Chapter 532

**Chapter 532: The Lazy One Makes a Mistake (2)**

*”Huuu.”*

A deep breath echoed.

Yeom Mong closed his eyes and slowly calmed his agitated heart. Tension was something familiar to him. Having watched the Demon Cult from the shadows for so long, tension was as natural an emotion as breathing.

But the tension that overwhelmed him now was unlike anything he had ever experienced before.

He could endure the fear of dying. Who in this world is not afraid of death? Everyone feels fear.

But Yeom Mong was someone whose strong determination allowed him to suppress that chronic fear.

However…

The tension that oppressed him now was on a completely different level.

*”Huuuuk!”*

Yeom Mong continued to breathe deeply.

*’Damn it, how can I be trembling like this?’*

He believed he had built a wall against fear. No one would dare mock Yeom Mong if he said he wasn’t afraid. He was someone who suffered every night, fearing that while he slept, someone might cut his throat. Even so, he never abandoned his mission.

In the world, there are countless brave people, but no one could deny Yeom Mong’s courage.

And yet, that same Yeom Mong was now trembling.

*”That my life ends is no big deal.”*

But if he failed in this mission, how many people would die?

A thousand? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand?

It was an impossible number to imagine.

The fate of the martial world hung on his shoulders, an unimaginable burden. Faced with such pressure, his heart and spirit shrank.

*Glu, glu.*

The sweat falling down his face reached his chin and then the ground. Yeom Mong wiped his face with his hand, adopted a low stance, and took several deep breaths.

“Ready?”

“Perfectly!”

“And them?”

“They’re getting closer.”

“…There’s no room for error. If we fail, we won’t be the only ones who die. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

His subordinates also had tense faces.

Their trembling jaws proved it. Yeom Mong sighed. Knowing he wasn’t the only one nervous relieved him, but it also worried him.

“They’re getting closer.”

“Mmm…”

Seeing the cloud of dust rising in the distance, Yeom Mong grunted.

*’This isn’t good for the heart.’*

Everyone knew that the members of the Demon Cult were fearsome. But seeing their advance with his own eyes multiplied that terror.

Nothing would survive under that cloud of dust. Men, beasts, cities, nature… that demonic cloud would reduce everything to ashes.

Seeing that, he became convinced that he couldn’t allow those bastards to reach the Central Plains.

“Prepare yourselves.”

“Yes!”

Yeom Mong exhaled deeply.

They had exhausted almost all their internal energy to get here before them. The same must be happening to his subordinates. That meant that, if they managed to stop them, they wouldn’t have the strength to escape.

They would probably die here.

Yeom Mong wasn’t afraid of death. What he feared was failing in his mission.

*’No, to be honest… I am afraid.’*

Who isn’t afraid of death?

He was afraid. A desperate fear. But even more than that, he feared not fulfilling his duty.

Everyone must feel the same.

“If we succeed, escape on your own.”

“…yes.”

The response wasn’t enthusiastic.

It was understandable.

Escaping also required skill. They had no way to evade the Cult’s pursuit. Exhausted as they were, even if they scattered, they would soon be captured. And then, in this desolate land of Qinghai, they wouldn’t even have graves; their bodies would fade with the wind.

*’For the death of a martial artist, that’s enough.’*

Yeom Mong watched the approaching cloud of dust.

“Do we cut it in half?”

“No.”

The goal wasn’t to cause damage, but to stop their advance.

“As soon as they show their heads, detonate it.”

“Yes!”

Yeom Mong opened and closed his fists repeatedly.

*’Damn them.’*

If Wei Yanho and his people were here, he wouldn’t be so tense. With Wei Yanho’s power, escaping after completing the mission wouldn’t have been difficult.

Sacrifice cannot be forced.

But it was inevitable to feel regret. No matter how much he tried not to resent it, the regret persisted. Perhaps he wasn’t as strong as he believed.

“They’re coming, they’re coming…”

Yeom Mong gritted his teeth as he watched the cloud approach.

From the top of the cliff, the power of the Demon Cult was truly impressive.

“Just a little more…”

He held his breath.

Just a little more, draw them in a little more…

Sweat poured down his face, tension at its limit. His clothes, stuck to the rock, were soaked.

And then, in that instant…

*Huh?*

The cloud of dust, which was advancing rapidly, suddenly stopped.

“…What?”

Yeom Mong frowned, confused.

Why? Why were they stopping? What was happening?

*’Did they discover us?’*

They had hidden their presence as much as possible with energy suppression techniques. At this distance and height, it was impossible for them to be detected. But with the strange demons of the Cult, it wasn’t unreasonable to think they had.

