Surging Killing Intent (2)
The blade punched straight through Jiang Zhou's back and jutting out from his chest.
Fwoosh…
The instant Jiang Zhou's body was skewered, his form scattered into the darkness—and the enemy's head rolled to the ground.
"Kraaagh…! Kraaagh…!"
At the same moment, more figures shrieking those horrid cries came rushing at him.
Shwack… rustle…
Jiang Zhou's form split in every direction, cleaving through their bellies, and heads began to fall.
The bisected torsos of his enemies spouted blood as they tumbled across the floor.
It was a scene straight out of hell itself, but none of it registered in Jiang Zhou's eyes. The furious exhilaration boiling through him was beyond all restraint. Killing intent surged from every inch of his body and burst out into the darkness.
Whoooooosh…
The killing intent radiating from his entire frame shook the old mansion to its foundations.
Crack… bam…! Groaaan…
The halls screamed as their roof tiles rained down, and the pillars holding up the ceilings twisted and buckled, unable to withstand the pressure. Even the enemies whose eyes had rolled back white shuddered from head to toe before that killing intent.
Rustle… rustle…
Jiang Zhou let no opening slip past him.
Wherever the Ink Sword passed, flesh split open and blood geysered skyward.
Ja-seol could only stare, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.
There was no doubt about it—the figure whirling through that darkness in a maddened sword dance was Jiang Zhou, the owner of the inn.
Shwack… rustle…
Every time the Ink Sword carved through the air, the bodies of those nameless attackers were cleaved apart, heads tumbling to the ground.
What stunned her even more was that her eyes couldn't properly keep up with his movements. Because of it, Jiang Zhou seemed to multiply into dozens of overlapping figures.
"Kraaagh…! Kraaagh…!"
Every time the unidentified attackers let out those ghastly shrieks, a foul stench drifted over. That revolting odor was unmistakably the reek of rotting flesh.
Charging like madmen while reeking of decay—there was no way those things were the chivalrous heroes of the martial world.
She had been watching the ferocious battle so intently that she didn't even realize her own hands were white-knuckled around the pillar she was hiding behind.
Whooooosh…
As Ja-seol watched Jiang Zhou fight, a sudden wave of killing intent came crashing down on her. It was so overwhelmingly savage that her whole body trembled against her will.
Cre-eak…
The wooden pillar she was clutching groaned as the killing intent split its bark and twisted it.
He might just be… even stronger than my senior brother.
While Ja-seol watched from behind the pillar, the number of the unknown attackers steadily dwindled. Not a single one of those white-eyed fiends survived.
Rustle…
A black Sword Gang split the night sky, and a moment later the chest of a man covered head to toe in tattoos was torn open.
"Kraaaaaagh…!"
As his anguished scream echoed across the night sky, the survivors all retreated at once.
But Jiang Zhou would not permit even a retreat.
Shwieeee…
The Ink Sword tore through the night and skewered another enemy's throat. The instant it pierced flesh, the blade reversed direction and flew back into Jiang Zhou's waiting hand.
Telekinetic Sword Control…
Before Ja-seol could even finish her shock, Jiang Zhou's form was already closing on the fleeing enemies.
In that very moment, twin streams of Sword Gang came slashing in from either side, aimed at his neck and abdomen. Jiang Zhou's head severed cleanly, and his stomach split open.
Fwoosh…
Shwack…
The moment his form dispersed into darkness, two heads soared into the air.
Thud… splash… splash…
The heads and their bodies rolled across the ground almost simultaneously. In the end, Jiang Zhou had cut down even the ones trying to run.
Whew…
Jiang Zhou let out a long breath. The uncontrollable exhilaration and killing intent were finally settling.
"Who's there?"
As he caught his breath, Jiang Zhou turned his head toward the darkness. In that instant, he caught sight of something darting swiftly away into the shadows.
A warrior?
The faint silhouette had a sword strapped at the waist.
