Chapter 1348: He Has Decided to Claim His Life (Part 3)

"Stay still."

Namgung Dowi slowly lowered the hand he had raised.

His signal made the disciples of Southern Island hold their breath, suppressing any movement as much as possible.

Tadadadak!

With swift footsteps, a group passed by the bushes where they concealed themselves.

"They're over here!"

Upon the high-pitched shout, the disciples of Southern Island bowed their heads even deeper, hiding their bodies. Tension tightened their throats, and anticipation gripped them.

Fortunately, those who passed by didn't discover their traces. Of course, it was somewhat expected.

"Aaaargh!"

From afar, a desperate scream reached them, confirming the presence of the enemy. How many enemies would try to find the traces of others for reasons that might be around them?

'Dojang.'

Namgung Dowi resisted the urge to turn his gaze in the direction of the screams. His priority now was to lead them away from here as quickly as possible.

"We will move."

"Yes!"

Paat.

Namgung Dowi took the lead, driving the ground forward. His gaze was directed towards a high peak ahead.

'From the highest peak, fifth from the left.'

However, their steps were heading towards the left side of the peak. If everyone chose the same path, dividing the group was pointless. They needed to choose different paths to avoid the enemy's gaze and then reunite.

'What the...?'

Namgung Dowi swiftly swung his sword. The neck of the momentarily surprised man from Myriad Man Manor was instantly pierced.

Squelch...

Pierced to the vocal cords, he couldn't even scream, convulsing before crumbling. Namgung Dowi quickly caught him before a sound could be heard, intending to discreetly place him in a hidden spot.

"Hoo..."

Sweat dripped down his forehead. While he had replenished his energy reasonably well, constantly scanning for the enemy's whereabouts was not as easy as he thought.

Spreading the internal energy was ultimately an act of utilizing one's inner strength. While using martial arts, spreading internal energy depleted his mental strength several times over.

'Don't make any noise.'

Even so, it was barely a fraction. Saying that he was exhausted in just a fraction was out of the question, even if he were to die. Baek Cheon led them far beyond this fraction, and Chung Myung led them for several days.

The pride of Namgung Family's Sogaju did not allow him to say he was exhausted after using only this much strength.

"Hurry!"

"Yes, Sogaju-nim!"

Namgung Dowi urged once again as he drove the ground with determination.

'Please don't be late, Dojang!'

❀ ❀ ❀

Paaat!

Chung Myung's sword twisted, mercilessly tearing through the enemy's chest.

"Kwaaaaah!"

The gruesome scream alone was enough to distort one's face. The sound would serve as a signal, attracting more people to this place.

"There he is!"

"This...!"

Those who rushed forward upon hearing the sound soon stopped in their tracks. Even in this darkness, the sight of the corpses scattered gruesomely was clear.

At a glance, there seemed to be more of them than those who had gathered now. The ominous feeling crept in that they might be the ones who had come to find their own place to die.

However, stopping for a moment did not change their fate.

Taat!

Chung Myung forcefully struck the ground and soared through the air.

"Blood, damage..."

Paaah!

Before the desperate voice could fully come out, a sharp red line cut through the darkness.

Thump. Thump.

The bodies of those who hadn't even properly resisted were cleaved diagonally and crumbled.

Chaak!

Chung Myung flicked the blood clinging to the end of his sword. His gaze darkened slightly.

Somehow, it seemed that the number of attackers had decreased since a little while ago. Of course, it could be that he simply dealt with all the enemies in the vicinity, but...

Pwooong! Pwooong!

At that moment, a colorful firework exploded in the southern sky. It was a massive flame that could be seen from anywhere in the Shiman Mountains. Chung Myung squinted his eyes.

'Surely... a troublesome one.'

It was probably a signal to call back those scattered across the mountain range.

Ho Gakmyung made two mistakes.

One was not knowing the fact that Chung Myung was exceptionally familiar with the terrain here. However, this was not something Ho Gakmyung could prevent or overcome. How could he know that Chung Myung was familiar with the Hundred Thousand Mountains and had engaged in guerrilla warfare against numerous opponents?

And the second mistake. This was an undeniable mistake with no room for excuses—it was overlooking what their strength was.

The absolute advantage that Myriad Man Manor had over Heavenly Comrade Alliance was their numerical superiority. Numerous heads could become a threat at any time in any situation.

Ho Gakmyung made a mistake in not utilizing the numerical advantage. Even if they mobilized many people, if they were scattered in this vast area, it would inevitably turn into a series of skirmishes with small numbers.

In such a skirmish, there was no way Chung Myung would lose. Ho Gakmyung's defeat was already foreseen from the moment he chose to fight on an unfavorable battlefield in an unfavorable manner.

