Chapter 133
Chapter 133
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: The Heavenly Net
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The next morning.
Cheonhwi, who had been catching a short nap, lifted his eyelids at the sudden surge of killing intent and grumbled.
"Don't they know not to mess with someone while they're sleeping?"
He immediately raised his sword finger.
At that instant, a single beam of light shot forth.
"Kuhk!"
With a short groan, a man plummeted from the tree to the ground with a thud.
"Heuk!"
"What?"
"Another ambush?!"
The late disciples, jolted awake by the loud noise in a daze, grabbed their weapons only to spot the corpse and pale in terror.
"When did..."
At that moment, a group of people poured down from the trees.
"Yawn."
Still sleepy, Cheonhwi yawned and drew the sword lying on the ground.
Then he slashed sideways.
Sskuk!
In that instant, a long bloody line was carved across the waists of those charging in.
Plip, plip—
A rain of blood poured down.
"Kyaaak!"
Hwangbo Sohyeon shrieked in horror at the sudden shower of blood and falling bodies from above, jumping back in fright before freezing in place.
An assassin had appeared before her in the blink of an eye, gripping his sword.
"I'll take you hostage..."
"Kyak!"
As the assassin swung his sword, Hwangbo Sohyeon screamed and thrust out her fist.
Kwajik!
The Heavenly King's Three Fists struck the careless assassin's jaw, sending him flying.
"Huh?"
Hwangbo Sohyeon stared at the fallen assassin in surprise before clenching her fist triumphantly.
"Hmph! Who do you think you're messing with?!"
She placed her hands on her hips.
Watching her newfound arrogance, Yang Seryeong gripped her triple staff with both hands and said,
"I'll leave the rear to you."
"Don't worry!"
Hwangbo Sohyeon and Yang Seryeong stood back-to-back.
The remaining three late disciples exchanged glances and took their positions.
They swiftly formed a defensive formation and clashed with the assassins.
Kaang! Chaeng! Sskuk!
Cheonhwi sheathed his sword, surprised at how well the late disciples were holding their own.
No assassins came for him.
Instead, they obsessively targeted the late disciples for some reason.
He slowly stretched.
Crack, crack—the sound of joints popping rang out, and hunger rose from his stomach as his body loosened.
"Something edible for breakfast..."
Just then, a small shadow flitted by.
"That'll do nicely."
Cheonhwi picked up a stone from the ground and hurled it skyward.
Whiiish!
The stone sliced through the air, piercing the gliding bird.
Snap!
Cheonhwi caught the falling bird and approached Yang Seryeong, who was still fighting fiercely.
"...!"
Yang Seryeong, locked in a brutal fight with the attackers, flinched at the bird head suddenly appearing before her.
She then spotted Cheonhwi and widened her eyes.
"G-Great hero?"
"Breakfast is served."
"Pardon?"
Yang Seryeong was utterly bewildered.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, an assassin lunged at Cheonhwi's back.
Thuk!
But a stone pierced his chest.
Cheonhwi handed the bird to Yang Seryeong without a glance at the collapsing body.
"How long to cook this?"
"About two hours..."
"Hm. Sounds good."
Cheonhwi dusted off his uniform and turned.
He scanned the tense assassins one by one before drawing the White Lotus Sword.
"I'll handle them first."
Cheonhwi finished them off far sooner than two hours.
To be precise, they fled before he could, making cleanup quick.
"Suddenly running away?"
Doubt arose.
They had charged madly without retreat until now.
As he looked on puzzled,
"Oh, so that's it?"
Extending his senses, he narrowed his eyes.
Hundreds of presences spread out around him.
They were tightening like a dense net, inch by inch.
"Quite the variety."
A chuckle escaped him.
It was a formation and method all too familiar to Cheonhwi.
'Unfurling the Heavenly Net Formation?'
Unlike its grandiose name of "Heavenly Net and Earthly Web," it was a simple, brutish tactic.
Overwhelm the few with the many.
Against experts, it meant harassing relentlessly with numbers, heedless of casualties.
And Cheonhwi knew how to break it better than anyone.
After all, how many times had he faced it?
In the North Sea, the Great Desert, the Western Frontier.
Wherever he went, the Heavenly Net Formation would deploy.
'The Sun and Moon Sect must have plenty of disciples.'
