After that long battle, Gwi-heon finally realized one thing.
He wouldn't be able to win if he kept fighting the way he always did.
His breathing was heavy and his body was covered in internal and external wounds, but his gaze slowly changed. The doubts that had previously surfaced began to fade, replaced by a decision he had been avoiding all along.
A powerhe hadn't used in a long time.
A power he had deliberately hidden even from the members of the Eunha Family.
His right hand rose, trembling slightly
TAP.
TAP.
Two quick taps on his chest.
TAP.
One tap between his chest and stomach.
TAP.
One final tap right below his navel, at the center of his dantian.
As soon as the final tap was released.
FWOOM…
The air around them vibrated as if screaming.
An unnatural chill radiated from Gwi-heon's body, sweeping through the forest in a single breath. Leaves froze in midair before falling, the surrounding dew hardened into ice crystals, and the ground beneath his feet was coated in a thin layer of pale white frost.
The temperature dropped drastically.
Raven's footsteps halted.
For the first time since the battle began, his eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"This Qi…."
But—
Too late.
In the blink of an eye, the distance of a dozen paces
vanished without a sound.
There was no sound of footsteps or the ground trembling.
Gwi-heon was already right in front of him, and at the same moment, a palm shot straight toward
Raven's face.
"Not bad."
His body blurred.
Phantom Step
activated in a split second, leaving a faint shadow where he had been standing.
But…
Sshhk!
Raven's cheek was still slashed.
The thin wound froze at the tip, leaving a piercing cold that seeped into the skin.
She slowly raised her hand and touched the wounded area, and as her fingertip withdrew, a thin smear of blood could be seen clinging to it.
Her gaze shifted.
"Huh…?"
For the first time since the fight began, her opponent's attack had actually managed to hit her.
And instead of anger, an expression of interest appeared on Raven's face.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"This palm technique…?"
He could sense something unusual about the previous attack.
Forced-condensed cold Qi.
Frost Press
Without giving Raven a chance to breathe, Gwi's guard moved immediately. With a few quick and precise movement techniques, the distance between them was closed in an instant.
"I won't give you a chance!"
Gwi-heon shouted loudly.
The air hissed…
Gwi-heon's palm shot out, cold, heavy, and brimming with cold Qi.
Three-Tide Glacial Palm.
A palm technique released in three consecutive waves.
The first attack came without warning.
The air in its path froze instantly. Raven's breath caught in her throat as the cold air entered her lungs, and her muscles tensed instantly; her joints felt stiff, as if her body were being forced to fight against a sudden onset of winter.
But Raven had anticipated it.
She took a half-step back, then shifted her body to the side. The palm swept narrowly past her chest, leaving a trail of ice suspended in the air before shattering into white shards.
Before Raven could steady her breath, the second wave struck.
The pressure of the cold Qi this time was far heavier. The ground beneath their feet trembled, sand swirled wildly, and the small stones around them shattered into shards of ice that flew through the air along with the second palm strike from the Gwi guard.
Raven drew his dagger in one swift motion.
Clang!
He parried the attack using the dagger in his right hand.
The metal of the dagger vibrated violently upon impact. But within seconds, the effect of the technique began to show. A layer of frost crept from the tip of the blade, enveloping the entire surface of the dagger before slowly spreading up to Raven's
right hand.
The cold pierced right down to the bone.
The nerves in his palm began to go numb. His fingers trembled and became increasingly difficult to move, while the skin on his right hand slowly turned a dark purple due to the cold Qi that continued to spread.
"This cold Qi…"
But Gwi's guard did not stop.
The third strike was unleashed with the final combination of his techniques.
The palm struck with more focused pressure, more ruthlessly aimed directly at Raven's body, one of whose hands was already numb.
Instantly—
Raven shifted his weight.
The dagger slipped from his right hand, and his left hand began to rise.
The same cold Qi began to flow from his palm.
Gwi-heon's eyes widened.
"That—?!"
Raven used the exact same palm technique.
BOOM!!
The two palms collided mid-air.
A shockwave exploded between them. Air burst outward, the ground lifted and instantly froze, and the layer of ice around them shattered and scattered. Raven's body and
Gwi's guard were both forced back several steps, leaving deep footprints in the frozen ground.
The air trembled.
A cold mist hung between them.
Gwi-heon stared at Raven with wide eyes. His breathing was heavy, his chest rising and falling erratically.
"D-don't tell me you…" his voice sounded full of disbelief.
On the other hand, Raven stood calmly.
His left hand was still emitting a thin wisp of cold vapor from the remnants of qi that hadn't yet fully dissipated, while his right hand slowly clenched into a fist, forcing the nerves that had gone numb to stir once more.
His gaze remained impassive.
"…"
"You… are from the North Sea?" Gwi-heon's voice dropped, but this time it was far more serious.
Raven raised a thin eyebrow.
"The North Sea?"
