Chapter 162
Chapter 162
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 162
Chapter Title: Invitation to Mount Hua
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Sangseo stared blankly at Hyeok Mulin, who had appeared before him, and parted his lips.
"Why... me...?"
But moments later.
Pewk!
Hyeok Mulin unleashed a finger wind in an instant.
As the finger wind shot toward Sangseo, his pupils dilated sharply.
But it merely grazed Sangseo's ear before striking the heart of the masked figure behind him.
Thud.
The masked man who had been holding Sangseo from behind dropped dead on the spot.
As he collapsed, Hyeok Mulin slowly approached Sangseo.
He looked down at him for a moment, then placed his hand on Sangseo's body.
Squeeze.
As Hyeok Mulin pressed on Sangseo's acupoints, his body began to move.
Sangseo pulled the dagger from his side and managed to staunch the bleeding himself.
Having temporarily treated his own wound, Sangseo stared fixedly at Hyeok Mulin and asked,
"Weren't you from the Four Black Alliances?"
"Four Black Alliances?"
Instead of answering, Hyeok Mulin countered with a chilling gaze.
Sangseo hurriedly added,
"I thought you wore me down with the duel, then ambushed me when I couldn't fight at full strength."
"Wasn't it you who proposed the duel to me?"
Sangseo fell silent at those words.
It was undeniably true.
After the Plum Blossom Sword Dragon's defeat, it had been a decision to protect Mount Hua's honor.
Of course, the outcome had turned twice as bitter.
Reflecting back on that moment, he realized there was nothing at all to suspect Hyeok Mulin of.
His gaze soon shifted to Hyeok Mulin's back.
'Then he was truly just a rising star of the orthodox sects?'
To have misunderstood such a man on a whim.
Sangseo felt too ashamed to even lift his face.
At that moment, as Hyeok Mulin dispatched a charging masked man with a single palm strike, he asked,
"Are you alright?"
"Thanks to you, I'm managing... not too badly."
His wounds were numerous, but not enough to render him immobile.
Hyeok Mulin said impassively,
"Then get up. There are still plenty of enemies left."
Sangseo nodded.
He had already been saved and owed a tremendous debt; he couldn't impose further here.
Gripping his sword tightly, Sangseo threw himself back into the fray.
* * *
Screams of chaos and the clash of metal rang out nonstop in the manor.
In one corner of the manor's courtyard stood a masked man leisurely watching the battle with his hands behind his back.
He was Bijanggak, the Human Ghost Killer, the mastermind behind this incident.
Once a wanderer who roamed the Central Plains, he had earned infamy by slaying over three hundred orthodox warriors before joining the Four Black Alliances as a villain.
Gazing contentedly at the courtyard battle, he said,
"See? I told you it would work."
A multiplayer melee was unfolding there, with the unorthodox fighters Bijanggak had brought holding a clear advantage.
Bijanggak smirked at the sight.
'Good thing I defied orders. No reason to flee with the target right in front of me.'
He recalled the letter from Grand Overseer Twin Brains that had arrived just days ago, as he prepared to assault the Shaanxi Sword Assembly.
The command written there was simple.
[Proceed with the plan as is. But if a young unorthodox man overwhelmingly defeats elders from Mount Hua or Jongnam in the duel, immediately abort and withdraw.]
At first, he couldn't comprehend it.
His mind couldn't picture a young warrior overpowering elders from Mount Hua or Jongnam.
But soon enough, it became reality.
A man had defeated Sangseo, elder of Mount Hua, by cleaving through his plum blossoms.
Flustered, they debated what to do, but in the end, Bijanggak made the call.
—We can't back down here.
After years of preparation for this raid, was it to fizzle out without even starting?
Unable to accept that, he disobeyed Twin Brains and redistributed his forces.
He assigned the most warriors and experts to the man who beat Sangseo.
Ensuring he couldn't escape no matter what.
No matter how strong, human stamina and inner energy had limits.
Thus, Bijanggak decided to overwhelm the strongest one here with sheer numbers.
After the raid began, he strolled leisurely through the courtyard where the most people had gathered, personally inspecting the battlefield.
"It's over."
The momentum had shifted, making defeat now the harder outcome.
Bijanggak grinned viciously, certain of victory.
Then, from the path to his right, someone entered the courtyard.
Bijanggak doubted his eyes.
"......!"
The newcomers were Hakgi, Sunwoong, Danri Hyang, Wonam, Sangseo—people he had ordered separate attacks on.
And leading them was none other than.
'Hyeok Mulin!'
That guy was alive?
He walked in unharmed on his own two feet, leaving Bijanggak's eyes wide in shock.
'How the hell did he escape that hell?!'
He had assigned half his assembled forces there, ensuring no survival.
Yet he broke through them all?
Bijanggak was dumbfounded by the incomprehensible scene, but it was undeniable reality.
"Good thing we're not too late."
"Look at all these vile scum swarming."
"Let's join up."
As the returnees merged their strength in the courtyard, the power balance flipped in an instant.
