Namgung Jin moved toward the center of the island, leaping from tall building to tall building as if performing acrobatics.
Glancing down at the thick smoke covering the ground, Namgung Jin couldn’t help swallowing a curse.
'He really is out of his mind.'
He couldn’t help thinking of the woman who had brazenly ridden a horse straight into enemy territory, not even certain what might be inside.
Namgung Jin intended to quickly destroy the Passage and enter the Ice Palace.
The Four-Directions Hall Administrator had said they should wait at the central Passage so they would not cross [N O V E L I G H T] paths and miss Tang Sohwa, but he thought differently.
Inside the Ice Palace was a Blood Cult man who had ignored his superior’s orders and shirked his duties just to drink human blood.
'This time she might really die a dog’s death...'
Was it because the Tang Clan Head had hidden her away at home and raised her preciously? She had no idea what rogue scum, slipping past their superiors’ eyes to play around, were capable of.
There was no variable more unnerving than trash left uncontrolled.
With a hardened expression, Namgung Jin increased his speed.
It was the moment he decided he would properly make an issue of it this time, so it would never happen again.
Tap.
After running for quite some time, Namgung Jin came to a stop. The buildings had ended.
Before his eyes spread a sea-like expanse of cloud and mist.
It was the road connecting the Ice Palace and the entrance of the island — Ildo.
Staring at the mist, Namgung Jin descended to the ground.
Listening to the sound of water, he stepped onto Ildo.
Splash.
After Tang Sohwa had left, Baek Unhyeon had recalled something and, looking at the map, guessed the Passage’s location.
[When the Han family first opened the waterway, they tried to get rid of Ildo.]
Because Ildo cut straight across the middle of the island, it inevitably blocked the flow of the waterway.
The Han family had tried to cut through Ildo so the waterway would not be blocked, but at the time, the Ice Palace people living outside the palace had fiercely opposed it, so they could not sever the road.
Instead, they compromised by building a conduit beneath Ildo through which the water could pass.
Splash.
The sound of water burrowing through the mist grew clearer.
By now, the fog had grown so dense that he could no longer see the surroundings.
Following the sound of water, Namgung Jin went to the far left edge and looked beneath Ildo.
He could see steam and hot water pouring through an iron grating.
After the Ice Palace fell, the Han family had put grates on the waterway, saying it was to eliminate the stench from the hot springs.
The only ones who could enter that place were the Han family.
They had warned that if it was tampered with improperly, the stench might leak out and kill people, so others were reluctant to go anywhere near it.
As Baek Unhyeon told that story, he had guessed that the waterway beneath Ildo might be the Passage.
Namgung Jin slipped his hand into his robes.
Following his long fingers, a single pill came out.
It was a pill he had secretly pilfered after seeing how casually Tang Sohwa used poison.
Tang Sohwa had said that the Second Seat’s curse was sulfur poisoning. And she had said that the strange antidote she had made would also block sulfur poisoning.
Placing the pill in his mouth, Namgung Jin chewed the paste with a grave expression.
For all his nerve, he trusted Tang Sohwa enough to secretly steal and take the Sichuan Tang Clan’s antidote.
Yet, not realizing his own feelings yet, he was thinking he needed to finish this quickly, go to the Ice Palace, and properly take issue with Tang Sohwa.
Namgung Jin drew his sword.
Crash.
With a short downward stroke, the joint of the iron grating shattered.
He tore the grate completely away and went into the waterway.
Splash.
Wading through hot water up to his knees, Namgung Jin took out a fire talisman.
Fwoosh.
As his field of vision brightened, the interior structure began to take shape.
The waterway was like a stone cave.
Huge slabs of marble were tightly fitted together.
Carefully examining the wall, Namgung Jin came to a halt.
Between the stone walls, a mineral of a different color had been set.
Feeling along the wall, he approached that section.
Unlike the other stones, this mineral was excessively smooth.
'Is it metal?'
When he brought the light closer, shadows fell into the engraving, revealing the inscription.
