Chapter 615

Chapter 615. The Lazy One Faces (5)

“Hmmmmmm…”

“…Well?”

“Stop moving and stay still for a moment.”

“Grrr.”

Jangil let out a frustrated grunt. Why did this guy always find a way to irritate him, even with the simplest phrases?

But it wasn’t the time for arguments. Wei Yanho cautiously peeked his head through the branches, squinting as he assessed the situation.

“It seems they aren’t moving.”

“You say they aren’t moving?”

“Yes.”

“Hmmmmmm.”

Jangil let out a long sigh.

“Do they seem to be alive?”

“It seems so, doesn’t it?”

“Mmmmm.”

Wei Yanho stretched out his foot and repeatedly pressed Jangil’s face with his boot. The man hanging from the tree shouted in alarm.

“Hey! I’m going to fall! I’m going to fall!”

“Why are you reacting like that if they say there are living people?”

“Because this isn’t exactly good news!”

Jangil jumped down from the tree. Wei Yanho also jumped down, landing beside him. The other observers approached.

“How is it?”

At Wei Jeonghan’s question, Wei Yanho shrugged.

“There’s not much to say. They’re all grouped together in one place. They’re not showing any movement.”

“I see.”

Wei Jeonghan’s face also tensed slightly.

“And you came down?”

“There aren’t exactly any corpses visible. There are dead, but they don’t seem to have collapsed from exhaustion. Rather, they seem like people who were already dead before.”

Wei Jeonghan exhaled.

They had confirmed two things: that a demonic plague existed, and that Baekgeom Fortress could control it. But there was something they hadn’t verified.

These infected individuals attacked everyone around them. However, they hadn’t yet seen them fighting among themselves. They had wondered if, once all the “enemies” around them disappeared, they would start killing each other. But apparently, that hadn’t happened.

*’Clearly it should be a cause for joy…’*

It was obvious that they should be happy that there were no more victims. However, they couldn’t feel pure happiness. Because those infected individuals were still alive, Wei Yanho would now have to risk himself again.

“Will you be alright?”

“Bah, don’t worry about nonsense.”

“But…”

“Even if all those guys came for me at once, they couldn’t beat me. I’ve become quite strong lately.”

Wei Yanho puffed out his chest with pride.

Wei Jeonghan smiled bitterly at the sight.

Wei Yanho was different from him.

In the past, during the war, Wei Jeonghan had felt crushed by the weight of death. Seeing everyone around him perish, knowing that he himself could die at any moment, had robbed him of all ability to smile.

Surviving each day was his only goal. He had to hide behind the great name of the Alliance.

But Wei Yanho was different.

Even in a situation like this, Wei Yanho didn’t lose his essence.

*’It’s really hard to imagine this boy any other way.’*

It wasn’t just because he was his son. He was simply someone extraordinary.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Actually, I’ll go alone.”

“Huh?”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m not in danger there, but the others are.”

“We’re not as weak as you think.”

“It’s not about weakness, it’s about reality.”

“Realistically speaking, we’re not that weak either.”

“Grr.”

Wei Jeonghan didn’t seem willing to yield. Faced with this, Wei Yanho couldn’t insist any further.

“Then you’ll have to be careful.”

“I never thought the day would come when you’d tell me that…”

Wei Yanho chuckled.

“Sons grow up fast, you know? Don’t worry. Feel moved as much as you want.”

“I’m not moved that you’ve become strong, but that you’re worrying about me.”

“…Let’s go.”

Wei Yanho pursed his lips and moved forward. Wei Jeonghan and the others followed him, shaking their heads.

Upon leaving the forest, they found themselves on a large plain. Crossing it would allow them to enter Hefei. And at one end of that plain, a dark mass could be distinguished.

“…Are those them?”

A huddled crowd formed what looked like a human forest. Seeing the scene, Wei Jeonghan felt a chill run down his spine.

*’What if they all charge at us at once?’*

Could they withstand it?

Just imagining it was terrifying.

Those people weren’t ordinary people. They were disciples of the main martial clans: Shaolin, Wudang, Namgung, among others. It would already be terrifying if they attacked in their right minds, but what would happen if they did it out of their minds, without reason?

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t find an answer.

“Wouldn’t it be better to reconsider?”

Jangil muttered cautiously.

Seeing his vague imagination materialize, fear invaded him. Moreover, there were no reinforcements available. At first glance, there were more than a thousand people gathered. How were they supposed to deal with everyone?

“Honestly, it’s not that I don’t want to…”

Wei Yanho sighed.

“But the problem is, they’re running out of vital energy.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you see it?”

Wei Yanho pointed with his chin. But Jangil couldn’t distinguish anything except the fog of demonic energy emanating from the crowd.

“Are you referring to that evil energy?”

“No, it’s…”

Wei Yanho tried to explain, but ended up shaking his head.

