A Narrow Escape
Wang Maeng had Yo Yeong-chun and some ten Cheonun disciples on night watch with him when a clamor rose in the distance, and a sense of foreboding crept over him.
"W-what's going on out there?"
Yo Yeong-chun blinked his large eyes, then suddenly broke into a bright smile at the distant sounds of fighting and turned to Wang Maeng.
"W-Wang, Senior Brother Wang, isn't that our reinforcements?"
He was so excited he even started stuttering.
"It could be…"
A gleam flickered through Wang Maeng's eyes as well.
"But even if our Cheonun Sect people have arrived, could they really kick up this much of a commotion? Who could possibly stand against Gi Gongsu?"
Just then, a single figure came racing toward them from the distance.
"It's one of ours! It really is one of ours!"
The Cheonun Sect disciples behind him couldn't hide their excitement at the sight of the approaching figure's white disciple robes. But the closer the person came, the more their expressions froze.
The one who had come to save them was none other than Yeop Pung.
That eyesore, Yeop Pung? What's he doing here?
How did he even break through the Gi family's camp? Didn't Gi Gongsu kill him?
Question marks filled every mind. They stared blankly as Yeop Pung approached. And yet, in a situation this desperate, seeing someone from their own sect was undeniably a welcome sight.
Wang Maeng, generous of spirit as always, quickly put on a smile and went to meet him.
"Yeop Pung, it's really good to see you."
But there was no smile on Yeop Pung's face.
"Don't celebrate too soon."
"…"
Wang Maeng felt exactly what Gi Gongsu had felt only moments earlier, and couldn't wipe the frozen smile off his face.
What does he mean, don't celebrate too soon? Having a normal conversation with this Yeop Pung is just impossible!
"Ye-Yeop Pung, w-why are you even here?!"
The group following Yo Yeong-chun, seeing Yeop Pung's sour expression, made no effort to hide their displeasure.
"Came to see if you were still alive."
"You—!"
Yeop Pung looked at the people in front of him with cold eyes.
You have no idea how much I had to steel myself just to come this far! There's no need to force a pleasant expression in a situation like this!
At that moment, the ever-perceptive Wang Maeng glanced behind Yeop Pung and asked cautiously.
"Yeop Pung, did you come alone? Or… then who are the Gi people fighting?"
"Uh…"
Yeop Pung looked up at the sky, then spoke in a suddenly grave voice.
Wang Maeng suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to curse.
Someone please take this lunatic away!
Some ten minutes later, all fifty-five Cheonun Sect disciples in the valley had gathered. Ridiculous as Yeop Pung's words had been, they quickly got to work on what needed to be done.
Wang Maeng really had celebrated too soon. No one had escaped this place yet.
Once assembled, they followed Yeop Pung under Wang Maeng's lead, moving quietly toward the Gi family's camp. Under ordinary circumstances it would have been a conspicuous move, and Wang Maeng's group was clearly tense. But as they drew near the Gi camp, they realized no one was paying them any attention at all.
The Gi family's camp had become a complete slaughterhouse — a chaotic wreck beyond any hope of putting back together.
The Gi disciples, who had swaggered so arrogantly, had been howling like beasts at the valley entrance just that afternoon about what they would do to the Cheonun disciples. Now they were the ones being trampled and torn apart beneath the claws of actual beasts. Their blood already covered the entire camp, and severed arms and legs lay scattered everywhere. Man and beast alike had gone wild-eyed, locked in a true battle to the death. Even in the history of the hunting tournament, there had never been a scene this horrific.
"W-what in the world is going on?"
Wang Maeng was so stunned he even started stuttering.
Only Yeop Pung watched it all with a cool expression, then once again spoke with profound gravity.
"Everyone, prepare to fall back!"
At last, in the thick of the fierce battle, Gi Gongsu roared with a voice full of grievance and rage. This fight was unwinnable.
He himself was fine — even if a dozen fat, vicious gray rabbits currently surrounded him, whipping up gales of wind as they attacked. On top of that, the two most powerful black panthers lurked like hidden blades in the dark, ready to deliver a killing blow at any moment. A pack of wild dogs circled him as well. And he mustn't forget the spotted deer he'd dismissed at first. That one was blasting lightning magic straight at him.
This much was still manageable. He was, after all, a master of the Six Meridians Realm. With his powerful physique and agile movement, he could still protect himself even surrounded by this many vicious Profound Beasts. But the others couldn't withstand this assault.
Just look at that wild boar. Though one of its tusks had broken off, it was rampaging wildly through the humans, goring everything in its path. No one could stop it. After losing one tusk, the boar had gotten so furious it actually sharpened up. It had never been able to handle two tusks properly before, but now, with only one left, it could aim with perfect precision — as if it knew exactly where to stab.
Hey, human, how about you just offer up that ass of yours already!
And what about that pack of gray wolves? How thoroughly had they been humiliated by Yeop Pung before? Now they were taking that rage out on the humans. How could untrained Gi disciples possibly stand against wolves fighting as a pack?
After several clashes between the Gi disciples and the wolf pack, human blood stained the wolves' claws. Wondering why there was no blood on the wolves' teeth? Because the wolves didn't want to open their mouths. Their fangs still ached when they did.
The situation on the rest of the battlefield was similar. The Gi family had three experts of the Five Meridians Realm, but the Profound Beast horde had many even more powerful than that.
In a mere ten-odd minutes since the battle began, the Gi family had been driven to the brink of defeat. Dozens of Profound Beasts had been wounded or killed, but more than ten of the Gi clan already lay on the ground, so thoroughly eaten that their forms were unrecognizable, and more than half were wounded. At this rate, the Gi family would be annihilated.
What truly broke Gi Gongsu's will to fight, more than anything, was the enormous shadow he happened to glimpse in the distant forest.
The shadow was hidden in the darkness, only faintly visible, but it was a monster Gi Gongsu had never seen before. It had thick legs and a streamlined body, standing nearly as tall as a grown man, and perched atop its head was something that looked like a canine skull.
What the hell is that monster? Some kind of mutant fiend beast?
The bizarre appearance was secondary. The real problem was the utterly terrifying aura radiating from that creature. Even Gi Gongsu didn't dare think of facing it.
No. We can't fight any longer.
Gi Gongsu felt every shade of defeat and humiliation, but in the end he gave the order to retreat. They had to get out of here fast. Otherwise they would all truly die.
"Retreat! Everyone follow me and fall back!"
Swallowing his fury, Gi Gongsu led the Gi disciples in a desperate breakout through the encirclement. Whether it was the Cheonun Sect disciples or Yeop Pung, he no longer gave a damn.
But what horrified Gi Gongsu's group was that even after they escaped, the beast horde came chasing after them with terrifying ferocity.
What the hell are they doing?! Weren't those things supposed to be chasing Yeop Pung? Why are they coming after us?!
The Gi group trembled with rage as they fled for their lives.
The shadow remaining in the forest was the giant rabbit with Bone riding on its head. After giving the pack the order to pursue, the giant rabbit tilted its head and looked up at Bone perched on top of it.
"Boss, weren't we supposed to be chasing that human who tied a butterfly knot on my grandson? Why the sudden change?"
"You idiot!"
Bone rolled his eyes downward with every ounce of effort he had.
"Isn't it more fun to torment a whole bunch of humans than to beat up just one? You need to think bigger, with a broader perspective…"
"That's our boss for you!"
The giant rabbit thought about it and decided that was indeed true. Humans all looked pretty much the same anyway — what did it matter who they beat up?
"Hurry up and chase them! Don't stop, keep attacking!"
BANG!
The giant rabbit kicked off hard with its hind legs and shot forward like an arrow.
Wang Maeng's group stared blankly at everything unfolding before their eyes. He couldn't understand what was happening at all.
Could it be that Heaven had answered the desperate prayers they'd offered last night? There was no other explanation for righteous beasts like these existing in the world. And they'd even done a good deed and left without leaving their names.
But while everyone else stood bewildered, Yeop Pung strolled leisurely onto the battlefield by himself. He plopped down, pulled out his jade token, and began absorbing the beast blood left on the ground.
He said nothing, his face expressionless, simply squatting there as he sucked up the blood. Once he'd filled his jade token from one pool, he moved on to the next, hopping right over the unrecognizable corpses of Gi family disciples sprawled across the ground.
Looking around, the blood of dozens of Profound Beasts had formed pools everywhere — more than Yeop Pung's jade token could possibly hold.
Damn it! What are we hesitating for?!
Wang Maeng's group finally snapped to their senses and pulled the jade tokens from their belts. With a rumbling rush, they charged into the campsite.
Now they were all seized by a frenzy. The beast blood left by dozens of Profound Beasts was more than enough to dye every last one of their jade tokens crimson.
Taibai Peak, one of the Twelve Peaks of Dragon Tomb, was a relatively low summit on the outermost edge, and the place where Profound Beast presence was weakest.
But this peak was not to be underestimated. The reason Dragon Tomb was called the dragon vein of Great Jin was because countless precious treasures existed within it.
Every year around this time, a Profound Qi Tide erupted from Taibai Peak for several days. Martial artists could absorb enormous amounts of pure Profound Qi merely by being nearby, and the rate at which they drew in vital energy reached more than ten times the usual speed.
The Autumn Hunt was held at this time and place precisely to coincide with the Profound Qi Tide. Participants who completed their missions and arrived at the campsite could enjoy its benefits regardless of whether they entered the Ascent Battle. The big shots of each faction had already arrived by airship at the hunting tournament camp on Taibai Peak, waiting for the contestants.
Every year around this time, the big shots of the Three Great Families, the Military Supply Bureau, and Cheonun Sect unfailingly indulged in their traditional wager.
The rules were simple. With the pride of each faction's camp on the line, no one really had a choice. With no odds attached, the big shots of the five factions pooled a prize fund and divided it equally into one hundred shares. Shares were claimed in the order contestants completed their missions and reached camp — whichever house's participant arrived, that house took the corresponding share. In the end, whichever house had the most people naturally came out the winner. This simple wager had continued year after year.
Until now, this had always been the time when Cheonun Sect's peak masters fell most silent.
But this year, things were a little different. Naeng Chu and the leaders of the remaining factions all sat in silence at the campsite. Only Maeng Chang-haeng was making a racket all by himself.
It was truly infuriating.