Canal Winds and Clouds (3)
Song Hyeon checked under the bed while Seo Baek searched the corner.
Wang Yi Sam decided to open the desk drawers and the wardrobe.
He pulled out each drawer one by one, but nothing suspicious caught his eye.
"Nothin' weird here."
Just as Wang Yi Sam reached for the wardrobe, Song Hyeon blocked his path for some reason.
"Hold on."
"What's up?"
"Commander revenants sometimes sever the heads of other revenants and stuff them inside wardrobes."
"What? Why the hell would they do that?"
"To break the minds of those who won't obey even after turning, or to mold loyal subordinates. They lock them in tight, dark spaces to crush their spirits."
"……!"
Just chopping off heads and cramming them into a wardrobe?
It was a gruesome, unimaginable torture!
The wardrobe stood silently in the corner like a sentinel.
Wang Yi Sam shivered at the thought of revenant heads crammed inside.
Song Hyeon summoned his sword energy again and positioned himself behind Wang Yi Sam—just in case.
"Go ahead."
Wang Yi Sam swallowed hard, his trembling hand opening the wardrobe doors.
Having already eliminated three rivals, Dohwa Gwang now hunted his fourth victim.
The corridor guards remained lax. It felt like their numbers had noticeably thinned—probably just his imagination.
No chance of getting caught anyway, but Dohwa Gwang slunk through the shadows, moving stealthily down the hall.
Before killing the last assassin, he'd tortured him for any extra intel.
But the man had spouted the same line as the others—no new info.
The common thread from all the assassins Dohwa Gwang had slain:
—Capture the Shaolin-bound group alive and drag them to Yongjeong Inn in Sukju for a massive bounty.
Sukju sat at the eastern edge of Anhui Province.
And Anhui was the stronghold of the Namgung family.
The Namgung family is behind this.
That was Dohwa Gwang's conclusion.
Everyone in the murim knew the open secret: the Namgung family head's only child, a daughter with no brothers, had taken a Murim Alliance mission and vanished without a trace—not even a body recovered.
The family head must harbor bitter hatred toward the Alliance after losing his sole heir overnight.
So, the Namgung were likely plotting to intercept the Shaolin group and exact revenge on the Alliance.
At first, Dohwa Gwang had planned to hand over the hostages to the Namgung and claim the reward.
But as things unfolded, it became clear the Alliance wanted specific intel from this job. His thinking shifted.
What the hell does that kid know?
If he could uncover that info, it'd net him far more than a mere bounty from the Namgung!
Double-cross both the Namgung and the Murim Alliance? Eat the pheasant and the egg too—haha!
Dohwa Gwang stifled a chuckle.
Then, from the room he'd just passed, a door creaked open. Someone stepped into the corridor.
"……!"
Dohwa Gwang flinched.
No presence until the door opened? If he'd noticed a beat later, his throat would've been slit!
He spun, whipping out his sleeve dagger toward the figure's neck.
Slash. One stroke, head severed.
Damn!
Dohwa Gwang grimaced and swiftly struck the body's acupoints. Pop-pop-pop. Sealing the blood flow.
He snatched the falling head by the hair mid-air.
Another assassin from the same crew as the ones he'd been picking off. One more kill didn't matter.
The problem was the blood.
Quick acupoints prevented a geyser, but severed neck and body still oozed enough to splatter walls and floor.
Damn it all!
Dohwa Gwang grabbed the corpse's collar, kicked the door open, checked the empty corridor, dragged it inside, and shut the door.
Not caught yet.
But he couldn't erase the blood trail. Even if he did, the stench would linger.
If guards passed by, the body would be discovered in no time.
He dropped the corpse and tossed the head onto the bed. No point hiding the smell now.
"Enough of this. Kill the assassins later—grab the kid first?"
Something wet on his face. Blood.
"Son of a bitch!"
Dohwa Gwang rummaged through the room's bundles.
As expected, no mirror. None in the desk either.
He needed one for his makeup.
These filthy black path assassins, who never washed, wouldn't carry mirrors.
"Cheap underworld scum. How am I the only one with a damn mirror?"
On a whim, he yanked open the wardrobe.
"Ugh, not in the bundles—ain't gonna be in here either…"
But the top shelf was crammed full. Round, dark lumps stacked like watermelons…
Dohwa Gwang's eyes widened as he peered in. His mouth fell open in shock.
"What the hell…?"
Severed human heads filled the shelf.
Suddenly, their eyes snapped open. The heads rolled their eyeballs before glaring at Dohwa Gwang in unison.
"……!"
