Chapter 54: Escape is in the Order of Intelligence (5)
Chapter 53 – Escape is in the Order of Intelligence (5)
Yun Jong-seung paced back and forth the entire time as he stood by one wall of the Grand Martial Arena.
Raising his head to look at the sky, he saw that the sun had tilted quite a bit to the west.
‘He must be doing well, right? Yes, because it’s Namgung Cheon. It’s Namgung Cheon and no one else.’
He chuckled to himself as he repeated those words.
To think he believed in him because he was Namgung Cheon.
Since when had Namgung Cheon become such a presence?
The being he had once despised and persecuted had at some point become someone to be wary of, and now, he had even been elevated to an object of trust.
Come to think of it, human relationships were truly strange.
“Damn it! If only it weren’t for the Gongjin Powder!”
Out of anxiety, he closed his eyes and tried to channel his internal energy, but as expected, he felt nothing in his dantian.
It was not that his internal energy had actually disappeared, but rather that he could not circulate his qi because of the Gongjin Powder.
Since it was said that the effect lasted for a day, he would not be able to use his internal energy until at least tomorrow.
‘This is all because of that guy…!’
Yun Jong-seung looked at Song Won-gyo, who was waiting calmly with his back leaned against the wall.
Unlike Yun Jong-seung, he did not seem particularly anxious. Rather, he seemed to be measuring the time while glancing at the sky as if expecting something.
Just then, Song Won-gyo turned his gaze and his eyes locked right onto Yun Jong-seung’s.
Even though Yun Jong-seung had landed a blow on Song Won-gyo last night, it seemed learned fear did not fade so easily.
Yun Jong-seung, who had unconsciously averted his gaze, felt a surge of stubbornness and glared back at Song Won-gyo.
Song Won-gyo chuckled and strode over.
‘Uh…? Why is he coming over?’
As Song Won-gyo suddenly approached, Yun Jong-seung panicked, not knowing what to do.
However, the thought ‘Why am I panicking?’ soon crossed his mind, so he clenched his teeth and stood his ground.
“Are you anxious?”
At the question thrown at him out of nowhere, Yun Jong-seung furrowed his brows slightly, trying to gauge the meaning behind the words.
Song Won-gyo continued speaking without even waiting for an answer.
“You must be. Though that original pushover bastard suddenly became strong, his opponents are the cadets of the Righteous Chivalry Academy. Just in case you’re wondering, don’t harbor any useless expectations. Your luck ends here anyway.”
“We’ll have to wait and see about that.”
“What?”
When Song Won-gyo glared as if it were laughable, Yun Jong-seung lowered his gaze again but quickly widened his eyes.
Song Won-gyo let out a hollow laugh.
“You bastard, you’ve grown fearless just because you blindsided me and hit me once yesterday? Do you think I would have been beaten if you hadn’t launched a surprise attack?”
“Who told you to sneakily feed us the Gongjin Powder in the first place?”
When Yun Jong-seung argued back without backing down, Song Won-gyo glared.
“Do you want to die?”
“Do you still see me as your pushover?”
“Hah! This is why you should never let yourself get hit, even by mistake. This crazy bastard…”
“What? What are you going to do about it? Co-come at me!”
As Yun Jong-seung quickly assumed a starting stance, this time Song Won-gyo flinched and took a step back.
Yun Jong-seung’s eyes sparkled at that sight.
‘What? This bastard is scared too?’
He had definitely retreated reflexively.
That meant he was at least on guard.
Yes, there was no reason he couldn’t win.
Even though he was injured, hadn’t he defeated Hwangbo Seung, who was from one of the Five Great Clans of the Jianghu?
On the other hand, Song Won-gyo glared at Yun Jong-seung with a highly guarded expression, his eyebrows twitching.
‘This bastard… what? His eyes have changed.’
A sharp light lingered in the eyes of Yun Jong-seung, who had assumed the starting stance. It was not the dead look he used to have when playing the pushover.
This was just like…
‘Namgung Cheon.’
His mood soured instantly.
A pushover should act like a pushover. Why was everyone acting like this lately?
Whether it was this guy or that guy, they all forgot their place and ran wild like untamed colts!
As his irritation kept rising, Yun Jong-seung spoke in a cold voice.
“Did you ask if I was anxious?”
“…?”
“I am anxious. I’m anxious because I feel like I’m of no help. Standing still while others are running makes me anxious. That’s what my anxiety is about, you dumbass.”
