Chapter 373

Converging from every angle, the seven Plum Blossom Sword Guards who had managed to evade or parry Il-mok’s initial blast of sword energy closed in on him.

This prestigious designation of Plum Blossom Sword Guard was reserved exclusively for the premier martial artists within the Mount Hua Sect, granting those elevated to its ranks the privilege of mastering the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves.

This particular style, the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves, centered entirely on rapid acceleration and deceptive imagery; except for the legendary Violet Haze Divine Art restricted to the reigning grandmaster, it stood as the pinnacle of martial sophistication within the Mount Hua Sect.

“Perish!!!”

A sharp metallic ring echoed!

Enduring the synchronized strike delivered by these elite figures of Mount Hua, Il-mok carefully scrutinized their coordination with total composure.

‘This differs significantly from the structure of Amitabha’s Demonic Extermination Fierce Tiger Formation or the layout of Potala Palace’s Seventy-Two Vajra Arhat Formation.’

In those setups, whether it was the Amitabha Sect’s Demonic Extermination Fierce Tiger Formation or the Potala Palace’s Seventy-Two Vajra Arhat Formation, more than fifty combatants would establish the battlefield framework right from the beginning.

Conversely, this small group of seven utilized the Seven Star Formation to execute their coordinated maneuvers.

The Seven Star Formation itself possessed no supernatural attributes; it functioned simply as a specialized Seven-Man Joint Strike Technique designed to prevent the participating swordsmen from crossing paths or disrupting one another.

Yet, there remained a distinct lack of cohesion compared to the grander formations like the Fierce Tiger Formation, depending less on the group structure itself and more on the individual prowess of those involved.

‘They leave no vulnerabilities.’

Furthermore, because all seven individuals practiced identical movements, their synchronized offensive appeared flawlessly executed without any conflicting trajectories.

“Escape is impossible for you here!”

“Be grateful that your demise will be cushioned by the scent of blossoms, you wretched heretic!”

Bellowing fiercely, the Plum Blossom Sword Guards lunged forward simultaneously from every side, throwing up a storm of illusory petals into the atmosphere.

As the air filled with spinning floral shapes from all angles, their combined pressure created a disorienting haze meant to shatter the focus of any opponent caught within.

For an extended duration, he appeared purely defensive, merely deflecting the onslaught of their unified strikes.

However, as he observed the dense storm of petals swirling around him, a mocking smirk broke across Il-mok’s features.

“I had been told that the blades of the Plum Blossom Sword Guards carried the sweet aroma of flowers, but this smells less like flora and more like the stench of decay.”

“Insolent!”

The lead Plum Blossom Sword Guard reacted instantly, his expression warping in fury at Il-mok’s insult.

A sudden gleam!

Il-mok pushed his internal movement techniques to their absolute limit, driving himself forward with immense aggression directly at the front combatant.

Though an ocean of deceptive petals stood in his way, Il-mok swept his Ascending Heaven Sword forward in an incredibly sharp, economical arc.

Three distinct metallic strikes vibrated through the air.

Instantly, the thick wall of petals blocking his forward sight dissolved into nothingness.

Because the underlying strategy of the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves relied heavily on speed and misdirection, Il-mok simply disregarded the illusions and struck precisely at the authentic points of pressure, completely neutralizing the attack.

“T-This cannot be!”

Seeing his signature technique shattered so cleanly, the Plum Blossom Sword Guard lost his composure entirely.

Even so, as a veteran of many battles, he instinctively swung his weapon once more despite his panic.

Clang!

The instant their weapons collided, Il-mok applied a subtle redirection technique with his Ascending Heaven Sword, sliding the opponent’s weapon harmlessly away while maintaining his mocking grin.

“Even with all seven of your numbers…”

The swirling cloud of petals from the surrounding attackers had only managed to blur his vision momentarily. Having attained a profoundly elevated tier of martial understanding, he remained unfazed.

“The Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves cannot be defeated!!”

Infuriated by the mockery, the surviving six Plum Blossom Sword Guards applied even greater ferocity to their blades, pressing the attack.

