Chapter 298. In the End, I Am the Trap.

The Lust Demon looked up at the cliffs of White Snake Island and said,

“You’re not saying we should climb up here, are you?”

“Madman.”

After answering the Lust Demon, I moved to the left side of the cliff. Since we had arrived in one piece anyway, I intended to kill them all, whether they were the Evil Path’s underlings or the Lord of White Snake Island, so it made no difference whether we went by way of the cliff or charged through a flower field.

The moment I passed over the sharp, slippery rocks and stepped onto flat ground, I felt the stability of solid earth beneath my feet.

But it struck me as unusually quiet. If the ship had failed to return normally, shouldn’t they have strengthened their guard?

At first, I had expected to watch a swarm of snakes come rushing in, fire arrows rain down from overhead, and a bloody battle after being surrounded. Now, though, it felt as if we had arrived on a deserted island.

When I checked, the ship that had brought us here was staying a short distance away.

As we headed toward the center of the island, the Lust Demon chattered as if excited.

“Master, this is my first time on an island. It’s my first experience.”

“There’s nothing special about it.”

“It’s perfect for living in seclusion. Wasn’t there once, long ago, a master who appeared with the title of some Island Lord and boasted tremendous martial prowess?”

The Sword Demon nodded.

“Occasionally, masters did appear from beyond the frontier.”

“Do you know what happened to that person? I was young back then.”

“As far as I know, he died in a duel.”

“Ah, yes.”

The Ghost Demon, who had been listening, looked around and said,

“It seems like a deserted island, no matter how I look at it.”

A short while later, when we reached the hill path of the approach and looked around, a small village came into view beyond the downhill road.

It was not a deserted island.

Past the hamlet, where houses stood sparsely here and there, there was a fairly large manor. At a glance, if it was not that place, there did not seem to be anywhere else for the Lord of White Snake Island to stay. But there seemed to be no need to go down the hill. Even the village was silent, as though there were no trace of people at all.

The Ghost Demon said,

“They have already fled.”

I looked around, then gazed at a ship cutting through the current as it approached the island. The ship we had ridden arrived at land at high speed, and the boatmen jumped off.

Even the way the boatmen ran looked urgent.

“Sect Leader!”

The boatmen called me desperately.

“Mm.”

I shot up to the top of the largest nearby tree and swept my gaze broadly over White Snake Island. I could not see beyond the cliff, but absurdly enough, the rest of the island’s perimeter entered my sight all at once.

It meant the island had not been that large to begin with. There were no anchored ships in sight, and no trace of people either.

I heard the voices of the boatmen running toward us.

“The Evil Path Alliance Leader’s warships are coming!”

“Warships are coming!”

I was already looking at the warships taking shape on the horizon.

How could they advance so leisurely in such a pretty formation?

Perhaps a descendant of Lu Xun or Zhou Yu was serving as their strategist, because warships large and small were gathering in a formation that encircled White Snake Island.

“Wow, impressive. The ships are surrounding the island.”

The Four Great Villains also reached the tall tree and checked the surroundings. We became four monkeys and looked around here and there with interest.

The Ghost Demon said,

“There look to be more than forty ships.”

“If each ship has thirty or forty men, how many is that in total?”

“What meaning is there in counting? Just think of it as a lot.”

The Lust Demon exclaimed in admiration.

“This is a pretty remarkable strategy, isn’t it? If they surround us like this, it won’t be easy for the Alliance Leader to come help. Those bastards will sink the ship the Alliance Leader is on first. Even if all of Haomun comes rushing here, they’ll all end up in the water. Master, since when were we deceived?”

The Sword Demon answered,

“If this is a strategy, they would have deceived the boatmen first. It seems they have a strategist.”

Just when it seemed they had been sacrificing their subordinates several times, the forces of the Evil Path Alliance suddenly appeared all at once with their full strength committed. Since we were inside that encirclement, I could not help but admire it.

“Incredible. To isolate us so perfectly. But why don’t I feel bad at all? I wonder what the reason is. What do you think?”

The Ghost Demon answered,

“Because there is a high possibility the Evil Path Leader will appear in person.”

If that was the case, it was actually a good thing.

The strategy would only succeed if we died, and White Snake Island would become a trap only if we died.

If we did not die, neither the strategy nor the trap would be of any use.

Such are the affairs of the martial world to begin with.

The Sword Demon said,

“Let us go greet them.”

We jumped down from the tree and went to welcome the approaching ships as though we had become the owners of White Snake Island.

The boatmen, who reunited with us halfway, said with bewildered expressions,

“Sect Leader, did we lead you into a trap?”

The boatmen looked at me while panting.

I bid the boatmen farewell.

“It is only a trap if I die, so do not worry. Since you have not learned martial arts, I will not check whether you used deception or were deceived. Go into the village and hide yourselves as you see fit. Dismissed.”

I waved my hand and made the boatmen withdraw. The boatmen fled to the village as I had told them. Affairs of the martial world should be resolved among those of the martial world.

We headed toward the harbor of White Snake Island while watching the ships gathering in.

“There are all sorts of ships.”

They varied not only in size, but also in shape, the fluttering flags, and even the colors painted on the hulls.

