Chapter 378: Hearing the Full Story
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 378: Hearing the Full Story
Rumble!
The twelve-foot-tall massive frame began to move.
Thump.
Thump.
The ground shook with every step, letting out a heavy, thunderous roar. It was proof that her weight had increased in proportion to her gargantuan size.
"Kuaaaaagh!"
The transformed Yorang swung her front paw at Ok-ryeong.
Whoosh!
The massive limb tore through the air. Seeing this, Ok-ryeong quickly widened the distance between them.
Crasssh!
Yorang’s arm slammed into the spot where Ok-ryeong had been standing a moment ago, shattering the earth.
Whoosh!
This time, Yorang swung her other front paw. The limb, as large as a full-grown human, lunged toward Ok-ryeong once more.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As the paw struck the ground, a thunderous roar erupted, and a shockwave rippled outward.
"Kuaaaaaagh!"
Driven by nothing but instinct, Yorang let out a monstrous shriek. She was clearly frustrated that her prey kept evading her attacks.
Crash!
Bang!
Thoom!
Yorang began to rush Ok-ryeong, using not just her front paws but her other six legs as well. It seemed to be a tactic to compensate for her lack of speed. Soon, all eight legs were tearing up the surrounding area.
Swish.
Zip.
Ok-ryeong moved with agile steps, dodging every strike. While Yorang’s strength and durability had increased exponentially, her speed had dropped to a dismal level. Evading her wasn't particularly difficult.
The problem was Yorang’s movement. To catch her prey, she was slowly advancing, expanding the Poison Zone as she went. If this continued, not only would the entire mountain range be turned into a toxic wasteland, but she might even reach the nearby village.
In her current state, she was nothing short of a walking calamity. She had to be suppressed somehow.
Ok-ryeong gathered her internal energy. Then, she lifted her foot and stomped down.
Boom!
The ground cratered, and a tremor rang out. Using the crater as a foothold, Ok-ryeong launched herself forward. Her form vanished in an instant.
Chururururu—
Clang!
A moment later, her sword collided with Yorang’s front paw, resulting in a deafening explosion of sound.
Kaaaaang!
"Kyaaaaagh!"
Yorang shrieked in agony. An immense pain radiated from her front paw. She began to thrash even more violently, her entire body quaking. With every movement, the trees and rocks in the vicinity were crushed, broken, and leveled.
Ignoring Yorang’s resistance, Ok-ryeong began to systematically destroy her legs one by one.
After some time had passed...
Every single one of Yorang’s legs had been shattered. They simply couldn't withstand Ok-ryeong’s transcendental Fast Sword.
Seeing this, Ok-ryeong felt a surge of triumph. She believed she had successfully suppressed her.
Wriggle. Wriggle.
Squelch!
Unfortunately, her hopes were quickly dashed. The shattered legs regenerated in the blink of an eye.
"Kuaaaaagh!"
Yorang resumed her assault with her newly restored legs, leaving Ok-ryeong with a troubled expression. She realized this could go on forever.
‘What should I do?’
As she faced off against her opponent, Ok-ryeong fell into deep thought. It seemed that suppressing her was an impossible task. In a normal situation, she would simply sever the limbs and be done with it, but Yorang possessed transcendental regenerative abilities.
That regeneration made even suppression difficult. How could she subdue someone who simply grew back whatever was cut off?
Yet, she couldn't bring herself to kill her. Yorang was Sun-woo’s friend, and her own. How could she easily kill a dear companion?
A headache began to throb in her temples.
"Kuaaaaagh!"
Another leg lunged at her along with a monstrous shriek.
Swish.
Ok-ryeong quickly dodged the leg and made a decision. She would do everything in her power first.
Ok-ryeong adjusted her grip on her sword. Stepping forward, she propelled herself like a bullet.
Boom!
Slice!
Her form vanished again, and one of Yorang’s legs was severed cleanly.
"Kyahahaaaaagh!"
