Book 11 Chapter 18

Lightning Valley (落雷谷)

- Blowing in the Fog

Lightning Valley (落雷谷)

Lightning Zone (落雷之地: Land of Lightning)

They were seven words carved into a boundary stone that had battled the elements for decades.

"Whew!"

Jang Hong whistled lightly.

"Wow, what a view."

Hyo-Ryong marveled at the magnificent harmony of nature in front of him.

"This is the place where the thunderbolt split the earth, so it's called Lightning Valley, and it's a place of great beauty."

It was a huge gorge on the border of Hubei and Shaanxi provinces. The sheer cliffs, which could only be described as natural harmony, were jostling against each other, and a light mist, not enough to obscure the view, moved in the wind like a living creature, which made the canyon's scenery even more mysterious. The canyon was probably less than a dozen sheets wide, and its height was impossible to measure. Above, white wisps of mist or clouds were creating a haze, making it difficult to gauge their height.

"If I get attacked in a place like this, I won't be able to pick up a bone."

Namgungsang didn't have the mental space to enjoy these natural wonders.

"Spare me the ominous sounds."

The old man grumbled. He, too, was an appreciator. He didn't want to be associated with a worrier like Nan Gongsang. He didn't want to become a horse's seed.

"It's foggy along here today! "

"It's never been so foggy as it is today……."

Binggum frowned slightly. He'd been through here a few times, but never with the fog as thick as it was today. It didn't feel right. Bing'er was beginning to feel a little uneasy. The sight of Yeomdo walking down the street with an expression that said he was not worried at all was very disturbing.

"Does he not think?

Even if the kids are having a blast, you still have to worry about them, and they're the same mental age as you……. I felt pathetic that I had put myself in a position where I had to bear three times the hardship.

'Stupid!

I had to curse at myself to get it out of my system.

'At a time like this, it takes a surprise attack to wake me up! Maybe it's a blessing in disguise for everyone….'

It was at that moment that Binggum realized.

"Ugh!"

It was Wolfgang who groaned.

"What's going on?"

Binggum asked in an urgent voice. His nerves were on high alert right now, and he was sensitive to the slightest sound. His complexion was as pale as if he had been poisoned, and much of his normal expression was gone.

"You don't have a good complexion, what's wrong?"

Then there was a sneaky electronic voice in Bing's ear.

[No one else should ever know about this].

[Got it!]

Binggum replied with a cautious preamble.

[Oh, I think it's the fish I had for breakfast].

His face was filled with embarrassment. He looked like he was about to tell a very big secret. He was the kind of person who believed in keeping his appearance clean and tidy for the sake of others, whether he was willing to admit it or not.

[What else am I going to say…….]

Bing'er's tense face turned impassive once more. What's the big deal about using the whole word?

[Be quick!]

Wolverine disguised himself as Tae-yeon and walked back the way he came, apparently not wanting to lose face in front of the many innkeepers. It seemed to be his theory that one should always be neat in front of an inn.

Perhaps he thought it was a mortal sin to let women know that a handsome man like him was going behind their backs. Illusions are a dirty business, but Bing'er was under no obligation to willfully indulge them.

At the top of the canyon through the canal, the sun was sinking low in the western sky, turning the pure white canal red in the twilight. As the ruddy sunset cast long shadows on the mountains, a line of whitish-black inhumans stretched up the canyon on either side.

They were now staring down the canyon, hanging on for dear life.

"I've deployed all of them, from the first to the twelfth."

Red Blood nodded at the report. His gaze was now on the delegation from the Heavenly Martial Academy with the eyes of a hawk stalking its prey in the sky.

"You said you'd definitely pass through here, and you were right.

"Who is the Tenth Patriarch?"

"We're all set."

"Who is the ninth Blood Bow?"

"It's just waiting for a command."

"What about you?"

"My sword is ready to drink blood at any moment."

Bloodblade replied confidently.

The Twelve Blood Horsemen are assigned duties based on the number of their bands. The bands they belong to also have their own significance. At the most basic level, the lower the number, the more direct the attack. These are the central core attackers.

The First Order is called the Bloodsword Order, and its leader is named Bloodsword. Whatever his original name was before is completely irrelevant. They specialize primarily in fleshy swordsmanship. The second generation's leader is a Bloodsword, and he and his second generation specialize in brutal methods. The third-generation master of the Bloodlance specializes in spears as the Bloodlance.

