Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: Death vs. Death (3)
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The Twenty-Fifth Squad watched as the Twenty-Second Squad was annihilated.
In truth, the Twenty-Fifth didn't just stand by idly. They weren't so heartless as to watch their comrades get massacred without lifting a finger—especially when there was no bad blood between them.
The Twenty-Fifth had tried to join the fight.
"Prepare..."
Just as their squad leader was about to move, the Twenty-Second's leader was already collapsing.
Four Thousand Four caught the leader and laid him gently on the ground.
He'd killed the man himself, then cradled his corpse himself.
Four Thousand Four ended the fight unilaterally, without giving them a chance to intervene.
It was too fast.
To him, the Heavenly Annihilation Division's squads looked like scarecrows.
If this had happened elsewhere against any other fighter, they would have backed off, of course.
The opponent was too much for a single squad to handle.
You had to assassinate someone like that—you couldn't take him head-on.
It was a natural thought, the right judgment.
But the Twenty-Fifth didn't retreat. Instead, their resolve burned brighter than ever.
It wasn't stupidity or reckless bravado. Assassins read situations more sharply than anyone. Nor was it blind obedience to orders—commands had to be followed, but there were many ways to do it.
What kept the Twenty-Fifth going was the conviction that they could win a frontal assault.
'That bastard! We can take him!'
'Why didn't we see it coming? We got too complacent.'
Watching from afar was different from fighting on the front lines. From a distance, you could observe the exchanges more objectively, more coolly.
One word for Four Thousand Four: stray cat.
He slunk in stealthily, jabbed once, then vanished. If things got even slightly dangerous, he'd loose an arrow from hiding.
Second, he was a master at masking his presence.
In assassin terms, it was called "false face stratagem"—showing a fake visage to strike from the shadows, lulling the enemy into complacency before stabbing them in the back, or using decoys to distract while you attacked. It was deception-based combat.
He wielded the false face stratagem masterfully.
He'd used the rising flames.
The white ants burning to death.
Even the corpses of his victims.
The Twenty-Second had been distracted by those tricks, and in that gap, they'd taken another hidden strike.
Was the false face stratagem just a cowardly ploy? A sneaky way to trick and ambush? No. Refined into a martial art, it became illusionary techniques.
But this false face stratagem... once you resolved not to fall for it, you could see through it. If you knew the enemy's tricks in advance, they held no power.
The Twenty-Fifth had watched Four Thousand Four's deceptions clearly.
The Twenty-Second hadn't been wiped out because their skills were weak. They'd fallen to the false face stratagem.
"Keep your wits about you!"
The squad leader didn't even need to say it. Everyone was already sharp.
Their hearts pounded fiercely.
Cleaning up the Twenty-Second's remnants had gotten them fired up without realizing it. Blood raced, hearts thundered.
No good. Killing intent was poison.
If you set your mind to kill, hatred seeped into your strikes. Resentment and violence tainted them. Killing became mere extermination of a life.
Cool your heart to ice.
No killing intent. No sense of ending a life.
These were the marks of one who guided souls peacefully to the afterlife.
'Huuu... Huuu...'
Breathing deeply, they turned inward to their hearts.
They watched the boiling organ calm, harden to cold steel.
Shh! Shiii!
The wind whispered. Another squad was closing in.
If they'd attacked alongside the first squad that died, it would have been easier to handle.
Those who moved together could be slain the same way. What worked on the Twenty-Second might have worked on the Twenty-Fifth too. By now, they might all be dead.
But that slight time gap... the perspective of watching it unfold...
They had to change tactics.
What if there was no other way? What if you had to face him the same way?
That was Four Thousand Four.
He didn't know assassination arts. He hadn't prepared some special technique for the Twenty-Fifth.
He just did what he could.
Same now. No thoughts of "try a different method" or "what technique should I use?" He didn't think that way at all.
Shh! Shiii!
Wind rose from all directions.
At least he was familiar with this forest now.
Another stroke of luck: he knew what drove them after him.
White ants—what the hell were they?
The fact that white ants pursued him meant he'd done something to piss off the Heavenly Annihilation Division. He had whatever made the ants chase him.
He needed to figure out the white ants.
'I burned them all in a panic at first... Heh heh heh! Lucky for me, they're giving me another shot.'
He drew a small knife and sliced a bit of flesh from his palm.
