Return of the Sword Emperor - Chapter 57

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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 20: Escape (3)

“Ma Wook.”
“Yes, Elder.”
“Have you heard anything about the Divine Sword?”
“Pardon?”

Ma Wook’s face went blank at the completely unexpected question.

“Are your ears sealed shut? I’m asking whether you know anything about the Divine Sword.”
“I, I’m terribly sorry, but I haven’t heard anything about it.”
“Tsk, tsk. Just as I suspected. Pathetic! The Divine Sword has been discovered practically on our doorstep, and you’ve let such critical information slip through your fingers. How can Madoryeon claim to have eyes and ears if we miss something like this?”

Though Sa Cheon Gwang’s reprimand was severe, Ma Wook had nothing to say in response. He couldn’t even understand what was being said; his mind was simply reeling in confusion.
Seeing that he was at a loss, Cho Gyun stepped forward.

“Allow me to explain, Elder.”
“Please, go ahead.”
“Are you familiar with Mugong Mountain?”
“Of course. It lies to the north—a mountain as vast as Jeonggang Mountain here.”
“Not long ago, signs of the Divine Sword’s appearance were detected there.”

Ma Wook’s mouth fell open in shock.

“The rumors are spreading beyond containment at this point, and we believe large numbers of people are already converging on Mugong Mountain.”

Ma Wook turned his gaze toward Sa Cheon Gwang without thinking, finally understanding why the man had appeared at Black Bone Fortress without warning. At the same time, resentment bloomed in him toward the organization and Cho Gyun for not informing him of such a critical matter beforehand.
Cho Gyun, catching the shift in Ma Wook’s feelings, lowered his head slightly.

“I apologize for not contacting you sooner, senior. The matter was too urgent and required absolute secrecy, so I couldn’t reach out without proper authorization.”
“I understand. These things happen.”

Ma Wook nodded as though accepting the explanation, but his expression betrayed that his acceptance was not genuine.

“A contest for the Divine Sword will erupt before long. To prepare, reinforcements are already on their way.”
“Reinforcements? Who’s coming?”
“The Black Moon Brigade. The decision was made to send Dam Hyun and several of his operatives, considering their effectiveness in this region. I also believe some forces from the Four Souls Brigade have been dispatched.”
“Well then, from now on, stop wasting energy on trivial matters and focus entirely on locating the Divine Sword.”

At Sa Cheon Gwang’s words, Ma Wook’s face turned troubled, and Yu Baek let out a laugh.

“He’s saying to cooperate as much as you can. This business with Nok Rim is also extremely serious, after all.”
“Of, of course. We’ve confirmed that Jeongmu Maeng is involved, so Black Bone Fortress will be far more cooperative from now on.”
“Hmph! What good is cooperation from a bunch of bandits…….”

It was just as Sa Cheon Gwang began to scoff.
The door flew open violently, and a man covered from head to toe in blood came stumbling in.
It was Yeop San, who had left to guide the Black Moon Brigade’s pursuit of the intruders.

“Br, branch chief!”
“What… is it? What happened to you…….”
“We, we were ambushed.”
“Ambushed!”

Ma Wook grabbed Yeop San by the shoulders and shouted.

“Speak clearly!”
“The, those we were pursuing—Dam Hyun suffered a grave wound, and most of the Black Moon Brigade operatives were killed.”

Ma Wook’s face twisted into an expression of disbelief as he pressed further.

“That’s… that can’t be right! Are you saying Dam Hyun really suffered such wounds?”
“Yes. Fortunately he did not lose his life, but he sustained grievous injuries and is making his way here as we speak.”
“Who did this? Who are these men who’ve brought Dam Hyun to such a state?”

At the chilling edge in his voice, Yeop San flinched and only then thought to survey his surroundings.

“Forgive… forgive me, sir.”

Seeing unfamiliar figures arrayed about him, his body instinctively flattened itself to the ground. The presence that radiated from them bore no comparison to Ma Wook or Dam Hyun.

“Was it the Jeongmu Maeng who did this?”

Sa Cheon Gwang pressed the question further.

“It… it was the Milkgeom Dan. Those who breached this place—they were the Milkgeom Dan.”
“The Milkgeom… Dan?”

Sa Cheon Gwang’s face betrayed utter bewilderment.
Though the Jeongmu Maeng harbored many skilled fighters comparable to the Madoryeon’s elite battle units, the Milkgeom Dan were among the weakest of them all.

