Chapter 281
Chapter 281
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 284
Chapter Title: Kill or Be Killed
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Dang Myeongjin's pupils shook violently.
'Is he... really trying to kill me?'
Logically, there was no way that could be true, but the moment he faced Namgung Hyeok's demonic sword radiating a crimson aura like blazing flames, goosebumps erupted all over his body.
Why was the phrase "grazed means dead" popping into his head?
"Dodge!"
Shuuu!
Whirrlik!
"......!"
Paeng Jung-hyeok urgently grabbed Dang Myeongjin by the collar and yanked him back. Dang Myeongjin stared blankly at his hair strands flying through the air, his eyes wide open.
'...I really could've died.'
Kaaang! Kaang!
Crimson lightning exploded, sending Paeng Jung-hyeok staggering backward.
"Urgh!"
"Put strength in your lower body! Your sword has no power behind it!"
Paaak!
Crack!
"Kuhuk!"
No sooner had Namgung Hyeok's cold voice rung out than Paeng Jung-hyeok's knee buckled.
Paeng Jung-hyeok's face twisted in agony.
Namgung Hyeok's hand created over a dozen afterimages.
Pabababang!
The sound of leather drums bursting echoed as Paeng Jung-hyeok tumbled to the ground.
In that gap, Paeng Yeon-hwa and So Hye-yeon charged from both sides, but they were struck by the flat of the demonic sword and sent flying.
Dang Myeongjin gaped at Namgung Hyeok's astonishing martial prowess.
'That monster...!'
This wasn't mere suppression—he was toying with them in the palm of his hand.
The gap in skill was so vast it beggared belief.
'Is this... really just training?'
Watching the demonic sword swing with lethal killing intent, it was hard to tell if this was a life-or-death duel or a spar.
'What the hell? Why is everyone so aggressive? Have they gotten a taste for getting hit?'
Paeng Jung-hyeok, who had been beaten to a pulp, had somehow leaped back up and was charging like a bull, while So Hye-yeon and Paeng Yeon-hwa, who had flown to the sides, were closing the distance.
"Uwaaaak! You bastard! Just one hit! Take just one hit! Why won't you get hit! Uwaaaak!"
Paaaang!
Boom!
So Geolgae let out a shrill scream as his jaw was struck, sending him crashing into the wall.
And just as quickly, he sprang back up and charged again.
"Take a hit, damn it! You dog of a Namgung Hyeok!"
Cheeeeng!
Namgung Hyeok kicked So Geolgae away again.
Dang Myeongjin's dazed eyes flashed as he watched the tenacious attackers.
'I'll show you how tenacious a warrior of the Tang Clan is!'
With a furious expression, he hurled poison pellets and hidden weapons from his sleeve as he leaped toward Namgung Hyeok.
"I'm Dang Myeongjin of the Sichuan Tang Clan—aaaang!"
Kwaang!
Namgung Hyeok slammed Dang Myeongjin into the ground in an instant, scowling.
"Why use hidden weapons so openly, you idiot!"
"I-I won't fight dirty..."
"Fighting dirty and surviving means you win. That's war, kid."
Namgung Hyeok knocked Dang Myeongjin out and his eyes gleamed.
"It's kill or be killed. Where's the dishonor in staying alive? Even if the fences fall, as long as people remain, you can rebuild."
A ripple spread through the hearts of those present.
His words were rough, but they carried profound resonance.
"What are you staring at on the ground? Who said they'd wait for you?"
Namgung Hyeok charged at them like a raging beast.
His gaze fell upon the three from the Thunder Dragon Squad forming the Ghost Valley Chain Formation.
Namgung Hyeok's demonic sword shattered the formation in a flash.
Paaaak!
"Kuh, kuuuk!"
Geon Cheon-hwi clutched his solar plexus, writhing in pain. It didn't feel like his organs were merely ruptured—they felt torn apart.
His internal energy stuttered and broke, preventing him from chaining his next sword technique.
Brutal blows hammered him and the three from the Thunder Dragon Squad.
Geon Cheon-hwi endured the pain and counterattacked, but his eyes widened in realization.
