Stirring the Tigers

Dokgo Jin surveyed the martial artists gathered on the drill ground before speaking.

"Until the squad's official barracks are completed, please assemble here at this hour every day."

Ground had only just been broken on an open lot in the White Tiger Camp for the Gwangho Squad's quarters. It would take at least two months before construction was finished.

Strictly speaking, there would have been no harm in merely selecting the members now and waiting to convene until the quarters were built for a formal launch.

Dokgo Jin, however, had no intention of letting that time slip away idly. Until then, they would make use of the Guest House Hall.

Ordinarily, after completing systematic training at the Martial Training Hall, martial artists of the Northern Heavenly Alliance honed their martial arts individually. Yet the combat squads under the Five Banners of Northern Heaven possessed unique training regimens of their own—much like the brutal Battle Banquet practiced by the Iron Soul Unit.

As long as the Gwangho Squad fell under the Five Banners, its members secretly harbored high hopes that they would have something similar.

Does the squad leader have something planned?

I'm curious to see what he has in store.

Yet the words that left Dokgo Jin's lips defied all expectations.

"We will gather each morning at the hour of the Dragon, but what you do afterward is entirely up to you. Whether you practice on your own or simply return to your rooms, there will be no restrictions."

Unable to contain himself, Shin Pyeong blurted out, "Then why have us gather at all, Squad Leader?"

"To build a sense of belonging," Dokgo Jin replied placidly. "Though you all reside in separate quarters, looking one another in the face every morning will remind you that you are part of the Gwangho Squad."

"Ah..."

The members, who had harbored lofty expectations, deflated at once.

Just as he turned to leave, Dokgo Jin added offhandedly, as if the thought had only just occurred to him, "Ah, though we are barely over twenty strong, we shall divide into teams. Two teams, twelve men each."

"...!"

The light in their eyes shifted in unison. Having teams meant there would also be team leaders.

Those with ambitions for rank and authority began exchanging wary, calculating glances.

True to their expectations, Dokgo Jin addressed the matter.

"I shall appoint the leaders for both teams provisionally. The leader of the first team is Mok Woo-jeon."

Mok Woo-jeon, who had been holding his breath in suspense, pumped his fist.

"All right!"

"The leader of the second team... is Wang Saeng."

Wang Saeng raised a single palm in a Buddhist salute, a satisfied smirk curling beneath his wild beard.

"Amitabha."

Dokgo Jin then proceeded to call out the names assigned to each team, one after another.

"As I stated, these appointments are temporary. If any member desires the position of team leader, you may challenge for it at any time and claim it by force."

At those words, the eyes of the squad members gleamed with predatory hunger.

Standing respectfully behind Dokgo Jin, Tang Pung-yeong smiled faintly to himself.

I know what they're dreaming... but it's pure folly.

When it came to martial prowess alone, Mok Woo-jeon and Wang Saeng stood peerless among the members of the Gwangho Squad.

Just last night, he and Dokgo Jin had carefully deliberated over the division of leaders and subordinates, pouring considerable thought into ensuring the combat strength of both teams was evenly balanced.

Led by their designated leaders, the two teams separated into two distinct formations.

"Now, we must determine which is Team One and which is Team Two..." Dokgo Jin paused, glancing back and forth between the two men. "Speak your minds, leaders. How should we decide?"

Mok Woo-jeon and Wang Saeng locked eyes.

"Naturally, we should settle it through martial skill, Squad Leader."

"Amitabha. That would indeed be the cleanest way."

Sparks flew as their gazes clashed.

"I've been itching to see who comes out on top anyway."

"Nothing would please me more, Patron Mok."

The two looked ready to draw steel and brawl right on the spot.

"Not bad," Dokgo Jin remarked. "However, wouldn't it be far more meaningful if the stronger team became 'Team One,' rather than merely having the stronger leader become the 'First Team Leader'?"

"...What?!"

"The designation of Team One and Team Two shall be decided through an all-out battle between both teams. However, the two team leaders will sit out."

"Excuse me?!"

As the two leaders stared with wide eyes, Dokgo Jin delivered his decree without a shred of hesitation.

"From this day forth, as long as you hold your positions, dueling between the two leaders is strictly forbidden."

"Th-That's...!"

Seeing Mok Woo-jeon's crestfallen face, Wang Saeng chimed in smoothly, "Fortune smiles upon you, Patron Mok."

"Look who's talking!"

"If you truly crave a bout, you need only step down from your post."

"Like hell I will! Why don't you step down first, Wang Saeng?"

"Amitabha. This poor monk would gladly oblige, were it not that my overwhelming martial might makes such an abdication rather difficult."

"Hah! Your tongue flows smoother than a river, monk!"

Watching the bickering pair, Dokgo Jin raised his voice. "We shall do this. Once every month, a battle will be held to determine who claims the title of Team One. Whichever side emerges victorious shall hold the honor of Team One for the month."

"...!"

The squad members stiffened, glaring across at the opposing ranks. A fierce fire of competition ignited in their eyes.

Watching from the side, Tang Pung-yeong marvelled in silent admiration.

So that was why he divided the teams that way...

Normally, when organizing squads, men were distributed strictly according to martial skill to maximize operational efficiency on missions.

