Chapter 1344: Go to Rescue (Part 4)

Ho Gakmyung stared fiercely at the subordinate in front of him with a pale and exhausted face.

"Where is the entrance?"

"Not yet..."

The subordinate's voice trembled as he answered. It was the first time seeing Ho Gakmyung in such disarray. Therefore, it was understandable how much anger Ho Gakmyung was suppressing right now.

The sword hanging from Ho Gakmyung's waist seemed like it could fly and cut his throat at any moment. However, what flew was not the sword but a short, small blade sharper than a sword, more sinister than a dagger.

"Find it."

"Yes!"

"By any means necessary."

The deputy bowed deeply.

But Ho Gakmyung had already turned his gaze away and was staring sharply at the peaks of Hundred Thousand Mountains, which rose like knives.

Suddenly, his lips cracked open, and red blood dripped.

'Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword...'

He had been played with in the hands of Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword from beginning to end. But what truly tortured him was the fact that he couldn't find a reason why he lost, no matter how much he thought about it.

How could such a thing happen? Could those who came to Guangdong for the first time know and utilize the existence that even they couldn't discover?

Who could imagine such a possibility?

'It's impossible...'

It felt like someone had reached into his mind and violently stirred it up.

But denying that possibility was meaningless. The impossible had already happened. No matter how much he turned away and ignored it, reality remained reality.

He poured out everything he could. He endured immense damage. Even committed the unthinkable, deceiving Jang Ilso.

The plan he had staked everything on had crumbled like foam in an instant.

What if they were to escape from the Hundred Thousand Mountains?

'Not that.'

The moment they crossed this hellish mountain range, what awaited them was the vast land of Gangnam. Even if the Evil Tyrant Alliance mobilized a large number of forces, it was impossible to block the entire south.

If he couldn't catch them in Guangdong, an area he knew well, could he capture them on even broader territory?

"Push all available forces inside."

"...Huh?"

A subordinate behind him looked surprised and glanced at Ho Gakmyung.

"Wherever they hide, they can't hide forever. Eventually, they'll have to reveal themselves. Catch and kill them then."

"...Commander. You mean in there?"

The subordinate asked hesitantly. When the subordinate asked again, Ho Gakmyung slowly turned around. The subordinate flinched at his gaze.

"Forgive me, sir."

"Don't make me repeat myself."

"Yes!"

The deputy bowed deeply.

Only after Ho Gakmyung's gaze turned away did the subordinate finally raise his head and look at the mountains spread out in front of him with trembling eyes.

A hellish mountain range where one couldn't even guess what was right behind you.

'There?'

Were they supposed to face Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword in such a situation? That guy?

The thought alone made him nauseous. But there was no other way. In the current situation, dissent would not be tolerated by Ho Gakmyung.

So, from the perspective of following his orders, there was nothing left to do but pray. May Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword, that devil's sword, not reach him.

❀ ❀ ❀ 

Thud. Thud.

Chung Myung lightly clenched and unclenched his fist, turning his neck from side to side.

'Different.'

He knew the person he was now was nowhere near his past self. He had learned that much for certain through this battle. However, there were clearly different strengths compared to the past.

First and foremost, recovery ability.

The purest energy he had gathered bestowed upon him an unparalleled recovery ability compared to his past self. Even though he suffered more severe injuries than before, he could quickly shake it off and stand up.

The internal condition of his body was also rapidly improving.

As his rigid body loosened up, sweat started pouring down from his entire body. The accumulated fatigue from the battle was being expelled in the form of sweat.

If he poured out this sweat, even if just a little, it was certain that his physical condition would recover.

'Nevertheless, it's not in vain.'

He hadn't reached the height of the peak he once climbed, but anyway, the peak he decided to climb now was much higher than the one his past self had ascended. 

Rip.

Chung Myung tore off the bandage wrapped around his chest.

Baek Cheon was about to scream what he was doing but closed his mouth. The wound on Chung Myung's chest had already healed.

"…Is he human?"

"I sometimes doubt it too."

Chung Myung smiled faintly. However, Baek Cheon did not relax his expression even after seeing that reaction.

"A guy who can recover like that…"

"What?"

"Well, if he had just restrained himself a little, he wouldn't have had to do that damn thing to his leg, right?"

"Oh? Is that so?"

"He's really crazy..."

Baek Cheon ground his teeth.

He knew it too.

There was no time for Chung Myung to rest. If he hadn't stepped forward and fought relentlessly, the sacrifices would have been incomparably greater now.

However, even though he knew, the boiling emotions were inevitable.

Baek Cheon sighed deeply, as if the ground was collapsing beneath him. At that moment, Chung Myung casually asked.

"What about Jo Gol Sahyung?"

"Yoon Jong is taking care of him in another place."

"He didn't get hurt much, but anyway, these days, the guys are weaker in exchange for their abilities."

"...Don't you ever think that you're just abnormal? If were someone other than you, they would have died ten times over."

"Tsk tsk. Weaklings."

Chung Myung laughed at his own words. Baek Cheon's face twisted.

"Are you laughing?"

"Does pretending to be serious change anything?"

"…."

"Sasuk, loosen up your face too."

"You…"

"People are watching."

In response to Chung Myung's casually thrown words, Baek Cheon's face became complicated with a strange light.

"Everyone is looking at Sasuk's face. Because our current situation is clearly reflected in his expression. If Sasuk, with his current not-so-handsome face, grimaces even more, everyone becomes more uneasy."

"Have you ever seen something called longing in your life?"

"At this level, he's a handsome guy."

"…Let's stop talking."

