Chapter 1534
What do you know? (4)
The familiar sound of insects chirping suddenly felt strange. Perhaps it was because the situation itself was unfamiliar.
For a while, the two men silently stared at each other.
“…To die.”
After a moment, Baek Cheon’s voice broke the silence calmly.
“Isn’t it something anyone who wields a sword should be prepared for?”
His statement was delivered in an unwavering tone, a statement of undeniable truth. However, Yoon Jong did not accept it as such.
“You know that’s not what I meant.”
Baek Cheon’s quiet gaze scrutinized Yoon Jong.
Gradually, Baek Cheon realized anew the deep-seated reluctance within Yoon Jong and the fact that he had never openly discussed it before.
“Hmm.”
Baek Cheon’s lips curved into a gentle smile.
“Thanks for your concern, but there’s no need to worry. I…”
At that moment, the plum blossom sword flew out from Yoon Jong’s scabbard like a flash. It carried a killing intent that he rarely displayed.
Whoosh!
The sword, imbued with a crimson aura, swiftly closed in on Baek Cheon’s neck. Startled, Baek Cheon quickly swung his own sword, deflecting Yoon Jong’s attack with strong blow.
Clang!
As their swords clashed, Baek Cheon’s body was pushed back.
“What…!”
But before he could show his surprise at the sudden ambush, Yoon Jong’s sword relentlessly aimed at him again.
In an instant, the surroundings seemed to blur. Baek Cheon felt the pressure as if a massive mountain was bearing down on him.
Rumble!
Baek Cheon’s sword swiftly scattered dozens of plum blossom petals. Like clouds, the red flower petals bloomed and formed a wall between Yoon Jong and Baek Cheon.
Kwoong!
Without hesitation, Yoon Jong stepped forward, twisting his waist and swinging his sword horizontally in one swift motion.
Hweeeeeng!
With a powerful sound, Baek Cheon’s plum blossom petals were swept away by the sword energy, unable to resist the onslaught like plum blossoms caught in an unexpected typhoon.
Thud!
Yoon Jong swiftly threw himself into the opened space, bringing his sword down rapidly over Baek Cheon’s head.
Baek Cheon’s pupils widened.
Kaaaang!
Baek Cheon’s sword thrust upward while Yoon Jong’s sword descended forcefully from above, colliding fiercely in mid-air.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Yoon Jong pressed down with the force to break Baek Cheon’s sword. Baek Cheon, gritting his teeth, pushed back with all his might, but Yoon Jong remained in place, like a mountain.
Thud. Thud.
Baek Cheon’s feet gradually slid backward, his bones screaming in protest. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t overcome Yoon Jong’s relentless pressure.
Baek Cheon’s twisted face and Yoon Jong’s calm expression, devoid of any emotion, faced each other across their crossed swords.
At that moment, Yoon Jong spoke.
“No matter how…”
Despite pressing Baek Cheon down, Yoon Jong seemed to have strength to spare.
“Even if you deceive your eyes with splendor, if your strength doesn’t back it up, it’s just a shell.”
Twooong!
At that moment, Yoon Jong’s sword pushed Baek Cheon away. Baek Cheon stumbled back several steps until he planted his sword into the ground.
Looking at him, Yoon Jong stared with narrowed eyes.
“That’s why what we should pursue isn’t splendor, but the truth within,”
Baek Cheon slowly raised his head to meet Yoon Jong’s gaze.
“…It’s what Sasuk said.”
Baek Cheon didn’t respond to Yoon Jong’s implication.
His face now showed neither shame from being pushed back, nor self-reproach, nor anger at Yoon Jong’s actions crossing the line. Just…
“You’ve become stronger than you think.”
“Have I become stronger?”
“…”
“If people still regarded Sasuk as a novice, perhaps they could be deceived. With a convincing sword technique and flashy showmanship, one could certainly present oneself accordingly. However, Sasuk”
Yoon Jong’s cold gaze seemed to pierce through Baek Cheon.
“No one sees Vice Sect Leader of Hwasan as a novice anymore.”
Baek Cheon fell silent. That silence was more affirmative than any response.
“So every enemy we face now will try their utmost to kill you, Sasuk. Without a moment of letting their guard down.”
“Yoon Jong-ah.”
Yoon Jong glared at Baek Cheon, biting his lip.
“I’ll say it again, you will die.”
Baek Cheon, silent as if losing his voice for a moment, sighed.
“Do they all know?”
“They’d be fools not to. How could they not know?”
“Then why have you said nothing until now?”
Yoon Jong replied as if it were obvious.
“Because it’s Sasuk.”
It was a reply laden with so much meaning that even Baek Cheon found it difficult to grasp all at once.
Baek Cheon stared back at Yoon Jong with a stern expression and asked directly.
“Then… why are you telling this now?”
Yoon Jong’s grip tightened on the sword in his hand. Despite the different question, the answer he needed to give remained the same.
“Because it’s Sasuk.”
Baek Cheon closed his eyes gently.
Yeah. It’s not that they can’t speak because they don’t know. It’s because they do know each other too well that they can’t speak.
Yoon Jong spoke coldly.
“Step down.”
While it was Yoon Jong who uttered those chilling words, it was also Yoon Jong whose eyes shook as if wounded by them.
“No one wants to see Sasuk meet such an end.”
“Hmm.”
Baek Cheon straightened himself and sighed lightly. His gaze, now scanning beyond distant peaks, was poignant.
“Winter will soon arrive.”
“…Sasuk.”
“As the cold winter sets in, even this mountains will be covered in snow. It will seem as if it never bloomed with plum blossoms during spring.”
