Chapter 187
Chapter 187
************************-
Translator: uly
Chapter: 187
Chapter Title: First Love's Shadow
************************-
"Hmph. Why are you so startled?"
Once the escort warrior of the Sado Alliance Leader, but...
Now part of Reverse Heaven's group, wearing the mask of the Sado Alliance Leader, Yeongwol slowly opened her eyes.
A nostalgic dream. Is first love truly unforgettable? She closed her eyes and sank into quiet thought.
Where did it all begin? Hmm. Right, it was definitely that.
When no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't overcome the barrier of gender.
The Heavenly Demon. My first love. Though it started as a simple mission, she whispered the name she had truly fallen for.
Her majestic bearing. Her playful smile. Hadn't it awakened emotions she had long forgotten?
The thing called 'love'.
But it had failed. For her sake, she would have done anything, yet the Heavenly Demon saw her only as a valued subordinate.
She yearned for romance, but it never came. Only a somewhat bitter response returned, making her heart ache even more.
The one she fell for was far too noble and strong.
And because of that, she had grown somewhat oblivious to those around her.
Wasn't it there that she realized it? That she had to make herself indispensable to the other person.
Only then could she transcend the wall of gender and make her look only at herself.
"......."
But the first attempt failed. It was unstable and easily exposed.
The Heavenly Demon was quick-witted and spat out all the poison she had painstakingly fed her. The plan fell apart, and to top it off, that damned bastard ruined the stage.
In the tangled mess of the plan, everything ultimately came to nothing.
But this time is different. The Sado Alliance Leader. She can't compare to the Heavenly Demon, but...
Even so, she's an attractive woman. Enough for Yeongwol to choose her herself.
"...But..."
Still not enough.
No one but her can fill this emptiness.
Where is she now? What is she thinking?
Yeongwol took a deep breath to steady herself. It's fine. They're bound to meet again someday anyway.
Until then, she'll make do with a substitute.
Everything will go her way in the end, after all.
"Alliance Leader!"
But something unexpected happened.
Yeongwol narrowed her eyes. Still wearing the mask of the Sado Alliance Leader, she took in all the incoming reports.
Her mimicked voice wavered at the unforeseen situation. Unable to comprehend, she asked again.
"...The advance has been halted?"
"Yes! That's right!"
He urgently presented the report.
The name written inside was simple.
"An unprecedented master named Mukseong has appeared in the enemy lines! Considering various circumstances... the chief steward judges his power to be on par with the Celestial Dragon Society Leader!"
"...Transcendent Realm?"
The current murim.
Even now, with geniuses springing up everywhere in ways unimaginable before, that name still carries immense weight.
Even in this era called the most brilliant golden age in history, those who had reached the Transcendent Realm were ridiculously few.
The moment they appeared, the tide of battle turned chaotic. When Transcendent Realm experts clashed, it wasn't enough to shatter the terrain-they were seen as exhausting enemy forces by smashing through troops head-on.
Monsters beyond human limits. And now, another one had appeared in the Celestial Dragon Society...?
"......?"
Yeongwol paused while scanning down the report.
There was something suspicious in the report. He wouldn't die no matter how many times they killed him...
"...This is..."
Rapid regeneration.
Black shadows burning like flames at the wounds.
Clearly inflicted with fatal wounds dozens or hundreds of times, yet...
The tale of a man rising like an immortal.
"...Heavenly Tribulation...?"
The sudden thought made Yeongwol shake her head.
No. It couldn't be. If it were Heavenly Tribulation, she possessed it too.
The excruciating pain was beyond words. She could grit her teeth and endure one death, maybe...
But more than that was impossible. Her mind would snap, and she'd drop her sword herself.
Besides, Heavenly Tribulation wasn't invincible. Such feats were impossible.
Regenerating the moment the sword was drawn and moving as if nothing happened?
Wasn't it completely different from what she had? Heavenly Tribulation's regeneration wasn't that fast. Moreover, fatal wounds meant instant death.
Whether the heart was destroyed or the head severed, it was the same. Like any human reaching death, damage to vital areas meant death.
Heavenly Tribulation's regenerative power had limits. She knew that best, having stolen and acquired it from the Heavenly Demon's reports.
So Heavenly Tribulation was out...
"...Red Cloud...?"
She had no idea who this was. She wasn't an intelligence expert to begin with. She was poor at gathering information.
She hadn't heard of this appearance from Reverse Heaven either, and it was someone she'd never seen before.
She had grasped the positions and features of all known Transcendent Realm experts, yet knew nothing about this one.
If it were Akbi, he'd have known. He was shady, with a hobby of collecting corpses of masters. He had detailed knowledge of living experts too.
But he was dead. She'd heard from Reverse Heaven. While stirring trouble at Shaolin, he was ultimately killed by one of the Four Venerables.
She'd heard a Murim Alliance inspector was involved too... but his skills were so poor he wasn't worth noting.
With Akbi gone, unable to help, there was only one place to lean on.
The sole warrior in Reverse Heaven she still had contact with. Her direct superior.
"......."
She didn't want to reach out. The incident back in the old Demonic Cult, and their methods were completely opposed.
Still, contacting him... was probably the right call.
She could handle one somehow. In fact, it would be good. That one would balance the Sado Alliance and Celestial Dragon Society.
But two was impossible.
Without preparation, she couldn't beat a Transcendent Realm expert, and in open war, they'd definitely be pushed back.
The silver lining was that the report made no mention of 'Sword Heart'. Perhaps the enemy was just a tireless monster.
