Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1408. It's time to wake up from the dream (3)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
"Report! Myriad Man Manor forces accompanying Paegun Jang Ilso's carriage have crossed Ma’an Mountain and nearly reached Nanjing!"
"Elder! Black Ghost Fortress moving from the Hangzhou direction has reached near Nanjing!"
“The water fortress! Reports confirm that the fleet of the water fortress has arrived near Nanjing!"
As urgent reports poured in, the beggars surrounding the table quickly moved the pieces on the map. Pieces on the map were quickly moved.
Cold sweat ran down Ciwu Beggar Neung Sam’s back as he stared at the map. Black, red, and blue pieces were converging as if to encircle one spot.
Nanjing (남경(南京)). The last retreat for Heavenly Comrade Alliance after crossing the river... No, the only retreat they could take.
The place where Heavenly Comrade Alliance ran to rescue Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword was a terrain blocked by a huge lake called Seokgu Lake on the left and Jangtang Lake on the right.
To escape, they had no choice but to head north toward Nanjing.
And now Myriad Man Manor, Black Ghost Fortress, and water fortress were blocking that one and only exit.
'N- No!'
If these forces truly arrived first and sealed off the retreat, there would be no hope for Heavenly Comrade Alliance. They will never be able to cross the Yangtze.
“Heavenly Comrade Alliance! What about Heavenly Comrade Alliance? Have we still not made contact?"
"We're doing our best, but..."
“Stop blabbering and make it happen! Right now!”
“But, but the mobility of those in Gangnam....”
Kwaaang!
Neung Sam struck the table with all his might.
"You...!"
As he even emitted killing intent, the faces of the beggars startled by his momentum instantly turned pale.
"If you value your lives so much, why did you crawl into Beggar Union? Is that how members of the Righteous Blood Beggar Union (의혈개방(義血丐幇)) act? Don't you know that those who live eating food given by others, yet hesitate to sacrifice their lives when needed, are nothing more than lowly beggars!"
At his words, the members of the Intelligence Hall bowed their heads deeply.
"Send the order again, right now!"
“Yes, Elder.”
At that moment, the door burst open with a loud crash, and a beggar rushed in.
“Elder! Shaolin! A message from Shaolin Bangjang!”
"Bangjang?"
Neung Sam’s face twisted in displeasure for a moment, but he quickly composed himself.
“Speak.”
"He says we must recheck the movements of those gathering in Nanjing! No matter what sacrifices must be made!"
"Damn it all! Who doesn't know that! Aren't we already doing it?"
"Th- That's not it! He says we need to check if there are others besides those who have been identified!"
“...What?”
"He said if Paegun anticipated this situation, they must have another move hidden. Bangjang Bop Jeong says we need to verify again whether the forces we’re aware of are truly the entirety of their power.”
"...One more move?"
Neung Sam's face went blank for a moment. But only for a moment—soon his complexion began to turn deathly pale. Frozen as if he had seen a ghost, he hurriedly looked at the map.
"Here... Could there be something more here?"
It was impossible. Absolutely impossible. Hadn't Evil Tyrant Alliance already mobilized all the forces they could?
Excluding Hao Sect which was too far to arrive in time, all the sects that comprise Evil Tyrant Alliance are gathering.
But what if that were possible?
What if the forces possessed by Evil Tyrant Alliance were more than what they know?
Sweat poured down Neung Sam's face like rain.
From the moment a gap in strength appears, it starts multiplying exponentially.
If two equally skilled martial artists battle one-on-one, even the winner will be left in tatters, but in a one-to-many battle, the side with fewer numbers would be struck down before even raising a hand.
This logic applies directly to military strategy. If the difference in strength exceeds double, the stronger side suffers minimal losses, while the weaker side skyrocketed.
But what if the forces gathering in Nanjing were greater than they knew? What if they outnumbered Heavenly Comrade Alliance's forces several times over?