Whiiing…
Jiang Zhou's form shot after it.
The figure was fleeing in the direction of the Murim Alliance Headquarters.
Someone from the Alliance, then?
Jiang Zhou halted his pursuit.
"Looks like it was a customer. Damn vermin…"
If it weren't for those cursed intruders, he would have been serving guests by now.
Aigoo…
Might as well go dig a grave.
Why was she running?
Even as Ja-seol fled at full speed under her lightness skill, hugging the shadows, she couldn't understand why she was running. The moment the front gate of the Murim Alliance came into view, she stopped her technique and glanced back—no one was following her.
Thank goodness.
She pressed a hand to her still-thundering heart. Everyone has a hidden side they keep carefully buried away. And tonight, she had stumbled upon the colossal hidden side of a man named Jiang Zhou. The owner of the inn, that master of the kitchen, had been a supreme martial artist all along—and not just any master, but one who wielded Telekinetic Sword Control as casually as breathing.
That alone had been enough to shake her.
But why did I run from there?
Tilting her head in puzzlement, Ja-seol walked on. The moment Jiang Zhou had turned his gaze toward her hiding place, her body had instinctively launched her away. There had been no real reason to flee—she had simply reacted.
"Where are you coming back from at this hour?"
She turned toward the voice. Her senior brother Baek Won-young was looking at her with a bright smile.
Instead of answering, Ja-seol countered.
"Where are you going?"
Haha…
"I was heading out to have a drink or two."
Her senior brother looked genuinely delighted at the mere prospect of going to that inn.
"I was planning to eat there too, but the lights were already out."
She quickly improvised the lie. She had no idea why she was lying—but it felt like the right thing to do.
Her senior brother's face fell dramatically.
"Is that so? And here I was hoping to share a cup with Brother Jiang and have a proper talk…"
"He'll definitely keep the inn open late tomorrow."
Haha…
"How would you know that, little sister?"
At his question, she could only wave the answer away.
"I don't know… just a feeling."
Baek Won-young nodded and turned to leave.
"Well, I suppose the inn can wait until next time."
Ja-seol made her way back to her quarters as well. Today had been far too shocking a day for her.
Clip-clop-clop…
The horse, which had been running like something possessed, abruptly stopped short. It strolled into the roadside brush and began grazing with perfect nonchalance.
"Come on, move it, you stubborn beast…!"
Yang Jeong kicked the stallion's flank and hauled on the reins, but the animal didn't budge an inch. Furious, he hopped down from its back and planted himself in front of its face.
"Keep this up and no mare in the land will ever mate with you, I swear…!"
At that, the grazing stallion raised its head.
But there was something deeply wrong with the look in its eyes. As if it had gone mad, they blazed with a wild glitter, and it looked ready to rear up and trample him on the spot.
"Uh…?"
A flustered Yang Jeong eased backward.
"Never mind… bad horse. Bad."
Only then did the stallion lower its head and return to its grass.
Yang Jeong had good reason to hurry home. He had brought a martial arts manual back with him, and the household had descended into chaos. His father had even thrown a lavish feast, declaring that the family had obtained a true treasure—and no wonder, for the martial arts handed down through the family all this while had been thoroughly ordinary. What Yang Jeong had brought home, by contrast, was beyond remarkable. It was transcendent.
"Where in the world did you get this manual?"
"Big Brother gave it to me."
He couldn't exactly say the Alliance Leader had handed it over, so he had no choice but to credit his sworn brother. If he'd admitted where it truly came from, his father would have interrogated him about every last detail and almost certainly marched straight to the Murim Alliance.
Ohhh…
"The benefactor who saved your life handed over a manual this precious? My boy, you've met a sage sent down from the heavens themselves."
His father was so moved that his eyes brimmed with tears. When Yang Jeong had returned home after two years of honing his martial arts under his master, his father had grilled him about everything—and back then he had merely mumbled vague answers. But the moment he'd produced the spirit herb, all his father's curiosity about those two years had evaporated.
