Guerrilla Warfare (3)
In a high-grade tavern on the fourth floor, Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu sat in one of the finest rooms, drinks spread before a table piled high with food.
"Kheheh, the finest delicacies seeping right into my very organs."
Yuan Bisu reveled in the rich, fatty meat with evident delight.
Only days ago they had been strapped for cash, but thanks to the interim payment from Geumsijong, the fortress had never felt so comfortable.
"If we take down the Mandokyuksamun, we're going to be rolling in money, sir. Think of everything we've done for them — the success payment is bound to be fat and generous."
"Isn't that getting a bit carried away?"
Jang Ryang, seated across the table, remarked with a wry smile.
"No one can say how this war against the Mandokyuksamun will end. A ceasefire treaty could be signed as early as tomorrow, for all we know."
"What? You're saying the Mandokyuksamun would propose a ceasefire?"
"What happens if the cultivation fields keep burning at the current rate? They'll run out of poison itself. They won't be able to continue the war at all."
Recently, Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu had been striking the Mandokyuksamun's cultivation fields one after another alongside Cheon Woo-jin.
How he managed it, neither of them knew, but Cheon Woo-jin located the fields almost instantly. With the three of them dividing up the roles, burning a field to the ground proved an easy affair.
They occasionally ran into Core Formation cultivators, but Cheon Woo-jin would step forward and fell them with a breathtaking technique.
"But would Geumsijong even accept a ceasefire after everything they've suffered? So many of their disciples died unjustly. They should be avenging them."
"Thinking of righteousness, yes. Thinking of profit, no."
Jang Ryang answered with a bitter expression.
"Revenge would certainly feel good, but it won't bring the dead disciples back. If the fighting continues, more of them will die — sometimes it's wiser to negotiate a ceasefire at a reasonable point. And in exchange for the ceasefire, they might extract concessions from the other side."
"Hah, I could never do that."
"Neither could I."
By that measure, Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu were men who pursued righteousness above all.
They had never given up the dream of rebuilding Changhwa Sect, the sect that had been annihilated. If either of them had been the type to favor profit over duty, they would have long since joined another sect. Having sworn to think of nothing but Changhwa Sect's restoration, they still lived as loose cultivators to this day.
"Speaking of which, what about Cheon Do-u?"
"Cheon Do-u?"
"Would Cheon Do-u avenge us if we died?"
At Yuan Bisu's question, Jang Ryang fell silent for a moment.
"We're not that close to him, are we? It'd be wrong to expect something like that."
"Hmm..."
"Or are you planning to avenge him if he dies?"
At Jang Ryang's question, Yuan Bisu tilted his head, cup still in hand.
"I'm not sure."
"See? We're just not that close yet, are we..."
"Honestly, it's because I can't even picture Cheon Do-u dying in the first place."
"..."
Hearing that, Jang Ryang tried to imagine it himself.
He couldn't picture it either.
Cheon Woo-jin was a man who had displayed astonishing survival instincts even back when he was merely in the Qi Condensation Realm. He had walked away from a chase by Core Formation cultivators. Perhaps because that impression ran so deep, Jang Ryang simply couldn't imagine him losing his life.
Of course, if Cheon Woo-jin suddenly faced a Nascent Soul or Soul Formation cultivator, surviving would be nearly impossible. And yet — somehow, the thought kept rising: if it were Cheon Woo-jin, wouldn't he find a way back alive anyway?
"In any case, sir, I..."
Cutting his words short, Yuan Bisu tipped back his drink, then deliberately let out a loud ahh of satisfaction.
"Ahh, I'm getting tipsy."
He shot Jang Ryang a meaningful glance as he said it. Jang Ryang understood at once and nodded.
The very next instant, something came flying through the window.
A fireball, born of a spell.
"...!"
Kwaaaang!
The entire room went up in flames. But Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu were unharmed — they had already deployed the defensive arts they kept at the ready.
"An ambush in a place like this...!"
"Run, first!"
The two scrambled desperately for the door, but immediately staggered, slapping a hand against the wall for support.
"Damn it, poison!"
"The fireball must have carried the toxin inside it!"
The poison had spread through the room the instant the fireball burst. They had planned for fire — never for this. The toxin had already seeped through their lungs and into their bodies.
