Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 152

No one knew what the red thing was. But when they saw it, everyone stopped moving without thinking.

“W-What is that?”

Cold sweat ran down Jo Gul’s back.

“Is it a trap? Or… something worse?”

Whatever it was, one look at that red glow told them it was danger.

As soon as you saw the red dot, it was hard to move. It felt like your body was warning you of danger.

Sensing the danger, Jo Gul looked at Chung Myung. No matter how Chung Myung acted usually, in moments like these, the most reliable person was Chung Myung.

“C-Chung Myung-ah.”

“Huh?”

“What’s all that?”

“Uh… Looks like bats?”

“Bats?”

“Yeah. I think I heard a story about bats with red eyes somewhere, so…”

Chung Myung tilted his head.

“Are bat eyes originally red?”

‘Is that important now?’

Then, Chung Myung suddenly clapped his hands.

“Ah, right! Bloodsucking Bat! That’s what they’re called!”

Hong Daeguang, who had been frozen, carefully asked:

“…So, all that red is the eyes of bats?”

“Yeah. Looks like it.”

“T-Then what should we do?”

“What should we do? They’re just bats. We can just pass by.”

Chung Myung started walking again like he didn’t care. The others looked around, their faces showing they were worried.

‘Is it okay?’

Well, if they’re just bats, it’s not a big deal. Some people avoid them because they’re creepy, but I’ve never heard of anyone dying from being bitten by a bat.

Everyone relaxed slightly and carefully followed Chung Myung.

Then, Baek Cheon stuck close to Chung Myung and quietly asked:

“But, Chung Myung-ah.”

“Huh?”

“I’ve heard stories about Bloodsucking Bats, but I’ve never heard that their eyes are red. Is that right?”

“Huh? No? As far as I know… Ah!”

Chung Myung suddenly clapped his hands.

“Wait! It’s not just a Bloodsucking Bat. It’s a Mara Bloodsucking Bat! There’s a spirit beast called Mara Bloodsucking Bat in Yunnan. If you get bitten by that spirit beast, your blood gets sucked dry and you die leaving only your skin. Their skin is so tough, even a knife can’t cut it. Masters have trouble fighting them…”

Chung Myung’s voice gradually faded.

Chung Myung glanced back.

Everyone stared at him, shaking as if they had tasted something terrible. Chung Myung spoke seriously.

“You know?”

“Yeah.”

Chung Myung took a deep breath and slowly stretched out his foot. It was an unusually cautious movement for him.

“Quietly…”

Flap.

“If we go, these guys will also…”

Flap! Flap!

“Not know…”

Flap! Flap!

Chung Myung smiled faintly.

‘There’s no way.’

“We’re doomed.”

Screeeeeech! Screeeeeech!

A sharp cry that seemed to tear their eardrums poured out, and the Mara Bloodsucking Bats with crimson eyes all flew up like a cloud.

“Ru…”

Just as Chung Myung was about to shout to run, the people behind him all pushed past him and ran forward like crazy.

“Aaaaargh!”

“If we get caught, we won’t even be able to recover our bones! Ruuuun!”

Chung Myung smiled as he watched them.

“Those bastards…”

‘What? The martial siblings will die together and live together? What about the affection between martial siblings?’

Seeing his martial siblings pushing Chung Myung and running away to survive, tears were about to blur his vision.

Among them, Baek Cheon, running ahead without looking back, caught his eye.

‘He’s just trying to survive on his own, that one, that one.’

‘He’s grown up so well that just looking at him makes me proud…’

“…The hell with that! You rotten bastards!”

Mara Bloodsucking Bats with gleaming red eyes rushed in from all directions.

“Hiiiik!”

Chung Myung also started running forward like crazy.

“Aaaaargh! Why are there bats in the cave!”

“Because it’s a cave, there are bats! You crazy bastard!”

“No! Why are the ones that were supposed to be in Yunnan living here!”

“How would I know!”

Hong Daeguang also started running away, yelling.

“Damn medicine man! That crazy bastard brought this from Yunnan and released it here! Sasuk! Sect Leader Sasuk! If that bastard is in the Immortal World, give him a punch in the face!”

– How am I supposed to beat the greatest person under the heavens?

“No! Then at least team up with your disciples and gang up on him like usual!”

“What are you talking about by yourself! You crazy bastard!”

“Kkeueueung!”

If Cheong Mun were really here,

‘That crazy bastard is ruining the reputation of Mount Hua.’

Chung Myung was saying things that he would have been furious about.

As if to punish him, the Mara Bloodsucking Bats bared their sharp teeth and rushed in menacingly.

Chung Myung hurriedly waved his hands to knock away the Mara Bloodsucking Bats.

Clang! Clang!

‘Wow, what is this!’

Hitting the bats felt like hitting a lump of iron. In Yunnan, if you accidentally enter a cave with Mara Bloodsucking Bats, even a large water buffalo is left with only bones in an instant. The sensation made sense.

“Aack!”

“Be careful! Their claws are sharp!”

Chung Myung was able to slap away the flying bats, but the others were not so lucky. Where the bat’s claws scratched them, skin ripped open and blood poured out.

The Bloodsucking Bats, smelling the blood, began to run even more rampant. Hundreds of them flew in a dizzying crisscross in the air, repeatedly flying away.

It was a sight that made his mind go blank just by looking at it.

“B-Branch Leader! My arm! My arm won’t move!”

“What? Is it some kind of paralyzing poison?”

Hong Daeguang’s face twisted.

‘What kind of bat is this!’

A body like steel and claws that make ordinary famous swords look ridiculous, and on top of that, paralyzing poison!

