Snake-like, elusive eyes slowly scanned the surroundings. Everyone who met that gaze lowered their eyes.

Rustle.

The red boots that stepped on the grass had grown. The sound of grass being crushed echoed.

“This, this.”

Jang Il-so shook his head and sighed.

Clank.

Every time he walked leisurely, the accessories on his body would collide, creating a clear metallic sound. The golden dragon engraved on the pure white long cloth trembled as if it were alive.

It was indeed an unexpected appearance, but from the moment he arrived, no one could take their eyes off Jang Il-so. It felt as if Jang Il-so was absorbing the space.

Not just the people of his clan but even the Five Swords were looking at him, enthralled.

A tiger appeared in the middle of a place full of people, seeming to walk leisurely.

“Hmm.”

Jang Il-so sighed softly and walked towards a man who was coughing up blood. He squatted down, looking at the man.

“Are you alright?”

“I-cough! I-I…”

“I am sorry. But I am in a hurry.”

Jang Il-so lightly tapped the back of the man with his hand. The complexion of the blood-robed man, who seemed to be out of breath, improved clearly.

“Cough! Cough!”

“Now, now, one more cough.”

“EUkkkk!”

The man puked out red blood and turned to the clan leader.

“Thank you, lord.”

“You are saying all sorts of nonsense. Since I came, I had to do it.”

“No. How can I complain even if the clan leader asks for my life!”

“Thank you for understanding. I will remember this.”

“I-it is an honor.”

Jang Il-so patted him on the shoulder and smiled. Then he got up.

Baek Cheon, who watched the process, felt great discomfort.

It was he, Jang Il-so, who attacked that man.

According to common sense, it would be reasonable for the man to feel betrayed and at least confused towards Jang Il-so, who attacked him out of nowhere. But now, the man was acting like Jang Il-so was his benefactor or something.

He openly gave the vial of medicine but didn’t completely forget that he had given it for something he did. And the wounded man was taking it like some treasure?

‘That man…’

Even though he saw it in person, there was almost nothing he could understand.

Jang Il-so’s gaze turned to Ho Ga-Myung, who bit his lip.

“Ga-Myung.”

“…Leader.”

Ttsk.“

Jang Il-so clicked his tongue with a displeased face and spoke.

“What would have been the reason that gave you the authority to use troops without my permission?”

“I…”

“It is because you thought you would go through without having any complicated procedures. Isn’t it?”

Ho Ga-Myung bit his lip and lowered his head. Jang Il-so sighed a little and frowned.

“But the person who knows my intentions the best did something like this. Ga-Myung, Ga-Myung. Why are you being so foolish? Why did you do this?”

Ho Ga-Myung bit his lip.

“Clan leader, I…”

“Forget it.”

But before he could say anything, Jang Il-so waved his hand as if annoyed.

“There must have been a reason for everything. You don’t have to explain.”

“…”

“I will listen to it later.”

Jang Il-so walked forward and stood in front of the Five Swords.

“Excuse me. This guy is a little overly motivated. Sometimes, he does things he wasn’t told to do. The mistakes of subordinates are the responsibilities of superiors, so if you want to blame, blame me.”

Chung Myung stared coldly at Jang Il-so.

The calm gaze of Jang Il-so and the cold gaze of Chung Myung intertwined in the air.

And the one who turned his attention away first was Jang Il-so.

“Ugh, you can eat people with your eyes. As you can see, I am a bit weak-willed, so I would like to relax my eyes a bit. Otherwise…”

A bright smile appeared on Jang Il-so’s lips.

“I will want to pull them out. Uh?”

“You bastard…”

Chung Myung tightened his grip on the sword.

At this point, it isn’t enough to call it bad ties; it was terrible ties.

Jang Il-so chuckled as he watched him grind his teeth.

“Let me ask you one thing.”

“What?”

“What are you carrying on your shoulders? It looks like something precious.”

Chung Myung’s head turned slightly. He calmly answered, looking at the clothes that wrapped the remains of Chung Jin.

“The spirit of Mount Hua.”

Jang Il-so looked back as if puzzled and made a face as if he was holding back laughter.

“Spirit?”

“…”

“Spirit… spirit. Spirit! Hahaha!”

Jang Il-so’s chuckling grew louder.

“Haha… Hahahahah! Ahahahaha! Right! That spirit of Mount Hua, right? Hahahah!”

He leaned back and laughed so loudly that the ornaments jingled and mixed with his laughter like music.

Baek Cheon bit his lip.

‘Damn it.’

In the meantime, they had fought against many enemies. Among them, there were definitely those they couldn’t match.

But he had never felt like this in the face of any despair. Even when fighting against that high priest of the Demonic Sect, he didn’t feel like a poisoned rat as he did now, and the opponent’s every move sent a chill down his spine.

Regardless of the level of actions, the person named Jang Il-so was clearly in an area impossible to understand.

‘A poisoned rat.’

Those people with that blood robe had to be among the strongest. Those alone weren’t enough, but even Jang Il-so had also appeared here.

Would they be able to deal with it?

No, such a thing cannot be possible.

No matter how skilled Chung Myung was, it would be difficult to deal with just Jang Il-so. If Chung Myung were occupied, they alone wouldn’t be able to handle so many skilled warriors of the Ten Thousand People clan. It was certain that they would be swept away in an instant.

Then, in the end, Chung Myung had to deal with Jang Il-so and the rest of them alone. It would be a clear defeat.

Then…

Baek Cheon whispered softly while keeping his eyes fixed on Jang Il-so, who was bursting into laughter.