But all of them were warships.

The atmosphere of those aboard each ship was also distinctive in its own way, so it was not difficult for me to guess that the Evil Path’s martial strength was high. It felt as if a king of a nation had appeared, one who had brought all the pirates of Dongho who had been active for many years under his command.

“With the ships gathered like this, it is majestic, at any rate.”

It seemed he was not a man who had lazed around eating and playing, then accidentally become the Number One Sword of Dongho. Perhaps wary of our assault, about a dozen ships remained floating on the water, while the remaining ships gathered at the harbor.

Some thirty ships docked at the pier and on the banks to either side of it.

However, more than ten ships still remained on the water. From one of them, a man holding a white fan appeared and spoke with inner force mixed into his voice.

“……Where did four dogs like you crawl out from, to dare challenge the king of Dongho?”

The Lust Demon answered in a quiet voice,

“Dogs is a bit much. Is that bastard the number one of the Evil Path?”

The Ghost Demon answered,

“He is too young. It is not him.”

I looked at the enemies pouring out of the ships, but of course I could not tell who was who. However, on each of the ships waiting behind them, there seemed to be at least one master with a noticeable presence.

I also mixed inner force into my voice and said,

“Has the number one of the Evil Path come? Or did he only send his underlings again?”

The fan-wielding man answered.

"How noisy. I shall report to the former Left Guardian of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. The Lord of the Four Seas Alliance has no interest in who the Haoeo Gate Master is, or what kind of man he is. If the former Left Guardian cuts off the Haoeo Gate Master's head and brings it, the Lord of the Four Seas Alliance will receive him as an honored guest of Dongho. We await your response to this."

The Sword Demon let out a brief sigh and spoke quietly.

"Answering is a bother too. Disciple."

"Yes."

The Sex Demon took a deep breath and then roared in a voice infused with internal energy.

"Don't you dare tell my Master what to do. Tell your precious Lord of the Four Seas Alliance to come out first. I'll face him. A bastard like a pirate chief who only gets his subordinates killed calling himself the King of Dongho—my ass. Not even fit to be a mountain bandit……"

It was no easy feat to shout at length using internal energy, so the Sex Demon briefly steadied his breath.

"Hoo."

Now, troops lined up before the pier. It truly looked like all the subordinates commanded by the supreme one of the Four Seas had arrived. The situation was becoming one where there were so many people that Baeksa Island felt cramped instead. However, they were definitely not an army.

Since they were a coalition of various forces of Dongho, there was no sense of unity.

Never in my life had I seen such a grand encirclement.

Neither the Demon Cult nor the Martial Alliance could have pulled this off. It was no different from a heavenly dragnet trapping the island from the water.

"The Four Seas Alliance is insane, but it's impressive."

At a glance, those who had landed on the island all looked like elite experts selected from the best, but even if we killed them all, it looked like the leaders of each faction were waiting aboard each of the dozen or so ships in the water.

Only then did the largest ship, which had been the farthest away, move alone and arrive at a central position as if being protected by the ten ships, stopping like a commander-in-chief's main camp.

The ship was so splendid that one could tell at a glance that it was the Admiral's Ship.

For a moment, the enemies maintained their silence.

A middle-aged man dressed excessively well appeared on the bow of the flagship in a relaxed manner and opened his mouth.

"Haoeo Gate Master, Sword Demon, Monglang, Yukhap Seonsaeng. I ask because I do not believe you are fools. The situation has become like this—do you think you have a chance of victory?"

I answered as the representative of the Four Great Evils.

"……What kind of bullshit is that, you want to die? Who are you?"

"Is that your answer?"

"Are those your last words?"

The middle-aged man shook his head. It looked exactly like a gesture mocking my bluff.

I spoke to the Four Great Evils.

"It can't be helped. There are too many for threats to work. I don't even know if that bastard is really from the Four Seas or not. He still doesn't look like he'll make the first move. I pay my respects to those who will die first."

The Sex Demon, Sword Demon, and Ghost Demon looked at me.

They seemed to have anticipated something as well.

But I was planning to handle things a little differently than usual.

"Fourth will be the Left Protector, Second will be the Right Protector, and the Eldest will serve as commander in front of me. A formation that unconditionally protects me. You know what I mean, right?"

The Sex Demon furrowed his brow.

"Why? What are you going to do?"

"You know already, asking that."

The Sword Demon spoke to the two of them.

"Take your positions as the Gate Master orders. There are too many; it can't be helped."

The situation was so unfavorable that even the Sword Demon acknowledged it.

I had more orders to give.

"Ilwol Gwangcheon is heavy. When I throw it into the air, the three of you add your palm winds and push it out. What happens next is none of our concern."

The Ghost Demon calculated the distance.

"Still, isn't it too far?"

I said to the three of them.

"That's why we're going to run and close the distance a bit."

The Sex Demon burst out shouting.

"No!"

I sprang forward together with the Sword Demon at the same time. The Sword Demon barked.

"Get a hold of yourself."

"Uwah."

