Fist Demon of Mount Hua ( Novel ) - Chapter 244
Chapter 244 – Mount Hua is Submerged in Blood, and Fist DemonWalks the Blood Path (1)
Read it only at Utoon.net!
Discord
Ring!
Cho Yeon-woon blinked momentarily at the sudden ringing in his ears.
“What’s wrong? Is the pain still severe?”
Dan Hwa-ran, who was nearby, asked with a worried expression.
“I’m fine! Just felt a momentary headache.”
“You shouldn’t be moving yet. You need absolute rest until your internal injuries heal. You know that, right?”
“Yes! I know.”
Cho Yeon-woon gave a bitter smile at Dan Hwa-ran’s concern.
His chest was tightly wrapped in white bandages. Like snow-white bandages were dotted with red flowers. Blood seeping from Cho Yeon-woon’s wounds was staining the bandages red.
Cho Yeon-woon recalled the man who had wounded his chest.
‘Jo Ja-kyung.’
The man who called himself the Great Lord of Heaven’s Crossing.
His Sword Transmission technique was truly terrifying, inflicting a great wound on Cho Yeon-woon’s chest. If the wound had been just an inch deeper, he would have already been dead.
Though he barely escaped with his life, Cho Yeon-woon’s injuries were so severe that he had to remain completely still until now. The one who had been caring for him devotedly during this time was Dan Hwa-ran.
“Could you help support me?”
“You shouldn’t move yet. Did you forget what the physician said? You need absolute rest.”
“It’s okay! I’m saying it because I feel well enough to move.”
“Such stubbornness. Fine. But don’t overdo it.”
“Understood.”
Dan Hwa-ran shook her head and supported Cho Yeon-woon. For a moment, Cho Yeon-woon’s face turned slightly red. The fragrant scent from her body stimulated his sense of smell.
Cho Yeon-woon maintained a deliberately calm expression as he walked outside the building. The first thing he felt outside was the subtle plum blossom fragrance carried by the wind.
“Wow!”
Dan Hwa-ran, who was supporting Cho Yeon-woon, couldn’t help but exclaim. Beyond the walls spread white waves. They were all plum blossoms. It was truly a forest of plum blossoms in full bloom.
“So this is Mount Hua?”
Cho Yeon-woon muttered softly.
Perhaps among all the sects in the world, none would have as many martial arts techniques with the word ‘plum blossom’ in their names as Mount Hua.
That’s how much the plum blossom was a symbol of Mount Hua.
“So my friend spent his childhood here?”
Cho Yeon-woon looked around the grounds with renewed interest.
He was currently within the halls of the Mount Hua Sect.
He didn’t know how they had escaped from Shaozhou. Surrounded by Dan Hwa-ran and the disciples, they had arrived at Mount Hua.
After arriving at Mount Hua, he focused on recovery. Fortunately, his internal injuries had somewhat healed, but the external wounds were the problem. The sword wound inflicted by Jo Ja-kyung wouldn’t heal easily, greatly hindering his movement.
The scenery of Mount Hua, filled with plum blossom fragrance, gave Cho Yeon-woon a strange feeling. Learning that Dam-ho had spent his childhood here made it even more meaningful.
Cho Yeon-woon toured the Mount Hua Sect grounds while supported by Dan Hwa-ran.
“Are you alright?”
“Senior!”
The warriors of the Hundred Battles Sect approached upon discovering him.
Though he ended up staying at Mount Hua Sect unintentionally, their expressions were brighter than expected.
“Where’s Master?”
“He went to Zhongnan Sect. After all, with Hero Yeom’s death, Zhongnan Sect’s power has greatly weakened.”
“Is that so? That’s just like Master.”
Cho Yeon-woon nodded.
Master Jang Il-san was always burning with a sense of justice. Therefore, such a decision wasn’t surprising at all. Yet somehow, he felt uneasy. Cho Yeon-woon thought it was because of his injuries.
That’s when it happened.
“How are you feeling?”
Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice was heard. Cho Yeon-woon turned his head at the cold yet heavy voice. He saw a group of people. Among them, a middle-aged man who emanated a magnificent aura like a well-forged famous sword particularly stood out.
