Chapter 179. Fate (4)
The bandit's eyes widened.
'An arrow?'
He wasn't sure if it was an arrow or something else. What mattered was that his forearm had been blown clean off—and whatever had done it had pierced straight through to his thigh.
“Arghhh!”
The bandit collapsed with a scream of agony.
Pa Sa Leok's eyes shook.
“What the hell?!”
At that moment, a dozen flashes of light streaked through the air.
Boom boom boom!
The beams of light pierced the foreheads of the bandits surrounding the hostages with pinpoint accuracy.
Pa Sa Leok whipped his head around, his eyes flashing.
'Over there!'
It was a wild hill about a hundred and fifty jang away in a straight line. Arrows fired from that distance had targeted his men with deadly precision.
“What kind of bullshit trick is this...!”
Flash!
Another streak of light blazed forth. This one was aimed directly at Pa Sa Leok—far faster and sharper than before.
Pa Sa Leok instinctively thrust up his palm.
Bang!
The arrow, struck by the explosive palm force, grazed his cheek and flew past.
Drip, drip.
Blood trickled from Pa Sa Leok's cheek. Its trajectory had been deflected, but its power remained undiminished.
'Strong!'
A heavy impact lingered in the hand that had swatted the arrow away. To infuse an arrow with such profound inner energy was beyond imagination. The archer's skill was in no way inferior to his own.
Pa Sa Leok bellowed,
“Kill all the hostages!”
Mo Yong Woo shouted,
“Charge!”
Rumble!
The two hundred lead warhorses surged forward. The remaining two hundred cavalry behind them held position. Instead, the Tang Ma Army soldiers atop them leaped down with agile footwork and charged in.
It was an assault combining flexible infantry combat around the vanguard cavalry—a tactical formation of elite martial artists skilled in swift, high-level techniques.
“Waaahhh!”
More bandits rushed in behind their fallen comrades, swinging blades at the hostages.
Boom boom boom!
Before the blades could reach the hostages, the bandits spewed blood and crumpled. It was a divine chain rapid-fire technique of godly precision.
How could someone see this situation so clearly from that distance? And even if they could, how could they unleash unerring archery like this? It was nothing short of miraculous.
'This damn shit!'
He never imagined their hidden card would be an archer of this caliber.
'This wasn't a diversion—it was them betting everything on that bowman?!'
It was the first time. He'd completely misread the enemy's hand.
Pa Sa Leok yelled,
“Forget the hostages! Fall back!”
Neighhh!
At that instant, a single warhorse let out a roar like a dragon's cry.
Outpacing all cavalry and infantry was Mo Yong Woo, charging straight at Pa Sa Leok's front.
Pa Sa Leok's blue eyes blazed with fury. Clear bewilderment flickered in that gaze.
Mo Yong Woo said coldly,
“I told you I'd kill you myself.”
Tang Ma. The words came from the commander of the army that purged demons.
That chilling voice sent a shiver down Pa Sa Leok's spine.
“Don't think you'll die easy.”
Flash!
The wave of sword force crashing in seemed ready to cleave Pa Sa Leok in two at once, ferocious and unrelenting.
A red glow enveloped Pa Sa Leok's fist.
Boom!
Surprise flashed across Mo Yong Woo's face.
“Aren't you underestimating me just because I'm the bandit leader?”
With a powerful stomp, Pa Sa Leok thrust out an arm like a log. A sinister black-red aura seeped from his entire body, ominous to behold.
The aura was sinister, but the power packed into that single fist was tremendous. It pushed back not just Mo Yong Woo, but the warhorse he rode as well.
“Consider yourself lucky, you brat.”
Whoosh!
Pa Sa Leok launched himself forward. His massive frame moved with startling agility, crossing the upper compound in an instant—like he was flying.
Pa Sa Leok roared,
“What are you waiting for? Tear down the north wall! We're taking the mountain path!”
That was when it happened.
Whoosh!
Pa Sa Leok sensed the world darkening around him. A single shadow had closed in on his back.
“I told you clearly.”
Mo Yong Woo, having leaped from his horse, had caught up in a flash and raised his greatsword high.
“You're dying here.”
“You little shit!”
Flash!
Boom!
The two rebounded in opposite directions. The bandits Pa Sa Leok crashed into tumbled like dominoes. Mo Yong Woo, embedded in a building wall, burst free and charged again.
In that moment, he spotted the hostages. The naked women trembled violently, their faces deathly pale.
'I'll protect you.'
Clank! Clank!
Mo Yong Woo shed his pauldrons and armguards, then flung his robe to the women. Infused with his profound energy, it fluttered down before them.
'Muk Bi will handle the rest.'
He'd ordered no arrows until his signal. In that sense, Muk Bi had disobeyed. But Mo Yong Woo had no intention of rebuking her.
It had been a razor-thin situation. They'd plunged into chaos without a full plan, but it had saved the hostages—something to be grateful for.
Now, only the fight remained.
Boom!
Mo Yong Woo stomped hard and unleashed a powerful palm strike.
Pa Sa Leok's eyes gleamed.
Boom!
A bandit spewed blood and fell to the mighty palm force. Pa Sa Leok had hurled one of his own as a shield.
It was a despicable move, but Mo Yong Woo wasn't surprised. This madman had ripped the throat out of an innocent woman while she lived. Nothing he did would shock anymore.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Pa Sa Leok ground his teeth. Mo Yong Woo closed the distance with ghostly footwork—practical yet exquisitely precise, perfectly sealing any escape to the rear or flanks. A divine maneuver.
No choice but to clash head-on. And best to end it quickly.