“The Black Moon Brigade’s vice-commander defeated by the Milkgeom Dan? Their master will lose his mind when he hears this.”

Yu Baek recalled the Black Moon Brigade’s commander and let slip a hollow laugh.

“The intruders—their numbers weren’t many, were they?”

Jin Ga Gyeol turned his gaze to Ma Wook with that question.
Unlike Sa Cheon Gwang and Yu Baek, who were bewildered, Jin Ga Gyeol’s expression remained infinitely grave.

“Six… sir. There were six of them.”

Only then did Sa Cheon Gwang and Yu Baek, understanding the weight of Jin Ga Gyeol’s inquiry, feel their faces harden into stone.

“Dam Hyun commands over thirty men, as I’ve heard. And yet he was bested not by anyone else, but by the Milkgeom Dan—by merely six of them?”

Sa Cheon Gwang’s fury shook the Sanchae to its foundations.

“Did the Milkgeom Dan’s commander come himself?”

Yu Baek directed the question at Yeop San.
The reputation of Milkgeom Dan’s commander, Hyeol Lyeon Soo, was well known even within the Madoryeon.

“No, sir. Those leading them—they said he was the Milkgeom Dan’s vice-commander. His name was… Jong Gak, I believe.”
“Jong Gak? I’ve heard the name, but I don’t recall him possessing such skill.”

Yu Baek tilted his head in confusion.

“No, sir. If Dam Hyun pursued those led by Jong Gak and his companions… then it makes perfect sense.”

Cho Gyun’s pupils and lips trembled visibly.
While the others were ignorant of the truth, Cho Gyun, dispatched from the Madoryeon’s central command, knew all too well what exploits the Milkgeom Dan had wrought and what terrible losses the Madoryeon had suffered because of them.

“There is a monster within the Milkgeom Dan.”

Cho Gyun’s trembling voice burrowed deep into the hearts of those who stared at him with startled eyes.

* * *

“Father.”

At the heavy note in Jo Sa-eung’s voice, Jo Yang set down his cup of spirits and exhaled a long sigh.

“Come in.”

The expression on Jo Sa-eung’s face as he entered was every bit as grim as Jo Yang had anticipated.

“What news is it this time? Who’s fallen?”
“Elder Ho has been killed, they say.”
“Ho… you mean Cheon Deuk?”

Jo Yang’s eyes widened sharply at word of his subordinate and friend’s death.

“Yes. They say those around him tried to stop him repeatedly, but he became greatly agitated over the death of the outer faction’s leader.”
“How could anyone stop a parent from avenging their child?”

A sigh escaped Jo Yang’s lips. He raised his cup and drained it in one draught.
Jo Sa-eung, knowing the depth of his father’s grief, silently refilled the vessel.
After a long silence, Jo Yang spoke, his voice hollow.

“I made a mistake.”
……
“When I learned that those Madoryeon dogs who had clashed with us were annihilated, I should have stopped then.”

Jo Yang lifted his cup, his face etched with regret.

“Even if I couldn’t have stopped then, I should have made the right choice when the next report came in.”

Whoosh.
The cup in Jo Yang’s hand turned to dust and scattered.

“But my damned pride kept me from it. I made a truly pathetic choice.”
“It is not your fault, Father.”
“No—for your sake alone, I should never have chosen as I did. In this critical moment when you contend for the position of successor to the Nok Rim Tu Wang, our strength has been greatly diminished…”

Jo Yang fell silent, his heart heavy with regret.

“Do not worry yourself. While our situation is not as favorable as before, I am not so weak as to be unable to overcome it.”

At his son’s confident words, a bitter smile crossed Jo Yang’s lips.

“Yes, you are that sort of man. But there is no reason to accept further meaningless losses. Pull back your forces.”
……

When Jo Sa-eung did not answer immediately, Jo Yang issued the command again.

“Pull back. For your sake, it is the right thing. And I have no wish to lose your uncle as well.”

Jo Sa-eung recalled Jo Geuk’s nature—to charge headlong at any foe, heedless of the odds—and answered with reluctant resignation.

“Very well.”

* * *

“Hah! Hah!”

Ragged breath poured from Dokgo Jin’s mouth.
Before him, the elite soldiers of Black Bone Fortress who had charged at him until the very end lay in a pitiful heap.

“Are you all right?”

Yu Seollan, who had been watching over the wounded from the rear, approached with a worried expression.
After the fight with Dam Hyun, she had fought more than ten times against the Black Bone Fortress bandits who tightened their encirclement, but never had a battle been so fierce as this one.

