Chapter 139: Deployment (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 139: Deployment (2)
The Hidden Cave of the Long-Stream Cult.
A massive iron door sealed the secret treasury where the cult’s legacy was said to be stored.
Yet, despite standing right before it, the members of the Divine Mechanism Hall paid the treasury no mind. Instead, they moved busily throughout the cavern, constantly adjusting the formation pivots scattered across the floor, shifting their positions after a set amount of time.
They focused on maintaining the formation, pressing their feet firmly against the stone floor and channeling waves of qi through them. This footwork was a martial art inherited from the exterminated Jegal Clan, now passed down as one of the exclusive techniques of the Divine Mechanism Hall.
It was the Spirit-Selecting Ordered Steps, a technique that could deploy a formation through footwork alone.
Thanks to their efforts, a formation was active across the entire cavern where the Divine Mechanism Hall had made their stand.
Jegal Mu-ran, the Divine Mechanism Hall Master, let out a ragged breath as she surveyed the state of the active formation.
"Hall Master, are you alright?"
"I still have about half of my internal energy left."
At her reply, the Divine Mechanism Hall's flagbearer frowned.
The Divine Mechanism Hall had been buying time, using the Hidden Cave’s own traps and formations to block the enemy’s advance. But there was a clear limit to that strategy. Even for the Divine Mechanism Hall, which specialized in such mechanisms, this was no exception. It was astonishing that they had stalled their pursuers for this long in such a confined space, but their time was running out.
The formation spread across the cavern—their final line of defense—was on the verge of collapsing. Without the Divine Mechanism Hall’s countless adjustments, repairs, and the constant application of the Spirit-Selecting Ordered Steps, it wouldn't have lasted even this long.
"Hmm. Holding out any longer will only lead to a pointless waste of internal energy."
Narrowing her eyes, Jegal Mu-ran simultaneously withdrew the Qi Waves of the Spirit-Selecting Ordered Steps that she had been channeling through her Yongquan acupoints.
As she, the core pivot of the formation, withdrew her energy, the already precarious structure crumbled.
Rumble!
The thick yellow mist shrouding the cavern surged a few times before rapidly dispersing.
Jegal Mu-ran drew an iron fan from her bosom and calmed her breathing to regulate her internal energy.
"By my calculations, I thought we could hold out for another day and a half."
"It must be because the Sama Clan is with them. Without their help, your calculations would have been correct, Hall Master."
Jegal Mu-ran glanced behind her. At the very end of the Hidden Cave stood the massive iron door leading to the secret treasury where the legacy of the Long-Stream Cult slept.
'I don't know what lies inside, but it must not fall into their hands. Especially not the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult.'
Lightly fanning the air with her iron fan, Jegal Mu-ran rechecked the positions of her subordinates.
Thud!
With a massive tremor, the formation collapsed completely. As it broke, their vision cleared, revealing the figures waiting beyond.
Standing side by side, the forces of the Iron Battle Camp and the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult blatantly exuded threatening waves of qi.
Seeing the two middle-aged men leading them, Jegal Mu-ran let out a low groan.
'The Eleventh Mirror Master and the Seventh Legion Commander.'
Both were supreme experts who had achieved the state of Three Flowers Gather at the Crown. They were not opponents to be taken lightly. Furthermore, the martial artists arrayed behind them were also radiating formidable auras.
Since the Eleventh Mirror Master was also the Jiangxi Branch Master of the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult, he had naturally brought the elites of his branch. The Seventh Legion Commander, too, would have handpicked warriors with outstanding martial arts from his military forces.
They were at a disadvantage in both numbers and quality. Moreover, the Divine Mechanism Hall was far from its peak condition, having expended significant strength on disruptions, ambushes, and deploying formations throughout the Hidden Cave.
"You have held out for a truly long time. As expected of a survivor of the exterminated Jegal Clan," Sama Sak, the Sama Clan Head, sneered. Jegal Mu-ran did not deign to reply.
The Seventh Legion Commander shook his head as he looked at the remnants of the formations scattered throughout the cavern.
"How foolish. Had you faced us with all your might from the start, perhaps one or two of you might have escaped with your lives."
