Chapter 40: Tracking
Black Spirit Valley was much deeper and wider than I had expected.
The farther we went into the valley, the higher the cliffs on both sides rose above us.
They were so tall that they almost blocked out the sky, making the surroundings look dark even in the middle of the day.
Jin Gwangung took the lead while the rest of us quietly followed behind him.
After continuing forward for some time, he suddenly stopped.
Then he spoke in a cautious voice.
“This is the area where we lost contact with both the scouting team and the investigation team.”
Tension immediately appeared on everyone's faces.
Jin Gwangung continued in a low voice.
“From now on, search this entire area thoroughly.”
“If you see anything suspicious or unusual, report it to me immediately.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
After looking at each of us once, Jin Gwangung carefully continued forward.
We began searching immediately after entering Black Spirit Valley.
At first, we all moved together.
But after a while, we determined that there didn't seem to be any immediate danger nearby.
So we divided into three groups.
Jin Gwangung alone.
Myeongjeon and me.
Hyeongwon and Yu Seola.
Each group spread out in a different direction to search the assigned area.
We agreed to regroup at a predetermined location after two double-hours.
I searched with everything I had.
The tops of rocks.
The dirt.
Tree roots.
Even pieces of wood that had washed up near the water.
I checked everything one by one.
Before long, the promised two double-hours had passed.
Myeongjeon and I returned to the meeting point.
Jin Gwangung was already waiting there.
Hyeongwon and Yu Seola were nowhere to be seen yet.
The moment he saw us, Jin Gwangung asked,
“What did you find?”
I answered immediately.
“Nothing particularly unusual.”
“I couldn't find any signs of battle either.”
I shook my head.
“There wasn't even a broken branch.”
Myeongjeon quickly added,
“That's right.”
“We couldn't find any trace of either the scouting team or the investigation team.”
Jin Gwangung frowned and muttered to himself.
“Hmm... strange.”
“There should at least be some sign of a fight.”
His expression hardened.
“For it to be this clean... it makes no sense.”
I was thinking the exact same thing.
If the scouting team had fought members of the Demonic Cult...
then at the very least, we should have found a corpse by now.
But there wasn't even a trace of combat anywhere.
On top of that...
the sun was gradually setting.
We were nearing the point where continuing the search would become difficult.
Then...
I saw Hyeongwon and Yu Seola returning from farther down the valley.
The moment they arrived, they spoke without even catching their breath.
“Elder!”
Hyeongwon's voice trembled.
“We think... we found something.”
Jin Gwangung immediately looked at him.
“Found what?”
Hyeongwon swallowed.
Then answered,
“...We think we found traces of the Demonic Cult.”
We immediately followed Hyeongwon and Yu Seola.
The narrow path descending farther into the valley somehow felt even more ominous.
The sky had darkened as well, and the sun was barely visible anymore.
Roughly a quarter-hour later...
Hyeongwon, who had been leading us, suddenly stopped using his movement technique.
He carefully looked around.
Then he raised one hand and pointed.
“Look at this.”
He was pointing toward a small rocky ledge slightly raised above the nearby ground.
But it wasn't an ordinary rock.
In the middle of it...
a thick, dark-red palm print had dried into the stone.
Blood had run between the fingers and down from the palm, leaving long stains across the rock.
Hyeongwon clenched his teeth.
“Something definitely happened here.”
“Those Demonic Cult bastards must have attacked our Kunlun disciples....”
Jin Gwangung didn't answer.
He quietly stepped in front of the rock.
His expression hardened as he stared at the bloody palm print.
It looked as though he were remembering the horrors of ten years ago.
“Was it really... the Demonic Cult?”
He muttered in a low voice.
The others reacted in shock.
“So it really was the Demonic Cult?”
“Th-Then... does that mean everyone from our sect is dead...?”
Jin Gwangung turned toward us.
“I'll check ahead first.”
Hyeongwon blinked.
“What? Elder Gwangung, what do you mean?”
“Stay here.”
Jin Gwangung's voice was firm.
“Don't move from this spot.”
“I'll check deeper inside the gorge myself.”
He looked at all of us.
“Understood?”
Without waiting for an answer, Jin Gwangung immediately used his movement technique and disappeared deeper into the valley.
The area fell silent again.
After a brief pause, Myeongjeon spoke.
“Are we really supposed to just stay here and wait for Elder Gwangung to come back?”
Hyeongwon answered,
“For now, we should follow his orders.”
Myeongjeon looked uneasy.
“S-Still... it's a little frightening without Elder Gwangung here.”
He glanced around nervously.
“What if the Demonic Cult suddenly attacks us while he's gone...?”
Yu Seola shook her head.
“Why are you so scared?”
“Nothing has actually happened yet.”
She looked around.
“And we already searched this area thoroughly.”
“At the very least, there shouldn't be any Demonic Cult members nearby.”
Only then did Myeongjeon's expression brighten slightly.
“R-Right.”
He forced a laugh.
“Haha... ha.”
Yu Seola's explanation eased the atmosphere a little.
But the tension on everyone's faces still couldn't be hidden.
I walked toward the place where Jin Gwangung had been standing.
Toward the rocky ledge with the bloody handprint.
Were they attacked by the Demonic Cult here...?
Red drops of blood were scattered around the palm print.
They looked so fresh that it almost seemed as though the victim's hand had touched the rock only moments ago.
I placed one hand against the stone and lowered myself for a closer look.
Then...
...!
Beneath the bloodstains...
