Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: Bad Bastard
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Morning came.
Dang Yak-ran woke up startled from a dream in which Heuk Do-san made eye contact with Bing-seol and fled.
“What rotten luck......”
Looking around, the canyon somehow felt disorderly.
With many of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts nowhere to be seen, Seop Dae-gang had his remaining subordinates surrounding Hyeon-gak, Yeom Jin-sang, and Gong Cheon-ak, whose consciousness was still hazy.
“Sleep well?”
She turned her head at the familiar voice and saw Mo Yong-ak standing there.
“Senior......”
“It's been a long time since I heard that.”
Before the Righteous-Demonic Great War broke out, the young talents representing the famed sects of South Murim and North Murim would hold gatherings several times a year.
The so-called Dragon-Phoenix Assembly.
True to the names dragon and phoenix, it was a meeting where the young experts destined to lead Central Plains Murim in ten or twenty years built their bonds.
They drank together, traveled together, and occasionally chased down and eliminated notorious demonic cultists, earning fame among the warriors of the land.
Naturally, their friendships deepened, and based on age and time in the martial world, they became seniors and juniors.
Mo Yong-ak and Dang Yak-ran were blood kin of the Moyong Clan and Tang Clan of Sichuan, respectively—the representative martial clans of South and North Murim—and as women, they were a bit closer than the other young talents from those regions.
Mo Yong-ak was two years older and thus the senior.
“But what happened?”
“The witch is gone.”
“Just now...... what did you say?”
“She must have slipped away while everyone was asleep last night.”
“That can't be. The Holy Maiden had unwavering loyalty to the Seventh Star Lord. There's no way she'd abandon him and flee alone.”
“She wasn't alone.”
“Not alone, then could it be......?”
“Young Master Heuk is gone too.”
She hurriedly looked around. Heuk Do-san really was nowhere in sight. Dang Yak-ran felt as if she'd been struck in the back of the head with a hammer.
“That can't be. He's not even from the Demonic Cult, so why? Aren't you mistaken, Senior? He might have gone hunting for a bit or out to scout the area.”
“He took a white wolf pelt along with one of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts' spears. I don't know why, but he even took every last one of the wolf ribs we roasted and ate the night before. He has no intention of coming back.”
It was unbelievable.
She couldn't believe it. For Heuk Do-san to abandon Hyeon-gak and her to run off with only Bing-seol. For the dream she'd had last night to have become reality.
Her heart felt like it was crumbling. She hurt this much, yet the time they'd spent together must have meant nothing to him.
How could he just leave like this without even a word of farewell?
‘Bad bastard......’
Then it hit her—she was resenting only Heuk Do-san, who had ignored Seop Dae-gang entirely and eloped with Bing-seol. And this despite the grudge she'd harbored against Seop Dae-gang in her heart for so many years, even with him right there before her eyes.
‘Crazy bitch, I knew it.’
“Yak-ran? Can you hear me?”
“Yes?”
“What are you thinking about so intently? I called you over and over, but you didn't answer.”
Dang Yak-ran barely held back the tears welling up and asked,
“I'm sorry. What did you say?”
“What happened between those two?”
“What......?”
“It looks like Young Master Heuk used some trick to seal the pressure points of two Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts on guard duty, then snuck the witch out. Young Master Heuk had no reason to leave, and as you said, the witches of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult are fiercely loyal—they wouldn't abandon the Seventh Star Lord lightly.”
“What are you......?”
“Were those two in love, by any chance?”
Mo Yong-ak seemed convinced that Heuk Do-san and Bing-seol were romantically involved.
It's impossible for one person to fully understand another. Perhaps Heuk Do-san really did like Bing-seol.
But was that really the case?
She recalled what Heuk Do-san had said on the first day after they landed.
“Of the people here, if I had to pick just one to travel with, I'd choose that woman.”
It was still too soon to conclude that he liked Bing-seol. It was true that he'd treated her kindly.
But if that was the measure, he'd treated her even better. He'd given her the armored pouch he hadn't given to anyone else and personally tended to her wounds.
‘There has to be some other reason.’
“So I was right.”
Mo Yong-ak said.
Yet her expression looked strangely sad. In that moment, a thought flashed through Dang Yak-ran's mind.
‘That's right—Mo Yong-ak. When she showed up with Seop Dae-gang, it must have made things awkward to keep traveling together. He still hasn't forgotten Mo Yong-ak. You idiot, how did I not think of that until now?’
