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Chapter 109. Great Journey of Avici Screams (8)
From the moment Murong Jae-hwa took up the bow, our journey began to grow easier.
PING.
TWANG.
When Murong Jae-hwa’s Horse-Piercing Arrow fell over the heads of the ambushers through the crude Illusory Arrows I shot up, they scattered in every direction in utter panic at the absurd power of the arrow.
An arrow that could not be defended against became an object of fear and made their steps hesitate.
Our party rested amid their hesitation.
“Brother, you know what you told me before?”
“What?”
“The story about the person who stopped ten thousand people by himself. That was exaggerated, right?”
Even after hearing his own story, Jae-hwa did not seem able to believe it easily.
I let out a soft laugh.
“It is true. There is not even the slightest exaggeration.”
In my previous life, the reason I had been able to accompany him, who had been like a lonely wolf who trusted no one, was purely because of my memory.
Thanks to that, I had been able to witness that wondrous sight no one else had seen.
“He stopped ten thousand enemies alone.”
They said the maximum range of a horn bow reached one hundred zhang, but the iron bow he used reached four hundred zhang.
In addition, his signature ultimate art, Thunderbolt Arrow, caused a massive explosion of qi and dealt a tremendous impact to the area.
When I recited the terrain drawn in my head, he sensed the wind, the terrain, and the movement of the earth, then shot arrows toward unseen targets.
When a single arrow shot from a distance so far it could not even be seen fell over the head of a unit, damage spread in all directions as though they had been bombarded.
Even if most of the Demonic Practitioners had gone mad from Demonic Qi, they had no choice but to instinctively shrink back from the lightning bolts falling over their heads.
Before his iron bow, ten thousand people could not move a single step.
“Thunderbolt Arrow……. How could that person think exactly like me?”
“The Ghost Bow Sect’s horn bow does look sturdy, but it will probably have a hard time enduring your strength. Later, switch to an iron bow. I will introduce you to an elder with good craftsmanship.”
“……Brother.”
His voice sounded strange, so I turned around and saw tears brimming in both his eyes.
“Wh-Why are you like that?”
“Brother, you are truly my benefactor. From now on, even if you say you can make soybean paste bricks out of red beans, I will believe you and follow you.”
I suddenly remembered Jae-hwa from my previous life and could only click my tongue.
-I hate people. People have less faith than dogs.
His innocent appearance, so unlike his previous life, somehow made me feel relieved.
“Ah, but Brother. Why have I never heard about someone like that?”
“…….”
I was about to say a suitable lie, but instead, I said something else.
“He…… died alone.”
“Yes? Why?”
-Please let only you remember that I existed. My life was always shameful, filled with avoidance and flight.
Those were the words he had left behind when he finally met his death at the hands of the Dark Soul-Severing Unit.
“Because he was ashamed of himself for never facing his own circumstances.”
When I spoke, hoping that the regrets of Murong Jae-hwa from my previous life would reach him, Murong Jae-hwa of this life fell deep into thought.
With Jae-hwa and me keeping the ambushers in check, we safely moved to Nanzhao.
Thanks to that, our party was able to rest briefly and sleep for a short time.
“Brother, they are coming again.”
“I saw them. Prepare yourself.”
“They really don’t get tired of coming.”
Although Jae-hwa had to move constantly with me and keep them in check without rest, he showed no sign of exhaustion.
PING.
TWANG.
Our arrows fell over the heads of a group that looked to be around five hundred people.
“Huh? Brother, they are not running away.”
Until now, the ambushers had panicked at the power of the Horse-Piercing Arrow, which they could not respond to, and had hidden behind boulders or under trees, unable to move.
“Let us try again.”
This time, we each fired three arrows in succession.
Because of the Illusory Arrows, a rain of arrows truly fell over the ambushers’ heads, but this time, they did not show any sign of panic.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
Five hundred people simultaneously poured Palm Force toward the sky, and a sound like thunder bursting in the clear sky rang out.
“…….”
It was an utterly brute-force operation, but it was also an undeniably effective method.
Moreover, as long as Murong Jae-hwa still could not use Thunderbolt Arrow, we had no way to deal damage to them.
“Wait here for a moment.”
I had to confirm the opponent’s identity.
There were not many groups capable of having five hundred people fire Palm Force all at once as if they were perfectly coordinated.
Using the Unrivaled under Heaven Movement Art, I closed the distance in an instant and confirmed their martial arts uniforms. I could only let out a low groan.
“Zhongnan…….”
It was the Nine Sects and One Gang again.
In the end, we had no choice but to change course from heading toward Nanyang to heading toward Mugang.
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We no longer had the strength to face as many as five hundred people, especially enemies at the level of the Zhongnan Sect. There was no method but to run away no matter what, but to keep moving blindly without sleeping was impossible when everyone in the party had already reached their limits.
I spoke in a low voice.
“This time, it is Shaolin.”
When we turned toward Mugang, three hundred people from Shaolin Temple were chasing after us this time.
“The real problem lies elsewhere.”
At my words, the faces of those looking at me with exhausted expressions grew even darker.
“The Twelve Peak Citadels still have not given up, and they say Mount Hua and Diancang are moving as well.”
“Can we be certain they are chasing us?”
Namgung Seon-hwa moved her dried-out lips.
She looked as though she might collapse at any moment.
I felt sorry for her, but I had no choice but to shake my head.
“The fastest route from Mount Song to Tianmen, where Murim Academy is located, is the road that passes through Nanzhao and Dongzhou before crossing into Hubei. Mugang is blocked by the Dabie Mountains. They came all the way here to target us.”
“…….”
She looked as though she wished this were not reality.
“What should we do, Young Master Jin……?”
