Episode 369

Even the Demonic Path Has Lines One Must Not Cross (2)

 

“Argh!”

 

Cheon-wol gritted his teeth as he wrapped the cloth tightly around his left arm.  The bleeding stopped as he applied enough pressure to cut off the blood flow.

 

It wasn’t just his arm.  Large and small wounds were etched like scars all over his body.

 

Among them, the wound on his arm was the most severe.

 

He had sprinkled hemostatic powder and tied it with cloth to stop the bleeding, but even lifting his arm was difficult.

 

It was fortunate that his arm hadn’t been severed.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Yeo Joong Wol looked at Cheon-wol with a serious expression.

 

Cheon-wol was battered and bruised, while Yeo Joong Wol didn’t have a single scratch on his body. It was because Cheon-wol had thrown himself in front of Yeo Joong Wol to protect him.

 

If it weren’t for Cheon-wol, Yeo Joong Wol would have lost his life several times already.

 

“I’m sorry for you. It’s my fault you’re in this predicament.”

 

“No, please don’t say that.”

 

Cheon-wol shook his head.

 

They had barely managed to break through the enemy’s encirclement and escape. But that was only a temporary solution.

 

Although the enemy had been caught off guard by Cheon-wol’s unexpected strength, they would soon regroup and pursue them.

 

There wasn’t much time.

 

Cheon-wol and Yeo Joong Wol had to move as quickly as possible.

 

“Huh!”

 

Cheon-wol stood up.

 

After a moment of silence, Yeo Joong Wol spoke.

 

“We don’t stand a chance like this. Do you understand?”

 

“But I won’t give up.”

 

“I’m not telling you to give up. Let’s change our approach.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Their target is me. Leave me behind.”

 

“Are you telling me to leave you? I could never do that.”

 

“I’m not telling you to leave me. I’ll buy us some time, and you go bring reinforcements.”

 

Cheon-wol frowned at Yeo Joong Wol’s words.

 

He couldn’t understand how Yeo Joong Wol planned to buy time.

 

Yeo Joong Wol smiled.

 

“You seem to have forgotten who I am. Do you really think I became the strategist of the Jade Heaven Alliance without any abilities?”

 

“Don’t tell me you intend to set up…a formation?”

 

“Yes! I plan to set up a formation to protect myself. As long as the formation is active, I’ll be safe. In the meantime, you go and bring reinforcements to rescue me.”

 

“But…”

 

“It’s the only way for both of us to survive.”

 

Cheon-wol  was momentarily speechless at Yeo Joong Wol’s firm words.

 

He was well aware of his physical condition.

 

In his current state, it was impossible to get Yeo Joong Wol out safely. They might be able to escape for a while, but eventually they would be caught.

 

“Listen to me. I have no intention of giving up my life easily or letting them capture me. I’ll protect myself with the formation, so you go and bring trustworthy people to rescue me.”

 

“…”

 

“Do you understand?”

 

When Cheon-wol  didn’t respond immediately, Yeo Joong Wol asked again.

 

“I… understand. I’ll do as you say.”

 

“Remember, my life is in your hands.”

 

“Yes!”

 

Cheon-wol  nodded with difficulty.

 

Yeo Joong Wol looked at him with pity for a moment, then glanced around.

 

He spotted a terrain suitable for setting up a formation.

 

It was a hill with an unusually large number of rocks.

 

The terrain itself was ordinary, but to Yeo Joong Wol’s eyes, it looked safer than any treacherous ground.

 

“Help me before you leave.”

 

“Yes!”

 

Yeo Joong Wol instructed Cheon-wol  to move the rocks.

 

‘With the Four Symbols and Nine Illusions Formation, I should be able to hold out for a while.’

 

The formation he intended to set up here was a combination of the Invisibility Formation and the Illusion Formation.

 

It thoroughly concealed traces, and even if intruders approached, it would show them illusions to lead them away.

 

Its killing power was weak, but its defensive capabilities were strong, making it excellent for buying time. Unless someone as skilled in formations as Yeo Joong Wol came, it would be nearly impossible to break through.

 

Cheon-wol  moved the rocks as Yeo Joong Wol instructed. As he exerted himself, the wounds from which he had barely stopped bleeding reopened. But Cheon-wol  didn’t complain and worked diligently.

 

“That’s enough.”

 

At Yeo Joong Wol’s words, Cheon-wol  stopped.

 

His entire body was drenched in sweat and blood.

 

“Now go.”

 

“Are you really going to be okay alone?”

 

“You’re underestimating me too much. Although I haven’t trained in martial arts like you, with this formation, no martial artist can easily harm me. So don’t worry and go quickly.”

 

“I understand. Please be careful. I’ll return with reinforcements as soon as possible.”

 

“Take care of yourself too. If something happens to you, I won’t be able to face Sobo.”

 

“I’ll be careful.”

 

At Cheon-wol’s response, Yeo Joong Wol nodded and entered the formation made of rocks.

