The masked men felt so lost with Hae Ack-chun in front of them like a huge giant ready to stomp on them, and they all stopped.
Of course, not everyone was terrified, and the courageous masked man swung his sword toward Hae Ack-chun.
“Huh!”
Pat!
At that moment, Hae Ack-chun grabbed the sword that the man had wielded.
“Kuahaha! Feels so good!”
“Eik!’
The bewildered man who had his sword caught kicked at him, but Hae Ack-chun grabbed his body and threw it to the floor.
Bang!
“Kuak!”
After only being thrown down once, his face already looked so smashed up. I had already seen this so many times.
As Hae Ack-chun pounded the poor guy back and forth, his body went limp.
“Huh? No fun!”
Hae Ack-chun snorted and threw the masked man off the cliff.
Even when their own colleague was killed like this, not a single person on his side walked forward. That was how great the presence of Hae Ack-chun was.
-Oh man, he is like a beast.
And it was right.
Hae Ack-chun, who tore his top off, was like a beast out to hunt. A true beast.
So even the enemies who wanted to run couldn’t run due to his intimidation. He just looked invincible now.
So how great does the South Heavenly Swordsman have to be to make such a man lose?
-… I don’t know. If my former master were alive, I doubt he wouldn’t be able to do the same thing now.
Iron Sword spoke honestly.
Looking at Hae Ack-chun who had grown so much over the last 15 years, even Iron Sword had acknowledged it.
And the heaviest man on the masked men’s side stepped ahead.
-The giant wants to go against another giant.
This masked man had no weapon, which meant that he should be a close combat warrior. And he was tall enough to make an average man look small.
But Hae Ack-chun was even bigger than him.
“Ghastly Monster. You are as great as the name suggests.”
“Are you my next opponent?”
“I never liked being compared to you, but fine. I will try…”
Before he could even finish his words, Hae Ack-chun moved in front of him with agile movements.
“Too rushed.”
Surprisingly, the masked man stepped back. Hae Ack-chun stepped forward, and his fist flew.
Bang!
The moment they both collided with fists, a huge sound ran. And there was a wind pushing us back.
A groan escaped from the masked man, and his body was pushed back.
“Kuak.”
The masked man who was pushed back lifted his fist and hurriedly went for Hae Ack-chun and once again, their fists collided.
“Kuahahaha!”
Hae Ack-chun would occasionally laugh despite the fight and wasn’t losing his balance at all.
Papak!
It looked like a simple movement, but there were so many movements within it.
The fists which collided were constantly flying out.
Pak!
Hae Ack-chun blocked any other jabs which came and then kicked at his ribs.
“Kua!’
Such a shocking blow that even I could hear the bones breaking.
It was painful, but in that state, the masked man used his left fist to hit Hae Ack-chun.
Puak!
Hae Ack-chun wiped his face slightly with his hand. In the meantime, the masked man had managed to lengthen the distance between them…
‘Amazing.’
I couldn’t take my eyes off this fight. Although he was one step behind Hae Ack-chun, the masked man also possessed great strength which couldn’t be looked down on.
Clench!
There was a slight crack on the floor where the masked man had retreated to and where he currently stood. He was releasing the qi hit into him by Hae Ack-chun through his feet.
“He seems to have gotten stronger in the time I haven’t seen him.”
The second elder, Seo Kalma, who was standing next to me, exclaimed in admiration.
He, too, seems to be surprised by Hae Ack-chun’s power.
He was praising him, but why was I feeling proud? It was then someone stepped ahead,
“I would like to thank the seniors.”
It was Baek Ryeon-ha.
I thought she would be hiding behind, but she spoke with pride in her voice, and some masked people who were blocked by Hae Ack-chun turned.
Baek Ryeon-ha shouted at them.
“If you are the ones who were sent by my sister, who has nothing to do with us, then I don’t mind accepting your surrender even now. And if you tell us who gave the order directly from your mouth, we guarantee your safety.”
I was a bit shocked and thought she wasn’t smart. But it was probably she who let this plan happen.
-She dug this trap?
‘Yes.’
It is a trap that deceived even her allies.
-It would have been nice if she let us know.
‘It must have been an urgent situation, and they let only a few people know of this.’
Perhaps the people who knew this were Hae Ack-hun, Seo Kalma, Han Baekha… and commander Jang Mun-wong. Since there might be another person working for Baek Hye-hyang in the group, they didn’t try giving the information to the other disciples.
-Amazing sisters.
Short Sword clicked her tongue.
I had the same thoughts as her. Baek Hye-hyang plotted this using her powers. Baek Ryeon-ha, who had realized this, laid out her own trap.
-That fox didn’t look that smart from the start. It just seemed like she had the personality to suppress people by force.
If that was the case, there would have been someone who played the role of her aide and laid the plan out for her.
We need to know who that person was as they seemed to have a stronger intention to take Baek Ryeon-ha down from the race.
-But do you know?
‘What?’
-Even you, who guessed this based on the circumstances happening, aren’t a dumb one.
I wasn’t that great. Anyone could guess what had happened. I didn’t think much of it.
“This will be my last advice to seniors. If you do not surrender, it ends with death.”
