"Namgung Hwang?"
"The Emperor Sword?"
The Five Swords, who had followed Chung Myung down the mountain, were taken aback.
"Namgung Hwang led the Blue Sky Sword troops and went to the river mouth?"
"Shaolin called, but instead of heading to Shaolin, he went to Plum Blossom Island?"
"Seems like it."
Baek Cheon looked at Chung Myung with a blank expression. Baek Cheon usually controlled his emotions well, but this time, the shock was overwhelming.
"… Why?"
Chung Myung smiled.
"Sasuk, if you want to lead people in the future, there's one thing you need to understand."
"What is that?"
Even though Baek Cheon asked with an anxious face, Chung Myung replied as if it were nothing.
"There's nothing more futile than trying to understand why a crazy person does something crazy."
"…"
"You probably don't understand, so let me explain it again…"
"No, Chung Myung. I understood it right away."
"… Uh?"
Yoon Jong quickly nodded from the side.
"I understand, too."
"I definitely understand, too."
"Same here."
"… But why are you guys talking while looking at me?"
Who else should they look at while talking?
It was his story.
Yoon Jong, who seemed to be choosing his words carefully, spoke.
"If you think about it, there's a reason. The Namgung family was humiliated at the river back then. I only saw it briefly, but considering the personality of the Emperor's Sword, Namgung Hwang…"
"Right. He must have been sharpening his sword… no, his blade for this."
Everyone shivered as they recalled Namgung Hwang swinging his sword with his eyes wide open. Remembering the incredible sword technique that couldn't be fully described by the term' sword technique,' their bodies trembled and ached.
"Then now…"
"Yes."
Chung Myung nodded with a smile.
"Wouldn't he be going crazy? Hehehehe."
Kwaaang!
An entire pavilion was blown out.
It was an impossible sight that would not have occurred even if a dozen military cannons had fallen. Yet, the creator of this spectacle was an iron sword, not even four feet long.
"You wicked people of the Evil Sects!"
A lion's roar erupted from Namgung Hwang's mouth.
"Drive out all those bastards who dared to step on the Northern Lands!"
"Yes!"
Namgung Hwang's command to the Blue Sky Sword troops spurred them into action, charging into the light.
Just by observing their momentum, one could surmise how intensely they had trained over the past three years.
Namgung Hwang's eyes radiated a terrifying presence.
"Black Dragon King!"
Three years.
A long time for some a brief period for others.
For Namgung Hwang, those years felt like an eternity.
He swallowed his humiliation, shame, and self-disappointment every single day.
The only thing that helped him endure that painful time, which felt as if his intestines were being torn apart, was the hope that after three years, he could sever the heads of the abominable Jang Ilso and the Black Dragon King with his own sword.
Amidst all that, he heard the news that the Black Dragon King, of the Four Precepts Alliance, had entered the Northern Lands with his pirates.
"That fucking bitch!"
Crack!
Namgung Hwang gritted his teeth.
If the name Namgung had remained in his mind, he would not have dared to cross the Yangtze River in such a manner, not even with the Four Precepts Alliance, let alone by himself.
When he regained his senses after his anger exploded, he found himself charging with his sword.
"Do-Wei!"
"Yes, lord!"
Namgung Do-Wei.
The son of Namgung Hwang, who had endured literal bone-crushing training for the past three years, responded with a firm voice.
Three years was enough time for him to grow from a child into a potential full-grown swordsman and the next head of the Namgung family.
"Lead the Blue Sky Sword troops and turn all the evil sect bastards into fish food! Even if we suffered humiliation once, let the world know that the name of Blue Sky still holds justice and harmony!"
"Yes!"
As Namgung Do-Wei ran ahead, Namgung Hwang's eyes stayed focused forward.
"Huh!"
Shaolin's letter was definitely received. However, Namgung Hwang paid no attention to its contents.
'Cowards!'
A person should know how to avoid death, but a warrior should not avoid death. Especially those who uphold the banner of justice and chivalry as their motto will lose everything the moment they step back because they fear losing their lives.
"You should have just died there."
If those Wudang had not done such foolish things, if the Shaolin and Qingcheng Sect had not gone along with those foolish actions…
He would never have begged for his life so cowardly. And the brilliant name of the Blue Sky Namgung family would not have been dragged through the mud.
Kwang!
Namgung Hwang's feet stomped on the ground.
"No, all of that is just an excuse."
If Namgung Hwang had truly held the courage to disregard his life, if he wanted the Namgung family to become a sect that stakes everything in the name of justice, he would have raised the sword in that situation, too.
At the last moment, what weighed down on his sword and held it back was none other than Namgung Hwang's weakness.
And that fact made Namgung Hwang more miserable.
"One cannot put back the spilled water. But!"
Namgung Hwang's eyes shone brightly.
"We can pour new water in. Today, I will reclaim the name of Namgung!"
At that moment, he saw a horde of pirates rushing toward him with incredible momentum.
"Block them!"
"Damn it, do those bastards know where this is?"
"The Namgung family is nothing! Kill them all!"
Namgung Hwang, looking at the pirates rushing at him like a swarm of bees, grabbed his sword.
