Chapter 82: Lull
The battlefield, boiling over with fury, cooled in an instant thanks to one man who plummeted from the sky like a bolt of lightning.
The Black Wind Corps Leader scowled as he glared at the sudden intruder. The young man had sleek black hair tied tightly back in a ponytail, striking features, a perfectly balanced physique clad in flowing black martial robes, and not a single weapon on him. What stood out was that, despite standing there defenseless, not a single opening could be seen in any direction around him.
Tian Ailang scanned his surroundings. His gaze settled on the Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace.
"Are you by chance the Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace?"
Seol Eom, the Ice Palace Lord, blinked in a daze at Tian Ailang's question before nodding slowly.
"I am. And who might you be?"
"Tian Ailang, lord of the Qi Arts School."
"Ah!"
Seol Eom and Seol Hwa let out small exclamations at his reply. Tian Ailang brushed past their reactions and searched the black tide for the Black Wind Corps Leader. Amid them stood one figure radiating the most massive, refined aura.
"That one's the Black Wind Corps Leader, right? And the rest are his Black Wind Corps?"
Seol Eom, following Tian Ailang's gaze, nodded.
"That's right."
With a rough grasp of the situation, Tian Ailang turned to Seol Eom and Seol Hwa.
"If your wounds are severe, fall back and rest. Those who can still fight, just hold the line."
"Then what about you...?"
To Seol Eom's question, Tian Ailang replied in a voice laced with killing intent.
"I've gotta cut loose. How often do you run into Demonic Cult bastards like this?"
Tian Ailang unleashed his inner energy in full. Feeling the snowflakes dancing in the sky and the frigid air, he drew in the water essence. Seol Eom and Seol Hwa gasped, sensing Tian Ailang's qi up close—like a vast ocean.
Around Tian Ailang, qi crystals whirled into formation, sharpening toward the enemy. Meeting the North Sea Ice Palace's chill, the water-essence crystals took shape like translucent arrowheads.
"He's a master! Don't let your guard down—attack!"
Spotting Tian Ailang's moves, the Black Wind Corps Leader warned his nearby subordinates. At his command, the momentarily halted Black Wind warriors and cavalry charged anew.
Pababababat!
Without hesitation, Tian Ailang unleashed hundreds of qi arrows.
"Argh!"
"Gah!"
"Urk!"
"Dodge!"
The cavalry crumpled helplessly under his random barrage. The Black Wind warriors, meanwhile, barely parried with spears and swords as they pressed forward.
'Wish I could use Firebomb Orbs.' Tian Ailang regretted how the North Sea's bitter cold made handling fire essence tricky. Nothing beat flames and explosions for crowd control. Still, it wasn't a major issue.
Thunder Dragon Descent.
Tian Ailang's body vanished, enveloped in lightning.
Pajijik!
"Ngh!"
"Don't panic! Argh!"
"Don't fight him alone—gang up..., Aaaagh!"
"There's only one enemy! Take him out first!"
Chaos erupted in the Black Wind Corps as Tian Ailang plunged into their midst. Seol Eom marveled at his overwhelming prowess.
'Incredible.'
What had been a death-or-glory standoff flipped dramatically the moment Tian Ailang arrived, rendering their resolve almost laughable. His dominance over the battlefield was beyond belief.
Then Seol Hwa bellowed as she charged forward.
"Warriors of the North Sea! Show them your pride!"
The Ice Palace warriors who had rushed out roared in response and surged ahead—not at the Black Wind Corps, but at other Demonic Cult fighters. Frigid blooms unfurled from the tip of Seol Hwa's sword, felling foes effortlessly. It was her variation on the Ice White Divine Palm: the Ice White Divine Sword.
Amid her strikes, Seol Hwa glanced at Tian Ailang. She was awestruck by how he wove through the legendary Black Wind Corps, carving through them like a whirlwind.
"Hahaha! That's awesome!"
Her sword flashed faster, colder.
As Tian Ailang assaulted the Black Wind Corps, he inwardly admired them.
'Great coordination and relentless.'
They surrounded him in layers, rotating in perfect shifts. Individually skilled, what made them terrifying was their willingness to sacrifice flesh for bone—like trading a plum tree for a peach. It made them a nightmare to face.
'Doesn't matter.'
Tian Ailang stomped down hard.
Earth Dragon's Repose.
Earth fissures erupted, scattering the Black Wind warriors around him as they lost footing and dispersed in panic.
Divine Dragon Finger Barrage.
Tian Ailang unleashed a storm of finger strikes at the airborne foes.
"Grahk!"
Off-balance, they screamed in agony and collapsed.
Watching his Black Wind Corps get slaughtered helplessly, Corps Leader Choe Yeo-un abandoned overall command to target Tian Ailang. But a commotion outside the walls yanked his attention.
The clash of countless weapons and dying screams echoed like thunder.
"What the...?"
As if answering his bewilderment, a mighty lion's roar boomed from beyond the walls.
"The Moyong blades!"
