Chapter 185
Chapter 185
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 185
Chapter Title: A Desperate Gambit
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The attack was so sudden that even twisting his body wasn't enough to completely avoid it.
No, had he not dodged, the wound would have been fatal.
“Ugh! Let go!”
As Yun An-ro gripped the blade with both hands, his eyes filled with disbelief, a flustered Hwang Byeong-chan struggled to pull the sword free.
“Why would you…”
“Why? You ask why? Are you really asking because you don't know?”
“…”
“Thirty years… no, it's been much longer. All these years of this damn charade.”
“Byeong… chan…”
“And what's left to show for it? In the end, nothing has changed.”
“…”
“All because of your ridiculous ideals!”
Unable to pull out the deeply embedded sword that Yun An-ro was gripping tightly, Hwang Byeong-chan's face twisted in frustration.
Whoooosh!
Energy gathered in his hand.
“Die!”
Splat!
But it was his head that exploded.
…by the fist of Neung Un-bi, who had unleashed the Three Nothings Footwork the moment he saw the sword pierce Yun An-ro's body.
Hwang Byeong-chan's headless body collapsed to the ground.
“Ah…”
Covered in red blood and white brain matter, Yun An-ro's eyes were utterly vacant.
Betrayal by someone he trusted. Betrayal by someone who had followed him without hesitation through hardship and trial, dreaming of a utopia. The shock was so great he could barely stay upright.
“Aaargh!”
Everyone except Yun An-ro, Shin Ye-rang, and Kim San screamed in horror and fled their positions.
They were terrified. Hwang Byeong-chan's actions had been completely unexpected, and they believed everything had gone wrong.
They could be seen running toward the encirclement as if to surrender, but now was not the time to worry about them.
“Leader Yun!”
Neung Un-bi supported Yun An-ro's staggering body, the sword still skewering him.
“Leader!”
Kim San and Shin Ye-rang rushed to Yun An-ro's side.
“Hwang Byeong-chan… why would he…”
Seeing Yun An-ro muttering to himself, everyone's expression grimaced.
The shock of betrayal was far more severe than the physical shock of being stabbed.
But there was no time for consolation.
Neung Un-bi quickly pressed Yun An-ro's pressure points to stop the bleeding.
He couldn't be left to wander in his shock.
If the mental trauma deepened, his injuries would only worsen.
Moreover, the sword embedded in his body must not be removed. The gushing blood would be impossible to stop.
For now, the only option was to move him to a safe place and leave it in until he could be treated.
“So he was corrupted in the end? He couldn't endure and turned his back on us? Just as I feared…”
Shin Ye-rang muttered, staring blankly at the headless corpse.
Just as she had worried, Hwang Byeong-chan had ultimately failed to escape the old saying: he who touches pitch shall be defiled.
Besides, living to protect an ideal is an incredibly difficult task.
When he became an elder of the Orthodox Murim Alliance on Yun An-ro's orders, he must have been deeply conflicted.
Should I continue to uphold our cause? If I just turn a blind eye for a moment, wealth and glory await.
Is it truly right to dedicate one's life to a cause no one recognizes? Will anything even change?
In the end, the sword in Yun An-ro's body was the conclusion Hwang Byeong-chan had reached after long deliberation. He hadn't faked it; he had truly betrayed them.
The only ones who thought it was a false betrayal… were those who had trusted him.
“Damn it!”
Neung Un-bi swore, looking at the others who had collapsed in despair.
“Shin Ye-rang! Kim San! Get a grip!
“…”
“Are you going to give up like this? You have to live! You have to show the world that what you've done wasn't wrong!”
“What we've done…”
“There's still a chance!”
“…”
“We have to get out of here alive. Get out and expose them. Expose every last bit of their vile corruption.”
These were words he wanted to say to himself.
Words of resolve he was making to himself.
I will get out alive.
I will never be beaten by them again.