'It's all over.'
Heavenly Comrade Alliance would be annihilated without even inflicting any real damage on Evil Tyrant Alliance. Then, only Ten Great Sects will be left to face Evil Tyrant Alliance, whose morale soared to the heavens.
There was one reason why Ten Great Sects have been able to maintain a minimum level of composure while facing Evil Tyrant Alliance until now. It was because the combined forces of Heavenly Comrade Alliance and the Nine Sects were superior to Evil Tyrant Alliance.
But if Heavenly Comrade Alliance were completely destroyed, the entire Kangho would plunge into unimaginable chaos.
Literally, the world would turn into a sea of fire.
"Impossible... Suddenly bringing in that much force is absolutely impossible. They would need at least another force on par with Ten Great Sects... But where would they get such a force?"
“Elder!”
Neung Sam, who had been muttering blankly, flinched and nodded.
"Tell those beggar bastards waiting across the river to cross it! We must search the area around Nanjing as thoroughly as if combing for lice! We must confirm if they've hidden any forces!"
"B- But, Elder! If we do that, the beggars will all die!"
"I know, so tell them to cross the river now! If it comes to it, we'll have to help them ourselves!"
"B- But Elder, you don't have the authority to..."
Neungsam turned a murderous glare on the disobedient man.
"Since when has Beggar Union waited for orders every time it acts righteously? Since when?"
“....”
"If they've set a trap, then Heavenly Comrade Alliance is finished! Not just Heavenly Comrade Alliance, but the entire martial world will burn! Don't you understand?"
At those enormously heavy words, even the hesitating subordinate finally nodded.
"...I understand."
“Hurry up, quickly!”
"Yes!"
Watching the beggar rush out, Neung Sam clenched his teeth so hard that the muscles in his jaw bulged.
'It's just an old man's worry. Practically impossible.'
It was impossible to amass such force in such a short time. And even if they had it, it would be even more impossible to hide it so thoroughly until now. Where in the world would someone with such patience exist?
Yet there was only one reason he couldn't push away the worry that was creeping up.
'If it's Paegun.'
One phrase from Bop Jeong's message kept echoing in his mind.
No one could do it.
But if it was Paegun, if it was that Paegun, couldn’t he?
Could he, who toys with the world, have predicted this entire situation and set a trap from which no one could escape?
“...Damn it.”
Neung Sam cursed under his breath and stared intently at Nanjing on the map.
If they finished their preparations quickly and blocked Heavenly Comrade Alliance’s path, Nanjing would be drenched in the blood of Heavenly Comrade Alliance’s disciples.
'Maengju-nim, please... please hurry. Please!'
❀ ❀ ❀
"Hurry!"
Hyunjong shouted until his throat was hoarse. At his command, Heavenly Comrade Alliance disciples gritted their teeth and ran harder.
They knew. No matter how fast they ran, they couldn’t avoid a confrontation with the enemy.
Gangnam, under Evil Tyrant Alliance’s control, wouldn’t just let trespassers who walked right in slip away so easily. There must certainly be those who have taken over the retreat route.
But even if confrontation couldn't be avoided, they could reduce the number of opponents. If only they could reach the river before Evil Tyrant Alliance fully assembled.
“Maengju-nim! Hainan Sect! Hainan Sect is falling behind!”
"Ugh!"
A suppressed groan burst from Hyun Jong's mouth.
He understood. They had already exceeded their limits. Unlike Heavenly Comrade Alliance, who had only recently crossed the Yangtze River, Hainan Sect had already fought their way through Gangnam. Just making it this far should be considered remarkable.
But understanding doesn't mean that all the frustration goes away.
“Those who still have strength, carry Hainan Sect’s disciples on your back, now!”
"Yes!"
Disciples of Mount Hua rushed to the rear. They practically collided with Hainan Sect disciples as they hoisted them onto their backs.
“I- I’m fine!”
