Chapter 1849 – Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1849. If there is such a thing as fate. (4) ❀ ❀ ❀

The brilliant radiance of the white sun that fell to the earth swept through the demons.

It wasn’t so much sword energy as it was an overwhelming force more akin to a terrifying palm strike. To draw forth such a tremendous force with a blade—only Changcheon Namgung could display such divine skill.

[Heavenly Azure Namgung, 창천남궁(蒼天南宮)]

But this didn’t mean that Namgung’s unique sword energy was invincible.

“Ugh…”

The demons, their mouths tightly shut, let out rare groans. The sword energy, which surged in like a tidal wave and exploded in an instant, was so intense that even those who had stained their bodies with fanatical faith wanted to scream. [gwangsin, 광신(狂信)]

Thoom!

Like pebbles kicked aside by a child, they were flung away. Namgung Dowi descended into the space that opened up.

“Huff! Huff!”

He was wounded. Yet with a single strike, he had broken the momentum of the demons charging so fiercely. One didn’t need to explain how incredible that was.

A fleeting hope flashed across the faces of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance members who could not run away, but could not fight back either.

If anyone could find a way out of this hopeless situation, perhaps it would be them—because they were friends of the Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword.

Yes, that hope briefly embraced them.

But the reality they faced was too brutal to overcome with mere hope.

Tap.

The demons who had been lying on the ground slowly began to rise.

It may not have been a perfect attack, but Namgung Dowi had clearly poured out every last bit of his strength into that strike. Moreover, he had not swung his sword even once while chasing the fake Jang Ilso. It was an attack fueled by all the inner energy he had managed to recover.

Yet the enemies were rising again, as if nothing had happened.

Crack.

The sound of bones twisting escaped from the bodies of the demons rising like ghosts. Namgung Dowi bit his lip hard.

‘Damn it. I gave it my everything.’

He had thought he could at least take one of them down. But all of them rose again. Their bodies may have been twisted, but they weren’t cut. They might bend and break, but they wouldn’t be sliced or severed.

The Namgung sword sacrifices sharpness in pursuit of the ultimate sword power. For that reason, the grotesque bodies of the demons were practically its natural enemy.

There was no particular anger in the eyes of the demons watching Namgung Dowi. They were always angry, always ready to express hatred. Allowing one strike didn’t give them any reason to feel new emotions toward him.

Whoosh.

The demonic energy they released began swirling like a storm. It surged so fiercely that it almost choked the air. Namgung Dowi’s dantian trembled and twisted under the pressure.

Namgung Dowi revealed his power aggressively.

“So… this is the level we’re at, huh”

The result he faced was despair. But that didn’t mean he had to fall into it. He was still alive and holding his sword.

Though the outcome of this clash meant he had one foot in the grave, standing before these demons meant he was racing toward a future of certain death.

Even so, Namgung Dowi’s resolve didn’t waver. Because he knew someone who never gave in, not even at the moment of death.

‘If I cower here, I’ll have no face to meet my father in the afterlife.’

He smiled—full of bravado. It was to steady his trembling legs.

“…This is going to be tough.”

The words of the Zhongnan swordsman, who seemed utterly incapable of reading the mood, slightly erased Namgung Dowi’s smile—but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t the only one here.

“We still stopped them.”

Tang Soso said calmly.

Indeed, Namgung Dowi’s single strike had quelled the ferocity of the enemies, which had previously raged like wildfire. Even if he didn’t defeat any of them, it was far from meaningless.

The only regret was that their momentum had only been subdued for a short while.

Fwoosh!

The enemies began to move again.

An indescribable pressure surged forth. But no one hesitated. Hye Yeon, Namgung Dowi, and Lee Songbaek all charged toward the demons without any signal.

Even a moment’s hesitation would lead to being devoured. That was the instinct they had honed on the brink of life and death—a natural choice to ensure the best outcome.

However, if you look at their actions from a different perspective, one word will come to mind.

‘Courage’.

“Uoooooh!”

There was no certainty they could withstand it.

The enemies were strong, and they were exhausted. Even at their best, these enemies would be difficult to face.

But it was that very reason that drove them forward. Because it would be difficult for anyone, the option of retreat simply didn’t exist.

Hye Yeon’s fist fell.

A golden Buddha light radiated holiness. His power with the energy of breaking evil, poured toward the demons. [pasa, 파사(破邪)]

Yet even when facing such opposing energy, the demons didn’t flinch in the slightest.

Some may fear death, but to others, it may be something welcomed.

The demons understood the existence of precious things in the world—but had never learned that their own lives could be among them. So without a shred of hesitation, they leapt toward Hye Yeon’s power.

Kuuuuung!

With a sound like dozens of temple bells ringing at once, the demons were flung back. But twice as many surged in to overwhelm Hye Yeon.

The demons were terrifying not only because they were strong.

They lacked the dignity expected of powerful beings. Even if only two or three would suffice, they swarmed in groups of dozens without hesitation.

“Haaah!”

From behind, Tang Soso scattered her acupuncture needles.

Since deciding to live as a swordswoman of Mount Hua, she had only used these needles to treat patients. But now, they flew with deadly precision toward the demons’ eyes and vital points.

Thwack! Thwack!

Like Tang Gunak’s flying daggers, Tang Soso’s needles pierced the demons’ bodies. But she knew well that stopping them with such thin needles was impossible.

After causing minor disruption, she swung her sword without hesitation.

Kagagagak!

A hand wrapped in dark energy blocked and grabbed her sword directly.

Beyond the diagonally extended sword, blood-red eyes filled her vision. The heavy stench of blood and overwhelming killing intent engulfed her.

A momentary fear gripped her so tightly it seemed like her breath might stop. But she remembered something her Sasuk always said.

