It’s not just a fox. (4)

The sensation of the sword’s tip piercing through something solid filled Baek Cheon’s entire body with a thrilling shiver.

Crack.

The refined cold steel sword finally penetrated the flesh that was as tough as rubber and as resilient as sap. Baek Cheon, staring blankly at his sword that had sliced through the giant’s body, suddenly lifted his gaze.

He wanted to see the expression on the Black Dragon King’s face at his final moment.

However, what he saw was not the eyes of a beast resigned to death.

Instead, they were the blazing eyes of a wild beast, wounded but ready to lash out.

Boom!

Baek Cheon’s body was flung backward.

“Kh… Hah!”

Crack!

The Black Dragon King, Jeok Segwang, grasped the sword lodged in his stomach with the hand that held his guandao.

He tried to break it, but the sword was firmly embedded and, being of solid cold steel, did not snap easily. Instead, it further tore at his insides.

Ultimately, the enraged Black Dragon King yanked the sword out of his flesh in one swift motion.

Slash!

Bright red blood gushed from the gaping wound. Throwing the sword aside, the Black Dragon King glared at those who surrounded him with a mixture of hatred and venom.

“How dare you… How dare you little brats…”

A man who lives by the sword must always be prepared for the day when a blade will pierce his own throat. The Black Dragon King, Jeok Segwang, was no fool to believe he would live forever. However, he had never imagined that he would be pushed to the brink of life and death by mere youngsters.

Who could have predicted such a fate?

“Ugh…”

Crunch.

The Black Dragon King clutched the wound in his chest and pressed it hard, a rough and brutal method of stopping the bleeding. There was no time to calmly apply pressure to the wound or close it properly.

The whites of his eyes turned red in a fury.

“Do you think… do you think that I, Jeok Segwang, will die here in this place?”

With a roar, he swung his guandao in one powerful motion. A torrent of dark energy shot straight towards the fallen Baek Cheon.

Just before the dark energy could strike Baek Cheon, Yu Iseol, as swift as a swallow, grabbed his shoulder and rolled him out of harm’s way.

Boom!

“You bastard!”

“Stay calm, Geol!”

Jo Geol gritted his teeth and was about to charge at the Black Dragon King when Baek Cheon, lying on the ground, lifted his head and shouted urgently.

“The one who is injured… Cough! Cough! It’s him! Don’t let him escape! Don’t give him a chance by rushing in recklessly!”

Upon Baek Cheon’s command, the swordsmen of Hwasan and Hye Yeon reacted first.

They suppressed their excitement and tightened the encirclement around the Black Dragon King. Determined to prevent him from escaping this place, just as Baek Cheon had said.

“Hyaaa!”

The Black Dragon King’s guandao emitted a massive wave of black energy once more.

“Amitabha!”

Hye Yeon unleashed a tremendous force that collided with the incoming black energy, diverting its direction. Despite the fact that it was the Black Dragon King’s full-force attack.

Boom!

The energy he released crashed into the ground and shattered into pieces. At that moment, the Black Dragon King’s eyes quivered.

It wasn’t because his attack was blocked. Nor was it because the power he had unleashed was pathetically weak.

It was because those who had blocked his attack continued to surround him calmly and exert pressure on him.

He had tried to feign excitement to create an opening, as he usually did, but they did not fall for it at all. These guys were now starting to respond like seasoned hunters.

“Y-you…”

The Black Dragon King, biting his lips, shouted.

“You Just Sect’s scum! Aren’t you ashamed of yourselves?”

It was an obvious provocation. A petty tactic meant to incite a reaction that wasn’t worth acknowledging.

Jo Geol, upon hearing the words, chuckled.

“Haha. Come to think of it, this is quite an amusing situation.”

“W-what did you say? You punk!”

Although his lips were smiling, his eyes remained calm.

“In the past, I might have gotten agitated by those words. But thanks to Surochae, I’ve learned just how childish such thoughts can be.”

Without turning his head, Jo Geol sought agreement.

“Isn’t that right, Sahyeong?”

“…I still flinch whenever I see a net. Since then, I haven’t even gone near the water.”

Jo Geol chuckled at Yoon Jong’s blunt words. While his mouth held a smile, his eyes never left the Black Dragon King.

It wasn’t just a joke.

In the Yangtze River, they had come to a painful realization. How meaningless it was to discuss cowardice on the battlefield. How dangerous it was to overestimate one’s own martial skills.

And above all, how terrifying it was to be surrounded.

Without such experiences, they could never have grown as much as they had. Therefore…

“This is a method we learned from you, Black Dragon King.”

“…”

“So give up. You will never escape.”

Jo Geol bared his teeth with hostility and mockery, while Yoon Jong calmly watched the Black Dragon King, Yu Iseol looked at him like an indifferent predator, and Hye Yeon wore a complicated expression.