He placed his hand on the characters and let his inner energy flow in at once.
Hissss.
The hazy steam roiled and was drawn toward him.
The moment the inner energy that had filled the engraving returned to his fingertips—
Flash.
Light burst beside Namgung Jin, and space opened.
"Huh..."
It was a Passage.
Namgung Jin immediately swung his sword, hacking at the formation.
Crash.
But the metal was not scratched in the slightest.
"...Han Cheol, is it?"
Namgung Jin infused his sword with inner energy and swung again.
Like lightning, white light burst wildly along the sword’s path.
Crash. Thud. Crash.
He poured his full strength into it.
After a long while, Namgung Jin stared at the Han Cheol with a hollow expression.
Not only had the formation not been broken, there was not even a hairline crack in the Han Cheol.
Setting his sword again, Namgung Jin pulled his body far back.
Slam.
A massive iron spear slammed down where he had just been standing.
Turning his head, Namgung Jin looked toward the entrance.
A red light flickered through the smoke — likely torches.
Around them, dark silhouettes appeared.
Dozens of people were standing at the entrance.
But they did not come inside.
They simply stood at a distance, laughing as if to mock Namgung Jin.
"There’s no need to wear yourself out."
The owner of the voice braced a hand against the wall at the entrance.
"Did you think we wouldn’t anticipate the possibility of an intruder entering? We made all the preparations."
The laughing voice echoed through the waterway.
Namgung Jin’s gaze rose.
Tiny dust-like bits of stone were falling.
He sensed something was wrong, but he could not bring himself to flee.
The thought that he had to destroy the Passage was holding him in place.
"It seems the Central Plains lot split up their forces to tamper with the Passages, but you had the bad luck of entering the Han family’s Passage. Ha ha, the Han family’s Passage is nothing like the others. Shouldn’t the gate for receiving a precious person be more special?"
Crack, crack.
Namgung Jin twisted his body in haste, but it was already too late.
Crash. Thud. Crash.
Bricks fell, creating a prison around him in an instant.
When he stepped in the opposite direction, bricks fell there this time.
Crash.
"It reacts to the intruder’s movements, so it would be best not to move."
The voice was light.
Unable to hold back, Namgung Jin shouted in anger,
"The sin of madmen like the Blood Demon is deep, but the sin of an accomplice like you is deeper still. Do you know that?"
"How would I know? This is the first I’ve heard such a thing."
The master of the Han family openly mocked him.
Namgung Jin did not yield and continued his admonishment.
"It is not right for the strong to oppress the weak, but at least they can make the excuse that it is the natural order of the strong preying on the weak. But someone like you clings to the strong and forcibly oppresses the weak, so your sin is far heavier. To commit evil, you have even gone against the natural order and piled up karma. That karmic retribution will never be light."
"Ha ha, the Martial Alliance swordsman surely knows how to curse with such refinement. I see now why everyone covets and resents the Heavenly Palace Sword so much."
Namgung Jin closed his mouth.
A Han family retainer had recognized him.
It was unsettling — no, frightening — that a Northern Sea noble knew so much about the Central Plains.
"...What else do you know about the Central Plains?"
"I know more than you think. I will have to go to the Central Plains myself someday. Ah."
Drawing out his words, the Northern Sea noble went on,
"Did you perhaps enter the island with the help of the Northern Sea Ice Palace bloodline?"
When Namgung Jin did not answer, the man gave a small laugh.
"Ha ha ha, fools. They don’t even know who killed their own bloodline."
Namgung Jin tensed at that remark.
Strictly speaking, he had not killed them himself, but the bloodline’s death was connected to him.
Breaking off the conversation, Namgung Jin swung his sword toward the Han Cheol.
Sword energy packed with inner power struck the wall.
Crash.
But still, the Han Cheol took no damage.
As he stepped through his footwork to pour even more power into the blow, stones fell from the ceiling.
The floor seemed to be sensing his movement.
'Is there a formation beneath the water that detects movement?'
