Chapter 86: Righteous Hero Association-5
Chapter 86: Righteous Hero Association-5
That was when it happened.
Something glowing blue shot through the air toward Sa Won-yang's back just as he was about to crush Hwa Yeong-bin.
Swish!
"!"
Startled, Sa Won-yang was forced to halt his attack on Hwa Yeong-bin and defend himself.
Kwaaaaaang!
When Sa Won-yang's hand struck the object, a tremendous explosion erupted.
It was a Ganghwan.
Same as the one Sa Won-yang had just used himself...
Sa Won-yang, having blocked the energy sphere, shouted with a twisted face.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Then a voice rang out.
"Well, look who it is. Could it really be Sa Won-yang? The Small-faced Demon Lord, hiding in a place like this!"
The man standing atop Jeonghyeopbang's wall was a middle-aged Daoist with a clean-cut impression, dressed in blue robes.
The moment he saw him, Hwa Yeong-bin cried out in astonishment.
"Sect Leader?!"
Huh? Sect Leader?
Then that meant he was Cheong-myeong Jinin, the sect leader of Mount Qingcheng?
Sa Won-yang likewise called out his name with a twisted face.
"Cheong-myeong... you bastard."
"To dare invade north of the front lines. This is the end for you, Small-faced Demon Lord."
Then, one after another, figures in blue robes began appearing atop the wall around him.
They were the elite masters of the Mount Qingcheng Sect.
Hwa Yeong-bin murmured, looking slightly flustered.
"How is the sect leader here?"
According to what Hwa Yeong-bin had told me, the man was a pro-Murim Alliance figure. He had participated in the Great Blood War, then used the Alliance's backing to become the sect leader of Mount Qingcheng.
Because of this, Hwa Yeong-bin had initially assumed he would oppose the attack on Jeonghyeopbang.
That was why he could only stand there bewildered now that the man had come in person.
But I could more or less guess the situation.
I sent a telepathic transmission to Hwa Yeong-bin.
- 'Looks like the Murim Alliance sent a messenger hawk. Probably the same situation as the Ami Sect. That's how they arrived so quickly.'
Sa Won-yang burst into maniacal laughter, his eyes blazing crimson.
"Kuhahahaha! Do you think someone like me would fall to the likes of Mount Qingcheng?! I'll take you all with me to the underworld!"
Then another voice came from behind.
"And what if Mount Qingcheng isn't enough? What about us?!"
Turning to look behind, figures were appearing atop the opposite wall as well.
This time, they were masters clad in green robes.
Hwa Yeong-bin murmured again, eyes bewildered.
"The Dang Clan too?"
The Dang Clan, huh. So they were the Sichuan Dang Clan.
Now that I thought about it, the Ami Sect, Mount Qingcheng Sect, and the Dang Clan had all been sects that participated in the Great Blood War.
The Murim Alliance's influence was likely reaching all three sects.
Anyway, it was a fortunate turn of events.
Thanks to this, it seemed my life had been saved.
Seizing the moment while Sa Won-yang's attention was diverted elsewhere, I bolted out of there.
Paaang!
Then I snatched up Hwa Yeong-bin and moved toward the Mount Qingcheng side, murmuring softly to him.
"It appears heaven is not yet permitting Hwa Daehyeop's arrival."
It was something I had wanted to say to him, to a man who had looked as though he found relief in the prospect of his life ending.
He stared at me blankly for a moment, then smiled faintly and murmured back.
"...Is that so?"
The Small-faced Demon Lord Sa Won-yang watched us moving away from him, but he couldn't bring himself to lift a hand.
The pressure from the Mount Qingcheng and Dang Clan masters watching from both sides had paralyzed him.
The master who appeared to be the commander of the Dang Clan forces shouted.
"Sa Won-yang! Resistance is useless! Surrender quietly!"
But Sa Won-yang, as if burning up the last of his strength, erupted in crimson Energetic Force from his hands and screamed.
"Don't make me laugh! You orthodox bastards! Do you really think I would be captured by the likes of you?!"
At that, the Dang Clan representative locked eyes with Cheong-myeong Jinin and spoke.
"If he insists on a warrior's death, we have no choice. Very well! As you wish!"
Then he launched himself through the air, moving around Sa Won-yang.
Tadak!
The other Dang Clan and Mount Qingcheng masters did the same. They too moved with nimble footwork and encircled Sa Won-yang.
Roughly a hundred people in total, combining both Mount Qingcheng and the Dang Clan.
And at a glance, several on both sides appeared to be transcendent peak masters, no less formidable than Sa Won-yang himself.
It was a complete pincer.
Now it seemed impossible for Sa Won-yang to escape this place.
But astonishingly, the situation wasn't over yet.
"Sa! Won! Yang!"
With a voice that boomed across the earth, someone came hurtling through the distant night sky like a meteor.
He was a man with a massive frame, one that vaguely reminded me of Bae Jong-gwan.
But there was no way a master possessing such overwhelming pressure could be Bae Jong-gwan.
Furthermore, I remembered that I had heard that voice before. On the front lines, no less.
No way?!
