Chapter 643

Many messenger birds took off and headed towards the Golden Heavenly Hall.

“Reports have come in from the Iron Spirit Squad.”

“The Luminous Sword Squad has sent news.”

“Commander Yu has brought a report.”

In the Golden Heavenly Hall, there were specific people tasked with managing these messenger birds. They would gently untie the letters from the birds’ legs and give them to the responsible person.

The chief in command was Ye Jin-hwang.

He was highly respected for his ability to gather and process information.

Ye Jin-hwang began to read the letters that had been sent from different places all at once.

The letters were inscribed with a cipher used exclusively by the Golden Heavenly Hall.

They were undoubtedly sent by the martial artists of the Golden Heavenly Hall.

When Ye Jin-hwang finished organizing the letters, he headed to where Jang Mugak and the other leaders were gathered.

“Reports have been received.”

“What’s the situation?”

“The operation was a success. All the ambushes were successful.”

“Every single one?”

“Yes. Every operation was reported to be successful.”

“Expected no less.”

Upon hearing Ye Jin-hwang’s report, Jang Ho-yeon smiled.

It was a plan he had no doubt would succeed, but it was a different feeling to hear it firsthand.

Jang Ho-yeon spoke to Jang Mugak.

“At least half of them must be killed or injured. Even before the real battle begins, inflicting such damage means we’ve already won.

“We mustn’t let our guard down.”

“Of course. We are fully prepared.”

Jang Ho-yeon replied with a confident tone.

They had concentrated their forces in areas where they anticipated enemy reinforcements.

Considering the damage done to the Silver Lotus Hall and their wounded warriors by the sneak

attacks, they should easily overwhelm them.

Everything was proceeding according to plan.

There was no way for the remnants of the Silver Lotus Hall and their allies to escape.

Suddenly, Jang Ho-yeon looked at Jang Mugak with a puzzled expression.

Despite the good report, there was a shadow on Jang Mugak’s face.

“Why that face? Is something bothering you?”

“It just feels odd.”

“What feels odd?”

“It’s going too smoothly.”

Jang Mugak felt an inexplicable unease.

Though everything had been meticulously planned, it was strange that it went so smoothly.

Jang Ho-yeon chuckled,

“Worrying because things are going too smoothly? That’s unlike you.”

“Hmm!”

“It’s because the plan is perfect. Don’t worry. They’re like fish in a net, and all we have to do is cast our net and ensure their total defeat

“Is that so?”

“The elites of the Golden Heavenly Hall and the Heavenly Martial Sect have mobilized. Do you really think that the remnants of the Silver Lotus Hall will be able to reach us safely after breaking through? I think it is almost impossible. Besides, all these letters are in code. The information from our side is certain.”

“It seems you’re right.”

Jang Mugak nodded slowly.

Hearing Jang Ho-yeon’s words, he realized that his concerns had been unfounded. He felt like he could bury his frustration for now.

“It’s time for us to make a move.”

Jang Mugak rose from his seat.

The rendezvous point for the Silver Lotus Hall and its allied sects had already been determined by the spies of the Heavenly Martial Sect.

He didn’t want to use the power of the Heavenly Martial Sect if he could help it, but now it was too late.

‘Let’s see how far this goes.’

First, he had to clinch a decisive victory against the Silver Lotus Hall to advance to the next level.

That being, reaching where his father, Jiang Cheon-hwa, was.

Jang Mugak led the elites of the Golden Heavenly Hall and the Heavenly Martial Sect to the expected gathering place of the Silver Lotus Hall martial artists.

＊＊＊

“Sigh!”

Lee Geom-han exhaled deeply.

He was standing on top of a towering mountain that overlooked Poyang Lake. Even from this distance, the entire expanse of the lake was visible.

This was the very meeting place where the Silver Lotus Hall and its allied sects were to gather.

“I can’t predict how many of them will actually arrive.”

On their way here, he and Namgung Seol had been ambushed by the Golden Heavenly Hall martial artists. That’s when they found out.

