Novel Bin
Chapter 404
Hwagmu fell into confusion upon seeing his destructive breath suddenly be blocked by an unknown figure.
"What's going on…"
Paaf—!
The five monsters, including Spectre, leaped onto the ice and targeted Hwagmu.
"How dare you!"
WHOOM—!
However, their attack was momentarily halted as lightning struck around him.
At the very least, Hwagmu had bought himself time to recover from having spewed his breath.
'This can't be… This can't be happening. Even if things have gone awry, I'm a Dragon.'
Hwagmu was an evil Dragon—a legend of the East, who had existed long before the creatures before him could even breathe.'So why…'
Crack…
His body began to swell. If time continued to pass like this, he could return to his true form as a Dragon, albeit somewhat unstable.
The first problem was whether he would be given that time, and the second was whether he could subdue them even if he regained his Dragon form.
"Where are you looking?"
Thud…
The red knight's sword pierced his thigh. She was the hardest opponent to read.
"Ugh…"
Whoosh—!
"Huh?"
BOOM—!
A tail that had sprouted from his body sent her plummeting downward.
Paaf—!
However, someone quickly grabbed that tail.
"Come down and talk."
Whoosh!
BOOM—!
This time, it was Hwagmu who fell.
Jamad grabbed his tail and threw him to the ground.
His fall was hideously unsightly.
"How…"
"Hwagmu… Like this…?"
"He's a Dragon… A legend…"
Hwagmu burned with rage upon seeing them witness his unsightly appearance.
'Don't look at me like that…!'
He wanted people to look at him with fear.
After all, fear was only a step away from reverence.
After having seized the East once, he had never envisioned such a downfall.
"I'm going to kill you… I'm going to kill you all!"
Crack…
The shape of wings coming out of Hwagmu became clearer. Although he couldn't freely fly due to the barrier, they would probably still be useful.
WHOOM—!
[Hwagmu used Power: Intended Sky.]
[Hwagmu manipulates the weather.]
[The current weather is Storm.]
[The storm is a domain. Hwagmu can exert his strongest power within the storm.]
[Those who go against the storm's flow will suffer continuous damage the moment they enter.]
[The storm will gradually expand, swallowing all enemies within it.]
BOOM…
The red rain stopped, and the Blood-pus Puppets melted away and were absorbed back into the ground.
Instead, a massive storm began forming around Hwagmu.
Whoosh… Whoosh…
"RUUN—!"
As someone shouted, a massive storm formed in the middle of the Dragon Palace.
"Die, ephemeral creatures."
BOOM—!
"NO!"
Soldiers were torn apart as they were swept into the storm.
Even the fragments of the Large Soldiers were utterly shredded.
BOOM—!
Spectre rolled up her sleeves and clapped.
CLAP—!
[Spectre used Night Parade of One Hundred Demons.]
[All kinds of ghosts rise and cause chaos.]
…
Whir…
Hihihi…
A ghostly energy enveloped the storm.
Kiiaakk—!
Uooo…
"Tsk. It's useless. The storm will only grow larger. Hwagmu has made up his mind."
Seol asked Spectre.
"What is he trying to do?"
"Mutual destruction. He hasn't regained his true form yet. However, he's still decided to use such immense power. He will most likely lose his sanity."
"…"
"It's a fifty-fifty chance. Either he manages to control the storm to the end, kills everyone here, and revives as a Dragon… Or he fails to control it, loses his sanity, and cannot revive. The problem is that the storm will leave an enormous scar no matter what happens."
Ur walked up to Seol from behind.
"I'll buy you some time."
"What…?"
"There's a way to stop it."
Spectre's eyes widened at Ur's words. She had lived for an immense amount of time.
"That's impossible! The opponent is a Dragon! A legend of the East, Hwagmu! The embodiment of evil that has been hiding for hundreds of years to achieve his goals!"
It was impossible for a mere summon to know something that she didn't. Yet, there was something she didn't know—Ur had been bound to Alcatron for an amount of time that could make hundreds of years insignificant.
"We can stop the storm from expanding if we cool the domain itself. For a storm of this magnitude, a huge amount of mana will be necessary. So everyone will have to be retrieved."
"…"
"The rest is up to you."
Ur looked at Jamad, Karen, and Karuna.
"Noisy ones. It's time to work. Help me with my task."
