Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1334

Everything around her seemed to break and fall apart suddenly. Chaos exploded. But one thing was clear: a thin, sharp sword had gone through the back of someone she knew very well. Her breath stopped.

Dark red blood started to flow down the sword sticking out of his back. It was thick and slow.

Crimson blood dripped slowly down the sword, turning the metal red. It reached the tip and stretched, then fell in heavy drops to the ground below. *Plop. Plop.*

The warm spray of blood hit her face. She saw everything clearly: the sword, the blood, and Chung Myung’s shoulders, slumped and still. It was all too real.

But at the same time, Yoo Iseol felt like it wasn’t real. It was like a dream.

Her senses were undeniable, but none of it truly entered the realm of understanding.

She could see it, but it didn’t feel real. She could hear sounds, but they didn’t make sense.

She stopped in her tracks.

Was it because it was already too late?

No. It was because, in the instant she tried to rush forward and save Chung Myung, a flash of blue energy erupted from the tip of the sword piercing his back. It was a threat: approach any closer, and they would cleave Chung Myung in two.

So, she had no choice but to stop.

Even as she watched the Blood Sword Clan members’ blades sink into Chung Myung’s left shoulder and right side.

Crack! Crunch!

Yoo Iseol’s body flinched as if she, too, had been stabbed.

Her eyes, wide with shock, were filled not with anger or sorrow, but with horror.

Because she had no choice but to acknowledge the reality.

Chung Myung, who would have effortlessly deflected such attacks if he had any strength left, was now unable to defend himself.

She never thought she would see Chung Myung, the great Sword Saint, so weak. This was the thing she feared most.

No sound escaped her parted lips. Or rather, no sound could escape. For she feared that the slightest movement, the faintest noise, would cause the sword lodged in that small body to twist and tear his heart apart.

She could only watch in silence.

Only a few steps. Those few steps felt as distant as an eternal wall.

He felt a thrill. It was the feeling you get when you stab someone and end their life.

Gweolyang’s eyes, now filling with elation, stared at his sword buried deep in the center of Chung Myung’s chest. More than half the blade was lodged within.

Of course, he knew.

Sword wounds did not bleed as easily as one might think. If the prey still had the strength to clench their muscles, only a few drops of blood would trickle out.

But now, blood was gushing rapidly from Chung Myung’s wound, enough to soak his entire chest. This meant that Chung Myung didn’t even have the strength to clench the muscles around the embedded sword.

Chung Myung’s hand, pierced while trying to block the sword, slowly closed and brushed against the blade. But that was all. Gweolyang’s sword remained unmoved.

Instead, a heavy weight began to settle on the sword held by Gweolyang. The weight that came when an opponent could no longer support their own body and surrendered to the sword that would end their life.

It was the weight of death, all too familiar to Gweolyang.

‘…Got him.’

It was an unbelievable result, even after achieving it. But the result was now clearly in his hands. Hwasan Sword Saint Chung Myung. He had finally captured the monstrous being whose reputation alone dwarfed the world.

This was an achievement that could not be expressed with mere words of triumph.

He had always felt an indescribable thrill when he finally captured a difficult prey after overcoming countless hardships.

But what dominated him now was completely different from that thrill.

He felt many things at once. He was very happy, but also very sad at the same time. It was confusing.

Gweolyang slowly raised his head.

He wanted to see.

What expression would the monster, who had tormented Gweolyang so relentlessly and demonstrated unimaginable divine might, wear as he faced death?

Would his face be contorted with pain? Or would he be serene? Or perhaps… would he wear a hollow smile?

But unfortunately, he could not see Chung Myung’s face. All he saw was the crown of Chung Myung’s head, drooping as if all strength had left him.

In that moment, a faint sense of emptiness flickered in Gweolyang’s eyes.

Perhaps even he had believed it.

That even in the face of death, this man would never bow his head. That even if he were to die miserably with dozens of swords piercing his body, he would face the sky with unwavering dignity until the very end.

The faint emptiness passed, and a sense of reality slowly returned.

Gweolyang opened his mouth without realizing it.

“He’s just… a man.”

There was no reply.

Of course not. There was no way he would have any strength left to answer. In fact, it was no longer certain whether he was even conscious.

Gweolyang slowly tightened his grip on the sword.

By just saying a word to Chung Myung, he felt like he broke his own rules.

What ruins a hunt is the carelessness that comes at the very end. You must always be careful until you are completely sure they are dead. You have to cut their heart and head.

It was the moment he finally gripped the sword, ready to slice through Chung Myung’s heart.

“…Wor…”

A faint murmur escaped Chung Myung’s lips. It might have been a small death rattle uttered in the last moment of his life.

But Gweolyang suddenly stopped his sword, for a reason he himself struggled to explain.

“…What did he say?”

There was no reason to ask again. He could simply ignore it and cut him down. But strangely, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

Chung Myung slowly raised his head.

Chung Myung slowly lifted his head. It looked like it hurt him a lot, like an old, rusty wheel turning slowly.

His eyes, visible through the blood-soaked, matted hair, seemed empty, devoid of any light.