Seeing the fire sparking in Neung Un-bi's fierce eyes, Shin Ye-rang bit her lower lip.
“What… what should I do?”
To Shin Ye-rang's words, who had forced herself to regain composure, Neung Un-bi smiled faintly and said.
“Kim San!”
“…Yes?”
“For now, you're the one who has mastered the Three Nothings Footwork. You must take the Leader.”
“Understood.”
Kim San responded immediately to Neung Un-bi's command and took Yun An-ro's body.
What did it matter that he was suddenly speaking informally?
Right now, following his orders was the best course of action.
“I'm counting on you. Make sure the sword doesn't harm the Leader's body any further…”
“Yes.”
After giving the firm instruction, Neung Un-bi rose to his feet.
“Hehehe, this is a real masterpiece. An absolute masterpiece. It brings tears to my eyes, I can hardly watch. Wouldn't you agree, Elder Namgung?”
“Indeed.”
Namgung Hak nodded in agreement with Jegal Min, who was mocking them while clapping his hands.
“Jegal Min, you bastard…”
Neung Un-bi glared at him, clenching his teeth.
A spawn of the Jegal clan. Though young, he had inherited all their venom and depravity.
“Hey, Young Master Neung.”
“…”
“Now that everything's been exposed, are you still going to act like this?”
Neung Un-bi glared at him as if he wasn't worth a response, while simultaneously gauging the right moment to escape.
“Don't bother. There's no way out for you.”
“That's what you think.”
“No. It's an objective analysis.”
“…”
“I may have been suddenly assigned this task because I was near the Orthodox Murim Alliance's headquarters, but did you really think I wouldn't have investigated you?”
“Investigated?”
“That's right. Don't underestimate the Jegal Family.”
“…”
“After the humiliation I suffered from you at the Three Gates Association, I investigated you thoroughly. The Heavenly Pillar Gate, Zhongnan, Mount Hua, even Shaolin.”
“Is that so? Looks like you have eyes and ears everywhere.”
“Isn't that obvious? It's the least I could do. You are, after all, the Third Young Master of the Demonic Cult.”
“…”
“Of course, your presence here was quite a surprise, but even so, there's no way for you to break through the encirclement. The skills I know you possess aren't enough for that.”
He was insufferable.
That confidence, thinking he knew everything and could manipulate it all as he pleased.
“So? What about my skills?”
“Not bad.”
“…”
“But a tiger uses its full strength even when hunting a rabbit. We had the traitor Hwang Byeong-chan, but we still did our best to build a solid encirclement just in case.”
“Did your best?”
“Absolutely. Unless you're a warrior as strong as the Alliance Leader or the Sword Saint, escape is impossible.”
“…”
“So don't waste your energy. Hand them over quietly. If you do, we'll take your circumstances into account and end this by simply exiling you to the Demonic Cult. You and all your subordinates.”
Jegal Min spoke as if trying to persuade him.
And Neung Un-bi coolly mulled over his words.
For someone who was just talking about justification and righteousness, he was quick to offer a deal…
Which meant he was still wary of something.
The Demonic Cult, no, the immense presence of the Heavenly Demon Emperor.
And the bastard still wanted something else. The way his eyes kept glancing at someone told him so.
The target was… Shin Ye-rang?
Why?
Come to think of it, they could have captured Yun An-ro the moment they fully won over Hwang Byeong-chan. They could have gotten their hands on all the incriminating evidence he possessed.
The reason they waited despite that.
Something they had yet to figure out.
“…Shin Ye-rang.”
“Yes?”
“Do you… happen to have what Cheok Wol-rin left behind?”
“…!”
At those words, Shin Ye-rang's eyes widened in shock.
That was enough.
In other words, the reason they had held back until now was to secure what he had left with Shin Ye-rang.
That meant even if Yun An-ro's evidence disappeared, there was still incriminating proof that could damage them.
Of course, Shin Ye-rang would have to escape this place safely.
And there was one more thing he realized from the bastard's words.