The fact that he'd left because of Mo Yong-ak hurt even more than him leaving without a word. She'd already forgotten all about Seop Dae-gang......
‘Stupid bastard.’
Just then, Hyeon-gak bellowed from afar.
“I'm telling you, I know nothing about it.”
“Last night, I saw you with the witch plain as day with my own two eyes. I turned a blind eye thinking there might be some extenuating circumstances, but you're really going to play dumb all the way to the end?”
One of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts demanded, his eyebrows twitching.
“What about it?”
“You're not going to tell us what you were doing then?”
“Hah, Heuk Do-san is the one who ran off with the witch, so why are you hounding an innocent man like me? Is a Shaolin Arhat monk not even worth considering? I've heard the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts have quite the reputation, but I didn't realize they were this arrogant.”
Hyeon-gak responded boldly, as if ready for a fight at any moment.
“Hey, you monk!”
“Enough.”
Seop Dae-gang quietly rebuked his subordinate.
“But, Sword Lord......”
“Great Monk Hyeon-gak is a hero of the Righteous Alliance who stormed out of Shaolin alone and slew countless Demonic Cultists. If you are rude to him again, I won't forgive it.”
“My apologies.”
The man quietly withdrew.
Seop Dae-gang said to Hyeon-gak,
“I apologize on behalf of my subordinate's rudeness.”
“Well, I did act in a way that could invite suspicion. That said, you'd do well to tell your men to watch their tongues from now on. As you've no doubt heard from the rumors, I'm not exactly known for my saintly temper—if someone picks a fight, my fist flies first and questions later......”
“I'll see to it.”
Seop Dae-gang replied with a smile spreading across his face. If anything, it made him look even more chilling.
“While I'm at it, let me say one more thing. Last night, I went looking for the witch to see if Gong Cheon-ak was dead or alive. As you may have guessed, it's all because of the massive Qimen Formation those Demonic Cult bastards spread across the seas before Shandong.”
Having said that much, Hyeon-gak gauged Seop Dae-gang's reaction. But Seop Dae-gang merely wore a faint smile on his lips and said nothing.
‘This bastard—can't tell a damn thing from his expression. What a slippery snake.’
“Gong Cheon-ak and the witch know every detail of that Qimen Formation. Now that the witch has fled, he's all that's left. To learn where we are, how we ended up here, and how to get back to the Central Plains, we have to keep that demon alive for now, even if we kill him later. That's why I've kept him breathing this long. I hope you'll keep that in mind.”
Seop Dae-gang simply smiled in silence once more.
Suddenly, Hyeon-gak had a thought.
‘If I fought this guy, could I win?’
Dang Yak-ran was a clever woman. She saw right through the situation.
The Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts were murderers who killed Demonic Cultists on sight—they'd clearly planned to eliminate Gong Cheon-ak and Bing-seol at dawn. Heuk Do-san must have realized this and taken Bing-seol with him when he left. Hyeon-gak was raising his voice more than necessary now to tip them off.
“What is it you want to know?”
Dang Yak-ran asked Mo Yong-ak again.
“He's an upright orthodox faction member. For him to sneak away a witch from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is a grave matter.”
“You intend to punish him?”
“The Righteous Alliance policy is immediate execution for anyone colluding with the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. All the more so when the other party is a top-priority target like that witch.”
“The war is over.”
“As long as the Demonic Cult hasn't fallen and the Alliance Leader hasn't declared a truce, the war isn't over.”
“We can't know that from here.”
“Exactly why it's not over.”
“......!”
“We've been in this forest for six days. You said you first encountered the Demonic Cultists on the sailing ship?”
“Yes.”
“If you arrived here at the same time we did, then you spent those six days with them too. Yet when we first spotted you, you didn't seem like enemies so much as fellow travelers with your comrades. Sword Lord Seop is taking this point very seriously.”
Sword Lord was the title for the leader of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts—the master who commanded their ten treasured swords as if they were his very life.
“Put it simply.”
“There are two key points. First, neither your side nor the Demonic Cultists killed each other during those six days. Second, why Young Master Heuk fled with Bing-seol.”
“So you're interrogating me right now. Right?”
“Yes.”
“Is this your own initiative, Senior? Or Seop Young Master's orders?”
“It's Sword Lord Seop's command.”
