Chapter 77: Crisis of the Mountain Sword Sect-2
Chapter 77: Crisis of the Mountain Sword Sect-2
But Seol Pung, who glanced once at the fleeing men, turned his gaze back to the martial artists surging toward him like a tidal wave.
Fleeing was the obvious thing to do, but he didn't want to.
Suddenly, Je Won-yeong, who had been escaping, called out to him with a bewildered face.
"Squad Leader Seol Pung?!"
He hadn't told Je Won-yeong, but in truth, the operation hadn't failed yet.
That was because Sak Mu-heun would be mixed in among the charging enemies.
Hae Cheong-yeon had thought from the beginning that it would be too much for just the two of them to cleanly finish off three peak-level masters.
So though she hadn't told Je Won-yeong, who didn't know Sak Mu-heun's true identity, the original plan had been for the hidden Sak Mu-heun to assassinate the remainder.
But that wasn't the only reason Seol Pung didn't run.
Seol Pung gazed at the wave of charging warriors and recalled a past memory.
Warriors swarming from all sides, his home filled with blood and flames, his mother fleeing while carrying his injured self, and his maternal grandfather fighting desperately, covered in blood.
Those memories he had always tried not to recall.
The reason Seol Pung first came to the frontline wasn't out of vengeance or chivalry like the other members.
'Simply... because I wanted to run away.'
That was how it had been.
Seol Pung had wanted to run away.
From his maternal grandfather's dying wish urging him to take revenge, and from his own bloodline that even his grandfather hadn't fully known.
Suddenly, he recalled the advice that Cheongyeon's father, the Sword Saint Hae Un-baek, had given him.
'You have already made every preparation to advance to the next stage. The reason you cannot overcome the wall seems to be not because of your body, but because there is a wall in your mind. I do not know the circumstances, but try to observe your inner self more closely. Then you will be able to find a clue.'
He had seen right through Seol Pung.
Seol Pung habitually pushed himself and always devoted himself madly to training, but deep in his heart, he had been afraid of his martial prowess rising.
Because he knew what he would ultimately have to do when his martial prowess had risen sufficiently.
To him, that was far too burdensome, and also terrifying.
So he just wanted to live only as Seol Pung, the squad leader of the Flying Dragon Thirteen Squads' seventh squad. If such a thing were possible, that was.
'But...'
Seol Pung also knew.
That if he continued to fail to break the wall and remained stuck in place, he wouldn't be able to keep living even as the squad leader of the Flying Dragon Thirteen Squads' seventh squad.
That someday, he would lose all the things that, though this was a place he had fled to, had now become so precious to him.
So now he had to choose.
Whether to stay in this place to run away from his fate, or to advance forward to protect the precious things.
And as he was a martial artist, the answer could only have been predetermined from the very start.
Seol Pung stared at the wave of martial artists surging toward him with a gaze more serious than ever before.
And he murmured as if making a declaration.
"I... will run no longer."
In the next moment, the tidal wave of Jeonghyeopbang warriors swallowed him.
"Hyaaaaaap!"
"Die!"
"Haaaaap!"
Amid the weapons pouring down from all directions, Seol Pung first gently pushed aside the flat of a blade that was striking down as if to split his skull.
Then, the blade strike deflected diagonally, and he lightly pushed the upper body of the warrior who lost his balance and leaned forward.
"Ugh?!"
In the next instant, the body of the warrior, who had unknowingly flung himself toward his comrades, was torn apart by the weapons of his own allies striking down.
Pu-hwa-aak!
"Kuaaaaak!"
When the warriors, who had suddenly embedded their weapons in their comrade's body, hesitated, one warrior beside them who had been swinging an axe was also flying toward his comrades without knowing why.
And he too had no choice but to block his comrades' weapons with his body.
Pu-hwa-aak!
"Keo-eok!"
It was a strange sight.
The warriors who had been charging to overwhelm Seol Pung ended up clashing with their comrades without even understanding what had happened.
But this was only the beginning.
The warriors around Seol Pung were being thrown back toward their comrades again, as if swept up in an irresistible current.
It was just like being caught in a dragon whirlwind.
And this was a fight that differed in nature from the image of Seol Pung who always slaughtered enemies with the dynamic movements of a wild beast.
The rest of the advice that the Sword Saint Hae Un-baek had given him surfaced in Seol Pung's mind.
'Your martial arts are currently too heavily skewed toward movement. That is not to say it is bad, but movement without stillness can become scattered. If you can grasp the subtle principle of stillness in motion, then not only the wall before your eyes, but even the next stage will not be impossible.'
While Seol Pung's feet remained rooted to the ground as if planted there, the warriors charging around him flew in all directions as if caught in a dragon whirlwind.
And that dragon whirlwind was growing more powerful as time passed.
"Th-that, insane!"