Having flown an immense distance to arrive like a meteor, he plunged straight down toward Sa Won-yang and roared.
"To dare betray the Supreme One! I will never forgive this!"
His enormous body looked like a crimson meteor itself.
Because a massive, spherical red aura was enveloping his entire body.
"That is..."
Unless my eyes were deceiving me, he had covered his entire body with the same Protective Strong Qi that Sa Won-yang had barely managed to produce moments ago.
I couldn't help but murmur.
"My god..."
Sa Won-yang's eyes dilated with horror as he watched the giant meteor descending upon him.
Frantically, he swung his hands, now shrouded in crimson Energetic Force, at the meteor and screamed.
"What?!"
But the giant, his whole body encased in Protective Strong Qi, continued his descent with unrelenting momentum and thrust out a single fist.
A strike that felt like divine punishment.
Duung.
That massive, overwhelming impact struck Sa Won-yang and the earth where he stood.
The next moment, an unfathomable explosion erupted.
Kwaaaaaaaaang!
With an ear-splitting roar, the ground overturned, the earth shook like an earthquake, and we were forced to crouch as low as possible to avoid being knocked down by the explosive pressure that surged toward us like a typhoon.
"Ungh!"
"T-this much?!"
A moment later, when we lowered the hands we had raised to shield our faces from the aftermath and looked toward the site, we could only murmur once more.
"My god..."
At the spot where Sa Won-yang and the giant had clashed, a massive crater had been carved, as if a meteor had fallen.
And at the very center, the giant stood alone, arms folded with an air of ease.
Sa Won-yang was nowhere to be seen.
But we could instinctively grasp what had become of him.
The bloodstains and shreds of flesh crushed and plastered into the earth beneath the giant's feet—that was Sa Won-yang.
By now, no words even came out.
Sa Won-yang, who had felt like an insurmountable wall no matter what we tried, had been reduced to... that... in a single blow.
It was so unbelievable it was almost dispiriting.
Cheong-myeong Jinin, the sect leader of Mount Qingcheng, swallowed dryly as he gazed at the giant and murmured.
"Iron God Mad Demon... Cheok Gang?"
It was him.
He was precisely the Iron God Mad Demon Cheok Gang, the Blood Cult demon commander who had nearly knocked out every last Flying Dragon Squad member with his presence alone at the Great Blood Summit.
He was also one of the Blood Cult's Five Demons, and one of the Thirty-Six Monsters Under Heaven, just below the Fifteen Absolute Masters.
And now, he had crossed the front lines and appeared here.
A middle-aged man with a jade-like face, who appeared to be the head of the Dang Clan forces, shouted with a hardened expression.
"Cheok Gang! For even you to reveal yourself here, the Blood Cult has finally shown its true colors!"
According to Hwa Yeong-bin, this man was apparently Dang Jeong-hu, the Poison Rock Sovereign and head of the Tang Family.
But even at his words, Cheok Gang only looked down on him with arrogant eyes.
It was as if he was silently asking, 'And what are you going to do about it?'
At that moment, an answering voice rang out.
It was not Cheok Gang, but someone else's voice.
"You misunderstand. My name is Lee Geon. This is a mission to apprehend traitors to our Blood Cult... a punitive expedition, so to speak."
Along with that voice, a masked figure in black slowly rose up from Cheok Gang's shadow.
Even at his appearance, I could not help but be startled.
Until now, I had sensed the presence of everyone else—the Qingcheng sect, the Dang clan, even Cheok Gang.
But I had not been able to feel the presence of this man who had just revealed himself at all.
Even now, as I was looking right at him, it was as if I was watching a mirage.
A ghost-like existence that exuded no presence whatsoever.
I swallowed hard with tension and asked.
"Who on earth is that...?"
But before Hwa Yeong-bin could answer me, the Poison Rock Sovereign Dang Jeong-hu was the first to shout his name with a horrified expression.
"Guyueumma Jigieum?!"
Guyueumma Jigieum?
Ha, good heavens.
Guyueumma Jigieum was one of the Blood Cult's Five Demons, just like Cheok Gang.
And he was also one of the Three Great Assassins of the World.
Both of the warriors among the Thirty-Six Stars of Heaven who belonged to the Blood Cult had now appeared right here.
Dang Jeong-hu shouted with a face full of fury.
"Cheok Gang, and now even you, Ji Gi-eum! Does the Blood Cult truly desire this Second Blood Correction War?!"
Then Ji Gi-eum bowed his head solemnly and answered.
"As I just stated, no. His Supreme Eminence received word from the Murim Alliance's military advisor Jegal Ji-gang that traitors from our Blood Cult had crossed the front lines and were disturbing the martial world. Furious at this, he dispatched us personally and commanded us to handle them. This matter was coordinated with the Murim Alliance's military advisor Jegal Ji-gang, so you may verify it for yourself."
"...What did you say?"
At the mention that it had been coordinated with Jegal Ji-gang, the people of Qingcheng and the Dang clan exchanged bewildered glances.
"Coordinated with Military Advisor Jegal?"
"With those dreadful fiends?"
