Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1565

When the two energies crashed, the force pushed the pirates around the Black Dragon King.

The strong pirates were thrown back like leaves in a storm.

The Namgung Clan swordsmen, who were charging forward quickly, also stopped and stepped back.

They all stared at one spot. In the middle of the scattering black and white energies, they saw Namgung Dowi being thrown backward.

“Young Master!”

Namgung Dowi, shot away like an arrow, flipped in the air and landed on his feet. His face was calm. He didn’t seem badly hurt.

Instead, the Namgung Clan swordsmen were shocked.

“Y-Young Master is….”

They knew how strong Namgung Dowi had become.

The current Namgung Dowi was not the same as the one from Mae Hwa Island.

Even though they saw it themselves, they could not believe that a few experiences and a new way of thinking could improve someone’s fighting skills so much.

Yet, Namgung Dowi, who had become so strong, was knocked back by one hit. The Black Dragon King had only stepped back a couple of steps.

“Haa, even after losing one arm….”

Just as someone mumbled, sounding hurt, Namgung Myung’s cold voice reached the swordsmen’s ears.

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“B-But….”

“Just because an arm is cut off doesn’t mean the inner strength disappears. Just because the arm holding the weapon has changed doesn’t mean the physical strength gets weaker. If it’s a martial artist like the Black Dragon King, this is normal.”

The Black Dragon King was his worst enemy. But because of that, Namgung Myung could truly respect him.

If the Black Dragon King was weak, if the Surochae were just ordinary pirates, then Namgung Hwang’s death would be meaningless, and the Namgung Clan’s pain would just be their own fault, right?

“Even without his right arm, the Black Dragon King is still the Black Dragon King. He is a formidable opponent for the Young Master.”

The word ‘formidable’ was chosen carefully so as not to hurt Namgung Dowi’s pride.

To put it simply, Namgung Dowi is no match for the Black Dragon King. At least, not yet.

“T-Then….”

“What? Are you now afraid for your lives?”

At Namgung Myung’s words, a fierce look appeared in the swordsmen’s eyes.

“How could we be!”

“Then draw your swords! Don’t leave everything to the Clan Lord. We are the ones who will cut off the Black Dragon King’s head! We are the Namgung Clan! The symbol of Namgung is not the Clan Lord, but the Azure Sky Swordsmen!”

“Yes!”

The Namgung swordsmen, regaining their senses, gritted their teeth and charged at the Black Dragon King again. The pirates were very good at understanding the situation. They quickly saw what was happening and blocked the swordsmen.

“Where do you think you’re going, you lot!”

“You’re already in your coffins!”

The pirates’ spirit was just as strong as the Namgung Clan’s. The Black Dragon King’s amazing power, which had pushed back Namgung Dowi with one hit, made the pirates feel much more confident.

The Black Dragon King was still standing strong.

What could be more empowering than seeing that for themselves?

“Break through!”

“Stop them!”

The terrible battle that happened before on a small island in the Yangtze River was now happening again here, but in a new way.

And the two men in the middle of that fierce battle glared at each other silently.

“Hmm.”

The Black Dragon King glanced down at the footprints in front of him.

Footprints were clearly left in the ground. They showed where the Black Dragon King had been pushed back, unable to stop the force of the attack.

“…A kid like you.”

The Black Dragon King’s eyes, as he glared at Namgung Dowi, flickered like black flames.

It was only two steps. It could be seen as a small price to pay for sending his opponent flying far away.

But if that opponent was a young man who hadn’t even lived half his life, that would change everything.

Namgung Hwang was one thing, but his son wasn’t even worth comparing. Yet, he had been pushed back, even if only for a moment, by the sword of a weakling born to a strong man.

Grrr.

The Black Dragon King, grinding his teeth, growled roughly.

“To think both father and son are so eager to die by me. It’s not even funny. I wonder what your father in the afterlife would say.”

Namgung Dowi glared coldly at the Black Dragon King and replied.

“Isn’t it shameful for the Black Dragon King to say such things?”

“…What?”

“Anyone would think you defeated my father fairly. You know it too, don’t you?”

Namgung Dowi fiercely twisted his face in defiance. Blood-soaked teeth were visible between his lips.

“My father is the Emperor’s Sword, Namgung Hwang.”

“…….”

