Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1695
Editor: Hoamz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Udeudeuk.
The sound of the Thousand-Faced Gentleman grinding his teeth seeped out eerily.
He had to escape this place immediately.
There were countless Evil Tyrant Alliance martial artists on this cliff now, too many to even count. Among them were a considerable number of Hao Sect members he brought with him.
However, what was more important than anything to Thousand-Faced Gentleman right now was his own life. Anyway, sect members or such could be gathered again plenty with just time.
Yet, Thousand-Faced Gentleman still couldn't move a single step. Because every time he tried to step forward, chilling killing intent stabbed his entire body. As if warning him.
Thousand-Faced Gentleman glared at the man standing before him. No, at the dagger in his hand.
That tiny dagger, something that would better suit a woman’s ornament, was binding him in place so that he could not even twitch.
“You bastard….”
He was none other than Thousand-Faced Gentleman. He wasn't someone to fear a toy-like small dagger like that.
But if the person holding that dagger was the Poison King Tang Gun-ak, the story changes. Even if one searched the entire world, there would likely be no one who could ignore a dagger held in that man's hand.
“What are you trying to do?”
Thousand-Faced Gentleman demanded angrily.
Then, Tang Gun-ak smiled so softly it seemed unfitting for the situation.
"It seems I cannot trust you."
“…”
“Since I cannot be certain whether you will truly flee or pull some trick, I have no choice but to keep you tied down here.”
Udeudeuk.
Thousand-Faced Gentleman gnashed his teeth.
"My life is at stake!"
"I know. That's precisely why I cannot let you go. Since your life is at stake, who knows what you might do?"
“….”
“Someone once said that eliminating variables is the best course.”
"Until those bastards escape?"
“That’s right.”
“Then you’ll die too?”
"Do I look like someone who fears death?"
“You may not fear death. But isn’t a dog’s death something anyone would fear?”
“We think differently. I don’t think it’s a dog’s death.”
Tang Gun-ak answered calmly. His gaze was like a deep lake without a single ripple.
“Securing Mount Hua’s safety is a task worth staking my life on.”
Thousand-Faced Gentleman’s face distorted horribly. Because he intuitively realized that those words weren’t mere bluff.
"There's no guarantee that holding me here will open their path of survival. At best, it merely creates a faint sliver of possibility. And you're willing to stake your precious life on something like that? Of all people, the world-renowned Poison King Tang Gun-ak?"
"Faint sliver of possibility..."
Tang Gun-ak glanced around. The sight of Mount Hua trying to rescue Wudang was visible. Even in this situation, they're carrying survivors on their backs.
“That’s enough.”
"...You're insane."
"Perhaps."
What would his past self have said? No need to think long. He would have said exactly what Thousand-Faced Gentleman was saying now. That it was foolish.
But not the current Tang Gun-ak.
Not because he thought it wasn’t foolish. He had simply become someone who could act even while knowing it was foolish.
Tang Gun-ak unconsciously smiled slightly.
“The price of choosing the wrong friends, I suppose.”
“…What kind of bullshit are you spouting. Move aside at once…”
Paaaaat!
A dagger shot out like lightning, grazing right past Thousand-Faced Gentleman's face.
Thousand-Faced Gentleman's eyes widened. The dagger spun through the air and returned to Tang Gun-ak’s hand.
The number of flying daggers held in his hand had increased to two before he knew it.
“I believe I told you not to move?”
"Ugh…."
“There will be no warnings from now on, Thousand-Faced Gentleman.”
Purudeudeuk.
Thousand-Faced Gentleman’s face twisted like that of a demon, all dignity be damned.
"I clearly... understand."
Thousand-Faced Gentleman’s drooping hands began dyeing whiter and paler.
"Killing you is the fastest way out of here."
“If you can, that would be so. But will you be able to?”
“You bastaaaaaard!”
With an explosive burst, Thousand-Faced Gentleman’s body momentarily split into dozens. Those numerous Thousand-Faced Gentleman rushed toward Tang Gun-ak in unison.
Kwagak!
Thousand-Faced Gentleman collided roughly with the small blades held in Tang Gun-ak's hands.
Even in this urgent situation, Tang Gun-ak’s gaze turned briefly toward Mount Hua.
Baek Cheon commanding Mount Hua while carrying Mu Jin and the others assisting him.
How strange.
Though Chung Myung wasn't there, they were acting as if Chung Myung were present. Nothing has changed. Even in this critical situation.
'It's merely one step.'
Chivalrousness wasn’t something grand.
Not turning away from those who fell even while one's own life was threatened. The will to endure a brief crisis, a small loss. The courage to take just one step for the fallen was precisely what Chivalrousness is.
Tang Gun-ak took a step that felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.
Paaaaat!
Soon, his dagger sliced through the air as sharply as it had a hundred years ago.
* * *
“Hurry!”
"Yes."
Kwagak!
A Sun Palace warrior who embedded his hand into the cliff gritted his teeth and pulled his body up.
Glancing down, it was hard to describe even with the word dizzying. Though their Linyi also overflows with high mountains, such cliffs weren't common.
And actually, Southern Sea Sun Palace was located in a vast plain far from the mountains. It was rather strange that the sects here had made their homes on high mountains that people rarely visited.
It wasn't that the Southern Sun Palace was peculiar. In the first place, it was a sect composed of royalty. For such a place to settle on a remote mountain doesn't make sense. As a result, palace members escorting royalty also rarely had occasion to set foot on such rugged mountains.
"Uh!"
Pasak!
