CHAPTER 397: GREAT ESCAPE (3)

The Rectification Gang is a subordinate organization under High Spirit Palace.

Since it officially belongs to the main sect, it held a status that could dominate ordinary wandering swordsmen.

But that doesn’t mean they were truly the elite of the Demon Cult.

Compared to the Peak realm masters like the Sky Sealing Blood Wolf Unit of the True Demon Palace, all of whom were Peak realm masters or above, the Rectification Gang was far inferior.

Therefore, normally they managed passage and collected tributes for the Divine Demon Bridge.

Though they were just money-hungry thugs, things were different now.

High Spirit Palace was engulfed in flames.

It was not a natural fire.

Orders were delivered by the fastest means.

They were to seal off the Divine Demon Bridge and search for suspicious individuals.

This order came directly from the High Spirit Palace Lord, Demon Brain.

The leader of the Rectification Gang, who had been staying in Sky Shattering Island to avoid war, was shocked.

He had been sprawled drunk in a large pavilion but immediately dressed and rushed to the Divine Demon Bridge here.

Even amidst this, he thought to himself.

‘I don’t know which madman it is, but they won’t come here, right?’

They didn’t know who set fire to High Spirit Palace.

But if they had any sense, they wouldn’t come to the Divine Demon Bridge, which was surely sealed off.

And even if they came, they would have turned back seeing the Rectification Gang’s warriors densely blocking the way.

Therefore, until a carriage slowly approached, he thought it might not be a big deal.

“What is that? Stop it.”

He ordered his subordinates irritably.

The subordinate quickly drew his sword and threatened the carriage.

But the carriage did not stop.

A madman sitting on the driver’s seat struck the horse’s rump, causing the carriage to rush forward wildly.

The subordinate who stepped forward threw himself away in a disgraceful manner to avoid the carriage.

The Rectification Gang Leader also realized the situation.

They came, those madmen.

The madmen who set fire to High Spirit Palace and stole the cult’s sacred relic.

They had come to break through the Divine Demon Bridge head-on.

This was something the Rectification Gang Leader could not understand at all.

He did not know that Yi-gang’s greatest goal was to send his younger brother and the later disciples back to the Central Plains.

“Shoot!”

They shot arrows.

Titi-ting!

Another madman deflected them with a sword.

The movement was extraordinary, chilling the Rectification Gang Leader’s heart.

“What are you doing! Stop them!”

The carriage had not yet fully accelerated.

If the warriors ran, they could block the carriage.

At that moment, a young man drawing his sword shouted.

“Get out of the way!”

The majestic True Qi contained in that Lion’s Roar.

The Rectification Gang warriors trying to block the carriage flinched in surprise.

Yi-gang, sword drawn, rampaged like a beast among them.

The Rectification Gang Leader realized the danger.

At his signal, a subordinate took out a firecracker from his bosom and shot it into the sky.

Piiiiik - Pung!

It was a firecracker used within the cult.

The red and yellow colors combined signaled a ‘request for support.’

The gang leader realized that the rampaging Yi-gang was at least a Transcendent master.

And if he lost them, as the person in charge here, he would not escape death.

The Rectification Gang Leader stepped forward himself.

“Defend the Divine Demon Bridge with your lives!”

The Rectification Gang Leader leapt up boldly.

Peak realm masters of squad leader rank followed.

“You guys, kill the big guy pushing that carriage!”

Two squad leaders obeyed the leader’s order and ran toward Gal Dong-tak, who was pushing the carriage.

The gang leader expected his subordinates to kill Gal Dong-tak instantly.

But the result was completely different.

Gal Dong-tak, pushing the carriage, pulled out an axe from inside and swung it fiercely.

In an instant, it severed one man’s neck and smashed another’s chest.

“Uooooh!”

Then he roared and pushed the carriage even harder.

The carriage’s speed was gradually increasing.

The Rectification Gang Leader gritted his teeth and charged at Yi-gang in front of the carriage.

His weapon was a saw-toothed jagged blade.

He swung it at Yi-gang, who was clearing the way for the carriage.

The jagged blade flashed brilliantly.

Kagak!

But in an instant, Yi-gang raised Shooting Star Fang and blocked the Rectification Gang Leader’s jagged blade.

There was neither haste nor strain in that defense.

