Chapter 242: The Rightful Heir of the Hainan Sect
Chapter 242: The Rightful Heir of the Hainan Sect
Pipipipiping!
"Uwaaaaagh!"
"Keuaaagh!"
"Charge! We have to get close so they can't shoot their steel arrows!"
"Go! Get close by any means! Heok?! Keuaagh!"
The warriors of the Black Dragon Ship, who had suffered devastating casualties in the first ambush, attempted to somehow defend against the steel arrows and break through the encirclement. They had judged that since the main force of the White-Robed Warriors attacking them appeared to be steel arrows, they stood a chance if only they could close the distance.
But the White-Robed Warriors were not so easily dealt with.
The White-Robed Warriors, who had all used steel arrows in the first ambush, now showed a formation where only one-third remained to continue firing while the rest drew their swords to block the Black Dragon Ship warriors' approach. It was truly a timely and appropriate response.
Chaechaeng! Chaechaechaeng!
Pipiping!
"Keueok!"
While roughly two hundred warriors held off the enemy at the front, the hundred warriors at the rear were sniping at the Black Dragon Ship warriors who tried to break through the encirclement, shooting steel arrows between their comrades' bodies. It was truly a perfect division of roles and coordination. Feats so precarious that the slightest mistake might result in shooting an ally, which were easy only in words. Yet they were employing these absurd feats with fluid mastery in actual combat, without a single mistake. Even without confirming it, I could tell they were elite soldiers who had trained together over a very long time.
Chaechaechaeng! Pipipiping!
"Aaaaagh!"
"Keueoeok!"
Against that astonishing encircling assault, which bordered on artistry, the warriors of the Black Dragon Ship died helplessly. And Sul Mo-saeng, the head of the Hainan Sul family, could only watch those Black Dragon Ship warriors in sheer bewilderment.
"T-this can't be..."
The situation unfolding before his eyes was far too different from the picture he had originally envisioned. He had only imagined a scene of easily dealing with the wretch Inparang using the overwhelming force of two hundred Black Dragon Ship warriors and triumphantly returning in glory...
After pledging his loyalty to Jin Tae-do over a decade ago, Sul Mo-saeng had walked only upon a smooth and certain path ever since. That was because Jin Tae-do, whom he had taken as his master, had become the sect leader of the Hainan Sect, and Sul Mo-saeng had been able to live under him, freely enjoying every benefit. There had been no obstacles, no hardships. Everything had been smooth sailing, and he had not doubted for a single moment that this life would continue forever. At least, that was how it had been until now.
But at this very moment, watching the Black Dragon Ship warriors collapsing with screams, Sul Mo-saeng had to swallow dryly without realizing it.
Gulp!
It seemed that a serious crisis had arrived in his life. He turned his head away from the Black Dragon Ship warriors and looked again before his eyes. Then he could see that another crisis, beyond just the unidentified White-Robed Warriors, was approaching. Right before his eyes, Inparang, having drawn the White Tiger Sword, was slowly advancing toward him. What was more, his gait was leisurely, as if approaching prey already caught.
Gazing at him, Sul Mo-saeng gnashed his teeth with a furious expression.
Grind!
All of this was because of that bastard. If he had just died cleanly back then, everything would have ended, but instead he had stubbornly survived without dying and was now finally obstructing his path.
"You wretch!"
Chaeng!
Sul Mo-saeng drew his sword with eyes full of rage. He absolutely had to kill that bastard. He felt that since all these problems had arisen because of him, if he just killed that bastard, everything could be resolved. Moreover, Sul Mo-saeng had confidence he could dispose of him. No matter how much they called him the successor of the Hainan In clan or whatever, he was still just a green boy barely in his twenties. There was no way a wretch like that could be a match for himself, a master on the verge of reaching the transcendent peak.
Sul Mo-saeng pointed his sword confidently at Inparang and shouted, "You wretch! This time, I will kill you for certain!"
Then his eyes caught the sight of Inparang's lips curling slightly upward. He was probably mocking him. Fury surged within Sul Mo-saeng at that mockery, and just as he was about to let out a battle cry and charge at Inparang—
"You bastard! How dare you!"
