Chapter 15
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: 05. Face Pursuit Unit Jeong (1)
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The Martial Qin Alliance had formed a temporary special unit.
Face Pursuit Squad.
The squad leader was Gwak Nan-hoe, the daughter of the Lion Hall master and a famed prodigy.
It was divided into four teams: Gap, Eul, Byeong, and Jeong. Flying Tiger joined the fourth team, Jeong Squad.
Each team consisted of a team leader and six members.
All the team leaders were young experts poised to lead the next generation of the Martial Qin Alliance, much like Gwak Nan-hoe, while the members were all outsiders like Flying Tiger.
Their objective was human hunting.
Eliminating vicious criminals who had shaken the security of Shaanxi Province to its roots—serial killers, civilian massacrers, or those of equivalent crimes.
It sounded righteous at first glance, but that was merely their claim. The truth was probably somewhere in between.
The stench of blood was thick in the air.
Nine names were already on the hit list, with more to be added.
At the top of that list were, predictably, the gang in ghost masks stirring up the most chaos in Shaanxi right now.
The ones Flying Tiger had encountered at Six Jia Gate.
As Gong Won-yeong had predicted, the Martial Qin Alliance was already pursuing them.
Ironically, the bad blood Flying Tiger had felt toward Ghost Face was reconnecting in this manner!
Flying Tiger briefly heard from Jin Ga-yong about what they would be doing ahead and then parted ways to return to the capital. Official duties began after two days of short rest.
The next day at dawn.
Flying Tiger slipped out secretly to avoid any watchful eyes. His destination was Serukdang.
Having passed the test, he planned to commence full dealings with Hidden Moon.
"My team is Face Pursuit Jeong Squad."
"Face Pursuit... Probably named after those ghost mask troublemakers making waves lately, eh?"
"You knew?"
"I suspected as much."
Flying Tiger nodded.
Of course Hidden Moon knew. That's why he'd placed him in that unit to scheme something.
Afterward, Flying Tiger relayed what he'd heard from Jin Ga-yong, and Hidden Moon smirked bitterly upon hearing it all.
"Heh, the ones who unified Shaanxi through martial might, yet they maintain their own backyard with money. What a joke."
It wasn't incomprehensible given the circumstances.
The Martial Qin Alliance's territory had expanded rapidly, but before they could stabilize the surroundings, they'd hastily gathered their main forces for another battlefield.
In short, a power vacuum had formed.
That made Flying Tiger curious.
"But why is the Martial Qin Alliance rushing these conquests? After all the effort to take Shaanxi, they should stay half a year or a year to solidify their base, right?"
"You must not know the inside story. Do you think they were unaware of what you pointed out? They had no choice."
"...?"
"Do you think they unified Shaanxi with their own strength alone?"
"Wasn't it?"
"In the final battle, they received support from experts of other provinces. Even then, they barely won. It was like a pack of jackals ganging up to tear apart a tiger."
The final battle Hidden Moon mentioned was the "Duel of the Lianman Plains" three months prior.
Both sides, fearing excessive casualties, had agreed to settle it with a duel between representatives.
A group deathmatch of ten against ten.
It wouldn't end until one side was entirely wiped out—a brutal bloodbath.
On the Martial Qin Alliance side, the ten representatives were naturally led by Lion Hall master Gwak Bu-ui, known as the Wandering Blade. The opposing leader was Zhao Banshan, the Iron Intent Sword and manor lord of Ye Mountain's Zhao Family Manor.
In that fight, Gwak Bu-ui beheaded Zhao Banshan, unifying Shaanxi and ascending as the overlord.
However, rumor had it that many of the ten experts representing the Martial Qin Alliance hailed from other provinces' renowned masters.
Flying Tiger had been oblivious to this due to his lack of interest in the world's affairs, but most Shaanxi warriors knew. And many, like Hidden Moon now, resented it deeply.
"It's an age of war. Let's unite as Shaanxi warriors so outsiders don't look down on us!"
The Martial Qin Alliance had shamelessly used such grand rhetoric to pursue their ambition of unifying Shaanxi.
Yet when their own strength proved insufficient, they'd quickly called in martial artists from other provinces. It didn't paint a pretty picture.
Whether wise or not, it wasn't the path of a proud overlord.
Especially in the jianghu, where individual might was revered—not a war between nations.
"The tiger they gnawed on was the Zhao Family manor lord?"
"Indeed. Despite overwhelming odds, Manor Lord Zhao Banshan's final stand was so fierce even his enemies admired it. That's why the consensus is that true Shaanxi warrior spirit was shown by Zhao Banshan, not Gwak Bu-ui. He left his name in death, you could say."
"High praise."
"He was one of the few true warriors in Shaanxi."
"...!"
"Anyway, how could a local jackal refuse the demands after owing such a huge debt to other jackals? Perhaps they gathered those experts as payment for immediate deployment from the start."
"I see."
Flying Tiger listened closely to Hidden Moon's commentary.
He'd never cared for politics before. But now he had to. The jianghu he was stepping into was right at the heart of that maelstrom.
