novelsmap Chapter 171 : Chapter 171
Chapter 171 : Chapter 171
Chapter 171 The Chase (4)
From a dizzying cliff, Jaun's sword fell at an incredible speed and split the body of Nine Springs Demonic Saber in half.
─ SHIIIIING
As the body of Nine Springs Demonic Saber split left and right, spouting a fountain of blood in all directions, the demons' faces filled with astonishment.
"Wh-what just happened?"
"The, the Commander..."
─ CRASH
The demons, who had confirmed the fall of Nine Springs Demonic Saber, did not know what to do and began to step back.
"E-eeek!"
The moment Nine Springs Demonic Saber collapsed, the remaining men in bamboo hats rushed toward Jaun all at once.
"Die!"
For the first time, the mouths of the men in bamboo hats opened. Jaun's sword swung indifferently toward the demons who were flying through the air, filling the space.
─ SLICE
A single slash.
With one swing, all the demons who had flown in spouted fountains of blood and fell to the ground.
"Ugh, ugh..."
A heavy silence descended in an instant.
The demons, overwhelmed by Jaun's divine presence, began to step back without even realizing it.
Jaun glanced around at the retreating demons and then flicked the blood from his sword onto the ground. Turning around, Jaun confirmed that Pan Bing-yeong, Yu Ha-rin, and Jin Cheol-myeong were all safe without major injuries and let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew. Thankfully, I wasn't too late."
"Ah..."
As she confirmed Jaun's appearance, the strength drained from Pan Bing-yeong's body.
Struggling to support herself, Pan Bing-yeong approached Jaun's side and looked him straight in the eyes. After staring into Jaun's eyes for a long while, she tightly gripped his sleeve.
"...From now on, we must go together, no matter what. I'm worried, of course, but more than that, I can't bear this... taking on everything by myself and confronting the demons. If you just tell me to fight and die in a corner, I'll do it, so please don't ask me to do something like this again."
"Come on. Seeing the energy you just emitted, it looks like you've overcome another wall. Now, even if dozens of ordinary demons gather, they won't be able to touch a single hair on your head, so what's the burden?"
"It's just that the responsibility of a situation like this is too difficult. The idea that if I make a mistake, everyone will be in danger... I won't do it again."
As Pan Bing-yeong shook her head while wiping the sweat from her forehead, Jaun gently patted her shoulder.
"I understand. I'm sorry. Still, you did well. If you hadn't stopped the demons here, the members of the Tang Clan would have been in great danger."
"Really? ...Did I do well?"
"Of course. Thanks to you, you prevented the Tang Clan from being annihilated. You did very well."
Slightly blushing at Jaun's praise, Pan Bing-yeong cleared her throat with an "ahem, ahem."
Soon after, the Poison King, Tang Il-bi, and Chu Myeong-hwa descended by stepping down the cliff in succession behind Jaun.
The three, who had slowly followed Jaun while replenishing their excessively depleted internal energy, looked around.
Chu Myeong-hwa, who grasped the situation at once with just a single glance, nodded and turned her head toward Pan Bing-yeong and the two from the Five Evils.
"...Pan Bing-yeong's growth rate is unbelievable, but you two have also grown at a tremendous speed."
At Chu Myeong-hwa's words, Yu Ha-rin and Jin Cheol-myeong, not knowing what to do, bowed their heads deeply. Chu Myeong-hwa patted their shoulders once and turned her body toward where the demons were.
As the entire party gathered in one place, a tremendous aura began to flow out. Though less than ten people were standing there, the demons felt as if they were facing an impregnable fortress.
"Eek!"
Baek-sa gripped his whip tightly and tried to step forward, but Chwi-yo's hand immediately blocked his path.
"Chwi-yo...!"
"...You saw it too. Lord Nine Springs Demonic Saber and his personal guards couldn't last a single exchange. If we step forward now, we'll only die a dog's death."
"B-but we can't just retreat like this...!"
"Endure it. Next time, an opportunity will surely come. Now... is not the time."
The strength in Baek-sa's hand, which was gripping the whip tightly as he looked at Chwi-yo, gradually loosened.
The demons, overwhelmed by their aura, were completely frozen and did not even dare to think of attacking, merely hesitating in their spots.