Suddenly, his eyes caught Inparang taking a step forward. Though he had been walking continuously until now, somehow this step felt a little different from all the others. And then, the next moment. Sul Mo-saeng could suddenly see Inparang's face materializing right before his eyes.
"Heok!"
Sul Mo-saeng was shocked by Inparang's movement technique. It was because a name for a movement technique similar to what the wretch had used abruptly surfaced in his mind.
'P-Phantom Shift?!'
But that was not what mattered now. Because the blade of the wretch who had drawn his sword was streaking toward him in a beam of light.
Shuhaaaak!
"Keuk!"
Sul Mo-saeng hurriedly raised his sword, trying to block the wretch's horizontally slashing blade.
Jjeoeong!
"!"
It was a tremendous impact. He had only blocked a single sword strike, yet his hand felt as if it were being torn apart. That was not all. Sul Mo-saeng had to exert all his strength to keep his own sword, which was vibrating violently, from being deflected and bouncing away. A scream erupted from within.
'Keuk! How can a mere young brat in his twenties be like this?!'
That was exactly the kind of thought he was having. He had thought he had clearly blocked the wretch's horizontally drawn sword, yet somehow, without any time lag, the wretch's next strike was coming down vertically.
Chuhaaaaak!
"!"
Staring at the blade crashing down like lightning above his head, Sul Mo-saeng could recall a single name.
'Southern Cross Sword...?'
And that was the final thought he could ever recall. Puhwaaaak! Sul Mo-saeng's body split cleanly in two. He, a master on the verge of looking upon the transcendent peak, had been bisected by the sword of Inparang, a mere twenty-something, and with just two sword strikes at that.
"Ooooh!"
Ja Gae-chu, the head of the Hainan Ja family, who had watched that spectacle from beginning to end, let out an exclamation with deeply moved eyes. In his eyes, which had dilated as wide as they could possibly go, tears were even glistening. That was the Southern Cross Sword. The very Southern Cross Sword that had produced the greatest under heaven in the name of Hainan, the one he had thought the Hainan Sect had lost forever. And more than that, look at that white sword he was holding. Was that not the White Tiger Sword? The sacred relic of the Hainan Sect, the White Tiger Sword, which he had thought might never be found again.
Ja Gae-chu had frankly been giving up, resigning himself to the idea that both the Southern Cross Sword and the White Tiger Sword were now utterly lost. But now, before his eyes, the successor of the Hainan In clan had appeared holding the White Tiger Sword, and had demonstrated overwhelming martial prowess with the Southern Cross Sword, executing a traitor of the Hainan Sect. It could not be anything but the most deeply moving spectacle he had ever witnessed in his life.
Ja Gae-chu, who had been gazing at Seonwoo Jin with tears welling in his eyes from the surging emotion, abruptly turned his head toward the warriors still fighting. And then he shouted in a booming voice.
- Warriors of Hainan, behold! The rightful successor of the White Tiger Sword and the Southern Cross Sword has appeared! Gongja Inparang, the successor of the Hainan In clan, has executed the traitor Sul Mo-saeng with the Southern Cross Sword!
The effect of that cry was tremendous. For the warriors of the Black Dragon Ship, who were still resisting, confirmed the White Tiger Sword held in Seonwoo Jin's hand and the corpse of Sul Mo-saeng split in two before him, and their expressions became utterly despondent. At the fact that the White Tiger Sword, the sacred relic of the Hainan Sect, stood on the opposing side from them, at the fact that Sul Mo-saeng, the supreme master who was supposed to lead them, had become a lonely ghost in an instant, the Black Dragon Ship warriors could not help but lose their will to fight before they even realized it. They abruptly halted their swords and steps and murmured.
"This can't be..."
"Wh-what do we do now?"
"Is that really the White Tiger Sword?"
Then Seonwoo Jin, who had sharply seized upon their confusion, raised the White Tiger Sword high into the sky and shouted.
- If you still consider yourselves warriors of Hainan, surrender before this White Tiger Sword! If you are subordinates of Jin Tae-do, I shall behead you, but if you are warriors of Hainan, I will spare your lives but once!
