Beopjeong looked at Plum Blossom Island with a deeply bewildered expression.
Jang Ilso led the procession from Myriad Man Manor, blocking their view of the island. However, it wasn't that difficult to see the situation by peeking between the ships.
'What's going on here?'
The war was in full swing, and Jang Ilso had arrived at Plum Blossom Island during this fierce battle. What could happen next? Even a little boy could guess.
But right now, nothing was happening on Plum Blossom Island. Not a single scream or the clashing sound of martial arts, not even a whiff of it.
Silence. It was so quiet that it felt like it cut through one's chest. Beopjeong's lips trembled.
He could instinctively sense what was causing this silence, the source of this profound quietness.
Paegun Jang Ilso.
It was clear that he was plotting something here. Now, it seemed as if a colossal serpent, threatening even the heavens, was coiling around the island.
But...
'What is he trying to do exactly?'
In this situation, what could one possibly attempt? Since the moment Jang Ilso arrived, and even from the moment that the Shaolin made their move, the conclusion seemed to have been set in stone.
"…Amitabha."
Muttered words escaped Beopjeong's lips.
It was impossible to discern. All that could be deduced was Jang Ilso's deep, unwavering malevolence coming from the island. Just gazing at it from a distance sent shivers down their spines.
'Please...'
No matter what Jang Ilso was planning, if they intervened, the result was clear. Beopjeong fervently hoped that Namgung Hwang would make the right decision.
But Beopjeong remained oblivious up to that point. He didn't know that what he should have been sensing was not the reaction of the Namgung Family. What the poisonous fangs surrounding the island were truly aiming for.
Jang Ilso, who turned back to face Namgung Hwang, had a strange smirk on his lips.
Namgung Hwang appeared like a man who had lost his soul. He looked nothing like the divine spirit of martial arts. All that remained was a defeated man who had been thoroughly debased and denied everything that once belonged to him.
"Hmm..."
Jang Ilso made a contemptuous sound mixed with a sigh and slowly licked his red lips with his tongue.
"Defeated... yes."
"…"
"No, Namgung Hwang."
Namgung Hwang slowly raised his head, which had been bowed deeply. His chin trembled slightly. The expression on his face seemed to reveal the turmoil inside him.
"You should beg for your lives. Hmm?"
"…"
"Miserably, and pitifully. Yes, that's how you should say it."
It wasn't a tone used to address an adversary. It was more like a casual reprimand to an uncooperative child. Perhaps, in Namgung Hwang's situation, this tone was far more humiliating than the current circumstances.
"You seem to be misunderstanding. This is not a battle between you and me. It's not even a contest between the Namgung Family and Myriad Man Manor. Understand?"
Jang Ilso's broad and wicked smile seemed even more cruel in its brightness.
"You don't even have the right to discuss your defeat with me."
Namgung Hwang's shoulders trembled.
The giant that bore the Namgung family's name was falling apart. It was a most pitiful and brutal collapse.
"So say it properly once."
Jang Ilso's whisper echoed clearly in the breath-held silence that gripped the entire island.
"Say it. Please, save us."
"..."
"Go ahead, plead, Namgung Hwang. That's the right thing to do."
Jang Ilso's face exuded a cruel sense of victory. More than any words, his expression vividly conveyed the situation.
Jang Ilso didn't lift a finger; he pushed Namgung Hwang and the Namgung Family further into the depths of their agonizing defeat. They were plunged into a nightmarish sense of defeat, even if they all had fought and died.
Namgung Hwang looked away from Jang Ilso and gazed at his loyal disciples.
They had come here trusting only him. Even with the situation unfolding as it did, they didn't utter a word of blame. Did he have the heart to witness their deaths?
Namgung Hwang's trembling lips slowly parted, and he began to speak with a more devastating sorrow than a boiling shout.
"Save..."
Jang Ilso observed him, smiling.
"Save..."
Namgung Hwang's jaw was convulsing messily, his bloodshot eyes, and trembling hands.
It was the moment when the giant of their era was finally relinquishing everything.
"Rrrrraahhh!"
In an instant, a flying sword darted toward Jang Ilso's face.
"Hmm?"
Clang!
Jang Ilso effortlessly raised his hand, blocking the sword with a ring on his hand. A silence fell over the place as if all sound had vanished.
