Emperor Namgung Mu of the Thousand Years - Chapter 54

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#054

 

As soon as I recognized the situation, there was only one thing I could do.

 

“Damn it…! Why the hell…!”

 

They noticed much faster than I expected.

 

Clearly some variable had gone wrong.

 

I have no idea what it could be right now.

 

But there’s no time to figure out the reason. Right now I need to break through first. I shoved aside the pile of silver ingots that had been carelessly placed on top and grabbed three roots of Baekhwamodo.

 

I put the three Baekhwamodo roots into a box nearby.

 

I hastily stuffed in various documents that seemed to have clear connections to Elder Dangmutae, the original Mandokgihae, and other papers as well.

 

-Clang clang clang clang!!!!

 

This irregular noise.

 

Along with it, the trembling of the earth that roared like a giant centipede breathing fire.

 

‘If my thinking is correct, at this speed…!’

 

It’s the Shell of Benevolence.

 

The Shell of Benevolence is being activated.

 

If it’s activated, then among the Jegal Family’s eight formations, that vicious ant trap formation that would be second to none…!

 

“Fuck…!”

 

I kicked open the door and came out.

 

I swept away the hanging ropes and ran down the corridor. I passed the completely burned pond.

 

I reached toward the door in front of me-.

 

“…!”

 

Suddenly I leaped up and hung upside down from the ceiling right above the door.

 

-Bang!

 

“Where is he!”

 

“There are traces this way!”

 

A group of guards rushed in like madmen.

 

They went straight into the room with the first mechanism formation.

 

“Damn! It’s all been broken!”

 

“Inside…! Quickly check inside! He should still be inside given the timing!”

 

They swarmed in.

 

Everything around shook.

 

People rushed about.

 

“Tch!”

 

I tore the hem of my clothes.

 

I secured the box containing the Baekhwamodo firmly to my chest and wrapped cloth around it once more to fix it tightly against my body.

 

I checked my weapons and as soon as I landed on the floor, I kicked open the door.

 

I came outside and began running at full speed.

 

‘The shortest route…! I need to escape from Jiak Paegyeong Fortress first!’

 

-Clang clang clang clang!!!!

 

Bells rang from all directions.

 

-Woooooong…!

 

The sound of a giant horn could be heard. Over it came the sound of heavy rain like a covering. Splashing footsteps echoed as they kicked up mud. The metallic sound of clanking weapons rang piercingly in my ears. The fishy smell of blood stung my nose. The mask covering my face kept sticking to my lips as it got wet from the rain. Hot breath fogged up my vision above it.

 

-Crash…!

 

Lightning flashed and thunder covered everything around. In the distance I could see the path leading back to the alley.

 

At the same time, three guards burst out from the alley.

 

Our eyes met.

 

The guard drew his sword.

 

“What, an ene-!”

 

I drove my knee into his face.

 

‘I can’t waste time!’

 

I snatched the spear from the falling guard and stabbed it straight into his opponent’s shoulder blade. I kicked the head of the one standing beside him. Swoosh, the iron chain wrapped around my right hand poured out like water and whipped through the air.

 

-Clang!!!

 

The guard’s body was half-crushed along with the arm that hastily blocked, flying through the air.

 

I tried to ignore them and pass right by.

 

-Whoosh!!

 

“…!”

 

I stopped my body that was about to leave.

 

Looking back, there was a guard who had shot a signal flare into the air with his bloodied hand.

 

“Damn…!”

 

I looked up at the sky.

 

-Pop!

 

White flames.

 

A marker pointing to this location that anyone could see.

 

And at the same time.

 

-Woooooong…!!!

 

The giant horn sounded and all the chaotic metallic sounds stopped completely.

 

And then-.

 

-Thud thud thud!!!

 

“Over here!”

 

“Here!!!! It’s the signal!”

 

“Enemy! Fifth alley from the southeast infirmary!”

 

-Crash!

 

The door beside me burst open and shattered. From there, three or more guards poured out again.

 

“Damn it!”

 

I swung my awl.

 

Three died instantly.

 

Now it’s a dogfight.

 

Blood spurted skyward in the heavy rain. Not one of them individually could ever match me.

 

The vast majority of guards are only third-rate to second-rate.

 

But their numbers are frightening.

 

Even in the world of assassins, when five or more coordinate their attacks, like weasels hunting a giant bear, they often wear down and eventually behead masters two to three levels above them.

 

‘Three breaths in one location! If I delay more than three moments, I die…! I must keep moving constantly!’

 

I drove the awl into the last third guard and abandoned it as I kicked off and leaped up. I stepped on the wall. I could see three or more layers of walls.

 

When I first infiltrated, I had approached via the shortest route.

 

But the enemy isn’t stupid either. That giant centipede-like movement writhing in the distance clearly showed three or more layers of guards surrounding that area.

 

No, there’s no need to confirm it.

 

I’ve experienced this situation countless times. In times like this, the most inefficient path was always the way to live, and the most efficient path was the way to die.

 

‘I’ll break through by cutting across the center of Jiak Paegyeong Fortress!’

 

They’re closing in by surrounding from the outskirts. In other words, the center is the eye of the storm!