Lastly, Baek Cheon, who had collapsed previously, was now standing up and approaching with a determined face.

The Black Dragon King, Jeok Segwang, took in all of these faces within his sight, and his expression gradually began to change.

Even Lee Songbaek and Jin Geumryong were struggling to their feet to join in.

The blazing anger on Jeok Segwang’s face slowly but unmistakably began to transform into another emotion.

Instinctively, he began to realize.

No matter how many subordinates he had here, no matter how formidable the power of Surochae’s forces that could kill all these enemies in front of him, it couldn’t save the life of the Black Dragon King.

The minions surrounding him were of no help in this situation.

The suspicion that had been creeping up grew more intense.

‘Why…? Why haven’t they come yet! Why!’

By now, they should have arrived. The chiefs of the Eighteen Strongholds of the Yangtze River, leading their subordinates. The real leaders of Surochae, not these riffraff here.

But why hadn’t they shown up despite the dire situation? They must have heard of his assault.

“Ugh…”

The hand gripping the guandao of the Black Dragon King trembled.

His breathing became labored. The terrible pain from the wounds covering his entire body surged up. The most lethal of all was the wound inflicted by that pale guy’s sword piercing his solar plexus.

Like water leaking from a cracked jar, his internal energy couldn’t gather properly. The sword had pierced his solar plexus and likely scratched his dantian as well.

Could he escape from here?

The Black Dragon King gripped his beloved weapon tightly. He tried to appear bold, but his eyes trembled slightly.

At that moment, Yoon Jong stepped a bit forward, pressing the Black Dragon King.

Unconsciously flinching and trying to retreat, the Black Dragon King bit his lip hard.

“My method… you say.”

In his eyes, a fierce aura overflowed.

“Do you even know what my method is, you worthless worms!”

Boom!

The Black Dragon King charged straight at Baek Cheon.

“I am the Black Dragon King! Even if I die, I won’t die alone! You damn Hwasan scum!”

Without his sword, Baek Cheon couldn’t fight at his full potential. If the Black Dragon King had to choose a victim, Baek Cheon was the obvious choice.

But the problem was that the others had already guessed the Black Dragon King’s choice.

“Predictable!”

Jo Geol stepped in front of Baek Cheon as if he had been waiting for this. His sword shot towards the Black Dragon King like a ray of light.

“Khaaah!”

However, the Black Dragon King, seeing the sword aimed at him, didn’t retreat. Instead, he charged faster like a mad bull, intent on colliding with Jo Geol as if he were prepared to die.

Jo Geol was momentarily taken aback.

‘What?’

Thud!

Jo Geol’s sword pierced through the Black Dragon King’s chest.

Boom!

At the same time, the Black Dragon King, despite his wound, swung his guandao’s shaft, striking Jo Geol. The unexpected attack caused Jo Geol to spew blood and be thrown back.

“Ugh!”

The Black Dragon King coughed violently, spitting out more than a mouthful of blood, but his momentum didn’t diminish. With eyes full of murderous intent, he charged at Baek Cheon again.

“Stop!”

Yu Iseol and Yoon Jong moved swiftly, slashing diagonally across the Black Dragon King’s body. Two streams of blood flew through the air. The strikes were fierce, slicing through bone and flesh.

Yet, the Black Dragon King did not stop.

“Vice Sect Leader!”

As Lee Songbaek and Jin Geumryong blocked Baek Cheon and Namgung Dowi, the Black Dragon King swung his guandao with all his might.

Whilling!

“Uwaaah!”

His arm swelled as if it would burst, gathering power that was then unleashed from the tip of the guandao.

Boom!

Lee Songbaek and Jin Geumryong, their feet planted firmly like the roots of a great tree, gritted their teeth. They swung their swords with all their strength to meet the incoming black energy.

Thud!

The force was too overwhelming for their hastily gathered internal energy to withstand.

Unable to fully counter the attack, they were pushed back helplessly, sliding farther back.

“Aaah!”

As they struggled to hold on, they were finally overwhelmed, like a string pulled to its limit and then snapping.

Crash!

Baek Cheon and Namgung Dowi were also thrown aside as they got tangled with the two men.

In the chaos, the bandages binding Baek Cheon to Namgung Dowi snapped. Namgung Dowi’s limp body tumbled like a leaf caught in a hurricane.

The Black Dragon King, now fully displaying his madness and savage fury, launched a frenzied assault.

“Dieeeeeee!”

“Vice Sect Leadeeeeeeer!”

In a desperate move, Hye Yeon mustered all his strength and delivered a powerful blow.

At that moment, he saw it.

