Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: First Strike Wins (5)
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Don't they say even a mutt has the upper hand on its own turf?
‘No, we left a day early, so how the hell did they catch up?’
The distance between Lanzhou, the Ten Demon Alliance’s headquarters, and Seohwa, where we departed, was a day’s ride on horseback.
And yet, the enemies chasing us had caught up.
*Thud-thud-thud-thud.*
“Hiyah! Hiyah!”
The Black Mountain Tigers galloped at full speed.
And the masters of the Ten Demon Alliance’s Dark Sect pursued us relentlessly.
It was time to choose: fight or flee.
I gathered my internal energy and shouted.
“Turn!”
*Thud-thud…*
The sound of hooves died down as if by magic.
Soon, our horses had completely turned around.
If we waited just a moment longer, a head-on clash with the enemy was certain.
It might seem reckless to think this way against nearly a hundred elite demonic warriors, but…
“Prepare for battle!”
I wasn’t confident.
Confident that I could lose.
“Heh heh heh.”
As if sensing it was his time to shine, the Black Tiger Corps Leader moved to the very front, unbidden.
“Looks like we’ll get a taste of action. Am I right?!”
“Yes, sir! Hahaha.”
“I’ll slice them in half!”
*Clang, clang, clang, clang.*
At his cry, the Black Mountain Tigers drew their swords, radiating immense self-assurance.
It was a confidence born from skill.
However, I had a duty to bring every last one of them back alive.
I had no intention of facing the enemy in a straightforward confrontation.
If the legend of the Black Mountain Tigers were to be broken, who would take responsibility?
*Whoosh.*
‘Perfect.’
After checking the wind’s direction by the way the sand scattered as I brushed it off my body, I pulled two spheres, each the size of a grown man's fist, from my saddlebag.
My secret weapon: the Vision-Destroying, Scent-Nullifying Pepper Bomb.
Developed by Cheong So-so, the Branch Head and Research Director of the Cheong Family’s Mujeon Branch, it was an improved version of the original pepper bomb. A powerful crowd-control weapon that could instantly paralyze the sight and smell of enemies over a wide area.
You could call it a +18 enhanced pepper bomb, I suppose.
I tossed the bombs high into the air.
*Boom. Boom.*
I shot out my energy like an arrow, piercing the center of the spheres and detonating them.
*Swoooosh.*
The toxic pepper powder, carried by the wind, descended upon our enemies.
And then.
“Gah!”
“My, my eyes!”
*Thud! Neigh!*
Blinded, our foes fell from their horses one after another, their formation shattering.
The enemy’s vanguard was completely neutralized.
“…”
I spoke to the gawking Black Tiger Corps Leader.
“What are you doing? Let’s go.”
“R-Right. Follow me!”
“Kill them! Uwaaah!”
I couldn't just stand by either.
I charged after the Black Mountain Tigers as they rushed forward.
*Swish! Swish!*
Red lines were drawn across the enemies’ bodies, following the arcs of the Black Mountain Tigers’ swords.
“Keuk.”
Running at the very rear, I smashed my foot into the head of an enemy struggling to his feet, bursting it, before pressing onward.
My target was the leader of this pursuit team.
The sooner I took out the head, the easier the battle would become.
“Hup!”
*Pow! Crack. Crunch.*
Unleashing the War Dragon Thirteen Strikes, I broke the bodies of the enemies blocking my path, allowing the Black Mountain Tigers to surge forward and overwhelm them.
“Don’t rest! Keep killing!”
At my shout, the Black Mountain Tigers gritted their teeth and swung their swords.
The duration of the crowd-control effect was about to end.
Sure enough.
“There they are!”
A few of the enemies, their eyes bloodshot, pointed our way and yelled.
The rest also began to open their eyes one by one, drawing their weapons and charging.
‘Dammit, already?’
The CC effect had worn off faster than I’d expected.
“Eek!”
An enemy, still streaming tears and snot, lunged at me with a thin sword.
Four or five demonic warriors followed close behind him.
*KABOOM!*
The Explosive Death Force I immediately slammed into them ripped their bodies apart.
*Stab. Stab. Stab-stab.*
Thin swords rose from the shadows and pierced my body.
Each sword tip was wreathed in the Dark Sect’s signature gray energy.
“Keuk.”
Though I quickly deployed my protective energy, I couldn't avoid small holes being punched all over my body.
The only saving grace was the Dragon Scale Armor covering my torso, which prevented any fatal wounds.
“These bastards!”