She decided she would keep cutting until Yorang could no longer regenerate. Ok-ryeong’s eyes began to glow with absolute resolve.
*
"Huff... huff... huff..."
Ok-ryeong panted heavily. Constantly severing those legs had drained a significant amount of her stamina.
The power she had gained through her recent enlightenment was the Light Sword. It was a technique that allowed her to achieve extreme speed by momentarily photonizing her body and her blade.
Of course, because the human body has its limits, she couldn't actually move at the literal speed of light, but she could reach the maximum speed her physical form allowed.
The problem was the strain it put on her body. The faster she moved, the more immense the load became, until her muscles, bones, and tendons began to scream in protest.
That was her current state. Her muscles shrieked, her bones groaned, and her tendons throbbed with pain. It was the price of relentlessly slashing at Yorang.
‘I’m almost at my limit.’
She knew the end was near. If this continued, she would collapse from exhaustion before Yorang did. Ok-ryeong glanced up at her opponent.
"Kuaaaaaagh!"
Despite having her legs severed countless times, Yorang still seemed to have plenty of fight left in her. Her regeneration had slowed down, but her strength was still overflowing.
Ok-ryeong was torn. During their confrontation, they had drifted toward an open clearing not far from the village. If she was pushed back any further, Yorang would undoubtedly descend upon the mountain village as a literal disaster.
She had to decide: should she kill Yorang here or not?
Though she held great affection for Yorang, she couldn't allow others to die because of her—especially innocent people who had done nothing wrong.
Ok-ryeong’s gaze turned somber as she sank into deep contemplation.
After a long silence...
Ok-ryeong slowly raised her sword. She cared for Yorang. Since their first meeting, they had shared many emotions as friends. Even while living in the Tang Clan, they were comrades who shared the bond of being outsiders.
Because she cared, she had to stop her. She had to prevent her from committing a terrible sin.
Ok-ryeong raised her photonized sword.
Vroooooom—
A halo of pure white light began to radiate around her. It was the precursor to full photonization.
Her eyes snapped open. She felt that with just one more step, it would all be over.
Ok-ryeong took one last look at Yorang. The creature was still shrieking and thrashing about. To Ok-ryeong, it looked like a child crying and throwing a tantrum, which broke her heart.
She felt a wave of guilt. She should have paid more attention to her. She should have understood her heart better. She should have embraced her more.
A single tear rolled down Ok-ryeong’s cheek as she took her stance. She intended to pierce Yorang’s heart in a single strike, before she could even feel the pain.
Boom!
She stomped the ground. Simultaneously, the earth cratered, and her form shot forward.
‘Yorang, I’m sorry.’
Offering an unforgivable apology, she threw herself forward.
Shweeeek!
Her sword lunged toward Yorang’s heart.
Then, something unexpected happened. The lunging sword suddenly twisted, soaring upward into the empty air. Ok-ryeong’s body followed the blade, and she landed nearby.
Having landed safely, Ok-ryeong wore a heavy expression. She realized she simply couldn't kill Yorang.
The moment she thrust her sword, memories of their time together flashed through her mind. The times Yorang had comforted her. The times they had fought side-by-side. The many times Yorang had made her laugh.
She didn't have many precious people in this world. To ask her to kill one of them with her own hands was too cruel a task.
‘I can’t do it.’
She decided that killing Yorang was an impossible feat for her.
"Kuaaaaagh!"
Yorang, in her Human-Faced Spider form, lunged at Ok-ryeong once more. Ok-ryeong quickly moved her body, changing direction toward the village at the foot of the mountain.
She had to evacuate the people as quickly as possible. Ok-ryeong’s form blurred and then vanished completely.
"Kuaaaaagh!"
Yorang shrieked, searching for the prey that had suddenly disappeared. To a creature driven only by hunting instincts, the escape of her prey was a profound humiliation. How could a perfect hunter like herself lose her mark?
Yorang began to maximize her sense of smell. Soon, she picked up the scent from a considerable distance away.
