Book 7 Chapter 25

Reunion of Brothers

- A Final Request

"Brother!"

Hyoryong called out to his brother with a trembling voice, looking at his pale face resting on his lap.

His heart was in turmoil, like a stormy sea.

His vision blurred, making it difficult to see his brother's face clearly.

"Brother! Brother!"

After calling out a dozen times, Hyobong finally opened his eyes. His eyelids seemed as heavy as a thousand pounds, making it an arduous task.

"Are you Aryong?"

"Yes, brother! I'm here. Do you recognize me?"

Hyoryong replied loudly, his face lighting up with a joyful expression. He had doubted Biryuyeon's words when Hyobong's eyes were still closed, but now he had truly regained consciousness. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

He had concluded that full recovery was impossible, but Biryuyeon had masterfully turned the situation around.

'I owe him a debt.'

It was a heavy debt, difficult to repay.

"Aryong!"

"Yes?"

Seeing Hyoryong respond with excitement, Hyobong said something.

"You're too loud, you brat!"

If his body were healthy, he would have smacked him on the head, but in his current state, it was merely a thought, impossible to execute.

"Yes?"

Hyoryong widened his eyes at his brother's sudden reprimand.

"My ears aren't deaf. Speak quietly! Don't bother those around us!"

These were hardly words from someone who had barely survived the brink of death.

"Yes…"

Hyoryong's voice instantly shrunk. After all these years, he still couldn't win against his brother. Hyobong, however, found his innocent brother, who hadn't changed even after years, endearing.

Gal Hyobong turned his head to look at everyone.

"My foolish brother has caused you all much trouble. I must offer my deepest apologies for that."

With his head resting on Hyoryong's lap, Hyobong managed to nod.

"Brother! I'm a full-fledged adult now. I'm twenty years old!"

At Gal Hyobong's teasing remark, Hyoryong let out a yell. He was now an adult, yet his brother still treated him like a child.

"Hahahaha…"

The hearty laughter quickly subsided. His eyes grew deeply solemn. Countless thoughts flooded his mind simultaneously.

"You were just a thirteen-year-old when we parted… Have I truly lost seven years in delusion and confusion…? Cough, cough!"

"Brother!"

Hyoryong's face turned pale at the sudden coughing of blood.

Dark red blood erupted from Hyobong's mouth with his coughs. Hyoryong's hands and clothes were quickly stained crimson with blood.

'Am I going to die now?'

He knew his own body better than anyone. It was unreasonable to expect to live with his meridians severed. It was sheer stubbornness and personal selfishness.

Even if Hua Tuo and Bian Que were summoned from the underworld to perform emergency surgery, it would be a fatal wound beyond repair.

Twitch!

Hyobong's fingers trembled slightly. He tried to move his arm to stroke the cheek of his tender-hearted brother, who was shedding tears for him, but even his arm wouldn't move according to his will anymore. His body was already in disarray due to the overuse of forbidden techniques, the explosion of innate energy, and the rampage of his qi.

"What is your identity?"

Qing Heun, who was covered in wounds from his recent battle, approached and asked. He felt it was imperative to get to the bottom of this. He had never heard of anyone of his generation possessing such profound martial arts on the side of the demonic path. Moreover, it was essential to understand the mastermind behind this sudden ambush.

"What use is the name of a body that will vanish upon death?"

He clearly implied that he didn't want to reveal it. Qing Heun's expression hardened further. Hyobong continued with a wry smile.

"I don't wish to expose my family's shame. What good would it do to leave behind a name forgotten even by my own family in the world!"

Given that he was about to die, Qing Heun found it difficult to proceed. Although an enemy, the opponent's spirit was suppressed, and his martial arts were far superior to anyone he had ever faced, thus earning his respect. Regardless of what anyone said, he was the first person of their generation to simultaneously contend with both Mo Yonghui and Qing Heun himself. He was fully deserving of recognition.

"Hmm…"

Qing Heun's mind was troubled with worry and anguish.

"Still, do you insist on knowing?"

After a moment of consideration, Qing Heun nodded.

Hyobong smiled gently. It was hard to believe he was the same person who had been burning with murderous intent moments ago, unleashing a rain of blood.

"Then you will know soon. I wish to rest now."

Qing Heun could not bring himself to refuse Hyobong's polite request.

"Very well!"

"Thank you."

This was the last conversation between the two. Qing Heun would carry the shadow of Gal Hyobong in his heart for the rest of his life. As the first opponent to neutralize his sword!

Hyobong could not rest as he wished. Tremendous pain assaulted his body.

"Haaak haak! Keuk!"

Gal Hyobong's condition rapidly deteriorated.

Hyobong, gasping for breath, was far from normal. Blood flowed from the corners of his mouth. His internal organs were already torn to shreds, like a tattered rag.

Due to the reckless use of so much latent energy, his body was irrevocably damaged. Recovery was impossible.

Having expended all the remaining potential within his body, Hyobong was destined for a gruesome death, with his muscles tearing apart any moment.

"Keuuk!"

Someone had to alleviate his pain. In this state, he would only writhe and suffer from the increasingly agonizing pain.

Then who would be the one to do it?

Everyone's gaze turned towards a young man wearing twin swords. Their stares conveyed a single message.

Hyoryong shook his head violently, his face ashen.

"No! I can't do it! H-how could I… with my own hands…"

His outstretched, empty hands trembled like an aspen leaf.

