Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Inferno Ambush
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"Ambush! It's an ambush!"
"Fire attack! Quick, bring water!"
"Where are the people? Damn it, no one's listening... For now, everyone follow me!"
Screams and shouts mingled into utter pandemonium. Those hastily roused from sleep stared in stunned dismay at the massive blaze blotting out their view ahead.
Even Yuk Jin-yang, who had weathered countless battles in his previous life, found himself momentarily rattled.
A fire attack rarely fazed seasoned martial artists. One could simply deploy lightness skills and slip away.
But the situation was exquisitely precarious.
It was as if Geoyang County itself had been taken hostage.
If it were just fellow martial artists, they could have extricated themselves somehow. But abandoning innocent commoners was unthinkable. His pride and sense of honor as a righteous faction warrior forbade it. There was no choice but to halt the encroaching flames and advancing foes right here.
"Everyone, calm down!"
Fire Cloud Sword Rider Sa Jong-seop bellowed with qi-infused voice. His resonant roar, echoing like thunder in a cavern, snapped the fire-panicked crowd back to their senses.
"White Horn Division, follow me. The rest of you, evacuate the civilians somewhere the flames can't reach."
Sa Jong-seop's gaze shifted to Yuk Jin-yang.
"You move on your own discretion. Can you manage?"
"Of course."
His crisp orders quelled the chaos.
Yuk Jin-yang issued commands to the Flying Stream Pavilion martial artists as well. Stick together as much as possible and lend aid to the White Horn Division.
No sooner had he finished speaking than enemy war cries erupted.
Aaaaah—!
Yuk Jin-yang scanned his surroundings. At least the fire provided clear visibility. The silhouettes of the distant onrushing mob stood out sharply.
Even a rough count put them at over a hundred strong. Their numbers marked them as the rogue unorthodox rabble Bae Ji-hak had rallied from nearby.
Yuk Jin-yang gripped the hilt of his Silver Dew Sword. He drew and cleaved the fearlessly charging foe in a single stroke.
He seized the thrusting spear of the next spear-wielding assailant with his left hand, then pierced the man's dantian with his blade.
He twisted aside to evade the sword stab from behind, then unleashed a palm strike from the Ten Thousand Rivers Single Source Art at the enemy's exposed torso. The corpse, side crushed, tumbled across the ground.
"Jeong Sojeo!"
Glancing aside on instinct, Yuk Jin-yang bellowed. Another foe was targeting Jeong Yak-bin's rear as she clashed with the unorthodox rabble.
He hurriedly unleashed Moon Stream Subtle Steps.
Qi settled into the inner knee eye acupoint, then he kicked off the earth in an explosive leap. He landed squarely before the enemy in an instant, his downward sword stroke slicing the foe clean in half horizontally.
Craaaack!
A grotesque sound accompanied the body splitting asunder.
He spared no glance at the horrific sight, whirling instead to deliver a horizontal slash. The unorthodox brute wielding yuan-yang axes and pressing Jeong Yak-bin lost his head.
Finally catching his breath, Yuk Jin-yang turned to Jeong Yak-bin. She murmured dazedly.
"How... how could they commit such an outrage...?"
Yuk Jin-yang seized her shoulders and shook. Her hazy gaze sharpened at last, meeting his eyes.
"Pull yourself together. This isn't the time for sentiment."
"...Pardon? I-I'm sorry."
"Jeong Sojeo, keep watch over Jin Won-gi in the manor. I've sealed his acupoints, but someone might try to spring him."
It was a considerate arrangement. Jeong Yak-bin grasped the intent and accepted without protest. Someone had to guard the hostage, after all.
"Damn it, get out of the way! Clear the path!"
"Kill them!"
"Break through! Secure the path first!"
The enemy onslaught showed no signs of abating. Their desperation felt strangely primal, as if they were fighting for survival itself.
There was little leisure to dwell on it.
Clang! Clang!
Keen energies and killing intents tangled in chaotic frenzy. Even his qi sense attuned to the space around him couldn't ward off every weapon assailing from all directions.
Wounds began to accumulate inevitably. Mere scratches for now, but enough to dull his movements in time.
"Watch out for the fire!"
So Yun-un's voice pierced the screams from somewhere. Yuk Jin-yang whipped his head toward the sound. A towering wall of flame loomed right before his nose.
He retreated in haste, only for a sudden great axe swing to target his flank. He barely parried, but the sheer force threw off his balance.
As the enemy raised his axe to cleave the fallen Yuk Jin-yang, unexpected salvation arrived. A five-chi longsword thrust out from nowhere, skewering the foe's throat.
"That settles the debt from last time."
Deung Gwang grinned as he emerged from the enemy's rear.
"You saved my skin."
Yuk Jin-yang clasped the proffered hand and rose.
The unorthodox raid had already entered mop-up phase. The flames guttered out swiftly too. Summer fields held damp puddles here and there.
'But would they not have known that?'
The belated realization hardened his suspicions into certainty. No Jin Clan martial artists had appeared anywhere amid the ferocious assault.
"They meant to sacrifice the unorthodox."
"What do you mean?"
Rather than explain, Yuk Jin-yang raised an arm and pointed to one spot. Countless figures shimmered hazily at his fingertip's target.
"They're coming again."
"Likely their main force."
