Chapter 116: One Cherry Blossom Day (5)
The children lined up in two long files and began their descent down the mountain.
Although they had successfully escaped, their expressions remained somber. One person had yet to be rescued.
“Will our teacher be okay?”
“The uncle will definitely rescue her…”
Even So-so, walking at the front, looked downcast. She kept her mouth shut, refusing to join in when her friends whispered behind her.
Their pace was painfully slow. How fast could children walk when they hadn’t learned light movement techniques? It might take them a whole day to reach Chang’an Fortress.
Suddenly, So-so’s face lit up. She spotted familiar figures ahead.
“Uncle Hyeonjeong!”
As So-so waved, someone blew a whistle and ran toward them from the opposite direction. It was Hyeonjeong of the Wolf Fang Squad.
“What happened? Why are you all coming down by yourselves?”
Thinking of the injured Uncle Il-gwang and Teacher Cho-hee, So-so’s eyes welled with tears as she explained everything.
In the meantime, more members of the Wolf Fang Squad gathered. Their numbers soon reached around fifty.
“The Commander arrived in time, so everything will be fine.”
Hearing the details, they realized there was nothing they could do to help, other than ensuring the children returned safely.
The Wolf Fang Squad members walked among the children, comforting them.
“Don’t worry too much.”
“Let’s head back quickly.”
One by one, the children climbed onto the squad members’ shoulders. Just then, So-so wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and said,
“Uncles, I have somewhere to go…”
Cheong-hae, who was standing in front of her, squatted down to look her in the eye.
“Where are you going, our little niece?”
“To find my teacher…”
“Didn’t your father and Brother Il-gwang go?”
“I have to help them.”
An amused yet bewildered look crossed Cheong-hae’s face.
“Why do you need to help…?”
“Uncle Il-gwang is really hurt right now…”
Her expression was too serious to be a joke. Still, they couldn’t let a child go alone.
“Just tell me where it is. I’ll go instead—”
Cheong-hae trailed off. His niece had already vanished with a whoosh.
“Phew. Her impatient temper is the spitting image of her father.”
So-so sprinted in the direction Il-gwang had gone. She wasn’t sure if she could find him, but she ran out of sheer urgency.
As Cheong-hae stood there dumbfounded, Hyeonjeong placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Just in case, let’s follow her.”
Excluding Il-gwang, they were the two strongest members of the Wolf Fang Squad, both possessing a Mount Hua Sect background.
Grasping the hilt of his sword at his waist, Cheong-hae said,
“Let’s hurry, Senior. Before we lose her.”
So-so’s light movement technique, which grew faster by the day, was not to be underestimated. If she got any further, tracking her would be impossible.
Kicking off the ground simultaneously, Hyeonjeong and Cheong-hae shot forward side by side, chasing after So-so’s trail.
***
“Aaagh!”
A scream tore from the Silver Flower Crone’s lips. The sword force had mangled her left shoulder as it sliced past, yet she somehow remained standing.
So-mu and Yeon Seo-hwa hemmed her in from the front and back, radiating intense murderous intent.
“To think you kidnapped innocent children to refine the Fiendish Demon Soul-Slaying Claw. You are beyond forgiveness.”
“Old witch, don’t think you’re escaping today.”
How could she block the joint assault of the Sword Saint and the Jade Flower Saintess with only one arm? Veins bulged in the old woman’s remaining right eye. She looked consumed by resentment.
“Just one day… If only one more day had passed, I could have completed it… How frustrating… I cannot die like this. I will absolutely not die!”
Suddenly, the Silver Flower Crone’s entire body erupted in a blinding radiance. So-mu hastily sent a telepathic transmission to Yeon Seo-hwa.
— Be careful. She is burning her primordial true energy.
Seo-hwa had already noticed.
Primordial true energy was the fundamental energy of one’s origin. Once used, it could never be recovered, but it yielded explosive power for a brief moment. The power of primordial true energy unleashed by a Transcendent Demon was monstrous.
A terrifying force poured endlessly from the Silver Flower Crone’s right hand as she launched a furious assault. It was too powerful to clash with head-on. So-mu and Yeon Seo-hwa had no choice but to back away and focus entirely on defense.
Boom! Crash!
It felt as though a thunderstorm laden with lightning was raging around them.
“Kh!”
“Agh!”
Groans escaped So-mu and Yeon Seo-hwa simultaneously.
Though they were temporarily pushed back, primordial true energy did not last long. Just as her furious momentum began to wane, the Silver Flower Crone’s figure vanished from her spot.
“Shifting Positions?”
So-mu quickly spun around, searching for her.
The Silver Flower Crone had bypassed them by thirty feet and was sprinting away. To think she would use her primordial true energy just to flee! It was completely unexpected.
“Stop right there!”
Yeon Seo-hwa gave chase, flicking a volley of silver needles.
Whoosh—!
Just as a dozen needles were about to pierce her back, the old woman kicked off the ground and soared into the air.
Seeing this, So-mu opened his right palm. A pebble on the ground flew up into his hand. Unleashed from his grip, the pebble shot toward the old woman at the speed of light.
Whoosh—!
The pebble, enveloped in crimson force, carried enough internal energy to pierce through anything. However, the Crone was no easy target. Twisting her body in midair, she barely managed to dodge.
Swoosh—!
Before she could let out a sigh of relief, she gasped in shock. As if predicting her dodge, dozens of silver needles flew toward her. In midair, there was no way to evade.
A wave of qi erupted from the old woman’s body, forming a repelling force.
Clang! Clang!
