The Bloodthirsty Asura (4)
“Impressive, Sir Wei!”
“Uncle, are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m fine, so don’t worry.”
Getting injured while taking down scum like this would be unacceptable. In this medieval world, one had to avoid wounds as much as possible. Even if the Central Plains were different, the Western side treated injuries by wrapping bandages and offering a quick prayer during meditation as official medicine. Living like that, people shouted about honor yet turned into cowards the moment real fighting began. Hygiene was another serious problem. Still, the Central Plains should be somewhat better. At the very least, they would attempt treatment with acupoint sealing or herbal decoctions.
Enough idle talk.
“Elder Baek, how were things above the waterfall?”
“It was a scene of horrific slaughter. Five Wuxia Alliance patrol members lay dead, hacked to pieces.”
Counting the one Ha-gyeong carried, that made six. Quite the massacre. Then again, it wasn’t strange once you considered that this fellow ranked among the Peak experts. Most Wuxia Alliance patrol members were only First-class at best; only unit commanders or higher reached the Peak realm.
“We’ll need to hear the details from the martial artist Ha-gyeong carried. We should also send word to the Wuxia Alliance so they can recover the bodies.”
“Elder, if we handle the recovery ourselves…”
“We can’t very well march into the city carrying dismembered corpses. I’ve already made sure the wild beasts won’t touch them, so informing the Wuxia Alliance warriors should suffice.”
…So the killings above had been dismemberments. The man who fell below the waterfall had been lucky to survive. He might even have been fleeing while his comrades bought him time.
“What should we do with this demonic practitioner?”
“It would be best to take only the head. Since we caught him, we can claim the bounty if one exists. Even if it doesn’t, proving we eliminated a notorious villain will reassure other martial artists so they can safely recover their comrades’ remains.”
“Understood.”
I watched Ha-jin nod in agreement, then glanced at Hye-ryeong. She studied the nameless madman with her usual calm expression.
“Uncle, he’s definitely dead, right?”
“Probably.”
I had wrapped my fist in Aura and struck his vital points with full force. How could he still be alive? Even if he possessed an indestructible body like the legendary Diamond Body, a man lying face-down in a pool of his own blood wasn’t getting up. No one could lose nearly every drop of blood in their body and still stand.
“…Let’s sever this demonic practitioner’s head. Once morning comes, we’ll head to Tongcheon and find the Wuxia Alliance’s Tongcheon branch.”
“Understood.”
“And Sir Wei—well done.”
“That’s right! Uncle, you really worked hard!”
It was nothing special. I tore my gaze from the corpse and smiled back at Hye-ryeong as she approached.
“Excuse me, is this the Wuxia Alliance’s Tongcheon branch?”
“Y-yes, it is… Are you from Haenam Sword Sect? Have you come from Haenam Sword Sect?”
“That’s right. We have news to share.”
Elder Baek concisely explained the situation to the Wuxia Alliance warriors. He told them about the patrol members found dead near the valley, how the survivor had been carried to a physician by a Haenam Sword Sect disciple, and how we had slain the demonic practitioner and brought his head.
After hearing everything, the branch leader immediately clasped his hands and bowed to Elder Baek.
“Thank you for avenging the patrol.”
“Don’t thank me. Thank this young man here. He single-handedly defeated that demonic practitioner.”
Elder Baek casually passed the credit to me. Feeling the branch leader’s gaze turn toward my bamboo hat, I lifted it slightly.
“A Westerner…? Could it be the Blue-Eyed Lion who’s been the talk of Chang’an lately?”
“That’s correct.”
“Your Central Plains speech is as fluent as they say! Sir Blue-Eyed Lion! Thank you for avenging the patrol!”
“How could I stand by while a villain rampaged?”
“You truly are as skilled as the rumors claim! The Bloodthirsty Asura was no ordinary opponent, yet you handled him alone!”
So I’d managed to leave a decent impression on the Wuxia Alliance. Wait—Bloodthirsty Asura?
“The Bloodthirsty Asura?”
