The Supreme Branch was an intelligence warfare unit.
The most critical mission of an intelligence warfare unit is the acquisition of information and the disruption of hostile forces.
Moreover, the most difficult and arduous task for an intelligence operative is incitement and sabotage.
Yet under Bu Eunseol’s guidance and training, the Supreme Branch members, along with their exceptional martial arts, had deeply mastered concealment and infiltration techniques like the Dawn Star Chart Method.
―Begin!
For any other intelligence operatives, this would have been a mission where they wouldn’t even know where to start. But they scattered as if it were nothing and began inciting and disrupting the civilians across Crimson Dragon Pass.
In the minds of the corps members, Bu Eunseol’s concise explanation of the key points for mission success echoed endlessly.
―The Heaven-Human Cult incited the civilians using emotions of anger and hatred.
And you must return that very method to the Heaven-Human Cult.
The lives of civilians are always arduous and exhausting.
Thus, they always need a target to vent their anger.
The masses always flock to sensational topics.
And the clearer and more massive the target, the more effective it is.
The Heaven-Human Cult exploited this to brand the Martial Alliance martial artists as an evil group that would destroy their homes.
Especially since the civilians already harbored some resentment toward martial artists who turn entire regions into wastelands during battles.
With the right circumstances and stage set, they acted voluntarily.
―But the incitement method the Heaven-Human Cult used has a weakness.
Bu Eunseol explained to the corps members.
―Spread rumors that the Heaven-Human Cult planned from the start to use Crimson Dragon Pass as a sacrificial pawn to block the Martial Alliance forces.
And he added one more thing.
―When spreading rumors, never do it empty-handed. Just make sure they don’t feel overly rewarded—only enough to lift their spirits moderately.
Persuading civilians cannot be done in a short time.
But with money, you can quickly gain their favor and spread rumors rapidly.
However, never use large sums.
It could breed resentment or make them feel bought, rendering them passive in spreading rumors.
―Most who blocked the path were civilians, with only a tiny minority being Heaven-Human Cult members. From now on, our corps will simply return their strategy in kind.
Bu Eunseol imparted the plan to the corps members.
Creating something from nothing.
A strategy that mixes truth and falsehood to fabricate reality.
The highest strategy in every military treatise is to identify the enemy’s core tactic and then cleverly reverse it for your own use.
Bu Eunseol began reversing the exact methods the Heaven-Human Cult had employed.
―Th-those absolute bastards!
The Supreme Branch infiltrated villages everywhere, launching incitement and fabrication.
The members, armed with ample funds, gathered people and plunged them back into rage by blending truth and lies.
And every arrow of that rage pointed straight at the target called the Heaven-Human Cult.
In a short time, the village’s public opinion flipped in an instant.
Of course, the Heaven-Human Cult agents were no fools. They had informants scattered throughout the villages, monitoring the civilians’ situation.
When the Supreme Branch incited and manipulated opinion, they immediately tried to report to their superiors.
But that was their mistake.
Bu Eunseol had already mobilized the Death Spirit Corps and seized the entire intelligence network across the Yellow River region.
The moment Heaven-Human Cult spies moved, they were instantly identified, publicly humiliated…
and once again ignited the villagers’ anger and condemnation.
―They say that guy was pretending to be a villager!
―Turns out he was actually from the Heaven-Human Cult!
The hidden Heaven-Human Cult members were driven mad.
While blended among the crowd, even the villagers couldn’t distinguish them—how could outsiders pinpoint them so perfectly?
―The Heaven-Human Cult members who deceived the civilians by hiding their identities eventually couldn’t bear the guilt and took their own lives!
Moreover, their deaths were disguised as suicides, then used to incite public opinion even more provocatively.
This was a cunning exploitation of the Heaven-Human Cult’s own vicious incitement tactics.
―Looks like we misunderstood.
―Yeah. The Martial Alliance people—despite all the trouble we caused—left quietly, didn’t they?
―Not only that, but lately the Martial Alliance warriors have been stationed in the village and helping people.
―They were putting in real effort and sincerity? Even fixing houses.
Thus, after four days turned into six, civilian opinion toward the Martial Alliance flipped to outright friendliness in an instant.
“An extraordinary man.”
Thanks to the Supreme Branch’s efforts, Muk Inhyeok’s Flame Wing Sword Corps passed through Crimson Dragon Pass to the warm welcome of the civilians.
Reversing public opinion once turned usually requires vast time and money.
Yet Bu Eunseol flipped it in just six days.
