Chapter 155: Just a Feeling
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SWOOSH- TAP TAP-
With a barely audible sound of wind, Cheol Ryu-heun quietly closed the window and disappeared.
The office fell into silence.
Ju Yu-gang leaned back and just blinked his eyes.
‘Modest? The true transmission of Sword-Commanding Hegemon King, who reached the pinnacle of the unorthodox martial world with sword-commanding technique alone…?’
Sword-commanding technique was a supreme cultivation where one moved a sword without touching it, as if controlling a horse.
However, if the practitioner’s internal energy wasn’t vast, the abysmal efficiency made it difficult to use as a primary martial art.
Since the core essence involved releasing the energy in one’s body like an invisible thread, connecting it to the sword and then executing it, energy consumption was considerably greater and faster compared to other sword arts.
A deep and profound level of internal energy was essential to maintain it for as long as possible.
Therefore, supreme masters who had made sword-commanding technique their primary martial art rather than just a one-off technique and built a great reputation could be counted on one’s fingers throughout martial history.
Sword-Commanding Hegemon King was one of those select few powerhouses, yet that fellow Cheol Ryu-heun…
-There are plenty of sword techniques more powerful than that one.
Had spouted that as if it were no big deal and left just like that.
‘Hah…’
When he said “plenty,” did that mean he had memorized all the secret formulas of multiple past martial artists who were even greater than Sword-Commanding Hegemon King?
No way.
Impossible.
No matter how he thought about it, that was something that couldn’t possibly be true by common sense.
‘I suppose I’ll find out in time.’
The moment Ju Yu-gang muttered inwardly and slightly shook his head, he detected someone’s presence from beyond the door.
Before long.
CLICK.
A shadow flickered and the door opened as a man in his thirties carrying a tea tray entered.
“Lord Ju, I’ve brought some warm tea and snacks.”
It was bodyguard Dam Maeng-gi.
“The window.”
At Ju Yu-gang’s sudden blunt words, Dam Maeng-gi set down the tea tray and tilted his head.
“Pardon?”
“From now on, keep a close eye on that side.”
“My… Has a stray cat been coming around and loitering again, bothering you?”
“No, something bigger than that keeps coming and going.”
“…?”
“Though even if you watch carefully, it’s not like you could stop it.”
“What do you mean…”
“Never mind, it’s nothing. But why the pouch?”
When Ju Yu-gang gave an eye signal, Dam Maeng-gi quickly untied the string-attached pouch hanging from one wrist and handed it over.
“Ah, yes. It was placed on the floor beside the door. I thought perhaps you had accidentally left it there, so I brought it in.”
“Is that so? It’s not mine though…”
Ju Yu-gang made a puzzled expression and opened the pouch to check inside.
‘Hm…?’
Two fairly large wild ginseng roots.
What was this now?
At that moment, what Cheol Ryu-heun had said earlier suddenly flashed through his mind.
‘Could these be Hundred-Year Snow Ginseng…?’
Ju Yu-gang soon discovered a small piece of paper inside the pouch.
The writing on it said this:
<These are Hundred-Year Snow Ginseng. Split them up, one each. If you handle this matter well, I’ll prepare other elixirs too. Shouldn’t you achieve Bone Replacement and Marrow Cleansing at least once before you turn forty?>
It was Cheol Ryu-heun.
Nine out of ten.
Ju Yu-gang laughed in disbelief.
“Hah… Haha, hahaha…! Hahahaha…!”
While Dam Maeng-gi stood blankly looking bewildered.
“How interesting, how interesting. Is this instead of the reward I gave up?”
“Lord Ju, what is that that you’re acting like that? And what’s written on the paper?”
“Well, it’s just something good. I’ll tell you later.”
“Ah… Yes.”
“For now, go and prepare the horses. There’s something I need to discuss with Lord Provincial Prosecutor.”
“Understood. Please wait just a moment.”
As Dam Maeng-gi disappeared beyond the door, Ju Yu-gang put away the pouch and then gazed fixedly at the documents on the desk.
‘A mysterious massacre…’
He quietly organized the cooperation request and the scene report, his eyes glinting sharply.
‘If I find the culprit during my inspection… I will make them pay the harshest price possible.’
* * *
Atop a bridge placed over a stream.
