Chapter 1333: I'll Carve That Name Into Memory (Part 3)

It felt as if the whole world had been crushed and crumpled.

Amidst it all, the only clear thing was the narrow and sharp metal that pierced through the familiar back she knew so well.

Slowly, a crimson blade protruded from the twisted sword on the back, and a slow stream of red blood followed its path. The blood, dyed by the red of the sword, cascaded down, elongating and falling gradually below.

The heat of the splattered blood on the face, every visible scene, and above all, the limp shoulders of Chung Myung were vividly alive.

Yet, for Yoo Iseol, all of this simultaneously felt strangely abstract.

Sensations were undoubtedly there, but none of them squarely fell into the realm of comprehension.

It seemed as if one could neither see what was being witnessed nor hear what was being heard.

She stopped her steps. Was it because it was already too late? No, when she rushed to save Chung Myung, a bluish aura had spewed from the end of the sword that pierced through Chung Myung's back. Approaching further meant an immediate threat to split Chung Myung into two.

So, she had no choice but to stop.

Watching the blood-stained blades of the Blood Sword Unit members pierce through Chung Myung's left shoulder and right flank, Yoo Iseol's body shuddered as if she, too, had been stabbed by a knife.

Thud! Thud!

In an instant, Yoo Iseol's body trembled as if she, too, had been pierced by the swords.

Her eyes, swollen with rage and pity, held nothing but fear. It was because she had to acknowledge and recognize it.

If there was even a bit of strength left, Chung Myung could have easily repelled this attack.

The limitations of Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword, which she thought she might never witness, were now laid bare in the most undesirable way imaginable.

No sound escaped her slightly parted lips. No, it was more accurate to say that she couldn't make any sound. Even the slightest noise might cause the sword embedded in that small body to twist and tear its heart apart.

She could only watch without making a sound.

Just a few steps. Those few steps felt as distant as an eternal wall.

A definite sensation of digging into the opponent's flesh. A sense of accomplishment only felt when penetrating the opponent's body and cutting off their life.

Goyang's eyes, filled with exhilaration, stared at the sword buried in Chung Myung's chest. More than half of the blade was embedded in the chest.

Of course, he knew.

Wounds pierced by a sword don't easily cause bleeding as one might think. If the prey still has strength, constricting muscles will prevent blood from flowing immediately.

However, blood was rapidly pouring out of Chung Myung's chest as if to fill the entire chest. This meant that Chung Myung had no strength left to resist the sword.

Chung Myung's hand, pierced along with the attempt to block the sword, slowly approached and touched the edge of the sword. But that was it. There was no impact on Goyang's sword.

Instead, a heavy weight began to settle on the sword held by Goyang. The weight that occurs when the opponent can no longer support their own body and entrusts their life to the sword that takes their life.

It was a weight of death too familiar to Goyang.

'... I got you.'

Achieving an unbelievable result. But now, that result was clearly in his hands.

Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword, Chung Myung.

He had finally captured the tremendous monster that made even his own name in the world look pathetic.

It was a triumph that could not be expressed in words.

A complex emotion, incomprehensible, rushed in. Overwhelming joy and unavoidable tragedy simultaneously dominated him.

Goyang slowly raised his head.

Because he wanted to see.

How would the monster that had relentlessly tormented Goyang, proving its godly prowess, meet its demise?

Would it contort in agony, remain stoic, or perhaps... break into a hollow laughter?

Unfortunately, Goyang couldn't see Chung Myung's expression. All he saw was Chung Myung's forehead, now shaken as if all his strength had left him.

At that moment, a faint sense of emptiness flickered in Goyang's eyes.

Perhaps he, too, believed in that.

He believed that even in the moment of facing death, one should never bow their head.

Even if dozens of swords were thrust into their body, even if they died mercilessly, they should still bravely gaze at the sky until the end.

After a fleeting sense of emptiness, reality slowly returned.

Unconsciously, Goyang opened his mouth.

"People... are... human."

There was no reply coming back. It was natural; there was no strength left to offer a response. In fact, it was unclear whether there was consciousness remaining at all.

Goyang slowly exerted force on the hand holding the sword.

Even uttering a word to the prey was a violation of the principles he had set for himself.

Normally, the downfall of a hunt occurs when complacency sets in towards the end.

Until the moment of completely severing the heart and cutting the throat, one should never let go of tension.

The moment Goyang raised the drawn sword to split Chung Myung's heart, a faint sound escaped from Chung Myung's lips. It might have been a small exhalation at the very last moment of life.

However, Goyang suddenly stopped the sword. It was difficult to explain the reason even to himself.

"What did you say?"

There was no need to ask. Ignoring and cutting through would have sufficed. Strangely, though, he couldn't bring himself to do that.