"I…"
Namgung Hwang stomped his foot hard on the ground. At the same time, the white-black qi emitted from the sword's handle rose up.
The aura was so thick that it was hard to believe it was a black aura, completely enveloping Namgung Hwang's sword and radiating a dazzling light.
Kwang!
It was the Step of the Emperor.
And that was the Sword of the Emperor's Sword.
"Ohhhhhh!"
Namgung Hwang's sword, raised above his head, came down in an instant.
Kwaaang!
One couldn't believe that it was the sound of a sword being swung. It was literally like the sound of a cannon being fired.
But what was even more unbelievable was not the sound the sword made, but the size of the sword qi that it produced.
A white sword qi the size of a house was emitted from the tip of his sword. The faces of those who saw the huge sword qi that flew in, covering their entire field of vision, instantly lost their color.
"A-avoid…"
Before they could even finish the word 'avoid', the white sword qi covered the approaching enemies. Not only that, it extended beyond them, leaving a huge scar on the street.
Kwakwakwakng!
A power that you could not believe even if you saw it with your own eyes.
Even if you called it power, it was so amazing that they were dumbfounded. A human unleashed this tremendous qi from his sword?
It was a sight that forced them to understand why the Namgung family was called the Blue Sky Namgung family and was able to maintain its position as the leader of the Five Great Families, and why the head of the Namgung Family always proudly put his name on the list of candidates for the best swordsman in the world.
"You insignificant bastards of the Evil Sect! Do you know who I am and still choose to block the path?"
Namgung Hwang's appearance, sweeping the front with a single sword and standing alone, roaring, made even the name of a Divine General seem so meaningless.
"Woahhh!"
"It is the Namgung family! The Namgung family has come to save us!"
"Blue Sky Namgung Family!"
"The Five Great Families have come!"
Those who had been hiding in relatively safe places and merely watching the scene unfold ran out and cheered when they witnessed it. Although the Namgung family had shown a disappointing appearance in the past, that was insignificant in this situation.
Seeing them come to the land and slaughter the pirates in person, all the ill feelings from the past were washed away, and faith began to fill its place.
"Do not come out! Those dirty pirates are still around! I will put your mind at ease soon!"
The people nodded their heads upon hearing those words and rushed back in. They instinctively felt that the wait wouldn't be long.
"Hmm!"
When Namgung Hwang nodded and was about to walk ahead with a brisk step, a person who approached him cautiously opened his mouth.
"Hyung."
"What?"
Namgung Hwang turned his head and looked at the person standing next to him.
The Sword of the Lion, Namgung Myung. He was the younger brother and leader of the Blue Sky Sword troops.
"Are you alright?"
"What are you talking about?"
"… I understand how you feel, hyung, but I feel like we acted too carelessly. I wonder if this could turn into something…"
"Namgung Myung!"
Namgung Hwang's voice, which sounded like a cannon, made Namgung Myung shrink back.
"Since when did you turn into such a coward?"
"T-that isn't what…"
"Just know this!"
Namgung Hwang looked at Namgung Myung with eyes that seemed like he wanted to kill.
"In a world where fools live, the only wise one is treated as an idiot."
"… Uh?"
"What more reason does a swordsman need to defeat Evil bastards?"
There wasn't a single doubt in the voice of Namgung Hwang. Just conviction.
"We suffered because we couldn't take the obvious for granted! Because we couldn't say what was right and what was wrong out loud!"
"L-Lord. I just…"
"Shut up!"
Namgung Hwang glared at Namgung Myung as if he wanted to devour him.
Of course, Namgung Hwang also understood Namgung Myung's concern about the damage the Namgung family might suffer due to it.
But now he knew.
A sect that valued profit would only last a hundred years.
In order to continue its value for thousands or tens of thousands of years, something more than profit was needed. Those who were blinded by small things and could not see big things would eventually perish.
At that moment, the image of someone crossed Namgung Hwang's mind.
A small swordsman covered in wounds.
A person who was defiant even with blood all over his body.
At that time, Namgung Hwang couldn't look that young swordsman in the eye. He didn't dare to look him in the eye. When the young swordsman looked back at him, he just unknowingly avoided the gaze.
What had pushed Namgung Hwang into true pain over the years was the shame he felt for not being able to look him in the eye at that moment.
"Never again…"
Namgung Hwang clenched his fist.
"I will never avoid looking into another's eyes again. I will never do anything that I would be ashamed of! I am Namgung Hwang! The head of the Namgung family and the Emperor's Sword!"
"Hyung…"
"If you have time to worry, then take your sword up. The Namgung family's swordsmen speak with their swords and not their mouths!"
"Understood, lord!"
Namgung Myung's eyes turned determined.
The right and wrong here were still unknown. But one thing was certain: his lord was now risking everything there.
Then, as his younger brother, a member of the Namgung family and the proud leader of the Blue Sky Sword troops, he had to respond to the will.
"Let's go!"
"Yes!"
Namgung Hwang grabbed his sword as he watched the horde of black pirates rush toward him from the dock.
"Defeat the Evil Sect people!"
White sword qi shot out from his blade and soared high into the sky.
To the clearest of skies.