The air grew heavy with the mock scent of blossoms as they scrambled to fill the void left by their faltering companion.

“The technique itself is fine—it is the users who are lacking.”

Il-mok wiped away the blinding illusion before him once more, stepping inside the guard of another Plum Blossom Sword Guard to deliver a decisive stroke.

A clean slice!

No elaborate openings were required; the simple reality was that all seven fell drastically short of Il-mok’s personal caliber.

Now that he had deciphered the rhythm of their style, their numbers ceased to pose any real threat to him.

Systematically dismantling the martial forms of the Plum Blossom Sword Guards, he began taking lives in rapid succession.

Within moments, the elite unit lay motionless upon the earth, leaving none but Sect Leader Mok Seon-ja standing in a state of absolute shock.

“How could a common heretic possess such…”

Watching Mok Seon-ja unravel as reality set in, a dark sense of amusement gripped Il-mok.

“You appear to hold an immense amount of satisfaction in your Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves.”

Speaking under his breath as though it were trivial, Il-mok executed a sweep of his blade, causing an identical storm of countless petals to manifest in the empty space.

The specialized Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword technique that Il-mok had perfected integrated elements of power, redirection, velocity, and misdirection—a complete culmination of blade mastery engineered by a brilliant perfectionist.

The core concepts of speed and illusion that defined the Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Moves were deeply understood by Il-mok; having already broken through to the Transcending Demon tier through his mastery of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword, replicating those movements required no more effort than an casual gesture.

The sole distinction lay in the quality of their internal force; due to his unique energy signature, his manifested petals bore a somber gray coloration rather than the traditional hue of Mount Hua.

Staring into the cascading vortex of gray petals filling his vision, Mok Seon-ja found himself completely mesmerized.

‘The legendary Falling Petals in Profusion…’

He remained entranced even as the steel silently parted his neck.

A final slice.

While Il-mok was occupied with the elite guards, the forces of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult were systematically overwhelming the Mount Hua Sect Taoists across the entirety of Zhuchen County.

Having spent the previous day and night in constant motion utilizing high-tier locomotion techniques alongside ongoing skirmishes, Il-mok granted his forces a brief window to recuperate.

When the sun rose again, he arose to stretch his limbs, just as a scout arrived to present a dispatch.

“Young Master, we have received an alert from Zhangye County.”

Following their rapid sprint from Gulang County to Jinchang County within a single day, Il-mok had strategically positioned several Heavenly Demon Divine Cult lookouts along the primary routes to Zhuchen County during their night halt.

Utilizing their deep familiarity with the topography of Gansu, these lookouts held high-altitude vistas to spot any incoming movements from the righteous factions.

“Zhangye County—that places them roughly twelve hours behind us.”

Learning that the primary vanguard of the righteous alliance was actively tracking them, Il-mok responded with an uncharacteristic look of approval.

The attendants flanking him shared his sentiment.

“Our diversion has successfully pulled them toward the northern territory, meaning we can proceed to our secondary objective.”

Just as Jin Ha-yeon noted, drawing the enemy’s attention northward had been their calculated intent from the beginning.

In leading his Heavenly Demon Divine Cult detachment through hidden pathways to breach Gansu Province, Il-mok had uncovered fresh intelligence.

While the Mount Hua Sect focused their raiding operations around the northwestern sectors near Lanzhou, the Mount Zhongnan Sect was concurrently striking the southeastern territories.

This reality prompted a minor recalculation of their strategy.

“Proceed as intended; direct a fraction of our strength to leave conspicuous signs of passage while making a feint toward Xining.”

“Consider it done.”

With Jin Ha-yeon acknowledging the command and exiting the chamber, Il-mok shifted his attention to Hyeok-ryeon Seon-a to issue further directives.

“Alert the main body to break camp. We change our trajectory toward the south.”

He had no intentions of setting foot in Lanzhou.

A short distance south of Zhuchen County lay the formidable peaks of the Qilian Mountains.

Their objective was to scale this range to penetrate the northern borders of Sichuan.

This would allow them to confront the forces of Mount Zhongnan directly.

