Chapter 42
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Clash at Jolgwang Mountain
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The surroundings were silent.
The caravan workers who had witnessed the scene, and even the bandits, couldn't believe what had just happened despite seeing it with their own eyes.
Dogwang, sickle in hand, had now reached the front of the procession alongside Seonwoyong.
Sa Hongcheon and Seo Hongsan could only stare at the two men in stunned silence, at a loss for words.
"Brother Sa. So, what do you plan to do with these bastards?"
Seonwoyong asked indifferently.
"Hmm... We've already drawn our blades, so no more words needed, right?"
"That's true, but wouldn't it be better to give them one more chance? That Gwak Sang guy or whatever—he's got a bad head, so it might be right to just cut it off."
Dogwang chimed in agreement with Seonwoyong's indifferent words.
"Exactly. This guy's got the right idea. Hey, you lot. What're you gonna do? It's been over ten years since I last killed anyone, you know."
"So killing a few more today wouldn't matter, then?"
"Talk about my monthly wage, wagon driver."
"I'm the guy who asked to be the wagon driver, and I got the job. Can't pay you more."
As the two bantered back and forth, Seo Hongsan lowered the spear he had raised.
"Who exactly are you people?"
"Me? Wagon driver. For the Great Fortune Caravan over there."
"Great Fortune Caravan?"
Only then did Seo Hongsan notice the Great Fortune Caravan's flag fluttering awkwardly at the rear of the line.
"This here's the leader of the Great Fortune Caravan. I'm just the guy on monthly pay, so talk to him."
Dogwang crossed his arms, still gripping the sickle.
"You've only got five wagons. Fine. You can go ahead with your wagons as they are. We only have business with the Shenzhou Merchant House, so wouldn't it be best for everyone if you stay out of it?"
Seonwoyong burst into laughter at Seo Hongsan's proposal.
"Haha... Man, you guys really live easy lives. Gonna live the world on your terms? You think that's that simple? Hilarious, you bastards. Haha..."
As Seonwoyong laughed on for a while, spouting nonsense, Seo Hongsan furrowed his brow and issued a threat.
"Young punk, seems you've got some skill, but you're awfully arrogant. To dare ignore me, Seo Hongsan, here on Jolgwang Mountain. Today, I'll give the beasts and birds of the mountains a feast..."
"Hey, you punk. If you're a bandit, act like one—keep your head and fight with your body. Why bother using that useless brain? Haha..."
Today's Seonwoyong was a bit different from usual.
He rarely laughed or spoke much normally, but today's words and laughter somehow felt sorrowful.
No one knew the reason, but Dogwang was nodding his head.
Tears were welling up in his eyes.
"They're not the type to listen to words. Hey, brothers! Take down those bastards right now..."
As Seo Hongsan issued the cold command,
Seonwoyong clapped his hands together.
Boom!!
But the sound wasn't a simple clap—it echoed hugely, low, and majestic.
The resonance was like pressing one's ear against a massive temple bell as it rang, piercing the listeners' eardrums and exploding in their minds.
"Ugh. Ack..."
In an instant, most of the standing bandits and workers around collapsed, losing consciousness.
Only a few experts with deep inner energy remained standing nearby.
On this side: Sa Hongcheon, Jin Seolha, and Dogwang.
On the bandit side: Seo Hongsan, Mok Gwangji, and one more.
Farther off, two people sitting on the Great Fortune Caravan's wagons: Elder Jang and Han Sojung.
Elder Jang aside, it was unusual that Han Sojung was unharmed.
"Young master, are you alright?"
Elder Jang asked in a startled voice, checking Han Sojung's complexion.
"Huh? Why? What's up?"
Han Sojung countered as if nothing had happened, but soon noticed all the workers around had collapsed and was surprised himself.
"Why's everyone like that?"
"Good you're fine... Have you been practicing some martial art lately, by any chance?"
Elder Jang probed Han Sojung's aura.
But there was still no sign of any special inner energy, just like before.
"Martial arts? You know I ran away because I hate that stuff."
"You've been with Young Master Seonwoo every evening for a month now already..."
"Well... He taught me some breathing technique. Said it'd help a lot with playing the zither. Along with finger techniques."
Elder Jang tilted his head but closed his mouth on the matter and turned his attention back to the situation at the front.
The experts, except for Dogwang, had no idea what martial art Seonwoyong had just used.
In truth, the Half-Reverse Art that Seonwoyong unleashed wasn't simple.
Having already shared the caravan's energy with heaven and earth, he had gathered the yin-yang energies flowing in the atmosphere into his palm and detonated them.
Even the standing experts now had their minds shaken by the sonic impact exploding in their brains, their blood and qi surging as they circulated their inner energy to calm it.
