Chapter 132: Because I Have to Kill Every Last One of You Invaders
Yeop Hyeon charged forward, and Luk Ban-jang and her crew leaped into action alongside him.
The soldiers ahead were still waiting in place for Yeop Hyeon's group.
The distance between the two forces shrank steadily.
A hundred zhang… fifty zhang… thirty zhang…
As Yeop Hyeon's group closed in right before their eyes, the soldiers gulped nervously.
Right then, an elderly man appeared in front of them.
"By order of the King! Soldiers, clear a path!"
'Clear a path?'
The soldiers blinked in confusion at the command.
The commanding general, his face twisted in a scowl, demanded clarification.
"State Preceptor! What do you mean by that?"
"It means avoid unnecessary losses. Those foes have others to deal with them."
"Minimizing our forces' casualties comes first!
Two thousand soldiers can't handle Yeop Hyeon's group. We'd need at least five thousand to pose a real threat. As you know, those twelve are monsters among monsters."
Using ordinary troops to block them was clearly unwise.
Seeing the soldiers lower their weapons and part ways, Yeop Hyeon's group was just as taken aback. But skipping a fight was the best news they could hope for.
At that moment, the middle-aged general suddenly lunged at Yeop Hyeon. Eyes blazing with fury, he thrust his spear straight for the man's throat.
A peak Soaring Realm expert.
Yeop Hyeon didn't charge but stood his ground, watching calmly. When they were mere steps apart, a single sword streaked through the air and pierced the general's brow.
Pfbt!
Blood sprayed high into the sky.
The general halted right in front of Yeop Hyeon. Blood streamed from his head, quickly drenching his face. Still glaring murderously, he rasped his final words.
"The Tang Kingdom… will never bow to a pathetic place like Kanguk…"
Yeop Hyeon met the man's gaze steadily.
"You've invaded our Kanguk and slaughtered countless innocents. I never expected you to surrender anyway. Because…"
Yeop Hyeon's lips curled into a savage grin.
"Because I have to kill every last one of you invaders!"
He strode forward toward the thousands of eyes fixed on him.
"Anyone else wanna try me? I'll send you off quick and painless—no worries!"
His taunt made a few soldiers twitch with rage.
"Who dares move? Mutineers will have their entire clans exterminated!"
'Exterminate their clans?'
The soldiers' faces darkened at the State Preceptor's words.
The old State Preceptor glared at Yeop Hyeon, killing intent undisguised. The Tang troops were equally desperate to kill him. But striking now would only lead to pointless sacrifices.
They had to die in the battlefield, not defending some gold mine.
With no soldiers moving, Yeop Hyeon's group pressed on into the mine.
Two thousand soldiers weren't frightening, but slaughtering them all would take effort. Their main goal was securing the gold mine. Killing was secondary.
Inside the mine, Yeop Hyeon's group gaped in astonishment.
'Gold!'
Dozens of crates brimmed with gold ingots. Not yet minted into coins, but easily worth over three hundred million in gold nyang.
Ya Ri's lips curved upward.
"If we make it out alive, we'll definitely hit Divine Fusion Realm!"
Reaching the Divine Fusion Realm demanded vast sums.
A Penetrating Nether Realm expert needed at least hundreds of millions in gold nyang to break through. It wasn't impossible without the money, but wealth could slash the timeline dramatically.
Typically, it took a decade from Penetrating Nether to Divine Fusion.
With enough resources and effort, that could shrink to a single year.
Money was everything to martial artists.
Yeop Hyeon's group swiftly cleared out everything in the cave.
Flush with their massive haul, they exited the mine in high spirits.
At that instant, two spears hurtled from the sky, crossing and embedding in the ground at their feet.
And with them appeared a man!
As the man opened his mouth to speak, Yeop Hyeon shot forward. Earth force instantly enveloped him, and the Great Black Sword dropped into his hand.
One Sword Determines Life and Death!
A霸道-overwhelming single strike!
The man tried to counter the tyrannical sword but realized his mistake too late. He'd just planted his own weapons in the ground.
He reached for his spears, but it was too late.
Boom!
The Great Black Sword cleaved him in two.
Instant kill.
He died without a proper fight, cursing his own folly.
Yeop Hyeon recalled his sword and picked up the two spears. Both were top-grade spirit weapons.
Neung Han stepped forward, crouching by the corpse and shaking his head.
"Brother Jang was a real stand-up guy… Dropping off such a huge gift right before leaving."
Luk Ban-jang whistled, summoning the black wolves. As they mounted up to depart, the ground suddenly trembled.
Luk Ban-jang looked up to see a cavalry unit charging toward them.
About a thousand strong, they wielded black spears and wore pitch-black heavy armor. Even their horses were clad in ebony plate.
