At last, you shall see it. (5)
Screeeech!
Birds shot up like arrows, piercing through the ominous sky filled with thick dark clouds.
Then, as if they had made some secret pact, they begin to spread out in all directions.
Above the damp fields.
Above the bodies growing cold, or those running and running with nothing but the will to survive.
Above the heads of those left stunned upon realizing that what they had been chasing was merely an illusion and a fake.
Above those roaming madly, searching for the master who must be somewhere in this place.
And among them, a particularly vivid golden trail was drawn in one swift stroke towards the south.
Fweeeeeeeet!
At the thin, high-pitched sound, Baek Cheon sharply turned his head around.
‘What’s that?’
In his sight appeared a golden flash cutting through the dark, cloud-covered sky.
‘A bird?’
It’s a golden bird [금조(金鳥)]. Without a doubt, it’s the Golden Sparrow, the divine beast of the Beggars Sect.
“Right now, it’s in Chung Myung’s hands…?”
Watching that trajectory for a moment, Baek Cheon unconsciously clenches his barely responsive fist.
He was no longer with Hwasan. There was no way to know exactly what they were doing right now.
But the moment he saw that divine bird, he was certain of one thing.
‘Yes.’
They are doing their best. He is, and the others as well.
With that thought, it felt as though new strength seeped back into his exhausted legs. Roughly pushing away the wet strands of hair clinging to his cheeks, Baek Cheon bit down hard on his lip.
‘I believe.’
Splash.
He kicked off the rain-soaked ground. His heart felt like it was about to burst, his entire body drained to the point of shivering in chills – but even if death awaited him, he couldn’t stop now.
It was laughable to even speak of limits. This body had already been broken a long time ago. Now, he was merely clinging to this shattered vessel so that it wouldn’t scatter into pieces as he pressed onward.
Hooooh, he gasped for breath roughly. After passing through the bleak, desolate land, a strange sight unfolded before them.
“Wh-What is that? Why are they all gathered like that?”
Baek Sang, who was beside him, shouted in confusion.
It was hard to describe with mere words like ‘they’re gathered.’ Yes, it was one single ‘flow.’
They were a group of defeated troops of Sapaeryeon who were fleeing the battlefield yet couldn’t scatter in all directions due to the fear that someone might pursue them at any given moment.
At the same time, Baek Cheon charged straight at them. Baek Sang, alarmed to the point of turning pale, shouted in dismay.
“Sahyeong, we should go around…!”
“There’s no time!”
But before Baek Sang could finish speaking, Baek Cheon cut him off decisively.
“We’ll break through as we are!”
“Are you insane? Do they look like easy prey just because they’re running away?”
Baek Sang’s protest was reasonable. They were defeated troops, but they weren’t those who had lost the will to fight and were simply fleeing. Even under these circumstances, trying to break through that group was extremely dangerous. No one knew that better than Baek Cheon.
Nevertheless, Baek Cheon acted as if he didn’t hear Baek Sang’s shout and instead increased his speed even more.
“Huh?”
Those who had been running aimlessly, barely aware of their surroundings, suddenly stiffened. It was because they saw two swordsmen openly charging at them, dressed in pure white uniforms.
What madness was this?
But just as they were about to sneer reflexively, they caught sight of the red plum blossom crest on the white robes. Their expressions changed in an instant.
“Hwasan?”
“Th-Those bastards came all the way here!”
A spark returned to the eyes that had lost their vitality – the spark of fear and hatred.
They had given up on the war and were fleeing. Yet the ones who appeared were swordsmen of Hwasan, not some other faction of Cheonumaeng. To them, there was only one way to interpret this.
“They’re chasing us! Those Hwasan’s bastards came all the way here!”
It was only natural for those who had been left startled countless times by the name ‘Hwasan’ to react that way.
“Uwaaaah!”
The members of Sapaeryeon all drew their blades. Then they swung them frantically at Baek Cheon, who was rushing in.
“Aaargh! Damn it!”
Before Baek Cheon could even respond, Baek Sang shouted and threw himself in front of him.
Clang!
He parried the incoming blades with his sword, releasing his pent-up rage.
“I’m a non-combatant, damn it!”
Paaat!