– It’s not that I’m not afraid.

‘I just do it even when I’m afraid!’

Crunch.

Even in fear, she was someone who could swing her sword.

Tang Soso twisted her blade. From the demon’s hand, hard as steel, red blood gushed out. Their blood was no different from hers.

Fwooosh!

She swung her sword with full force, slicing off the demon’s fingers. Years of endlessly honing her swordplay—breaking and remaking herself—had made her a true Plum Blossom Swordsman.

Tuung!

Using her left hand, Tang Soso struck out with Bamboo Leaf Palm instead of more needles and pushed the demon away, then slashed her sword horizontally like lightning. [jugyeopsu, 죽엽수(竹葉手)]

A red line was drawn across the enemy’s neck. Without stopping, she gritted her teeth harder and unleashed her Plum Blossom Sword technique.

Clatter!

Although it was the same red hue, unlike the enemies' eyes, the plum blossoms blooming endlessly gave off a warm feeling.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Through the petals in full bloom, the enemies’ powerful pressure broke through, but Lee Songbaek desperately blocked it all.

Mount Hua and Zhongnan.

A sword that discarded everything for offense, and a sword that sacrificed much for defense.

So different that they could never truly harmonize, and yet, for that very reason, the sword techniques of these two sects merged together here with astonishing synergy.

“Ah—mi—ta—bha!”

And then, above it all, Hye Yeon’s Arhat Divine Fist poured down.

 

“Hmm…”

Meanwhile, Jang Ilso clicked his tongue softly in disapproval. His gaze landed on the young ones desperately holding off the demonic cultivators.

It would be no exaggeration to say he had grown used to it by now. It wasn’t the first time he had seen it with his own eyes, and he had heard even more.

Yet it still felt like a mystery.

Those young ones' power couldn't possibly rival that of the demonic cultivators. The strength granted by the one called ‘Heavenly Executioner’ was enough to make even Jang Ilso shudder. These exhausted fledglings were nowhere near the level to contend with such a force.

And yet, they were achieving the impossible. Jang Ilso couldn’t understand how such an unbelievable and bizarre thing could happen. But he didn’t ignore the possibility that the impossible might occur once again.

‘Especially…’

Jang Ilso’s gaze fixed on one person.

Among those strange ones, there was one who stood out as particularly out of place. To be blunt, she was far too weak to even belong among them.

Yet she fought more bravely than anyone else. As if she were leading the others.

‘Mount Hua… no, Tang Family?’

The answer was clear. It must be both.

It was that person who made this impossibility into reality. A swordsman of Mount Hua, bearing the blood of the Tang family.

Jang Ilso felt a flicker of interest. He instinctively licked his lips.

He hadn’t originally planned to waste his energy here. He had much yet to do, and even the strength to crush an insect needed to be conserved.

But if that insect disturbed the house too much, wasn’t it only right to act before it caused more trouble?

Jang Ilso’s eyes narrowed like a crescent moon. Almost simultaneously with the faint smile on his lips, he lightly stomped on the ground.

Finally, the bracelet in his hand interlocked like the solid teeth of a beast, and it bit into the iron sword.

Clang!

A sharp sound rang out, and Tang Soso’s eyes widened in shock.

Jang Ilso had suddenly appeared before her. It was only natural that the fear she had held in check began to shake.

Instinctively, she raised her upper body in defense. He was Jang Ilso, after all— she thought he might pierce her flesh with those roof-tile-like rings at any moment.

But Jang Ilso hadn’t approached her with rings to fight.

“Hmm.”

Jang Ilso snorted as he looked into Tang Soso’s eyes.

“It’s true what they say… you really can’t hide your blood.”

In that moment, Tang Soso felt as if time had stopped. The intense world around her fell into silence the moment Jang Ilso appeared.

In that heavy silence, Tang Soso saw it. The chilling smile forming on Jang Ilso’s red lips.

Perhaps in that instant, she already sensed what he was about to say.

She reflexively twisted her wrist to cover his mouth, but Jang Ilso’s fist was a little faster.

Kwaang!

As his palm struck her wrist, Tang Soso’s own arm smashed into her face, sending her tumbling backward in an undignified heap.

“You…!”

She sprang up almost before her back hit the ground. Jang Ilso remained standing arrogantly, looking down at her. His mocking expression carried a hint of pity.

“Oh dear, no. That’s not it. You shouldn't be angry. You should be curious.”

Confused by his cryptic words, Tang Soso instinctively tried to curse, but Jang Ilso whispered first.

“Aren’t you curious?”

Like a demon slithering out from the depths of her heart.

“About how your father died?”

“What…?”

“If it were me… I could tell you.”

Tang Soso stared blankly at him, momentarily speechless.

At first, she couldn’t understand. No— she didn’t want to. But she couldn’t ignore it forever. She was too clever for that.

“No…”

Her trembling voice leaked out.

“No. No. That can’t be. Someone like you… my father wouldn’t… not to someone like… to someone like you!”

She shook her head madly, like one possessed. She couldn’t accept it. It had to be a lie, the snake’s whisper meant only to deceive. It was a lie. She desperately denied it again and again.

But deep down, a part of her knew.

Jang Ilso was more than capable of telling lies. But in this moment, he had no reason to. Telling a lie just to break her would be too bothersome.

Unfortunately, Tang Soso realized that.

“Noooooooooooo!”

A thunderous scream burst forth. She cried like a beast and shed tears, but she did not collapse. Instead of succumbing to despair, she chose to do what she must.

There was no hesitation.

“Jang Ilsoooooooooooo!”

Gripping her sword tightly, Tang Soso charged straight at Jang Ilso with all her might, not bothering to defend herself.

Jang Ilso let out an eerie laugh as he watched her.

Next Chapter

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