Chapter 54: Chapter 54
“Haa…”
Even while exhaling rough breaths, Jin Un did not lower the sword aimed at the bandits. Beside him lay Seok Do-byeok, who had collapsed intoxicated by the poison.
‘If I die, Young Hero Seok dies as well…’
Was that all? It was self-evident that they would surely slaughter all the villagers who had beseeched him as well.
Even while his stomach churned and his vision wavered, Jin Un circulated his internal energy to drive out the poisonous energy little by little.
“It is difficult, right? That is expected. Since we spiked it with poison potent enough that a single drop could put even a bull to sleep.”
“Hehehe, why go interfering in other people’s business then?”
The bandits spat sneers at the staggering Jin Un.
To Jin Un’s ears, even those words were not properly heard. There was only the thought that he could never die. For the sake of Young Hero Seok and the villagers, and for the sake of Mount Hua, which had to spread its wings once more.
Drip. Drip-drop.
Raindrops fell upon the back of Jin Un’s hand gripping the sword. The cold rainwater was awakening his mind, if even just a little.
Suddenly, someone spoke like this.
“Well, it is weather just right for dying.”
“…”
The martial artists looked at that man. Feeling awkward, the man let out a dry cough and shouted to divert attention.
“Kill him!”
At the same time, three martial artists at the forefront rushed forward.
Jin Un’s pupils, contracting in an instant, shifted slightly left and right.
Although he could not distinguish things well because he was intoxicated with poison, the cultivation he had accumulated his entire life did not simply vanish.
Jin Un’s sword moved slightly. Because his strength could not be applied properly, it was not that fast.
Clang!
He parried the sickle thrusting from the forefront. Jin Un’s figure swayed heavily, looking as though he might fall backward.
The martial artists felt a strange thrill. What kind of existence was a Plum Blossom Swordsman of the Mount Hua Sect in the martial world? Even if it had declined more than before, that renown had not entirely vanished.
They, mere bandits, were overwhelming such an expert. Although they had used poison, they had not a shred of shame. The world they lived in was fundamentally that kind of place.
“Hahaha!”
Toward the staggering Jin Un, one bastard burst into wild laughter and swung a club. He intended to smash his head open just like that. If he beat a Plum Blossom Swordsman to death with a club, it would serve as boasting material over drinks until the day he died.
Because Jin Un’s figure was already tilted far backward, it appeared there was no way he could possibly block it.
However, just before the club could crush his head, Jin Un tilted his head aside. The club struck his shoulder heavily instead of his head.
Thud!
Jin Un bit his molars hard. Because of the stinging pain in his shoulder, he almost dropped his sword.
Instead, however, Jin Un raised his left hand and grabbed the club. Thanks to that, his body did not fall completely, and the man applied force so as not to be pulled along.
At the same time, Jin Un released the hand that was holding it. The man, who had been straining backward to resist, stumbled instead.
Even intoxicated by poison, a Plum Blossom Swordsman’s understanding of martial arts was not something mere bandits could dare compare to.
The man was horrified in an instant, but the silver blade had already surged right before his eyes.
A very brief moment.
‘…The scent of plum blossoms.’
He sensed the scent of plum blossoms faintly brushing the tip of his nose.
That was the end.
Slice!
Both of his eyes were deeply slashed. Writhing in agony, he flung the club away and brought his hands to both eyes.
It was a meaningless action.
Stab!
In succession, the sword pierced the man’s chest. He collapsed futilely, and Jin Un, supporting his body on the sword plunged into the man’s corpse, gasped for rough breath.
“Haa, haa…”
The rainwater that had been falling in one or two drops was now pouring down in torrents before anyone knew it. The white breath Jin Un exhaled shattered as it met the rain.
Suddenly, he saw his hero headband rolling in the muddy water, having fallen at some point. The plum blossom pattern was entirely invisible, and its mottled, filthy state felt just like the plight of himself and Mount Hua.
“Fierce. Truly fierce.”
The bandits clicked their tongues as they looked at their dead companion and Jin Un. There was not the slightest sign of sorrow even at their companion’s death. From the start, there was no such thing as camaraderie among those who had gathered merely to plunder other people’s property.