Contrary to what he was shouting, his sword moved with incredible speed. After defending, he immediately counterattacked two of Sapaeryeon’s warriors. Having their chests and thighs deeply slashed, they screamed and collapsed.
Baek Cheon spoke up.
“Don’t mind them and keep running!”
“Damn it!”
Baek Sang gritted his teeth and sped up, just as Baek Cheon said.
This situation felt utterly unfamiliar to him. Those belonging to Hwasan never hesitated to take the lead, but in truth, Baek Sang was different. He had realized his limits sooner and had never thrown himself into danger rashly.
“Why drag me into this? There are plenty of more skilled fighters!”
“Shut up and run!”
“Aaack!”
With that final shout – more of a half-hearted rebellion – Baek Sang slammed his foot into the ground.
“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”
His heart pounded as if it would burst at any moment. Each breath felt like a ball of fire roiling in into his chest.
Countless eyes fell upon him. Some were filled with fear, some with excitement, and others with tenacious hostility and murderous intent.
His hands trembled. Perhaps the fear he felt was even greater than the fear in their eyes. Yet it was a feeling he, as a swordsman of The Great Hwasan Sect, should never have dared to harbor.
However, Baek Sang frankly acknowledged the fear swirling inside him.
‘I was scared. I felt like I was about to wet myself!’
Honestly, he wanted to just shut his eyes and run away. If he had been alone, he wouldn’t have hesitated for even a moment. But right now, at this very moment, he couldn’t do that.
Paaaat!
“Huh!”
A sharp blade suddenly appeared in front of him. He jerked his head aside in fright, but it was slightly too late. The blade grazed his cheek, leaving a burning pain behind.
He swung his sword and cut off the wrist of the one who had attacked him.
Thud.
That didn’t make his wound vanish. Blood gushed from the long gash on his face and splattered everywhere.
“Baek Sang!”
“Don’t fuss!”
Baek Cheon shouted urgently, but Baek Sang retorted coldly. He did not let out so much as a single groan despite the throbbing pain.
‘Yes, I am a coward. I have no talent. If I could have run away, I would have done so anytime. But not now.’
Behind him was Baek Cheon – the one who had been standing in front of Baek Sang ever since he first set foot in Hwasan.
Sometimes Baek Sang admired him. Sometimes he envied him. Whether in admiration or envy, Baek Cheon’s back had always been right there before him.
“Get out of the way! I’ll lead!”
The moment Baek Cheon tried to grab his shoulder, Baek Sang shook him off firmly.
“Baek Sang?”
“Damn it!”
Baek Sang clenched his teeth and swung his sword fiercely towards the front. Startled by the sword’s energy, Sapaeryeon’s warriors stumbled back, practically tumbling away.
“With that body of yours, you’re trying to take the lead? Are you planning to die for sure this time?”
“…”
“Shut up and keep up! I’ll clear the way!”
Only then did Baek Sang truly felt it sink in.
It meant that Baek Cheon had always been facing scenes like this ahead of him – countless times, until he was injured, worn down, and finally broken.
And yet someone who understood that so clearly was talking about fear?
‘Don’t spout nonsense.’
Words like courage were laughable. Baek Sang had long confirmed that nothing like that existed within him.
This was not courage. It was the bare minimum of pride.
‘If I back down here, I’m not even a man.’
“Damn it!”
He cursed incessantly under his breath as he swung his sword.
“You, you bastard!”
Suddenly, blades surged in from three directions at once.
Just as Baek Sang sensed it would be impossible to block them all and was about to sacrifice his left shoulder, Baek Cheon’s sword shot out from behind.
Clang! Clang!
Even though it carried almost no inner strength, his sword traced a strange circle, twisting the trajectory of the blades.
“Huh!”
The memeber of Sapaeryeon who had slashed at him flinched in shock. Seizing the opportunity, Baek Sang swiftly thrust his sword into the man’s neck.
“Urk!”
With a smothered death cry, the member of Sapaeryeon toppled backward.
“I’ve got your back!”
“…You’re so damn impressive, seriously!”
Even as he grumbled, Baek Sang’s lips twitched. He forced down the corners of his mouth that threatened to rise of their own accord. Then, as if refusing to be outdone, he picked up speed.
Clang!
He struck aside the incoming blades and cut down the enemy. Leaving the attacks from the left and right to Baek Cheon, he relentlessly forced his way forward.
