Chapter 650: Anything Can Happen

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“Turn back right now!” Baek Muheun roared, turning to the Five Young Azure Dragons following him.

He had been racing toward the battlefield at full speed to make sure his son was safe. When he sensed presences on his tail, he turned his head, and was utterly appalled.

“I said turn back! That’s not a request. It’s an order from your Headmaster!”

“I knew something was off. It freaked me out how he kept making that faraway face every now and then during the Heavenly Martial Festival.”

Unfortunately, the Five Young Azure Dragons had inherited their master’s world-class stubbornness. Not only did they not give in to his repeated persuasion and threats, they kept chasing after him with indignant faces and even argued back.

“No way! We heard everything the teachers said earlier, you know?”

Namgung Su shook his head in disdain. The ones who are seeing this have disappointed him.

“Mr. Baek Suryong is in danger right now, isn’t he?”

“I knew something was off. It freaked me out how he kept making that faraway face every now and then during the Heavenly Martial Festival.”

“I knew something was off. It freaked me out how he kept making that faraway face every now and then during the Heavenly Martial Festival.”

“I’m sorry, but we wouldn’t have followed you in the first place if we planned to turn back halfway.”

“If we leave that guy alone, he’s just going to come back all banged up again!”

“NYANG!”

The Five Young Azure Dragons, and even Silver Tiger, who had tagged along with them, screamed defiance.

Baek Suryong said, "Shame on you!"

For the first time, Baek Muheun understood how Mae Geuklyom must have felt back when he used to chase after him. “You foolish kids. Who on earth did you get this stubbornness from...?” he groaned, trailing off midsentence.

There’s only one teacher these little punks would take after.

Seeing the worry and anxiety on the Five Young Azure Dragons’ faces, Baek Muheun couldn’t bring himself to scold them further.

“Awesome! I’ll be sure to take you up on that when the time comes.”

“...That rotten son. I’ll make him pay for putting his old man through this. It’s high time that little brat’s backside receives a good smacking...”

[I shall help you. If I cast sorcery on your blade, we can make it hurt several times more without injuring him.]

“Awesome! I’ll be sure to take you up on that when the time comes.”

For a moment, the Divine Azure Dragon Sword and Baek Muheun were of one mind as they plotted Baek Suryong’s comeuppance.

Baek Muheun sighed and looked at the Five Young Azure Dragons, who were willingly throwing themselves into the jaws of death. Even if he forced them to stay behind, they would still run to the battlefield. He couldn’t subdue them and send them back by force, either.

Time was of the essence, and he couldn’t afford to waste it squabbling with the students. Besides, there was no guarantee that he could subdue them in the first place.

Every one of them crossed the peak realm long ago...

What you are reading is obtained via automation.

Individually, the Five Young Azure Dragons’ martial arts were too outstanding to call them mere prodigies. They were hardly inferior even to the Orthodox-Unorthodox Alliance elites fighting on the battlefield.

Not only that, despite being exhausted from the Heavenly Martial Festival and the fighting in the city, they all seemed strangely full of energy. Even as they drew closer to the battlefield, which was overflowing with heaven-defying energy, they did not seem to have much trouble breathing.

The swarming enemies flinched at the appearance of their unfamiliar master, whose presence was in no way inferior to the Orthodox-Unorthodox Alliance’s strongest.

The Divine Azure Dragon Sword explained why. [The reason they are unaffected by the pressure is because they have all been trained in divine martial arts. Or... perhaps there are higher beings watching over those children.]

Baek Muheun nodded. In the end, he decided to head to the battlefield with the Five Young Azure Dragons. He slowed down slightly to match their pace. “Follow behind me. You must keep formation, and you are not to fight recklessly without my orders. Do you all understand?”

““Yes!”” the Five Young Azure Dragons answered as one.

And so, Baek Muheun, the Five Young Azure Dragons, and Silver Tiger raced toward the battlefield, leaving a gust of wind in their wake.

Nevertheless, they faced their fears and bravely strove to save their teacher.

WHOOOOOSH!

Suddenly, Baek Muheun sensed an unfamiliar gaze from afar. Since he sensed no hostility in it, he ignored it and kept running.

