It’s Time To Wake Up From The Dream. (3)

“Reporting! The Ten Thousand People Clan’s forces escorting Hegemony Lord Jang Ilso’s carriage have crossed Ma’anshan and are nearly at Nanjing!”

“Elder! The Black Ghost Fort that moved from the Hangzhou direction has reached the vicinity of Nanjing!”

“Pirates! A fleet of the Yangtze Pirates has reached near Nanjing, report!”

As urgent reports poured in, the beggars surrounding the map reached out. The markers placed on the map were hastily moved.

Cold sweat ran down the back of the King Crow Neung Sam, who was staring at the map. Black, red, and blue markers were closing in, as if encircling a single point on the map.

Nanjing. The place the Heavenly Friends Alliance, having crossed the river, had taken as their retreat… no, the only place they could use as a retreat.

The place the Heavenly Friends Alliance rushed to in order to rescue Mount Hua’s Sword Saint is a terrain blocked by enormous lakes: Shijiu Lake to the left and Changdang Lake to the right.

To escape from there, they had no option but to head north toward Nanjing.

And right now the Ten Thousand People Clan, Black Ghost Fort, and the Pirates were blocking that sole retreat.

‘Oh no!’

If they really arrived first and sealed off the retreat, the Heavenly Friends Alliance would have no hope. They would never be able to cross the Yangtze.

“Heavenly Friends Alliance! What happened to them? Still no contact?”

“We are doing our best right now, but…”

“Don’t just flap your mouths, do something! Now!”

“B-but the movements of those in the Southern lands are…”

KRAAAASH!

Neung Sam struck the table with the map down with all his force.

“You…!”

The murderous intent he exhaled made the faces of the beggars blanch in an instant.

“If you value your lives so much, why did you crawl into the Beggars’ Union! Are you the disciples of the Righteous Blood Beggars’ Union? If you live on handouts and then hesitate over your lives when needed, don’t you know you’re nothing but lowly beggar scum!”

At those words, the members of the Information Hall dropped their heads.

“Send orders again, at once!”

“Yes, Elder.”

At that moment the door burst open with a bang and a beggar rushed in.

“Elder! Shaolin! A message from the Shaolin Abbott!”

“Beop Jeong?”

A flash of displeasure crossed Neung Sam’s face for a moment. He quickly composed himself and spoke.

“Speak.”

“We must re-check the identities of those gathering at Nanjing! No matter what sacrifices it takes!”

“Goddamn it! Who doesn’t know that? Aren’t we already doing that?”

“N-no, it’s not that! They say we must check whether there are others besides the ones already revealed!”

“…What?”

“They say if the Hegemony Lord predicted this situation, he would surely have hidden one more move. We must re-verify whether the forces we’ve identified are truly their full strength.”

“…One more move?”

Neung Sam’s face went blank for a moment. Then his complexion turned deathly pale. Frozen as if he’d seen a ghost, he hurriedly looked at the map.

“Here… is there something more here?”

Impossible. Absolutely impossible. Hadn’t the Four Sects Alliance already mobilized every force they could?

Except for the Lower District Sect, which is too far to arrive in time, the sects that make up the Four Sects Alliance had all assembled.

But what if that were possible?

If the Four Sects Alliance’s strength was greater than they believed?

Sweat poured down Neung Sam’s face like rain.

Once a disparity in strength appears, it multiplies exponentially.

If equally matched fighters fought one-on-one, both sides would be battered, but if it becomes one-versus-many, the side lacking numbers won’t even be able to properly strike before getting pummeled.

This principle holds in military strategy as well. If the difference in forces exceeds twofold, the stronger side’s losses drop drastically while the weaker side’s losses grow even greater.

But if the forces gathering at Nanjing are larger than they thought? If they exceed the Heavenly Friends Alliance’s strength by several times?

‘It’s all over.’

The Heavenly Friends Alliance would be annihilated without even inflicting significant damage on the Four Sects Alliance. Then only the Nine Great Sects would be left to face the Four Sects Alliance, whose morale would be soaring.

The only reason the Nine Great Sects had managed to keep some margin against the Four Sects Alliance so far was one: the combined strength of the Heavenly Friends Alliance and the Nine Great Sects was superior to the Four Sects Alliance.

But if the Heavenly Friends Alliance were to utterly collapse, the martial world would be dragged into a terrible chaos no one could predict.

It would quite literally set the world ablaze.

“Impossible… It’s absolutely impossible to pull together that much force suddenly. At least another Nine Great Sects-level force would be needed… where on earth could such people be?”

“Elder!”

Neung Sam, who had been murmuring in a daze, flinched and nodded.

“Tell the beggar bastards waiting across the river to cross it! They must comb the area around Nanjing as if raking it! Check if the enemy has hidden forces!”

“But Elder! If we do that, the beggars will all die.”

“I know, so tell them to cross the river immediately! If they can’t, then we must help them ourselves!”

“B-but Elder, you don’t have the authority to…”

Neung Sam glared at the insubordinate man with murderous eyes.

“Since when have the Beggars’ Union waited for orders to practice righteousness? Since when?”

“…”

“If they’ve laid a trap, the Heavenly Friends Alliance is finished! Not only the Heavenly Friends Alliance, but the entire world will be set alight! Don’t you understand?”

Under those heavy words, the hesitant subordinate finally nodded.

“…Understood.”

“Hurry, now!”

“Yes!”

Watching the beggar rush out, Neung Sam clenched his jaw until the muscles stood out.

‘It is just worry. It’s practically impossible.’

It was impossible to muster that much force in a short time. And if someone had such strength, hiding it so thoroughly until now would be even less plausible. Where in the world would someone have that patience?

