Chapter 164: No, Why Don't You Show Up! (3)

Chapter 163 – No, Why Don’t You Show Up!(3)

At any rate, Namgung Cheon’s skill in catching the incoming arrow could not be dismissed as luck.

Drawing a strong bow was also Do Ji-baek’s specialty. So much so that he had even earned the nickname ‘Divine Archer of Guilin’.

Yet Namgung Cheon had caught that arrow with one hand.

Do Ji-baek’s expression stiffened.

‘What on earth is that greenhorn… No, he can’t even be called a greenhorn!’

Just then, the martial artist standing beside him reported quietly.

“I believe that child is Namgung Cheon.”

“Yes. That guy is Namgung Cheon…!”

Do Ji-baek ground his teeth.

The Divine Dragon of the Jianghu and the winner of the Joint Conference. And the wicked fellow who had beaten his son and bodyguard to a pulp!

“He is indeed at a level that cannot be ignored.”

At this point, he had no choice but to admit it.

For even the Biyue Sect Leader, Yeon Chu-ryang, had not thought of catching his arrow.

Meanwhile, Yeon Chu-ryang also looked at Namgung Cheon with eyes completely different from before.

‘He caught that arrow just now with bare hands…?’

Would he have caught it if it were him?

No.

Since he wouldn’t have caught it, he would have just stared blankly at the caught arrow in front of his eyes.

Namgung Cheon spoke to him as he stood in a daze.

“Should we run now?”

“Huh?”

“Since the front and back are blocked, let’s head to a place where it is easier to fight first.”

“Where is that?”

They had already entered the canyon, and both passages were blocked.

A state where they could go in neither direction.

It was literally a dilemma.

Yet Namgung Cheon uttered nonsensical words.

“We passed it a bit, but it is not completely too late yet. Run! Quickly!”

“So where is that… Huh? Uh… Hey!”

Before Yeon Chu-ryang could say anything, Namgung Cheon had already begun to run ahead.

Does that guy know something and is running?

However, Yeon Chu-ryang could no longer ignore Namgung Cheon.

He was the fellow who had caught the arrow flying toward his forehead. Moreover, that expression of his as he spoke resolutely just now somehow inspired trust.

His calm tone was as if experiencing such a cornered situation was not a first or second time for him.

After a brief hesitation, Yeon Chu-ryang roared.

“R-run! Follow behind Namgung Cheon! Agency Lord, hurry!”

“Yes? Ah, we run too! Follow behind Namgung Cheon!”

It was Yi Sa-heum who had seen Namgung Cheon’s final expression right beside him.

For some reason, he too had come to rely on Namgung Cheon.

‘That confident face. It did not stem from bravado or arrogance. I don’t know what it is, but it was the aura of a Jianghu expert who has experienced such situations countless times.’

Yi Sa-heum was a great merchant.

Though not to the extent of Gold King, he had developed his own wits and survival instinct while running the escort agency all his life.

At this moment, his instinct was screaming at him to trust Namgung Cheon.

Meanwhile, Namgung Cheon led the transport and strided at the front, shouting.

“Out of the way, you bastards!”

Namgung Cheon charging like a gale, and the transport chasing behind at a fearsome speed!

As he charged head-on, kicking up a thick cloud of dust, the Three Peaks Sect ended up wearing blank expressions instead.

‘Are they crazy?’

Do Ji-baek frowned deeply.

Indeed, the Three Peaks Sect had practically brought all of their disciples.

Having already become the largest sect in Guilin, they overwhelmed the Biyue Sect and the escort agency in headcounts.

Yet an audacious cadet was charging straight toward the Three Peaks Sect, leading the transport?

“We must have seemed quite easy to look down on. Teach that gutsy fellow a lesson!”

“Yes! Sect Leader!”

The Three Peaks Squad Leader was the first to reply, leading his squad members forward at the same time.

The Three Peaks Squad Leader shouted loudly.

“You bastard! Looking down on our sect…!”

“I told you to shut up and get out of the way!”

