Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Iron Blood Gang 1
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It was the first time he'd unfolded One Hundred Li White Night since Snow Garment Peak. Even in Baek Moo-jin's eyes, its power was overwhelmingly tremendous. Though it stemmed from his own martial arts, an utterly surreal scene had spread across the surroundings.
Not even the blowing wind could make anything sway.
Yet even after unleashing this inexplicable technique, Baek Moo-jin sensed something lacking about One Hundred Li White Night.
With his current level of inner energy, it seemed insufficient in raw killing power.
Of course, drawing up more energy would expand the radius and heighten the penetrating chill. But because it blanketed such a wide area, Baek Moo-jin judged it inefficient for reliably slaying a specific target.
On the other hand, against hordes of foes whose power fell short of his own, he figured no technique could match its efficiency.
As Baek Moo-jin approached Jin So-hye but paused, he calmly surveyed the surroundings.
He envisioned himself freezing the swarm of charging masters with One Hundred Li White Night, then slicing their throats with his White Lotus Sword. Even the landscapes of hell probably wouldn't look as gruesome.
He was expanding his battle instincts by reflecting on his techniques and their sensations. In particular, Baek Moo-jin had grown accustomed to imagining various variables whenever he won a spar.
Finishing his imaginings, Baek Moo-jin approached Jin So-hye again.
Even at the moment One Hundred Li White Night erupted, Jin So-hye had tried to resist, crossing her palms in a stance to ward off the cold.
Baek Moo-jin stood before her and gazed at her for a moment.
Suddenly, the sharp cracking of ice emanated from Jin So-hye's body.
'Huh? She's coming to?'
A reddish glow then seeped from her crossed palms. She was trying to melt the cold with her Heaven-Annihilating Flame Flower Technique.
Baek Moo-jin silently watched.
If he'd meant to kill her, he could have done so dozens of times over by now.
Jin So-hye mustered her Heaven-Annihilating Flame Flower Technique and barely shook off the chill of One Hundred Li White Night. As fragments of ice burst outward with sharp pops, Baek Moo-jin lightly waved his hand to scatter them away.
White breath escaped Jin So-hye's lips, followed by a ragged gasp as if her blocked airways had burst open.
"Haa..."
It was only natural that she had no will or strength left to attack. Her dazed eyes, fixed blankly on Baek Moo-jin, held a whirlwind of complex emotions.
Rage, regret, shock, the humiliation of defeat...
Baek Moo-jin met her gaze steadily and asked in a flat tone.
"Are you alright?"
What kind of ridiculous question was that?
Of course she wasn't.
As pale-faced Jin So-hye tried to speak again, her lips—still pressed tightly together—gave way, and she collapsed in a heap. She must have felt utterly wronged. Jin So-hye wasn't someone meant to lose in a place like this.
She had simply met Baek Moo-jin too soon.
Bad luck.
But this defeat would prove an invaluable experience, one beyond trade for anything else.
She was still alive, after all.
More precisely, because Baek Moo-jin hadn't killed her.
Baek Moo-jin looked down at the fallen Jin So-hye but hesitated to touch her.
'Is it because our techniques counter each other so well? She's tougher than she looks. Still...'
Baek Moo-jin blinked a few times, waiting for her to rise. But she lay motionless, likely unconscious.
A sigh escaped his lips.
Laying hands on a fallen woman felt profoundly uncomfortable. Especially since Jin So-hye was the Little Palace Lord of Sacred Flame Palace, a figure they viewed with utter dread.
As she showed no sign of stirring, Baek Moo-jin unconsciously glanced around.
No one would be here anyway.
Both he and Jin So-hye knew their arts were too unique, so they'd deliberately chosen this remote spot for their duel.
Yet if Baek Moo-jin didn't help, she might lose her life. He removed his outer robe, then went to the rock where he'd left his sword and used it to strap his twin blades to his back.
Returning to Jin So-hye, he reluctantly rolled her onto her back and checked her neck and wrists with his fingers. No physician himself and lacking such experience, all he could do was take her pulse. Fortunately, she was still alive.
Only then did Baek Moo-jin oddly apologize to the unconscious woman first.
"Sorry about this. Touching your body and all..."
With one arm under her neck and around her shoulders, and the other behind her knees, he lifted her effortlessly.
No matter how mighty his martial prowess, the weight of Jin So-hye in his arms was ridiculously light.
"Challenging me with a frame like this."
No one to reply, yet he muttered anyway as he carried her toward the inn.
2.
Striding swiftly with Jin So-hye in his arms, Baek Moo-jin suddenly caught a faint, unidentified floral scent wafting from somewhere. He tilted his head and glanced around.
"Sniff... Hmm...?"
Her chilled body was gradually warming by now. But in this barren place, a flower scent felt out of place. A few more steps, and he realized it came from Jin So-hye herself.
"Aha..."
That realization dawned absurdly slowly. If anyone had been watching, they'd have cursed him out and kicked him.
Yet his curiosity lingered; he kept tilting his head as he walked.
Why the fragrance...?
Did she sprinkle perfume on herself...?
Baek Moo-jin wondered if his nose had always been this sensitive. Jin So-hye's subtle body scent tormented him relentlessly.
In truth, her body was damp in spots from his ice arts, and as her unconscious form stirred her Heaven-Annihilating Flame Flower Technique on its own, her natural scent intensified.
The unfamiliar allure of a woman's scent left Baek Moo-jin flustered, quickening his pace unnecessarily. His steps weren't mere walking—they outpaced the sprint of most martial artists, propelled by uncanny footwork.
As he neared the inn where they'd briefly spoken earlier, the cradled Jin So-hye suddenly spoke.
"Put me down."
"Whoa!"
"Ah!"
