Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: Ghosts of Guizhou
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The merchants showed clear signs of great fluster at the sudden offer to join them.
Some examined Yuk Jin-yang's attire and tensed up noticeably. There were even those who stealthily moved their hands to the weapons at their waists. They appeared to be escorts disguised as merchants.
Yuk Jin-yang sat down without waiting for permission. One man twitched his eyebrows and opened his mouth. He was a striking figure with a thick scar running across his cheek.
"Is this your first time in the jianghu? How rude. Do you not know what it means to carry a sword and request to sit without permission?"
"Because you were discussing something I couldn't possibly overlook."
Yuk Jin-yang lifted his robe. The Five Harmony Alliance token hanging at his waist came into view. Yet those present smirked even after seeing the name and affiliation engraved on the token. They treated him as nothing more than a greenhorn.
"Hah, to think you'd rely on such a shoddy fake identity token."
"Do you think there are only one or two in the jianghu who impersonate the Alliance?"
"Fearless, aren't you? Or do you just not know the ways of the world? You look like you've just set out on your jianghu travels, and leaning on others' prestige for gain will only get you hurt."
Yuk Jin-yang calmly countered.
"Only you lot? Looks like there's a deserter from the military among you. With Guizhou right around the corner, you even had the leisure to volunteer as escorts for the caravan?"
One swordsman's expression hardened noticeably. A faint killing intent leaked out along with it. The back of his hand, now gripping the sword hilt, had veins bulging prominently.
The man barely managed a reply.
"What nonsense."
"Isn't that sword a standard military-issue weapon? A two-handed dao about three chi long is rare even in civilian homes, let alone the jianghu."
"You're spouting nonsense."
"It's the classic military dao style. You must have been too attached to switch it out. Of course, no half-decent blacksmith would dare forge a copy of a Great Ming-prohibited military dao."
It was then that the man, patience exhausted, tried to shoot to his feet.
"Sit."
Won-yeong, who had slipped behind them unnoticed, pressed down firmly on the swordsman's shoulder. He couldn't overcome the strength and shrank back in place.
It had been a slow movement, yet no one could react. She had completely deceived their senses.
"How dare you...!"
"Tut tut."
Yu-baek, who had appeared alongside her, subdued those itching to lash out.
At the aura of extraordinary masters, the warriors' faces changed. A chilling presence emanated, as if swords would be drawn at any moment. Yet no one actually moved to act.
Even amid the clashing presences, Won-yeong paid it no mind and smiled brightly.
"Well now, it seems you lot are the ones ignorant of jianghu ways. Sure, the world is full of con artists, but to be this obtuse... How do you expect to survive its perils? You're lucky to have lasted this long."
No retort came. They merely stared at Won-yeong with dumbfounded expressions.
She turned to the actual merchants and left them with one remark.
"You lot must lack discernment as well. To travel with trash like this as escorts."
It was outright abuse. The swordsman with his shoulder pinned whipped his head around in fury but soon froze solid. He had caught sight of Won-yeong's chillingly clear sky-blue eyes.
Won-yeong set her black hat down on the table. Seeing her white hair as well, the man asked in a trembling voice.
"White hair and blue eyes... perchance from the Western Regions or the Ice Palace? Or could it be Yeonam Yuan Clan?"
"The latter. From the Alliance."
"Damn it all, so that token was genuine? That kid really bears an Alliance token? The Alliance must be scraping the bottom of the barrel, even dragging in brats who haven't dried off behind the ears."
"Watch your mouth, unless you want that shoulder pulverized. I could make it so you never use that arm again. Interested?"
Won-yeong tightened her grip on his shoulder. The swordsman spat a groan laced with curses and rolled his eyes to scan the surroundings.
Despite the savage exchange, not a soul paid it any mind. Unnoticed, a sound barrier had sealed off the area.
The swordsman flinched and asked.
"Did you come hunting for me from the start?"
"Do we look that bored? We just happened to cross paths."
Yuk Jin-yang replied indifferently. The man gnashed his teeth.
"My luck's rotten. Then what exactly do you want?"
"I've already stated my purpose. I want the details on what you were discussing earlier."
The man subtly glanced to the side. Soon, a merchant nodded and spoke up. It was the one who had urged the other merchant to leave together just before.
"I'll explain. So release my cousin."
"So your source was this fellow."
"Indeed. Nothing beats military intel for certainty on future events. Let's start with introductions. I'm Jang Jung-il of the Jang Merchant Group."
"Yuk Jin-yang of Zhejiang's Yuk Clan."
Jang Jung-il's eyes went wide.
After identities were revealed, the merchants' attitudes shifted dramatically toward cooperation. They answered questions frankly and without reservation.
"You asked why the local river bandits halted their activities? The West Dragon Hall swept away all the gangs that caught their eye."
"They completely wiped out the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold's sub-branch. Of course, even the bandits are trending toward abandoning the area these days."
"Why head east of the Yangtze? It's the chaos originating from Guizhou. Even bandits are recoiling in disgust."
