Chapter 1634: Before Everything Disappears (Part 4)

"Oh?"

"Sasuk?"

While truding back to the dorms, Baek Cheon encountered Jo Gol and Yoon Jong and widened his eyes.

"Stunned."

"...This tastes sweet."

"Are you alright, Sasuk?"

"...I'm... fine..."

As Baek Cheon nodded reluctantly, Jo Gol whispered to Yoon Jong.

"Isn't his condition worse than expected?"

"He met his father, though, didn't he? When runaway kids meet their fathers, it usually doesn't end well. Legs could be broken, you know?"

"Should we say he came back safely in one piece, then?"

"No, not quite. We should say he's in one piece 'for now'. Who knows when those legs might break."

"Ah."

Jo Gol glanced at Baek Cheon's legs. After all, before coming to Mount Hua, about a week after he had run away and was caught, receiving quite a beating to the point where any bone could have been broken.

He had been beaten to such an extent for just a week's absence, but now it had been a ridiculous decade or so since he had ran from home. Of course, by now, it might be more fitting to call it independence rather than running away, but Jin Chobaek's perspective might be different.

Yoon Jong, examining Baek Cheon's pallid complexion, chuckled.

"I also think that severing ties with one's origin is not easy. Take this opportunity to mend your relationships somewhat, Sasuk."

"Yoon Jong-ah."

"Yes?"

"...Do you know what my father is like?"

"Well..."

Yoon Jong narrowed his eyes slightly. He had seen him a few times from a distance, but in truth, he didn't know what kind of person he was. He only knew he resembled Baek Cheon.

"Kind of..."

"Just keep one thing in mind."

"What do you mean?"

"Jin Geumryong came out from under him."

"..."

Yoon Jong's face darkened at those words.

"Well... I see. Sasuk's father."

Jo Gol and Yoon Jong exchanged glances.

"My, my. When you think about it, Sasuk and Jin Geumryong's father. He must be someone extraordinary."

"That's right. Because he's Sasuk's father."

These bastards?

Baek Cheon's forehead creased. But he couldn't refute it as it was true.

"But isn't he be better than Jin Geumryong?"

"That's what I think. My brother... No, Jin Geumryong and I have only one thing in common, right? I don't want to admit it, though."

"It seems to me there's more than one thing..."

"Do you really want to get beaten up?"

"...What are you talking about? That commonality?"

Baek Cheon murmured weakly.

"It means we've been beaten up to death by someone."

"Ah, you mean getting your head cracked."

"That can certainly be considered a commonality. But what does that have to do with this?"

"So..."

Baek Cheon sighed deeply.

"It's a bit awkward to say this myself, but our father... is like Jin Geumryong who had never been beaten before."

"Eeeeeeeeek!"

"Uuuh..."

Yoon Jong and Jo Gol trembled.

The images of Jin Geumryong and Baek Cheon prior to being beaten by Chung Myung flashed through their minds. What kind of people would those two people have become if they had grown older?

"...It must be hard for you."

"That... Now that I think about it, being tied to heavenly principles isn't necessarily mandatory. After all, you've left home."

Baek Cheon weakly replied, massaging his face.

"Easy for you to say..."

"True."

"That's right."

A sigh escaped involuntarily.

Of course, Jin Chobaek had aged, and a lot of time had passed, so he must have softened compared to before. But even so, the burden of having to act alongside a father with whom he had a bad relationship hadn't disappeared.

Moreover...

At that moment, Yoon Jong twitched and looked at Baek Cheon with a serious expression.

"Sasuk. There's something I want to ask."

"What?"

"Is Jin Geumryong then becoming a regular unit member?"

"That's right."

"Which unit does that person belong to?"

"..."

"Surely..."

Baek Cheon turned his head to gaze at the distant sky. Seeing something glistening in the corner of his eyes, Yoon Jong and Jo Gol once again exchanged glances.

"Who compiled this member list?"

"Why ask the obvious? Chung Myung compiled it, didn't he?"

"Coincidence?"

"Oh, Sahyung. Stop talking nonsense. Is there any coincidence in what that guy does? This is clearly intentional."

Doesn't that mean Chung Myung knew very well that Jin Chobaek and Jin Geumryong were there but still pushed in Baek Cheon as the vice leader of the unit?

"Is he really on our side?"

"He's a vile one..."

The two, trembling, approached Baek Cheon as if they had made up their minds and wrapped his shoulders from both sides.

"Stay strong, Sasuk. What can you do? Just try to ease your mind since we're already here."

"Yes, Sasuk. After all, we're family, right? Family."

"Because we're family... Because we're family."

"Ah..."

That was true, too.

Seeing them unable to find more comforting words, Baek Cheon, still an adult, opened his mouth first.

"What about you guys? Have you met your unit leaders separately? Are they alright?"

"The Beast Palace Lord is fine. Always. Of course, if you talk to him up close, your ears might hurt a bit..."

"Is that so."

Baek Cheon nodded weakly.

While others might be irritable due to the spirit creatures milling around the Beast Palace Lord, Jo Gol wouldn't mind. After all, he was closer to that side than to humans.

"Moyong Gaju-nim was more receptive than I expected."

"...Really?"

Baek Cheon looked at Yoon Jong with slight surprise.

"He said if you know your role well and don't unnecessarily interfere, he wouldn't disturb the work. He seemed a bit different from what I've seen before."

"...He's a head of a powerful family. Naturally, he must have broad thoughts."

"Yes. Thinking about it, until now, wasn't he the one trying to mediate as much as possible while restraining Lord Jaegal?"