Most shocked were Namgung Sect's disciples. They widened their eyes in unison, astounded, holding their breath in astonishment.
They groaned in despair, fearing their lifelines might have been severed by this single attack.
Crack.
Jang Ilso's ring emitted an eerie sound as it deflected the blade.
"What are you doing, Dowi-nim?"
Nanggung Dowwi, who had thrust the sword at Jang Ilso with gritted teeth, now clenched the hilt and growled while his hand was tightly gripped.
"Don't mock us, Jang Ilso."
"..."
"I will die here."
Jang Ilso regarded him with an amused expression.
"Do, Dowi!"
A loud scream burst from Nanggung Myung's mouth.
"What are you doing? Step back!"
"What happens if I step back?"
"What—"
Nanggung Dowi flexed his sword and glanced back briefly, bloodshot eyes, seemingly on the verge of penetrating Nanggung Myeong.
"If we step back, do you plan to beg for your life from this man and return with your tail between your legs?"
"..."
"Then, do you plan to tell the children waiting for us at home that we fought with the villains of the Evil Sect and did our best to return?"
The last words were almost a scream.
"Father!"
Namgung Dowi shouted toward Namgung Hwang.
"A swordsman who abandons their spirit is not a true swordsman. What you must protect until the end is not your life but your unwavering spirit!"
Nanggung Hwang's body trembled with a shiver.
"These are your own words, of all people! You, of all people! And now you're telling me to beg the Evil Sect for my life?"
In a desperate cry, Namgung Hwang clenched his lips.
"… Step back, Dowi."
"No, I won't step back."
"Dowi!"
Namgung Dowi glared at Jang Ilso.
"Did you say that you choose the value of your life, Jang Ilso?"
"That's right."
"Then I…"
Namgung Dowi's eyes were unsteady. The words he spoke weren't filled with unwavering conviction. In fact, even as he uttered them, his heart wavered several times.
But that's why his words carried power.
"I will die here."
At the moment these words fell, all of Namgung's swordsmen trembled. Was this the audacity of youth? An innocent choice by someone who knew nothing?
That couldn't be it. Their trembling hands told a different story. Right now, Namgung Dowi was battling head-on with the terror of death and confronting the formidable evil of Jang Ilso.
"Namgung Dowi! What are—"
Namgung Myung tried to intervene in a hurry, but Namgung Dowi spoke over him.
"Please, go on living."
"…"
"Go back alive. That's not wrong. It's the right choice."
Namgung Myung fell silent.
"But at least one person… at least one person should uphold Namgung's spirit. Even if it's for the sake of the children waiting for us when we return!"
Namgung Dowi bit his lip.
"That is the role of the one bearing Namgung's blood."
No one said a word.
The one who must protect until the end is not life but one's unwavering spirit. It was a lesson that they had all heard countless times. But at the very end, those who had gathered here couldn't muster the resolve to embrace their spirit.
In this situation, only Namgung Dowi, who could still be considered young, was the one holding onto what he had learned. Shock and shame overwhelmed the others, in varying degrees.
Someone lifted their head with bloodshot eyes. Someone bowed their head even lower. Someone clenched their fist so tightly it drew blood. Their reactions were different, but it was clear what they were thinking.
They were reigniting a faint spark in the midst of an extinguished flame.
It may be nothing.
Perhaps it was all just a fantasy, as Jang Ilso claimed. But here and now, there was someone willing to stake their life on that illusion.
That future was given up by them now in order to protect their last shreds of dignity. If they considered themselves swordsmen, if they knew how to wield a sword, they couldn't help but look at this scene without feeling moved.
In the eyes that were once lifeless, a renewed fighting spirit began to well up. They seemed ready to erupt once someone opened the floodgates.
But at that moment, their instinct told them something was wrong when they heard Jang Ilso's voice mixed with a languid groan.
"Hmm."
And upon hearing the following words, everyone in Namgung had an instinctual feeling that something had gone terribly wrong.
"That's right."
Even Namgung Dowi stared at Jang Ilso in great confusion.
Jang Ilso smiled warmly, wearing an unparalleled and uncharacteristic gentleness in his expression as he looked at Namgung Dowi.
"Yes, that's how it should be. I was worried. You might all bow down pathetically and beg for your lives to return home."
