Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 520

A wild, new madness blazed in the eyes of the Demonic Cultists. It was like looking into a firestorm.

They charged at the Ice Palace disciples with even greater force than before, their feet pounding the icy ground like thunder. The air itself seemed to vibrate with their violent energy.

“Stop them! We must stop them!”

Han I-myeong’s scream echoed from behind, but none of the Ice Palace disciples seemed to hear him.

Stop them?

For what?

What was approaching them now was not human, but something like a living death. Those who stood in their path had suffered the same fate.

So, why should they risk their lives to stand in front of them?

“Aaargh!”

The courage they had mustered was chipped away each time a scream erupted from the front.

“Hee, heeik!”

“I, I don’t want to die!”

Those who had trained their entire lives to fight the enemy turned their backs in fear.

It wasn’t their fault. They had no strong leader, no reason to encourage themselves, and no love for the Ice Palace to protect it with their lives. To protect the Murim people, who had nothing to do with the Ice Palace, and to face those devils, was impossible from the start.

Han I-myeong shouted until his throat was sore, but the warriors of the Ice Palace did not obey his commands.

“Running away won’t save you! Fight back! Don’t lose your pride as Ice Palace warriors!”

It was an empty cry. Han I-myeong’s bloodshot eyes trembled.

“Damn it!”

If words wouldn’t work, he had to move himself.

“Elder Yeo! You must immediately lead the other elders and stop those demons!”

“I, I⋯⋯.”

“Elder!”

He rebuked Yeo Sa-hon like fire.

“Pull yourself together! You are the one who must lead the Ice Palace now!”

But even with his words, Yeo Sa-hon’s eyes darted around wildly, his breath coming in short gasps. His hands trembled, and he couldn’t seem to focus on Han I-myeong’s face.

“I-Isn’t it impossible⋯⋯? How can we stop them⋯⋯?”

“Elder!”

Han I-myeong’s sharp shout did not reach his ears. He just continued to mutter with a pale face.

“It’s the end… all of it… the Ice Palace… we’re all doomed…”

It was a ridiculous expectation from the start.

Yeo Sa-hon was the one who assisted the previous Palace Lord, and he was not someone with great leadership skills. If he truly had great abilities, he would not have been trapped in the Ice Crystal Mine for years.

It was impossible for him to lead the terrified Ice Palace disciples in this time of war, not even in peacetime.

“⋯⋯Damn it.”

Lack of ability cannot be a sin.

But the lack of ability of the one who must lead the troops in wartime is a great sin.

‘How can I do this⋯⋯.’

Han I-myeong’s face darkened with despair.

Baek Cheon coldly watched the scene unfolding below.

‘It’s impossible any longer.’

The Ice Palace disciples as they were now could not stop the Demonic Cult.

If everyone was full of morale and resisted to the best of their ability, things might have turned out differently. If there was this much difference in troop numbers, it wouldn’t be easy for the Demonic Cult to overcome, no matter how strong they were.

But running away in fear like that, they wouldn’t even be able to scratch the Demonic Cultists.

No matter how well-trained an army is, it is nothing more than a rabble without a commander. There was no one in the Ice Palace now who could unite and command them.

‘If Seol Cheon-sang had been the Palace Lord of the Ice Palace, it wouldn’t have been like this.’

Baek Cheon was realizing once again how important the position of Palace Lord, the head of a sect, was.

The sight of the Demonic Cultists, like black ink, gradually staining and trampling the white earth was clearly etched in his eyes.

And they were now running straight towards this place.

Grip.

Baek Cheon’s grip on the sword tightened.

He stood firmly, putting strength into the foot that was on the floor.

“Hoo.”

And he took a short breath.

Do not let the enemy pass behind you. He couldn’t help but realize once again how difficult it was to put that simple task into practice. And behind him was a fellow who had been doing that too naturally until now.

Kwaaaaang!

A Demonic Cultist, spewing black demonic energy and dripping with madness, shot out the demonic energy at the backs of the Ice Palace disciples who had not yet run away and leaped over the castle. It seemed he was planning to invade through the window.

Baek Cheon’s blood ran cold as he watched the enemy rising with truly terrifying speed.

“Benefactor!”

