13 – Staff Demon (1)

Meanwhile.

Chui sat at the very end, quietly eating his food and drinking his wine.

“…”

Even as he ate, his mind was wholly focused on the surging internal energy churning within his mental realm.

[Cold…]

[Hot…]

[Let me out of here…]

[Please, release me…]

[I was wrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgivemeIwaswrongforgiveme…]

The spear ghosts newly acquired during the extermination of the Jo family.

They clustered together in the very depths of the abyss inside his dantian, crying, begging, and laughing hysterically.

At the deepest point among them sat the spear ghost of Jo Yangja.

‘As expected of a first-rate expert.’

He glared at Chui with tears of blood streaming down his face, retaining his defiant attitude even as his internal energy was being drained.

He truly was the strongest existence among all the spear ghosts Chui had captured so far.

But Chui did not feel the slightest impatience.

‘Even so, he won’t last more than a few days.’

The abyss of internal energy created by the Spear Ghost Canon was an unbearably cold and lonely place.

Jo Yangja was probably burning with hatred toward Chui right now, grinding his teeth in fury… but soon enough, he would be begging to be cherished, begging to be let out and used, screaming and pleading to be freed from this cold, dark place even for a moment.

‘That isn’t what’s important right now.’

Chui checked the condition of his body once more.

One Circulation of Heaven.

When he circulated the blood-red internal energy flowing through his body in a full cycle from the crown of his head to the tips of his toes, his entire body finally came fully under his control.

Gulgak, Tenth Floor.

He had now climbed all ten steps of Gulgak.

Before Chui now stood a vast, towering door.

A horrifying door made entirely of skulls and blood vessels.

Iol.

Only by opening this door that led to the upper stage and stepping onto the next level, where only pain and hatred surged endlessly, could one finally be called a true adept of the Spear Ghost Canon.

‘…However, to move past this stage, I need outside help.’

That was precisely why Chui had attended this banquet.

To advance to the Iol stage, one had to open the Ren and Du meridians.

To do that, specific acupoints had to be pierced, half of the blood currently flowing through the body had to be drained, and that space replaced with the energy of precious elixirs.

Naturally, it was a process impossible to complete without outside assistance.

However, Chui, who had crossed countless lines between life and death, was confident he could carry out the process alone.

Still, to obtain the necessary elixirs and materials in time, he would need to borrow someone else’s hand.

‘Ju Yehwa Pyoju, was it?’

Chui quietly looked toward Ju Yehwa Pyoju at the head table.

She was coughing repeatedly after spitting out her wine.

Judging by her reaction, she seemed to have noticed his presence.

Chui calmly raised a finger and placed it against his lips.

Then—

“Gasp!”

Ju Yehwa Pyoju hurriedly shut her mouth.

She was thinking hard.

‘Why? Why is my benefactor sitting in a place like that?’

Unable to understand the situation, Ju Yehwa Pyoju agonized over how she should act.

But then—

Smack!

Chui’s head was suddenly slammed forward.

Woo Dongwon had struck the back of Chui’s head with his hand.

“Hey! Where are you looking when your senior is talking to you?!”

“The runt’s already getting cocky!”

“Straighten up! My cup’s empty!”

The stable boys, emboldened by alcohol, began to harass Chui again.

Woo Dongwon, his face flushed with drink, pressed Chui’s head down hard with his fist.

“Even if you’re just some drifter who’ll be gone soon, huh? At least behave nicely while you’re here. Got it? If you don’t want to get hit, keep your head on straight.”

Naturally, Ju Yehwa Pyoju, who was watching this, was unable to sit still.

“Th-th-those crazy bastards!”

“Yes? Is something wrong?”

“N-no, miss!”

“…?”

Following Ju Yehwa Pyoju’s involuntary outburst, Ho Yeyang turned her head.

Ju Yehwa Pyoju desperately racked her brain to draw Ho Yeyang’s attention back to herself.

Just then, someone else timely caught Ho Yeyang’s eye.

Tok-tok-tok-tok-tok…

The clear sound of a wooden fish echoed out.

From somewhere unknown, a monk had suddenly appeared, standing at the far end of the banquet.

He wore a tattered bamboo hat pulled low over his face, and in his hand he leaned on a dark, thick pole as if it were a staff.

The excrement-sweeping robe he wore was so old and torn that it was impossible to distinguish from rags.

Ho Yeyang pressed her palms together and spoke.

“Reverend, how did you come here?”

The monk laughed.

“I’m not a monk, just a passing traveler. It seems there’s a celebration here—if it wouldn’t be rude, might I have a bowl of food before I go?”

“Of course. Please, by all means.”

Ho Yeyang willingly made space for him.

Then—

Step—step—step—

The monk strode boldly toward the upper seats of the banquet.

Without saying a single word, he plopped himself down at the highest table.

Then he began grabbing rice cakes, rice, and wine in front of him and shoveling them into his mouth.

“Well now, this is delicious. I’ve skipped several meals. Ahem— ahem—”

As he noisily chewed on skewered meat, the honored guests nearby frowned.

Ho Yeonam, the master of Hojungmun, spoke politely.

“Reverend.”

“I told you, I’m not a monk. I just picked up the wooden fish along the way.”

“Yes, I see. Regardless, the seats for guests are not here.”

“Is that so? Then where?”

“You may eat over there.”

Ho Yeonam gestured toward the far end of the banquet.

The monk clicked his tongue.

“That’s the lowest seating, where the servants sit, isn’t it?”

“We didn’t divide the seats strictly by status. The food is the same.”

“Heh—well. Still, people have their feelings. Fine, fine. If the food’s the same, that’s good enough.”

The monk brushed himself off as he stood and let out a long belch.

