Chapter 1436
Yes, I’ll remember that. (1)
Clang!
Chung Myung gritted his teeth fiercely.
A terrifying murderous aura that took one’s breath away just by looking at it was shining in his eyes. The dreadful aura, enough to freeze anyone even at a distance, was focused on one person.
A man clad in crimson fluttering robes.
With a face so pale it seemed ghostly, as the crimson line drawn on it curved gently, Chung Myung’s blood surged backward.
It was him. It was him!
How many had shed blood because of his schemes, how many had died under his tyranny?
No matter how much they struggled, it was futile. The emotions accumulated in his heart refused Chung Myung’s control and erupted into a scream.
“Jang Ilsoooooooo!”
The wailing cry echoed, like the fierce heat of lava flowing from an erupting volcano, filled with intense rage.
Woooooong!
In response to the owner’s rage, the Dark Plum Sword held by Chung Myung seemed to echo the anger of its owner as it emitted a fierce sword cry. Just as Chung Myung was about to kick the ground with a swift motion, a voice rang out.
“Stop!”
Yu Iseol, who had suddenly caught up with Chung Myung, firmly held him back from behind. She grabbed onto his trembling body tightly, while Yoon Jong, who quickly followed, joined forces to restrain him.
“Calm down, you madman! He’s not an opponent you can just rush into. You’ll die!”
As Yoon Jong shouted, a single stream of blood trickled down from Chung Myung’s cracked lips.
Does Chung Myung not know who that is?
The main forces of both Hwasan and Tangga have yet to arrive here. In such a situation, rushing towards Jang Ilso, who is being escorted by the main force of Maninbang, is nothing short of reckless suicide.
The opponent is Jang Ilso. It’s not as if Chung Myung will face him alone just because he’s charging forward. Instead, Jang Ilso, seizing the opportunity, will thoroughly exploit the numerical advantage to trample Chung Myung.
Yes, he understood. Now was the time to remain calm.
However, no matter how hard he tried, the boiling rage within him refused to subside. It surged within him like his stomach had flipped upside down. Chung Myung’s teeth dug deeper into his lips.
“Aaargh!”
Chung Myung pushed Yoon Jong aside and leaped forward.
“Chung Myung-ah!”
Everyone knows. Yoon Jong’s words are all true. Especially in times like these, one must remain calm.
Kwaaang!
However, the pent-up rage surges and erupts through the tip of his sword. Chung Myung forcefully channeled all the remaining energy he had into the Daek Plum Sword.
“Aaaargh!”
His body, twisted to its limit like a drawn bowstring, momentarily recoiled. Simultaneously, Chung Myung’s sword was unleashed. Fused with his internal energy, the Dark Plum Sword charged towards Jang Ilso like a lightning bolt piercing through the dark clouds, descending upon the earth.
Giiiiiiing!
A thunderous roar, as if the sky itself was warping, reverberated through the air.
Yoon Jong and Yu Iseol’s gazes quickly darted forward. The astonishing power imbued within Chung Myung’s sword momentarily ignited a glimmer of hope, a flicker of expectation.
In the slowed-down world, the figure of a man standing before Chung Myung’s charging sword became crystal clear. As if frozen in time, the rings adorning Jang Ilso’s hands emited various hues of brilliant lights.
Jang Ilso’s hands, enveloped in a myriad of colorful lights, intercepted the flying sword.
Kwaaaaaaaah!
In an instant, the silence that had subdued everything shattered like glass, replaced by a thunderous roar that shook the world.
The clash of forces. The collision of energies.
Unable to withstand the tremendous aftermath of their clash, the members of Maninbang were immediately thrown back, blood spraying from their mouths as they were repelled.
Kwagagagagak!
The Dark Plum Sword, wedged between Jang Ilso’s rings, seemed to pulsate as if alive. Seeing the sword pushing through the gap between the rings as if it could pierce his throat at any moment, Jang Ilso burst into laughter.
“Haaat”
Kwaaaaaaaah!
With another thunderous roar, the Dark Plum Sword soared through the air.
Unable to sever Jang Ilso’s neck, it seemed to exhaust its remaining energy, and plummeted downward, tearing through the sky like a dying comet before crashing into the solid ground below.
Thud!
The sturdy earth yielded like soft tofu as the Dark Plum Sword pierced it, sinking more than halfway deep right in front of Jang Ilso. As he reached out to grasp the sword, two rings crumbled and fell from his fingers with a clink.
Clatter.
Following the shattered rings, crimson drops followed onto the ground.
Jang Ilso looked silently at his hand, blood trickling from the split palm.
For a moment, his eyes twisted strangely, but soon returned to their usual softness.
“Well, well. That was quite intense.”
Jang IIso raised his hand and slowly licked the blood trickling from his wound. As Jang Ilso watched Chung Myung with his red tongue pressed to his wound, his eyes were filled with such chilling madness that it took one’s breath away.
“To act so recklessly, going on rampage regardless of consequences. One might not see the line between a Sapa bastard and a Taoist? Hahaha!”
Even from a distance, his voice, filled with inner strength, pierced through Chung Myung’s ears sharply.
Just as Chung Myung was about to scream, their eyes met across the empty space between them, entwining in a tense confrontation. Jang IIso chuckled softly.
“You must want to kill me.”
In response to his calm tone, a surge of murderous energy emanated from Chung Myung’s body. While others might have trembled just from meeting his gaze, Jang Ilso continued to mock him.