This was a monster that even a master could not handle. The problem was that there were hundreds of such monsters attacking in swarms, not just one or two.

“Aack!”

Hong Daeguang, feeling a sharp pain in his shoulder, quickly turned his head. Already, a Mara Bloodsucking Bat was attached to his shoulder.

“You bat bastard!”

Hong Daeguang shouted like lightning and knocked away the Bloodsucking Bat. Then, a handful of flesh fell from his shoulder, and blood spurted out.

‘We’re all going to die like this.’

The wound was not important. What was important was that the paralyzing poison was seeping into the wound. Soon, his movements would become dull, and after that, the only ending left was to be eaten alive by these damn things.

“Never get bitten! Kill all the bats that come close!”

“Branch Leader! Weapons don’t work! These guys’ movements are strange. They avoid them as if they know the trajectory in advance!”

“What…”

But there was no time to be annoyed. Hong Daeguang quickly reached out his hand to knock down the Bloodsucking Bat flying towards his face.

Hong Daeguang used a powerful palm strike from his fighting style.

However, the bat spun in the air and avoided Hong Daeguang’s palm strike too easily.

“Avoided it?”

A mere insect avoided the palm strike containing the Beggars’ Sect’s martial arts?

A chill ran down his spine.

‘How can there be such ridiculous monsters in the world?’

He knew that the world was wide and there were countless strange and bizarre things. As the branch leader of the Beggars’ Sect, who knew more about the information of the Murim than anyone else, he had no choice but to know.

However, the feeling of seeing them directly was terrible.

Even if Hong Daeguang did his best, could he handle ten of these monsters?

He wasn’t confident.

But there were not ten Mara Bloodsucking Bats here, but hundreds. At this rate, everyone would really be annihilated.

“Mount Hua Divine Dragon! Mount Hua Divine Dragon! Do something!”

And the only person to look for in this crisis was Chung Myung.

“Aoh!”

Chung Myung drew his sword with a frown.

“Mount Hua…”

Hong Daeguang, who turned around to urge Chung Myung one more time, stopped talking.

Nothing had changed.

Chung Myung had just drawn his sword. His expression, his movements, even his energy. Nothing had changed.

But…

‘It’s different.’

He didn’t know what was different, but Chung Myung until now and Chung Myung running behind him now felt like different people.

That ridiculous sense of incongruity made Hong Daeguang flustered.

The silly Chung Myung who always talked nonsense was gone. Now, it was a serious swordsman, like he had fought in a hundred battles. He held his sword ready.

Soon, his sword moved slowly.

Whoosh.

It felt like a wind started to blow. Chung Myung’s sword moved slowly. The tip of his sword shook slightly, and then suddenly, many sword shapes filled the dark cave.

‘Plum blossoms?’

They bloomed.

A plum blossom began to bloom at each tip of the divided sword. Small flower buds soon transformed into the shape of fully bloomed flowers. It was as if the inside of this cave had become a large plum tree forest.

Even though it was a dangerous moment, Hong Daeguang was amazed.

‘Is this the martial art of Mount Hua?’

These were the plum blossoms of Mount Hua.

People had almost forgotten about this style, but now it was becoming famous again. Hong Daeguang was seeing it with his own eyes.

It felt like a strong smell of plum blossoms filled the air.

Hong Daeguang knew it was impossible for a sword to smell like flowers, so it must be an illusion. But the feeling was so strong, it made him shiver.

And,

Falling flowers.

The plum blossoms began to flutter. The plum blossom petals, following the wind and the flow, swept through the cave like a blizzard, sweeping away the Mara Bloodsucking Bats.

Screeeeeech!

Caw!

The screams of the Mara Bloodsucking Bats echoed through the cave.

Flap.

The sound of the bats’ wings pierced Hong Daeguang’s ears.

It was the sound of wings he had heard a little while ago, but it was a little different. This time, it was the sound of the Mara Bloodsucking Bats, cut by Chung Myung’s sword, falling to the floor.

“Ah…”

Hong Daeguang, realizing that the plum blossoms that had filled the cave had disappeared as if washed away, let out a sigh filled with deep regret.

Swoosh.

Chung Myung’s sword went back into its scabbard.

“Hoo.”

Chung Myung, who exhaled a short breath, raised his head sharply.

There was a swordsman with a refined, blade-like energy…

“…Those damn bat bastards don’t even know their place!”

…wasn’t there!

Chung Myung, in his familiar appearance, proudly straightened his shoulders.

“…”

‘If he had just kept his mouth shut and stayed still, I would have been a little touched.’

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going?”

“G-Going.”

Hong Daeguang glanced back.

Whoosh. Whoosh.

Not all the bats died from the sword strike. Many were still alive, hanging on the cave walls and staring at them.

But a spirit beast is a spirit beast. Perhaps realizing Chung Myung’s strength, they were just bats at best, and they didn’t dare approach, only making low threats.

‘This sword is so powerful, even these monster bats are scared.’

‘Is this strange? Or is it just amazing?’

The end of the cave finally came into view as Hong Daeguang shook his head.

‘Damn it, I’m already afraid of what’s going to come out next.’

Hong Daeguang bit his lip slightly and quickened his pace.

‘But deciding to stick next to this guy was the best choice.’

Because if it weren’t for that, he would have already died.

Hong Daeguang looked at Chung Myung with eyes full of trust.

Perhaps knowing his heart, Chung Myung also smiled and said:

“Did you come to play? Why do you keep looking around?”

“…”

“You’re acting like a beggar! A real beggar!”