Chapter 47: Four Great Villains (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 47: Four Great Villains (4)
The precious sword, flying like a spear amidst a wave of crimson killing intent, was deflected away.
Sama Chak reached out toward the flying blade. As if possessed by a life of its own, the sword was drawn through the air and into his hand.
Sama Chak swung the blade against the crimson killing intent spreading like a tide.
Swish!
The air shimmered like a heat haze in the shape of a crescent moon.
The crimson killing intent surging forward collided with the wave of energy unleashed by Sama Chak’s swing. The impact split the center of the boat in two.
Creeeeeak! Rumble!
“The—the boat!”
The vessel tilted precariously, shaking violently. The cult members watching from a distance grabbed onto the railings. Eventually, the tremors subsided.
The aftermath of the two clashing forces was nothing short of spectacular. The deck was split in a fan shape, radiating outward from the space between Sama Chak and me.
“Ha!”
“How could…?”
Haeakcheon, Seo Gal-ma, and even Baek Ryeonha, who was watching from afar, stared at me with wide, shocked eyes.
Do Jang-ho turned his head and asked, “Blood Demon. What was that just now?”
“I’m not sure myself… Urgh!”
The moment I tried to answer, my heart hammered violently, and a headache so sharp it felt like my skull was splitting ambushed me.
Thud!
The strength left my body, and my knees hit the floor.
“Blood Demon!”
Amidst Do Jang-ho’s panicked cry, the voice of the Lesser Conversation Sword echoed in my head.
—Your Blood Demon transformation has worn off. You’re—you’re having a nosebleed!
“Huff… huff…”
Even without the sword’s warning, I could feel the hot liquid trickling down from under my nose. My body refused to listen to me. Looking at my hand, I saw that the red dot of the Heavenly Authority had already turned blue.
It seemed I had completely exhausted my Mental Focus.
“Are you alright?”
I waved my hand dismissively at Do Jang-ho’s question. Truthfully, I was far from alright.
—What was that just now? That was a Blood Stillness Sword Stance that rivaled the Blood Demon’s own.
The voice of the Blood Demon Sword echoed in my mind. Rivaled or not, after unleashing that technique, not only was my Mental Focus depleted, but my Innate True Qi was almost entirely spent. I couldn't muster any strength in my limbs.
—It seems you exerted power beyond your limits. You forcibly drew out a realm you haven't yet reached. How did you do it?
I didn’t know either. I had simply stood up with a singular, desperate thought: I didn't want to die. It felt as if the power of the Heavenly Authority had resonated with that conviction to save me.
‘Damn it…’
But my body felt incredibly heavy. If I fell out of the fight now, the others—who were already struggling—would surely be overwhelmed.
I lifted my head and looked at Sama Chak. He was staring back at me, his eyes narrowed in a peculiar expression.
“I need… a moment to recover.”
Do Jang-ho nodded at my words. He stepped in front of me to protect me, taking a Qi Control Stance.
‘Whew… whew…’
I closed my eyes and began circulating the Innate Heart Method. A warm energy rose from my heart and permeated my entire body. I had to recover, even if only a little.
“Heh heh! Now I have even more reason to keep you alive!”
Boom! Boom!
Ignoring his injured hand, Haeakcheon slammed his fists together. As he did, his arms—from his shoulders to his fists—turned a deep, dark crimson.
Sssssss!
Steam billowed even more intensely from Haeakcheon’s entire body. It appeared he was about to use a secret technique.
“Haaa… Very well, Brother Hae. Let’s settle this.”
Raging Demon Lord Seo Gal-ma gripped his long saber with both hands, holding it diagonally. A sharp killing intent began to shimmer off the blade like a haze. As a master at the peak of the Supreme Peak Realm, he too had a hidden trump card.
“Let me lend a hand as well.”
At that moment, someone walked into the center of the battlefield.
“Blood Hand Witch?”
It was Han Baek-ha. Though she had only one arm, she took a palm technique stance with her hand stained red by the Blood Jade Hand. Despite her poor condition due to her injuries, every bit of help was needed, so neither Haeakcheon nor Seo Gal-ma stopped her from joining.
