The Heavenly Demon Is Going to Destroy the Murim Alliance (2)
In Na-yul’s eyes, they clearly hadn’t come for a peaceful chat. If they wanted to talk, they wouldn’t have stormed in at this ungodly hour, and they certainly wouldn’t have dragged along the majority of the Alliance’s fighting force. This was war between factions. The number one user sect had mobilized to crush a newborn clan.
The Alliance leader. That petty bastard. There had been rumors that he’d been nursing a grudge ever since getting absolutely demolished by the Heavenly Spirit during the last tournament. So it was true? A middle-aged man acting like a sulky child—does he actually enjoy living that way?
“Old hag! Those people aren’t guests, they’re intruders!”
“Obviously. Who in their right mind shows up uninvited in the dead of night?”
The moment Baru finished speaking, she slammed her staff into the ground. A thick fog surged outward with her at the center. In a world lit only by moonlight, the mist swallowed every trace of light. Mount Hua was plunged into complete darkness.
It’s the same trick she used during our test! If she uses that, we can at least buy some time. No one could stay calm when ghosts started popping out in the middle of a pitch-black night!
Na-yul had been thinking how reliable the previously bickering Baru looked, but for some reason the fox spirit’s expression remained grim.
Why?
As far as Na-yul could tell, the strategy had no flaws. She knew better than anyone how terrifying ghosts could be in this hyper-realistic VR world. Anyone who faced them would undoubtedly lose their minds in terror.
“This is troublesome.”
“Why?”
“The opponent has prepared countermeasures specifically against me. In other words, they’ve made thorough arrangements just to screw me over.”
Before Baru could even finish speaking, the fog that had blanketed the forest dissipated. Moonlight poured down from the sky once more, illuminating the world.
“It seems they have a Taoist sorcerer on their side as well. And one skilled enough to counter me, at that.”
“Then is there no way to stop them?”
“I’m trying to stall for time, but that seems to be the limit.”
What are we supposed to do then?
The only ones currently on Mount Hua were Na-yul and Baru. Hak Yeong-chung had left after finishing his business, saying he would return later, and the other Mount Hua users were probably already logged out, resting for tomorrow. Na-yul had sent a distress message to the Mount Hua members the instant she noticed the raid, but it was unlikely anyone would log in at this hour. Even if they did, it would only be one or two people—and only after things had already progressed quite far.
Na-yul bit her lip. The two of them had to hold off the enemy. Running away wasn’t an option. Where could they possibly flee after abandoning the precious place the Heavenly Spirit had created? Even if it meant throwing away every bit of internal energy she had built up, Na-yul intended to stand her ground here.
But what about Baru?
Na-yul glanced at the fox spirit, who was muttering continuously—probably casting some kind of Taoist magic. She was an NPC. Unlike users who could resurrect after death, she was a living being within the game. She had claimed that mountain deities never truly die, so she would eventually revive, but it would take an incredibly long time.
The moment that realization hit, a dark shadow settled in Na-yul’s heart.
What if Baru dies here?
The Heavenly Spirit would be furious. She cherished and loved Baru dearly. In other words, one insolent vixen who had taken up space beside the Heavenly Spirit would simply disappear. Normally, Na-yul found Baru’s constant whining, sighing, and bickering incredibly annoying because she didn’t understand just how incredible the Heavenly Spirit was…
Wouldn’t it actually be better if she disappeared now? There was even a perfect excuse. I fought with everything I had, but we were defeated. That’s why Baru ended up getting hurt. The Heavenly Spirit might get angry, but if she thought of it as sacrificing something that had been an eyesore…
Slap!
Na-yul struck her own cheek with all her strength.
You crazy bitch. Is this really the time to be thinking about that? Do you actually want to see the Heavenly Spirit sad? Do you want to watch her be disappointed in you for failing to protect the Baru she dotes on? Of course not. Get a grip.
“Lady Baru.”
*
“Lady Baru.”
With one cheek blazing red, Na-yul looked at Baru with the most serious eyes she had shown all day.
“You’re telling me to run away, aren’t you?”
Baru answered the moment Na-yul opened her mouth. In this situation, if an outsider child was speaking with such resolve, there was only one thing she could possibly say. The rest was obvious. We don’t die permanently, but you do, so you should escape first. Even if the building collapses, we can just rebuild it. She had probably prepared something along those lines.
“Na-yul. Have you contacted Min-ga?”
“Yes.”
“Then that’s enough. That fellow will arrive soon, so it’s better to wait here.”
Since the enemy also had a Taoist sorcerer on par with Baru, even attempting to flee offered no guarantee of complete success. If this had been her own sacred mountain, she could have toyed with them, but this was not her mountain. Here, she was not omnipotent. In that case, rather than risking an uncertain escape, it was far better to stall for time on this ground. If they fled blindly and fell into danger, it would be difficult to rescue them—but if they bought time at Mount Hua, Min-ga would eventually appear. Then everything would be resolved.
Baru could not imagine Min-ga ever falling in battle. In terms of martial arts alone, she was superior to anyone. Baru still clearly remembered the sight of the Mount Hua sect leader, driven mad by blood arts and running amok. She remembered the overwhelming martial prowess he had displayed. And she also remembered how Min-ga had handled that power as easily as if she were disciplining a newborn baby. Having witnessed such a scene, Baru simply could not picture Min-ga being defeated.
“If she received the message, Min-ga will be here shortly. All we need to do is hold out until then.”
As she spoke, Baru struck the ground once more with her staff. The scattered spirits of Mount Hua began gathering around her one by one.