Naenggueon, who had been standing back and driving the ordinary warriors forward, ground his teeth at the sight of Seol Pung's growing power.
It seemed he would have to intervene personally.
'It wouldn't be too dangerous if I just throw concealed weapons from afar, right?'
Seol Pung was a bit frightening, but judging by his unmoving feet, Naenggueon made that assessment and cautiously approached Seol Pung.
Seol Pung was currently in a trance-like state of selflessness, his eyes even closed, generating a dragon whirlwind made of people around him.
Naenggueon aimed the concealed weapons he had taken from his subordinate at Seol Pung and concentrated his internal energy.
"You bastard... die!"
Pyu-shu-shu-shuk!
Four concealed weapons, concentrated with all of Naenggueon's internal energy, shot toward Seol Pung.
Their speed was like rays of light, a velocity that most ordinary warriors could not even perceive.
Given that Seol Pung's eyes were still closed, it seemed he hadn't noticed yet.
Naenggueon wore a smug smile as he watched the concealed weapons fly toward Seol Pung.
But in the very next moment, he realized that those concealed weapons were flying back toward himself, and he was horrified.
Pyu-shu-shu-shuk!
"?!"
He couldn't even comprehend what in the world had happened.
But right now, it was time to move his body and dodge those things, rather than understand.
If he made a single mistake, it was a situation where he could die by his own concealed weapons.
"Eeek!"
Naenggueon, who had urgently thrown himself aside to hurl the concealed weapons, suddenly felt a stinging pain in his lower body.
"Ugh?!"
A sensation of strength draining from his lower body after a brief sting.
He couldn't throw his body.
"Wha-what is this?!"
Greatly alarmed, Naenggueon hurriedly tried to raise his arms to at least block the concealed weapons.
But he could immediately realize that his arms wouldn't move either.
"Uh, u-u-eok?!"
That grotesque scream, cried out in horror, was the last words Naenggueon could leave behind.
Because in the next instant, the four concealed weapons pierced through his chest and throat.
Pu-uk!
"Keok!"
The surrounding warriors who saw this screamed in shock.
"Daehyeop Naeng!"
"Dae-Daehyeop Naeng is dead!"
"All the peak-level masters are dead?!"
When the Jeonghyeopbang warriors began to fall into confusion, Sak Mu-heun, who had been hiding and ambushed Naenggueon, hid his body again among the Jeonghyeopbang warriors.
Then he looked at Seol Pung, who was creating a human dragon whirlwind with an expression of having fallen into a state of selflessness.
He had always been a remarkable man, but today he seemed to be on a different level than usual.
Just like the absolute beings of the martial world.
***
Jeomchang Mountain, Yunnan Province.
This place, the former headquarters of the Jeomchang Sect which had once been one of the Nine Great Sects, was currently the main base of the Blood Demon Cult.
And Jeon Mu-gwang, the Slaughter Blood Demon who was the current leader and hero of the Blood Cult, was sitting alone in the office of the Jeomchang Sect Leader, comfortably reading a letter sent by Jegal Ji-gang.
Having finished reading the letter, he smiled gently like a refined scholar and suddenly opened his mouth to speak.
"It seems Jeonghyeopbang has finally been discovered."
Then a voice came from the empty air.
"They lasted longer than expected, Supreme One."
The Blood Demon, smiling faintly, asked.
"So, the seeds have been sufficiently sown, I take it?"
"Sufficiently, Supreme One."
"Good, then let us settle this now. Take Cheok Gang and Sayu, and you go."
Then the voice, which had paused briefly, spoke again in a slightly flustered tone.
"This subordinate alone is sufficient, Supreme One. Especially taking someone like Cheok Gang, that mad boar..."
At the difficult tone of his subordinate, the Blood Demon burst into a hearty laugh.
"Eo-heo-heo-heo! Gieum, it seems even you find Cheok Gang troublesome. The reason I'm sending the three of you together isn't for that matter, but because of the Sword Saint."
"...You refer to the Sword Saint?"
"Yes, it seems Jegal Ji-gang wants the Heavenly Robe Sword Saint to be removed. He plans to send him toward Jeonghyeopbang this time. So, can you handle the Sword Saint alone as well?"
The voice couldn't bring itself to say yes.
Though he wouldn't compare to the Supreme One he served, the Blood Demon, he still knew the Sword Saint was a master a dimension higher than himself.
Then the Blood Demon, smiling faintly again, said.
"Furthermore, the resolution of this matter must be handled publicly, in full view of the orthodox faction members. Only then will Jegal Ji-gang be unable to say anything different later on. So, in truth, Cheok Gang is more suitable than you. Sending you is simply to manage that fellow so he doesn't cross the line."
Once the Blood Demon finished speaking, a voice that somehow seemed more drained than before answered.
