Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1331

Boom!

Each step she took sent a thunderous boom echoing through the air.

This was not the Yu Yiseol who was usually as silent and nimble as a swallow. A desperate urgency radiated from her, impossible to hide.

‘Faster!’

Her usually calm face twisted with growing anxiety.

Wham!

She pushed herself faster, the trees around her turning into streaks of green and brown. A Shaolin disciple stumbled into her path. In a flash, her sword moved, and the disciple fell, his head separated from his body. She didn’t even pause, just kept running.

That strike, so quick and deadly, reminded her of Chung Myung’s swordsmanship. He always fought with such fierce speed.

‘Faster!’

She kicked off the ground again and again.

It wasn’t just her own life that depended on her speed. It was the lives of the Hainan Sect disciples struggling against the storm of arrows behind her.

Chung Myung’s lonely figure, standing firm after sending her away, haunted her. She remembered the determined set of his jaw, the way he always carried the weight of the world. She couldn’t let him down. If she couldn’t resolve this situation and return in time, that figure might be the last image of Chung Myung she ever saw.

‘Too slow!’

Impatience burned in her chest, making her breath come faster. Yu Yiseol kicked off the ground with even greater force.

Wham!

Usually, Yu Yiseol was known for her gentle and calm nature, better than anyone else in Mount Hua Sect. And that was the path she had chosen to keep pace with those who were born with great strength.

A sword that wasn’t based on physical strength, a sword that could be built with hard work, even without talent.

That was the sword of the Sword Demon, Yu Yiseol.

Zzzzzing!

A powerful arrow, filled with internal energy, flew towards her with great speed. Without slowing down, she lowered her body as much as possible, almost flying above the ground.

The arrow flew harmlessly through the air.

Wham! Wham!

Arrows flew one after another, but Yu Yiseol’s footwork never allowed them to hit her.

Yu Yiseol sliced the neck of the archer who was preparing to shoot an arrow.

Thwack!

Her sword moved in a smooth curve, cutting through the bow and the archer’s neck in one swift move. The archer was too surprised to react. It was a fantastic strike that would have impressed anyone.

However, Yu Yiseol was biting her lip hard enough to draw blood.

‘Too slow!’

This wasn’t enough. She needed to be faster, more efficient.

She thought she understood why Chung Myung’s sword was so often hurried, why there was never any time to relax in his swordsmanship.

‘Faster!’

She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek and ran towards another place where arrows were being fired.

Of course, she knew the people she was looking for weren’t there. Those firing the heavy arrows were still hiding to avoid showing themselves.

But she didn’t have time to search for them one by one.

So, there was only one way.

Instead of her finding them, she would make them find her.

If she used her sword as boldly as possible in the most obvious place, killing as many enemies as possible, the ones who couldn’t stand it would attack her.

Then, by risking herself, she could find the enemy and draw away the attacks aimed at the main group…

Clench!

A thought flashed through her mind, and Yu Yiseol bit her lip even harder without realizing it.

– Why push yourself so hard? Why go that far?

It was a question she had once asked without thinking. Words spoken carelessly because she didn’t understand Chung Myung and didn’t even try to understand him now pierced her heart.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust her fellow disciples. She had never doubted what they could do.

Even so, she had to push herself.

Because that was the only way to save even one more person.

Even so, she had to push herself.

Because that way, the enemies would target her instead of others.

Fighting as bravely as possible at the very front was the best she could do. The more she got attention and swung her sword in the middle of the enemy lines, the safer the others would be.

She saw the enemies ahead.

The archers’ faces darkened when they saw her rushing towards them without looking back.

“Shoot! Shoot her!”

The archers quickly turned the bows they had been holding up, aiming them at Yu Yiseol. The arrows, several on each bow, rained down on her like a storm of angry wasps.

Instead of slowing down, Yu Yiseol plunged her sword into the ground. The strong plum blossom sword bent as if it would break, then snapped back quickly. Yu Yiseol used that force to jump into the air.

Zzzzzing!

An arrow, moving with great speed, grazed her pants. But without paying attention, Yu Yiseol leaped into the air, a flash of silver against the green, and plunged into the middle of the enemies.

The plum blossom sword drew a much wilder circle than usual.

Crack! Crunch!

A bow made of steel was cut apart along with the archer’s body. As the broken bow and body were thrown away, blood splattered over her head.

Wham!

As soon as her feet touched the ground, she shot forward, quickly stabbing the neck of an archer who was stumbling in confusion. His neck was pierced with a sickening crunch, and the red blade stuck out from the back of his neck.

“Ki-Kill her!”

“She’s alone anyway! Kill her!”

Archers can’t do anything when someone gets close. This was common knowledge.

People say old sayings are always right, but that’s not true. A bow without its string is just a heavy stick. And you should still shoot an arrow even if the enemy is close.

In fact, an arrow can be even *more* dangerous when the enemy is closer.

