Chapter 216: Who Took the Treasure (1)
Thud!
It was the sound of the Dog Demon Leader collapsing.
Fifteen minutes. That was all it took for the hundred-member Dog Demon Squad to be annihilated.
The Neo-Demonic Cult had expected this. They were, after all, mere disposables.
“You are as formidable as I heard. But do you think you can face all of us alone?”
The Grand Protector, standing in the center of the cult’s camp, murmured.
It wasn’t hard to guess that he was the commander of this force.
Though So-mu wanted to rush over and kill him first, the six cultists standing around him were the problem. They appeared to be elders of the cult, all in the Realm of Transformed Qi.
“Of course. If you’re curious, test it yourself.”
“You are truly arrogant.”
The Grand Protector described him as fanatically arrogant.
Of course, So-mu’s response was half-bluffing.
The number of cultists was enough to fill the entire Shaolin Temple. Before he could decide the battle, his stamina would deplete first. Yet, he couldn’t back down.
“Against trash, I alone am enough.”
“Let’s see if you have the right to say such words.”
The Grand Protector’s gaze turned to someone on his right.
It was a swordsman wearing a bamboo hat over a tight-fitting black robe.
“Shura Leader, Cheon Jin-hwan.”
The designated cultist quickly ran forward and stood straight.
“Give the command.”
“Lead the Shura Squad and take him down.”
“Understood.”
About a hundred black-robed men gathered around Cheon Jin-hwan.
Their synchronized movements indicated they had trained in a battle formation. The dense demonic qi they exuded showed their level was on a different plane compared to the Dog Demon Squad.
“Do whatever you want.”
So-mu watched quietly as they surrounded him.
If he launched a preemptive strike, he could easily crush them, but the enemy would keep coming. To drag the fight out as much as possible, he had no choice.
A moment later, a hundred blades were aimed at him from all directions.
“Strike!”
At the Shura Leader’s command, the cultists spun like tops, narrowing the circle of encirclement.
Situated at the center, So-mu felt as though he were trapped in a vortex of blades.
However, this was not enough to threaten him.
“Futile.”
The moment he spoke, two strands of sword qi shot toward his throat.
So-mu didn’t even move his body. He merely tilted his head slightly.
Whoosh!
The sword qi seemed to graze his throat, but only the sound of tearing wind echoed.
Right then, four more strands of sword qi approached.
A single step was enough. Sliding to the right, So-mu twisted his upper body, dodging the attacks with minimal movement.
At this point, the Shura Squad realized he was not someone they could handle, but they had no choice.
Eight blades shot toward him again. However, So-mu’s counterattack was faster.
The moment he unleashed his strike, an unbelievable sight unfolded: the entire formation collapsed.
Boom!
With a thunderous roar, five cultists were launched into the air, sliced to pieces.
Emerging from the center of the cultists, So-mu spun like a storm in midair.
The Third Form of the Soul-Bereft Sword Play: Flying Progress Chaos Strike.
As his blade moved, sword qi fell like a torrential downpour.
Boom! Boom!
“Ugh!”
“Ack!”
Over ten cultists fell to the ground, severely mangled.
A gap was instantly created in the formation. So-mu was not one to miss such an opportunity.
Landing on the ground, he began to tear through the Shura Squad like lightning.
If he executed his high-level forms consecutively, he could destroy the formation itself, but he had to conserve his internal energy for now.
Weaving through the Shura Squad, he looked like a fierce lion tearing through a flock of sheep.
Once the formation lost its function, no one could keep up with So-mu’s movements and swordsmanship.
It could no longer be called a battle. It was a one-sided slaughter. Piercing screams echoed through Mount Song.
Slash! Splat!
“Aaaaack!”
“Ack!”
“Ugh!”
Wherever So-mu passed, the corpses of the enemy fell like autumn leaves. At this rate, they wouldn’t last even ten minutes.
Watching this from afar, the expressions of the Grand Protector and the cultists gradually stiffened.
“Grand Protector, even if he is in the Realm of Transformed Qi, his martial arts exceed our expectations.”
“There is no need to worry. Even if we lose half our men, if we can take him down, it’s a winning trade.”
They watched So-mu’s slaughter in silence.
After some time, doubt appeared on their faces.
“Grand Protector, something is strange.”
The battle, which looked like it would end in minutes, had been going on for nearly thirty minutes. They couldn’t just celebrate the fact that the Shura Squad was holding out.
“It seems so. He appears to be buying time.”
“Is he waiting for reinforcements?”
The Grand Protector did not answer. A cruel smile merely played on his lips.
After enough time had passed, the last remaining Shura Leader spat out blood.
“Argh!”
Pulling his sword from the leader’s abdomen, So-mu flicked the blood off the blade.
“Is this all?”
So-mu’s blood-soaked armor didn’t have a single scratch.
Though they should have been intimidated, the old man in the red robe let out a laugh as if the situation were amusing.
“Hahaha. How could that be?”
“Over two hundred of your men are dead. What is so funny?”