He realized that the Golden Heavenly Hall had placed troops all along the road to Poyang Lake.

While he, with his overwhelming martial prowess, repelled the ambushers, there was no guarantee that the elite warriors from the Silver Lotus Hall and other sects would fare the same.

Namgung Seol spoke,

“They’ll probably take a lot of damage.”

“Indeed.”

“It’s my fault. I should’ve anticipated that they would act this way.”

“How could this possibly be your fault, Seol?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Seol?”

“My overconfidence seems to have led us astray.”

Namgung Seol apologized.

She had boasted of her ability to strategize the entire situation, yet reality had proven otherwise.

Unanticipated variables had emerged, and her abilities were insufficient to navigate them all.

‘We should’ve brought in the Hao Clan. If we had, this lack of intelligence wouldn’t have left us vulnerable to surprise attacks.’

Reliance solely on the intelligence of the Silver Lotus Hall had brought them to this point.

Namgung Seol decided that once this crisis was over, she would bring the Hao Clan under her control.

Until now, no sect had ever dared to bring the Hao Clan under their influence. It was not for lack of power; most of the martial artists in the Hao Clan were relatively weak.

The difficulty lay in the sheer number of Hao Clan members, who were like scattered weeds, making it impossible to find them all. However, Namgung Seol’s approach was different.

Once we subjugate the Chief Inspector, Hong Yushin, we can map out the entire organizational structure. The Subjugation can follow.

It was still a long way off, but she had to start drawing a picture now.

Just then,

“Look, the martial artists from the Thousand Kingdom School are approaching.”

The voice of her subordinate snapped her back to the present.

When she looked up, she saw Namgung Jin leading the martial artists of the Thousand Kingdom School toward them. However, their demeanor was extremely unsettling.

Every single one of them bore tattered clothes and considerable injuries.

And their numbers were significantly fewer than expected.

Both Namgung Seol and Lee Geom-han quickly approached Namgung Jin.

“Are you alright?”

“We lost a lot of our forces to an ambush.”

“The Thousand Kingdom School was ambushed too?”

“We divided our forces into five groups. Three of them were ambushed, suffering major casualties.”

“This is grave.”

“At least we endured to this extent. I’m not sure about the other sects.”

Namgung Jin’s voice was deeply troubled.

Lee Geom-han nodded and waited for the other sects to join them.

Shortly thereafter, representatives of the sects they were expecting arrived.

Elites from the Shaolin Temple, the Mad Martial Sect, and the Martial Sword Alliance arrived, and their losses were less than Namgung Seol and Lee Geom-han had expected.

There were even some sects that arrived unscathed.

Namgung Seol grew suspicious.

“How is this possible?”

“Hmm!”

Lee Geom-han mused, questioning the heads of the unharmed sects. However, they too were clueless.

The new leader of the Martial Sword Alliance, Yoo Soo-hwan, spoke,

“It seems someone covertly assisted us.”

“Who?”

“In this world, only one person could have done this.”

“You mean… Pyo Wol? But he declined our proposal.”

Lee Geom-han looked incredulous.

Yoo Soo-hwan firmly responded,

“Of course, he’d refuse our direct alliance. Being swayed by someone isn’t in his nature. He must have acted independently.”

“That would…”

“We’ll know the truth soon enough.”

“I truly hope you’re right, Lord Yoo. I sincerely do.”

“I’m aware.”

Yoo Soo-hwan responded with a calm expression.

On the other hand, having heard the entire conversation, Namgung Seol’s face contorted with disbelief.

‘Did he really help? I can’t believe it.’

If Pyo Wol had really sent the Black Sect assassins to kill the hidden martial artists from the Golden Heavenly Hall, then the current situation would make sense. But she didn’t want to believe that.

To her, Pyo Wol represented evil, on par with Jang Cheon-hwa.

Even though he hadn’t done anything obviously bad, it was hard to know what he was planning in secret.

Out of everyone Namgung Seol knew, Pyo Wol was the most sneaky and risky.

