Chapter 430 : Blood Battle on Water

Chapter 430: Blood Battle on Water

Cheong Geonmin had already decided not to concern himself with what happened to the Dabie Sect alliance fighting at the Heavenly Central Sect.

Preserving the elite of his clan was a wiser decision than having them wiped out, and eliminating Namgung Yoo and Hoi Unkyung was the more accurate strategic move.

Then, Cheong Geonmin furrowed his brow.

It was because someone suddenly appeared in front of him.

“How did you get here, Brother Jeok?”

“Hahaha, since Brother Cheong was hastily leaving the battlefield, I thought something important must be going on and followed you.”

Cheong Geonmin cursed him inwardly.

‘Unlucky bastard. As soon as the tide turns, he pulls out.’

If it ended like this, only the deaths of Iron Response Sect Leader Jeon Woong and the Serpent Dragon Sect’s Young Sect Leader Gocheok would be in vain.

However, upon seeing Jeok Gwang, Cheong Geonmin felt he could solve his dilemma and welcomed him.

“Brother Jeok, perfect timing. Instead of wasting strength in this attrition, let’s work on something together.”

“What is it?”

Jeok Gwang had already sensed that Cheong Geonmin had other intentions when he retreated without hesitation from the battlefield.

“There’s information that Hoi Unkyung of the Sky Ocean Merchant Union is heading to the Heavenly Central Sect. It seems to be military supplies. If we take care of that, don’t you think we’ll still have a chance at victory?”

With no other intel, Jeok Gwang had no choice but to believe Cheong Geonmin’s words as they were.

Cheong Geonmin deliberately left out the fact that Namgung Yoo was acting as Hoi Unkyung’s escort.

If he mentioned Namgung Yoo, Jeok Gwang would surely run away out of fear of the Namgung Clan’s influence.

He was already the type to bail out when things looked grim—if he said they had to kill Namgung Yoo, Jeok Gwang would surely tuck tail and run.

Even Cheong Geonmin himself could handle Hoi Unkyung somehow, but Namgung Yoo, considering the Namgung Clan's authority, was not someone to be trifled with.

That’s why he intended to use Jeok Gwang to kill her.

“Then let’s hurry.”

As Jeok Gwang, already fired up, rushed him, Cheong Geonmin grinned slyly.

“Indeed. Only by capturing them can our battle situation improve.”

Cheong Geonmin also spouted lies as he urged his horse forward.

Watching them from atop a hill, a woman muttered in disbelief.

“Gathering up a bunch of ragtag forces and trying to go to war with the Heavenly Central Sect? I must be the fool for expecting anything. The Dabie Sect alliance is far too weak to intervene in this war.”

Her tone shifted from anger to resignation, bordering on despair.

“I even brought the Glass Saintess for this… what a waste.”

Man Inhwa’s eyes flashed coldly as she watched the Dabie Sect alliance being slaughtered.

She had come upon hearing rumors that the Dabie Sect alliance had launched a war against the Heavenly Central Sect, bringing along Hoi Soyu, the Glass Saintess, and thirty elite warriors.

If the tides of battle turned favorable, she had planned to step in and exact her revenge on Yong Hwarin.

With the Glass Saintess’s power, she believed she could snap Yong Hwarin’s neck.

The Glass Saintess, previously incomplete, was now nearly perfected—Man Inhwa was convinced no one could stand against her.

Then she turned and spoke to the strategist standing behind her.

“They’re also heading for Hoi Unkyung, aren’t they?”

“It seems that way. Otherwise, there’s no reason for them to go in the direction of Wonyang.”

“There’s no helping it. If we can’t catch a pheasant, we’ll settle for a chicken. I suppose I’ll have to vent my anger on them. We’re heading for Wonyang too.”

As Man Inhwa unsheathed her blade, Hoi Soyu and the warriors followed closely behind.

The boat carrying Yong Hwarin and Eungjo drifted toward Hagu.

Now that the current had calmed, the boat no longer rocked.

It was hard to imagine how they had made it through that treacherous gorge.