Yet Dokgo Jin had focused entirely on balancing the strength of both teams, a choice that had initially puzzled Tang Pung-yeong.

It was a calculated move to pit them against each other!

On top of that, the two team leaders were fiercely competitive rivals. In their desperation to defeat the other, they would relentlessly push and forge their teammates day and night.

Mok ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Woo-jeon could not hold back his impatience. "When is this battle, Squad Leader?"

"On the final day of each month. That gives you half a month from now."

"Half a month..."

With a hardened expression, Mok Woo-jeon turned to glare at his teammates.

We are winning this, no matter what.

Wang Saeng wore the exact same resolute look.

Dokgo Jin's scheme had struck the bullseye.

One month had passed since the recruitment of the Gwangho Squad.

Out of nowhere, an official mission was handed down to the squad.

Even Tang Pung-yeong, the vice commander, was visibly rattled.

"This is absurd. Assigning a formal mission to a squad that hasn't even officially launched..."

Dokgo Jin took it in stride. "It is a test. They likely harbor doubts about whether our squad can properly execute missions with such a small number of men."

"Ah."

No matter that Dokgo Jin had been granted full operational authority, if the squad failed to prove its worth on this assignment, the higher-ups intended to use it as an excuse to reshape the Gwangho Squad to their liking.

It might have been taken as an insult, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but Dokgo Jin understood their logic.

At the end of the day, they were a combat unit under the White Tiger Banner. A combat unit had to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠maintain a baseline of military might, so forming one with a mere twenty-five men was bound to make leadership nervous.

All we have to do is prove that twenty-five is more than enough.

The mission objectives were simple: eliminate the band of horse bandits using Clear Water Ridge outside the Northern Heavens Fortress as their base.

Based in Clear Water Ridge?

Even if considered the outer fringes, Clear Water Ridge was not far from the Northern Heavens Fortress. How could horse bandits dare establish a stronghold so close?

...Yet there must be a reason they have yet to be wiped out.

In a single glance, Dokgo Jin penetrated the heart of the matter.

An annoyance too petty to mobilize a major strike unit for, yet too irritating to simply leave alone.

They raided swiftly and vanished like ghosts. Not overwhelmingly powerful, but thoroughly troublesome.

In many ways, it was the perfect target to test a newly formed squad.

"The Fallen Goose Cavalry, is it?" Dokgo Jin turned to Tang Pung-yeong. "Vice Commander, proceed to the Heavenly Secrets Hall and request access to all intelligence on the Fallen Goose Cavalry."

"Understood!"

Because records within the Heavenly Secrets Hall could never be removed from the premises, one had to inspect them on-site.

The hallways of the Heavenly Secrets Hall were deathly still.

There was no clash of weapons, nor any reverberations of inner energy from martial cultivation. Only the occasional staff member clutching confidential letters hurried ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠past with swift, silent footsteps.

That heavy quiet felt like a testament to just how many secrets were hoarded within these walls.

Guided by an attendant, Dokgo Jin stepped into a reading chamber.

"This is the intelligence requested by the Commander of the Gwangho Squad." The attendant handed over a thick dossier. "These are the records concerning the Fallen Goose Cavalry, the horse bandits operating across Clear Water Ridge. Please return them once you have finished your review."

"I will."

Once the attendant withdrew, Dokgo Jin sat alone and unfolded the dossier.

Dokgo Jin tapped his finger lightly against the paper.

Three times, and all three times they merely fled.

It was not because they were exceptionally powerful. They simply lacked any desire to fight an open battle. Their entire strategy boiled down to one thing:

Guerrilla warfare.

At the same time, he could not help but admire their audacity. To dare operate as bandits right under the nose of the Northern Heavenly Alliance—ordinary bandits would never have had the nerve for such an endeavor.

His gaze traveled further down the page.

Twenty years.

A man far more accustomed to fleeing than fighting. A leader who prioritized the survival of the collective over the lives of individual comrades. For such a man to have survived for two decades meant he was ruthless and thorough to the extreme.

He turned to the final page and closed the dossier.

They are certainly slippery bastards.

If fifty Second-Class martial artists scattered in every direction across rugged mountains, even a transcendent master would struggle to capture every single one. A few would inevitably slip through the net, and once gathered again, they would simply reform the Fallen Goose Cavalry.

Mobilizing a core combat unit of the Five Banners to hunt down a petty band of bandits would wound the pride of the Northern Hegemon.

That was precisely why the Fallen Goose Cavalry had avoided extermination until now. And it was why this was an ideal mission for the newly formed Gwangho Squad.

In dealing with these bandits, only one thing mattered.

Give them no opportunity to flee.

Dokgo Jin rose from his seat. Returning the dossier to the attendant, he asked one more question.

"Do you possess a topographical map of Clear Water Ridge?"

The attendant paused briefly before answering, "We do, but... that requires a separate request for review."

"File the request."

A short while later, Dokgo Jin walked out of the Heavenly Secrets Hall with the topographical map of Clear Water Ridge in hand.

Dark Sky Martial Emperor

Author | Jeong Cheon

Publisher | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.

Managing Editor | Editorial Department

Published by | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. - Dreambooks

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