Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1349. He says he’ll take that bastard's life (4)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Ho Gamyeong spoke curtly. Yoo Gong stared at him with a hardened expression. In that instant, all the surrounding gazes fell upon him.
'Damn it.'
It was the moment when his hope—that perhaps by staying quiet as a dead mouse he could avoid doing anything until this pursuit ended—was utterly shattered.
"Did you not hear me?"
As Ho Gamyeong urged, the atmosphere turned icy. It was as though ignoring the advisor’s command one more time would result in an immediate beheading.
Yoo Gong bit his lip hard and forced his unwilling feet to move forward. Ho Gamyeong’s calm, sunken gaze swept over him.
“What do you think?”
"...What do you mean?"
"I won't tolerate evading the question. That's inefficient."
“....”
"I want to confirm one thing. Are you willing to cooperate or not?"
Yoo Gong's fingertips trembled faintly.
Ho Gamyeong's gaze remained as indifferent and cold as ever, but Yoo Gong couldn’t think of it that way.
That subdued gaze seemed to speak directly to him as if saying, ‘I already know everything. Don’t even think about trying to pull any trick.’
"Well?"
When Ho Gamyeong repeated his question, Yoo Gong’s lips quivered. But the words crumbled in his mouth before they could emerge.
Ho Gamyeong stared at him emotionlessly for a moment before turning his head.
“I recall there being another one?”
At those words, everyone's eyes shifted to another person standing at the rear.
“Ah....”
As all attention suddenly turned toward him, Yoo Gong’s Saje, Go Hong, shuddered violently. The color drained from his face almost instantly.
“Bring him here.”
"Yes."
The Myriad Man Manor martial artists grabbed Go Hong's shoulders and dragged him toward Ho Gamyeong. Go Hong looked back at those holding him with a pale face but, unable to muster the courage to resist, was helplessly dragged along.
Teolsseok.
The ones dragging him threw him down before Ho Gamyeong. Go Hong, having fallen forward onto his hands, forced himself to raise his head.
“I, I....”
The moment his eyes met Ho Gamyeong's, Yoo Gong's face turned from pale to ashen, then almost bluish.
"I won't force you."
“....”
“But as long as you’re here, you must follow the ways of Evil Sects. In Evil Sects, the only way to preserve your life is to prove your usefulness."
“I, I....”
Go Hong’s shoulders quivered violently. How could he not know what they wanted? Though he had stayed quiet as a dead mouse, he had been acutely aware of their movements and actions throughout.
What they wanted from him was to sell out his sahyung.
The reason he had come this far was simply to survive. And to save the people from his hometown.
But the one who had resolved to betray even his sahyung along the way wasn’t Go Hong. It was Yoo Gong.
"Well?"
Go Hong’s lips felt parched and cracked. Go Hong swallowed dryly and opened his mouth with a trembling voice.
“W- What are you asking…? I- I don’t…”
"Can you prove the worth of your life?"
Ho Gamyeong's intimidating gaze weighed down on Go Hong.
Go Hong’s eyes unconsciously darted somewhere else. It was an instinctive glance that even iron will couldn't control.
Ho Gamyeong didn't miss Go Hong's survival instinct struggling to live.
“There’s something.”
Even that fleeting glance was enough for Ho Gamyeong to see through him, and Go Hong’s eyes quaked violently as if an earthquake were raging inside them. Ho Gamyeong spoke slowly and deliberately.
“Then it’s simple. There remain only two choices. Cooperate and survive, or keep your loyalty and all die.
“....”
“Of course, I don’t just mean you but the others from Hainan Island who are still alive as well.”
“Ugh…”
Cold sweat began to soak his entire body.
Since being dragged here by Ho Gamyeong, no physical harm had been inflicted on him.
But right now, he felt like it would be better to be hacked apart. The mental torment of enduring these words was far worse than any physical pain he could imagine.
“I’ve given you plenty of time. Decide."
“I....”
Go Hong’s pale lips quivered.
The desire to live, yet the resolve that he couldn't betray those who were once comrades.
Those two irreconcilable desires churned his thoughts into a chaotic mess.
“I, I....”
Go Hong's eyes wandered aimlessly, finding nowhere to rest. The weight of countless stares bore down on him.
Ho Gamyeong's indifferent gaze, the Myriad Man Manor martial artists' menacing stares, and even Yoo Gong's utterly unreadable look.
For a moment, his vision blurred. The world spun around him, and nausea surged from the pit of his stomach.
“I, I....”
When Go Hong finally couldn't speak his decision, Ho Gamyeong cut in without hesitation.
“This one useless. Kill him.”
"Yes!"
The moment the order was given, the Myriad Man Manor martial artists at the sides of Go Hong drew their swords. Knowing this wasn't mere intimidation, Go Hong's eyes bulged as he frantically shouted.
"Wa- Wait, just wait! I, I...!"
Paat!
But the dao swung toward his neck without mercy.
"Stop!"
At that moment, someone shouted explosively as if in a fit.
The dao flying with cold killing intent stopped just as they touched Go Hong's neck.
Jureureuk.
A thin line of blood trickled down from the nicked skin of his neck.
“I’ll speak.”
It was Yoo Gong who shouted. His pale lips pressed tightly together as he closed his eyes.
“Sa- Sahyung!”
Ho Gamyeong's blade-like gaze turned to Yoo Gong.
“I’m not giving you more time.”
