Chapter 158

Chapter 158

Back outside the village. The formation axis destruction team.

“San! Left side!”

Kaaaang—!!!

“These damn things!”

“Don’t stop! If you stop, you’re done for!”

“I know that too…!”

At Seonwoo Gang’s shouted warning, Baek Risan reflexively spat out curses and gritted his teeth. Even while executing qinggong, the continuous attacks made him feel like he was losing his mind.

“They were calm at first, but why are they acting like this now…!”

After the darkness cleared.

At first, the yokai didn’t actively attack. Of course, from the beginning they had about a dozen yokai trailing them, but that was exactly it.

If they fought, they could handle them without problems. Just about enough yokai were following the group.

They were faster than the yokai.

However, at a certain point, the situation changed.

Kieeeeeк!

“Baek Risan! It seems like the yokai are getting more numerous the further forward we go!”

“Weren’t I thinking the exact same thing?”

Chwaaaaк!

After cutting down with flames drawn to their peak the yokai that had suddenly popped out from the side and thrust its face forward, Baek Risan grimaced at the bloodstains on his clothes while approaching Seonwoo Gang. The exchange continued.

“Baek Risan. What I’m thinking is…”

“You’re saying it seems like the yokai are moving to protect the formation’s axis, right?”

“Yeah. Your comprehension is fast, which is good… there!”

Kwadeuк!

Seonwoo Gang, who had twisted the neck of a yokai that had leaped from above aiming for his back with his bare hands, immediately threw the corpse behind him and continued speaking.

“The further forward we go, the more yokai there are, and if you look at things like the footprints left on the ground, you can see them moving toward the formation axis. It seems almost certain that the yokai are moving to protect the one remaining formation axis.”

“That’s not what’s important! What’s the solution?”

“Right now, there are only two options. Either break through head-on, or make an instant breakthrough and cut out just the formation axis… there!”

Kaang!

After deflecting with his sword blade a fist-sized yokai that had flown at his neck, Seonwoo Gang clicked his tongue at his tingling wrist. Then, as if nothing had happened, the exchange immediately continued.

“Choosing a frontal breakthrough means we don’t know how many more yokai might swarm in, and choosing to break through means we don’t know what state the formation axis is in! Either way, the risk is quite high!”

“…Isn’t there a better method?!”

“If there were, I’d have explained it already!”

There’s not much time to attempt another strategy. The yokai swarming in are one thing, but more importantly, they need to break through before the village’s defensive line is breached.

‘If we attempt a frontal breakthrough, damage will definitely occur. People might die. But…’

The problem comes after concentrating all forces to break through at once.

What if the formation axis is in a form that’s difficult to destroy easily like the second formation axis? Or what if the yokai don’t disappear even after the formation axis is destroyed?

‘We’ll be annihilated.’

Kadeuк.

Baek Risan bit his lip until it bled and tightly gripped the handle of his sword. A question of whether to sacrifice some safely, or gamble to save everyone.

‘Oraboni and Seohwa have been enduring this kind of pressure constantly?’

The lives of the group depend on a single judgment. Under the pressure weighing on his shoulders, Baek Risan let out a deep sigh and furrowed his brow. And after a moment.

“Let’s go with striking all at once.”

Baek Risan gave his answer.

“The risk…”

“I know. You’re saying if it goes wrong even a little, we’ll be annihilated.”

Looking at Seonwoo Gang, Baek Risan spat out the words like chewing them and clenched his fist. Naeryeok rose like wildfire.

“Even so, we can’t accept sacrifices. It’s not just us. If we try to break through head-on and fail because the number of yokai is greater than expected…”

Then everyone in the village will die. That means everything ends.

“This is the right way.”

“…Alright.”

Watching Baek Risan declare firmly, Seonwoo Gang nodded and immediately cut down the yokai that appeared in front. His eyes settled.

“The distance ahead is roughly one sijin. We need to keep running at this speed—can you do it?”

“Even if our other martial arts are similar, my qinggong is definitely better than yours, you know?”

“Is that so?”

At Baek Risan puffing out his chest and speaking, Seonwoo Gang chuckled and fully extended his golden sword energy. And then.

“Then run. Run and break through the front. I’ll take the rear.”

“I should. Follow well!”

Shortly after.

A golden flash and white flames began racing through the dark forest.

One and a half sijin since the formation axis was destroyed.

“…I’m surprised.”

After gauging the time, Seomun Cheok looked outside with a tense expression and opened his mouth casually. The horde of yokai that had been attacking for quite a long time without striking.

We’ll kill with full force anyone who approaches the barrier. If you don’t approach the barrier, we won’t attack.

Seohwa’s effective strategy stopped the yokai for a full sijin. During that time, yokai approached the barrier, but Seomun Cheok dealt with them all. That was the result before his eyes.

“I never thought we could spend a whole sijin without fighting.”

This makes defending manageable.

With conviction, Seomun Cheok loosened his grip on the spear shaft. And at that moment, Seohwa spoke.

“…The atmosphere is strange.”

“Mm? The atmosphere?”

“Yes. The yokai’s atmosphere has changed somehow…”

The yokai encampment visible beyond the flames.

The air that had been unsettled until just now was becoming refined with an ominous feeling. The yokai that had been standing in disorder gradually found order. As if they were a human army, the yokai were finding discipline.

Not good.

“They’re coming. We need to prepare defenses immediately.”

“…We did rest quite a bit though.”

No matter how much they’ve found discipline, at this point it doesn’t matter. We’ve held out before—we just need to hold out for another half sijin, isn’t that the only problem?

“Don’t worry too much. If they only come from the front, it won’t be that difficult.”

They have no other options either.

