Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1321

“Senior Brother! Behind you!”

“I know!”

“The rear is collapsing, Senior Brother!”

“I said I know!”

Jo Gul jumped when Baek Cheon roared. Even in all this chaos, Baek Cheon drew his sword, completely steady.

Wham! Power exploded from Baek Cheon’s sword. It smashed into the enemies blocking their way, throwing them aside in one strike.

“Aaaaargh!” The Evil Sect warriors had lost focus for a moment, seeing the terrible scene behind them. They screamed as Baek Cheon’s sword power pushed them back.

“Push forward!”

“But…!”

“Didn’t I tell you to be quiet and focus on what’s ahead!” Baek Cheon shouted angrily. Jo Gul’s sword shook a little.

“If we don’t break through, we will all die! It’s not just about saving a few people anymore!” When Jo Gul heard Baek Cheon’s words, his eyes became determined.

“Aaaaargh!”

Screeeeeech! His fast sword stabbed through the enemies who were hesitating and running away, one after another.

“Aaaaargh!”

Wham! He pushed off the ground with all his strength. Jo Gul’s sword made many shadows at once. These sword shadows, powerful enough to fill the whole canyon, rushed towards the enemies.

Jo Gul looked a little excited. Then, Yoon Jong quickly moved past him and charged ahead. His sword forced back the many enemies who were running away.

Baek Cheon made them even more determined. “If you are worried about what’s behind us, then fight as hard as you can to open a path! That’s the only way to save everyone!”

“Yes, Senior Brother!” Yoon Jong and Jo Gul fought even harder and charged forward.

“Get out of the way, you bastards!” They were like an unstoppable force.

They moved so fast it was as if the canyon was empty. But even this speed felt too slow. They were so worried about the others that they felt they should be much further ahead.

Baek Cheon really wanted to turn back, but he stopped himself. He looked straight ahead and told himself, ‘Don’t look back!’ He wanted to run back right away. But he knew exactly what he had to do. He knew he couldn’t try to do everything alone. That would be too much and arrogant.

‘I trust you to protect the back!’ Baek Cheon showed his determination by shaking his sword strongly.

He didn’t need to look to know what the people behind him were seeing. He knew they were looking at that small back he had always seen in front of him. That small back that always strongly protected everyone.

“Don’t just stand there doing nothing, follow us!” Baek Cheon’s shout made the Hainan disciples jump and quickly wake up.

“Hurry!” Right after, the Hainan disciples, clenching their teeth, started to run as fast as they could, following the path made by Jo Gul and Yoon Jong.

Chung Myung’s cold, deep eyes put pressure on the Maninbang warriors. Maybe because of this, the aggressive Maninbang warriors only growled, hesitating to attack Chung Myung.

Chung Myung looked at them and spoke. “Green Forest King.”

“Yes.”

“Send the Elder uncles to the back.”

“Understood.”

“And that guy with the octopus-like face too.”

“…I will.”

Even after answering, Im So-byeong didn’t move for a moment. He just stared without expression at the back of Chung Myung’s head, his face tense.

“This kid….”

Feeling that stare, Chung Myung smiled a little.

“What? Did you think I was ready to die here or something?”

“…It’s not that, but….”

“Don’t worry. I know how important my life is.”

“…”

“And against these guys, I don’t even need to use the Jade Seal. Just….” Chung Myung stopped talking for a moment, then chuckled.

But, there is one thing I’m a little sad about.

“Dang Pae.”

When Chung Myung called his name, Dang Pae jumped and looked up. Dang Pae’s face was very pale. He knew what he had done wrong.

He could handle being scolded by others. But if Chung Myung said ‘it’s okay,’ he felt like he would break down.

That would be like saying the Dang family was weak and could not do more. Dang Pae really hoped Chung Myung wouldn’t say those words. Just then, Chung Myung reached out his hand.

Wham! Something was pulled out from the pile of dead bodies, which was like a small hill, very quickly. Chung Myung grabbed it and threw it to Dang Pae behind him.

“Uh….”

Dang Pae caught it, confused, and looked down at what was in his hand without thinking. Chung Myung had given him throwing knives that Dang Pae couldn’t get back during the hard fight.

“Stay behind me.”

“…Yes?”

“Protect my back.” Dang Pae’s eyes slowly widened at these surprising words.

So, right now….

“Why? Can’t you do it?”

“Ah, no! I still have energy!” He didn’t dare use his poison hand attacks, but he could throw throwing knives as much as he wanted.

Throwing knives were good because they used less energy, unless he used his strongest moves.

“But can I….”

Can I really help Chung Myung? In this situation?

He couldn’t say the question out loud, so he kept it to himself. But Chung Myung seemed to guess what Dang Pae was thinking. He shrugged and said casually, “Even if you are not very skilled, it’s better than nothing. Right now, I need something I know well.”

Something I know well? Dang Pae didn’t understand. Chung Myung went on, “Don’t worry. I’ll make up for anything you can’t do.”

“Yes? What do you me-….”

Luckily, the answer came fast. Thud. A quiet footstep came from beside Dang Pae. He turned and saw Yoo Iseol standing there, her face cold. It was like she was meant to be there all along.

Yoo Iseol said softly, “Don’t go in front.”

“…Yes?” Dang Pae asked, surprised by her words.

