Chapter 147 - The Ones Wearing Black Masks (6)

To Seong Moran, Jin Sowoon was an uncomfortable presence.

Setting aside matters between their sects, even from a person-to-person perspective, he was not someone she felt entirely at ease with.

A man who would risk his life for others at any given moment. A man who acted as if it were only natural, even if the person he was helping had once been his enemy.

Because of that, Seong Moran always harbored dissatisfaction toward his actions, yet she could not push him away or leave his side.

Perhaps she continued calling him by an alias he didn't quite like because she hoped, even if just a little, that he would become more selfish.

'In the end, it turned out like this.'

Had she not agreed with his intentions in the first place, they wouldn't have been facing this worst-case scenario right now.

"To dare come here without knowing your place..."

An unpleasant voice lowered itself like a growling tiger.

Even though the weather had become quite warm, steam billowed from his entire body. It likely meant he had just expelled all the alcohol he had consumed and fully prepared for combat.

Flying Cloud Divine Wind, Jong Byeokgi.

The storm-bringer who had proudly claimed a spot in the Dragon-Phoenix Summit during the term of Yong So-ah, which was called the strongest generation.

A being who would have easily been chosen as the ascending star to lead the next generation if it weren't for Yong So-ah and Ilmyeong was now exuding intense killing intent.

"Who are you? Reveal your identities."

Qi gathered on Jong Byeokgi's sword.

Seong Moran, repulsed by the sharp killing intent she felt from him, spoke to Jin Sowoon.

-Young Master Jin. What do we do now?

Jong Byeokgi's arrival meant that the warriors of the Mount Cangshan Sect had also almost arrived.

Moreover, it was certain that they would go through fire and water to hide their ugly side.

-He has revealed himself like this, so we should actually be glad.

Seong Moran bit her lip tightly and said.

-As expected, tagging along with the Underworld's Divine Star means frequent fights with the Orthodox sects.

Seong Moran adjusted her grip on her sword.

She didn't want to remain someone who only leaned on him. She wanted to become someone he could lean on. No, at the very least, she wanted to be someone who believed in him.

She didn't know why such a thought occurred to her. It was simply the direction her heart was pointing.

-They will be desperate.

-I know. And the sword of the Iron Sword Sect does not break so easily.

-Understood. Then let's settle this as quickly as possible.

-Are you seriously planning to go head-to-head with Senior Jong Byeokgi?

The Dragon-Phoenix Summit of the Murim Academy's previous term was truly a war of the stars.

The mere existence of Yong So-ah and Ilmyeong had raised the standard of evaluation extremely high, and as a result, the current Dragon-Phoenix Summit was filled with experts more than ever before.

Jong Byeokgi was an expert chosen among them as the figure who would lead the Mount Cangshan Sect in the future.

He was a rising talent evaluated to have a different class of talent.

-Why would I do that? I'm just trying to buy time.

Contrary to his words, a faint killing intent swirled within Jin Sowoon's two eyes visible behind his mask.

She hadn't even seen that kind of gaze during the Murim Academy's standard exam. What exactly was going on?

-Anyway, let's not get killed or hurt. How embarrassing would it be to get hurt while helping others?

Seong Moran gave him a needless scolding, hiding her feelings of concern as much as possible. Speaking like this was the most "her" way of doing things.

-I'd like to say the same to you. Please be as careful as possible if you don't want to get scolded by Lady Namgung Seonhwa.

-You're so funny, really.

With those final words, the two of them split to either side.

"You damn bastards dare..."

The sword of Flying Cloud Divine Wind, Jong Byeokgi, swung like lightning and unleashed a volley of Sword Qi.

Sun-Shooting Sword Technique, Fast Sword Form.

The volley of Sword Qi, so fast it was hard to confirm with the naked eye, shot toward Jin Sowoon.

Jin Sowoon continued to run forward without slowing down in the slightest.

And the moment he offered his body to the Sword Qi.

"Hup!"

Jin Sowoon's figure shattered and disappeared like an illusion, and the Sword Qi merely advanced toward empty space.

The moment Jong Byeokgi, his eyes wide at the sight, turned his head at a strange feeling, Jin Sowoon, who had vanished before his eyes, was about to split Jong Byeokgi's head open like a falling thunderbolt.

