Blood Sea of Death.
With every step the man took, blood flowed beneath his feet.
"You… you monster!"
The warriors screamed and charged, but it was useless.
Not even the Sword Dragon Unit — the Martial Alliance's most elite combat division — could stop him.
Nor the Hidden Sword Society, where the elders of the Nine Great Sects had gathered.
Nor even the Ten Guests, the ten greatest masters of the righteous world.
Before the man's overwhelming might, all of them were powerless.
He was a Fiend Demon — one of the Three Calamities, alongside the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon — a deranged murderer whose name was feared across the land.
"Th-this is impossible. Not even one of the Three Calamities, not even one of the Seven Titans of Shenzhou, could do such a thing!"
Countless masters had gathered today to stop the Fiend Demon.
They were not nameless rabble — these were the renowned warriors whose fame resounded across the martial world. Among them were the Ten Guests themselves.
Yet all of them had been slaughtered by his hand.
The Fiend Demon, who had painted the greatest bloodbath in the history of Jianghu, now strode toward a vast manor.
Shattered pieces of a wooden plaque lay scattered atop the countless corpses — the plaque had once borne the words Baek Clan of the White Healer.
Indeed — the target of this massacre was a family of physicians.
The greatest under Heaven — the Baek Clan.
"Wh-why are you doing this to us? What wrong have we ever done to you?!"
"..."
Jo Baekil, the last surviving member and head of the Baek Clan, shouted in rage and disbelief.
The Fiend Demon only looked at him from beneath his tangled hair, his gaze sharp and chilling.
"Is this because of what you heard in those rumors? That one of our physicians treated your family improperly? Even if that were true, such things happen during treatment — it wasn't our fault! Why—?!"
"That's not the reason. I know well that a physician's success or failure lies in Heaven's hands. I once walked that same path myself."
"…What?"
Jo Baekil froze in disbelief.
The voice — clear and composed — did not sound like it could belong to a monster.
And… he once walked the path of medicine?
The Fiend Demon brushed his disheveled hair back.
His face, scarred and battered, seemed strangely familiar.
"It's been a long time, Uncle. Or should I say, Baekbu? You told me I could call you that, didn't you?"
"Y-you… you are—!"
Jo Baekil's voice trembled like a leaf in the wind.
At last, he understood.
"You… the wretch from the Divine Healer Clan!"
The Divine Healer Clan — once hailed as the greatest under Heaven — had fallen into ruin after delving into forbidden arts, branded as heretics and exterminated by the martial world.
The Baek Clan of the White Healer had played a major role in exposing their crimes. Their success in that endeavor earned them glory — and the title of the greatest physicians in the land.
Back then, there had been a traitor from within the Divine Healer Clan itself — the youngest son, Wi Jicheon.
Unlike his talented siblings, he had always been scorned as a fool. Yet he had been the one to expose his clan's corruption. Many praised his righteousness.
But after the Divine Healer Clan was wiped out, Wi Jicheon disappeared, forgotten by all.
"Y-you're Wi Jicheon?!"
"Yes. I am Wi Jicheon — the most unfilial son under Heaven, who was deceived by your venomous tongue and cast his own family into the fires of hell."
"I… I didn't mean… it was all a misunderstanding!"
"A misunderstanding?"
The Fiend Demon — Wi Jicheon — spoke in a voice that burned like molten iron.
"When I close my eyes, I still see my father, my brothers, my sister — their tears of blood. And you call that a misunderstanding?"
"!!"
"Do you know what's worse? Even after my foolish betrayal, none of them blamed me. They were grateful that I had survived. Do you know what it felt like to hear that? Do you know why I lost my mind?!"
Boom! Crash!
His roar unleashed a storm.
Jo Baekil coughed blood, his face turning deathly pale.
He had already suffered fatal wounds before the conversation began — and now, the Fiend Demon's aura crushed what little life remained.
Death was certain.
"In your final moments, repent for your sins."
Wi Jicheon turned his back.
His vengeance was complete.
Yet there was no sense of relief.
Because even after revenge, the dead do not return.
'Father. Brother. Sister.'
Their faces rose before his eyes.
You brat! Slacking off again?!
Hahaha, don't be too harsh on him. He's still young, isn't he?
Father, it's because you always defend him that he never learns!
Tsk.
He missed them.
Desperately.
'I'll be with you soon. My true energy is nearly burned out… my life won't last much longer. Though, perhaps I'll fall into hell, and we won't meet at all.'
As darkness crept into his vision, Wi Jicheon let out a faint laugh.
He could recover if he focused his remaining energy — but he didn't care to.
His revenge was done. There was nothing left to cling to in this world.
He wanted only a quiet place to die.
But just when he thought it was all over—
"Heh heh… foolish boy. Whether you're called one of the Seven Titans or one of the Three Calamities, you're as stupid as ever."
"…What?"
It was Jo Baekil — somehow still alive.