The startled Hainan Sect disciples reflexively pushed against shoulders and resisted, but Mount Hua disciples held them even tighter.
"Damn it! This isn't the time for pride!"
"Ugh..."
Eventually, Hainan Sect disciples obediently allowed themselves to be carried. Indeed, this wasn’t the moment to worry about their pride. If they were surrounded by the enemy because of Hainan Sect’s slower pace, pride would be the least of their concerns.
“This way!”
“We’ll help too!”
"Make way, scrawny scholar! Carrying others is Beast Palace's specialty!"
Not just Mount Hua, but those with strength remaining from other sects also rushed in to carry Hainan Sect disciples.
Seeing this, Hyun Jong clenched his teeth and kicked the ground.
'Soon! It's almost here!'
Thankfully, the remnants of Myriad Man Manor trailing them hadn’t caught up. If things continue this way, they could reach the Yangtze without a major confrontation.
"Squeeze out your last strength!"
Baek Cheon, riding on the back of Hyun Jong who was encouraging his disciples, raised his hand and weakly covered his mouth from which coughs were escaping.
"Cough, cough."
The black blood that flowed out with the cough soaked his hand. His vision blurred momentarily as he glanced at it, then silently clenched his fist and tucked it away in his sleeve.
"Are you alright?"
Baek Cheon nodded his head as if everything was fine in response to Hyun Jong's question.
“...I’m fine.”
"Bear with it a little longer. The Yangtze is just ahead!"
“...Yes.”
A bitter smile formed on Baek Cheon’s lips. Though Hyun Jong continued to push true energy into him, his body was like a broken vessel, simply letting the qi flow through.
'The others...'
Baek Cheon turned his head to check on his sahyungs.
Given their condition, they should have already lost consciousness, but they were desperately clinging to their senses.
They too knew their fate would soon be decided.
Wasn't there a saying, ‘Do your utmost and leave the rest to heaven’?
They had done everything they could. No, they had even done what they couldn't. So now there was nothing to do but leave it to heaven.
If heaven did not abandon them, if it understood their efforts even a little, it would have prepared some path of survival.
Otherwise it would be too cruel.
"Maengju-nim, we're almost there! Just pass this hill, and the Jang River will be in sight!"
Tang Gun-ak's shout turned everyone's gaze forward. A long uphill road stretched ahead. They would reach the Yangtze once they passed that road.
Then finally this grueling journey would end.
'Please!'
Baek Cheon bit his lips tightly.
He didn’t ask for much. Wishing for no enemies to block their path was too absurd.
He only wished for one!
May there wouldn’t be too many enemies. May there be just enough enemies to open the way by sacrificing just this one life.
"Push forward!"
Hyun Jong urged the disciples as he ran ahead.
The densely stretching forests blurred as they passed by. Th The end of the high hill approached instantly.
'Please!'
Had he ever wished for something so desperately? Had he ever been in such dire need?
'Yuanshi Tianzun!'
Hyun Jong prayed and prayed again.
If Yuanshi Tianzun is truly watching over them, if He who had turned away from Mount Hua Sect to the point of resentment truly exists, just for this moment, may He protect them. May He at least not ignore this desperate plea.
If He demands a price in the name of cause and effect, let Him be satisfied with just this aged life.
“Maengju-nim!”
Hyun Jong kicked the ground with all his might.
Hyun Jong, who had risen to the top of a not-so-high hill where the earth and sky met, looked out at the sight that had finally unfolded.
The first thing that entered his vision was an extremely wide river, so vast it should rightly be called a sea.
His gaze slowly shifted downward.
The vast land leading to the Yangtze River was... dyed black and red.
At this moment, what could that mean?
Hyun Jong's legs buckled and he staggered under despair.
"Ah... Aah..."
Every inch of land in sight was filled with people. The path to the Yangtze River was densely packed with people.
It was despair—bearing the name of ‘enemy’.
|Note
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