 

As soon as I decided, I threw myself from atop the wall. I kicked open a door and entered another long indoor area. I ran frantically across the wooden floor.

 

“Where is he!”

 

“Enemy!”

 

While running, I saw enemies swarming in black masses from the far end of the corridor. I picked up a chair beside me and threw it at the window next to me.

 

-Crash!

 

The bamboo slats and window frame were crushed and flew away along with wooden fragments.

 

I threw my chain through the opening.

 

-Whip!

 

As soon as I hung from the ceiling beam of the adjacent building, I pulled myself up and crossed over onto the roof.

 

The moment I crossed over, I leaped across the wall and threw myself straight through the window of another room arranged in a direct line.

 

-Bang!

 

“Kyaak…!”

 

“What is it!”

 

The maids screamed. I could see the eyes of the six guards among them widen as they looked at me, who had suddenly burst in. They drew awls in both hands.

 

-Kwadududu!

 

Blood spurted from the necks and hearts of four guards as they died instantly.

 

“Keuruk!”

 

One guard desperately grabbed one of my awls with all his might.

 

-Clank!

 

The awl wouldn’t come out. My movement stopped. The last remaining guard beside him thrust his sword at me. Using the awl as an axis, I stepped on it and brought my foot down with my full weight.

 

-Kwang!!

 

The iron core embedded in the heel of my leather shoe crushed his jaw.

 

Even while doing so, I rummaged through his belongings.

 

It was another signal flare.

 

“Don’t be ridiculous!!”

 

I snatched it before the signal flare could even go off.

 

-Piiiik!!

 

I looked to the side in surprise.

 

Beside me was a maid holding a small whistle, blowing it frantically in terror.

 

“Over here?!”

 

“It’s the whistle sound!”

 

“Room 3! Room 3-!”

 

Right next to me, beyond the wooden door, I could hear the sound of people running and filling the corridor.

 

“Kuk!”

 

As soon as I pulled out one of the spear shafts from my waist, I wedged it across the door handle beside me.

 

-Bang!!

 

“What! Why won’t the door open!”

 

“It’s locked! Someone locked it from inside!”

 

“Break it down!!”

 

Soon the guards were slamming their bodies against the door like hammers. The spear shaft was getting crushed. In the meantime, I escaped from that spot with all my might.

 

Even a distance that could be reached instantly in a straight line became extremely slow as I had to turn at right angles, change directions up and down before taking even twenty steps.

 

Indoor and outdoor changed more than three times in the blink of an eye.

 

I traveled along corridor wooden floors, stepped on dirt floors, then crossed windows again and ran across roofs.

 

Then I landed on the ground again, bursting into indoor spaces and leaping across room after room.

 

“Huk…! Huk huk!!”

 

Heavy rain poured down.

 

Blood rained down.

 

My entire body was drenched in cold sweat and rainwater.

 

-Splash!

 

I threw my body into the sewer where all kinds of filth flowed.

 

I ran more than fifty steps through that sewer, breaking the trail of footsteps carved into the muddy street, and flung chains through the heavy rain to climb to the opposite roof.

 

“If I keep going like this, I’ll be cornered!”

 

I could tell by instinct.

 

I couldn’t describe it in words and there was no theory behind it, but I could tell.

 

That subtle difference between walking the path of life and walking the path of death.

 

Right now I was certainly advancing, but I was being cornered.

 

I was being driven to some location by a collective like a sluggish giant organism.

 

If I continued like this, I would die.

 

The moment my strength gave out, I would die like a bear being torn apart by weasels swarming from all directions.

 

I need a change. A change…!

 

Isn’t there some way?

 

“Huk… huk huk!”

 

The training level of the Hwangbo Family guards was higher than I thought.

 

And I was alone.

 

-Bang! Crack!

 

I smashed through the window again and crossed to another building. Panting and crawling on all fours, I straightened my posture again and sprinted.

 

“Here! Here he i-! Uaak!”

 

“My arm! My arm!!”

 

“Here, this monster bastard is here- Keuaak!”

 

Cool your head.

 

Even if your body is hot, at least cool your head.

 

In my head, I vaguely thought it was over.

 

Despair invaded my mind wearing the mask of rational thinking.

 

I swung my fists frantically, but like the claws of a trapped beast, the strength was draining away.

 

Any human would have to think this.

 

“Huk huk…!”

 

No.

 

I can do it.

 

Don’t give up.

 

Don’t give up…! There must be some way.

 

If I keep breaking through like this, there will be no end.

 

I need to use some method.

 

I was certainly overwhelming and smashing each enemy I faced individually, but I felt like I was sinking into a quagmire.

 

This distinctive disgusting feeling of being caught in a formation.

 

The feeling that immediate problems seemed to be solved, but everything was getting tangled up in the end.

 

Instinct cried out.

 

If this repetition continued, the end would definitely be death.

 

“What should I do, what…!”

 

-Bang! Kwang!

 

I gritted my teeth as I moved freely through the guards who were being smashed and scattered like flying debris.

 

“How…?!”

 

Think.

 

Think… Namgung Hwi…!

 

Subtly, but certainly, strength was draining from my hands and feet.

 

I could feel fatigue accumulating.

 

“Kill him!”

 

“Over here! Here!”

 

“Keuwook!”

 

Don’t give up.

 

You can’t give up.

 

You know it. No one has ever had expectations of me anyway. I carved out my own path to survival…! If even I… if even I give up on myself, it’s over at that moment…!

 

-Bang!

 

I smashed through the thin sliding door, and through the gap in my breathing, a spear flew at me in a surprise attack.

 

I swung my hand.

 

I broke the spear.

 

At that moment, five more guards rushed out from beside it, thrusting their spears.

 

I froze.

 

In the midst of it, I deflected four more spears, but for a moment I felt my tired hands and feet getting tangled. One spear blade rushed toward me, passing by before my hand blade could even reach it.

 

“Ah.”

 

Time feels like it’s stopping.

 

I can see the spear blade approaching as if leaping into my embrace.

 

The spear blade that flew before I could even activate the Pasabeolsik body technique,

 

-Clang!

 

struck the iron plate I had placed under my chest and deflected with a shower of sparks.

 

“Kugh!”

 

I escaped the danger of instant death.

 

I grabbed the spear and pulled it.

 

The startled rabbit-eyed guard rushed at me immediately. I threw an iron gauntlet punch like a mace toward his face.

 

-Crash!

 

The opponent’s neck was crushed along with a spray of blood.

 

In that moment, something from the guard’s chest fell out. It was the signal flare made from bamboo lantern that I had seen earlier.

 

“…This is it!!”

 

Something that came to mind in that split second.

 

I snatched it up.

 

-Thud thud thud!

 

I stopped moving forward and began sweeping horizontally. If there were more than five, I would definitely kick off and flee, and if three or less, I would attack and crush them.

 

-Clatter!

 

What gathered in my hands this way were five signal flares.

 

-Clang! Clatter!

 

I ran across the rooftops, smashing roof tiles. I knocked down another guard and snatched the torch from his hand.

 

I landed on the ground. I entered a nearby granary with rice.

 

Before I could even control ten breaths, my eyes moved quickly while watching all directions.

 

I shook the moisture from my hands and pulled strands of rice straw from the rice sacks. I rubbed my palms together to make fuses of different lengths.

 

I twisted and attached them to the ends of the signal flare fuses.

 

I put them in my chest to keep them from getting wet in the rain and burst out.

 

-Thud thud thud!

 

While avoiding the pursuit of enemies behind me, I positioned myself under a wall where rainwater couldn’t reach as much as possible. I stuck one signal flare into the ground there and placed the fuse on a roof tile fragment to keep it from getting wet. I covered it again with a roof tile like a roof. Then I quickly left that location.

 

Instead of trying to break through the outermost wall of the heavily guarded Jiak Paegyeong Fortress, I stopped just before it and moved horizontally, installing five signal flares here and there.

 

And-.

 

-Whiiiiish…!

 

-Whiuung! Bang!!!

 

White signal flares began exploding from all directions, from completely wrong positions where I wasn’t, each at different times.

 

“Over there! It’s a signal flare!”

 

“What, now it’s over there?!”

 

“First we go here! Top priority…!”

 

The guards protecting the fortress were closer to soldiers than martial artists. Each one was not dependent on autonomous movement and martial arts, but beings who moved in perfect unison according to a single discipline and law, having stripped away all reason.

 

Then I decided to shake that law.

 

And it worked.

 

‘I can see an opening…!’

 

I can see the iron fortress-like gaps opening up as they swarm here and there.

 

That slight difference is enough for me.

 

It’s a way out…!

 

I break through with all my strength at full power.

 

There’s no need to conserve strength anymore.

 

In the process, I encountered seven more guards, but they were crushed and knocked down by my chain and iron gauntlet fists.

 

“Damn bastards! The signal flares are a diversion! Don’t be swayed! Maintain the outermost perimeter… Hey you bastards!! Listen to me!! Being fooled by something so obvious! Even when I’m spoon-feeding you this much-!”

 

I wonder who that is.

 

I can hear the heart-rending scream of someone who appears to be commanding from far away.

 

“You said the traces were from one person?! Are you being swayed by just one person right now? And you haven’t even laid a hand on them? Are you still Hwangbo Family guards after all that? This isn’t just anywhere, it’s Jiak Paegyeong, Jiak Paegyeong! Hey you bastards!! Stop being in such confusion and…”

 

I could still faintly hear the commander’s screams from behind, but I had no time to check.

 

As soon as I took refuge in the forest, there was only one thing to check first.

 

The first thing I checked after escaping the encirclement was my physical condition.

 

My body is fine.

 

After checking my body’s condition, the next thing to check is the objective.

 

Three roots of Baekhwamodo.

 

I pull the cloth and take out the box. Fortunately, the box wasn’t damaged even during the intense sword fighting.

 

I opened the box with a sigh of relief.

 

“…?”

 

And I discover something strange.

 

“…What.”

 

I check once more.

 

I pick up one of them to examine it.

 

No matter how many times I check, it’s certain.

 

“…Why can’t I feel the cold energy from this anymore…?”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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