“Forget it. You wouldn’t be able to see it.”

“Don’t do this to me!”

“I can’t ask you to see the invisible.”

Wei Yanho dropped the subject.

He didn’t know how Jangil would see it, but to him, it was clear: vital energy was escaping from their bodies. If they were left like this, they wouldn’t last long.

*’Soon they’ll start dying.’*

It was a miracle that no one had collapsed yet. Or rather, it showed how strong they were. Only disciples of great clans and sects could endure so much. Anyone with less training would have already perished.

And what did that mean?

That those whom Wei Yanho would face were just as strong.

They weren’t weak at all. Without the demonic plague, Baekgeom Fortress wouldn’t have been able to defeat them alone. Of course, those who remained here were few compared to those who had managed to flee.

But even that “minority” far outnumbered Wei Yanho’s group. So much so that it was impossible to even think about facing them.

“What do you plan to do?”

“Mmm.”

Wei Yanho watched them in silence before shrugging.

“What else is there? Capture them.”

“Capture them?”

“One by one. Treat them individually.”

“…That’s your plan?”

“I know it’s not much of a plan…”

Wei Yanho sighed.

“No one in history has faced something like this, how could there be an established solution? We can only try what seems most sensible.”

He was right.

Who the hell had gone through this before?

“No matter how much I think about it, it doesn’t seem feasible.”

“Life is a challenge.”

“Hearing that from your mouth makes my heart tremble.”

“From emotion?”

“From indignation. Although, thinking about it, your life has always been a series of challenges. A normal person wouldn’t roll around in bed for three days straight. They wouldn’t even try.”

“Hehe, I have my own style.”

“It wasn’t a compliment, you idiot!”

Wei Jeonghan was about to explode, even in this situation.

“First…”

Wei Yanho looked at the huddled group and spoke.

“Let’s approach little by little. Maybe only those on the edges will react.”

“…And if they all come?”

“We run.”

Wei Jeonghan put his hand to his forehead.

They didn’t have a real plan. The worst part was that, as crazy as it sounded, he couldn’t think of anything better.

“Jegal Munin.”

“Yes, Grand Master Wei.”

“I’m asking you just in case.”

“Yes!”

“After all, you’re from the Jegal family. Surely you can come up with a better strategy than this, right?”

“Hahahaha.”

“Am I wrong?”

“Hahahaha.”

“…You don’t have anything?”

“Hahahahaha!”

“…Move away.”

“Yes.”

Jegal Munin retreated with dignity. Wei Jeonghan ended up sighing deeply.

“I don’t know. Something will occur to us.”

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to devise a more solid plan, but as Wei Yanho had said, they couldn’t afford to waste time either.

After all, they had to save as many as possible.

*’Besides, they don’t seem to be in good condition.’*

Among the thick demonic energy, their faces looked pale and emaciated.

It was obvious what would happen if they waited longer. That’s why they couldn’t stop Wei Yanho, but…

“…Couldn’t you attract them from afar?”

Wei Jeonghan asked as a last attempt.

“Only if they were so distracted or weak that they wouldn’t notice someone disappearing. But I don’t think that’s the case.”

“Yes, I suppose not.”

Just when Wei Jeonghan resigned himself to executing Wei Yanho’s “plan”…

“We can check it, can’t we?”

Jangil spoke.

“In what way?”

“See if they have the lucidity to react.”

“Huh?”

Jangil continued as if it were obvious.

“Think: we see them, but they don’t see us. And the distance isn’t so great that they can’t distinguish us.”

“G-go on.”

“Then their perception must be altered. We can easily verify it.”

“How?”

“Well, in the simple way.”

Jangil crouched down and picked up a stone from the ground.

“You always complicate things. Everything in life has simple solutions. How do you know if someone is home before breaking in? You throw a stone and that’s it.”

It was a miserable analogy.

Literally.

“Puaj.”

Jangil stepped forward with determination.

“If I throw a stone and they don’t react, it means they don’t perceive well and our job will be easy. And if some come, we’ll handle them without problem.”

“Huh?”

“Hiyah!”

At that moment, Jangil threw the stone with force.

And seeing it, Wei Yanho muttered in an empty voice:

“What if they all come?”

“…Huh?”

“If they all chase us?”

“…”

All eyes followed the trajectory of the stone.

The rock described a perfect arc towards one end of the group.

*Tok, tok tok, tok.*

Upon falling, it rolled a couple of times until it hit the leg of the nearest infected individual.

“…”

Not even the song of a bird could be heard. Absolute silence covered Hefei.

And then…

*Sssssssssss.*

The group saw it.

The bowed heads rose in unison, turning towards the same point.

Of course, that point was where Wei Yanho and the others were.

“…”

“…”

Jangil broke the silence with discomfort.

“It seems someone is home…”

“…”

Wei Yanho swore that, if they got out of this alive, he would kill this damn beggar.