Yet there was one reason Neung Sam couldn’t shake the creeping unease.

‘If it’s the Hegemony Lord.’

That single word from Beop Jeong’s message wouldn’t leave his mind.

A thing no one else could do.

But if it was the Hegemony Lord, could he do it?

The man who toyed with the world might have predicted all this and laid a trap from which no one could escape.

“…Damn it.”

Neung Sam muttered a curse under his breath and stared intently at Nanjing on the map.

If they finished preparations quickly and blocked the Heavenly Friends Alliance’s path, Nanjing would be stained red with the blood of the Heavenly Friends Alliance.

‘Alliance Leader, please… please hurry. Please!’

❀ ❀ ❀

“Hurry!”

Hyun Jong shouted until his throat was raw. At his command, the Heavenly Friends Alliance members gritted their teeth and ran.

They knew it, no matter how fast they ran, they couldn’t avoid engaging the enemy.

Southern lands, controlled by the Four Sects Alliance, wasn’t lenient enough to easily spare those who marched in brazenly. There would surely be forces holding the retreat.

But even if they couldn’t avoid battle, they could reduce the number of opponents. If they could reach the river before the Four Sects Alliance fully assembled.

“Leader! Southern Island! Southern Island Sect is falling behind!”

“No!”

A suppressed groan escaped Hyun Jong’s lips.

He understood. They’d already exceeded their limit. Unlike the Heavenly Friends Alliance, which had crossed the Yangtze not long ago, Southern Island had already fought through the Southern lands, making it remarkable they’d come this far.

But understanding didn’t ease his frustration.

“Those with strength left, carry Southern Island’s disciples on your backs, now!”

“Yes!”

Mount Hua’s disciples rushed backward and hoisted the Southern Island’s disciples, who were in front of them, almost as if bumping into them.

“I’m fine!”

Startled Southern Island Sect’s disciples pushed at shoulders and protested reflexively, but Mount Hua’s disciples held them tighter.

“Damn it! This is no time for pride!”

“Ugh…”

In the end, Southern Island Sect’s disciples allowed themselves to be carried. This was definitely not the time for pride. If Southern Island Sect slowed them and caused them to be surrounded, pride would mean nothing.

“This way!”

“We’ll help too!”

“Move aside, city gentlemen! Strength is the specialty of the Beast Palace!”

Not only Mount Hua but members from other sects who had energy left rushed in and hoisted the Southern Island Sect’s disciples.

Seeing that, Hyun Jong gritted his teeth and stamped the ground.

‘Soon! Any moment now!’

Fortunately, they weren’t caught from behind by the remaining Ten Thousand People Clan pursuers. At this rate, they could reach the Yangtze without a major engagement.

“Squeeze out your last strength!”

Baek Cheon, carried on Hyun Jong’s back as he urged the disciples, weakly raised a hand to cover his mouth as a cough escaped.

“Cough, cough.”

Black blood from the cough stained his hand. With blurred vision, Baek Cheon looked at his hand and silently drew it into his sleeve, clenching his fist to hide it.

“Are you okay?”

In response to Hyun Jong’s question, Baek Cheon forced a nod as if he were fine.

“…I’m fine.”

“Hold on a little longer. The Yangtze is just ahead!”

“…Yes.”

A bitter smile formed at Baek Cheon’s mouth. Hyun Jong kept pushing his innate qi into him, but Baek Cheon’s body, like a cracked vessel, simply leaked it away.

‘The others…’

Baek Cheon turned his head to check on his fellow sahyung.

Given their conditions, they could have let go of consciousness, but each of them was desperately trying to hold onto awareness.

They knew it too, their fates would soon be decided.

Wasn’t it said, do all you can, then await heaven’s decree?

They had done everything possible. No, even the impossible. So now all they could do was entrust themselves to heaven.

If heaven did not forsake them, if it understood even a bit of their efforts, it would have left at least a chance for survival.

Otherwise it would be too cruel.

“Alliance Leader, it’s close now! Once we pass that hill, we’ll see the Yangtze!”

Tang Gunak’s shout turned everyone’s gaze forward. A long hill stretched ahead; pass that and they’d reach the Yangtze.

Then at last this dreadful journey would end.

‘Please!’

Baek Cheon bit his lip hard.

He didn’t ask for much. Wishing there’d be no enemies at all ahead would be absurdly naive.

He wished for only one thing!

That the enemy not be too numerous. That there be only as many enemies as could be cleared by sacrificing this single life.

“Keep going!”

Hyun Jong urged his disciples and ran on.

The dense forest thinned and brushed past them. The crest of the high hill approached them in an instant.

‘Please!’

Had he ever felt such desperation? Such urgency?

‘Heavenly Lord!’

Hyun Jong prayed and prayed again.

If the Heavenly Lord truly watched over them, if the one who had so long neglected Mount Hua despite resenting it existed, then at least in this moment watch over them. Don’t ignore this plea.

If a price in the name of karma were demanded, let an old life suffice.

“Alliance Leader!”

Hyun Jong slammed his foot into the ground with all his strength.

At the crest of the not-so-high hill, where earth met sky, Hyun Jong rose and finally looked at the scene spread out below.

What first entered his sight was an immense river, so vast it would be more fitting to call it a sea.

His gaze slowly shifted downward.

The broad land stretching to the Yangtze was dyed black and red.

What, at that moment, could that mean?

Hyun Jong’s legs buckled with despair and he staggered.

“Ah… ahh…”

Every patch of land in sight was filled with people. The road to the Yangtze was packed with bodies.

It was despair by the name of the enemy.