 

Yeo Joong Wol moved a small rock to seal the entrance. The air around them shimmered for a moment, and Yeo Joong Wol vanished without a trace. The Four Symbols Nine Illusions Array had been activated.

 

Unless someone had extremely sharp senses, they would never realize a formation was hidden here. And even if they did, it would be nearly impossible to break it in a short time.

 

Cheon-wol bowed in the direction of the formation.

 

“Please, hold on until I return. I’ll be back soon.”

 

He forced himself to walk away even though his feet felt heavy.

 

If he pushed on for two more days, reinforcements sent by Lim So-bo would meet him.

 

Cheon-wol unleashed his qigong with all his might, and in an instant he became a small dot in the distance and disappeared.

 

Half an hour after Cheon-wol disappeared.

 

‘This is it. The trail leads here.’

 

A group of people appeared where he had been.

 

They were the assassins who had ambushed Cheon-wol and Yeo Joong Wol.

 

Their numbers had been halved. Some had died or been injured in Cheon-wol’s counterattack.

 

No one had expected Cheon-wol to possess such terrifying strength. That’s why the casualties were so high.

 

Anger flared in the eyes of the assassins who had lost so many of their comrades. Though trained to remain calm under all circumstances, it was impossible not to be shaken by the deaths of close comrades.

 

Their leader gritted his teeth.

 

“Damn it! Whoever he is, he’s really something. To think he’d give our Kill Soul Squad such a hard time.”

 

The Kill Soul Squad was an assassin group operated by the Inner Court

 

The Inner Court’s leader, Ju Shin-yoon, had felt the need for his own private assassins and had personally created the Kill Soul Squad.

 

Ju Shin-yoon used the Kill Soul Squad effectively.

 

They were primarily used to eliminate threats to the Changcheon Alliance, but occasionally, they were also used to remove his political enemies.

 

The Kill Soul Squad was Ju Shin-yoon’s fierce hunting dogs.

 

The squad leader, Naeng Samun, looked around with sharp eyes and said,

 

“We need to find out where he went. We can’t let him escape.”

 

“Yes!”

 

One of his subordinates, who particularly resembled a monkey, answered energetically.

 

He was called Monkey Nose. Not only did he look like a monkey, but his senses—especially his sense of smell—were so keen it bordered on abnormal. When it came to tracking someone’s trail, no one could match him.

 

He examined the ground carefully.

 

After a while, he finally picked up a faint trace.

 

“They went this way.”

 

He pointed to precisely where Cheonwol had gone.

 

“Good! Track him. He’s carrying the strategist, so he couldn’t have gone far.”

 

“But something’s strange.”

 

Suddenly, Monkey Nosetilted his head.

 

“What is it?”

 

“The trail is very small.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“If two people moved, there should be more tracks than this…”

 

Monkey Nosesniffed the air.

 

Naeng Samun crossed his arms and watched Monkey Face.

 

When it came to tracking, he was second to none. If Monkey Nose said something was odd, it was worth taking seriously.

 

“I’m certain two people were here, yet only one scent moves away.”

 

“You’re sure?”

 

“Yes. This smell—”

 

Monkey Nose sniffed again and moved in a certain direction. A moment later, his expression became puzzled.

 

He could smell something, but he couldn’t see anything.

 

He walked on, following the scent.

 

Suddenly, he vanished without a trace.

 

Naeng Samun’s eyes went cold.

 

“It’s a formation. Yeo Joong Wol must have set up a formation and hidden himself.”

 

A moment later, Monkey Nose reappeared.

 

He looked visibly confused.

 

Suddenly, everything went dark, and his senses of smell and sight were paralyzed. He had momentarily become blind.

 

He lost his sense of direction and flailed about, but then his sight and smell returned.

 

“What the hell?”

 

He blinked, not understanding what had just happened.

 

Naeng Samun approached him.

 

“Yeo Joong Wol has set up a formation and hidden himself.”

 

“A formation?”

 

“Yes. He definitely set up a formation.”

 

At Naeng Samun’s confident words, Monkey Nose blinked.

 

“What should we do?”

 

They were skilled at finding and killing people, but they were practically amateurs when it came to formations.

 

“Find someone who can break the formation.”

 

“Understood!”

 

A subordinate quickly left to carry out the order.

 

Naeng Samun glared at the area where the formation was set up.

 

“Yeo Joong Wol! If you thought you could save your life with this formation, you’re sorely mistaken. You’ll never escape my grasp until you die.”

 

***

 

So Goo-san, the head escort of the Jeongong Escort Agency, walked over and sat down beside Oh Jung-gyeong

 

So Goo-san was in his mid to late thirties and had spent his whole life in escort work.  He had originally been the head escort of a large escort agency where Oh Jung-gyeong had once worked.

 

When So Goo-san was already renowned as a head escort, Oh Jung-kyung had been nothing but a greenhorn porter. But after catching So Goo-san’s eye, Oh Jung-gyeong rose through the ranks and eventually became a head escort himself.

 

When Oh Jung-gyeong left the major agency to start his own, the first person he sought was So Goo-san.

