Escape from the Barge (1)
Wang Yi Sam swallowed hard and raised his broad dao.
'Damn it! The kid's always gone when you need him.'
Then, from behind the assassins, another shadow slipped silently into view.
But unlike before, Wang Yi Sam stared at it in a daze, muttering blankly.
"What the...? How in the world..."
The assassins sneered, assuming he was just pretending to be shocked to make them turn around.
"Hah! You think some toddler trick like that will work on us?"
But Wang Yi Sam wasn't the type for quick-witted improvisation. His surprise was genuine.
The guard they'd just hacked to pieces had somehow risen again.
Only then did Wang Yi Sam realize what was happening.
"Revenant!"
Wang Yi Sam pointed back with his sword finger, and the assassins turned with mocking laughs.
"Heh heh heh! Fine, we'll play along once. If there's nothing there, you're..."
In an instant, the assassins' faces froze just like Wang Yi Sam's as they spun around, their snickers dying.
Grrrrrr.
The guard curled his lips, baring his fangs like a beast, growling deep in his throat.
"How's a guy we just killed...?"
While the assassins stood stunned in confusion, the guard's jaws snapped wide, tearing into the neck of the one in front.
Crunch.
"Aaaagh!"
The revenant—not the guard anymore—jerked its head back, ripping out a massive chunk of flesh. An artery severed, and blood sprayed in a fountain.
Spurt!
The corridor turned into a blood sea in seconds.
The revenant didn't stop, lunging at the next assassin. The man reflexively thrust his sword, piercing the revenant's chest clean through.
Shunk. The blade skewered right through the center of the revenant's chest and out the back.
A strike that would fell any living man on the spot, heart pierced while standing.
But the revenant didn't die. It was already a corpse once over...
With the sword still impaled in its chest, the revenant charged, clamping down on the assassin's wrist. It tore off another huge bite of flesh, just like before.
"Guh!"
Neck and wrist—both vital spots where major blood vessels ran. Not as critical as the throat, but blood poured from the bitten wrist anyway.
The bitten assassin turned toward the last of the trio and howled like a beast before charging.
Raaargh!
Two assassins down without a fight, but the third remained utterly calm.
Those two weren't friends or comrades to him anyway—just tools.
If anything, watching them get taken out had taught him how to handle revenants. He was grateful.
"Just gotta avoid the bite, right?"
As the revenant lunged, the assassin raised his palm vertically and smashed the creature's jaw.
Crack. The jaw spun sideways—not a direct blow, but a golden hand technique meant to induce concussion.
Of course, a revenant wouldn't suffer brain trauma. But it bought enough time for a follow-up.
Slash! With his other hand, the assassin swung his sword, severing the revenant's head.
"Scared of bites? Just lop off the head."
The assassin spoke leisurely.
But even a swordsman who could cleave a human neck like flipping his palm was overconfident without knowing a revenant's true nature.
The severed head hung in midair, jaws gaping wide, and spat a bundle of blood thread worms straight at the assassin's face.
Spiiiit!
The assassin, who had stylishly sheathed his sword after the clean decapitation, was caught utterly off-guard by the bizarre attack.
The writhing mass of worms lashed out like octopus tentacles snagging fish, wrapping the assassin's face tight.
Whirr!
"Gah! What kind of monster...!"
The assassin drew his sword again, but it was too late.
The severed head yanked his face close and bit into his neck.
Crunch.
The assassin flailed with his sword, but the head clamped like a bear trap that never released.
"Let... go, you monster...!"
Blood-soaked in an instant, the head still drove its teeth deeper into the assassin's neck.
Finally, the man convulsed and collapsed. His vessels severed by revenant fangs.
Three skilled assassins, dead to a single revenant.
Only then did the severed head unclench, pulling free its teeth. It rolled its eyes to glare at Wang Yi Sam.
Wang Yi Sam backed away slowly, raising his broad dao high.
These three dead men weren't any weaker than him in martial arts. But he had one edge.
He'd fought revenants before and knew the countermeasures.
The body was headless for now, so limited until reattached. Block the blood thread worms from the head—that was the key.
Wang Yi Sam held his broad dao vertically, blade facing front.
A stance to parry any worm spray with the flat.
Then, a figure shot from the far end of the corridor like an arrow, slamming his sword into the severed head.
Crunch. Gweeaaak...!
The head shrieked and thrashed but couldn't budge. The blade pinned it straight through the throat to the deck.
Wang Yi Sam stared blankly at the head, then looked up. The one who'd flown in like a bolt and skewered the revenant was none other than Song Hyeon.
"Where's Seo Baek?"
"Not here yet."
