The Red Dragon Martial Emperor - Chapter 97

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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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The Crimson Dragon Undefeated — Episode 97

Chapter 97 — Mu Jeong Geomni, Turning Back

Mun Chi-yong pointed toward Cheol Mu-ok, Ju Tae, and the warriors under Sword King Il-maek.
“The prince and the women can be killed anytime. So we dispose of them first.”
“Understood!”
“Go.”
Crack-crack-crack!
Men in assorted garb burst from the forest in unison.
Mun Chi-yong remained in the woods, watching Yi Hwan and the others. Upon seeing Yi Hwan lower his sword, he let out a cold laugh.
“They say he’s changed into someone else, yet his form is still rather convincing.”
Clink.
Mun Chi-yong drew something from his robes.
It resembled a prayer bead, but was not one—nor could it be called a necklace. It was a most peculiar object, and as Mun Chi-yong gripped the thing through which a dark shimmer flowed, he slowly stepped from the forest.
Crack-snap-bang!
Whoosh-crack!
Even as the fighting erupted, anguished death cries burst forth in succession.
“Argh!”
“Aaaaagh!”
Cheol Mu-ok’s great blade belched fire. Ju Tae’s sword froze the very air around it. Men who ventured within range toppled, spraying blood, their severed heads turning white with ice. The warriors of Sword King Il-maek too danced a frenzied blade-dance—a terrible display unseen until now, revealing they fought with all their strength.
Cheol Mu-ok’s great blade belched fire. Ju Tae’s sword froze the very air around it. Men who ventured within range toppled, spraying blood, their severed heads turning white with ice. The warriors of Sword King Il-maek too danced a frenzied blade-dance—a terrible display unseen until now, revealing they fought with all their strength.
“Argh!”
“Aaaaagh!”
Song Cheon-mu, Gomi, and the Female Warrior had withdrawn at Yi Hwan’s command.
‘I should help them.’
Their hearts burned with the desire, yet there was no room to advance. To step carelessly into that maelstrom risked being struck by their own allies’ blades.
Gomi’s eyes fixed on Yi Hwan.
He stood silent and motionless where blood-wind swirled.
‘What does he intend?’
Then Song Cheon-mu stepped forward.
“We should aid them.”
Snap!
Gomi seized his wrist and shook her head.
“If we join, we’ll only obstruct. Follow the prince’s command.”
“……!”
In that brief time, Gomi could not deny the gulf in their levels.
Again her gaze returned to Yi Hwan.
‘Why does he stand so still?’
Then it happened.
Gomi spotted Mun Chi-yong emerging from the forest and launched herself forward, crying out.
“Your Highness! The left flank!”

* * *

‘Could it be Mu Jeong Geomni?’
Yi Hwan had not thrown himself into the fray. Rather, he could not.
An aura operating on a different plane than these men was stimulating his senses.
Should he himself join the battle now, Gomi and Song Cheon-mu—whom he had ordered back—could be drawn into danger. Though his own death was their objective, he could not rule out the possibility that they would eliminate his companions first to make killing him easier. For this reason, Yi Hwan had aligned all his perception with the aura he suspected to be Mu Jeong Geomni, holding himself perfectly still.
‘Move now, old one.’
Then it came.
“Your Highness! The left flank!”
Gomi’s sharp cry pierced from behind. Yi Hwan’s eyes reflexively turned toward the left.
Mun Chi-yong emerged from the forest like a thief in the night. Yet with the Human Skin Mask concealing his face, there was no way to know it was him.
Whoosh-spin!
The peculiar object left Mun Chi-yong’s hand.
Whirr-whirr-whirr!
It spun with a grotesque whistling cry, hurtling toward Yi Hwan.
Yi Hwan’s blade sliced through the air.
Clang-clang-clang!
The shriek of metal upon metal rang out, and in the next instant a violent explosion erupted.
Boom!
“Ah!”
A sharp cry tore through the chaos.
Gomi, who had been rushing toward Yi Hwan, was swept up in the blast wave and staggered backward.
‘…Poison.’
Yi Hwan’s eyes snapped wide open.
With the explosion came a sickening, acrid stench that assaulted the senses, and a sickly red smoke blooming across the air.
Poison Smoke.
Flames erupted from Yi Hwan’s body. In an instant, they wrapped around and engulfed the toxic clouds.
Crackle-crackle-crackle!
The Poison Smoke dissolved rapidly, consumed by countless tongues of fire.
“What—!”
A gasp of shock tore free.
It was Mun Chi-yong.
Yi Hwan had charged forward—and his speed was blinding, like a flash of lightning.
In that frozen moment, their eyes met across the space between them, and Mun Chi-yong felt his entire body seize.
‘This… this can’t be…!’
He had merely met Yi Hwan’s gaze head-on. Yet his body had turned to stone, and not a single finger would obey him.
‘This… this is sorcery!’
Thud!
“…!”
Mun Chi-yong’s body folded like a shrimp. Yi Hwan’s blade had pierced straight through his solar plexus.
“Go ahead and wait for us there. I’ll be sending your master—that stubborn fool in the Imperial Palace—to join you soon enough.”
Yi Hwan drew the blade downward without hesitation.
Slash!
“Ahhhhhhh!”