“Chung Myung.”

“Hmm?”

“If the fight starts, I will run in, so you run.”

Chung Myung turned his head with a blank face.

“… What?”

“It isn’t a joke. You must live.”

Baek Cheon looked at Chung Myung with a serious expression and said,

“Be sure to return to Mount Hua alive. And this book needs to be delivered.”

Chung Myung looked at him blankly for a moment and laughed, dumbfounded.

“Dong-Ryong has grown up so much. You know how to say such things.”

“It is no joke, you bastard.”

“Uh. I am not kidding either.”

“…”

The corners of Chung Myung’s lips curled up.

“Especially now.”

“Why are you so moronic…!”

“Right.”

“…”

“If you talk too much, you will regret it. And…!”

Chung Myung looked at Baek Cheon with cold eyes.

“Don’t be mistaken. I am not saying that I am going to die. No one dies here.”

“…”

“The one who dies will be there.”

Chung Myung glared at Jang Il-so and the members of the Ten Thousand People clan.

“It doesn’t matter who the opponent is. If they block us, we need to break through. That is all.”

As soon as Chung Myung finished speaking, Yu Yiseol pulled out her sword and then took a step forward, standing next to Chung Myung.

“Let it be anyone.”

“Right, let it be anyone.”

Jo Gul and Yoon Jong also stood to their left and right, drawing their swords.

“It is the Ten Thousand People clan, so I am used to it.”

“We can at least open the path.”

Tang Soso put her hand on her bosom and came close to Chung Myung.

‘I will choose poison. Don’t approach it harshly.’

A frost-like qi rose from her eyes.

Baek Cheon bit his lip as he looked at the sajaes ahead.

Of course, they also knew that the current situation was extremely hopeless. But not a single person cried or feared death.

‘Stupid bastards.’

Srrng.

Baek Cheon steeled his mind and resolutely drew his sword.

“Move.”

He pushed his way between Yu Yiseol and Yoon Jong, stood ahead, and pointed his sword forward.

This ferocious qi poured out of his body, and the Ten Thousand Warriors clan members all aimed their weapons, emitting their strength as if in response. It had the momentum of an animal about to rush at any moment.

It was a tense situation as if it might explode at any moment.

But then,

“HAHAHAHA!”

Jang Il-so covered his face with one hand, trying to hide his smile, and laughed for a while before extending his arm out.

With one movement, the force of the Ten Thousand Warriors clan vanished.

“Open the way.”

At Jang Il-so’s words, his men stood in doubt. However, when Jang Il-so opened his mouth again, all doubts quickly vanished.

“You want me to say it twice?”

The effect was immediate. The Ten Thousand Warriors clan retreated as if they were on fire, opening the path to the left and right.

“C-Clan leader!”

Ho Ga-Myung groaned, but Jang Il-so didn’t even respond. His mouth opened slightly beneath the hand covering his face, revealing pure white teeth.

If the leader spoke, it would look like this.

“Don’t forget. Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon.”

“…”

The eyes revealed between the fingers studded with rings gave off a bright blue glow.

“You owe me one. The calculations must be clear.”

Chung Myung glared at Jang Il-so with sharp eyes.

“That’s one-sided.”

“Even if you look at it like this, I think it is pretty accurate.”

Tck.

Chung Myung shook the sword once.

Then, he slightly lifted the sword that was hanging down and began to slowly hide the blade inside the sheath.

Shhh.

“It is a rule not to do business with scammers, but…”

Tak!

The sound of the sword entering the sheath resonated clearly.

Chung Myung looked straight at Jang Il-so and said,

“Just this once.”

“Thank you for this.”

Chung Myung glanced back.

“Let’s go.”

The Five Swords looked at Chung Myung with shocked eyes. There was doubt in their eyes about whether they could trust Jang Il-so’s words.

Of course, if they broke through and then were attacked while passing through the road they opened, the situation would be worse than it is now.

“He isn’t that stupid. Let’s go.”

But Chung Myung calmly walked ahead.

“Uh…”

In the end, the Five Swords also trusted his words and urgently followed him.

There was no doubt in Chung Myung’s step toward Jang Il-so. The cold eyes of Chung Myung and the dark eyes of Jang Il-so, whose contents were unknown, met in the air and became intertwined.

The moment their shoulders brushed against each other, Chung Myung spoke softly.

“Just once.”

“…”

“I remember it clearly.”

With those words, Chung Myung walked among the Ten Thousand People clan without even looking back. Eyes of hostility poured in on them, but there was no reason to look at them.

They were followed by Mount Hua’s disciples, who raised their alertness like hedgehogs.

Eventually, Baek Cheon, who had completely escaped the encirclement of the Ten Thousand People, looked back. Before he knew it, sweat was dripping down his chin and onto the ground. Even though he didn’t swing the sword, he felt like the qi had drained out of his body.

Everyone let out a small sigh.

“They aren’t following?”

“… Are they really sending us away?”

“What is that guy thinking?”

And then they kept looking back as if they couldn’t understand the situation.

“Chung Myung.”

“… First…”

But before Baek Cheon could say anything, Chung Myung shook his head. And he tightly held the cloth behind him.

“To Mount Hua.”

“… yes.”

Just before he began to hasten, Chung Myung glanced back. He could clearly see the Ten Thousand People clan staring in their direction.

Chung Myung bit his lip, broke eye contact, and ran ahead.

‘Hegemony Lord, Jang Il-so.’

He would engrave that name.