 

So Goo-san had no reason to follow Oh Jung-gyeong. He could have stayed at his original Escort agency and guaranteed his career. Yet, he willingly left to join Oh Jung-gyeong and they walked a tough road together.

 

 

He did it all out of loyalty to Oh Jung-gyeong.

 

Although loyalty was valued in the Jianghu, people who took it as seriously as So Goo-san were rare.

 

Because of this, Oh Jung-gyeong’s trust in So Goo-san was incredibly solid.

 

“Brother!”

 

“They don’t seem like an ordinary group.”

 

“Yes. Not a single one of them looks ordinary.”

 

“Did you find out their identities?”

 

“One of them called himself Lee Jin-mun.”

 

“I’ve never heard of that name.”

 

“It could be an alias.”

 

“Even so, it’s not strange. There are many people in the Jianghu who don’t want to reveal their identities. The question is whether they pose a threat. What do you think?”

 

“They didn’t seem to be a threat. The Lee Jin-mun guy wasn’t even interested in our cargo.”

 

At Oh Jung-gyeong’s words, So Goo-san stroked his beard and looked at the group.

 

“Hmm! Even so, we can’t let our guard down for a moment. The future of our Cheongong Escort Agency depends on this mission.”

 

“I know. If this mission fails, our agency will go bankrupt.”

 

Oh Jung-gyeong bit his lip.

 

The stakes were very high for this escort mission. Failure meant ruin not only for him but for all the escorts and porters relying on this job. The weight of their livelihood weighed heavily on his shoulders.

 

Oh Jung-gyeong’s father had been a physician. Growing up, Oh Jung-gyeong learned medicine from him and could have led a more comfortable life. But he discovered that being a physician didn’t suit his temperament, so he became an escort guard instead.

 

He had never regretted that choice—except at moments like this, when doubts crept in. Why had he chosen such a hard road when he could have had an easier path?

 

Whenever he felt this way, So Goo-san seemed to know and would reassure him.

 

So Goo-san saw Oh Jung-gyeong’s gloomy expression and smiled.

 

“You don’t have to feel too pressured. Haven’t we done well so far? We’ll continue to do well. I believe in you.”

 

“Thank you, brother! That’s comforting.”

 

Oh Jung-gyeong’s expression finally brightened a bit.

 

So Goo-san patted Oh Jung-gyeong lightly on the shoulder and stood up.

 

“Where are you going?”

 

“I need to check if the cargo is properly secured.”

 

“Hyungnim, you’re being quite meticulous. Didn’t you just check it a little while ago?”

 

“There’s nothing else to do on the boat, so I might as well.”

 

“In that case, I’ll join you.”

 

Oh Jung-gyeong followed So Goo-san to the place where their cargo was stored.

 

Lee Gwang and Seok Yi Cheon watched the two men meticulously inspecting the cargo.

 

The desperation in their actions was palpable as they checked if the tarps were securely covered and the cargo was well tied.

 

Seok Yi-cheon spoke up as he watched them.

 

“I don’t know what kind of cargo they’re carrying, but it must be extremely important considering how often they check it.”

 

“Indeed.”

 

“That kind of behavior isn’t always good, though.”

 

“Because it attracts attention?”

 

“Exactly! If they check the cargo every half hour, it naturally arouses the curiosity of the passengers. And there’s no guarantee that none of them have bad intentions.”

 

Lee Gwak smiled as he looked at Seok Yi Cheon.

 

“Do you think something will happen?”

 

“Normally, no. But we are in the midst of a war. It wouldn’t be strange for troublemakers to appear out of nowhere.”

 

The recent battle in the Hwangwon Plains between the Jade Heaven Alliance, Dragon Heaven Valley, and the Martial Sword Troupe had been pivotal.

 

The Jade Heaven Alliance and the Martial Sword Troupe had invaded Dragon Heaven Valley at the risk of widespread criticism, but they had failed, and the consequences were beyond imagination.

 

For now, the Jade Heaven Alliance’s campaign to conquer the Jianghu had temporarily halted. No matter how vast their forces were, the damage they had suffered this time was unimaginable.

 

With the death of Yong Cheon-myeong and countless elite martial artists, the alliance’s movements inevitably shrank.

 

The Dragon Heaven Valley was too busy repairing the damage to focus externally, and the Martial Sword Troupe was also distracted by internal problems.

 

The Nine Dragon Clan, too, was in chaos, unable to gather external information because of the Hao Clan.

 

With the major powers of the Jianghu distracted, the rogue factions that had been lying low began to rise like wildfire, plunging the world into chaos.

 

Such a situation would have been unthinkable when the Ten Great Sects were still strong.

 

In these turbulent times, nothing was surprising.

 

“It would be nice if good people could prosper, but the world isn’t that simple.

 

Lee Gwang smiled slightly at Seok Yi Cheon’s words.

 

Seok Yi Cheon, who spoke like that, was also a good person.

 

Lee Gwang liked that about him.