“Moon Evil Sword, let’s go again!”
Despite his massive frame, Haeakcheon lunged forward like a bolt of lightning. Following him, Seo Gal-ma and Han Baek-ha also threw themselves toward Sama Chak, unleashing their ultimate techniques.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sama Chak’s hands moved with blinding speed, weaving a tapestry of sword light.
‘Hmm?’
A glint of surprise appeared in Sama Chak’s eyes. His sword had pierced Seo Gal-ma’s chest, but instead of retreating, the man lunged forward, practically impaling himself further to close the distance.
The others were the same. They disregarded their own wounds entirely, focused solely on landing a fatal blow on Sama Chak.
‘These fools…’
When three masters attacked with the resolve of mutual destruction, even Sama Chak had to become serious, as any variable could prove dangerous.
Sama Chak glanced toward where his daughter was.
‘Ha!’
In the midst of all this, Sama Yeong was looking at So Woon-hwi, not him. The saying that raising a daughter was futile suddenly made sense.
However, he found one thing unexpected. He knew the Blood Cult to be an evil faction that used any means necessary, yet not a single one of them had targeted his daughter, who was currently unable to move due to his pressure point technique.
‘It’s different from what that fellow said.’
Sama Chak had heard a story from the First Blood Star, Thunder Blood Sword Jang Ryong. He had been told that if his daughter, Sama Yeong, was here, she would be bound by repeated brainwashing and the consumption of a Blood Drum. If that were the case, it would have made more sense for them to use her as a hostage.
Yet, none of them did.
‘Should I have listened to their side of the story as well?’
Sama Chak possessed a brilliant mind, but he was equally emotional and bellicose. It was those traits that had made him one of the Four Great Villains. Because of what he had heard and the belief that his daughter was being insulted, he had resolved to kill these people and So Woon-hwi, who he believed had seduced her.
But the more they fought, the more he felt that wasn't the case.
‘Hmm.’
As his burning rage cooled slightly, his cold reason returned. However, the battle was already in full swing.
‘If that man lied to me and these people haven't harmed my daughter, there’s no need to increase the grudge by killing them.’
In that case, he only needed to suppress them and take Sama Yeong with him. However, they had become more difficult to handle than before. Individually, they were weaker than him, but their combined attack and their willingness to die for a strike made suppressing them difficult.
Especially…
‘Bizarre Hae Ak-cheon. This one is the most troublesome.’
Of the three, Haeakcheon was the strongest. He already possessed a body close to the Indestructible Diamond Body, and after using his secret technique, his arms had become even harder while his internal power surged. Furthermore, the more he fought, the more his battle spirit rose, making his movements sharper.
‘He is standing right before the Wall.’
Sama Chak evaluated him highly. Haeakcheon was a man on the threshold of becoming a peerless master. If he could only gain enlightenment, the martial world might have to welcome a new superhuman.
‘Suppressing him first is out of the question.’
The answer was then clear. The target was Han Baek-ha, whose skills were relatively lower. She was a master near the peak of the Supreme Peak Realm, but having lost an arm, she was the most vulnerable among them.
‘Good.’
Sama Chak lightly manipulated his sword formula, neutralizing her palm technique. Then, with the speed of a lightning bolt, he aimed for her pressure points. He created a dense net of sword light to prevent the other two masters from interfering.
But a variable occurred.
“Kraaaaagh!”
Instead of blocking or dodging the sword net, Haeakcheon slammed his body into it, heedless of the cuts. Using his muscular arms as shields, he forced his way through.
And then…
“Take this!”
Haeakcheon raised his two dark-red hands, clasping them together. It was Haeakcheon’s signature secret technique, Golden Blood Mad Pressure. A pressure as heavy as a great mountain bore down.
Crrrk!
Even before the technique landed, the deck split apart, and the floor within a two-zhang radius sank downward.
‘I have no choice but to block this.’
Sama Chak concentrated his killing intent into his sword and thrust it upward. The moment the sword and the two fists collided…
BOOM!
With a thunderous roar, something no one had predicted happened. Under the sheer force of the two masters, the stern of the boat was crushed downward, and the vessel, already split in half, began to collapse into the water.