"That's right."

"He seems to become quite mild if you look at it one way. If I do well, there shouldn't be any major problems."

Baek Cheon nodded.

There shouldn't be any problems with Tang Gunak and Hye Yeon, and the combination of Pungyeong Shin Gae and Namgung Dowi shouldn't cause any issues either. While Namgung Dowi may be full of energy, Pungyeong Shin Gae had been the one controlling the Beggar's Union from the shadows until now. They should be able to harmonize with each other.

Then...

"Why only me..."

"Don't cry, Sasuk."

"A grown man acting so embarrassingly!"

Baek Cheon sighed deeply, wiping his face with his sleeve.

"Anyway, let's do our best. Now... Yes, now there's really... yes, nothing else left."

"Yes, Sasuk."

"Yes."

Yoon Jong and Jo Gol nodded their heads. Although he seemed pitiful now, once he entered the battlefield, Baek Cheon would be the one to perform his role better than anyone else.

However, Yoon Jong's gaze towards Baek Cheon wasn't as comfortable as Jo Gol's. Neither Baek Cheon nor Jo Gol had realized it yet.

"Rather, what should we do now? Since no one has given us any instructions, what exactly should we do?"

Jo Gol scratched his head, and Baek Cheon nodded weakly.

"Now, we're not in a position to receive orders, but to give them."

"Yes."

"So don't wait for others to tell you what to do. Think about what you should do and act on your own."

"So, that's... difficult..."

Seeing Jo Gol's troubled face, Baek Cheon chuckled.

"If I were you, I'd first meet with the people of my unit. Even though you're connected by sect, if you get to know each other well, things might go more smoothly."

"Ah, that makes sense."

Jo Gol nodded vigorously.

Normally, he would easily come up with such thoughts, but suddenly being thrust into the heavy position of an vice leader made it hard for his mind to turn.

"What about after that?"

"After that..."

Baek Cheon turned his head to one side.

"We wait."

"..."

"For them to issue instructions."

* * *

Chung Myung. Im Sobyeong. And Jaegal Jain.

The chief tactician representing the righteous sects and the chief tactician representing the evil sects. And the chief commander of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance, who had proven over the recent years that there was no one to rival his emergency measures.

The three of them were seated around a small table in the center.

"The organization is complete. It may take some time, but soon we will move as one body."

Chung Myung nodded at Jaegal Jain's words.

The most effort put into organizing this time was precisely this. They shouldn't be too close, but they shouldn't be too far apart either.

In theory, it would be corrent for those who were the most awkward and had a bad relationship to fight together and narrow the psychological distance, but Chung Myung was not foolish enough to ignore the reality that was right in front of him and only shout ideals.

The important thing was to minimize sacrifice and defeat the Evil Tyrant Alliance. Everything should be prepared for that one purpose.

And then...

Just as Chung Myung's thoughts were deepening, Im Sobyeong spoke up.

"The important thing is the lack of time."

"Hmm."

"And... now, how will the Evil Tyrant Alliance move?"

Jaegal Jain nodded his head.

"Is there still no movement from the Evil Tyrant Alliance?"

"We are still keeping a close eye, but they have not yet moved."

"Why on earth..."

Jaegal Jain had a look of utter incomprehension.

Something was definitely strange. The enemy had the perfect upper hand now. If they had pressed on, the Heavenly Comrade Alliance would have had trouble responding as well. But thanks to the meaningless posturing they had taken and the time they had wasted in Hubei, they had given them time to prepare.

"What other scheme could they be concocting?"

"It would make sense to think that way, but..."

Im Sobyeong couldn't easily nod his head. Every one of Jang Ilso's moves had meaning. But this time, even Im Sobyeong couldn't read the meaning behind this actions at all.

So what they could rely on right now...

"What does the Chief think?"

After receiving Im Sobyeong's question, Chung Myung's eyes, which were fixed on the map, spread out across the table. His eyes sank deep, very deep.

"A ruse..."

Chung Myung's head drooped.

"There is no such thing as a lingering ruse."

"But he has done it before..."

"He wasn't lingering then; he was aiming a blade at us. It's different now. No matter how you think about it, it's just meaningless."

"Um. So...?"

Im Sobyeong's head was becoming complicated.

Thud!

"Aaagh!"

Im Sobyeong grabbed his head and staggered backwards.

"Why! Why did you hit me!"

"Tsk!"

Chung Myung distorted his face and looks at Im Sobyeong.

"But still, that brat who is the strategist of the Heavenly Comrade Alliance's army, even the Nokrim King panicking!"

"...Really?"

"That bastard is still just a human. He plans everything, but he can't always do everything according to his own will."

"..."

Chung Myung narrowed his eyes.

In every war, there are variables. Sometimes big variables, sometimes small variables. And sometimes even trivial but fatal variables.

Sometimes, those small variables can completely overturn the course of the battlefield.

"The situation is clear now. He has clearly encountered an unexpected variable."

"..."

"So what we need to do is one thing."

Chung Myung's eyes shone with a bright blue light.

"To ensure that the one who has fallen down never rises again."

Im Sobyeong momentarily stopped breathing.

And in that moment, Chung Myung's words pierced his ears.

"We've done enough defense. To the point of exhaustion and horror."

Thud!

Chung Myung's hand, his five fingers, tapped the map. And those fingers soon gathered and twisted the map.

"Now it's our turn."

"Chief..."

"We attack."

A fierce energy flowed from Chung Myung's eyes.

"Until his final breath... is completely cut off."

It was eerie.

A chilling voice.