Chapter 11

Chapter 11

 

WHOOSH!

After landing on the floor of the passage, Dang Myeong glanced upward. The underground passage was located about thirty feet  below the surface.

“Young Lord, no, Clan Lord, please hurry.”

At Dang Hong’s words, Dang Myeong stared at the passage for a moment, then nodded and quickly moved forward.

The passage was not very wide. It was only large enough for two people to walk shoulder to shoulder, so everyone was moving with their backs pressed close to the wall.

Small luminous pearls were embedded in the walls, giving off light and securing their view.

Because of that, Dang Myeong moved at a somewhat faster pace. The space was too narrow to use lightness skill, so for now, he walked quickly.

After walking for quite some time, Dang Myeong was slightly surprised.

The passage was so long that it seemed endless.

“Clan Lord, this passage is quite long.”

“Judging by our current direction and distance...... we seem to have already left the Tang Clan.”

Dang Myeong murmured as he ran his hand along the wall.

“Just where is this connected to?”

“I do not know either.”

At Dang Hong’s words, Dang Myeong nodded and continued walking. After they walked for who knew how long, a somewhat wider space appeared midway through.

And on the opposite side, another passage could be seen.

However, there were four passages. And in front of them, an expert of the Secret Serpent Unit was waiting.

“Young Lord.”

When he gave a Cupped-Fist Salute and bowed his head, Dang Myeong looked at the passages and asked,

“Are three of them paths of death?”

Only one would be a proper passage, and the other three were likely death passages filled with poison and hidden weapon traps.

“That is correct.”

At the Secret Serpent Unit member’s words, Dang Myeong looked at the passage and asked,

“How did you know which one was the path of life?”

“The Unit Commander knew.”

At the words that Dang Jang knew the path of life, Dang Myeong nodded.

“Understood.”

Dang Myeong started down the passage again, then looked at the Secret Serpent Unit member.

“No traces must remain behind us.”

“I have already received that order.”

At the Secret Serpent Unit member’s words, Dang Myeong hurriedly ran down the passage. After they had gone some distance, the passage branched again.

There was another Secret Serpent Unit member in front of it as well, and Dang Myeong and the Flying Heaven Unit passed through.

After nearly about an hour of moving through the passages, a wide space appeared.

A small waterway flowed through the open area, and sealed jars had been set down on one side.

It was a space large enough to hold several hundred people. Looking at it, it seemed to be a naturally formed cave that had been refined by human hands.

As Dang Myeong surveyed the surroundings and followed the passage again, the gathered members of the Secret Serpent Unit and the Flat Bat Unit showed quiet respect.

“Young Lord.”

“Young Lord.”

Seeing the Secret Serpent Unit members whisper softly, Dang Myeong looked around and spoke in a low voice.

“Where are the Unit Commanders?”

“They are surveying the outside.”

At the whispered words of the two men, Dang Myeong nodded. After he waited for a moment, the family members began to gather one by one.

The family members gathered with eyes filled with tension and fear. Dang Myeong smiled at them, then waited for Dang Jang and Dang Miryeong to arrive.

When a fair number of people had gathered, Dang Jang and Dang Miryeong appeared.

“How is it?”

“It is Chogu Mountain.”

“Chogu Mountain......”

Dang Myeong was slightly surprised at the name Chogu Mountain. He had thought they must have come far, but Chogu Mountain was a place very far from the Tang Clan.

“There are no Demonic Cult experts visible nearby.”

“Since the main house did not dispatch experts to the Qingcheng Sect and Emei Sect, they are not moving either.”

Dang Myeong spoke quietly, then continued.

“But they are the ones short on time. If we wait, the Demonic Cult experts will soon......”

Dang Myeong bit his lip. It was difficult to say the words, “They will attack the main house.”

Seeing Dang Myeong like that, Dang Jang said,

“We must decide whether to remain here or leave this place.”

Before Dang Myeong could answer Dang Jang, Dang Hong opened his mouth.

“The Clan Lord handed the Flying Heaven Ring over to the Young Lord.”

At Dang Hong’s words, Dang Jang and Dang Miryeong flinched and looked at Dang Myeong. Then, after a brief moment, they gave a Cupped-Fist Salute and bowed their heads.