“…Can’t… *pause* …move…”

Incomprehensible words trickled out from between his lips, which were unclear whether they were opened or closed.

“…Can’t… anymore…”

In that moment, Gweolyang saw it.

Chung Myung’s lips, stained black with dried blood, curving up into a chilling smile. The moment he saw that smile, Gweolyang’s blood turned as cold as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

“…Legs.”

Gweolyang tried to push his sword down harder with all his power! But even though he used all his strength, the sword stuck in Chung Myung’s chest and wouldn’t move.

‘What?’

A purple aura flowed from the wound, beginning to engulf Gweolyang’s sword.

At that moment, Chung Myung pushed his sword-pierced hand towards Gweolyang.

Scratch!

With the sound of bone scraping against metal, his hand slid all the way to the sword guard. Chung Myung, still holding the sword guard, unexpectedly pulled Gweolyang towards him. Gweolyang, whose center of gravity was already leaning forward from pressing down on the sword with all his might, could not resist the force.

Soon, Gweolyang saw it. The sight of sword energy gathering on Chung Myung’s sword, which had been hanging limply.

It was the sword energy of Hwasan, as red as blood and as sharp as dawn.

‘Ah, no…’

Wham!

The sound of air being cut open echoed in the canyon. It was a sound he knew, but it felt different now.

Gweolyang blankly stared at his own sword, buried deep in Chung Myung’s chest. His sword, which had been forcibly pulled, was almost entirely embedded in Chung Myung’s chest.

“You…”

Gweolyang’s mouth hung open in a daze. His lips, which had been moving without forming words, finally opened again after a moment. A voice filled with complex emotions escaped.

“You… you tricked me… on purpose?”

In that instant, Gweolyang’s bewildered eyes met Chung Myung’s, which were losing focus.

Chung Myung’s voice, slightly clearer than before, was heard.

“If I can’t… go…”

Even as he spoke in a metallic voice, Chung Myung smiled. His blood-soaked teeth were revealed.

“…You have to… come. Right?”

Gweolyang’s eyes shook.

A moment of silence passed. Then, a stream of bright red blood gushed from Gweolyang’s lips.

Gweolyang realized belatedly why he had hesitated for a moment at the very end.

Even animals hesitate before taking bait. Even if the bait is something amazing, like killing the great Hwasan Sword Saint.

From the beginning, Chung Myung was not the one being hunted, but Gweolyang.

“You…”

Gweolyang, choking on blood, slowly collapsed.

The sword, pulled out with his last ounce of strength, was drawn from Chung Myung’s body. The blood gushing from the wound covered Gweolyang’s kneeling face.

“You really…”

Plop!

Gweolyang’s body, unable to finish his sentence, sprawled on the ground along with the Blood Sword Clan members who had charged in with him.

At the same time, Chung Myung’s body also staggered forward.

“Chung Myung-ah!”

Yoo Iseol hurriedly rushed forward, catching Chung Myung from behind as he collapsed, and supported him.

“Sasuk! Chung Myung-ah!”

“Heu…”

Feeling Yoo Iseol’s firm grip, Chung Myung smiled weakly, revealing his teeth.

“Too… late…”

“You…”

“Haa… anyway…”

As if all the barely connected nerves had snapped, Chung Myung’s head dropped limply.

Yoo Iseol’s hand instinctively reached for Chung Myung’s neck. She felt a faint pulse at her fingertips. Confirming that Chung Myung’s pulse was still beating, Yoo Iseol quickly tore off her robe and tied it around Chung Myung’s wound.

‘He’s alive.’

He had suffered a critical wound, so severe that it wouldn’t be surprising if his life ended at any moment, but he was still alive nonetheless.

He was still alive.

That was enough. What more reason did she need to risk her life?

She glanced once at Chung Myung’s unconscious face, then carried him on her back, tearing off the remaining robe and tightly binding him and herself together.

She could feel his heartbeat faintly and slowly against her back. His body temperature had also dropped so low that her hands were trembling.

She was afraid. Afraid that this heart would slowly stop beating. Afraid that the last remaining warmth would fade away.

Yoo Iseol raised her head.

She saw the Maninbang approaching again, assessing the situation. Their expressions were extremely grim. They would probably never let her go so easily.

They knew how precious the opportunity to end the life of Hwasan Sword Saint Chung Myung was.

Especially Ho Gamyeong, who was gleaming with ambition in the back, would try to end everything by driving a sword into Chung Myung’s heart no matter what it took.

Yoo Iseol reached out and grabbed Chung Myung’s Plum Blossom Sword, which had fallen to the ground. The unfamiliar handle still held warmth.

Rather, that warmth made Yoo Iseol calm and collected. Her constantly wavering eyes turned cold.

Yoo Iseol glared at the Maninbang, who were gradually gaining momentum and closing the distance, and kicked off the ground forcefully without delay.

‘I will protect him.’

Bang!

In the moment she leaped backward, the Maninbang rushed towards Yoo Iseol like a torrent pouring from a burst dam.

‘I must!’

She instantly sliced off the head of the Maninbang member running at the very front. The sword blazed with a resolute will.