The Regressor of Mount Hua
Chapter 399. Dark Heavens Vanguard (3)

Chapter 399. Dark Heaven's Vanguard (3)

The Yangtze River, known for its strong currents, was useless in front of the Imoogi.

It was foolish of Zhou Xuchuan to leave the Imoogi, also known as the God of Water, behind and try to brave the waters with just his body.

As expected, the Imoogi was incredibly fast.

They moved beneath the surface, not above it, in order to avoid detection by the Dark Heavens Association's surveillance network.

Thanks to his water immersion art, Zhou Xuchuan could hold his breath for as long as needed and had the physique to endure the pressure of the deep water, so that part wasn’t a problem.

It's good that the southern front ended so easily, but I'm concerned that I didn't see any of the executives.

Zhou Xuchuan sat cross-legged on the Imoogi's head. Strangely, he didn’t budge, as if something held him in place, even though they were speeding along underwater.

Even if the Dark Heavens Association Lord or Blessed Existence are located at their base, the headquarters in Hefei, it bothers me that I can't see Tang Mingren.

The Poison Dragon of the Righteous Faction, and the Avaricious Wolf of the Dark Heavens Association.

Tang Mingren.

Just thinking about him made Zhou Xuchuan’s heart waver.

While Tang Mingren's poison arts are one thing, his intellect is also extraordinary.

He has been deceiving the Righteous Faction, no, the murim, for a long time.

It wasn't for nothing that he had taken on the darkness of the Righteous Faction.

If they didn't come to the south, then they should be in the north.

He uncrossed his arms and placed his hand on the Imoogi's head.

I guess I should pick up the pace.

He conveyed his intention to the Imoogi to speed up.

***

As the monsoon clouds cleared, the heat lifted.

The sun that had scorched the earth faded. The cool breeze that brushed through one’s hair made the body feel lighter. However, the atmosphere on the northern front was nothing like that breeze. The air here was thick with tension from the battle ahead and as intense and heavy as the heat of midsummer.

A vast field stretched into the distance. But instead of the sun rising on the horizon, dark waves rolled forward in steady formation.

It was the Northern Army of the Dark Heavens Association.

If the Southern Army was made up mostly of opportunists and defectors from the Righteous and Evil Factions, the Northern Army was the exact opposite.

They were either private soldiers who had been trained long ago by Destructive Soldier, a former imperial military official, or were elites who had pledged loyalty for several or even dozens of years to the cause, rather than the martial artists persuaded and mobilized for the purpose of strengthening power like in recent times.

Perhaps that was why their movements were unusual.

Of course, every gesture and footstep was filled with discipline, and they took each step in unison, as if they were one body.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The warriors of the Dark Heavens Association advanced like seasoned soldiers. Had they been wearing armor, the clanking would have echoed off the land. Instead, it was their synchronized footsteps that rang out. When the Northern Army of the Dark Heavens Association advanced, the ground trembled as if there was an earthquake.

Rumble!

Seeing them up close would have overwhelmed most people.

The grass that once danced in the breeze now lay flattened. Every step left the weight of a mountain behind.

No one spoke. But their eyes burned fiercely. The silence only made the heat feel hotter, as if their passion itself was setting the air on fire.

"Ha..."

A beggar of the Beggar Gang stuck out his tongue at the sight in front of him.

"I'm getting goosebumps."[1]

The beggars hid themselves in holes they had dug in advance to avoid prying eyes.

It was impossible to completely hide due to the nature of the plains, but as long as the enemy stayed at a distance, the hiding spots served their purpose.

"Those bastards are moving."

"I saw it just now too. It looked like some kind of army."

"No, that's not it. They've split."

"What?"

One of the beggars suddenly sat up and stuck his head above the ground. He shielded his eyes with his hand, squinting at the horizon. Then, just for a moment, he used a vision art to sharpen his sight.

He exhaled with relief after confirming that the Northern Army had divided into two groups.

"Whew, thank the heavens. Let's use a traversing art, get out of here and report back quickly. I don’t like where this is heading."[2]

The beggars retreated using their traversing arts, and as soon as they reached a certain distance, they used a lightness art to return to the unit.