From just one exchange, the gang leader instinctively sensed his opponent was the superior master.

His guts turned cold.

He instinctively ducked his head.

Swish—

A white sword blade brushed past where the back of his head had just been.

The hair on the back of his head was cut off, revealing his scalp clearly.

The Rectification Gang Leader swung the jagged blade fiercely.

The fierce strike stirred a whirlwind, so Yi-gang stepped back slightly instead of meeting it head-on.

In a life-or-death fight, such flashy moves inevitably create openings.

Normally, Yi-gang would not have missed that opening and would have pierced the gang leader’s chest.

But now, the Rectification Gang Leader was not alone.

Clatter!

His subordinates threw iron chains to block the carriage’s advance.

If the horse’s legs got caught and it fell, the carriage would be finished.

Knowing this, Yi-gang could not just let it pass.

He swung his sword and cut all the chains.

Thanks to that, the Rectification Gang Leader bought some time.

“They’re dangerous! Block their path! Don’t let them escape! Reinforcements are coming!”

The usually brutal Rectification Gang Leader showed a defensive attitude.

But that made him even more threatening.

「We must break the enemy commander first to cause confusion!」

Zhang Sanfeng advised.

Yi-gang was already thinking the same.

He stepped back a step and charged at the Rectification Gang Leader who was watching for an opportunity.

Shwaaak!

Yi-gang’s lightness technique using the secret art of light footwork was miraculous even here in Sky Shattering Island.

It was a speed too fast for the Rectification Gang Leader, who wielded a heavy jagged blade, to handle.

Yi-gang succeeded in striking the Rectification Gang Leader’s weak spot.

Shooting Star Fang’s teeth sank into the Rectification Gang Leader’s thigh.

“Kuh!”

The Rectification Gang Leader spun his body and retreated.

He must not be allowed to live; now that the chance was seized, he had to be finished.

It was the moment Yi-gang was about to strike the Rectification Gang Leader’s neck.

“Save the Leader!”

His subordinates did not stay still.

Thick iron chains flew toward Yi-gang from all directions this time.

Yi-gang withdrew his thrusting sword and unfolded the absorption technique.

The flying chains tangled with his sword, making a loud noise.

Chains thrown by three people were all tied up with Yi-gang’s sword.

A three-to-one struggle ensued.

Normally, Yi-gang would be pulled away.

“Hup!”

Yi-gang’s power, enhanced by the secret art of light footwork, was enough to overwhelm even a three-to-one struggle.

Those who failed to release the chains from their hands were bounced away.

The lucky ones just rolled over the bridge, but the rest fell into the river, splashing water everywhere.

The Rectification Gang Leader retreated with a terrified expression.

Yi-gang glared at him and grabbed a chain that had lost its owner.

Then he threw it toward the carriage running past him.

The iron chain flew straight like a snake hunting prey.

And Peng Mu-ah, who was standing on the carriage roof blocking a Demon Cult member climbing up.

She caught the chain.

Peng Mu-ah stabbed her sword into the carriage roof and fixed her body.

Yi-gang trusted Peng Mu-ah, pulled the chain, and launched himself.

Yi-gang soared.

While he leapt several meters, the Demon Cult members did not leave the soaring Yi-gang alone.

Dozens of arrows aimed at Yi-gang alone.

However, White Fang seemed alive, spinning around Yi-gang and deflecting the arrows.

He dodged spears thrust with arrows and cut spear shafts with his sword tip.

When someone stabbed with a sharp giant blade, he lightly stepped on it.

The sword tip of the giant blade could not pierce Yi-gang’s sole and instead broke off.

Yi-gang succeeded in climbing onto the carriage.

The carriage gained acceleration.

The Divine Demon Bridge was not yet completely sealed off.

The Rectification Gang and Demon Cult members had only camped at the Sky Shattering Island entrance to block, but beyond the river, the Divine Demon Bridge was actually empty.

Yi-gang jumped off the carriage and ran alongside.

Yi-gang, Go Yo-ja, Gal Dong-tak.

Ha Jun, Peng Mu-ah, Noh Shik, and three Kunlun Sect disciples.

There were nine people in total.

Those on the carriage were the four Kunlun Sect disciples including the injured No shik, with Dam Hyun as the driver.

Gal Dong-tak was still pushing the carriage with his brute strength, sharing the burden with the horses.

