Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1272. A tiger trapped in a cage of poison (2)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
The poison-laden Snake Swords flew in like hungry serpents.
Against normal swords, twisting the body to dodge would suffice. But now, that option is practically nonexistent. The snake sword, more akin to a whip than a blade, could change its trajectory at any time.
And even if dodged, one couldn't prevent those swords from coiling around the body. If the sharp and chain-like snake sword were to wrap around him, the outcome would be as obvious as day.
Kung!
In that dire moment, Chung Myung stomped down with all his strength. Internal strength sleeping deep in his Dantian surged up like a great river, coursing through his entire body. The internal strength that had gathered only the purest energy in the world instantly burst forth with explosive force.
Kagagagak!
The segmented swords entangled with Chung Myung’s Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword were pulled taut as if on the verge of snapping. At that moment, Chung Myung yanked his sword violently toward himself.
Kung!
A heavy explosion rang out. Simultaneously, the enormous force Chung Myung exerted on the segmented swords hurled the Blood Sword Platoon members forward like arrows.
Momentary bewilderment flickered in their eyes which had remained cold throughout.
Was it because their combined strength of five exerting full force had been overpowered and they were being dragged forward?
No.
It was because they could see what awaited them as they were dragged closer.
The Blood Sword members frantically tried to let go of their weapons and withdraw their bodies. But the powerful suction force traveling through the snake swords refused to release their hands.
'N- No...'
Even as they were helplessly pulled forward, they caught sight of Chung Myung’s face twisting into a chilling grin. That face looked more demonic than ever.
Kwadeuk! Kwadeuk! Kwadeuk!
The snake swords that had been flying like vipers pierced through the Blood Sword Platoon members' backs.
"Keugh...."
They stared blankly at the blades that had burst through their chests like a snake’s tongue. Even as they looked down at the gruesome sight, disbelief lingered in their vacant eyes. Trembling, they struggled to lift their heads. Their eyes met Chung Myung's smiling gaze.
“Not bad, but…”
Paaaaat!
In one swift motion, Chung Myung's Amhyang Plum Blossom Sword slashed down the Blood Sword member in front of him cleanly in two.
"Not enough."
Chung Myung rushed forward as his whole body hit the spurting blood. The snake swords writhed and lashed out at him like a living serpent, but Cheongmyeong wasn’t one to fall for the same trick twice.
Kang! Kaang! Kaang! Kang!!
The Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword struck the heads of the incoming Snake Belly Swords one after another. The snake swords, writhing as though alive, were sent recoiling powerlessly like snakes pierced through the head.
Snake swords are unparalleled in pulling strength once they latch onto something, but they couldn't muster even half the penetrating power of conventional swords.
Losing the momentum they had seized, the snake swords were no longer a threat to Chung Myung.
Paat!!
Chung Myung kicked the ground off and accelerated further.
Before him lay only five remaining Blood Sword martial artists, the vast sea stretching out behind them, and the ships of Heavenly Comrade Alliance disappearing into the distant horizon.
Chung Myung surged forward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring and reached the vicinity of the Blood Sword martial artists who were desperately swinging their swords. The momentary flicker of surprise that crossed their previously cold eyes betrayed their dismay.
Paat!
Chung Myung twisted his body sideways and swung his sword fiercely. The sheer force imbued in the strike seemed capable of cleaving through anything in its path.
It was an attack the Blood Sword members had no hope of blocking!
But at that very moment, a ruthless gleam flashed in their eyes.
Chwararararak!
The snake swords that had been aimed at Chung Myung recoiled and swiftly wrapped around the bodies of the wielder.
Kwadeuk! Kwadeuk!
Red blood spurted as the snake swords wrapped around the platoon members' bodies out. It was utterly incomprehensible. The Blood Sword martial artists, who did not even blink an eye at the act that was close to self-harm, gritted their teeth and
I threw my body in front of the sword.
Chung Myung's eyes widened slightly. Then.
Kwaaaaang!
The bodies of the Blood Sword members, still entangled in their snake swords, were split in two in an instant. No matter how tightly the segmented swords coiled around them, no matter how much internal strength they infused, mere snake swords joined by wire could never block Cheongmyeong's full-force strike.
Their bisected bodies were torn apart under the blow’s residual force, flung backward in fragments. The Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword maintained its momentum after destroying three bodies in one breath and drove into the fourth.
Kwagagagak!
Blades and wires tangled around with Chung Myung's sword. Human muscle and bone also gripped his sword like tough rubber.
Kwaaaaang!
However, Chung Myungs’ sword mercilessly cut through the fourth body. And even then, Its unrelenting force drove toward the last remaining member.
A chilling sensation ran up Chung Myung's spine.
A qi sense. No, perhaps sixth sense.
A vague, inexplicable awareness alerted him to an imminent danger rushing toward him from behind. A stealthy approach he never would have noticed if he had been even slightly more caught up in the battle's heat.
However, the moment Chung Myung turned his gaze, the last member of the Blood Sword Platoon lunged and impaled himself on the Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword.
Kagagak!
The snake sword began to tighten and twist the Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword embedded in his body. A move showing absolute determination to never release this sword even if his body was shredded inside.
Only Chung Myung's gaze turned reflexively. He saw Blood Sword Platoon daeju Go Yang flying in at a speed that made ‘lightning-fast’ seem inadequate.
Swaeaeaek!
