Wheeeee...
The wind hissed across the murky expanse of swampwater. Gnats buzzed, tree roots curled like skeletal fingers, and the air reeked of decay and mildew. Sun-Ho and the party trudged into the sinking path before them.
Ji-Mun groaned. "I know I said I wanted adventure, but I didn't mean foot fungus and poisonous frogs."
Ribbit.
A large, wart-covered frog blinked at him from a rock and jumped into the green slush.
Ma-Rok grinned. "At least it's scenic."
"Scenic? This place looks like a corpse's armpit," Ji-Mun muttered.
So-Ri raised a brow. "You have a vivid imagination."
Yul-Rin adjusted her robe, pulling her hair into a tight knot. "If I get leeches again, Ji-Mun is cleaning them off me."
He blanched. "No thanks. I'm a swordsman, not a leech extractor."
Master Jang simply marched on. "Less whining, more awareness. This is Hydra Sect territory. Even their moss has a temper."
Sun-Ho walked at the rear, his gaze drifting to the hazy waterline. He remembered reading something about this place in the old records. Hydra Sect didn't protect treasure—they protected knowledge that could cause trouble if misused. It made this mission more dangerous, and more interesting.
---
Serpents Stir
The swamp grew darker as they ventured deeper. Mist clung to their legs like grasping hands, and vines hung like nooses from twisted branches.
Yeon pointed ahead, expression blank. "Movement."
Before anyone could react—
Snap!
A green-scaled serpent struck out from a hanging branch. Ji-Mun ducked just in time.
WHIP!
So-Ri's ribbon darted out, slicing the snake in two.
HISSSS!
More serpents slithered from the muck.
"Formation!" Sun-Ho commanded.
Ma-Rok took point, shield raised.
THWACK!
A serpent bounced off his plated shoulder.
Yul-Rin's needles gleamed silver and red.
Ting! Ting! Ting!
Each struck with pinpoint accuracy, paralyzing the creatures before they reached her.
Sun-Ho extended a finger.
Fwoooosh!
A cone of flame seared the marsh in front of him, driving back the largest of the serpents.
They moved like one—an efficient machine forged through countless battles together. Yet Sun-Ho felt it with every strike: their rhythm, their instinct, their trust. His mind quietly measured his companions' reactions, analyzing their timing, their strengths. That awareness was what made him a true leader.
After ten minutes of slashing, burning, and screaming (mostly from Ji-Mun), the serpents retreated.
Master Jang nodded. "Hydra Sect's pets, most likely. Let's move."
---
The Forgotten Temple
They reached it shortly after—an ancient, vine-covered temple half-submerged in the swamp. Stone serpent heads jutted from the facade, some broken, others eerily lifelike.
So-Ri whispered, "This was a distillation site, right?"
Jang nodded. "And minor scripture storage. Dangerous still."
Ji-Mun peered at the ominous doorway. "I vote we burn it down and call it a day."
Sun-Ho smiled. "Let's not."
As the group fanned out, Sun-Ho slipped behind a tree and emerged cloaked and masked—the Elementless Sovereign returned.
"I'll retrieve the scroll," he said, voice deeper, practiced.
Ji-Mun sighed. "Great. I love when you go all mysterious and broody."
So-Ri chuckled. "He just likes the dramatic entrance."
---
The Sovereign Moves
Inside, the air was thick with old venom. Stone walls oozed a greasy sheen. The few guards wore rotting armor and sleepy expressions.
"I heard the Sovereign controls all five elements," one muttered.
"Pfft, nonsense. Nobody can do that. Probably just a group pretending to be one person."
Thud.
A body hit the floor. His companion turned just in time to see a glint of white mask—
CRACK!
Moments later, the Sovereign slipped into the inner chamber. Sealed scrolls lined a stone shelf. He placed a finger against the jade lock and pulsed his Qi—
Click.
It opened.
He chose three scrolls and sealed the rest back.
---
Unexpected Hostiles
On his way out, he stopped.
Voices.
Two inner disciples of the Hydra Sect stood at the back entrance, arguing.
"I told you not to take extra venom!"
"We need it for the Pill Master—"
They paused, seeing the masked figure.
"You're not—!"
Whump.
He knocked one out with a swift kick.
The other ran.
Fwip!
A flame-string snapped his ankle from behind.
He fell with a splash, unconscious before he hit the mud.
---
Campfire and Conversation
Back at camp, the scrolls lay beside Yul-Rin, who was busy identifying ingredients by scent. Ma-Rok and Ji-Mun were debating whether frog legs were edible.
"You know," So-Ri said softly, sitting beside Sun-Ho as the fire crackled, "you're starting to live up to that masked name."
"I thought I was already too famous," he said dryly.
"Maybe. But mysterious heroes in white masks tend to get poems written about them."
Ji-Mun piped up. "I already started composing one. It starts with: 'Oh Sovereign of balance, so humble and fierce—'"
"Finish that, and I'll launch you into the swamp," Sun-Ho said.
Master Jang raised an eyebrow. "Better than the ones about me. Someone called me 'the yelling grandpa of wind.'"
Ma-Rok choked on his tea.
Yul-Rin leaned in. "I have copies of that poem."
Yeon, silent as ever, sat by the flames, watching them. His eyes didn't quite smile, but there was a warmth in how he passed the stew to Ji-Mun without being asked.
Sun-Ho noticed. He's changing, he thought. Slowly, but he is.
---
Reputation Grows
As they laughed, far away in another Murim hall, scrolls had already begun to circulate about the white-masked cultivator. His deeds were spreading fast. Another group had even mistaken him for a fallen demigod returned to cleanse the land.
Sun-Ho didn't know it yet, but the ripples of his dual identity were starting to form a tide.
---
End of Chapter 36