Shhhhhhh.
As the night deepened, the rain thickened into a torrential curtain, drowning the world in noise and water.
“Visibility is deteriorating rapidly,” came the report from the Crescent Moon Pavilion field commander. “Observation missions are facing significant difficulties.”
Nighttime rain. Coupled with the fact that the civilians had extinguished every lamp in fear of the urban warfare, Shenyang was swallowed by an abyssal darkness.
“That can’t be helped…”
Moyong Ho, Adjutant to the Great General Regent, clicked his tongue in frustration.
“Is there any change in the status of the other rebel strongholds within the city?”
The primary objective—the underground base immediately before them—was all but suppressed. However, scattered pockets of resistance remained, attempting to hold out in isolation.
“No unusual activity reported.” The Crescent Moon commander shook his head, water flying from the brim of his hat. “Hearing the explosions, fires, and gunfire, the rebels have only locked their gates tighter.”
Moyong Ho’s older sister, Moyong Woon-jeong, was currently concluding the purge within the Moyong main residence. Consequently, Moyong Ho was overseeing the field in her stead.
“Good.”
While wiping out all the rebels in a single stroke would have been ideal, expecting such perfection was mere greed.
“Our forces are stretched thin everywhere.”
He examined the tactical map, dimly illuminated by the flickering light of a small oil lamp. The locations of the enemies still holding out were marked in stark ink across the city grid.
“If the enemy remains holed up like this, it works to our advantage.”
As long as the operation to simultaneously secure the Moyong main residence and the city of Shenyang proceeded as planned, the outcome was set.
“Once the main residence is completely secured, my sister will descend here with her troops,” Moyong Ho stated, tracing a line on the map.
The Crescent Moon agent finished the thought. “And when that happens, the rebels in Shenyang will be isolated in their bases, crushed without being able to lift a finger.”
“And the Wudang Vanguard will have to turn back, sucking their thumbs outside the walls without ever joining the fray.”
Moyong Ho smiled.
“A perfect finish.”
“Hah, truly.” The Crescent Moon commander wiped the rain from his face, shaking his head in amazement. “I never imagined it would be possible to conquer both the Moyong Clan and Shenyang in a single day.”
Moyong Ho shrugged. “It is a joint operation between the Grand Young Master, who possesses a divine intellect for strategy, and the Great General Regent, whom they call the God of War. Anything less would be surprising.”
At that moment, a messenger thrust his head into the temporary command tent.
“Report.”
Though a breach of etiquette, it was a necessary measure to prevent the light from the cramped tent from leaking into the dark exterior.
“Preparations for the search team to enter the rebel underground stronghold are complete.”
The search team’s mission was twofold: sweep for remnants hiding in the warren of tunnels and secure the heads of high-value targets.
“Still no report on Vanguard Captain Gam Woo-hyeon or Elder Moyong Gucheok?”
“No, sir.”
“The fire situation?”
“Due to the rain, no flames are visible from the exterior of the building.”
“Entry time?”
“The Grand Young Master has ordered immediate entry once the smoke clears just a little more.”
“Understood.”
If it was the Grand Young Master’s order, who would dare object? Moyong Ho nodded and called out to the retreating messenger.
“Ah, wait.” Moyong Ho paused. “Who has been assigned as the team leader for the entry squad?”
The messenger answered instantly.
“The ‘Golden-Eyed Goddess’ has taken charge personally.”
The Golden-Eyed Goddess.
He didn’t know who had coined the moniker, but it was the alias everyone was now using for the Grand Young Master’s Head Handmaiden, Jeong-ah.
“If it’s her, then success is certain. Dismissed.”
Moyong Ho was the direct adjutant to the Great General Regent and a direct bloodline descendant of the Moyong Clan. Under normal circumstances, he would speak casually to a mere maid. But he could not dare speak lightly of a martial artist who had slaughtered the Full-Blossom Sword Phoenix of Mount Hua without suffering a single scratch.
Moyong Ho sat back in his chair, the scene from earlier vivid in his mind’s eye.
The pinnacle of the Illusion Sword in the Central Plains. The myriad sword lights woven by the sword of Mount Hua. And the existence outside common sense who had shattered those lights—and Mount Hua’s brilliant history—into pieces.