At Hye-yeon’s voice, Baek Cheon quickly moved aside.

Hye-yeon, who slightly twitched his eyebrows, immediately threw a punch at the wall with the window.

Kwaaaaang!

The wall burst open, and the front was completely뚫렸다. Hye-yeon quickly moved to the front and unleashed his power downwards.

Kwaaaaang!

One of the Seventy-Two Arts of Shaolin, the Arhat Divine Fist, showed its power.

Golden energy poured down like a waterfall.

“What?”

“What is this!”

The Demonic Cultists, who were quickly climbing the wall, were momentarily flustered by the enormous power and scattered. Those who failed to avoid it could not withstand the power and fell below.

“Amitabha!”

Hye-yeon’s majestic Buddhist chant flowed from his mouth. It was a voice filled with anger, unlike usual.

The terrible slaughter that unfolded before his eyes made even Hye-yeon, who had embraced compassion as his lifelong teaching, furious.

“Evil demons! Have you no shame? In the name of Buddha, I will stop you!”

The sound of him grinding his teeth was clearly audible to Baek Cheon.

Crack!

Hye-yeon clenched his fist tightly and glared down with a knife-like gaze.

Kuuuung!

And without hesitation, he threw his fists down one after another.

The Shaolin’s numerous fist techniques, of which even the Shaolin monks did not know exactly how many kinds there were. Among them, the most famous Hundred Steps Divine Fist unfolded.

The Demonic Cultists spewed out blue murderous intent with their eyes at the power of the divine fist pouring down from above.

Even though the power that could crush their entire bodies at once was pouring down, the Demonic Cultists did not flinch, but rather climbed the wall at an even faster speed.

Kagagak!

The foot imbued with internal energy dug into the wall. And with the reaction force obtained by momentarily emitting internal energy, they leaped more than ten feet at once.

“Amitabha!”

Hye-yeon also did not back down and unleashed the Arhat Divine Fist with a roar.

A Demonic Cultist, who was hit head-on by the powerful Arhat Divine Fist, spat out blood and fell below. But seeing that sight, Baek Cheon’s face turned white instead.

‘They don’t even scream.’

The sight of the Demonic Cultists glaring with murderous eyes even while falling was so eerie that it chilled a corner of his heart.

Shouts echoed across the icy walls. “Alms!” someone yelled.

“I know! Fourth Sister!” another voice replied urgently.

“Yes!” came a third answer.

Baek Cheon and Yoo Iseol quickly moved to stand beside Hae Yeon, one on her left, the other on her right, ready to fight.

Demonic Cultivators had pushed past the Ice Palace fighters and were now swarming up the walls. Hae Yeon fought fiercely, but more and more Demonic Cultivators kept coming. She couldn’t hold them back by herself any longer.

“Kraaah!”

A Demonic Cultivator, clinging to the wall like a spider, suddenly leaped towards them. Red light glowed in his eyes.

Baek Cheon’s face became serious. He focused his energy and thrust his sword forward.

The sword sliced through the air and pierced the Demonic Cultivator’s shoulder with a sickening thud. It went in more easily than Baek Cheon had thought it would.

But at that moment, the Demonic Cultivator’s eyes flashed.

He grabbed the blade of Baek Cheon’s sword with his black hand, even though it was stuck in his shoulder.

The Hancheol sword was known to cut through steel, but the Demonic Cultivator gripped it tightly, not even flinching.

“This…!”

Hae Yeon was shocked. He punched the Demonic Cultivator again and again, hitting him hard.

The sound of an axe splitting wood echoed repeatedly. With each blow from Hae Yeon, the Demonic Cultivator’s body convulsed violently.

Yet, the hand gripping Baek Cheon’s sword refused to let go. Even as he vomited blood, he pulled the sword towards himself.

Baek Cheon bit his lip.

Suddenly, a bright blue light shone from the sword in the Demonic Cultivator’s shoulder. Baek Cheon pulled the sword upwards with a quick, hard twist.

With a sickening rip, the sword tore out of the Demonic Cultivator’s shoulder. Blood splattered everywhere from the black hand that had been holding the blade.

“Kugh!”

The Demonic Cultivator stumbled back, his face contorted in pain as he glared at Baek Cheon. Then, he fell off the wall, disappearing downwards. Even as he fell, a strange smile stayed on his face.

