Fist Demon of Mount Hua - Chapter 89

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 89. The One Who Acts and Moves Alone, the Solitary Walker School—Part 1
The light was draining from Jwa Mun Hyo’s eyes.
A life was flickering out.
Even as his breath ceased, Jwa Mun Hyo could not comprehend what was happening to him. He died without leaving behind a single word.
“Master!”
Chae Gyoo gathered the lifeless Jwa Mun Hyo into his arms.
The surviving martial artists of Hyungsan Sect surged toward Jwa Mun Hyo and Chae Gyoo.
“Ugh!”
“Master!”
Tears streamed down their faces as they glared at Dam Ho with hatred born of grief.
They had descended from Hyungsan with light hearts. Never had they imagined losing their master and fellow disciples in this place—the shock was crushing.
“Kill him.”
“We must avenge the master!”
The Hyungsan martial artists surged forward again, but Chae Gyoo held them back.
“All of you—stop.”
“Elder!”
“But he is the master’s killer!”
They protested as any would, yet Chae Gyoo remained unmoved.
“This is an order from your elder. Disobey me, and I will expel every last one of you from the sect.”
“Ugh!”
At Chae Gyoo’s extreme decree, the Hyungsan martial artists froze. No matter how consumed by rage, nothing terrified them more than expulsion from the sect.
As the disciples fell silent, Chae Gyoo gazed down at Jwa Mun Hyo’s corpse. The face that once blazed with vigor had gone pallid and still.
“Master.”
Chae Gyoo closed Jwa Mun Hyo’s eyes, then rose to his feet.
Cold fury burned in his gaze as he turned to face Dam Ho.
His heart screamed for vengeance, but his mind whispered that he must endure.
Half of the disciples he had brought to this place lay dead in an instant, and even the master had been no match for him.
His opponent was a master of incomprehensible skill.
With their current strength, they could never hope to defeat him. It was bitter truth, but truth nonetheless.
He had to remain as coldly rational as possible.
One misstep, and not only would avenging the master become impossible—every disciple here would perish.
He had a duty to shepherd the survivors safely back to Hyungsan.
“We will return to Hyungsan. Will you let us go?”
Though Chae Gyoo’s words were a retreat, there was no servility in them. Something about his bearing struck Dam Ho as unusual.
“And if I do?”
“We will rebuild our strength and seek vengeance upon you one day.”
“Then why should I let you leave? It would be far simpler to slaughter you all here and now.”
“Then we will accept death without resistance.”
……
“Killing those who will not fight back does not sit well with men of your temperament. For one of your kind, it would be doubly so.”
This was a gamble with their lives at stake.
Chae Gyoo was wagering the fate of himself, fifty disciples, and the Hyungsan Sect itself as he provoked Dam Ho.
His mouth had gone dry, yet he did not flinch, fixing Dam Ho with an unwavering stare.
The hellish silence stretched on until, at last, Dam Ho’s lips parted.
“Perhaps the Hyungsan Sect has need of a master like you after all.”
“Then you will let us leave?”
I will.”
“Even knowing we will seek our revenge?”
Chae Gyoo’s eyes wavered at Dam Ho’s answer—both hoped for and utterly unexpected.
“Yes.”
“You are surely mad.”
“Perhaps.”
Dam Ho nodded slowly.
Had anyone else spoken such words, he would have crushed their skull without hesitation.
Chae Gyoo fought desperately to protect his disciples, yet never abandoned his principles. Such men were rare—impossibly rare.
Since his return to the world, he had encountered none like this. And so, this once, he wanted to grant Chae Gyoo a chance.
Chae Gyoo asked him a question.
“What is your name?”
“Dam Ho.”
“I will remember it. The Hyungsan Sect will never forget your name.”
“Yes!”
“My name is Chae Gyoo. Remember it well. One day I’ll drive a sword through your heart.”
“I look forward to it.”
Dam Ho nodded and moved forward.
Though he limped slightly with each step, his bearing only grew more terrifying—so much so that the disciples of Hyungsan Sect parted on either side to let him pass.
Beneath the reddening sky, Dam Ho’s figure receded bit by bit. Watching him go, Chae Gyoo found himself murmuring without thinking.
“One who walks alone… the Solitary Walker School.”
Chae Gyoo did not know it.
That thoughtless murmur would become the name to replace Dam Ho’s Dark Form Fist.
The Solitary Walker School.
Dam Ho walked on, alone.
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An unbelievable rumor struck Hunan Province.
A legendary Fist Demon wielding the fist had appeared.
He had obliterated the Ak Family Stronghold and killed Jwa Mun Hyo, the master of Hyungsan Sect.
Nam Hak, the foremost disciple of Gongdong Sect, had fallen to him.
He was a ruthless killer who showed mercy to none who had fallen out of his favor.
The Blood Star of Xinjiang.
A crimson star that had appeared from Xinjiang.
Yet some called him by another name.
The Fist Demon.
In all the annals of the martial world, none had ever acquired such a blood-soaked epithet in so brief a span of time.
People began to take notice of Dam Ho.
Whenever two or more gathered, Dam Ho became the subject of conversation. Especially in Hunan Province, where he had recently revealed himself, talk of him seemed never to cease.
Yet for some reason, after the incident at Hyungsan Sect, he had not shown himself again. This only deepened the people’s curiosity about him.
