By Zephyria 
* * *
“Cough, cough!”
“Where is the fire coming from?!”
The interior of Demon Subjugation Valley was as much of a chaotic mess as the outside.
A faint smell of burning was detected from somewhere, and it quickly turned into thick smoke that filled the mine tunnel.
People panicked at the sudden turn of events. The acrid smoke stung their eyes and noses, causing tears to stream down their faces and their heads to spin.
To put out a fire, one must first locate it. However, the smoke crawled through the complex mine tunnels, making it impossible to gauge where it ended. Anyone who ventured deeper following the smoke would likely suffocate.
“Move!”
Eventually, someone, streaming with tears and snot, could no longer bear it and bolted toward the exit. This triggered a chain reaction, and people abandoned their original duties, swarming toward the outside where the fresh air was.
In an instant, a Hell Map unfolded within Demon Subjugation Valley.
“Tsk, tsk… This is why you should have lived a virtuous life.”
Seong Mu-yeon clicked his tongue as he watched them. He and Seong Mu-jae stood far away from the crowd, their noses and mouths tightly wrapped in wet cotton cloths to avoid inhaling the smoke.
“Are you the one to be saying that?”
“Me, what did I do?”
As Seong Mu-jae stared at his younger brother with cold eyes, Seong Mu-yeon—the very person who had personally recreated the Hell Map in Demon Subjugation Valley—jumped in surprise.
After knocking out all of Peng Yuan-jin’s subordinates, Seong Mu-yeon had begun acting covertly with Seong Mu-jae.
Everyone in Demon Subjugation Valley was focused on the external enemies; no one paid them any mind. Who would have expected that the Sixth Young Master, who had lost his dantian, and the Seven Sons, whose inner force was sealed and limbs bound, would be able to slip through the surveillance and roam freely?
They made their way deep into Demon Subjugation Valley, hiding or knocking people unconscious along the way.
Seong Mu-yeon intended to blend in with the people fleeing the smoke and escape the place with them.
Because it had been modified from an abandoned mine, the internal structure branched out complexly in all directions along the ore veins, but it was ultimately formed around one long main passage used for entry and transporting minerals. Targeting this point, they had gathered wet wood and set it ablaze so that the smoke would spread throughout the entirety of Demon Subjugation Valley.
The result was a success.
Seong Mu-jae had no choice but to admit it was a decent plan. It was better than Bang Gyeom’s suggestion to hide somewhere and wait to be rescued. There were simply too many variables that could arise while the enemy maintained complete control over Demon Subjugation Valley.
“Let’s go too.”
Seong Mu-yeon blended into the fleeing crowd and shouted loudly.
“Run if you don’t want to die!”
It would be troublesome if someone left behind realized that the fire wasn’t as large as it seemed. He needed to further exacerbate the confusion.
“Hey! What are you doing?! Do you want to die? There’s a fire!”
As they ran along the mine tunnel, whenever they found someone standing blankly, not knowing what to do, they kicked them in the rear to snap them out of it.
As they got closer to the outside, Seong Mu-yeon and Seong Mu-jae realized one problem.
“…Will we be able to get out through there?”
The exits connected to the outside were limited, and most had been collapsed and blocked to prevent enemy entry. Hundreds of people were crammed into the few remaining escape routes.
There was no way these terrified people would exit in an orderly line. They pushed and shoved, stepping on one another to force their way through, and naturally, the exit became completely clogged.
Seong Mu-yeon and Seong Mu-jae stepped back, watching the scene where people were tangled together in a single mass, screaming.
If they rashly tried to push their way in, they would be crushed to a pulp.
“L-let’s wait until the crowd thins out a bit before we leave.”
Seong Mu-yeon found a quiet spot a short distance from the entrance and plopped down.
“Brother, lower your body so you don’t inhale the smoke.”
They were fine for now because their noses and mouths were tightly covered, but among those who were slower to react, many had already suffocated and collapsed onto the cold stone floor.
While a fierce struggle took place on one side, with people pushing and squeezing themselves in to get out first, the Seong brothers sat in a corner and waited. It felt strangely surreal to be in a seemingly peaceful situation while listening to the desperate struggle nearby.
“….”
However, as time passed, the two grew increasingly anxious. The crowd blocking the exit showed no sign of thinning, and to make matters worse, the smoke began to fade.
Some Demonic humans, who had been rubbing against the exit following the trend, suddenly seemed to sense something strange and began staring blankly back toward the other end of the tunnel.
Those who were overreacting out of fear would soon realize as well. Demon Subjugation Valley was a gold mine, not a coal mine. Even if a fire broke out, in a place surrounded by boulders, there was no way an explosion would occur, and the fire would soon die out.
“…Should I set another fire?”
Seong Mu-yeon asked with a grim face.