"Kuaaaaaagh!"
Yorang let out a roar.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
She began to move her massive legs rapidly. A blood-red light began to glow in her eyes as she gave chase.
*
Rattle, rattle, rattle.
A long caravan of wagons began to race noisily down the official road. The wagons were all stained with dirt and covered in various scratches, large and small. Judging by their appearance, they had clearly traveled a very long distance.
Rattle, rattle, rattle.
The wagons, which had been racing down the road, finally came to a halt in front of a massive gate bearing a plaque that read "Sichuan Tang Clan."
The eyes of the gate guard widened. He had recognized the identity of the caravan at a glance.
"The search party!"
Indeed. The wagons stopped before the gate belonged to the search party—the Alliance search party that had been dispatched seven months ago to find the missing persons.
"Good work."
Just then, a very familiar voice reached the guard's ears. Startled, the guard turned toward the source of the sound.
There, he saw a young man standing majestically atop the roof of a wagon.
"Open the gate."
The young man spoke while looking down at the guard.
"Huh?"
Dazed for a moment, the guard let out a foolish response. The young man smirked. It seemed the guard hadn't quite grasped the situation yet.
"Jang Sun-woo, disciple of the Poison King and hero of the Tang Clan, has returned! Open the gates immediately!"
Sun-woo infused his voice with internal energy and shouted. The sound echoed in all directions, making the very heavens and earth tremble.
"Ugh!"
The guards protecting the main gate of the Tang Clan all covered their ears at once. The immense power behind the shout made it feel as if their eardrums were about to burst.
‘Was that too much?’
Seeing their reaction, Sun-woo felt a bit sheepish. He had intended to announce his return grandly, but he might have overdone it.
‘Eh, whatever.’
He soon adopted a relaxed expression. He was returning triumphantly after completing his mission. A little commotion was perfectly fine.
Creeeeeak.
As soon as Sun-woo finished his shout, the massive gates began to swing open. Sun-woo watched the opening gates with a heart full of emotion. He was finally back. Back to his home.
Surely, his lovers were inside, waiting for him anxiously.
Thump, thump, thump.
Sun-woo felt his heart racing wildly. Just the thought of meeting the women he loved made his chest flutter.
‘I should go on ahead.’
As the gates opened, Sun-woo quickly hopped down from the wagon roof. He then launched himself forward, utilizing his movement techniques to sprint ahead.
Toward the place where his lovers would be waiting.
*
"What!?"
Sun-woo looked down at Tang Gam with a bewildered expression. He had just heard news that was utterly unbelievable.
"......Right now... none of them are here."
Tang Gam continued, beads of sweat rolling down his face.
"What kind of nonsense is that? What do you mean no one is here?"
Sun-woo asked again, unable to comprehend. How could all the women who made up the clan's leadership be absent at the same time?
"Did they all go out for a flower viewing or something?" Sun-woo asked, looking exasperated.
"It's not that. An urgent matter arose, so they all had to leave."
"And what is this 'urgent matter'?"
".......Well... that is..."
Hearing Sun-woo’s question, Tang Gam began to stammer. He knew very well how much Sun-woo doted on Yorang. He was terrified of what Sun-woo might do if he found out she had run away.
"Lady Yorang has run away from home..."
Just then, a woman's voice drifted from behind. Sun-woo quickly turned his head.
There stood a beautiful woman dressed in a pure white martial arts uniform.
"...Bed-wetter?"
Sun-woo blurted out in surprise.
".....My name is Lee Ye-seol."
Hearing the humiliating nickname, Lee Ye-seol’s face turned bright red as she spoke.
"No, more importantly, Yorang ran away!?"
Sun-woo finally processed the words and spoke with a panicked expression.
"Exactly as I said. Lady Yorang has run away. The Tang Clan is currently in a state of emergency."
Lee Ye-seol continued in a calm tone. Hearing her words, Sun-woo looked utterly dumbfounded.
Just what on earth had happened?