while Cheon Kyungwan and Yoo Seoyeon trailed close behind, as if to keep an eye on them.
Once inside, Byeok Taesan spoke to Cheon Kyungwan.
“I know a fairly decent forbidden technique. Since we have three test subjects, it’s a good chance for you to learn it.”
“I’ll do that,” Cheon Kyungwan replied without hesitation, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
The three men, however, couldn’t take it so lightly.
Using them to practice a forbidden technique? The very thought was horrifying.
But they didn’t dare voice any objections. Doing so seemed like a surefire way to die.
Yoo Seoyeon, on her part, was astonished.
Up until now, her impression of Byeok Taesan hadn’t been favorable.
He had seemed lethargic and incompetent, exuding an aura of apathy. His cold sarcasm could wound others without a second thought.
But the Byeok Taesan she witnessed today was vastly different from the one she thought she knew.
‘And a forbidden technique, no less…’
Where could he have learned such a thing?
Unconcerned by Yoo Seoyeon’s watchful gaze, Byeok Taesan positioned Black One in front of him and began explaining the forbidden technique to Cheon Kyungwan in detail.
“Remember these three pressure points: here, here, and here. These are the basics. From there, you can expand to these points: here, here, and here. Depending on the order, you can achieve different effects, so memorize it carefully.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“There’s a specific sequence for channeling internal energy. Mastering the flow is key, so focus on practicing that.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Byeok Taesan explained the forbidden technique in meticulous detail.
Although everyone present heard the explanation, only Cheon Kyungwan seemed to grasp its true essence.
Cheon Kyungwan found it remarkable.
As Byeok Taesan demonstrated the flow of internal energy, it became clear without any verbal instructions.
This was possible because Byeok Taesan had imprinted the energy flow onto Cheon Kyungwan’s senses using the spiritual energy he had absorbed after killing the Crimson Dragon Sect Leader.
For those present, detecting such spiritual energy movement was impossible.
“How is it? Do you get it? Even if you don’t, it’s fine. You’ll get the hang of it through practice.”
“I think I can manage.”
“Good. Then try it. Let’s start with… something simple, like temporary blindness.”
“Pardon? Bl-blindness? Wait a moment! Please, hold on! I promise to behave! There’s no need for something as troublesome as a forbidden technique!”
Black One’s panicked shouts echoed in the room.
After all, losing his sight to a forbidden technique wasn’t something he could sit still for.
But his protests were futile.
Before he realized it, Cheon Kyungwan had already stimulated Black One’s pressure points and infused internal energy, applying the forbidden technique.
Byeok Taesan nodded approvingly as he observed.
“Precise. You have good instincts.”
“Thank you.”
“Removing the forbidden technique is five times harder than applying it, so I’ll teach you that later. Though honestly, you don’t need to know how to undo it. Just reinforce it every three or four days, and there’ll be no issues.”
Black One’s complexion turned deathly pale.
Byeok Taesan gestured for the man to leave. Head bowed in defeat, Black One trudged out.
“For the other two, let’s use a different forbidden technique. Since it’s for practice, let’s go with… making their hearts burst.”
Upon hearing this, the other two men thought Black One was incredibly lucky.
Yoo Seoyeon stared at Byeok Taesan’s back with a mix of disbelief and dread.
If she hadn’t accompanied him to the courtesan house yesterday, she might not have felt this way.
‘He does this every day?’
Yoo Seoyeon knew full well that Byeok Taesan was unwell. She had even witnessed him collapsing suddenly in the past—a sight that had left her deeply shaken.
Yet now, she couldn’t help but question if he was truly sick.
Yoo Seoyeon genuinely cared for Yeon Harin.
That was why she had insisted on becoming Yeon Harin’s personal bodyguard.
In truth, someone with Yoo Seoyeon’s skills could have easily secured a prestigious position in the Yeon clan.
Still, she had stubbornly chosen to guard Yeon Harin instead.
As Yoo Seoyeon glared daggers at Byeok Taesan’s back, her eyes suddenly sharpened.
The two men walking ahead of her had abruptly stopped.
This time, she saw it clearly: Byeok Taesan stopped first, followed by Cheon Kyungwan.
“What’s the matter now?”
Yoo Seoyeon asked cautiously.
She wasn’t sure what was going on yet, but yesterday’s events were fresh in her mind, so she didn’t dismiss it outright.
“The smell of blood,” Byeok Taesan said.
Yoo Seoyeon gave him a puzzled look. She lifted her nose slightly and sniffed the air.
“I don’t smell anything.”
Cheon Kyungwan seemed equally perplexed, glancing at Byeok Taesan as if to confirm.
Byeok Taesan sighed, exasperated.
“Do you only smell with your nose?”
What else would she use—her eyes?
Yoo Seoyeon looked at him incredulously.
Meanwhile, Cheon Kyungwan, ever the obedient follower, immediately began employing all his senses, including his intuition.
Moments later, he murmured to himself, “The smell of blood…”
Yoo Seoyeon stared at the two men, utterly bewildered.