Chapter 486
Chapter 486
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 486
Chapter Title: The Overlapping Formation
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Gongson Dangyeong dismissed the question that had popped into her head and offered a compliment with a full smile.
“If you had remained in the merchant world, Division Head Seonu, you would have surely taken the Central Plains by storm.”
Those in the martial world tended to look down on merchants.
This was because merchants struggled to maintain their footing without the protection of martial factions and were perceived as a class sensitive only to monetary gain.
But seeing Bu Eun-seol, who excelled in both martial arts and strategy, she felt that prejudice gradually fading.
“You praise me too highly.”
“Thanks to you, I've learned a great deal. I will improve the Myriad Flowers Emporium based on what you've told me.”
Having received all sorts of unexpected advice, she wore a satisfied expression.
But the truly important part was only just beginning.
“Then, we should head to the warehouse in Soho now.”
One of the merchants' biggest worries was the constant threat of thieves.
For this reason, they would install elaborate mechanisms in their warehouses or build the warehouses themselves in secret locations.
But the Myriad Flowers Emporium was different.
It had established a massive joint warehouse, constantly guarded by warriors of the Martial Alliance, where goods could be stored safely.
Of course, there was a storage fee, but it was far cheaper than installing security mechanisms or hiring guards to fend off thieves.
From the merchants' perspective, it was a good policy, and for the Martial Alliance, it became a lucrative source of income.
And now, the two of them had to search the entire joint warehouse in Soho to find any problematic items.
“It's huge.”
Arriving in the Soho district, Bu Eun-seol surveyed the massive warehouse grounds and nodded.
The joint warehouse built by the Martial Alliance looked like another Myriad Flowers Emporium in itself.
Stepping inside the enormous rectangular building, he saw it was filled with goods entrusted by various shops.
From this point on, Bu Eun-seol had to find every single forgery that could become a problem.
Looking at the mountain of goods piled up inside, Bu Eun-seol tilted his head.
“But I don't see any works of art.”
Gongson Dangyeong gave a faint smile.
“The art pieces are stored separately in an underground vault equipped with heavy security.”
She then went to the far end of the warehouse and activated the mechanism that led down to the underground facility.
“There aren't that many art pieces, so it shouldn't take long to check them.”
*Creeaak.*
As the mechanism activated, a solid steel door opened, revealing a staircase leading down.
When the vault door opened, an incredible collection of art was revealed beneath a high ceiling studded with luminous pearls.
Their value was easily in the millions of nyang.
Ordinarily, the shop owners would never entrust so many authentic pieces to a single warehouse like this.
But because it was the Myriad Flowers Emporium, run by the Martial Alliance, the merchants could leave their goods with peace of mind.
”……You said there weren't many?”
Bu Eun-seol asked, blinking, and Gongson Dangyeong stammered, embarrassed.
“Fewer than I thought... I mean.”
“Even if the Martial Alliance guards protect it rigorously, I'm not sure it's wise to store so many valuable art pieces in one place.”
Bu Eun-seol said, looking around the vault.
“Besides, this warehouse is in a remote location, far from Chengdu.”
“Just because guards are on duty doesn't mean thieves won't come.”
Gongson Dangyeong explained with a smile.
“First of all, this warehouse in Soho is equipped with overlapping mechanisms that even so-called Divine Thieves would find difficult to bypass. More importantly, when our Alliance built this warehouse, we made a promise.”
Her eyes sparkled under the light of the luminous pearls.
“That if anyone were to steal anything from here, the Alliance would stake its honor on pursuing them until they were caught.”
This joint warehouse was guarded by a force equivalent to three of the Martial Alliance's second-class sword brigades.
It was also fitted with subtle and unique mechanisms that even an expert in formations and devices would have difficulty detecting.
But the most powerful security measure was the Martial Alliance's promise to never overlook a theft.
The moment anyone laid a hand on the warehouse, they would be hunted by the Martial Alliance for the rest of their lives.
No matter how audacious the master thief, they wouldn't dare to try.
“Shall we begin?”
Bu Eun-seol nodded at Gongson Dangyeong's words.
There was no time.
They had to quickly search through all the items here and check for forgeries.
***
How much time had passed?
Bu Eun-seol blinked his tired eyes.
Though the luminous pearls shone brightly, continuously using his heightened senses to examine the art pieces…
…was causing his eyes to dry out and fatigue to set in.
An ordinary person would have collapsed from hunger and exhaustion, but Bu Eun-seol and Gongson Dangyeong were both martial arts masters.
They could manage without food for not just half a day, but even a couple of days.
“I believe that's the last of them.”
Bu Eun-seol had discovered twelve forgeries.
