Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Pursued and Pursuer
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“Tell me what you’re going to do, old man.”
“You damn...”
“I said tell me, Gun Cheokjeon!”
Even with the tip of a sword right at his throat, Ak Muyoo didn’t so much as blink.
“If one of us has to go, it won’t be us—it’ll be you, bastard!”
Gun Cheokjeon said coldly.
“You think you can make it out alive if you go?”
“......”
Gun Cheokjeon couldn’t respond. He and the other five generals had roamed battlefields for a decade, but their trips into the desert could be counted on one hand. They’d never ventured this deep, either. Missions requiring travel to distant places had always been left to the Wind Corps.
“I’d love to ditch you lot and run. But if I go, you won’t last a day before you’re dead. And if you die, no one’s left to clear my name. That’s why I’m pulling this shit—trying to drag at least one of you out alive. Get it? Now put this away, you punk.”
Ak Muyoo smacked the flat of Gun Cheokjeon’s blade.
Gun Cheokjeon glared at Ak Muyoo with murderous eyes.
“One more thing. You seem to think that if General Choyu lures the enemy away, he’ll die first—but that’s a mistake. In this desert, no one knows who drops first. You could end up dying before General Choyu.”
“But you’ll live, right?”
Ak Gun-eok said.
“I can survive because of you.”
“Why would we...”
“You’re the ones who sent our Wind Corps into the desert. I had to study it to stay alive, and now I know it like the back of my hand. And they say you can’t die if you’ve got debts to collect.”
Now he was openly dropping the honorifics.
“Debts?”
“That bastard Jujangcheol swallowed ten years of my pay. He even promised the dead guys’ shares, so even lowballing it, that’s gotta be three million nyang.”
“So...”
“I can’t die until I collect. Go round up the camels. We’ll ride the ones here—the rest, bring ‘em all.”
“......”
“If you don’t wanna die, hurry. If the Blood Wolves show up, we’re done in our current state.”
“Got it.”
Ak Gun-eok, So Daehwa, and Adal went off to gather the camels.
“Take this.”
Choyu held out his sword to Ak Muyoo.
“Why give it to me?”
“Deliver it to the Northern Divine House in Peking.”
“......You want me to pass on a message?”
“Tell them the past years were so happy, I won’t forget them even in death. And this is a gift for your trouble. It’s from the Martial God Tower—legend says it holds the Radiant World Divine Art.”
Choyu unfastened his necklace and handed it to Ak Muyoo.
“Understood. I’ll make sure it reaches them when I get to Peking.”
Ak Muyoo nodded.
“How do I do it?”
Choyu asked while grabbing a crescent blade from one of the corpses.
“Just ride a camel south.”
“That’s all?”
“The farther, the better.”
“Got it.”
Choyu selected a camel and mounted it.
“General Choyu.”
The four generals gathered beside him.
“Ignore what that guy said. Luring the enemy doesn’t mean I die first. You staying here might drop before me. Stay sharp.”
“General...”
“Hah!”
Choyu cracked his whip.
Kuh-eok!
The camel bellowed and bolted south, dragging the twenty-odd camels tied behind it along.
“Let’s move.”
Ak Muyoo swung his Demon Hook at the neck of a camel standing nearby.
The camel’s head came clean off in one stroke. As blood gushed out, Ak Muyoo yanked Nuru Ha Jin close and stood under the spray. The two were drenched in blood.
Thud!
The camel collapsed.
Ak Muyoo then sliced open its belly.
“Come here.”
He called to Nuru Ha Jin.
“To cover ourselves in camel stench?”
She asked.
“Exactly.”
Ak Muyoo nodded. Nuru Ha Jin immediately smeared camel guts all over her body.
“You lot do the same and follow.”
Ak Muyoo left. He went to the corpses, cleared a few, and dug into the sand below.
“Get in.”
“Yes.”
Nuru Ha Jin did as told.
“Weren’t we leaving right away?”
Gun Cheokjeon asked, watching Ak Muyoo.
“We’re surrounded on all sides—east, west, south, north. No way out. Once they chase General Choyu, the north opens up. That’ll buy us a few days easy.”
Ara was the first to slather camel guts over her entire body.
“Head and face too—nice and thorough. Blood Wolves sniff out humans like ghosts. They know what human meat tastes like.”
Ara rubbed guts on her face and head, then slipped into the pit Ak Muyoo had dug. Gun Cheokjeon and his group smeared themselves with guts, dug a pit under the corpses, and crawled in.
Moments after they hid under the bodies, the Blood Wolf Clan arrived. The first Blood Wolves raced around, sniffing everywhere.
Then the Blood Wolf clansmen entered.
They scanned the area briefly before spreading out to search.
“A fight happened here. The dead are from the Four Evils Bandits.”
One reported to a massive, bear-like man with a bushy beard. He was Gorgan, tenth chieftain of the Great Desert Wolf Heaven.
“Only Four Evils Bandits among the dead?”
“Yes.”
“What weapon wiped out the Four Evils Bandits?”
“Swords and bows.”
“Swords?”
“Yes.”
“We desert folk hardly use swords, right?”
“Yes.”
“Where’d they go?”
“South.”
“Pursue!”
“Yes.”
Piiik! Piiik!
A sharp whistle pierced the Blood Wolf Clan camp.
Grrr!
The Blood Wolves feeding nearby froze, then charged south. Soon after, the clansmen followed on their heels.
“Don’t come out until I say.”
Ak Muyoo whispered low.
He deployed Six Beasts Sense Command and Beast Blood Demon Art at once, burying his face in the sand.
