Massacre Must Be Answered with Massacre
Yi Do headed to the site at Bibong Mountain together with Un Dohyeon.
He had already examined the bodies the Hong Clan had recovered before coming here, but they had not been enough. He wanted to see the site itself. So he came.
Barely a day had passed since the incident, which made it easy enough to reconstruct what had happened. Blood and viscera were strewn everywhere — shattered fragments of carts, and bodies so thoroughly dismembered that they had been impossible to recover in one piece.
Yi Do surveyed the surroundings without a single change in his expression.
"...I've been going over the wounds, but there is no 'trace' whatsoever. Identification is impossible."
Yi Do silently nodded at Un Dohyeon's report. The trace he spoke of was the trace of martial technique.
Of the warriors who had set out on the escort, exactly twenty had been Oryong Peak Fortress men — the strongest fighters among them. And they had died without accomplishing anything, yet without the slightest trace of a form or technique. Which meant that opponents of overwhelming strength had simply slaughtered them, each blade already staked, each strike leaving nothing behind.
Yi Do, who had been examining the wounds, spoke.
"One martial artist of the Five Qi Returning to Origin realm."
With that, he walked toward a tree in one corner of the site. There lay a corpse split in half at the neck, and its state was utterly different from the bodies around it. The direction the blood had sprayed. How far the skin had been pressed. The manner in which the bone had been severed. Yi Do's two eyes saw all of it with perfect clarity.
"Curious."
Truly curious.
"A jeolseon, was it... An ingenious weapon."
There was nothing more to see.
"A man who wields a saber but not as his primary weapon. A woman who fights with a jeolseon. Both at the Five Qi Origin realm. And five martial artists wielding sabers at the Three Flowers Crown realm. Does anything come to mind?"
"...A saber-wielding man of the Five Qi Origin realm who doesn't use it as his main weapon... I can't be certain, but the odds are high that it's Pung Bi-chang, the Branch Master of the Pacheon Fist Sect's Jangam Branch. As for the jeolseon... it is an extremely unusual weapon. I can't say."
"There's no one in Jangam Commandery who uses a jeolseon?"
"...No. Not that I'm aware of."
"Then it means an outsider."
Yi Do did not so much as entertain the notion that mere bandits had done this. He could state it with certainty — there were no bandits here. What lunatic bandit would set foot in a territory where the Asura Sword Sect and the Pacheon Fist Sect were locked in a struggle for dominance? There had been several, long ago. Every one of them had been torn apart.
This was that kind of place.
Yi Do, who had been quietly standing, turned around.
"Let's go."
"Yes."
Back in Sambong County, the two did not head for the branch hall. Their destination was a small building tucked away in a corner of the county.
Un Dohyeon stopped at the entrance, his voice trailing off.
"Branch Master, this place is..."
Yi Do smiled. There was no way he didn't know where this was. The Cheonjeong Gate Sambong County Branch. When you lacked information, the correct answer was to go to those who possessed it. That was why he had come to the Cheonjeong Gate.
"Wait here."
"...Yes."
Yi Do entered the Cheonjeong Gate alone.
A man at work inside looked up — and swallowed hard.
"...Good day to you."
His voice turned respectful without his willing it. He had no choice. There was no one in Sambong County who didn't know this man. And for an organization that dealt in information not to know him? They might as well tear down their signboard and go out into the street to die.
"Is the branch manager in?"
"...The branch manager is... inside at the moment, but... may I ask what business brings you?"
"What business does anyone have at an information organization? I've come to buy information."
Yi Do nodded. The man rose from his seat at once and dashed upstairs. Before long, a crashing sound rang out — unmistakably a chair toppling over. Then a man came scrambling down to the first floor, out of breath. He was thin in build overall, and his face was brimming with flustered alarm.
"Ah, for an esteemed guest to visit such a shabby little place..."
He guided Yi Do to a small room in one corner. Yi Do silently followed, and quite naturally, a private meeting was arranged. The man took his seat and smiled awkwardly.