"Shine on the North Star!"
"The Moyong spirit!"
"Echoes across the world!"
"In this world's chaos!"
"With Moyong here!"
"We shall find peace!"
Waaaaah!
Tian Ailang smiled faintly at the cries from outside. It was the Tianzhong Moyong Corps from the Moyong family, whom he'd met en route thanks to the Hao Clan Lord's arrangements. Led personally by the current family head, the Peerless Hero Moyong Dan, with 200 elite troops—the Moyong clan's rare cavalry force among the orthodox sects.
Another roar shook the field.
"Prove how mighty Lord Zhu's army is! The enemy are the culprits who plunged the court and realm into chaos! Annihilate these fearless foes!"
Uwaaaaaah!
The ground trembled under the massive horde's stomping response.
"What now...?"
The Black Wind Corps Leader grimaced, unable to gauge the dire situation beyond the walls.
Tian Ailang called out to Seol Hwa, who was swinging her sword ferociously nearby.
"Reinforcements have arrived! Press the enemy!"
Seol Hwa nodded in surprise.
"Warriors of the North Sea! Reinforcements are here! The enemy's cornered—crush them without mercy!"
Uwaaaaaah!
Even without her words, the Ice Palace warriors, reading the tide, bellowed in rage and struck with superhuman fury, avenging their fallen comrades.
As the battle's flow twisted in an instant, the Black Wind Corps Leader glared at Tian Ailang, locked in fierce combat with his corps. What he'd thought was victory had started shifting the moment Tian Ailang appeared.
He drew his sword to charge—but a formidable energy forced him to twist away and swing.
Kang!
Though he parried with full force, the projectile merely veered slightly before embedding in the ground. He stared.
"An arrow?"
A plain shaft quivered violently. Amazed that such a normal arrow packed this punch—not like the Ice Palace Lord's massive ones—the Corps Leader whipped his gaze toward its origin.
Atop the walls, an old man was nocking another. Piwit. The moment he aimed, the arrow hurtled at insane speed. Rapid fire with devastating power.
The Corps Leader deflected it and scowled. Things were bad.
Grahk!
Screams filled his ears nonstop—mostly from his own side. Reason screamed retreat, but pride rebelled.
Choe Yeo-un, whose Black Wind Corps had never failed a mission, rejected the idea of turning tail without success. Grinding his teeth against his crumpling ego, he bellowed,
"Black Wind Corps! Withdraw!"
No matter their pride, it couldn't outweigh the Demonic Cult's grand scheme. This wasn't the place or time to die for it. If he joined the fray with desperate resolve, they might raze the Ice Palace—but mutual destruction loomed likelier. Pointless. Dozens of his men were already dead by Tian Ailang's hand. Live to fight another day.
Ududuk.
He ground his teeth again, shot a bloodshot glare at Tian Ailang and the Ice Palace, then led the breakthrough.
"I'll clear the path. Follow!"
"Follow the Corps Leader! Black Wind Corps, obey without question!"
Perfectly disciplined, they shook Tian Ailang and began retreating. But Tian Ailang clung relentlessly, Seol Hwa joined to pin their feet, and the old man on the walls rained arrows nonstop. Retreat was grueling; casualties mounted.
The Corps Leader burst through the outer gate—and froze at the enemy numbers. Over 2,000 cavalry waited outside, yet the foes outnumbered them threefold. Mostly infantry, but their spear walls handled the horsemen with disciplined precision—not rabble.
"All forces, withdraw! Follow me!"
The Black Wind Corps Leader and his men mounted their waiting horses mid-gallop and attempted a wedge breakthrough.
The Demonic Cult cavalry outside, who'd been fighting, dodged and tailed them desperately.
"That's the Black Wind Corps! Block them!"
Tian Ailang shouted as he exited the gate in pursuit.
"Tian Clan Head!"
Moyong Dan galloped up with a squad. He extended a hand to Tian Ailang, who grasped it and swung onto his back.
"Pursue the enemy! Leave no Demonic Cult scum alive!"
Moyong Dan spurred the Tianzhong Moyong Corps into the chase. The Black Wind Corps proved their title as the martial world's finest cavalry, thundering ahead with terrifying speed and power—a league above dismounted combat. They smashed through layered spear walls in one go.
But the trailing Demonic Cult cavalry floundered against the spears, unlike the elite corps. Chaos reigned anew.
As Tian Ailang slipped through the gap the Black Wind Corps had carved, his eyes met the commander of these troops.
"Hwaun! We'll handle the pursuit. Help the North Sea Ice Palace clean up here!"
"Got it!"
Hwaun, Lord Zhu's right-hand man and guard captain, replied swiftly. Tian Ailang trusted them to handle it. Lord Zhu had sent not just his right hand and masses of troops, but the camp's top expert, the old man. Plus, the Ice Palace's strength exceeded expectations. He could focus solely on the Black Wind Corps.
"Peerless Hero! Faster!"
Tian Ailang urged Moyong Dan, head of the Moyong family.