Karen, who usually ignored Ur's words, naturally refused.
"No! You're trying to show off again, aren't you? It's obvious."
"I'm only doing this because of Seol. I'm forcing myself to step forward in a body I'm not yet accustomed to."
At the mention of Seol, Karen sighed.
"Well, I guess I have no choice. Okay!"
Without needing lengthy explanations, they scattered around the storm.
Whoosh…
"Let's start."
Crack…
Craacckk…
A pure white energy began to form around the storm.
Seol watched and waited for the right moment.
"Are you going…?"
Seol Hong, who had approached, asked.
"Are you going inside that storm? Are you… once again, going to put yourself in danger?"
"…"
Seol briefly thought about his answer.
No matter what reason he gave, Seol Hong wouldn't let him go.
Her disheveled crown and torn Dragon Robe showed the suffering she had endured to reach this point.
And that there was no glory at the end of that hardship.
"It's something only I can do."
"I know I can't stop you. Then…"
Swoosh…
Seol Hong handed something to Seol.
"This…"
"If it's mother, she's going to protect you."
It was her hand mirror—an object she had cherished since she was a young girl until she became a fully grown-up woman.
"Please…"
Seol Hong swallowed her words.
Nothing could be guaranteed.
WHOOM—!
Seol stood before the storm created by the Dragon.
Crack…
The storm was blocked by ice, halting its expansion.
"NOW!"
As Ur shouted, Seol walked toward the storm.
Crack…
As he reached his hand into the storm, it shook as if it would tear him apart.
But the rotation couldn't stop Seol from walking forward.
WHOOM—!
He walked into the storm, which swallowed everything.
* * *
Someone stood in the middle of the storm.
Like a ray of sunlight peering through a forest's canopy, a man holding a giant spear greeted him.
"So it's you… I've been waiting."
It was Hwagmu in the form of Hong Cheon. The Dragon had once again taken a human form.
"Are you Hong Cheon or Hwagmu?"
"Haha… Hahaha…"
It seemed that something was wrong with him.
Hwagmu had stayed hidden in Hong Cheon's body for 300 years, corrupting him.
"I don't know anymore…"
He couldn't tell if he was Hong Cheon, who had become Hwagmu, or if he had become Hong Cheon from Hwagmu.
Where had things gone wrong? Where had it got twisted?
Swoosh…
The one holding the giant spear was both Hwagmu and Hong Cheon, who had defeated him.
"Come, dark one. Face me."
Whoosh—!
The giant spear swung.
"Be buried by the legend!"
BZZ…
A huge amount of lightning was imbued in the giant spear.
WHOOM—!
The ground shattered and was swept away by the storm.
BOOM—!
Creak… Creak…
While maintaining the Yaksha state, Seol blocked the spear.
- Ugh… It's heavy.
The attack was so powerful that even Shin Yu groaned.
However…
Bzz…
Hwagmu wasn't the only one chosen by the storm.
BOOM—!
The sword repelled the spear.
"YOU BASTARD!"
BOOM—!
The two collided and pushed each other back. If they hadn't absorbed some of the shock, the storm might have torn them apart.
Crack…
'Hmm…?'
The sound of something shattering echoed from Seol's chest.
It was the mirror Seol Hong had given him.
"That… mirror…"
As if he had remembered something upon seeing the broken mirror, Hwagmu paused for a moment and then clutched his head.
"AGH!"
He screamed while attacking.
WHOOM!
The one wielding the storm, Hwagmu…
He once rose to the sky effortlessly, commanding the weather, bringing rain to those suffering from drought and clear skies to those trapped in storms.
But now, he had forgotten those days.
Now, he was just an evil dragon.
"AAHH—!"
"HAAA!"
BOOM—!
BOOOOM—!
Each time their weapons clashed, an immense shockwave shook the storm's core.
Those outside the storm might have prayed for it to stop, just as people had once prayed to Hwagmu in the past.
BOOM—!
Creak…
Seol didn't retreat an inch.
One was the evil dragon Hwagmu, who had once dyed the East in blood, and the other was Seol, who was opening a new era.
Their clash was like the tolling of a bell.
BOOM—!
Whir…
A faint green light enveloped Seol's body.
- …child.
A gentle voice reached the two who were clashing within the storm.
- My child…
BOOM—!