Confirming that the demons were not moving, Jaun closed his eyes and began to broaden his senses to assess the surrounding situation.
"The Tang Clan members have moved to a relatively safe distance, so let's rejoin the main unit. These here aren't the end. There are still remaining demons constantly climbing up here. If I had my way, I'd like to annihilate them all here, but... the level of the demons following behind is not to be trifled with."
"Yes. I feel it too. Countless demons are approaching this way. I can already feel my body tingling. In our current state with much of our energy depleted, it's a burdensome number to face."
At Chu Myeong-hwa's words, Jaun turned his head and briefly looked at the demons who were watching them from a certain distance.
"It's a shame, but let's retreat for now."
At Jaun's words, the party nodded and slowly began to fall back.
The demons, who confirmed that the party was leaving the passage one by one, began to close the distance, thinking that the number of masters they were facing had decreased.
Jaun, who was moving at the very rear, felt the demons approaching and turned his head to look at them.
"...If you're so eager to die."
Confirming the demons who had closed the distance, Jaun gave a cold smile and took a deep breath.
─ WHOOOOSH
A huge wave of demonic energy began to pour out of Jaun's body.
As Jaun raised his momentum, the demons who had been following his party with tense expressions all drew their weapons at once.
─ SHIING
As the demons raised their weapons with hardened expressions, Jaun's sword was drawn from his waist.
─ KIIIIING
The sword, filled with Jaun's energy, let out a faint cry. Jaun, who had confirmed that all his companions had safely exited the passage, lowered his body with a stiff expression.
"I'll give you what you want."
Jaun's sword momentarily drew a large semi-circle.
─ SLICE
The demonic energy shot out from Jaun's sword and flashed brightly. The moment Jaun's energy swept past, a thin line was drawn across the waists of dozens of demons who were looking this way.
─ SPURT!
The demons, who hadn't even properly grasped the situation, had fountains of blood erupt from their waists. Their bodies, which were looking down at the blood pouring from them with bewildered expressions, split in half and collapsed to the ground.
─ CRASH
"HIIK!"
The demons who confirmed that the bodies of those in front had been split in half and had fallen, backed away again with pale faces.
Jaun, who had been glaring at them, soon turned his gaze toward the cliff. Then, after confirming the steep cliffs rising on both sides, he drew his sword and swung it toward them.
The massive energy extending from Jaun's sword swept past both cliffs.
─ RUMBLE
─ CRASH!
The diagonally cut edges of the cliffs slid down and poured into the passage.
Jaun, who was glaring at the demons with sharp eyes from beyond the thick dust cloud, turned his body and began to run.
The demons could only stare with their mouths agape at the collapsing cliff.
***
"...What happened here?"
The old man, who arrived late at the blocked passage, looked around.
At the words of the old man, who exuded an aura like a great mountain despite his small frame, the surrounding demons trembled.
"Lo-Lord Fist Demon..."
The Fist Demon's eyes scanned the surrounding terrain after glancing at the demons who were prostrated on the ground, trembling.
On the left, rocks that had melted from the heat or were blackened lay scattered about, and on the right, pillars of ice that still radiated a cool energy were dripping water.
'Users of the Extreme Yang's Fiery Yang Art and the Extreme Yin's Ice Arts?'
The Fist Demon's eyes, which had been frowning as he examined the traces one by one, soon came to a stop at the corpse of Nine Springs Demonic Saber.
'And on top of that... a master who has reached the pinnacle of the sword.'
Walking toward the corpse of Nine Springs Demonic Saber and carefully examining the cut surface, the Fist Demon clenched his teeth.
'There was no mention of such individuals in the mission report. That old fool, Demonic Brain... he's completely lost his touch, cooped up in his room.'
Frowning, the Fist Demon stood up and turned his head to look at the debris of the collapsed cliff.
The passage was clearly blocked, but it was not impossible to cross.
'They wouldn't have given up the chase because of an obstacle like this.'
As the Fist Demon raised his head, he saw the edge of the cliff, which was cut as smoothly as a mirror and reflecting light.
'...Did they lose their will to fight?'
The glittering cut surface of the cliff looked like a silent warning. It was certainly a divine presence that could make one's body stiffen.
But for those who had taken the first step to conquer the Central Plains under the command of Lord Blood Demon, it made no sense for them to become so powerless just because they had lost their fighting spirit.