“Yes, that’s right. He was originally a demonic practitioner active around Guangdong. After eating something strange, he fell into Qi Deviation and began slaughtering people. We dispatched a patrol to track him, but… he turned out far stronger than expected.”
So things had twisted like this? The Bloodthirsty Asura was supposed to be an opponent the protagonist defeated in the early stages. He was the one the protagonist and his companions were meant to raid together. If I took him down instead… what about the protagonist’s experience points?
“Sir Wei?”
I’d unintentionally shattered the original story. I couldn’t begin to guess how far the ripple effects would spread. As an early-game enemy who had pushed the protagonist to his limits, he was meant to help the protagonist grow. The fact that such a character had been eliminated suggested the original plot was highly likely to diverge.
…In the worst case, the possibility that the Demonic Cult might defeat the protagonist’s side differently from the original.
A terribly ominous premonition.
…At this point, I couldn’t afford to relax. I might even have to force-feed the protagonist fortuitous encounters. Even then, all I could really do was advance the opportunities he was supposed to receive in the original story. Whether I could steer the already butterfly-effected plot back onto its original course remained uncertain.
…Perhaps it would be more feasible for me to monopolize the protagonist’s destined opportunities and crush the Heavenly Demon myself. At least right now, I was stronger. This body’s talent was exceptional enough to reach the Peak realm in just two years by this world’s standards. The problem was that defeating the Heavenly Demon would require reaching at least Grandmaster level. Could I get that far?
“Sir Wei? Are you all right?”
“Ah, I was just thinking about something.”
“Thinking about something… sir?”
“Old memories, that’s all.”
I soothed Ha-jin’s concern with a suitable reply. Knowing something of my past, Ha-jin nodded and moved to Elder Baek’s side to begin discussing matters with the branch leader. From the sound of it, they were negotiating compensation for slaying the Bloodthirsty Asura. I saw no need to insert myself into such talks.
“I’ll wait outside.”
“Very well.”
I stepped quietly out of the building and met Hye-ryeong’s eyes. She had been leaning against the wall, gazing at the sky with a bored expression. When our eyes met, she broke into a bright smile.
“Is it over?”
“Not yet.”
“Then why did only you come out, Uncle?”
“No reason for me to handle the negotiations.”
“That’s true. Still, I thought you’d do it like last time… When you negotiated with that famous merchant, the words just flowed out of you. I figured you’d squeeze all sorts of things out of the branch leader this time too!”
“There was a reason for me to step in back then. This time there isn’t.”
The situation with the famous merchant had been do-or-die. Now we weren’t dealing with merchants—we just needed to pass information to the Wuxia Alliance. There was nothing for me to do. The branch leader wouldn’t try to swindle an elder of the Haenam Sword Sect, one of the Wuxia Alliance’s core factions.
“Well, like you said, this time we just need to receive the reward and relay the news about the Demonic Cult to the branch leader once more…”
“Exactly.”
“By the way, Uncle, are you going to participate in the martial arts tournament?”
Hye-ryeong’s eyes sparkled with anticipation as she flapped her arms. Asking again meant she had noticed the shift in my thoughts. She really was surprisingly perceptive.
“…Hmm.”
Given how things had turned out, this was something I needed to seriously consider. The Haenam Sword Sect barely existed in the original story, so it wouldn’t affect the plot much, but this incident was a serious variable. I could no longer be certain the rear lines were safe. Therefore…
“It might not be a bad idea to participate.”
“Did you change your mind?”
“Since I’ve come all this way, it would be a shame not to experience the Central Plains’ swordsmanship.”
I gave a plausible reason and looked up at the sky. Not a single cloud marred the clear blue expanse. It was so pristine that it irritated me, in stark contrast to my complicated feelings. I let out a sigh tinged with worry and glanced at Hye-ryeong.
“When we go to the Wuxia Alliance, help me fill out the application.”
“Hehe, leave it to me! I’ll write you a magnificent application!”
Hye-ryeong puffed out her chest and nodded vigorously. I tore my gaze from her swaying chest and looked back up at the sky.
Captain, it seems even here, living in peace is out of the question. A bitter smile formed on my lips.