Chapter 64: Hovering Between Life and Death (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 64: Hovering Between Life and Death (3)
Only then did Chief Gong Jin seem to realize the gravity of the situation. He summoned the physicians and began barking orders.
A moment later, he returned holding a single book.
"This is it. The book you were looking for."
The title, Heart-Guiding Blood Flow Divine Art, was written on the cover in still-vivid characters.
I tried to hand it to Hwang Chu.
However, Hwang Chu shook his head and stepped back. "If I keep it, there's no telling when it might be stolen. I would like you to hold onto it, Young Hero Eo."
What? You want me to carry this dangerous thing?
If I held onto this, I’d become a walking bullseye for every greedy bastard out there.
"No. It’s better if the original owner keeps it."
"That is not the case, Young Hero Eo. Though it is an heirloom of our sect, it can no longer belong to a single individual. If that is so, I wish to entrust it to you. I believe that would be the safest option."
Internally, I showered Hwang Chu with every curse word I knew.
"I suppose it can't be helped. In that case, I'd like to entrust this to our deputy leader, Fairy Doyeon."
When I tried to pass it to her, Doyeon also shook her head.
"This is a vital artifact. It must be held by someone with the skill to protect it. And that person is you, Young Hero Eo."
I looked at Jeok Yeong, but he had the same expression on his face.
Left with no choice, I accepted the manual like a man forced to eat bitter herbs.
Should I just set it on fire?
No. If I delivered this to the Murim Alliance, I might not only get a reward but also a fairly high-ranking position.
How grand would that be?
Then I shook my head, snapping out of it. I was forgetting my place for a moment. I was already living a life on a tightrope at Ten Thousand Dragons Fortress; the idea of surviving in the Murim Alliance was a pipe dream. If I played my cards wrong, I’d become the laughingstock of the world.
Among the world's heroes, almost none managed to obtain money, fame, and women all at once. You had to choose just one to truly remain a hero.
I tucked the manual into my robes, thinking I’d hand it over the moment I ran into a master from the Emei or Qingcheng Sect.
My chest felt heavy with the book inside. The wuxia novel I always carried to read, Legend of a Master, was about the same size. With the two books combined, my chest looked quite bulky.
Chief Gong Jin sent the wounded to other physicians and began clearing out the medical clinic.
"I'm sorry, but we don't have time to tidy up. We need to leave immediately."
Thinking it best to move as quickly as possible, I hurried the Chief along. We had already delayed too much, and I was anxious that the enemy might burst in at any second.
"I understand. I'm ready."
We planned to drop the physicians off at the nearest village before heading toward the Ilguk Sect.
Leaving the clinic, we loaded the physicians into a carriage and turned onto the main road. Since many of the doctors couldn't ride horses, the carriage was our only option.
I was worried that traveling so openly would make us easy targets. My instinct told me to take a shortcut through the brush, but that was impossible with a carriage.
We were galloping down the road with frantic urgency when it happened.
Suddenly, hidden weapons whistled through the air and embedded themselves in the necks of our horses.
Gasp!
Jeok Yeong and Doyeon kicked off their saddles with grace, soaring into the air. It was the elegant movement expected of true masters.
Could I do that?
Before my horse could collapse, I channeled internal energy into my right Yongcheon point and kicked off the saddle.
Thump!
Neigh!
Unable to withstand the internal energy erupting from my foot, the horse buckled instantly.
I flew through the air and landed lightly on the ground. All that time I’d spent practicing my lightness skills had finally paid off. If I had face-planted into the dirt here, my reputation would have been worth less than a dried lump of dung.
I looked around and saw a few of the weaker members of the Demon Subjugation Group groaning on the ground after falling. A chill ran down my spine at the thought that I could have been one of them.
However, the real reason my blood ran cold was the sight of those who had thrown the weapons.
A swarm of men in black robes and masks poured onto the road. They stood there waiting, as if they had been expecting us all along.
"Who are these people to block our path?" Chief Gong Jin asked, glaring at the group radiating bloodlust.
"These are the ones after the manual," I replied.
Without a second thought, I pulled a signal flare from my pouch and fired it into the sky.
Pop!