"Sa- Sahyung, you can't! Sahyung!"
Go Hong frantically tried to stop him, but Yoo Gong opened his eyes and stared at him silently. The dao pressed against Go Hong’s neck glimmered with cold killing intent once again.
Yoo Gong finally pointed to a large tree in front and spoke.
"There."
His fingertips trembled slightly. Though it showed how complex his inner thoughts were, no one cared about his feelings.
“Sahyung! Stop...!”
“There’s a mark carved into that tree.”
Go Hong bit his lips so hard it bled. Ho Ga Myeong glanced at his reaction. Just from that alone, it seemed Yoo Gong wasn't lying.
On the upper part of the large tree Yoo Gong had pointed to, there was a faint marking that would be difficult to find unless one knew to look for it.
“What does it mean?”
“...It’s hard to explain in words.”
“Why?”
"Sahyung!"
Go Hong shouted with a pained face. But Yoo Gong, as if resigned to his fate, began to reveal everything he knew without hesitation. After all, it was impossible to deceive someone like Ho Gamyeong.
"That's the sword trace from the seventh form of Hainan Sect Surging Wind Blue Wave Sword Technique (장풍파랑검법/Prev. Surging Wave Sword Technique)."
“Hmm?”
“A sword... No, even a dao will do.”
When Yoo Gong held out his hand to ask for a weapon, the Myriad Man Manor martial artists looked back at Ho Gamyeong as if seeking permission.
"Give it to him."
"Yes."
They handed over a dao they were holding. Yoo Gong held the unfamiliar dao in his hands and exhaled briefly. Then, he performed a basic sword form in the air without channeling any internal strength.
"And that form ends like this."
When the simplified move came to a close, the tip of the blade pointed in a specific direction. Everyone’s eyes followed the direction it indicated. The dao’s tip was pointing toward a part of the forest.
“Do you understand now?”
"The direction the sword points at the end of the form..."
Ho Gamyeong nodded as if he understood.
“Well thought out.”
It was undeniably clever.
No matter how meticulously crafted, a cipher will eventually be broken. And using a code that the enemy could quickly figure out could lead to catastrophic consequences.
But with this method, understanding the cipher's meaning would be difficult. Only Hainan Sect disciples trained in the sword techniques of Hainan Sect would be able to interpret it.
‘A prestigious sect is indeed a prestigious sect.’
Each group must have included people who could clearly confirm and interpret this cipher, someone keen-eyed enough to spot these subtle markings even while moving quickly.
Ho Gamyeong nodded slightly and asked again.
“The distance?”
“I don’t know.”
Yoo Gong shook his head.
"These markings are typically used at ten-li intervals, but this can vary depending on the situation. Since I don't know how they agreed..."
"But if we follow this direction, another marking will eventually appear. Is that correct?"
"That’s right."
“If not....”
Ho Gamyeong’s cold gaze bore into Yoo Gong.
"We’ll end up catching those ahead of us."
The faint hostility in Yoo Gong's eyes drained away helplessly at those words.
“...That’s likely.”
“In other words, keeping you alive is necessary to find them. Is that correct?”
“....”
"I thought it odd how generously you explained everything."
Ho Gamyeong nodded quietly.
"Fine."
“....”
“But I won’t allow you to waste time. Since you seem clever, you can probably guess why I brought so many people?"
“...I know.”
"Lead the way."
Yoo Gong nodded silently. He let out a sigh and started moving forward when he noticed someone glaring at him—Go Hong. His bloodshot eyes burned with anger.
'Is he resenting me?'
To come this far had already branded them a traitor who sold out their sect. Why sacrifice their only life now trying to protect something?
If he had that kind of courage, he wouldn’t have made it this far in the first place.
Seeing him merely looking for someone to blame, having neither the courage to risk his life nor the resolve to betray the sect, an unspeakable disgust welled up within Yoo Gong.
Must survive.
That was the only goal Yoo Gong had left.
Having thrown everything into the dung heap—his pride as a Hainan Sect disciple and even the path he had dreamed of—all that remained was his life and the safety of those left in Hainan Island.
But even so, Yoo Gong couldn't bring himself to meet Go Hong's eyes. He wanted to glare back with malice, but for some reason, he found himself avoiding his gaze.
"Move out."
“...Yes.”
Ho Gamyeong curled the corners of his mouth as he watched Yoo Gong running forward with his teeth clenched.
“Let’s go.”
"Yes!"
The others followed closely behind Yoo Gong into the dense forest.
‘That was certainly a deadly move you prepared, Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword.’
But Chung Myung undoubtedly wouldn’t have anticipated this. He couldn’t have predicted the hidden card they had prepared in response.
"You wouldn't expect a jackal to command dogs, would you? Not even you, great as you are."
And even if he had, it wouldn’t matter. This battlefield was no longer Ho Gamyeong's anyway.
Even if he suffered another defeat at Chung Myung’s hands, the outcome would not change.
The flow of this battlefield had turned toward the one who should rightfully hold everything.
A strange heat flickered in Ho Gamyeong's eyes.
He too wanted to witness it. No, because it was him, he wanted to witness it even more desperately.
Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword. No, Plum Blossom Sword Demon. How would Lord Ryeonju crush this overwhelming monster that he couldn't even touch?
What would happen when Paegun, who had shown inexplicable favor only to that Plum Blossom Sword Demon until now, finally drew the sword he had kept buried?
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