It was only natural that the Demonic Cult would try to retrieve the Bright Sword.

Why hadn’t I thought of that?

I had assumed it was just medicinal material. Regardless, the one-armed ghost in Taoist garb who had suddenly appeared seemed to know the Sword Demon.

The Sword Demon said, “If I spared you, you should’ve grown old and died in the Main Stronghold. Why’d you crawl back out?”

Apparently, the one who cut off that bastard’s arm and sent it to the old Stronghold was the eldest brother. They seemed to have a superior-subordinate relationship, and yet now they looked like mortal enemies.

The one-armed ghost muttered something under his breath and raised his sword. It seemed he had infused it with internal energy, as the blade shot out from the scabbard.

Sreeeeng...

Grabbing the sword mid-air, the one-armed ghost charged at the Sword Demon, and the fight began.

The eldest brother, drawing the Bright Sword, immediately gained the upper hand and slashed the ghost’s body. Strangely, it felt more like hitting tough leather. His clothes were torn, but there was no sense of cutting flesh.

When the one-armed ghost swung his fluttering sleeve in retaliation, the Sword Demon leaned back. Bizarrely, the ghost wielded his sword and used his empty arm like a whip. It was a style both graceless and vicious.

We had no intention of interfering, since the eldest brother was engaged in a one-on-one.

Of course, if the Sword Demon started to lose, we’d jump in, Jianghu etiquette be damned.

Still, what the hell was that one-armed ghost mumbling? I listened carefully, trying to make out the chant. The murmurs cut in and out, but when I focused, it roughly translated to this:

“I will tear off your arm and attach it to my shoulder. I haven’t forgotten. Every time I touch this shoulder, your face appears in my mind—how could I forget? That lowly bastard once called Number Thirteen... dared to disgrace me. I’ll make you remember the past.”

He was cursing like a deranged lunatic.

The Sword Demon, seemingly catching the gist of the muttering, laughed as he swung his blade.

“What the hell are you babbling about?”

Watching the fight, I asked the one-armed ghost, “Did the eldest brother cut off your arm?”

“......”

“Are you here to lose the other one too, because losing just the left wasn’t enough? No answer, huh.”

I drowned out the ghost’s muttering with my own nagging.

“So you’ve always been weaker than the eldest brother. Were you a Sword Demon candidate? Living off scraps with other ghosts in the old Stronghold, taking dumps, and dying would’ve been a peaceful end. But no—you dragged yourself out here, asking to die sooner. Were the errands from your senior ghosts really that miserable? I'd pity you enough to spare you, but you killed a Taoist from Mount Kunlun on your way here. That I cannot forgive. Even if you defeat the eldest brother, I’ll cut off your right arm.”

As I spoke, the one-armed ghost’s face gradually turned a deep leaden gray.

I muttered under my breath, slightly surprised, “You’ve only managed to learn a technique that changes your facial color? What kind of useless martial art is that?”

“It’s a protective technique called Blue Jade Art. If mastered, it has its uses.”

“What kind of idle bastard would learn that?”

A voice came out of nowhere, and I turned my head to see an unnaturally small man approaching.

He looked like someone who’d stopped aging in boyhood—youth and age etched into a single face. His face looked young, but his eyebrows were white. More than that, his clothes were so immaculate they didn’t match the word "ghost" at all. He seemed disinclined to join the fight, stopping at a decent distance and watching the duel.

Without even looking, the Sword Demon greeted the new arrival.

“Grand Duke. You’ve come.”

“It’s been a while, Left Guardian.”

I looked at the man called Grand Duke and figured he was older than me, so I greeted him with formal speech.

“Grand Duke, welcome.”

The Grand Duke glanced at me and gave a slight nod. “Nice to meet you, Haomun Lord.”

“Doesn’t look like the Cult Leader’s son. How is he a Grand Duke? That’s curious.”

When the man ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) referred to as Grand Duke smirked, a sigh escaped me. Come to think of it, if the Left Guardian addressed him as Grand Duke with formal speech, he might very well be the previous Cult Leader’s son.

If that’s the case, both the White-Robed Scholar and the Chief Strategist were way off in their predictions.

So was I, of course. I assumed, being a ghost, there’d be a gap to exploit—but the one-armed ghost and the Grand Duke both appeared more or less mentally sound.

‘This doesn’t look good...’