“This bastard…”
Song Won-gyo glared with burning eyes before smirking.
“Do you think that original pushover bastard will succeed? You’re wrong. He won’t even be able to return here.”
At that moment, Yun Jong-seung’s eyebrows twitched.
“You bastards… you were plotting something after all!”
“Except for the group you guys belong to, everyone will attack Namgung Cheon. That original pushover bastard touched people he shouldn’t have touched.”
“Cowardly bastards! Even so, for the other groups to team up and attack him!”
“That’s the Jianghu, you bastard. I wonder if they’re having a go at it right about now? He might have turned into a bloody pulp already.”
As Song Won-gyo sneered, Yun Jong-seung lowered his head deeply and trembled. A moment later, a heavy voice fell from Yun Jong-seung’s mouth.
“Come at me, you bastard.”
“Huh?”
“Stop babbling about losing to a surprise attack or whatever, and just come at me!”
“This crazy bastard is really… As if I’d ever lose to a pushover like you!”
Song Won-gyo shouted at the top of his lungs and charged, kicking off the ground.
In any case, it was a situation where neither of them could use internal energy.
*Whoosh!*
At the same time Song Won-gyo planted his lead foot, he swung his left fist hard.
In that split second, Yun Jong-seung put his right foot forward and extended his left hand, shouting:
“Lest you whine about losing because it was my left hand, I’ll face you with my left hand too!”
*Crack!*
*Crunch!*
As fist and palm collided, the sound of breaking bones rang out. In an instant, Song Won-gyo’s expression turned black.
“Ugh! Aaaaah!”
Along with his scream, Song Won-gyo’s body flew into the air and was thrown back a long way.
With his left arm having gone limp, he did not budge, as if he had completely lost consciousness.
“Pant, pant…!”
Yun Jong-seung, breathing heavily, looked down at his left palm.
His palm was dyed red.
Although he could not emit internal energy, simply exerting strength in his fingers as if performing a finger art was enough to fully manifest the subtle principles of the Red Lotus Palm.
‘I won!’
Yun Jong-seung tightly clenched his left fist and raised his head.
“Namgung Cheon is not someone a bastard like you can call a pushover or whatever so casually. That guy is…”
Yun Jong-seung turned his head and stared blankly in the direction Namgung Cheon’s party had run.
“…a truly amazing guy.”
Yes, he will break through and appear no matter what you bastards do!
* * *
“This is a bit strange, isn’t it?”
The Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets gathered at the back gate of the mountain stronghold stirred.
It had already been well over two double-hours since Namgung Cheon entered through the back gate. By now, it was more than enough time for him to have appeared with the hostage on his back.
Yet, there was not a single peep of news.
Not even the sound of a trap triggering could be heard.
Just then, Eon Ho-ryang and Jin Tae-gon, who had gone to check the other entrances, returned.
“There is no trace of the mechanisms having operated at the front gate.”
“Same for the side gate. There were no traces of anyone passing through.”
At their words, Dokgo Jin cupped his chin and muttered.
“Then this means those bastards went in and still haven’t come out…”
“Could it be that they failed to rescue the hostage?”
At Eon Ho-ryang’s words, Dokgo Jin shook his head side to side.
“It’s not a matter to judge hastily. Perhaps the guy is waiting for us.”
“Are you saying he knows we teamed up?”
“It’s possible. If he’s quicker-witted than we thought.”
“Then what do you plan to do?”
Dokgo Jin glanced at the sky and said.
“We wait. They have no choice but to come out anyway, to return with the hostage.”
“True.”
Eon Ho-ryang and Jin Tae-gon nodded in agreement.
Just as Dokgo Jin said, in order to pass the Third Trial, they had no choice but to bring the hostage out of the mountain stronghold.
Even if they went out through another passage, they would be able to hear the sound of the mechanisms activating, so they just needed to be thoroughly prepared.
However…
They did not come out.
While time flowed mercilessly, not even a shadow of Namgung Cheon’s party showed up.
By now, opinions were beginning to split even among the Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets.
“Could they have been caught by the mechanisms?”
“Or are they really holding the hostage and waiting for us to enter?”
“At this rate, the sun is going to set.”
“Doesn’t that bastard intend for all of us to die together? Since he thinks he’ll lose the hostage to us anyway, maybe he’s aiming for everyone’s disqualification?”
That single remark shouted by someone was quite persuasive.
