674 Chapter 1562: It's Different From Back Then (Part 2)
"What, what!"
Kwaaaang!
White sword energy erupted in an instant.
In the face of this sudden and unimaginable attack, the Su Lo Chae's subordinates couldn't even scream; they scattered and tumbled, overwhelmed.
A refined sword energy.
Heaven's (蒼天)Namgung (南宮). A crafted sword, true to its name, unfolded beneath the blue sky.
Paaat!
Namgung Dowi, who had dismantled the leading subordinates in an instant, rushed forward. Behind him, white-robed swordsmen with determined faces filled the gap.
"It's the enemy!"
A thunderous explosion echoed from the front. The subordinates, witnessing the approaching swordsmen, shouted in panic.
However, before they could respond, once again, a white sword energy shot up into the sky.
Kwaaaang!
"Sogaju-nim! You must conserve your strength!"
A tearing scream from behind. But instead of responding, Namgung Dowi bit his lip.
He knew. He knew very well.
There was still a long way to go until they reached the Black Dragon King. Trying to engage with the scattered enemies one by one would only exhaust them before facing the Black Dragon King.
Yes, he knew well enough.
But what could he do? Without immediately parrying the swords, it felt like his chest would burst.
'Su Lo Chae!'
He didn't forget. No, he couldn't.
The subordinates of the Su Lo Chae who rushed like hunting prey on that small island. The family members dying miserably on that cold island. The last face of his father sinking beneath the deep river, slashed by the Black Dragon King's blade.
He could never forget. Even if he chewed up everyone here and swallowed them, he wouldn't forget.
Because it was the searing mark (火印) that had been engraved in his heart that would cause him pain for the rest of his life.
But even if he couldn't forget, it didn't mean there was nothing he could do. Even if he couldn't revive the dead, even if he couldn't erase that terrible memory, he could soothe the souls of the deceased.
With their blood and the blood of the Black Dragon King.
'Am I being foolish?'
Woo-ung!
Namgung Dowi's sword echoed as if responding.
Namgung Dowi also knew that his current choice was not wise. Surely, those who knew him must think he was foolish and stupid.
'But what can I do? Dojang?'
Sometimes, people must be foolish. More important than being smart is not ignoring the cries of one's own heart.
'Wasn't it the Dojang who taught me that?'
A strange smile, unsuitable for the situation, crept onto Namgung Dowi's lips.
Yes, it was Chung Myung who taught him. So, even if he got angry and scolded him, wouldn't he understand a little?
"Ohhh!"
Namgung Dowi burst forward, shattering a large group of enemies.
"Sogaju-nim!"
"Sogaju! Calm down!"
"Do not try to stop me!"
Namgung Dowi shouted loudly.
"If you want to stop me, stand before me! If you want to protect my sword, open the way with your swords! That's the Namgung way!"
The gaze of the swordsmen who heard his words changed instantly.
No words were necessary.
Namgung's swordsmen pushed each other and stepped forward. Namgung Dowi's words were correct. If there was an enemy in front, his sword would naturally keep cutting them. What would be the point of swinging his sword if there were no enemies in front of him?
It wasn't just Namgung Dowi who couldn't forget Plum Blossom Island.
Everyone had left someone behind there. Everyone had buried the name 'Heavens' (蒼天) there. Now, they were on the path to reclaim that name. It was not a matter of who gave in to whom.
Namgung Gil (南宮吉), who had rushed forward in an instant, plunged his sword into the lower abdomen of a retreating enemy.
"Mm..."
Namgung Gil, upon seeing him quivering with fear, jeered with a voice filled with resentment and rage.
"Why is that? Would you like to try shooting that fancy cannon again?"
Memories from that time resurrected. The helplessness of holding a sword and being unable to do anything. The pain of witnessing comrades crushed to death by cannons fired from distant waters.
'Just to these guys!'
The resurfaced memories ignited with hatred, and that hatred breathed life into their swords.
Paaat!
Pulling out the embedded sword and cutting the enemy to pieces, Namgung Gil gritted his teeth as he saw the blood scattered in the air.
This wasn't filthy blood. This was glorious blood.
The eyes of the Namgung Family's swordsmen began to glow with a bloodthirsty hue.
Since that day, they had undergone relentless training that couldn't be adequately described as harsh. Yet, if they couldn't unleash their swords in such a situation, what meaning did all that training hold?
"Wuoooo!"
The swordsmen surged forward as if competing with each other.
Twelve Iron Sword Technique (鐵劍十二式).
A practical swordsmanship style representative of the Namgung Family. At this moment, the swordsmanship, newly forged under the hands of the artisan Chung Myung based on the foundation of Namgung, revealed its true power.
Ka-ga-gak!
The extended sword shot like a thorn dart (峨嵋刺) [not sure], sinking into the chest of the enemy.
A fundamental sword form devoid of flashy techniques. At the moment when Namgung's distinctive energy was infused into the sword, the simple sword, in line with the two characters 'Namgung,' was reborn.
Paaah!
As Namgung Gil swiftly cut through the retreating enemies' waists, ready to unleash a furious shout.
