Chapter 62: Heading to Henan (2)
Chapter 62: Heading to Henan (2)
The contract posted on the bulletin board offered three times the usual pay for an escort job to Henan.
Honestly, having already made off with several Fortuitous Encounters, the fact that this escort job paid three times the average rate didn't matter much to me.
Still, I was curious about why the pay was so high. The fact that the escort fee had been set at three times the usual amount meant the Escort Agency had judged that there was a good chance we'd have a rough time of it.
"The fee is suspiciously high."
"Then shall we run there? It's not that far to Henan."
"No. Let's just ride. Going there the usual way would be boring, anyway. If something else happens, at least we won't be bored."
"...Do you two usually make decisions like this?"
We had reached a decision faster than beans roast in a flash of lightning.
We'd noticed something suspicious, yet instead of taking any precautions, we'd decided what to do simply because it sounded fun. Seol Yu-ran looked bewildered as she asked us about our conversation.
We met each other's eyes, then shrugged.
"Master, there are three of us who've reached the Peak Realm. Even if some old master from a previous generation suddenly came out of seclusion and started acting up, we could teach him some manners, you know?"
"So it's not manners education, but manners forcibly administered?"
"Education is what you call it when the person being taught is willing to learn. If they don't want it but you force it into their head, then that's administration."
"......"
Seeing Seol Yu-ran wear an expression that suggested she found our reasoning rather convincing, I thought she was starting to take after us.
Well, if she hadn't been influenced by us, she wouldn't have been able to cheat so freely right in front of her husband.
Anyway, could some genuine wanted criminal from the murim, one who'd really been living in seclusion, appear and cause a ruckus, interfering with the escort job?
If it was a female master who'd regained her youth, the Thousand-Faced Lust Demon would step in. If it was a bearded cock, the Lecherous Fist Hero would handle it. There'd be no need for Chi-chi or Seol Yu-ran to get involved.
Even if it really was a Super Peak master, they wouldn't be a match for me if I fought at full strength.
...Of course, if that happened, we'd fail the escort job, too, which would be a headache.
As if a Super Peak master—when there weren't even two digits' worth of them in the Central Plains—would just pop up here out of nowhere.
***
And so, after signing up for the escort job, we were hired on the spot and climbed into the carriage.
The moment we showed them that all three of us were Peak Realm masters, the clerk's face lit up, and he welcomed us with genuine enthusiasm.
That was because the pay for escort jobs was capped at the rate for First-rate martial artists, but no rate had been set for anyone at the Peak Realm or above. Hiring such experts wasn't cost-effective, and the Peak Realm masters themselves tended to refuse, calling the work beneath them.
Besides, even if you offered a fortune as payment in the form of some exceptionally rare treasure, if that treasure happened to be a secret manual of some peerless divine art or the inner core of a spiritual creature, a Peak Realm master whose eyes had lit up at the sight of it might betray you.
That was why Escort Agencies generally preferred to hire a large number of First-rate martial artists.
In other words, we were going to have to work as Peak Realm masters while being paid at the rate for First-rate martial artists.
So the cargo on this escort job isn't a rare treasure. The way they're looking at us as if there's no chance we'd betray them makes that certain.
Which meant there was some sort of trouble along the road to Henan.
"But there's something I'd like to ask. Is there some problem along the road to Henan?"
"...Did you apply for the job without knowing?"
"Look at my wives' and my skills. All three of us have broken through the wall. Unless the Demonic Cult Leader suddenly appears, do you think we have any reason to worry?"
"Good heavens. I was thoughtless. I apologize for making a remark that sounded as though I was looking down on you."
The clerk bowed his head and explained why the reward had been inflated.
"This story's been spreading around quite a bit lately... Apparently, a Fallen Monk came out of Shaolin Temple."
"Hm? From Shaolin Temple?"
"Yes. What was it he said? That he'd die if he had to eat nothing but greens any longer, and that if he was going to die, he'd rather die after eating meat. Then he ran away, consumed by his inner demons."
"Oh."
My mouth fell open as I found myself convinced.
My argument that while there might be married women who'd never tasted King Cock, there were no married women who'd tasted it only once—
was much the same as saying that while there might be monks who'd never eaten meat, there were no monks who'd tasted it only once.
It was only natural that I'd find it so easy to understand.
The guy had eaten nothing but greens since he was a child, then tasted meat and discovered a whole new world. No matter that he was from Shaolin Temple—who'd want to spend the rest of their life eating nothing but greens in a temple? I understood that feeling!
"Apparently, he's fleeing from Henan toward Shaanxi. They say Shaolin Temple sent the Eighteen Arhats to catch him, but... wouldn't it be a disaster if we ran into him first by bad luck? On top of falling to his inner demons and eating meat, they say he's even broken the precept against killing. To maintain our customers' trust in the Golden Escort Agency, we had no choice but to spend this much."
After finishing his explanation, the clerk said his farewells and went back to his work.
After hearing what he had to say, we couldn't quite hide our bafflement. Who would ever have imagined this whole mess had started because of meat?
"So there's someone else just like Master."
"No, Chi-chi. What do you mean by that?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
Chi-chi looked over at me with a gaze that had gone cold.
