“What?”

I asked back coldly in a half-lowered voice. No, it wasn’t a question. It was just a pointed remark for rebuke.

“Do you not know what the situation is?”

Unless his brain was pickled in demonic qi, the declaration he just made was an impossible statement.

“I know. But with me now… there’s a chance.”

Regret came belatedly. I shouldn’t have let him get the evil object here. To think that inducing his growth would lead to this result.

Originally, Baek Hasin wasn’t a protagonist who just recklessly shouted for justice.

He knew his place and how to act flexibly according to the situation. The problem was that I had given him a possibility.

He had obtained the Black Moon Sword, and in the process, he had also reached the super-peak level.

But it was far from enough to face the Blood Fiend we had encountered.

At best, he could exchange a single blow. It wasn’t a distant gap where his head would have been severed without even being able to swing his sword once, but it was still dangerous to face him head-on.

“Get a grip. Even you now are no match for that monster. Besides, how are you going to find them in that vast place?”

“You and I can do it.”

This bastard subtly changed his words. When I looked at him with a straight face, what was there was a pair of clear and straight eyes. Eyes that seemed like persuasion wouldn’t work.

There was a separate way to persuade this type of person.

“What are you going to do about Bong So? Are you going to let him die?”

But the answer came unexpectedly from the man himself.

“…I can go back on my own. The bleeding has stopped, and if I just find the entrance, I can go back. Mountain climbing is my specialty.”

Bong So answered with a pale face. Since the Martial Alliance Leader and the five members of the suicide squad had infiltrated to kill the Blood Demon and the situation was chaotic, his words were not wrong.

Moreover, since we had subjugated the group including the Red Demon Archer when we entered, it would be even easier.

“Still, we can’t leave an injured person behind. Others whose life and death are uncertain, and one who needs help right now. You wouldn’t not know who to prioritize.”

I induced an escape, pretending to be concerned for Bong So. However, Baek Hasin’s will was firm.

“Then please take care of Senior Bong So. I’ll go alone.”

‘Damn it.’

It was the situation I had feared the most. Baek Hasin was strictly the protagonist of the original story. And he was a super-master who had grown strong at an unprecedented rate. I couldn’t lose him now.

“Haa, you damn bastard.”

I let out a sigh and proposed a compromise.

“Let’s find the exit first. And then we’ll ask for support from Captain Park Hwang-ryeok of the Blue Dragon Unit. We can’t search this dangerous place with Bong So.”

When I gave the ultimatum, Baek Hasin nodded his head.

“Alright. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

After a casual reply, I estimated the exit by reverse-calculating the arrangement of the formations, the direction we had passed, and the internal structure.

And after running for about half a shichen, we were finally able to find the path we had come from.

“We’re out!”

Baek Hasin, who had escaped the exit, raised his voice. Here, there were about a dozen elite martial artists brought by the five heads. If we started the search with them, it might be worth a try.

“Why did only the three of you come out? What’s the situation inside?”

As expected, Park Hwang-ryeok asked. As I explained, his expression hardened.

“That’s a Blood Fiend! To think there are two more of those enormous things…!”

“But with our strength, we can save them.”

At Baek Hasin’s subsequent remark, Park Hwang-ryeok shook his head.

“No. We will wait here.”

As expected. Baek Hasin was flustered, but I knew. The reason they were waiting here.

“What?!”

“We were tasked with grasping the situation here until the main force arrives. It is the Alliance Leader’s order, so I plan to keep it to the end.”

If they had wanted to save their comrades, they would have gone in long ago. But the reason they didn’t and waited for us, the additional troops, was because of this.

In the military, sometimes just holding a position was important.

Baek Hasin, who had belatedly realized the reality, turned his steps.

“Then I will…!”

Just then, I blocked him and said strongly.

“No. As long as the original infiltration mission has failed and the threat remains, we must protect this place.”

“I can’t do that!”

And then I slammed the prepared sound argument at Baek Hasin, who was trying to approach.

“Now that the whereabouts of the professor and other superiors are unclear, the command authority over the on-site personnel belongs to Captain Park Hwang-ryeok. For the success of the mission, put aside your personal feelings for now.”

Simultaneously with my words, Park Hwang-ryeok and the others also drew their swords and guarded the entrance. No matter how strong Baek Hasin was, he couldn’t break through this group.

This was the best. I was sorry for deceiving him, but it was for everyone. I met Baek Hasin’s eyes, which had a betrayed expression, and declared on behalf of the group members.

