The Chaotic Melee
Muk Bi exhaled deeply after blasting the last assassin's head clean off.
“Huuuuh.”
She had fired dozens of formless bullets in a single breathless barrage. Even with her vast inner energy reserves, the effort left her momentarily drained.
The assassins’ movement arts were endlessly varied. When they layered explosive footwork onto their attacks, even the peerless Muk Bi suffered extreme fatigue. ‘Still, I’m lucky. The White Tower training paid off.’ In the past, she had often sparred at close range with Yeon Hojeong.
Recently Yeon Hojeong had been too busy, so she trained alone or exchanged blows with the army’s soldiers. Those sessions only ended when her inner energy and stamina were completely spent.
She had kept up that regimen almost every single day. Thanks to it, she had been able to fight the assassins with unbroken focus.
She felt a fresh wave of gratitude for Yeon Hojeong’s guidance.
The Hongcheon Qi-based bow-string reinforcement technique wrapped fiercely around her entire body.
Her depleted stamina surged back at an incredible rate. Without the Hongcheon Qi supporting her, recovery this swift would have been impossible.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah. You?”
“I’m fine.”
Yeo Guk wiped the blood from his face.
He might not match Muk Bi, but his stamina was second to none. The same held true for every member of the Myeolsa Army.
“I only survived because I had the Department Head backing me. Without you, I’d be dead.”
Even a master on Muk Bi’s level would have fallen. The only reason the two of them had been able to wipe out so many assassins was Muk Bi’s godlike movement arts and her impossibly precise archery.
Muk Bi shook her head.
“That’s not the issue right now. Head north, gather the remaining Myeolsa troops, and move to the third base.”
“Understood. What about you, Department Head?”
“I’m heading to the battlefield.”
Yeo Guk clasped his hands in salute.
“I’ll send word once we arrive.”
“Good.”
Whoosh!
Yeo Guk vanished from the spot.
Even right after a brutal life-or-death struggle, his movement arts showed no sign of faltering. As expected of a master who had cultivated the pinnacle of Daoist martial arts, his qi flow remained steady despite the fierce battle.
Muk Bi lightly slapped her own cheek. ‘All right, then.’
Whoosh!
She once again took to the skies.
Her Dragon Flight gained momentum. Not only had her archery’s power and spear technique’s flexibility improved, but her lightness skill had also become far more refined than before.
Now her qi control was so delicate that, given even the smallest gap, she could disappear without a trace. The fight with the assassins had given her a precise sense of where she stood in the martial world.
Bang! Bang!
The faster she ran, the more speed she built.
She wanted to chase after the path Yeon Hojeong had carved, but the five Myeolsa soldiers mattered more than Yeon Hojeong right now. If they had not yet engaged the enemy, fine—but if they had clashed with the enemy leader, the five soldiers were in greater danger than Yeon Hojeong. That was Muk Bi’s judgment.
And her judgment was correct.
As she curved northeast toward the soldiers’ approach, something brushed her senses.
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion that shook the air sharpened her nerves like a blade. ‘The Three Kills Formation!’
Yes—this was the aura of the Myeolsa Three Kills Formation.
What had disturbed that aura was a sinister power she had encountered once before. ‘Blood Demon Palm, was it?’ She recalled Yeon Hojeong’s words. ‘If the enemy appears on the retreat route as I expect, the Shadow God might not show, but that damned woman definitely will. She won’t come alone, of course. We humiliated her too badly for that.’ ‘The first strike will almost certainly come after the initial ambush. The odds are low, but if that disciple of hers got his tail stepped on, it’s not impossible. If it happens, you must combine forces with the soldiers without fail.’ ‘Remember this clearly. The probability is extremely low. We probably won’t be torn apart. But if it does happen, you will be the one commanding the Myeolsa Army. Prioritize survival over engaging, and engaging over eliminating. Keep that in mind.’
Muk Bi remembered Yeon Hojeong’s words perfectly.