Smaller units are responsible for direct attack with their own specialized weapons, while larger units are responsible for rear support, ranged fire, tracking, encirclement, and various maneuvers. The larger the unit, the heavier and more diverse the items it carries.

And the double-digit bands were in a position to support and align with each other, so there was often a 10th person, an 11th person, a 12th person, and so on.

The Tenth, in particular, carries the heaviest burden of the Twelve on his back. It looks like a thick, hollow wheel, and the only one who knows what's inside is the Tenth, for all who have ever seen its contents are dead. No one knew what was in it except the Twelve, because dead men cannot talk.

The name of the ninth squad was the Blood Bow Squad, and as its name implies, it was the squad that possessed the most terrifying archery skills in the Jianghu. The ninth master archer was currently staring at his prey with a sharp gaze. His prey had very distinctive physical features-red hair and a red beard-that made it easy for him to distinguish them from the crowd. It was his job to prioritize sniping the most troublesome and difficult individuals to deal with. He pulled out a single reddish arrow in his tradition and hung it on his red shi.

The arrow is called the Blood Bow, and it is also known as the Cursed Arrow. He was the only one here who could use both the Blood Demon Bow and the Blood Demon Warrior at the same time. Unfortunately, a master of that caliber couldn't shoot and hit two people at the same time. It wasn't impossible, but the chances of success were slim. So he decided to take one, and then the other.

It took him only a blink of an eye to shoot one and load the other. He slowly pulled the draw on his bloodbow; his arrows had never missed in the last thirty years.

"Those three?"

Red asked.

"You're waiting your turn."

"Great!"

The preparation was perfect. Red Blood raised his hand and gave the signal. A red flag rose from Blood's hand.

pi!

A sharp ripping sound ripped through the atmosphere, echoing through the canyon.

'Hit!

The Ninth Lord Blood Bow clenched his fist inwardly. It felt like something was piercing, that was for sure, but…….

"What is it?

It was a product of instinct. He had to take a moment to think before he realized why he'd taken a step to the side.

Shhhhh!

The wind of flesh, sharp as an awl, grazed his cheek.

Boom!

A liquid the same color as his hair trickled down his cheek. He raised his left hand to the wound in his face. His gaze traveled to the place where the arrow had lodged. There was no arrow there.

Only one dot remained.

"Nosa, are you okay? "

Sensing an upset, several guards came running. There was no arrow in sight. The arrow had flown so hard that it had buried itself in the ground, from the arrowhead to the feathered tail. Tension flashed across their faces as they wondered how strong a man could be to exert such power.

He stretched his hand down into the ground, and the ground cracked, pulling an arrow out of nowhere. Without a moment's hesitation, the arrow floated up and caught in Yin's grasp. It was an excellent contact technique.

The arrows were blood-red and the tips were slightly curved, like fishing hooks. It was crudely constructed so that, once lodged in flesh, it could not be removed without incision. Though it would seem that a weapon of this power would pass right through a person. Yeomdo was not hard to recognize. I had never seen one in person, but I had heard of them through the grapevine.

"血魔箭(血魔箭)……."

Yeomdo has gone silent.

"Why would the cursed beast that drove Kang Ho into a bloodbath a hundred years ago appear now?"

The warnings of danger ran through my body like a shiver of anxiety, and that's when Lim approached me and asked.

"What the heck is this stuff?"

How dare you not know what you know, even if you're not studying! Yeomdo was furious.

"You ignorant bastards, what the hell did you study in history class?"

A curse fell from his mouth.

"Blood Bow "Blood Bow" is one of the teenage cavalry weapons that wreaked havoc on the mighty during the Heavenly Blood Tax a hundred years ago. Its terrifying speed makes it impossible to catch, and the only way to avoid it is to dodge. It is said to be a hunter that never loses sight of its prey, and if you can survive this arrow, it will be a lifesaver………."

For a moment, Yaldo was silent. The others did the same. Their gazes met.

"Holy crap!"

Now was not the time for leisurely chit-chat.

"Danger! All hands on deck!"

Shhhhhhh!

At that moment, a hail of arrows rained down from the sky.

"Fire!"

So embarrassed by the fact that his arrow had missed the mark that he stopped short of giving the order to fire a full volley, which was a golden opportunity for the one-and-done warrior who prided himself on his one-shot, one-kill philosophy. His confidence had been fueled by the sight of a fountain of blood spurting from Yan Dao's heart. He hadn't expected to miss.

