Book 14 Chapter 7

The two scariest disasters in the world!

"Hmph!"

"Heh heh heh heh heh!"

"Did you boil the slug, jump!"

Yeomdo screamed at the top of its lungs, urging people on.

Thirteen rescuers who set out to rescue a beautiful woman without regard for their own safety.

They now had to wrestle with two opponents: finite time and infinitely high mountains.

Sadly, Nakan Peak was the highest of the five volcanic peaks. The geese didn't crash to their deaths from exhaustion for nothing; they had already accumulated fatigue from the night's intense fighting.

But there's no time to rest. I'm reminded of how much of a treat it is to stretch my legs and sit down.

Now we're really running out of time.

"Run!"

At Bi Ryuyeon's shout, they revved up again and began to leap toward the falling peak, practicing light kung fu.

They ran nonstop until the early evening chill enveloped them. They were out of breath, their lungs swollen to bursting, but there was no time to rest. The land grew more and more barren and desolate. It seemed that the breath of life was becoming fainter and fainter. Like the patients before the halo.

By the time Hanno listened to him and ran to rescue Eunseulan, the sun was already rising.

It's that time of year again. It's time for wake-up calls and morning rounds.

"Hmph!"

By the time they reached their destination, they were exhausted. How could they not be exhausted, no matter how strong they were inside and out, after running at full speed up a mountain that would take a normal person a whole day to reach?

My legs were shaking and sweat was pouring off me like rain. Some of the weaker ones were even spinning before their eyes.

"Hurry up!"

Soon, the sunshine checks would begin, and I'd have to go out on the range like it was nothing. That's when it happened.

"Wait a minute!"

Hmmm!

The group's heads snapped to one side in unison.

"Oops!

Several people's complexions turned noticeably pale, especially Yoon Jun-ho, who was known for his timidity, whose face was almost contemplative.

A striking half-black, half-white long gun!

The man standing there was the Ruler of the Three.

And another one…….

Her gaze traveled to the alien entity and stopped, a smirk on its face that made her feel uncomfortable.

'Wei Jichen…….'

Why is that "subtraction" there?

"You mean that rat from last night?

Boom!

Her ears perked up.

"What's going on?"

Hanno asked, his body covered in blood. They had just been discussing how to rescue Eunseulan. This bloodshot old man was urging them to go rescue her as soon as possible.

"It's nothing, it must be a rat."

And then I turned off that part of my brain.

'I made a very uncharacteristic mistake…….'

He vowed to be more proactive next time.

The situation was clear. Their ceremony had been stolen by that venomous bastard, Wei Zichen. Even though they are members of the same Heavenly Martial Academy. She had the nerve to show her face, and she had a feeling that if she didn't let him know the cost of her nerve, she wouldn't be able to sleep with him later.

There was a tension in the room, like a protest at full tilt.

And the awkward silence that settles over it. No one feels comfortable speaking up in this situation.

"Who is she?"

The gray-haired ruler at the head of the line asked in a questioning tone. The gray-haired holy man's saintly demeanor suggested that he would have a hard time washing his face, but his back was as stiff as bamboo and his eyes were full of crystals.

The Five Books of Ink!

Judging by the five black stripes on his right sleeve, he was the highest-ranking of the trio, and each of the men standing behind him in silent observance was a Samhon.

"……."

Everyone has a question. What should I say?

The longer the silence lingers, the more wildly my heart races, and my chest tightens as if I'm going to suffocate.

"……."

What the hell am I supposed to say, tell them the truth about everything? Unless they've been selling her to them, they've done nothing wrong except break the rules and go off the rails.

Should I or Shouldn't I……. It was at a time when they were in the midst of serious conflict and mental struggle.

"We're in distress!"

A relaxed, confident voice came from somewhere. The voice belonged to none other than Bi Ryuyeon.

"That's a ridiculous claim……!

At a time when everyone was thinking, "Who would believe that?

Suddenly, Mo Yonghui stepped forward and stood shoulder to shoulder with Bi Ryuyeon on his left. He was a young man who was known for his uprightness and dislike of lies to the point of being called a liar. It was so much so that he was called the 'upright young man' and his mouth opened cautiously.

"You're in distress."