The surprisingly vicious attack sent a chill down my spine.
It wasn’t me I was worried about. It was the Black Mountain Tigers…
“Hmph! Pathetic.”
*Swish!*
“You think this is the first or second time we’ve faced an attack like this?!”
*Swish!*
…They were fighting incredibly well.
Moving forward in teams of three, protecting each other’s backs, they gave off the vibe of seasoned veterans.
‘Looks like I just need to worry about myself.’
Forty enemies remained.
The plan was for me to take down the enemy leader while the Black Mountain Tigers cleaned up the rest.
The War King’s energy surged in an instant, spreading its force over my body.
*KABOOOOOM!*
Soon, the black energy of the War Dragon began to swirl around me.
*Thump!*
Combining the War King Step with the Flying Heavenly Wind, I charged straight for the man who appeared to be the enemy leader.
*Crash-crash-crash-crash-crash!*
The five enemies who stood in his way were torn into pieces of flesh and scattered in all directions.
“You!”
The startled leader’s body sank into the ground, vanishing from sight.
The Dark Sect’s martial arts were as elusive as ever.
But they wouldn’t work on me now.
*BOOOOOOM!*
Stealth techniques are useless against area-of-effect attacks.
The Explosive Death Force I unleashed through the soles of my feet tore up the surrounding ground.
“Cough.”
The man reappeared, blood trickling from his lips.
“W-Wait!”
*Boom. Thwack.*
I slammed my Explosive Death Force into his head, and with that, our battle with the pursuit team concluded.
A moment later.
“Hoo…”
Catching my breath, I surveyed the battlefield.
Only five had sustained minor injuries. One could say we had defended ourselves well enough.
‘But I’m not happy with this.’
The performance of the Vision-Destroying, Scent-Nullifying Pepper Bomb was deeply unsatisfactory.
‘I’ll have to tell Research Director Cheong to work on increasing its duration.’
Of course, today’s failure would become the driving force for creating an even more powerful pepper bomb, so I didn’t dwell on it for long.
“Let’s go!”
Having secured an idea for a more potent pepper bomb, I led the Black Mountain Tigers onward.
* * *
The next day.
I spotted a small village and frowned.
“…What is that?”
*Flutter. Flutter.*
White flags hung over the village, swaying in the fierce sandstorm.
What’s more, there wasn’t a single demonic warrior guarding the perimeter.
“It seems they fled before we arrived.”
“Looks that way.”
I nodded silently at the Black Tiger Corps Leader’s words.
‘In a world without cell phones…’
Even if word travels fast, I couldn’t understand how they had caught the news so quickly.
Whoever they were, their survival instincts were truly off the charts.
“Ahem, it seems the reputation of our Blood Killing Corps has spread this far.”
As I scratched the bridge of my nose, the Black Mountain Tigers laughed like a band of brigands, pleased.
But what surprised me even more was the scene that followed.
“Hooray! Long live our heroes!”
“Sob, sob, we suffered so much from their tyranny.”
“Thank you so much for coming all this way. How can we ever repay this kindness…”
The villagers came out to welcome us with open arms.
My goodness, villagers welcoming a band of demonic brigands.
It was truly a mind-boggling sight.
When I collected myself and observed them, I understood why.
‘This isn’t some third-world country…’
The children were so malnourished their bellies were swollen, while the adults were nothing but skin and bones.
In such a state, proper clothing was a luxury, and not a single person wore decent garments.
“…Is there a representative?”
At my question, an old man leaning on a staff walked forward.
“Are you the village chief?”
“Y-Yes, I am.”
“…Did the demonic bastards who were here run away?”
“The moment news of you heroes’ arrival reached them, they fled immediately.”
“…Well, I’ll be.”
I don’t get it.
For those demonic bastards, the very personification of evil, to flee without even putting up a fight.
As I clicked my tongue and shook my head, the Black Tiger Corps Leader chuckled and said.
“When you get down to it, those demonic bastards are the ones who value their own lives the most. Isn't that right?”
“That’s right, Corps Leader.”
“It’s their specialty to run away at the slightest disadvantage.”
Coming from the Black Mountain Tigers, an anti-Ten Demon Alliance special forces unit, it must be true.
I nodded and asked the village chief.
“We’d like to get some food…”
“They fled in such a hurry they couldn’t have taken much. If you search their base, you should be able to find a fair amount.”
“Thank you.”
Following the chief’s directions, we found a considerable amount of food and treasure left behind at the Yukjin Sect's base.