Caught off-guard and oddly guilty, Baek Moo-jin startled and dropped her unceremoniously. She wobbled but steadied herself, then glared at him.
Baek Moo-jin raised one hand.
"No choice."
What misunderstanding was this phrasing inviting? Jin So-hye blinked in shock.
"Pardon?"
She eyed Baek Moo-jin.
He wore only a thin inner garment, having removed his outer robe.
Startled, Jin So-hye instinctively checked her clothes and body, her head swiveling. Baek Moo-jin watched with baffled eyes.
'What's that about? What'd she imagine?'
For a moment, she suspected him, then sighed in relief at her intact attire.
"Give me my sword."
Without a word, Baek Moo-jin drew her blade from his back and handed it over. As if explaining why he'd shed his robe, he roughly donned it again and gripped his longsword in his left hand. He sorely wanted to snort derisively but barely held back.
The moment Jin So-hye took her sword, she said,
"I misunderstood for a moment... Anyway..."
"Is that so?"
What on earth was she trying to say?
After fumbling for words, Jin So-hye continued.
"...Patriarch Baek, thank you for showing mercy. I lost. I'd like to challenge you again sometime."
"Rematch?"
"Yes."
Baek Moo-jin shook his head.
"Pass."
Jin So-hye frowned.
"Why?"
Baek Moo-jin regarded her.
A strong woman. Few could match her. Evidently, Sacred Flame Palace had forged her rapidly through diverse methods, much like his own Snow Mountain Baek Family.
But he had no reason to fight again.
'She's no match. Why keep going?'
Baek Moo-jin spoke insincerely.
"In ten years."
By then, he figured, she might catch up somewhat. Plus, after several spars with masters since entering the world, he'd realized his predecessors' arrangements were far grander than he'd imagined.
Jin So-hye's face fell at "ten years," staring at him. She wasn't one to beg twice.
She gripped her sword with both hands in salute.
"Until next time, then."
Baek Moo-jin nodded.
"Sure."
Surviving One Hundred Li White Night marked her as exceptionally tough, yet her dejected look made her seem like any ordinary woman.
Baek Moo-jin stood a moment, watching her retreating figure. Unbidden, disquieting thoughts crept into his mind.
'No troubles on her way to Jin Family Merchant Group, I hope.'
He turned toward North Heaven Alliance. But unease gnawed at him.
"Haa... Good grief."
Trailing her, Baek Moo-jin called.
"Miss Jin."
"Yes?"
"I'll see you safely to the Jin Family Merchant Group."
She shook her head.
"No need."
His expression hardened more than in battle.
"I could subdue you by force and drop you there. Follow my words."
What was this man's thinking, issuing such a threat?
Jin So-hye stared blankly at him.
Whether she guessed his intent or not, Baek Moo-jin saw it as the natural course. Only then would his mind rest easy. Physically fine, she was leagues below him in strength, but if she met mishap here—collapsing or dying—it'd sour his mood. Even without incident, escorting her back felt right.
Baek Moo-jin insisted stubbornly.
"Must I use force to make you obey?"
His tone was rough, but clearly well-meant, so Jin So-hye couldn't take offense. Silently, she headed for Jin Family Merchant Group. Baek Moo-jin followed a few paces behind.
Thus, the man and woman walked the night road in silence.
3.
The Jin Family Merchant Group, garrisoned by Sacred Flame Palace warriors, was engulfed in demonic flames.
What on earth had happened?
Baek Moo-jin and Jin So-hye had been gone quite a while. Even so, nearly eighty Sacred Flame Palace warriors had held the site.
Beneath the inferno, Sacred Flame Palace men and mysterious black-clad figures lay mingled in horrific death poses everywhere. Yet the surviving attackers—indiscriminate of friend or foe—tossed all the corpses into the blaze.
Had the Left Supervisor been intact, this wouldn't have occurred.
Call it karmic retribution? Or plain misfortune?
The forces encircling the burning site outnumbered Sacred Flame Palace's by double. But the man who'd slain most was a long-haired figure in black robes stained with blood.
From who-knows-where, he'd procured a drink and sat alone, spectating the blaze. Feeling his mask stifling, he roughly yanked it off, tossed it aside, and downed a cup.
The man was Iron Blood Gang's Deputy Leader, Yoo Ja-eon.
His masked subordinates eyed him coldly. He'd insisted on secrecy, forbidding masks off—yet here he was, discarding his own and boozing. One inwardly cursed.
'Damn bastard.'
Near Yoo Ja-eon lay Left Supervisor Lee Gon, who'd resisted fiercely to the end, now in a gruesome state.
Yoo Ja-eon glanced at the corpse.
"Even gravely wounded, he fought like a demon."
"Indeed. Probably the one escorting the Little Palace Lord."
"First, sketch his features and identify him properly."
"Understood."
"And the surviving Blood Gate lackeys."
"Yes."
"Kill them all. Can't have leaks."
"Understood."
Someone approached, knelt, and reported.
"Witnesses at a nearby inn saw a young man and woman. Details match the Little Palace Lord."
"Oh? Killed Squad Leader Im, now out on a date. Outrageous."
The reporter cleared his throat oddly before continuing.
"Not certain, but the man's description sounds like..."
"Like what?"
"North Heaven Alliance's Baek Moo-jin."
Yoo Ja-eon gaped.
"For real?"
"Yes. Matches the portrait from our hit list. White longsword, too. Suspected Baek Moo-jin."
"Those bitches traveling together? No return till you find them."
"As you command."
Suddenly, Yoo Ja-eon hacked as if phlegm stuck in his throat, spitting yellowish phlegm mid-sip. He rinsed with booze, then spat toward the burning Jin Family Merchant Group again.
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