He dug a hole, buried the flesh. Just in case, he dripped blood over it. Then covered it lightly with soil—visible enough from outside.
'This should leave a few alive.'
Swoosh!
Four Thousand Four moved.
"If we kill him, it won't mean much."
"Heh heh heh! Vanguard, that fool's got some brains. Just take it easy."
The two entered the forest leisurely.
They knew more about Four Thousand Four than most—things others didn't. In intel, they outdid even Vanguard.
They were from headquarters.
Headquarters staff didn't join squads. Yet here they were... probably just to watch Vanguard. He knew it too, and still brought them along. Not a good sign.
But if Vanguard ordered them as squad members, they had to obey. No point whining about headquarters now. If they'd wanted to say something, they should have been upfront from the start: "We're here to surveil you."
"So who dies?"
"You."
"Why me? You're the little brother—you die."
"Elder goes first."
"Damn it! Fine. I'll go first."
One of the Valley Ghost Ears hit the dirt.
"Then this body is mine!"
Shh!
He climbed a tree.
Both stopped breathing almost simultaneously.
The one in the tree halted all bodily functions—breath, even blood flow. Not perfectly, but near enough.
It rivaled the Noble Breath Great Law for stealth.
The one on the ground slowed his breaths.
One breath, two, three... Each grew thinner, deeper. Gaps widened between them; the occasional leak carried no force.
Huff...! Hoo! Huff...!
Breaths turned erratic.
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow... No artificial rhythm—just the sound of death.
He was dying.
'Hm?'
Four Thousand Four detected a new breath.
This was a soul departing the living world. Thin, drawn out, powerless. It would stop soon... yet clinging stubbornly to life.
Someone who needed help.
'You're something else. Dying in these mountains doesn't scream "good life." What attachment keeps you hanging on? Just go peacefully.'
Four Thousand Four had to prioritize.
Handle the squad first, or aid the dying man?
After a moment's thought, he decided.
Squad first.
Guiding a soul required a willing heart. Doing it anxiously while telling them to rest easy made no sense.
Send them off happily, and they'd go happy.
Anxious, excited, murderous minds wouldn't do.
He'd shaken those off already.
He'd kill the squad, but send them peacefully.
But if even a speck of selfish motive lingered, he'd be a murderer, not a guide.
To avoid that mistake, squad first.
Shiii!
He moved. The white ants veered sharply too.
"Ah!"
Fox groaned.
"What? What's wrong?"
Jaja asked urgently.
Vanguard eyed Fox. Hanbi did too.
Fox had eyes that saw what others missed.
"Four Thousand Four dropped the fire spirit."
Fox said weakly.
"How do you know?"
"They're chasing him into the valley."
"So?"
"He's crossing water. Can't use fire there. Only way to shake the white ants."
"Then Four Thousand Four messed up."
Vanguard said coldly.
"Those ants thrive in water. They get fiercer. Pursuit speed doubles after. Huge mistake."
"What the hell are those ants?"
"Headquarters knows."
Jaja smirked.
"Not even you, Vanguard?"
"No. I just know they've never failed a chase. Until now."
"So he's done for?"
Silence fell.
No escape for Four Thousand Four without fire spirit. Ordinary flames from gathered leaves wouldn't kill white ants. Needed something like fire spirit to trap them in blaze.
Without it, he was dead.
He could counterattack like with the Twenty-Second... but they'd lost their ants then. As long as the ants pinned his location, no surprise strikes.
"Want to give him the fire spirit, huh?"
Jaja said, eyeing Fox.
Fox said nothing.
He did. But he couldn't. He didn't want Four Thousand Four dead, but the world did. Too many wanted him gone.
"There is a way to help."
Fox finally spoke.
"Where he's heading. Keep going, it's a dead end. No escape. See those big rocks ahead? He's going right there..."
"On purpose?"
"Nah, doesn't know it's blocked."
"So even without ants, he's caught?"
"Maybe not. If vines hang on those rocks. He climbs straight up. Chasers look like fools chasing chickens."
"Got it. We head there."
Vanguard said without hesitation.
"You're helping?"
Fox brightened. But Hanbi responded coldly.
"Still don't get it? We're here to kill Four Thousand Four. If that's an escape route, we block it. Can't let him slip away."
Hanbi was icy as if facing an enemy.