Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 494

“Increase the speed!”

Go Jin-ak, the leader of the Northern Sea Ice Palace’s Ice Sword Unit, urged his men in a loud voice. The biting wind slapped their faces, but they ran on without slowing down.

‘Those young fighters from Mount Hua.’

Go Jin-ak’s lips twisted slightly.

It seemed ridiculous that the Ice Sword Unit had to capture such insignificant people. Using the Ice Sword Unit to catch these people was like using a huge hammer to crack a tiny nut – it was too much.

But they were warriors of the Ice Palace.

No matter how small the task, they always did their best when given an order. That was the Ice Palace’s way, and the Ice Sword Unit’s way.

“Captain!”

A sharp voice came from behind.

“There, up ahead!”

Go Jin-ak squinted, his eyes narrowed against the stinging snow. Through the swirling white chaos, he saw movement.

“Is it a battle?”

“It seems we are late.”

“Fools.”

Go Jin-ak smiled faintly at his subordinate’s words.

“The fact that a battle is happening means there are enemies. It means it’s not too late yet.”

He reached out and grabbed the sword at his waist.

Excitement surged as the cold sword touched his hand.

“Now, let’s play!”

He was about to kick off the ground and rush forward when something caught his eye.

Some of the fighters suddenly began to run towards them.

“…What are those?”

“It seems they are coming to fight us.”

“Ha…”

Go Jin-ak let out a hollow laugh.

The closer they got, the clearer it became. Judging by their clothes and the way they ran, they were definitely not warriors of the Ice Palace.

“It seems those are the young fighters from Mount Hua.”

Obvious mockery settled on his face.

“I want to praise their courage for drawing swords against us, but they should know that we are not as soft as the people in the Central Plains.”

Go Jin-ak muttered lowly and then shouted.

“Subdue them all! You may kill those who resist to the end!”

“Yes, sir!”

Having finished the order, he kicked off the ground and increased his speed. He had no intention of leaving it to his subordinates. He wanted to defeat the impudent fighter running at the front in one quick strike.

The fighter was rushing straight at him without hesitation.

‘That impudent bastard!’

Go Jin-ak gritted his teeth and swung his sword, filled with cold, powerful energy, like lightning towards the head of the rushing figure.

Clang!

A loud metallic sound rang out, and Go Jin-ak’s body was sent flying backward as if he had been hit by a huge wave.

‘What?’

His mind spun. *What was that power?* He had never felt anything like it. His wrist screamed in pain, and the cold wind on his face brought him back to reality.

Spin.

He barely managed to twist his body in the air and landed on the ground. Then, with a changed look in his eyes, he looked forward again.

A sword with a particularly white gleam was pointing at him. The face of the opponent, with his neat long hair fluttering, was frighteningly calm.

“…You…”

Before Go Jin-ak could finish speaking, the man in front of him opened his mouth.

“I am Baek Cheon, a second-generation disciple of the Mount Hua Sect.”

“……”

“And you are?”

Go Jin-ak stood up. Then, he raised his sword and pointed it straight at Baek Cheon.

“I am Go Jin-ak, the leader of the Ice Sword Unit of the Northern Sea Ice Palace. In the Northern Sea, I am called Bukjin Sword (Northward Advancing Sword).”

“Bukjin Sword Go Jin-ak.”

Baek Cheon repeated it for a moment and nodded lightly.

“Forgive me for not being able to have a long conversation. Instead, I will definitely remember that name.” His eyes were fixed on Go Jin-ak, showing he was ready for the next attack.

“You impudent bastard…”

The provocation, though not intended as such, made Go Jin-ak’s body tremble. But even so, he couldn’t easily bring himself to rush at Baek Cheon.

The heavy pain still remaining in his hand made him hesitate.

‘It was an absurd amount of power.’

He wasn’t particularly large, but he couldn’t understand how he could put so much power into that thin sword.

“Captain.”

As if noticing that Go Jin-ak’s momentum had waned slightly, the subordinate who had been chasing him called out urgently. Only then did Go Jin-ak snap back to his senses.