“…Golden-Eyed Goddess, indeed.”
He muttered, rubbing the back of his neck where a phantom chill had settled.
“Whoever came up with it, they named her well.”
***
At that same moment, in the shadows of the city.
“Junior Sister…!”
The Grand Young Master’s forces weren’t the only ones to witness the slaughter of the Full-Blossom Sword Phoenix, Mae Ok.
“No, Captain…!”
“Hold him…!”
The disciples desperately pinning down Vanguard Captain Gam Woo-hyeon looked wretched. The proud white martial uniforms of the Great Huashan Sect were now little more than rags, stained with the blood of allies and enemies alike, blackened by ash, and soaked in mud.
“You must endure it…!”
“If we are discovered now…!”
None of them cared about their appearance.
Nine deaths, one life.
The fact that they were alive right now, that they had escaped that hellish underground, was nothing short of a miracle.
“Junior Sister…!”
She was the one who had always eyed his position. She had even suspiciously disappeared alone at a decisive moment.
“Mae Ok…!”
Despite all that, she was family. She was a comrade with whom he had roamed the battlefield for years. To watch from afar as her head was severed was a misery beyond words.
[Enemy patrol approaching…!]
At the urgent sound transmission from the disciple keeping watch, everyone immediately flattened themselves against the wet roof tiles. Filthy water pooling on the rooftop filled their mouths, but they dared not move.
[Hold the Captain tighter…!]
[Do not let him run out, no matter what…!]
Fortunately, the rain and darkness were their saviors. The enemy patrol passed below, oblivious to the figures lying flat above them.
“…Kugh. Kuek…!”
Even the sobs leaking through Gam Woo-hyeon’s gritted teeth were masked by the relentless drumming of the rain.
[Enemy patrol… has passed.]
The survivors of the vanguard breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“Captain… no, Eldest Senior Brother.”
A first-generation disciple grabbed Gam Woo-hyeon and hoisted his upper body.
“You must pull yourself together, Eldest Senior Brother.”
The disciple gripping his collar had only one arm left, the price paid during their horrific escape.
“Do you intend to get the rest of us killed here?”
Gam Woo-hyeon’s focus returned slightly at his junior’s desperate plea.
“…How many survived?”
“Nine,” the disciple answered quickly as reason began to return to Gam Woo-hyeon’s eyes.
Only nine remain?
But flipping that thought—it meant there were still nine lives he was responsible for saving.
“…I see.”
The disciples tried to help Gam Woo-hyeon up, but he waved them off and sat up on his own.
“That bastard. Do we still have that bastard’s head?”
“Of course.”
The first-generation disciple nodded firmly and lifted the severed head hanging at his waist.
“It is right here.”
It was the head of Elder Moyong Gucheok.
***
“We have no choice…!”
The Huashan Vanguard had squeezed out their last ounces of strength to reach the office during the initial chaos.
“It’s our final gamble…!”
Gam Woo-hyeon had recalled that Moyong Gucheok, the commander of the rebel stronghold, had disappeared into his office when the fighting began. There, they found the secret passage the Elder had used and managed a miraculous escape.
“H-Hiek?!”
And there…
“Why are you bastards here…?!”
They discovered Elder Moyong Gucheok waiting for the right moment to flee Shenyang. The result was the grisly trophy now in the disciple’s possession.
“…Guard it well.”
Gam Woo-hyeon spoke through gritted teeth, his voice trembling with rage. “Our Mount Hua never forgets a grudge. Sooner or later, the rebels of the Moyong Clan will pay the price…!”
The Moyong Clan had been the hegemon of the North since ancient times. Because of today’s events, many rebels outside Shenyang would likely rise against Moyong Woon-jeong.
“Of course.”
“Good. But to do that—”
“We must escape this city first.”
The disciple who had crawled to the railing alongside Gam Woo-hyeon reported via sound transmission.
[The enemy is constantly running patrols in the surrounding area.]
Gam Woo-hyeon clicked his tongue inwardly.
[They suspect there must be a secret passage leading outside.]
[That is correct.] The disciple nodded slightly. [The fortunate thing is that their available manpower is low. Instead of forming a wide encirclement, they are relying on mobile patrols.]