“If you had fought my father fairly to the death, you would be dead now.”

“You!”

“My father, the Emperor’s Sword, is too important to waste on a simple pirate like you. I am enough to defeat you myself.”

The Black Dragon King’s dark face turned reddish.

He wasn’t angry because he was being compared to Namgung Hwang. He was furious that a lowly brat dared to say anything he wanted to him.

And maybe that was….

A person flashed through the Black Dragon King’s mind.

A small brat who was maybe half his size. The moment that brat’s sword pierced his arm.

The moment all of that was remembered clearly, the Black Dragon King’s eyes filled with rage.

“I will rip you apart and throw you to the fish in the Yangtze River! Unlike your father, even your body will disappear from this world!”

Namgung Dowi raised the corner of his lips.

For some reason, he felt like he had to say these words.

“I’ll say those words back to you, exactly as they are. Remember them well.”

Because anyone he knew would have responded this way.

“Oooooh!”

Without saying anything else, the Black Dragon King swung down his huge glaive.

Kwaaaah!

A powerful black energy blade, like a thick line drawn with ink, shot towards Namgung Dowi. It was pure power.

Namgung Dowi bit his lip without thinking.

‘Is this what it’s like?’

His heart beat very fast, and he was covered in sweat, like rain was pouring down him. The pressure from the flying blade of energy, and the fear pressing down on his entire body, was even more extreme.

At the same time, Namgung Dowi realized something new. Until now, he had never fought a life-or-death battle against someone stronger than himself.

Or maybe, he had never even fought a real fight to the death against a strong opponent.

‘Is this what it was like?’

A person flashed through his mind.

Someone who calmly did things that everyone else thought were crazy and dangerous.

And the image of another person also flashed through his mind.

Someone who always protected them, standing strong.

‘It couldn’t have been easy for them.’

Kwaang!

Namgung Dowi took a firm step forward.

They must have been afraid too.

Because they had to face more than just the Black Dragon King. They had dealt with bigger problems and stronger enemies.

Therefore.

“Oooooooooh!”

Namgung Dowi’s sword was covered in white sword energy.

A small white light suddenly became very bright and strong. It shot towards the black sword.

Kawaaaang!

The huge waves of light from their swords crashed together again.

“Ugh!”

Blood flew from Namgung Dowi’s mouth. It felt like a giant hammer had smashed into his chest. He was strong, one of the best young fighters around. But the Black Dragon King was like a mountain compared to him, the strongest fighter in the whole Jianghu world. Pain shot through Namgung Dowi, but he gritted his teeth. *I can’t give up now,* he thought.

Instead of retreating, Namgung Dowi pushed off the ground with all his strength.

Pieces of light and energy from the swords flew everywhere. Some hit Namgung Dowi, cutting his skin. But Namgung Dowi only looked at the man in front of him, not even blinking.

“How do you fight someone stronger?”

He had asked that question once.

His teacher had replied, “Run away, you idiot. Why fight someone stronger than you? If you want to die, stick your nose in a bowl of water. Why go through all the trouble? What do you want, a cup of water?”

The answer and the look were both indifferent, but Namgung Dowi knew the truth. He knew that concern was hidden within those prickly words.

“But hey, if you really gotta fight… like, if you can’t run and you have to bite back… then there’s only one thing to do.”

Again, the black sword energy flew towards Namgung Dowi. With the same force as before, Namgung Dowi raised his sword and struck with all his might.

A way to push back strong energy by being flexible and not directly fighting against it.

Kwaaang!

Namgung Dowi’s body was thrown back like a cannonball, crashing into the ground.

‘I don’t know any such method.’

Chung Myung would have easily pushed back that sword energy as if nothing had happened, and Namgung Hwang would have destroyed it with brute force, but Namgung Dowi had no such ability.

Paat!

Namgung Dowi’s falling body shot forward as if he had planned it.

In that moment, Namgung Dowi’s vision was filled with huge black sword energy.

It was overwhelming and desperate.

Faced with such a big difference in power, Namgung Dowi chose to move forward. But it was an advance that seemed hopeless.

Namgung Dowi forced his body downwards with all his might, not towards the sky, but towards the earth.

Kooong!

His body crashed into the hard ground, half-buried in it. It was a desperate attempt to create a small chance.

