Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Yangtze River Bandits
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Yangtze River.
Most people thought of it as the massive river that cut across the Central Plains.
But in the current martial world, the Yangtze held a meaning more important than ever before.
It was the boundary dividing righteousness from evil.
And the reason was surprisingly simple.
The Murim Alliance dominated north of the river, while the Evil-Black Alliance loomed large to the south.
"Whew. This is gonna be tough again today."
Yeo Ungi, leaning against the dock on the northern bank of the Yangtze, let out a sigh.
It had already been a fortnight since he'd been stationed here.
And in that time, he'd done just one thing.
Repelling the water bandits.
But every time he boarded a boat, the seasickness made his head spin, turning even knocking out the bandits into an ordeal.
"Sigh. If I'd known the Righteous Patrol was stuck doing crap like this, I wouldn't have busted my ass to join..."
Grouching to himself, he rolled his neck around.
The Righteous Patrol had long been his goal.
For a warrior from a mid-tier sect like the Iron Blood Hall, it was the biggest armed force he could join in the Murim Alliance.
So he'd figured joining the Righteous Patrol meant heroic deeds and slaying evildoers, like the tales he'd heard.
'But nope. Stuck fighting water bandits.'
The first mission he'd gotten upon joining had been simple and straightforward.
Escort the escort agencies and merchant caravans traveling up and down the Yangtze!
'At least it's a consolation that they're no ordinary bandits—they're from the Water Dragon Stronghold. Take down that old man, and it'd build some real reputation...'
Yeo Ungi recalled the old man among the bandits who exuded the fiercest aura.
'Yeah, fat chance.'
It left a bitter taste, but he had to admit it.
With his current skills, he couldn't beat that old codger—hell, just surviving with his head intact was a miracle.
'If I'd come alone, I'd be dead.'
He deliberately craned his neck even more.
Hearing the crack, he felt oddly refreshed.
"Haa, I don't wanna."
"What are you saying?"
A reprimand came from beside him.
"Oh, hey, you're here."
Yeo Ungi scratched his head and looked at the one who'd scolded him.
"You haven't forgotten what we have to do, right?"
"Haha, I know. Just venting 'cause this situation's frustrating, Miss Cheonghwa."
"Good."
The woman with raven-black hair cascading freely and a frosty expression—Hyukryun Cheonghwa—eyed Yeo Ungi suspiciously.
But that lasted only a moment.
"So, what do you think about today?"
She asked softly.
Yeo Ungi answered while watching her clutch her sword tighter to her chest.
"Hm, they didn't show yesterday, so probably not today?"
Yeo Ungi shrugged.
Then he pushed off the wall.
"Anyway, time to board."
"Got it."
The two slowly climbed aboard the weathered ship moored nearby.
As they stepped onto the creaking deck planks, they immediately greeted those already aboard.
"Yeo Ungi, dispatched from the Alliance."
"Hyukryun Cheonghwa."
A portly middle-aged man rushed over.
Pounding footsteps followed, and he beamed widely.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Son Wi, head of the Dawn Escort Bureau."
"Haha, likewise. Yeo Ungi here."
"Hyukryun Cheonghwa."
"Looking forward to working with you this time."
"Haha, we'll do our best."
After the introductions and some chit-chat,
"You can't just board this ship willy-nilly."
There was a commotion from below deck.
"But someone said I could."
"Who?"
"The deputy strategist."
At those words,
"What...?"
"The deputy strategist?"
Yeo Ungi and Hyukryun Cheonghwa, who'd been listening to the ruckus, flinched.
"Wh-what's wrong?"
The escort head panicked at their reaction, but they moved first.
"Excuse us."
"Talk later."
They hurriedly brushed past the escort head and peered below.
There, a sharp-featured young man in black martial robes was arguing with an escort warrior.
"I don't recognize him. Have you seen him before, Brother Yeo?"
"No, first time for me too..."
As Yeo Ungi shook his head, the young man's voice rang out.
"...So they said this ship needed protection from Water Dragon Stronghold raids, right?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A short while later, the ship set sail.
