The Eldest Daughter of the Tang Clan of Sichuan Protects the Family

Chapter 265

The Blood Demon pulled out the hidden weapon lodged in the back of his neck.The blade resting between his thumb and forefinger looked as small as a needle.

As if brushing dust from his hair, the Blood Demon lightly shook his hand. In that instant, the flying dagger vanished.

Thud.

At the same time, a black figure fell from the roof.

Judging by the black martial garb, he was a martial artist of the Black Tiger Unit. Worse still, the face was familiar.

A flying dagger was embedded in Han-won's chest. As Han-won tried to leap up at once, the Blood Demon raised his hand.

Dozens of hidden weapons that had been rushing toward the Blood Demon changed direction at the gesture.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The hidden weapons that seemed about to pierce Han-won instead ricocheted in all directions. The Black Tiger martial artists who had fallen hurriedly intercepted the weapons.

They caught the incoming metal, and for those they could not catch, they struck the flying daggers aside to divert their paths.

They, too, were all familiar faces.

Thud. Thud.

A few hidden weapons that could not be avoided embedded themselves in Ran-hee's and Cheol-ho's bodies, but without the slightest agitation, they bought time for their wounded comrades to escape.

When Han-won climbed onto the roof with the flying dagger still lodged in his chest, the Black Tiger members who had landed on the ground also vanished.

The Four Tiger Unit, who had briefly halted their hidden weapon techniques for fear the Blood Demon might use them to attack allies, resumed their assault.

The intervals between the hidden weapons plunging down from the roof and those flying in from the forest were steady.

It seemed that while their comrades withdrew, the others had formed a group formation.

True to the Clan Head's forces, it was fast and organized—yet it was the worst possible move.

The rain of hidden weapons curved toward the target like a vortex.

The group formation's hidden weapon technique was like throwing binding ropes.

When internal energy was released from the fingertips hooked onto the enemy's body like grappling hooks, the hidden weapons followed that path and skewered the foe.

Thus, the trajectories of countless hidden weapons did not tangle, and the casters could retrieve their own weapons at any time.

If trapped, it was a terrifying formation that would tear one's entire body to shreds in the blink of an eye.

Yet the face of the one caught within the formation was calm.

Flash.

As the Blood Demon opened three acupoints at once, the purple millet-sized that had moved toward the center of his body darted wildly at tremendous speed.

The three energies chased one another, drawing circles as they rapidly rotated in the middle dantian.

The energy fluctuating in his chest emitted unstable waves of energy outward.

Kwaaaaang!

As it collided with the energy embedded in his body, a fierce wind lashed out along with an explosive sound.

The path connected to the Blood Demon opened a channel for a counterattack against the Four Tiger Unit.

The whirling hidden weapons returned to their owners' hands.

Shlick!

The martial artists were busy retrieving the weapons flying back at them.

But the Blood Demon did not stop there.

Tak.

He brought both hands together before his middle dantian.

The three energies twitched, then suddenly began rotating in the opposite direction. They spun even faster than before. Pressure rose around the Blood Demon as if space itself were warping.

Schluuuck!

The hidden weapons were sucked in and slashed their owners' bodies.

"Keugh!"

Saaaaa.

As the Blood Demon widened the gap between his palms, the energies again reversed rotation and sprang back toward their owners.

Dozens of blades toyed with their masters, carving them to pieces.

All of it happened in an instant.

Suddenly, as the Blood Demon spread his arms wide, Tang So-hwa quickly shut the window.

Tadadadak!

The sound of something striking the outer wall like raindrops cut off at once.

Soon after, the sound of the Blood Demon vomiting blood was heard.

"Keheok."

With the window closed, nothing should have been visible.

Yet to So-hwa's eyes, three lights flitted about like fireflies.

The Blood Demon still could not properly control the energies he had created.

The energies that had slipped free of the sphere he formed roamed his body at will, as if seeking their other halves, pummeling his acupoints. The sealed points did not budge, but the sheer force of the rampant energies seemed to have ruptured his internal organs.

It was an internal injury that would have killed an ordinary martial artist instantly.

