A Trap
“Beom Chang put us up to all of it!”
Jin Somyeong stopped the horse-chopping saber just before it came crashing down.
He barely kept his expression calm as he said, “...Beom Chang ordered this? Who is that supposed to be?”
He had already investigated the man thoroughly and knew plenty about him, but he asked as if he had never heard the name before.
“Th-that’s...”
The answer came too slowly. Seeing the man still hesitate, still failing to grasp the situation, Jin Somyeong’s brow creased sharply.
Whoosh.
The saber flashed down in an instant, stopping a hair’s breadth from biting into the man’s fingers.
“Aagh! I’ll talk! I’ll tell you everything, so please put that vicious thing away! What happened was...”
The man’s explanation poured out in a rush.
From the fact that Beom Chang was the nephew of an old Foundation Establishment monster, to the scheme he had devised after setting his sights on Jin Somyeong—he spilled it all without holding anything back.
“Ah. Now I remember who Beom Chang is. He’s the gatekeeper who tried to force me into becoming a labor disciple before, isn’t he?”
“Yes! Under normal circumstances, he would have come after you again long ago and forced another contract on you, but when you suddenly disappeared, he thought you were dead and gave up. Then one day, you appeared in the market...”
Once the man started talking, there was not the slightest hesitation left in him. He confessed every petty trick they had tried against Jin Somyeong recently.
“The plan was to make it difficult for you to earn Spirit Stones, hinder your cultivation, then approach you naturally and do you a favor. I’m sorry!”
“Ha. Do me a favor, and then what? Did you think I’d be grateful?”
“Wouldn’t that be better than forcing you into a contract? To be honest, I don’t know exactly what Brother Beom is thinking either. ...But please, think about it carefully! Entering his service wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing!”
“What?”
The man shouted it with such brazen confidence that Jin Somyeong found himself almost curious, beyond mere disbelief.
When Jin Somyeong jerked his chin for him to continue, the errand-runner cried out in haste.
“Please listen. Whether you live as a wandering cultivator or become an outer disciple of the Red Sun Sect, you’ll have no future either way. Wouldn’t it be ten times better to pledge loyalty to Brother Beom, who has a real chance of reaching Foundation Establishment?”
“Unbelievable. If I pledge loyalty, is that bastard going to reward me or something?”
“Of course! If Brother Beom breaks through to Foundation Establishment someday and guides us, then we may have a chance at reaching Foundation Establishment too!”
Jin Somyeong clicked his tongue at the errand-runner, who pleaded with him as though he truly believed every word.
Shaking his head, Jin Somyeong tossed out a single remark.
“After signing that idiotic slave contract?”
“...Pardon?”
“Does a man like Beom Chang even have the breadth of character to keep Foundation Establishment subordinates under him? He’d obviously pile on every restriction he could think of. If your life and death depend on a single word from someone else, what changes just because you reach Foundation Establishment?”
The man’s mouth clamped shut, as if Jin Somyeong had struck the heart of the matter.
In this world of transcendents, contracts were not bound merely by law.
Contracts imbued with mystic power were far more merciless than any legal restraint. Once you were forced into signing one, you had no choice but to obey, because the contract used something deeply vital from the body—like essence blood, the very source of life—as its medium.
There were even contracts that used the soul itself, and those were famous for their terrifying binding power. Depending on the terms, breaking one could leave a person crippled—or dead.
As Jin Somyeong silently looked down at him, the errand-runner fumbled for an excuse.
“A slave? That’s a misunderstanding! You must have gotten the wrong idea after seeing the labor disciple contract, but that’s only offered to people who are genuinely worthless!”
“Heh.”
“How could Brother Beom possibly mistreat someone as skilled in combat as you, fellow Daoist? The moment I saw the move you used to subdue me, I knew it at once! You have the makings of a combat immortal! Brother Beom would surely make great use of you!”
The man talked so much that Jin Somyeong’s ears began to hurt. Even if thrown into water, this one’s mouth would float to the surface first.
He had to know by now that, in all likelihood, he was as good as dead. Even so, he fought desperately to persuade Jin Somyeong.
Letting the nonsense wash past him, Jin Somyeong waved a hand.
“Enough. You understand I can’t simply let you go, don’t you? If you want to live, sign this.”
Jin Somyeong drew an antique parchment from inside his clothes.
Dense spiritual energy seeped from the paper; at a glance, it was clearly no ordinary object but something touched by mystery.
“Wh-what is that?”