“I heard you weren't one of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts. Or......?”
“That doesn't matter. Right now, we need to pool our strength.”
“We did the same. At first, our forces were evenly matched, so we were locked in a standoff with no chance to kill. Then we had to join forces to save the ship from the storm.”
“And after landing?”
After landing, they'd agreed to a truce to keep Bing-seol alive. She was their one hope for finding the way back to the Central Plains.
But was that really all there was to it?
Dang Yak-ran couldn't answer right away.
“Last night, Young Master Heuk said that if you're curious about anything, ask Dang Yak-ran. She'll tell you everything.”
“He said that?”
“I'm trying to help Young Master Heuk right now.”
“How can I believe that?”
“Why couldn't you?”
“......”
Dang Yak-ran was at a loss for words once again.
Mo Yong-ak was right. The two were senior and junior from the Dragon-Phoenix Assembly. After the Righteous-Demonic Great War began, they'd fought side by side as members of the Righteous Alliance against the Demonic Cult.
So why couldn't she believe her?
‘Everything's gone to hell.’
“Yak-ran......”
“Bing-seol...... I mean, the witch suffered terribly from seasickness while crossing the ocean. She promised to show us the way back to the Central Plains if Gong Cheon-ak let her live. We spared her, and in return, they'd guide us home. That's the whole reason we ended up traveling with the Demonic Cultists.”
It was all true, except for the part where Gong Cheon-ak held the key to everything.
“You were always terrible at lying.”
“......!”
“Hong Team Leader is pursuing them with three Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts. As the name suggests, they're masters of the hunt. Young Master Heuk and the witch will be caught before long. Once they are, Gong Cheon-ak gets eliminated. The witch serves as guide, and Young Master Heuk...... will have to forfeit an arm.”
Mo Yong-ak seemed to view Heuk Do-san as little more than his old scholar self. He'd gotten a bit rougher after going through the war, but he was still a scholar at heart.
Two days ago in the battle against the Blood Wolf Corps, Seop Dae-gang had lost three of his Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts. Meanwhile, their side had taken various injuries but everyone survived. It was all thanks to Heuk Do-san's exceptional martial prowess and mercenary tactics.
But Mo Yong-ak apparently thought it was because of the two peak experts, Hyeon-gak and Gong Cheon-ak.
‘The Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts could never catch him. If anything, they should pray he doesn't kill them instead.’
It was then. From afar, one of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts landed a solid punch squarely in Yeom Jin-sang's face.
With a thud, Yeom Jin-sang toppled over. He was a vicious cur. Despite taking a blow that would have killed an ordinary man, he sprang right back up. Then he bolted.
But the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts were faster. Two of them shot forward like arrows in a hailstorm and blocked his path with ridiculous ease.
“What happened?”
Mo Yong-ak approached and asked.
“He claims he's not Demonic Cult.”
Seop Dae-gang said.
This shocked Dang Yak-ran even more than Mo Yong-ak. The man who'd been yapping “Seventh Star Lord, Seventh Star Lord” and following Gong Cheon-ak around was now denying it out of nowhere.
No matter how desperate he was to live, with Hyeon-gak and her watching plain as day, what kind of nonsense lie was this?
“Look, I'm telling you, I'm not Demonic Cult! I was just pretending to be one of them so I could slit that bastard Seventh Star Lord's throat the moment I got the chance. I swear to heaven it's true.”
Yeom Jin-sang wailed at the top of his lungs.
Blood was pouring from his nose, staining around his mouth bright red. With that face, he glared at the still-unconscious Gong Cheon-ak as if he wanted to tear him apart.
Despite his desperate pleas, Seop Dae-gang said simply,
“Dispose of him.”
Shing!
One of the Soul-Chasing Ten Ghosts drew his gleaming longsword. Pale-faced, Yeom Jin-sang clung for dear life.
“My real name is Ha-gok-sang, a black boss who ruled Dongyeon Harbor on the eastern coast of Shandong Province. I fled an ambush by a rival gang and threw myself on the mercy of the Hebei Peng Clan. After that, I served under their third son, the Evil God Axe Peng Do-gwang, and cut down countless Demonic Cultists. It's true. Please believe me.”
Seop Dae-gang showed not the slightest hint of doubt. He nodded to his subordinate. As the sword came down, Dang Yak-ran cut in.
“Wait a moment.”