Reaper of the Drifting Moon novel - Chapter 410 Reaper of the Drifting Moon novel

Chapter 410 Reaper of the Drifting Moon novel

Yong Seol-ran couldn’t sleep all night.

After tossing and turning, she finally gave up on sleeping and stayed awake.

She was out of bed before dawn.

Pyo Wol and Ghost King still hadn’t woken up.

With their abilities, they would be able to sense her movements without even waking up.

Both of them possessed martial arts skills and senses that transcended human limitations.

Yong Seol-ran didn’t bother waking them up and went outside.

After washing her face briefly at the well, she grabbed a hoe and headed to the field.

As she crouched down in the field and pulled out weeds, time flew by quickly.

By the time she came to her senses, the sun had already risen above the mountains, coloring the whole world in red.

“Whew!”

Yong Seol-ran straightened her back and took a deep breath.

With her eyes slightly closed, she practiced her internal arts.

Although she had given up on practicing martial arts like swordsmanship, she never missed a day of doing herinternal arts.

It felt as if the hot energy of the sun was entering her body along with her breath.

Yong Seol-ran skillfully gathered the energy that entered her body using the Emei sect’s inner cultivation techniques.

A moment later, when she opened her eyes, Pyo Wol appeared in her line of sight.

Pyo Wol, who had come outside at some point, was staring intently at her.

Yong Seol-ran blushed and asked, “When did you come out?”

“Just a moment ago.”

“You must have seen me practicing my internal arts.”

“It seems your internal energy has increased significantly.”

“I didn’t intend to increase my internal energy, but I’ve been doing these exercises out of habit, and it’s naturally grown.”

At Yong Seol-ran’s response, Pyo Wol nodded.

Pyo Wol also practiced his internal arts every day without fail.

The inner energy he accumulated using the Four Hearts methods was still diligently

being stored in his energy center.

Such was the existence of a martial artist.

Even if they didn’t hold a weapon, they always practiced their internal arts to prepare for any situation.

Yong Seol-ran might have let go of her sword, but she hadn’t given up on being a martial artist.

Though she herself was not aware of this fact.

Yong Seol-ran approached Pyo Wol.

Perhaps because she had been working since morning, Yong Seol-ran’s body smelled of earth.

The enchanting fragrance that she used to have was gone, but she thought her current state was much better.

“Please wash up and wait a bit. I’ll prepare the meal soon.”

“Alright!”

Pyo Wol nodded and went to the well.

After scooping up some cold water and washing his face briefly, he returned to the house, where Ghost King was already awake and sitting at the table.

The Ghost King still had his eyes and ears covered with a cloth. Nevertheless, he sensed Pyo Wol entering the room.

“Did you take a bath?”

“Why don’t you take one too?”

“I don’t need to. When I practice my internal arts, dirt naturally falls off.”

“Still, there’s nothing like washing with water.”

“Why, is bathing so important?”

“It is!”

Pyo Wol nodded and sat down in front of Ghost King.

Meanwhile, Yong Seol-ran was busy preparing a meal inside the hut.

She cooked fresh rice and served the leftovers from the previous day.

Once the meal was set, the three began to eat.

During the meal, Yong Seol-ran asked Pyo Wol,

“How long are you planning to stay here?”

“We’re leaving today.”

“So soon? You’re not staying longer?”

“We don’t have much time.”

At Pyo Wol’s calm response, Yong Seol-ran slightly furrowed her brow. However, she soon said as if it was no big deal,

“Well, it can’t be helped. If you happen to pass by this area again, please visit. I’ll be here.”

“Sure.”

“Is it a promise?”

“Yes!”

At Pyo Wol’s firm answer, Yong Seol-ran’s face brightened a little.

Just then,

“Oh my! What’s going on?”

“Everyone, come and see.”

Suddenly, voices came from the village entrance.

Sensing the unusual atmosphere, Yong Seol-ran stood up quickly.

“I’ll be right back. Please continue eating.”

Without waiting for a reply, she ran outside.

All the villagers had gathered at the entrance.

“What’s the matter?”

“Oh dear! Yong Seol-ran!”

“Why? What happened?”

“Look at this. Gosh! Ju Young… “

The village head couldn’t finish his sentence.

His eyes were filled with tears.

Yong Seol-ran looked in the direction he was pointing. There was an object covered with a cloth.

She instinctively knew the object under the cloth was a corpse.

The smell of decay was seeping through the cloth.

Yong Seol-ran knelt down and lifted the cloth. A decomposing corpse was revealed.

It was a young man named Im Ju Young.

Like Yong Seol-ran, he was a young man who had settled in the village.

He was hardworking and friendly to everyone, earning the villagers’ trust.

“Didn’t he say he was going to the city a few days ago?”

“That’s right! He went to buy plows and farming tools, and the villagers had collected money for him.”

The slash and burn Village was located in such a remote place that people had to go to the city to get daily necessities. Therefore, it was common for the villagers to ask someone going to the city to buy things for them.

This time was no different.

When young and healthy Im Ju-young said he was going to the city, the villagers gave him money and asked him to buy the necessary items for them.

Im Ju-young gladly accepted their requests.

Yong Seol-ran also had something she needed and asked him for help.

It was time for him to return, but there was no news yet, which was strange.

Yong Seol-ran examined Im Ju-young’s corpse closely.

The decaying body had quite a few injuries. Among them, the most fatal one was a long wound on his side.

It seemed that someone stabbed Im Ju-young’s side with a sword, which was the decisive cause of his death.

“Where was the body found?”

“A friend here went hunting and found it about 20 li away.”