Especially while engaging in a dangerous duel along the way.

Yong Hwarin, having blocked a hole in the boat with his foot, had exhausted much of his qi and his mouth was parched.

Eungjo, noticing Yong Hwarin’s gaze drifting toward the flask at his waist, had already prepared.

He turned and pretended to row while dropping poison into the flask.

Just in case, he also swallowed an antidote to the poison.

Eungjo then placed the oar inside the boat, took out the flask, and guzzled the water.

Then he looked at Yong Hwarin and spoke.

“Would you like some too, Hyungjang?”

Parched, Yong Hwarin didn’t decline.

“Thank you.”

Blocking the hole in the boat had severely drained his strength.

Still holding the hole shut with his foot, Yong Hwarin extended his hand.

Eungjo held the flask and reached out toward him.

As Yong Hwarin grasped the flask, he suddenly flinched in shock.

His eyes had landed on the tattoo running from Eungjo’s wrist to his forearm.

‘That’s…?’

The pattern, long forgotten, triggered a chill across his entire body.

‘That’s the mark that was on the hands of the masked attackers from my past life—the ones who ambushed my sect and assassinated my father. Neither the Heavenly Demon Sect, Blood Demon Castle, Dark Echo Valley, nor the Sacred Heaven Cult used such markings. I had written it off as some mysterious organization and almost forgotten… but to see it on him?’

Yong Hwarin held the flask and stared intently at Eungjo.

“Please, drink.”

Seeing how desperate Eungjo was for him to drink, Yong Hwarin realized what it meant—and poured the flask’s contents onto the floor.

“Wh-what are you doing?”

Then, the words Myeong Gujeong had said flashed through his mind.

“So it’s true. The power behind the Heavenly Demon Sect vanished from Sangmubo, and now I’ve found it here.”

Upon hearing this, Eungjo looked up, surprised.

“Huh? You didn’t know who I was until just now! How did you figure it out?”

“That’s not something you need to know. I was on my way to Sangmubo to arrest you, and here you are, walking into my lap. I’m the lucky one.”

Yong Hwarin quietly replied, convinced that Eungjo had no path of escape.

Having already fought him in a duel, Yong Hwarin knew who was stronger and had no reason to worry.

“That’s right. I’m the man behind the Heavenly Demon Sect. But do you really think you can capture me?”

“Don’t you think you’re just a rat in a jar?”

At Yong Hwarin’s words, Eungjo shook his head.

“Where do you think I sent my subordinates halfway through?”

“What do you mean?”

“That’s right. I recognized you from the beginning. Heavenly Sword Hero Yong Hwarin. I knew it was you at first glance.”

“Doesn’t matter. You still can’t escape my grasp.”

As Yong Hwarin stepped forward, Eungjo shouted.

“Come out!”

At that moment, swords surged up from the water like bamboo shoots after rain.

Yong Hwarin immediately retreated and leapt onto the edge railing of the boat.

Crack!

The boat split apart and shattered.

Warriors who had been lying in ambush beneath the water burst forth, attacking Yong Hwarin, who now stood on a wooden plank.

Having been hidden underwater, even Yong Hwarin hadn’t noticed them.

Water had a similar effect to Protective Energy, blocking qi fluctuations—making it difficult to detect presence even up close.

“Hahahaha!”

Eungjo burst into wild laughter as he watched Yong Hwarin attacked while stranded on the waterborne plank.

He believed he had dragged the tiger into open water—like a fish already caught.

The black-clad warriors focused their attacks on the lower side, aiming to destroy the wooden plank under Yong Hwarin’s feet.

It was a ploy to make him fall into the water.

No matter how skilled one was, in the water, they were no match for those trained in Water Arts.

Fighting on land and water was worlds apart.

Yong Hwarin knew this too and struggled not to lose the plank.

But these black-clad men weren’t ordinary.

Each one was at least a first-rate master.

Defending against their onslaught while protecting the plank was nearly impossible.

As attacks came from beneath, Yong Hwarin sprang upward into the air.

At the same time, he clamped the plank between his feet and lifted it up.

