Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Assault on the Water Dragon Stronghold
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The boats carrying the Water Dragon Stronghold's bandits arrived at a cave carved into a sheer cliff.
As soon as the vessels entered the cave, they were gradually enveloped by darkness.
"We should just kill the wench now."
Heukyano's face twisted in frustration as the shadows slowly crept over him.
He had repeatedly spared those he could have killed on the Stronghold Leader's orders, time and again.
And during that time, the two had grown stronger.
Especially the woman's growth—it was steep enough to inspire fear.
"When I first saw her, she couldn't even last a single exchange, but now she holds out for over a hundred moves."
It was hard to believe even seeing it with his own eyes.
At first, she had been barely able to block the Black Night Palm, but now she wasn't just defending—she was counterattacking.
'We need to cut them down before they grow further.'
He shook his head with a sigh.
But he couldn't do that.
It would mean defying the Water Dragon Stronghold Leader's order to disengage at an appropriate point.
"Why did the Leader give such a pointless command...?"
No matter how much he pondered, he found no answers.
And it wasn't just that.
Prolonging this needless war of attrition had even built up resentment within the Water Dragon Stronghold itself.
'Sigh, I just can't figure out the Leader's intentions.'
As Heukyano pressed his forehead with his index finger, nursing a budding headache,
Thud—
the boat came to a stop right on cue.
At the same moment, brilliant lights flickered on one by one from the ceiling and walls all around.
Night pearls, they were.
How many had they plundered over the years? There were far more than one or two.
"Aigoo, what a ordeal this is."
"What can we do? It's the Leader's command. We just gotta grit our teeth and push through."
The grumbling bandits began disembarking from the boat in a noisy horde.
"...Guess I have no choice but to wait."
Heukyano watched his subordinates file out like a procession of ants through the passage, then took a step forward.
Creeeak—
The door to the helm room swung open.
"Good work today..."
Heukyano turned his head, and his expression slowly hardened like stone.
The one who emerged from the door was no subordinate—it was an unfamiliar young man.
"Who are...?"
Their eyes met in an instant.
The youth's pitch-black pupils slowly seized Heukyano's gaze, drawing him into the darkness.
Whoosh— whoosh—
Heukyano shook his head vigorously.
Regaining his senses, he gripped his weapon and moved to speak.
"Impressive mental fortitude."
A faint smile curled at the young man's lips.
A feather-light smile.
Yet gazing upon it, Heukyano felt a chill run down his spine.
"...Who the hell are you?"
Whoosh—
Suddenly, the young man's figure vanished.
At the same time, Heukyano's face drained of color.
The youth was right in front of him.
"...Wh-when?!"
"You don't need to know who I am."
The moment those words ended.
Flash!
Sword light devoured Heukyano's vision.
'How can such an expert...!'
And that was the last thought Heukyano ever had.
Splash—
In the blink of an eye, blood spurted from Heukyano's neck, staining the wooden deck crimson.
"What kind of hideout is this dump?"
Cheonhwi clicked his tongue.
The path here had been labyrinthine enough.
And this cave was their base?
No wonder it had been so hard to find.
Who would ever imagine that the Water Dragon Stronghold—one of the top outfits in the Yangtze River Waterway Strongholds—had its lair in a cliffside cave?
"Plenty of rats still skulking inside."
Cheonhwi flicked the blood from his blade and muttered as he turned around.
"Aigoo, my poor aching body."
"Why do we gotta do this crap, seriously."
The bandits who had just emerged grumbling froze at the sight of Cheonhwi.
"Huh? Who's this guy?"
"Was there someone like him?"
"Gasp!"
Then, they all gulped in unison.
There was a corpse in front of the youth.
Heukyano's corpse!
"S-Senior?!"
"An enemy... guk!"
As they opened their mouths to shout,
Flash!
Sharp sword light flashed once more, and cold bodies piled up.
"Inside's all cleared."
Cheonhwi stepped forward slowly.
"Now, time to clean up out here?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Kwaaaagh!"
"S-Spare me!"
The ones outside sensed something amiss from the screams erupting within the boat and hurriedly gripped their weapons.
"Wh-what's going on?!"
"Screams are coming from the boat Senior Heukyano's on!"
"From the boat? You think it's an enemy?"
"No idea."
They swallowed hard in tension, glaring at the boat, when...
"...It went quiet."
The screams cut off abruptly.
And at that moment.
Creeeak— creeeak—
The sound of footsteps on the wooden planks echoed.
The boat's door swung open, revealing a young man.
A handsome youth clad in pitch-black martial robes.
Blood trickled down his cheek in a single streak.
Then the youth raised his head.
"Let's see. Even at a glance, there's over a hundred."
A low whisper spread.
Smirk—
His red lips split into a grin, baring white teeth.
"This'll take a bit."
Cheonhwi kicked off the ground immediately.
Unfurling his Dark Phantom Step, he landed on the cave floor in one leap and sliced down on one who hadn't even noticed his approach.
Slash!
The chilling sound made the one beside him turn, but...
Slice!
The sword struck first.
So swift was it that the victim died without even a scream.
"Enemy!"
"An intruder's here!"
Only then did the bandits cry out in panic.
"What? Enemy? How many?!"
"Where?!"
Bandits poured out from all directions.
Cheonhwi stroked his chin as they swarmed densely.
"Creepy."
He muttered at the endless cockroaches emerging from who-knows-where.
