Hengshan Inspector's Wild Leap - 4
At first, I flat-out rejected the elder's words. Another spirit beast all of a sudden? What kind of nonsense was that? Spirit beasts aren't like squirrels scampering around the neighborhood hills or random mugwort weeds. Only creatures that have lived for ages in famous spiritual sites, soaking up that mystical energy over countless years, even qualify to evolve into spirit beasts—and the odds of that happening are so abysmal the word "slim" doesn't even cut it.
Across the entire Central Plains, they pop up maybe once every few decades, if you're lucky. And if you want to force one into existence? You'd have to be ready to uproot your entire sect or family's foundation, throwing every elixir you've got at it just to have a snowball's chance. That's a spirit beast for you.
And now two of them were showing up in the same place, at the same time? 'What the hell kind of bullshit is this?'
The probability was insane. Lower than some guy winning the lottery jackpot two weeks in a row. At least lotteries have winners every week. Spirit beasts? A whole generation might pass without sighting one.
"A spirit beast...? Are you certain?"
Even the sect leader couldn't swallow this mad surprise, his voice thick with bewilderment as he double-checked. It had to be a joke. The elder must've cooked up some wild gag to entertain the VIPs we'd brought from Dongting Lake. If he just said, "Actually, it was a prank," right now, I'd laugh it off no problem.
"Absolutely certain, Sect Leader! Several elders have already cross-verified the aura they carry and confirmed it!"
But the response that came back was brutal. No joke, no prank—this was stone-cold truth.
- Kki-eeeeeng!
- Kki-ooooong!
No sooner had the elder finished than the two fawn's chorus rang out. But was it my imagination? The one with the antlers sounded even brighter than before.
'Found its mate, huh.' I'd live to see spirit beast lovebirds. The lone fawn had been a total menace on its own, but now doubled up, it acted like fear was a foreign concept. Sure, it was already a lawless little terror without much fear to begin with, but this took it to another level.
- Kki-iiiing!
"That beast has gone mad!"
"Whose is that thing?! What if it steals our wooden swords?!"
"It snuck up on Yu-myeong during training, rammed him from behind, and snatched it!"
The punk who'd only used its own antlers as weapons was now charging around with some poor martial artist's wooden training sword clamped in its mouth. No surprise the whole Hengshan Sect freaked out when this already handful of a beast armed itself with human weaponry.
Meanwhile, the newly arrived female deer spirit beast was trotting happily after the male. Dodge the male's charge by a hair? Bam—instant trampling by the female. Miraculous tag-team disaster.
'They're coordinating tactics now.'
I couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity. From solo act to duo, and now employing strategy? Spirit beasts or not, beasts pulling battlefield maneuvers was too much.
"My lord."
"Reply come in!?"
Lost in the two beasts' rampage, Jo Wi-cheo's voice snapped my head around. The moment the spirit beast count jumped from one to two, I'd dispatched a fresh messenger bird to Jwa Do-eosa. Time-lagged as it was, the incoming reply might assume just one beast—but if we could bag both as a pair, that'd still be a win.
"It's a reply, but..."
Jo Wi-cheo rarely trailed off like that, and my heart thudded ominously. A reply was a reply—what was with the ominous buildup? Did it catch fire en route or something?
"Two spirit beasts appearing in succession isn't normal. Don't provoke them with capture attempts—stand by and wait, per the order."
"What."
I nearly blacked out at Jwa Do-eosa's merciless response. Don't capture them? Just wait? With their numbers doubled and chaos squared? I'd detailed every bit of Hengshan Sect's suffering in the report!
'Emotionless robot.'
Even an outsider like me was pissed. Jwa Do-eosa was clearly some monster without human feelings. No wonder she was still single.
"Hengshan Sect's getting trashed in real time—what do you mean 'wait'?!"
"But someone is en route to assess, so we won't have to wait long."
That was a small mercy. If it was an indefinite hold with no one assigned, it'd be hell—but if help was already moving, fine.
"The Prefect coming personally?"
I stroked my chin, pondering who could warrant a dispatch even with a Rank 4 like me here. Had to be someone senior, and already mobilizing? Obviously a Hunan regional official. Among those with spirit beast capture authority—and experience dealing with Hengshan Sect Leader, a war vet—the shortlist was Prefect, Inspector-General, or Provincial Commander...
Most likely the administrative Prefect, the safe bet—
"Giwangwang Highness is coming."
