Martial God Black Bird – The Crow Takes Flight – Chapter 167

Chapter 167: Turbulent Waves

“What happened?”

Yeon Ja-ryong asked Baek Mu-ho, who had arrived first.

Instead of answering, Baek Mu-ho pointed to the body on the floor with his eyes.

Mo Eun-cheon, who seemed to have heard his question, opened his mouth with a triumphant look.

“Yeon Ja-ryong, my younger sister killed Four Heavenly Flames.”

Yeon Ja-ryong couldn’t believe his words and examined the body.

As he said, the body lying sprawled out was definitely Four Heavenly Flames.

Furthermore, the sword stuck in Four Heavenly Flames’ side was Mo Eun-ha’s.

‘I can’t believe it even though I’m seeing it with my own eyes.’

Mo Eun-cheon asked Mo Eun-ha, who was sitting with a haggard face, in a proud voice.

“How did you kill Four Heavenly Flames?”

She couldn’t even get up from her seat, as if she was injured.

“I don’t know. When I came to, Four Heavenly Flames was dead next to me.”

Mo Eun-cheon showed a slightly flustered look at Mo Eun-ha’s answer.

“You’re saying you don’t remember even though you stabbed him this deep in the waist with your sword? Ah…… Perhaps you killed Four Heavenly Flames unconsciously. You really don’t remember anything at all?”

As Mo Eun-cheon urged her for an answer, Mo Eun-ha vaguely mumbled her words.

“Before I lost consciousness…… I think I stabbed him with my sword.”

“That’s more like it. You avenged Won Bang-heon. Well done, well done.”

He pushed the narrative that Mo Eun-ha was the one who killed Four Heavenly Flames.

‘She doesn’t remember even though she pierced his chest and side with a sword? That can’t be true.’

Yeon Ja-ryong was certain that another martial artist had killed Four Heavenly Flames.

“How’s Jang Ryong?”

“He seems to be alright. Let’s go in together.”

Baek Mu-ho followed Yeon Ja-ryong inside, and Ak Mun-yeong followed behind.

Jang Ryong was sitting up halfway to greet them.

“Good work. I heard the damage was significant?”

Yeon Ja-ryong nodded with a heavy face.

“As you said, that Overlord guy was a monster I’ve never seen before. It seems like over fifty unit members died.”

The three unit leaders didn’t seem to have any major injuries, but their clothes were torn and bloodstains were visible underneath.

“How did you get hurt?”

At Baek Mu-ho’s question, Jang Ryong looked at his shoulder with a bitter face.

“Four Heavenly Flames got me. I’m lucky to be alive.”

“Mo Eun-ha saved your life too.”

It seemed that Baek Mu-ho believed that Mo Eun-ha had saved Jang Ryong as well.

He chuckled at this.

“Is that so?”

Yeon Ja-ryong, who was examining Jang Ryong’s face, glanced at Kang Dong-jae lying on the opposite side.

“Is Dong-jae still the same?”

“As you can see. But he’ll wake up soon.”

“Haha……”

Yeon Ja-ryong, sensing something from his expression and tone, let out a long, empty laugh.

“I’ve been with you for years, how can I not know when you’re lying?”

“Ah…… As expected, it’s hard to fool Ja-ryong.”

Jang Ryong shook his head with a long sigh.

He had guessed that it would be difficult to deceive Ja-ryong, if no one else.

“What? What is it? What’s the lie?”

Baek Mu-ho, who still hadn’t grasped the situation, looked back and forth between Yeon Ja-ryong and Jang Ryong.

“It means Mo Eun-ha wasn’t the one who killed Four Heavenly Flames.”

Ak Mun-yeong seemed to understand Yeon Ja-ryong’s words.

Her gaze was fixed on Kang Dong-jae, who was sleeping.

Who in this inn could kill Four Heavenly Flames?

No matter how much she thought about it, there was no one but Kang Dong-jae, who was sleeping.

“Keep it a secret. That way, Mo Eun-cheon will return to the Martial Alliance.”

“Whose idea was it?”

Jang Ryong looked at Kang Dong-jae, who was lying down.

“He must have been very tired because he passed out as soon as he lay down.”

“So you’re saying Black Bird killed Four Heavenly Flames?”

Baek Mu-ho exclaimed in surprise belatedly.