Either way, she had to report it first. It was crystal clear that she needed his power.
A warrior incomparable to someone like her.
The power of the one called one of the Six Reverse Stars... known as the Seventh Demon in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Yeongwol glanced at her subordinate waiting for a reply. She haughtily tilted her head, just like the Sado Alliance Leader would.
"So?"
"...Pardon?"
"Are you saying the Sado Alliance's chief steward is afraid to advance because of a single warrior?"
"W-Well... If the opponent is truly a Transcendent Realm expert, we'd expect massive casualties..."
"Tell Song Namcheon this: Do what we do best."
"What we're best at...?"
The opponent is strong.
But that doesn't mean they have to stop the war.
The Sado Alliance's forces were stronger than the Celestial Dragon Society's to begin with...
So they just needed to whittle them down as well.
It would be better to proceed that way until he arrived.
"Making up for lack of skill with lives. Isn't that what we do best?"
Periodically culling all factions to maintain controllable order.
That was one of Reverse Heaven's tasks.
Those who had to die anyway...
The Sado Alliance was no exception.
...
They had lost masters.
The number easily surpassed a hundred. Not just that-their boasted super-elites and numerous peak experts had been shredded too.
Adding the first-rate warriors scattered among them, the total casualties exceeded two or three hundred.
The important thing was that each one was a master.
What nonsense was this? Song Namcheon swallowed a hollow laugh. He keenly felt that even he couldn't do the same.
An opponent who seemed unkillable. Unable to see the end, they had to flee like cowards.
One defeating many?
It could happen. He believed it was possible enough.
But on a scale exceeding a hundred? Utter nonsense. These weren't untrained commoners; a suicide squad mixed with peak and super-elite masters couldn't bring him down...
Unless the Celestial Dragon Society Leader stepped in, it was truly absurd.
"......"
"......"
The leaders of each sect gathered in the tent fell silent. Song Namcheon couldn't speak easily either.
They needed to devise a new strategy, but he had no idea where to start. There were four Aura Realm experts here alone...
They all subtly sensed it.
That they couldn't possibly stand against that man.
"...C-Could we at least tie his legs down..."
"One would split off first. The remaining three could push with a joint attack somehow... but who stands at the front?"
"Sh-Shouldn't the strongest one?"
"Are you mad?! If the chief steward dies, who commands?! I have no confidence! Troops are still gathering, and this...!"
The belated clamor began tearing into allies instead of the enemy.
"Just overwhelm with numbers!"
"That's wrong! Chief steward! That guy's sword is stronger against the so-called weaklings! Didn't you see that heavy sword's power?! It'll sweep us away beyond reason!"
"Then you want to run from here?! Pull back because we can't beat one?! The world will laugh at the Sado Alliance!"
"You bastard! Watch your mouth! What's wrong with waiting? The report has gone to the Alliance! High masters from headquarters will surely come as reinforcements! What's wrong with holding until then?!"
"What about supplies for the army gathered now?! We can't sustain them without plundering, and more are coming! Our total assault was planned to supply via plundering in Celestial Dragon Society territory from the start! Do you know when headquarters' masters will arrive and just wait idly?! Most available elites are deployed to other fronts anyway! Pushing up from Guangxi!"
"Th-Then shouldn't we invest more men and crush them?! We just miscalculated! Blindly overwhelming with numbers could crush the enemy under the weight too!"
"Didn't you just see?! It could be an irreparable mistake! What if he really doesn't die?! If he holes up there swinging that sword endlessly, how many will die?! We could lose over half our assembled forces just to breach one fortress!"
"Isn't that an overestimation?! You're scared, elder!"
"You worm! They say bugs only see bugs- you didn't even properly see the sword he swung for half a day!"
"You done talking?!"
It was chaos. But Song Namcheon didn't feel like stopping it.
It was tangled. It felt like a Transcendent Realm expert had suddenly dropped in front of them. Without an equal, attrition warfare to wear him down made sense, but...
There was no certainty. He lacked confidence in handling the blood he'd have to witness.
How many would die? Or should they have pressed like before? But he still seemed to have energy left...
It didn't make sense. Where did such a warrior come from?
If not for the Sword Heart, what difference was there from the Celestial Dragon Society Leader suddenly appearing?
"......."
The shouting continued for days. Song Namcheon hesitated. At the same time, he awaited the Sado Alliance Leader's response.
Relay horses were surely galloping hard. And a messenger would arrive with the document.
The Leader would probably come personally. At least send the deputy leader, the Greatest Sword of the Unorthodox Paths.
Then victory was possible. A powerhouse on the verge of Transcendent Realm. With him, they could seize a sure advantage.
Song Namcheon, stuck unable to act, finally received the awaited reply amid the tightening supply stranglehold.
But neither the Greatest Sword of the Unorthodox Paths nor the Sado Alliance Leader accompanied the relay horse.
Just a single document.
"What does it say?"
"......."
He was a follower. One who obeyed orders.
But...
Did he dare follow this order?
Without certainty, he set the document down. Rubbing his face with both hands, he whispered.
"...Before the Celestial Dragon Society's main force reaches the mountain fortress, sortie."
"Th-Then reinforcements..."
"None."
More blood would flow than what they saw that day.
Song Namcheon drew his sword. He gazed at his reflection in the blade.
...This time.
He too had to stand on the battlefield.
If only to stop him.
"We'll break through ourselves. Inform everyone. Prepare to march."