“Ah! Sage Hyeon-geom.”
Cho Yeon-woon hurriedly made a respectful gesture. Though he felt pain in his chest, he didn’t show it.
Sage Hyeon-geom introduced the elderly Taoist priest beside him.
“Pay your respects. This is Sage Hyeon-cheon, our sect’s leader.”
“Ah! Junior disciple Cho Yeon-woon greets Mount Hua Sect’s leader.”
“Ho ho! Welcome, Young Hero Cho.”
Sage Hyeon-cheon smiled warmly as he received the greeting.
Behind Sage Hyeon-cheon stood middle-aged Taoist priests. They were Mount Hua’s first-generation disciples: Mu-kyung, Un-kyung, Han So-yu, and others.
Un-kyung slightly bowed his head in acknowledgment to Cho Yeon-woon. Cho Yeon-woon exchanged glances with him.
Sage Hyeon-cheon asked.
“How is your condition?”
“Thanks to your care, I’m much better.”
“That’s good. Take care of yourself and recover quickly.”
“Thank you.”
Sage Hyeon-cheon showed a warm smile. It was the kind of smile rarely seen by Mount Hua’s disciples.
Sage Hyeon-cheon looked back. He saw his disciples.
“Woon-kyung, stay behind and guide Young Hero Cho around Mount Hua. He’s only been in his room recovering until now, so he must be unfamiliar with the paths.”
“Yes, understood.”
Woon-kyung bowed his head as he answered.
A natural aura of authority befitting a sect leader emanated from Sage Hyeon-cheon.
Sage Hyeon-cheon had lived his entire life for Mount Hua’s glory. Though the murim’s situation wasn’t particularly good, his and Mount Hua’s reputation grew higher by the day.
Especially since Sage Hyeon-geom rejoined Mount Hua, a smile never left Sage Hyeon-cheon’s face.
Though he had neglected martial arts training due to his busy days as Mount Hua’s leader, he too was a warrior who had reached mastery.
The achievement of Sage Hyeon-geom who returned to Mount Hua had reached such heights that even Sage Hyeon-cheon found it difficult to gauge.
‘Yes! This is it. Now that the wall blocking Hyeon-geom has crumbled, it’s only a matter of time before he becomes the greatest swordsman in the martial world. When Hyeon-geom stands at the pinnacle of the world, Mount Hua will also stand at the peak of the murim.’
Sage Hyeon-cheon equated Sage Hyeon-geom’s achievements with Mount Hua’s glory.
Though many warriors who fled from Shaozhou had taken refuge in Mount Hua, Sage Hyeon-cheon wasn’t worried at all. It was because he was confident that with Mount Hua’s current strength, they could protect themselves in any crisis.
“Well then…”
Just as Sage Hyeon-cheon was passing by Cho Yeon-woon.
“…”
Suddenly, Sage Hyeon-geom stopped walking. His expression had noticeably hardened.
“What’s wrong?”
“…”
“Disciple?”
When Sage Hyeon-cheon’s voice rose slightly, Sage Hyeon-geom looked at him.
“Sect Leader.”
“Speak.”
“We should prepare.”
“For what?”
“Enemies.”
“Enemies?”
Dong dong dong!
Just as Sage Hyeon-cheon showed a puzzled expression, urgent bell sounds rang from below the mountain. It was the emergency bell that only rang during Mount Hua’s crises.
Sage Hyeon-cheon’s expression hardened like Sage Hyeon-geom’s.
“What in the…”
“A powerful one.”
Sage Hyeon-geom’s gaze turned toward the bottom of the mountain.
The powerful presence felt from below Mount Hua was disturbing his senses.
‘A master beyond imagination.’
Sage Hyeon-geom’s already cold eyes emanated an even frostier chill.
From Sage Hyeon-geom’s reaction, Sage Hyeon-cheon felt an ominous sense of crisis. As far as he knew, Sage Hyeon-geom had never shown such a reaction before.
Moreover, the atmosphere felt from below the mountain was unusual. The urgently ringing bells had already stopped.
That fact spoke only one thing.
‘Does this mean the children standing guard at the entrance were annihilated? So quickly?’
The situation was turning out more serious than expected.
