Chapter 44
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: The Mount Hua Sect Makes Its Move (3)
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Jinmyeong bit his lip, watching the Purple Divine Sword close in at an incredible speed.
*This won't work.*
He could no longer block the Purple Divine Sword with his controlled swords.
To be precise, his controlled swords couldn't keep up with the Purple Divine Sword's speed.
And Jinmyeong himself couldn't shake him off either.
Shaking him off with his clumsy footwork was impossible from the start.
*I need to get into a stance.*
It was impossible to block the Purple Divine Sword's attacks while retreating.
In fact, he wouldn't even be able to block them properly.
Jinmyeong stopped in his tracks and drew his sword.
“Good.”
The Purple Divine Sword nodded, seeing Jinmyeong draw his sword.
Then, he immediately thrust his sword at Jinmyeong.
*Clang!*
Jinmyeong blocked the attack with the sword in his hand.
“Kuh!”
The moment he blocked the attack, a tremendous impact washed over his body.
Taking the shock he had felt even when blocking with his controlled swords directly with his body felt overwhelming.
*Still, I blocked it.*
Although his entire body ached as if it would break and he was constantly being pushed back, Jinmyeong continued to block the Purple Divine Sword's attacks.
Even Maejinpung, who had expected to break through Jinmyeong's defense, was so surprised his eyes wavered.
“Hmph!”
Was his pride wounded because Jinmyeong had blocked his attack?
The Purple Divine Sword pressed Jinmyeong, swinging his sword even more fiercely.
*So this is the swordsmanship of Mount Hua.*
In typical martial arts novels, the Mount Hua Sect used Plum Blossom Sword Arts.
There were often descriptions of the scent of plum blossoms rising, or of the style being sharp and dazzling.
*In this novel, doesn't the Mount Hua Sect use the Plum Blossom Sword Arts?*
He couldn't sense any scent of plum blossoms from the Purple Divine Sword before him.
There was no dazzling feel to it either.
Rather, the Purple Divine Sword's blade was incredibly sharp and fierce.
The Purple Divine Sword's blade was roughly pressing down on Jinmyeong.
*It's not easy to move.*
Whenever he tried to dodge an attack, the Purple Divine Sword's blade would suddenly appear and obstruct his movement.
It felt like he was cutting off his escape routes in advance.
*I can roughly predict how he's going to attack...*
As he continued to block the Purple Divine Sword's attacks, he could anticipate the next one.
However, the Purple Divine Sword's attacks were too fast and powerful to easily evade.
That was why Jinmyeong had no choice but to keep taking the Purple Divine Sword's powerful attacks head-on.
But just because Jinmyeong couldn't move didn't mean his controlled swords couldn't either.
“Hm? A cheap trick!”
Maejinpung frowned as he saw Jinmyeong's controlled swords flying toward his back.
He then spun around quickly and swung his sword.
*Ch-ch-ch-clang!*
The sword Maejinpung swung knocked away all of Jinmyeong's controlled swords in a single blow.
“I never said not to attack, but that was nothing special.”
“That's because I wasn't using my full strength.”
“Did you think you could win with such a half-hearted attack? It seems I've been underestimated.”
At Jinmyeong's words, Maejinpung's expression darkened even more.
He was enraged at the thought of being disrespected.
“Because I don't need to beat you. Surely you haven't forgotten what you said?”
Seeing Jinmyeong grin at him, Maejinpung felt as if he had been struck hard on the head.
“Your movements stopped. You're not going to claim that was all part of a single move, are you?”
“…Hahahaha!”
Maejinpung burst out laughing and sheathed his sword.
Jinmyeong watched him silently.
“Right. Just as you said, the one move is over.”
If he hadn't stopped moving, he could have insisted it was all a single move.
But Maejinpung had stopped to block the controlled swords coming from behind and had even paused in his anger at Jinmyeong's words.
In the end, the "one move" that Maejinpung had been insisting on was over.
“However, I'm starting to think it might be better to just kill you right here.”
Maejinpung looked as if he had no intention of keeping his promise.
“Surely a master like the Purple Divine Sword wouldn't go back on his word?”
“You lot are my enemies anyway.”
Therefore, he didn't think the promise made with the people of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was important.
“I never thought you'd be able to take it.”
“It seems you underestimated me.”
“I admit it.”
He had thought Jinmyeong wouldn't be able to withstand his attack.
Of course, since he was called the New Demonic Sword Controller, he figured Jinmyeong could block it with his controlled swords.
That's why he had pushed his luck, attacking until Jinmyeong was forced to block him directly.
“Fine. I will retreat for now.”
Despite saying the promise wasn't important, Maejinpung intended to retreat without fighting further.
“We will meet again soon. Next time, you won't get to keep your life so easily.”
Maejinpung turned without a second thought.
And then he began to leave with the disciples of Mount Hua.
*So he's actually retreating.*
It was only natural.
There was nothing the Mount Hua Sect could do against the members of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Without proof, it was impossible to attack the cult members.
From the Mount Hua Sect's perspective, making an enemy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was a terrifying prospect.
Especially without the support of the Righteous Alliance.
If the Mount Hua Sect and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult fought without the Righteous Alliance, only a future where the Mount Hua Sect was annihilated awaited them.
Instead, he tried to kill Jinmyeong, who was being watched by the Kunlun and Kongtong sects, but even that had failed.
*He's a very dangerous one, indeed.*
The Purple Divine Sword, Maejinpung, glanced back at Jinmyeong.
He hadn't used his full strength, but his attack had still carried immense power.
Not even one of the Fifteen Divine Dragons would have been able to block all of his attacks.