Under normal circumstances she could leave everything to him. But if he were removed from the equation, then—as he had said—she would be the one leading the Myeolsa Army.
She had to stay tense, and stay tense again. Even if she could not match Yeon Hojeong, she needed to prepare countless contingencies and make swift decisions. ‘That said…’ Muk Bi could not help but marvel at Yeon Hojeong’s foresight. ‘He said the odds were low, yet he had already anticipated this far ahead.’
Having a capable superior was difficult. But when that superior was Yeon Hojeong, everything changed. Knowing someone so thoroughly prepared the road ahead gave her immeasurable reassurance as an ally.
Since she had benefited from that foresight, it was time to do her part.
Whoosh!
With one final step she doubled her speed in an instant.
In the distance to her right, she caught sight of Yeon Hojeong locked in fierce combat.
Muk Bi’s eyes flashed. ‘A master!’
Just as Yeon Hojeong had suspected, the Blood Demon Palm expert had not come alone. ‘Then the odds are high that the other one is the Shadow God.’
At that moment—
‘……?!’
Muk Bi’s eyes trembled. ‘Th-that……!!’
The Shadow God’s first disciple, who had been behind Ok Cheong, suddenly moved at terrifying speed and lunged toward the figure presumed to be the Shadow God.
Yeon Hojeong, who had been swinging the Flood Dragon Chain, abruptly halted his attack mid-motion. Even the peerless Yeon Hojeong could not hide his shock.
Muk Bi, who had frozen for an instant, forced herself to look away. ‘That battlefield is not mine.’
Yeon Hojeong would handle it somehow. He always did! ‘I have to go where I’m needed.’
Bang!
Muk Bi flew onward without hesitation. Before long she spotted the five blood-soaked soldiers. ‘Song Yeon-gyeong!’
The five Myeolsa soldiers were the Emei spearmen led by Song Yeon-gyeong. They had formed their formation and were swinging their six-foot spears with divine skill, yet they could not land a clean hit on the ghostly Blood Demon Ghost Woman. ‘Damn it!’
There was no time to weigh options. Muk Bi immediately drew the string of the Honglian Bow.
So Bang turned her head and met Muk Bi’s gaze. ‘……!!’
Muk Bi felt a chill run down her spine.
So Bang’s eyes, fixed directly on her, burned with murderous intent.
Muk Bi released the string.
Boom!
The formless bullet exploded in midair before it had traveled even halfway. So Bang’s projected force had been faster than the bullet itself.
Whoosh!
Muk Bi twisted through the air with godlike agility and landed behind the five soldiers.
Song Yeon-gyeong’s eyes widened.
“Department Head!”
Without answering, Muk Bi raised the Honglian Bow. She could not spare even the fraction of a second it would take to reply.
An iron arrow nocked on the bow flashed like lightning.
Whoosh! Crash!
The iron arrow shattered and flew into the sky.
“……You bitch.”
So Bang ground her teeth after swatting the arrow away with her fist. A long gash ran across her knuckles. The arrow had broken, but its penetrating power had exceeded expectations and pierced her inner-energy shield.
Muk Bi’s eyes gleamed. ‘She’s weakened!’
So Bang’s fighting spirit was far murkier and slower than the killing intent she radiated.
She was overwhelming the Myeolsa Three Kills Formation, yet she was not immune to its draining effect. She was not as pressured as when Yeon Hojeong had been the formation’s axis, but her qi and stamina were clearly being consumed at a rapid rate. ‘We can do this!’
Whooooosh!
Muk Bi gathered the bow-string reinforcement technique at her fingertips.
“Spearmen! Keep pushing forward! I’ll cover the rear!”
“Yes!”
With a resounding cry, the five spearmen surged ahead.
Only one additional fighter had joined them, yet that single person was the Myeolsa Army’s strongest and a master worthy of the title Divine Archer.
With such a superior fighting alongside them, what was there to fear? Flames of fighting spirit lit in the eyes of Song Yeon-gyeong and the other spearmen.
So Bang roared.