"Forgive my late introduction. I am Jang Sang-bo, branch manager of the Cheonjeong Gate Sambong County Branch."
"Yi Do. I hold the post of Branch Master of the Asura Sword Sect's Sambong Branch."
"Ah, as if I wouldn't know. You are a man of truly fearsome reputation, after all. Heh heh."
Yi Do came straight to the point.
"Do you know what happened at Bibong Mountain yesterday?"
"The massacre of the Hong Clan... if that is what you mean, then yes. I do."
"I've come to obtain information on it."
Jang Sang-bo's face went carefully blank. His attitude grew wary in an instant.
"...As you are no doubt aware, the information handled by our Cheonjeong Gate is divided into grades — Yellow, Dark, Earth, and Heaven. When it comes to something like this, occurring so recently, with clear evidence that the perpetrators intended to conceal their identities, the case is classified as Heaven-grade at minimum, regardless of the enemy's level of martial attainment. With time it may drop to Earth or Dark grade, but as of now it is Heaven-grade — and that is what matters."
"And?"
"It means the price goes up considerably."
They had not divided things into grades for nothing. Heaven-grade commissions were not paid in silver taels. The minimum starting price was thirty gold taels. Below that, they wouldn't even take the job. No matter how mighty the client, this was the principle of the Cheonjeong Gate.
"And how are you measuring the price at the moment?"
"...One hundred gold taels. Minimum."
Yi Do's brow furrowed slightly.
"A hundred?"
"Yes. The minimum. As information is gathered and sorted, unforeseen complications can arise, so surcharges exceeding the original price by several times are possible."
It was expensive — but they had the skill to justify it. Yi Do did not doubt that.
"A man of the Five Qi Origin realm who wields a saber but not as his primary weapon. A woman of the Five Qi Origin realm wielding a jeolseon. And five saber-wielding men of the Three Flowers Crown realm. I need information on these people, and on the powers behind them. What sum are you thinking, all told?"
Jang Sang-bo seemed to consider for a moment, then spoke in a cautious tone.
"...Two hundred gold taels. Minimum."
A smile spread across Yi Do's lips.
"Fine. Whatever the sum comes to, know that I will pay it. However — payment after the fact."
"...Pardon?"
"I said I'm paying after."
Jang Sang-bo's expression turned strange. Was the man joking?
"...I, Branch Master, beg your pardon, but our Cheonjeong Gate normally takes payment in advance."
"Normally, you say. Then there must be occasions when you accept payment after the fact."
"There are, but... only when more than sixty percent of the assessed price is paid upfront. A complete post-payment arrangement like this is... difficult."
Yi Do was no fool. Did the man truly think he didn't understand that?
"Listen carefully. I am about to make you and your Cheonjeong Gate a proposal."
"...A proposal?"
"Hear me out, then decide."
Jang Sang-bo's expression turned serious. He was willing to listen. Yi Do opened his mouth.
"If the powers behind this are brought to light, I will take everything they have."
"..."
"Masters of the Five Qi Origin realm, masters of the Three Flowers Crown realm — I will cut their throats all the same. And if there are powers behind them, I will crush those too. In this case, that would be a sect, I imagine. Consider how much money I will be bringing out of that place."
"...Money, you say?"
"One share in ten of that money goes to the Cheonjeong Gate."
Jang Sang-bo's eyes went wide.
"All you need to do is provide information. The names of those who butchered the Hong Clan's caravan at Bibong Mountain, the powers behind them, where the plunder they stole was transported and whose hands it sits in now. And if there are powers behind them — where those powers' escorts are moving."
"..."
"Provide only that, and a tenth of the proceeds passes to you. Whatever the information fee would have come to, you stand to gain far more than your existing profit."
"..."
"I've explained it at length. Can you not do the arithmetic?"
Jang Sang-bo was no fool. The powers behind it? Honestly, he had his own suspicions. He could guess what Yi Do was thinking, too. The caravan had been slaughtered. By whom? Once that came to light, Yi Do would gut their caravans in exactly the same way — and the profit from that would be considerable. It meant this wouldn't end with one or two plunderings.