But Ho Gakmyung was certainly not someone to be underestimated. He recognized his mistake and immediately went into reevaluation.

Chung Myung continued to think calmly.

'Even so...'

It was a somewhat ridiculous mistake for Ho Gakmyung to make. Perhaps it meant that he had collapsed to the point of making such a mistake.

Considering that it is much more difficult for someone who has collapsed once to rise again than for someone who has not collapsed at all, this immediate response is somewhat surprising.

Did he overestimate Ho Gakmyung? Or...

"Hmm."

Chung Myung's gaze turned back to the sky. Far away, the eastern sky was gradually brightening. Regardless of what happened on that side, continuing to delay time was meaningless.

'I guess this is enough.'

Originally, his goal was not to increase the enemy's sacrifices but to buy time for others to escape, so there was no need to exert unnecessary strength.

As Chung Myung was about to leave, he glanced back. With an inscrutable gaze, he looked at somewhere in the south. But he soon became a streak of light, shooting towards the north.

❀ ❀ ❀

Tap. Tap.

Ho Gakmyung's eyes slowly scanned the ground.

Until a moment ago, he was certainly disheveled, but now he was back as if nothing had happened. His complexion was still a bit pale, but his uniform was neatly arranged, and even his gaze was sharper than before.

"Did you find them?"

"Yes, Commander! They're here!"

Those who were searching the ground quickly nodded in response to Ho Gakmyung's question.

"There are traces of the group moving."

"How many?"

"About twenty."

"...How many footprints did you find a little while ago?"

"Still about twenty."

Ho Gakmyung nodded slowly.

"Quite meticulous."

Dividing the group while avoiding pursuit was definitely not a bad choice. It could induce confusion among those who were tracking while avoiding surveillance networks.

"But too honest."

For those who had never been chased by someone, it was natural that they didn't even think about their footprints. Even if they did think about it, it might not be easy to avoid leaving footprints while desperately running away. Moreover, since the ground was covered with grass, they might not have even thought about leaving traces.

In the end, it was a mistake stemming from lack of experience.

'I don't necessarily have to be perfect.'

The enemy wasn't perfect either.

"Then, let's go that way."

Ho Gakmyung's gaze turned towards the towering mountain behind. Considering the shape and direction of the traces they had discovered so far, the destination was clear.

"Move."

"Yes!"

Ho Gakmyung mobilized his subordinates and moved quickly.

They failed to block those escaping from the Hundred Thousand Mountains. However, if they knew where they were moving, the spark of pursuit could still be kept alive.

"Commander! It's this way!"

Among those running ahead, some seemed to have found traces on the ground, as they were holding their palms down and estimating something.

"Two groups... No, more than three groups. People from different directions have gathered here."

"Was this the meeting point?"

"But..."

At the slightly unclear end of the sentence, Ho Gakmyung's eyes twitched.

"What is it?"

"...The arrival times are different."

"Is there any reason why that's strange?"

"The ones who arrived didn't wait for others to join and moved immediately."

"They moved?"

"Yes, here!"

The person explaining pushed aside the bushes and revealed deeply imprinted footprints.

"There's force behind the traces. If they continued running through here, the front, not the back, would have been more clearly imprinted."

"Continue."

"But there aren't many footprints lingering here. It means they arrived, checked something, and then moved without waiting for those behind to arrive."

"Hmm."

Ho Gakmyung nodded slowly.

"It means that although the experience is great, it is not easy." [not sure]

If they had clumsily tried to join here, it could have become an opportunity for an attack. But was there a reason to go through such a cumbersome method?

What if it was Im Sobyeong? How would he have thought?

"...The Nokrim King couldn't be sure if there were ambushes behind or not. And he couldn't trust the others."

So he probably conveyed the escape route he visually confirmed here to those who followed, and moved to secure the path first.

The events that occurred here unfolded in Ho Gakmyung's mind.

Those who arrived first surveyed the situation and determined the escape route to move. Then, those who arrived later followed the secured escape route.

"But one thing is missing."

A meaningful glint appeared in Ho Gakmyung's eyes.

If Im Sobyeong had arrived here and decided the path after scrutinizing, they would have needed a means to convey the direction they were going to the rear guard.

An immediately created signaling system? That wouldn't be possible. This plan was probably not well thought out in advance.

To avoid clumsy confusion, they must have used an already established means. And that would probably be...

Ho Gakmyung's head turned swiftly backward. Someone who received his gaze flinched for a moment. One corner of Ho Gakmyung's mouth faintly lifted.

"We may not know, but..."

The face of the person who received Ho Gakmyung's gaze contorted painfully.

"It probably means that those who know each other have recognizable marks among them."

"...?"

"Isn't that right?"

The person who received Ho Gakmyung's gaze, Yugong, a disciple of Southern Island, tightly bit his lower lip.