Jang Ryong put his finger to his lips.

“Please be quiet. The other unit members will hear you.”

Only then did Baek Mu-ho look around cautiously and ask in a small voice,

“Did Black Bird really kill Four Heavenly Flames?”

“Yes. So please keep it a secret. If you don’t want to sacrifice more unit members, that is.”

◈◈◈

Less than ten Black Tortoise Unit members survived.

Still, Mo Eun-cheon’s complexion was bright.

One of the newly recruited members who barely survived approached him with a dark face.

“Shouldn’t we collect the bodies of the fallen unit members?”

Now that he had some peace of mind, Mo Eun-cheon’s voice and face were extremely gentle.

“The martial arts families of Henan will collect the bodies and send them to the Martial Alliance, so don’t worry. Moreover, there are crows in Henan as well, so they will be looking for the bodies of the unit members to earn silver.”

The new unit member hesitated before expressing his feelings.

“Before I joined the Four Divine Units…… I thought they always returned victorious from battles whenever they were dispatched. But after becoming a member of the Four Divine Units, I realized that wasn’t the case. In this battle against the Divine Cult, I lost all my friends.”

Mo Eun-cheon pretended not to understand the new unit member’s sorrow.

“Thanks to that, haven’t you become a hero? You survived this terrible battle, so your reputation in the martial world will grow.”

The new unit member looked at Mo Eun-cheon with deep, dark eyes.

“Is that how it is?”

“That’s how it is. How do you think heroes are made? They are all made through the sacrifices of their comrades. Yeon Ja-ryong, who has a high reputation in the martial world, also sacrificed countless comrades.”

The new unit member bowed deeply and left the room.

He also had a desire to become a hero.

But he didn’t want to become a hero by stepping on the sacrifices of his friends and colleagues.

◈◈◈

“Straighten your shoulders. We haven’t completely lost the battle yet.”

Yeon Ja-ryong met with each of the Azure Dragon Unit members and lifted their spirits.

Once again, the Azure Dragon Unit had the fewest casualties among the Four Divine Units.

The unit members nodded and smiled.

If Yeon Ja-ryong hadn’t stayed until the end to block the Divine Cult martial artists, more unit members would have died.

After checking on the Azure Dragon Unit members in each room, he came out to the courtyard.

Mo Eun-cheon would soon say it was time to go back.

‘It’s going to be chaos when the Four Divine Units return to the Martial Alliance.’

Elder Won Hwa-gon would be furious about Won Bang-heon’s death.

But since it was established that Mo Eun-ha had assassinated Four Heavenly Flames, her family’s and her own reputation would rise.

‘Since Won Bang-heon wasn’t the only one who died, Elder Won Hwa-gon would have no choice but to suppress his anger.’

As Yeon Ja-ryong was walking around the courtyard, he spotted a unit member squatting in a corner.

That unit member was the only new recruit who had survived this battle.

Yeon Ja-ryong approached him and tapped him on the shoulder.

“What are you doing?”

The new unit member flinched and slowly raised his head.

“All my friends are dead.”

His face was extremely dark.

There was no way to comfort or advise him on this.

He had to realize it himself and get back on his feet.

But Yeon Ja-ryong couldn’t just pass by, so he shared his own story.

“When I first joined the Four Divine Units…… I lost several good friends. I was so heartbroken that I couldn’t even eat for days. So the next time I was dispatched, I did my best to protect my friends. But every time I went out, there was always a friend who died.”

The new unit member listened attentively to Yeon Ja-ryong’s story with his eyes shining.

He was different from Unit Leader Mo Eun-cheon.

“So what did you do?”

“I started to think that the stronger I became, the more friends I could protect. And so I became a unit leader. When we return to the Martial Alliance, you’ll meet other friends. You become strong and protect those friends. Ah…… Don’t overdo it though. If you overdo it, you’ll die before you can protect your friends.”

After finishing his story, Yeon Ja-ryong patted the new unit member on the shoulder once more and left.

‘He’s a different kind of person. Now I understand why the unit members praise him.’

The new unit member watched his retreating figure, lost in thought.

Yeon Ja-ryong was a giant.

‘Can I become like him?’

◈◈◈

Overlord entered a small village inhabited by shifting cultivators.