"By your command, it shall be as the Supreme One wills."
After a moment, the presence of the subordinate hidden in the shadows vanished, and the Blood Demon, who had been sitting quietly again, suddenly let out a sigh.
It was because the sound of familiar footsteps could be heard from afar.
It was the sound of his daughter, Jeon Hee-geum's footsteps.
His only remaining family, the one who had left him with no choice but to join the Blood Cult, and thus the precious daughter he had finally been able to reclaim.
But even though that precious daughter was coming, the Blood Demon's expression wasn't very bright.
Because he knew all too well why she was coming.
The Blood Demon waited a moment, and when Jeon Hee-geum arrived in front of the door, he used his formless energy to open it.
Then, a beautiful woman who looked only about thirty entered from outside the door.
A woman whose beauty suggested she would have been even more stunning in her youth, but as she looked at the Blood Demon, her eyes were brimming with tears.
The Blood Demon gave her a warm smile and said.
"Come in, Hee-geum."
But despite the Blood Demon's warm words, Jeon Hee-geum, with tears still welling, asked directly.
"Father, is there still no news of Yu-gyeom?"
Then the Blood Demon finally let out a sigh and replied.
"It has been clearly confirmed that he left the Flying Dragon Squads, so he is likely on his way. But wouldn't he perhaps be coming after sorting out his feelings somewhat? The truth about the Jeomchang Sect and you must have been a shock to the lad."
At that, tears finally streamed down Jeon Hee-geum's face.
"Father, if anything goes wrong with Yu-gyeom, I don't think I could possibly live."
At those words, the Blood Demon frowned slightly and said.
"Eo-heo! He is a child who has already surpassed the peak realm. To you he may be a child, but he is a full-fledged peak master. What could possibly happen to him out there? Good news will arrive soon, so try to compose yourself. You cannot show him a haggard appearance when you meet him again, can you?"
At the Blood Demon's reassurance, Jeon Hee-geum wiped her tears.
And she managed a smile as she said.
"Father, you are right. To show him a good appearance when we meet again, I shouldn't be like this. I will focus more on my training."
But Jeon Hee-geum, who had said that and was about to leave the room, suddenly stopped and asked.
"I can... trust you, Father, can't I?"
At the question of the only daughter he loved in the world, the Blood Demon inwardly sighed and replied.
"Trust me. There will be no more deceiving you."
With those final words, Jeon Hee-geum left the office.
After his daughter left, the Blood Demon's face was rarely tinged with anger.
'As expected of a mongrel mixed with the blood of the Ma family, he's been trouble from beginning to end.'
The Blood Demon had never intended to acknowledge Ma Yu-gyeom, who was his grandson but mixed with the blood of his sworn enemy, the Ma Family Estate, as his own flesh and blood.
So from the beginning, when he had first found his daughter Jeon Hee-geum, the Blood Demon had told her that Ma Yu-gyeom was already dead.
After that, Jeon Hee-geum, who struggled for a long time, was only able to recover her spirits years later.
And recently, she had started various activities saying she would help her father, and it had been a mistake to allow it.
Jeon Hee-geum had been searching for information about her dead son and came to learn that he was alive and well.
The trust between father and daughter that had been built up over time collapsed in an instant.
So the Blood Demon had no choice but to hastily change the summit with the Murim Alliance Leader, which had been scheduled elsewhere, to the Flying Dragon Thirteen Squads.
'All of that was an arrangement to bring the brat of the Ma family...'
All the subsequent events had proceeded well according to the Blood Demon's design.
Planting the suggestion in Ma Yu-gyeom, so that he had no choice but to learn the Blood Cult's martial arts and leave the Flying Dragon Squads. Everything had been according to the Blood Demon's arrangement.
But while everything was proceeding smoothly, one unexpected thing had occurred.
Ma Yu-gyeom, who had accepted all the arrangements, did not come to the Blood Cult.
Rather, as he had left the Flying Dragon Squads, he was now in a state where his whereabouts couldn't even be determined. This was a result that even the Slaughter Blood Demon Jeon Mu-gwang, said to possess the wisdom of a serpent, had never anticipated.
The Blood Demon regretted it.
It would have been better to just kidnap him.
No, it would have been better to kill him before his daughter Jeon Hee-geum found out.
But now he knew all too well.
That unless he brought Ma Yu-gyeom back, his relationship with his daughter would never recover.
Because he had a record of deceiving her once, if Ma Yu-gyeom's whereabouts disappeared completely, his daughter would eventually come to think that he had killed the bastard.
The Blood Demon stepped outside the office and looked at a large, conspicuous tree.
Then, in an instant, the tree began to burn as if exploding.
Hwa-a-a-ak!
It took only a single breath for the tree, engulfed in fierce flames, to scatter into dust.
It was an event caused by a single glance from the enraged Blood Demon.