Even though their companion had died, they did not grow tense. Jin Un was in a state where it would not be strange if he collapsed right away. The thought that they might lose never entered their minds.
“Go and kill him already.”
Someone spoke. However, no one stepped forward. Though they did not think they would lose, somehow they felt that if they stepped forward first, they might die from a blind blade.
The bandits looked at each other and shook their heads. They each knew better than anyone else that this was the extent of their caliber.
“Phew, forget it.”
A man among them whose martial prowess was higher clicked his tongue and stepped forward. Unlike the others, a sword was held in his hand. He was one of the few proper swordsmen among them.
“I am Jang Il-su. What is your name? Since you are a Daoist, wouldn’t you have a Daoist moniker or a Daoist name?”
The swordsman who introduced himself as Jang Il-su asked.
Jin Un looked at that man with blurring vision and spoke.
“…It is not a light name to be shared with a bandit bastard.”
“Oho. The Nine Sects truly are different.”
Jang Il-su let out an exclamation of admiration. Although he was currently mingling with mere bandit riffraff, he was also once a man who traveled the martial world. Even among martial artists, people possessing that level of spirit were rare to behold.
“Good. I will kill you without pain.”
Having spoken so, Jang Il-su raised his sword high. A faint energy lingered over his blade.
Seeing this, Jin Un’s pupils wavered slightly.
‘Sword qi. Why would a martial artist of that caliber…’
If his physical condition were normal it might be different, but for now, there was not the slightest chance of victory. Jin Un readjusted his grip on his sword once more. If he could not kill him, he would at least take his right arm.
‘…Young Hero Seok. I am sorry.’
Jin Un, resolved for mutual destruction, apologized to Seok Do-byeok in his heart. It was because he knew that if he died, Seok Do-byeok could never live either.
However, there was no other way.
Jin Un’s mind rapidly turned cold.
Soon, Jang Il-su stamped his foot. Rainwater shot up from where he had stood. After closing the distance in an instant, he thrust his sword forward.
He did not yet possess the skill to project sword qi outward. However, severing the neck of a half-dead guy was child’s play.
Clang!
The two sword blades clashed head-on. Jin Un’s palm tore and blood flowed, but Jang Il-su appeared unharmed.
Jang Il-su’s sword rushed in continuously without rest.
Jin Un struggled to swallow the bloody scent rising in his throat and kept moving his body.
Cl-cl-cl-clang!
In an instant, more than ten exchanges passed. Jang Il-su could not help but marvel. Even though the fellow looked ready to collapse immediately, he was miraculously deflecting the sword.
Jang Il-su suddenly felt his mood sink. As someone who had once wandered the martial world, watching the desperate struggle of such a man was not very pleasant.
‘I should kill him.’
He was no longer in the mood to cross swords. Jang Il-su’s momentum shifted at once. The sword qi lingering on his sword shone even more distinctly.
“Wow, truly impressive.”
Jin Un and Jang Il-su. Though it was unknown to which of the two the words were addressed, someone spoke like that.
Jin Un noticed that Jang Il-su intended to kill him in this single move. That was also what Jin Un had been waiting for.
Drawing a large trajectory unlike before, Jang Il-su’s sword surged forward.
On the other hand, Jin Un squeezed out his strength once more and raised his sword as he had done until now. No, he made it appear that way.
‘It is over.’
Jang Il-su thought so. The moment the swords collided, either the Daoist bastard’s palm would tear completely or the sword would break. However, the situation that unfolded next differed from his expectation.
The steel blade of the Daoist’s sword moved while tracing a bizarre trajectory like a living serpent.
Plum Blossom Falling Stream. It was a stance created by imitating the shape of falling plum blossoms. It was also a stance that suited the Mount Hua Sect, which was once called the sect of the freest Daoists.
Jang Il-su had expected the swords to clash against each other, but suddenly a scene unfolded where they surged toward each other’s bodies.
‘Foolish…’
When he realized the opponent intended mutual destruction, it was already too late. If he pulled back his sword now, only he would be injured.
