Return of the Sword Emperor - Chapter 38

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 14: The Tang Clan’s Debt of Gratitude and Resentment (1)

Racing across the brush with Cho Sang Bi, Dok Go Jin leaped over a boulder the size of a house in a single bound.
Upon hearing that the Tang Clan had fallen into crisis, he had begun rushing swiftly toward the Battlefield.

“Huff! Huff!”

Though they had run for barely the time it took to drink tea, his companions pursuing Dok Go Jin were already breathing in ragged gasps. Only Jong Gak maintained steady respiration; even Yu Seol Ran and Nam Goong Ho showed clear signs of strain. Dok Go Jin’s speed was simply that formidable.

“You’re moving too fast. We can’t keep up behind you. At this pace, even if we reach the Battlefield, we’ll be in no condition to fight properly.”

Despite Jong Gak’s warning, Dok Go Jin did not slow his pace.

“Right now, reaching the Battlefield as quickly as possible is what matters most. I’ll arrive first, so have the others maintain their breathing and continue at their own pace.”

Having left these instructions with Jong Gak, Dok Go Jin pushed his speed even higher and vanished from sight in an instant.

“This is insane.”

Jong Gak’s mouth fell open of its own accord.
He had given everything to follow behind him, yet realized with a hollow laugh that even that had not been his full strength.

“Section Chief, did you hear? Keep everyone together and bring them along.”

Jong Gak, having issued his command to Yu Seol Ran, did not slacken his own speed before disappearing.

“I’m going as well.”

Yu Seol Ran watched Nam Goong Ho dart past her side and turned her head sharply.

“Damn it.”

Though her heart ached to follow Jong Gak and Nam Goong Ho, she could not abandon the other team members who were running toward her with faces twisted in desperation.

“Slowly now—ease your pace a little.”

The team members seemed to come alive at Yu Seol Ran’s call, their steps slowing gratefully.

“Don’t stop!”

Yu Seol Ran barked sharply, her eyes flashing fierce.

“Catch your breath while you move. Anyone who can’t keep up with this had better be prepared!”

At the wild light blazing from Yu Seol Ran’s eyes, the team members set their halted feet in motion once more.

* * *

“Krahaha!”

Facing the arrogant gaze fixed upon him from above and the wild laughter that shook the Battlefield, Dang Cheol could do nothing.
His arms hung limp at his sides, his left leg bent grotesquely, his ribs crushed—everything spoke to the dire straits he now found himself in.

“Still, you put up quite a fight.”

Bang Yo, master of the Soaring Heaven Leg Technique, approached Dang Cheol with haughty strides.
Though his body swayed precariously as he barely remained standing, the fire in Dang Cheol’s eyes had not been extinguished.

“Ho! That look in your eyes—it seems you still have a trick or two left in your arsenal. Well then, let’s see you pull it out.”

Bang Yo crossed his arms and let out a mocking laugh.
When Dang Cheol showed no reaction, Bang Yo continued.

“The Tang Clan has some secret trump card they pull out when cornered, don’t they? Secret trump card, hidden technique — whatever fancy wrapping you put on it, it’s still just cowardly tricks like Hidden Weapons or poison. Don’t tell me that was all you had?”

Even under such mockery, Dang Cheol could not respond.
Bang Yo was right — Dang Cheol did have one final trump card.
The Hwa U Pok, ranked among the Tang Clan’s most prized Hidden Weapons, stood at a considerable level of power.
The problem was that he had already used it, and it had dealt Bang Yo no meaningful damage.

“If you’ve got nothing left, then let’s finish this.”