＊＊＊
Sa Ma Gyeong Won, the sect leader of Akyang Swordsmen Sect, had his brow furrowed deeply. It was because of unexpected guests who had arrived without warning.
Seated before him was a man in his early forties, dressed in a pale indigo robe befitting a literatus.
Sharp facial lines and keen eyes—eyes that gleamed as if penetrating into the depths of a person’s soul.
All of it felt oppressive.
The man’s name was Namgung Chang, a figure of the Namgung Family.
Sa Ma Gyeong Won knew nothing of Namgung Chang. Yet the mere fact that he came from the Namgung Family, one of the Five Great Families, weighed upon him with tremendous pressure.
The Five Great Families.
The Hwangbo Family, seated in Beijing, Shandong Province.
The Jinju Eon Family, seated in Anping.
The Peng Clan, lords of Hebei Province.
The Jegal Family of Hubei Province.
And finally, the Namgung Family of Anhui Province.
Among the hundreds and thousands of martial families scattered across the realm, these five possessed unrivaled power and influence.
Each had histories spanning centuries, and their strength and reach were in no way inferior to the Nine Great Sects.
Whereas most of the Nine Great Sects lay scattered throughout the inland reaches of the Central Plains, the Five Great Families were concentrated along the eastern coast.
This had much to do with the history of the Central Plains.
When the Nine Great Sects first emerged, the center of power lay inland. But as dynasties succeeded one another, the capital was moved to present-day Beijing, and the surrounding coastal cities began to flourish.
Most of the Five Great Families experienced explosive growth alongside the capital’s relocation to Beijing, achieving their present prosperity.
For this reason, some viewed the Nine Great Sects as traditional powers and the Five Great Families as rising ones.
The Namgung Family had established itself in Anhui Province three hundred years ago. Even then they wielded considerable wealth and martial strength, though not on the scale they command today.
In any case, the present Namgung Family had grown formidable enough to give even the Nine Great Sects pause, and their influence far exceeded what Akyang Swordsmen Sect could hope to match.
Sa Ma Gyeong Won’s wariness toward Namgung Chang was not unfounded.
Namgung Chang introduced himself as an elder of the Namgung Family.
At his side was a handsome young man. Had anyone unknown to him seen them, they would have taken the youth for a scholar—his skin was pale and porcelain-fine, his smile gentle.
The young man’s name was Namgung Su, and since his name was not known in the martial world, Sa Ma Gyeong Won did not recognize him. Nor did he have the presence of mind to dwell on it.
Sa Ma Gyeong Won spoke carefully.
“To what do we owe the honor of this visit from an elder of the Namgung Family?”
“Before we proceed—I’m told that a certain Hae So Jeo of the Hainan Sect has been staying here. Is that correct?”
Namgung Chang’s voice was very soft and measured. Yet the moment Sa Ma Gyeong Won heard it, an inexplicable chill ran through him.
“That is so, though…”
“Then you must have received some hint of what’s to come.”
“Of what?”
“Much as Hae So Jeo has suggested, an important gathering will be held here before long. I’ve come merely to secure a place in advance.”
“A gathering, you say?”
“That is something I cannot yet disclose.”
Namgung Chang shook his head gently.
“Akyang is practically the front garden of our Akyang Swordsmen Sect. Yet you hold a meeting in my own front yard without telling me the reason?”
“The matter at hand is grave enough to warrant discretion. I would be grateful if you could show us a little patience, Master Sa Ma.”
“What?”
Sa Ma Gyeong Won could not accept Namgung Chang’s words.
It was as though a guest had walked into someone’s home uninvited and declared they would use the courtyard as they pleased, so the owners should stay out of it.
The problem was that the martial world was a place where power ruled.
If the Namgung Family—members of the Five Great Families—had come to do preliminary work, how formidable must the others attending this meeting be?
“Then, may I ask who is coming?”
“The Five Great Families.”
“Mm!”
“The Nine Great Sects.”
“What?!”
With each successive name Namgung Chang uttered, Sa Ma Gyeong Won’s face drained of all color.
A meeting of the Five Great Families and the Nine Great Sects was entirely beyond his station. Should he displease even one of them, the Akyang Swordsmen Sect would vanish from the world that very day.
“And the Hainan Sect as well. For now, just understand that important figures will be gathering here.”
“The entire Nine Great Sects and all the Five Great Families are coming? Not a single one absent?”
“That is correct. Because the matter to be discussed is so significant, they have decided to convene in this Neutral Territory.”
“Mm!”
Sa Ma Gyeong Won found himself at a loss for words.
Neutral Territory or not, sects still operated here. The Akyang Swordsmen Sect was a prime example, and the Uisun Sect—one of the Hunan Five Great Sects—existed nearby as well.
Yet that they spoke of this place as neutral territory only showed how little they regarded the established sects already rooted here.
Namgung Chang continued.
“Which is why I must ask for the cooperation of the Akyang Swordsmen Sect. I ask this in earnest, confident that you will lend us your aid.”
His words were framed as a request, but the substance beneath was little more than coercion. The problem was that the Akyang Swordsmen Sect possessed nowhere near the strength to refuse such an ultimatum.
“Mm!”
Sa Ma Gyeong Won exhaled slowly, and Namgung Chang smiled.
Namgung Chang knew it well.
That Sa Ma Gyeong Won could never refuse his proposal.
The martial world was a place where power held dominion.
Those who commanded enough strength to govern the entire martial world were now converging on this place.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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