Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1701

Tang Gunak stared at Jo Gul, completely shocked.

Even in the middle of this battle…

Jo Gul’s energy was amazing. Everyone else looked dull next to him. He was like a bright light in a dark place.

It was more strange than amazing to see this.

Jo Gul could not have cut through such strong Solar Heat before. This was something no one expected.

Tang Gunak watched the Mount Hua Sect fight with the Solar Palace, right behind Jo Gul. They were relentlessly pushing back the Southern Sea Solar Palace, one of the Five Overseas Palaces.

In that instant, the throwing knife in Tang Gunak’s hand shot out with terrifying speed.

The throwing knife was so fast, you couldn’t see it move. It hit the ground near the Thousand-Faced Scholar’s feet. The Thousand-Faced Scholar’s face twisted in agony as he had been looking for an opportunity to escape while Tang Gunak’s attention was momentarily diverted.

“I said you’re not going anywhere.”

“You damned bastard……”

Blood flowed from various parts of the Thousand-Faced Scholar’s body, serious wounds from Tang Gunak’s knives.

However, Tang Gunak was not in much better condition himself. His clothes were tattered and torn, and the flesh visible through the gaps was blackened and dead.

The Thousand-Faced Scholar’s eyes were bloodshot.

“You… you son of a bitch! Are you really going to hold me back until the end!”

Even in this situation, the Thousand-Faced Scholar kept glancing at the edge of the cliff. While keeping Tang Gunak in check was important, the fear that a deafening roar would erupt at any moment and the entire ground would collapse was even greater.

“You’d throw away your life for the sake of those mere whelps? The infamous Poison King? The head of the Dang Clan?”

“Mere whelps, you say……”

A sneer crept onto Tang Gunak’s lips.

“Have they even reached thirty years of age?”

“……What?”

“No, most of them haven’t even reached thirty. And yet, they are fighting on equal terms with the elite of the Southern Sea Solar Palace, one of the Five Overseas Palaces.”

“What’s your point?”

“Don’t you want to know?”

Tang Gunak’s gaze turned utterly serious.

“What they will become if they continue to grow like this, and what they will be capable of doing?”

“That’s a load of bull……”

The Thousand-Faced Scholar spat out a string of curses, not caring about looking good anymore.

He knew that Mount Hua was formidable. So what if they were?

His own life was what mattered most to him now, not the future of Mount Hua.

But there was no way to escape the current situation.

Tang Gunak’s throwing knives were faster than his own lightness skill. If he tried to run, a knife would hit him in the back.

However, subduing Tang Gunak was also out of the question. They would have to fight many more times to see who would win. Would the cliff even hold up that long?

“Get out of my way, Poison King! Are you really trying to get us both killed!”

“Perhaps not.”

The throwing knife in Tang Gunak’s hand slowly began to spin.

“It doesn’t seem like it will take that long, does it?”

Suddenly, Tang Gunak looked very focused.

His junior had shown him a sight he might never see again, and he couldn’t afford to show any weakness.

He couldn’t lead, but he could protect them from behind. He wanted to be a senior they could respect.

“Are you really the Tang Gunak I know?”

“……”

“Have these young people made you lose your mind? Your foolish actions will bring about the downfall of the Dang Clan. What sane head of a clan would risk his life for another sect that isn’t even his own!”

At those words, Tang Gunak chuckled softly.

He was obviously trying to anger Tang Gunak. It was a weak insult, not like him at all. He should have recognized that the Thousand-Faced Scholar was desperate and ignored it.

But Tang Gunak wanted to say these words.

“I am a little worried, to be sure.”

“……What?”

Tang Gunak’s gaze turned towards the cliff. A strange light flickered in his eyes for a moment.

“It’s just that I’m not the only one who does crazy things.”

A short sigh escaped Tang Gunak’s lips.

“Taaah!”

Lee Song-baek used all his energy to create a strong, white sword energy.

Woooooong!

It was like the sword understood what he wanted, and it made a loud sound. The emitted sword energy shot across the face of the cliff.

“This bastard……!”

The Solar Palace disciples, seeing the onrushing sword energy, were enraged and unleashed their intense killing intent. How dare such young whelps wield their swords against the Solar Palace!

Hwaaaak!

Soon, orange Solar Heat Energy erupted, colliding head-on with the incoming sword energy. The thick, strong sword energy and the burning heat force crashed together in the air, making a huge explosion.

Kuuuuuung!

The explosion threw Lee Song-baek back. It was the heat force unleashed by not one, but several opponents. There was no way Lee Song-baek could withstand it alone.

But before his body could completely fall from the cliff, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Lee Song-baek’s eyes widened. Lee Song-baek felt a rush of relief and gratitude towards his senior brother.

“S-Senior Brother!”

“Stop with the foolishness!”

Jin Geum-ryong spat out coldly through gritted teeth.

“Don’t fight them directly! Those bastards are……”

“Senior Brother! Above!”

Jin Geum-ryong stopped speaking and quickly looked up. Orange flames were pouring down right in front of his eyes.

It was at that very moment that Jin Geum-ryong’s eyes widened.

Woooooong!

A powerful blue energy suddenly appeared above them, like a roaring dragon. It was the Azure Dragon’s Roar.