"The Mandokyuksamun bastards, then...!"
A long tail gets stepped on, eventually. It seemed they had finally been discovered.
Staggering, Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu stumbled out of the room — only to find figures who could only be Mandokyuksamun cultivators blocking the corridor ahead.
"Blast it all..."
Jang Ryang gritted his teeth. With their bodies in this state, breaking through was impossible.
"Sajang."
At that moment, Yuan Bisu spoke, his body propped against the wall.
"Will Cheon Do-u avenge us?"
"You're still on that? We're hardly that close to him—"
"Frankly speaking..."
Yuan Bisu wore a sorrowful smile.
"I always hoped that someday, we would become that close to him."
"..."
"We'll never get the chance now. It's a shame."
Jang Ryang bit his lip without a word. He felt the same. He had wanted to grow closer to that junior brother who fought so boldly, as if nothing in this world could frighten him — wanted to keep working alongside him, building friendship over the years. And now the thread would be severed here.
"Well, either way, Cheon Do-u will blow the Mandokyuksamun to pieces. Let's just believe that's him avenging us."
"Even though you said they might sign a ceasefire just now."
Grumbling, Yuan Bisu forced his hands together in a mudra. Jang Ryang likewise dug out every talisman he carried.
Kill as many of them as possible on the way out.
Just as the two steeled themselves for their final stand—
"Bow your heads a little lower."
A cold voice cut through the air.
The moment they heard it, both men dropped flat.
Black lightning came pouring through the corridor windows right after.
"Ugh...!"
"Gaaaah...!"
Screams rang out. Lethal black lightning was tearing through their enemies — they didn't need to look up to know it.
Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu huddled against the floor and waited for the storm of lightning to subside. At last, silence settled around them, followed by the sound of light footsteps.
"Looks like you're in one piece."
"...!"
They lifted their heads to find Cheon Woo-jin, his face as composed as ever.
"This is exactly why I told you we should rendezvous somewhere more discreet."
This tavern had been today's meeting place — the plan was for Cheon Woo-jin to finish his business with Geumsijong and join them here.
"Well done flying straight for the window when you saw the commotion. If you'd forced your way in through the main gate, we'd have been a beat too late."
"Ch-Cheon Do-u..."
Jang Ryang's throat caught. He wanted to say thank you, but the emotion surging up choked the words off.
"Cheon Do-u...!"
At that moment, Yuan Bisu forced himself upright. His legs still trembled, the poison not yet purged, but he fixed Cheon Woo-jin with a resolute gaze.
"If some bastard ever murders you, Cheon Do-u — we'll avenge you by any means necessary! I swear it!"
"What a grim thing to say out of nowhere."
Cheon Woo-jin looked at him, utterly unimpressed.
* * *
The Mandokyuksamun had apparently identified the culprits burning their cultivation fields only after considerable delay. But identifying them now changed nothing — there were no more fields left to raid.
'As long as the Mandokyuksamun is preparing for a decisive battle, there's no need to waste further strength on raids.'
Cheon Woo-jin's field-burning campaign had been aimed at degrading the sect's poison production capacity. But in the end, it had also been designed to corner the Mandokyuksamun into exactly this situation.
If a prolonged war became untenable, he expected them to attempt a short, decisive battle — just as they did in the game.
'The Mandokyuksamun can't stomach attacking the Geumsijong main hall directly. So naturally, they'll have no choice but to lure Geumsijong's main force elsewhere and settle things there.'
Recently, the Mandokyuksamun had leaked word that they would conduct a special ritual at a spirit mountain on the fifth floor — claiming they would create a poison potent enough to wipe out every Geumsijong cultivator at once.
It was, of course, a trap meant to lure Geumsijong in. In the game, they had set traps in precisely this manner, so the scheme was easy to see through.
But from Geumsijong's perspective, ignoring it was not an option. Because the Mandokyuksamun might genuinely be trying to make such a poison.
"Our urgent investigation has confirmed it... the Mandokyuksamun's sect master, Gi Shin-ryeo, is truly heading for that location."
Gwak Gyeong-in, having seated Cheon Woo-jin, Jang Ryang, and Yuan Bisu, spoke with a grave expression.