Rumble.
Black-red energy surged from Pa Sa Leok once more. He'd invoked Sumi Yeok Bul Gong, the supreme art of So Roe Eum Sa.
And in response.
Mo Yong Woo unleashed the majestic sword force of his ultimate technique, Geon Gon Baek Pal Geom Hae.
Their sword and fist collided head-on.
Clang clang clang!
As the brutal clash between supreme masters began, the entire Tang Ma Army breached the outer compound.
Boom! Thud!
Bandits fell one by one, vomiting blood. It was melee chaos. United, they might have held; scattered like this, the individually superior Tang Ma Army held the edge.
But the Hwarang Group was no pushover.
Thud!
“Gah!”
One soldier spewed blood and collapsed. A short spear had pierced his chest with exquisite precision—the Tang Ma Army's first casualty.
Casualties were inevitable in battle, but this was far too soon.
A bandit yelled,
“Group up! These guys are a ragtag mob!”
“Waaahhh!”
Bandits were simple. Seasoned warriors who could take on a hundred alone, honed by countless brushes with death—but bandits at heart. That made them all the more terrifying. The cry that the enemy was disorganized flipped the Hwarang Group's morale.
Their simplicity became an advantage rivaling peak martial arts in this chaos.
Boom!
An astonishing sight. Massive bandits smashed through the outer walls with body slams, shoving back the cavalry. Their innate divine strength, honed by brutal external arts, rivaled legends of uprooting mountains and overwhelming the world with qi.
Horses were said to equal ten infantry, but before these brutes, such numbers meant nothing.
“Kill! Kill them all!”
“Arghhh!”
The Hwarang Group, initially pushed back, now matched the Tang Ma Army—and began to overwhelm them.
Thud! Thud! Crack!
A dozen Tang Ma cavalry toppled on the spot.
Slash! Stab! Stab!
They severed the fallen horses' necks, then impaled the riders atop them. No room to maneuver properly. These were renowned martial artists, but none had experience in mass combat.
Without training and practice, even superior individual skill was halved. That was group warfare—war itself.
Boom!
Mo Yong Woo blocked with his greatsword's flat, but Pa Sa Leok's fist emerged unscathed. A fist law boasting steel purity.
Its inherent toughness was shocking, but the destructive power of the sinister aura cloaking it was even greater.
'Can't let it go on like this.'
Shing!
Thud!
Pa Sa Leok staggered back three steps. The kick hadn't been full force, yet he'd only retreated that far. Peak external art defense—immense durability.
'We can't keep going like this.'
Clang!
The downward greatsword slash severed Pa Sa Leok's forearm. But it was mere flesh. He'd twisted at the moment of contact, avoiding amputation. Battle instincts honed to the primal level.
Incredible for a mere bandit leader.
'We've gained enough from the surprise. Time to withdraw.'
He accurately assessed the battlefield even mid-clash with a formidable foe. Just a bit late. Had he seen it sooner, Tang Ma casualties could have been minimized.
No one expected flawless judgment on a first campaign; this alone proved Mo Yong Woo's genius unmatched.
Mo Yong Woo shouted,
“Squad Leader Jin! Pull the troops back!”
Jin Pae, mid-slaughter, lit up. He didn't want to retreat. He wanted to wipe these madmen out. But it was the commander's order. No choice.
The order to him alone—not all squad leaders—stemmed from trust he'd obey without question.
“Tang Ma Army, full retreat!”
Shing!
Soldiers pressing the bandits turned heated gazes to Jin Pae.
“But Squad Leader!”
“It's the commander's order! Fall back now!”
Gyu Byeok gnashed his teeth.
“This squad, retreat!”
The soldiers hesitated. Mo Yong Woo's judgment had been sure, if late—but the men didn't react instantly.
Simple reason: battle fever. They knew orders were absolute, weren't defying out of pride, but martial artists' ego delayed them a beat.
And the result was gruesome.
Boom boom boom!
Bandit arrows, timed perfectly, rained on this squad's cavalry.
Boom boom!
Neighhh!
They blocked over half, but the rest struck true. Thirty-odd cavalry fell.
“No!”
“Retreat! Retreat!”
Only then did withdrawal accelerate. But the Hwarang Group was tenacious. They knew from experience that an unintended retreat crushed enemy morale.
Clang!
Pa Sa Leok seized Mo Yong Woo's greatsword. His palm bled, but Sumi Yeok Bul Gong's power prevented bone-deep cuts.
“How's that, brat?”
Pa Sa Leok grinned whitely.
“Who said they'd kill who?”
“......As expected, things don't go as planned.”
“Kuhahaha! Figured it out now, eh?”
Whoosh!
Immense force pressed Mo Yong Woo harder. In raw power, Pa Sa Leok clearly held the edge.
“Been fun after so long. Farewell, young commander.”
That was when it happened.
Crack!
“Guh!”
Pa Sa Leok clutched his nose, staggering.
“Y-You bastard, what the...?!”
“Going all out, right?”
Mo Yong Woo wiped his forehead. A headbutt had shattered Pa Sa Leok's nose bridge.
“No need to worry about the men now, so I'll be different from before.”
“What the fuck are you saying, you dogshit!”
That was when it happened.
Rumble!
Trees on the southern hill exploded wholesale. A group barreled through, toppling rocks and trees indiscriminately.
Pa Sa Leok's eyes bulged.
Mo Yong Woo's gleamed with killing intent.
“You're all getting caught here today.”
Roarrr!!
With a furious bellow, a white storm shattered the southern wall and stormed in.
The Myeol Sa Army.