Yoo Iseol answered simply, “I will be ahead of you anyway.” Dang Pae slowly nodded.

His job was to use throwing knives to slow down enemies. So, if he tried to do too much, it would only get in the way.

Dang Pae understood what Yoo Iseol meant, but he still planned to do his best. His eyes showed his strong determination. He tightened his grip on the throwing knives.

‘I will give it my all.’ That’s the least I can do for someone who trusts me!

“Move!” Only then did Im So-byeong feel a little better and start to lead the older members. Some of the older members coughed up blood as they tried to walk, but Im So-byeong shouted coldly, “You will die whether you move or stay here! Move, now!”

The older members clenched their teeth and ran forward. Their strong inner power helped them keep going, but they didn’t know when they would suddenly fall down.

But even so, they had to move. Because they were still alive. Because they were not dead yet. They had to fight until they had no strength left and fell.

Im So-byeong helped Hye-yeon, who was shaking and trying hard to stand, and put him on his back before turning around.

“I’m going first! Don’t be slow, follow me!”

“Stop complaining.” Chung Myung said casually, and Im So-byeong gave him a hard look before leaving.

Now, only Yoo Iseol and Dang Pae were left with Chung Myung. Chung Myung smiled at the strange feeling.

‘To be honest, this is not something I’m used to.’ He had fought his way forward many times, but falling back to gain time like this didn’t fit his personality at all.

In the past, many people would do this for him, so he could just jump in and make chaos. But not anymore. Now, he can’t just do what he wants. He has to do what he needs to do, not just what he feels like doing.

“Being an adult is hard.”

“Still young.”

“Yes, yes.” Even though he sounded playful, Chung Myung wasn’t smiling.

The reason the enemies weren’t completely winning was simple. If they couldn’t use their energy freely, it was better to wait and gain time until the poison got worse. Ho Gamyung knew this, so he wasn’t giving the order to attack fully.

But not anymore.

“Okay then….”

Chung Myung slowly lifted one foot. This standoff couldn’t go on forever. If that’s true, there was no need to make it last longer than needed.

Chung Myung knew when even a careful animal, that doesn’t attack with its back turned, would show its anger.

“Let’s start.” The moment he put his foot down, not forward but backward, clearly to retreat.

“Kroaaaah!” It was like a tight rope had snapped. The Maninbang warriors, who had been crouching down, charged at Chung Myung with great force all at once.

A huge wave of wanting to kill, like something held back that suddenly exploded, washed over Chung Myung. In that cold, scary desire to kill, Chung Myung smiled slightly.

He used all his inner power in the Dark Fragrance Plum Blossom Sword. The muscles in his sword arm throbbed, and blood rushed through his body.

The Maninbang warriors screamed and swung their swords. Three in front, and two from above!

The swords coming from above and below at the same time were like the wide open mouth of a giant monster.

Chung Myung pulled his sword back as far as he could. And then, just as the monster’s mouth of swords was about to bite him.

Wham! The sword shot out with amazing speed.

It was a sword strike so strong it was more like shooting an arrow than swinging a sword. Chung Myung’s sword, which flashed like light for a moment, stabbed through the necks of five Maninbang warriors charging at him at once.

Bang! At the same time, he pushed off the ground with his foot.

It wasn’t a move forward. Dang Pae, Yoo Iseol, and Chung Myung quickly moved back. When the Maninbang warriors saw them running away through the bodies of their dead friends, their eyes became crazy with anger.

“Chase them!”

No matter how strong the enemy was, even if chasing them meant death, the ones chasing always felt more confident. Just chasing after that strong swordsman with swords made the Maninbang warriors even crueler.

“Kroaaaah!” The Maninbang warriors roared like animals and charged forward almost crawling.

They stepped on and crushed those who had fallen but were still alive, but the ones charging didn’t even notice. They were only focused on chasing the Hwasan Sword Saint, screaming like wild animals.

Screeeeeech! Dang Pae’s throwing knife stabbed right into the top of the head of the enemy charging from the front.

“Get out of the way!” The sword coming from behind cut the shaking enemy in half at the waist in one strike.

They pushed aside the top half of their dead friend’s body and aimed at Chung Myung, showing a cold and scary cruelty and desire to kill.

“Aaargh!” A sword with enough force to cut anything in half came straight down towards Chung Myung’s head.

It was an attack that completely ignored defense. A strike that put everything into one swing, without thinking about what would happen next.

Crack! Chung Myung’s sword, shot out like an arrow, stabbed through the neck of the Maninbang warrior and stuck out from the back of his neck. But the enemy sword, already moving fast, didn’t stop and went even faster, falling towards Chung Myung’s head.

Wham! Chung Myung lightly pushed off the ground with his foot.

Then, the enemy sword, carrying strong wind, just missed his face by an inch. His hair moved in the wind.

A cold feeling, like being scratched by a rough saw, came next. Even though the sword didn’t touch him, the evil intent and power in it felt like they went right through the air and into his body.

Chung Myung, feeling that cold and familiar feeling all over, cruelly twisted the sword that was stuck in the enemy.

Wham! As he used his inner power, the stabbed neck broke open right away, and the cut head flew up into the air. Hot blood sprayed everywhere.

It was like a firework showing that a terrible fight was really starting now.