When the plank wasn’t destroyed, the black-clad warriors leapt up after him.

Yong Hwarin immediately flipped upside down using the technique of Returning Dragon Circling Heaven and unleashed sword qi downward.

Slice!

Two necks were severed by Yong Hwarin’s sudden reversal, and the bodies plunged into the water.

Splash! Splash!

“Press the attack!”

As the black-clad warriors hesitated, Eungjo shouted.

Three of them sprang up again, using the corpses of their fallen comrades as springboards.

Their target was the wooden plank.

The three of them charged with a near-suicidal leap.

With no choice, Yong Hwarin infused qi into the plank clamped between his feet and kicked.

As one of them swung his sword to destroy the plank, Yong Hwarin unleashed a lightning-quick Swift Sword strike, slicing through all three as he descended onto the water.

Splash!

Now with only his chest above the water, Yong Hwarin found himself in trouble.

Though he had slashed through the rushing enemies in haste, he had no idea how many more remained.

‘Damn it! Now that I’ve fallen in, swordplay becomes nearly impossible.’

The black-clad warriors began to close in on Yong Hwarin.

They were trained in Water Arts and moved freely beneath the surface.

Yong Hwarin, who had never learned to swim, was flailing, barely maintaining his balance.

In this state, swinging a sword was out of the question.

The floating wooden planks had already been removed by the black-clad men—there wasn’t even a palm-sized scrap of wood left nearby.

‘If only I had even a single wooden stick…’

As that thought crossed his mind, Yong Hwarin looked down at the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword.

He had been too focused on the fight to remember—but when operated with the Azure Dragon Three Marbles, the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword became as light as paper.

‘You fool! Only now you remember that?’

Yong Hwarin lightened the sword using the Nine Dragons Heavenly Ascent Technique, allowing it to float.

Then he placed his weight upon it.

As Yong Hwarin stood atop the sword, all the black-clad warriors were stunned.

Not only was the sword floating—he was standing on it.

Something they had only heard of in stories.

Yong Hwarin picked up an iron sword from a corpse’s hand and spoke.

“Anyone who stands in my way will be buried at sea.”

As his subordinates shrank back, Eungjo shouted furiously.

“What are you all doing?! Bring me his head!”

Then, the black-clad warriors all surged out of the water.

From that moment on, Yong Hwarin held nothing back.

He mercilessly cut down any enemy who approached.

They focused their attacks on the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword again, but not only was it immune to damage—even against sword qi—it moved with Yong Hwarin.

None of them realized he was controlling the sword with Sword Unification.

To draw out the remaining enemies underwater, Yong Hwarin launched his body into the air.

As expected, the black-clad warriors sprang from the water like fish, attacking him midair.

At that moment, Yong Hwarin activated Sword Unification.

Whoosh!

The White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword, which had been floating on the water, rose into the air and began slicing through the airborne enemies.

“It’s Sword Unification!”

One of the black-clad warriors shouted before dying.

While they were still suspended in the air, trying to block the White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword, Yong Hwarin unleashed Nascent Qi with the iron sword.

A blue flash exploded toward the cluster of black-clad warriors.

In the air, with nowhere to dodge, they could only channel their qi to activate Protective Energy.

But the moment Nascent Qi exploded, limbs were torn apart, and the black-clad warriors plunged into the water.

Their Protective Energy couldn’t withstand Yong Hwarin’s Nascent Qi.

Eungjo muttered in shock as he witnessed it.

“Sword Unification and Nascent Qi…”

He had heard rumors, but seeing it with his own eyes was something else.

Eungjo had assumed that both techniques would be useless underwater.

But Yong Hwarin, using the sword as his foothold and unleashing Nascent Qi, no longer looked human.

Now, Yong Hwarin no longer held back—he scattered Nascent Qi wildly.

No one had imagined that Nascent Qi could be used like sword qi.

However, Eungjo still had one hidden card.

He had a subordinate carrying explosives.

If Yong Hwarin could just be forced into the water again, he would have plenty of opportunities to detonate the charges and kill him.