In terms of value, the loss amounted to tens of thousands of nyang.
But the financial loss was temporary.
If these forgeries had entered circulation, the Myriad Flowers Emporium's credibility would have plummeted, and Gongson Dangyeong would have faced great trouble.
“If we trace the route these forgeries took to get here, we should be able to identify who orchestrated this.”
“Thank you. Thanks to you, we finished sooner than I expected.”
Gongson Dangyeong, though weary, offered a bright smile.
Even though she wore a veil, her wide smile seemed to brighten the dim interior of the vault.
*'They look alike.'*
Gongson Dana might be counted among the Three Beauties of the World, but Gongson Dangyeong was undoubtedly a great beauty herself.
She also looked quite young.
She didn't look at all like a woman in her thirties, ten years older than Gongson Dana.
“Shall we head back now?”
At her words, Bu Eun-seol nodded with a rewarding smile.
He had carried out a secret mission with none other than the Grand Marshal of the Martial Alliance and had clearly shown her his competence.
In the future, whenever Gongson Dangyeong faced a difficult task, she would surely think of Bu Eun-seol at least once.
“Seeing you, Division Head Seonu, makes me think I did well to accept Division Head Yuk's proposal.”
Gongson Dangyeong muttered as she fiddled with the mechanism to exit.
“I, too, haven't had the best of luck with people until now.”
*'So that's how it was.'*
She had risen to the position of Grand Marshal at a very young age.
Of course, it was because she had the skill and achievements to match, and had earned the recognition of the leadership.
Unfortunately, the Martial Alliance was not a place one could survive on skill alone.
The position of Grand Marshal, in particular, was one that could be lost at any time depending on one's merits and demerits, so creating a faction to support oneself was inevitable.
She had likely reached out to Yuk Jang-cheon, and he had eagerly taken her hand.
Because it served both their interests.
If they both didn't gather more factions and individuals to their side…
…they might end up wandering from place to place, rubbing their hands together in desperation to achieve something, only to be forced into a miserable retreat.
*Krrrr...*
The thick door opened, revealing the passage leading back up to the floor above.
As Bu Eun-seol finally stepped out of the underground vault,
*'...!'*
he suddenly sensed a subtle silence.
The Martial Alliance forces guarding the building. All traces of their presence were gone.
Feeling something was amiss, he expanded the range of his extrasensory perception, and his eyes widened.
Not only had the Martial Alliance forces guarding the warehouse vanished, but a large, unidentified army had surrounded the building in a circle.
*'The Three Realms?'*
The only ones audacious enough to touch a Grand Marshal, one of the highest leaders of the Martial Alliance, were the Three Realms, weren't they?
*'This is a similar situation to Prefect Dan.'*
He suddenly recalled his first meeting with Dan So-ok.
Back then, too, unidentified assailants had surrounded an entire village to kill her.
*'Which means their target isn't the warehouse, but the Grand Marshal.'*
She, who was always escorted by the Sacred Guard, had come out into the martial world alone.
It seemed the Three Realms had no intention of letting this golden opportunity slip by.
*'But this... this level of sensory perception is beyond Seonu Jin's abilities.'*
Bu Eun-seol hesitated for a moment.
Gongson Dangyeong was a key figure in the Martial Alliance with whom he needed to maintain a close relationship.
If he set Seonu Jin's abilities too high, he might arouse her suspicion.
But if he pretended to notice the situation too late... he might be forced into a situation where he had to use all of his abilities.
*'I'll just set Seonu Jin's abilities a little higher.'*
“Grand Marshal.”
Having made his decision, Bu Eun-seol looked around with a very serious expression.
“I think we should go back to the underground vault.”
“What do you mean?”
“The forces that were around us have all disappeared.”
“That can't be. I didn't sense anything.”
“I'm certain. The presence of our Alliance's sword brigade members is completely gone. They might be dead, or they might have fallen for a diversionary tactic, like luring a tiger from its mountain.”
Gongson Dangyeong blinked.
If he could sense the forces outside from within this warehouse, his sensory range had to be at least forty *zhang*.
Was Seonu Jin truly such a remarkable warrior?
“If they took down over a hundred of the Martial Alliance's elites in an instant... that means a force at least ten times that number has arrived.”
*Rumble...*
Just then, the sound of the surrounding forces gradually approaching the warehouse could be heard.
“Grand Marshal, it seems the forces that surrounded us are now approaching.”
“I feel it too.”
It seemed Gongson Dangyeong's martial prowess was also well beyond the peak level.
But that wouldn't be nearly enough.
Since the Three Realms had sent assassins with clear intent, unless one had reached the Transcendent Dao Realm like Bu Eun-seol…
…it was impossible to stand against such a force.