The protruding stone he gripped crumbled helplessly. The swaying, shaken warrior panicked, frantically feeling the cliff to barely find another hold. A small crevice where he could barely hook a single finger joint. He was relying on that crevice for his entire body weight. The warrior’s entire face was drenched in cold sweat.
Martial arts merely make unfamiliar tasks relatively easier, they don't make one skilled.
Advancing while hanging onto this high cliff was a grueling task even for them, seasoned martial artists. Especially in a situation where they carried explosives in their chests that could detonate at any moment.
'Why something like this...'
The warrior bit his lower lip hard.
No. He must not harbor doubts. The palace master's orders were absolute. The palace master's command was the king's command. If disobeyed, not only his life but his family and relatives' lives must be forfeited.
Even if ordered to offer his neck immediately, doing so with a joyful heart was the proper attitude a Sun Palace warrior serving the palace master must hold.
“Hurry!”
"Ugh!"
The Sun Palace warrior reached out once more and fumbled along the cliff face. Finding nothing to grasp, he forced internal strength into his fingers and drove his hand into the rock.
"Done!"
“Begin!”
"Yes!"
Kwagagagak!
Upon reaching the pre-agreed position, they all simultaneously pressed their bodies to the cliff and began piercing the cliff with one hand.
Kwaang! Kwaang!
The sound of shattering rock rang out across the cliff.
“Dig deep! Blowing it from the outside won’t bring it down in one go. Dig deep and plant the explosives inside!”
"Yes!"
While answering loudly, the Sun Palace warrior unconsciously bit his lips tightly again.
They were hanging on a cliff where a single slip would send them plunging hundreds of zhang down, without even a rope to entrust their bodies to. In such a state, punching through solid rock was no easy task. Something one wouldn't even attempt unless out of their mind.
But having received orders, his body faithfully followed. Even if the result be his death.
Kwang! Kwang!
Fists fully loaded with Scorching Yang Energy consecutively struck down the cliff. Countless stone fragments flew up and struck his face. Perhaps because it was a desperate situation with life on the line, a deep hole was quickly created in the smooth cliff.
Lifting his head slightly, he saw Evil Tyrant Alliance martial artists struggling to finish climbing the cliff even in the midst of this.
A sudden doubt arose. Which side was more foolish?
Himself, striving to obey an order that might take his life, or those foolish ants scrambling up the cliff without even knowing what fate awaits them.
Which of the two was more foolish?
But the answer to the question came from an unexpected place.
“Below! Someone is approaching from below!”
“What? Below?”
Those who were digging into the cliff all looked down in surprise.
And they saw it.
From below. On the incredibly steep cliff that was practically an overhang, something pure white was climbing up.
'What’s that?'
The Sun Palace warriors' eyes widened. Climbing here? Now?
'Shouldn't they know?'
An explosion already occurred once. Those above who hadn't seen the spectacle firsthand might take time to grasp the situation, but those below the cliff were different.
Knowing full well what the situation was, they were climbing this cliff that was no different from the entrance to the underworld? Were they out of their minds?
“That fool!”
"H- He's fast! He'll reach us soon!"
"Bi Gyeong (비경(費煚))! Gu Gye (구계(歐季))! Lead your men and stop that bastard!”
"Yes!"
Several among those hanging on the cliff shot toward the one rising from below.
Papapapat!
Bright red energy surged like lava from their bodies as they kicked off the cliff and descended. The fiercely driven Scorching Yang Internal Art took form and whirled around their bodies.
Just seeing the hot energy wave seeming to melt the cliff, one could know how well-trained martial artists they were.
'To think someone would do something so reckless.'
It seemed Jungwon people were all out of their minds. Climbing a cliff instead of fleeing in this situation was madness enough, but the fact that he was alone made it even more absurd.
What on earth can one person do alone?
“The rest of you, pay no mind and focus on piercing the cliff. We must not delay any longer!”
"Yes!"
The moment the Sun Palace warrior, who had been distracted for a brief second, quickly answered and was about to pick up the pace.
Wuuuuuuung!
A bizarre sound rose from below.
It sounded like something massive vibrating, or perhaps thousands of bees flapping their wings at once.
Drawn by the noise grabbing their ears, the Sun Palace warriors eventually looked down again. And for a moment, they were entranced.
A pure white sun, bright enough to put the name of the Southern Sea Sun Palace to shame, was illuminating the dark cliff like a lie.
'What...?'
Kwaaaaaaaaaang!
The white energy exploded all at once. The Sun Palace warriors who had gone out to block the enemy were literally turned into bloody pulp and sent flying in all directions.
"…Huh?"
The dead eyes of a man, flung back up several times faster than the speed at which he had shot down, met the eyes of the one hanging on the cliff.
The already lifeless corpse rose as if bidding farewell then began falling again below the dizzying cliff.
Goosebumps raced down everyone's spines at the unbelievable sight. Shortly after, everyone looked at the one who emitted this absurd sword energy.
"Ooooooh!"
He surged while letting out a tiger-like roar holding a shining white sword. At his terrifying momentum, the Sun Palace warriors' bodies froze.
They didn't know why.
Why did the momentum of this man, whom they were seeing for the first time, dare to make them shrink? They, who have served and obeyed only the great ones?
Wooooooong!
The man’s sword shone white again.
It was like the sun. Its light instantly illuminated the world shrouded in darkness.
'Em... peror...?'
The man’s sword, laden with full power, forcefully cut through the air.
Kwaaaaa!
The emperor’s white sword energy surged like a raging wave toward those clinging to the cliff.
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