But they had already scraped together all the wood in the warehouse to start the fire. To get more wood, they would have to tear up the firewood used in the kitchen or the furniture in the martial artists’ quarters.
“Wait! There was that!”
Seong Mu-jae, who had been silent, suddenly stood up as if a thought had occurred to him.
“What is it?”
“I’ll be right back!”
“Where are you going, Brother!”
Seong Mu-jae vanished into the smoke. Seong Mu-yeon hurriedly stood up to chase him. At that moment, a strong wave of dizziness washed over him.
“Ugh…”
Seong Mu-yeon barely managed to lean against the wall and squeezed his eyes shut. His head spun, and a chill ran down his spine. He could taste the metallic scent of blood deep in his throat.
‘Damn it…’
It had been several days since he last took his medicine; it seemed the effects had worn off and the rebound reaction was starting. Moreover, since he had overexerted himself by operating his inner force, it was only natural that his body couldn’t hold up.
Once the dizziness subsided slightly, he double-checked the medicinal ingredients he had carefully kept inside his clothes. These ingredients were nothing short of a lifeline for Seong Mu-yeon.
Seong Mu-jae had found and returned his confiscated belongings on the way, but in a situation facing battle, there was no luxury to brew and drink medicine.
‘Let’s just hold on until the fight is over. That’s all. If I just get through tonight and take it after, it’ll be fine.’
After waiting a moment, the dizziness vanished as if it had never been there.
‘I must be careful not to overdo it…’
Vowing this, Seong Mu-yeon followed Seong Mu-jae deeper inside.
* * *
“Huff, huff.”
Seong Mu-jae ran with all his might. There was almost no sign of people in the mine tunnel. He only occasionally encountered a few survivors heading back the way he came.
But even they were now stopping their flight as the smoke dispersed.
‘If I just have that…’
Seong Mu-jae’s eyes sparkled with excitement. He had thought of a brilliant way to deal a proper blow to Peng Yuan-jin and Demon Subjugation Valley.
Peng Yuan-jin had obtained several explosives from somewhere. Thanks to that, a plan to collapse the entrance when enemies invaded was possible. Since it had been a mine long ago, he might have luckily found explosives used for digging paths.
There should be some explosives left besides those used in this battle. Of course, he didn’t intend to detonate all of them. However, if he took out some of the gunpowder and used it appropriately, he could create enough smoke and loud bangs to terrify the people…
“What are you doing here, Sixth Young Master?”
At the voice coming from behind him, Seong Mu-jae felt a chilling cold. His boiling passion vanished in an instant, and his body froze stiff.
“Are you planning to detonate that? You’re quite fearless. Do you want us all to die together?”
“Left Horse General…”
Peng Yuan-jin, who had been commanding the battle outside, had returned before he knew it. Having seen the smoke and sought the cause of the fire, he quickly realized that the fire in Demon Subjugation Valley was not as significant as he had thought. Immediately, he remembered the remaining explosives. Fearing a very troublesome situation if they fell into Seong Mu-yeon’s hands, he had rushed over to check personally.
Peng Yuan-jin scanned the surroundings.
“Indeed, if the explosives went off here, the tunnel itself wouldn’t hold. We would all be crushed to death. Furthermore, the retreat path could be blocked…”
Peng Yuan-jin spoke in a calm tone, as if engaging in idle chatter, as he approached step by step.
“As you know, I’ve dug several secret passages to retreat through in case of emergency.”
Seong Mu-jae instinctively stepped back.
“They say it’s scarier when someone who knows the secrets betrays you, and that truly is the truth. The Sixth Young Master must be well aware of the fatal weaknesses of this place.”
“I didn’t intend… to detonate the explosives…”
“To be honest.”
“….”
“I didn’t know the Sixth Young Master had the guts to betray us. My apologies. I underestimated you. I rarely make such mistakes, but you’ve hidden your inner thoughts so well for so many years.”
“N-no. Left Horse General, I…”
Peng Yuan-jin’s pitch-black eyes, which had been calm, suddenly flashed.
“A traitor should be treated properly as a traitor.”
“Gah—!”
In the blink of an eye, Peng Yuan-jin’s smiling face was right in front of him. Seong Mu-jae trembled all over. His gaze slowly dropped.
He couldn’t see his wrist because it was buried in his abdomen.
Peng Yuan-jin’s hand had pierced through his stomach.
“I’m glad I found out now.”
As Peng Yuan-jin pulled out his blood-stained hand, Seong Mu-jae’s knees slowly buckled.
“Brother!”
Seong Mu-yeon, who had just arrived, witnessed Seong Mu-jae sliding to the side. In front of him, Peng Yuan-jin greeted him with a smile, his hand stained red with blood.
“Ah, you’ve arrived. Seven Sons.”