Namgung Dowi thought to himself. This voice belonged to a demon that would captivate humans.
Warm and comforting, there was no hint of evil in the voice. It was the voice of a demon that concealed something dark and heavy beyond human imagination.
"Such a noble young master you are."
Jang Ilso chuckled brightly, as if he was complimenting a child for doing a good deed.
Ckak.
Jang Ilso pushed his sword aside and casually brushed his hand over it.
"I can't help it."
He extended his arms slightly, shrugging his shoulders slowly.
"Even though you didn't accept the mercy I showed you, I have no choice but to do as you wish."
"..."
"Ho Gakmyng."
"Yes, Lord Ryeonjul."
"Evacuate everyone."
Ho Gakmyung' eyes widened momentarily as he watched Jang Ilso, confused and uncertain. Even Namgung's swordsmen could discern the shock and amazement in his eyes.
"…Are you saying that everyone should withdraw, including Myriad Man Manor?"
Hogamyeong normally wouldn't dare to question Jang Ilso like this, but his confusion was so profound that he couldn't help himself.
Jang Ilso shot him a slightly annoyed look, his tongue clicking.
"Ho Gakmyung, it seems you don't understand me. I clearly said 'everyone.' The entire Evil Tyrant Alliance will withdraw from this island."
"Y-Your Excellency, that's..."
But then Jang Ilso's gaze shifted briefly to Ho Gakmyung. He lowered his head in embarrassment.
"Understood. As you command, Lord Ryeonjul."
"That's right. Indeed."
Jang Ilso smiled again as if to say, "How touching."
At that moment, an even greater anxiety gripped Namgung Dowi's heart.
"So...it's proper to give you an appropriate end that suits your spirit."
Jang Ilso turned his body around. His red robe fluttered like wings in the strong wind.
As he turned away, he spoke with a calm and sober voice.
"Die here. Reflect on whether your choice was right. Keep on reflecting."
Once the decision was made, there was no room for a moment's regret.
Jang Ilso continued to walk confidently. Then Ho Gakmyung gestured for something.
The Evil Tyrant Alliance members, who were perplexed because they couldn't follow the situation and froze in place after receiving the order. They began to leave Plum Blossom Island with baffled expressions.
It was a bewildering sight. The people who had thrust their swords at their throats were now sheathing them and walking back the way they came. Namgung's swordsmen were left watching, unable to react.
"This is..."
Namgung Myung muttered as if squeezing out his words.
Suspicion turned into doubt in the eyes of Namgung Dowi's swordsmen. Perhaps... Could Jang Ilso's proposal truly be an act of mercy? What if it wasn't a hidden agenda to drive them away but a genuine attempt to save them?
It seemed improbable, absolutely impossible. But if that's the case, why was Jang Ilso turning away from them without any hesitation? Why wasn't he forcing them to stay? Or even taking their lives with his own hands? Why did they do this? Everyone was struggling to comprehend the situation, and in this confusion, Namgung Dowi had one terrifying thought.
Maybe everything that had happened on this island was part of Jang Ilso's plan.
From the moment Jang Ilso arrived on this island until this very moment, perhaps they never left the palm of Jang Ilso's hand.
"Lord Ryeonjul, what should we do next?"
"We are going to encircle the island to ensure that not even an ant can escape."
"Yes? Yes! I will do as you command."
Ho Gakmyung bit his lips and finally asked cautiously.
"What are your plans moving forward, may I ask?"
Jang Ilso chuckled lightly.
"What will I do? I'll show them what true despair is."
"Ahh..."
Ho Gakmyung nodded as if he understood.
"Indeed, offering them a comfortable death is a luxury."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Ho Gakmyung, why are you not understanding why I'm not so furious today? It's not like you."
"Yes?"
Ho Gakmyung asked with a puzzled look.
Jang Ilso grinned, his mouth twisting slightly.
"Someone like Namgung was never important to me from the beginning. My goal is..."
And he slowly shifted his gaze.
"These bastards."
In Jang Ilso's eyes as he looked across the river, there was a sinister glint.
"The stage is finally set. It begins now. Let's show them how much ugliness lies within me."
Watching Jang Ilso grinning as if he were ecstatic, Ho Gakmyung felt a shiver run down his spine.
It was the moment when Jang Ilso bared his fangs to the world.