"Beyond that, the Mandokyuksamun's key figures appear to be converging there as well. The powerful poisons stored in their warehouses are likely being transported too."
"..."
"Whether it's for the ritual or for a trap to catch us, I can't say... but either way, we cannot afford to ignore it."
Saying this, Gwak Gyeong-in furrowed his brow.
"The Mandokyuksamun of the past genuinely possessed the power to make such a poison. A poison terrible enough to slaughter the entirety of Geumsijong."
"Hmm..."
"It's precisely because we remember that, that we can't simply sit idle. We must prepare for the worst."
If they dismissed it as a trap and the Mandokyuksamun actually completed the poison, the consequences would be catastrophic. In the end, Geumsijong had no choice but to answer the provocation.
"With things as they are, our Sect Master has decided to step forward himself."
"Is that true?"
"Their side has Gi Shin-ryeo, after all. Ours has no one who can face him except the Sect Master."
A battle in which the heads of both sects would personally take the field. If ever a war had a decisive battle, this was it.
And yet...
"Excuse me, sir."
Yuan Bisu, listening quietly, asked in a cautious voice.
"The Mandokyuksamun's Old Ancestor — he won't be appearing, will he?"
"..."
Old Ancestor. At that single word, the atmosphere turned frigid.
"The previous sect master, Sama Mun, you mean..."
Sama Mun. He was, in effect, the architect of the Mandokyuksamun as it existed today. Every poison art the sect employed rested upon his theories. Having reached the Nascent Soul Realm, he had passed the sect master's seat to Gi Shin-ryeo and retired; he now dwelled in the upper layers of Ghost Head City alongside the sect's guardian beast, the poison dragon Gal Roe.
"You all know how this works, don't you? Daoists who have reached the Nascent Soul Realm generally refuse to meddle in petty affairs like these. Sama Mun won't involve himself in this fight."
"Hmm..."
Despite Gwak Gyeong-in's explanation, Yuan Bisu remained uneasy. Jang Ryang voiced his own anxiety from the side.
"Daoist Gwak — what happens if, by some chance, Sama Mun truly does appear? Would your Old Ancestor step forward on Geumsijong's behalf?"
"Our Old Ancestor..."
Geumsijong, too, had a retired predecessor.
Like Sama Mun, he was a Nascent Soul cultivator — the only one among them capable of opposing him.
"Our Old Ancestor has been in seclusion for over forty years now. He likely doesn't even know this war is being fought..."
"Th-Is that really true?"
Jang Ryang's eyes went wide.
"Then — even if Sama Mun appears, Geumsijong's Old Ancestor won't come out?"
"No — surely, if Sama Mun were to appear and run rampant, our Old Ancestor would sense the upheaval and descend. Even in seclusion, he would feel something of that magnitude..."
"Hah. Well, now..."
The less-than-reassuring answer left both Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu with anxious faces. However hard they fought to subdue the Mandokyuksamun, it would all mean nothing if Sama Mun appeared and annihilated everyone.
"Come now, gentlemen — what's the use of agonizing over something you can't predict? That's like worrying about a natural disaster. The concern accomplishes nothing."
"That's true, but..."
"And another thing."
Gwak Gyeong-in spoke in earnest tones.
"I have no intention of demanding sacrifice from the two of you — men who aren't even members of Geumsijong. If Sama Mun appears, you run. Simple as that."
"But we couldn't possibly—"
"You are, after all, men we hired. When things become truly hopeless, cutting your losses and withdrawing is the correct call."
Saying so, Gwak Gyeong-in smiled faintly.
"Don't throw your lives away out of some misplaced sense of loyalty. Fleeing from a natural disaster is nothing to be ashamed of."
"..."
Jang Ryang and Yuan Bisu fell silent, expressions conflicted. Being who they were, they couldn't bring themselves to answer, "Then that's what we'll do."
"The same goes for you, Cheon Do-u."
Gwak Gyeong-in turned to Cheon Woo-jin as well.
"If Sama Mun should appear, you flee at once as well. No matter how remarkable you are, before a Nascent Soul Old Ancestor you wouldn't be able to do a thing — you'd simply die a dog's death."
"..."
Cheon Woo-jin did not answer.
He simply sipped the tea Gwak Gyeong-in had offered, silently lost in thought.