The rest were using lightness skill at a speed not falling behind the carriage.

‘At this rate, it might be possible…’

Exiting Sky Shattering Island head-on was not an easy task.

The Demon Cult would surely send pursuers.

But the Demon Cult’s situation was not very relaxed now.

If they could just get out and ride horses to the Great Desert… now that the Windstorm Unit roaming the Great Desert was eliminated, escape might be possible.

Moreover, they obtained important information.

Peng Mu-ah and the Kunlun disciples heard information from someone recently captured from the Martial Alliance.

It was said that the Orthodox-Unorthodox Alliance, having received a letter from Yi-gang, sent a rescue team to the Demon Cult.

They probably couldn’t enter Sky Shattering Island, but if they could join them, they could return safely.

Yi-gang thought so fast his head felt hot.

He looked to the side.

There, his younger brother was running.

His physical condition was abnormal. Normally, he should have been collapsed inside the carriage, yet he was running like that.

His face was twisted in pain.

His pretending to be fine was clearly seen by Yi-gang.

While running, Yi-gang suddenly felt a strange sensation.

The current situation of fleeing from Demon Cult members didn’t feel real.

「The priest is truly remarkable. He infiltrated the Demon Cult and rescued his brother and the young men.」

「He’s not just talk.」

Zhang Sanfeng and Heavenly Demon said.

In fact, it was no ordinary feat.

「The priest seems to know what is important.」

「Those who don’t know what matters are mere petty men. A man, no, a true human, must know what he desires.」

For some reason, Zhang Sanfeng and the Heavenly Demon were strangely in sync today.

「That is what it means to truly be alive. Are you alive?」

The Heavenly Demon asked.

An obvious question…

Since meeting the Immortal Sword in the damp underground space.

Yi-gang’s goal had always been survival.

「Now that you have a new body, now that you are freed from the time-limited curse, what do you wish for, leader?」

But now it is different.

After undergoing the body transformation thanks to Bodhidharma, Yi-gang was no longer time-limited.

The days of struggling just to survive were over.

Having lost his purpose, he should have lost his drive too.

But Yi-gang’s heart was beating even stronger now.

Yi-gang was doing what even powerful martial artists of the Central Plains, who lost their children and disciples, had given up on.

Yi-gang infiltrated the Demon Cult and rescued his brother, Peng Mu-ah, Noh Shik, and the Kunlun disciples.

He felt truly alive.

‘I…’

He would definitely let them live and leave safely.

He would stop the invasion of the Demon Cult and the Evil Cult.

He would thwart the Evil Cult’s plot to resurrect the Evil God.

It was not just for So-hwa’s revenge.

Because there were still people in this world he wanted to protect.

Just as the Immortal Sword cherished Yi-gang and his granddaughter.

Just as Bodhidharma and the lamas risked their lives to protect Tibet.

Yi-gang would protect those he cherished.

「To the extent you can die for it?」

It was a question that needed no answer.

At last, Yi-gang realized.

That something more important than his precious life had appeared.

「At last, you can stand under the sky.」

Zhang Sanfeng said.

The Heavenly Demon’s laughter was heard.

「The time has come to prove your words.」

Yi-gang felt something flying from behind.

He could not block it; it was not aimed at him.

It was a huge stele.

The stele engraved with the name of the Divine Demon Bridge, standing before it, flew through the air.

With fierce momentum, it targeted the carriage’s horses precisely.

One horse’s head was crushed, killing it instantly.

The other horses tangled and fell, breaking legs or necks.

The carriage, unable to resist the momentum, overturned and rolled on the ground.

If commoners rather than martial artists had been riding, they would have been seriously injured or killed.

They could no longer run.

Yi-gang looked across the Divine Demon Bridge.

On that side, those who appeared to be Demon Cult members were running.

Yi-gang looked at the place where the stele had come from.

There stood a huge man with hair standing on end in all directions.

It was Yo Dae-soon, the Lord of the True Demon Palace.

He locked eyes with Yi-gang and roared fiercely.

“Hand over the sacred relic!”

His majestic shout rivaled Yi-gang’s.

He charged forward, followed by the Sky Sealing Blood Wolf Unit of the True Demon Palace.

The Heavenly Demon’s words were correct.

Now, a crisis had come where escaping alive was impossible.