“We will wait for the main force.”

***

Meanwhile, inside the Blood Mountain, Cho Min-ha was lying in a corner of the passage, breathless. His body was motionless and seemed to have grown cold, but in fact, his heart was beating faintly.

‘That was close. If it weren’t for the pouch Cheonwu gave me, I would have been caught and killed long ago.’

He had been able to survive by tearing open the pouch at a fork in the road and throwing it at each of them shortly after he started being chased by the Blood Fiends.

‘It was fortunate that there was no pursuit after that, but what should I do now?’

In case there was any additional pursuit, he had quickly moved away and was waiting for them to retreat while hiding his presence.

After shaking off the pursuit, he had passed a couple of forks in the road, so the probability of him being caught was less than 10%. But there was no harm in being careful.

Above all, the direction he was currently heading was where the vertical shaft where Namgung Dohyeok had fallen was. Since everyone’s lives could be in danger, Cho Min-ha had no choice but to be cautious.

After a long period of silence, Cho Min-ha began to move cautiously. And at the vertical shaft he arrived at, he pondered.

‘Should I go and save them now? Or should I escape to the entrance I came from and get support?’

He had given up on the idea of joining up with the group of intermediate students, including Zhuge Cheonwu. It was a path that had already been split by the Blood Fiends. Trying to join up recklessly would only endanger each other.

Just as Cho Min-ha was about to make a choice, something from below touched his qi sense. When he raised his inner vision to see what it was, an amazing sight unfolded.

“You?!”

It was Namgung Dohyeok and Cheon Ga-seong, who were climbing up by sticking daggers wrapped in metal thread into the wall and stepping on them.

“You’re alive?”

While Cho Min-ha asked with a pleased expression, they finished climbing the shaft. They had finally broken through the Blood Cult’s trap and killed the elders.

After a brief exchange of information, Namgung Dohyeok decided on a course of action.

“First, we’ll go outside. Those things are Blood Fiends. Since they are Transformation masters, it will be difficult for us alone. Zhuge Cheonwu’s side is cunning, so they’ll be hiding well.”

Cho Min-ha nodded, remembering Zhuge Cheonwu who had handed him the pouch. Just as they were about to head toward the entrance they had come from.

A creepy energy spread inside the cave.

“…Didn’t you say you shook them off properly?”

“Should we run first?”

Simultaneously, they kicked off the ground. In the darkness, four pairs of black eyes were staring this way from a distance.

***

“Why don’t you just give up now?”

I suggested, pretending to be a villain. At that, the guy stubbornly refused.

“No.”

“Don’t be a child. This is not the time for us to be like this.”

“Just let me go. That’s enough.”

He must have his own calculations to be like this. With the pincer attack of two super-peak masters, even a Transformation master could be killed. However, that was only possible on the premise that all three of the people isolated inside were alive.

In the worst case, they could all be dead and he would have to face the Blood Fiends without even being able to join up.

It was a pity, but I couldn’t gamble on just the best-case scenario.

Just as the tension between me and Baek Hasin was rising.

“What?”

A terrifying energy wave was transmitted from behind me, to be precise, from inside the cave leading to the entrance of the Blood Mountain.

“Everyone, prepare your formation!”

With Park Hwang-ryeok’s quick command, the martial artists surrounded the entrance and drew their swords. I also turned around and took out the Daoist Scholar’s Fan, and Baek Hasin also raised his guard and drew his sword.

‘First, right before the enemy comes out of the narrow entrance, I’ll hit them with the Flame Lightning First Blade Spear and then…’

As I was forming a strategy and staring at the inside of the entrance, a familiar face came into view.

“That’s?!”

The three stragglers, including Cho Min-ha, were running. Behind them were two Blood Fiends, rushing with a suffocating killing intent.

Although the three were fleeing at an incredible speed, the speed at which the enemies were catching up was also unusual.

Namgung Dohyeok was trying to widen the distance by throwing daggers every time, but even that was barely working. At this rate, it seemed they would be caught before they even arrived.

None of us could survive a 1-on-1 encounter with a Blood Fiend. If we faced them in a narrow passage where we couldn’t even properly perform a pincer attack, we wouldn’t be able to hold out.

Just as the gap between them gradually narrowed and the Blood Fiend’s claws were about to reach, I shouted.

“Duck your heads!”