"Crazy..."

CLANG!

Amidst the clash of sword and sword, a massive impact sound seemed to ring through the space.

Jong Byeokgi, forced back five steps, retched and vomited up all the food and alcohol he had consumed overnight.

And Jin Sowoon immediately thrust directly at that Jong Byeokgi's neck.

"You bastard... How dare you..."

Jong Byeokgi, thinking the opponent's sword was heavier than expected, brought out the Fire Dragon Sword Technique.

The moment Jin Sowoon's sword and Jong Byeokgi's sword clashed, the sound of twisting iron echoed throughout the venue.

SCREECH—

The people of the Yuwol Sect tried covering their ears at the sound piercing their eardrums, but the agonizing noise continued incessantly while the two exchanged sword strikes.

If there was a silver lining, it was that Jong Byeokgi had now come to his senses and was pushing the masked man back.

The warriors of the Yuwol Sect rejoiced, but only for a moment.

The masked man's sword, which had been retreating against the Fire Dragon Sword Technique, began to create that very phantom sword.

"Please be careful! He uses a phantom sword!"

As a warrior of the Yuwol Sect warned him about the sword technique that had already killed numerous comrades, Jong Byeokgi's mouth dropped wide open in shock.

"A p-phantom sword?"

Did some bad memory come to mind?

At the same time, dozens of phantom swords erupted from the masked man.

"... Don't tell me— fuck—!"

Jong Byeokgi soon gritted his teeth and scattered Sword Qi wildly.

Along with a massive vortex, the Mount Cangshan Sect's supreme art, the Returning Wind Unceasing Sword, was unleashed.

C-R-A-A-A-S-H!

The storm that met the dozens of phantom swords expanded massively in size, swallowing both the phantom swords and the real sword hidden within them.

WHOOSH.

The place where the storm had swept through was left desolate, with even the weeds that had grown wildly on the ground completely removed.

However, the figure of the masked man did not exist within it.

"Jin Sowoon..."

At the name Jong Byeokgi spat out through gritted teeth, the masked man's figure fluttered down and landed within the remnants of the Returning Wind Unceasing Sword.

"Have you gone mad? Or has the power of the Taiyi Sect become so great that you can afford to make the Mount Cangshan Sect your enemy?"

Jong Byeokgi spoke as if he were certain it was Jin Sowoon, but the masked man offered no reply.

Jong Byeokgi suddenly yelled out as if frustrated.

"Answer me! Jin Sowoon! Are you going to hide and pretend it isn't you now!"

Without answering, the masked man simply stepped into that damn footwork once again.

Jong Byeokgi gritted his teeth and raised his sword.

He had driven out all the intoxication by circulating his qi, but the hangover lingering in his body clouded his mind.

In this state, he could not distinguish between illusion (幻) and reality (眞).

'If so, it's a head-on confrontation.'

He had already realized during the Dragon-Phoenix Summit event that the Sun-Shooting Sword Technique did not work against him. Jong Byeokgi was not foolish enough to tread the same path.

He unleashed the Sudden Wind Fast Sword, created by extracting only the overbearing advantages of the Returning Wind Unceasing Sword.

SWOOSH—

The moment the Sword Qi fired along with the fierce wind was about to swallow Jin Sowoon.

Jin Sowoon, who had vanished leaving behind an illusion just like before, appeared to Jong Byeokgi's right.

"How long do you plan to use the exact same trick!"

Jong Byeokgi once again changed the direction of his sword and struck down with the Falling Blossoms Flying Flowers Sword.

The Sword Qi, slicing even through space like the shadows of falling blossoms, blocked all of Jin Sowoon's escape routes.

They were supreme techniques that, if even one landed, would cost a hand or a foot.

Jin Sowoon, having raised his sword, slowly twirled it in a circle.

Jin Sowoon bloomed a phantom sword, even knowing it shouldn't work.

Jong Byeokgi's triumphant eyes, confident in his victory, gradually began to widen.

"Wh-what!"

Sword Qi began to gather one by one on the numerous phantom swords embroidering the empty space.

It was a given that Sword Qi could not be imbued into phantom swords.