Gal Jung-heon, who had been standing with Divine Wind in the shade of a large zelkova tree, soon saw Cheol Ryu-heun appear nearby and spoke.
“You’re back. Did things go well?”
“Of course.”
Having nodded, Cheol Ryu-heun immediately sat down in the saddle.
The moment Gal Jung-heon took his place behind him.
“An unfortunate incident occurred in a nearby area recently.”
“Pardon? An unfortunate incident?”
“A mysterious massacre happened in a mountain village of fewer than ten households.”
He had read the text on the papers placed on Ju Yu-gang’s desk while talking with him earlier.
“That’s… How sad.”
As Gal Jung-heon’s grave voice came, Cheol Ryu-heun grasped the reins and opened his mouth expressionlessly.
“I have a hunch.”
“Pardon?”
“A premonition that this is an incident connected to the martial world.”
“Do you suspect the culprit… Is a martial artist?”
“Just a feeling. I don’t know if it’s one person or several. Now, let’s head to our Sect.”
Immediately after, Divine Wind kicked off the ground and began a swift sprint.
RUMBLE RUMBLE, RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE…
* * *
At the same time.
Inside an abandoned house deep in the mountains, five martial artists in different attire were gathered.
The composition of the five who had met clandestinely was interesting.
That was inevitable.
Because all five were in fact notorious wandering masters from the unorthodox martial worlds of various regions.
Seated at two worn tables – four at one and one at another – the group said nothing for a long while.
As that heavy silence lingered, a man in his mid-thirties with curly hair stroked a large axe and let out an irritated voice.
“What the hell, why is he so late? It’s been half a shichen since we exchanged names. Ahem! A man should keep promised times, damn it…”
Tang Mu-gae, martial alias Thousand-Man Foe Axe.
A master said to be so terrifying with his iron axe that he could sweep away a thousand men at once, his main area of activity was Jiangxi Province, which bordered the east of Hunan Province.
At that moment, a man of the same age across from him replied coldly.
“Don’t make noise for no reason. If you don’t want the money, just leave. No one’s going to stop you.”
With narrow eyes and a goatee-like beard, he was Seup Yeo, a wandering swordsman from this Hunan region.
Called One Sword Without Mercy for his brutally merciless techniques, he was famous for having martial strength comparable to the elite masters of renowned great sects.
Thousand-Man Foe Axe Tang Mu-gae twitched his thick eyebrows threateningly.
“Your mouth is insolent. If you annoy my eyes, you might lose your head.”
As if reflecting his combative nature, his right hand had already firmly gripped the handle of his iron axe.
Seeing that, One Sword Without Mercy Seup Yeo snorted dismissively.
“Pfft, how ridiculous. Can you even chop firewood properly with that cumbersome axe?”
“Keheh. If you personally become the firewood, I’ll gladly demonstrate my skill. How about it?”
“I heard that a few months ago you got slapped and beaten badly by some greenhorn girl called Bamboo Forest Divine Maiden. With that level of drifter ruffian skill, what are you going to do?”
Simultaneously, Tang Mu-gae shot to his feet and swung down his iron axe.
WHOOOOSH!
The axe blade accompanied by heavy wind pressure.
Not to be outdone, Seup Yeo’s iron sword also shot up quickly with a sharp sound, as if going out to meet it.
SWOOOOOSH!
When the axe blade and sword blade collided, a loud metallic ring echoed through the quiet chamber.
CLAAAANG-!
Seup Yeo, who had blocked the exchange while still seated, grimaced at the stinging shock running through his wrist.
‘UGH!’
At that moment, the chair let out a CRACK as it cried out.
The tremendous force of the heavily swung iron axe had been transmitted and shattered it.
“I’ll crush you just like this!”
When Tang Mu-gae put strength into his bulging arms, sparks flew with a SCREECH from where the two weapons met.
Monstrous strength that proved the alias of Thousand-Man Foe Axe wasn’t earned for nothing.
Unable to withstand that heavy force, Seup Yeo ended up kneeling with one knee on the floor.
‘URGH! He’s strong!’
But then he exploded the true energy he had injected into his sword with a BANG, pushing away the axe blade, and his opponent’s large frame retreated about one step.
“That just now was pretty good. Keheh. Let’s see more.”