Chung Myung's head slowly lifted. Like an old, rusty wheel creaking and turning forcefully, Chung Myung, who forcibly raised his head, silently stared at Goyang.

The eyes revealed through blood-soaked hair looked empty, as if devoid of any light.

"Move... move."

Between the ambiguous lips, difficult-to-understand words flowed out sporadically.

"Not... not yet..."

At that moment, Goyang saw it.

Chung Myung's lips, stained with blackened blood, rising ominously at the corners. The smile, at the sight of it, caused Goyang's blood to chill as if entering an icy cave.

"...Legs."

Goyang urgently exerted all his strength to bring down the sword. But even though he poured out all the remaining power, his sword, embedded in Chung Myung's chest, did not budge. As if lodged between giant rocks, no matter how much force he applied, there was no movement.

'What?'

A violet energy began to flow from the wound, covering Goyang's sword. At that moment, Chung Myung pushed the hand pierced by the sword towards Goyang.

Grit!

With the sound of bone scraping against metal, the hand reached the hilt (劍環) of the sword. Holding the hilt, Chung Myung pulled Goyang towards him. Due to the exertion of force on the sword, Goyang, who had been leaning forward, couldn't resist the pull.

Suddenly, Goyang saw it. The sight of sword energy forming on Chung Myung's sword, which was hanging down.

It was the sword of Mount Hua, red as blood and sharp as dawn.

'Ah, no...'

Paaaaang!

A familiar yet unfamiliar booming sound echoed through the canyon. Goyang, dumbfounded, stared at the sword deeply embedded in Chung Myung's chest. The sword that had been forcibly pulled was almost entirely buried in Chung Myung's chest.

"You..."

Goyang's mouth hung open, momentarily speechless. The mouth that couldn't find words and was mumbling incoherently opened again after a while. A voice tinged with complex emotions flowed out.

"You did it... on purpose."

The eyes of Goyang, momentarily absent, and the powerless eyes of Chung Myung met.

Chung Myung's voice, which had become slightly clearer than before, could be heard.

"If...I can't... go..."

Even as his voice mixed with a metallic sound, Chung Myung laughed, revealing blood-soaked teeth.

"...You should come...Right?"

Goyang's eyes shook.

A moment of silence passed. Soon, a stream of red blood poured from Goyang's lips.

Goyang realized belatedly. The reason he hesitated for a moment in the last moment.

Animals feel an instinctual discomfort before biting the bait. Even if it's the bait of Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword's life, an irresistible lure.

The one being hunted was not Chung Myung from the beginning but Goyang himself.

"You..."

Goyang, who spat out blood from his mouth, slowly collapsed.

The sword, pulled with the last will, was pulled out of Chung Myung's body. Blood pouring from the wound covered Goyang's face as he knelt on the ground.

"You really..."

Thud.

Goyang's body, which couldn't finish the words spitting out, fell to the ground like the Blood Sword members who rushed together.

At the same time, Chung Myung's body also swayed forward.

"Chung Myung!"

Yoo Iseol hurriedly rushed forward, caught the falling Chung Myung from behind, and supported him.

"Sajil! Chung Myung!"

"Hu... h..."

Feeling the firm grip of Yoo Iseol, Chung Myung weakly revealed his teeth.

"It's... too late..."

"You..."

"Ha... anyway..."

Every nerve that had barely connected was cut off as Chung Myung's head drooped.

Yoo Iseol looked at Chung Myung's unconscious face for a moment, lifted Chung Myung, tore off her own robe, and tightly bound Chung Myung's body with the remaining cloth.

She felt faint heartbeats on Chung Myung's neck. The body temperature, now so cold that her hands trembled.

She was scared. Scared that the heart would slowly stop. Scared that the last remaining warmth would extinguish.

Yoo Iseol lifted her head.

She saw the approaching members of the Myriad Man Manor, again understanding the situation. Their expressions were ruthless. They probably wouldn't let Chung Myung go willingly.

Especially Ho Gakmyung, who was shining his eyes from behind, would probably do whatever it took to put a sword into Chung Myung's heart and put an end to all of this.

Yoo Iseol reached out and grabbed the Dark Fragrance Plum Blossom Sword lying on the ground. The unfamiliar handle still had some warmth.

Strangely, that warmth made Yoo Iseol calm and composed. Her eyes, which had been shaking, became cool.

Raising her momentum, Yoo Iseol slammed the ground without hesitation.

'Protect.'

Bang!

As she pulled her body back, the members of the Myriad Man Manor rushed in like a torrent bursting from a broken dam.

'Absolutely!'

She swung the sword and sent the head of a Myriad Man Manor member charging at the forefront flying in an instant. The sword was burning with a determined will.