Baek Cheon’s gaze, which had been distant, returned to Yoon Jong once more.
“Any flower is destined to wither eventually. It’s something inevitable, something one cannot evade or deny. But…”
A resolute voice rang out without hesitation.
“There is no flower that does not bloom because it knows it will wilt.”
“Sasuk!”
“Rather, knowing it will eventually fall makes it bloom even more desperately. That’s the plum blossom.”
Yoon Jong bit his lip.
“There’s no need to throw oneself into defeat unnecessarily.”
“..”
“Just step back and recuperate properly. All you need is to recover, isn’t it? So…”
Yoon Jong, who had been speaking fervently, suddenly paused.
A bitter laugh escaped him.
Because he knew. How meaningless such words were to that person.
Yoon Jong could not be unaware of this fact. Even Baek Cheon, who had lost his skills, would be of some help in a desperate situation. And the battlefield was a place where even that tiny bit of help could mean the difference between life and death for countless others.
Would Yoon Jong endanger his sworn brothers’ lives just to save himself? Such a choice did not exist for Baek Cheon, as Yoon Jong well knew.
“Sasuk.”
“Don’t worry.”
Baek Cheon shook his head. It was a slow but resolute gesture.
“I know I could put you all in danger because of me. But because I know, I will never let that happen.”
“We’re not talking about that right now!”
Finally, a shout erupted from Yoon Jong’s lips.
Watching Yoon Jong fume, Baek Cheon actually smiled faintly. It was because he realized Yoon Jong was someone who could get angry like this.
In some ways, he was sad that the target was himself, and in other ways, he was proud.
“Hwasan needs me.”
“…”
“It’s not arrogance or conceit. It’s simply that I have a role to fulfill.”
“I can do it.”
“Not yet. You know that.”
“I… “
Yoon Jong clenched his fist tightly.
In his heart, he wanted to deny it a hundred times over, but he couldn’t bring himself to do so.
There would come a time when Yoon Jong would inherit his role, but that was a future with uncertain time frame.
Right now, he was someone who could never replace Baek Cheon.
“…So, ultimately, you’re planning to go to the battlefield?”
“Yeah.”
“No matter how much I say, you won’t listen.”
“Probably not.”
Yoon Jong nodded heavily.
“In that case, I’ll stop you my way.”
“Yoon Jong-ah.”
“If words don’t work, there’s no other choice.”
Turning sharply, Yoon Jong swiftly descended the mountain, moving away from Baek Cheon.
Baek Cheon silently watched Yoon Jong’s retreating figure.
It probably wasn’t easy for him to come up here. But he couldn’t have stayed away. Because he was Yoon Jong.
Baek Cheon looked sadly at the space where Yoon Jong had disappeared, then spoke with a subdued voice.
“Come out.”
Rustle.
From a bush, a figure emerged.
“…You wouldn’t have known.”
“Even if my senses are dull, I still have my wits. The sound of insects stopped abruptly in the middle.”
Yu Iseol nodded.
The reason was that Yu Iseol almost dashed out in surprise when Yoon Jong ambushed Baek Cheon that she got caught.
Baek Cheon turned to look at Yu Iseol, who was contemplating quietly.
“Are you going to stop me?”
“I feel the same way.”
“So, you won’t stop me.”
“Because it would have been the same.”
Yu Iseol meant that if she were in Baek Cheon’s position, she would have made the same choice.
“…I see.”
Baek Cheon nodded. Hearing this eased his mind slightly, but he couldn’t help but sigh.
“…It’s tough.”
Baek Cheon stared silently at the moon rising in the sky.
The faint moon, half obscured by clouds, also silently gazed down at him.
Yoon Jong’s footsteps descending from the mountain grew faster and faster.
His chest felt heavy, as if it was filled to the brim. Breathing became difficult, almost suffocating.
It wasn’t because of Baek Cheon’s forced actions. Rather, it was the frustration he felt towards himself for understanding, despite Baek Cheon’s insistence.
No, perhaps it was more apt to call it helplessness.
If only Yoon Jong could fully replace Baek Cheon, then such stifling situation wouldn’t occur.
He had always known such a situation could arise, but he had casually thought it would be a distant concern. That complacency had led to the current predicament.
If Baek Cheon were to die in this upcoming war, Yoon Jong would never forgive himself for the rest of his life.
No, his regrets were trivial. What mattered was that Baek Cheon didn’t die. Not just Baek Cheon, but that no one died.
‘Retired Sect Leader…’
Unconsciously, Yoon Jong found himself thinking of Hyun Jong, then quickly shook his head.
Even if retired Sect Leader intervened to stop Baek Cheon, the situation could worsen. In the worst-case scenario, things could escalate further.
Moreover, he wasn’t sure if detaining Baek Cheon under retired Sect Leader’s authority would truly resolve the situation.
It felt stifling and suffocating. It seemed like every direction was blocked.
His heart was anxious and desperate, yet there seemed to be no solution in sight.
In that moment, only one person emerged in Yoon Jong’s thoughts.
‘Chung Myung.’
It wasn’t just Baek Cheon who couldn’t be understood.
What infuriated him the most was why that damned bastard had remained silent until now.
Surely Chung Myung couldn’t be unaware of what Yoon Jong had caught on?
Yoon Jong’s determination surged once more.
‘If it’s him…’
He had to listen.
Why was he staying silent? Why did he treat this serious matter as if it were someone else’s concern, even as war could break out any moment? Why… was he ignoring Baek Cheon going into battle in such a condition?
In the darkness, Yoon Jong’s gaze turned chillingly cold.
‘If it’s him… he’ll give some kind of an answer.’
No, he would make him give an answer.
He had to, without fail.
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