*Thud! Bam-bam-bam!*

Surprisingly, Namgung Cheon did not slow down his charging speed at all but rather charged even more fiercely, swinging his scabbard.

The Three Peaks Squad Leader momentarily opened his mouth wide and looked into the air.

The squad members who had run forward to block Namgung Cheon were all flying in the air.

‘Is… is that a human? How is a mere cadet that strong…?’

Yeon Chu-ryang and Yi Sa-heum, who followed behind, also opened their mouths wide in surprise.

‘T-that fellow is the real deal.’

‘The rumor about him being the Divine Dragon of the Jianghu was not an empty one!’

However, no matter how much he was called the Divine Dragon, it was difficult to cope with a surging human wave tactic.

Do Ji-baek, filled with spite, roared at the top of his lungs.

“What are you doing! All of you, charge and block that fellow!”

“Understood!”

The Three Peaks Sect disciples replied in unison and charged forward. Hundreds of people rushing out at once in the canyon was a sight reminiscent of a war.

“You bastard! You won’t be able to cross me…!”

The Three Peaks Squad Leader let out a roar close to a battle cry as he charged, but in that instant, Namgung Cheon kicked off the ground and sprang up.

*Whoosh!*

“Huh…?”

In an instant, Namgung Cheon flew right before the Three Peaks Squad Leader’s eyes.

‘How is a kid’s lightfoot skill like someone who has spent his entire life running away…!’

He could not continue his thought.

For Namgung Cheon’s sole slammed directly into his face.

*Thud, crash!*

The Three Peaks Squad Leader, who collapsed to the ground just like that, fainted on the spot while foaming at the mouth.

At the same time, Namgung Cheon, springing back up into the air, soared across the sky.

“T-that…!”

At that terrifying lightfoot skill, Do Ji-baek, who watched from the rear, pointed his finger and trembled.

He was to the point of doubting if he was seeing things.

“Sect Leader, watch out!”

“Sect Leader! We will block him!”

In an instant, the First Peak Squad Leader and the Second Peak Squad Leader stood before Do Ji-baek to block him.

While the two defended against close combat, Do Ji-baek loading and shooting arrows was a tactic they had synchronized over a long time.

However…

“Huh…? His direction…?”

*Whoosh!*

Having stepped in empty air, Namgung Cheon twisted his direction and swung his sword toward an unexpected place.

First of all, changing direction in midair as if executing footwork was a remarkable level.

Unless they were disciples of the Kunlun Sect who were masters of lightfoot skills, who at that young age could duplicate something similar to Void Treading?

At any rate, flying like a bird, the target Namgung Cheon swung the Emerald Silk Sword at was, unexpectedly, the southern cliff.

Yeon Chu-ryang and Yi Sa-heum, who were eagerly running behind, also could not hide their bewilderment.

‘Where is he going?’

‘Did he lose his balance after leaping?’

All sorts of thoughts entered their minds, but,

“Hraaaaah!”

At that instant, a resonant battle cry capable of shaking heaven and earth erupted, and Namgung Cheon slammed his sword straight down vertically.

‘Azure Emerald Lightning Sword!’

Namgung Cheon recalled a formula of the Azure Emerald Sword in his mind.

Deep blue air condensed around the sword, creating a bright sword qi that fell mercilessly toward the cliff.

*Boom! Crackle!*

*Rumble, crash!*

Surprisingly, did the cliff, which had looked only solid, not begin to collapse with a heavy roar?

Yeon Chu-ryang, Yi Sa-heum, Gang Sang-do who was chasing them, and Do Ji-baek who blocked the front opened their mouths in shock.

‘The… the cliff…!’

‘Is… collapsing!’

‘What on earth is that fellow’s identity?’

However, they soon could understand Namgung Cheon’s actions to some extent.

‘Behind it… there is a path?’

Surprisingly, the cliff was made like a thin barrier, so when a portion of it collapsed, a path leading to another canyon revealed itself.

*Thud!*

Landing on the ground, Namgung Cheon looked back and shouted.