Following his directives, the detachment set out.

Though the Qilian Mountains possessed a reputation for incredibly treacherous and vertical paths, the high-tier martial cultivation of the entire group ensured that no single warrior lagged behind during the mountain transit.

After successfully navigating past the Qilian Mountains, they maintained a southern course for an extended period, arriving at De he by nightfall.

Following a single day of rest to replenish their travelling provisions, they resumed their march at dawn.

By that afternoon, their path along the edge of the expansive Qinghai Lake was suddenly obstructed by a large gathering.

This unexpected encounter left both Il-mok and his followers visibly startled.

A force numbering no less than five hundred fighters stood before them, with the distinctive banners of the Martial Alliance catching the wind at various intervals.

‘Was the report not explicit that the righteous vanguard was pursuing from Zhangye County?’

As this contradiction puzzled the cultists, the grand leader of the opposing forces stood at the center of his army.

Alliance Leader Cheok Bae-myeong cast an appreciative look toward the Chief Strategist standing at his flank.

A few days earlier.

Word of the cult’s aggressive incursions had prompted an immediate and massive mobilization of the righteous sects across Lanzhou.

However, by the time they reached Gulang County after a half-day march, the raiding party had vanished into the distance, leaving the alliance with nothing to show for their haste.

Discovered to be moving toward the northwest, Cheok Bae-myeong intended to press forward in immediate pursuit, but Gongson Hyeon raised a hand to halt him.

“Alliance Leader, a direct pursuit at this juncture is futile. They maintain a lead of at least twenty-four hours.”

“Are you suggesting we simply stand by and allow their escape?”

Hearing the leader’s objection, Yang Mu-ja voiced his agreement.

“The Alliance Leader speaks correctly. Given that Mount Hua’s primary strength is deployed up north, if they can delay the enemy, we can merge our numbers and annihilate them entirely.”

As the surrounding leadership murmured in assent, Gongson Hyeon cut through the chatter forcefully.

“We have to look at this logically. If we cannot close the distance from the rear, how do we expect to cut off their line of retreat? Do you truly believe their goal ends with Mount Hua?”

“Are you implying their true objective is Mount Zhongnan?”

“Precisely. Once they finish with Mount Hua, their trajectory will likely take them through the Daxue Mountains toward Qinghai.”

“…What if their path takes them directly through Xining instead?”

Addressing the point raised by Namgung Jin, Gongson Hyeon offered a calculated response.

“Look at the scenario from a different perspective. A standard pursuit is already out of the question. Therefore, are we not forced to take a calculated risk?”

As the assembled masters debated the point, the Chief Strategist laid out the final plan.

“Their raiding party is small, meaning their numbers are limited. We will divide our strength into two separate groups. One will maintain the pursuit from behind to keep them moving, while the secondary force takes a direct route to Qinghai immediately to set an ambush along their predicted escape route.”

Ultimately, the leadership body embraced the strategy formulated by the Chief Strategist, splitting their righteous coalition into two distinct groups at Gulang County.

Alliance Leader Cheok Bae-myeong took command of the core Martial Alliance forces, flanked by Namgung Jin and the warriors of the Namgung family, alongside various intermediate sects and the Jeonma family to form the blocking force.

Meanwhile, the Buljon alongside the monks of Shaolin turned their focus northward, accompanied by Hwangbo Ak—who sought to avoid direct engagements with the cult forces—with Yang Mu-ja and the Taoist practitioners of the Mount Hyeong Sect joining their march.

The Alliance Leader, having reaffirmed his confidence in Chief Strategist Gongson Hyeon, focused his attention back on the immediate battlefield.

Unsheathing his blade, Cheok Bae-myeong directed it toward the cluster of roughly one hundred cultists occupying the path ahead, his voice booming with the immense weight of his internal cultivation.

“The hour to break the wicked and elevate the righteous is upon us—obliterate these modern heretics!!”

This singular declaration served as the official opening salvo of the grand conflict between light and shadow.

“Waaaaah!!”

With a collective roar, the warriors of the righteous factions surged forward, launching themselves directly at the cultist lines.