Because he reverse-engineered the Heaven-Human Cult’s scheme, seeds of doubt, which had clouded their eyes with a mix of truth and lies, then gave them a clear target for their rage.
It was like setting fire to dry straw—once lit, it burned on its own.
“Seon Woojin. Truly no ordinary man.”
He had thought him merely a power-hungry climber clinging to Commander Gongsun. But he possessed intellect beyond imagination.
“Why has such a man gone unnoticed until now…”
The Supreme Branch had been treated like cold rice since their third-rank captain days due to lack of affiliation. But after repeatedly earning merits and successfully negotiating peace with the Yeolha Holy Palace, the name of the Supreme Branch Captain began circulating in the Martial Alliance.
Even then, Muk Inhyeok paid little attention.
He only learned the name Seon Woojin after the scandalous rumors with Commander Gongsun Dankyung.
Who knew he would turn out to be this exceptional?
“I thought he was just riding on power.”
Now it seemed Commander Gongsun had recognized his outstanding talent early on.
By keeping him close, unfavorable rumors had arisen instead.
“So she plans to elevate him another step.”
Muk Inhyeok himself had clawed his way to Vice-Commander of the Flame Wing Sword Corps through every kind of ordeal.
He intuitively sensed that Bu Eunseol’s appointment as temporary strategist for this expedition was no coincidence.
“But unfortunately, first-rank captain isn’t achieved by intellect alone.”
After the Heavenly Sword, becoming a first-rank captain in the Martial Alliance had become extremely difficult.
Especially for someone young, it was nearly impossible.
Because now, appointment required the approval of over half the Martial Alliance’s sect leader-level figures.
That meant not only the leadership, but earning a merit so monumental that the entire Martial Alliance acknowledged it.
Rising to first-rank captain on intellect alone was virtually impossible.
“Well, not my concern.” Muk Inhyeok briskly moved the martial artists forward.
And finally, far in the distance, the Heaven-Human Cult’s main stronghold came into view.
The massive buildings of the Heaven-Human Cult, sprawled across ten thousand pyeong, looked like relics left by legendary giants.
“Money is good. You can practically see it plastered everywhere.”
And around the Heaven-Human Cult, a solid defensive line had been constructed. They were fully prepared to face the Martial Alliance vanguard.
“All corps members, listen!”
Muk Inhyeok shouted briefly and concisely.
“Sweep them away!”
Papapapt!
With the Iron Spear corps of the Flame Wing Sword Corps leading, the battle against the Heaven-Human Cult finally began.
Krrrrr.
At that moment, the sky darkened, and faint mist rose from the ground.
Simultaneously, the Iron Spear corps members at the front suddenly slowed as if trapped underwater.
Once again, the Heaven-Human Cult had unleashed bizarre sorcery.
“I was wondering why they hadn’t used it.” Muk Inhyeok, watching the battle, smirked.
“Formations might be tricky, but sorcery is easy to break.”
Through the Jang Mountain Gorge trap the Divine Might corps experienced, he had inferred that the Heaven-Human Cult harbored masters of formations and sorcery.
Not just the Heaven-Human Cult—numerous demonic sects existed in the martial world.
To counter their strange sorcery, the Martial Alliance had the Anti-Evil Warfare corps, specialists in sorcery and anti-sorcery techniques.
Namely, the Moon Shadow corps.
And Muk Inhyeok was an expert from that very Moon Shadow corps.
“Time to use the Evil-Repelling Sword Casket after so long.”
Muk Inhyeok drew a large wooden box tied behind his saddle.
Shshshshshk!
Infusing it with internal energy, dozens of swords poured from the box and began embedding themselves in order across the surrounding dozens of zhang of ground.
“Disperse!” As Muk Inhyeok unleashed the anti-evil technique, white light flowed from the swords.
The darkened sky brightened, and the Iron Spear corps’s movements returned to normal.
“Haaap!”
The Flame Wing Sword Corps martial artists immediately charged the Heaven-Human Cult members, extending their swords.
They unleashed various formations, sorceries, hidden weapons, and poisons in succession, but it was insufficient to oppose the Flame Wing Sword Corps.
In the end, unable to withstand the superior martial prowess, the Heaven-Human Cult’s defensive line began to crumble.
The moment the Flame Wing Sword Corps members surged inward as if they had been waiting,
Booom!
A tremendous explosion erupted.
Simultaneously, the bodies of Flame Wing Sword Corps members scattered like shrapnel.
“That is…” Muk Inhyeok’s eyes widened, mouth agape.
A single Heaven-Human Cult member’s body exploded like a bomb, scattering in all directions?
Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul.