"Hahaha, so you're Brother Cheonhwi! Pleased to meet you. I'm Yeo Ungi."
Arriving at the stern, Yeo Ungi grinned and welcomed the latecomer Cheonhwi.
"As expected of the deputy strategist. Spotting we were short-handed and coming to reinforce us personally."
His face lit up.
This mission didn't even feel like a proper one yet—the total dispatched here barely scraped a dozen.
And the Yangtze was no narrow stream.
It was too vast to handle.
Thus, Yeo Ungi and Hyukryun Cheonghwa had to run missions daily.
But reinforcements arriving meant,
"Any chance you know how many came besides you, Brother?"
He asked brightly, but the response crushed his hopes.
"Just me."
"...Pardon?"
Yeo Ungi blankly let out a deflated sound.
He quickly shook his head side to side to snap out of it.
"Nah, no way you came alone..."
Mid-wave, he met Cheonhwi's impassive gaze and swallowed hard.
"Y-you're really by yourself?"
"Yes."
"..."
Yeo Ungi's expression darkened instantly.
"Haa."
He sighed as if the ground might cave in, then slumped limply against the ship's railing.
"Damn it! Thought I'd get a break at last, but nope—another full day of rolling around. Sigh."
Cheonhwi eyed him amusedly.
Most righteous faction folk he'd seen were either Taoists or from prestigious families.
This reaction was refreshingly different.
Laziness oozed from him, plain as day.
'Better than those stiffs.'
As he watched Yeo Ungi, Cheonhwi remembered his purpose here and spoke up.
"Do you know where the Water Dragon Stronghold is?"
"Their main base is unknown."
The answer came not from Yeo Ungi, but another.
Cheonhwi turned to Hyukryun Cheonghwa.
"They've raided multiple times, but you still don't know their base?"
Her brows furrowed.
"...They're not that easy to deal with."
'What? Not easy?'
He couldn't help a scoff.
Water Dragon Stronghold, Aquatic Dragon Band—whatever.
Bandits at the end of the day.
'If they're struggling this much against mere bandits, no point asking more.'
Cheonhwi promptly lost interest in the pair.
Hyukryun Cheonghwa shut her mouth too, conversation dying.
As the mood chilled abruptly,
"Haha, Miss Cheonghwa, we're gonna be on missions together now—why not get along instead of being so cold?"
Yeo Ungi, hoping to smooth things over lightly, piped up to liven the air.
But,
"Do we need to be friends just to do missions together?"
Hyukryun Cheonghwa shot it down flatly.
"Exactly matches my thoughts!"
Cheonhwi chimed in right away.
'No use for them anyway.'
He had no desire to waste time or emotion on needless bonds this mission.
"Ha, haha."
Yeo Ungi was the one left awkward.
'Sigh. Thought it'd be easier with one more person...'
As he drew breath for a sigh laced with mixed feelings,
Splash—
The waves suddenly turned treacherous.
The advancing ship got caught in fierce currents, rocking wildly. Sensing ill omens, Yeo Ungi shot to his feet.
And at the same instant,
"W-water bandits! Water Dragon Stronghold!"
A shout exploded from the bow.
"Miss! Brother!"
Yeo Ungi whipped around, yelling urgently, but
"..."
They were already gone.
"Miss Cheonghwa, fine, but..."
Staring at the pair who'd vanished before he could react, he shook his head.
"Brother Cheonhwi's a top-tier master too, huh."
Feeling his own ordinariness to his bones, he sighed and stomped the shaking deck.
"Whew, better stick to my job."
Meanwhile, Hyukryun Cheonghwa—who'd moved first—glared at the scrawny old man before her.
"You again, Black Night Old Man."
"And you keep coming back despite getting wrecked every time, girl."
Her brows knit at his barbed words. She glanced back briefly.
"Everyone, get behind me."
Her voice was quiet, but it pierced every ear clearly.
"A-alright."
"Fall back, all of you."
Seeing the escort warriors and merchants scramble rearward, Black Night Old Man glared.
"Heh heh, think I'll let you off easy?"
Finishing, he raised his hand sharply.
"Attack!"