Soon, the waiter brought liquor and food. It was the locally renowned Yaozi Xuequ Wine. The taste was superb. Were it not for the mission, Yuk Jin-yang would have savored the intoxication without dispelling it.
Won-yeong and Yu-baek also marveled after sampling it.
While his seniors quenched their thirst, Yuk Jin-yang pressed on with the merchants.
"What's the situation in Guizhou like?"
"Growing more horrific by the day. Demons and ghosts rampage, black道 mobs swing their swords freely, and the garrison troops respond with iron fists. No room for mere bandits."
Jang Jung-il answered offhandedly. He twitched his lips briefly, poured Xuequ into his cup, and downed it in one go.
"Judging by your questions on local affairs, were you headed for Guizhou from the outset?"
"Who knows."
He answered ambiguously on purpose, but Jang Jung-il showed the sharp instincts of a merchant.
"With even the Alliance getting involved, the region will be reduced to scorched earth. My judgment was spot on."
"......"
"But you should be cautious. It's long been infamous as a haunt for demons and death sects, and now cults are running amok too."
The names Jang Jung-il rattled off were shocking. Death sects, cults. And demons.
Yuk Jin-yang felt a profound sense of déjà vu, as if he'd returned to the Shandong battlefield. In some ways, it felt worse. At least that place hadn't been infested with yokai.
"What's the latest on His Highness the King of Chu? From what I overheard, it seemed his safety was in question."
"That lord?"
A flicker of bitterness crossed Jang Jung-il's face.
"He's barely staving off Guizhou's crisis for now. But it won't last. Rumors say His Highness picked a fight with Guizhou's death sects."
"Picked a fight?"
"You outsiders wouldn't know. The death sects' reign of terror in Guizhou must have been intolerable. And lately, their power structure shifted."
"Power structure?"
"The usual ragtag groups merged. They call themselves the Ghost Sword Society, forming a massive gang. They claimed a deep mountain valley as their base and set their sights on regional dominance."
The words naturally soured his expression.
At that scale, they ought to be deemed a major black道 sect rather than a death sect. They were merely a band versed in assassination arts.
Assassins brazenly operating in the open? That was no conduct for a professional killer outfit.
Jang Jung-il's explanation continued.
"They use demons and ghosts as a bulwark, making suppression difficult. Their influence blankets all of Guizhou; rumors swirl that another faction will soon join the Black Forest Seven Sects."
Yuk Jin-yang realized the situation was far graver than imagined. Won-yeong and Yu-baek wore deeply serious expressions as well.
The vassals of the unorthodox, the Black Forest Seven Sects. This referred to the seven preeminent factions among them.
For their name to arise meant no trifling matter.
Though lately suppressed by the Alliance's prestige, the Seven Sects had originally rivaled even the orthodox Nine Great Sects.
Being compared to them proved the death sects' alliance had amassed world-class might.
"But His Highness the King of Chu could no longer tolerate their insolence and drew his blade. He led troops straightaway and exterminated several sects. Noble intent, but it stirred up a hornet's nest."
The man's cousin picked up the thread.
"Now do you grasp why I fled? Banner captains and centurions dropping like flies—a grunt like me would just meet a dog's death."
Yuk Jin-yang let out a quiet sigh.
'So that's why the King of Chu couldn't rendezvous midway.'
Death sects were the vilest breed among black道 unorthodox. As assassin bands, their members' dispositions were inevitably vicious.
While jianghu grudges lasted a lifetime, death sects repaid them with unmatched tenacity and obsession. Even other unorthodox shook their heads in dismay.
They wouldn't spare royals out of deference or settle for half-measures. Some might even see it as a chance to make their name by honing their blades.
Though the Ghost Sword Society had drifted from pure death sect roots, it was unlikely the mindsets of individual members had transformed. No doubt the King of Chu, wary of this, had summoned them all the way to Guizhou.
'We may need to brace for the worst-case scenario.'
Yuk Jin-yang thought so. They might have to contend with brutes rampaging on raw power, ignorant of proper major sect conduct.
Won-yeong rubbed the back of her neck. It was her habit when her head throbbed.
"Cooperate with the military? More like we'll be stuck cleaning up their messes."
"Are Guizhou's assassins that formidable? Even banded together, they shouldn't match the military."
Yu-baek asked innocently. Won-yeong shrugged with arms crossed.
"To be blunt, on individual skill alone, they're not that strong. We—or the military's warriors—could smash them head-on with ease."
"Then why the grim faces...?"
"The issue is they won't fight fair duels. Every servant, attendant, even close aide could be a masked assassin in disguise."
Yuk Jin-yang inwardly concurred with Won-yeong's assessment.
Martial chronicles brimmed with experts who, overconfident in their cultivation, met grisly ends to blades flashing from the shadows.
That was the terror of assassins. By obsessively targeting vulnerabilities, they often rendered cultivation levels moot.
Won-yeong muttered something between jest and earnest.
"We can only pray that when we arrive, His Highness hasn't been found headless."