A poison user technique that detonates the body with a single breath of true qi for mutual annihilation.
The fragments that spread upon explosion were laced with deadly poison, and bone shards and flesh became hidden weapons scattering everywhere.
A forbidden secret art banned in the martial world for its sheer brutality.
Yet the Heaven-Human Cult, with no relation to poison arts, had mass-produced poison users and taught them this forbidden technique?
Boom! Bang!
Every time Flame Wing Sword Corps martial artists charged to break the defensive line, explosions inevitably followed.
The Heaven-Human Cult members outnumbered the Flame Wing Sword Corps by ten to one.
Moreover, with those who had learned Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul liable to self-destruct at any moment, the Flame Wing Sword Corps martial artists could not penetrate deeply into enemy lines.
Occasionally, when a section of the defensive line collapsed and the Flame Wing Sword Corps surged inward, the Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul was used again, causing massive casualties.
“This…” Muk Inhyeok, watching the battle, glared.
If the Heaven-Human Cult had truly cultivated poison arts masters, the Martial Alliance intelligence network would have detected it.
Raising poison users requires enormous funds and time.
Yet not only had the Heaven-Human Cult secretly trained poison arts experts, they were now sacrificing masters cultivated over long years without hesitation?
Among the countless cult members, it was impossible to distinguish who could perform Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul.
At this point, despite breaching the defensive line, the Flame Wing Sword Corps could not easily advance inward—an absurd phenomenon.
Paaaah!
The moment they pushed even slightly inward, explosions accompanied sprays of poison liquid and bone shards like hidden weapons in all directions.
Yet in the chaotic melee of friend and foe, they could not unleash sword qi or hidden weapons to kill.
“Ugh.” Muk Inhyeok bit his lip.
As long as the Heaven-Human Cult members held out this way, breaching the line and entering the cult was impossible.
“Damn it!”
The same applied to Seong Joyeong’s Divine Might corps attempting entry via Jangshan Gorge.
No—here on the vast plain, the Heaven-Human Cult members, ten times more numerous, were encircling the Divine Might corps.
Each time the Divine Might corps displayed superior prowess to breach defenses and enter the cult, countless poison liquids and bone shards scattered like hidden weapons, devastating an area of three to four zhang.
More Heaven-Human Cult members died, yet no fear showed in their eyes.
Forcing entry in this state would lead to total annihilation.
―Retreat!
In the end, Seong Joyeong had no choice but to order his subordinates to withdraw.
***
In the Martial Alliance barracks on the Haseo Plain, Muk Inhyeok and Seong Joyeong sat side by side with defeated expressions.
They had suffered heavy losses from the Heaven-Human Cult’s unexpected strategy and were forced to retreat.
If they had pressed the fight, even if they captured the cult, the Divine Might and Flame Wing Sword Corps would suffer fatal damage.
“Utterly incomprehensible.” Muk Inhyeok shook his head. “No matter how rich they are, how could a mere demonic sect restore the Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul technique and mass-produce poison users capable of it?”
“Indeed.” Seong Joyeong sighed in frustration and spoke. “To turn one’s entire bloodstream into a deadly poison capable of Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul takes at least three to five years… And to sacrifice poison users created with such funds and time without hesitation? This makes no sense.”
Muk Inhyeok nodded. “Without massive ranged siege weapons or reinforcements, our current forces cannot possibly take them.”
Seong Joyeong sighed as well. “Correct. Pressing the attack like this would cause catastrophic losses to the vanguard even in victory.”
“Then reinforcements are the only option?”
“Heh.” Seong Joyeong muttered with a hollow, incredulous expression. “To think we must request additional troops just to deal with a demonic sect.”
Due to the Heaven-Human Cult’s utterly unforeseen combat methods and defensive tactics, the two vice-commanders acknowledged that without reinforcements, even victory would bring irreparable losses.
Step, step.
At that moment, Bu Eunseol entered the tent.
Because of his deep, clear eyes and confident stride, the two men unconsciously rose from their chairs.
“I’ve heard the situation.” Bu Eunseol cut straight to the point. “Reinforcements are out of the question.”
“Out of the question?” When Seong Joyeong glared, Bu Eunseol replied calmly.
“As the Vice-Commander said, two Martial Alliance vanguards mobilized just to handle a demonic sect?”
“And?”
“If we fail to repel them and request reinforcements? This battle becomes tantamount to announcing the alliance’s defeat to the entire martial world.”
“What’s wrong with admitting a little defeat? We can just crush the Heaven-Human Cult to pieces afterward.” At Seong Joyeong’s words, Bu Eunseol shook his head gravely.