"What are you talking about?"
"Did you think you were the only one who desired the Heavenly Immortal Divine Art? That miraculous technique that turned the fool of the Divine Healer Clan into one of the Three Calamities?"
Wi Jicheon's face hardened.
The Divine Healer Art.
The secret technique of his clan.
Even among his kin, its true nature had been a mystery.
"Who? Who else knew of it?"
"Heh heh…"
Jo Baekil laughed faintly.
"All of this happened because your clan possessed a treasure far beyond its station. Even if it hadn't been me, they would have—"
Before he could finish, a flash of light pierced his forehead.
"!!"
A throwing knife.
Wi Jicheon's gaze darkened.
For someone of his power not to notice a hidden weapon — impossible.
Only one person in the entire martial world could do such a thing.
"Show yourself."
A figure materialized from the air.
Clad in black night-clothes, face hidden behind a mask.
Age, gender — impossible to tell. But Wi Jicheon knew who it was.
Not by presence — for there was none.
The figure stood before him like a mirage, leaving not even a shadow.
The Shadowless Realm.
The supreme state of an assassin.
"Kill Demon."
One of the Ten Evils — the demonic masters of the unorthodox world.
'This isn't good.'
Under normal circumstances, Wi Jicheon would have crushed such a foe with ease.
But his energy was in tatters. He was far too weak.
"Who sent you? Are you tied to the ones that old bastard mentioned?"
There was no reply.
But Wi Jicheon could tell — this assassin was connected to those who destroyed his clan.
'Just who…?'
His expression grew grim.
He sensed that the enemy behind all this was far beyond imagination.
"Well, no matter. I'll just kill everyone involved."
His aura flared like a raging fire.
And then—
The two demons clashed.
In the end, Wi Jicheon won.
But it was his final victory.
'I was struck at the end… by a heart sword.'
When his battle with the Kill Demon reached its climax, someone else had attacked him from the shadows.
The true mastermind.
And the weapon used was terrifying — the Sword of the Heart.
'Only seven in all of Jianghu can wield it — myself included.'
The Martial Alliance Lord, the Sword Immortal of the Nine Great Sects, the Spear King of the Clan Union, the Heavenly Demon of the Demonic Sect, the Blood Demon of the Blood Cult, the Overlord of the Evil Alliance — and Wi Jicheon himself.
Together, they were known as the Seven Titans of Shenzhou.
Beings above the Ten Guests, the Ten Evils, and the Ten Demons.
Which one of them was behind it?
Even Jo Baekil had said they — not he.
There was more than one.
'So my suspects are… everyone in Jianghu.'
Wi Jicheon gave a bitter laugh.
Whoever they were, it was too late.
He was dying.
'If only… I had one more chance.'
He prayed with the last flicker of his soul.
If Heaven would grant him one more chance—
'No… it's not about revenge anymore.'
He clenched his teeth.
'I won't let everyone die in vain again.'
His father — gentle and warm.
His stern, righteous brother.
His sister — harsh on the outside, but soft within.
All those he loved.
'I'll protect them all. Even if I must become a demon myself. I'll be the shield for them, so that the Divine Healer Clan may truly become what we dreamed of — physicians who bring happiness to the world.'
'Heaven and Earth, Gods and Spirits — if you grant me just one more chance, I will give you everything I am.'
And as he made that vow—
He closed his eyes.
"You idiot! You still can't tell the difference between Water Spring, Small Sea, and Bright Ground meridians?! How can you confuse the basics of comparative method?!"
"!!"
Wi Jicheon's eyes shot open.
A voice — familiar, impossibly so.
He turned.
'Brother…?'
It wasn't just him.
"Haha, don't be too harsh on him, Kang-ah. He's been working hard. I heard he studied all the way until You hour last night."
"That's not something to praise! Only until You hour?! The Apprentice Healer Exam is right around the corner! He should be studying all night!"
"Well, he can take the exam next time. I'm just proud he's studying at all."
"Tsk."
His father. His sister. His brother.
Wi Jicheon stared, dumbfounded.
The words "Apprentice Healer Exam," "comparative method" — none of it registered.
All he could think was—
'Is this a dream? A memory before death?'
His heart pounded.
If this was a dream or an illusion, their figures would soon fade away.
So before that happened—
He had to say what he'd never been able to say.
"Father, Brother, Sister… I have something to tell you."
"Hm?"
"…Thank you. And… I love you all."
He barely held back tears.
They would vanish any moment.
Even if it was just a dream, he wanted to send them off with a smile.
But then—
"…Love? All of a sudden?"
"…Did you eat something strange?"
"Pfft!"
'Huh?'
"Don't tell me you've been drinking during the day?!"
"Kang, maybe you scolded him too much and he's gone mad!"
"Tsk."
Wi Jicheon's face flushed bright red.
Something felt… off.
This didn't feel like a dream.
'Could it be…?'
Unbelievably—
A miracle had happened.