Plunder: A Success?

Baek Hyun waited.

While the two bandits beat the young cultivator senseless, he kept himself tucked behind the rock and watched.

One of them was tall, with a slight limp in his right leg. The other was small in frame, but the sword in his hand moved with a skill that was more than passable. Both wore spirit stone pouches at their waists.

Baek Hyun studied those pouches and, for a moment, let himself wonder. How many stones were in there? Two? Five? Ten? The fact that he was counting at all struck him as faintly ridiculous. A moment ago he had been too afraid of them to think of anything but flight. Now he was taking inventory of another man's property.

People were shameless creatures. When death felt close, they begged only to be spared. The moment living seemed possible again, the first thing they coveted was someone else's purse. Baek Hyun, of course, told himself he had his reasons. He had been cast out of his clan. No money, no roof, not even a proper cultivation resource to his name. Those two, meanwhile, meant to go on living quite comfortably after beating a weaker man half to death. In a situation like this, who had any right to blame him for walking off with a single Snow Spirit Stone? He, at least, had no intention of blaming himself.

"Brother, isn't this enough?"

The young cultivator spoke through bloodied lips.

"I truly don't have anything."

"Still breathing, are you?"

The tall bandit laughed.

"Then we'd better keep looking."

He rifled through the young cultivator's clothes. A few spirit herbs and a worn pouch came out of the inner folds. Nothing worth having. The bandit clicked his tongue, disappointed.

"Carry junk like this around and of course you stay stuck ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at early Qi Condensation."

He kicked the pouch aside.

"No money to cultivate? Go home and farm. Why crawl up a mountain and make a nuisance of yourself?"

Baek Hyun, listening, was privately impressed. Remarkable logic. The man robbing you lectures you for being poor and tells you to take up farming. Who, exactly, had written the morals of the cultivation world? A roomful of bandits, most likely, sitting around with nothing better to do.

"Let's go. Dig any more and there won't be anything to find."

The short bandit tucked a jade bottle into his robes and turned away.

Baek Hyun narrowed his eyes. Now. Once the bandits were gone, he could take the Snow Spirit Stone. He only had to wait until they were truly out of sight. There was no reason to rush. The dead have no need to wait. The living can.

And then—

"Wait!"

The young cultivator shouted. Both bandits turned.

"Not that ore!"

Baek Hyun's face went stiff.

…This little bastard?

The moment their eyes were on him, the young cultivator rushed to explain.

"The ore in that crack in the rock! It isn't mine! I wasn't even going to take it!"

The tall bandit's eyes flashed.

"Ore?"

"No! I swear!"

"Where is it?"

The young cultivator shut his mouth. Too late. The two men followed his gaze toward the rocks. A moment later, the short bandit laughed.

"Well. Isn't this a stroke of luck."

He started toward the crack. Baek Hyun ground his teeth. He was the one who had found the Snow Spirit Stone. Strictly speaking, the System had pointed it out, but he had found it first all the same. And now these bastards were about to walk off with it. The world really was unfair. It wasn't the one who worked who collected the reward. It was the one with the strength. So what was a man without strength supposed to do?

Baek Hyun considered it, briefly, and soon had his answer. While the strong man collected the prize, you aimed for the back of his head. The trouble was that aiming for the back of a head required getting close enough to reach it.

The short bandit slid a hand into the crack.

"Oh. Fairly big, isn't it?"

A blue light spread across his palm. The Snow Spirit Stone. A thin rime of frost clung to its surface, and a faint cold seeped from within. It was about two joints of a thumb in size.

Text appeared before Baek Hyun's eyes.

Baek Hyun cursed inwardly.

Tell me that a little sooner.

Getting the Snow Spirit Stone into his hand would not be the end of it. Swallow the energy blindly and ruin his meridians all over again, and the whole thing would be wasted effort. Handing it over wasn't an option either.

The short bandit looked the stone over, then tossed it to the tall one.

"This ought to cover the wine, yeah?"

"Wine money?"

The tall bandit snorted.

"You take something like this to an apothecary, or the Cultivator Market. Get lucky and you might pull a few spirit stones."