HISSSSSS...

The closer they drew to the battlefield, the denser the heaven-defying energy became. Repeated clashes of energy were accompanied by shouts, screams, and a nauseating stench of blood that seemed to numb the olfactory senses.

VWOOOM!

The Divine Azure Dragon Sword’s prophetic words rang out ominously. [When the heavens open and a Dimensional Fracture forms, the harmony between heaven and earth shall crumble. The distinction between time and space shall lose all meaning, and the laws of the world as you know them shall fall into disarray...]

The Five Young Azure Dragons were startled to suddenly hear the Divine Azure Dragon Sword’s voice. After everything they had been through over the past year, though, they quickly adjusted and listened closely.

[Steel your hearts, all of you. From here on, anything can happen. Supernatural phenomena will appear one after another, and you will not be able to tell fact from fiction. It will only grow worse the closer you get to that sky.]

““Gulp...”” the Five Young Azure Dragons swallowed hard at the chilling warning. Even so, they all pretended to be calm and traded jokes.

Hyonwon Kang shrugged. “You heard her. I don’t care either way, but if you guys are scared shitless, you can turn back now.”

“Senior Wonkang, the corner of your mouth is twitching right now.”

“Always such a show-off...”

The Divine Azure Dragon Sword did not know exactly what plan Baek Suryong had devised. Still, she could easily guess that it was far more dangerous than anything before. He had undoubtedly decided to kill the Blood Demon, even if it meant sacrificing himself. Perhaps that was the only way to save the world from ruin and close the Dimensional Fracture.

“If you’re scared, Senior, you should turn back. Then we’ll get to tease you about it for the next fifty years.”

“All right, all right, enough chatter. Save your energy.”

Baek Muheun looked at the students with pride. Of course they were scared and trembling. No matter how exceptional their martial arts skills were, even if they were good enough to win the Heavenly Martial Festival, they were still just teenagers.

[Normally, no one can enter without the creator’s permission. If I pour out all my remaining power, though, I should be able to open a rift for a short while.]

Nevertheless, they faced their fears and bravely strove to save their teacher.

“...Suryong, you rascal. You’d better know how lucky you are to have students like these.” Baek Muheun quietly tightened his grip on the Divine Azure Dragon Sword. The battlefield was close, so he readied himself for the fight that would soon begin.

Deploy formation ‘Rescue Baek Suryong’!

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!

The violently swirling sky drew closer and closer. Directly beneath it, a fierce battle raged. The surviving masters of the Orthodox-Unorthodox Alliance and the Blood Cultists were locked in a desperate melee, and some of them spotted Baek Muheun and the Five Young Azure Dragons.

The swarming enemies flinched at the appearance of their unfamiliar master, whose presence was in no way inferior to the Orthodox-Unorthodox Alliance’s strongest.

““GRRRRR...””

““KYAAAAAAH!””

The horrifically dense, heaven-defying energy leaking from the Samsara Hell Annihilation Formation had been amplified to the extreme by the Dimensional Fracture instead of dissipating. Crazed Blood Cultists with bloodshot eyes, the Soulless, and the monsters that had disappeared earlier were all back. On top of that, despite wounds that should have killed them, several cultists rose to fight again.

[...Those who should have died are trapped in purgatory, unable to cross into the afterlife. This is truly horrifying.]

“Even hell must be more peaceful than this place,” Baek Muheun muttered under his breath, though his gaze became calm.

“Awesome! I’ll be sure to take you up on that when the time comes.”

FWOOSH!

Brilliant blue enhanced sword qi formed on the Divine Azure Dragon Sword.

SPLURT!

The first fiend to charge at Baek Muheun never saw his next move. The unnaturally massive fiend split in two, spraying blood everywhere.

The Divine Azure Dragon Sword did not know exactly what plan Baek Suryong had devised. Still, she could easily guess that it was far more dangerous than anything before. He had undoubtedly decided to kill the Blood Demon, even if it meant sacrificing himself. Perhaps that was the only way to save the world from ruin and close the Dimensional Fracture.

Baek Muheun brushed past it indifferently, warning the Five Young Azure Dragons in a gentle voice. “Be careful.”