Above all, there was Yi Do's worth.
For an organization that dealt in information, there was no way not to know. No — it went beyond knowing; they needed to get a grip on him by any means necessary. Yi Do was a martial artist whose future promised even more than his present. His value transcended imagination. And a man like that was plotting something — and offering to hand over a share in ten of the spoils.
"Every word... everything you've just said — is it the truth?"
"I have no hobby of saying two different things with one mouth. Nor a hobby of speaking falsehood. What will it be?"
A beaming smile bloomed across Jang Sang-bo's face.
"We will cooperate. I will gather every scrap of information my hands can reach."
"Good. How long do you need?"
"...Six hours will suffice."
"Six hours. Understood."
Yi Do returned to the branch hall just as he was. Six hours passed.
Un Dohyeon, who had been waiting in front of the Cheonjeong Gate, approached Yi Do carrying a thick bundle of paper.
"Branch Master. I've obtained it."
Yi Do took the documents and skimmed through them at speed.
He had learned this lesson many times in his past life: never, ever ignore an information organization. Once, he had smashed ten Cheonjeong Gate branches to pieces — and the ten years that followed had been exhausting. It was only after severing the necks of the sect master and vice sect master of the Cheonjeong Gate's headquarters and killing eight of its elders that a dramatic reconciliation had finally been possible. Of course, he had also obliterated the Haomen who had meddled in between — which was why it had taken ten years. For ten full years he had gone without proper sleep, hunting down the disciples of the Cheonjeong Gate and the Haomen alike.
That experience had taught him several lessons. Even the most obstinate men opened their mouths once a blade arrived at their necks — and for all their talk of being information organizations, they were human in the end, so offer them more money than the established rate and they would happily sell out another branch.
This case was a little different, but the principle was the same.
Reading on in silence, Yi Do came to a halt at one point.
The powers behind it were, as everyone had expected, clans of Jangam Commandery. No fewer than four clans were entangled — and the Pacheon Fist Sect's Jangam Branch as well. The Five Qi Origin master with the saber was their Branch Master.
He had apparently used a saber in some attempt to disguise his identity. It had meant nothing.
One of those four clans: the Jong Clan. Their caravan would pass the northern edge of Bibong Mountain today.
Yi Do slowly closed his eyes.
At that sight, Un Dohyeon's face filled with puzzlement, but he asked nothing. The Branch Master must have something deep to ponder. He turned away in silence, stood with his back to Yi Do, and spread his senses across the surroundings. Guarding Yi Do's person at the slightest excuse had become habit by now.
Yi Do opened his eyes.
"Un Dohyeon."
"Yes, Branch Master."
"We go to the Hong Clan. Prepare yourself."
Un Dohyeon smiled.
"I am always prepared."
And so Yi Do and Un Dohyeon made their way to the Hong Clan.
Hong Chik-seo, who had been pacing about in restless anxiety, cast his worries aside the moment he spotted Yi Do and broke into a beaming smile. It felt a bit strange to put it this way, but — it was a mark of trust. However much the sects had once lorded over Sambong County, this was still a place where people lived, and even when the clans of Jangam Commandery had to be checked together, at root they remained competitors.
Right now, the Hong Clan had lost a great deal. Everyone had turned their backs on them. Only one person had not turned away — Yi Do of the Asura Sword Sect.
He spoke.
"I'll need to make use of some people."
Hong Chik-seo answered at once, without a breath of hesitation.
"Use as many as you wish."
"I need fifty porters, quick on their feet. Martial artists will do as well."
Hong Chik-seo brought warriors of the Hong Clan straightaway, without a single moment's hesitation. Their eyes were all burning bright. They were men who meant to avenge those murdered on the escort — friends, younger brothers, sworn comrades.
The number was gathered.
An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. If they had carried out a massacre, then it was only proper that the massacre be repaid in kind.
"Follow me. We march on Bibong Mountain."