Chapter 215 - The Stratagem Unfolds Perfectly at Cheokbyeok
Seobaek had found the Geomga camp. Baek Do-ryang, who had just returned from Wall Thunder Manor, led him straight to the Sword God's tent.
Right there, Seobaek conveyed Yeon-hoo's will.
"Even if Hwangha Suryeon provokes us, do not respond—just wait, and good news will come within a few days."
"Are you telling us simply to trust those words and wait blindly?" Bukgung So's tone was icy.
Seobaek pressed on undeterred. "I am merely relaying my lord's message."
Baek Do-ryang stepped forward. "We need more details on the situation."
"My apologies, but this is everything my lord instructed me to say."
Baek Do-ryang was at a loss. He himself was willing to trust Yeon-hoo and wait, but Bukgung So was different. He wasn't the type to accept vague assurances without a proper explanation. Just today, he had raged about not striking the northwest supply lines.
Baek Do-ryang ventured cautiously, "What if we trust the Iron Blood Family Lord's words and wait it out? Neither side can move rashly right now, so there's no harm in it..."
Bukgung So ignored him, fixing Seobaek with a cold stare. "And if no good news comes in a few days—what then, did he say?"
"In that case, my lord will visit you personally to discuss the next steps."
"And who are you?"
"One of my lord's bodyguards."
"I asked for your position in the north."
"I hold no official position."
"What?"
Bukgung So's eyebrows arched like knife blades. Baek Do-ryang hurriedly sent a transmission to calm him.
"The Iron Blood Family Lord's bodyguards hold no official positions. That doesn't mean we should take them lightly. Please set aside your anger, my lord."
Bukgung So, on the verge of unleashing harsh words, clamped his mouth shut at Baek Do-ryang's transmission. But his gaze on Seobaek remained frigid. To him, it was deeply offensive that someone without any rank had come on such a critical matter.
Of course, from Bukgung So's perspective, it was understandable. It clashed directly with the White Night Eight Great Families' emphasis on protocol and face.
"My lord."
At Baek Do-ryang's urging, Bukgung So swallowed the bitter words rising in his throat and forced out what he least wanted to say.
"Very well, I'll trust this Iron Blood Family Lord's abilities for now. But see to it that the wait isn't dragged out. Relay that."
"Understood."
Seobaek bowed and left the tent. Baek Do-ryang followed.
"Come to my quarters."
"No, I must return at once... Please give my regards to the young master."
"I will. Safe travels."
As Seobaek departed the Geomga camp, he shook his head. "What a prickly fellow."
He was referring to Bukgung So.
Western Taibai Plains of Northern Murim. The vast plain leading into the mountains undulated like waves.
Thud thud thud!
The ground trembled, dust clouds blotting the sky as thirty thousand Red Wolf Corps riders gradually revealed themselves.
Crossing the plain, the Red Wolf Corps split into three groups of ten thousand, fanning out in three directions. Gwan Baek led one, Gwan-ryang and Jeok Yong the others, with strategist Heo Jeong accompanying Gwan Baek.
After riding further, Gwan Baek eyed the emerging city walls and sneered coldly.
"Slow the pace."
"Slow the pace!"
Thud thud thud!
Moments later, ten thousand Red Wolf Corps halted before the towering walls encircling the city.
Heo Jeong said, "They'll have only minimal defenders left, so send someone to demand surrender."
"Do it."
A Red Wolf rider galloped toward the gates, white flag planted on his mount. But he had to wheel back before reaching them.
Arrows rained from the walls.
Gwan Baek's eyes filled with killing intent as he watched.
"If they resist, so be it."
"Taking it without sacrifice is best. We'll approach beyond arrow range and reveal we're the Red Wolf Corps."
"If it's the same again, we attack immediately."
"Understood."
The rider charged again, stopping short of arrow range and bellowing with infused qi.
"We're the Red Wolf Corps! Our lord says: Open the gates and surrender, and no one dies. Resist, and we'll slaughter every last dog you own!"
A few arrows flew but fell far short. None followed.
Gwan Baek watched the figures clustering on the battlements. Too distant to see clearly, but their frantic gestures showed panic.
"Think they'll surrender?"
"Hwangha Suryeon has the weakest cohesion among the Eight Great Families. Their loyalty to their lord is laughable. They won't stand against us with mere hundreds. Now that we've revealed ourselves, they'll open the gates soon. Just wait a bit."
Gwan Baek nodded silently at Heo Jeong's confident tone.
Then, someone stepped forward and shouted desperately.