As he entered the village carrying his large axe, the villagers were terrified and fled into their homes.

He sauntered into the village and entered the most dilapidated house.

Creak……

As Overlord entered the yard, the door opened and an old man peeked his face out.

His eyes, as he examined the large axe and Overlord’s face, trembled like a sailboat caught in a storm.

“Finally…… Finally, you have emerged into the martial world. I greet Overlord.”

The old man rushed out and knelt before Overlord, prostrating himself.

“Are you ready to become the overlord of the martial world?”

“Though my abilities are meager…… I have completed my preparations.”

The old man was the first master Overlord encountered when he entered the martial world.

He had withstood Overlord’s axe twice.

Overlord, finding this commendable, spared his life and took him as a subordinate.

However, due to encountering the Southern Heavenly Blade Emperor, he had to spend twenty years by the lakeside instead of becoming the overlord of the martial world.

Overlord had vowed to return in twenty years as he retreated to the lakeside.

And now he had come to find him.

“How many have you gathered?”

“A little over fifty.”

“I don’t need riffraff.”

“They are all masters who have made a name for themselves in the martial world.”

Overlord was very pleased.

“Call them in.”

“As you command.”

Upon receiving the order, the old man hurried to prepare for departure.

He was a vicious bandit, known as White Bone Demon （白骨魔） in the martial world over twenty years ago.

◈◈◈

Rattle…… Rattle……

His body swayed and the sound of cart wheels rolling could be heard.

As he opened his eyes blearily, Jang Ryong, who was leaning against the cart, spoke to him.

“You’re awake?”

“Where are we?”

“We’re on our way back to the Martial Alliance.”

“Did things go well?”

Chuckle chuckle chuckle……

“They went so well that it’s a problem. Mo Eun-ha’s reputation is about to surpass yours.”

“That’s good.”

“Tsk……”

Jang Ryong even clicked his tongue.

“Aren’t you even a little upset?”

“The higher you climb, the greater the impact when you fall.”

His eyes filled with questions at my answer.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Haha…… I was just talking about the futility of fame.”

Jang Ryong didn’t ask any further, as if he was thinking the same thing as me.

“The Mo Family will use their family’s power to make Mo Eun-ha a hero of the martial world. Maybe she’ll even be called the Sword Empress （劍后） at such a young age.”

“Since she killed Four Heavenly Flames, it’s only natural that she would be called the Sword Empress.”

“Matchmakers from families who think they’re something will be constantly visiting the Mo Family. They’ve really hit the jackpot.”

As if hearing his laughter, Yeon Ja-ryong approached the cart and hopped on.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m good. What happened to Overlord?”

“As you said, he was a truly monstrously strong individual. Over fifty unit members died because of him.”

It wasn’t that surprising.

Yeon Ja-ryong continued speaking.

“The martial world is buzzing about Overlord right now. The rumor that he single-handedly repelled the Four Divine Units has spread. Some people are even calling him the best under heaven, surpassing Alliance Leader Yeon Cheon-yu.”

I was quite surprised by his words.

I even wondered if this was what Overlord was aiming for.

“What’s Overlord doing now?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t make any moves until the Four Divine Units withdrew from Henan.”

I recalled Overlord’s words when he was acting arrogantly by the lakeside.

“Overlord wanted to become the overlord of the martial world. He’s not someone who would be someone’s subordinate or follow orders.”

“So you’re saying Overlord will leave the Divine Cult and build his own power?”

“Probably.”

Yeon Ja-ryong tilted his head with a dubious look.

“Would that be possible?”

◈◈◈

As Yeon Ja-ryong said, the martial world was abuzz with rumors about Overlord.

In every inn they stopped at, people talked about Overlord, and there were even martial artists who wanted to join his ranks.

“Since he faced the unit leaders of the Four Divine Units alone, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call him the best under heaven.”

“That’s right. Even Alliance Leader Yeon Cheon-yu of the Martial Alliance wouldn’t be able to face the unit leaders of the Four Divine Units alone.”

“Rumor has it that Kang Dong-jae, who was called Black Bird, was also defeated by Overlord and is bedridden.”

“Really? Where did you hear that?”

“I heard merchants who left Henan talking about it.”

The rumors, spreading from mouth to mouth, shook Yangyang even before the Four Divine Units arrived at the Martial Alliance.