Hwagmu flinched as if he were having a seizure and swung his hand.
"STOP! STOOP! GET OUT OF MY DREAM!"
At that moment, upon seeing Hwagmu's reaction, Seol realized something.
'Could it be…'
[<Yu Hwa>’s inheritance is starting.]
…
Yu Hwa's inheritance suddenly started.
The broken hand mirror was the catalyst.
However, the green particles that triggered the legacy's memories also enveloped Hwagmu.
Without dropping their weapons, they returned to the memories of that day.
* * *
…
Oof… Oof…
He ran while dragging his aged body.
Thud…
Because he hadn't brought a servant, only Bang Hyu supported him.
It was Hwagmu—no, Hong Cheon.
Ah…
Slash…
He stumbled and fell to the ground.
But got up without showing pain and ran, forgetting dignity and status.
Oof… Oof…
Creak…
Buaa!
Buaaa!
Buaaaaaa!
A child's cry.
The birth of a new life.
Hong Cheon lifted the precious child.
"Yu Hwa…?"
BOOM—!
The midwife stuck her head to the ground and wept.
"Please… kill me…"
Hong Cheon's pupils turned gray. He frantically searched for the mother.
Oof…
Oof…
The woman breathed heavily.
She had already lost too much blood and was nearing death.
"Why… did you come…"
"Yu Hwa… Swordsdancer… Death…? How could this…"
"Please, listen to me…"
Yu Hwa spoke with trembling lips.
"Seol Hong."
"…"
"The child's name. The Dragon's child, Seol Hong…"
The woman he had deliberately kept at a distance…
The human who had nearly made him lose his purpose with her intense allure…
The woman whom the era's hero, Hong Cheon, and…
The evil dragon Hwagmu, who was awaiting resurrection, loved the most.
"My child… My child…"
Thud…
As Yu Hwa stopped breathing.
WHOOM—!
Swoosh…
Rain began pouring down from the sky.
* * *
[You have inherited Yu Hwa's unfulfilled desire.]
[A skill has been inherited from the deceased.]
[You have inherited Sword's Song.]
[Due to Crow's class effect, the ability’s effect has been enhanced.]
[Ghost Hand's characteristic enhances the ability.]
…
BOOM—!
Within the storm’s cross-section.
BOOM—!
The one clashing weapons with Hwagmu was Seol.
BZZT—!
BOOM—!
However, as their weapons clashed again, the figure became Yu Hwa.
Hwagmu struggled to raise his strength.
"HAAAAA!"
WHOOM—!
His final strength.
The final move of the one who wielded the storm.
And Seol's sword, charging toward the storm.
WHOOM…
With a flash, the two lines crossed.
BOOM—!
The storm exploded.
In an instant, the eyes of countless people caught within the storm turned to one place.
And simultaneously, the calm after the storm arrived.
Cough…
Hwagmu spat blood from his mouth.
The sky had become clear.
It seemed as if the sunlight washed away all the misfortunes Khan had endured so far.
And among those watching the scene, the words Jin Ryeo had said to Seol Hong came to mind.
- The Dragon Emperor Hong Cheon used to be a salmon. However, due to being unable to bear the tyranny of Hwagmu, he swam upstream to become a Dragon. Isn't it funny? How can a salmon become a Dragon?
A long time ago, a salmon that swam against the current became a dragon but lost itself.
- Perhaps… just perhaps…
The legend of an era, the Dragon Emperor Hong Cheon, spoke with his blood-stained lips.
"Yu Hwa…"
There was a man standing before him.
Clank…
The man sheathed his sword.
- Maybe Seol is a salmon.
Hwagmu laughed bitterly.
"…so you're still dancing."
BOOM…
Hwagmu, who was Hong Cheon…
Hong Cheon, who was Hwagmu…
The dragon's breath ceased.
"Hwagmu has…"
"No way…"
After the storm was over, another salmon swam upstream…
"Aah… Khan!"
And finally, became a new Dragon.
[You have stopped the Evil Dragon Hwagmu from resurrecting!]
[The Great Journey: Dragon War has been recorded under a new name.]
[It has been recorded in history as The Great Journey: Salmon and Dragon.]
[It has been recorded as part of the Twilight Era's Chronicles.]
[The tale of the man who came on an old ship spreads.]
[Secret Society: Veil has revealed its hidden form to the world!]
…
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