The masked fighters began to be swept away rapidly, their numbers dwindling with each passing moment.
Bijanggak's face hardened at the sight.
'Victory's decided.'
Their arrival widened the gap decisively, guaranteeing total annihilation.
No path to recovery here.
Realizing this, his expression turned icy.
'Fleeing now won't save me anyway.'
He had defied the Grand Overseer's command and pressed on with the plan.
And ended in total defeat.
Even if he escaped alive, not just the Murim Alliance but the Four Black Alliances would hunt him down.
With all escape routes gone, Bijanggak looked up at the sky with hollow eyes.
Where had it all gone wrong?
Moments later, his thoughts coalesced.
Right. The root of all this trouble was.
"...That bastard."
Bijanggak's bloodshot eyes locked onto Hyeok Mulin.
Without him, the raid would have succeeded perfectly, unleashing a bloodbath across Shaanxi!
Shing!
Drawing his sword, he abandoned any thought of his own life.
He charged at Hyeok Mulin solely to take him down with him.
'I'll drag at least you with me!'
Explosive sword qi erupted from his blade.
Bijanggak poured his inner energy and all his innate true qi into One Sword Pierces Autumn.
His sharp thrust drew a straight line toward Hyeok Mulin's heart.
But Hyeok Mulin didn't dodge.
He simply watched the approaching sword calmly.
Clack.
And moments later.
The sword tip halted short of Hyeok Mulin.
Sangseo, Hakgi, and even Danri Hyang.
Three swords had pierced Bijanggak's body first.
Drip.
Blood trickled from Bijanggak's mouth as he lowered his head.
Staring at the swords in his body, he lifted his gaze to Hyeok Mulin once more and slowly moved his lips.
"So... unjust..."
Soon his body slumped, ending the battle.
Looking down at him, Hyeok Mulin surveyed the courtyard and said,
"It's over."
Most of the attacking masked men lay dead on the spot.
The sword experts at the Shaanxi Sword Assembly had suffered many heavy injuries, but fatalities were few.
Hyeok Mulin leading them to reinforce the courtyard had made all the difference.
The damage was still significant, but victory was clear.
Afterward, Sangseo and Wonam took charge of cleanup and ordered the wounded transported.
They then gathered everyone remaining.
Once all were assembled, Sangseo stepped forward and spoke.
"Everyone endured much amid this unforeseen calamity."
Who could have foreseen it?
A gathering of Mount Hua and Jongnam being raided.
"I think we must conclude this year's Shaanxi Sword Assembly here."
Continuing it would be impractical, a natural decision.
Sangseo continued in a subdued tone, eyeing the crowd.
"Until solid evidence reveals their backer, refrain from rash judgments."
The crowd nodded.
Sangseo himself half-convinced the Four Black Alliances were behind it given their scale and skill, but couldn't confirm without proof.
"I will request an investigation team, return to the sect, and report the details. All of you, head back safely."
"Yes, understood."
"We'll stay vigilant to the end."
With Sangseo's closing, the Shaanxi Sword Assembly ended.
Each clan and sect gathered their people and prepared to depart.
As they bustled about, Sangseo approached Hyeok Mulin, who stood alone.
He expressed his gratitude once more.
"Truly, thank you. Not just me—most here owe you their lives."
It was the truth.
In his previous life, the Four Black Alliances' ambush had succeeded, killing over ninety warriors, with survivors barely escaping.
But now, deaths were countable on two hands—a vast difference.
Sangseo gazed steadily at Hyeok Mulin, the center of it all.
To possess such prowess and character at that age.
'Has a new blessing been born to the orthodox sects?'
Sangseo smiled warmly, lifting the corners of his mouth.
Then he made a proposal to Hyeok Mulin.
"If our paths align, how about visiting Mount Hua? I'd like to repay you for saving the warriors' lives, but here I lack the means—I want to host you properly at the main sect."
"...May I have a moment to think?"
"Refuse if you wish; take your time."
Sangseo gave him time to consider and left. Alone now, Hyeok Mulin pondered.
Mount Hua Sect.
It was one of the Nine Great Orthodox Sects, core of the Murim Alliance and orthodox factions.
A place incomparable to somewhere like the Danri Clan—right in the heart of enemy territory.
For a demonic cultivator, it was the epitome of danger.
But.
'It doesn't matter to me.'
With the Pure Soul Divine Demon Art at its peak, he could conceal his demonic qi at will. Even Sangseo, who had faced him, couldn't discern his true nature.
Few in the world could detect it now.
Thus, Hyeok Mulin had freedom of movement, with no burden.
But what occupied his mind was.
'......Mount Hua.'
Hyeok Mulin gazed up at the sky.
Just then, a single petal drifted down from the heavens.
Floating like it owned the world, it rode the wind to land in Hyeok Mulin's hand.
Gazing at it intently, Hyeok Mulin slowly parted his lips.
"The time has come."
The sect leader of Mount Hua Sect.
Gu Mujun.
The time to face the Mount Hua Sword Immortal.