Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 535

The tip of the sword trembled slightly as he raised it.

His legs were shaking. It looked like they might give way any second.

Yet, Baek Cheon stood firm, facing the Bishop who glared at him with murderous eyes.

The Bishop’s lips twisted.

“Baek Cheon of Hwasan… do you know what that name means?” he asked.

The Bishop’s eyes burned with dark flames, piercing Baek Cheon. Under that intense gaze, Baek Cheon bit his lip.

“To those who worship the Heavenly Demon and have given everything to the Order, do you know what the name Hwasan means?”

Baek Cheon forced a smile, speaking slowly and carefully, as if each word was hard to say.

“I don’t know about that, but I know one thing for sure.”

He gripped his sword tightly, as if he might break it.

“Our ancestors cut off the heads of your gods!”

The Bishop smiled coldly. “Now, it’s your head that will be cut off.”

His face was like stone, showing no feeling at all.

It was a strange kind of anger. Not loud shouting, but a deep, quiet fury that felt even more dangerous. This dark anger fell on Baek Cheon and his friends.

“Heavenly Demon Reincarnation, Myriad Demons Return,” the Bishop said, opening his mouth.

“Tell me, you hateful Hwasan disciple,” he continued.

“Hwasan has lost its strength. Your spirit has fallen, and that mighty power, which even the Patriarch feared, is gone.”

Baek Cheon chuckled at this.

Spirit and power, indeed.

It was almost funny.

The Central Plains didn’t respect Hwasan.

Even the Hwasan disciples had forgotten their pride in saving the world from the Demonic Sect.

Yet, the Bishop of the Demonic Sect, their greatest enemy, was talking about Hwasan’s strength and spirit.

How could he not laugh?

“You, who call yourselves Hwasan disciples, are too weak to carry on Hwasan’s legacy,” the Bishop said.

“And yet, you dare to stop me? With that feeble power?” His gaze looked down on Baek Cheon.

Baek Cheon scoffed.

“Feeble, yes. I am utterly feeble, as you say.”

“That’s why I can’t back down! If I retreat now, I will stay feeble forever!” Baek Cheon pointed his sword, his voice growing louder.

“Hwasan’s spirit, you say?”

“See for yourself! I will prove with this sword that Hwasan’s spirit is not broken!”

The Bishop stared at Baek Cheon silently.

‘Yes, that was the look.’

Back when the Demonic Sect and the Central Plains fought.

The Hwasan warriors, standing at the front, fighting the Demonic Sect with all their strength, all had that look in their eyes.

Not retreating even when scared, not giving up even when they knew they might lose.

“Hwasan is indeed Hwasan,” the Bishop muttered quietly, then bared his teeth again.

“One!”

The energy that had been quiet suddenly exploded, covering his body and raging wildly.

“It is meaningless. Even if that spirit is not broken, Hwasan is not the Hwasan it once was. You have not gained the power of Hwasan.”

A whirlwind of black energy roared like a beast, rising to the sky. The pressure crushed everything around.

“I will show you that nothing matters against overwhelming power!”

Baek Cheon’s hand, holding the sword, twisted and bent backward from the pressure. His body screamed in pain, and his soul cried out.

But he did not retreat. Instead, he stepped forward and lowered his stance.

‘I will not retreat.’

I will never retreat.

“Guh….”

The sword bent as if it would break under the pressure. The blood vessels in his hand burst, turning his skin black.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stop his body from being pushed back.

Then, warmth touched his back.

Baek Cheon turned around.

“Sasuk!”

“Sahyung!”

Yoon Jong and Yoo Iseol were supporting his shoulders. As always, so naturally. And so easily.

Baek Cheon turned back to face the despair in front of him.

‘It feels like I’ve fallen into hell.’

It felt more real than ever.

He understood how terrifying the enemies his predecessors had fought were. He realized how great it was that they had defeated them and cut off the Heavenly Demon’s head.

Baek Cheon swung his sword fiercely, pushing back the pressure, and slowly moved into an attack stance.

“I am….”

If he were alone, he might have dropped his sword and run away.

But he wasn’t alone now. Behind him were those he had to protect. Those who were pushing him forward.

Not as Baek Cheon, the martial artist, but as Baek Cheon, the Great Disciple of Hwasan, he could not retreat even one step.

“I am the one who carries on Hwasan!”

The tip of Baek Cheon’s sword began to draw a delicate plum blossom.

A small plum blossom.

It seemed too small to face the black demonic energy, like a dragon.