The phantom swords clad in Sword Qi cut off the starting point of the Falling Blossoms Flying Flowers Sword and blocked the Sword Qi.

CRASH, CRASH, CRASH, CRASH, CRASH, CRASH.

Every time the sound of impact erupted, the blossoms vanished.

Jin Sowoon pierced through all of the Falling Blossoms Flying Flowers Sword and approached Jong Byeokgi.

Jong Byeokgi quickly thrust forward with the Sun-Shooting Sword Technique's Hou Yi's Full Bow Martial Move.

SWISH.

BOOM.

Jong Byeokgi, who had flown in like lightning, was knocked away like an arrow.

THUD.

COUGH.

Just as Jong Byeokgi, with red blood streaming down his mouth, jumped to his feet to continue the fight again.

SLASH.

Jin Sowoon, appearing from behind Jong Byeokgi, severed the tendons in his heels.

"Urk! Uargh!"

Jong Byeokgi slumped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

The warriors of the Yuwol Sect couldn't hide their shock at the sight.

"Young Master Jong! Young Master Jong!"

They had no idea what would happen if Jong Byeokgi, the ascending star of the Mount Cangshan Sect, died here right now.

If it only ended with their misdeeds being exposed, they would at least be able to receive the protection of the Mount Cangshan Sect, even if they were cursed at.

But if Jong Byeokgi died, they couldn't predict what that Mount Cangshan Sect would do to them.

"Protect Young Master Jong! Hurry!"

The warriors of the Yuwol Sect threw their lives away like mere straw as they began to rush at Jin Sowoon.

However, The Geum-eun-dong Brothers did not just stand by and watch.

"Why are you making a fuss and interfering in the boss fight!"

Geumpyo stepped forward and blocked the warriors of the Yuwol Sect.

Eunho and Dongryong also unleashed Ten Thousand Swords and thoroughly held them off.

The warriors of the Yuwol Sect did not dare to break through The Geum-eun-dong Brothers and dig their way inside.

Jin Sowoon leisurely approached the screaming Jong Byeokgi.

"Now I am finally making you pay the price for insulting my sect."

"You... Even after doing this..."

Watching Jong Byeokgi grind his teeth desperately, Jin Sowoon switched his grip on his sword.

And then he struck his Dantian hard enough to pierce through his body.

THUD.

Along with the bizarre sound of something shattering that was hard to believe came from a human body, Jong Byeokgi let out a grotesque scream.

"G-G-U-A-R-G-H—!"

Jong Byeokgi spewed out a mouthful of black blood heavily mixed with bits of flesh.

Before he could even check what he had vomited, his eyes rolled back as he collapsed backward.

"Crazy..."

"... Did Flying Cloud Divine Wind just lose?"

"What are you doing! Kill that bastard right now!"

At that moment, with a loud roar, the large main gate was blown away like a twig.

C-R-A-A-S-H!!

"..."

Those who had barged in after smashing the main gate were uniformly Mount Cangshan Sect warriors with fierce momentums.

And behind them, Yuwol Sect warriors swarmed in as if chasing them.

Among the nearly one hundred Mount Cangshan Sect experts, a middle-aged man who appeared to be the leader of the group looked at Jong Byeokgi once and then raised his head to look at Jin Sowoon.

"... Who the hell are you?"

At his terse demand, a Muwol Squad member pointed his finger at Jin Sowoon.

"Y-Young Master Jong... called him J-Jin Sowoon."

"Jin Sowoon?"

The middle-aged man stared at Jin Sowoon with chilly eyes.

"Are you Jin Sowoon of the Taiyi Sect?"

"..."

"You must have known that we are the Mount Cangshan Sect, and that boy is the Mount Cangshan Sect's Jong Byeokgi, right?"

"... I know."

"Hah, you know? Then can you explain why you committed such an act?"

"Jong Byeokgi was involved in the kidnapping cases occurring in Yueyang. Did the Mount Cangshan Sect happen to know as well?"

"..."

The middle-aged man's face hardened stiffly. However, it quickly changed back into an enraged face.

"What nonsense are you talking about! Kidnappings!"

"Hehe... I knew you would feign ignorance like that. That's why I took action. Because at the very least, you all need to pay the price too."

