It was as if the world itself was shaking.
When the ground beneath one's feet, which should provide solid support, trembles, it instils an indescribable fear in people.
And if one knew that this shaking was not a simple earthquake but a precursor to an even greater disaster, how could that fear be expressed?
"Ah..."
Yoon Jong's eyes began to tremble like aspen leaves in the wind.
And at that very moment.
Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble!
With a sound like the collapse of heaven and earth, the ground on which they stood shook even more violently.
Yoon Jong saw it.
'That, that...'
The edge of the land they stood on, which seemed to touch the sky, was cracking in irregular lines, as if black lightning were splitting the earth instead of the sky.
"What... What?"
"This, this is...!"
The members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance standing on the cliff turned pale.
Rumble!
The edge of the cliff slowly began to crumble. No, it was more accurate to say it was being "crushed" rather than simply collapsing.
Crash! Crash!
The fragmented and crumbling earth began to fall into the abyss below. At first, the collapse was slow, but it gradually picked up speed.
The collapse approached faster than the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance at the edge of the group could comprehend the situation. Before they could react, the ground beneath their feet gave way, and they plummeted down, causing those around them to scream in terror.
"It's collapsing!"
"Aaah!"
These screams were not directed upwards but downwards, as their bodies were sucked into the abyss below, which had opened like the maw of an endless hell.
"Aaaagh!"
One by one... and then another.
The collapsing cliff devoured the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance like a ravenous monster, showing no sign of leaving even one behind.
Those who had survived countless crises, those who had steeled their hearts with firm resolve, those who had armed themselves with conviction—all froze in place.
In that moment, they instinctively and inevitably realized that they were nothing more than specks of dust, insignificant beings about to be crushed by this great collapse.
"Aaaagh!"
"No, noooo!"
With desperate screams, the exhausted members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance began to fall.
No matter how desperately they reached out to grab onto anything solid or how hard they tried to find footing, it was useless. No part of the cliff granted them a chance at survival.
"The cliff is collapsing!"
The members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance screamed in terror, retreating endlessly.
But was there any place on this cliff where they could escape?
"Move! Move out of the way!"
Those who had been pressing the Mount Hua Sect from the slopes on both sides turned and hurled themselves in the direction of the cliff. Or at least, they tried to.
"Get out of the way, you bastard!"
"Move or I'll kill you! Move!"
But that slope had always been narrow, designed to make it easy to block enemies. With so many people now trying to escape through that narrow path all at once, safety was impossible.
"Get out of the way!"
"Aaah!"
In their panic, swords were swung wildly, cutting down their own allies. Someone's eyes, wide with disbelief, were shoved roughly aside by a desperate hand.
No words held any meaning in that place. The only thing that mattered was survival—surviving was all that counted.
Swords were swung recklessly, and hands wrapped in rough energy ripped at anyone within reach. People trampled over those who had fallen, clawing their way over the backs of others as everyone struggled to survive.
"Move! Move, you bastards!"
"Urgh!"
A member of the Evil Tyrant Alliance who had been stabbed and trampled countless times struggled to keep his eyes open through the pain. The last sight he saw was... the wave of the collapse.
Crash!
"No..."
Those who had already fallen, those who hadn't been able to break through the wall of people, were finally swallowed up by the avalanche of debris. Death, slow but unstoppable, gradually tightened its grip on everyone.
Had Ho Gakmyung's plan succeeded completely, the cliff would have collapsed instantly, and they would have died without time for despair or pain.
But now, they were being slowly herded into the jaws of death, as if in a rabbit hunt.
"This was your plan from the beginning, you damned strategist!"
"Jang Ilso! You devil! Curse you!"
Only now did they realize what was happening, and they cursed Ho Gakmyung and Jang Ilso with fury and despair, but it was all in vain. Their words scattered into the air and were lost to the winds of the collapsing cliff.
"Aaaaaagh!"
Some, overwhelmed by fear, gave up on escaping through the slope and hurled themselves off the cliff.
Perhaps it was a better choice than being helplessly swept away by the collapsing cliff, but it didn't save their lives.
Thud! Thud!
The sound of their bodies breaking echoed ominously from below. As the sounds of what seemed to be hell itself reached their ears, those still on the cliff felt as if they were going mad.
Anyone who saw the only possible way to survive in such chaos would have felt the same.
Seeing no chance to escape via the slope or by jumping off, some members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance turned and charged desperately toward the spot where the Mount Hua Sect and the Sun Palace were facing off.
Not to defeat the Mount Hua Sect.
But to trample over both the Sun Palace and the Mount Hua Sect and break through.
"They're coming!"
It was the Wudang Sect who noticed them first.
The Wudang swordsmen raised their swords warily as the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance rushed toward them like ghosts.
But the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance, who had lost all their strength and now resembled prey, didn't even glance at the Wudang swordsmen. Instead, they avoided them and ran past.
"Open the way! Open it, damn it!"
Clang!
Their desperate cries were directed at none other than the warriors of the Sun Palace.
