Chapter 1413
If you truly desired it, you should have seized it! (2)
The mountain, symbolized by its lush greenery, was named ‘Qingcheng’. But now, it was adorned with a color that didn’t match its name.
The greenery and elegant pavilions were engulfed in red flames, and the ground untouched by the flames was covered in red blood darker than the fire itself.
It seemed as if the world had been entirely consumed by malicious intent.
Amidst it all, the Sect Leader of Qingcheng, Byeok Hyeonja, struggled to catch his breath.
“Ah…”
Qingcheng was his homeland, his everything. Yet now, Qingcheng was crumbling under relentless assault.
Cough!
With a cough, crimson blood spurted from his lips. Just by looking at the puncture wounds on his abdomen and the deep wounds engraved all over him, one could easily predict his fate.
Yet Sect Leader Byeok Hyeonja barely felt any pain. If compared to the agony of seeing Qingcheng, which was more important to him than his own life, burning, the pain felt in this frail body was as insignificant as specks of dust.
Cough! Cough!
Once again, he vomited dark red blood, forcing his heavy head to lift as he looked ahead.
“Huuuu…”
His sworn brother who had been with him all his life lay cold and lifeless, a brutally mutilated corpse. His death filled Byeok Hyeonja’s heart with indescribable grief and rage.
“Aaaargh!”
“Help! S-Save… Aaaargh!”
In the distance, someone’s desperate screams echoed.
The piercing screams, so loud they seemed to strike the ears, tore at his heart. His disciples were now being chased under the cold blades of the enemy.
But Byeok Hyeonja had no strength left to rush to their rescue.
No one could escape this calamity. Perhaps the young disciples, whom he managed to somehow guide to safety in the final moments, were now desperately fleeing, but there was no guarantee they could escape the clutches of the devil.
It’s over.
Yes, it’s all over.
Qingcheng, the prestigious Great Sect of Sichuan boasting a long and distinguished history, meets its end today. Not by the hands of Demonic Cult or Imperial Palace, but at the hands of those vile Sapa bastards.
‘How… How did it come to this?’
How did it come to this?
Why is Qingcheng burning?
Why have they appeared here?
Though it seemed like watching a war unfold from afar on the Yangtze River would suffice, why have the blades of Sapaeryeon descended upon this place?
“Ah… Ahaha…”
Byeok Hyeonja groaned, as if laughing or crying, looking somewhere with confusion.
The grand gate of Shang Qing Gong, symbolizing Qingcheng, was engulfed in flames. Not a gate leading to purity, but rather, like a gate opening towards hell.
And through that blazing gate, a man slowly revealed himself.
Clad in robes as red as the blood that had soaked Qingcheng, flattering fiercely akin to the raging flames that engulfed Qingcheng.
A man adorned with extravagant jewelry that seemed entirely out of place in this gruesome scene.
Clink.
A twisted smile adorned the man’s lips.
Dressed ostentatiously like a clown, entering through the blazing gate, the spectacle captivated even the nearly unconscious gaze of Byeok Hyeonja, consumed by grief and rage.
“Jang…”
Suddenly, Byeok Hyeonja felt as though all of this were but a scene in a play.
Every sight, the figures within, and even himself kneeling before them, seemed like nothing more than a scene from a surreal drama. It was both immensely tragic and ludicrous.
“Jang… Ilso…”
Perhaps it truly was nothing more than a play.
Wherever Jang Ilso walked, such events unfolded. Shattering the reality that ordinary people held, only scenes reminiscent of a drama played out.
“Jang Ilsoooooooo!”
A bestial roar erupted from Byeok Hyeonja’s lips. Laden with sorrow for the dying, despair for the unbearable reality, and hatred for the one orchestrating it all.
Yet, even in the face of such guttural screams, Jang Ilso showed little reaction. He merely let out a slightly deeper smile.
“Now, Jang Il…”
Byeok Hyeonja’s hand trembled.
The impending disaster loomed heavily before his eyes.
Flames devouring everything behind him, the crimson robes of doom, extravagant jewelry, and even those crimson lips.
Byeok Hyeonja met the eyes of calamity, Jang Ilso.
Yet, Jang Ilso’s gaze was tranquil and serene. There was no trace of the madness or exhilaration commonly seen in the eyes of Sapa committing murder – instead, he appeared gloomy.
How could one understand the calmness in the eyes of the man who orchestrated this gruesome massacre?
“Ah… Ahhh…”
Anger, sorrow, fear, and pain mingled together as sobs akin to lamentation continued to escape.
Jang Ilso looked down at Byeok Hyeonja, who had collapsed and was covered in wounds.
Surely, harsh ridicule or mockery were expected to pour forth. They had nothing to share other than that.
But surprisingly, Jang Ilso’s reaction was different from Byeok Hyeonja’s expectations.
He… smiled brightly.
There was no malice. No, perhaps it could even be described as devoid of malice. With a serene smile devoid of a hint of ridicule, Jang Ilso kindly addressed him.
“Come to think of it… we’re acquaintances, aren’t we, Sect Leader Byeok? We’ve been estranged for a while. Yes. How have you been all this time?”
At the gentle and soft greeting, Byeok Hyeonja’s fingertips grazed the ground.
