"They'll attack from the flanks! Stay alert at all times!"
Baek Cheon glanced at the flames engulfing the left side before checking the opposite direction. Yoon Jong led his group, also on guard at the flanks.
'Now...'
Baek Cheon swiftly scanned the surroundings, about to issue another command.
"Why was I pulled back?"
Jin Geum-Ryong had approached unnoticed, his usual arrogance replaced with a scowl.
"Do you understand the situation? We've entered rough terrain. Our speed is bound to drop. If the front gets delayed, we'll be surrounded and isolated by enemies converging from all sides."
"I know."
"And yet you retreated? Do you understand your position? You should have been at the forefront, clearing the path."
"..."
"Or do you…?"
"Cut the nonsense, Jin Geum-Ryong."
"What?"
Baek Cheon's gaze was fixed ahead. He watched Jo Gul leading his group, cutting through the enemies at the front.
"I assigned the most suitable person to the role. In terms of breaking through the front, there's no better swordsman than Jo Gul."
"You…"
Jin Geum-Ryong hesitated, then Baek Cheon spoke plainly.
"No. Even if I hadn't weakened, it would be the same. Even if I were twice as strong, it would be the same. The right to lead isn't won by sheer strength."
"..."
"You'll understand eventually why I put Jo Gul at the front and not you."
Jin Geum-Ryong frowned, staring silently at the vanguard. He couldn't see anything particularly special about Jo Gul yet.
'That reckless idiot?'
The only reason Jin Geum-Ryong didn't immediately protest was Yoo Iseol's silence. Despite her usually impassive demeanor, she showed no objection, which indicated her agreement with Baek Cheon's decision.
Sighing, Jin Geum-Ryong muttered, "I really don't get these Mount Hua people."
He sharply watched Jo Gul's back.
"Let's see how great you are."
"Get out of my way!"
Jo Gul's sword cut through the air like lightning.
Paah!
In a flash, the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance were pierced through, falling like rotten logs.
As they fell, the burning landscape of Mount Wudang became increasingly visible.
Charred trees, still fiercely burning flames. If there were a gateway to hell, it would look like this.
Climbing the mountain through those ominous flames was already a daunting task, not to mention the enemies waiting beyond the flames, ready to ambush from more advantageous positions.
Yet Jo Gul moved forward without a moment's hesitation.
"Vice unit leader! The flames are too intense here! We should detour!"
"No!"
"Vice unit leader!"
"Hyaaah!"
Ignoring the warnings from behind, Jo Gul charged forward, swinging his sword horizontally.
Kagagak!
The burning trees were cut down from the base. Gasps of astonishment echoed around.
"Ah?"
Boom! Boom!
Each falling tree created a large open space. Though small flames remained, the fierce fire that had enveloped the trees was gone.
"Let's cut them down!"
Jo Gul shouted loud enough for everyone to hear.
"They're already burned through! Just cut them down! Let's make a path!"
"Ah."
The stunned onlookers quickly nodded.
"Y-Yes! What are you all doing? Help the vice unit leader!"
"Understood!"
Cutting through the forest while climbing a mountain? Normally unthinkable. The pine trees on Mount Wudang were notoriously hard and massive. Even martial artists couldn't easily cut through them to clear a path.
But not now. The trees had burned down to the core, leaving only their shapes. Even ordinary people could easily cut through or break such trees.
"Cut wider!"
"Yes!"
"One swift cut! With all your might!"
"Yes!"
Jo Gul sprang forward, swinging his sword broadly again. The charred trees fell instantly.
Many watched Jo Gul's back, captivated.
'How?'
Cutting through the burned trees to make a path. Reducing time by eliminating the fire instead of detouring.
It might seem like an obvious idea in hindsight, but coming up with the most appropriate action instantly in such a chaotic situation was far from easy.
With the suffocating smoke and fierce flames, how could anyone remain calm? Most here only thought of avoiding the flames.
Yet this young swordsman had instantly devised an unthought-of solution.
'I never heard he excelled in this way.'
'Are all of the Five Swords of Mount Hua like this?'
Unaware of the gazes fixed on him, Jo Gul just kept pushing forward.
'So light!'
His body felt unusually light.
Not from the thrill of battle or excitement, but genuinely light.
It felt like he could break through to the mountain's peak in a single breath.
"You bastard!"
Three crimson-hot spears flew through the blazing fire. Before Jo Gul could even fully register them, his sword had already reacted. The sharp blade deflected all the spears.
Kang!