Soon, Hidden Moon stated his first demand.
"Bring me the real hit list of the Face Pursuit Squad."
He suspected there was a separate true list beyond the one announced publicly.
He wanted that list procured.
If so, squad leader Gwak Nan-hoe surely had it, and perhaps the other team leaders like Jin Ga-yong did too.
"By when?"
"The sooner the better, but you'll need time to adjust. I'll ask you instead—when do you think it'll be possible?"
"Half a month. Until then, I'll contact you immediately as I learn about ongoing or planned individual operations."
"Perfect."
"Anything else?"
"That's enough for now. Things will change soon enough; we'll talk then."
"Understood."
Afterward, Hidden Moon updated on Gong Won-yeong's treatment progress, and Flying Tiger asked at the end.
"Oh, you mentioned before? That the Fufeng Four Heroes job would bring in some money."
"Yes. We filled exactly a hundred by yesterday. Why?"
"What if one of those supposedly dead ones is alive and wandering around?"
"Like Pung-sam, you mean? Worried?"
"It nags at me."
"Hm, can't disappoint the clients. I did send kids to dig around, but no sign of them. They probably left the area already or are holed up hiding somewhere."
"But..."
"Don't worry. The moment they show up here, they'll vanish."
"Got it."
What was Hidden Moon's ultimate goal?
Flying Tiger hadn't even started his first day, yet he'd already hinted at changes in the squad.
What fruit was he waiting to ripen?
'Well, if I survive, I'll find out eventually. For now, focus on staying alive.'
After two days' rest, Flying Tiger reported for his first day.
But was it a good gig?
The time was evening, and the location was a pleasure house called Six Fairy Maidens in the western district of the capital.
Upon giving Jin Ga-yong's name to the doorman at the entrance, a neatly dressed young girl promptly escorted Flying Tiger to an annex.
The little one, tripping along, asked, "Are you a guest of Master Jin's family?" and chattered on about "our Master Jin this and that." She seemed smitten.
'Didn't peg him for it, but looks like our team leader's got a thing for brothels? Even stealing the heart of a kid like that.'
So Flying Tiger gave the girl a flick on the forehead to shut her yapping mouth.
They arrived at a charming standalone building with a small garden in the front courtyard. The plaque read "Orchid Blossom Pavilion."
The young guide scampered off grumbling, which Flying Tiger ignored as he entered.
A long table held tea and snacks.
Three men were already seated.
A bald brute with a vicious look.
A shady, wrinkled old man.
A gisaeng boy primped meticulously.
Among them, the bald one eyed the entering Flying Tiger appraisingly and spoke.
"Look at this tender little punk. Newbie, huh?"
Flying Tiger pondered beating the guy down but held back for the first day. He muttered "Crazy bastard" loud enough to hear, then pulled out the chair opposite the bald one, plopped down, crossed his arms, and glared.
He planned to endure, but cross the line and he'd punish swiftly.
The bald man's ringed eyes widened.
The hunched old man beside him patted his shoulder and groaned. They knew each other.
"Hey, Ye Dok-du. Don't start trouble on day one. I'll be in real trouble if I get fired again."
What? Day one?
Flying Tiger's brow twitched, but then the gisaeng boy greeted him.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Hwa Yeong, the Myriad Transformations Sword. I studied at Mount Hua for ten years in my youth."
Mount Hua Sect?
A famed orthodox sect acknowledged across the jianghu. In its long history, it had occasionally produced the era's "Supreme Sword of the World," and even otherwise, it teemed with sword demons obsessed with the blade, severing worldly ties for pure cultivation.
A world far removed from the one Flying Tiger trod.
But...
So what?
"Flying Tiger. Nameless nobody."
Flying Tiger replied curtly and shut his eyes completely.
He sensed pointless chatter if he responded kindly.
Arrogant attitude.
But normal in his world.
Show weakness, and you're instantly a sucker or a cripple!
Thus, the bald brute Ye Dok-du and Flying Tiger's exchange was the usual shoulder-measuring in this world.
An awkward silence filled the room, broken after about one gak (15 minutes).
A fifth man entered behind Flying Tiger. A sturdy fellow with a prominent hooked nose and short mustache.
"Hey, beak-face. New face—fresh meat?"
Ye Dok-du spoke up again.
The hooked-nose man glanced around and bowed low.
"Joined today. Name's A Jeok-gang. Please take care of me, seniors."
This one was a pushover.
Ye Dok-du guffawed, promising to guide him well in a speech, while Hwa Yeong fawned "Junior" and milled about.
Another gak passed, and the door opened again for the sixth man.
Everyone stood hurriedly. It was Jeong Squad leader Jin Ga-yong.
"All here. Sit comfortably."
"Huh? Captain, we're still missing one."
A team had six members, so Hwa Yeong's point was valid.
Jin Ga-yong dismissed it casually.
"True, we picked one more. But background check showed he was a spy from One Heart Society—black path scum. Broke his limbs and tossed him out. Time's tight, so our Jeong Squad will proceed with me and you five."
Not bad for a captured spy. Might live crippled forever, but at least alive.