"Then who will?"

This was not something someone else could do for him. However, Hyoryong's heart was too tender to readily volunteer for the task.

"Keuk!"

Suddenly, Hyobong gathered all the remaining strength in his body and began to sit up. He, who couldn't even move an arm moments ago. Moreover, he was experiencing pain as if his entire body was being dismembered. To try and sit up on his own in such a state was reckless.

"Brother!"

Hyoryong immediately tried to support Hyobong.

"D-don't touch me!"

At Hyobong's thunderous roar, Hyoryong quickly withdrew his hand. His brother's face was hideously contorted. He could keenly feel that his brother was expending his last reserves of strength.

"Keuuuuk!"

Slowly, inch by inch, his body was being propped up. It was an incredible display of willpower. A normal martial artist would have fainted a hundred times over in such a situation.

"Uaaaaaaaah!"

Gal Hyobong's body shook violently. He was forcing his dead muscles to move. The pain could not have been slight. Extreme pain, as if thousands of needles were piercing his entire body, struck him. His torn innards cried out in searing agony. Yet, he did not yield to the pain. His eyes were filled with determination.

"Huk huk huk! Keuk!"

After wrestling with the pain for nearly an entire *gak* (approximately 15 minutes), Hyoryong was able to sit up. His body was drenched in cold sweat from the hour-long struggle. Anyone watching could see he had done something reckless.

A faint, mocking laugh escaped Gal Hyobong's lips.

"Heh! Even though my body is already dead, I'm still sweating!"

After sweating profusely, his body felt light, as if it could fly. The pain that had felt like thousands of needles piercing his entire body moments ago was gone, as if it were a lie. Both his body and mind were at peace. A smile of satisfaction appeared on his lips.

"Hyoryong!"

Hyobong called out in a quiet but irresistible voice. It was the first time he had called him Hyoryong. It implied that he now recognized him as a full-fledged adult. This was a profoundly significant word for Hyoryong.

"Yes! Brother!"

Hyobong offered a benevolent smile. It was the warm smile his brother had always shown him in their childhood.

"Will you not grant me peace now? Show me what you've learned. I wish to be at peace now."

Words like a bolt from the blue echoed.

"B-brother!"

Hyoryong's body trembled as if struck by lightning. The faces of those around him stiffened. The inevitable had finally come.

This person was about to die, entrusting his life to his brother… He did not want to show his only brother a pathetic struggle on the verge of death.

"No, brother! That's impossible. How could I possibly…"

Hyoryong pleaded, fidgeting restlessly. He was in a state where rational judgment was difficult.

"Snap out of it! Have you already forgotten whose grandson you are!"

Jerk!

A stern reprimand, like a thunderclap, erupted from Hyobong's mouth. It held a force that was unfathomable for someone facing death. The air seemed to crackle with intensity.

Admiration appeared on the faces of those around them. To be so resolute in the face of death was not something anyone could do.

By that alone, he was fully deserving of respect. Finally, Hyoryong nodded in silence. His brother's words carried an irresistible power. He wanted to free his brother from the endless pain that was about to return. Hyoryong himself finally acknowledged that this task was his, and his alone.

'Brother!'

Hyoryong silently called his brother's name in his heart. Blood dripped from his grip on the sword.

"Hwik!"

The sword flashed. The sword light, like a shooting star in the night sky, cut through Hyobong's body. No blood splattered. No blood stained the sword.

"Well done! Excellent."

Gal Hyobong smiled faintly.

"Puwhaaak!"

Only then did blood gush from his body like a fountain, staining Hyoryong's vision red. Blood spurted out even though there were no visible wounds.

Even amidst the rain of blood, Gal Hyobong did not lose his smile.

"B-brother!"

Tears that Hyoryong had been holding back poured down like rain. Blood flowed down his tears.

"Yeon (劫)! Beware of Heaven's Yeon…"

Thud! Finally, Gal Hyobong's eyes closed quietly. The genius, once hailed as a star of the dark path, had ended his life today.

And the single sentence he left behind was like an icy dagger piercing everyone's hearts. Heaven's Yeon… Heavenly Tribulation! Could it be that the dark hand was still lurking and wriggling?

For a moment, all who watched fell into silent stillness.

"That was a magnificent swordsmanship technique, *Gyeongisangin* (劍氣傷人). Brother would have been pleased!"

Biryuyeon patted Hyoryong's back, offering comfort.

It was likely the best technique Hyoryong could perform. It was the highest level of *Gyeongisangin*, which severed blood vessels and nerves without leaving external wounds, thus ending the opponent's life.

Even in death, his brother had left him his final lesson. Something that had been tightly bound in his chest felt as if it were loosening.

Thump!

Hyoryong's knees hit the ground. He collapsed onto his knees.

"Kuuk! Uaaaaaaaak! Uaaaaaaaak!"

Wails erupted from Hyoryong's mouth. Tears burst forth like a flood. He could not possibly control his turbulent emotions. Clutching the dry ground, feeling his heart being torn apart, Hyoryong wept incessantly. His blood relative had died. And by his own hand! Biryuyeon watched his grieving friend with a somber gaze. There was nothing more he could do. All he could do was give him space to cry, resent, and wail to his heart's content.

"I will never, ever forgive the ones who did this to my brother!"

"Grik!"

Hyoryong made a firm resolution, swallowing his own blood that dripped from his clenched lips. It was a blood oath.

And so, their summer came to an end.