Without inner energy, he couldn’t use Heaven-Earth Pure Ear Technique, but combining these two produced power rivaling a martial artist’s version. The downside: you had to press your ear to the ground or shove your face in the sand like this—hardly dignified.
He spread his senses slowly. Sounds flooded in. Wind first. Then sand crumbling and piling in the breeze. Lizards or scorpions skittering.
And...
‘There.’
Rough breathing. Two of them. They thought they were stealthy, but it rang clear.
They crouched against a sand dune, staring at the corpses.
Ak Muyoo kept watch. After about fifteen minutes, the enemies stood and left.
Once they were fully gone, Ak Muyoo lifted his head and emerged, shoving corpses aside.
“You can come out now.”
Gun Cheokjeon’s group climbed out at his words.
“We leave now.”
Ak Muyoo mounted a camel immediately.
Fortunately, the Blood Wolves ignored the camels. Trained not to harm the desert’s transport, apparently. Ak Muyoo had three; the rest had two each.
One of his carried water, the other white sheepskin and poles—materials for a desert tribe’s ger.
Everyone mounted, and they departed. The stench was vile, but no one complained.
* * *
Hundreds of gers dotted the desert heartland. Blood Wolf banners fluttered here and there—this was the Blood Wolf Clan camp.
Their main base was the Great Desert north of the Gobi, but war’s end hadn’t sent them home yet. Loose ends remained.
First: war funds.
Beyond imperial payments, desert tribes had pledged contributions, and they awaited collection. Second: eliminate five enemy generals.
The largest central ger was Chieftain Adalta’s abode—ten paces across. Wolf pelts covered the floor, save the central fire pit.
Adalta sat inside with several chieftains.
“How’re the war funds?”
He asked First Chieftain Haruk.
“All arrived.”
“Time to head home?”
“Once we wipe out the imperial generals...”
“Do we all need to be here for five guys?”
“No.”
“Where’s Gorgan?”
“Word is he entered the Black Sand Zone south.”
“Leave it to Gorgan. We head back. Tell him no heads, no return. And declare them public enemies of the Border Wastelands.”
“Understood. We’ll prep withdrawal now.”
Haruk bowed.
Three hours later, Blood Wolf warriors turned toward home.
Gorgan heard of the main force’s return two days later. His men were mid-battle with Choyu, the one they’d chased.
Over twenty Blood Wolf warriors lay dead, more dying, but Gorgan stayed calm.
“What’d they say?”
He asked the messenger.
“No imperial generals’ heads? Don’t come back.”
“I see.”
Gorgan stared coldly ahead.
“Kuh-eok!”
A scream rang out.
Gorgan turned. Choyu, thrashing wildly, finally collapsed.
Gorgan approached.
“Where’re the rest?”
Fluent Central Plains speech flowed from his mouth.
“If I’d tell you, I wouldn’t have come alone.”
“Fair.”
Gorgan nodded.
“Got the guts for one-on-one?”
Choyu asked.
“One-on-one?”
Gorgan’s eyes widened. Choyu could barely stand, yet he challenged him?
“Yes.”
Choyu jammed his blade into the ground as a crutch and rose.
“You can’t even twitch a finger. Why fight?”
“Kill you, and they escape safe.”
“......Heh heh heh!”
Gorgan chuckled lowly.
“Fight me?”
Choyu pressed.
“Fine.”
Gorgan nodded and drew his weapon—a Border Wastelands dao, but longer.
He faced Choyu, blade raised.
“Promise: kill me, you call off the chase.”
“Others’ll step up if we don’t. Your comrades won’t leave the desert alive.”
“Just you promise.”
“Done. Heard that?”
Gorgan bellowed to his men.
“Yes!”
The warriors roared back.
“Thanks.”
Choyu held his blade to his chest, regulating breath. He calmed to a windless lake surface.
Clack!
Gorgan tilted his dao diagonally, left foot edging forward slow.
“Come, Central Plains dog!”
But Choyu didn’t move. He knew one chance only. Wait for the perfect moment.
Whoooosh!
A sudden whirlwind spun between them.
‘It’s coming!’
Gorgan gripped tighter. Choyu stayed still.
“I thought...”
Pa-at!
As Gorgan relaxed, Choyu kicked off. His body shot forward flat in midair at terrifying speed.
“Gasp!”
Gorgan’s face twisted. Too fast. He swung as Choyu moved, but half a beat late.
‘Cut him, and my heart gets pierced.’
Perfect mutual destruction.
‘Damn it!’
Regret hit—too careless. But too late.
“We go together!”
Gorgan smashed down with full force. His dao mercilessly cleaved Choyu’s torso.
No scream. Choyu died instantly.
“......?”
Gorgan puzzled at his chest. Choyu’s blade tip had grazed skin, but missed the heart.
“Couldn’t muster the strength at the end.”
He muttered low.
“You okay?”
An aide approached.
“Fine. Bury this one with honor.”
“Yes.”
The aide ordered his men.
“Where’d we start chasing this guy?”
Gorgan asked.
“Tianji.”
“Then the rest went north from Tianji.”
“Likely.”
“What’s north?”
“Death Sand Sucking Ground.”
“Full speed to Death Sand Sucking Ground. Alert the other units!”
“Yes!”
Pwoooo! Pwoooo!
“Hah!”
“Taha!”
“Yah!”
Kuh-eok! Kuh-eo-eok!
Thud thud thud! Thud thud thud!
Soon, Blood Wolves leading, the clan charged north.