Trying to focus on the Sword Demon’s fight only made me more aware of the Grand Duke’s presence.

But watching the Grand Duke only made me more curious about the duel.

Then the one-armed ghost finally spoke.

“......Grand Duke, will you not help?”

The Grand Duke replied, “Seems like a fair duel. Go on. You need to avenge your grudge.”

Even from that short exchange, it was clear that the Grand Duke was far scarier than the ghost. Every time I looked at that white-browed youth, the urge to crack jokes dried up fast.

Could he have known in advance that the Sword Demon was staying at the Martial Alliance?

He must’ve been stationed nearby, setting up a broad encirclement before appearing.

While watching the duel, the Grand Duke looked at the Lecher.

“You’re the Sword Demon’s disciple.”

The Lecher hesitated, choosing his words, then answered bluntly.

“That’s right.”

The moment the Lecher responded casually, the Grand Duke flicked his hand. Something like a misty blade flew through the air. The Lecher crossed both palms to block it, but was hurled into a building midair.

Boom!

I looked at the hole in the building. The Lecher was staggering out, brushing off dust with a smile.

“......Ah, I let my guard down.”

I gave a warning to the Grand Duke, who had just manhandled our Fourth.

“Grand Duke, don’t attack at will.”

Ignoring my words, the Grand Duke pulled a small metal object from his robes and flicked it with his finger. It screamed through the air like wind through a tunnel, releasing an ear-shattering high note.

The Drunk looked up at the sky and said, “Seems like more ghosts are coming. What’ll you do?”

“What do you mean what? Kill them all. We can’t run anyway—eldest brother’s fighting.”

The Grand Duke turned a cold gaze on me.

“Lord of Haomun, just as rumored—you’re bold.”

I calmly studied the Grand Duke’s tone, gaze, and aura, then asked, “Grand Duke.”

“What is it?”

“Are you the Cult Leader’s half-brother, perhaps? Or a cousin?”

“Why? Do I look like him?”

“Minus the turd-sack frame, you kind of do.”

The Grand Duke’s eyes narrowed sharply.

Just then, a loud boom drew his gaze from me to the Sword Demon.

The one-armed ghost had been smashed across several walls by the Bright Sword and reappeared, muttering again.

“Grand Duke, please help...”

The Grand Duke snorted.

“Shut up. Shameless bastard.”

Looking around, I then turned back toward the center of the road.

“They’re coming again.”

This time, a limping old man with a cane and a freak in dark robes were staggering forward like they’d just crawled out of their graves. They looked more like patients who’d just escaped a clinic than martial artists. The fact they even made it here in such condition was a miracle.

Watching their feeble steps, I couldn’t help but snap.

“What, you’re not gonna hurry up? You’ll die of old age on the way! You rotten geezers, what the hell are you crawling here for?”

The two ghosts finally arrived, barely staying upright, and said,

“Grand Duke, we’d like to kill that one.”

The Grand Duke replied, “If you capture him alive, I’ll forgive your crimes and let you return.”

“Understood.”

The two obeyed and began to move toward me. With their ghostly approach, I instinctively stepped back.

‘Capture me? That's ridiculous.’

It felt like I had been promoted from a simple medicinal ingredient to something worthy of a royal banquet soup.

The old man’s pace quickened, though he still limped on one leg. The black-robed man also looked unwell, but he was faster. He was hopping forward—must’ve lost a leg too.

It was now every man for himself, so I didn’t have time to check on the Four Evil Men. I entered a nearby alley, turned right twice, and slipped out instantly.

I reappeared on the street where the Sword Demon and the ghost were fighting.

Then I sprinted across the street and darted into the alley on the opposite side, turning left twice. When I emerged, the Sword Demon was slashing down vertically with the Bright Sword, tormenting the ghost.

Full circle—such is life in Jianghu.

I ran at full speed, leapt up, grabbed the ghost’s head, and unleashed Hundred Battles Tenfold Technique while activating Jeunjong. I ripped out every hair on his head and shook him violently.

“Kuwaaaaaaah!”

With the ghost in my grip, I ran...

And the Sword Demon, as if we’d switched shifts, began attacking the cane geezer and the black-robed freak. While fleeing, I glanced at the Grand Duke—he simply watched with a smile, unmoving.

The ghost’s screams were utterly horrific.