“If they took care of the entire sword brigade here, their strength must be greater than several divisions combined. It would be best to retreat to the underground vault and hold out.”
Gongson Dangyeong thought for a moment, then shook her head.
“A force that large could easily break through the vault's mechanisms with brute force. It would be better to set up a formation throughout this entire warehouse.”
She was a brilliant woman, and her skill in formations was well-known in the martial world.
The warehouse interior was vast, and with countless items piled up in a complex manner... she could easily deploy any kind of formation.
*Ruuuumble.*
The sound, like a stampeding herd of cattle, spread closer.
It seemed the large force would enter the warehouse at any moment.
*Whoosh.*
Moving swiftly through the spacious warehouse, Gongson Dangyeong began to create a formation using the items stacked inside.
“Division Head Seonu, do you know of the Heaven-Defying Cloud Chaos Confusion Formation?”
“I do not.”
“Then please follow what I do and set up the exact same thing on the opposite side.”
Bu Eun-seol furrowed his brow.
If he set up the same formation on the opposite side, wouldn't it cease to be a single formation?
“Are you saying we should overlap the formations?”
“That's right. It's impossible with an ordinary formation, but it can be done with the Heaven-Defying Cloud Chaos Confusion Formation.”
“Understood.”
Bu Eun-seol didn't ask again.
He didn't have deep knowledge of formations, but he had a memory that never forgot what it saw once.
As Gongson Dangyeong created the formation's foundations with the surrounding objects, Bu Eun-seol immediately followed her lead, setting up an identical one.
*Kwoong.*
Just then, the building's entrance burst open, and a tremendous killing intent began to pour in.
“A little faster!”
At Gongson Dangyeong's shout, Bu Eun-seol also worked quickly to complete the formation.
Finally, as they grew close enough for their noses to almost touch,
*Thwack!*
Gongson Dangyeong thrust the wooden doll she was holding into the central point.
At that, the surroundings darkened, and the Heaven-Defying Cloud Chaos Confusion Formation activated throughout the entire warehouse.
“Hoo.”
Large beads of sweat ran down Gongson Dangyeong's forehead.
“That was a close call.”
If Bu Eun-seol hadn't possessed such a remarkable memory and failed to set up the formation on the other side with her…
…they wouldn't have been able to create the overlapping formation, and they would have been unable to stop the assassins in such a confined space.
*Fwish! Paat!*
Even with the formation active, the sound of blades cutting through the air echoed from all directions.
“It seems a thousand of them really have stormed in.”
“A thousand, you say?”
“Yes. The Cloud Chaos Formation has the ability to completely block out most sounds. The fact that we can hear this much... means at least a thousand warriors are swarming in, trying to destroy the formation.”
Her gaze turned serious.
To be able to enter the formation and still swing their swords meant they were dealing with a gathering of highly skilled martial artists.
If a thousand such individuals had gathered…
…these were not assassins, but a force closer to the strength of an entire sect.
“I don't understand. My movements should have been completely concealed.”
She wore a grave expression.
To handle the Myriad Flowers Emporium's affairs secretly, she had come here alone with Bu Eun-seol.
But she was the Grand Marshal, the head of the Martial Alliance.
To prepare for any unexpected situations, she had stationed elite warriors at various points along her route.
So how could such a large force have moved to the vicinity of the warehouse?
Could they have dealt with all of them?
“They knew beforehand.”
Bu Eun-seol said firmly.
“They knew that the last of your business with the Emporium would be here, at the Soho warehouse, and they have been waiting in this area for a long time.”
“In that case.”
“There is a traitor in your command.”
Gongson Dangyeong bit her lip.
Finding the traitor could wait. Right now, they had to survive against those assassins.
“Can this formation hold back such a force?”
Gongson Dangyeong shook her head at his question.
“It's impossible. No matter how powerful the formation is, it can't hold a thousand warriors. Eventually, they will break it.”
“Then how about we retreat to the underground vault and set up another formation there? It has various mechanisms, so we could hold out for longer.”
“That's also impossible.”
In response to his suggestion, Gongson Dangyeong pointed toward the hazy interior of the formation.
“Right now, we are at the *tianyuan*, the central point of a Go board. Inside the Cloud Chaos Formation, a gray mist obscures vision, and more importantly, one loses all sense of direction.”
“Since you set up the formation, surely you know how to dispel it?”
At that, she spoke with a look of despair.
“I had you set up an overlapping formation, remember? Even if I could account for the variations in the formation I laid out, the variations from the one you set up... I couldn't calculate them.”