As Namgung Dowi fought through the pain, the rough sword energy swept dangerously over his head.

Paat!

Namgung Dowi quickly rolled his body, using the movement to shoot forward again.

Is he like a weak dog compared to strong tigers?

Maybe.

Compared to Namgung Hwang, he wasn’t even a dog. Compared to Chung Myung, he was just an earthworm, not even a snake.

But Namgung Dowi didn’t give up. He didn’t think he could become a tiger himself.

Because he knew now. He had come to understand.

That a dog has its own way.

“You bastard!”

Just as the Black Dragon King was about to explode in anger, Namgung Dowi’s sword cut through the air.

It wasn’t the Imperial Sword Style, but the Iron Sword Twelve Forms.

It wasn’t a sword style that used strong inner power, but simply Namgung’s swordsmanship, cutting quickly and repeatedly.

Paaaaat!

He quickly sent out about twelve bright sword attacks towards the Black Dragon King. The Black Dragon King, who was about to gather his inner strength to unleash the sword energy again, frowned.

“Such a pathetic trick!”

Kaaang!

With a strong swing of his crescent blade, the incoming sword attacks were crushed like sandcastles swept away by a big wave.

“Ooooooh!”

But Namgung Dowi didn’t get tired. He kept sending out pure white sword energy, stubbornly and seemingly without hope, so desperately that you couldn’t help but clench your fists!

“You rat-like bastard!”

The Black Dragon King’s eyes flashed with anger.

His left arm, holding the crescent blade, started to swell as if it would burst. The power that gathered was released explosively as the crescent blade was swung. It was a truly terrifying attack.

Kwaaaaaaaa!

It was as if black ink had been spilled across the world.

The dark black energy swallowed all of Namgung Dowi’s sword energy and then swallowed Namgung Dowi himself.

It was a sight that could make you lose your mind.

But Namgung Dowi, again, pushed off the ground instead of backing away.

Gooooooo!

Namgung Dowi’s sword glowed with a white light.

It was his sword.

The Sword of Azure Sky, ready to stand proudly in the world.

Namgung Dowi, one with his sword, jumped into the sea of sword energy. It was as reckless as diving into the deep ocean on a dark night.

Kwadedeuk!

The tip of the sword immediately broke through the sword energy.

Peok!

Namgung Dowi’s shoulder blade broke open, unable to handle the pressure.

Tudook!

He heard sounds as if something was breaking near his eyes, and soon, he started to lose hearing in one ear.

Woodeudeuk.

The sound of something in his body being crushed echoed in his head. It was because of the pressure and pain, as if a mountain was pressing down on him.

But Namgung Dowi kept going.

Biting down on his lips, which were numb from the pressure and bursting wounds, he took one step at a time.

And when the white sword finally broke through the black sea, he saw a crescent blade with a blue light.

“This is the end!”

Paaaaaaaaaang!

With a loud roar that seemed to tear the air, the crescent blade, carrying the weight of ten thousand pounds, crashed down as if to split Namgung Dowi’s head open.

Watching this, Namgung Dowi’s eyes went blank for a moment.

‘What did he say back then?’

…I think I heard something.

Back then…

“…Strike the enemy’s weakness with my strength. Remember, no one in the world is without weaknesses. It’s just that their strengths hide them…”

Paaaat!

Namgung Dowi’s sword, which had stopped for a moment, shot out like lightning.

The target wasn’t the enemy’s heart or his neck, but the hand holding the crescent blade that was being swung down through the air. The fingers!

“Keuk!”

The incoming crescent blade twisted sharply. If it had hit as it was, it would have cut Namgung Dowi in two. But the Black Dragon King had already lost one arm. He couldn’t lose his remaining hand.

Kwaaaang!

The crescent blade, its direction changed, crushed the hard ground like tofu.

Dust exploded into the air, making it hard to see and taste like dirt, and a strong shockwave swept through the area.

‘Where…!’

The Black Dragon King, having lost sight of Namgung Dowi because of the dust, quickly stood up to prepare for an attack. But before that…

“…Jeokse Gwang.”

He looked at his right side, where his arm used to hold his favorite sword. Then, from that side, he heard a weak voice.

“Got you.”

Namgung Dowi, his handsome face covered in blood, gasped and gave a crazy smile.

A cold fear went down the Black Dragon King’s back.