Yuk Jin-yang nodded. The aura they exuded felt far more ferocious than before.
Amid the ashen fields, the two groups faced off. The eight-chi-tall behemoth at their forefront stepped forward with a savage grin.
Yuk Jin-yang knew his identity without introduction.
Former Azure Swallow Division Leader, Southern Sea Cloud Sword Bae Ji-hak.
"Long time no see, Sa Jong-seop."
"Bae Ji-hak...!"
The hitherto cool-headed Sa Jong-seop growled like a beast. He clung to reason by a thread. Fortunately, he refrained from rashly charging.
"You've lost your mind completely. Setting fires with innocent commoners about?"
"What do I care? I'm no longer with Haenam Sect. Your endless prattle of chivalry and righteousness wears thin."
Bae Ji-hak replied indifferently, then abruptly proposed.
"Anyway, I've a suggestion. How about picking our vanguards for a duel?"
"What nonsense is this?"
"Someone fancies a bit of entertainment before the main clash."
Bae Ji-hak stepped aside. A haughty young nobleman emerged in his place, hands clasped behind his back.
"I am Jin Cha-geon! Word is one among you bested my cousin. I'd cross hands with him."
A stir ran through some Haenam Sect warriors. Whispers held that the young scion had come to rescue kin.
His features rang familiar. Even the arrogant bearing echoed his cousin's. Was the whole clan like that?
Sa Jong-seop dismissed the absurd proposal.
"You launch an unorthodox ambush first, then request a vanguard duel? Spare us the lunacy."
"Were the esteemed Haenam Sect warriors truly hard-pressed by mere rogues? We sent them merely as a courtesy."
Jin Cha-geon sneered mockingly. His intent to crush their spirit was plain.
Haenam Sect was already depleted from the surprise raid. A vanguard loss would devastate morale. From Jin Clan perspective, no downside to trying.
Assuming victory, of course.
Killing him outright could turn the tables.
Bae Ji-hak would be trouble, but Jin Cha-geon had volunteered personally. He hardly seemed the type to back down in disgrace.
His calculations complete, Yuk Jin-yang sent a transmission.
—Accept it. I'll step forward.
—...Defeat means irreparable disaster.
—It won't happen.
Sa Jong-seop fixed him with a piercing stare. Yuk Jin-yang met it unflinchingly. At length, Sa Jong-seop exhaled softly and withdrew.
"Win without fail."
"Ten exchanges."
Yuk Jin-yang gripped his Silver Dew hilt.
"I'll end it within."
A chill wind blew. Ashes swirled like lingering incense. Heaven's tribute to the fallen souls, perhaps. Who could say. Yuk Jin-yang cleared stray thoughts and focused on the foe at hand.
Jin Cha-geon assumed stance, water sleeves donned on both hands.
Yuk Jin-yang drew a short breath. In that instant, he introspected his body. Consumption was severe. His middle dantian unopened, qi endurance lagged behind his martial prowess.
He hadn't boasted ten exchanges idly. Fail to finish within, and defeat loomed.
Yuk Jin-yang advanced a step. He deflected the oncoming fist with his left arm, then loosed a feint palm with his right. A follow-up fist arrived as if anticipated. Golden Lock Hand snared the wrist.
"What..."
Shock burst forth at the first clash. Jin Cha-geon wrenched his arm free with brute force, but Yuk Jin-yang promptly gripped his Silver Dew hilt with his left.
Shing!
A diagonal sword path surged like a whirlwind. Jin Cha-geon hurled himself to the dirt and rolled desperately. A fine Lazy Donkey Roll.
Yuk Jin-yang gazed down and spat.
"So my lost donkey was here."
"You filthy frog spawn...!"
Even as he cursed, the foe held back from rash assault.
His demeanor toward the opponent had utterly shifted. Gone was the prior nonchalance; now he measured distance with utmost caution. His qi was honed taut like tempered steel.
Observation was fleeting. Jin Cha-geon stepped forward, narrowing the gap.
His footwork blended lightness and weight. To maximize the warrior essence of Radiant Mountain Jin Clan Fist.
Swoooosh!
He deflected the viciously extended fist, its residual force alone hinting at monstrous power.
"You're better than your cousin."
No reply came. Instead, Jin Cha-geon answered with flashy footwork, charging with a confident smile.
As if sensing victory already. Far too hasty.
Yuk Jin-yang unleashed the latent Moon Maiden Divine Art qi in explosive surge. He pushed his meridians to the absolute limit. No intent to hold reserves, burden on the body be damned.
He thrust out his right arm as if launching a palm strike. A feint, yet Jin Cha-geon responded predictably with Radiant Mountain Jin Clan Fist's chained sequence first form. The mutual cancellation opened for a finishing barrage.
But countering the feint had already decided the contest.
Yuk Jin-yang swept his right arm in a grand circle. Focusing power even as he deflected the foe's linear fist, absorbing the scattering waves. Like wind devouring wind to swell in might.
At last, the palm wave of Soaring Serpent Riding the Mist erupted in storm-force gale. It struck Jin Cha-geon's face dead-on.
Kabooom!
The devastating impact landed true. No protective qi could withstand such an ultimate technique, let alone human flesh and neck bones.
Jin Cha-geon's head was gone from the neck up. The ragged cross-section of torn flesh attested to the technique's ferocity.