"Ah, Giwangwang Highness."
I nodded at Jo Wi-cheo's words. If Giwangwang hustled, Hengshan was within reach.
...
'Fuck.'
Somber, I closed my eyes. Two rampaging beasts, and now the Demon King himself en route. Screw waiting—should we just bail?
Giwangwang. One of the talents my future-knowledgeable ancestor scooped up alongside Dongguwang Jang Sa-seong-i, instrumental in rebuilding Song. In proper history, the warlord closest to unifying the realm with the mightiest forces—a king who dared claim emperorship, unlike Jang Sa-seong-i who stopped at king.
"Hey, Han Un! Fancy meeting you here!"
True founding emperor Jin U-ryang-i. Among the eccentric kings, the undisputed craziest had arrived at Hengshan Sect.
"Left Vice Censor-in-Chief Han Un greets Giwangwang Highness."
"Keh, you're starting to look more like your grandpa every day. That blood runs thick, eh?"
As I prostrated deeply, Giwangwang clapped my shoulders hard, bursting into laughter. Ow. Why didn't the Daesong's Twelve Great Masters—monsters like Baekryeon Cult Leader and this guy—ever consider sparing the weak?
"We greet Giwangwang Highness."
"Oh, Sect Leader! Long time no see! How've you been?"
Giwangwang shifted from pulverizing my shoulders to the sect leader beside me.
"First time since the Yangtze Bandit Purge?"
"Yes, Highness. Glorious chance back then to purge those Yangtze scum alongside you."
"Heh, 'glorious'? I had it easy with heroes like you around."
Spotting an old acquaintance, Giwangwang's grin wouldn't quit. Good. If he'd griped about schlepping to Hengshan, it'd be exhausting.
'Today's gonna be chill.'
I sighed inwardly in relief. Unlike Dongguwang making bank on coastal trade, Giwangwang held Yangtze strongholds, periodically smashing river trash. Quick to rage and trash locales if irked—but on good days like this, no one was heartier. Neighborhood grandpa vibes, sans the title.
- Kki-eeeeeeng!
- Kki-ooooong!
"What's that racket?"
Mid-chuckle, Giwangwang blinked at the fawns' cries.
"The spirit beasts."
"Ah, those? Must be close."
Nodding, he glanced toward the sound and leaped away—instantly gone. So fast my brain blanked. Sure, Giwangwang didn't need escorts like us, but a king charging solo? And he'd come to Hengshan alone too. Was this okay?
"Same as ever, charging ahead. A true leader."
'Charging...' Sect Leader murmured fondly, romanticizing the reckless charge as pioneering virtue.
- Kki-eeeeeek!
"...Hm?"
"Eh...?"
Soon, a shriek like tearing metal pierced the air.
'No way.'
Cold sweat trickled down my back. Was Giwangwang pounding the fawns? Disaster. Dispatching even him signaled high imperial interest—if the beasts ended up pulverized before investigation, I'd take the heat. Who cared if Giwangwang did it? They couldn't grill a king, so I'd get, "Why couldn't you manage him?"
"Sect Leader! Let's hurry!"
"Y-yes, best we do."
I dragged my stiff body toward the screams. Moments ago, I'd wished those pests dead—now I prayed desperately for their survival. Please.
Thankfully, no mangled spirit beast remains greeted us.
'What.'
Just two pitiful fawns, plastered together, trembling.
Were these the ferocious lawless punks I knew?
"Ah, you made it?"
Gawking at the surreal scene, Giwangwang—fondling the male's antlers—turned to us.
"Roaring cries had me thinking lively brutes, but they're more skittish than expected. Bolted the second they saw me—took some effort to snag 'em unharmed."
"Pardon?"
I blurted involuntarily. Fear? Flight? Those concepts didn't exist for them. Yet the scene was undeniable reality: male fawn quivering with dewy eyes under Giwangwang's strokes; female nuzzling its neck, gazing piteously at me.
'And what's your deal.' Why me?
"Heh, tamest spirit beasts I've ever seen."
Sect Leader shuddered beside me at Giwangwang's mutter. After their torment, he'd be spitting blood inside.
'No way.'
Then it hit: did these punks actually sense top predators? Instinctively cowering before someone who could obliterate them?
'Insane.'
The hypothesis was too plausible to dismiss outright—I roughly scrubbed my dry face. Evolving into spirit beasts must've sharpened instincts alongside smarts.