* * *

“Gomi!”
The Female Warrior rushed toward her in alarm.
“I’m fine! Stay back!”
Gomi steadied herself and clenched her teeth. Having nearly been shredded by shrapnel, something inside her ignited.
“These bastards.”
Her eyes blazed with fury.
That was when it happened.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
The man who had nearly killed her was screaming in agony, splitting in two before their eyes.
Gomi approached Yi Hwan’s side without sparing a glance for the horrific sight of blood and entrails spilling across the ground.
She spoke with fierce determination.
“I’ll fight alongside you!”
Yi Hwan turned to look at her. His eyes had grown colder than ice.
“Stand back. The truly terrifying ones haven’t even appeared yet.”
“That’s exactly why I’ll fight with you!”
“That’s an order, Gomi.”
“…!”
“You need to understand—having you at my side is nothing but a hindrance. Step back.”
The words trampled her pride without mercy.
Yet Gomi found herself unable to think of anything else. She had never seen Yi Hwan’s eyes like this before. In fact, she had never seen such eyes in her entire life.
Slowly, Gomi retreated. It was not an act of will, but of pure instinct.

* * *

Zing!
Searing pain rose from his Dantian.
‘I pushed myself too hard because of the Poison Smoke.’
If he had left the Poison Smoke untouched, Gomi and the others would have been in danger. To prevent that, he’d had no choice but to unleash a technique that required the strength of ten realms or higher—consuming the toxic clouds before they could spread.
But Yi Hwan had not yet recovered to that degree.
As a result, his dantian bore the strain, and a severe pain shot through him—a pain so fierce he could scarcely draw breath.
Crack!
“Argh!”
“Ugggh!”
Mun Chi-yong’s direct subordinates unleashed a furious assault with all their might. Yet they could not overcome Cheol Mu-ok and Ju Tae. Had those two—heirs to the Blade King and the Sword King—fought at full strength, even a larger force would have ended the same way.
The difference lay in will.
Cheol Mu-ok and the others, resolved to protect their lord, possessed a far steelier determination than enemies bent on slaughter.
Yi Hwan trusted them.
So he remained clear of the fray, his focus fixed on the currents of power beyond the forest. But pain dulled his concentration. Now his dantian churned like boiling water poured into a vessel.
Then it came.
‘Is she approaching?’
The movement of power shifted.
The direction was from the left—where Mun Chi-yong had first appeared. Yi Hwan drew in a quiet, deep breath and pulled all his inner strength into his blade. If the opponent truly was Mu Jeong Geomni, he would need to decide the match in a single exchange. To drag it out risked collapse from his dantian’s strain.
Tingle.
Now not just his dantian but his entire body began to tingle. Power flowed down from beyond the forest. Yi Hwan called out toward the trees, his voice low and cutting.
“You there. How long will you slink about like a thief in the night? If you’ve come for me, show yourself.”
Sing!
His blade erupted with Blue Light.