Even Dohwa Gwang, who treated lives like insects, felt a chill down his spine. He groaned and staggered back.
Then, applause echoed from behind.
Clap-clap-clap.
The room was empty except for him.
Under the bed? He'd have sensed anyone entering.
Yet someone was clapping…
Cold sweat beaded on Dohwa Gwang's forehead.
"Who's there?"
He whirled—and froze in disbelief.
The headless corpse he'd dragged in stood rigid, hands clapping mechanically!
The shock didn't end there.
"Impressive swordwork to behead me in one stroke, even if I was careless."
A voice from the bed.
Dohwa Gwang whipped his gaze around—and recoiled again.
One severed head stared straight at him, grinning wickedly.
"Y-you…"
"That's right. You Central Plains folk call my kind revenants."
"Heard the rumors. But…"
"First time seeing one? The great assassin Dohwa Gwang, spooked. Sun'll rise in the west tomorrow, heh-heh-heh."
"……."
Dohwa Gwang glared at the head, then regained his composure.
"Seen plenty of blood ghosts, but a real revenant? Lucky me."
"Fitting for Dohwa Gwang. Wouldn't wanna see a worm like you quake at one revenant."
"Too bad. Gotta kill you proper before leaving this room. Wait—revenants are already dead, right?"
Dohwa Gwang paused, snapped his fingers.
"Oh, right! That kid burned stuff to check for revenants. Burn you too."
The head's grin vanished.
"No words? Scared of fire, revenant?"
"……."
"Figured! Revenants don't mind decapitation but fear flames. Jackpot info—haha!"
The silent head spoke coldly.
"Can't let you do that."
The headless body charged.
Whoosh. Daggers sprang from Dohwa Gwang's sleeves.
"Call that a sneak attack…"
His smug smile shattered.
Behind him, the severed heads gaped wide. From their mouths, blood thread worm tentacles lashed out like octopus arms.
Squeeeeeal.
Hundreds of tentacles coiled around Dohwa Gwang's neck and limbs.
He hadn't expected an attack from the heads at his back—caught flat-footed.
"Damn it!"
But he wasn't helpless. Swinging his arms back, he sliced chunks of tentacles, which thudded to the floor.
Plop-plop-plop.
Then the body lunged, striking his vital points.
Pop-pop-pop. Dohwa Gwang stiffened, frozen in place.
"……!"
First time acupointed in his life—or he'd have died before.
Never imagined a pincer from headless body and lone heads.
The body picked up a head from the bed and approached.
The heads in its hands spoke.
"Don't worry. Being a revenant feels better than you'd think."
"……!"
"Severing the neck and inserting the worm is surefire, but we can't risk that. The kid might spot the cut marks."
Pop. Another strike—Dohwa Gwang's mouth gaped involuntarily.
The body raised a head to his face.
"One more for the collection."
From the head's mouth, tentacles spewed into Dohwa Gwang's throat.
Squeeeeeeeeal!
Meanwhile, Wang Yi Sam flung open the wardrobe with tense hands and sighed in relief.
"What? Nothin' here."
True enough—the wardrobe was empty.
No proof the scholar was a revenant anywhere in the room.
"We may need to reconsider the assumption."
"Then why'd the scholar chop off revenant heads?"
"Could be another reason."
"Tch, wasted effort."
No scholar, no evidence—nothing left to do.
"Let's pull out."
But Song Hyeon blocked Wang Yi Sam from heading downstairs.
"One more task."
"What now?"
"Guards are slack. Time to hunt the scholar."
"Hah, in this huge boat? Where?"
Wang Yi Sam asked half-heartedly, but Song Hyeon answered smoothly, as if prepared.
"Three places."
"Three?"
"Yes. Latrine, galley, captain's quarters."
"Latrine? Warned not to leave, and who goes there sleepless at night?"
Wang Yi Sam scoffed, but got no comeback.
"I know one who can't hold it and wakes every midnight."
"……."
Wang Yi Sam shut his mouth. He knew who Song Hyeon meant.
"Galley too. Gluttons who crave midnight snacks can't fill up on rice cakes—might steal food there."
At least he wasn't the second type. He craved booze more than food, so no late-night hunger.
Still, doubts lingered.
"We just came from the galley."
"It's vast. He could be hiding."
"Tch."
"Finally, captain's quarters. If a revenant, he'd ambush there at night."
"Why there?"
"To seize a group, take the leader first. Turn the captain, and converting the guards follows easily."
"……!"
Wang Yi Sam swallowed hard.
Song Hyeon was right.
A revenant captain would make the whole boat fall like flipping a hand.