Wang Yi Sam had sighed inwardly in relief at Song Hyeon's arrival, but flinched without thinking. Song Hyeon's eyes were icy cold, unlike his usual detachment.
Song Hyeon yanked his sword free. Shink. It pulled out effortlessly from the deck, like from soft tofu.
He'd pierced the heart meridian of the blood thread worms—the head went still.
On the floor, the bitten assassins lay bleeding out.
Song Hyeon thrust into one neck.
Stab. Krrk...!
The man let out a final scream and died. Song Hyeon stabbed the next.
As Song Hyeon ended two lives in a blink, the last assassin collapsed backward, scrambling away.
The other two had severed throat arteries, but he'd only been bitten on the wrist—still conscious.
"What the hell are you? Killing people like it's nothing...!"
"You're the ones killing indiscriminately. Why are you even here?"
"That's..."
The assassin shut his mouth, unable to answer.
How could he call out murder when he was an assassin himself?
"Those two were bitten by the revenant anyway—they'll turn. No saving them."
"Th-that's what it was?"
"Yes."
Relief washed over the assassin briefly.
"You're bitten too."
"M-me? I'm fine! Just the wrist..."
"Neck or wrist—same thing."
Song Hyeon extended his sword. They were three paces apart, but his arm seemed to stretch like rubber. In a flash, he pierced the neck and withdrew.
Wang Yi Sam gulped. He'd sensed it at the Jegal residence too—Song Hyeon's swordsmanship reeked of otherworldly ghostly qi.
"These three had their heart meridians severed—no turning."
"Good work..."
Wang Yi Sam could only nod along.
Then, a shadow appeared from the opposite direction Song Hyeon had come. Wang Yi Sam tensed again, but relaxed at the gait.
"Kid! What took you so damn long?"
"Sorry I'm late. Had some business."
The shadow was Seo Baek.
Seo Baek, Song Hyeon, and Wang Yi Sam—who'd split to search for the scholar—were reunited.
Seo Baek eyed the blood-splattered corridor and bodies, nodding as if grasping the situation.
"Revenant?"
"Yes."
Seo Baek was calm, and so was Song Hyeon's reply. Wang Yi Sam inwardly clicked his tongue at their nonchalance.
"The scholar—or some hidden revenant—is turning the murim warriors."
But Song Hyeon shook his head at Seo Baek's words.
"No. This is worse than expected."
"How so?"
Seo Baek asked, but no answer came. Warriors burst from rooms lining the corridor, flinging doors open in unison.
Not just them—more poured in from both ends, heading for Seo Baek's room.
"What's all this racket? Can't get a wink!"
But none had the eyes of someone woken from sleep.
Slitted gazes scanning intently.
Every murim man on the barge—no, every assassin—converging on Seo Baek's room.
And sure enough, none recoiled at the bloodbath or asked questions.
Seo Baek wouldn't miss it.
'Damn. They're all here for me.'
His guess was spot on.
Those who'd heard directly at Yongjeong Inn, or gotten the word secondhand, had finally gathered.
The assassins who'd agreed at the inn not to fight each other.
Some like Dohwa Gwang had quietly eliminated rivals, but no big clashes till now. Even for black path folk, no brawls was a miracle.
With the barge nearing the capital, they'd shown their fangs.
But the mood was odd.
Their target, Seo Baek, stood right there—yet no one drew steel, all hesitating.
Their thoughts aligned.
Whoever grabs the kid first loses.
Snatching Seo Baek first made you every other assassin's bullseye. You'd just pave the way for someone else.
The last one to seize him and drag to Yongjeong Inn would win!
So they eyed each other warily, no one moving first.
Seo Baek clocked that too.
'Interesting. All rivals, so no one's drawing first?'
He turned to Song Hyeon with the unanswered question.
"How's the situation worse?"
"No guards on duty. No presence from the captain's quarters either. They're all gathered in one spot."
"That's serious."
Seo Baek crossed his arms, nodding as realization dawned.
But his face stayed nonchalantly calm, leaving Wang Yi Sam baffled at their exchange.
"Hold up. No guards is the problem? Probably slacking off together somewhere."
Song Hyeon crossed his arms too, nodding indifferently.
"Makes sense. The waterway gang's all together now."
"Having dinner."
Wang Yi Sam tilted his head.
"Dinner? Ship work's hungry stuff—midnight snack ain't a big deal."
"Not that kind. Revenant dinner."
"What?"
"The warning to stay in after curfew, the missing guards at night—all to buy dinner time."
"Dinner time?"
"Yes."
Seo Baek's once-indifferent eyes and voice chilled.
"Revenants hate dinner interruptions. Gotta sever necks to soak in bloodwater."