Gongson Dangyeong had overlapped the formations to hold back the numerous enemies.
This meant the formation's variations had multiplied, and even someone as brilliant as her couldn't possibly calculate all the positional shifts.
“We can get through.”
Just then, Bu Eun-seol's eyes gleamed as he spoke.
“Let's head to the vault now.”
“How?”
Bu Eun-seol said calmly.
“I have memorized the approximate positional shifts of the formation.”
“You memorized all of those complex positional changes?”
Gongson Dangyeong's eyes widened.
The Cloud Chaos Formation has twenty-five variations—five times five.
And she, with her genius intellect, had overlapped that formation.
In theory, the formation now contained six hundred and twenty-five variations.
And Bu Eun-seol had calculated all six hundred-plus variations in that short amount of time? That was impossible, even for a genius.
“Did I not follow your formation symmetrically?”
Bu Eun-seol, having read her thoughts, said calmly.
“In other words, I observed the formation from a broad, external perspective as I set it up. That's how I was able to calculate the positional shifts you taught me.”
“Then.”
“If you can recall the first three hundred or so variations, I believe I can solve the remaining three hundred.”
Gongson Dangyeong couldn't hide her astonishment.
“Your memory is incredible.”
To have memorized all the positional changes while simultaneously setting up the formation in that brief moment?
Didn't that mean he possessed a memory that could rival her own?
“To be honest, I thought no one had a better memory than me.”
“For a merchant, memory is money.”
Gongson Dangyeong nodded as if she finally understood.
“So that's how you were able to learn martial arts so quickly while being part of the merchant world, Division Head Seonu.”
The heirs of merchant guilds were always wrestling with numbers.
Furthermore, to manage a merchant caravan, one had to learn organizational management along with various other forms of knowledge and trivia.
After studying so much, there was precious little time left to train in martial arts... which was why outstanding warriors rarely emerged from the merchant world.
But since Bu Eun-seol was so brilliant, he must have had ample time to practice his martial arts as well.
*'To think Division Head Seonu was such a genius.'*
Gongson Dangyeong could now understand why Baekri Mujo, the Leader of the Sacred Guard, had called Seonu Jin the "Dragon of the Merchant World."
“But even so, it's still a difficult task.”
Gongson Dangyeong faintly shook her head.
“There are a thousand of them. Even if we navigate through six hundred variations, we'll still run into an enemy at least once every two steps.”
Gongson Dangyeong said with a look of despair.
“Even if we make it to the underground vault, if they've seized control of this entire area, we'll just be meeting our end there.”
The area around this joint warehouse was a remote place where no one lived.
Even if they reached the vault, against such a large force, it was clear they wouldn't last even a day.
“That's not true.”
Bu Eun-seol said firmly.
“The Sacred Guard will come.”
“The Sacred Guard?”
“Doesn't the Sacred Guard escort all of the Alliance's key personnel? You, Grand Marshal, are naturally one of them.”
“If my movements were so easily discovered, I wouldn't have come here with just you, Division Head Seonu.”
Gongson Dangyeong said weakly.
“I can guarantee you, the Sacred Guard has no idea where I am. I made sure of it.”
“Since you guarantee you took measures, it's possible the Sacred Guard really doesn't know.”
Bu Eun-seol said confidently.
“But Brigade Leader Baekri will know.”
“Brigade Leader Baekri?”
“Yes. And now that this has happened... he will be here before dawn. Within four hours at the latest.”
Bu Eun-seol had only met with the Sacred Guard's Leader, Baekri Mujo, once.
But in that one meeting, he had been able to grasp what kind of man he was.
He was a perfectionist who neither made nor tolerated mistakes.
Therefore, he would not neglect one of the Sacred Guard's primary duties—keeping track of the Grand Marshal's whereabouts.
And since she was in danger... he was certain Baekri Mujo would sense it and arrive with a large force.
“Do you know Brigade Leader Baekri well?”
“I have only met him once.”
“You've only met him once?”
“That's right. But you can trust me.”
Bu Eun-seol said, staring intently at Gongson Dangyeong.
“The Brigade Leader will definitely come.”
Gongson Dangyeong could feel it.
Bu Eun-seol's faith was not in his own brilliant mind, which could foresee future events.
It was solely in the ability of the Sacred Guard's Leader, Baekri Mujo.
“Alright. I will trust you, Division Head.”
Gongson Dangyeong took a deep breath.
*Shing.*
And she drew the short, precious sword hidden at her waist.
“It's going to be a long night.”
She let out a deep sigh.
To buy time against such a large force…
…they would have to enter the Cloud Chaos Formation, defeat the assassins one by one... and then retreat to the underground vault where the art was stored.