Yoo Soo-hwan seemed to trust Pyo Wol implicitly for some reason, but Namgung Seol couldn’t do it.

‘Surely, he has some ulterior motive for helping.’

She still didn’t trust Pyo Wol. But she felt it wasn’t the right time to share her doubts about him.

The priority was to win the war.

If she defeated the Golden Heavenly Hall and the Heavenly Martial Sect, then she and the Silver Lotus Hall would control Kangho.

Decisions about Pyo Wol could wait.

‘After all, if he has indeed joined this war, it’s not bad for us.’

She was already aware of the formidable strength of the assassin group led by Pyo Wol. Although they hadn’t officially joined forces, having Pyo Wol and his assassins on their side was comforting.

Namgung Seol smiled brightly and spoke,

“Regardless, it’s fortunate that many sects arrived without harm. I will now give instructions on how each sect should proceed.”

Seeing her step forward to take the lead, Yoo Soo-hwan frowned slightly.

This was a meeting for the leaders of each sect to talk. Even if Namgung Seol was close to Lee Geom-han, she shouldn’t have acted so boldly.

Just as Yoo Soo-hwan was about to rebuke her, a cry went up.

“The Golden Heavenly Hall is here!”

“There are martial artists from the Heavenly Martial Sect as well.”

“I see martial artists from the Rain Mountain Manor too.”

A massive army could be seen approaching from the foot of the mountain.

With many flags waving, the energy of the moving army reached the martial artists at the mountain’s peak.

Lee Geom-han focused his gaze on the vanguard of the approaching force.

At the forefront was a martial artist radiating unparalleled presence.

Lee Geom-han instantly recognized him.

“Jang Mugak!”

In the entire world, the only one who could exude such a presence was Jang Mugak.

Numerous martial artists with extraordinary auras surrounded Jang Mugak.

At a glance, it was evident that they were the core warriors of the Golden Heavenly Hall.

Lee Geom-han spoke as if Jang Mugak stood right before him.

“Let’s settle our unfinished duel, Jang Mugak!”

The last time they met, Lee Geo-han had to pull back because of Namgung Seol. While many thought he was beaten, he really wasn’t. He was in a tough spot, but he didn’t actually lose.

He saw this as an opportunity to restore his honor.

“I’ll kill Jang Mugak and head straight to Jang Cheon-hwa.”

He clenched his fist in determination.

The Silver Lotus Hall’s martial artists and their allies let out a powerful battle shout.

“Charge!”

Despite their weariness from the journey, their morale pierced the heavens.

Namgung Seol wore a look of regret.

Martial artists were often more driven by emotion than reason.

Managing the excited martial artists, upon seeing the Golden Heavenly Hall’s troops, was challenging.

If she tried to take charge in this situation, it might alienate the warriors further.

‘If only the Golden Heavenly Hall had arrived a bit later.’

It was a pity that the opportunity to take the initiative had been lost.

Meanwhile, the martial artists who joined the Silver Lotus Hall showed clear signs of excitement on their faces.

‘This is an opportunity to make a name for myself.’

“If I can help us win this battle, my name will be etched in Kangho

‘I will achieve great merit.’

Their hearts were pounding harder than ever before.

Their gaze was fixated on Lee Geom-han’s hand.

They were itching for a fight.

They hoped Lee Geom-han would give the order to attack any moment now.

Their wishes were clearly conveyed to him.

Even though they had the advantage of higher ground and could plan more, the martial artists didn’t want that. It also wasn’t Lee Geom-han’s style.

Their blood was boiling.

There was only one way to cool that fervent blood: an intense battle.

With a swift motion, Lee Geom-han pointed down the mountain.

“Charge!”

“Attack!”

“Drive the Golden Heavenly Hall out!”

The martial artists surged forward, racing down the mountain slopes.

In no time, they clashed with the martial artists of the Golden Heavenly Hall.

The ultimate battle between the Golden Heavenly Hall and the Silver Lotus Hall had begun.