Bang Yo laughed coldly and hurled himself at Dang Cheol.
Dang Cheol, still refusing to yield even now, stretched out his hands, but Bang Yo’s kicks sent him flying backward without resistance.
Thump! Thump!
Bang Yo’s feet struck Dang Cheol’s shoulder and chest with brutal force.
Unable even to cry out, Dang Cheol was driven back; Bang Yo pressed down on his thigh, then leaped again, raking his heel across Dang Cheol’s back repeatedly.
Dang Cheol collapsed helplessly, yet even that mercy was denied him — Bang Yo, having already repositioned himself ahead, drove his heel into Dang Cheol’s chest once more.
For all the continued brutality, there was nothing Dang Cheol could do. Through his dimming consciousness, all he could wish for was to escape the pain as quickly as possible.
Having thoroughly toyed with Dang Cheol, Bang Yo let out a snort when he saw that his opponent had lost consciousness completely.
Now it was time to finish this.
Bang Yo raised his leg high.
He meant to stamp down hard on the back of Dang Cheol’s skull as he toppled forward.
But before his heel could crush down, a terrible killing intent flooded through him, and every hair on his body stood on end.
Bang Yo’s head snapped toward the source of that murderous aura, and he saw a blade flashing toward him like a beam of light.
Without thinking, Bang Yo twisted his body, and the blade bent sharply in response, following his movement.
Bang Yo rolled desperately and unleashed the Hoe Ryong Gak, flicking the sword away.

‘What kind of power is this…’

Bang Yo’s expression twisted slightly.
Even though he had struck only the flat of the blade, the impact transmitted through his leg was substantial.
In that moment, Dok Go Jin, having retrieved his sword, approached Dang Cheol’s side.

‘Still breathing, but…’

Dok Go Jin’s face darkened as he examined Dang Cheol’s condition.
The external wounds alone were horrific, but the internal damage was far worse. The Five Organs Six Bowels were ravaged, and even the Gi Gyeong Pal Maek meridians were completely shattered.

“Who are you?”

Bang Yo asked, his expression bewildered.
The way the I Gi Eo Geom technique was deployed, combined with the extraordinary Inner Power channeled through the blade, suggested a master of considerable skill had appeared. Yet the enemy standing before him was nothing but a boy!
Still, he did not let his guard down. He had experienced enough in the martial world to know that anything could happen.

“It’s been a long time, Ascension Demon Leg Bang Yo.”

When Dok Go Jin spoke his name, it was Bang Yo who was taken aback.

“Have we… met before?”
“I remember, at least. I can’t speak for the old man, though.”

The corners of Dok Go Jin’s mouth twisted upward as a memory surfaced — the image of Bang Yo crawling along the ground in despair, both legs shattered.

“You’re fortunate. To be breathing at all after meeting me — that’s luck.”

Before the words were even finished, Bang Yo’s body tore through the air.
Lying diagonally, parallel to the ground as he flew forward, Bang Yo unleashed nine consecutive kicks, targeting every vital point on Dok Go Jin’s body.
It was the Gu Ryong Tui — the technique that, once activated, could shatter anything under heaven.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Each time Bang Yo’s kick exploded outward, chaotic waves of air rippled across the surroundings.
Yet Dok Go Jin, deploying the Eun Yeong Bo while deflecting each strike lightly with his blade’s tip, remained perfectly composed.

‘His power hasn’t diminished,’ Dok Go Jin thought.

Frustrated that his attacks were being brushed aside so effortlessly, Bang Yo’s assault changed abruptly.
His kicks came faster and sharper than before, driving relentlessly toward Dok Go Jin.
Dok Go Jin let all of them slip past him, then simply thrust his blade forward.
Bang Yo gasped in horror as the sword burrowed between his legs, twisting his body in desperation—but it was already too late.
Screech!
Blood erupted with a sickening sound of tearing flesh.

“Ahhh!”

Bang Yo staggered and landed, his agonized cry echoing as he dragged one leg backward, blood streaming from his ankle and pooling across the ground with every step.

“You… you dare… to lay hands on me…?”

The sight of his Achilles tendon severed so cleanly drained all color from Bang Yo’s face. For a man who had devoted his entire life to perfecting Leg Technique, it was a catastrophic wound.

“Why that expression? Surely you didn’t believe an old man’s martial arts were supreme under heaven?”
“Silence!”

Bang Yo trembled with shame and roared in fury.

“You find insults directed at yourself unbearable, yet you cannot bring yourself to respect an opponent who fought with all their might?”

Dok Go Jin’s gaze flickered toward Dang Cheol, whose breathing had already ceased. His eyes had turned colder than ever.

“One may stake one’s life in battle. But unless the enemy is an eternal adversary, there should be no humiliation even in death.”

