Chapter 297
Chapter 297
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 300
Chapter Title: Thunderbolt Aftermath
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The fourth floor heaved like waves in a storm, the shockwave surging skyward.
People clamped their hands over their ears and flattened themselves to the ground, lips pressed shut.
Rumble!
The colorful lanterns and sculptures clinging to the ceiling and walls came crashing down in a heap, cracks spiderwebbing across the surfaces.
Dust and debris rained down onto the prone Thunder Dragon Squad.
The squad, stained ochre and gray, twitched.
The Thunder Dragon Squad blinked as they lay flat.
So Geol-gae swallowed dryly and cautiously pushed himself up.
It was a total mess.
The Heavenly Pavilion, sturdy as a turtle's shell, had held firm—any ordinary manor hit by a thunderclap bomb would've collapsed outright, slaughtering everyone inside without mercy.
"Whew! It went according to plan."
...Y-you!
So Geol-gae's pale face flushed beet red as he glared at Nangong Hyuk, who muttered nonchalantly from the side.
"You madman! What were you thinking, setting off a thunderclap bomb!"
"We're all alive, aren't we? Any dead? Injuries?"
"...Y-you!"
"Then go outside and beg them to kill us."
So Geol-gae hesitated at Nangong Hyuk's brazen calm, glancing out.
The outside was packed with unorthodox warriors fleeing in panic from the thunderclap bomb.
...Damn, we survived.
No words when you're alive.
The outcome was good, wasn't it?
On reflection, Nangong Hyuk's judgment had been near-perfect.
He couldn't think of anything better.
'Sticking with this guy makes my morals evaporate. If the result's good, that's all that matters, right?'
What grated even more was that with Nangong Hyuk, they always survived one near-death scrape after another.
"...Isn't there an easier way? A way to survive easy?"
"Life is a chain of hardships."
End of discussion.
So Geol-gae deflated, pursing his lips.
Paeng Jung-hyuk wiped cold sweat from his brow.
It had been razor-close.
The Heavenly Pavilion was their final bastion. When they'd cleared a path on the first floor, he'd vaguely assumed there was some plan.
But poisoning the air like a pre-set trap, then unleashing thunderclap bombs for a wipeout.
'...Now I'm dying to know what's rattling around in that head of his.'
Watching Nangong Hyuk command the battlefield and make snap decisions felt like staring at an insurmountable wall, dwarfing even their martial arts gap.
Geon Cheon-hwi drew a long breath, eyeing Nangong Hyuk.
"...But didn't we hand back all the thunderclap bombs?"
Nangong Hyuk brushed off his shoulders and glanced up slyly.
"Why spit out something that valuable?"
"But those are state-managed..."
"When has the martial world ever followed the law?"
That's no different from the unorthodox.
...
Nangong Hyuk was so unfazed it seemed his very thought process operated on another plane.
Nangong Hyuk stared blankly at the floor.
The stairs to the first floor had crumbled, buried in rubble.
Dust still swirled, hot updrafts reminding them of the thunderclap bomb's ferocity.
Namgung Ryong approached, lightly patting his shoulder.
"Good work..."
"Not over yet."
"Mm."
Namgung Ryong furrowed his brow slightly, following Nangong Hyuk's gaze.
So Geol-gae laughed awkwardly.
"What do you mean? That was a thunderclap bomb. Didn't you see the power? How could anyone survive that?"
A thunderclap bomb turned a five-zhang radius into an inferno.
It wasn't just poison maximized in a sealed space.
Fire like that in a place like this meant total annihilation.
No expert could emerge unscathed from a direct hit powerful enough to shake the Heavenly Pavilion.
Even dodging the flames, they'd be crushed in the collapse, gasping their last.
"Surviving that? That wouldn't be human. That'd be..."
Rumble...
"Huh?"
So Geol-gae instinctively turned at the vibration climbing his soles.
And in that instant.
Boom!
The rubble exploded outward, revealing Ho Tae-gun, charred black and in tatters.
