Martial God of the Sun and Moon - Chapter 322
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 322
“Hurry and organize the supplies! The wounded are over there! Over there!”
“Yes!”
“Third Sect Leader! Where is the Third Sect Leader! What are you bastards doing, not taking care of….”
“Sect Leader, the Third Sect Leader has already….”
“….”
The Moyong Family encampment, which had been engaged in battle around Qingzhou and Wenzhou in southern Zhejiang, was floundering in a quagmire of chaos.
“Rest comes first. Get them to eat something quickly. Has the physician we requested arrived?”
“Well, that is….”
“…Damn it, I knew this would happen. Don’t tell me the medicinal herbs and wound salves didn’t arrive either?”
“Fortunately those did arrive. But they’re all counterfeit.”
“Heh, hehehehe. All counterfeit? How infuriating….”
The man laughing as if at a loss was none other than Goe-am Sect Leader Song Wi, one of the pillars of the Moyong Family’s six thousand strong contingent.
Unable to show demoralizing behavior before his subordinates who had just returned from battle, Song Wi had to swallow the sighs that threatened to burst forth.
‘This has become laughable. What could the main family possibly be thinking? Driving loyal men to their deaths for such meaningless displays of force!’
The blood massacre caused by the Third Grand General and Muyong Tae.
Though our forces’ morale had risen and the martial world had been shaken, if one asked whether it was a meaningful assault for victory, the answer was absolutely not.
Of course, the Three Great Families and Gae-bang that had been supporting the Dokgo Family withdrew, leaving the Dokgo Family like a dragon with its sharp fangs pulled out.
But does a dragon become an earthworm just because a few teeth are lost?
Rather, the black dragon with its pride wounded shed its arrogance and revealed its fury.
Before the Dokgo Family’s relentless wave assaults pouring in from Anhui, Jiangxi, and Fujian, the Moyong Family’s front lines had no choice but to retreat helplessly.
“There’s no helping it. We’ll have to distribute counterfeits. Check on the wounded and distribute them at once.”
“Yes!”
“Tell those who are unharmed to take turns cultivating their qi… And where are all the sect leaders! Tell them to gather immediately!”
“Yes!”
Song Wi, who had been hurrying about the encampment, soon roughly pushed open the door of a building at the center of the village and entered.
Thud! Creak!
As he threw his sturdy frame into a seat, a horrible sound emanated from the old chair.
That sound was like a scream. It was he who wanted to scream.
“Sect Leader.”
“Ah, Soldier. You’re here.”
“I’ve prepared water. Why don’t you wash your face and freshen up?”
“Thank you. I was feeling uncomfortable from the blood anyway.”
Song Wi washed away the dried blood clinging to his skin, then suddenly recalled his own circumstances and offered a hollow smile.
“Are you alright?”
“You know I’m not alright.”
“….”
“The only fortunate thing is that the enemies finally pushed into Zhejiang, forcing us into urban warfare. At least we can rest on beds instead of sleeping rough! Haha… This damned!”
Crash!
Song Wi forcefully slammed down the bronze bowl filled with water. The bowl bounced and rattled wildly across the table.
While the Dokgo Family pitched tents and slept rough due to the Jeongheol Sect’s threat, Goe-am Sect managed to ‘borrow’ a village from the commoners for a time.
That was the only advantage Goe-am Sect currently held.
Any other merits?
None.
Not a single one.
“Ahem. Il Daejoo has arrived.”
“You’re unharmed.”
Soon, sect leaders covered in blood just as Song Wi was entered the room.
“…The Third Sect Leader has departed, so what of the Fourth?”
“He hasn’t died. However, his injuries are severe and he’s receiving treatment.”
“What exactly happened to the Third and Fourth Sect Leaders?”
“It was because of the Namcheon Single Sword.”
“Namcheon Single Sword? General Seo Joongbaek?”
“Yes, the Third Sect Leader also fell to his hand….”
Song Wi clenched his teeth, swallowing a sigh, then turned to the soldier.
“What’s the situation on the front?”
“Fortunately, our lines haven’t been breached. If anything, we could call it a victory.”
“What are the casualties?”
“Worse than anticipated. Since the Third Sect Leader’s forces were fragmented and scattered, most are unaccounted for.”
“Still, at least we’ve held them back for now.”
Song Wi continued speaking, pressing wearily between his eyes.
“Has there been any other instruction or word from headquarters… or rather, from the main family?”
“None.”
“Then what of Seongcheon Sect?”
“Yong Sect Leader has sent word that he will entrust judgment to the sect leaders in each region. He said he will bear full responsibility himself.”
“Ha ha, ha ha ha.”
Even that Sect Leader Seongcheon, who devoted his entire life to the main family, has now lost his heart to the clan.