Yet even while coughing up blood, the Blood Demon allowed his energies to run wild.

He made his own efforts to gather the energies back into one place, but they continued to rebel a little longer.

The small energies neither dispersed within his body nor were expelled outside.

And it was not only the Blood Demon who was being shredded by that rebellion.

The hot energies scattered everywhere had been reduced by half.

So-hwa wanted to believe they were all hiding their presence just to catch their breath.

As she reached out with stiff hands to open the window, Namgung Hyun stopped her again.

"It's dangerous."

At his low voice, So-hwa's gaze moved past his shoulder.

"Do you think it's only this pavilion?"

Namgung Hyun turned his head to follow her gaze, but could not say a word.

Before they knew it, the flames had climbed up to the third floor and swallowed the corridor. At this height, it would be better to open the window and jump.

When So-hwa placed her hand on the window again, Namgung Hyun did not stop her.

Creeeak.

Outside looked as though a typhoon had passed—splintered tree trunks and martial artists scattered like fallen leaves. Thankfully, many bodies were still twitching. It meant they were still alive.

In the meantime, the Blood Demon seemed to have recovered from his internal injuries.

Whether his ruptured organs had healed and his torn wounds closed, the Blood Demon, who had been clutching his abdomen, lowered his hand and wiped the blood from his lips.

So-hwa felt fear.

Without taking a single step, the Blood Demon had neutralized the Four Tiger Unit in an instant.

'...... I was the one who made the worst move.'

Poisoning the Blood Demon with the goal of eliminating him within a quarter of an hour had been the mistake.

She had not known that a quarter of an hour would allow him to grow like that.

No—who could have expected something like that to be created within a quarter of an hour?

Even the Blood Demon himself seemed unaware.

Unable to bear the integrated energies he had gained, he was still grinning foolishly.

Crimson blood stained his lips like rouge, making the monster's smile all the more grotesque.

So-hwa quietly swallowed her revulsion.

Right now, the Blood Demon was testing his newly acquired power.

Like a child playing with a new toy, he was using his own strength on the Four Tiger Unit to see what it could do.

Satisfied with the result, he forgot the very purpose that had brought him here and became intoxicated with his newfound realization.

The madman was genuinely enjoying the slaughter.

So-hwa suppressed her urge to stop everything and examined the Blood Demon's surroundings.

The Main Blood Hall Lord was nowhere to be seen.

It seemed he remembered saying that the doors must be opened after half an hour.

'So half an hour has already passed.......'

So-hwa believed that the Wudang Sect and the Namgung Clan would come.

When the Blood Demon first entered the Tang Clan estate, it was the Main Blood Hall that had sent the signal. And opening the gate to admit outsiders after half an hour was also their responsibility.

Given that the Main Blood Hall Lord had moved personally, something must have gone wrong, but since they acted according to the signal from the Main Blood Hall, someone had certainly arrived at the gate.

'Just a little longer. We can't let everything collapse now.'

So-hwa clenched the round poison smoke pill hidden in her sleeve.

Just as she rolled the egg-sized pill as if about to release the poison, she stopped moving.

Ta-at.

A small-framed martial artist landed in front of the Blood Demon.

The Black Sky Demon stepped forward to the front, breaking the standoff.

At the same time, a tremendous rumbling vibration echoed.

Drrrrrrrr.

So-hwa's pupils shifted to the side. The hidden weapons embedded in the outer wall shook violently, as if trying to break free.

Knowing where the hidden weapons were about to return, So-hwa's face went pale as she shouted.

"Stop! Fall back!"

However, So-hwa's voice was swallowed by the hidden weapons pouring in from all directions.

Swish!. Whoosh! Swish!

Provoked by the Black Sky Demon's advance, the elders leapt in as if to flaunt their martial prowess.

Whiiik!

Hidden weapons rained down in utter chaos, yet none collided with another, each flying along its own path.

At the same time, the hidden weapons embedded in the walls began to pull free.

Shlick!

The blades, sharp enough to slice even the air, shot toward the Black Sky Demon. But the hidden weapons drawn in by the Blood Demon failed to reach Tang Clan members; instead, their trajectories were twisted by the weapons he threw, turning back to attack the Blood Demon himself.