A trail of sparks arced through the air. Seeing this, one of the men in black muttered, "Planning a final firework show before you die?"
I smirked, knowing I still had cards to play. "Whether it's my end or yours remains to be seen."
When I spoke boldly without shrinking back, the man sneered. "What gives you such arrogance? Are you relying on these leftovers?"
He mocked us, his gaze sweeping over the Demon Subjugation Group.
"What do you want?" I asked.
The man's eyes narrowed. Even through the mask, I could tell he was grinning.
"We want the manual you're carrying."
"The manual? What's this sudden talk of a manual? The rumors say it's at the Ilguk Sect. Why don't you go look there?"
The man chuckled. "We fabricated those rumors. We want the real manual."
I knew it. The Ghost Pursuit Squad had created a fake manual and diverted everyone's attention to the Ilguk Sect so they could steal the real one in secret.
"I don't know about the manual you're looking for, but I've had a manual of my own for a long time. Is that what you want?"
At the mention of me having a manual, the man's gaze sharpened.
"The one I have is the Three Calamities Sword technique. Want that?"
"Hahahaha!" The man laughed loudly to brush off the embarrassment. "I won't let you die easily."
"And I'll make sure your death is nice and messy," I retorted.
As I mocked him, the man's aura turned murderous. "I'll give you one more chance. Hand over the manual and that man, and I'll let the rest of you live."
He pointed directly at Hwang Chu.
"He's a member of our Demon Subjugation Group," I said.
The man scoffed. "We already know he's a disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect."
Then, a man stepped out from behind him.
"Huh? You're..."
It was the patient who had burst into the room demanding Cherry Blossom medicine while I was talking to Chief Gong Jin. It turned out the Ghost Pursuit Squad had planted a spy in the clinic disguised as a patient.
"We also know you have the manual. Hand over the book and the boy, and I swear on my name that we won't touch the rest of you."
"Hmph. What kind of oath is that coming from someone whose 'name' is probably just a number?"
At my words, the man's eyes turned cold and predatory. "How do you know that?"
Oops. My inner thoughts had slipped out.
As I hesitated, unsure of how to respond, the members of the Demonic Cult League suddenly began to stir.
"The warriors of Ancient Wood Valley have appeared!"
Perfect. My stalling had been worth it.
Unaware of my thoughts, the man tried to threaten me again. "Fool, now that the masters of Ancient Wood Valley are here, you won't even be able to keep your lives. If you hand them over to us, we'll protect you from them."
"Hahahaha!"
I burst into laughter and looked at him. "Do you know who that is over there? That is Gan Cheon-seong, the leader of the Blood Wood Group from Ancient Wood Valley, also known as the Blood Wood Black Hand. Don't you wonder how I know that?"
Finally realizing the situation, the man ground his teeth. "Then that signal flare earlier... was a signal to call those bastards?"
"Took you long enough to figure it out."
There were nearly forty warriors from Ancient Wood Valley. Even without our interference, they were more than a match for the Ghost Pursuit Squad. Plus, we had masters like Jeok Yeong and Doyeon on our side. The odds were in our favor.
"Khahahaha!"
Suddenly, the man laughed and raised his hand. As if on cue, more masked men in black sprang from the forest where they had been hiding.
There were nearly fifty of them.
"Fool, do you have any idea how much effort we put into this? Our organization has already spread a Heaven-Earth Dragnet across this area."
Dammit. Now they outnumbered the Ancient Wood Valley warriors nearly two to one. And a Heaven-Earth Dragnet on top of that?
I felt a wave of dizziness. We were all dead. Dammit, how did things get so twisted?
Just as I was losing hope, a familiar, annoying voice crawled into my ear like a tickling breeze.
[Don't worry. It's me, Candlelit Shadow Agent No. 4. You have reinforcements too. I brought them here. They're the only ones who can stand against those bastards right now. Just hold on a little longer. Your help will arrive soon.]
I didn't know where the voice was coming from, but as soon as that irritating whisper faded, a group of people approached from the opposite side of the road using high-level lightness skills.
Their red robes stood out vividly.
Oh my god. Did that Candlelit Shadow idiot bring the Blood Lamas as 'reinforcements'?
