Chapter 645: That’s an Order

Mae Geuklyom flicked the blood off his blade. Steadying his ragged breathing, he looked around. “Is everyone all right?”

Everyone from the Azure Dragon Academy was fighting. The situation in the city was so chaotic that even the students who had suffered injuries big and small during the Heavenly Martial Festival had to lend the instructors a hand.

“Yes. We’re fine!”

“We can hold out.”

“Compared to the teachers fighting outside, this is nothing...”

The instructors answered with forced calm. Their blood-soaked martial uniforms proved how brutal their fight had been, yet not one of them complained.

““KUHAHAHAHAHA!””

““Kill them! Kill them all!””

The vast Samsara Hell Annihilation Formation had taken hold of the city. Monsters emerged from the red mist rolling into the streets, and cultists hiding among the crowds went berserk, attacking people indiscriminately.

Amid the chaos, the Azure Dragon Academy responded swiftly and orderly. The school trip had turned the instructors and students into battle-hardened warriors.

“Azure Dragon Academy! Assume the Azure Dragon Anti-Blood Cult Formation!”

With Dokgo Jun at the center, the Azure Dragon Academy students swiftly rallied. Instead of rashly confronting the enemy, they focused on protecting themselves and the helpless civilians.

Their composure set an example for the other Five Great Academies. The Vermilion Phoenix Academy was the quickest to follow suit, and soon, the students of the Heavenly Martial, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise Academies came to their senses and organized their ranks as well.

“Vermilion Phoenix Academy, form up on the Azure Dragon Academy’s left!”

“The Heavenly Martial Academy will take the Azure Dragon Academy’s right!”

Thus, an alliance of the Five Great Academies’ prodigies was born, with the Azure Dragon Academy students at its heart.

Mae Geuklyom sighed, “Those kids...”

He felt proud of his students, yet a part of him felt sorry for them as well. He knew how much those children had lost to grow this strong.

After watching them for a moment, he turned his attention to the sky.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!

Dark clouds swirled violently across the sky, as if foreshadowing the end of the world. In all his seventy-plus years, the old man had never witnessed such a bizarre phenomenon.

“Suryong... Are you all right up there?” he muttered, thinking of his only grandson.

“Grandpa, please protect the students here. You too, Dad.”

If not for those words, he would never have stayed behind. Although the murim revered Baek Suryong as one of the Ten Supremes, to him, the young man was simply his precious grandson, the apple of his eye.

“You heartless brat...”

Why do you insist on carrying the world’s heaviest burden all by yourself?

It’s only been a year since we met. There are so many places I want to go with you and so many stories I want to tell you. I want to tell you about your mother’s mischievous personality, which you barely remember, and gossip with you about your good-for-nothing father’s delinquent days. Sometimes we’ll share a drink, and you’ll have to endure this old man’s annoying ramblings.

That is this old man’s only wish, Suryong.

“You had better come back safely. Unless you want a scolding from your old grandpa.”

Mae Geuklyom sighed softly and turned back to the battlefield. His duty was to ensure that his grandson would have no reason to grieve when he returned from the battlefield.

“Injured students, don’t push yourselves! Fall back inside!”

The martial artists of the Nine Sects One Gang, the Murim Alliance, the Imperial Army, and the Five Great Academies who had not gone to the front joined forces. Still, quelling the chaos in the city was no easy feat.

“We’re all going to die... We’re all going to die!”

“Hehehehe! The heavens are angry! Hehehehe!”

“Let’s surrender to the Blood Cult. They won’t kill everyone if we surrender, will they?”

Overcome by terror, more and more people turned their backs on reality. Some collapsed to the ground while others screamed at the top of their lungs, urging the crowds to surrender to the Blood Cult.

“Kneel, all demons! The Blood Demon returns! Worship him! The Blood Demon will soon conquer the worl...!”

A man who had lost his mind and was mimicking a Blood Cultist fell over, having taken a heavy blow to the back of his head.

Noh Goonsang appeared from behind him, sealed the fallen man’s acupoints, and clicked his tongue. “Lie down for a bit. When you wake up, you’ll realize how shamefully you behaved.”

Despite his bravado, his face was pale. Having lost most of his martial prowess, he was hardly different from a commoner. Still, as the spiritual pillar of the Azure Dragon Academy, he commanded the instructors and comforted the frightened students.

“Principal! Don’t go so far ahead! What would you have done if he’d been a demonic arts practitioner?” Sin Yeonho nagged worriedly, following close behind Noh Goonsang.

Noh Goonsang laughed it off. “He was just a commoner who doesn’t know a single martial art. The poor thing simply lost his mind.”

Everyone was fighting with all their might in their respective roles. Baek Suryong and Namgung Su braved the terrifying energy swirling at the frontlines. The instructors stayed behind to protect the students, who took up arms to defend themselves. All of them were risking their lives.

“This truly is a terrible hell,” Noh Goonsang muttered quietly as he looked around.

CRRRRRRUMBLE!

Suddenly, a deafening roar that seemed to tear the sky apart echoed from beyond the city walls. The air shuddered violently, and a massive earthquake unlike anything anyone had ever experienced struck right after.

KABOOOOOOM!

The ground split like a spiderweb and began to cave in. Buildings crumbled, knocking people down and crushing them beneath the rubble. In an instant, the city descended into pandemonium, with screams erupting from every corner.

“Lower your center of gravity, and watch out for anything falling from above!” Baek Muheun warned the students.

Then, sensing a familiar energy, he looked up at the sky.

SHWAAAAAAAK!

A lone sword streaked across the sky. Baek Muheun’s eyes went wide in recognition.

Without hesitation, he leaped into the air and snatched the Divine Azure Dragon Sword by its hilt. “What happened to Suryong!?” he demanded urgently.

[...He is fighting the Blood Demon.]

Baek Muheun sensed something ominous about the Divine Azure Dragon Sword’s resigned tone. Landing back on the ground, he bit his lip hard and asked again. “What does that mean? He’s fighting the Blood Demon, yet he gave up his best weapon? Please explain so I can understand!”

[He asked me to look after the students. He said he has a plan and asked me to trust him. It was a choice that child made himself.]

Baek Muheun felt his heart sink with an inexplicable sense of foreboding. “A choice...? What do you...”

[Look around you. This is Suryong’s choice,] the Divine Azure Dragon Sword interrupted before he could finish.

HISSSSSS...

The red mist that had flooded the city was thinning. As it did, the rampaging cultists lost their strength, and the monsters began to vanish one by one.

“The Blood Cult’s evil sorcery is disappearing...”

“We’re saved! We’re saved!”

““WAAAAAH!””

Most of the people cheered. Only Baek Muheun alone looked around with a pale face.

Mae Geuklyom walked over to him. “Muheun.”

“...Father-in-law.”

“What’s going on?”

Baek Muheun explained everything to Mae Geuklyom. As he recounted what he had learned from the Divine Azure Dragon Sword, Mae Geuklyom’s expression also hardened.

“Father-in-law, I’m going to Suryong. The large-scale fighting seems to have ended, so it should be fine for one person to leave.”