“Just a bit faster. If you were a bit quicker, you could have killed me. Right in front of my nose, you’d twist the sword in my gut, wouldn’t you?”
Chung Myung’s body trembled involuntarily, struggling to contain the burning hatred within.
“But… Hwasan Geomhyeop.”
Jang Ilso, who had been smiling brightly, suddenly covered his face with his blood-soaked hand.
Through the fingers partially obscuring his face, his eyes revealed an incredibly sinister gleam. A mix of regret, hatred, malice, and twisted desire poured forth from his gaze, causing onlookers to involuntarily shrivel.
“That’s… the same for me.”
In this situation, Jang Ilso, like Chung Myung, had to let go of someone who must be killed. If the price to pay wasn’t his own life, Jang Ilso would have done whatever it took to kill Chung Myung right there and then.
“So, there’s no need to lament like that. After all, you know it too, don’t you? Our end is predetermined.”
Jang Ilso chuckled softly.
He knows it, and so does Chung Myung.
The two of them cannot coexist under the same sky. Whether he dies or Chung Myung dies, one of them has to perish for it to end. That’s what their fight will be about.
It’s not about grudges or hatred. It’s not about the will of heaven or some predetermined fate. Such words are too cheap to meddle in this. It’s simply that they cannot tolerate each other.
“Just wait a little longer.”
Jang Ilso grasped the Dark Plum Sword embedded in front of him. The sword spat out an eerie cry as if rejecting Jang Ilso. Nonetheless, he paid no heed and drew the sword from the ground.
“I’ll soon go to sever that stubborn life.”
Paaaaaaa!
The Dark Plum Sword, propelled from Jang IIso’s fingertips, flew fiercely towards Chung Myung. However, Chung Myung didn’t even blink as he watched the sword flying straight at him. His gaze was solely fixed on Jang Ilso.
With a swoosh, the flying sword cut across Chung Myung’s face, grazing it before embedding itself into the ground.
A long wound opened just beneath his eye, from which blood trickled down. Both Chung Myung and Jang IIso had their faces stained red with blood from the wounds they inflicted on each other.
Chung Myung’s lips parted slowly.
“No need to come.”
His voice, growling almost, wasn’t as loud as Jang Ilso’s, but Jang Ilso could hear those words clearer than anyone else.
“I’ll go.”
In the dazzling and oily eyes, a moment of iciness flickered. Chung Myung spoke.
“It’s only you, whose end was predetermined. Wait. I’ll definitely cut that neck of yours.”
A sly smile bloomed at Jang Ilso’s lips. His eyes curved like a crescent moon.
Cling.
Whether it was something bothering him or he was lost in other thoughts, whenever Jang Ilso slowly clenched and opened his hand, blood dripped and stained the ground.
Trickle.
At such times, the rings on Jang Ilso’s fingers constantly produced a sound, evoking a strange tension.
Everyone held their breath. As the sound from Jang Ilso’s rings gradually sped up, so did their heartbeats. An oppressive feeling, making it hard to even breathe freely, pressed down on everyone.
Even with a simple hand movement that barely felt like a handful of inner strength.
“Hmm.”
However, eventually, his hand relaxed and opened again. Simultaneously, some who had been tensed up like they were about to faint slumped down, their legs losing strength.
“If expectations are high, disappointment is great, isn’t it? But saying it like that, one can’t help but have expectations.”
An emotion, whether joy or hatred, surged on Jang Ilso’s face. A sinister smile emerged on his fierce, sharp face.
“Well then, give it a try. My neck is always here.”
“Remember. The moment you die, you’ll surely recall those words.”
Jang Ilso stared intently at Chung Myung. Then, a small laugh burst from his lips.
“Hahaha.”
“…”
“Hahahahahaha!”
Jang Ilso laughed until the world seemed to vanish, his laughter echoing through the silent air where no one dared to breathe, filling the desolate land with his madness.
After laughing for a while, Jang Ilso glanced at Chung Myung once and then turned away, his robes billowing dramatically.
“Yes, I’ll remember that.”
Jang Ilso stepped away slowly. The fierce Red Dogs, who had been escorting him, exuded a murderous aura towards Chung Myung before turning their bodies entirely.
“See you again, Hwasan Geomhyeop! Hahaha! Hahahahahaha!”
With the whole Maninbang in motion, Jang Ilso gradually faded away, without any sense of haste, just leisurely moving ahead. The remaining people could only watch as Jang Ilso departed.
Leaving behind only a few drops of blood and the shattered remnants of his rings, Jang Ilso disappeared beyond the horizon.
“…Chung Myung-ah.”
As Yoon Jong called out with concern, Chung Myung’s teeth sank into his lips at that moment.
‘Jang Ilso.’
Chung Myung etched those letters into his heart.
Until now, there had been nothing he detested as much as the Heavenly Demon.
But Jang Ilso was different from the Heavenly Demon.
Heavenly Demon was, quite literally, an otherworldly existence. Its very presence could destroy the world. But Jang Ilso was just a human. A human, more human than anyone else. A human made up entirely of the evil intentions of humanity.
That’s why he was hated this much, and that’s why he was dangerous.
Chung Myung muttered quietly.
“We’ll meet again soon.”
And on that day, his sword would pierce through Jang Ilso’s neck without fail.
Even if he had to wager everything he had.
Comments