Simultaneously, the maximum firepower Flame Lightning First Blade Spear was shot, becoming a flash of light. The blow grazed over Namgung Dohyeok’s bent head and exploded on the Blood Fiend right behind him.

Kwaaaang!

An exploding thunderclap. The entire cave shakes with the shockwave. With this much firepower, even a Blood Fiend would have been stopped for at least a step.

Just as Namgung Dohyeok and the others were about to escape the entrance.

Seo-geok-!

A red claw passed by at high speed, and blood scattered in the air. The Blood Fiend, which had approached before they knew it, had cut down Cho Min-ha.

Although Cho Min-ha had twisted his body and raised his sword to block his vitals, he was no match for the surprise attack of a monster with Transformation senses.

‘He couldn’t block it at all.’

Even though it was a blow with all my might, it couldn’t even stop the opponent’s charge for a moment. Although I had gotten stronger, the gap between me and the Transformation realm was still absolute.

“Form a formation!”

Thanks to Namgung Dohyeok’s help from the side, they were able to escape the entrance together, but the wound was bigger than expected. It was a situation where he had to retreat and stabilize like Bong So.

In the meantime, the martial artists, including Park Hwang-ryeok, were thrusting their swords in a formation against the rushing Blood Fiends.

Kaaaaang!

A sword cry like tearing metal rang out, and a pincer attack followed along the formation.

‘Is that the sword formation of the Blue Dragon Unit, the elite of the Martial Alliance?’

The unit members flawlessly filled the brief gap when Park Hwang-ryeok was pushed back by the sword power. Next to him, they repeatedly thrust their swords at exquisite angles, overlapping their sword strikes.

As the several layers of swords struck simultaneously like a living creature, even the Blood Fiends couldn’t break the sword formation and were just pushed back to the entrance.

Since the entrance was also narrow, it was difficult for the two of them to make large movements, so the sword formation was even more effective.

Of course, it was too early to be relieved, as tremendous blows that seemed like they would break the sword formation at any moment were exploding from the entrance.

“Are you alright?”

I belatedly checked on Cho Min-ha’s condition. Due to the blood on the Blood Fiend’s claws, his blood vessels were half-eroded. Although he had taken an antidote given by another martial artist, in a sense, he was in more danger than Bong So.

“…I survived thanks to you.”

He looked this way with a pale complexion.

“Don’t mention it. I was grateful too.”

With those words, Cho Min-ha disappeared to a safe place with Bong So’s support. I looked in the direction they had disappeared and then turned my head.

At the entrance, the offensive to break through the sword formation and the defensive to block it were still clashing.

However, if an individual and a sword formation clashed, the longer the time, the more advantageous it was for the latter. Naturally, since they were a group, their recovery and endurance were superior, so at this rate, it was obvious that the Blood Fiends would get tired and fall back.

The powerful Blood Fiends had become rats in a trap in front of the superior terrain, personnel, and strategy. In the original story, there were often pictures of them being repelled like this, so except for the worst-case scenario, it seemed there was no need to worry too much. That’s what I thought.

Kwareureung!

Just then, with the sound of a pile of rocks collapsing, the entrance of the cave crumbled. The cave had begun to collapse, unable to withstand the impact of the clash.

Thanks to that, the two Blood Fiends were left standing in the widened passage.

“We need more people! Take the right!”

With Park Hwang-ryeok’s shout, the other people, including the academy’s instructors, also formed a sword formation and began to block the Blood Fiends, who had started to run completely wild. The tide of the battle was changing rapidly.

Swiiik-!

At that moment, an arrow flew from behind me. As soon as I blocked it with a shield, the shout of our martial artist who was in charge of guarding the rear was heard.

“The Blood Cult is surrounding us!”

Even though we had killed the Red Demon Archer, this area was strictly the Blood Cult’s base. Feeling the commotion, they had formed an encirclement.

‘To think they would attack simultaneously at this timing… Were we the rats in a trap instead?’

In the original story, when a stream of bad luck like this overlapped, I would either turn off the game or reload a previous save file. In the first place, there was no sharp solution in a situation of being surrounded on all four sides like this.

Remembering that, my mouth felt bitter for no reason. Because there was no save or retry here. It was desperate, but I couldn’t give up.

‘I have to survive somehow.’

Looking at the archers and the group of Blood Fiends spread out in all directions, I gathered my mana.

At the Blood Mountain, around the time dawn was breaking, a life-and-death battle began in the worst possible situation.

(End of Chapter)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep