Chapter 87
Chapter 87
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Long Time No See (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
- You think that bastard will kneel just because the author told him to? Don't let your guard down.
‘Let my guard down? No way.’
It had been a long time since I'd fought like this, so that was just something that slipped out unconsciously.
I'm not letting my guard down, Master.
- Good. Back in my day, I cut down plenty of those river pirates on the Yangtze, but the Hai Jin Gang's underlings grumbled a bit yet followed their leader's orders to the letter. It's not like they blindly obeyed him just for the money like some dog.
Master had a point.
The Hai Jin Gang members were terrified by the unknown fear that I represented.
‘But in the end, they charged at me on Jeong Bong-jin's command.’
If they weren't underworld thugs, there might have been other reasons to explain why they rushed in like that.
Righteousness and loyalty, or perhaps family they had to protect, or intellectual curiosity.
‘But none of that applies to underworld scum.’
So there was only one reason the Hai Jin Gang charged at me.
‘The confirmed fear they'd built up over time from seeing Leader Jeong Bong-jin was greater than the unknown terror they felt from me.’
As Master said, Jeong Bong-jin was likely no pushover.
‘Even Jeong Hyeon struggled against him in the original story.’
But it was worth a shot.
The reason Jeong Hyeon struggled against Jeong Bong-jin in the original was because he was mentally and physically exhausted by the time he faced the leader.
His body was worn out from cutting down countless Hai Jin Gang members despite being outnumbered.
And toward the end, when the gang leader callously sent his own coachmen forward with poison attacks, disregarding his fallen men, Jeong Hyeon's naive heart had broken at how someone could act that way.
‘And he had no comrades left to back him up, as they were busy dealing with the minions.’
But I wasn't Jeong Hyeon.
It was the same that I had no comrades here to help.
However, I had my corpse soldiers.
So I hadn't suffered from being outnumbered, hadn't grown tired, and now my side even held the numerical advantage.
The mental and physical exhaustion Jeong Hyeon endured had nothing to do with me.
‘And crucially, I'm not as nice as that guy.’
On top of that, I had no intention of fighting upright with pure swordsmanship like Jeong Hyeon.
As a reader, I admired Jeong Hyeon's straightforward style, but my way was to use everything at my disposal.
‘That Hai Jin Gang leader hurriedly downed an antidote before his coachmen could spray their poison.’
He clearly hadn't achieved a body immune to all poisons like mine.
In that case, I should start the fight by grabbing the poison pouches from those dead coachmen's waists and spraying them around.
And I'll send my corpse soldiers ahead too.
‘Let's see if you've got the skill to break through the poison arts and corpse soldiers to clash swords with me.’
That was when it happened.
As I smirked at the thought and reached for the poison pouches on the waists of the two coachmen who had unleashed their poison techniques...
Clack-
The ornate carriage door swung open with a clack, and out stepped Hai Jin Gang Leader Jeong Bong-jin, heaving his massive body to his feet.
- He's coming.
‘Yes, sir.’
I quickly yanked the pouches free and tossed them to the nearest corpse soldiers.
I then gripped Regret, where Master resided, adjusted my stance, and prepared for battle.
But at that moment...
Defying both Master and my expectations, the Hai Jin Gang leader dropped to his knees.
"P-Please spare me!"
The hulking Jeong Bong-jin folded his massive frame neatly and knelt, pressing his forehead to the ground as he begged for his life.
Master let out a hollow chuckle at the sight.
- ......? Is he completely shameless? But how does a guy like that command such loyalty from his men?
I was just as baffled.
Was this some ploy to lower my guard for a surprise attack, a stance to build momentum? I watched him closely.
"This fool misjudged you, my lord, and committed a grave offense! Spare me, please! If you just let me live, I'll give you anything you want! There must be something I can offer a noble like you!!"
Sweat poured down his face like rain.
His body trembled like an aspen leaf.
His panicked eyes suggested he was sincere.
‘Why the hell is this guy acting like this?’
In the original story, Jeong Bong-jin met his end after an intense clash with Jeong Hyeon. There was no scene like this.
‘From all the talk of misjudging me and nobility, he must be mistaking me for someone else...’
Well, I could just ask why.
To prepare for any contingency, I had my corpse soldiers surround Jeong Bong-jin in layers.
Then, mimicking the "someone" he feared, I spoke.
"You dare act like you know me?"
At my question, Jeong Bong-jin, forehead still glued to the dirt, snapped his head up slightly and replied.
"I-I heard rumors circulating in the black markets. About the Demonic Cult..."
"Demonic Cult?"
"F-Forgive me! The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult! No, the Divine Cult! I heard whispers that among the Great Demon Heads... no, the Cult Protector Kings of the Divine Cult, there's one who defies heaven's order by commanding the dead as if they were alive. This fool thought it was nonsense and forgot all about it until just now! Are you perchance the disciple of the Reverse Heaven Demon Gu, my lord?!"
Out of his mouth came the name of a faction I hadn't thought about in a while.
- Demonic Cult? Isn't that the group founded by Ryeon-geum, the one who served under me?
‘...Yes, that's right.’
The Reverse Heaven Demon Gu.
And his disciples.
‘The ones who stole the Pearl Eon Family's corpse manipulation manual from my original body's family, and in the near future, they'll lead a corpse legion as the vanguard invading the Central Plains.’
In the original story's timeline, encountering them was still far off, so I'd put them out of mind for now.
Come to think of it, they did exist.
Anyway.
If Jeong Bong-jin knew of the great demon Reverse Heaven Demon Gu, it wasn't incomprehensible why he'd grovel like this.
No, it was actually a good thing.
I could exploit his fear to extract information or whatever else I wanted.
With that in mind, I spoke again.
"What do you mean there's definitely something you can give me?"
Did my words give him hope of survival?
Jeong Bong-jin straightened his back from his kneeling position and yanked off the necklace from around his neck, holding it out to me.
"What's this? Trying to prove the saying about a necklace on a pig?"
"N-No, my lord. That's the key to the safe attached to the carriage. I was on my way to give the Blood Purifying All-Poisons Elixir to my new concubine I'd just acquired, so there's gold and jewels inside worth at least two thousand taels."
I'd unexpectedly gained two thousand taels of gold.
It was a situation where I'd come to spend money but ended up with more than I'd spent rolling in, yet it didn't feel pleasant.
"I could've just killed you and taken it anyway."
Given my personality, I definitely would've searched his body, found a necklace like this, spotted a matching slot on the carriage, and tried it.
Moreover, thinking about how he'd amassed that wealth made me anything but happy.
‘What kind of scum is this Jeong Bong-jin?’
He'd profiteered off salt smuggled to the southern coast's people, and that wasn't enough—he'd butchered them like fish bait or bundled them like dried fish to sell.
I forced a cold smile that bloomed naturally and said,
"And this is what you think you can give me? Disappointing."
At my words, Jeong Bong-jin put on a sly, ingratiating expression and spoke.
"N-No way, my lord! Back at our main base, there's a warehouse that dwarfs this little safe on my carriage! All of it! No, my men and I will pledge ourselves to the Divine Cult."
"You will?"
"Yes. Give us a chance. Not long ago, some visitors to our Uido headquarters pre-ordered and took away boys and girls. Thinking back, they must've been from the Cult, right?"
"...Go on."
"Don't you need a steady supply of pure yin and yang essences?! Leave it to me! I'll lead the way. I'll be the Divine Cult's loyal dog!!"
At Jeong Bong-jin's words, I stroked my chin thoughtfully for a moment.
‘Have I gotten everything I can?’
From Jeong Bong-jin's ramblings, I'd gained four things.
First, I learned there was a safe on the carriage and got the key.
Second, piecemeal information related to the Demonic Cult.
‘He probably doesn't know more about the Demonic Cult.’
He hadn't immediately thought of Reverse Heaven Demon Gu upon seeing me, so that was likely the extent of it. No more on the Demonic Cult.
‘Third is Uido.’
More importantly, the Hai Jin Gang's main base he'd blurted out in panic.
‘In the original, it was described as untouchable because no one knew its location among the southern islands.’
If I anonymously tipped off the authorities or the Murim Alliance, it'd be handled without me lifting a finger.
‘And finally, the fourth...’
That Jeong Bong-jin deserved to die.
I channeled internal energy through my dantian to direct the corpse soldiers.
Stab! Stab! Stab! Stab! Stab! Stab!
Their blades plunged simultaneously into Jeong Bong-jin's massive body.
"Guhk... Why...? I-I offered everything..."
Jeong Bong-jin stared at me with fading eyes and stammered.
I poured internal energy from my lower dantian into Regret and replied.
"Why should a dead man care?"
Slash-
At that instant, his head separated from his hulking body and fell.
Bathing in blood at night didn't exactly lift my spirits.
And I was a bit tired too.
‘Corpse Domination Technique is the most efficient among black magics, but this world itself isn't great for black magic efficiency, and using it alongside Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship really drains my internal energy fast.’
But there was no time to blame the blood bath or shake off the encroaching fatigue.
‘I haven't sensed anyone else since dealing with the Hai Jin Gang...’
Considering the time delayed fighting them, it wouldn't be strange if people crossing the pass showed up soon.
I needed to get out of here quickly.
"Still, gotta grab what I can."
And it wasn't just items I needed to collect.
I had to clean up so that anyone finding this scene later wouldn't connect it to me, Dang Ok-gi, or Yin Ha-seong.
‘Most of it can stay as is.’
The scene atop the pass looked like infighting where they'd stabbed each other to death, no matter who saw it.
But two bodies needed to be melted away without a trace.
I rummaged through Ha-seong's backpack he'd left behind and pulled out the Bone-Dissolving Powder I'd won at the auction house.
Sizzle-
Sizzle-
I sprinkled it on the corpses of the two coachmen who'd rushed in spraying poison.
At my actions, Master, now back at my waist, spoke up.
- Why melt those two bodies, you rascal? Thanks to your signature bizarre corpse arts, even to my eyes, it looks like the Hai Jin Gang fought among themselves.
‘Even you see it that way, Master? Then anyone would.’
- Yeah. But why use the Bone-Dissolving Powder?
‘Gotta take the gold and jewels from the safe, right?’
- What's that got to do with this?
‘All the Hai Jin Gang corpses are here, but if only the gold vanishes, the survivors would notice.’
- ...Ah! So you're erasing those two coachmen to make it look like he took it with him? You're one meticulous bastard.
‘Oh yeah, didn't Dang Ok-gi and Master wonder why a righteous Murim junior like me bought Bone-Dissolving Powder? See, it comes in handy.’
- You still remember that offhand question on the road? You're one tenacious guy.
I still needed to prove it to Dang Ok-gi too.
‘Speaking of, I wonder if Dang Ok-gi and Ha-seong are okay?’
By now, they might've come to...
With Dang Ok-gi's personality, he'd rush over the moment he woke.
‘Gotta hurry.’
After generously dusting the two coachmen's bodies with Bone-Dissolving Powder, I moved even faster.
I shouldered Ha-seong's backpack, grabbed the box with the Blood Purifying All-Poisons Elixir.
Opening the safe under Jeong Bong-jin's carriage revealed gold ingots, jewels, and silk, so I wrapped the gold and jewels in the silk and tied them to the pack.
"Nothing forgotten."
Now just head to the safe house.
That was when.
As I turned to slip away to the safe house with light steps...
I spotted a purple orb-like thing in one corner of the carriage.
"Hm?"
When the two coachmen sprayed their poison.
It was the antidote Jeong Bong-jin had drunk.
"...More than three seconds have passed, for sure."
A quick check showed it still looked usable.
I rubbed the antidote vial on my thigh and slipped it into my sleeve...
- Throw that crap away! You vicious little shit!!
How long had Yin Ha-seong and Dang Ok-gi been pacing outside the safe house door?
"!"
"?!"
They heard the gate serving as the front door creak open from afar. Finally, the door directly to the safe house swung open with a creak-.
And Eon Yong-un, the one they'd been waiting for, appeared.
"Waiting long?"
At the sight of Eon Yong-un, Dang Ok-gi and Yin Ha-seong rushed over and hugged him without a second thought.
"Spider! Spider!!"
At Eon Yong-un's urgent cry, Yin Ha-seong and Dang Ok-gi recoiled for entirely different reasons.
In the process, the silk bundle tied to Eon Yong-un's backpack came loose, spilling gold and jewels everywhere.
"Brother?"
"...Found it on the way back."