Baek Cheon let out a deep sigh. His heart was heavy.

It wasn't like he didn't know. No matter the situation, he shouldn't show any signs of shaking. He also knew that well.

But… It wasn't as easy as it sounded.

He almost killed Chung Myung. He almost drove Yoo Iseol and Jo Gol to death. Because his judgment wasn't accurate. If he had been a bit more...

Tap.

At that moment, Chung Myung lightly tapped Baek Cheon's shoulder.

"...What is it?"

"I wouldn't have been able to do that."

"..."

"Sasuk's judgment was accurate. I couldn't imitate him even if I tried."

"...Don't talk nonsense."

"But still, you have some sense."

"Well, hey?"

While speaking nonsense with his mouth, Chung Myung's gaze was surveying the condition of Yoo Iseol. Despite deep wounds here and there, there didn't seem to be any lingering effects. The Taoist martial arts were powerful to this point.

But not having lingering effects didn't mean it was erasing the pain she had experienced.

This time, Chung Myung's gaze reached Tang Soso, who had fallen asleep from exhaustion. Just by looking at the small wounds on her fingertips, one could guess how fierce the battle had been.

For those who wielded swords in battle, their role ended when the battle concluded, but the medical practitioners' fight began from that moment. She probably saved countless lives, but she also had to send many lives away.

Chung Myung's gaze turned cold.

Thud.

He walked slowly.

Here and there, the figures of the disciples of Southern Island were sprawled across the wide common area. They were sleeping like corpses, having discarded the dignity of aristocrats.

"Do you understand?"

Baek Cheon, who had followed him without Chung Myung noticing, spoke with a firm voice.

"Everyone fought to their limits. It's not a situation where they'll recover after just two days of rest. If we go outside now, it will only accelerate the crisis."

"Hmm."

Chung Myung nodded.

"That makes sense. However, it's not exactly accurate. There's a venomous bastard with an upturned eye scrambling to find a way in."

"..."

"And with his abilities, he'll soon discover the entrance. It's just that he hasn't found it until now because he's lost half of his taste."

Baek Cheon bit his lip.

Chung Myung's words were correct. This place could never be permanently safe.

At that moment, those who had noticed Chung Myung waking up rushed over.

"Dojang!"

"Are you okay?"

"Your injuries are severe; please rest a little more!"

Chung Myung smiled as he looked at Namgung Dowi, Tang Pae, and Hye Yeon, each with a worried expression. Every one of them had a face filled with concern.

'I've had enough.'

Causing worry for these young ones.

"How about Nokrim King?"

"Here."

Im Sobyeong walked slowly from behind.

"They say even the evil spirits hesitate to take away a person with a bad personality. Seeing the Dojang now, it wasn't just empty talk."

Chung Myung laughed at the sarcastic remark.

At the sarcastic remark, Chung Myung chuckled.

"Ho Gakmyung gave you a beating, and now you're taking it out on me for no reason."

"W-who got a beating?"

"Then should I say you got your ass kicked?"

"Uh..."

Im Sobyeong clenched his fist tightly. Even though he pretended otherwise, it seemed his pride was greatly hurt. After grumbling for a moment, Im Sobyeong took a deep breath and asked.

"What do you plan to do now?"

"What?"

"The situation is what it is. As you may know, we can't stay cooped up here forever, so we have to go outside. But considering everyone's condition..."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces darkened. Though they managed to catch their breath, the situation was far from stable, and no one was unaware of that fact.

"What do you plan to do?"

"Well..."

"That's not something I can decide; you should ask them over there."

"What?"

Im Sobyeong looked at Chung Myung as if asking what he meant.

"The situation has changed now."

"...What are you talking about?"

Chung Myung's eyes swept over the people in front of him.

Not as severely injured as Yoo Iseol, the wounds on the others' bodies still bore the traces of the intense battles they had fought so far.

"What about Jo Gol Sahyung?"

"He's over here... "

Namgung Dowi pointed, and Chung Myung followed him, looking silently at Jo Gol, who still hadn't regained consciousness. He remained silent for a long time, as if his eyes were taking in every single wound on his body.

After a moment, Chung Myung turned to Im Sobyeong.

"Sword."

"..."

Baek Cheon offered the sword that Chung Myung was holding.

It was the sword he had kept to prevent Chung Myung from jumping around until he recovered. It was a commitment not to hand it over until Chung Myung's body improved.

However, for some reason, now Baek Cheon couldn't resist giving it to him.

"Im Sobyeong."

"Yes, Dojang."

"Prepare while giving me some time to recover. We'll leave this place in a moment."

Im Sobyeong nodded, and Chung Myung continued.

"Yes, Dojang."

"Get ready while I buy some time. We'll leave this place in an instant."

Im Sobyeong nodded.

He, too, was a strategist. He knew well that if they could surpass the Hundred Thousand Mountains, they could swiftly move all the way to the Yangtze River.

Ho Gakmyung had tightly surrounded the Guangdong region. Now it was time to pay the price for that.

The problem was that with the current conditions of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance and Southern Island, even with utilizing Hundred Thousand Mountain's terrain to its fullest, the battle wouldn't be easy.

Moreover, instead of the time to recover, the fact that they gave enemies the time to surround them again was another issue.

Chung Myung was aware of this situation.

His words now implied that he could resolve this situation.

"What are you planning to do?"

Im Sobyeong asked cautiously. Upon hearing that, Chung Myung grinned manically.

"I need to settle a debt."

Between his twisted lips, a sinister smile revealed his white teeth.

"They will understand what it means to step foot here."

It was time to let them know what he had painfully realized in the past.