"The Azure Heaven Association is a foolish bunch, are they not? It seems they threw this desperate tantrum simply because they didn't want the legacy to fall into our hands," the Eleventh Mirror Master replied, his gaze looking past the Divine Mechanism Hall. "It appears that massive iron door back there is the entrance to the secret treasury where the legacy of the Long-Stream Cult slumbers."
"We can deal with the Divine Mechanism Hall first and open it at our leisure. Clan Head Sama, will that be possible?"
"Of course. Leave it to me."
The Eleventh Mirror Master and the Seventh Legion Commander slowly advanced on the Divine Mechanism Hall. They had thoroughly blocked any escape routes, ensuring not a single member could slip away.
Yet, the expressions of the Divine Mechanism Hall members remained resolute.
Shlick!
They snapped open their iron fans in unison, a determined fighting spirit flaring in their eyes.
"Let us show them the thoroughly calculated battle of the Divine Mechanism Hall," Jegal Mu-ran's calm voice encouraged her followers.
*
The Divine Mechanism Hall bore the joint assault of the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult and the Iron Battle Camp.
Though they occasionally stimulated the remaining formation pivots with the Qi Waves of the Spirit-Selecting Ordered Steps to coax out some of the formation’s lingering power, it was far from enough to turn the tide. At best, they used the Golden Star Eye Technique to read their enemies' movements a breath faster, parrying fatal attacks from a distance with the Rhythmic Fan Technique.
Clang!
A fist-shield, clad in the overlapping qi of the Iron Horse Wall-Supporting Art, slammed into the flagbearer's fan. He was thrown back, his throat convulsing.
"Cough!"
Spitting up a mouthful of blood, the flagbearer turned his head. In the distance, Jegal Mu-ran was struggling against the combined assault of the Eleventh Mirror Master and the Seventh Legion Commander. She had already expended a vast amount of her strength deploying the final formation; without her Spirit-Selecting Ordered Steps, they would never have lasted this long.
Though she barely maintained her defense, she was walking the line between life and death with every exchange.
The situation was no different for the other members. They were barely holding on through their own formations and joint attacks. Injuries steadily piled up on their struggling bodies. It was a miracle they were still standing.
'I have no regrets. But it is a bitter sorrow to hand over the legacy of the Long-Stream Cult to them.'
Just as the flagbearer's blood-soaked iron fan began to tremble, a sound erupted.
Boom!
With an explosive roar, the enemies blocking their only escape route were swept away.
The eyes of the Divine Mechanism Hall members widened. A blue wave crashed into the cavern with fierce momentum, and the martial uniforms of those bursting through were embroidered with clouds.
"Let's go!"
"Divine Mechanism Hall! We have arrived!"
"Prioritize supporting the right flank! That's the most urgent area!"
The Azure Firmament Hall charged into the battlefield.
Like a pair of wings, Gong Jun-am's greatsword and Wi Hyeon-su's broadsword swung to either side, sweeping the front line. Though their weapons were different, their strikes powerfully blended the principles of the Martial Conquest Grand Selection Formula and the Majestic Shattering Assault Axe.
Dashing in behind them were Heo Il, Hong Jun, and Samyeop. They forcefully broke through the Iron Battle Camp warriors who were trying to regroup, creating a gap. Samyeop's swift sword and Hong Jun's twin swords hacked at the fist-shields raised like a barricade before Samyeop followed up with a powerful kick.
Thud! Crash!
Practitioners from the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult rushed in from both sides to aid the Iron Battle Camp, but Baekri Cheong and Jang Mun-hyeok blocked their paths. Though each faced four or five opponents alone, they were far from being pushed back, displaying an even more overwhelming martial prowess.
Tring!
"Let's quicken our breathing! Can everyone keep up with my tune?"
A beauty in a splendid blue court dress plucked her instrument’s strings in rapid succession. The sound-wave qi generated by the vibrating strings bolstered the charging Azure Firmament Hall, amplifying their own qi and lending them strength. As the hands of Sa Yeon-u—the beauty who had joined from the Resounding Voice Hall—grew faster, the density of the sound-wave qi thickened, and the dazzling, rapid melody exhilaratingly pushed the Azure Firmament Hall forward.
"Block them, kugh!"
