Division (3)
Boom!
Rocks crumbled, and trees exploded into powder with a series of bangs.
Clang clang clang! Sharp blades clashed amid surging sword qi.
Kraaack! A corpse torn to shreds by that sword qi.
"Gang hyung!"
The man who had been alive and grumbling just yesterday no longer drew breath.
But there was no time to cling to the body and grieve.
"Get it together!"
If he let sorrow consume him, he'd meet the same fate soon enough.
The horrors of the battlefield hadn't changed much between his past and present lives.
"You wanna die together like this?!"
"Jin Sowoon…."
He pulled the despairing academy student to his feet, but the kid couldn't even unleash half his potential.
The sudden ambush, the unexpected death of a friend, the harsh weather and terrain—all of it had turned this place into hell for the academy students.
"Eunho, what about our team?"
"They're holding the White Tiger Sword Formation and responding. But if other areas collapse, we'll be in danger eventually."
"…."
He wanted to rush to his own team right away, but there should be some time before that became necessary.
Of course, if he didn't resolve this mess first, rushing over would just mean arriving to a pile of corpses.
Remember. Remember.
What he needed to do right now. Find a way to survive this—not just for himself, but with his people.
Yeah, with my people.
Once his thoughts cleared, he turned to Eunho.
"Go back to your team."
"Senior Brother…!"
"And make damn sure none of our team dies."
The White Tiger Sword Formation varied in subtlety depending on its operation. Right now, Eunho belonged at his team's center.
"Got it."
Eunho nodded and met his eyes again. Resolve burned in the junior's gaze—he'd gotten the message.
"Don't you die either, Senior Brother."
Watching Eunho dash off, he unleashed the Tae-eul True Scripture at full power.
Don't die, don't die….
Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force ignited, pushing back the darkness. He tore his eyes from the now-distant Eunho.
"Obviously."
The black-clad assassin's eyes widened in the shadows.
"Hup!"
Instinctive fear drove the man to leap back.
It felt strangely nostalgic. In his previous life, they had always been the ones retreating.
So it was time to return the favor.
"I'm not dying until I've slaughtered every last one of you bastards!"
Slash.
The black-clad man collapsed without even a final scream. Blood fountained from his severed neck like a signal flare.
# Shrrrrk.
He scattered the Great Heaven Sword Method wrapped in Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force in all directions.
Not to deceive anyone, but to avoid being deceived himself.
He captured their brief exposures in the light of his Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force and cross-referenced them with memories from his past life.
Light stealth techniques, overly efficient saber arts, demonic qi that's not overtly apparent.
The Demonic Cult's strike force, nicknamed the Shadow Wolves within the Murim Alliance in his previous life: the Akma Rangdan.
They specialized in stealth operations and ambushes precisely because they didn't flaunt their demonic qi.
They seemed like a half-baked force at first glance, but that made them effective for scattered deployments.
But there were definitely traces of demonic qi.
He halted his tangled thoughts before they complicated things further.
Priority one: deal with these damn bastards.
The problem was their ingrained stealth habits, compounded by their all-black attire, made them nearly invisible. Even extending his senses, they blended too well with the academy students—tricky opponents.
"Kraaack!"
"Gahk!"
Even those vaunted academy students fell without properly showcasing their skills.
"…Damn it."
All he could do was shine as brightly as possible. But the Rangdan just hid in the shadows trailing his light.
"Jin Sowoon!!!!!"
Then, a bear of a man came charging wildly toward him, arms barely shielding his head.
Thud!
Two Rangdan lurking in his shadow were flung out, and he unleashed a barrage of sword strikes at them.
Slash, slash.
One collapsed with blood gushing from his neck; the other, arm severed, fled back into the darkness.
Both clearly bore fatal wounds, yet neither uttered a groan.
The bear clicked his tongue in disgust.
"Damn… who the hell are these guys?"
The bear-like man was none other than Nam Hwaseong.
"Nam Hwaseong. Why are you here?"
