Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1305. What the hell is that guy? (5)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Jo-Gol stared intently ahead with nervous eyes.
"Sahyung…"
"Shh."
But no sooner had his lips parted than Yoon Jong silenced him.
Yoon Jong's face hardened as he silently observed the scene through the dense bushes.
A narrow gorge.
In truth, the term ‘gorge’ was hardly fitting—it was more akin to a cleft between cliffs. In that narrow pathway, countless figures were camped in formation.
Their fierce momentum seemed to ripple all the way to where Yoon Jong and Jo-Gol were hiding.
“…Let’s turn back.”
"Yes."
Yoon Jong and Jo-Gol carefully turned their bodies.
The undergrowth rustled with each movement.
It was a faint sound, but it grated against their ears like nails on glass.
The two moved cautiously with lowered bodies to minimize disturbing the bushes. The moment they reached the back side of the mountain, they straightened their backs and broke into a run.
After running for quite some time, they entered the depths of the forest at the mountain's base.
As they entered the depths where even sunlight barely penetrated, a suffocating killing intent surged towards them.
"It's us!"
As soon as Jo-Gol shouted, the looming killing intent instantly dissipated as if washed away.
Leaping over the waist-high bushes, Jo-Gol quickly lanced at those seated before him.
Hainan Sect disciples sat resting here and there.
‘…Their numbers have dwindled.’
Jo-Gol's expression darkened slightly.
Having stepped away briefly and returned, he could see the situation with a more objective eye.
Their numbers had clearly diminished compared to when they first arrived at the shore.
But it wasn’t just the numbers.
The greater change was in the momentum they emitted.
The gazes of Hainan Sect swordsmen that occasionally fixed on Jo-Gol carried chilling killing intent.
It wasn’t hostility towards Jo-Gol.
Though they had been resting here for some time, the heightened nerves and killing intent from previous battles wouldn't easily dissipate.
Clothing so soaked with sweat and grime its original color was indiscernible and faces caked with dried blood and dust.
Their lips were cracked and parched, and the shadows under their sunken eyes made their faces look even heavier.
They looked more like battle-weary soldiers than martial artists.
Jo-Gol realized anew how much they had changed.
If he hadn’t traveled with them to this point, he might not have believed these haggard figures were the same people he had seen at Hainan Sect.
'It's been only a few days.'
Of course, it wasn't that Jo-Gol didn't understand them.
The trials they had faced in these past few days surpassed the hardships most people would endure over several years.
If Jo-Gol had not met Chung and grown gradually but had instead been thrown into the battlefield like them, he would have been similar.
No, perhaps he would have been worse off.
Or perhaps he wouldn't have even reached such a state.
Because He might not have survived at all.
While walking deep in thought, Jo-Gol suddenly flinched at the sensation under his foot.
He hastily withdrew his foot.
“Ah…. I’m sorry!”
What he had stepped on was a sword laid down by Hainan Sect disciple.
Rather than ‘laid down’, it would be more accurate to say it was ‘thrown’ or ‘abandoned’.
But regardless, touching another's beloved sword was extremely disrespectful.
Even merely touching another's beloved weapon often leads to bloodshed.
And now he had stepped on it...
And yet, Hainan Sect disciple said nothing upon seeing his sword stepped on.
He merely glanced at Jo-Gol before wordlessly pulling the trampled sword closer and throwing it down before him.
He didn’t even bother wiping off the mud left on the blade from Jo-Gol’s shoe.
Just then, Yoon Jong quietly approached and urged him.
"Let's go."
“Yes, Sahyung.”
Jo-Gol nodded and followed Yoon Jong.
The scene he had just witnessed lingered uncomfortably in his mind.
'But it's his sword.'
As a disciple of Mount Hua, Jo-Gol had been taught to cherish his sword as if it were his life.
Teachings were much like ink soaking into a white cloth. Hearing the same words for long enough, one unconsciously follows them throughout life.
Hainan Sect, being a prestigious sect, must have received even stricter teaching than Mount Hua.
Yet there was Hainan Sect disciple treating his sword like a stray wooden stick. Was he so exhausted that even his treasured sword had become insignificant?
Or did it mean that even life itself was that insignificant here?
Jo-Gol soon shook his head and emptied his mind.
All of these are meaningless thoughts and delusions.
The two stopped walking only after reaching where Heavenly Comrade Alliance gathered.
“Sasuk.”
At Yoon Jong's call, Baek Cheon, who was discussing something with Im Sobyeong, turned his gaze.
“You’ve returned?”
“Yes, Sasuk.”
"The situation?"
“It’s not good.”
Yoon Jong explained with a hardened face.
"The gorge ahead is much narrower than we thought."
"How does it compare to where Black Dragon Water Fortress was?"
"It seems even narrower.”
Baek Cheon's face darkened slightly.
The gorge leading into Black Dragon Water Fortress had also been steep and difficult to defend from attacks from above.
If this gorge was even narrower, there would be no room to evade, making it even more dangerous.
“What about the enemies?”
“They’re blocking it without leaving any gaps. The gorge is so narrow that it didn’t seem like there were many of them, but they might be stretched far back. And assuming they’ve established a formation at the exit… there are at least five hundred of them.”
“…Five hundred.”
Baek Cheon repeated calmly.
Despite his calm voice, his thoughts were far from at ease.
'There's no end to it.'
The number of enemies they had slain on their way here was beyond counting.
They had likely killed more enemies in the past few days than in their entire lives combined.
Yet still the enemy's reinforcements outnumber their losses.
Now he felt despair beyond mere gloominess.
“What about bypassing the gorge and climbing the mountain instead?”
"The mountain terrain is extremely steep. It might be possible for us, but I’m not sure Hainan Sect disciples could keep up…”
"...There must be ambushes too."