The instant Jin Somyeong held out the soul-binding contract known as a Soul Contract, the errand-runner’s face went deathly pale. Even his hands and feet began to tremble, and he could not continue speaking.
“A S-Soul Contract! Fellow Daoist—no, Brother! Is there any need to go this far?”
He clung to him pitifully, but Jin Somyeong did not waver. His voice was cold as he said, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. You people tried to make a slave of me, so I will do the same to you. Any complaints?”
He had originally purchased this Soul Contract to use on Beom Chang, but since things had turned out this way, testing it on the errand-runner first was not a bad idea.
It’s a shame, though. It cost a hundred Spirit Stones.
Thinking of the painful price, Jin Somyeong fluttered the contract in front of the man, who remained kneeling in a daze.
“If you don’t like it, don’t sign.”
“Ah...”
Like a man forcing himself to drink corpse-tainted water, the errand-runner hesitated again and again before finally taking the contract.
As he read the terms, his eyes shook violently.
Party B must obey Party A’s commands unconditionally.
Even at the cost of Party B’s life.
Party B may not speak falsehoods to Party A.
If Party B deliberately deceives or harms Party A, Party B’s soul shall be destroyed, resulting in death.
“Party B must obey Party A’s commands unconditionally. ...Even at the cost of his life. This is insane.”
The more he read, the more his already bloodless face sank into utter despair.
“Party B may not speak falsehoods to Party A... If he deliberately deceives or harms Party A, his soul will be destroyed and he will die. Damn it! Aren’t these terms too harsh?”
“It has to be at least this much for me to let you go with peace of mind. As I said, if you don’t like it, don’t sign.”
Shing.
Because then you could simply die. Jin Somyeong conveyed those final words by drawing his saber.
“W-wait!”
The saber’s persuasion worked beautifully. A blade so brutally threatening was more effective than any silver-tongued orator.
“Ugh...”
The man squeezed his eyes shut and signed the Soul Contract.
At that instant, a mysterious light burst from the parchment. It pierced into the space between his brows and seized a fragment of his soul like a hostage.
“Aah...”
Along with the man’s despairing groan, a faint connection formed between them.
The contract had been successfully established.
From now on, Jin Somyeong could destroy the other man’s soul with a mere thought.
In truth, that alone would have been enough, but he did not stop there. He carried out one more procedure.
Make the contract’s power stronger.
He poured all his will into the wish, spending every last one of his more than thirty Boundless Great Ability beads.
He strengthened the contract’s binding force and made it impossible for even the keen senses of a Foundation Establishment grand cultivator to detect. Nor did he forget to conceal any traces of the Boundless Great Ability’s intervention.
In truth, the Boundless Great Ability was already extremely secretive by nature and left no traces behind, because whether consciously or unconsciously, Jin Somyeong had always wished it to be so.
Still, there was no harm in being extra careful this time. More than half the golden beads he spent went into reinforcing that secrecy.
Whew... Done.
He had successfully made himself a slave.
Had it not been for the Boundless Great Ability, he would never have done something this risky. The traces of such contracts were known to be extremely subtle, but there was no guarantee they would escape the notice of a Foundation Establishment grand cultivator.
But now it doesn’t matter.
The Boundless Great Ability was a supreme power, mighty enough to tear open empty space and create the Mental Secret Realm. There was no way someone at the Foundation Establishment level could unravel a wish that had consumed over thirty golden beads.
“Damn it... That cursed Beom Chang bastard, look what he’s dragged me into!”
Tears streamed down the errand-runner’s cheeks. He seemed bitterly aggrieved at being forced into slavery against his will.
Tsk, tsk.
In truth, there was nothing pitiful about it. He had merely suffered the exact thing he had intended to do to another. It was his own karma.
The errand-runner, who had been sitting there blankly, belatedly rose and collected himself. Then, as if attending his master, he bowed respectfully to Jin Somyeong.
“Since it has come to this, I will serve you to the best of my ability. However, if I may make one request... if I accomplish something meritorious someday, please release me from the contract...”
“Mm.”
It was not a question that required a clear answer. Jin Somyeong gave him neither hope nor despair and simply did not respond.
“Are you truly fifteen... no, sixteen years old? Are you perhaps the reincarnation of some mighty being?”
The man seemed to have formed some strange misunderstanding because Jin Somyeong’s actions were so unlike those of a young boy, but Jin Somyeong did not bother answering that either.
Tap.
He struck the man’s dantian with the tip of his foot. After returning the spiritual energy he had sealed, he said, “Now that the contract is complete, I need to confirm whether what you said was true. Explain again why you were tailing me.”
“Hah?”