Then he shuffled his way toward the end seats and squeezed in.

Woo Dongwon was sitting right beside him.

“What kind of crazy monk stuffs himself with meat like that? Ugh, and what’s with that smell…”

As the monk sat down and devoured all the rice cakes and meat, the stable boys glared at him fiercely.

Woo Dongwon spoke up on behalf of the group.

“Hey, you crazy monk. Our master’s generous enough to let you stay, so be grateful. Honestly, you look more like a beggar than a monk. Hell, normally we’d beat you and throw you out. Ack—what a stench. You could kill someone with that smell.”

Hearing this, the monk burst into loud laughter.

“Well now, you’re quite a cheeky one. Come here for a moment, will you?”

The monk extended his hand toward Woo Dongwon.

As Woo Dongwon frowned and tried to swat it away—

“What do you think you’re doing?”

A hand blocked the space between the monk and Woo Dongwon.

Chui looked at the monk with an indifferent expression.

Seeing Chui standing in front of Woo Dongwon, the monk burst into another hearty laugh.

“Oh? You figured out what I was about to do?”

“…”

“Sharp instincts, kid. You’ve got promise. Hahahaha—”

The monk lowered his raised hand.

Then he spoke to Woo Dongwon, who was peeking out from behind Chui.

“You should spend your whole life being grateful to this brat. You just received a life-saving favor.”

“What the hell are you saying, you crazy bastard monk?”

Hearing the monk’s words, Woo Dongwon picked his ear with his little finger.

At that moment—

Thump!

The monk sprang to his feet.

Then he shouted loudly.

“Everyone, listen up!”

The thunderous voice echoed through not only the far end but even the highest seats of the banquet.

A shout infused with internal energy.

The expressions of several people changed.

Ignoring that, the monk continued speaking.

“Now—I don’t know what good fortune you’re celebrating, but I thank you for letting me join such a lavish feast. However, there is just one thing that disappoints me… and that is that the wine is cold. Cold wine chills the stomach, and when the stomach is chilled, illness is bound to follow. In weather this chilly, isn’t it only natural to drink warm wine?”

Through the tattered bamboo hat, the monk’s eyes glowed blue.

“This Gu fellow will offer each of the assembled heroes a cup of warm wine.”

The monk placed his finger on the table.

At the same time—

Rrrrrrrrr…

The entire long table began to tremble faintly.

Soon after, steam began to rise from every wine cup on the table.

Bubble bubble bubble bubble bubble…

The cups heated up rapidly, and the wine inside began to boil violently before evaporating in an instant.

All the other food on the table remained untouched; only the wine in the cups vanished completely.

As everyone’s expressions stiffened, only the monk laughed heartily.

“Oh my. I really did make it a dry toast. What a waste—boiled all the good wine away. What should I do now?”

Silence.

Faced with the skill of a martial master at the very peak, no one could speak.

Naturally so.

What is a peak-level martial expert?

Warriors who, even in a group of three, could drown an entire city in blood and wipe it out overnight.

Absolute powerhouses who had set foot into the supreme realm.

With such a being openly releasing his presence, the lives of everyone gathered here were effectively in his hands.

Eventually, Ho Yeonam spoke.

“Are you perhaps carrying Pyoju Ju’s gold token?”

“No, Sect Master. That person is not him… I’ve never seen this man before.”

Ju Yehwa, seated beside him, barely managed to force out her words.

At that moment, the monk removed the bamboo hat that had been covering his face.

Gray hair swept back, a deeply wrinkled old man’s face.

Small eyes showing mostly whites, and a long scar running across the bridge of his nose, left a striking impression.

The monk introduced himself.

“I am Geumgwi, the Collector Ghost of the Sado Alliance. Once, I was also known by the alias ‘Staff Demon.’ Heh heh.”

The instant those words were spoken, the faces of everyone at the banquet froze in shock.

Staff Demon Gu Gangryong.

He had once risen to fame as one of the Twin Ghosts who dominated the martial world.

But one day, due to a certain incident, he came into conflict with the Sado Alliance, and after losing a duel with the Alliance Leader, he began working for them.

His role was to seek out organizations that failed to pay their tributes, interest, or principal on time, and to collect what was owed.

Glug—

Staff Demon poured warm wine from the bottle into his cup and drank it down.

“The Black Dao Gang has fallen.”

Not a single person among the audience could open their mouth.

Staff Demon continued sipping his wine.

“And I hear the Jo family that colluded with them has fallen as well.”

His sharp gaze swept across the banquet.

“So then, who benefits the most from all this? Who are the ones celebrating so grandly with a feast like this? That’s what I was curious about.”

As Staff Demon’s gaze slid over the lavish dishes on the table, it stopped on Ho Yeonam’s face.

“So I stopped by a few places on my way here. This Hojungmun is the last.”

“…We have no connection whatsoever with the Black Dao Gang.”

“If that’s true, then nothing will happen tonight. Eat at ease.”

Staff Demon laughed heartily and turned his head.

His gaze shifted to Ho Yeyang beside Ho Yeonam.

“…Hmm. I see now why.”

“?”

Ho Yeyang forced a smile under Staff Demon’s blatant stare.

“What do you mean, senior?”

“I heard that Jo Gajang brought disaster upon himself by coveting Miss Ho’s beauty. Now I see why. With looks like that, you could easily ruin one or two sects. Hahahaha—truly beautiful.”

An outright appraisal of her appearance, delivered straight to her face.

As Ho Yeyang hesitated, unsure how to respond, it happened.

Staff Demon suddenly leaned forward toward Ho Yeyang.

And then—

Spit!

He spat a thick glob of phlegm directly onto her face.

 

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