*’But they are the Demon Cult.’*

He had considered the possibility of being discovered, but he never thought they would stop. The Cult, arrogant as it was, wouldn’t stop just because a few were hiding on a cliff. For them, that would be a humiliation.

The normal thing would be to send some to eliminate the intruders while the rest advanced.

That was Yeom Mong’s conclusion after twenty years of observing the Cult.

But, against all odds, the enormous contingent had stopped.

Yeom Mong’s face contorted.

*’What should I do?’*

What was the best decision now?

*’Detonate now?’*

It wouldn’t cause damage, but it would block the road. Perhaps it was better to do it now and escape, increasing their chances of surviving.

But Yeom Mong decided to wait.

He preferred to hold them here, even if only a little longer, rather than increase his own chances of escaping. If he waited for them to climb the cliff and then made it fall, he would gain more time. He gritted his teeth.

His life… or time.

“What… what are those bastards doing?”

Yeom Mong, who had already resigned himself to dying, stared perplexed at the Demon Cult.

They were retreating at twice the speed they had advanced. No, it wasn’t retreating. They had changed direction and were now moving backward.

With unusual ferocity.

Faster and more violent than when they were advancing towards the Central Plains.

“No…”

Speechless, Yeom Mong stood up and watched as the cloud of dust moved away.

In an instant, it disappeared beyond the horizon.

Yeom Mong, stunned, opened his mouth.

“What the hell is going on…?”

It was something he couldn’t understand.

“W-what do we do?”

Faced with his subordinate’s question, Yeom Mong didn’t know what to answer. Not even he understood the situation. After a long silence, he spoke:

“Send a message to headquarters. The Demon Cult has changed course. For now, we have gained time.”

“Could they have withdrawn completely?”

“Impossible.”

Yeom Mong shook his head.

They had waited twenty years for this. He didn’t know why they were retreating, but it wouldn’t be because they had changed their minds. They would solve the problem and return with more force.

“Do we wait?”

“…We retreat.”

“But the explosives are still…”

“They were about to arrive. That means they know we’re here. Next time, they’ll send scouts to clear the cliff before advancing. It would be a useless death.”

“Ah!”

“We have accomplished our goal. For now, we retreat.”

“Are we going to the Central Plains?”

“The Central Plains…”

Yeom Mong licked his lips.

He didn’t know why they had retreated, but he had an idea of who had forced them to do so.

*’Wei Yanho.’*

Wei Yanho had said that he would pacify the empty land of Xinjiang. Yeom Mong didn’t understand what that meant, and he hadn’t asked. If he spoke in riddles, it was because he didn’t want to reveal the truth. So he had no choice but to let it go.

But…

“We will follow them.”

“Captain!”

“Prepare yourselves. From now on, we will pursue them.”

“We won’t gain anything by following them.”

“Yes, probably not. But…”

Yeom Mong looked at the sky for a moment, then smiled and said:

“Who knows? Maybe we’ll find a Lazy one injured.”

“…Huh?”

The subordinate, not understanding, could only blink confused.

—

**[…]**

“…What are you doing?”

The old man was looking at Wei Yanho with an expression between disbelief and fury.

Wei Jeonghan and Jang Il perfectly understood his feelings. If they could, they would apologize on behalf of Wei Yanho.

But Wei Yanho remained unperturbed.

“It’s a little difficult to explain.”

“Difficult?”

“Yes. A moment ago, this would have been considered theft, you know?”

Theft?

The old man’s lips trembled.

“But now that you have arrived, this has become an assault. It has leveled up.”

“And his lack of ethics too.”

“And his audacity.”

Faced with Jang Il and Wei Jeonghan’s comments, the old man was on the verge of collapse.

“This… this…!”

His ears were ringing. His blood pressure was rising so much that he almost fainted.

Where were they?

In the Demon Cult!

That the most important core of the Cult had been invaded was enough to enrage him! But that the invaders were these lunatics was too much!

“Damn madmen!”

“I hear that often.”

Wei Yanho sighed.

“But it’s curious, you know? When you invade a place and mess everything up, these things end up broken anyway. If we take them to use them for something good, why is it crazy? Don’t you think?”

Jang Il, intrigued, asked:

“Something good?”

“Yes, like feeding beggars or children.”

“…Ah, you’re right. Don’t forget it. Make sure you feed me.”

“Are you the only beggar in the world?”

“I am the representative of the beggars. Feeding me is feeding them all.”

“Do you want me to hit you as a representative?”

The old man, hearing their conversation, finally burst out.

“Damn bastards!”

At the same time, a terrifying energy emanated from his body. A dark aura enveloped him, and his white hair bristled. It was a chilling sight.

“I will kill you all!”

Wei Yanho’s reaction was simple:

“Wow, the grandpa has character.”

As he said this, he continued to manipulate a decorative vase.