"You bastard, is that thing even human?!"
So Geol-gae gaped like he'd seen a monster crawl back from hell.
How the hell did he survive that blast?
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The White Blood Squad Leader and his squad followed, billowing black smoke as they burst free.
Nangong Hyuk, watching, clicked his tongue lightly.
"Tch, all in one piece."
He'd never expected the thunderclap bomb to take out Ho Tae-gun.
The man had already leaped to the third floor when it was thrown.
A master who could cloak himself in protective qi wouldn't die to something like that.
The bomb was for the rabble.
Taking out the White Blood Squad too would've been ideal, but what could you do?
The jianghu never flows your way.
At least he knew they weren't rabble.
'Well, most of 'em are cleared. Good enough.'
Nangong Hyuk smirked, looking down at Ho Tae-gun atop the rubble.
"How's the thunderclap bomb taste?"
Ho Tae-gun ground his teeth, shedding his charred tunic.
"You... dare..."
"Man, your face is a sight. What, no more smug bullshit like before?"
"I'll make sure you..."
"Earache. Come up. This time I'll play for real."
People shook their heads at Nangong Hyuk's words, each one twisting guts into knots.
Even now, that tongue never stopped.
But it bred confidence too.
'That's Nangong Hyuk for you.'
Seeing his cocky, sly grin eased their tension.
So what if they survived the thunderclap bomb?
The fourth floor had Nangong Hyuk—deadlier than any bomb.
Nangong Hyuk slung his demon sword over his shoulder and glanced back smoothly.
The Thunder Dragon Squad, now reliable enough, had already reformed ranks without a word.
Namgung Ryong, Paeng Jung-hyuk, So Hye-yeon, So Geol-gae, the Tang siblings.
All primed and ready.
Nangong Hyuk eyed Ho Tae-gun and the White Blood Squad leaping to the fourth floor.
Numbers even.
Both sides seething.
Ho Tae-gun gnashed his teeth, aura flaring.
Feral killing intent dominated the floor in seconds.
He stepped forward, raising his sword.
"No more thunderclap bombs—how'll you manage!"
"What're you on about."
...
"No escape."
"That was just a toy."
Nangong Hyuk grinned faintly, glancing back.
He eyed the ranked Thunder Dragon Squad, then turned forward.
"Best setup I've ever fought in, punk."
Nangong Hyuk's lip curled.
Across past and present lives, fights on even terms were rare enough to count on one hand.
This was prime conditions.
Ho Tae-gun's bloodshot eyes fixed on Nangong Hyuk as he lunged.
"I'll rip that mouth off first!"
Kwaaaah—!
He exploded forward in a blast of momentum.
The White Blood Squad shadowed him, drawing blades.
Nangong Hyuk's eyes flashed blue lightning, bolts branching from his shoulder like tree limbs.
He stepped forward powerfully.
"Crush 'em!"
Boom!
The floor quaked as his sword swept wide.
Crackle!
Thunder laced with the demon sword's malice crashed toward Ho Tae-gun.
Simultaneously, Namgung Ryong led the Thunder Dragon Squad into the White Blood Squad.
Kwaaaang!
A roar and shockwave rocked the fourth floor.
Ho Tae-gun bared fangs at the fiery thunder numbing his hand.
A bizarre vortex spun from his blade, gray sword qi erupting.
White sword light and gray qi shattered the twist of Nangong Hyuk's thunder.
Kwaaaang!
The shockwave rippled out in circles to three zhang.
Crackle!
Screech!
Nangong Hyuk scoffed at the whirling sword qi amid his thunder.
Dozens, hundreds of sword shadows and qi tangled in the air, sparks flying wildly.
Ho Tae-gun's eyes wavered.
His assault hadn't budged Nangong Hyuk's sword.
Solid, heavy.
Fast and sharp.
No gaps for his qi to pierce—Nangong Hyuk's swordplay was perfection.
But sharper than that flawless offense was Nangong Hyuk's mockery.