"Suppress your anger!"
Namgung Myung's cold voice pierced his ears.
"I'm not saying to forget your grudges! Just don't mistake the target of resolving that grudge! We still haven't even reached our true enemy!"
The swordsmen unleash their sharp, fierce murderous intent.
The Black Dragon King Jaeksekwang.
Their true adversary and target of their swords.
Namgung Myung's words were correct. Their hatred was too deep and heavy to cheer after killing these insignificant nuisances.
"Clear the way! We will behead the Black Dragon King!"
"Yes!"
The swordsmen of Namgung united and started running.
They wouldn't return. Even in the best possible situation, more than half of them would have to bury their bones here. But even so, it didn't matter.
If everyone had to die here for the price of beheading the Black Dragon King, no one would regret it. Could death be considered terrifying compared to the fear of their family head's murderer being taken by someone else, or the fear of him remaining alive and breathing?
Their determination enveloped their bodies like armor, and the momentum pouring from behind ignited their spirits.
"Bl, block them!"
"Namgung Family!"
Sharp sounds of clashing echoed from all directions.
Sensing the Namgung Family's appearance, the Su Lo Chae released a tense aura in all directions.
A sensation as if an entire forest in front of them was swaying. An enormous pressure weighed down as if a giant, ferocious beast were rising to its feet.
However, without hesitation, Namgung's swordsmen rushed towards the monstrous Su Lo Chae. To carve out the heart driving that monster with their own hands.
"Get out of the way!"
Paaah!
The extended sword swiftly cut off the enemy's neck. As swords swung one by one, the necks of enemies were severed, and cut arms and legs tumbled down. Namgung broke through the crowd like a chariot rushing down a slope.
However, the name Eighteen Yangtze River Fortresses was not just an empty name that resonated solely on the Yangtze River.
"They're gathering!"
"Run faster!"
It was visible to everyone. The sight of the enemy gradually converging towards them from all directions.
It was like a swarm of ants gathering to cut off the last breath of a still-living prey.
The sight pierced through the Namgung Family's swordsmen.
A sight they had already witnessed. And an experience they had already gone through ruthlessly. Didn't they deeply feel how terrifying it is when individuals, seemingly insignificant, come together?
The footsteps of the rushing swordsmen naturally slowed down. It wasn't a delayed thought. It was the fear, dormant deep within their hearts, suddenly awakened and gripping their ankles.
And that moment had arrived.
Woooooong!
"So, So Gaju!"
Namgung Dowi's sword pierced the sky, seemingly lifting it, and the sword began to emit a radiant white light.
The increasingly concentrated white aura soon grew as large as a huge boulder.
"Gaju…."
Following Namgung Dowi, the swordsmen who witnessed the scene and were behind him could only think of one person's sword.
The one who shattered mountains and split rivers with a single strike.
The one who seemed more imperial than anyone and more masterful in the way of the sword.
Namgung Hwang's sword.
"Oooooooo!"
The white aura, which swelled in size once again, shot up into the sky as if piercing through it, then immediately shot towards the enemies rushing in their direction.
Kwaaaaaaaang!
A massive explosion.
Everything that existed in the place where the white aura burst was crushed. The imperial sword that did not allow anything to stand before it. The sword that originally belonged to the Namgung but was lost, now was recreated in the hands of Namgung Dowi.
"Anyone who stands in the way will be crushed! We are the Heaven's Namgung family!"
Namgung Dowi roared.
And what that roar gave to Namgung's swordsmen needed no contemplation.
"Oooooo!"
The power in their previously faltering footsteps surged more than ever. Namgung's swordsmen, with their eyes filled with intense radiance, soon became one sword and shot forward.
The enemies who couldn't escape or retreat dyed the world red by the blood flowing through their bodies.
"Black Dragon King!"
"Hmm."
The Black Dragon King's mouth twisted roughly as he looked at the white aura soaring into the sky from a distance.
A sword aura he had seen somewhere. An aura that could never be forgotten once seen even once. However, the owner of that sword aura would undoubtedly have become a cold corpse under his blade.
The Black Dragon King's gaze, which was fixed on where the sword aura erupted, fluttered towards his right sleeve.
"Dare…."
The Black Dragon King growled like a wounded beast.
No matter how he lost one arm, he wouldn't expect someone like the Namgung Family to target him. If it were the past Namgung Family, it might be a different story, but the current Namgung Family aiming for him was nothing short of disgrace.
"Namgung Hwang's son is leading the Namgung Family?"
"Yes. His name is Namgung Dowi."
"Namgung Dowi…."
The Black Dragon King suppressed his anger and let out a scornful laugh.
"Barking like a little puppy without even knowing its purpose. I never would've thought that a puppy like that would've popped out from under a tiger like Namgung Hwang."
The Black Dragon King laughed with a mocking tone while clutching his remaining arm. His eyes began to sparkle with a fierce light.
"If you want to die so badly, I guess I'll have to give it to you. Today, we will dry up the seed of Namgung right here!"
A vicious madness flowed from the Black Dragon King's eyes.
A profound madness that would dye the blue sky entirely black.