But the plum blossom does not bloom alone.

Another one. And another.

Yoo Iseol added her plum blossom to Baek Cheon’s. Jo Gul, Yoon Jong, and even Tang Soso desperately created their own plum blossoms, all overlapping.

“Heuaaaaaah!”

A vast forest of plum blossoms appeared.

It was as if plum blossoms were blooming all over Hwasan, welcoming spring.

It was as if the whole world was covered in plum blossoms.

At that beautiful sight, the Bishop bit his lip, drawing blood.

‘That is…’

How could he forget?

That hateful sight.

In an instant, the world seemed full of plum blossoms, blooming everywhere… and then….

The Bishop grabbed his chest.

The memory he could never escape had taken over him.

In those endless flowers, the figure who had moved like lightning and cut through his chest, that hateful person, seemed to be right in front of him.

‘Plum Blossom Sword Saint….’

He remembered the Plum Blossom Sword Saint cutting through his chest with cold eyes.

“How dare you….” His teeth ground together.

Anger surged through him, ready to burn him to ashes.

If he had stopped the Plum Blossom Sword Saint then, the Heavenly Demon would never have risen again.

A hundred years of regret. A hundred years of pain.

The anger that had been held back was now exploding.

“Plum Bloooooooosom Sword Saaaaaaint!”

He knew it for sure.

These were the Plum Blossom Sword Saint’s descendants. The ones who carried that hateful sword!

“I will kill you all! Haaaaaaap!”

The raging demonic energy began to come together and poured down like a flood towards the Hwasan disciples: Asura Heavenly Killing Demon Force, Demonic Torrent!

A very powerful and dangerous magic, known only to the leaders of the evil Demonic Sect, was happening again for the first time in a hundred years. This magic was something truly terrible.

It was a truly terrifying sight, like something from nightmares. Imagine Hell itself: hundreds, no, thousands of black ghosts all mixed together in a huge crowd. They screamed horrible cries as they rushed forward.

This huge wave of black ghosts smashed into the forest of plum blossom flowers. These flowers were everywhere, covering the land like a soft, pink blanket.

Rumble!

The beautiful plum blossoms were no match for the powerful, black ghosts. They broke apart quickly, like glass shattering into tiny pieces.

“Ugh…” Baek Cheon groaned in pain. His hands were badly hurt, almost crushed. He held his sword very tightly and bit down on his teeth.

It felt like a giant weight was pushing down on him, trying to crush him. He felt like he could be defeated at any second.

‘Hold on!’

He bit his tongue hard, forcibly dragging back his fading consciousness.

His students, his followers, were behind him. And even more important than them, someone else was there, someone he had to protect at all costs.

It didn’t matter if he died here!

I will never back down!

“Amitabha!” Hye-yeon shouted a holy word. Suddenly, a brilliant wave of golden light burst out from behind Baek Cheon. It was Hye-yeon’s incredible power! This golden light spread through the plum blossoms, making them glow with a warm, golden light.

The black torrent.

The crimson plum blossoms.

And the golden light intertwined and swirled together.

“Come on! You evil monster, raaaah!” Baek Cheon roared with all his strength. But his shout was immediately lost in the huge explosion that happened next.

BOOM! The combined powers exploded outwards with incredible force. A huge wave of energy rushed outwards, shaking everything around. Trees were ripped from the ground and thrown away like toys. Even the hard ground cracked and pieces of earth flew into the sky.

“Hahahahahahahaha!” The bishop laughed like a madman. Even as the world around him seemed to be falling apart, he stood strong, laughing wildly. His eyes were filled with a crazy bloodthirst, and he seemed to have lost all sense of reason.

“The great Heavenly Demon is coming! All evil spirits, obey me!” Completely lost in his madness, the bishop let loose his power without control. He destroyed everything around him. The mountain trembled, and the ground seemed to cry out in pain.

“Hahahaha!” Black, evil energy spread out from him like a dark cloud, destroying everything it touched. It felt like this dark energy was trying to destroy the whole world and end humanity.

Bzzzt.

Bzzzt bzzzt.

‘What’s that sound?’

A strange sound kept intruding.

It was an incomprehensible noise.

But… that was all he could think. He was too weak and tired to even try to figure out where the sound was coming from. He felt confused and lost. He was drifting away, like falling asleep. Everything was becoming blurry and unclear. It felt like he was floating in a deep, dark ocean, with no energy left in his body, as if he had become just a spirit, being carried along by the water.

Dragging, dragging.