Gargling, shrieking, and the sound of a pig being slaughtered all blended together. I widened the gap with Jeunjong, stomped on the ghost’s arm, and unleashed Hundred Battles Tenfold Technique with both hands, burning his head.

“......Ah, shut up.”

Even with a protective technique, you can’t block thunder energy. Even with armor-like skin from martial arts, thunder energy seeps through. A loud sizzle echoed, followed by a collapse—and the ghost’s head was charred black.

I didn’t take any chances. I stomped his head and crushed it.

Then I picked up the Kunlun sect’s sword and approached the Grand Duke. He had his back turned, still watching the Sword Demon fight. As I neared, he spoke.

“Haomun Lord, who do you think will win?”

“The Sword Demon, of course.”

“I think so too.”

I stepped up beside the Grand Duke and looked down at the little bastard. Arms crossed, he was fixated on the duel.

The Grand Duke spoke. “Retrieve the Bright Sword and One Kill. Capture the Haomun Lord. Absorb the disciple’s extreme yin technique. Kill the tagalong.”

“Who’s the bastard giving out such nasty orders?”

“W—...”

As he spoke, I broke his arm-cross and slashed sideways with the Kunlun Sword. The little bastard raised his left hand and caught the blade between two fingers.

Tap!

The Grand Duke glanced at me sidelong. As internal energy surged through the sword, I let go and leapt away with Jeunjong. The Kunlun Sword clattered to the ground in two pieces.

From a distance, I asked, “Grand Duke, why act so relaxed? Got another scheme going?”

The dwarf clasped his hands behind his back and surveyed the area.

“I’m confident in my escape too, so I sealed off the surroundings. Don’t you feel how quiet it is?”

“......”

The Lecher, the Drunk, and I looked around. Sure enough, there was no sound at all.

I made an offer to the Grand Duke.

“I’ll go quietly. Let the other three go.”

“Don’t lie.”

“Sharp, aren’t you?”

Getting caught so fast meant this bastard had brains too. I thought only ghosts would come, but turns out someone who commands them showed up too.

The title "Grand Duke" says it all. If the eldest brother speaks to him respectfully, then he’s someone on par with the Blood Night Palace Lord. More likely than being the previous Cult Leader’s son, he felt like the Cult Leader’s brother-in-law or cousin.

Whatever the case, he acted like some stuck-up noble.

Still watching, the Grand Duke advised the ghosts,

“The Sword Demon’s left arm is a trap. It’s in a sword-immune state.”

I glanced at the Lecher and the Drunk.

Just a glance, and the Grand Duke spoke while watching the fight.

“Want to try the three of you?” 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“Shall we?”

I rubbed my palms together and blew into them. The Grand Duke turned, wary, eyes locked on my hands.

“Haomun Lord, I’ve heard you wield a powerful technique.”

“......”

I rubbed my hands a few more times, then lowered them. For some reason, it felt like the energy blade that sent the Lecher flying might come again even before I could assemble Heaven-Piercing Sun-Moon Radiance. But it wasn’t a situation where we could quickly finish the Grand Duke by rushing in.

Feeling boxed in, I had no choice but to keep watching the Sword Demon’s fight.

As I stayed still, the Grand Duke said again while watching the duel:

“Left Guardian, if you’re going to use the Bright Sword like that, wouldn’t it be easier for both sides if you just returned it? I don’t get your stubbornness.”

While he kept talking, I scanned the area—more ghosts had arrived. Each of them looked twisted enough to make me uncomfortable. They didn’t seem like people who became ghosts at the old Stronghold, but rather like monsters who were born ghosts. More sea creature than mountain beast—like relatives of squid.

The Grand Duke addressed the ghosts.

“The Haomun Lord has excellent light footwork. Stay alert. And don’t cluster together—his technique’s power is formidable.”

Among the ghosts, I spotted familiar faces: the Red King and the Blue Earth King.

Perhaps I’d gotten too arrogant.

No jokes came to mind.

Then I heard a flapping sound and looked up toward a nearby rooftop. Following my gaze, the ghosts turned their heads. Even the Grand Duke, who had been focused on the duel, looked up at the rooftop.

“......”

A conceited man stood, chin slightly raised, staring down at all of us with a blank expression.

The Grand Duke asked, “And who are you?”

The White-Robed Scholar crossed his arms and spat. A string of spit curved through the air and aimed for the Grand Duke’s head. One of the ghosts waved a hand, and the saliva vanished in midair without a trace.