"Where do they all keep coming from?"
The bandits who had rushed out scanned for the foe, then spotted Cheonhwi.
"Just one guy?"
Their faces fell in disappointment as they glanced at the one who had called for help.
"D-don't underestimate him! Look at those bodies!"
Following the bandit's pointing finger, they saw the mountain of corpses hidden behind Cheonhwi, and their expressions hardened.
They gripped their weapons in unison.
Meanwhile, Cheonhwi eyed the horde. More precisely, their peculiar weapons.
'Interesting weapons.'
Curved sabers with hooked tips, whips studded with razor thorns.
All of them radiated unbridled killing intent.
Crack!
Then a man with a whip kicked off the ground and lashed out viciously.
The whip sliced through the air toward Cheonhwi's side.
Grab.
Cheonhwi effortlessly dodged and seized the thorny whip.
"Pretty fun weapon."
"I'll make it even more fun for you."
The man sneered and yanked the whip.
But...
"Hup!"
It didn't budge an inch.
Yank!
In that instant, his body was pulled forward.
"So, when are you gonna make it more fun?"
"Hep!"
As the panicked man released the whip,
"Want me to show you instead? Here, watch."
Cheonhwi had already gripped it properly and swung with full force.
Snap!
A crisp crack rang out.
The man's clothes shredded under the thorns, blood spraying everywhere.
"Kwaaaagh!"
The scream tore from his dantian.
But the assault didn't stop.
Snap! Snap!
After a few swings, Cheonhwi wrapped it around him and burst it open in one go.
"Next."
He scanned the frozen crowd.
Their eyes brimmed with terror, but Cheonhwi paid it no mind.
"If you won't come to me..."
He stepped forward.
"I'll come to you."
A few tried to drop their weapons and flee, but sword light flashed first.
"Don't dream of living. Unlike last time, I'm uprooting you all this round."
Cheonhwi's voice was flat and emotionless.
From the moment he accepted the mission, only one thought occupied his mind.
The extermination of the Water Dragon Stronghold.
Not a single one spared.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In the chamber where the Water Dragon Stronghold Leader resided.
The room brimmed with rare treasures.
There sat a stocky, solidly built middle-aged man and a long-faced elder in a deeply pressed bamboo hat, facing each other.
The bamboo-hatted elder's lips twitched at the commotion outside.
"Noisy out there."
"No need to worry."
In contrast, the Water Dragon Stronghold Leader remained calm.
It stemmed from confidence—his stronghold had been ambushed several times in the past but never breached.
"Do you know the Chief Stronghold Leader has made his move?"
The elder's eyes grew icy.
"He's already acting?"
"Heh. You underestimate the Chief."
The Leader sneered at him.
The Chief of the Yangtze River Waterway Strongholds.
Known in the jianghu as a brute who knew only brute force, but the Leader knew better.
He was a snake of a man.
"He's far more capable than you imagine."
"You trust him, then."
p>
"It's not trust—it's fact."
The elder slightly lifted his hat, meeting unyielding eyes that brooked no deceit, and his lips moved.
"Don't even think of betraying him."
"What? Betray?!"
The Leader erupted suddenly.
Not an outburst—pure rage.
"You dare spout pretty words while using me?!"
"Haha. 'Using'? Such harsh words. Isn't it a fair deal?"
Unable to endure the elder's smug tone any longer, the Leader slammed his fist on the table.
"Spit out your lies with some saliva at least."
He spat each word like venom, glaring fiercely through the deeply shadowed bamboo hat.
"After seizing my weakness and toying with me."
"But you obeyed in the end, didn't you?"
The piercing retort left the Leader grinding his teeth in silence.
They glared at each other for a long moment.
"......"
The Leader finally slumped back into his seat, his face one of resignation.
"What does the Ten Nights Gate want that you're pitting the Yangtze River Waterway Strongholds against the Murim Alliance?"
The elder's identity was astonishing.
A disciple of the Ten Nights Gate, the enigmatic sect that ruled the night.
One of the pillars of the Six Demonic Gates—no, the Five now—the most secretive and shadowy faction under heaven.
"I don't have a loose tongue."
The Ten Nights Gate disciple smirked.
Grasping the implication, the Leader furrowed his brow.
"Then why are you here today?"
"To deliver the next order, naturally."
"...How long must this go on?"
"That depends."
The disciple lifted his hat slightly.
His pitch-black pupils reflected the Leader, like a prisoner trapped in inescapable brain chains.
"For life, wouldn't you say?"
The Leader squeezed his eyes shut.
His lifelong hidden weakness, discovered by these vile bastards of all people.
'I should have struggled then.'
Too late for regrets.
He was already knee-deep in the swamp they'd created.
Shoulders slumping in defeat, he muttered like a lament.
"Fine. What's the order this time? Kill every last one of the dispatched relief force now?"
An offhand remark.
Touching the relief force meant provoking the Murim Alliance.
One misstep could ignite a righteous-demonic war.
Yet...
"You guessed it spot on."
"...!"
The Leader's eyes shook.
"Y-you mean to start a war now?!"
Instead of answering, the disciple smiled faintly.
That cold smile pierced the Leader's heart like a barbed thorn, stealing his breath.
"You're mad. Utterly insane."
As the Leader reeled in horror,
Bang!
The door exploded in a cloud of dust.
Cheonhwi burst through the swirling haze.
"You done talking?"