No mockery or scorn from the world could inflict such agony upon a person. No, not even if a venomous dagger pierced through one’s lung. That dagger wouldn’t hurt as much, for it couldn’t tear apart the soul.
“Why…”
Releasing the tightly bitten lower lip, Byeok Hyeonja spoke. Blood streamed from the torn lips.
“Why… Why are you here? Why?”
“Hmm?”
“Why! Why are you here when you should be at the Yangtze! Why here! Why Qingcheng! Why! How! Why us! Why! Whyyyyy!”
His beastly roar echoed through Qingcheng. Jang Ilso observed Byeok Hyeonja’s outburst with apparent amusement.
“Why…”
After a moment of murmuring, he chuckled softly.
“Well, why indeed?”
“…”
“It’s a bit difficult to answer. There’s no particular reason. I just felt like it, would that suffice?”
“Grrr…”
Tears of blood flowed from Byeok Hyeonja’s eyes.
Could there be such polite and affectionate mockery? That demon showed no mercy, not even to someone gasping for breath. He simply mocked thoroughly.
“Now, Jang Ilso… Jang Ilsooooo!”
“Well, well. Looks like you’re quite angry. But really, there’s no reason at all.”
Jang Ilso approached Byeok Hyeonja a little closer.
“But if I had to give a reason, there might be one.”
“…What is it then?”
Jang Ilso’s voice penetrated Byeok Hyeonja’s ears.
“Because you’re weak.”
“…”
“Because you’re the weakest. Because I can trample over you without even taking any risks. Like the tender neck of a lamb, I can easily cut off your breath with just a bite.”
“You, you…”
“Is there any other reason needed?”
Tears of blood poured from Byeok Hyeonja’s eyes. As flames flickered, casting ominous shadows, his face resembled that of a demon.
The teachings of Tao that he had upheld his entire life now seemed utterly meaningless.
All that remained was overwhelming hatred and rage.
“Aaaaargh!”
Byeok Hyeonja swung the sword he held with all his might. Towards the white neck of that devil.
Thunk!
But before that, Jang Ilso’s hand pierced through Byeok Hyeonja’s chest.
With wide-open eyes, he slowly looked down at his chest. Blood thickly flowed down the white wrist embedded in his chest.
Jang Ilso spoke.
“It had to be done.”
“…”
“Now, there’s nowhere safe on the Yangtze River.”
Byeok Hyeonja’s body trembled like a reed.
“Of course, I like it. Cowardly bastards like you. While others shed blood in battle, you leisurely enjoy that blood from behind. And then, you show up later, pretending to sympathize with the blood spilled by someone else, taking away what was achieved with someone else’s sacrifice, those are the real humans, aren’t they?”
Crack!
It wasn’t just his body. Even his mind was thoroughly shattered in this moment.
“It’s just disgusting.”
“…”
“To believe you’d escape unscathed while watching the world burn is nauseating. Seeing such complacency in the face of impending doom makes me sick. When I see people like that, I feel like setting them ablaze myself.”
Jang Ilso smiled brightly.
“That’s the only reason. How about it? Isn’t that enough for you?”
Byeok Hyeonja clasped Jang Ilso’s hand, embedded in his chest, with both hands.
“G.. Ghost..”
“Hmm?”
“G… Ghost… Even if I were to become… a vengeful ghost… I’ll… curse… curse only… you… the grudge… of Qingcheng…”
At Byeok Hyeonja’s feeble words, flowing weakly like his blood, the corners of Jang Ilso’s mouth twitched.
“Ha… Hahaha! Hahahahahahaha!”
And soon, he burst into maniacal laughter.
“Why does the nonsense of those who can’t even accomplish anything always sound the same! It’s all over once you’re dead, isn’t it?”
Thud!
Jang Ilso’s other hand gripped Byeok Hyeonja’s hair.
“If you had the power to curse as a ghost, you should have torn me apart while you were still alive! If you wanted something, you should have fought for it instead of waiting! If you truly desired it, you should have seized it!”
As he looked into Byeok Hyeonja’s fading eyes, Jang Ilso twisted his face grotesquely and laughed.
“But now, you don’t have that chance anymore.”
Thud!
Jang Ilso’s hand was forcefully ripped out of Byeok Hyeonja’s chest. Along with the hand, blood trailed out, painting the world like rough brush strokes.
Byeok Hyeonja’s body crumbled slowly.
Thud.
Even as his breath ceased, he couldn’t bring himself to close his eyes.
Qingcheng, one of the Great Sects and a prestigious sect within Sichuan. Yet, the death that befell its master was far from dignified – it was utterly pathetic.
Thunk!
Jang Ilso, having crushed Byeok Hyeonja’s head under his foot, casually flicked the blood off his hand.
“Hmm.”
He glanced around slowly.
Everything was ablaze.
The mountains, the pavilions, and the people.
The once lavish green mountain, when he ascended it, was now gone. The pavilions had lost their former splendor and crumbled, and the mountain reduced to ashes would never regain its former glory.
A deeply satisfied smile adorned Jang Ilso’s lips. In the night sky hung a crescent moon, mirroring his eerie smile.
“This is quite splendid? Hmm?”
The crimson edges of his robe fluttered wildly, resembling raging flames.
“Hahahaha! Hahahahaha! Ahahahahaha!”
The flames that would engulf the world flickered.
It was a blood-red flame named Jang Ilso.
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