*Which means he has definitely surpassed the Fifteen Divine Dragons.*
Among the young masters of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the only ones said to have surpassed the Fifteen Divine Dragons were the Blood-Laughing Demon, Mok Jagyeong, and the Mad Demon's only daughter, Shin Yehyang.
But now, he felt Jinmyeong was not lacking even when compared to those two.
In fact, he had a feeling Jinmyeong would become stronger than both of them in the future.
“Are the disciples' corpses still far?”
“They have almost arrived, sir.”
They were in the process of moving the bodies of the Mount Hua disciples and the Yuk Escort Agency members, who had died on the border of Henan and Hebei, to Mount Hua.
*We will meet again.*
The Purple Divine Sword hoped the disciples' corpses would arrive quickly.
Only then could he find evidence and avenge his disciples.
The Purple Divine Sword's steps quickened as he headed toward Mount Hua.
“That's unbelievable.”
Meanwhile, as the Mount Hua Sect retreated, people approached Jinmyeong, who was sheathing his sword.
The first to approach him was Yeong Soso.
“To think you could withstand the Purple Divine Sword's blade.”
Whether the Purple Divine Sword, Maejinpung, had attacked Jinmyeong with his full strength was not important.
They all knew that the Purple Divine Sword's attack had been anything but ordinary.
“Young Master Jin. How on earth did you get so strong?”
“Why did you hide your strength until now?”
The successors of the Elders, who had never even spoken to Jinmyeong before, began to approach him.
*When did I ever hide it?*
He had never hidden it, not once.
They were just the ones who refused to acknowledge him.
Jinmyeong, who, despite being a disciple of the Heavenly Demon, had been inferior to them.
How could they admit that the youngest disciple, whom even the Heavenly Demon had given up on, had become stronger than them?
But now, they had no choice but to admit it.
*Is the Youngest Master now greater than the First Master?*
*Do we need to reconsider things?*
They couldn't help but continuously compare Jinmyeong to the Heavenly Demon's other disciples.
“So? Junior Brother? That offer I made before is still valid.”
Yeong Soso pushed the others aside and approached Jinmyeong.
She then gave him a seductive smile.
It was enough to make even the prepared Jinmyeong's heart flutter again.
“The time for idle chatter is over.”
Neung Byeokmun's voice cut in.
“It seems the Mount Hua Sect won't retreat just like that.”
And Mok Jagyeong's voice was also heard.
*And here they are, after pushing me into a deadly situation.*
Seeing them try to lead the others now, after foisting the Purple Divine Sword on him, made his anger surge.
“I know you are displeased, Young Master Jin. But we are pressed for time.”
There was no hint of apology on the face of the Shadow Brigade Leader as he looked at Jinmyeong.
Only a sense of urgency could be felt from him, likely because he believed the Mount Hua Sect wouldn't back down so easily.
*This is different from the Kongtong and Kunlun situations.*
Of course, the Kongtong Twin Elders and the Cloud Dragon Sword could be called masters.
But the Purple Divine Sword was a master on an entirely different level.
If Mount Hua made a request, Kunlun and Kongtong might also make a move.
“We must move quickly.”
Therefore, they had to return to the Cult before Mount Hua could act.
The Shadow Brigade Leader, thinking there was no more time to delay, hurried the group along.
“Can you walk?”
“Yes. Though my legs are shaking a bit.”
Jinmyeong nodded as he took the luggage Shin Yehyang handed him.
His body, having blocked the Purple Divine Sword's attack, was still screaming in agony.
But he didn't think the Shadow Brigade Leader or Mok Jagyeong would consider his condition and let him rest.
If they were that kind of people, they wouldn't have pushed him in front of the Purple Divine Sword in the first place.
“For now, we'll have to go as far as we can.”
Jinmyeong and Shin Yehyang followed Neung Byeokmun, who was leading the way.
*What on earth happened to him?*
There was also someone who bit their lip while watching Jinmyeong's back.
*I knew he wasn't ordinary, but...*
He had known that Jinmyeong's talent was anything but ordinary.
Of course, all disciples of the Heavenly Demon were said to possess heaven-sent talent.
But the talent Jinmyeong possessed was different from theirs.
An eye that could see through to the very essence of a martial art with just a single glance.
*That's why I was wary of him.*
Even though Jinmyeong hadn't learned any martial arts, he considered him the most dangerous of the disciples.
They called him a man with a body forsaken by the heavens, but he thought that if Jinmyeong ever became able to learn martial arts, he could become the most dangerous of all.
And in reality, he had shown that he wasn't far behind Mok Jagyeong, who was considered the strongest among the Heavenly Demon's disciples.
Weren't people now implicitly thinking that he might be even stronger than Mok Jagyeong?
*I really should have killed him back then.*
To think that failing to kill Jinmyeong would come back like this.
He even wondered if his own meddling was what led Jinmyeong to find his fortuitous encounter.
He also wondered if the boy would have continued to live quietly as a mouse if he had just been left alone.
*It's no use regretting it now.*
Failing to kill Jinmyeong at that time, and meddling with him before that—it was all in the past.
*It's not like there are no more opportunities.*
The Purple Divine Sword and the Mount Hua Sect had retreated, but he didn't think it would end like this.
If it were, they wouldn't be moving in such a hurry.
It was possible that Kunlun and Kongtong, who had a bad history with them, might also get involved.
*If I use this well, I can kill him.*
This was a good opportunity to kill Jinmyeong.
And not by his own hand, but by borrowing the power of the orthodox sects.
Wouldn't the number of people targeting Jinmyeong grow larger than expected?
Perhaps because he thought a great opportunity had arrived, a smile played on his lips as he watched Jinmyeong's back.