If only that irritating sound would stop, he could be completely at peace…

Then, suddenly, everything changed. “Ugh!” Chung Myung gasped. A sharp pain, like a needle, stabbed into his fingertip. It was so painful it woke him up instantly. Chung Myung’s eyes flew open. He stared straight ahead, no longer confused or sleepy. His vision became clear again.

‘…What is happening…?’ Chung Myung thought, confused. He looked around and saw a crazy scene. Rocks were broken into pieces and scattered everywhere. Sharp pieces of ice were falling from the sky like a storm of arrows.

Chung Myung turned his gaze to his hand, where he still felt the pain.

Something pure white was biting his hand, drawing blood.

‘Baek Ah?’

Chung Myung looked around, still confused. Then, without even thinking about it, he looked down. He saw a long line in the dirt, showing where his body had been dragged along the ground.

Chung Myung looked at Baek Ah again.

“Kii!” Baek Ah cried out. Chung Myung couldn’t understand animal words, but he looked into Baek Ah’s eyes and knew what the animal was trying to tell him. He could feel Baek Ah’s desperate fear.

The valley was being torn to pieces.

The bishop was rampaging madly.

And….

The disciples of Mount Hua were bleeding and collapsing over there.

In that moment, a cold, deadly anger filled Chung Myung’s eyes.

“You…” Chung Myung said, his voice low and dangerous. He grabbed his Plum Blossom Sword, holding it so tightly his knuckles turned white. He had never let go of it, even when he was unconscious.

“The evil demon world will take over!” The bishop shouted in his crazy voice. “No one who doesn’t believe in demons will live! The Heavenly Demon will clean this world and create a new world for demons! You are just tiny bugs, I won’t even leave your heads to show respect to me!”

Twitch.

At that moment, the bishop, who had been erupting in mad laughter as if he had lost his reason, stopped speaking momentarily.

‘What?’

He stopped as if his body had stiffened.

But even the bishop himself did not understand why he had stopped speaking.

Throb!

“Keuk…”

A sharp pain shot through the bishop’s chest. “Ugh…” he gasped. He grabbed his chest, feeling like he wanted to rip it open because of the pain. A freezing cold feeling came from the ice on his chest.

The pain was terrible, like a knife cutting and digging into his chest. It felt just like when the Plum Blossom Sword Saint had first cut him open.

‘Why now…?’ he thought, confused. This chest wound would never heal. It was so bad that even magic or holy powers couldn’t fix it. That’s why he had frozen it with ice, and always stayed in very cold places, to stop the wound from getting worse.

He knew that if he used too much power, his wound would get much worse and could even kill him. Wasn’t that why his friend, the Law Enforcement Officer, had begged him to use the ice on himself first, instead of using it for the Heavenly Demon ritual? His friend had risked his life to get that ice.

But never before had he felt such extreme pain from this wound….

Throb!

“Keuk…”

The bishop clutched his chest, struggling to suppress the pain.

‘Did I overdo it?’

He couldn’t think of any other reason for the pain. The bishop bit his lip in anger and stared fiercely at the Mount Hua disciples in front of him.

‘Before my body reaches its limit, I must kill all of those….’

But his thoughts could not be completed.

Eerie.

He felt a strange, cold feeling behind him. It wasn’t like the normal cold of the Northern Sea. It wasn’t even like the icy cold pain in his chest. This was a different kind of cold, a creepy, unsettling feeling coming closer.

The bishop’s head slowly turned to the side.

In the distance, he saw a man who had been lying on the ground slowly rising to his feet.

The bishop frowned, confused.

He didn’t understand what was happening. Why did he feel this strange fear? It was just a dying man getting up. What was so scary about that?

But then, the bishop’s eyes suddenly opened wide in shock. His eyes, which were red and cloudy from the evil energy, started to shake with fear.

He suddenly saw a vision in his mind. It was the Plum Blossom Sword Saint, the legendary warrior from the past! And he saw that image on top of the figure of the man slowly standing up. This was the same Plum Blossom Sword Saint who had given him the chest wound years ago.

The bishop started to shake. His eyes were wide with disbelief. He thought he must be seeing things, having a crazy dream.

Chung Myung was now standing completely upright. He slowly raised his head and opened his eyes. His gaze was so cold and sharp it felt like it could freeze the bishop’s soul.

“You,” Chung Myung said. His voice was icy cold, like it came from the grave. “Don’t even imagine you will die easily.”

From the tip of his sword, a bright red light exploded outwards, like a wave of blood.