No matter how you look at it, it was a small boat that was paddled with both hands without a single sail.
But could you call it just a boat when it flies across the surface like a swallow, creating a splash that spans more than ten feet?
Kwa, kwa, kwa, kwa, kwa, kwa, kwa!
Just looking at the momentum, it seemed to split the Yangzte River. It was also questionable how such a small wooden boat could withstand that speed.
At the amazing sight, a strange emotion began to grow on the faces of Mount Hua's disciples.
"...Am I seeing things?"
"Why is he here?"
"Chu- Chung Myung...."
Yoon Jong's voice slightly trembles with surprise. But then.
"Ah, shit! This is really tiring! No, if you come out to the Yangtze River, you should be fighting on the water! Why are you crawling up to the land there? Watch me shove you all back into the water!"
Yoon Jong, who had briefly opened his mouth, closed it again. And a delighted smile hung over his face.
"It is Chung Myung."
"It's so obvious looking at the bad temper."
"...How on earth did he know to come here?"
"Amitabha…. It seems we're actually in hell."
It wasn't just Mount Hua's disciples who were perplexed. The pirates also couldn't hide their bewilderment. It was due to the fact that they had never seen such a bizarre sight, even though they had lived their whole lives on the Yangtze River.
"Wha- What's that...."
At that moment, Jo Seung roared loudly.
"What are you watching at! Shoot the harpoon! Sink him!"
"Yes!"
Some of the pirates who heard Jo Seung's orders rushed inside and pulled out several large carts. Then they turned the large harpoon loaded on the cart and aimed at the boat.
"Shoot!"
Kwaaaang!
A huge harpoon cut through the air and flew toward the boat Chung Myung was on.
"Huh?"
Kwadeuduk!
The harpoons literally shattered the boat. A huge splash rose on the surface.
"We got him!"
"Good riddance, bastard!"
The pirates cheered loudly, but there was not a shred of worry or concern on the faces of Mount Hua's disciples looking at the scene.
They just looked at the rising splash with blank faces.
"If it could kill him, we wouldn't have suffered this much."
"…You can say that again."
As expected.
Chwaaaak!
A person sprang out from the splash that rose more than ten feet at an incredible speed. The disciples of Mount Hua's eyes popped out at the sight.
"That… That…."
"Crazy...."
The reason for this reaction?
Of course, they expected that Chung Myung wouldn't die from just that. If an attack of that level could even cause a bruise on Chung Myung's body, it would be a miracle. Wasn't Chung Myung's life force more tenacious than a whale's?
But the reason they were surprised was because he was 'running' toward them at an incredible speed.
"He's running."
"Yes."
"On the water."
"…Yes."
"Hohoho. To witness such a thing in my life...…."
Every time Chung Myung stretched out his feet, the water exploded like a burst. He was running so fast that dozens of splashes rose behind Chung Myung like fireworks.
"Shit! I should've done this earlier! I wasted my strength rowing! This is why they said if the head is bad, the body suffers!"
Baek Cheon wraps his face with both hands.
No... No, Chung Myung. That's not it...….
Your head just didn't get the chance to suffer because your body is too good, you crazy bastard...
"Wh- What's that...?"
"A- a human runs on water?"
The pirates, too, all bulged their eyes at the sight.
Of course, they knew about the martial arts technique called Walking on Water (수상비(水上飛). Lit. Flying On Top of Water), since they were martial artists. But they had never seen it with their own eyes.
Some martial masters did occasionally show the miracle of stepping on the water and jumping, but it was literally just stepping and jumping.
But isn't that weird guy who just showed up literally running on the water?
"Ru- running on wa-..."
"Urgh!"
"Running...."
The amazed pirates closed their mouths.
Chung Myung, who had been briskly running on the water, began to sink gradually. At some point, the water reached up to his ankles, and his movement became more of a slide than a run until it quickly rose to his waist.
"He- he's sinking!"
It was then.