"They're finally moving."

Tang Hui raised her head while wiping her butterfly-shaped hidden weapon.

"We'll check how they reorganized and their objectives once again before going to battle."

The Northern Alliance forces were reorganized. The names were decided as the Northern Upper Army and the Northern Lower Army based on their locations.

"Five hundred under the Martial Alliance banner, nine hundred from the Gold Will Sword Sect, and two hundred and five hundred from the Tang Family and the Peng Family respectively. Then, a hundred from the Mount Hua Sect and three hundred from the Zhongnan Sect for a total of two thousand five hundred. Our commander is Patriarch Peng Zihu, and I, the Poison Phoenix Tang Hui, will serve as the adjutant."

Since this was something that had already been decided previously, there were no objections.

"To avoid being detected by Blessed Existence, we’ll press forward early. When we reach the middle of the battlefield, we’ll stage a retreat and lure them into the traps. If anyone has doubts about the plan, speak now."

None of the leaders said anything.

Tang Hui placed a hand on the table and issued a warning.

"If you’re holding back questions because of pride, then don’t bother joining the fight. I had to ask the Mechanism Dragon and his aides to explain parts of the traps I didn’t understand. So if you feel even slightly uncertain, speak up."

"We'll keep that in mind."

"Everyone, good luck."

After finishing the strategy meeting, Tang Hui entered her personal barracks to prepare and do maintenance.

"You've worked hard."

Tang Hui frowned as soon as she opened the tent.

"Oh my. You don't look so good. What's wrong?"

"It seems like you don't get along well with your sect, Duan Unnie. Or, was it that you got kicked out because you were a pain in the ass?" Tang Hui growled softly at Duan Lihua.

"How could that be the case~"

As expected of Duan Lihua, she didn't even blink at Tang Hui's harsh words and showed a relaxed appearance. The way she shrugged her shoulders was somehow incredibly annoying.

"I figured maybe you got excommunicated because of your awful personality. But if that’s not it, what brings you to the north? Shouldn’t you be down south with the Qingcheng Sect?"

"To prod a point."[3]

Duan Lihua ran her hand over her scabbard.

"What are you talking about?" Tang Hui glared at her with a cold look and asked.

Her expression seemed to say, 'What the hell are you talking about?'

Duan Lihua smiled bashfully, lowering her gaze as if embarrassed. It was impossible to tell if she was being sincere or not.

"Well, I just wanted to check out the Sword God's size and length."

"W-wha-what!" Tang Hui shouted.

She looked completely different from the cold-hearted adjutant from before. Her long eyelashes fluttered, and her cheeks turned red.

Her pupils shook violently.

Duan Lihua covered her mouth with a sleeve and burst out laughing at the sight of Tang Hui’s flustered reaction.

That pervert is teasing me again!

Tang Hui was furious at being teased by Duan Lihua, but she forced herself to cool down and regain composure.

That woman just enjoys making me flustered.

Duan Lihua's intentions were obvious.

Tang Hui decided not to react at all, thinking that the more flustered she was, the more that woman enjoyed it.

"Oh my, oh my. What did you just imagine, Poison Phoenix?"

"If you’re going to keep throwing those ridiculous puns at me, just stop already."

Tang Hui snorted, finding it absurd.

"It's obvious, you mean to say that you want to fight Zhou Xuchuan again to broaden your horizons? That's probably it."

"No, but I meant it sexually?"

Duan Lihua rubbed her hand holding the scabbard up and down.

"Cough, cough!"

Tang Hui coughed as if something had gone down the wrong pipe. Duan Lihua burst out laughing again at the sight, so hard that it seemed her abdominal muscles might give out.

"What are you doing..."

Just as Tang Hui was about to turn into a demonic rakshasa, the tent opened and a young man in his late twenties came in.

His hair was messy and spread out in all directions, and his eyes looked half-closed, as if he was sleepy.

His clothes were messy, marking him clearly as someone from the Beggar Gang, yet there was something oddly clean about him. Maybe it was his pale skin or unexpectedly handsome face.

"Beggar Dragon? How long has it been since I've seen your face?" Duan Lihua greeted him with a faint smile.