The archers ran forward together, holding their heavy iron bows without strings. Behind them, other archers had their bowstrings pulled back, ready to shoot as soon as they could.

*Kaa-aaang!* The loud clang of metal on metal echoed through the air.

Yoo Iseol quickly knocked aside the iron bow aimed at her head. But before she could attack, another archer jumped up and shot an arrow right at her face. This arrow felt like it had special power in it.

Yoo Iseol leaned back fast. The arrow just missed her shoulder, cutting off a few strands of her hair. It kept going and hit a soldier from Sabaelia who was running up behind her, hitting him hard in the stomach.

“Kraaah!”

Even though the arrow hit their own friend, the archers didn’t care. More archers jumped into the air and shot a storm of arrows at Yoo Iseol, one after another, very fast.

Arrows came flying down like a heavy rain, all around her. Yoo Iseol had to roll away to get out of the way.

*Tap tap tap tap!*

Arrows stuck into the ground where she had just been. If she had been even a little bit slower, those arrows would have hit her.

‘This is different now. I can’t just defend.’

Yoo Iseol jumped up like lightning and ran straight at the enemy. She was so fast, she didn’t even think, she just moved.

“Uh, oh!”

*Thwack!*

Yoo Iseol stabbed her sword into the stomach of an enemy who looked surprised. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him around hard. In a flash, he was turned around, and he was in front of her.

“N-no…”

He turned his head quickly, knowing something bad was about to happen.

*Crack! Crunch!*

Arrows flew down and hit him in the back before he could even turn all the way. Yoo Iseol used his body to protect herself from the arrows. Then, she quickly pulled out her sword and cut down the other enemies around her.

When you jump into a group of wolves, you know you will get hurt. Even a strong tiger can’t fight many wolves without getting hurt.

Yoo Iseol knew this. Trying to do something impossible when you are desperate is like killing yourself.

But she still jumped into the middle of the enemy for one reason.

“Aaaaaaargh!”

Several enemies around Yoo Iseol screamed. They were suddenly cut down from behind by sword attacks. They didn’t even see who attacked them before they fell.

“Sago!”

It was Yoon Jong! He was calmly and quickly breaking apart the enemy group from the outside.

The archers heard desperate screams coming from outside their circle. Their hands started to shake a little.

Unlike spears or swords, bows can only shoot in one direction. A bow can’t shoot at enemies all around you at once.

It was like showing that archers are weakest not when enemies get close, but when they don’t know where to aim. The two fighters from Hwasan, Yoo Iseol and Yoon Jong, sent out sword attacks from inside and outside the circle at the same time.

Bright sword energy, like blooming plum blossoms, flashed out and knocked away the enemies who had surrounded Yoo Iseol.

“Aaaaaaargh!”

“Kraaah!”

The enemies fell down like broken dolls, with cuts all over their bodies.

Now Yoo Iseol had the advantage. She wanted to use this chance to quickly defeat the rest of the enemies.

*Whooooosh!*

But then, a loud whistling sound cut through the air. A super-fast, powerful arrow flew right towards Yoo Iseol and Yoon Jong. It was easy to see that this arrow was much stronger than the others.

Yoo Iseol finally knew who she needed to chase. Her eyes turned cold blue with anger.

But before she could even move, someone else was already running that way.

“Geol?”

It was Jo Gul. His face was strangely cold and serious. He ran into the forest like an arrow. Soon, they heard a scream, but it wasn’t Jo Gul’s.

Then another scream.

And another.

Three screams in total. Jo Gul had figured out exactly where the strong arrow came from. He had found them and killed them all. It was so calm and smart, it was hard to believe it was the same Jo Gul they knew.

The archers looked around in fear. They realized that even their best fighters had been beaten.

They stopped attacking as strongly. Just then, Yoo Iseol stumbled and grabbed her stomach.

“S-Sago!”

Yoon Jong was shocked and quickly held her up. Blood was coming out between her fingers where she held her stomach. When she used the enemy as a shield, an arrow had gone through the body and hurt Yoo Iseol.

“You bad guys!”

Yoon Jong shouted angrily. He swung his sword wildly, cutting down the archers.

“Aaaaaaargh!”

The archers were already too scared to fight anymore. They decided to save themselves instead of following orders. They left their friends behind and ran away without looking back.

“Sago! Are you okay?”

Yoon Jong didn’t chase after them. He helped Yoo Iseol stand up. Taking care of Yoo Iseol was much more important to him than catching those cowards.

“Yoon Jong.”

“Sago, your wound! We need to help you now!”

“The cannons are still there.”

“What?”

“Trust me!”

Yoo Iseol pushed Yoon Jong away and jumped forward.

“Sago! No! Sago! Sago!”

Yoon Jong shouted, worried. But Yoo Iseol just ran as fast as she could towards the back. She left the fight to Yoon Jong and Jo Gul. She hoped Chung Myung was still okay.

Her throat felt tight with worry.

Everywhere she stepped, her blood left red marks on the ground.