‘Didn’t I tell you to bow to the family head long ago! Or to withdraw entirely! What difference does it make now!’
Fury surged within me.
And yet, in another sense, it was remarkable.
Whether it was remarkable that Yong Gun-baek would say such things now, or that the main family ultimately broke his stubbornness, I couldn’t say.
‘I should have at least brought Goe-am Sect and attached myself to the family head. Or left the Moyong Family entirely….’
Song Wi clicked his tongue.
“Has there been any contact from the other martial sects of Yukcheon Sect?”
“Gunkon Sect, some time ago….”
“I don’t care about those lunatics. What about the others?”
“It appears the main force led by the Sword King of the Dokgo Family has destroyed Seongcheon Sect once.”
“Then Pacheonggun is… no, never mind. There’s no point hearing about it anyway.”
“We need only hold the enemy’s ankles as ordered, isn’t that so?”
“Yes.”
Song Wi rose from his seat.
“First, we seal this place off. I dislike it, but we’ll make active use of the Jeongheol disciples. Since things have come to this, whether we neutralize the poison or use commoners as sacrifices, do whatever you can.”
“Sect Leader! No matter what, that is…!”
“Then you’re saying we should just die like this!”
“….”
“Send a report to headquarters. Tell them we’ll endure anything—just don’t abandon us.”
The dismal meeting ended, and Song Wi ground his teeth as he stepped outside.
The Right Army had taken some damage too, so there would be time to rest tonight.
And so night arrived.
Song Wi, who had been sitting in lotus position concentrating on dispelling the aftermath of the fierce battle, suddenly opened his eyes wide.
“Who are you?”
Click!
The locked window suddenly burst open.
In the moonlight streaming through the open window, a slender figure in black robes stood waiting.
Flawless posture, long and deep breathing—a master of tremendous skill.
‘A woman? An unfamiliar face.’
Whoosh.
Song Wi’s hand moved toward the sword resting at his knee.
“Did the family lord send you? Judging by your appearance, are you from the Jeongheol Sect?”
“….”
“Reveal your identity. Unless you wish to die by a single stroke.”
The woman opened her mouth.
“Goe-am Sect Leader, Goe-am Sword Immortal Song Wi. Is that correct?”
“I told you to reveal your identity.”
The woman scoffed.
“Upon seeing a night visitor, you speak the name of an ally before the name of an enemy?”
“That means… Surely not!”
“Ah, he told me to refrain from unnecessary words. But I still have my duty to fulfill.”
The woman suddenly extended her hand gracefully.
“Since you appear to be Sect Leader Song, I’ll deliver the message.”
“A message?”
Flutter!
A letter drifted gently into Song Wi’s grasp.
The inner energy manipulation of one who had reached enlightenment. I’ve never heard reports of such a skilled woman in the Dokgo Family’s Right Army.
“Read it. I won’t ambush you.”
“….”
Song Wi kept his guard up while turning his attention to the letter.
To the Loyal Retainer Yuk Cheondan’s ally, Goe-am Sect Leader Song Wi, personal delivery.
Loyal retainer? Is this mockery?
Before even reading the contents, I became curious about who had sent it.
To Cheonma Sect Leader Dokgo Myeong, with utmost respect.
Blood vessels bulged in Song Wi’s eyes.
Cheonma Sect Leader?
“You treacherous woman!”
Only then did Song Wi draw his blade and strike without hesitation.
Crash!
But the woman had already vanished without a trace.
“Sect Leader! What has happened!”
“Sect Leader?”
The guards waiting at the door rushed in upon hearing the commotion.
“An intruder! Establish a perimeter at once!”
“Yes, yes?”
“An enemy has infiltrated, I’m telling you!”
“Yes! Understood!”
Song Wi hastily read through the contents of the letter.
Written in an antiquated tone, the letter’s message was simple and direct.
Raise the white flag and surrender within the hour. Do so, and I shall treat you as a senior and master of the martial world.
Arrogant!
Surrender? Raise the white flag?
‘This…!’
At first, fury surged to the crown of his head, but soon his mind grew complicated.
Why would they do such a thing?
Deception? Or a genuine gesture of goodwill?
‘Regardless, this Song Wi would die before raising a white flag.’
The Cheonma Sect. If they’re real, so what?
They displayed remarkable martial prowess in breaking through the Heavenly Net, but they hadn’t fought against elite forces like his own—only fragmented rabble and stragglers.
‘With less than a hundred men, they dare attack us who outnumber them several times over? Ridiculous.’
But then a thought occurred to him.
Wouldn’t that opponent know this as well?
Could this be… confidence?
Like the legend of Guan Yu, who broke through five gates alone and rode forth.
“You there.”
“Yes!”
“Switch from alert status to full combat readiness.”
“Yes?”
“And… where did you say our nearest allies are located?”