An arrow pierced the neck of a commander of ten who was shouting orders. He died on the spot, his command unfinished. The arrows flying through the chaotic battlefield relentlessly targeted the leaders.
"Judging by his attire and qi, that fellow looks like a centurion, doesn't he?"
At the rear of the Azure Firmament Hall, atop a half-tilted stone pillar, a broad-shouldered man was drawing his bowstring. It was Cheong-jong, providing rear support through long-range interception. After loosing several arrows and finally sniping the centurion, he scanned the members of the Azure Firmament Hall, looking for any spot that might need his support.
"Oh. Those guys are fighting well too. They're definitely stronger than your average Second Cloud. Is the Hall Master's eye for talent really this accurate?"
The martial prowess of the Second Clouds, who solidly backed the Third Clouds from behind, was not to be underestimated. They demonstrated the beauty of joint attacks, weaving their own strikes between the forms unleashed by their seniors.
After watching them for a moment, Cheong-jong shifted his gaze, searching for another officer to target.
Rumble!
Screams erupted from all over as the overwhelming might of the Azure Firmament Hall crashed down. Naturally, the screams belonged to the warriors of the Iron Battle Camp and the Sun-Moon Demonic Cult.
The Eleventh Mirror Master and the Seventh Legion Commander, who were double-teaming Jegal Mu-ran, clearly felt the shift in the battlefield's atmosphere. The Seventh Legion Commander, accustomed to monitoring his subordinates' conditions through his qi sense, felt his brow furrow deeply.
The Azure Firmament Hall was moving as one body. It was as if someone was overseeing the entire battlefield, issuing meticulous, real-time orders to every single member.
'But that's impossible!'
The Azure Firmament Hall was clearly moving of their own volition, adapting to every situation.
Roughly swinging the fist-shields on both arms to tear apart the whirlwind of the Rhythmic Fan Technique, the Seventh Legion Commander shouted, "We must hurry!"
"Ugh! This is absurd!" the Eleventh Mirror Master growled, feeling the overwhelming power of the Azure Firmament Hall just as keenly.
Both had the same thought: they needed to kill the Divine Mechanism Hall Master right now and rejoin the fray.
The waves of qi emanating from the two supreme experts instantly thickened—the precursor to unleashing their ultimate techniques.
Crack!
Thud!
Jegal Mu-ran bit her lip as the ultimate techniques were unleashed from both sides. With a wide sweep of her iron fan, she merged dozens of whirlwinds into a single tempest.
Boom!
Jegal Mu-ran, who had countered with the ultimate technique of the Rhythmic Fan Technique, was helplessly blown back. Though she had barely managed to block the attacks, her internal organs were severely shaken.
This was her limit. She didn't even have the strength to take a single step.
"Cough!"
As she coughed up the blood rising in her throat, the Eleventh Mirror Master’s left hand lunged for her neck. Jegal Mu-ran tried to counter, but his stance instantly shifted. Aiming for her neck had been a feint; his true target was her heart.
'Ah!'
Realizing her judgment had faltered for a split second, Jegal Mu-ran's eyelids trembled. With his five fingers extended like sharp talons, the Eleventh Mirror Master’s left hand was poised to pierce straight through her heart.
Spurt!
Bright red blood sprayed through the air.
The eyes of the Eleventh Mirror Master, who had just thrust his hand forward, widened in shock.
The blood was not Jegal Mu-ran's.
Seeing his own left arm writhing on the ground, the Eleventh Mirror Master shrieked.
"Aaaargh!"
Startled, the Seventh Legion Commander quickly pulled back the screaming man, who was clutching his severed wrist. He had no choice. The man who had suddenly intervened looked ready to swing his sword at the Eleventh Mirror Master's neck at any moment.
Embroidered on his deep blue martial uniform were four white clouds.
Seeing the blue waves flowing along the blade, the Seventh Legion Commander instantly recognized him.
"Namgung Jun!"
Standing protectively in front of Jegal Mu-ran, Namgung Jun held the Eternal Righteous Sword low.
"Have you no shame, ganging up on the Divine Mechanism Hall Master?"
A blue mist drifted from the Eternal Righteous Sword. It spread gradually into the air like a translucent veil as the blue waves surged vigorously.
"Try doing the same to me."