Unlike when Bi Ryuyeon had spoken, when he spoke, he suddenly became convincing. Indeed, this beautiful woman who had fallen unconscious in front of them was now seen in their eyes as a pitiful woman in distress in the mountains.

"Chet, you're discriminating against people!"

Bi Ryuyeon, who was watching this turn of events from the sidelines, grumbled quietly.

Even at his young age, Mo Yonghui's reputation was rumored throughout the powerhouses. His rock-solid uprightness, which had survived a thousand years of change, was well known, along with his flaws.

Then another person came and stood to her right. To her surprise, it was Na Yerin.

She made no sound with each step. Her every move was graceful and mysterious, like a fairy walking on a purple cloud. As she moved, all eyes in the room turned toward her. It was an irresistible charm. Flames of jealousy, envy, and desire flashed in Wei Zichen's eyes.

His mysterious eyes, which resembled the night sky and seemed to extend into infinite space, pierced people's hearts.

Boom!

The hearts of the audience, young and old, beat loudly once.

The first rays of morning sunlight fell upon her jet-black hair, crowning her head with a golden wreath. Silence fell all around.

Her lips parted in silence.

"You're in distress."

A mysterious rumble, neither high nor low, with immeasurable depths that captures a man's soul in an instant. Her voice, like clear music, came to me like a stream of refreshing rain. The words that flowed from her carnelian lips were imbued with a divine power, as if they were spirits of speech.

If she were a horse, she could look at the moon and say it was square, look at a swan and say it was black, look at a crow and say it was white. It was an amazing power that could hold dozens of people captive at the point of a spear.

Then everyone started to think alike.

'Yes, she's a poor damsel in distress, and it's only human decency that she should be taken care of. How pitiful that such a beautiful young woman should be in such a remote part of the world, in such a mountainous place, and that we shouldn't help her!'

Yugang, the ruler of the Muksun Obon, also believed so.

The Nangong Sang, Jinling, and Yinling also joined in, and they all spoke as if in agreement.

"That's right. A castaway. You wouldn't leave a poor castaway like this, would you?"

There was so much unity of opinion that it was hard to argue against it.

Now the three rulers were also troubled, and they began to put their heads together and discuss something.

"What are they thinking?

Bi Ryuyeon couldn't take her eyes off them even if she wanted to, and soon the discussion was over.

"Excuse me, Xiao Zhaoge, you must be Pomegranate Hai Xiao Zhaoge, one of the participants in this year's Heavenly Pavilion, and also known as the Crimson Swordswoman?"

Yu Kang asked in a very polite voice.

"Yes, it is!"

Seok Ryu-ha responded with a polite bow.

Yue Kang's target was Red Sword Pomegranate, who had been involved in the scene from the beginning. She, and everyone else watching, couldn't help but be surprised. They hadn't even been here for a week yet, and it was only natural for them to know her identity.

"Seok Sojae, let me ask you a question, and since you're the only one of these people with a different affiliation, if you agree with me, then everything they say must be true. Is this woman on the ground really in distress?"

At this point, Bi Ryuyeon and her teammates became nervous.

They had forgotten for a moment that she was a woman from their enemies and rivals, the Magisterium. Moreover, she had been forced into this path. She was a victim of sorts. If she revealed everything here, there was a good chance that all her hard work would be wasted.

The tension in the room was palpable as they stared at her tightly closed lips, and it was clear from the subtle shifts in her eyes that she was troubled.

Her red lips, which had been twitching restlessly, finally parted.

"…Yes, he's in distress. I've been watching from the sidelines, so it must be true!"

She nodded slightly, and we all secretly breathed a sigh of relief and patted our chests. But they weren't quite over the hump yet; the Three Rulers were more persistent than they realized.

"But that raises one more question, doesn't it?"

"What is it?"

Alas, the trust between man and man is so loose! Bi Ryuyeon lamented to the heavens.

"It's no big deal. What kind of distress was this little guy in? How could he have come all the way to the top of this great mountain and been in distress? I just don't understand that part yet."

He said that if I can't explain this, I'm not convinced yet. It's like, "Where did you get this castaway?" or something. And yet you're acting like it's no big deal…….

'Oops, I hadn't thought of that yet…….'