"Your eloquence is still the same, Noonim."

Not only Duan Lihua, but also Tang Hui was familiar with the Beggar Gang's Dragon, Chai Lia, a warrior that was one of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes.

"This is not the time to be like this," Chai Lia sighed deeply as if grumbling.

"What is it?"

Tang Hui's face returned to the cold expression she always had.

"The speed of the Northern Dark Heavens Army's advance is faster than expected."

"This really is not the time."

Tang Hui frowned.

***

The commander of the Northern Upper Army was Peng Zihu.

The Northern Lower Army commander was Shin Shen Daoyun.

Agh... to think I'm the person in charge of the front lines again!

Shen Daoyun gritted his teeth and groaned inwardly.

Since things had come to this, he had intended to remain by Peng Zihu's side as a commanding advisor and adjutant, but even that had been a pipe dream.

He had originally intended to hand this position over to Hong Jin, the abbot of the Shaolin Temple, but he was recommended to be commander because he had a lot of experience, even if his martial arts skills were weak.

It was good in the sense of being a promotion, but it wasn't that great for someone who had already experienced the front lines so much.

Five hundred members of the Martial Alliance, nine hundred members of the Beggar Gang, one hundred of the Gold Will Sword Sect, six hundred members of the Ximen Family, and three hundred members of the Shaolin Temple, totalling two thousand four hundred.

Still, as a competent commander, he did what he had to do.

He memorized the operation details in his head. He checked them over several times so that he wouldn't forget. He prepared countermeasures by recalling and memorizing each deployed member and their characteristics.

"They're coming," one of his guards said.

"Yes, I can see it."

He pushed down the complaints that were ready to spill out of him and looked straight ahead.

"Three thousand."

"How fast."

The Temperance Staff Beggar, Sun Yishan, was impressed.

"It's nothing special."

Knowing the number of troops was an essential skill for a commander.

In fact, even if one wasn't a commander, in an environment like Guizhou where enemies swarm at any moment, one had no choice but to be fast at counting.

"Four thousand to the mechanisms?" Ximen Erjin muttered with concern.

"It's close, but it'll be okay." Shen Daoyun reassured Ximen Erjin.

He didn't think it would be split exactly in half.

Even if the difference in troops was a thousand, there are cases where the average force is adjusted to form an organization. He had expected this much.

"Prepare for battle..."

Shen Daoyun stopped mid-sentence.

W-what the hell?

His eyes widened slowly.

That... that can't be. No, it can't.

The hand that had been raised above his head began to tremble slightly. There was anxiety in his eyes.

Shen Daoyun had better eyesight than most people. Compared to the northern barbarians, his ability to track was at its peak.

It was thanks to training while looking at the battlefield for a long time.

And when he used his qi befitting a martial artist, his eyesight became so sharp that he could be considered the best in the world.

Because of that, he was able to see the group of Dark Heavens soldiers in more detail than the martial arts masters next to him.

The problem was that there was a face that shouldn't have been there.

The sky was cloudless.

But it felt strangely gloomy.

It was still early for dusk, yet it felt dark.

A shadow passed over the plains. It wasn't a cloud. It was a dark shadow and wave made of people.

"Do you know why the leaders, often the greatest of the murim, don't stand at the forefront of a battle?"

Then, a middle-aged man opened his mouth.

"Qín Zéi Qín Wáng. If you want to capture the enemy, you have to capture the leader first. If the leader is captured, the entire army will collapse. Therefore, the leader and the head of the force, even if he is the strongest, must hide himself."

A deep smile spread across the middle-aged man's lips.

"However..."

The man, the master of the dark heavens, continued speaking.

"If you don't get taken down, then isn't that all there is to that concern?"

The one standing in front was neither a private nor a general.

"Now, if you can stop me, then do it."

The Vanguard, the Dark Heavens Association Lord.

1. In Korean, instead of goosebumps, your entire body shakes. ☜

2. Technically, a crawling art, but this type of art is sort of like swimming through dirt/crawling across the dirt to not be seen. ☜

3. This literally means to provoke, but it also means perverse. So she's making a pun and teasing Tang Hui. ☜