“I greet the Clan Lord.”

“I greet the Clan Lord.”

Given the situation, their greeting was voiced softly, but the Tang Clan experts’ courtesy was deeply respectful. 

At that sight, Dang Myeong nodded quietly and opened his mouth.

“If the Demonic Cult experts...... attack the main house, we leave.”

“Where will you head?”

“We will go to the Qingcheng Sect.”

He stopped short!

Dang Jang looked at Dang Myeong as though puzzled.

“The Qingcheng Sect......?”

“I know what you are thinking. You believe they will not help us, correct?”

“That is not it...... We did not help the Qingcheng Sect, yet you say we will go there......”

At Dang Jang’s implication that it would be shameless, Dang Myeong went, Ah, and looked at him.

‘Right. Here, we did not send reinforcements to the Qingcheng Sect.’

Because of that, Dang Myeong shook his head.

“We must go to the Qingcheng Sect.”

“What does that mean?”

Dang Myeong looked back. Behind him, the Tang Clan’s family members were gathering.

“The Demonic Cult is trying to annihilate the main house. It is impossible to take this many family members out of here right now.”

At Dang Myeong’s words, Dang Jang looked at the family members and nodded.

“That is why, if the Demonic Cult attacks the main house, I will move the two units, the Secret Serpent Unit and the Flat Bat Unit, to the Qingcheng Sect and make it known that Tang Clan experts are there.”

“You mean...... you intend to turn the Demonic Cult’s attention toward the Qingcheng Sect?”

At Dang Jang’s words, Dang Miryeong looked at the family members as though she understood what he meant.

“And the remaining family members will hide here.”

“Yes. We must be prepared to hide in this place for at least a month.”

“A month...... That is enough time for martial artists from the Central Plains to enter Sichuan Province.”

“The problem is whether this place will be safe for a month.”

Dang Myeong answered Dang Jang’s question.

“If we collapse the entrance, we can buy time. It will be inconvenient, but......”

THUD! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

At the sudden roar that rang out, Dang Myeong turned back. From far away, he could hear a heavy collapsing sound.

Just as Dang Myeong was about to hurry back the way he had come, a masked man in black approached.

“I greet the Clan Lord.”

The masked man was the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit.

“That sound just now?”

“It was the sound of the underground passage entrance collapsing.”

“Already?”

“It was the Grand Clan Lord’s order.”

“Did all the family members enter?”

“I entered last.”

The Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit looked at Dang Myeong and continued speaking.

“The Clan Lord said it would be difficult to lead the family members away. He told you to endure here for one month.”

“Will we have enough time to endure here for a month?”

At Dang Myeong’s question, the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit thought for a moment, then said,

“It is possible.”

The Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit looked at Dang Myeong and continued.

“Because this place was prepared for the Tang Clan.”

“What do you mean?”

“The escape route has collapsed, and there is no longer any path of life in the underground passage.”

At the words that the trap mechanisms had been activated even on the path of life, Dang Myeong sank briefly into thought.

‘Then does that mean we do not have to go to the Qingcheng Sect?’

The Qingcheng Sect...... was not a place he wanted to go.

The sense of betrayal he had felt in his first death had been too great.

Of course, considering what he had experienced as he died, even if the Qingcheng Sect had dispatched experts, they would not have been able to prevent the Tang Clan’s annihilation.

“And there is a message from the Clan Lord.”

The Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit looked steadily at Dang Myeong and said,

“Never treat your life lightly.”

At the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit’s words, Dang Myeong paused for a moment, then sighed and nodded.

“I have received the message clearly.”

Dang Cheondeuk had been worried that, because Dang Myeong might be reborn, he would carelessly give up his life.

After thinking for a moment, Dang Myeong nodded.

“We will not go to the Qingcheng Sect. We will spend one month here.”

“As you command.”

At Dang Myeong’s decision, Dang Jang, Dang Miryeong, and the others all gave Cupped-Fist Salutes and bowed their heads.

“By the way, did we bring any food?”

“There are fasting pills in the jars inside Flying Heaven Cave, and the water flowing through the cave can be used as drinking water.”

At Dang Jang’s words, Dang Myeong nodded and looked at Dang Miryeong.