“At Geonkon Sect.”
“How far away?”
“Two hours’ distance.”
“…Send a messenger ahead at once. Tell them to expect an enemy attack here.”
* * *
“You’ve arrived?”
“Yes. I sent a messenger to my sister instead.”
“You said you’d handle anything we asked.”
“And that’s why she went and came back without incident.”
In the thicket of midnight, countless shadows of men lay hidden in the darkness.
“What of the white flag?”
“It didn’t work. They’re entering combat readiness instead.”
“I expected as much.”
“Then why announce ourselves like this? We could have simply ambushed them.”
“If we conduct ourselves as filthily as those Jeongheol dogs, our name becomes nothing more than mediocre.”
“You mean….”
“We attack directly in the manner of the martial realm, claim the heads of their masters, and return with honor.”
“…!”
“We must become a fearsome force they cannot help but acknowledge—one they cannot stop even as they prepare and anticipate our coming.”
“Yes!”
“Surely none of you are frightened because the enemy prepared in advance?”
“How could that be?”
“Impossible!”
“Then….”
Dokgo Myeong spoke.
“Let’s go.”
Whoosh!
The Cheonma Sect rose as one.
The undulating black scales of their armor—it was like watching a dragon rise to its feet.
* * *
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Chaos erupted throughout the village.
“All hands awake! Rise! There are intruders at the Sect Leader’s quarters!”
“The Cheonma Sect! The Cheonma Sect is coming!”
The single night of peace, hard-won after relentless battles fought day after day, shattered in an instant.
The martial artists of Goe-am Sect dragged their exhausted bodies upright and raised their blades.
“The Cheonma… the Cheonma Sect?”
“Aren’t they that group of masters who can each handle dozens alone?”
The entire camp stirred with unease.
The high-ranking masters harbored doubts about the true extent of the Cheonma Sect’s power, but to the ordinary martial artists who had only heard reports from the front lines, they were monsters who had slaughtered several times their own numbers.
And in truth, that was not an exaggeration.
“The rear is a cliff and the west has sturdy palisades, so they’ll certainly come from the east and north.”
At Sect Leader Song Wi’s words, the sect leaders tensed.
Time passed, and a report came from the scouts who had been sent out.
“Enemy forces sighted! Genuine hostiles!”
“From which direction are they approaching!”
“From the west! The west!”
“…The west, you say?!”
From the west, beyond the towering wooden palisade.
A man walked forward at a leisurely pace, his qi completely exposed and unguarded.
“…!”
Whether masters or ordinary martial artists, none could find words in the face of that terrifying aura.
With each step that touched the ground, a horrifying wave of qi rippled outward.
Though still at considerable distance.
It was merely his footsteps.
“Cough!”
“Ugh!”
Among the ordinary martial artists who belatedly gathered their qi, some staggered, feeling internal injuries.
Dokgo Myeong, radiating such overwhelming qi, arrived before the tall wooden palisade at the village entrance.
And then.
CRASH!
A deafening explosion erupted.
The warriors of Goe-am Sect gasped in horror.
“What, what is that!”
The palisade crumbled.
It wasn’t just the struck section that collapsed. The shockwave from that single blow rippled across the wooden barrier like waves, and the entire palisade erected on the village’s western side shrieked—creeeeak!—as it tilted and fell.
“How many enemies! Is it the entire Cheonma Sect!?”
“Just one!”
“General Dokgo Myeong alone!”
“What!?”
Dokgo Myeong, having carved a path through alone, finally entered the village.
CRASH!
“Ahhh!”
“P-please, spare us!”
The Goe-am Sect warriors facing Dokgo Myeong from the west began to crumble helplessly.
Bang!
Not a single step was blocked.
If a fully grown tiger were to fight a flock of sheep—no, a warren of rabbits—it might look like this.
Each swing of the Hyeonchul Sword claimed three or four lives, weapons and all.
Poison? Arrows? Traps? Nothing worked.
Boom! Screeeech!
The explosion that erupted with the resonance of true force shattered everything.
And that wasn’t all.
“From the front! Enemy forces from the front as well…!”
Boom, boom, boom, boom! CRASH!
The main force of the Cheonma Sect pierced through the gaping hole in the front lines.
It was escalating beyond all measure.
Screams erupted from every corner of the village. The Goe-am Sect was swept away helplessly, floundering without any means of resistance.
“Goe-am Sect Leader Song Wi.”
Finally, I spoke, slinging the Hyeonchul Sword across my shoulder.
“Come out before all your subordinates are dead. The Cheonma Sect Leader has come for your head.”
A single display of martial power that commanded the attention of all the enemy masters.
At that incredible sight—reminiscent of Muyong Tae’s assault—Goe-am Sect Leader Song Wi’s eyes widened as if they might split open.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————