"From now on, you'll train in this art here at home."
At his father's words, Yang Jeong shook his head.
"Father, wouldn't it be better to learn from Big Brother than to practice at home?"
Ohhh…
"Now that you mention it, you're right. That's my boy!"
Deeply impressed, his father had packed him a heaping bundle of rice cakes and every other foodstuff he could lay hands on. Which meant Yang Jeong had to get back to the inn as fast as possible, before any of it spoiled.
Impatience mounting, he walked back up to the stallion.
"There's another fine mare waiting for you at the inn. So let's move—now."
Pat… pat…
And he didn't stop at words. He made elaborate mating gestures with both hands.
Had the beast actually understood him? The grazing stallion suddenly raised its head, its eyes blazing wild.
Thud-thud-thud…
Then it took off at a dead sprint.
"Hey, you beast…! You're supposed to carry me…!"
Yang Jeong belatedly tore off after the horse.
"Stop…! Stop, you mangy…!"
Sin Pung-gae trudged out of the Murim Alliance Headquarters with leaden steps.
Where in blazes is that boy hiding?
No matter how hard he searched, the boy was nowhere to be found in the Alliance. The Alliance Leader had been no help, and the prodigies of the Jamryonghoe only shook their heads, saying they knew of no such person.
As he walked, his gaze drifted toward the stream—and there was Jiang Zhou, emerging with a stack of dishes to wash them at the water's edge.
I wanted to taste that famous cuisine of theirs too, damn it all.
In all his years as king of the beggars, this was the first time he'd ever been denied a meal he craved. That made the loss sting all the more. But after hearing the story from Jiang Zhou's own lips, he could hardly set foot in that inn again.
Cheeky bastards.
He had already dispatched the Beggars' Sect beggars stationed in the Alliance. Before long, intelligence would come flowing in from his informants spread across every road and town. It was a trivial little affair from long ago, so they might not be able to pin down exactly what had happened—but the Beggars' Sect had been gravely insulted over it, and he wanted the truth dragged into the open no matter what.
"May your house flourish."
Sin Pung-gae offered the parting blessing with mock courtesy. Jiang Zhou, scrubbing away at his dishes, glanced up at him.
"Safe travels, sir. Let's never meet again."
Tch…
Petty little grudge-keeper.
Muttering inwardly, Sin Pung-gae made his way toward the village. After walking for a good while, he entered it and caught the scent of food wafting from every direction.
Where shall I fill my belly before moving on?
He had already eaten his fill at the Alliance before leaving, but beyond this village there wasn't another town of any size for a long stretch of road.
Sniff… sniff…
Sin Pung-gae flared his nostrils and went hunting for whichever inn smelled the finest.
Thud-thud-thud…
Then, from somewhere, came the thunder of hooves.
What lunatic gallops a horse through a crowded village?
Irritated, he turned toward the sound.
Whoa there…! Gah…!
Villagers scattered in every direction as a horse bearing a rider tore through the town at terrifying speed, barreling for the gates.
"Please, I'm begging you, slow down, you beast…! Look out…! Look ouuut…!"
The horse's owner was bellowing like a man possessed from its back.
Tsk, tsk…
"Horse has gone mad, has it."
Sin Pung-gae clicked his tongue and turned away—then something about the rider flickered at the edge of his vision.
Hm?
He whipped his head around and hurried after the direction the horse had gone. It was already a distant speck on the road.
"It couldn't be… a face to outshine Song Yu or Pan An himself?"
Found him. At long last, the boy was found.
Sin Pung-gae didn't hurry. That road led to one place, and one place only—the Murim Alliance.
So that's why the brat wasn't in the Alliance all this time.
Once beyond the village, he spread his lightness skill and began to run.
Hehehehehe…
"Run all you like, boy—where exactly do you think you can escape to?"
The gloom that had weighed on his heart had turned to pure, bubbling joy.