Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1672

Jo Gul’s eyes opened wide. He saw it as Mount Wudang became clearer in the distance. It had been faint before, but now the shape was sharp. “Red…”

At first, he thought he was wrong.

But when he looked at the mountains around it, he knew it was true. Mount Wudang was burning. The lower half of the mountain was covered in bright red flames.

“Senior Brother! Look!”

“Fire…?” Yoon Jong’s face became serious at once.

Fire that could burn so much of a huge mountain was something he had never thought of. Yoon Jong bit his lip hard. “How could anyone do this?”

Just seeing the mountain from far away made him feel the danger to Wudang deep inside.

“We need to hurry, Geol-ah!”

“Yes, Senior Brother!”

Yoon Jong ran forward, his hand making a tight fist.

*Hold on, Wudang!*

They would be there soon. Yoon Jong really hoped Wudang would still be standing when they arrived.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!* The air filled with a sound like a thousand bees buzzing. Everywhere Empty Sky looked, there were hands. Not real hands, but shadows of hands, filling the sky. These “hand shadows” were called Jang-young. Each one moved in a different way, like a dance of hands. They were so bright and confusing that just looking at them made his head spin. It was like magic, a perfect trick. This was why the Thousand-Faced Scholar was known as the most dangerous fighter from the evil groups.

Empty Sky didn’t see a way to fight against these amazing hand shadows. Quickly, he jumped back, moving like he was floating on air. But the Thousand-Faced Scholar was too experienced to let him escape. He smiled in a cruel way and chased after Empty Sky, getting closer fast. More and more hand shadows appeared around them, filling the space. Hands reached out to Empty Sky from all directions. It was scary and amazing at the same time. It was like ghosts, drawn to the energy of someone alive, all rushing towards him wildly.

*CLANG!* Empty Sky’s sword flashed out, cutting through the hand shadows. This was his Tai Chi sword, a special sword that held both light and dark power. It sliced through the wave of hand shadows like cutting water. But then, *WHOOSH!* Empty Sky’s eyes widened. The space his sword had opened was instantly filled with more hand shadows. It was like trying to empty a river with a cup.

Empty Sky panicked and jumped back quickly. *THUMP! CRACK!* Something hit him hard, like being punched with a heavy bag. He stumbled and almost fell. He looked down at his side. His left shoulder and right side were hit. His clothes were ripped and torn where the hits landed, showing his skin. On his skin, there were purple marks, shaped exactly like hands. It was as if the hand shadows had left their mark on him. *BURN!* A terrible pain shot through him, like fire burning his skin. The evil power from the hand shadows was inside him now, hurting him deeply.

Empty Sky looked at the purple marks on his skin, his face grim. He looked back at the Thousand-Faced Scholar. The Thousand-Faced Scholar looked calm, not like Empty Sky who was hurt. He slowly spoke, “Where is Heo Do?”

When he heard those words, Empty Sky’s face became even colder.

“Even a young tiger is still a tiger. This is too much for you. Go get Heo Do. You should bring someone as strong as Heo Do to fight me.”

Empty Sky’s sword, which was hanging by his side, moved a little, as if it wanted to fight.

“Or?” the Thousand-Faced Scholar asked. He laughed loudly, a mocking sound. “Has that great Heo Do already run away? He always thinks only about what’s best for himself, so maybe he did. Is it just fools like you who are left?”

Anger flashed in Empty Sky’s eyes. “How dare a nobody from a small evil group talk to the leader of Wudang like that?”

“Hmm?”

“This is just the start. You are enough for me. You are just someone who serves a group that has already lost.”

The Thousand-Faced Scholar’s eyes changed. *These good guys are interesting. Evil groups always care about power. They don’t fight someone stronger if they can help it. But these good guys, even when they know they are weaker, they don’t give up unless they have to. Even if it means they will die sooner.*

“If you want to die, I won’t stop you,” the Thousand-Faced Scholar said. “I will teach you your place, and it might cost you your life.”

*With a flick of his wrist,* the Thousand-Faced Scholar sent out more bright hand shadows.

*Hundred-Faced Hand.* This was the name of the attack. Before the Thousand-Faced Scholar made it his most famous move, it was called the “Carefree Illusionary Play Hand.” It was known as the most powerful hand attack of the evil groups. The hand shadows seemed to break apart and multiply, becoming more and more, covering the sky like layers of clouds. This attack was meant to trick, to tease, and to make fun of his opponent. It was like the evil groups themselves, all shown in one move. It was aimed right at Empty Sky, the best fighter from Wudang. The attack was full of a strong desire to kill.

It was terrifying. It looked like the whole world was filled with hand shadows. This huge wave of hand shadows crashed down on Empty Sky, like it wanted to crush everything in its way.

In this dangerous moment, Empty Sky didn’t try to fight the wave in the same way as before. Instead, he took a long, deep breath and looked straight at it.

*Can I really do this?*

Maybe he couldn’t have done it before. If he hadn’t seen something. If he hadn’t felt something. But now…

*Swish.*

Empty Sky’s sword moved softly. It wasn’t cutting and tearing at the hand shadows like before. This time, his sword moved like it was swimming, gently wrapping around the attack.