In that instant, a thought surfaced in Baek Hyun's mind. They meant to sell the Snow Spirit Stone. Then he didn't necessarily have to snatch it. He could wait until they were on the move with it, and then—

No. He corrected himself almost at once. That was far too dangerous. He had no idea where the two of them were headed, and if they caught him following, it was over. There was a much simpler way.

Baek Hyun picked up a small stone from the ground and hurled it with all his strength toward the far side of the woods.

Crack.

The stone struck a tree. Both bandits turned at once.

"What was that?"

"An animal?"

Baek Hyun held his breath. A moment later, a small snow hare burst out of the trees. The short bandit spat a curse.

"Just a rabbit."

The instant he turned back, Baek Hyun snatched up another stone. This time he threw it farther.

Crack.

The sound rang off another trunk.

"Now what?"

The tall bandit scowled.

"You go check."

"Why me?"

"Your legs work, don't they?"

"And all that works on you is your mouth?"

The two men glared at each other. Baek Hyun clamped a hand over his mouth. He nearly laughed. At this rate they might start fighting each other over a single stone. Contrary to his hopes, though, they settled again soon enough.

"Forget it. Let's just go."

The short bandit waved it off.

"Nothing good comes of lingering here."

They set off along the forest path with the Snow Spirit Stone in hand. Baek Hyun let out a silent sigh. A failure. Or, more precisely, he still hadn't gained a thing. He watched the two of them recede.

Then, just as they were passing the young cultivator, the short bandit stopped dead.

"Ah."

He looked back.

"Almost forgot."

The young cultivator's face went white.

"Brother, I really have nothing left!"

"I know."

The short bandit smiled.

"That's why I thought I'd ask just one last thing."

He drew his sword.

"How did you know about that ore earlier?"

The young cultivator's eyes wavered. Watching, Baek Hyun understood. They had already been suspicious. They thought the young cultivator had known about the ore and deliberately kept it hidden.

"I'll tell you! I was only passing by, and—"

"Liar."

The sword moved. So they weren't complete idiots after all. Baek Hyun couldn't keep watching. Left like this, the young cultivator would die. The two of them had nothing to do with each other, of course. But there was a problem. If the boy died, the bandits would comb the area even more thoroughly, and they might well find the place where Baek Hyun was hiding. And there was a more important problem than that. The Snow Spirit Stone. If they left with the ore, he lost his chance to stabilize his body here and now.

Baek Hyun ground his teeth.

"Ah, fuck."

He drew a single coin from his pouch and pinched it between his fingers. The money hurt. One coin out of three. But right now time mattered more than money. He rose from behind the tree.

"You there!"

Both men turned. Baek Hyun put on a startled face, and made sure it showed.

"I—I'm just someone passing through!"

The short bandit narrowed his eyes.

"Who are you?"

"I came from Cheongun City to gather herbs. I didn't realize the two of you were here…"

"Then come over here."

Baek Hyun swallowed a curse. There were always people who assumed that if they told you to come, you would come. Right now, he had no choice. He walked, slowly. One step. Two. Three. The distance closed. He watched their hands, their feet, the set of their swords. He couldn't tell which of them would move first.

Then the tall bandit spoke.

"You been here a while?"

"No. I only just arrived."

"Then why were you watching us?"

"The two of you looked rather frightening."

The short bandit laughed as if he couldn't believe his ears.

"Talks well, doesn't he."

"If a man means to live, shouldn't he at least be good with his words?"

At that, the tall bandit burst out laughing.

"Look at this brat. I like him."

Baek Hyun laughed along. He was not, in any sense, laughing on the inside. He shifted the coin in his hand, ever so slightly, and turned his body at an angle so no one's eyes would drop to it. Then he spoke.

"Actually, there's something I ought to tell the two of you."

"What?"

"I saw that ore just now as well."

Both faces hardened. Baek Hyun thought, Good. From here on, all I can do is trust my luck.

"You saw the ore too?"

The short bandit came closer.

"Where?"

"Behind that rock, over there."

Baek Hyun pointed the other way. Both men looked at once. It was a very short moment. He didn't waste it. He flicked the coin pinched between his fingers.

Ting!

The coin cut through the air, skimmed past the short bandit's cheek, and struck a tree.

"What!"

The man jerked his head around on reflex. In that instant Baek Hyun dropped low and lunged sideways. His target was not the Snow Spirit Stone. It was the wrist of the tall bandit holding it. He seized the wrist and twisted with everything he had.