To the warriors of the Black Dragon Ship, those words were tantamount to compelling them to decide: would they become warriors of the Hainan Sect, or would they remain as Jin Tae-do's private soldiers? They were also words that implied Jin Tae-do was no longer the rightful sect leader of the Hainan Sect. And those words ultimately became the declaration that brought an end to the battle. For the warriors of the Black Dragon Ship, though they were warriors of the Hainan Jin family, were still warriors of the Hainan Sect as well.
With all momentum of victory already lost, no warrior wished to die as a traitor of the Hainan Sect.
The warriors of the Black Dragon Ship had now completely lost their will to fight, and could only let their swords fall from their hands.
Clang! Clang!
"I-I will surrender!"
"We yield."
"We surrender...."
And so the battle ended just like that.
It was nothing short of a result that vividly demonstrated the fate of a fight whose justification had been stripped away.
Afterward, all the surrendered warriors of the Black Dragon Ship were disarmed, their acupoints sealed, and forced to kneel to one side.
And the White-Robed Warriors who had subdued them all began to gather around Seonwoo Jin.
The eyes of all watching Seonwoo Jin burned with a fire-like intensity.
Then, one warrior with a sharp impression standing at the front knelt before Seonwoo Jin and cried out.
"The warriors of the Hainan In Clan and the Hainan Sa Clan behold the Young Lord!"
It was a fervent voice that seemed to unleash deep-seated resentment long knotted in the heart.
And that was the beginning.
As he knelt crying out as if leading the chorus, nearly three hundred White-Robed Warriors all began to kneel, shouting with desperate fervor.
"The warriors of the Hainan In Clan behold the Young Lord!"
"The warriors of the Hainan Sa Clan behold the Young Lord!"
"Young Lord!"
"We behold the Young Lord!"
Thud! Thud! Thud!
It was an astonishing spectacle indeed.
The sight of some three hundred warriors kneeling before Seonwoo Jin with brimming tears seemed like witnessing the return of a legendary hero.
Standing beside Seonwoo Jin, Son Dae-su, Son I-rang, and Jin So-eun stared blankly, utterly spellbound, at the three hundred warriors kneeling before them.
A shiver coursed from the tips of their toes straight up to the tops of their heads.
And finally, when all the White-Robed Warriors had knelt and cried out fervently, the last came.
Ja Gae-chu, head of the Hainan Ja family, slowly approached Seonwoo Jin and knelt, speaking.
"Ja Gae-chu, head of the Ja family, greets the rightful successor of the Hainan Sect."
The rightful successor of the Hainan Sect.
Those words held truly immense weight.
Hearing those words beside Seonwoo Jin, Son Dae-su could not help but sigh in spite of himself.
"Haah!"
The rightful successor of the Hainan Sect—how could such words be anything but heavy?
They carried the implication that the current sect leader, Jin Tae-do, was illegitimate, and that he must be driven out to reclaim the rightful place. It was also a statement bound to stir up a massive bloodbath within the Hainan Sect.
Son Dae-su already felt as though a thick scent of blood was filling the air.
He thought to himself.
'Isn't this spiraling out of control? At this rate, it can only lead to an all-out war with Jin Tae-do.... And besides, isn't Seonu Gongja not the real Inparang? No matter how good his intentions were in avenging Inparang, if they ever discover the truth....'
Merely imagining it was a truly horrifying thing.
Feeling suddenly light-headed, Son Dae-su looked at Seonwoo Jin with anxious eyes.
But despite the unfolding of such a heavy situation, Seonwoo Jin's expression did not flicker in the slightest.
He simply stood impassively with his arms crossed, gazing at the warriors of the Hainan Sect before speaking briefly.
"All of you, rise now."
At that moment, Son Dae-su let out a hollow laugh of admiration.
Because the way he commanded the warriors as if Son Dae-su's own worries were not even a concern was far too natural.
It was an arrogant manner, as if it was perfectly natural for him to be their ruler.
And look.
The warriors of the Hainan Sect, having heard his command, were rising from the ground as if charmed, were they not?
This meant he possessed an overwhelming dominance that compelled all to submit.
Son Dae-su could only shake his head with a hollow laugh.