“There seem to be quite a few leaders among them, but they’re no easy prey.”
“That’s certainly true.”

Though Nok Rim had numbers, their overall skill typically fell short compared to other martial sects. However, the bandits from the Nok Rim Eighteen Strongholds—the core forces of Nok Rim—were indeed formidable fighters. And among them, the leaders of Black Bone Fortress, who ranked among the best, were no different from the masters of any other sect.

“You’re bleeding.”

When Yu Seollan cried out in alarm upon seeing blood flowing down his arm, Dokgo Jin casually wiped away the blood and spoke.

“It’s nothing. Just a graze.”

For a mere graze, quite a bit of blood was still streaming down.

“There’s no poison on it, is there?”

Yu Seollan asked again, her face etched with worry.
During their clash with the Black Moon Brigade, Yu Geomha had been struck on the thigh by a poisoned projectile and now faced a situation as dire as any of the Amhyang Dae members.

“No sign of poison. How are you faring, Commander?”

Dokgo Jin pointed at the broken arrow embedded in her shoulder.

“It hurts, but I’m fine. Still, I don’t know how long they’ll keep pursuing us. We’re almost clear, aren’t we?”
“Hard to say. The whole area here belongs to Nok Rim territory. I’m worried whether just Black Bone Fortress will come after us, or if others join in.”
“What do you mean?”
“If they’ve called for help from other strongholds, the situation could become very grave. Like it is now.”

Dokgo Jin’s cold gaze turned toward the forest opposite.
Upon seeing that look in his eyes, Yu Seollan’s body went rigid.
As she stared at the woods with a tense expression, dozens of bandits emerged from the undergrowth.

“Enemies.”

Jong Gak, who had been tending to the unconscious Yu Geomha and members of Amhyang Dae, rushed over with a hardened expression.
Jong Gak’s body, having protected his companions through battles as fierce as Dokgo Jin’s own, bore injuries so severe that his condition was worrying. Beyond the wounds sustained in his fight with Dam Hyun, his entire body was covered with large and small cuts.

“But… they seem different from the Black Bone Fortress ones.”

Yu Seollan tilted her head as she watched the approaching bandits.

“They look like bandits from Bu-un Fortress and Waryong Chae.”
“How did you know that?”
“That one in front—isn’t he the one who was dueling earlier?”
“Ah!”
“You’re right. That’s him.”

As Dokgo Jin pointed to Gong Ja-gyeol, who was leading his subordinates carefully forward, both Jong Gak and Yu Seollan exclaimed in recognition.
At the same time, worry washed over them.
The skill Gong Ja-gyeol had displayed during that duel was far from ordinary.

“I wondered who was causing such a commotion in the dead of night, but it seems it was you after all.”

Gong Ja-gyeol spoke, his gaze sweeping across Milkgeom Dan.

“So that’s how it is. Have you come to stop us?”

At Dokgo Jin’s question, Gong Ja-gyeol lifted his shoulders with a shrug.

“Not exactly, but with all that chaos happening at the neighboring stronghold, we ought to at least find out what’s going on. And we need to make sure it doesn’t spread to us.”
“So you’re planning to stop them?”

Rather than answer directly, Gong Ja-gyeol turned to the middle-aged man beside him with a question.

“What do you wish to do?”

Won Song, the fortress master of Bu-un Fortress, studied the Milkgeom Dan fighters with narrowed eyes, as if gauging their strength.

“Of course we should block them. We’re not particularly close with Black Bone Fortress, and they didn’t ask for help—but they’re still like brothers bound by blood.”

Just as the tension peaked, Won Song chuckled softly and waved his hand.

“But Black Bone Fortress has already ordered a retreat, so there’s no real reason for us to fight. What do you think?”
“I share the fortress master’s view. Since Black Bone Fortress has withdrawn, there’s no need for us to shed our own blood.”

With Gong Ja-gyeol’s smile, the tension between both sides dissolved in an instant.

“I appreciate it.”

Jong Gak offered his thanks with genuine warmth.
Won Song nodded in acknowledgment and turned to leave.

“We’re heading back.”
“We should too—”

The moment Gong Ja-gyeol turned to go, Dokgo Jin called him back.

“Gong Ja-gyeol.”

Surprised that Dokgo Jin knew his name, Gong Ja-gyeol’s eyes widened as he looked back.

“Hold on a moment. Let’s talk.”

A mysterious smile played at the corner of Dokgo Jin’s mouth as he gestured.

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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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