His brows curved like a crescent moon.
Deploying the Heavenly Net meant they intended to finish him off.
'They're coming to die on their own.'
Cheonhwi grinned.
"All done, Great Hero."
Yang Seryeong approached cautiously.
In the wooden bowl made overnight sat thick porridge and roasted bird meat.
Cheonhwi stared at the porridge.
"Boiled the leftover jerky. Thought it might be good for breakfast..."
Yang Seryeong said, gauging his reaction.
He might think it presumptuous, but
"Nice idea."
Unlike her worries, Cheonhwi smiled in satisfaction.
"Whew."
Yang Seryeong sighed in relief.
"Glad you like it."
"Haven't tasted it yet."
"..."
"Let's see how it tastes first."
Yang Seryeong broke into a cold sweat.
'I-It'll be fine, right? Yeah, it has to be. Everyone said it was good.'
She grew more serious than ever.
As she fretted over what might happen if he disliked it,
"Here goes."
Cheonhwi savored the porridge.
The seasoning was better than expected, and the jerky texture was to his liking.
"Tastes good."
As Yang Seryeong patted her chest in relief,
"Hm?"
Cheonhwi, chewing the bird meat, suddenly frowned and spat it out.
"Did you taste this?"
"W-Well..."
Yang Seryeong's face drained of color.
Cheonhwi tossed the roasted bird at her with a pitiful look.
She caught it in surprise.
"Try it."
At his words, Yang Seryeong cautiously chewed the meat and grimaced.
It was poorly seasoned and utterly bland.
"...I'm sorry."
"Heard you were a good cook..."
As Cheonhwi began to speak,
"Great Hero, thirsty?"
Zhuge Victory hurried over, offering the waterskin filled from the stream last night.
"It's cool."
Cheonhwi eyed Zhuge Victory steadily before gulping it down.
'Hm, let it slide this once?'
Feeling a bit better from the adept service, he glanced at the fidgeting Yang Seryeong and moved his lips.
"I'll let this one pass."
Yang Seryeong's expression brightened.
Noting the change, Cheonhwi turned to meet Zhuge Victory's eyes.
"Quick on the uptake."
"Ha, haha."
"But no second chances."
Cheonhwi tossed the waterskin back to the awkwardly smiling Zhuge Victory and stood.
"Let's get going."
"Yes."
Yang Seryeong rose as if she'd been waiting.
Relief at finally leaving this place lit her face.
As the two took the lead,
"Whew."
Paeng Cheolwi let out a deep breath, clutching his reopened side wound.
"Too much strain for big movements."
Thanks to Hwangbo Sohyeon's Heavenly King Pill, he'd barely healed his internal injuries, but he wasn't back to full strength.
The bruises lingered.
'Gotta hold back a bit.'
As Paeng Cheolwi fiddled with his deep side wound, Hwangbo Sohyeon, who had finished circulating her qi, approached with a worried look.
"You okay?"
"Not quite like before, but thanks to the young lady's internal injury and wound salve, I'm much better."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"That's a relief."
Hwangbo Sohyeon beamed.
But only briefly. She eyed his side and clenched her fist.
"Still, tell me if it's tough. I'm a martial artist too."
"I trust the young lady's skills."
The newly close pair chatted amiably, leaving Moyong Sang, unaware of last night's events, gaping.
"Zh-Zhuge young master, what happened?"
"Something like that."
Zhuge Victory brushed it off.
It was awkward to say "Romance blossomed last night."
Instead, he urged Moyong Sang, eyeing the departing group.
"We should hurry too."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Damn it!"
Zhuge Victory ground his teeth.
He'd finally started traveling with Cheonhwi and relaxed, but it didn't even last a day.
'No break at all!'
His gaze swept the surroundings.
Men in uniforms marked with 日 on the chest and 月 on the back charged with frenzied expressions.
Wrinkle formed on Zhuge Victory's forehead.
"What is it with these constant..."
A day was lucky.
Ambushes came every hour or so.
Like right now!
Chaeng! Chaeng!
"Kuk!"
Zhuge Victory deployed his fan to barely deflect the darts from the left.
Then he assumed a defensive stance.
'This is driving me mad.'
His head throbbed.
Half a day with the group, and this was already the third ambush.
Unlike prior attacks, these weren't mindless charges—they hit and ran.