"That all you got? All that yapping had me thinking you packed a punch!"
His mouth, flapping nonstop amid the Three Thunders Swordplay, assailed Ho Tae-gun harsher than any blade.
Crack!
Ho Tae-gun shook thunder from his wrist, twitching his brow.
"All mouth!"
"Ain't it the opposite?"
"I'll kill you!"
The White Blood Radiant Heaven Sword's light split, dawn breaking the black sky.
Gray qi slowly but surely dyed heaven and earth.
Ho Tae-gun's Whirling Divine Art, taught by the Society, spun ferociously.
A monstrous sword art that, at mastery, spewed a thousand whirling sword qi.
Even at fifth stage, he could unleash a hundred in rotation—no greenhorn could block it.
'Yes! This'll be fun! I'll shred you with my whirling sword qi!'
He'd mince him so fine no corpse remained!
No matter how strong the punk, he couldn't stop this all-out trump card.
Then.
The Namgung sword stance—profound weight blended with Nangong Hyuk's unique feral sharpness—shifted.
Nangong Hyuk's sword wavered.
Hundreds of sword shadows fluttered like petals from his swaying hand.
Shwaaang!
Shwa shwa shwaa!
Like a lotus blooming, his sword light unfurled petals in a rush.
Ho Tae-gun's jaw dropped.
His vision filled with Nangong Hyuk's sword light.
Petals brushed past his whirling sword qi.
Tap!
A light tremor once.
Tap tap tap!
Swift sword light grazed by.
Soon, his spinning qi halted, absorbing the light.
"I-it can't be...!"
Ho Tae-gun shrieked.
He clenched his teeth, surging Whirling Divine Art with all his might.
But hundreds of petals already enshrouded him.
Thud!
A heavy, dull thud as hundreds of sword lights struck near-simultaneously, resounding as one.
Thuuuud!
Sword light burst from Ho Tae-gun's back.
Nangong Hyuk eyed him coldly.
"...Y-you..."
Ho Tae-gun tried to speak, lips flapping, then collapsed.
Blood pooled from his body, staining the floor red.
Nangong Hyuk flicked his demon sword clean.
The Tyrant's Soul Thousand Hands, unfolded as sword shadows, withdrew quietly.
"Whirling Demonic Art, huh."
Nangong Hyuk muttered.
Ho Tae-gun's technique bore clear traces of the Whirling Demonic Art.
Crude completion, sloppy execution, but unmistakable...
'...Dogs and pigs wielding demonic arts now.'
Were demonic arts that easy to learn, acquire, spread?
Nangong Hyuk turned.
The White Blood Squad was getting shredded by the Thunder Dragon Squad, led by Namgung Ryong, Paeng Jung-hyuk, and So Hye-yeon.
Kwang! Kwaang!
Thud!
"Arrrgh!"
"Keurgh!"
"Urk!"
They sensed the scales had tipped.
From the moment White Cloud Sword King Ho Tae-gun fell to Nangong Hyuk, defeat was sealed.
Now that monster would step in and deliver death.
But Nangong Hyuk just crossed his arms and grinned.
"Orthodox folk sure know how to brawl!"
So Geol-gae whipped his head around.
"Help out! We gotta finish quick!"
"Dragging time here's the real help."
"N-no!"
"Wrap it up. Time to head back."
Nangong Hyuk's gaze shifted outside.
The ant-like unorthodox warriors ebbed away like tide.
Unlike their frantic flight from the bomb.
Some fled, but most headed one way.
'...They're encircling.'
Nangong Hyuk intuited trouble at the south gate.
Separate squad stalling was pointless now.
"Move!"
Boom!
No sooner had he spoken than the fiercely resisting White Blood Squad Leader was bisected by Namgung Ryong's sword and fell.
The Thunder Dragon Squad's eyes flashed as they roared back.
"Yes, Second Young Master!"
Nangong Hyuk and the Thunder Dragon Squad pursued the unorthodox horde.