[…The short visibility due to the night rain is also a stroke of luck.]
Even as they conversed, another enemy unit passed by, failing to spot their concealed positions.
[The fact that the enemy cannot use firearms is also a huge advantage for us.]
However, ultimately, time was on the Grand Young Master’s side.
[…Since the rebels couldn’t hold out for even a day, we must assume there will be no external support.]
The original plan had been for external reinforcements to arrive while the rebels held out inside. But that picture had already been torn apart by the Grand Young Master’s swift dismantling of the stronghold.
[Once the sun rises and the rain stops, our discovery will be—]
[A matter of time.]
[…Yes.]
Gam Woo-hyeon ground his teeth.
Are we forced to hope for yet another miracle?
He looked up at the sky from his prone position.
Shhhhhhh—!
Oh, Heavens.
Due to the intensifying rain, let alone the moon, not even a fragment of starlight pierced the gloom.
Do you forsake this Gam Woo-hyeon like this…?
But then.
[The enemy’s movement is strange…!]
The disciple watching the opposite side, toward the fortress wall, reported urgently.
[It looks as if the enemies are hurriedly retreating from the wall—!]
The disciple’s report could not finish.
THOOOM—!
“Earthquake…?!”
“No!”
Gam Woo-hyeon sprang to his feet.
BOOM! CRASH! KA-BOOM!
“That is…!”
In their eyes, the fortress wall began to collapse with a deafening roar, debris flying into the night.
Rumble-crash!
“…It’s friendly bombardment!”
At this hour? In this place? Bombardment?
There was only one answer. Gam Woo-hyeon shouted, his face brightening with salvation.
“Grand Strategist Sima…!”
It was the moment another miracle descended upon the Huashan Vanguard.
***
“Unidentified enemy stone-throwing attack!”
“Wall breach! The fortress wall has been partially destroyed!”
“Damn it…!”
Amidst the sudden and chaotic flood of reports, Moyong Ho screamed at the top of his lungs.
“What are you doing?! Begin counter-bombardment!”
“It’s difficult! We cannot pinpoint the exact location of the enemy artillery due to the darkness and visibility!”
“We lack the manpower to operate our batteries!”
Having squeezed every available soldier for the operation, this vulnerability was unavoidable. Whoever the enemy was, they were exploiting that weakness perfectly.
“Request immediate support from the Moyong main residen—!”
“Wait.”
Stopping Moyong Ho was Grand Young Master Yeon So-hyeon, who had just entered the temporary command tent.
“Grand Young Master…!”
“Withdraw all our forces immediately!”
“……!”
Moyong Ho understood the order instantly.
“Retreat! Issue the retreat order immediately!” he shouted to the messengers. “We’ll be swept away if we stay!”
Screech— Pop!
As a green signal flare burst in the sky, illuminating the rain in an eerie emerald light, the Grand Young Master’s forces began a rapid withdrawal.
“R-Rebels! They are pouring out from every stronghold!”
“Huashan Vanguard at the front! Huashan Vanguard spotted!”
“The enemies are heading for the collapsed wall!”
If they had been swept up by the enemies pouring out all at once, the friendly forces would have suffered massive casualties.
“Enemy! They are charging en masse toward the broken wall to secure an escape route!”
If that had happened, all the effort put into minimizing troop losses until now would have been in vain.
“Tell them absolutely not to try and block the escaping enemies from the front,” the Grand Young Master ordered calmly.
Moyong Ho relayed the shout. “The Wudang Vanguard may respond through the collapsed wall! Avoid getting caught in between!”
Having succeeded in preventing immediate damage with quick and precise judgment, the Grand Young Master stepped out of the tent again.
Shhhhhhh—!
“…Grand Strategist Sima.”
Amidst the pouring rain, the Grand Young Master smiled bitterly.
“You played a good move this time. However…” His gaze turned toward the distance beyond the fortress wall. “You had best not expect to get everyone out alive so easily.”
Rumble!
As if answering the Grand Young Master’s mutter, thunder rolled across the sky.
For the survivors of the Huashan Vanguard and the remnants of the Moyong rebels in Shenyang… it was the beginning of a hellish retreat battle.