The guy who should be with the Twelve Bongseong had come all this way.
"What's going on here, Jin Sowoon?"
His question carried ironclad faith that he knew everything. Amid the fighting, he couldn't help turning his head.
"…You came all the way here just to ask that?"
Trust shone unyieldingly in the man's eyes.
"Dealing with this shitshow is your specialty, isn't it?"
…Was that a compliment?
Whatever. He was here—time to put him to use.
"Perfect timing. Start setting fires from now on."
"Fires?"
He nodded toward their surroundings.
"We need light to fight, don't we?"
Nam Hwaseong furrowed his brow.
"You know how damp Mukrim is! Even dry firewood just smokes out…."
"Who said anything about burning the forest?"
"…Then?"
He kicked a fallen torch into a nearby tent.
Whoosh.
Flames spread instantly, illuminating the area.
Tents made with oil-treated cloth for waterproofing were highly flammable, so torches were kept at a distance. Perfect kindling.
Nam Hwaseong coughed amid the smoke billowing from the blazing tent.
"Wh-where are we supposed to sleep now! Cough cough."
Sleep? In this situation? So typically him—it was almost energizing.
He glared at the back of Nam Hwaseong's head.
"You wanna sleep in hell or out in the dew?"
"…I've done plenty of good deeds. I ain't going to hell."
"Bullshit."
The sudden bursts of light let academy students who had struggled against shadows in the dark dodge the Rangdan blades with agile movements.
Nam Hwaseong followed suit, hurling torches into more tents, brightening the area further.
Others finally got the hint, their heads clearing.
"Fire! Light fires!"
"Burn the tents!!"
"Hurry! They're using stealth techniques!"
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
Flames erupted across the camp. For a moment, it was like daylight, stabilizing the one-sided battle bit by bit.
"You fucking bastards…! Who the hell are you!"
"Do you know who I am? One of Wudang's Three Great Swords!"
"I'll find your sect and make you pay!"
Counterattacks sprang up everywhere, some even overwhelming the Rangdan.
But the overall situation remained dire.
"Nam Hwaseong. Where's Cheol Sunjik?"
"Cheol hyung? Why him?"
"We can't fight all night! Find him and bring him to the camp center."
"…In this mess?"
"If you wanted safe desk work, you should've studied letters instead of martial arts!"
Nam Hwaseong's shoulders seemed to slump, but there was no time to care.
"Be there in one hourglass."
"A-alright."
He unleashed the Tae-eul Paeman Sinbo, creating five illusions, then chained Socheon Sword Technique and Great Heaven Sword Method.
Shrrrrk.
Slash, slash, slash, slash.
A peculiar sensation from his past life tingled at his fingertips.
Is this what killing feels like?
Competence proving his efforts. Confidence that he could do anything. Omnipotence over life and death.
Even committing murder, a strange euphoria heated his mind.
Did the fiends crisscrossing battlefields feel this? Was that why they laughed so madly?
The thought chilled his chest.
Stab.
Red Light Sword pierced a vital point. Pulling it out would kill the man anyway.
But he twisted it half a turn.
Crunch crunch.
As bones shattered, the fading spark in the Rangdan's eyes bulged like burning nerves.
"Yeah, keep your mouth shut to the end."
He stabbed the Red Light Sword into the man's thigh and twisted again.
"Kuh…."
A scream leaked from the dying man's lips for the first time—likely his slowing heart could no longer enforce restraint.
The others hiding from the Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force's light sensed something amiss and charged simultaneously.
Eight in total.
Yanking the Red Light Sword from the thigh, he unleashed Ten Thousand Swords of Heaven and Earth.
Shrrrrrrrrk.
The myriad swords split into six, executing the Twin Heaven Sword Conclusion.
Shrrrrrrrrrrrrrrk!
Dozens, hundreds of illusory and true sword qi stormed the space like a tempest.
And then.
Black demonic qi fiercely countered from within the sword storm.
Kaboom kaboom kaboom!