The spirits of Mount Hua answered the call of their mountain deity.
‘O Divine One. What is it this time?’
“Intruders have come to destroy Mount Hua.”
‘Hmm. This is quite serious. We were hoping for something more like last time—merely frightening the children.’
‘That Wang Hwi fellow will probably show up too.’
‘He does love playing the hero.’
At the sight of the spirits gathering around Baru, Na-yul instinctively took a step back. The spirits chuckled at her reaction.
“Na-yul. Why are you so startled? Everyone is looking quite splendid this time, aren’t they?”
“…They’re still ghosts, though.”
Baru had been about to scold the disheartened, grumbling girl, but there was no time. The intruders had already reached the gate.
The gates of Mount Hua opened, and a group poured inside. Most of them were outsiders and showed little reaction upon seeing Baru, but one person offered her a polite greeting. He was probably the Taoist sorcerer who had interfered with her magic.
“I thought you would have run away, yet here you are waiting. What is this? Are you asking us to capture you, Divine One?”
The man standing at the front of the group looked at Baru with a disgusting smile as he spoke. Both his words and his demeanor were vulgar. A group led by someone like him—there was no need to look further to know their level.
“Do you think there is any reason for me to run?”
“Do we look that weak to you?”
“Well. You do look rather weak. No matter how strong a pack of bloodlings might be, how strong could they truly be? Especially you, with that repulsive grin—your face alone is so pathetic, how could I not look down on you?”
At Baru’s words, laughter erupted from the spirits clustered behind her. The enemy leader frowned at the provocation but showed no further reaction. She had hoped he would lose his temper, but it seemed he at least had the dignity of a leader.
“Lady Baru. If we can just take out that sorcerer, things will get much easier, right?”
“It certainly seems that way.”
Hearing Baru’s answer, Na-yul stepped forward.
“Alliance Leader. It’s been a while.”
“Na-yul. Why don’t you just step back quietly? You don’t want to die and lose your internal energy either, do you?”
“So you’re telling me to betray the sect I just joined? Just how much of a piece of trash do you think I am?”
“If you want to fight…”
Instead of finishing her reply, Na-yul dashed forward. A sudden surprise attack aimed at instantly incapacitating the sorcerer—but three outsiders, including the Alliance Leader, blocked her path.
“Weren’t you going to finish what you were saying?”
“Is that something people who came to launch a sneak attack should be saying?”
“Fair point.”
That exchange became the signal. The rest of the outsiders charged toward Baru and the spirits.
From Baru’s perspective, none of them were particularly powerful. At best, they were only slightly stronger than the current members of Mount Hua. Under normal circumstances, the current Baru could have handled them easily. The problem was the enemy sorcerer.
While the spirits clashed with the martial artists, Baru needed to support them with Taoist magic—but the enemy sorcerer was blocking her every move. Whenever she tried to borrow power from the surrounding nature, he interfered and seized control. When she attempted to create a phenomenon, he intruded and neutralized it. And if she tried to cast a spell to strengthen the spirits, a weakening curse immediately followed, rendering it meaningless.
“I never imagined the day would come when I would face a Divine One in battle.”
“Who the hell are you?”
“As you can see, I am merely one of many unremarkable sorcerers.”
What nonsense. There was no way a sorcerer facing her directly could be insignificant. She didn’t know where this bastard had crawled out from, but he was inhumanly skilled. This was going to be difficult.
The spirits residing on Mount Hua had all been considered powerhouses in life. They undoubtedly possessed greater skill than the intruders. However, the problem was that Mount Hua was not in its normal state. Spirits originally maintained their existence by drawing on the mountain’s vital energy. But after the previous blood arts incident, Mount Hua had yet to fully regain its proper form. Naturally, it was almost entirely devoid of vital energy. How could the spirits dependent on it display their full power?
For now, they were overcoming the gap in strength using the abilities they had possessed while alive, but there was clearly a limit. Without support from Taoist magic, they would gradually be pushed back.
Tsk. I have to deal with that damned sorcerer first, no matter what!
While she was pondering this, the enemy sorcerer launched his first attack. A tiger-shaped flame charged forward like a predator on the hunt. Baru swung her staff and knocked the flame aside, but she failed to notice the dagger that followed right behind it. Fortunately, she twisted her head at the last second, and the blade only grazed her skin.
Blood trickled down Baru’s cheek. But the wound from the dagger was not merely a cut. A moment later, she felt her head spin violently.
Poison?!
She urgently used her divine energy to purge the toxin and succeeded, but she had still lost focus for an instant. The spirits who had been holding on thanks to her support began to fall one by one.
This is bad…
“Die!”
The moment she saw the sword flying toward her, Baru hastily moved her staff. The blade collided with the staff, and her body was thrown backward by the force. She lost her grip on the staff and collapsed to the ground. The attacker immediately rushed toward her.
This is truly troublesome. I told Min-ga I would be fine, yet now I have no face left to show her.
“What truly impudent children.”
It was then. A sharp, murderous voice rang out, and the head of the man charging at Baru simply vanished. It wasn’t that it had been struck or exploded—it was as if the part that should have been there had simply ceased to exist. As the headless warrior’s body toppled forward, the sound of footsteps came from beside Baru.
“Did I look like such an easy opponent to you?”
Baru slowly turned her head. Beneath the moonlight stood a woman with a long pipe clenched in her teeth.
“Baru. Didn’t you say you could handle most of them?”
“Min-ga…”
Baek Ara was standing right there.