Seong Mo-ran was the same as Namgung Seon-hwa. She, who had always sent overflowing energy spreading in every direction, now looked so precarious that she might snap if the wind blew.
“The best method is to cross the Dabie Mountains.”
“Ah…….”
“…….”
Sighs flowed from here and there.
Even the warriors who had endured by sheer spite and grit and followed us this far already knew that they could not cross the Dabie Mountains.
Moreover, three Black Path sects were located around the Dabie Mountains. If we were to get into trouble with them, people would not fall behind due to injuries. They would lose their lives.
“……However, that seems difficult, so we will cross to Dongzhou through Nanyang instead. In exchange, we will not be able to rest.”
“……That sounds better.”
“……That is better.”
After making a choice with the feeling of choosing between burning to death and drowning, we began moving once more.
“There they are! The Entry Tokens are there!”
“Strike!”
“Everyone is exhausted. If we just push those bastards aside, we can enter Murim Academy!”
Even though massive sects such as Shaolin, Mount Hua, and Diancang had appeared, the plunderers had not given up.
Rather, because they were people who had been waiting on the route ahead, they tried desperately to seize the Entry Tokens somehow before the people of the Nine Sects and One Gang arrived.
“…….”
“Haa, haa.”
“Kgh, haa.”
Our party fought more desperately and painfully than ever.
Those who were already exhausted did not even have the strength to shout or let out battle cries.
They merely thought of the fastest and most optimal method to defeat the opponent and escape this place.
A small nameless mountain on the road to Nanyang.
Our party was hiding in that place where darkness had fallen.
The evening meal time had long passed, but no one could even think of lighting a fire.
No, no one even took out the jerky they habitually ate.
Every person in the party only wanted to quietly close their eyes in this darkness.
The moon, which had been hidden behind clouds, revealed itself and shone on Seong Mo-ran’s dried-out face. She smiled awkwardly.
“……I never thought I would practice Moving Circulation this hard in my life.”
“…….”
“…….”
Everyone merely showed awkward smiles and could not make even the sound of laughter.
SCREEECH-
The cry of a hawk sounded through the moonlight.
Thinking it could not be, I rose from my seat and whistled softly.
Sure enough, the hawk that descended while flapping its large wings was Hao Gate’s Iron Hawk.
“Why at this hour…….”
Hao Gate sent information once every morning.
Even so, if they had deliberately sent a Messenger Hawk again in this dark night,
I quickly examined the Iron Hawk’s leg.
More parchment was wrapped around the Iron Hawk’s leg than what had been sent in the morning.
“…….”
Everyone who knew that I received information from Hao Gate about our movements looked at my face.
I could not gauge how I should convey the story I had just seen.
“What does it say?”
“……It says Qingcheng Sect and Kongtong are moving north after passing Wuhan.”
“…….”
“…….”
The final destination of Qingcheng Sect and Kongtong Sect, which had taken the exam in Jiangnan, should have been Wuhan, where Murim Academy was located.
Namgung Seon-hwa, who had been silent, spoke as if in disbelief.
“Why would they be moving north?”
Not a single person voiced aloud the prediction that came to mind regarding the reason they were moving north after passing Wuhan.
“No, not that…… Does something not feel strange? There should already be more than enough Entry Tokens in Jiangnan. From Qingcheng and Kongtong’s perspective, their chances decrease by the distance they travel. What reason would they have to do this?”
“That is true. Entering the academy is what matters. It is strange to say they came after us simply because we have many Entry Tokens. The number of Third Trial Tokens is fixed, after all.”
“On top of that, Shaolin is the same. Why are they chasing us? They have already secured enough Entry Tokens.”
It was not only Shaolin. Mount Hua, Diancang, and Zhongnan had also secured the same level of Entry Tokens as in previous years from their perspective.
“I believe I can answer that question.”
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG.
At the voice that came from the darkness, we reacted like lightning and drew our swords.
A figure moved silently among the dark forest.
“A g-ghost?”
Geum-pyo was startled out of his skin.
He was not the only one who flinched. The warriors of each family all gripped their swords tightly at the sight of that figure moving left and right like a ghost.
“I apologize for startling you. However, because you were hiding so stealthily, it was quite difficult to find you.”
Looking at the figure slowly emerging from the darkness, I said,
“What brings Senior Il-myeong all the way here?”
He was none other than Small Buddha Il-myeong, a member of the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly.
Unlike the warriors who were stroking their startled chests, I did not take my eyes off him.
“I came to explain what is happening right now.”
“It sounds like someone’s intention is involved.”
Il-myeong gave his distinctive warm smile, enough to embarrass the people who had been startled out of their skins after calling him a ghost moments ago.
“People say that my generation’s Murim Regular Exam unfolded with competition fierce beyond all precedent……. but I don’t think so.”
“…….”
“The regular exam you and the bodhisattvas are taking will likely become the harshest and most chaotic exam in history.”
Il-myeong bowed his head.
“And in the end, all of you will be eliminated.”
“This is the first time I have heard that the Small Buddha of Shaolin Temple possesses future sight.”
I ground my teeth, but Il-myeong merely laughed hollowly.
“Benefactor, you are still like a blazing fire.”
“Please understand my discourtesy. The current situation is what it is.”
Il-myeong nodded as if he understood everything.
“We came to change the future in which all of you are eliminated.”
“You keep saying ‘we.’ Is it only my eyes that cannot see them?”
“Haha, truthfully, because we spread out to find you, I came this way alone.”
“Who is this ‘we’?”
“To be precise, it is not ‘we.’ It was a plan proposed and carried out by ‘him.’”
“Him?”
“Hyeoncheong…… Ah, perhaps it would be better to call him ‘Yong So-ah.’ He wishes to see you.”
“…….”