Rumble!
“The—the boat is collapsing!”
“Everyone, jump!”
It wasn't just the result of the two clashing. The ship simply couldn't withstand the cumulative damage of the battle. The primary cause was the earlier collision between So Woon-hwi’s and Sama Chak’s killing intent, which had already left the upper deck precariously split.
Rumble!
—Woon-hwi!
Along with the Lesser Conversation Sword’s shout, the deck I was sitting on shook violently, jolting me out of my meditation. It had been such a short time that my Innate True Qi had barely recovered. However, thanks to its restorative properties, the stiffness in my body had eased somewhat.
Crash!
The boat was splitting and crumbling apart. The situation was so unstable it was hard to keep my balance.
—Jump!
As the sword said, if I didn't jump into the river immediately, I would be buried under the wreckage.
‘!!!’
At that moment, someone caught my eye. It was Sama Yeong. Still paralyzed by the pressure point technique, she was sliding down amidst the debris of the collapsing ship.
“Damn it!”
Without a second thought, I threw myself toward her. There was no solid ground left as the boat broke apart, but I used my lightness skill to leap across the fragments toward her.
Splash!
Sama Yeong’s body had already fallen into the water along with the wreckage of the deck. I dove in right after her.
When I opened my eyes underwater, everything was a blur. Hoping for the best, I concentrated what little Innate True Qi I had left into my eyes, and my vision slowly began to clear.
‘Oh no!’
Sama Yeong’s stiff body was sinking deep into the water. I pushed off with my internal power and swam rapidly after her. She looked like she was in pain.
‘Just hold on a little longer.’
I grabbed her waist and turned toward the surface with all my might.
‘I have to release the pressure points.’
Tap! Tap!
I concentrated my Innate True Qi and struck her pressure points to release them, but I only felt a powerful recoil. The internal power Moon Evil Sword had instilled was too strong. I had no choice but to carry her to the surface.
Glub, glub!
Bubbles escaped her mouth; she was going to drown at this rate. I kicked my legs frantically.
‘Cursed wreckage!’
Massive pieces of the ship were raining down into the water like debris. Due to the water's resistance, I couldn't swing the Blood Demon Sword at my usual speed. Still, thanks to my internal power, I was able to cut through the obstacles.
—The upper left is clear.
Following the Namcheon Iron Sword’s voice, I saw an opening where only small fragments were falling. I darted through and broke the surface.
“Pwah!”
She had swallowed so much water she was unconscious.
“Lady Sama! Lady Sama!”
Damn it! If my Innate True Qi were intact, I could at least release the pressure points. I needed to get to a nearby boat quickly and perform artificial respiration.
As I tried to swim while holding her…
“Urgh!”
Once again, a splitting headache ambushed me. It was the aftereffect of pushing my Mental Focus beyond its limits. My body refused to move due to the pain.
“D-damn it!”
If I lost my strength here, both Sama Yeong and I would be in danger.
‘I have to get Lady Sama to a boat, somehow…’
It was a moment of desperate crisis.
Thwack!
“Ugh!”
Along with a sharp pain in my head, I lost consciousness.
In the middle of the Yangtze River.
There was a man running across the surface of the water as if it were solid ground. This was the legendary lightness skill known as the Water-Skimming Lightness Skill.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Small ripples formed every time his toes touched the water. The one performing this miracle was none other than Moon Evil Sword Sama Chak. Tucked under each of his arms were the unconscious forms of his daughter, Sama Yeong, and So Woon-hwi.
“You bastarrrrrd! Moon Evil Sword! Put the Blood Demon down this instant!”
Haeakcheon’s thunderous roar echoed from behind him. This was because Sama Chak was running toward a location completely unrelated to the other boats while carrying the two.
“Damn it!”
Splash!
Haeakcheon, who had been standing precariously on a floating piece of timber, dove into the water. He was determined to catch up.
But how could a man swimming ever catch a man running across the water as if it were a plain? Sama Chak was already far in the distance.
As he ran across the waves, Sama Chak glanced down at So Woon-hwi with a bored expression and muttered to himself.
“Now, what should I do with you?”