“I’ll tear every last one of you into a thousand pieces!”
Muk Bi released the string with cold precision.
“Try it if you can.”
Whoosh!
* * *
‘……?!’
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes flashed. ‘You!’
In the space of a split second, he caught Sama Hyeon’s movement as the man leapt onto Ok Cheong’s shoulder like a phantom.
The motion was so swift and stealthy that even Ok Cheong, with Sama Hyeon flying directly above his head, failed to notice. It was an extraordinary concealment art and lightness skill.
The problem was that Sama Hyeon’s movement was so fast he was already charging between the Flood Dragon Chain and Yayul Jeok. ‘Damn it!’
Even Yeon Hojeong had not anticipated Sama Hyeon’s sudden action.
Clang!
The Flood Dragon Chain changed direction mid-flight. One wrong move and it might have impaled Sama Hyeon’s torso.
BOOM!
The chain slammed into the ground, kicking up a thick cloud of dust.
Thud! Crack!
At that moment, Sama Hyeon coughed up blood and staggered backward.
“Ghh!”
Yayul Jeok’s figure appeared in front of Sama Hyeon.
A throwing dagger was buried in Yayul Jeok’s chest, and a terrifying killing intent poured from his body. He had never imagined he would be ambushed by Sama Hyeon.
“Y-you bastard!!”
Fwoooosh!
The Beast King’s Killing Qi surged like flames.
Although he had been caught off guard by Yeon Hojeong’s skill and taken an unexpected blow, he had been tracking the Flood Dragon Chain’s movements perfectly. Just as he moved to counter that attack, Sama Hyeon’s unforeseen strike had landed.
If he had been circulating the Shadow God Qi, the ambush would never have succeeded. Because he had filled his body with the Beast King’s Killing Qi, he had failed to detect Sama Hyeon’s concealment art.
It was a painful mistake.
“You’re begging to die!”
Whoosh!
Yayul Jeok charged at Sama Hyeon like a wild beast.
His intent was to kill with a single blow. The murderous aura he emitted was even more vicious than when he had fought Yeon Hojeong.
In the moment of chaos—
Flash!
Yeon Hojeong, who had reached Sama Hyeon’s side with the Blood Wing Flash, thrust his fist toward Yayul Jeok.
At the same time, Ok Cheong swung the Taiji Wisdom Sword at Yayul Jeok’s back. He judged that striking Yayul Jeok was more efficient than moving to Sama Hyeon’s side.
Four masters converged on a single point, each targeting their opponent.
Yeon Hojeong’s Four Gods Qi, Yayul Jeok’s Beast King’s Killing Qi, Ok Cheong’s Primordial Qi, and Sama Hyeon’s Shadow God Qi collided.
BOOM! Thud! CRASH!
“Graaah!”
“Kuh!”
A tremendous shockwave erupted, turning the surrounding area into a wasteland.
Sama Hyeon coughed blood and was hurled backward. Yeon Hojeong also retreated, suffering internal injuries.
Ok Cheong hung limply at Yeon Hojeong’s side, his consciousness gone. The sword in his hand was snapped in half.
“……Damn it all!”
Whoosh!
“Graaah!”
With a blood-choked scream, Yayul Jeok fled like a beast.
Yeon Hojeong wanted to give chase immediately, but Ok Cheong’s condition was too dire. His breathing was so faint that death seemed imminent.
Yeon Hojeong’s face twisted.
BOOM!
He struck Yayul Jeok’s retreating back with a palm strike from the Crimson Flame Six Killing Hands.
Yayul Jeok coughed blood, staggered, then forced himself to keep running. His flight was driven purely by the will to survive.
“……!!”
Yeon Hojeong stared helplessly at the path along which Yayul Jeok had vanished.
Things never went exactly as planned, but he had never expected to lose a man he had already caught.
That was not the immediate problem, however. Yeon Hojeong hurriedly checked Ok Cheong’s pulse.
His eyes trembled.
“Ok Cheong!”