Kwa-deuk! Kwa-deudeuk!

A spine-chilling sound spread in all directions.

The sound of the Blood Demon being torn apart rang out without pause.

Yet So-hwa saw that the hidden weapons were not absolute.

If they could not kill their target, they only ended up placing weapons in the enemy's hands.

Knowing why the Blood Demon was remaining still made So-hwa's heart race all the more.

He ultimately succeeded in drawing the rampaging energies into his upper dantian.

"You must retreat!"

She shouted, her face pale, but no one paid her words any heed.

At that moment, So-hwa lifted her head at the shadow that covered her face.

The hidden weapons that had swarmed like a cloud of bees merged into one in the sky.

The tip of a massive cone fixed itself onto the Blood Demon's Baihui acupoint. The blades plunged downward all at once.

Kwaaaaang!

A purple sphere that manifested from the Blood Demon's chest knocked the hidden weapons away.

Chwaaaak!

The blades shot back into the sky, then scattered in all directions.

Like splashing lava, crimson blades mercilessly slashed through the forest.

Shlick!

Whether they had dodged quickly or not, no screams or sounds of flesh being pierced were heard.

Now she understood why the elders had not lost confidence even after seeing the state of the Four Tiger Unit.

But the hidden weapons carved up one particular section of the forest with unusual ferocity.

Shlick! Slash!

Trees standing to the west were split apart, gradually opening the field of view.

So-hwa's expression froze.

It was because the figure of a blood-drenched martial artist caught her eye amidst the bamboo grove.

A fear entirely different from the emotions she had felt thus far surged in like a wave.

The killing intent on the youthful face was soon concealed by the Clan Head's imposing figure.

"C-Clan Head. I'm fine."

Tang Hak's face, which had remained cold even when facing the Blood Demon, turned deathly pale.

So-hwa's gaze shifted back to the Blood Demon. As if he had been watching her from the start, their eyes met at once.

So-hwa realized that the Blood Demon had deliberately carved through the bamboo grove—just to show her.

Understanding his intent, a chill ran up the back of her neck.

The Blood Demon could distinguish the energy of the Tang Clan members.

Which meant he could find and devour Tang Hak whenever he wished, no matter how well he hid.

As if about to show something amusing, the Blood Demon curled his lips and stopped the rotation of the sphere in his upper dantian.

She did not know what he intended to do, but she knew whom he meant to harm.

In an instant, she was dragged into the past.

So-hwa recalled the memory of facing the ruined Tang Clan estate, having survived all alone.

The one who created that tragedy laughed before her as if to mock her.

Each time his laughter broke into a cough, the Blood Demon's shredded flesh knitted itself back together.

So-hwa lost her reason.

At that moment, the scent of pine resin wafted in from afar.

Namgung Hyun, too, seemed to sense the change in energy and spoke.

"It might be more dangerous to go out this way. We should cross the corridor and go to the room on the opposite side instead—"

As he poured out his words in an uneasy voice, So-hwa cut him off.

"Young warrior."

As Namgung Hyun turned his head, not yet understanding, he caught sight of an expression he had never seen before.

The fire demon swelled and shrank repeatedly, its raging flames reflected in eyes that revealed countless emotions.

The reddened rims of her eyes felt too powerless to be called pure rage, while her pressed lips displayed confidence and self-loathing at once.

Even Namgung Hyun, sensitive to others' emotions, could not comprehend her heart.

"I tried to forgive you, Young warrior. And I thought that if I came this far... it would be possible.”

Her cold voice pierced his eardrums.

"But I'm sorry."

Tang So-hwa confessed, her tone so changed she seemed like a different person.

“It seems that in this life as well, I will not be able to forgive you.”

Before he could even grasp her meaning, Namgung Hyun's vision flipped.

Ta-at!

A chill brushed against his neck.

Tang So-hwa pressed the flying dagger to his throat and immediately applied force.

Kwaang!

Yet before it could even cut flesh, the flying dagger was knocked into the air.

The Blood Demon, having leaped onto the railing, grabbed Tang So-hwa’s wrist.