'At this point, whether he is the real Inparang or not might not even matter. What an incredible dominance. I used to scoff at the notion that some are simply born as kings, and now I see it with my own eyes.'
Son Dae-su inwardly conceded.
If he, merely in his twenties and with no experience leading others as their chief, could display such natural dominance, then he must have been born a king.
He also thought further.
If he decided to continue living as Inparang, he would eventually become the true king of the Southern Sea.
Son Dae-su even began to think he might perhaps forge a new legend after the Namhae Sword King.
It was while everyone, including Son Dae-su, was trembling with awe at the spectacle resembling a scene from some story.
Yet one person alone could not share their emotion and was letting out a deep sigh.
That was Myo Cheong-ju, head of the Hainan Myo family.
Myo Cheong-ju was filled with regret.
'I should have attacked together with Sul Mo-saeng and killed him somehow when he was fighting earlier. That moment's hesitation has now cost me my final chance. It's far too late now; there won't even be an opportunity.'
Even just moments ago, Myo Cheong-ju had been unable to decide his course of action.
This was likely due to his lifelong habit of always mediating between both sides and steering decisions to his own will.
By never aligning with one side and staying in the middle, he had always been able to make the final choice, and thereby consistently maximize his own benefit.
So when Inparang began fighting Sul Mo-saeng, he had opted to watch the situation for a moment rather than intervene, but... he had never anticipated that the outcome would be decided so swiftly.
Myo Cheong-ju bit his lip in regret.
'It was a completely misjudged decision.'
And now, with everything over in an instant, Myo Cheong-ju was forced to keenly realize that the times he had been able to make the final choice were only when the balance between both sides was taut.
Now that the scales had completely tipped to one side, there was no choice left for him to make.
Furthermore, Inparang already knew that he had sent his father, In Gye-un, to the Hengshan Sect, did he not?
There was no way he would ever acknowledge him as truly neutral.
He suddenly envisioned the situations to come.
'Is there any... room for negotiation?'
Perhaps it might be possible.
If he promised to stand with Inparang against Jin Tae-do to reclaim the Hainan Sect.
Clearly at a disadvantage compared to Jin Tae-do, Inparang would surely need allies. In that case, he wouldn't want to make the Hainan Myo family a complete enemy either, would he?
So if he could just persuade him well on that point....
It was while he was thinking such thoughts.
Seonwoo Jin's gaze suddenly turned toward Myo Cheong-ju.
And the moment he saw those icy eyes looking at him, Myo Cheong-ju immediately understood.
There was no room for negotiation.
That he had absolutely no intention of sparing his life.
Seonwoo Jin aimed his sword at him and shouted.
"Myo Cheong-ju! When you go to hell, pray that you can apologize to the souls of the In and Sa families who were unjustly slain!"
Following his sword, every White-Robed Warrior also looked at him with blazing eyes.
Those were gazes filled with vengeful intent to execute the enemy.
Myo Cheong-ju could only squeeze his eyes shut.
From the very beginning, there had been no thought of negotiation.
And in this situation, even if Inparang had harbored a desire to negotiate, the other warriors would never have accepted it.
'This is the end.'
He felt hollow.
That the choice he had made to side with Jin Tae-do, who seemed most likely to become sect leader at the time, would come back to him in this way....
As he had always regretted, he should never have gone that far.
And as always, regret was utterly useless.
Myo Cheong-ju finally accepted death and closed his eyes, and just as Seonwoo Jin was about to swing his sword at him.
Myo A-ran, who was beside Myo Cheong-ju, suddenly cried out.
"Wait, please!"
At that clear, elegant voice, every gaze in the area focused on her in an instant.
Then Myo A-ran cried out desperately toward Seonwoo Jin.
"Before you kill my father, please speak with me first! I have urgent words for you, Young Master Yin!"
But Seonwoo Jin's sword did not move an inch at her words.
With eyes still icy cold, he asked her.
"Why should I?"
Myo A-ran looked at Seonwoo Jin with unreadable eyes, then slowly answered.
"Because... I am your betrothed."
In that instant, Seonwoo Jin's pupils shook violently.