Sage Hyeon-cheon looked at Han So-yu.
“So-yu!”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“Go to Myung-kyung right now.”
“Pardon?”
“The weaker first-generation disciples and the third-generation disciples must evacuate. Go with Myung-kyung.”
“But…”
“This is an order.”
“Understood.”
Though it didn’t make sense to him, since it was the sect leader’s order, Han So-yu had to comply.
Sage Hyeon-cheon turned his gaze to Mu-kyung, his head disciple.
“Gather all disciples immediately.”
“Understood.”
Mu-kyung quickly responded.
He was perceptive enough. When both Sage Hyeon-cheon and Sage Hyeon-geom, whom he revered like heaven, reacted this way simultaneously, he could well imagine how urgent the situation was.
Sage Hyeon-cheon looked at Cho Yeon-woon.
“Young Hero Cho, since you’re unwell, retreat if the situation calls for it. There’s no need to take unnecessary risks.”
“No. Even if I’m unwell, I’m still a warrior. If a Hundred Battles Sect disciple flees from enemies, my master won’t forgive me.”
Cho Yeon-woon straightened his back. Though the pain in his chest still pressed against him, he paid it no mind.
“Very well. Just be careful. You and the Hundred Battles Sect disciples must look after your own safety. We likely won’t have the capacity to look after you.”
After finishing his words, Sage Hyeon-cheon quickly ran down the mountain. Mount Hua disciples who had rushed out upon hearing the bell joined behind him.
Cho Yeon-woon spoke to a fellow disciple nearby.
“Gather all Hundred Battles Sect disciples immediately.”
“Fighting in your condition is reckless.”
“We can’t just sit and take it. Stop arguing and gather the other disciples.”
“But…”
“I’m a Hundred Battles Sect disciple. And I’m also the current owner of the Banner of Hundred Battles. I can’t shame the banner.”
Cho Yeon-woon smiled. The disciple shook his head helplessly at Cho Yeon-woon’s attitude.
“Did you hear? Our foolish senior wants everyone gathered.”
“Yes!”
“Hahaha!”
The Hundred Battles Sect disciples laughed.
Seeing this, Dan Hwa-ran shook her head.
When Cho Yeon-woon returned to his room, Dan Hwa-ran handed him neatly folded clothes.
“What’s this?”
“What do you think? Clothes. You can’t fight looking like that.”
“Is that so?”
Cho Yeon-woon showed an embarrassed expression. But soon he accepted the clothes from Dan Hwa-ran with a determined face.
What Dan Hwa-ran gave him was a blue robe. The well-ironed blue robe suited Cho Yeon-woon very well.
“Thank you!”
“If you’re thankful, don’t overdo it.”
“I can’t promise that.”
“Men really…”
Cho Yeon-woon placed his hand on Dan Hwa-ran’s head as she shook it. When Dan Hwa-ran looked up in surprise, Cho Yeon-woon smiled gently.
“Don’t worry. I’m Cho Yeon-woon. And…”
“The current owner of the Banner of Hundred Battles. I know.”
“That’s right.”
“Really…”
“Let’s date.”
“Huh?”
Dan Hwa-ran’s eyes widened at the unexpected words. Cho Yeon-woon smiled softly.
“If we win this battle…”
“What?”
“I’ve liked you for a long time. I was just too shy to say it.”
“T-that…”
Dan Hwa-ran’s face turned completely red like a ripe persimmon. Cho Yeon-woon patted her head and turned around.
“You don’t have to answer now. I’ll hear it when I return.”
His face was as red as Dan Hwa-ran’s.
Even he didn’t understand why he chose this moment to say those words.
‘Damn! Has my injury made my heart weak too?’
Despite his embarrassment, he was slowly regaining his smile.
He saw a large banner leaning against the wall.
The Banner of Hundred Battles.
His pride and the symbol of Hundred Battles Sect.
Cho Yeon-woon took the banner and went outside.
Whoosh!
The Banner of Hundred Battles unfurled in the incoming wind. Hundred Battles Sect disciples gathered one by one under the banner.
Cho Yeon-woon spoke to them.
“Let’s go, you damned fools.”
“Wahaha!”