Even as he was getting pummeled to the brink of unconsciousness, the strike points Namgung Hyeok was hitting felt familiar.
'...Iron Blood Thirteen Paths.'
The pressure point strikes weren't comparable to before in intensity, but he was clearly beating him down along the paths of the Iron Blood Thirteen Paths.
This wasn't just honing combat sense—he was genuinely tempering them.
In a spar that mimicked real battle, he was striking acupoints along the Iron Blood Thirteen Paths, boosting their energy, and imparting lessons—all at once.
Things that were hard enough with words alone, Namgung Hyeok was accomplishing.
Against top late-stage disciples, no less.
Others would call Namgung Hyeok insane.
Even Geon Cheon-hwi could see it—how much more the others?
That's why Namgung Ryong faced Namgung Hyeok without a single groan.
'Even the Second Young Master is human.'
He couldn't perform such feats indefinitely, so they couldn't squander the opportunity.
No matter how much stamina and internal energy Namgung Hyeok had, there were limits.
Transcendent masters might have inexhaustible stamina and vast inner power like an ocean, but not him.
Indeed, a hot heat was already rising from Namgung Hyeok's previously ironclad torso.
Kwarung! Shuuuak!
He still swung his demonic sword with ferocious momentum and agile movements, but at some point, his words had noticeably decreased.
Geon Cheon-hwi's pupils trembled.
'Had the Second Young Master ever been like this?'
Geon Cheon-hwi ground his teeth and lifted his head.
If Namgung Hyeok was giving his all, how could he slack off?
Geon Cheon-hwi dragged the prone Tak Hyeok-dong and Jang Woong to their feet.
"Get up! Fight!"
"Kraaaah!"
"You bastard!"
Spitting curses, the two grabbed their axes and twin blades and rose.
The three reformed the Ghost Valley Chain Formation and charged at Namgung Hyeok once more.
Namgung Hyeok circulated the Heavenly Creation Bright King Art and swung his demonic sword.
All his nerves focused on the late-stage disciples receiving his blade.
His senses sharpened to the point where he could see not just muscle twitches, but even the direction of body hairs quivering.
Namgung Hyeok's nerves were on edge, as if facing ten thousand foes.
Striking Geon Cheon-hwi's acupoints differed in attack and depth from repelling Namgung Ryong's Sovereign Sword Form.
Adjusting internal energy and acupoint strikes to each opponent was grueling, even for Namgung Hyeok.
If he were the Poison Tyrant of old, it wouldn't have been hard, but he wasn't that man anymore.
Countering opponents who struck back with Pursuit Blood Seal required superhuman focus while modulating power.
At some point, each movement drained him like wet cotton sapping strength.
The Heavenly Creation Bright King Art, which had whirled dozens of times per breath, began to slow.
Yet Namgung Hyeok did not stop his demonic sword.
The best time to absorb the Spirit Pill's energy quickly and thoroughly was now.
'Surviving is something you do yourself!'
Relying on help in chaos was the height of folly.
The moment of standing alone would surely come.
Crisis visits everyone.
'No one will come to save you.'
In the end, you must survive on your own.
Expecting aid is a luxury.
'The Namgung Clan is the same.'
Orthodox Heaven Alliance?
If those bastards came to help, he'd eat his own hand.
Even if everyone else came, the Orthodox Heaven Alliance never would.
'And when have I ever needed such help?'
Namgung Hyeok squeezed out his last internal energy and struck Namgung Ryong.
Paaaak!
Kung!
Namgung Ryong, who had been holding out alone, collapsed like a rotten tree stump.
Namgung Hyeok panted raggedly before barely straightening his back.
"Aigoo! I'm dying."
Namgung Hyeok thrust his demonic sword into the ground and caught his breath.
"Haa, all that good food and they still don't drop easily. Aigoo."
Guess drugs do make a difference.
Even modulating his power, taking down ten took this much effort.
Namgung Hyeok swept his sunken gaze over the fallen late-stage disciples.
"...So this is my current limit?"
He had pushed his internal energy to the brink for the first time since opening his meridians.
Thanks to that, he could see where his limits lay.
Hitting the ground was a valuable experience too.