“Sacrifices are necessary for a grand cause. More importantly, you are buying time. Did you think we wouldn’t notice?”
Since he had already bought almost all the time he needed, it didn’t matter now anyway.
“Yes. What of it?”
The Grand Protector laughed for a long time, unable to contain himself.
“Hahaha! It’s been a long time since I’ve laughed like this. Did you think you were the only one buying time?”
He meant the cult was also buying time.
Though he didn’t show it, So-mu had also noticed. The moment he arrived, he had detected cultists stealthily leaving the camp.
They had likely gone to notify the government troops stationed nearby. Before long, a dragnet of heaven and earth would be cast here.
It was a difficult situation, but he had succeeded in diverting the enemy’s attention.
‘It went as expected. I’m really not cut out for acting, though. This is troubling.’
So-mu put on a shocked expression, flinching.
“What? Why were you buying time?”
“You’ll find out soon enough. You will die here today.”
“Are you saying there are more reinforcements besides you?”
He even looked around as if he knew nothing. It was a somewhat awkward performance, but the Grand Protector didn’t seem to suspect anything. The smile on his lips confirmed it.
“Hahaha. You’re not completely stupid. No matter what your scheme is, you won’t escape from this place today.”
“But do you actually have the power to stop me?”
“Let’s see if you can still be so relaxed in a moment.”
So-mu flicked the blood droplets off the tip of his sword and muttered,
“I look forward to it.”
At that moment, the Grand Protector gestured to the cultists.
“He is exhausted! Ghost Annihilation Squad and Blood Demon Squad, go and finish him!”
A moment later, the cult’s camp surged like a wave.
The main force was finally moving. Over a thousand cultists began to rush toward So-mu like a rising tide.
“Aaaaah!”
“Die!”
In the Murim, it was rare for such a force to move against a single person.
It was a suffocating sight, but So-mu, facing them alone, didn’t even show a change in expression.
“Come.”
Soon, the wave of cultists swallowed his figure.
From afar, So-mu could no longer be seen. Only the sound of torrential rain echoed from within the wave.
The Grand Protector watched with a satisfied face, his hands behind his back. But after a single breath, his pupils dilated.
As if a miracle had occurred, the wave of cultists suddenly split down the middle.
Slash!
It was a massive crescent sword qi.
For a split second, the Grand Protector caught sight of So-mu, who looked like a demon.
Covered in the blood of the cultists, he was slashing and slicing with minimal movements. Only when the cultists were densely packed did he execute a form, causing mass casualties.
“Grand Protector, at this rate, the Ghost Annihilation and Blood Demon squads will also be wiped out. Let the elders step forward and handle this.”
After a brief pause, the Grand Protector muttered in a low voice,
“We must deploy all our forces, not just the elders.”
The gazes of the waiting cultists turned to the right flank. A group was rushing toward them at extreme speed.
“Aaaaah!”
“Charge!”
Though they were fewer in number compared to the cultists, their movements were remarkable. Furthermore, the three leading them exuded the aura of the Realm of Transformed Qi.
Though they were a formidable force, they were still far from enough.
“Wipe out the orthodox dogs!”
All the cultists remaining in the main camp began to charge. Those on the trees leaped down, and more poured out from the forest continuously.
The six elders also stepped forward, seeking an opportunity to strike So-mu.
It was absolute chaos. As time passed, the entrance of Shaolin Temple transformed into a gruesome hell.
The only calm area was around the Grand Protector and his direct guard of a hundred cultists.
“Something is definitely strange.”
The leader of the guards asked in confusion,
“What do you mean, Grand Protector?”
“Why are their reinforcements so few? They cannot match us with that number.”
“Perhaps they don’t have the help of the government forces.”
“It’s not a matter of that.”
“Yes…”
What did they stand to gain from this fight? No matter how much he thought, it didn’t make sense.
Even if Shaolin was the Abbot’s home sect, they were not foolish enough to fight a losing battle.
After pondering, the Grand Protector designated one of his subordinates.
“I feel we are missing something. Just in case, go up to Shaolin Temple and check the situation.”
“Understood!”
The Grand Protector watched the battlefield in silence, his arms crossed.
Perhaps due to their small numbers, the orthodox martial artists fought in groups, back-to-back. Though they held out well, it was only a matter of time before they collapsed.
How could they withstand a force ten times their size in a defensive battle?
The Great General of So was currently locked in a tense clash, surrounded by the six elders. A fierce storm of qi raged around them, preventing anyone from approaching.
‘What is their target…’
While he was deep in thought,
after about fifteen minutes, the subordinate he had sent returned in a frenzy.
“G-Grand Protector! The scouts monitoring Shaolin Temple have all been killed. I went deeper to check, and there wasn’t a single soul inside.”
“What? Where did they vanish to, then?”
“They must have escaped the temple and are hiding somewhere on Mount Song.”
The Grand Protector pressed his palm against his forehead as if he had a headache.
“All of you, follow me.”