Splaaash!
Chung Myung, now submerged up to his head, started to swim smoothly like flowing water. It was as smooth as if he had intended to do so from the beginning.
"…That was natural."
"Ten points."
"...."
It was a spectacle that was both astonishing and bizarre, a sight so extraordinary that nobody knew how to express it in words. So everyone just watched in stunned silence.
Splaaash! Splaaash! Splaaash!
Chung Myung, who swam as fast as a mermaid, arrived at the shore and stood up.
Drip. Drip.
Chung Myung took a few wobbly steps like a soaking wet rat before flopping down on the spot.
"Aigoo... My back. I thought I was going to die. Hnggg. It's not like I'm looking for wealth or glory, why do I have to suffer this?"
Then he started to whine while patting his back.
Mount Hua's disciples, who looked at the scene silently, naturally turned towards the distant sky.
'To be honest, I was almost touched.'
'We should only wish for what we could wish for.'
At that moment, a pirate near Chung Myung plucked up the courage to rush at him and stabbed him with a harpoon.
"You rascal! How dare you!"
Huh?
Mount Hua's disciples turned their heads.
Do- don't.….
"Ah, shit!"
Chung Myung, sitting as he was, kicked the pirate in the stomach.
Kwaaaang!
An incredibly loud noise rang out, much too loud for a person getting hit. The rushing pirates bounced back faster than the harpoon fired from a cannon.
Paeeeeeeng!
The body, which had been blown through the wind, flew over the heads of other pirates and plunged right into the middle of the cliff.
Kuuung!
There was silence.
The heads of all the pirates slowly turned. Seeing their colleague cleanly embedded in the cliff, their faces were filled with disbelief, even after seeing it with their own eyes.
Chung Myung grumbled.
"I'm suffering enough to die, but you stab me with a spear so rudely? Do you want to die?"
'No, Chung Myung. That one's already dead.'
If he's still alive after that, that would be the real discourtesy...
"Ugh, these beggar-like scum.…."
Chung Myung, who calmly made remarks that would have been frowned upon if the beggars of Beggar Union had heard, stood up and turned his head toward the Five Swords.
Flinch.
"You guys...!"
It was the moment Chung Myung was about to prepare for a bomb of a nag.
"How did you get here!"
"Huh?"
Baek Cheon cut him off quickly. Chung Myung, who was speechless for a moment, tilted his head.
"How did you get here when you were supposed to be in Mount Hua?"
"Oh. Sect Leader sent me."
Listening to their conversation, the disciples of Mount Hua silently applauded in their hearts.
'As expected, Sasuk is an expert!'
'See how he slipped past the nagging like flowing water. Even though he seemed ready to explode just before.'
'So skilled.'
"Sect Leader?"
"That's right. He said you're probably all struggling here!"
Chung Myung stretches his belly forward in triumph.
"He told me to come and save you. Ha, it's so bothersome."
"...."
"But why did you crawl all the way here..."
"These bastards brought us. They lodged a chain on our ship and pulled us, so there was no other way! It's not our fault."
"Those bastards?"
Chung Myung's brutal gaze turned to the pirates.
Baek Cheon, who had smoothly turned Chung Myung's attention, secretly looked at the disciples and gave a thumbs-up. Then everyone unanimously raised their thumbs toward him.
Chung Myung grumbled with an unhappy face.
"Did you fail to handle these pirate bastards and got dragged here?"
"Those bastards use poison."
"What, poison? All of those things happen because you lack guts! Back in the day, even if you got hit with five poisoned knives, you'd say, 'Ah, my back's a bit sore today, it would be better if they scraped it towards my back instead'! Anyway, kids these days!"
"You're the youngest, Chung Myung...…."
"Oh, that's right, isn't it?"
Chung Myung tapped his forehead and shrugged his shoulders.
"Anyway, I've got a lot to say, but..."