As I ran toward the pirates, I coiled the Moon Shadow Formless Art around my left hand. Before I could coil the Golden Dove Soaring Art around my right hand, the Sword Demon surged ahead of me. Following that, the Sex Demon passed through the air, and the Ghost Demon also passed my right side while drawing his sword. Even the Ghost Demon, who was usually calm, shouted in an excited voice.

"This is insane. Is this really right?"

"It is."

I narrowed the distance using lightness arts, then stopped alone at a suitable point and began forming Ilwol Gwangcheon.

The Sex Demon and Ghost Demon stopped and took positions in the front as the Left and Right Protectors.

The Sword Demon, who arrived behind them, rolled his neck this way and that.

Looking at the enemies staring in bewilderment, I formed Ilwol Gwangcheon with a perplexed heart—it was larger than usual.

Come to think of it, I felt like it had been far too long since I last unleashed it.

I'd devoured all sorts of things in the meantime, so it seemed my internal energy had deepened. The red-tinged palm force of the Golden Dove Soaring Art and the white-tinged Moon Shadow Formless Art transformed into True White and True Crimson before I knew it, staining each other.

Fzzzzzzzzt…….

The sound had become even more terrible than before.

I was slightly terrified of the catastrophe I was creating. The dizzying feeling of jumping off a cliff without internal energy was probably something like this. While I was briefly distracted, arrows poured from the air, hidden weapons flew from the front, and the elites of the Four Seas' supreme one also began charging toward us.

I threw Ilwol Gwangcheon into the air without completing its deepest fusion.

"Ah……."

A sigh escaped on its own.

The Sex Demon, Ghost Demon, and Sword Demon simultaneously reached out and unleashed palm winds. They were all men of outstanding aptitude; even without speaking, they added pushing force the moment they saw Ilwol Gwangcheon flying.

The ominous radiance of Ilwol Gwangcheon spinning in the air was pushed far away by the palm winds of the three demons, then met a counterattack in the air above the pier.

All kinds of weapons, palm forces, palm winds, sword qi, blade qi, sword tempests, and more surged toward the falling Ilwol Gwangcheon.

SCREEEEEEECH!

I instead spoke to the three of the Four Great Evils.

"Be careful."

In that instant, the Sword Demon grabbed his disciple and the Ghost Demon by the scruffs of their necks and threw them toward the rear where I stood, as if dragging them back. He drew the Radiant Sword, grasped it with both hands, and erupted a vertically extending sword qi into the air.

As a rectangular beam of black light manifested by the Sword Demon's internal energy shot into the air, the Eldest Brother's muttering voice was faintly heard.

"……Sword Ultimate Intent."

It looked like the Sword Demon's counterattack to block the aftermath of Ilwol Gwangcheon, but Sword Ultimate Intent could be interpreted as the True Intent confirmed at the tip of the sword.

It felt like the heavens were rumbling from very far away, as if my ears had already lost their function.

The moment Ilwol Gwangcheon exploded, I felt pain as if someone had struck both my eardrums, and my face naturally scrunched up. At the same time, the Sword Demon, who had blocked the front with the ultimate technique called Sword Ultimate Intent, was pushed back in his standing posture, and the Sex Demon and Ghost Demon rushed in again, each grabbing the Sword Demon's shoulder with one hand.

I saw the three being pushed back and rushed in, catching the Sex Demon and Ghost Demon's backs with both hands.

For the four of us to be pushed back by the shockwave of an explosion this far away was not something that should have happened.

We simultaneously checked the situation at the pier.

People were floating in the air, and shattered rocks were flying about.

The water that had shot upward scattered in every direction.

The ground where the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven had landed had been gouged out so deep and wide it was difficult to gauge by eye, and the river water poured into it as though filling an empty bowl.

What in the world had I done?

It was a sight impossible to believe even with my own eyes, so I stood with the Four Great Evils and silently observed the devastation of the dock for a while.

“…….”

In any case, there was no finding where the forces that made up the vanguard had vanished to.

At a place some distance away, a boat that was not particularly large suddenly fell from the air and shattered with a thunderous crash. It seemed several boats had been destroyed as well. Debris mingled with the river water, and the scenery of the island, which had been rather beautiful, had turned into a garbage heap.

The Sword Demon let out a sigh.

“……As far as the power of the ultimate techniques Third unleashes is concerned, it is already at a level worthy of being called the greatest under heaven.”

The Lust Demon and the Ghost Demon were still dazed and said nothing, but I could not help acknowledging the words of the normally thoughtful Sword Demon.

“Agreed…… Since we’ve seized the initiative, shall we try scaring them with a bluff now?”

After annihilating the forces of the foremost man of the Unorthodox Path with the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven, I once again wrapped qi around both hands. The Lust Demon flinched in surprise and looked at me.

But this time, it was the Hundred Battles Ten-Stage Art.

With lightning qi coiled around both hands, I produced a roar that, in sound alone, was no less than the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven.

Cracklelelelelele…….

I said to the three of them.

“Let’s go. We need to properly show them who’s fallen into whose trap.”

The Four Great Evils, finally released from their tension, burst into laughter at my words. When all three of these bastards laughed at the same time, I felt completely refreshed inside. Was this what they called a noble, magnanimous spirit?

Our breathing was now quite in sync.