At her words, the masked man with ax in hand yelled,
“Just because we are silent, you are making fun of us!”
“Euk!”
His roaring voice was like a wolf crying out, making my ears hurt. And shouting here means that the voice would echo around.
When the situation turned unfavorable, this guy seemed to lose his mind.
“You are as disgusting as you can get. If this is the case, it seems like we will have to deal with you quickly and capture just a few before we leave.”
Seo Kalma also had the same thoughts as me, and Baek Ryeon-ha nodded at it.
“Cheeky things! Let’s see who will die! Come at us!”
“Yes!”
At the shout of the masked man with the ax, the masked men turned towards us.
Things went bad, so it looked like they wanted to have a fight with us, leaving Hae Ack-chun with his fight; everyone now concentrated on Baek Ryeon-ha.
“Sixth Blood Star. Protect the lady!”
Seo Kalma asked Han Baekha to be with her just in case. She also accepted it without another thought.
“I understand.”
“I will take care of the guy with the ax. Someone give me a weapon.”
“Here.”
A warrior turned his crescent blade to Seo Kalma. It didn’t seem like they brought their weapons as they were hiding behind us, so any sword from the members would do.
He swung the weapon a couple of times, and it began to sound like he was getting used to it.
“Commander Jang. Can you move?”
“I am all fine, Elder.”
Seo Kalma, who confirmed the condition of Jang Mun-wong, aimed forward and took command.
“Warriors all follow me to cut down the enemy!’
Phat!
Seo Kalma moved first.
The middle and upper-rank warriors, all full of fighting spirit from the call, bravely followed behind the man.
And despite being injured, Commander Jang Mun-wong was at the forefront, ready to take down the enemies.
Papak!
In an instant, the swords of both sides clashed.
Interestingly, both sides had masks on, so it was a bit of a hassle. The masks were different, but with all the fast movements, it was difficult to know who was an ally and who was the enemy.
‘Man.’
I decided to move to the middle.
It seemed like it would be good to be there to show off the right skills. After all, the attention would be drawn from there.
Chachachang!
Seo Kalma and the masked man with the ax collided. And the masked man with the ax seemed like he could hold his ground.
While swinging the big ax, he was able to block the path of Seo Kalma. And in this situation, it might not be good for us…
Puak!
“Kuak!
Now I had to deal with my own enemies.
I stabbed one in the neck and then aimed for the other. It is good to do what I can after such a long time of inaction.
Papapapk!
I was the first to deal with the masked people and aimed for their vital points. My tactics all worked fine.
As we kept removing one after another, the masked men on the enemy side began to get pushed back.
“That guy! Kill that one with the rusty sword!”
“Take him down!”
I got caught.
I guess I extended my lead a bit too much and now got noticed by the enemy. Because of that, two to three people rushed to me.
‘Returning Dragon Sword.’
I quickly decided to use this technique, the Returning Dragon Sword.
Holding the sword at a different angle, I rotated my body which moved like the wind and deflected the swords of the masked men.
Chachachang!
“Huh!”
“Huh?”
These masked men were unable to hide their shock, which had come from the sword technique they had just witnessed. But why would I care?
Puak!
“Kuak!”
While they were too shocked by my sword technique, the warriors on our side aimed for their heads. During these close-range fights, if one loses focus, they lose their life.
And gradually, the enemies began to dwindle in number, and of the 40 masked men, only three were extremely skilled.
The rest were a mix of first-rate and second-rate warriors.
Papak!
Even though injured, Jang Mun-woong was actively performing in the lead. As I expected, he was amazingly strong.
Among the masked men, there were those who appeared to be experts, but he was overpowering them with just one hand.
‘The ones remaining…’
There were only 10 enemies left now. Fortunately, they were first-rate warriors who had been through hell.
At that moment, the violent sounds of clashing could be heard with two people fighting.
It was Seo Kalma and the masked man with an ax. Chang!
‘Amazing.’
Seo Kalma was also showing amazing resistance. His nickname was Guardian, and he managed to overwhelm the dominant strikes of the masked man.
The masked man seemed too hurried to take after his safety.
‘As expected from one of the venerable people.’
It wasn’t for nothing that they were given the title of the Four Venerable Dignitaries.
At that time, one of the masked men on the enemy side threw the spear at Seo Kalma, who was waiting in the air.
I immediately moved and went up, managing to deflect the spear that the masked man had thrown.
Clang!
In the end, if Seo Kalma was at risk, I had to do something.
And this idea of trying to interfere in the fight between two was very like any Unorthodox Sects.
Since one was in the middle of a fight, we could take them down.
“You! Over and over again!”
The masked man who threw the spear grunted at me. And it was then–
Chachachang!
A huge force.
Two masters were fighting, and their weapons clashed violently, hoping for the other to die. If anyone made a mistake here, then their heads would be the next to fly.
‘Ah!’
Little by little, the ax of the masked man started to show dull and irregular movements. Noticing this, Seo Kalma would not miss this chance, and he deflected the ax and pierced through it!
Puak! Thud!
Seo Kalma, who cut off the hand of the opponent first, didn’t miss the chance.