For an instant, the world seemed to blur and warped. Amidst the warped surroundings, the only thing Chung Myung could see was the dark tip of Go Yang’s sword driving toward him.
Ppudeudeuk!
The platoon member, seeing this too, mustered every ounce of strength to drag Chung Myung’s sword down further. Having drawn out even their innate energy, a cascade of bright red blood poured from their mouth like a waterfall.
But at that instant, Chung Myung smiled crookedly and let go of the Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword he was holding.
Kwadeuk!
With the balance of power suddenly disrupted, the sword—now free of Chung Myung’s hands—was pulled with brutal force into the chest of the Blood Sword member and buried itself up to the hilt.
There was no way Chung Myung could miss that moment. He spun his body with a swift pivot and used the recoil to strike the pommel of the Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword with his elbow.
Kwang!
With a short and powerful blast, the Dark Fragrant Plum Blossom Sword pierced straight through the chest of the Blood Sword member. Moving past them as smoothly as a willow sway yet faster than lightning, Chung Myung snatched the sword’s hilt mid-flight and gracefully spun his body.
In that fleeting moment, Chung Myung's cold, subdued gaze met the chilling eyes of Go Yang who had closed the distance to mere paces.
Chwaaaak!
Like a brush painting a single bold stroke across a blank canvas, Chung Myung's strike swept through the air and collided head-on with Go Yang’s incoming blade.
Kwaaaaang!
A tremendous explosion followed.
Unable to withstand the aftermath of force colliding with force, internal strength with internal strength, seawater shot skyward. As if heaven and earth had reversed places.
The massive spray of water completely obscured the view of everyone witnessing the scene for a moment.
Splash.
The water that had risen high into the air came pouring down like rain.
When the scene finally became visible again, only Go Yang remained standing on the shore.
Thud.
Swaying precariously, Go Yang dropped to one knee and finally collapsed under his weight.
Blood streamed from a deep wound that ran from his left shoulder to his lower right abdomen and flowed steadily into the blue sea.
“Daeju-nim!”
One of the Blood Sword members rushed over in panic, but Go Yang, without so much as glancing at them, kept his sharp gaze fixed on the distant sea.
By now, Chung Myung had shot out over that sea. Too far to even think of catching.
“….Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword.”
Go Yang sneered, his blood-soaked teeth showing through his twisted lips.
"He lives up to his name."
Even after sacrificing his subordinates as bait and launching an all-out surprise attack, this was the outcome. But Goeryang felt neither disappointment nor despair.
It was only natural.
“It’s just the beginning…”
Go Yang clutched his chest.
The wound was deep enough that his innards might spill out with one wrong move But his life wasn’t in danger. That was enough for now. If he wasn’t dead, there was still a chance.
"Prepare for pursuit."
"Yes!"
Go Yang surveyed the battle-stained shore.
“…What a sight.”
He had braced himself for this outcome, but seeing the results with his own eyes drew a dry chuckle from him.
The once-blindingly white sands of the southern sea, which had shimmered like pearls, were now soaked in dark crimson blood. And the corpses strewn across it were so horrific that even the most hardened of martial artists would feel a chill run down their spine.
Finding an intact body among the corpses was difficult. Even if Evil Sects fought each other to mutual annihilation, the results wouldn't be this devastating.
"Kukuk."
What made the scene even more absurd to Go Yang was that most of the corpses were from Myriad Man Manor. While the occasional corpse of a disciple from Hainan Sect could be spotted, they were so few and far between that one would have to search deliberately to find them.
A one-sided defeat. There was no other way to describe this massacre.
"You're finding this amusing, it seems."
Go Yang turned his head at the cold voice coming from beside him. Ho Gamyeong, blood still unwashed from his face, approached him. He spoke coldly:
“If Ryeonju-nim hears of this, he'll find it laughable as well—out of sheer disbelief.”
"No, he'll compliment us."
"......"
"That's what hunting is."
Go Yang muttered, his lips twisting into a sinister smile.
The hunt of beasts and the hunt of men are not the same.
Beasts hunt those weaker than themselves. Humans hunt those stronger. It was proof that one didn’t need to be stronger than their prey to capture it.
Soon, that Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword would come to understand it, too.
The terror of being hunted by those weaker than oneself, and the humiliation of being trampled by them.
"Now we just need to track properly. He’s nothing more than a rat in a jar.”
"More like a tiger in a jar."
"Either way, they're trapped."
"Hmm."
Ho Gamyeong didn’t bother to argue and simply gazed out at the sea.
The ship in the distance was heading toward Gangnam. A reasonable choice, better than fleeing elsewhere. But in the end, it would make no difference—any path was death ground for them.
"We should tighten the noose."
Just as Go Yang was about to nod—
"A- Advisor!"
“…Hm?”
The men who had gone to push the ships off the shore came running back with ashen faces.
"The ships' bottoms are holed! All of them!"
“…What?”
"Even if we get them off the shore, at this rate the ships..."
Ho Gamyeong stared at the reporting soldier before shifting his gaze back to the sea. By now, the escaping ships had drifted far out.
“They got us.”
Usually, Ho Gamyeong wouldn't fall for such an obvious ploy.
'No matter how composed I tried to act, the mere appearance of Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword must’ve rattled me more than I realized."
For once, irritation flickered in Ho Gamyeong’s eyes.
"Requisition ships! Right now!"
"Understood!"
As his men scrambled to follow the order, Ho Gamyeong glared coldly at the retreating ships.
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