The orange energy and the blue energy collided. It was as if an azure dragon were leaping into a raging fire.

Kwaaaaang!

The blue energy blocked the energy flying towards Jin Geum-ryong.

“Hap!”

Then, white sword energy appeared behind them. It destroyed even the smallest bits of Solar Heat Energy.

“Sect Leader Pung?”

“Sect Leader?”

Pung Young-shin hurried past them, silent. Soon after, an angry shout struck their ears.

“You foolish bastards!”

The two men couldn’t believe their eyes. Could it be that Jongri-guk himself had climbed this cliff?

Jongri-guk’s gaze as he glared at his disciples was so fierce that even Jin Geum-ryong, let alone Lee Song-baek, flinched.

After all, the two had climbed the cliff without the Sect Leader’s permission. They broke the rules by climbing the cliff without permission. They could be in big trouble, even death.

Jongri-guk gave them an angry look and shouted.

“Jin Geum-ryong! Lee Song-baek!”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

The two men answered with stiff faces. But an unexpected response came back.

“I will deal with your punishment later.”

“……Yes?”

“First, eliminate the enemies! Follow me!”

Jongri-guk shot upwards without waiting for an answer. Jin Geum-ryong and Lee Song-baek looked at each other, surprised. Then, they quickly kicked off the cliff and followed Jongri-guk to his left and right.

Again, red energy rained down. They could feel the terrible heat even before it touched them.

Jongri-guk’s eyes emitted a sharp blue light.

“How dare you!”

Swaeeeeek!

His sword moved fast through the air. Suddenly, there were many sword images, like hundreds of swords at once. These sword images formed a huge wall of swords.

Lee Song-baek’s eyes widened as much as they could.

The sword wall stopped not only the energy, but also the burning heat. Nothing could get through. The orange flames hit the sword wall like waves crashing against a rock.

‘T-This is?’

The Thirty-Six Swords of the World. This was a famous sword technique of their sect.

Cheong-myeong had said it was the best defense sword style, like a strong tree that can’t be moved.

Jongri-guk was showing the true power of the Thirty-Six Swords of the World.

Lee Song-baek’s eyes trembled.

His sword was heavy. No, in truth, he had been trying to become heavy.

He had believed that since the sword of the Jongnam Sect was trying to become a flower, his sword had to become a solid root.

But now, Jongri-guk was teaching him with his sword.

It was like Jongri-guk’s sword showed everything the Jongnam Sect stood for, everything their past leaders had learned. Lee Song-baek was seeing it all.

About ‘not being biased.’

It was not as heavy as Lee Song-baek’s sword, nor as light as Jin Geum-ryong’s. It had no distinct characteristics, but that was precisely why it was unbiased.

Maybe this was what it meant to be truly perfect.

‘No, that’s not all.’

Even while using this sword style, Jongri-guk’s body was still perfectly balanced. He was climbing a very steep cliff with just his toes, but his feet moved just as quickly.

It was at that moment that Lee Song-baek shouted in alarm.

“Sect Leader, in front……!”

In the middle of the burning Solar Heat Energy, something black was flying.

It was definitely the same thing that had left Namgung Dowi in a near-death state just moments ago.

Kwaaaaang!

Before they could even move, the explosive blew up right in front of them. Jin Geum-ryong and Lee Song-baek instinctively grabbed onto the cliff and ducked their heads.

But nothing happened to them.

They felt the ground shake, but they weren’t hurt or pushed back.

When they looked up, surprised, they saw Jongri-guk’s strong back and his sword wall. It was as solid as iron.

‘This explosion is so strong…?’

This was much stronger than before. Jongri-guk’s martial prowess, which he thought he already knew, came as a great shock to Lee Song-baek.

At that moment, Jongri-guk roared.

“What are you doing! Come on!”

“Yes, Sect Leader!”

Just as Lee Song-baek and Jin Geum-ryong were about to kick off again, two more explosives flew towards them from above.

This time, even Jongri-guk gritted his teeth for a moment.

“Playing games.”

But then, something appeared before them like a ghost and batted the incoming explosives away, sending them flying far from the cliff.

Kwaaaaang!

Kwaaaaang!

A massive explosion erupted in the air like fireworks.

“Sect Leader Pung!”

“Supreme Strategist!”

Pung Young-shin easily stopped the explosives. His body stretched out like taffy. Jongri-guk, not to be outdone, retrieved his sword and surged forward like an arrow shot from a bow. The wind whipped around them on the cliff, carrying the smell of smoke and the salty air from the sea below.

“Those bastards!”

Puhuh!

Soon, Pung Young-shin’s energy struck the chest of a Solar Palace disciple clinging to the cliff. Pung Young-shin attacked more than ten times very fast. He stopped the enemy from breathing and pulled out the explosive that was stuck in the cliff.

“You son of a bitch, where do you think you’re going!”

Cold sword energy hit and went through the neck of a Solar Palace fighter. He was angry because his plan was ruined and he was about to attack.

“Cough……”

The man, clutching his neck, stared at Jongri-guk with a horribly twisted face.

“I resent……. Hmm?”

The dying man smiled in a way that was impossible to read. It was a very bad feeling.

Just then, Jongri-guk realized something was wrong.

Hwaaaak!

Then, his body exploded with a huge blast that made the cliff shake.