Slash!
“Kuak!”
The masked man with his wrist cut fell to the floor, and Seo Kalma landed down safely.
“It is finished.”
Now was the time to slice the throat.
Pak!
The man who was kneeling threw something out.
It was an assassin needle.
When he, who was about to die, had decided to throw it with internal qi infused, it wasn’t normal.
“You!”
Chachachang!
Seo Kalma had to hurriedly wield his blade to block the needle, and without missing this gap, the masked man turned and ran somewhere.
Pat!
And that was to where Baek Ryeon-ha was.
“Who said you could go!”
As he ran, Han Baekha blocked him by standing in front of Baek Ryeon-ha with her hands dyed red, already prepared for such moves.
Being prepared in advance meant having an advantage.
With his wrist cut off and injured, there was nothing he could defend himself with. But then an unexpected thing happened.
Phat!
The guy who was aiming for Baek Ryeon-ha suddenly changed his direction and came for me.
“Tis!”
Seo Kalma ran to prevent this, but the distance between everyone was too wide.
Thinking that I could not avoid him, I began to think about using the Xing Ming Sword technique’s ultimate technique, the Chasing Slasher Sword.
The sword technique, which rotated violently, moved forward.
Even if the masked man was a first-rate warrior who managed to escape from so many people, he could not possibly block this technique with only his hands, especially with only one working hand.
But again, he did something unexpected.
“Kuak!”
‘Uh?’
Iron Sword simply pierced his chest without a fight.
‘Was it intentional?’
At that time, the masked man who grabbed the stabbing Iron Sword got closer and wrapped his severed arm around my neck.
And said,
“A rusted sword. You are the disciple of Ghastly Monster, So Wonhwi.”
‘…?!’
This guy knew my name.
“H-how do you know me?”
I pretended to look shocked and carefully went for Short Sword.
But before I could reach it.
“You will pay the price for disturbing our movement. Let’s die together.”
Pat!
The masked man who grabbed me by the neck jumped off the cliff.
“Nooooo!”
“Young Masterrrrr!”
The shouts of Seo Kalma and Baek Ryeon-ha echoed in my ears at the same time as I was already falling down.
Swish!
Dying together made the guy speak as if he had won.
“Kulkul. You should have never done that, little guy.”
Clench!
“Kuak!”
Perhaps he had no intention of letting me go; he kept clenching my neck, making me feel like I would die of strangulation before falling down.
At that moment, I pulled out Short Sword and stabbed him in the side of the lungs.
Puak!
“Kuak!”
He endured the stab to the chest, but the stab to the lungs was too much, making him loosen his grip.
I immediately pushed him away.
“Youuuu!”
In anger, he struggled and tried to catch me, but his hands were easy to avoid.
I knew that this would have been a huge risk if he hadn’t been this wounded.
-Catch me!
Iron Sword yelled, and I immediately pulled out the sword lodged in that man’s chest.
“Kukak!”
“You die!”
I stabbed him again in the head, and he tried to block with his arm, but Iron Sword still managed to pierce him.
Puak!
There wasn’t even a scream. He was looking at me with a shocked face which soon turned into a dead one.
At this moment–
Paaak! Thud!
‘Kuak!’
I could feel that the guy’s bones shattered as he fell. I didn’t even know why I was focusing on him, but I watched as he fell down.
Falling from this height must be something he would never recover from.
Wooong!
My body also began to speed up, and I soon hit the body of water, slipping below the surface. As I began to be swept away by the torrents, I began to float up.
Perhaps due to the training I had, I was able to stay awake all the while, but due to the shock of falling from such a high height, my body wouldn’t move.
-Wonhwi! Get yourself together!
-You cannot let us go!
In the midst of this, Iron Sword and Short Sword told me not to let go of them in this harsh current.
Fortunately, I didn’t, as my body was too stiff to let go of them.
I was worried that being dragged down by this current, I would probably die at some point.
Puak!
My body was sinking.
I could feel the water pushing itself into my mouth and nose, making me sure that I should die when innate qi began to surge up.
Pound!
Once again, my heart began to pound, and the once stopped flow of innate qi began to happen again.
My stiff body began to move little by little.
I groaned in pain as I tried to make myself more stable. But that wasn’t easy when being swept away by the water force.
I reached out like a crazy person wanting to live, and it was this moment.
Grab!
Something was around my wrist.
‘Uh?’
Swish! Ppat!
At that moment, my body, which was being pulled into the currents, came out of the current.
I looked at what was around my waist, but I could faintly only feel it.
But I was certain some kind of force was pulling me up.
Papak!
Thanks to my body being pulled, my body had touched the currents a couple of times and then got dragged somewhere.
It was a cave in the valley. And someone seemed to be pulling me into it.
Pak!
And my body entered the cave with force, making me roll on the floor.
After a few rounds, the strength in my body went down, and someone grabbed me by the shoulder.
Tak!
Who could have saved me?
“Huk…. Huk… cough!”
I was coughing up the water. Even in the midst of the frenzy, the moment I lifted my head up, I couldn’t help but be shocked.
‘….!?’
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that there were only bones left of this being.