* * *

Mu Jeong Geomni waited, hunting for an opening.
She could have rushed out and taken Yi Hwan’s head at once, but she wanted no margin for error whatsoever.
Her pursuit of perfection showed itself plainly in that choice.
Battle had erupted.
As Mu Jeong Geomni watched, she could not hide her shock at the formidable might of Cheol Mu-ok and Ju Tae.
She had known they were no ordinary fighters, but she had not guessed their strength ran this deep.
‘The escort of a prince driven from the Imperial Palace—how can they be this strong?’
Then it happened.
“Your Highness! To the left!”
At the woman’s sharp cry, Mu Jeong Geomni’s eyes snapped reflexively toward where she pointed.
Someone had hurled something at Yi Hwan. A burst followed, and smoke bloomed across the air.
‘Poison smoke!’
The instant she recognized it, flames erupted from Yi Hwan’s body and consumed the poison smoke. The smoke vanished in a heartbeat, and his blade pierced straight through the attacker’s chest.
Mu Jeong Geomni’s eyes widened.
‘What in the world—’
The scene before her defied what her own eyes could believe. That single move Yi Hwan had just unleashed was a display of Extreme Power that none but a master who had ascended to the Absolute Realm could accomplish.
Mu Jeong Geomni, who had always regarded Yi Hwan as someone she could kill at will—just as she did Mun Chi-yong—could not help but feel her shock deepen.
In that instant, her faith in herself began to waver.
‘Can I truly kill him?’
Perhaps not Yi Hwan alone, but Cheol Mu-ok and the others still stood. If a single strike failed, the danger to herself would become grave indeed.
‘For the sake of His Highness, I must kill him. I must.’
Mu Jeong Geomni found her resolve anew and began to close the distance to Yi Hwan. Yet the whisper of doubt already blooming within her rose again.
That was when.
“You there. How long will you slink about like a thief in the night? If you’ve come for me, show yourself.”
Mu Jeong Geomni’s eyes widened once more.
‘From this distance, he sensed my presence—’
All this while, she had suppressed her aura to a level approaching the Ghost Breath Concealment Art. Yet Yi Hwan was looking directly at her spot, his gaze cold, and smiling.
‘This is impossible.’
Then.
Mun Chi-yong’s subordinates began to flee. Only five remained. In that short span, fifteen had fallen.
Cheol Mu-ok, Ju Tae, and three other warriors burst to Yi Hwan’s side.
‘Too late.’
Clench.
Blood dripped from Mu Jeong Geomni’s lips where her teeth had bitten down.
Carrying out Cho Gwang’s orders mattered, but she could not die here and leave him exposed. If she fell, Cho Gwang would be a single lamb surrounded by wolves.
‘Never did I think such a day would come.’
At last, Mu Jeong Geomni made her choice.
To retreat before the enemy.
And now he found himself standing in the very heart of the situation he despised most.

* * *

The energy that seemed to belong to Mu Jeong Geomni was retreating swiftly into the distance.
‘She’s given up. Lucky for us they fled at just the right moment.’
Yi Hwan drove his sword into the ground.
Thunk!
Then he dropped to one knee.
“My lord!”
“Ah!”
Cheol Mu-ok and Ju Tae rushed to support him.
Drip-drip-drip.
Blood spilled from the corner of Yi Hwan’s mouth. The internal injuries he’d been forcibly suppressing all this time to keep Mu Jeong Geomni at bay had finally ruptured from within.
“My lord!”
Gomi and Song Cheon-mu came running as well.
Gomi looked down at Yi Hwan’s ashen face, drained of all color, and hastily pulled something from her garments.
It was a Soul Pill — the kind she always carried in preparation for grave internal injuries.
“Take this at once!”
“Isn’t this precious?”
“Now is not the time for such words! Please, take it immediately!”
“You won’t regret it?”
“My lord! This is no moment for jesting!”
Gomi cried out sharply.
Yi Hwan smiled and swallowed the Soul Pill.
“Now sit and begin your Breath Circulation at once! We will stand guard!”
“Never mind. I can manage it while we walk.”
Yi Hwan wiped the blood from his mouth and headed down the Ridge. But after only a few steps, he reached out and leaned against a tree.
Strength drained from his entire body; he could not take even another step.
‘I’ve pushed too far.’
Drip-drip-drip.
Blood spilled again, staining the earth crimson beneath his feet.

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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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