The errand-runner let out a hollow laugh, as if utterly fed up.
“You truly are thorough. Fellow Daoist—no, Brother. If you keep this up, you’ll become someone great one day. In any case... there was nothing particularly false about what I told you earlier. Beom Chang really is the nephew of a Foundation Establishment grand cultivator. And the reason I followed you was...”
He repeated what he had already said, and there was no issue.
If he had lied after signing the contract, he would already have coughed up blood, so Jin Somyeong could relax on that front.
“By the way, what’s your name?”
Since he had acquired a subordinate—or rather, a slave—there was no harm in at least knowing the man’s name.
“...My name is So Yo-gwang.”
“Good. So Yo-gwang. I’ll give you your first order. One month from now, lure Beom Chang to the place I tell you. You must come up with a suitable excuse so that he doesn’t raise his guard. Can you do it?”
So Yo-gwang’s complexion turned pale. He stiffened like a stone statue and could not answer properly.
“Wh-what did you just...”
He had imagined what Jin Somyeong’s order would lead to.
As So Yo-gwang asked again, as though refusing to believe it, Jin Somyeong kindly repeated himself.
“I told you to bring Beom Chang to the place I designate one month from now. The most important thing is making sure he doesn’t become wary.”
“D-don’t tell me... You intend to subdue Brother Beom—no, that Beom Chang bastard, just like you did to me, and force him into a Soul Contract too?”
So Yo-gwang’s voice rose sharply.
Jin Somyeong frowned at the violent refusal, as if the man had stepped on a snake. It was not pleasant to watch him panic so noisily in fear.
“I asked whether it was possible.”
“It’s impossible!”
So Yo-gwang shouted with firm resolve, then explained desperately.
“You may not know because the rumor hasn’t spread yet, but Beom Chang recently advanced to the sixth layer of Qi Refining! Even if the two of us attacked him together, we couldn’t beat him!”
“The sixth layer?”
“Yes! On top of that, Beom Chang is the most talented among his uncle’s family. His uncle, that Foundation Establishment old monster, practically raised him like a son.”
“...”
“Just imagine how much he dotes on him. I don’t even know how many self-defense artifacts he’s been given!”
As if trying to make him reconsider, So Yo-gwang went on and on about Beom Chang. At this rate, he seemed ready to describe the man’s taste in women too.
“Enough. Spare me the useless details and explain the artifacts he has. I’ll listen and decide.”
“Yes. There are a few artifacts he bragged about to me. In particular, there’s an artifact called the Shadow-Breaking Bell, and it is extremely dangerous. The effect of that peak-grade first-tier artifact is...”
Jin Somyeong listened closely, calculating his odds, and came to a decision.
So Yo-gwang’s detailed explanation of Beom Chang had been a great help.
“Good. My order remains unchanged. One month from now, lure Beom Chang to the place I tell you.”
“Pardon?”
So Yo-gwang had no doubt tried to frighten him into giving up, but instead, Jin Somyeong felt more confident.
“I’ll handle subduing him myself. I never expected anything from you to begin with. You only need to focus on bringing Beom Chang.”
“...Bringing him won’t be difficult. If I deceive him by saying things went wrong and that I subdued Brother Jin Somyeong in this wasteland, he’ll come personally to make a master-servant contract. I’ll get scolded a bit, but that won’t be a problem.”
“What are the chances he’ll bring someone else?”
“To be honest... very low. The slave contract Beom Chang forces on people is itself something he’d rather not let others know about.”
“Just as I thought.”
“As you can tell from the fact that he was punished by being made a gatekeeper, it isn’t a normal initiation contract.”
It was an extremely satisfactory answer.
“Good. Then return to the market for now. Of course, before that, we’ll need to work out a way for the two of us to contact each other.”
In addition to arranging a method for exchanging news, they discussed the concrete details of the plan.
So Yo-gwang begged him several times along the way to change his mind, but Jin Somyeong did not accept.
In the end, So Yo-gwang returned to the market with a tearful face, and Jin Somyeong disguised himself with the Faceless Mask and secretly followed behind him.
One month later.
With the Boundless Great Ability fully restored, Jin Somyeong operated the Breath-Concealing Art and hid his presence.
He crouched among boulders the size of houses, watching the horizon for Beom Chang, who would arrive before long.
How long had he waited?
They’re here.
Far off on the horizon, two figures came flying in a graceful arc.
The instant he concentrated spiritual energy into his eyes to strengthen his vision, he saw So Yo-gwang, looking faintly tense, and Beom Chang following behind him with an irritated expression.