The sword pointed slowly towards the shadows of palm trees that moved like waves. It looked like the sword was making fun of empty space.

The sword moved in a quick circle. A bright circle appeared in the air. This circle felt important, like a strong beginning and an ending all at once. But this circle was different. It was like a deep, strong root that could not be moved, even if the world shook. Imagine the root of a very old pine tree, growing on the edge of a cliff, strong and true.

Suddenly, the Void moved like lightning, pushing his sword forward fast. *Clang!* A loud, sharp sound like metal hitting metal rang out. The palm shadows that had covered everything disappeared as if they were just an illusion. Then, everything was quiet for a moment.

Even though he wore the mask of the Thousand-Faced Assassin, you could see surprise in his eyes. He couldn’t hide it. The Void’s sword had hit right in the middle of his open hand.

“What?” he thought. But before he could even finish the thought, the Void’s sword moved again, fast and dangerous. The Thousand-Faced Assassin yelled and jumped back. *Snikt!* A hot pain shot through his cheek. The sword had just touched his cheek, and cut his shoulder too.

*Tap.* The Thousand-Faced Assassin stepped back to the edge of the cliff and touched his cheek. He felt the mask he always wore, but under it, he felt his own skin, which felt strange now. He felt wet blood. It was very real. The Thousand-Faced Assassin’s face twisted in anger.

“…How?” he whispered.

His attack was one real hit hidden among many fake moves. In that quick moment, the Void had found the real hit in the Thousand-Faced Assassin’s attack. No one had ever done that before. Even people stronger than the Void had failed. If it was easy to beat the Thousand-Faced Assassin, he wouldn’t be known as the best master of evil skills. Maybe the Void had done something even Master Heo wasn’t sure he could do.

The Void pulled his sword back calmly and looked at the Thousand-Faced Assassin. The Assassin was shaking with confusion and anger.

“…You shouldn’t have been able to do that,” the Assassin whispered.

“What?” the Void asked.

“If this was the first time, I probably couldn’t have done it,” the Void said, now speaking more calmly. “But I’ve seen attacks even more amazing than this before. Another group defeated Wudang and made us feel ashamed, but I learned from that defeat.”

“…”

“I’ve been waiting to be able to beat those kinds of attacks. I won’t be tricked by simple fake attacks like yours.”

The Thousand-Faced Assassin’s eyes flashed. He wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve and asked angrily, “More amazing? Are you saying my palm attack is… second-rate?”

“Maybe not second-rate,” the Void replied. “But it’s not as good as the sword attack I know.”

The Thousand-Faced Assassin’s face became red with shame.

“You… you stupid fool! How dare you!”

*Grrr!* The sound of the Thousand-Faced Assassin grinding his teeth in anger was loud on the White Rock Cliff.

Of course, he knew his fighting skills weren’t unbeatable. But they were definitely not weak enough to be ignored by a young fighter like this.

“I was going to kill you anyway,” he growled. “But now, after what you said, you won’t even get an easy death.”

“That’s what I wanted,” the Void said, holding his sword tightly.

He knew it was partly luck. The Thousand-Faced Assassin’s palm attack was very hard to beat. But even though he knew this, the Void didn’t back down. If he couldn’t beat this palm attack, if he couldn’t stand against these fake moves, he could never face that terrible sword that mixed truth and lies in a confusing way. He knew this, so he wouldn’t be afraid. He must not be afraid.

*’The Divine Dragon of Mount Hua!’* he thought. *’No, is he called the Sword Master of Mount Hua now? Wudang’s sword will not be defeated!’* That one fight had broken his confidence, his sword skills, everything. If he was afraid now, wouldn’t he be saying he hadn’t improved at all since then? Wudang’s sword is Tai Chi. Tai Chi means balance and the beginning of everything. So, Wudang’s sword is not tricked by lies.

“Don’t you understand?” the Thousand-Faced Assassin shouted. “I’ll show you what happens when Master Heo isn’t here! You’ll learn what happens to dogs who are left behind by their master!” Seeing the Thousand-Faced Assassin rush towards him with scary power, the Void bit his lip hard.

*’Sect Leader!’* he thought desperately. His sword seemed to cry out loud.

“Hmm?” A playful voice spoke softly. The corners of her bright red lips smiled a little. Usually, her voice was different, but now her face looked innocent, like a child who found something very interesting and liked it.

“This is… a little surprising?” Her bright, light-colored eyes looked closely at the person in front of her. An old Taoist in black Wudang robes. But now, he looked more like a swordsman than a Taoist. This man was blocking Jang Il-So’s way, and he felt very sharp and controlled, like a knife.

“Um, well…” Jang Il-So scratched his head lightly, looking worried. Then he sighed.

“Are you… Master Heo Do?” The eyes of the Wudang swordsman, Master Heo Do, flashed with strong anger.

“This is the end, Tyrant!” *Shhhhk.* Master Heo Do slowly pulled out his sword. The sword was filled with terrible hate and gave off a cold feeling.

“This is… not very nice,” Jang Il-So said. His eyes smiled softly, like crescent moons.