Blood continued to spill from the wound carved across his face until it was entirely soaked, but Baek Sang seemed to have forgotten even that.
Before long, however, Baek Sang realized something: the gazes of the enemies looking at the two of them were gradually filling with a single emotion.
“Th-These devil-like Hwasan bastards!”
It was a fitting reaction towards those who had chased down fleeing remnants of the troops and now swung their swords like true fiends.
Sapaeryeon’s members faltered. In fact, they backed away in an attempt to get as far from the two as possible. At the same time, the pressure that had seemed poised to crush Baek Sang disappeared all at once.
“Out of the way, unless you want to die!”
Baek Sang roared like a beast, sounding just like some foul-mouthed ruffian from Sichuan.
“Don’t let your guard down!”
“I know!”
Baek Sang realized why Jo Geol was shouting like that. It was his way of releasing the mix of fear and exhilaration that threatened to explode inside him.
“Sahyeong!”
“What?”
Baek Sang, who was charging through Sapaeryeon that couldn’t easily rush forward, asked.
“So, do you know where the hostages are?”
“I don’t.”
“What do we do if you don’t know, you lunatic!”
Baek Sang screamed as be turned his head around. Baek Cheon, startled, shouted back.
“Look forward, you madman!”
“At least answer me… Get out of the way, you Sapa scum!”
Bang!
Failing to dodge in time, Baek Sang slammed aside the blade of a wavering Sapaeryeon’s warrior, then turned to Baek Cheon.
“If the hostages aren’t anywhere nearby, and we don’t even know where they are, isn’t this all for nothing?”
“That’s right.”
“No! Come on, Sahyeong!”
“I told you. I don’t know. But I found someone who might.”
“Then who is it?”
Baek Cheon clamped his mouth shut as if he couldn’t answer just yet.
It wasn’t the sort of matter he could mention lightly. Too many people were involved.
When Baek Sang received no reply, he grew anxious.
“Are you sure they’re really close by? If this is all just a guess…”
“No. There’s no way I’m wrong about this.”
“Why not?”
Baek Cheon’s eyes showed firm resolve.
“If Diancang betrayed him, Jang Ilso wouldn’t have cared much about charging them with those crimes. What mattered was preventing the pawns he already had in his grasp from escaping. So…”
Baek Cheon spoke with conviction.
“If it were that bastard Jang Ilso, he would have dragged the hostages in front of them and held a blade to their throats. He would have killed them one by one, driving them back into his clutches.”
This meant that the moment Jang Ilso uncovered Diancang’s betrayal, he needed to be able to bring the hostages all the way here.
“They have to be close by.”
Sometimes, there are things that feel more certain than what you can see with your own eyes.
‘I wasn’t wrong. Not a chance.’
Now that he was sure, there was only one thing left to consider: how to rescue the hostages. And for that, there was one more thing needed – something absolute.
“Over there!”
Suddenly, Baek Cheon raised his voice. Hearing him, Baek Sang instinctively lifted his head.
“That…”
A group of people came into Baek Sang’s view. Each one was dressed in ragged martial robes, their faces hidden behind black masks.
“Those people…?”
“Yes, Diancang,”
Baek Cheon said quietly, biting down on his lip. His mind was raicing.
There had been no sign of ‘him’ at the place where they had confronted Diancang’s sect leader.
But he must be there. He was probably assigned to watch them from nearby. So then…
“S-Sahyeong! Th-That… what is that?”
“Huh?”
Baek Sang’s urgent voice broke Baek Cheon’s train of thought. Baek Cheon opened his eyes wide, then gasped in shock.
“That…”
His pupils shook violently.
“This… this is…”
It was the worst-case scenario he could have imagined.
Beyond the masked figures, he saw another crowd. It was a large group of people in different martial arts uniforms – white, blue, and various others.
“Damn it!”
That’s right. Cheonumaeng’s forces were attacking Diancang.
________
So. Question one. Where did Baek Cheon get Hwasan’s uniform?.. He left Wudang in a plain attire and after being rescued he was with Diancang. The last time we saw him he was beat up and dirty (as far as I remember)?
Question two. Who is Baek Cheon talking about???
________
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Return of the Mount Hua 
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