Yeomdo was devastated.

At that moment, Bi Ryuyeon hesitantly replied loudly.

"She has suffered a great disaster!"

"A disaster?"

Wei Gang shook his head, still unconvinced. Bi Ryuyeon nodded.

"Yes, that's right, a poor victim of one of the two most terrifying plagues in the world."

His voice was hushed.

"From the looks of it, there doesn't seem to be that much damage?"

"There's a story behind everything, and you can't judge a book by its cover, can you?"

"That's right, we shouldn't jump to conclusions, that's for sure."

This time, Weeks seemed to be convinced.

"So what is the plague that has befallen this woman?"

She didn't hesitate to answer.

"It's compatible (虎患)!"

"Ho-o-hua-an?"

The faces in the room instantly crumpled, but Bi Ryuyeon nodded hesitantly.

"So you're talking about that compatibility versus mama?"

Again, Bi Ryuyeon nodded.

The man's eyes widened to the size of peacocks.

'Well, why don't you explain that nonsense to…….'

Only a fool would believe such a grandiose, unreliable, and unrealistic story. Until you show them proof.

It was clear that the rulers thought so too.

"Hmmm, compatible with……. That doesn't make sense to me, I've been living here for over fifty years now and I've never heard of that."

There was a shadow of suspicion hanging over their sharp retorts, and everyone thought it was a natural reaction.

Even if you sprinkle ashes on the cooked rice, you can't help it! The gazes of the people looking at Bi Ryuyeon were uneven.

"Can you provide any evidence?"

Finally, the words that shouldn't have been spoken came out of Yu Kang's mouth.

"It's all over, it's doom, it's the end of the world!

Everyone in the room let out a muffled scream.

'You're crazy! You're doomed!

Watching Bi Ryuyeon dig her own grave, Wei Zichen smiled inwardly at her conversion. However, Bi Ryuyeon's answer surpassed everyone's expectations.

"Of course!"

The eyes of the people in the room widened like raindrops at Bi Ryuyeon's cool answer. Their eyes were all shouting, "This is it!

"How!

"Boss!"

Without looking back, Bi Ryuyeon quietly called out to someone. Who was she calling?

"There it is!"

The man who had suddenly emerged from the grass was Binggum. The men's jaws dropped. Their eyes were already wide enough to hold a full moon.

"Iceberg, you……."

Yeomdo's postscript, "How did you get here?" was cut short by a swift elbow from Bi Ryuyeon.

The astonishment of the audience was not only because of the ice sword, but also because of the "something" he was now carrying on his shoulder. It was so bulky that it was dragging on the ground, but he didn't seem to be struggling with it, which showed how deep the hollowing of the ice sword was.

Upon Bing's shoulder, and to the horror of all present, was the giant Bum, whose massive forepaws could turn even a bear upside down in a single blow.

"Good job."

Bi Ryuyeon smiled in approval.

"No big deal!"

The answer was yes, but if someone stood in front of him and said, "It's really no big deal!" he would be a good candidate for a sword marriage. It's no big deal to wander through the wilderness all night to catch a 'great lake' like that. Bing'er's predecessor had a tattered appearance from his nightly treks. He was nowhere near as neat as his usual self.

"Oh, no……."

Bewilderment and astonishment filled the air, whether it was from the rulers or the eleven-or twelve, if you count the dead Pomegranate. By what means, by what harmony, is this possible?

As far as he could recall, there was only one other instance of this bizarre linguistic heresy happening.

A few people shifted their gaze to glare at Bi Ryuyeon.

"How?

Shake!

Bing'er tossed the greatsword in front of the Three Rulers and replayed the events of the previous night in her mind.

"There's one thing I need you to do while we're down there."

"Request?"

"You never know when you might need it!"

"What?"

He spat it out without a care in the world. It was as if he didn't care about the process or the labor to get it.

"Tiger!"

Two days later.

A manor house in Hwaeum County caught fire, presumed to be arson, and the entire house was destroyed. Luckily, the winds were calm enough to keep the fire from spreading to neighboring buildings, but many lives were lost. Hundreds of firefighters were mobilized and raced east and west for twelve hours to catch the flames before they were finally contained at dawn the next day.