The air roared—dong, dong—and the flames from burning tents scattered like sleet from the shock.
"Think you can escape…!"
He gripped the Red Light Sword tighter and slashed down.
Slash, slash, slash.
Three corpses fell amid sprays of blood.
Bang bang bang bang!
The rest couldn't withstand the sword qi explosion; limbs burst as they tumbled across the ground.
With most tents ablaze, no further need for extra light.
He withdrew his Jade Pure Heavenly Star Force and heightened his killing intent.
Kraaaaaack!
Eerie screams swept the area as the Red Light Sword sharpened viciously, carving through the Rangdan.
"Kuhuk!"
Was it the sword's killing intent? A scream escaped the pierced Rangdan's lips.
A frail figure, far from what he knew.
"…Why aren't you laughing? Don't you fiends laugh in battle?"
He twisted the Red Light Sword, shredding bones and nerves once more.
"Kraaaack…!"
The man died screaming instead of laughing.
At the gruesome sight of the shrieking Rangdan, one academy student paled and shook his head in horror.
"What are you doing? Wanna die?"
"…."
"If you wanna live, grab your sword and head to the camp center."
"Now…?"
"How many times do I gotta say it? If you hate danger, don't pick up a sword!"
"A-alright!"
Ignoring the terrified kid, he dashed on, scanning around.
That shiny bald head should stand out.
"Ilgak!!!!"
Where the hell was this bald bastard?
He'd asked Jeongdohoe members during gaps in slaughtering Rangdan, but no one knew.
More absurd: one had looked terrified and said,
"No way… are you trying to, uh, take out Ilgak?"
What nonsense was this lunatic spouting?
"Stay scattered and you're dead. Didn't they teach you that at the academy? Where's Ilgak!"
"Ah… th-that way, maybe…."
Damn, way out on the edge.
Following the academy student's pointing finger, he beheaded one Rangdan and kicked off the ground.
"Ilgak!!! Where are you!"
After felling seven more, he finally spotted the damn bald head.
But.
As he charged, the monk thrust his staff fiercely at him.
This crazy….
He twisted midair, kicked the staff, and landed roughly.
"Can't tell friend from foe, baldass?!"
"Benefactor Jin?"
Ilgak sighed softly, finally recognizing him.
"Your killing intent was too fierce… I naturally assumed enemy."
"…."
"By the way, Benefactor Jin, these foes are brutally merciless. They don't even scream at death's door."
He knew—he'd faced them on the way. Hell, he'd known since his past life.
"Head to the camp center."
"The center?"
"Explanation later!"
As Ilgak fell back, the outskirts began crumbling.
He shouted to other academy students.
"Everyone to the center! No end to this if you stay scattered!"
Bang bang! Bang bang!
Focused on moving, he had no leisure to chase fleeing Rangdan—but any in sight got finished.
"Kraaaack!"
"…."
Ilgak eyed him oddly.
"…These ones scream under Benefactor Jin's sword too."
Ignoring whatever issue that implied, he pressed on.
At the camp center, Cheol Sunjik, Nam Hwaseong, and Namgung Seonhwa had arrived.
Namgung Seonhwa met his eyes and spoke.
"Figured you wanted us grouped by faction, so I came."
Sharp as ever—the reason she hadn't hesitated at Ma-ryeong Plateau.
"Good timing."
His team worried him a bit, but with Eunho and Geum Pyo, they'd hold.
"What do you mean, Benefactor Jin? Stirring division in this crisis?"
Ilgak exclaimed in shock.
Surprisingly, Cheol Sunjik listened quietly.
Didn't they hate each other?
"What can randoms who can't sync do now? Group with people you know. That's why I called everyone here."
"…And then? We can't hold them off like this."
"Who said anything about holding?"
"Benefactor Jin…!"
Nothing beat taking a beating head-on. Block with your arm, it hurts; with your head, your head hurts.
Best defense against a thrashing? Shove a spike in the bastard's gut.
"We're counterattacking now."
Let's see if you bastards run or not!