With the Ghost Pursuit Squad and the Demonic Cult League blocking the front, the Ancient Wood Valley warriors behind them, and the Blood Lamas blocking the other side, we were trapped right in the middle.
As I stood there with my jaw dropped in horror, the voice whispered again, as if sensing my thoughts.
[If I had known you'd made a deal with the Ancient Wood Valley masters, I wouldn't have lured the Blood Lamas here. Why is everything getting so tangled? I lured them here to deal with the Ghost Pursuit Squad and the Demonic Cult League. My apologies. But keep hope alive. I've summoned masters from the Tang Clan, Qingcheng, and Emei who are nearby. Hold out until they arrive. I'll stay hidden and let you know when they get here.]
If only I knew how to use Sound Transmission, I would have unleashed a torrent of abuse. It was infuriating that I couldn't talk back.
I spent all that time practicing lightness skills and didn't bother with Sound Transmission. Now I'm paying for it.
While I was lamenting internally, a middle-aged Blood Lama with a reddish face shouted, "I heard the Heart-Guiding Blood Flow Divine Art is here! Who has it?"
The Blood Lamas seemed to assume that the standoff between the masked men, Ancient Wood Valley, and us was definitely over the manual.
Hearing those words, my mind began to race. I realized I could use these bastards to break through this crisis.
I guess these brilliant ideas really do come from having an open upper dantian.
Satisfied with my plan, I flashed a smile. I raised my hand high and shouted.
"I have the manual!"
Then, I pulled the book from my robes and held it up for all to see.
"Look!"
I slowly turned, holding the manual high so that the title was visible to both the Blood Lamas and the masked men. These were first-rate masters; they could easily read the characters from thirty paces away.
Then, I tucked the manual back into my robes and shouted again.
"Did you see it? There is only one manual, but too many who want it. It is too much of a burden for me to keep, so I shall hand it over to someone else!"
As I spoke, I pulled a cloth bundle from my travel bag. Then, I took the manual out again and wrapped it in the cloth.
"I'm leaving it right here!"
I threw the bundle onto the ground.
Jeok Yeong and Doyeon tried to stop me.
"Brother! What are you doing?"
"Young Hero Eo, even if the situation is dire, how could you give up something so important?"
"Leader!"
Protests erupted from all sides. But when I gave them a pointed look, they all fell silent, sensing I had another motive. My past actions had earned me enough trust for them to follow my lead.
"Now that I've left the manual here, I don't care who takes it. Since I've given it up, we're leaving!"
We began to edge away from the center of the road.
From the moment I threw the bundle, the surrounding area fell into a heavy silence. No one moved. Ancient Wood Valley, the Demonic Cult League, and the Blood Lamas were all too busy glaring at the bundle and each other.
In that opening, I bolted.
Behind us, a cacophony of screams and clashing weapons suddenly erupted.
"Kill them! Charge!"
"Seize the manual!"
Just as I intended, they were locked in a bloody battle over the book. We needed to get as far away as possible while they were distracted.
We ran as if our lives depended on it, using our lightness skills to fly down the road. However, our speed was limited because we had to escort the physicians and Chief Gong Jin.
Still, we pushed ourselves and eventually reached a small village. We hid the physicians and the Chief there.
"It's too dangerous for you to stay with us. Since the Demonic Cult League has spread a dragnet here, stay hidden for a while. Masters from Wudang and Emei are supposedly on their way, so just wait until then."
When I finished speaking, Chief Gong Jin asked, "But... was that really the manual you dropped in the bundle?"
He seemed to truly believe I had abandoned the real manual on the road.
"I suppose you had no choice if you wanted to save everyone," he added, looking at me with sad, understanding eyes.
I reached into my robes and pulled out the manual.
"The manual is right here."
"What? But I clearly saw you put it in your robes and then take it out to wrap it in that cloth!"
I gave him a sly grin.
"I always carry another book in my robes. I purposely showed them the real manual, put it back, and then pulled out a different book to wrap in the cloth. Right now, those bastards are probably opening that bundle only to find a wuxia novel called Legend of a Master."
Legend of a Master was a wuxia novel so popular that almost everyone, from commoners to martial artists, had read it. The members of the Demon Subjugation Group knew it well.