"Most likely. I felt traces of killing intent as we passed."
Baek Cheon nodded.
He didn’t know if it was Jo-Gol, but with Yoon Jong confirming it, then it was as good as confirmed.
Enemies in ambush on cliffs were nothing to Mount Hua disciples.
In fact, they might even be easier to handle than those lurking on flat ground.
But not everyone here was a disciple of Mount Hua.
There’s no need to mention Hainan Sect; even Namgung Dowi and Tang Pae wouldn’t be able to display half their true abilities atop a cliff.
Perhaps Im Sobyeong, who roams the mountains as if they were his own backyard, might be an exception.
Baek Cheon turned his gaze to one person with a newfound sense of realization.
Chung Myung was leaning against a tree stump with his eyes closed.
Baek Cheon's eyebrows twitched for a moment.
When that guy hung the disciples of Mount Hua from cliffs or dunked them in water, Baek Cheon thought it was merely an efficient way to torment them.
But here, he realized it again and again.
That all that training had meaning.
Of course, in a peaceful world, such training would have been pointless.
But in wartime, where killing and being killed continues, all those experiences could save lives.
'Did he anticipate all this?'
Impossible to know. But he couldn't ask either.
Since the start of this battle, Chung Myung has drastically reduced his words.
And whenever there was a moment to rest, he would close his eyes and focus solely on recovering his strength.
As if that would let him fight even a moment longer.
Baek Cheon knew. He knew that was the right thing to do.
Half the conversations exchanged under the guise of ‘meetings’ were meaningless.
Perhaps they were nothing more than an energy-wasting attempt to reassure themselves that they weren’t heading down the wrong path, or to suppress the gnawing anxiety rising in their chests.
However, Chung Myung executed his tasks mechanically as if he were devoid of emotion.
To the point where he doubted for a moment whether that guy was really the Chung Myung he knew.
“Sasuk?”
Baek Cheon exhaled deeply and turned his gaze elsewhere.
“Nokrim King.”
"Yes."
“What do you think?”
Im Sobyeong said, scratching his head with the tip of his fan as if it were a habit.
"Taking a detour would be the wisest method, but... in war, one can't always follow the right judgment."
Baek Cheon nodded.
A detour would only prolong their retreat.
But as long as the enemy replenished their forces faster than they could cut them down, they would face ever more opponents as time passed.
"Behind us..."
“I recommend not thinking about it.”
Im Sobyeong shrugged as he spoke lightly.
“Well, it's not like thinking will give us an answer. For now, we should only think about moving forward."
He was right.
But as Im Sobyeong said before, there are times when doing what was right was far harder than merely knowing it.
No matter how hard Baek Cheon tried to push the thought away, the image of the forces of Myriad Man Manor closing in from behind kept creeping into his mind.
‘They must be close by now.’
How far? Two hours? Maybe one?
Having stayed here for so long, they were undoubtedly within an hour’s distance by now.
"So in the end, we must break through."
Baek Cheon looked at Hainan Sect disciples slumped on the ground.
They looked utterly exhausted. Could they endure the brutal battle that was about to begin?
Since yesterday until today, they had barely rested an incense stick's worth of time.
Time so short they couldn’t even close their eyes, let alone circulate their internal energy.
Even training in such conditions would have pushed them to their limits, yet they had been fighting for their lives for days.
Could such people withstand this battle?
"…Let’s consider another route."
“Acting Sect Leader.”
"We’re not avoiding the fight. We must think realistically. Yoon Jong, what’s your assessment of the enemy?"
Yoon Jong spoke calmly with stiffened face.
"I can’t say for certain, but it seems like there are some from Evil Tyrant Alliance. I could feel a chilling presence from time to time."
Baek Cheon speaks to Im Sobyeong again.
"Even if we break through there, it's meaningless if casualties mount too high. And even if it’s not, if we exhaust ourselves there, only death while fleeing remains."
“Hmm.”
"You must avoid the rain when it falls. Passing through the gorge doesn’t mean it’s over."
Baek Cheon's words made sense.
Im Sobyeong’s face stiffened as he fell into thought.
Another voice suddenly cut in.
"Go through the gorge."
Baek Cheon sharply turned his gaze.
Chung Myung opened his eyes at some point and fastened his sword to his waist while approaching.
“Chung Myung-ah.”
"We just need to get past there."
“…Chung Myung-ah. That might work for you, but they..."
“Sasuk.”
Baek Cheon shut his mouth.
"Just need to get past there."
Baek Cheon, hesitating over what to say, eventually nodded.
When Chung Myung spoke like this, there was always a reason.
Wasn't it Chung Myung who decided to take this route in the first place?
Baek Cheon said.
"Let’s do it. But remember that if the casualties is too great, even breaking through won’t mean anything."
"Casualties?"
Chung Myung chuckled softly as if amused.
His exposed white teeth looked unnaturally chilling.
"You need to look at the situation properly, you desk-warmers."
"...What do you mean?"
"Even if there were a detour, I would have gone this way."
When Baek Cheon looked puzzled, Chung Myung spoke as if spitting out words.
"You can’t get surrounded in a narrow path. All you have to do is deal with the enemy in front of you."
Baek Cheon's hands trembled slightly.
But Chung Myung just smiled coldly, either knowing or ignorant of his reaction.
"Whether it's a hundred or a thousand, just keep cutting and the path opens. What better road is there?"
Baek Cheon sighed ignored the chill crawling up his spine and let out a deep sigh.
"…When do we move out?"
"Now."
A chilling gleam settled in Chung Myung's eyes.
"But tell them to be prepared. It’ll be far more horrific than they expect."
Everyone nodded gravely.
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