The delegates from the Academy of Heavenly Arts made it clear that they hadn't been chosen to represent the White City because they were handsome or well-connected. They quickly drew their weapons and parried the arrows that were fired at them. The arrows were heavy because they were loaded.

"These aren't normal people!

Even as he watched in admiration, Yindo wielded his sword, smashing dozens of arrows simultaneously. The arrows flying at him shattered into tiny pieces of wood, scattering around him.

"Boom!"

"Ugh!"

The arrows continue to rain down, but only one man is harmed. One of the arrows in the hail of arrows pierced the thigh of one of the unfortunate coffins. From what Yeomdo could remember, he was a graduate of the Zhongnan sect, though he couldn't quite remember his name…….

An angry Yaldo shouted.

"Hey, Bingchong, you hurt your thigh in a surprise like this? You want to die at my hands? You're one of the delegates of the Heavenly Martial Academy, you're a candidate for life!"

How dare they attack the delegation he was leading! Yidao's anger burned like the fires of hell. As if to quench the flames, another hail of arrows rained down on his head.

Crimson Seventeen Flame Sword Energy

Righteousness (奧義) Heat Wave (暴炎傘)

The mournful red flames of the salt flats glowed once more, casting a giant red umbrella into the air.

"Well, Mr. Nosa, it looks like you were right to leave him there after all."

'It was a good choice to leave him there,' said Namgung Sang, furiously parrying the arrows that were flying in all directions. It had been an excellent choice to leave Yi Songhak there.

"I see. If you were here, you'd be a tough nut to crack! If you're okay, you're still not saying hello……."

Binggum couldn't help but agree with the Southern Archer. What made Bing'er feel like an expert was the fact that she was able to knock down arrows with the ease of a fly, whereas the others were struggling a bit.

"It's a good thing that place was on our way, because it will keep him safe."

"Let's hope the folks at the Zhongyang Mark Bureau do a good job."

"You did a good job."

Namgung replied, parrying an arrow that was flying toward his back without even looking at it. It was indeed fortunate that the members of the Zhongyang Mark Bureau were not here. If they were here now, the mark would have been doomed to never reach its destination.

"Don't panic!"

"Stay calm! "

With a quick flick of his hand, Binggum caught several flying arrows as they flew by, paying attention to the men who were distracted. To him, it was not a very difficult trick, and perhaps that was why he wanted to increase the difficulty of the trick. Bing'er's hand shot out like lightning, and the dozen or so arrows she had caught flew in ten directions toward their returning master.

"Crunch!"

Nine bloodstains rose above the canyon.

"Did I miss one?"

It's a world of extrasensory perception that the average human can't even imagine.

"He's a lucky guy."

Binggum muttered to himself and once again caught the incoming arrows. Seeing his near-magical skill, the delegates began to imitate him as best they could.

Shhhhhhh!

In an instant, more than a hundred arrows flew towards the master, but not all of them were as accurate as the ice sword, so the damage to the enemy was not as great as expected. However, it was praiseworthy that he had broken the enemy's Ye Feng. As proof, the downpour of arrows had turned into a light rain.

"Watch out for bouncing arrows! Don't stop firing! Stay in formation!"

Blood Bow burned in his mouth. The counterattack was unexpectedly strong. It was ridiculous that the arrows they fired were caught in their hands…, and that they had to face such an unexpected counterattack. It was a shame that an army of archers with bows could be defeated by humans with only arrows. If left unchecked, the damage would only get worse.

"You bastards, die!"

He held nine red arrows simultaneously in his right hand and hung one of them in his demonstration. It was a prelude to his culminating display.

Bloodthirsty Demon Palace Secret Technique

Kougong Renkai (九宮連環射)

Blood Nightscape (血夜九星)

"Go!

One Blood Warrior left the demonstration.

The shouting and flying arrows were surprisingly slow. But too slow was a problem. Normally, at that slow of a speed, the arrow should have drawn a parabola, but it was flying straight and true.

Instead of being slow, the arrow was spinning with terrifying speed. The mist was sucked into the spin of the bloodmage. Where the arrow was headed was the Iceblade, and in front of it was Na Yerin, wielding her sword with a cold, frosty glow. To reach the ice sword, the arrow would have to pass through Na Yerin.