Just as Namgung Ryong and the others had experienced their limits and received his aid, Namgung Hyeok had received theirs.
"The road ahead is long."
Namgung Hyeok pulled his demonic sword free and trudged out of the training ground.
He still had work to do.
* * *
Namgung Jangcheon silently gazed at the training ground visible through the window before turning his head.
"So in the end, no word on support from the Orthodox Heaven Alliance."
Chief Steward Geum Gwang-mo nodded gravely.
"Elder Namgung Sang attempted to persuade them but ultimately failed. The Murong Clan and Northern Paeng Clan elders said they would help, but..."
"The martial world has always been a cold place."
Namgung Jangcheon's expression turned bitter.
He never imagined he'd invoke that old martial proverb in this situation.
With danger looming, enemies and allies stood in stark relief.
But he soon reined in his bitterness.
Namgung Jangcheon was the head leading the Namgung Clan.
He could not show despair or defeat until the very end.
Instead of blaming others, he needed to make use of what he had.
Even those kids in the training ground were gritting their teeth in preparation for the coming war.
Namgung Jangcheon eyed the map drawn on the wall of Cheonggung Hall.
Mobilizing all of the Namgung Clan's intelligence, they were monitoring enemy movements in Anhui Province, Zhejiang Province, and even eastern Jiangsu Province.
Tiny flags on the map were already encroaching into the Namgung Clan's territory.
"Enemy movements?"
"We anticipate engagement within three days."
"Three days..."
Even with such large forces, their speed was faster than expected.
Namgung Jangcheon asked quietly.
"How far along is the formation?"
"...About thirty percent complete."
"Push it as fast as possible. We need at least fifty percent."
"Yes."
"Continue training them in joint techniques."
Geum Gwang-mo nodded and said.
"The Hefei Wild Clans we requested aid from have begun producing hidden weapons and arms."
"Mm! Good."
"In five days, we should receive the items we commissioned, though it'll be tight."
At Geum Gwang-mo's words, Namgung Jangcheon's expression eased slightly.
But his complexion remained poor.
They were rushing desperately, yet time was agonizingly short.
After a moment's thought, Namgung Jangcheon spoke.
"What of the Hefei Ten Clans and nearby sects we requested aid from?"
"...Best not to expect much. They're not the type to share our fate."
"Don't resent them. With lives and sects' futures at stake, no blame should be laid."
"...Yes."
"Send someone again. Tell them to bar their gates or leave Hefei temporarily until the flames subside."
Abandoning their bases wasn't easy, but it was a choice to avoid meaningless sacrifice.
His own nose was barely three inches long, but as a righteous Namgung Clan, he felt obligated to prevent neighboring sects from being swept up.
Namgung Jangcheon let out a sigh laced with worry.
"So this is every force we can muster right now?"
"Yes."
"Mm..."
It fell short.
The incoming sects weren't ragtag groups—they were hegemons of their regions.
Even a sect the size of the Black Dragon Sect, which once threatened the Namgung Clan, was among them.
Even total mobilization might not suffice...
After prolonged deliberation, Namgung Jangcheon cautiously opened his mouth.
"Have we contacted them too?"
"Pardon?"
Geum Gwang-mo showed confusion before realizing whom he meant, then paled in shock.
"Family Head! Not them. We can't trust our backs to those people!"
"This is the main clan's crisis. They are still people of the main clan."
"They'll rejoice at our crisis now. They might stab us in the back!"
Namgung Jangcheon fully understood Geum Gwang-mo's vehement reaction.
He could see them as traitors.
But Namgung Jangcheon thought differently.
He emphasized firmly.
"Inform them as well."
"Family Head!"
"Our paths diverged and swords were drawn, but they still bear the Namgung name. I don't believe they'll watch our clan's peril as if it were someone else's affair."
A new emotion overlaid the bitterness on Namgung Jangcheon's face.
"For once, I want to trust them."
Geum Gwang-mo swallowed hard at Namgung Jangcheon's bitter expression.
He exhaled deeply before speaking.
"I'll inform them immediately."
"Make haste."
The air in Cheonggung Hall grew heavy.
Namgung Jangcheon's gaze swept over the flags on the map, trembling faintly.