Baek Cheon was silent for a moment. Even though they had defeated one, a cold feeling went through him.

‘These are madmen,’ Baek Cheon thought. Looking at these creatures, he understood why the Ice Palace fighters had run away in terror.

These Demonic Cultivators were unlike anyone he had ever fought.

Were they strong? Yes, very strong. Baek Cheon knew that without being on the wall and Hae Yeon’s help, they wouldn’t have been able to stop them so easily.

But it wasn’t just their strength that scared him. It was something deeper. He felt a basic fear of these people who didn’t care if they lived or died, as long as they could kill their enemies.

The crazy look in their eyes, their stubbornness, their almost insane focus on killing – it made anyone who faced them want to step back.

But he couldn’t think about this for long right now.

Suddenly, four or five more Demonic Cultivators got past Hae Yeon and jumped up at the same time.

Instantly, Yoo Iseol acted. White plum blossoms bloomed around the Demonic Cultivators, like a sudden snowstorm. Everything turned white – the walls, the ground, even the air seemed filled with white petals. But these were no ordinary flowers. Each petal seemed to have a tiny red dot in the center, like a bloodshot eye.

The plum blossoms cut into their skin. Red blood appeared on their white clothes. It was a reminder that these monsters were still living beings.

But the Demonic Cultivators didn’t even react. Even with cuts appearing on their bodies, they didn’t blink. They just kept chanting strange, scary words over and over, like they were in a trance, and kept moving towards them.

“Amitabha!”

Hae Yeon quickly said the Buddhist prayer. Golden light burst out from him. He opened his hands wide, and a strong wave of force pushed outwards.

KABOOM! The Demonic Cultivators caught in the blast were thrown back like toys. But others dodged it, screaming like animals, and attacked the Mount Hua disciples with their black hands.

“KREEEAAAH!” A terrible scream, like someone being tortured, hurt their ears.

Suddenly, black energy rushed towards them, thick and fast like a cloud of dark smoke.

“Kugh!” They knew they couldn’t block that attack. The three of them jumped back quickly.

Then… THUD. THUMP. Two Demonic Cultivators landed heavily in front of them.

Drip, drip. Blood fell from their black hands. They didn’t seem to notice the blood, or the pain. They just ignored their injuries.

They simply stared intently at the disciples of Mount Hua, as if they were prey.

Seeing their gleaming eyes, Baek Cheon ground his teeth.

‘We should have stopped them lower down,’ Baek Cheon thought angrily. Now, they were here. Now, they had to fight to the end.

Then, the Demonic Cultivator, who had been silently staring at them, opened his mouth with a chilling voice.

“Where is the Ice Jade?”

Baek Cheon laughed a little. “Are you stupid? Why would I tell you?”

“I see… I suppose not.”

Hmm, maybe not.” The Demonic Cultivator’s blood-covered hand glowed bright red.

“Let’s see if you still say that after we break your arms and legs, and rip out your insides.”

The Demonic Cultivator didn’t wait for a reply. He ran at Baek Cheon, his eyes filled with hate and a desire to kill.

But then, suddenly… WHOOSH! Baek Cheon moved faster than anyone expected and swung his sword down hard.

CLANG! The sound of metal hitting something hard rang out. The Demonic Cultivator’s face twisted in pain as he looked down at his hand. Baek Cheon’s sword was stuck deep in his hand, right through the black energy covering it.

“Kugh!” For the first time, the Demonic Cultivator made a sound of pain.

CRUNCH! Baek Cheon pushed down harder on the sword, putting all his energy into it.

“You Demonic Cultivators talk too much,” Baek Cheon said. WHAM! He kicked the Demonic Cultivator hard in the chest, jumped back, and pointed his sword.

“Not Mount Hua.”

The Demonic Cultivator stumbled back. He slowly ran his tongue over his lips. He seemed to forget about his injured hand. His eyes were now locked on Baek Cheon, full of hate.

“You will die a horrible death.”

“Try it,” Baek Cheon replied.

“Heh heh…” The Demonic Cultivator made a low, creepy laugh. Then, he started chanting again, like a crazy person, and charged at Baek Cheon.