Sensing the threatening flesh, the iceblade's gaze turned to the source. Na Yerin's gaze, too, fell upon the shivering arrow buried in the swirling mist. Then a shadow blocked her view: a man's back.

"Ryuyeon!"

In that moment, Na Yerin thought she saw a glimpse of Bi Ryuyeon's smile, but his gaze was already fixed squarely on the Blood Demon Warrior, without the slightest hint of fear. The mist swirled in a strange combination of spirals.

"Dodge!"

Yeomdo cried out in an urgent voice. Arrows shot out of nowhere from all sides of the slowly approaching maelstrom. The center of the mist swirl was a kind of smoke screen. Nine arrows flew out in succession, staggered in time. It was a desperate attack, full of life.

Shhhhhhh!

Pah-pah-pah-pah!

Eight arrows shot into her body. She didn't move a single step, and the slowest arrow, the one that created the swirl of mist, struck her.

Quack!

There was a terrifying roar, like a volcano erupting. The air around them whipped up into a gale. Huge gusts of wind swept in all directions. For a moment, all was quiet. For a moment, even the peculiar weather phenomenon of arrow rain raining down from the sky did not occur. All eyes turned to the center of the dust cloud.

"Huh!"

His eyes widened to the size of lampshades, and he had to rub them hard at the sound of the voice that came a moment later, as his eyes caught sight of an unbelievable scene.

"Hiya, this looks a little expensive."

It was a voice so carefree that it could hardly be considered to be in the middle of a battlefield on a tightrope of life and death. The owner of the voice that was still so cheerful in this life-and-death moment was none other than Bi Ryuyeon, who had just become an arrowhead.

Na Yerin's stony face melted like the ice on a spring day. She sighed and rubbed her chest in relief. In the midst of her sigh of relief, Na Yerin suddenly stopped. She realized how nervous she had been just a moment ago and how relieved she was now. This was clear evidence that her behavior was being influenced by Bi Ryuyeon's actions.

Na Yerin stared back at the man who had surprised her with his clear, deep gaze. Somehow, she felt like she was losing.

"What was that?

"One, two, three, four…, nine!"

It was definitely nine. He checked the Yeomdo again to make sure he hadn't miscalculated. It was definitely nine. He knew he wasn't very bright, but he still had no problem counting numbers below ten. In the dust, Bi Ryuyeon held one of the nine arrows in her hand, turning it this way and that, fiddling with it. The arrow was dust-free, so she had obviously not pulled it out of the ground. There was no way it could have appeared as a redhead in the night, much less as a characteristic red arrow full of life.

Then there was only one conclusion.

'Oh, no way, that's almost impossible to do with your bare hands!'

He wasn't the only one who was stunned. Both Bing'er and Gao Yan stopped what they were doing and looked at Bi Ryuyeon.

"What trick did they pull?

That was the only conclusion most people could come to, because there was no other explanation. No matter how many times you looked at it, those nine arrows flying in succession at different intervals of time must have been the legendary archery skill of the Nine Arrows.

But as if to dismiss such legendary reputations and bloody rumors, Bi Ryuyeon is happily spinning around with the Blood Demon Warrior.

'So monsters are monsters that can't be helped?'

Not only was the Yeomdo high, but everyone was staring at her in disbelief.

"You have to give back what you take, right? "

Unable to do anything with the blood duel in his hand, Bi Ryuyeon picked up the single arrow on the ground. His gaze turned to the direction of the owner of the nine arrows. What were his eyes seeing now?

Pod!

For a moment, his hand held nothing. A bolt of lightning tore through the air.

"Crack!"

From beyond the fog, a terminal rang out!

Poof!

The blood-red bow fell to the ground.

On that day, the Ninth Generation of the Twelve Blood Horsemen lost their leader.

"Surprise is less effective than I thought. I can't believe they're shooting at us like that and not killing anyone. And the resistance is fierce."

He looked at the arrows flying back at him with terrifying speed, his sword cutting them in half here and there.

"Those are the representatives of the White City. I'd feel bad for them if they were attacked like this."

The red blood was a sign that it was already expected.

"Arrows only need to bind the feet. Activate the second line!"

"Bokmyeong!"

Bloodsword raised a blue flag.

"Secondary triggered!"

The Tenth, led by Blood Chain, took out a round, wheel-like pack on their backs. They drove a rod into the ground and set the wheel in the center of it, with a chain wrapped around it. The rod had a folding mechanism in the middle so that they could adjust the angle of the wheel to any angle they wanted.