“What are you doing? Run quickly!”

“Huh? Ah, y-yes!”

“Run! Follow Namgung Cheon!”

*Thud, thud, thud!*

As the transport sped up again, they began to run into the collapsed cliff.

Do Ji-baek, whose body had momentarily frozen in shock, regained his senses late and roared.

“What are you doing, you fools! Shouldn’t you chase them! Are you just going to stand by and watch a fire across the river!”

“Ah, chase them! Catch them!”

The Three Peaks Sect and the Black Mountain Stronghold also rushed after the transport.

Even so, Do Ji-baek and Gang Sang-do harbored the same question.

‘How on earth did that young fellow know about this route?’

‘Is it a coincidence? How could it be…’

However, there was someone among them who closely watched this situation.

‘Has the Alliance indeed obtained the map? However, it is only half a map. As long as the map for the mechanism formation is mine alone, our Cult shall reclaim the Demon Elixir Valley!’

Cheol Un tightly gripped his broadsword and ground his teeth.

However, it was a bit strange that Namgung Cheon, rather than Bi Ryang, stood at the forefront.

Indeed. If Bi Ryang was a top-secret figure employed by the Alliance, they would try to divert attention elsewhere.

So it was not incomprehensible that a cadet was running wild.

Reaching his own conclusion, Cheol Un ran, mingling with the Black Mountain Stronghold martial artists.

Meanwhile, Namgung Cheon, who ran to the end of the canyon, stopped running and spun around only when a dead end appeared.

The transport that chased after him also stopped, bewildered by the sheer rising cliff.

“W-what is the meaning of this? It is a dead end!”

As Yeon Chu-ryang shouted with a pale expression, Yi Sa-heum also asked urgently.

“Did we take the wrong route? We cannot escape like this, can we?”

Since the two could not hide their bewilderment, the transport following behind milled about like lost sheep.

However, Namgung Cheon paced back down the path they had entered with a calm expression.

*Shhring!*

Namgung Cheon, suddenly drawing his sword, spoke coldly as he looked at the enemies charging over, kicking up dust clouds in the distance.

“Stop whining!”

“W-what?”

“It is better to burn our bridges than to get trapped on both sides and wiped out. Isn’t that right?”

“T-that may be true, but…!”

“If the path is blocked, break through. That is the way of the Jianghu. The philosophy of a fugitive, the instinct of a cornered rat. Now that we have escaped the disadvantageous terrain, we just need to fight and win.”

“Fight and win. As if that is as easy as…”

“Do you plan to run away your entire life? Think things will get better as time passes? No. As time passes, you will have to run even more desperately. And then, once you enter the alley of regret, there will be no place left to flee.”

“……!”

“Fight before it is too late. Fight and overcome! We avoided the worst terrain, didn’t we? When you think, ‘this is not the worst,’ that is when you fight!”

*Whoosh!*

Just in time, the blowing wind caught Namgung Cheon’s hair and clung to it persistently.

Somehow, at this moment, Namgung Cheon’s back looked broad.

Watching his back, Yeon Chu-ryang and Yi Sa-heum could not help but feel internally stung.

Yeon Chu-ryang wore a bitter smile.

‘That is correct. That is the way of the Jianghu. Since when had I become so weak? To think only of surviving and running away. Because I abandoned the thought of clashing at the risk of my life from the start, things have become this difficult.’

Yi Sa-heum’s thoughts were not much different from Yeon Chu-ryang’s.

‘I sought only comfort even after stepping foot into the Jianghu. That is why I had no choice but to face difficult situations every time. Was his name Namgung Cheon? That child’s words are absolutely correct. For a mere cadet to show such resolve. I am ashamed of my age.’

Namgung Cheon raised his sword high.

“This is a terrain where even human wave tactics won’t work! Now we are on equal terms! Let’s fight and crush those despicable bastards! Let’s show that justice is still alive in this Jianghu!”

“Uwaaaaah!”

The party, whose morale had risen like a miracle, let out a shout in unison.