“If word spreads that the alliance requested reinforcements, sects that have stayed neutral toward the Heaven-Human Cult will mobilize in earnest.”
The Heaven-Human Cult had considerable ties with the demonic factions along the Yellow River.
When rumors spread of the Martial Alliance marching with a large army, the cult immediately requested aid.
But no sect readily complied—because they could never win against the Martial Alliance.
Yet if it became known that the Heaven-Human Cult had soundly defended against two alliance vanguards?
They would deem fighting the Martial Alliance feasible and immediately join the cult.
“Even without victory, dragging it into a protracted war would force the alliance to seek a compromise. Reinforcements must never be requested.”
At Bu Eunseol’s explanation, the two vice-commanders nodded silently.
Stationing alliance vanguards long-term along the Yellow River would mean enormous financial losses.
“Hmm.”
Groans escaped Muk Inhyeok and Seong Joyeong.
Only now did they realize exterminating the Heaven-Human Cult was no simple matter.
“Then what should we do?” Seong Joyeong spoke unconsciously, then immediately regretted it.
Such words were tantamount to acknowledging Bu Eunseol as strategist.
Muk Inhyeok might be one thing, but he had no intention of recognizing a second-rank captain as acting general. Yet after witnessing Bu Eunseol’s handling of events, he instinctively knew the man was a strategist rivaling Gongsun Dankyung.
“I mean, if you have an explanation, spit it out quickly.” Seong Joyeong snorted, and Bu Eunseol spoke.
“Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul is a secret art only elite poison users can master.”
“That’s common knowledge.”
“If the Heaven-Human Cult had trained so many poison users, they wouldn’t need to drag out a tedious siege—they would have charged Haseo immediately to decide the outcome with our vanguard.”
Seong Joyeong and Muk Inhyeok nodded simultaneously.
They too had found it incomprehensible.
A poison user capable of Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul meant poison arts mastery renowned in the martial world.
Using such masters merely as self-destruct weapons for mutual annihilation? The cost-benefit was absurd.
“Then…” At Muk Inhyeok’s mutter, Bu Eunseol replied.
“They are not true poison users who formally trained in poison arts, but people forcibly injected with poison in a short time and steeped in it. Since they will use Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul anyway, any method to turn their blood into poison liquid suffices.”
“The Heaven-Human Cult researched such a method?”
“No research needed. They simply recruited those who already knew the technique.”
“Recruited?”
“Yes. While gathering intelligence across the martial world recently, the most shocking discovery… was the covert circulation of human incendiary powder. That means many in the martial world modify or experiment on human bodies.”
This time Muk Inhyeok asked.
“Then they are puppets steeped in human incendiary?”
“No. Puppets are clearly distinguishable from ordinary folk. The Heaven-Human Cult likely used a secret art like Poison Essence Spot Enhancement to rapidly boost power and adapt to poison in a short time.”
Hearing Bu Eunseol’s explanation, Muk Inhyeok tilted his head.
“Even so, if we cannot distinguish them, it’s useless.”
“We can. Steeped in poison in a short time, they must suffer side effects. Obvious ones.”
“Obvious?”
“When the human body is steeped in poison, side effects occur, correct?”
Seong Joyeong, who had been listening silently, spoke coldly. “No matter how chaotic the melee, if such obvious signs existed, this Vice-Commander would have noticed.”
They were vice-commanders of the Seven Great Vanguards.
Though not highly active in the martial world, they were comparable to the next generation’s leading figures.
If those using Mighty Dragon Self-Destruct Soul had clear distinguishing marks, they could never have missed them.
“They prepared for war with the Martial Alliance for a long time. From the moment they planned to create poison users in a short time, they naturally hid such symptoms.”
“Ridiculous. Anyone can say that.” When Seong Joyeong sneered, Bu Eunseol did not answer immediately but changed tack.
“But there is one part they absolutely cannot hide.”
“Cannot hide?”
“When martial artists are exposed to poison long-term, what happens first?”
“That depends on the poison.”
“When creating poison users, they naturally weaken toxicity via the principle of using poison to control poison, so it poses no life threat. There is no specific poison.”
Seong Joyeong, pride stung, racked his memory with all his might.
“Chronic poisoning causes skin to peel… or blood to leak from vessels.”
“Those are not unknown symptoms. If it were that easy, wouldn’t Vice-Commander Seong have noticed?”
As Bu Eunseol kept delaying without answering, Seong Joyeong’s face flushed.
―Anyone can say that.
The very words he had just sneered.
He realized he himself was now the one being sneered at.