Eon Ho-ryang and Jin Tae-gon looked at Dokgo Jin.
“Brother Dokgo. What are you going to do? At this rate, everyone really might get disqualified.”
“Damn it! That dog-like Namgung Cheon! He’s really doing this kind of crap?”
Dokgo Jin’s expression distorted violently.
True, if they went inside the mountain stronghold, they would inevitably fight in a narrow space, making it difficult to utilize their numerical advantage.
But even so, there were fifteen on this side. The opponents were three who had to protect the hostage.
One way or another, the probability of the other side winning was slim, so did they mean they wouldn’t just take it meekly until the end?
‘Fine, if that’s what you want, I will go in and crush you!’
They could wait no longer.
If they exceeded the time limit, they could all be disqualified even if they brought the hostage back.
*Clang!*
Dokgo Jin drew his sword.
“Let’s go!”
Finally, the fifteen cadets began crowding into the back gate.
* * *
“Shouldn’t we really be heading out by now?”
Paeng Su-hyeok pressed with an anxious expression.
However, Namgung Cheon, sitting cross-legged while circulating his energy, responded calmly.
“Wait. Blessings come to those who wait.”
“Argh! Just how long! The sun is setting soon!”
“Wait. The time will surely arrive.”
“This is driving me crazy!”
Paeng Su-hyeok continuously paced at the entrance of the cultivation room while biting his fingernails.
Meanwhile, the cadet acting as the hostage, standing next to Jin So-hong, could not understand the situation at all.
He thought they would return quickly as soon as they found him, but they had been doing this for over two double-hours.
Since no one answered even when he asked for the reason, he did not know what was going on.
It was then.
As expected, the first to react was Namgung Cheon.
Having been sitting cross-legged, he snapped his eyes open.
Next, Paeng Su-hyeok and Jin So-hong flinched at the same time and looked toward the entrance door.
Lastly, the cadet acting as the hostage could also feel the presence of people gathering from the outside.
‘But… this many all at once?’
It felt as though a crowd of well over ten people was rushing over, as if they had planned it beforehand.
“Su-hyeok, So-hong! Get ready!”
“Don’t order me around, Namgung Cheon!”
Even as he spoke, Paeng Su-hyeok quickly tucked the hostage under his arm and leaped toward the upper part of the entrance.
Jin So-hong also quickly threw her meteor hammer to hang in the air like a spider.
A moment later, the door was thrown open violently, and a group of cadets appeared.
*Crash!*
At the same time, fifteen cadets poured into the cultivation room in a rush.
The cadets quickly surrounded Namgung Cheon, who was sitting in the very center.
Dokgo Jin strode over in front of Namgung Cheon.
“Namgung Cheon! Where is the hostage?”
“Wow, sitting like this really brings back old memories of holding onto a hostage and holding out.”
“What?”
While Dokgo Jin furrowed his brow, Namgung Cheon waved his hand.
“Ah, it has nothing to do with you.”
In fact, Namgung Cheon had been in this situation countlessly in his past life.
Since there were times when he couldn’t see any exit while running away, he would capture a Martial Alliance member and use them as a hostage.
At those times, the leaders of the Martial Alliance would always chase him down and say those words.
‘Jin Cheon-rang! Where is the hostage?’…
Although the current situation was slightly different from back then.
Namgung Cheon smirked and stood up from his seat.
“Now, Paeng Su-hyeok.”
*Tap!*
As he spoke, Paeng Su-hyeok, who had been hanging above the entrance, slipped out with the hostage in an instant.
Right after, Jin So-hong flew out like a bird and immediately shut the heavy door behind them.
“Wh-what…!”
Before the Righteous Chivalry Academy cadets could even react, harsh metallic sounds rang out in succession.
*Screeech, thud!*
*Click! Click! Clack!*
The cadets, who had been staring blankly at the locked door, turned to look at Namgung Cheon with absurd expressions.
“What is the meaning of this right now?”
“What do you mean? It’s the act of giving you bastards a proper lesson.”
When Namgung Cheon smirked, Dokgo Jin’s face distorted violently.
“This crazy pushover bastard… you’ve completely thrown your life away just to pass the Third Trial. Have you not considered that we will beat you to death if you do this?”
“Nope, I haven’t.”
“Madman. Let’s see if you can still make that face even after you’ve become a cripple! What are you all doing? Stomp him!”
*Shhh!*
The angered cadets rushed at Namgung Cheon all at once.