Crack!
A dark, grimy hand pierced through the back, still clutching the blood-soaked, beating heart.
"Gurgle…"
The dying and the one witnessing the death locked eyes at close range—eyes wide with disbelief. Recognizing the death approaching right before them, the terrified face was mercilessly mocked by the other.
Bang!
The Evil Sect member, now little more than a corpse, was kicked away, and the hand holding the heart crushed it down.
"Hahaha! You filthy unbelievers!"
Fear has a strange nature.
People show greater courage when in groups than when alone. There's a clear difference between walking alone on a dark night and walking with others in that same night.
But once fear begins to spread, it becomes even greater than when alone. The fear that started at the front quickly spread throughout the entire Black Ghost Fort.
What was lacking was not skill but mindset.
The difference between the Justice Faction sects still harboring the poison from the calamity a hundred years ago and those who had forgotten everything over time was starkly revealed here.
"Heavenly Demon Resurrection, Ten Thousand Blessings. Second Coming of Heavenly Demon, Ten Thousand Blessings. Heavenly Demon Resurrection, Ten Thousand Blessings."
The mantra, muttered like a spell, pierced the ears.
Screams of dying and laughter filled with madness echoed simultaneously, along with endless curses and killing intent pouring down like flesh being torn.
Who could possibly maintain reason consistently in the face of that?
"Ugh… ugh…"
"No, this can't be…"
Everything collapsed.
The skill built over a long time, the perfectly controlled reason, and the pride given by the name Black Ghost Fort all crumbled instantly like a rotten old tree.
All that remained were humans terrified and desperate to live.
"Aaaaaaah!"
Someone screamed and turned to flee. At first, it was just a few sudden actions, but the ripple effect was huge.
Those who could only think of fighting now had the option of running away presented to them.
Those who couldn't resist the temptation turned their backs to the enemy. Even those still holding on found their blades dulled.
The hungry wolves, sensing the opponent's weakness, pressed harder on the flock before them, intent on devouring every piece of flesh.
Fear and despair settled on the blood-soaked ground.
"No, no…"
The elite of the Black Ghost Fort, facing their comrade being torn apart, froze like statues. They knew they had to fight, knew they had to resist, but their whole bodies seemed bound and wouldn't move.
"Uh… ugh…"
The Demonic Cult member, eyes glowing with bloodlust, howled like a beast and struck down toward his head.
'Death…'
At that moment.
Craaaash!
With a fierce crashing sound, the charging Demonic Cult member's head soared into the sky.
For a moment, it felt as if the world had stopped.
The Black Ghost Fort elite, about to resign to death, stared blankly at the Demonic Cult member's head spinning in the air, spraying blood. The face still showed lowly pleasure.
That Demonic Cult member probably didn't realize his death even at that moment, just as the one who saved his life now couldn't understand the situation.
Thud!
The head that flew through the air fell to the ground.
It was just one death among countless others on the battlefield.
Small and trivial.
But its aftermath was tremendous.
"…"
The barely surviving Black Ghost Fort elite's gaze lowered slightly. Just below his eye level, someone who hadn't been there moments ago stood with their back turned.
Black murim robes.
Hair tied tightly.
And in one hand, a long sword gleaming white.
"Mount Hua…"
Before his mind could comprehend, his mouth opened first. Before the groan-like voice ended, the feet of the one standing ahead moved again.
Slash!
He pushed off the ground and swung his sword like a spear.
"Ahht!"
Another Demonic Cult member instinctively swung his arm, intending to block the flying sword and tear the neck in one strike.
But just before the arm and sword collided, the sword spun and slipped past the arm, then swiftly struck the neck like a hawk's talon snatching prey.
Screeeech!
The Demonic Cult member's body, which had taken countless attacks without flinching, was cut down without resistance. The head soared into the air, and the body collapsed on the spot.
The battlefield froze.
Chung Myung, who had just severed two Demonic Cult members' heads in an instant, slowly opened his mouth.
"…I'll teach you, rookies."
Chung Myung slowly raised his sword again.
"When facing the Demonic Cult…"
Flash!
His sword began to emit brilliant sword energy. The red sword aura scattered like illusions, covering the Demonic Cult members.
"Ugh!"
"Th-this is…"
Faced with a storm of petals covering the front, the Demonic Cult members instinctively tried to retreat. No matter how much they risked their lives charging the enemy, they couldn't blindly rush into the sword qi that obscured their vision.
"Kaaaah!"
They retreated, swinging both arms to strike down the flying plum blossom sword qi. But the moment their hands, filled with tremendous demonic qi, touched the petals, all the sword qi vanished as if it had been an illusion.
'What?'
And then.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Taking advantage of that moment, the flying sword qi swiftly pierced the Demonic Cult members' necks.
"Gah!"
Even looking down, the necks were not visible. All the Demonic Cult members could see was blood gushing fiercely from their necks.