“Please see to it that the family members can stay here.”

“As you command.”

Dang Miryeong took the family members and returned to the cave called Flying Heaven Cave.

After Dang Miryeong left, Dang Myeong looked at Dang Jang and the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit.

“Uncle Dang Jang, Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit, please guide me.”

“We will.”

After finishing his conversation with the two of them, Dang Myeong paused for a moment, then sighed and ran a hand over his face.

“Hoo!”

The Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit, who had been silently watching Dang Myeong, opened his mouth.

“We captured a Demonic Cultist.”

He stopped short!

At the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit’s words, Dang Myeong looked at him.

“Where did you capture him?”

“He had disguised himself as a soldier on the Chengdu city wall.”

At the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit’s words, Dang Jang said, “If it was Chengdu’s city wall, that is a location from which the main house can be seen.”

“So it was there.”

“As the Clan Lord said, we set the Secret Shadow Unit’s search perimeter four hours  out and searched. That was how we found him.”

At the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit’s answer, Dang Myeong nodded.

“Understood. Then...... Unit Commander Dang Jang, please station experts in the passage. And Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit, please tell me the secrets of the main house that you know.”

“Understood.”

When Dang Jang took the martial artists and entered the passage, the Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit looked at Dang Myeong and said, “Then I will tell you the main house’s secrets.”

The Unit Commander of the Secret Shadow Unit told him the hidden secrets that the Clan Lord of the Sichuan Tang Clan needed to know.

***

FWOOSH! FWOOSH!

The buildings of the Sichuan Tang Clan blazed, belching flames. Around them, acrid smoke and pink smoke rose as well.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

From one side, explosions rang out again and again. The place where the Sichuan Tang Clan’s poisons had been gathered was rupturing, causing explosions.

Dang Cheondeuk stood before the Flying Heaven Pavilion of that Sichuan Tang Clan.

“Huff! Huff!”

Around Dang Cheondeuk, who was breathing roughly, were white-haired old men who were likewise gasping for breath.

They were the Tang Clan elders.

The Tang Clan elders were covered in wounds. And the Great Elder, Dang Pung, was barely standing with one arm severed, using his sword to prop himself against the ground.

Dang Cheondeuk lightly ran his hands over his body.

RUSTLE!

Dang Cheondeuk let out a small sigh. In preparation for fighting the Demonic Cult experts, he had removed bulky hidden weapons like daggers and prepared small hidden weapons like needles.

But he could not feel many hidden weapons remaining.

At that, Dang Cheondeuk glanced around. Around him, Demonic Cultists wearing Night Clothes that looked as though they had been soaked in green liquid were surrounding them.

“Impressive. Truly impressive.”

Someone came out from among those Demonic Cultists. He, too, wore the same clothes as the Demonic Cultists.

“Are you the Right Envoy of Light?”

“You...... know me?”

When the Right Envoy of Light asked in surprise at being recognized despite not a single patch of his skin being exposed, Dang Cheondeuk looked at him and said,

“More or less......”

“Well now...... the Tang Clan’s intelligence network is even more impressive.”

The Right Envoy of Light looked at Dang Cheondeuk, then at the old men behind him.

“Impressive. To think you annihilated three combat units of our cult with just these people. The Tang Clan’s poison, hidden weapons, and mechanisms truly live up to their fame.”

The Right Envoy of Light looked at the Tang Clan experts and said,

“It seems you already evacuated the other family members. Why did you remain?”

“When a nation falls, the people may live, but the king dies. Do you think a clan is any different?”

“This is the Sichuan Tang Clan, with hundreds of years of history. If there were no one to bleed with it when the house of the Sichuan Tang Clan collapses, how lonely would our home be!”

At Dang Cheondeuk and Dang Pung’s words, the Right Envoy of Light looked at them, then clapped lightly.

CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!

“Splendid. As expected of the Sichuan Tang Clan......”

The Right Envoy of Light looked at Dang Cheondeuk and the elders and said,

“Now, then...... die together with the Tang Clan.”

At the Right Envoy of Light’s words, the Demonic Cult experts charged.

Dang Cheondeuk and the elders gathered in a circle and hurled their remaining hidden weapons with all their might.

And the elders began to fall, one by one.