"You little shit!"

The tall bandit spat the curse. But Baek Hyun had already let go and fallen back. Breaking the wrist had never been the point. In the moment he grabbed it, he had felt the cold of the Snow Spirit Stone against his palm. He focused his mind on that cold.

Then something astonishing happened. The faint energy flowing out of the Snow Spirit Stone began to seep into his body along his palm.

Baek Hyun's eyes went wide. It worked. It actually worked. But there was no time to be glad of it.

"You rat bastard!"

The tall bandit swung his sword. Baek Hyun threw himself backward. Cloth split. A heartbeat later and his belly would have been opened. He rolled across the snow and ducked behind a rock.

"Get him!"

The short bandit shouted, and both men came at once. Baek Hyun clenched his jaw. He had not succeeded in stealing the Snow Spirit Stone. He had only absorbed a little of its energy. Still, he knew one thing now. His body could take in ice-attribute spiritual qi. Which meant the thing he had to do next was simple.

Run.

He turned behind the rock. The ground there dropped away in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a steep slope, buried under snow. Set a foot wrong and he would go tumbling. Even so, it was better than two men with swords coming up behind him. He ran for the slope.

"Stop!"

Anyone who stopped just because he was told to wouldn't have been running in the first place. Baek Hyun went down the snow as if sliding. His feet missed their purchase again and again. His shoulder slammed into a tree. At the end of it he went down hard, as if the ground had swallowed him. He was on his feet again at once. There was no room to look back.

Only after he had run a long way did he wedge himself in among the rocks. His breath climbed all the way to his throat. His heart hammered like something mad. With a shaking hand he felt his stomach. No blood. Alive. Alive again.

He set his back to the stone and spent a long while dragging ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his breath under control. Then, all at once, a laugh broke out of him.

"Ha… haha."

It was genuinely absurd. He had tried to steal an ore from two bandits. The result? One coin gone, his clothes torn, and a very near death. And still he was laughing. Because inside his body, faint as it was, something had definitely changed. The System's text rose again.

Baek Hyun stopped laughing.

"One percent?"

"Then the other ninety-nine?"

Baek Hyun closed his eyes. Very slowly, he bowed his head.

"…Fuck."

He had just understood. What he needed was not simply a single Snow Spirit Stone. It meant he would have to keep securing cultivation resources from here on. And he had no money, no skill, and no one he knew. On top of that, two bandits had now seen his face. Show himself on the outskirts of Cheongun City again, and there was a chance they would recognize him.

He dug through his robes. Two coins. The Basic Tu-Na Technique. His father's Wooden Plaque. That was all.

After a moment he drew the plaque out and set it on his palm. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠No faint light. No vibration. Nothing happened at all. Baek Hyun looked at it, then murmured low.

"Father."

There was no answer.

"What in the world did you leave me?"

He slipped the plaque back into his robes and slowly got to his feet. It wasn't over. He hadn't gotten his hands on the Snow Spirit Stone, but he had confirmed that he could absorb ice-attribute spiritual qi. That alone was a gain.

Baek Hyun looked down the snow-covered mountain path. He had no thought of going back to where the bandits were. Not now, at least. He would have to find another way. Dig herbs and sell them, take odd jobs for coin, do drudge work under someone else. However it happened, he had to secure resources. Growing stronger came after that. He started walking.

Then the System put up one last line of text.

Baek Hyun's steps stopped.

"…What?"

For a while he said nothing. Then, slowly, he smiled. This one was different from before.

"Right."

He drew the old cultivation manual from his robes. The corners were worn down, the cover torn in places. For the past three years, it was the book that had failed to move him so much as a single step forward. He turned the pages. And he laughed, one last time.

"This damned world rigged the game from the very start, and now it tells me the textbook was wrong too."

Baek Hyun closed the book. He had no thought of throwing it away just yet. It was the only thing he had. But someday he would have to replace it. A proper technique. Spirit stones. Pills. And the power to make sure no one could treat him lightly. He needed all of it.

He walked the mountain path again. Today he had gained nothing worth the name. Even so, he had survived. And the one who survives gets another chance.

He was still weak. But from now on, he had no intention of blaming that weakness on anyone but himself.