"You're a madman... We can find out what you were thinking when you committed this act back at the main mountain. Furthermore, your sect will no longer exist in Jianghu, so don't even think about leaning on anyone else."

As the middle-aged man turned around while spewing killing intent, the Mount Cangshan Sect's warriors began to deploy the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array.

A rare lethal sword array that dictated whoever entered could not leave until they became a ghost.

Seong Moran, watching this process with bated breath, did not know what to do.

She could only gaze at that foolishly upright man who did not hesitate to choose to walk into death himself to save others.

Just then, Jin Sowoon's voice reached her ears.

-Lady Seong, you must absolutely not step outside the sword array.

-Pardon?

Before Seong Moran could respond, Jin Sowoon shouted.

"Geum-eun-dong!"

"""Yes!"""

The Geum-eun-dong Brothers simultaneously took positions around Seong Moran.

It was the White Tiger Lethal Sword Array, familiar even to Seong Moran's eyes.

"Eunho, you take charge. I will fill Saryeon's spot."

"Understood."

"Go with Ten Thousand Illusions from the start. We will be at a disadvantage if we drag out the time."

"Yes!"

Seong Moran could not gather her senses.

In the meantime, the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array began to operate.

Fifty swords were drawn simultaneously and thrust at the eight directions of the Taiyi Sect party.

Four swords appeared around the Taiyi Sect party and began to stir the space on their own as if dancing.

SHING, SHING, SHING, SHING.

CRASH.

Then, dozens of phantom swords manifested from the four swords dazzled the eyes of the warriors casting the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array.

"Ignore them! They're just phantom swords."

With their courage magnified by the middle-aged man's shout, the Mount Cangshan Sect members ignored the phantom swords and began to thrust their swords in.

However—

S-W-I-S-H.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG.

Amidst the clashes with phantom swords where no sound should have been heard, the sounds of friction rang out and screams erupted from everywhere.

"Urgh!"

"Aargh—"

"Gah!"

Five swordsmen of the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array suffered injuries, and the sword array momentarily faltered.

Other Mount Cangshan Sect swordsmen on standby in the back tried to fill that space, but Jin Sowoon dug into that short instant.

"Where do you think you're going!"

The moment Jin Sowoon squeezed into the gap in the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array, the Cold Flame Palm wildly blasted out from the hands of the middle-aged man, whose eyes were ablaze.

B-A-N-G, B-A-N-G, B-A-N-G.

The ground was flipped over, and weeds scattered into the air.

Evading the Cold Flame Palm, Jin Sowoon returned to the White Tiger Lethal Sword Array once again.

As if determined not to lose Jin Sowoon any longer, the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array spread out widely in an instant and embraced all the members of the Taiyi Sect.

The Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array perfectly surrounded the White Tiger Lethal Sword Array.

It was a sword array originally created to deal with a single absolute expert.

Even for the Top Hundred Experts of the World, there was no way to completely escape it.

"Star Illusion!"

Simultaneous with Eunho's shout, the Twin Heaven Sword Art that extended from the four people's hands shot out in all directions.

"Keuk!"

"Keheuk!"

Even as the warriors forming the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array fell one by one, the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array itself did not collapse.

"Fill the empty spaces!"

At the middle-aged man's words, the waiting Mount Cangshan Sect warriors shot forward like arrows to fill the empty spaces.

They continuously pressed forward, as if determined to fight to the bitter end.

"You seem to possess a modicum of skill, but let's see if you can truly escape the grasp of the Mount Cangshan Sect."

The Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array, which had spread out widely, gradually began to tighten.

The damage continued to occur only on the side of the Mount Cangshan Sect, but equivalent to that damage, the Light-Splitting Five Ghosts Sword Array constricted the White Tiger Lethal Sword Array.

In the end, the hems of the Taiyi Sect people's clothing began to be cut away one by one.

Even so, no one broke away from the sword array.

Even in a critical situation where her life was hanging by a thread, Seong Moran kept her eyes wide open.

Because she had decided to believe in them, to believe in him.

And at that moment.

"Halt!!!"

Along with a voice that rang resoundingly throughout the entire manor, nearly two hundred warriors appeared on the walls of the manor.