They installed the wheels at a slight angle.

Each member of the Tenth held the beginning of the chain from the wheel in his right hand. The chains were very rough and had a deep color. It was obvious that it was not made of ordinary, plain iron. They drew the pikes from their belts and attached them to the ends of the chains. The pike had six blades, curved inward in an unusual shape.

"Activate Iron Chains! "

Chorus!

On cue, dozens of wheels connected to dozens of iron rods began to spin furiously with a loud clatter.

Quack, quack, quack!

Flying from the canyons on the left and right at regular intervals, black iron chains slammed into the ground with a loud clang. The spears at the end of the chains were frightening in appearance, but not enough to hurt anyone, but as they spun a web from side to side, the delegation was unwilling to retreat.

"What the hell is this, they're going to lock us in here!"

Yeomdo shouted nervously.

Boom!

Mo Yonghui looked at his sword in disbelief. Even though he had infused it with as much sword energy as he could, the result was not even a scratch on his fingernails. What kind of material was it made of that made it so hard? He was lucky the blade wasn't broken.

"Hoo hoo hoo, that iron chain is forged from ten thousand years of iron, and no amount of sharpening can break it!"

A sickening sneer curled the corners of Redblood's mouth.

"The enemy wants to keep our ankles tied here."

Binggum said, looking around at the webs of iron chains everywhere. Then he grumbled, as if the Yeomdo was the same.

"Hmph! But cordons are for containment anyway! These stupid ropes can't hold us back. Besides, we don't have any other valid means of attack yet, do we?"

This was because they couldn't attack directly with anything other than arrows.

"Unleash the flying wheel!"

Red Blood, watching the situation from above the canyon, ordered.

"Okay."

Bloodsword raised the yellow flag again.

Chorus!

Iron and steel spun furiously, the clashing echoing throughout the canyon.

"That…, what is that?"

The old man and Tang San opened their eyes wide in panic. A bladed iron wheel was spinning at a terrifying speed as it descended from the black chains all around it. This beast with sharp iron teeth was rotating its body at a frightening speed, seeking blood sacrifices. Moreover, the distance between them was too small to defend against, much less evade.

Imagine a waterfall of dozens of iron rings on dozens of chains - it's scary to even think about.

"Get out of here!"

Before he could finish his shout, an iron ring whizzed past his side in a terrifying gust of wind. Relieved that he had dodged one, he was sent flying into the air, startled by the cold gust of wind that was now aimed at the back of his head.

"Huh!"

It was a close call. One of the other rings had just made a staggered attack on the opposite chain. The chains were cleverly spaced to prevent the two spokes from hitting each other.

"Scary bastards!"

Arrowheads above, iron rings below! I couldn't help but get distracted.

"Crack!"

"Ouch!"

Already several of the men had been wounded by the teeth of the spinning iron wheel, which spun at a terrifying speed. Not as many as the first time, but the sky was still raining down arrows once in a while.

"This is dangerous!

The fact that Bingum and Yeomdo had the same idea at the same time was something to celebrate. It was a moment when something had to be done.

That was it.

The chains on the side not far from Yin Do clanked loudly once, as Bi Ryuyeon stood on top of them. However, the weight of Muklongwan caused it to rattle. Even as the chain bounced and swayed wildly, she remained calmly balanced.

"What are you going to do?

All eyes turned to Bi Ryuyeon.

Click!

The chains rattled once more, and Bi Ryuyeon leaped.

Flying Thunderbolt (飛雷門) Poisoned Door (独門身法)

Phoenix Dance Righteousness (奧義)

Bon Dance (鳳舞騰天)

Pavabababat!

Bi Ryuyeon was being carried up the gorge upside down in chains. The people's eyes widened. The same was true for the Blood Horse soldiers who were guarding the chains above the canyon.

"Hurry up! "

A member of the 12th quickly fitted a spare wheel to the chains.

Hooray!

The blade spun at a terrifying speed, slicing through the wind and sending the car's wheels plummeting toward the rainbow.

"It's dangerous! "

Na Yerin's face paled. There was only one thought in her mind right now. When she sensed that Bi Ryuyeon was in danger, the ice mask on her face shattered, and Na Yerin cried out in anguish.

"Liu Ye'er!"

<Continued from Volume 12 of Fault Tolerance