‘I showed an unsightly appearance.’

He bit his lip and raised his sword.

“I admit you are not easy. So don’t cry when my sword cuts you down.”

The corner of Baek Cheon’s mouth curled up slightly.

“As much as you want!”

With a short answer, Baek Cheon kicked off the snowfield and swung his sword.

“…Here we go again, that guy.”

“But this bastard is being disrespectful to our martial uncle?”

“…It, it was a mistake, so put down your fist. How did you become so violent, Senior Brother?”

“It’s not that I’ve become violent, it’s that you’ve lost your mind!”

Hye-yeon, who was running behind Jo Gul and Yoon Jong, who were bickering, couldn’t find an answer to this conversation.

“Amitabha.”

‘It seems like they are both right.’

The world is fair.

“Stop talking nonsense and focus! They are not easy!”

“Yes, Senior Brother!”

Jo Gul and Yoon Jong’s swords glowed blue almost simultaneously.

Meanwhile, Yoo Iseol, who had been running silently, opened her mouth.

“Soso.”

“Yes, Sahgo!”

“Next to me.”

“Yes!”

Tang Soso clenched her teeth resolutely, holding her sword. Yoo Iseol quietly comforted her.

“I’m next to you. If you just show your skills, it won’t be difficult.”

“Yes!”

Tang Soso shouted resolutely and pointed her sword.

With Baek Cheon in the center, Yoon Jong and Jo Gul split to the left and right, and Yoo Iseol and Tang Soso took their positions and unfolded their swords.

The sword, containing the sharp energy, cleanly cut through the falling snowflakes like flower petals. Then, without stopping there, it stretched out even more sharply towards the oncoming Ice Sword Unit.

Swaaaack!

Surprised by the unexpected speed, the members of the Ice Sword Unit frantically parried with their swords.

Clang!

But the sword of Mount Hua did not end with just one strike.

Paaaat!

The deflected sword was thrust out at an even faster speed than the first time. The sword, with its indescribable speed and bizarre movements, was incredibly practical.

Chwaaaack!

The half-frozen leather clothes were quickly torn open, and blood spurted out.

“Kuk!”

The Ice Palace Unit, having suffered a setback with just one exchange, retreated in disarray. Their faces were full of surprise.

‘Fas, fast.’

They could tell just by exchanging swords once.

Their swords were surprisingly fast and terribly practical.

These still-youthful individuals were aiming precisely for the vital points with swords filled with venom, like seasoned veterans who had been in the martial world for decades.

Those who were receiving the attacks felt a chill down their spines.

As if they would never give up the momentum they had gained, the later disciples of Mount Hua continuously thrust and stabbed with swords imbued with sword energy.

“Kuk!”

The Ice Palace Unit tried desperately to regain their composure. But with more than a dozen sword energies flying at them simultaneously, there was no way they could maintain their usual stance.

Once their posture was disrupted, it gradually crumbled even further, and as a result, the swords they wielded did not carry proper energy.

And.

Swoosh!

“……”

One Ice Sword Unit member’s eyes widened in terror as Yoon Jong’s sword flashed towards him.

He soon collapsed without even being able to scream properly. Even in the midst of that, he saw Yoon Jong’s face passing by him without any change in expression.

They had lived as swordsmen of the Northern Sea for decades, but these young swordsmen were even more experienced.

Realizing that he had been defeated in his posture as a swordsman, he couldn’t overcome his bitterness and collapsed onto the snowfield.

“Eurachaah!”

Jo Gul’s sword also moved powerfully and fell quickly.

Clang!

The person who was pushed back in the battle of strength against strength slid backward. As his feet slid, long marks were created on the snow.

“Taat!”

Confirming that a considerable distance had been created, Jo Gul let out a short shout and swung his sword.

Dozens of red plum blossoms seemed to bloom in the snowy air, each petal sharp and deadly as it flew towards the enemy.

Like snow plum blossoms blooming in the middle of winter.