"Alright. Now it's a bit more manageable. Time to handle business."
A moment later, Dogwang—who seemed almost unaffected—tapped his palm with the sickle and sat on a nearby rock.
Sa Hongcheon was the first among them to regain his composure.
"Well, Young Hero Seonwoo. What now with these bastards?"
"They said they have business with the Shenzhou Merchant House, so question them about that. I'll just watch from here now. Seems stepping in further would be overstepping."
"No way. The Shenzhou Caravan's business is the Great Fortune Caravan's business, isn't it?"
"Come on. I stepped in because I couldn't stand by while non-martial folk got hurt or killed, but now Brother Sa, you can handle this just fine."
"Got it. Thanks anyway."
For Sa Hongcheon, it was like escaping the gates of hell.
At that moment, Seo Hongsan also recovered.
His focus was solely on Seonwoyong.
"Just who the hell are you...?"
Seo Hongsan's tone had changed.
"Hmph. You think you qualify to ask me that?"
Seonwoyong spat coldly and plopped down on the rock next to Dogwang.
"Alright, let's talk properly now. How exactly do you know the detailed cargo manifest of our caravan?"
Sa Hongcheon gripped his longsword tighter and asked Seo Hongsan.
"What's that matter now? We've decided to settle this with blades, so let's talk with them. Heh heh..."
Seo Hongsan thrust his longspear forward, readying for battle.
"Fine. If you're a warrior, let's settle it like warriors."
Sa Hongcheon swung his longsword straight at Seo Hongsan, who began thrusting with his spear in response.
The moniker "Clarity Sword Guest" was earned by Sa Hongcheon in his youth, when he left his sect, the Zhongnan School, and roamed the jianghu.
Cautious and gentle by nature, he rarely drew his sword lightly, but once he did, he was resolute in ending his opponent's life—that was his hallmark.
He had mastered the Zhongnan School's signature arts, the Thirty-Six Heavenly Swords and the Thunderbolt Hand, once even earning a seat among the Zhongnan Three Heroes, but he chose the secular world.
After swearing brotherhood with Shenzhou Divine Fist Jin Ichang, he had spent over twenty years with the Shenzhou Merchant House, traveling the jianghu and demonstrating his prowess, resulting in the title Clarity Sword Guest.
Now sixty years old, having lived a full cycle of the zodiac, he intended to live up to that name today.
Between fluidly executing the forms of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Swords with his right hand, he unleashed his signature Thunderbolt Hand with his left.
Famous as a swordsman, it was when he deployed the Thunderbolt Hand that he had truly resolved to kill.
But Ironclad Black Leopard Seo Hongsan was no pushover either.
Having once served as the spear instructor for the Imperial Guard defending the capital, he was a master of practical spear arts used by soldiers, like the Yang Family Spear and Zhao Family Spear.
Plain but effective, he utilized the longspear's reach to block Sa Hongcheon's sword strikes from afar, waiting for an opening.
As the two men's fierce clash heated up, Jin Seolha and Mok Gwangji also drew their weapons and began fighting.
Mok Gwangji, the Jolgwang Iron Bear, wielded a massive axe befitting his build.
Jin Seolha circled him with light footwork suiting her Iron Butterfly moniker, swinging her linked swords, while Mok Gwangji swung his huge axe like a switch, countering her.
"Looks like the outcome's clear enough."
Dogwang muttered to himself while watching the four-way fight, and Seonwoyong nodded.
Purely in terms of martial purity and level, Seo Hongsan and Mok Gwangji outclassed Sa Hongcheon and Jin Seolha.
Yet the two men's gazes weren't on that four-way bout.
They were fixed on another man quietly spectating: an old man in a green robe.
"What's that old guy's deal?"
To Dogwang's question, Seonwoyong replied indifferently.
"How should I know? Doesn't seem like he wants to fight, so no need for us to step in."
At that moment, as if having overheard, the green-robed old man glanced their way and approached.
He came right up to the two sitting men and plopped down beside them.
"Leaving such a good seat empty..."
Now three men sat side by side, watching the show.
"Old timer. What brings you here?"
Dogwang spoke first.
The old man rummaged in his bosom and pulled out a bronze plaque, handing it over.
Engraved vertically in the center was "Chief Inspector," and above it, "Green Forest."
Dogwang examined it briefly before handing it back.
"You're the Green Forest Chief Inspector? And you're just sitting around like this is fine?"
"What can I do? Disobedient bastards are everywhere."
"Those two thief scum are about to lose their heads, and you're just gonna watch?"
"What's the big deal if thieves lose their heads thieving? If it's fate, it's fate. Heh heh..."
The old man answered leisurely, as if it were someone else's business.