Thud! Thud!
The Demonic Cult members pierced through their necks, some bearing a clear plum blossom sword qi mark on their foreheads, collapsed like rotten straw.
Extreme Illusion Sword Technique. A sword technique where the boundary between reality and illusion is extremely narrow.
Because it deceives and mocks opponents, Mount Hua's swordsmanship has been disparaged as Evil Sect and inferior, but to the Demonic Cult members who overpower enemies with brute force, it was like a deadly poison.
"Aim for the neck."
Chung Myung twisted the corner of his mouth into a smile and said.
It was certainly different from the mad grin of the Demonic Cult members, but in some ways, it was a similarly chilling smile.
"Or smash the head."
Step.
Chung Myung took another step forward. Intense killing intent, anger, and an indescribable heat surged in his eyes.
And at that moment.
Kraaaaash!
With a terrifying crashing sound, something flew and struck the Demonic Cult member's head.
Bang!
Then, with a huge explosion, the Demonic Cult member's head burst open.
'What?'
The golden object that flew in quickly spun and returned to where it came from.
Clink!
Jang Ilso lightly reached out and caught a bracelet, wearing a sharp smile.
"Head and neck… If you had that info earlier, you should have told me. You really have a bad temper."
Chung Myung ignored Jang Ilso's words and advanced.
The eyes of the Black Ghost Fort elites, once completely darkened by despair, regained their light.
Head and neck.
Of course, these are not easy targets. Everyone thoroughly protects their head and neck. But there is a world of difference between having no way to defeat the opponent and having a difficult but existing method.
"This…"
However, the Demonic Cult members' stance was completely different regarding what had happened.
Having watched their comrades die before their eyes, a deeper hatred began to cloud their faces.
"You filthy bastard…"
Chung Myung smiled as he looked into their eyes.
"Yes. I like that look in your eyes."
"…"
"That look…"
Chung Myung's eyes reddened fiercely.
"It's most enjoyable when soaked in fear."
Bang!
Chung Myung charged forward with an eerily bright smile. His sword was filled with intense red sword qi.
The sword, once perfected by cutting their necks, now aimed again at their throats.
"Kill them!"
The Demonic Cult members screamed in frenzy and charged at Chung Myung. They instinctively understood who the most dangerous being here was.
"Heavenly Demon Second Coming! Ten thousand…"
"Shut up!"
Chung Myung sliced the incoming arm in one strike and shoved his sword into the mouth of the chanting Demonic Cult member.
With that strike, the Demonic Cult member's cervical spine was severed instantly. The sword spun inside the mouth and split the head in two.
Flash!
Before the sword was fully drawn, Chung Myung's foot moved first. Advancing nearly ten feet in one step, he penetrated the startled Demonic Cult members and stomped the ground hard.
Chung Myung converted all the qi gained from his advance and stance into his sword, rushing at tremendous speed and swinging it at the Demonic Cult member's waist.
Crack! Crack!
It felt more like severing than cutting.
The tough, rubbery body of the Demonic Cult member couldn't withstand the sword's force and snapped with cracking sounds.
Kraaaash!
Finally, the Demonic Cult member's upper body, severed at the waist, spun like a top. Chung Myung kicked away the collapsing lower body and spun on the spot, scattering plum blossom sword qi in all directions.
Darkness covered the sky. The land was deeply stained.
Those clad entirely in black murim robes.
In that dark world, a plum blossom tree stretched its branches wide, as if nourished by flowing blood, glowing with an intense red.
Rustle!
The scattered plum blossom petals whirled fiercely like a whirlwind, sweeping through the Demonic Cult members.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Though the petals seemed fragile, their power was not weak. They easily pierced through the bodies of Demonic Cult members who had blocked and nullified countless solid sword and spear qi coming at them.
"Aaaaargh!"
For the first time, screams echoed from the Demonic Cult members' mouths.
Their bodies never allowed death to come easily. Even with dozens of holes in their bodies, they couldn't die so easily. This meant they had to feel every bit of pain from all those wounds vividly and intensely.
The sword qi tore flesh, severed tendons, and ground bones. The vivid pain tore through the Demonic Cult members' minds until they turned pale.
Blood continuously spurted from the Demonic Cult members surrounding Chung Myung. That blood made the plum blossoms which Chung Myung created even deeper in color.
A pouring rain of blood.
Amid it, Chung Myung was the only one whose white teeth were not stained with blood.
The hot, bloody smell pierced his nose suffocatingly. That scent helped Chung Myung adapt to the place again. The unfamiliar sensation rapidly returned and settled at his fingertips gripping the sword.
Everything changed. But this sensation still remained at his fingertips.
"…You shouldn't have forgotten me."
Chung Myung raised his head and laughed like a demon.
"Isn't that right?"
Chung Myung smiled eerily and stomped the ground.
The hunted and the hunter.
The moment their roles were reversed.