"Who is the commander here now?"
At the Fist Demon's words, Chwi-yo and Baek-sa, who had been hesitating in the back, took a step forward.
"We g-greet Lord Fist Demon. We are Chwi-yo and Baek-sa. Since Lord Nine Springs Demonic Saber has fallen... w-we are the commanders here, but..."
The Fist Demon, who glanced at the trembling Chwi-yo, snorted as if he found it absurd.
"Are you the rising stars that Somajeon sent?"
"Yes... I am Squad 10 Leader Chwi-yo, assigned to the Sichuan region."
"I-I am Squad 3 Leader Baek-sa."
The Fist Demon frowned and let out a small sigh.
"The Master of Somajeon must have lost his touch too. To present such trash as the rising stars of the Demonic Cult."
At the Fist Demon's harsh words, the two bowed their heads low.
The Fist Demon, who was looking at the two with cold eyes, spoke again.
"Are you two the only ones in Sichuan?"
"...A total of three participated, but the Squad 1 Leader was injured in the battle on the mountainside and has retreated."
"One thing after another."
The Fist Demon, who looked at the collapsed cliff again as if in disbelief, bit his lips.
'Tsk. The conquest of Sichuan is Lord Blood Demon's first move. If it collapses like this from the start, it will have a negative impact on our army's morale.'
Not a single one of Demonic Brain's plans—to perfectly conquer Sichuan with a thousand demons including Nine Springs Demonic Saber, then to annihilate the Tang Clan and secure the ingredients for the Blood Immortal Pill—had succeeded.
Most of the Tang Clan's warriors had escaped alive, the Black Lotus, an ingredient for the Blood Immortal Pill, had withered from the poison, and even Nine Springs Demonic Saber had lost his life.
'If I just retreat like this, I won't have the face to see Lord Blood Demon.'
The Fist Demon let out a small sigh and spoke again.
"What were the appearances of those who were here?"
"...All those who directly participated in the battle were young men who looked to be no older than twenty. An old man and a middle-aged man wearing the martial robes of the Tang Clan joined later, but... all the others were people we had never heard of."
"Th-they were individuals of considerable skill."
The Fist Demon, looking at Chwi-yo and Baek-sa who were speaking with tense expressions, spoke to them with a cold gaze.
"Tsk. Bringing you along will only hold me back. All of you, return to the Tang Clan estate, join the others there, and reform your ranks. If I see such a disgraceful display in the next battle, I will deal with you myself."
"...We will obey your command."
As Chwi-yo and Baek-sa bowed and stepped back, the Fist Demon briefly looked at the smoothly cut surface of the cliff before leaping up. Then, he jumped over the high pile of debris and began to run forward.
***
"Just a little further and we'll be at the border of Sichuan!"
At Tang Hun's words, a mixture of relief and regret crossed the faces of the Tang Clan warriors. Their steps became heavy at the thought of having to abandon Sichuan, their home.
Tang Hun, who was about to rally the warriors once more, suddenly flinched and turned around. He felt a huge energy approaching from far away.
A bright light spread across Tang Hun's face as he felt the familiar energy of the Poison King within it.
"Elder Poison King is coming!"
At Tang Hun's cry, the Tang Clan warriors all turned around.
The figures that had looked like dots in the distance closed the distance in an instant and approached.
"Don't stop, keep running!"
The moment Jaun arrived, he shouted loudly. Tang Hun, who was about to greet the party with a pleased face, looked around with a bewildered expression.
"Run quickly! A formidable one is coming!"
Startled by Chu Myeong-hwa's words, Tang Hun once again went to the front of the Tang Clan members.
In the meantime, the bearded man, who had recovered some of his energy, approached Jaun with a tired face, and Jaun grabbed his arm tightly.
"Brother. The power of the wind, one more time!"
"...I-I just barely caught my breath."
The bearded man, who was staring blankly at Jaun's firm expression, let out a deep sigh.
"Sigh."
After a moment of contemplation, the bearded man shook his head and then turned around to stand before the group.
─ WHOOOOSH
Once again, a fierce energy began to emanate from the bearded man's body, and as Jaun added his strength to it, a tremendous wind began to blow.
The party, entrusting their bodies to the wind pouring from behind, once again ran toward the border of Sichuan at full speed.