It was an aggressive sword strike, but the plum blossoms that Jo Gul created went incredibly well with the white snow. It was truly a fantastic sight. The most splendid swordsmanship in the Central Plains was now unsparingly showing off its beauty in this distant land of the Northern Sea.

The warrior of the Ice Palace widened his eyes without realizing it at the sight of the flying red plum blossoms.

‘Th, this kind of swordsmanship…’

Anyone who uses a sword in the Ice Palace has this kind of imagination.

The imagination of wanting to pierce through all the fierce snowflakes with a sword. And the imagination that if they work hard, they will be able to reach that level someday.

But at this moment, he realized.

If he was going to reach that level, he had to be a little faster.

Because if he had, he would have been able to block these plum blossoms. It was impossible for him to block all the plum blossoms, which were more numerous than the snowflakes, with his current skills.

“Kraaah!”

The plum blossoms that fluttered with the blizzard swept past his body in an instant. He was cut shallowly in various places on his body, and soon he collapsed, spurting blood in all directions.

The wounds were not very deep, but the shock of being cut in dozens of places in an instant was enough to take away his consciousness.

“Nice!”

It was the moment when Jo Gul, who had clenched his fist in a good mood, was about to rush towards the next opponent. Yoon Jong’s cold voice was heard.

“Rough.”

“……”

“Be calm. This is a real battle.”

“Yes, Senior Brother!”

Jo Gul, barely managing to control his overly excited mind, hardened his face and lowered his sword slightly. Yoon Jong, confirming that his lower body was stable again, nodded slightly and pressed down on his sword.

‘Certainly, this guy is…’

The speed at which Jo Gul was getting stronger was truly terrifying. He was just unstable because he was naturally clumsy. The agility and speed of his sword were beyond what Yoon Jong could dare to catch up with.

But he shouldn’t be satisfied with that. Excessive excitement is bound to create gaps and lead to unexpected mistakes.

“Let’s go!”

“Yes!”

The two swung their swords at the oncoming Ice Sword Unit.

The fast and sharp sword of Jo Gul and the relatively heavy and serious sword of Yoon Jong began to rage in harmony as if they were being wielded by one person.

Swoosh!

Swoosh!

The opponent fell like autumn leaves to the interlocking swords like gears.

While one person is focused on attacking, the other person blocks the flying swords instead, and they attack the gaps created by each other’s swords sharply at the same time.

While one person attacks the front, the other person scatters flower petals from behind. Sharp fire rains down from behind, but there is not the slightest hesitation or fear in the other person’s movements.

Firm confidence.

And resolute trust.

From the beginning, the two of them were not pushed back even when facing the Martial Arts Unit of Maninbang. Although the Ice Palace was called one of the Five Outer Palaces, there was no way that the Martial Arts Unit of the Ice Palace was particularly stronger than that of Maninbang.

Of course, the situation would have been different just a few months ago.

But now, the two of them had gained definite experience and firm confidence through the fierce battle with Maninbang. And after melting down the basics that were still lacking through the Dangga Training into their own.

So there was nothing to fear or hesitate about.

“Let’s finish this quickly and go help Soso, Senior Brother!”

“…I told you not to run your mouth!”

The faces of the Ice Sword Unit turned blue each time red plum blossoms bloomed.

Flower petals containing a colder energy than the northern wind and snow were dyeing the sky of the Northern Sea red.

“Av, avoid it!”

“Aaaaargh!”

Panicked voices and loud screams echoed everywhere at the same time.

Jo Gul’s sword flew like lightning through the plum blossoms of Yoon Jong, which were slowly falling and causing confusion.

The two of them had not completely let go of their swords for even a single day since they met Chung Myung. That long period of intense training was blooming more splendidly than the plum blossoms that had welcomed spring through their swords.

Jo Gul, who had completely overwhelmed the opponent’s momentum, grinned like a rascal, revealing his teeth.

“You’ll be disappointed if you’re surprised by this much! My sword is even faster than this!”

“Ah! I told you not to run that mouth of yours!”

…Although it bloomed in a slightly strange direction.