"Wouldn't a Lust Demon master who's tasted a married woman go after other married women too? It's the same principle. That Fallen Monk who ate meat... He might actually be a better match for you than I thought, Master."
"That's harsh. Comparing me to a meat-eating monk. Have you ever seen a monk who's this good in bed?"
"Of course not. Where else would you find a man who's as good in bed as our disciple?"
Seol Yu-ran chuckled and linked her arm through mine. Chi-chi wasn't about to lose, and linked her arm through my other one.
At least it felt like a friendly rivalry. Was that something to be grateful for? Since I was the one with the strongest martial prowess and the mightiest cock, it was fortunate that things had stopped at this.
Otherwise, a life-and-death clash of blades and spears would already have erupted, with blood splashing everywhere.
And so, I climbed into the carriage with my women. We had all demonstrated our qi and proved that we had reached the Peak Realm, then made a separate deal to ride in the carriage in comfort instead of receiving the wages of First-rate martial artists. That was how we'd managed it.
But perhaps seeing me climb into the carriage with a woman on each arm had displeased him.
A tactless fellow who just had to make his displeasure known went over to the chief escort and said,
"Hey, Chief Escort. I'm a First-rate martial artist, and even I'm walking. So who does that fellow think he is, riding in a carriage with two women who look like whores?"
"...Mind your words. All three of them are masters who have broken through the wall."
"Eh?"
The chief escort sighed at the martial artist's blank expression.
"These days, the name 'the Post-Nut Clarity Sect and His Wives' is on everyone's lips around here. Have you been holed up in some mountain cave or something? I'm talking about that One-Person Inheritance sect which began as a Daoist sect but ends in lust, yet whose martial prowess is anything but ordinary—the one rumored to have swept every last Green Forest bandit out of this area. You really haven't heard of them?"
"I'm a bit of a loner..."
"Whew. Be careful what you say from now on. I hear the head of the Post-Nut Clarity Sect, the man they call the Lecherous Fist Hero, pursues the Path of Lust in accordance with his sect's principles, so he'll put up with people criticizing him—but he won't put up with anyone criticizing his women. If you'd insulted even one of those two women just now, he'd have beaten you badly enough to leave you recovering for weeks."
"He'd beat me?"
"He's a fist fighter."
"Ah..."
The First-rate martial artist realized what he was dealing with and hurried back to his place. No—he went farther in and hid among the porters.
He was hiding himself in advance in case I'd taken notice of him.
Hmm. Good. It's working.
Watching the nameless martial artist hunch in on himself without being told, I was satisfied. I hadn't been wrong to act the way I had: by openly displaying my Peak Realm cultivation while making it seem like "common knowledge" throughout the martial world that I wouldn't let anyone insult my women.
I couldn't say what things would be like in other regions, but at least in Shaanxi, no one would openly insult my women to their faces.
Thanks to riding in the carriage, the journey to Henan was peaceful for two days. All we did was keep our Qi Perception spread out and, whenever it seemed that wild animals or Green Forest bandits were about to approach, warn the chief escort in advance and then eliminate them.
The porters, who were in charge of menial work, took care of bothersome tasks like cooking and keeping watch.
Sometimes, when I wanted a taste of pussy, I'd take one of the two into the mountains in secret, late at night, fuck her until I'd had my fill, clean up afterward, and come back down.
After two days of that, I ran out of things to do, so I decided to give the escorts some pointers on their martial arts.
"Fist Hero, you're going to give the escorts pointers on their martial arts?"
"Yes. The Post-Nut Clarity Sect pursues lust, but doesn't force it on anyone. We are, without question, a sect that walks the righteous path. And yet those men were badmouthing the Post-Nut Clarity Sect, the very sect I belong to."
"What?! Which one of them dared to spout such outrageous nonsense...!"
The vein on the chief escort's forehead swelled into the shape of a cross. As the man responsible for this escort mission, he must have wanted to beat to death whoever had dared to offend a group of Peak Realm masters with such reckless words.
After all, it was entirely possible that I might say I was offended, pay the penalty for breaking the contract, and leave—only to sneak up and hit them from behind in the middle of the night.
I spoke to the chief escort, whose eyes were brimming with resolve to rake the escorts over the coals.
"It's all right. To be honest, the Post-Nut Clarity Sect, which pursues the Path of Lust, isn't exactly a sect we can proudly proclaim ourselves to be. So I understand them."
"Ah... So you truly deserve the epithet of Hero, Fist Hero."
"Haha. Given my age, Young Hero would be quite enough."
After saying that heartily, I persuaded the chief escort.
"So I want to raise the sect's reputation, even if only this way. If we keep making an effort like this, perhaps one day everyone will recognize that the Post-Nut Clarity Sect is a renowned sect that walks the righteous path."
"Good heavens. You truly are a man of depth. You genuinely care for your sect."
I simply smiled warmly at the chief escort's admiration. If I did this, people would think well of us one way or another.
Then the chief escort, who had been surreptitiously watching my expression, asked me in a coy voice,
"Ahem. But, Fist Hero, if I may..."
"What is it?"
"Well, could I receive a pointer or two as well? I'll make sure you're compensated generously."
I gave him a smile brimming with a spirit of customer service.