Something they had missed.
Since his presence here was a surprise, Wang Cheon and the Sakwol Squad staying in Dengfeng County were safe. They would prepare for them soon, but at least for a while, they would be fine.
Furthermore, they only saw him, not who was beside him.
Namely, Hyang-i's presence.
Then again, who would ever guess that a mere maid was actually a formidable master?
That was their mistake.
*Hyang-i.*
“…?”
*I need a diversion. Please. I'll repay this debt someday. Break through the encirclement and rendezvous with the Sakwol Squad immediately.*
Neung Un-bi's telepathic message made Hyang-i's face contort.
“What are you talking about! I'm supposed to protect you!”
“Hyang-i!”
“…”
Hyang-i immediately retorted, but Neung Un-bi sent another telepathic message so no one else could hear.
“Damn it… Damn it all!”
“…”
When the telepathic message ended, Hyang-i swore as if shouting.
But it was the only way. Their encirclement was certain to tighten soon.
“Huu, alright. But you have to stay alive. Once I join the Sakwol Squad, I will definitely come back for you.”
“Heh, don't worry, Hyang-i.”
“…”
Hyang-i didn't reply to Neung Un-bi's laugh, but the fierce glint in her eyes made it clear she would help with all her might.
“Hey, Jegal Min.”
“…?”
When Neung Un-bi suddenly broke into a grin, Jegal Min looked puzzled.
“You really think you're smart, don't you? Then again, all you Jegal bastards do.”
“…”
“But you know what?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“That sometimes, the world doesn't go the way you want it to.”
“What?”
Just as Jegal Min was trying to decipher Neung Un-bi's meaning.
“Hyang-i!”
With Neung Un-bi's powerful shout, Hyang-i shot toward the left flank of the encirclement at an unimaginable speed.
“What the…?”
Stunned by her speed, the eyes of Jegal Min and Namgung Hak widened in unison.
“Stop her!”
At the urgent cry, Neung Un-bi's smile deepened.
Stop her?
Don't be ridiculous.
You said it yourself, didn't you? That escape is impossible unless you're a warrior as strong as the Alliance Leader or the Sword Saint.
Unfortunately for you, she's exactly that kind of person.
Kraaaash!
The encirclement, like a great fortress wall, shattered with a violent explosion of sound.
“Run!”
Seizing the opportunity, Kim San and Shin Ye-rang moved instantly at Neung Un-bi's shout.
Meanwhile, Hyang-i, her disheveled hair flying, tore through the encirclement with transcendent prowess.
Every time the daggers in her hands sliced through the air, blood splattered, and the screams of those who lost limbs echoed across the mountainside.
“Kekeke, you bastards! I'll kill you all!”
Stopping her was impossible.
Wasn't she the one who had once targeted the life of the Heavenly Demon Emperor, a being whom all revered?
And to top it off, it was night.
The mountainside, shrouded in darkness, was so densely forested that barely any moonlight penetrated, and the deep shadows made her martial arts even more ferocious.
Rain of the Dark Sky.
As Hyang-i's daggers cut through the black night sky, a rain of blood poured down.
“Hold the formation!”
A panicked shout from Namgung Hak.
But the encirclement scattering was an inevitable result.
Furthermore, when you have a limited number of people and some of them abandon their positions?
A weak point emerges.
“Kim San! Shin Ye-rang and I will open a path!”
“Yes!”
Neung Un-bi shouted and simultaneously changed direction.
Sizzle!
A lit incendiary bomb flew in an arc, shaking the mountainside with a violent explosion.
KABOOOM!
It was a small explosion for an incendiary bomb.
But through the scattering formation, Neung Un-bi flew in with a cruel smile on his face.
Lunar Eclipse, Moonlight Slaughter Dance!
Krrrrack!
“Gyaaaak!”
Agonized screams erupted from all sides.
Kim San, carrying Yun An-ro, leaped into the chaos.