At the very edge of the cliff, not the part of the cliff that jutted out towards the outside of the mountain, but the section made of earth and wood. The Sun Palace warriors were blocking the only path of survival.
Swoosh!
But it was as if the Sun Palace warriors had anticipated this situation, as they unleashed their blazing heat qi without hesitation, setting the members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance ablaze.
"Aaaaagh!"
Dozens of members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance screamed as they were engulfed in the crimson flames. Their writhing in agony made them look like they were dancing, but then they began to thrash on the ground in desperation. The flames that consumed their bodies rose up like another wall, blocking the path for those trying to survive.
"You bastards!"
In desperation, attacks were launched at those who had just moments before been their comrades.
But it wasn't just attacks. Desperate hands, wrapped in intense heat, struck out at those who had been fighting alongside them just moments earlier.
Hell on earth.
In this struggle between life and death, the boundaries between enemy and ally, between sects, and even between right and wrong, had completely collapsed.
All that remained were those trying to survive, and those refusing to let them.
"Do something! Damn it, you're Mount Hua!"
"If this continues, we'll all die! Please!"
The members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance, realizing they couldn't break through the Sun Palace on their own, begged the Mount Hua Sect in desperation.
Baek Cheon clenched his fists and ground his teeth.
He had anticipated such a situation. He knew they would sacrifice even their own men.
But witnessing it was too much. The sight was so horrific that it made his stomach turn.
Yet he had no time to feel pity. No matter how wide the top of the cliff was, if it continued to collapse at this rate, it would only be a matter of time before the ground beneath them gave way.
Baek Cheon glared at the Sun Palace Lord. The expression of sick pleasure on his face was utterly repulsive.
He could tell just by looking at him.
The spot where the Sun Palace Lord stood was connected to the mountain's summit. Even this collapse wouldn't bring it down.
It was just a few steps difference, but they were on the side of life, while the others were on the side of death. What greater power could there be than holding the key to survival at a crossroads like this?
That was why Baek Cheon could never forgive him.
He was a cruel man who, despite knowing that people were still alive, blocked their way and forced them into the jaws of death. A vile and base man who relished in his cruel deeds.
"You...!"
His heart pounded with anger as he prepared to charge forward. But before he could, Jo Gul and Yoon Jong's swords were already flying toward the Sun Palace Lord.
"Get out of the way, you bastard!"
Jo Gul's sword split into dozens of pieces and rained down on the Sun Palace Lord. But the lord countered with a blast of scorching heat qi, as if he had anticipated it.
The sudden pressure and heat shattered the sword energy.
"Ugh!"
A rough groan escaped Jo Gul's lips.
'Damn it!'
But they couldn't back down now. Behind them lay nothing but death.
"Aaaaaagh!"
--
As Jo Gul charged forward, not even looking back, a burst of fire qi erupted and scattered like an iron wall, sweeping over his body.
"Ahhhh!"
"Gol!"
Yoon Jong desperately swung his sword, barely managing to form a sword barrier in front of Jo Gul. However, he couldn't fully absorb the impact. Yoon Jong, too, was thrown back, entangled with Jo Gul.
Hye Yeon, dressed in black robes, immediately rushed in.
"Ooooooooh!"
Pahaaaaat!
Hye Yeon's fists traced dozens of arcs in the air. It was the Arhat Fist, honed to an extreme level. Unlike the usual heavy strikes, this was a fist focused on speed and destructive power—so much so that it could be described as somewhat 'urgent.'
"Hmph!"
The Sun Palace Lord scoffed and swung his fist. Tens of fist shadows spread through the air, each imbued with immense inner strength.
The fists that completely shattered Hye Yeon's attack then slammed into Hye Yeon's body.
Kwaaang!
"Gahh!"
Hye Yeon spewed blood as he was pushed back.
If not for Yoo Iseol's sword, which flew like an arrow toward the Sun Palace Lord's neck at just the right moment, Hye Yeon might have suffered a severe injury from the follow-up attack.
Kaaang!
However, even Yoo Iseol's sword, which saved Hye Yeon, could not bring down the Sun Palace Lord. Her swift and precise sword technique left deep scars on the Sun Palace Lord's precious hands, but such minor wounds were not enough to force him to retreat.
Kwaaang!
The Sun Palace Lord's force struck the air, and Yoo Iseol was finally flung backward.
"Dieeeeee!"
Members of the Evil Tyrant Alliance, who had been desperately looking for an opening, all charged at the Sun Palace Lord at once, knowing that if they didn't bring him down, they would die.
"How dare you!"
But the fist released by the Sun Palace Lord became a massive vortex of flames, engulfing them. Desperate screams rang out as dozens of the Evil Tyrant Alliance members were instantly reduced to ashes.
Poof!
Simultaneously, the corpses crumbled and scattered.
The Sun Palace Lord let out a thunderous roar.
"Did you think I was so easily defeated, you insignificant wretches!"
The Sun Palace Lord, towering like a mountain with murderous intent and malice, glared down at everyone in despair before him.