Three strikes overlapped so quickly they sounded as one. His blade then shot forward at an astonishing speed, aimed where the spears had come from.
"Ugh!"
Jo Gul, who had retrieved his sword, swung it horizontally like flowing water, cutting down the tree blocking his path in one swift motion. A massive ancient pine, blackened but still bearing the marks of time, fell with a great sound.
Boom!
Jo Gul straightened his back as the scene unfolded before his eyes.
"Hm."
Beyond the flames, which emitted enough heat to distort his vision, he saw more than a hundred members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance waiting for him.
Fire and enemies.
Seeing both, Jo Gul spun his sword once more, gripped it firmly, and lowered his stance.
"Sub-Leader!"
"Keep moving!"
Jo Gul, without hesitation, pushed off the ground as if there was no more time to think.
Leading the charge meant he had only one task: not to stop until he reached the mountain peak!
"Stop me if you can!"
Jo Gul's body shot towards the enemy like a ray of light.
Silence stretched on for a long time.
Chung Myung picked up the cup of alcohol in front of him. Looking straight at Jang Ilso, he downed it in one gulp.
Clink.
The cup was set back down on the table. Chung Myung roughly wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
"Not really."
"Hm?"
"Aren't you curious about what would have happened if our positions were reversed?"
Chung Myung chuckled. It was a sneer more biting than anything Jang Ilso could muster.
"I don't have the leisure to ponder things that could never happen."
"..."
"I've never even thought about it. The idea that I could become someone like you."
"Oh, dear. Such a lack of imagination."
Jang Ilso shook his head slightly.
"Have you really never thought about it?"
"Not even once."
"Truly?"
Jang Ilso chuckled softly. He stared at Chung Myung as if trying to see into his very soul.
"Being part of the Evil Sect isn't really that extraordinary. Anyone who refuses to conform to the world's arbitrary rules is labelled as such. In that sense..."
Facing the Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword with a nonchalant expression.
"Among those self-righteous sect members, you might be the one who resembles the Evil Sect the most."
"..."
"Have you truly never thought about it? Never wanted to cut off the heads of those spouting nonsense, or crush everything they stand for? Even if not..."
As he continued slowly, Jang Ilso's eyes gradually burned with intensity.
"Never wanted to break down all the rules they arbitrarily established and call the law of the world?"
"..."
Chung Myung did not answer.
"Have you really never thought that way? Never?"
"Stop your nonsensical chatter. It ruins the taste of the drink."
Chung Myung coldly cut him off, looking at Jang Ilso.
"I don't know what answer you expect from me, but I only have one. I will never become like you, you stupid Evil Sect scum."
Jang Ilso's eyes narrowed.
"Words from someone who hasn't experienced it."
"No matter what I experience, it's the same."
"..."
"You speak as if you know me well, but you don't. You will never understand me."
"Why is that?"
"Because you only care about yourself."
By now, Jang Ilso's face was devoid of any expression. He merely stared at Chung Myung.
"But I'm different. What matters to me isn't someone like myself."
"That's a nauseating hypocrisy."
"Maybe. But I live grasping that nauseating hypocrisy. Just like you live clinging to that filthy hatred disguised as ambition."
"..."
Chung Myung spoke as if it was obvious.
"And even if you and I switched places, the outcome would be the same. At least for now."
"What do you mean by that?"
"You will lose, Jang Ilso."
"..."
"If I were in your position, I'd lose too. This war isn't decided by you or me. That moment has passed."
At those words, Jang Ilso glanced at the burning Wudang Mountain. Then he looked back at Chung Myung with a twisted smile.
"Ah, is it that lofty belief again? That they will win for you?"
"..."
"Hoping that your desperate wishes will reach the heavens? Hm?"
"There is no heaven. And even if there were, I'm not foolish enough to wish for anything from that damned thing."
"Oh? Then what is it?"
"You don't understand. You're wrong, you fool."
Jang Ilso tilted his head at Chung Myung's unexpected words. Chung Myung grinned, showing his teeth.
"You think you've trapped me here."
"...Is that not the case?"
"I'm not here. What's here is just my shell."
Chung Myung's gaze slowly shifted away from Jang Ilso. Towards the burning Wudang, somewhere below it.
"I'm already there."
"..."
"I'm fighting there. The real me."
"What nonsense..."
"You will never understand. That's why you will lose."
Chung Myung turned his gaze back to Jang Ilso. His indifferent, dark eyes pierced through him.
"Your arrogance in thinking you understand everything will be your downfall."
Jang Ilso's eyes wavered greatly for the first time since he had sat down.