They advanced in perfect unison, like a single organism.
These were the Tang Kingdom's elite heavy cavalry.
Yeop Hyeon narrowed his eyes. He'd heard of them. Long ago, a hundred of their heavy cavalry had annihilated over three thousand Kanguk infantry. Kanguk troops feared them utterly.
They were the Tang Kingdom's strongest mounted force.
The kingdom commanded three thousand heavy cavalry, and a full thousand had appeared here.
The aura from a thousand heavy cavalry was enough to drain the color from Ya Ri's face.
Luk Ban-jang, however, remained utterly impassive.
The cavalry halted a hundred zhang away—the perfect charge distance.
Then, thousands more soldiers emerged from the surrounding woods. All bore longbows on their backs and feathered helmets.
Easily ten thousand in number.
They formed an encirclement around Yeop Hyeon's group.
The heavy cavalry parted in two ranks, and a man with a longsword stepped forward from between them.
It was Hahu Do, the one they'd clashed with before.
Blade Path Grandmaster of the Tang Kingdom, Hahu Do.
Behind him emerged a dozen black-clad warriors.
Luk Ban-jang eyed the forces arrayed before them and spoke calmly.
"The others have probably shown up too."
Yeop Hyeon nodded. He knew without asking that she meant the Qingzhou Mubang and Jungto Sinju warriors.
The Tang Kingdom wouldn't tackle them with just their own troops.
That would mean catastrophic losses.
How could they wage war on Kanguk after that?
The Tang side made no move.
Yeop Hyeon's group couldn't act rashly either. Breaking through such numbers alone was impossible.
Thus, the standoff left the area eerily silent.
"When's the reinforcements arriving?"
"Just about now."
"Reliable?"
"Reliable and useful."
Yeop Hyeon nodded.
"Those Jungto Sinju mercenaries you mentioned last time… pricey, right?"
"Not really. A hundred million for two."
Yeop Hyeon nearly tumbled off his black wolf.
'A hundred million for two!?'
When they'd first entered the Tang capital, Luk Ban-jang had pushed him to hire Jungto Sinju mercenaries. Given the circumstances, he'd agreed. But hearing the price still shocked him.
'Damn, maybe I should form a mercenary band later with Baek Ze, Mu Yun Qi, and Ji An Zhi! We'd rake in the cash!'
Ya Ri and the others reacted the same way.
They'd earned a fortune lately, but a hundred million gold nyang was still insane.
Luk Ban-jang looked at Yeop Hyeon's group.
"Stake your lives or your gold."
Neung Han gave a wry smile.
"Lives first, obviously. So, sis—which band did you call?"
"The Ninth Mercenary Band!"
Everyone but Yeop Hyeon paled.
Seeing their faces, Yeop Hyeon asked.
"Ninth Mercenary Band? That strong?"
Neung Han smiled bitterly.
"That's the one we wanted to join originally. Got rejected."
"Why?"
Neung Han's expression darkened.
"Simple. We weren't good enough!"
'Not good enough?'
Yeop Hyeon blinked in surprise.
Neung Han was peak Penetrating Nether Realm.
Hard to believe he fell short.
Ya Ri chimed in.
"If we had pull in Jungto Sinju, we wouldn't have washed up here. Yeop bro, you'll see when we go—it's crawling with geniuses everywhere. And the Ninth starts at five hundred million gold nyang."
'Five hundred million?'
"…"
Ya Ri pointed at Luk Ban-jang.
"Sis used to be Ninth Mercenary Band. They're cutting us a deal for her sake. Otherwise, no amount of gold would've brought them."
'Mercenaries pay that well!'
Yeop Hyeon thought for a moment.
"I'm thinking of starting a mercenary band. Anyone interested?"
As Ya Ri's group stared, he added seriously.
"I'm dead serious."
Neung Han replied.
"If you want it, it's doable."
Yeop Hyeon shook his head.
"Just a small outfit. Join if you're in; no hard feelings if not. Friends either way."
Ya Ri's group glanced at Luk Ban-jang.
She asked Yeop Hyeon flatly.
"You the boss?"
He nodded.
"Why?"
After a pause, Yeop Hyeon said.
"In a fight, I'll lead the charge—not run… er, first in. Retreating? I'll cover the rear. That enough?"
Luk Ban-jang studied his face, then turned to Ya Ri's group.
"Can you follow?"
They nodded.
The strong lead; others follow. Anywhere.
Yeop Hyeon was strongest besides Luk Ban-jang and had earned their trust across the board. No objections to him leading.
Luk Ban-jang nodded and faced Yeop Hyeon.
"Name?"
"Bandits!"
Yeop Hyeon declared with fierce eyes.
"Touch us, and we'll strip their land bare—not a blade of grass left! That's why—Bandits!"
"…"