Dok Go Jin lowered his blade at an angle and began walking toward Bang Yo.
His steps were leisurely and unhurried—almost like a stroll through a garden.
Yet that very ease became, for Bang Yo, a terror more dreadful than any killing intent.
Gritting his teeth, Bang Yo drew all his Inner Power into one leg.
As transparent, hardened energy enveloped his entire limb, he struck the ground with his palm and launched himself upward.

“Die!”

Bang Yo’s full-force kick erupted in a violent explosion, and a whirlwind born from his heel bore down upon Dok Go Jin as if to swallow him whole.
Dok Go Jin set one foot down lightly.
Thud!
With a solid reverberation, Inner Power stirred from his Dantian, flowed through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, and channeled into his blade—piercing the exact heart of Bang Yo’s vortex.
Screech!
Another ghastly sound, followed by a scream.

“Ugh!”

Bang Yo’s body spun helplessly along with the whirlwind he had created, then crashed limp onto the ground.
His Achilles tendon was severed again—this time the wound was far deeper and wider than before.
Dok Go Jin drove his foot into Bang Yo’s ribs as he lay there, writhing in agony.
Bang Yo flew through the air and collided with Dang Cheol in a grotesque heap, their heads nearly touching.
Bang Yo found himself face-to-face with Dang Cheol’s open, lifeless eyes, and primordial terror seized him.
He wanted desperately to move away, but he could not. Dok Go Jin had shattered his spine when he kicked him.
Bang Yo’s head, still thrashing pathetically moments before, suddenly went limp and still.

Though fierce battles raged on all sides, Bang Yo’s defeat was enough to send shockwaves through everyone.
The Ma Do Ryeon, who had anticipated an easy victory, now faced startling uncertainty. The Tang Clan, trapped in what had seemed a hopeless situation, glimpsed a sliver of light.
The first to respond was Ye Do Hwang, who had been pressing Dang In Seong relentlessly and commanding the Battlefield.

“Du Gyeong!”

At Ye Do Hwang’s call, the vice-leader Du Gyeong rushed over at once.

“Yes, Master.”
“Finish it.”
“Sir? If I do that, then you…”

There was no need for him to voice his doubts. Ye Do Hwang’s gaze had already fixed on Dok Go Jin.

“Master, it’s impossible for you alone.”

Du Gyeong seized Ye Do Hwang’s arm and shook his head firmly.
Bang Yo, the Rising Heaven Leg Master, was hardly unremarkable in skill even among Ma Do Ryeon’s ranks. Even a master as trusted as their leader would find himself outmatched.

“I know. That’s why I’m bringing a few more.”

Ye Do Hwang had never intended to face Dok Go Jin alone.
He had no desire to force a confrontation at any cost.
Ye Do Hwang cast a glance at Dan Do Je, the Blood Sea Demon Shadow, who was trading blows with Dang In Seong, and Jang Rye, the Heaven-Destroying Demon, who was struggling to drive the poison invading his body.

“All we need do is buy time. Then the elders will finish him for us.”

Ye Do Hwang patted Du Gyeong’s shoulder lightly, then met the eyes of the senior members who had gathered and turned his body away.
In that moment, Dang In Seong, having steadied his breathing, tried to block Ye Do Hwang’s path, but Du Gyeong cut off his movements.
Yet even Ye Do Hwang could not draw near to Dok Go Jin.

“Enemies!”
“Reinforcements have arrived!”

Conflicting cries erupted as Jong Gak and Nam Goong Ho, who had arrived late at the Battlefield, began to rampage. In particular, Jong Gak, recognizing Ye Do Hwang, charged directly toward him.

“An old acquaintance, then. From Mi-geom Dan, was it…?”

Ye Do Hwang murmured to himself, waving off his subordinates who tried to intercept Jong Gak, and drew his blade personally.

‘That man was monstrously strong, but…’

Ye Do Hwang recalled the memory of his defeat at the hands of Mi-geom Dan’s master and exchanged a single strike with Jong Gak.
Clang!
The two men retreated, their gazes fixed upon each other.
Confidence bloomed on Jong Gak’s face that he could handle this opponent, but Ye Do Hwang felt no such assurance.
Even from that single collision, he felt the presence of the Mi-geom Dan master’s aura—the one that had rendered him helpless before.

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