As I expected, Jegal Ji-gang had indeed possessed a secret line of communication with the Blood Cult.
But something was strange.
'He's speaking about that so easily? In front of this many people?'
While the martial artists were murmuring, Guyueumma Jigieum bowed his head once more toward the assembled heroes and asked solemnly.
"The Blood Demon has commanded that the ringleader of the traitors, Sa Won-yang, be executed without fail, but that we act only after seeking the understanding of the righteous faction to deal with the rest. And so, we intend to erase this place called the Jeonghyeopbang from here onward. What do you think? May we finish off this place and everyone who belongs to it?"
At his solemn question, I could not help but be impressed.
It was not simply because he spoke of dealing with the Jeonghyeopbang as if it were as easy as cleaning his own front yard.
To anyone watching, Cheok Gang's killing of Sa Won-yang just moments ago could only look like the Blood Demon cutting off the tail.
And that was likely the truth of it.
But now, by giving the righteous faction the choice, Ji Gi-eum was implicitly showing that they had merely executed a traitor, not cut off the tail to cover their tracks.
Of course, it was an act they could only perform because they were utterly confident there was no tail to be caught in the first place.
Dang Jeong-hu glared at Ji Gi-eum with fearsome eyes and spat out his words as if chewing them.
"There is no need. We Sichuan martial artists will handle the rest with our own hands."
Then Ji Gi-eum bowed his head solemnly and said.
"Understood. Then we shall take our leave."
And then Ji Gi-eum spoke to Cheok Gang, who was scanning the righteous faction warriors with a face full of dissatisfaction.
"I trust you have not forgotten His Supreme Eminence's command. Let us withdraw."
The moment the Blood Demon was mentioned, Cheok Gang flinched slightly. He soon nodded, bent his knees a little, and then shot up into the night sky.
Boom!
He became a red meteor and flew across the night sky, just as he had when he first appeared.
While everyone's eyes were briefly stolen by his wild leap, Guyueumma Jigieum had already vanished.
He was truly a ghostlike figure.
Once they disappeared, Dang Jeong-hu suddenly spoke to Cheong-myeong Jinin.
"You have come a long way, Cheong-myeong Jinin. There is a branch hall of the Tang Family nearby, so how about we rest a little and then discuss the matter?"
At those words, Cheong-myeong Jinin smiled benevolently, as if he had been waiting for the question, and replied.
"Hehehe. A disciple of Qingcheng has labored so hard for the safety of Sichuan martial world. As an elder of the sect, how could I rest? It is fine."
Having said that, Cheong-myeong Jinin looked at Hwa Yeong-bin.
The Qingcheng disciple he mentioned was apparently referring to Hwa Yeong-bin.
Then Dang Jeong-hu smiled a wry smile and said.
"Hmph. It is widely rumored in the Sichuan martial world that you, Cheong-myeong Jinin, and the young hero Hwa Yeong-bin do not see eye to eye. It is rather bewildering that you are suddenly emphasizing your position as an elder of the sect."
"Hehehe! The martial world has always been full of floating rumors. How could that be a matter of a day or two? Our opinions may differ, but how could our hearts for Qingcheng differ?"
The atmosphere between the two, who were conversing with smiling faces, seemed incredibly fierce despite outward appearances.
It was only after thinking for a moment that I was able to grasp the hidden meaning in their exchange.
'So, what Dang Jeong-hu meant by telling Qingcheng they'd come a long way... was that since this area is Dang clan territory, they held priority over the Jeonghyeopbang's territory, right? And what Cheong-myeong Jinin meant by bringing up Hwa Yeong-bin... was that since it was a Qingcheng disciple who exposed the Jeonghyeopbang as Blood Cult members, they held priority?'
Simply put, both sides had just revealed their greed for the Jeonghyeopbang's territory the moment Cheok Gang and Ji Gi-eum vanished.
All while setting aside matters concerning Jegal Ji-gang's relationship with the Blood Cult, the sacrifice of the Ami sect's disciples, and any concern for the kidnapped women.
My chest began to feel tight.
I suddenly surveyed the martial artists of the Qingcheng sect and the Dang clan.
They seemed to have brought about a hundred martial artists in total, and even at a glance, at least thirty on each side appeared to be peak-level masters.
And their level was astounding.
The leaders of both sides engaged in this war of words, along with two or three others on each side, emanated a presence comparable to the Small-faced Demon Lord Sa Won-yang.
It was indeed a sight befitting powers that formed one axis of the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Families.
'But...'
I recalled the moment when the Iron God Mad Demon Cheok Gang had appeared.
His haughty presence, appearing alone in a place where these tremendous martial artists were gathered and looking down upon them all.
Though it was only a brief moment, the emotion the martial artists on both sides had shown toward him had clearly been fear.
A hollow laugh suddenly escaped me.
"Ha, haha."
I had thought that if I only reached the peak realm, I would be able to launch a meaningful offensive against the Blood Cult...
But as time passed, I was painfully realizing more and more just how absurd that thought had been.
The world I had seen from the mere first-rate realm and the world I saw now that I had reached the peak were this different.
I suddenly asked myself a question.
Can I truly change the future?