The Black Dragon King, Jeok Segwang, who had been rampaging as if he had given up on life, turned his gaze to face Hye Yeon’s attack directly.

There was nothing. No madness in those eyes. No sign of agitation either.

All that could be seen was a gaze as cold as ice.

“I’ve been… deceived…!”

Boom!

Before Hye Yeon could even finish his scream, the Black Dragon King, struck by the attack, spewed blood and was sent flying. He soared over Baek Cheon and his fallen group.

“Noooo!”

A scream-like shout erupted from Yoon Jong’s mouth.

He didn’t block it. He didn’t even think to evade.

From the beginning, he had no intention of avoiding it.

Even with his life hanging by a thread, the Black Dragon King was searching for a way to survive.

Thud!

Sure enough, after being flung over ten jang, the Black Dragon King barely hit the ground before he used his remaining hand to push off the earth.

Though blood poured from his wounds, he crawled and rolled forward, inching his way.

‘I will survive!’

It didn’t matter if his limbs were severed. It didn’t matter if he lost his martial arts and became a cripple.

The one lesson he had learned from this ruthless world was that as long as he survived, opportunities would always come.

Nothing is ever given to the dead. No matter how magnificent the death or how great the glory, it means nothing.

Any opportunity can ultimately only be seized by those who are still alive.

‘Survive..’

His legs wobbled as they touched the ground. Exhausted and grievously injured, his body was barely more than a corpse, but he summoned the last of his strength to stand.

Once he managed to lift his massive frame upright, the world opened up before him. He could see his subordinates rushing towards him with all their might.

A breath of relief. The scent of life replaced the stench of blood.

Now, if he just ran forward, he could survive.

He could endure any strike that might land on his back.

“Ugh… Uaaaah!”

As he expelled all his pent-up emotions and prepared to spring forward with all his strength.

Jerk!

His body suddenly convulsed as if struck by lightning and then froze in place.

“Wha..”

No one could understand.

Baek Cheon and Hwasan couldn’t see it. All they could see was the Black Dragon King’s back.

But the subordinates rushing towards him could see it clearly.

The joy of survival vanished from the Black Dragon King’s face in an instant, replaced by shock, despair, and hopelessness.

“You, you…”

The Black Dragon King stared blankly at the ground before him.

No, in truth, he wasn’t looking at the ground, nor the subordinates filling it, but something beyond.

He could sense it instinctively.

What lay beyond was not life.

It was the death he had struggled so desperately to avoid.

“Ugh… Uh…”

Only then did he understand why the chiefs had not arrived, why he had been pushed to this desperate state.

He realized who was standing at the end of that seemingly bright road.

But knowing changed nothing.

“Aaaaaaagh!”

The Black Dragon King spun around like a bolt of lightning. His terror-stricken eyes darted around frantically before landing on the fallen.

Boom!

He struck the ground with his feet. The only way to survive was over there.

“Come… here…!”

He flung his last remaining hand forward, even discarding his guandao. It reached for Baek Cheon, who lay half-conscious, towards his neck, where everything was at stake.

“Come here! Now!”

The dignity and majesty he had once guarded as the Black Dragon King, all of it was abandoned. He was now just a pitiful man desperate to live.

And because of that, his appearance was both desperate and vivid.

“Aaaaah!”

Overwhelmed by intense despair, he hurled himself forward with a scream.

The fingers of his outstretched hand finally reached Baek Cheon’s neck.

‘Got…’

Thud!

In that instant, a thunderous noise echoed through his mind.

“…”

His hand stopped, hovering just a chi from Baek Cheon’s throat.

The Black Dragon King stared blankly at Baek Cheon, at his own hand, at the empty air.

Or perhaps, he wasn’t seeing anything at all.

His gaze slowly dropped. There, he saw a cold, bloodstained sword.

It was a familiar sword he could never forget.

Drip.

Blood trickled down the blade, staining the crimson hand that held it even redder.

The Black Dragon King’s eyes followed the blade to the face of the person holding it. More precisely, to the chilling gaze that emanated from that battered face.

“You…”

That battered face contorted strangely.

The Black Dragon King understood. That twisted expression was undoubtedly a ‘smile’

“You… said… I would die… by your… hand.”

The twisted mouth opened, revealing bloodstained teeth.

It was a chilling yet, in some ways, refreshing and bright smile.

“Namgung…”

“The Blood Debt… is settled. Jeok… Segwang…”

The Black Dragon King silently looked at Namgung Dowi and then slowly lifted his head. He saw the vast expanse of the blue sky.

No matter how he made the Yangtze River his domain, he could never escape the endless azure sky.

“You…”

The Black Dragon King’s massive body fell like a rotten tree.

“..bastard…”

Thud!

It was a petty final word, unbefitting a giant who once dominated the world.