"Did the north's lord truly promise that?!"
"He did!"
Silence fell briefly—then Heo Jeong's prediction came true.
"We surrender!"
"Then open the gates!"
Creeeak...
Gwan Baek grinned as the gates parted slowly. "He said we'd ride right up to Hwangha Suryeon's headquarters and back without spilling a drop of blood, taking everything. Didn't think it'd play out exactly like this. Heh heh heh."
"Shall we advance?"
"Yes."
Clank. Clank.
Gwan Baek and Heo Jeong rode toward the gates. The Red Wolf Corps arrayed behind them like a mountain about to crumble.
A middle-aged man recognized Gwan Baek and dropped to his knees, bowing low. "We surrender!"
Those with him knelt too, heads to the ground.
Gwan Baek asked, "How many troops in the city?"
"Twelve hundred combatants, plus families—around four thousand total."
"You've accepted our lord's will and surrendered, so no one loses their life. But any hint of treachery, and not one survives. Clear?"
"No such thing will happen—please show mercy..."
Around the same time, Gwan-ryang and Jeok Yong also entered two Hwangha Suryeon outposts bloodlessly. No battles, no casualties.
Gwan Baek, succeeding first, sent couriers ordering them to focus on defense.
Yeon-hoo's bold claim—to expel every last Hwangha Suryeon force lurking in Northwest Murim territory without bloodshed—unfolded without a single deviation.
Cheokbyeok.
Hwangha Suryeon's strategist Ga Hoe's gaunt face twitched violently.
Tremble...
The contents of the successive couriers were identical: Deceived by the Red Wolf Corps' feint, all outposts painstakingly built over ten years in the northwest had fallen to the north.
Bam!
Ga Hoe slammed the table, head bowed. He couldn't lift it for a long while.
They'd been played too perfectly. Those northwest outposts were to serve as beachheads for advancing into the northeast later. Now lost overnight to Northern Murim.
What a utter defeat.
Here, Ga Hoe entertained a what-if. 'If we'd left the outposts alone and sent reinforcements from here...'
Would they have attacked Cheokbyeok then?
A somber middle-aged aide spoke up, voice heavy. "Strategist! If those fall, not only are supply lines cut, but if northern forces from the north of Cheokbyeok block the path to headquarters, we'll all be isolated!"
It was true. That fueled Ga Hoe's rage. What infuriated him most was he'd done nothing wrong—just made the best call.
Yet they'd lost the northwest outposts without a fight and now teetered on isolation.
And worse: Those outposts lay within Baekya-beol-recognized Northern Murim territory. No protesting northern intervention to Baekya-beol in the Geomga-Hwangha Suryeon war.
Then—
"Strategist!"
A Black Cloak burst in. "Scouts report the Blood King Army showing signs of movement!"
Murmurs rippled. The earlier aide pressed, "Strategist! We must decide before it's too late!"
Fsssh...
Smoke rose from the table under Ga Hoe's hands. Flames flickered from his sleeves; the aide waved them out.
Crunch.
Ga Hoe's lips turned blue under his teeth. "Prepare to retreat."
Geomga camp.
Baek Do-ryang rushed to Bukgung So's tent. "My lord! Intelligence says Hwangha Suryeon's forces are moving north!"
"...What?"
"They're retreating! This must be the good news the Iron Blood Family Lord mentioned! If they withdraw, we take Cheokbyeok intact for the family without further sacrifice!"
Baek Do-ryang's usually composed face flushed with excitement. But at the glad tidings, Bukgung So's eyes grew colder.
"If they're truly retreating, we can't let them go easily."
"My lord, pursuing a cornered foe will cost us dearly too."
"We'll clash with Hwangha Suryeon again someday. Better to instill proper fear beforehand. Strategist, prepare pursuit at once!"
"..."
"That's an order, Do-ryang."
"Understood. I'll see to it immediately."
Baek Do-ryang bowed reluctantly and left. Then Bukgung Cheon approached.
He asked urgently, "I heard Hwangha Suryeon is retreating. Is it true?"
"Yes, it seems so."
"Then we pursue. For our fallen warriors, we can't let them slip away."
"...!"
Baek Do-ryang's eyes widened. Worlds apart from his reaction to Bukgung So's identical words.
'The young master has this side to him...'
The Bukgung Cheon he'd known abhorred bloodshed and shunned harsh reality. That aversion had strained ties with Bukgung So.
Yet now, the same hardline stance from his lips. Baek Do-ryang could scarcely believe his ears.