The moment Tang Mu-gae curled his lips and was about to swing his iron axe again,
JUMP-!
The young man on the right and the woman in her forties on the left rose swiftly and struck.
SWISH- WHOOSH-!
A soft sword like an insect’s wing and a Willow Leaf Saber curved like a willow leaf came to rest just touching Tang Mu-gae’s side and elbow respectively.
FREEZE.
Tang Mu-gae’s movements also stopped.
The young man holding the soft sword spoke in a calm voice.
“Both of you, please stop there. We didn’t gather here to fight.”
Dressed in brown robes, he was Seok Mo-pil, a wandering master from the Hubei region whose reputation had risen recently.
He was called Drunken Shadow Sword because the movement of his soft sword evoked the image of shadows swaying drunkenly.
Following that, the woman in her forties holding the Willow Leaf Saber cast a cold gaze.
“If you want to fight, both of you get out. We’ll do this among ourselves.”
Dancing Saber Mandarin Duck Gyeon Mi.
A female wandering master of this Hunan Province who had built her reputation with flashy saber techniques resembling dance movements.
Tang Mu-gae, having quietly turned his head, spoke with a grin.
“Hey, do you like that guy?”
At that, double wicks lit in Gyeon Mi’s eyes.
“Hmph, stop spouting nonsense and wait quietly until the organizer of this meeting arrives. No matter how strong your strength is, you can’t handle all of us at once.”
“Tsk, making such a fuss over a little sword play… Acting like that makes me even more annoyed. Fine, shall I just kill all you lot this time?”
Startled, transparent ripples rose in the pupils of Drunken Shadow Sword Seok Mo-pil and Dancing Saber Mandarin Duck Gyeon Mi.
They had heard he was combative, but hadn’t expected him to be this unreasonable.
It seemed like a real bloody battle might actually break out.
But then.
Tang Mu-gae, who had been radiating fierce fighting spirit and killing intent, suddenly relaxed his expression and chuckled.
“Kekeke… You’re scared. Seeing that look, I’ve completely lost interest. Fine, since this is a special occasion, I’ll refrain from bloodshed today. Damn, you’re all lucky.”
Then he withdrew his iron axe.
Seok Mo-pil and Gyeon Mi also put away their weapons with distrustful expressions.
Meanwhile.
One Sword Without Mercy Seup Yeo seemed bitter about being pushed back in that one exchange, and ground his teeth with a CRUNCH as he sheathed his sword.
‘I’m holding back because of the money. But when this is over… I’ll sever your neck first!’
At that moment, the person who had been sitting alone at the other table spoke.
“Small fry, always just bickering.”
A woman wearing a jet-black vest, her long hair twisted up high and pinned with a hairpin.
But.
No one objected.
Soon the woman moved like lightning and took position behind Seup Yeo’s back.
‘AH!’
Startled, Seup Yeo urgently tried to turn his body, but he could no longer move.
Already, a black, thin wire pulled taut by the woman’s two hands was pressed close against the back of his neck.
“What was it you said earlier?”
A cold voice unsuited to her youthful-looking face.
The woman tilted her head and spoke again, eyes narrowed to slits.
“Bamboo Forest Divine Maiden, that greenhorn girl… That’s what you said, right?”
At the voice thick with killing intent that sent chills down the spine, not only Seup Yeo but Seok Mo-pil, Gyeon Mi, and even Tang Mu-gae looked unsettled.
Black Rope Wondrous Lady Na Rae-hyang.
Despite her girlish youthful face, she was thirty-eight years old this year – a master famed for her unique martial art using ultra-fine black wire and her unpredictable eccentric behavior.
Also.
She was one of the Five Elegants of Jiangxi, the five supreme masters who dominated Jiangxi Province, like the Five Supreme Martial Experts of Hunan Province and Six Extremes of Hubei.
Though a wanderer with no sect affiliation, her overwhelming presence was something everyone acknowledged.
SWISH.
Black Rope Wondrous Lady Na Rae-hyang leaned her face in slightly, then spoke viciously into Seup Yeo’s ear.
“You still don’t know what you did wrong? If I wrap this black rope around your neck and sever it, you won’t be able to wag that tongue anymore. Or… Should I just pull out your tongue?”