Namgung Jin leapt onto a fallen stone and, from atop it, unleashed a continuous flurry of sword energy.
Thud. Crash. Thud.
But the Han Cheol did not budge, and only the stone wall next to it collapsed.
Plunge. Plunge.
The broken wall and fragments fell into the water.
In response, bricks from the ceiling hurtled down to the floor.
At this rate, the Han Cheol would likely be hidden behind the stone walls.
With no choice, Namgung Jin moved to the stone wall at the front.
In truth, he could, at any time, use the Passage he carried on his person to cross back to the Central Plains.
However, if he fled without destroying the Passage before his eyes, the precious person of the Blood Cult might cross over just as they had said.
Namgung Jin did not believe in the existence of the Blood Demon, but others believed the Blood Demon existed. Because of that, he could not bring himself to run away.
If he left without destroying the Passage, those who remained would be afraid, so he had to do everything he could while he was still here.
Crash. Thud. Thud.
But contrary to his earnest intent, the formation was not broken.
Trapped in the trap, Namgung Jin swung his sword as if to ignore his growing anxiety, but there was no end in sight.
Crash.
Just then, a spear flew toward him.
Namgung Jin deflected it with his sword, but with spears and arrows flying in succession, he had no choice but to move from his spot.
He hid his body behind a brick wall.
Boom.
No sooner had he dropped down than a stone wall fell from the ceiling.
By a hair’s breadth, he sprang upward and avoided the falling bricks, only to be exposed again to the spears and arrows thrown from the entrance.
Namgung Jin checked the ceiling.
Because the ceiling stones had all been used up in reaction to the fragments, the ceiling in front of the Han Cheol was bare.
He went to the front of the Han Cheol and hid himself behind a huge block.
Sheathing his sword, Namgung Jin took a dagger from his robes.
'Just ten more... attempts.'
It was the moment when the Namgung swordsman, unable to give up, gripped the dagger and was about to cling to the Passage.
"[Little Clan Head.]"
A short transmitted voice pierced his eardrums.
"[To the ceiling.]"
Feeling an immense surge of force, Namgung Jin’s eyes flew wide.
Without a shred of hesitation, he sprang up and clung to the ceiling.
Kwoooom.
As if a blocked waterway had burst, a tremendous gust of wind and water came surging in.
Clinging to the ceiling, he was soaked through.
"Cough."
Namgung Jin immediately checked below.
The huge stone walls that had imprisoned him were shattered to pieces and scattered, and as the steam cleared, his view opened wide.
Seeing the debris that had rolled all the way to the Han Family Head’s feet, Namgung Jin turned his gaze to the opposite side.
A woman had settled her stance, the massive sabre resting on her shoulder.
When she tried to come inside, Namgung Jin shouted,
"Do not move! The ceiling stones fall in reaction to movement! There must be a formation beneath the surface that detects motion!"
But the Four-Directions Hall Administrator, perhaps not hearing him, did not stop and came inside.
Creak, creak.
Vibration rippled through the ceiling.
Namgung Jin was just about to let go and run to the Hall Administrator.
Crash.
A massive brick fell toward the Hall Administrator’s head.
Craaaash.
The stone, taller than a person, split into dozens of pieces.
The Black Tortoise Pavilion Lord sliced through the rock as easily as cutting a soft block of tofu.
Rattle, rattle.
Debris no larger than a finger rained down like a shower.
Even that was all blown away by the Hall Administrator’s light flick of the hand.
While the Black Tortoise Pavilion Lord and a few swordsmen shattered the huge stone into fragments, dozens of Four-Directions Hall martial artists charged toward the Northern Sea nobles.
The nobles standing at the entrance fired arrows and hurled spears, but it was useless.
While he watched the Northern Sea nobility’s armed force being subdued by the Four-Directions Hall martial artists, a small cough sounded in his ear.
"Mm-hm."
Pang Shihyeon, who had at some point come right up beside him, watched his reaction and then spoke.
"...Tell your father that I arrived on time."