The moment Seomun Cheok said that and stepped forward, Seohwa turned pale. And then.

“What is that…?”

The next moment.

The yokai that had formed ranks threw their bodies all at once into the wall of flames.

Chiiiiiк—!!!

—Kieeeeeк!

Along with the smell of burning flesh, the yokai engulfed in flames screamed and rubbed their bodies on the ground. The bizarre behavior of throwing themselves into the fire.

If sane, if they were animals that know what fire is, they wouldn’t think to throw their bodies into such a house-sized blaze. Even from the yokai’s perspective, approaching the wall of flames is aberrant behavior.

It doesn’t stop.

Kung!

The yokai with massive bodies covered the wall of flames with their bodies, one by one. The wall of flames, spanning several jang in width, gradually gave way as the yokai’s corpses piled on top.

Yes.

Right now, the yokai were carving a path over the flames. Using their own bodies as paving stones for the path.

“Oil.”

“…What?”

“We need to prepare oil! Right now!”

The path gradually widens.

At Seohwa’s scream-like order, Seomun Cheok immediately had the Gyoryongpa sect members bring the oil they had prepared in advance. Unlike the animal fat they had coated the wood with beforehand, these were plant-extracted oils that catch fire easily but extinguish quickly.

“Throw it—!!!”

Peng! Peobeobeobeobeng!

The oil contained in leather pouches flew and burst, filling the path the yokai had created with flames once more. Flames that filled the entire view, covering the sky.

If the great scorching heat of hell were to manifest in this world, would it feel like this?

In a world turned entirely red, covered by the light of flames, Seohwa gritted her teeth and checked the remaining oil pouches. Because this one time had consumed quite a lot of oil.

‘At most three times left.’

The oil that can be extracted from plants isn’t something easily obtained in these mountains, unlike animal fat. Even gathering all the oil from about two hundred households only yielded about thirty pouches at most.

At first, she thought that alone would be enough. She thought living beings couldn’t overcome their fear of fire.

Unless there were yokai that could not just breathe fire but control it—and such yokai would be at the level of great yokai, rarely appearing. Even great yokai would find it nearly impossible to control flames of this scale.

‘If that attempt continues…?’

Even after killing hundreds of yokai, there are still about a thousand remaining. If those yokai use the same method as before.

Can we block them then too?

‘…A method.’

I need to come up with a method.

After instantly assessing the current situation and closing then opening her eyes, Seohwa looked at the leather pouches. Then she immediately gave instructions to Seomun Cheok.

“Please prepare many leather pouches right away. Every single one we have.”

“The oil there is all we have. We can’t prepare more…”

“No. Just the leather pouches are enough. To fill with water instead of oil.”

“What?”

“They’ve started employing strategy. That means a commander has emerged on their side.”

Sacrificing yokai to pile corpses and use them to cover the fire and create a path through the flames.

It’s a strategy that can’t emerge when individual survival instincts aren’t being suppressed. It’s cruel and cold-hearted but efficient, and that’s what makes it a certain method.

“The only thing that can block them is oil pouches. But we don’t have many oil pouches.”

“Then we need to make it look like we have many oil pouches, even if it’s bluffing. So they don’t realize our hand is weak.”

“…That’s certainly true.”

It’s not wrong.

Nodding at Seohwa’s words, Seomun Cheok immediately conveyed Seohwa’s words to those working near the meeting hall. Soon, leather pouches filled with water piled up on the table.

“Is this enough? It looks like they’re trying to break through again.”

“They’ll try at least one or two more times from now on.”

As the leather pouches burst with a loud bang, Seohwa bit her lip. Even though it’s bluffing, if the opposing strategist properly understands the situation, they’ll quickly realize these numerous oil pouches aren’t real.

‘Please.’

Please don’t realize it. Please let the yokai commander be someone who doesn’t know well about human ecology.

There’s nothing she can do but pray. Unconsciously clenching her fist, Seohwa glared at the yokai throwing themselves into the flames.

After about a moment.

When the oil pouches were nearly depleted and only pouches containing water remained.

The yokai’s movements stopped.

“Is it over?”

“…It’s too early to let our guard down.”

At Seomun Cheok’s words, Seohwa turned her gaze to the yokai. Corpses have piled up, but the wall of flames remains intact. In appearance, they’ve burned hundreds of yokai to death without taking any damage.

‘If it worked, they won’t deploy more.’

They placed hundreds of leather pouches filled with water on the table. If they confirmed the leather pouches with their eyes, they wouldn’t think to enter more.

A moment of waiting.

Confirming the yokai weren’t entering any further, Seomun Cheok let out a sigh of relief and loosened his grip on the spear shaft. He casually opened his mouth with a sense of relief.

“That was a good strategy. Your bluffing seems to have worked.”

“At least they won’t try to break through the flames again. With this, we’ve bought quite a bit more time.”

One and a half sijin plus one moment has passed. Not much time remains until two sijin.

“We can hold out. Definitely.”

“…We mustn’t let our guard down. It’s not over until it’s over.”

“Right. That’s true too.”

Even at Seomun Cheok’s words, Seohwa didn’t relax her hardened expression and gripped the handle of the Uicheongeom. And then.

“Now they’ll try to break through from the front. No matter what happens, we must hold the front…”

Must hold it.

Peoeok!

As she was saying that, Seohwa heard a sound from beside her and turned her head with a creak. A yokai that had somehow fallen beside her, dead with its neck broken.

“…What?”

Slowly raising her gaze, Seohwa looked at the yokai encampment. The yokai encampment visible far in the distance.

Large yokai were grabbing smaller yokai and spinning them around.

As if.

Like the preparatory motion for throwing rocks.