The village head pointed to a man who was the only hunter in the village.

The man usually worked in the fields, but when he had free time, he would walk around the area with his bow and arrow, hunting.

The deer and wild boars he caught became precious sources of nutrition for the villagers.

Yong Seol-ran said to the hunter, “Will you guide me to where the body was found?”

“Of course.”

The hunter’s complexion was very dark.

It was the first time a member of the village had died.

Because the village was so small, most members were close like brothers and sisters.

The hunter thought of the deceased Im Ju-young as a close friend. That’s why his sense of loss and anger were immense.

As Yong Seol-ran and the hunter were about to leave the village, they heard Pyo Wol’s voice.

“We’re going with you.”

Pyo Wol and the ghost king had been looking at Im Ju-young’s corpse, covered in a cloth.

Yong Seol-ran said, “You don’t have to.”

“We have to repay you for the meal.”

“Alright, then…”

Yong Seol-ran nodded her head.

She knew very well how fearsome an assassin Pyo Wol was.

With his observation and tracking skills, finding the culprit wouldn’t be too difficult.

The four of them left the slash and burn Village and headed to where the body was found.

The place where the body was discovered was a remote forest far off the path. If the hunter hadn’t accidentally come in here while chasing a wild boar, the body would have never been found.

“Here. Ju-young was lying here.”

The hunter pointed to where Im Ju-young’s body had been found with a somber face.

Pyo Wol knelt on one knee and examined the place where the body had been.

“At least three more people were here. One of them has big and deep footprints, so they must be quite large. The one standing here seemed to have been leaning on a spear or staff, and the one in that spot had a sword.”

Pyo Wol deduced the size and weapons of the people who had been here based on the traces left on the ground.

Yong Seol-ran’s expression became serious.

“Was it a robbery?”

“It wasn’t a simple robbery.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Did you see the wounds on the body?”

“Yes, but why?”

“The wounds are messy. There are signs of them playing around. If they were just after goods or money, there would be no reason to play around with him like that and kill him.”

“Did they kill for fun?”

“I think so.”

“Who would have done this and for what purpose?”

“I can’t tell that much from the traces left here.”

A considerable amount of time had passed, and many traces had disappeared. It was thanks to Pyo Wol that they could figure out this much. Other people couldn’t tell what had happened or how many people were involved.

Yong Seol-ran was no different.

Although she was a strong martial artist, she wasn’t very good at observing and deducing things like this.

Yong Seol-ran asked,

“Can we find them?”

Instead of answering, Pyo Wol looked around.

After a while of examining the bushes, Pyo Wol’s eyes sparkled.

He had discovered a hidden trace in the leaves.

“They came on horseback.”

“Did ordinary bandits chase after Im Ju-young on horseback?”

Yong Seol-ran thought it didn’t make sense.

If they were on horseback, it meant they had some financial backing. There was no reason for such people to chase after Im Ju-young, torment him, and kill him.

The things Im Ju-young had were just everyday tools, not valuable items.

“Can you tell where they went?”

“I can’t guarantee that I can find them, but I can try to track them.”

“Please do.”

“Alright!”

Pyo Wol nodded.

Even if Yong Seol-ran hadn’t asked, he would have tried to find them.

He had a debt to repay to the girl, and above all, the situation itself piqued his interest.

It was far from common for people on horseback to chase down someone to a remote place like this and play with them until they died.

Pyo Wol began to track the traces.

Before following Pyo Wol, Yong Seol-ran told the hunter,

“I’ll go later. You go back to the village first.”

“Are you sure?”

“Don’t worry.”

“Alright! Be careful, Yong Seol-ran!”

“Yes! I will.”

As Yong Seol-ran’s figure disappeared in an instant, the hunter couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Wow! She’s really amazing. I don’t know why someone as great as her is living in a backwater place like our village.”

The hunter shook his head and returned to the village.

Despite the passage of time and the almost complete disappearance of traces, Pyo Wol was relentless.

When a large animal like a horse passed by, there were bound to be traces left.

Hoof prints on the ground, broken branches, trampled grass, and various other traces.

Pyo Wol didn’t miss any of these seemingly insignificant traces that ordinary people would pass by without noticing.

They ran for almost two hours like this.

Yong Seol-ran closely followed Pyo Wol, and the Ghost King followed behind them.

Pyo Wol, Ghost King, and Yong Seol-ran were all exceptional martial artists.

Even after running for two hours, none of them showed any signs of fatigue.

That’s when it happened.

Pyo Wol, who had been leading the way, suddenly slowed down.

Yong Seol-ran and the Ghost King adjusted their speed accordingly.

Pyo Wol stopped at a dense, dark hill covered in bushes.

“Why…”

Yong Seol-ran was about to ask the reason, but she closed her mouth.

It was because she saw a group of people at the bottom of the hill.

Over thirty men were scattered around, resting. And on one side, what seemed to be their horses were grazing.

“What?”

Yong Seol-ran furrowed her brows.

There were more than thirty horses grazing.

“What?”

Yong Seol-ran furrowed her brows.

There were over thirty horses grazing.

It meant that all the men had come on horseback.

Horses were very expensive luxuries. Moreover, maintaining them required considerable cost.

Over thirty men were riding these luxuries, which couldn’t be maintained without financial backing.

It meant that they were not ordinary people.

The aura emitted by the men was also extraordinary.

Yong Seol-ran cautiously asked,

“Are you saying that among them, there’s a murderer?”

“The traces led to them.”

“Hmm!”

That’s when the Ghost King, who had been silent, opened his mouth.

“I smell a familiar scent from them.”