Like hunters wearing down a beast.
"Trying to tire us to death."
Realizing the Sun and Moon Sect was serious, cold sweat beaded on his brow.
'Does he know?'
His gaze turned to Cheonhwi.
But only briefly.
'Hah. Of course he does.'
He sighed inwardly.
Cheonhwi looked utterly unconcerned, not even glancing at the Sun and Moon Sect disciples—as if the situation had nothing to do with him.
However, Cheonhwi was thinking differently.
'Sending small fry to test the waters.'
Cheonhwi glanced at the charging Sun and Moon Sect disciples and pulled out a few steel pellets.
Ting! Ting! Ting!
He flicked them one by one with his fingers.
The pellets flew too fast to track, piercing foreheads and claiming lives.
'Amateurish.'
A calculated ambush, but to him, who had faced massive Heavenly Net Formations before, it was child's play.
'No real experts either.'
Cheonhwi scanned the surroundings.
Sun and Moon Sect disciples scattered everywhere.
Discards brought along—none qualified as experts.
'No more places to run...'
Cheonhwi circulated his inner energy.
'Cornered, the big ones will come out.'
He lightly stomped.
Swish—
His figure vanished.
Simultaneously, strike sounds and belated screams echoed from all directions.
"...Whew."
Yang Seryeong wiped sweat from her brow.
No more charging foes, screams everywhere—it meant he had moved.
Sure enough, Cheonhwi reappeared moments later.
"Thank you, Great Hero."
Cheonhwi eyed Yang Seryeong's gratitude and spoke.
"Time to eat."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Four days into the journey.
The late disciples' appearances deteriorated visibly over time.
Haggard faces from exhaustion were expected; dark circles now loomed large under their eyes.
Not just that.
Their clothes were filthy and torn, barely qualifying as garb.
They reeked from afar—a dire sight.
"...When will it end?"
Hwangbo Sohyeon said in a weary voice.
She'd long abandoned cleanliness.
She looked like a Beggar Clan disciple wouldn't seem out of place, forcing strength into her drooping eyes from fatigue.
"Until they all die or we do."
Zhuge Victory muttered.
The relentless Sun and Moon Sect ambushes.
No experts among them.
But fearless charges kept the late disciples on constant edge.
The scariest part?
'No regard for day or night.'
Thinking of the ambushes made him dizzy.
No proper sleep for days.
Attempt rest, get ambushed—repeat.
Mental fatigue piled on, pupils dilated long ago.
In contrast, Cheonhwi was fine.
While they lost sleep to ambushes, he slept soundly.
Meals handled for him.
Ideal conditions.
'Hm, time to step in properly.'
Cheonhwi read the presences around.
Over ten ambushes, he never let Sun and Moon Sect disciples escape.
Simple reason.
To whittle numbers and draw out the Heavenly Net's key forces.
Now nearly at the target.
Unaware, the late disciples shook their heads at the leisurely Cheonhwi.
"If only he'd hurry..."
"He's tiring too."
As exhaustion became glaring, Yang Seryeong—who spoke most with him—stepped up.
"Great Hero."
"Yes?"
"Could we speed up a bit?"
"No need."
"Pardon?"
Cheonhwi turned his head sideways.
"Come on out."
As the words ended,
"...Vicious bastard. Unfazed by the Heavenly Net."
A familiar voice emerged from the brush with a familiar face.
A one-armed middle-aged man, right shoulder wrapped thickly in bandages.
Myeongwol-do, whose arm Cheonhwi had torn off.
Already sensing him, Cheonhwi smirked.
"Not running this time."
Myeongwol-do's eyes narrowed.
"This is a step back for ten steps forward."
"Not just plain retreat?"
What 'step back for ten forward'—he fled to survive.
"Brought everyone this time?"
"Afraid, are you?"
"Yeah, scared."
"As expected. Our sect's..."
"If stragglers remain, I'll have to visit the Sun and Moon Sect myself. When'll I get there?"
"Talking like you could take the sect alone."
"Isn't that obvious?"
"...Overconfidence."
"Fact, not confidence."
Myeongwol-do's glare sharpened.
"I'll shatter that arrogant confidence."
"Sure."
Cheonhwi replied indifferently.
Countless had vowed to fix his personality since his past life—none succeeded.
"Then try breaking it."