Thinking he had stepped forward for nothing, Jang Il-su pushed his sword in even deeper.
Stab!
Jin Un’s sword deeply cleaved Jang Il-su’s shoulder first. He exerted force as if he would not stop there.
Although Jang Il-su’s sword was rushing to sever his neck, it did not matter. He was already prepared for mutual destruction anyway.
Because of the pouring torrential rain, his long hair was soaked and his vision was not even properly visible.
‘So this is how it ends.’
Closing his eyes, Jin Un applied force to his hand. Soon he felt the fellow’s bone being sliced entirely, and at the same time the fellow’s blade touched his neck.
He was not afraid of death. He merely felt apologetic to Young Hero Seok, the villagers, and his fellow Daoists of Mount Hua.
“Kuuugh…”
The groan of Jang Il-su, whose arm had fallen off, was heard.
Jin Un was puzzled. His blade touching his neck had abruptly stopped. Although the sound of rain was still heard, the rainwater falling overhead had subsided.
‘Am I dead?’
Thinking so, he opened his eyes.
Someone was standing behind his back. Reaching out a hand, he was gripping Jang Il-su’s blade. An expert of the caliber to grasp a sword imbued with sword qi barehanded. Even within the Mount Hua Sect, such experts could be counted on one’s fingers.
Jin Un turned his head to confirm the owner of the hand. Jin Un’s eyes widened.
“…Young Hero Cheon?”
It was Cheon Woo-jin.
Astonishingly, the energy he emitted was evaporating the rainwater falling around him. Seeming to have already fought a battle before arriving, blood was stained on his clothes.
Cheon Woo-jin looked at Jin Un with a dry gaze and spoke.
“Did you say that if it rains, one must get wet?”
“…”
It was the words Jin Un had previously spoken to Cheon Woo-jin.
Cheon Woo-jin looked at Jin Un with his characteristic calm eyes as always. Even with dozens of bandits before him, he seemed not to care in the slightest.
“If there is a place to take shelter, taking shelter for a while, and if there is someone to block it for you, standing behind them is also not a bad choice. There is no need to get drenched unnecessarily.”
Jin Un could not say anything. He had no strength to open his mouth, and Cheon Woo-jin’s perspective came as a shock to him as well.
Cheon Woo-jin’s master, White Elder, had also once said something along the lines of having to get wet if it rains. However, Cheon Woo-jin was a man who had been deeply influenced not only by White Elder, but also by Black Elder.
Still holding Jang Il-su’s blade, Cheon Woo-jin pulled out the Crane Feather Fan from his robes with his other hand.
Soon, a breeze began to gather at the tip of the Crane Feather Fan, just like when he suppressed the fiery demon previously.
“W-What is that?”
The bandits exchanged glances. They too were quick-witted people who had survived in the harsh martial world. Soon, as if rehearsed, the bandits began to turn their steps around.
“Hey, you sons of bitches!”
Jang Il-su spat curses. However, the bandits’ flight was an action without the slightest meaning.
As always, the breeze starting from the tip of the Crane Feather Fan swallowed the rainwater and transformed into a gale.
There was one thing overlooked by those who did not know the White Flower Sword Immortal well: when dealing with evil people, White Elder was by no means gentler than Black Elder.
He was a man who earned the moniker of Sword Immortal while using a fan because the wind he raised was said to be sharper than most divine swords, so what more needed to be said?
“A-Aaargh!”
Soon, screams erupted where the gale swept through. Blood and flesh mingled with rainwater and poured down in torrents. It was as if hundreds of blades had slashed their entire bodies to shreds.
Even while his eyes closed from sheer exhaustion, Jin Un watched that scene dazedly.
‘Is this truly…’
The sight unfolding before his eyes was so unrealistic that it felt like a dream.
With such thoughts, Jin Un’s eyes slowly closed.
Cheon Woo-jin laid the collapsed Jin Un down beside Seok Do-byeok and spoke softly.
“It is so heavy, after all, if one’s clothes get completely soaked in the rain.”