The needles fell like rain before they could reach her. But the relief was short-lived. The moment her repelling force faded, a long, thin needle pierced her thigh, burying itself deep.
Thump!
“Aaagh!”
Landing on the ground, the Silver Flower Crone stumbled but did not stop. Running for her life, she let out a furious roar.
“You wretched couple, I will kill you both! I won’t die alone!”
The pursuit continued for another quarter of an hour.
Running with a needle buried deep in her thigh caused excruciating pain, yet she ran like a madwoman without stopping for a single second.
Behind her, So-mu and Yeon Seo-hwa fired more hidden weapons, striking her a few more times, but she showed no signs of collapsing.
“We must finish this crazy old witch today.”
“To think she is this stubborn…”
The Silver Flower Crone’s grudge against them was too deep; they could not afford to let her live.
After a long chase, they finally reached a dead end. Before them lay a bottomless cliff. Below ran a raging rapid; anyone who fell into it would surely not survive.
The old woman skidded to a halt at the edge.
“D-Damn it!”
So-mu approached slowly, his sword lowered.
“If you commit a crime, you must pay the price.”
Yeon Seo-hwa also blocked her escape routes, clutching a dozen silver needles in each hand.
“This exhausting ill fate ends here.”
Taking a deep breath, the Silver Flower Crone spat out her final words.
“Even in death, I will come back to haunt you!”
Whoosh—!
With that, the old woman threw herself off the cliff. Closing her eyes, she fell like a meteor, her right arm trailing behind her.
However, to ensure there were no mishaps, So-mu could not just let her go. Rushing to the edge, he hurled his sword down the cliff.
Whoosh—!
The flying sword plunged down like a bolt of lightning, So-mu’s internal energy concentrated at its tip. Startled, the Silver Flower Crone opened her eyes and struck the incoming blade with her right hand.
Clang!
Under the single strike, the blade shattered into pieces. In that instant, a fragment of the shattered blade pierced straight through her abdomen.
Thump!
“Blegh!”
An indescribable pain washed over her, but it wasn’t over. A dozen silver needles thrown by Seo-hwa arrived next, burying themselves all over her body.
Thud! Thud!
“Aaagh!”
Screaming in agony, the Silver Flower Crone vanished into the rushing rapids below.
Splash!
Still, concern lingered on Seo-hwa’s face.
“Is she dead…?”
“Surely… no one could survive that, not even a god.”
“Yes… Cho-hee and the children must have escaped safely, right?”
There was one fact they were unaware of: Seo-hwa’s sister had been taken to a different location.
***
Because of his severe injuries, Il-gwang’s pace was slow. Limping along, he finally arrived at the mouth of a cave.
“It’s here…”
Grasping Mae Cheon-pung by the hair, he dragged him into the cave. The stench of decaying corpses made him knit his brows, and curses escaped his lips.
“How could a human do such things to another…? No… you bastards aren’t human. That’s why you need to be beaten like dogs.”
Stepping deeper into the cave, a wide cavern about fifty feet across came into view. Yeon Cho-hee sat on her knees, her hands tied behind her back, surrounded by ten Black Fog Squad members.
Seeing their leader dragged by his hair, the men hastily drew their weapons.
“L-Leader?!”
“What happened…?”
Who was the leader of the Black Fog Squad? Although his rank within the Demonic Cult wasn’t the highest, he was still a man of some renown.
His pride shattered, Mae Cheon-pung hung his head and spoke.
“I brought him here to say this.”
Il-gwang looked puzzled.
“Say what?”
Mae Cheon-pung ordered his men in a voice dripping with malice,
“Kill that woman! Now!”
The men hesitated, startled by the order. However, since the command had been given, they had to act.
As several of them raised their swords, Il-gwang’s face contorted. His massive hand clamped onto Mae Cheon-pung’s neck like he was grabbing a chicken.
Grab!
“If any of you take a single step, I’ll snap your leader’s neck.”
The men froze. Mae Cheon-pung’s face turned red as his breath was cut off.
“K… kill…”
Il-gwang was not about to let him issue another command. Increasing the pressure of his grip, Mae Cheon-pung could no longer speak.
The henchmen were at a loss.
“What do we do…?”
“Do we kill her or not?”
The opponent before them was clearly a master of the Flower Realm. Although he looked in terrible shape, he was not someone they could ignore. If they killed the hostage, not only would their leader die, but they wouldn’t survive either.
Just then, Cho-hee slowly lifted her head.
“Mr. Il-gwang…?”
Seeing her haggard face, rage flared within Il-gwang. Yet, he couldn’t just kill Mae Cheon-pung. Suppressing his anger, he asked,
“A-Are you alright?”
“Yes… How did you get here…?”
“I came to rescue you. Please wait just a bit longer.”
Although he said that, he had no clear plan. How was he supposed to take down ten Black Fog Squad members surrounding her in one go?
Just then, Cho-hee spoke again with difficulty.
“So-so, why are you here…?”
Il-gwang turned around. A familiar little girl was waddling into the cavern.
“Why are you here?”
Stopping beside Il-gwang, So-so placed her hands on her hips and knit her brows.
“Did you bad uncles hit my teacher?”
One of the Black Fog Squad members asked in disbelief,
“Who are you?”
“I’m So-so.”
“Why is a brat interfering in adults’ business? If you don’t want to get hurt, get lost.”
Instead of answering, So-so reached into her pockets with both hands. When she pulled them out, wild cherries were wedged between her tiny fingers.
“Misters, have you ever eaten cherries?”
They were the cherries she had picked to share with her friends and father, which she had kept in her pocket as a snack.