His gaze hardened instantly, as if he had just seen something that shouldn't have appeared here.
"I couldn't possibly have misidentified that technique," he said softly but firmly. "Did the Heavenly Ice Imperial Family send you?"
Raven remained silent for a moment, but his mind began racing.
"The Heavenly Ice Empire…?" he thought to himself. "Is there now another empire besides the Long Empire that I heard about before in the Central Plains?"
In his time, there had been only one empire that truly stood above Murim and the outside world. But now, a foreign name like the Heavenly Ice Empire had emerged in the north.
His gaze narrowed slightly.
"And this man…" Raven thought, observing Gwi-heon's reaction,"clearly comes from that place."
What piqued Raven's interest wasn't just the name of that northern sea, but Gwi-heon's reaction itself.
The man didn't question his qi at all.
"Just because I imitated that palm technique, he immediately assumed I came from the same place,"
Raven thought.
"That means that technique isn't something just anyone can learn."
Slowly, an idea formed in his mind.
"In that case… I can use this to my advantage."
Raven finally spoke up.
"Yes," she replied calmly. "Just as you suspected. I was sent to find you."
Gwi-heon chuckled, but there wasn't a trace of warmth in it.
"So they still haven't given up looking for me…"
His gaze fell to the frozen ground around them before slowly returning to Raven.
"Who sent you? The elders? Or…" his jaw tensed for a moment, "the main family?"
Raven didn't answer right away. He deliberately let the silence hang for a few seconds, as if intentionally not answering so his cover wouldn't be blown.
"You're still important enough that they can't let you stay missing," Raven finally said.
Gwi-heon laughed hollowly.
"Important in what way?" his voice brimmed with palpable hatred. "I failed to protect the Palace Lord. Even using this technique again makes me unworthy."
His hands clenched tightly.
"Someone like me should have died that day. But since I'm still alive… I'll take revenge on that person."
Raven remained calm as he listened.
Instead, he reacted immediately to the technique Raven had used.
"That's why they're looking for you," he replied without hesitation, following Gwi-heon's line of thought. "To defeat that man, they need your help.
Gwi-heon fell silent for a moment before letting out a small, bitter laugh.
"What can someone like me do?" he muttered. "I'm just the former leader of the White Shadow Guards now."
His gaze slowly dimmed.
His hands clenched so tightly that the veins on the backs of his hands stood out.
"Yet my duty was to protect the Palace Lord and his family."
His breathing sounded heavy.
"I have failed."
There was such deep regret in his voice, far more painful than the wounds currently covering his body.
"And even if I return…" he continued softly, "will they still accept me?"
He stared at his own hand.
"In my current state, it's impossible to face that person. I don't even know how long it will take to find a way to avenge the deaths of our people."
Raven listened in silence, but his mind was racing.
"So this Heavenly Ice Empire is in big trouble," he thought. "Their Palace Lord died because of someone's actions, and judging by his reaction… the impact is still being felt even now."
His gaze narrowed slightly.
"And this person's position turns out to be far higher than I had imagined," Raven thought to himself. "He's not just an ordinary soldier… most likely one of the special forces tasked with protecting the main family of the Heavenly Ice Empire."
Raven then spoke again, trying to stay in character.
"As you said," he said calmly, "whatever your reasons, the main family still needs you. There's a lot to rebuild, so every ounce of energy we have left must be put to the best possible use."
As soon as he finished speaking—
Gwi-heon's expression changed.
"Wait."
His tone suddenly dropped.
"That incident happened twenty years ago."
His gaze slowly sharpened.
"How can you speak as if it all happened just yesterday?"
Raven immediately realized his mistake.
"Damn it… I guess I got too carried away," he thought quickly.
Gwi-heon's eyes widened slowly.
"…No."
"Impossible."
"You…"
A cold aura began swirling wildly around his body.
"You're not from the North Sea."
Raven smiled faintly.
And that smile was the clearest answer.
Gwi-heon's face darkened instantly.
"Bastard…"
His voice dropped low.
"YOU'RE PLAYING WITH ME?!"
BOOOOM!!!
An explosion of cold Qi erupted from his body, far greater than before.
In an instant, the ground around them froze solid. A layer of ice spread rapidly in all directions, enveloping the surrounding trees and rocks. The night air turned into a suffocating winter storm.
But the most terrifying thing wasn't the cold.
It was the killing intent emanating from Gwi-heon's body.
This time was different.
This was no longer a battle to test his opponent's strength.
He truly intended to kill Raven.
Meanwhile, Raven remained silent for a moment before a low laugh escaped his lips.
"HAHAHAHAH…"
His laughter sounded light, but it felt incredibly piercing to Gwi-heon's ears.
"Looks like you really fell for my little trick," Raven said with a faint smile.
The veins on Gwi-heon's forehead tensed.
"You're going to die tonight, kid."
Far from being intimidated, Raven's cold smile only widened.
"You should have shown that kind of face from the start."