Chung Myung let out a long sigh and turned his gaze toward the pirates. The Chaeju of the Great Whale Fortress, Barbarous Black Fish, was looking at him with an absurd gaze.
Udeuk, udeuk.
Chung Myung, who twisted his neck from side to side, slowly drew the Dark Fragrance Plum Blossom Sword from his waist.
"First of all, I'll dump all those bastards into the river.…."
"They were good swimmers."
"Then I'll lodge them into a cliff!"
"Hahaha."
In Chung Myung's lucid reply, Baek Cheon couldn't help but laugh.
In fact, nothing has changed. Only seven have changed to eight.
But that eight was never the same as seven.
The poison piercing through the body was still the same, but it didn't feel as dizzying as before. And more than anything...
Squeeze.
The hand holding the sword automatically filled with power.
The other disciples standing beside him seemed to have similar feelings. Judging by the return of ease to their faces, which were full of solemnity just a moment ago.
There are so many things they want to ask.
How he knew to come here. How he managed to get here so quickly from Shaanxi. And how he found out where they were...
However....
'Now is not the time for that.'
Chung Myung took two steps forward and stood in a straight posture. As soon as they looked at his small and wide back, a bright smile bloomed on Baek Cheon's mouth.
"Come. Let's take care of these pirate bastards first and...."
"Eurachaaaaaaa!"
"Listen before you go, you bastard!"
Suddenly rushed forward like lightning, Chung Myung rushed at a staggering pace toward the leading pirates.
"Huh?"
Kwaaaang!
The pirates standing at the front didn't even know what hit him as he was kicked away.
Pooook! Pook!
The flying body knocked down numerous pirates crowded behind. It was as if the wooden blocks were bouncing helplessly at a ball thrown by a child.
"Wha- What!"
"This guy!"
"What's this guy? What, you bastards!"
Chung Myung grabbed the pirate in front of him, shooting fire with his eyes, and rammed his forehead straight into his face.
Kwaang!
"I!"
Kwang!
"Because of you guys!"
Kwang!
"Ran all the way here from Shaanxi, you bastards!"
"Aaaaaakh!"
Pirates flew around like leaves caught in a storm
"I'll clearly show you the price for my accumulated resentment-... No, for touching Mount Hua's friend!"
"He's showing his true colors, this bastard!"
Five Swords hurriedly ran after him.
While the pirates, drowned in confusion by the unexpected situation, were struggling to retreat, Five Swords was already approaching and stabbing them with their swords.
"Anyway, he's got one hell of a temper!"
"Can't stop him."
The atmosphere was reversed at once. The sword felt incredibly light. Even the foot stepping on Footwork Method felt extremely light.
"For God's sake!"
Baek Cheon happily spat out a curse-like exclamation.
Although he didn't want to admit it, having that back in front of him gave him strength. As if someone was firmly pulling him.
The number of pirates that used to be desperate inducing doesn't seem great anymore.
'Chung Myung....'
"How dare you stab me with a harpoon! Am I a fish, you bastard?"
Looking at Chung Myung, who had taken a harpoon from a prisoner and ruthlessly stabbed it into his butt, Baek Cheon tightly closed his eyes.
'Let's only look at the good things. Just the good things.'
"No! Did you all eat snails before I came? Why can't you come quickly?"
"We're coming! We're coming, you bastard!"
"Fake Monk!"
"Yes!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Chung Myung leaped into the air from his spot.
At that, Hye Yeon promptly fired a powerful Fist Force into the space Chung Myung had just vacated.
"Uooooo!"
It's not Domination (패(覇)), but Heavy (중(重)).
It was a force filled with heaviness, not destructive power, which spread out like a fan and instantly pushed back the densely packed enemies.
"Now!"
"Yes!"
Five Swords charged forward like a streak of light. From the tip of their swords, a variety of plum blossoms bloomed.
Between the steep cliff and the vast river.
In the middle of that, bright red and incredibly beautiful plum blossoms bloomed splendidly.