At that, the calm river surged upward, and waterlogged rat-like figures popped up from all sides.
"Loot 'em all!"
"Strip 'em clean, nothing left!"
The bandits drew bizarre weapons and charged in a flash.
The commanding Black Night Old Man laughed.
"Huhu, gonna let them be?"
"You're my opponent."
Hyukryun Cheonghwa gripped her sword.
As the translucent blade emerged slowly, sunlight reflected off it, stabbing into Black Night Old Man's eyes.
"Kuh! You bitch! Sneaky—!"
As he rubbed his eyes,
"You've always been the sneaky one."
The woman's icy voice spread.
Clang!
No rending flesh—just the clash of metal on metal.
"Hmph! Think that'll drop me?"
Black Night Old Man grinned, yellow teeth bared, having parried with his sword flat.
Soon, a sticky aura oozed from his body, slowly corrupting his entire form.
"This time, I'll kill you, girl."
"No. You'll be the one dying."
As Hyukryun Cheonghwa unleashed her own energy, at the stern—where Yeo Ungi guarded the escort folk—he ground his teeth.
"Damn it! Quit showing up already!"
Thud! Thud!
Fists flew, sending endless bandits tumbling, but it was grueling.
He glanced back urgently.
"Anyone here who knows martial arts, lend a hand!"
The Dawn Escort warriors exchanged looks, then a few drew swords.
With them handling some, Yeo Ungi caught a breather.
"Phew. Now I can breathe."
Feeling a bit relieved,
He suddenly remembered someone and bellowed skyward.
"Brother! Brother Cheonhwi!"
A shadow flickered instantly.
Bam!
Charging bandits flew backward.
"What?"
Yeo Ungi startled at Cheonhwi's ghostly appearance but quickly composed himself.
"You gotta do the mission!"
"Hm, true..."
Cheonhwi stroked his chin.
Yet he dodged the bandits' assaults with mere body twists.
His movements were near-divine.
"This happen every raid?"
Déjà vu hit him.
'They're just playing around.'
The power gap was obvious.
Numbers alone were disadvantageous.
Two against nearly forty bandits? Hopeless.
Unless they were elites making numbers irrelevant—but they weren't.
And that Black Night Old Man?
His skill could fell the woman ahead and still have plenty left.
He could've hijacked the ship solo without minions.
Yet he was going easy on them.
'Why? Unless these raids are...'
As Cheonhwi pondered,
'Every raid like this?'
Yeo Ungi rolled his eyes shrewdly.
His sharp instincts caught that the question wasn't casual.
"Brother, find something?"
"Hm, looks like they've got ulterior motives."
"Pardon?"
With that, Cheonhwi vanished.
"...Brother?"
Yeo Ungi looked around in panic, but Cheonhwi was gone.
"Th-that guy's disappeared!"
"Now's our chance! Attack!"
The bandits, briefly halted by Cheonhwi's display, charged like fish to water.
"B-brother! Where'd you go?!"
Yeo Ungi bellowed, but the departed Cheonhwi never returned.
"Shit!"
Soon, he clashed with the bandits anew.
"Arghhh!"
Meanwhile, aura suppressed, Cheonhwi scanned the fighters one by one.
'No clue what they're after.'
For bandits, their attacks lacked punch and ferocity.
Then Black Night Old Man bellowed.
"All retreat!"
Despite clear superiority, a retreat order?
Unfathomable, but
'Heading to their lair themselves? Perfect.'
Cheonhwi smirked satisfactorily.
He swiftly blended into the receding bandits like an ebb tide.
Swish—
Soon aboard the Water Dragon ship, heading deep inside, he spotted a door labeled "Helm."
'This'll do for hiding.'
He opened it at once.
"Was just about to set off..."
The bandit turning irritably gaped wide-eyed.
"Wh-who the hell are...?"
But he couldn't finish.
Couldn't even speak.
Cheonhwi had sealed his mute acupoint.
"Water Dragon bandit, right?"
Cheonhwi eyed the frantically nodding, terrified bandit and commanded.
"Take us to the Water Dragon Stronghold. Now."