“Let’s just take a little and give the rest to them.”
At my subtle suggestion, the Black Tiger Corps Leader and everyone else grinned and nodded.
“Heh heh, let’s do that.”
“Sounds good.”
“I don’t know what the King of Hell is doing. He should be taking these demonic bastards away.”
My first failed robbery.
‘Well, this isn’t so bad.’
But it was a failure that felt good.
* * *
Three days.
“Hah!”
In that short period, the Ten Demon Alliance’s pursuit teams continued to catch up to us.
Having used up my pepper bombs, the Black Mountain Tigers and I had no choice but to fight them with all our might.
After a bloody battle, we annihilated the enemy without a single casualty.
This happened a total of three times.
After a series of fierce struggles, we finally succeeded in entering Ningxia.
*Swoosh.*
We came to a halt in front of an inn that stood tall beside a large river.
The Dragon Gate Inn.
The ominous name made it sound like a place where a fight was bound to break out, but this was a Haomun contact point.
I had the Black Mountain Tigers wait outside and went in. I saw a middle-aged man skillfully tossing a wok.
“Looks like I’ve come to the right place.”
“Would you like some?”
He offered me food without even turning around.
“I make it a rule not to eat what others give me.”
It wasn’t because of the martial world’s taboo against accepting food from strangers.
‘I can’t be at ease until I’ve seen the kitchen.’
There was no way the notoriously poor hygiene standards of ancient China would be any different in the medieval martial world, so I wasn’t eating.
For the record, the inn we used as our base in Hanzhong underwent strict hygiene inspections under my supervision.
Thanks to that, not a single guest had gotten sick from the food, and the owner seemed quite satisfied.
However, unaware of these circumstances, the owner of the Dragon Gate Inn spoke in a slightly troubled voice.
“Oh dear, I started cooking when I saw you arrive.”
I glanced into the kitchen and, as expected, it was a complete mess.
I shook my head and changed the subject.
“That’s alright. Let’s get straight to business.”
The man came out of the kitchen and cupped his fist.
“I am Lee Jeok, the 37th Branch Master of Haomun. You can read my name backward, and it’s still Lee Jeok.”
‘So Yang Ryeong sent a dimwit!’
That’s right. To aid our escape, I had made prior arrangements with Yang Ryeong to prepare an escape route.
It was a bit of a surprise that such a half-wit had been sent as the person in charge.
Whether he knew what I was thinking or not, he began to explain the escape plan.
“The boat you requested has been prepared. However, we couldn't secure a large one, so you'll have to split into groups of fifteen.”
The thought of being crammed into a small boat with a bunch of grimy men made me frown, but it couldn't be helped.
In the martial world, a boat capable of carrying people was a luxury item, so much so that they said one boat was worth one concubine.
If anything, it was impressive that he had managed to procure two medium-sized vessels.
“We’ll do that.”
“Thank you for your understanding. Do you know how to steer a boat? If not, our disciples can…”
“We can handle it, don’t worry.”
The Black Mountain Tiger hyungs said they could do it, so whatever.
“And about the payment…”
“Let’s use one of the three chances.”
I decided to use one of my three free coupons.
Since he had acquired expensive boats, the fee was bound to be high.
“Uhm… it would have been a bit difficult if you hadn’t mentioned it beforehand. As you know, procuring the boats cost quite a pretty penny…”
“You said I could use it whenever, and now you’re saying I should have told you in advance? What kind of bullshit is this? Don’t you know you’re supposed to treat regulars better?”
It’s not like it’s a coupon for sweet and sour pork.
“But…”
“How about I just smash this whole place to bits? Huh?”
Perhaps moved by my polite request, Lee Jeok’s eyes widened, and he nodded his head.
“…A-Alright. But please explain it to the Chief later. This is a matter that could get me in a lot of trouble.”
“Of course, man. I’ll even put in a good word for you, say you did a great job.”
“…”
After barely finishing our negotiations, Lee Jeok lit a fire in the woodpile beneath the chimney.
It seemed he was sending a signal with the smoke.
And then.
*Swoosh.*
Before long, two medium-sized boats arrived.
The Black Mountain Tigers and I boarded without a word.
We were so exhausted that all we wanted to do was rest.
Of course.
“Ah, the horses we left over there—sell them off and send the money to Hanzhong. They’re good horses, so don’t sell them for cheap, got it?”
“…”
I didn’t forget to sell the horses before we left.
“Well then, take care.”
With my farewell, the boats set off, cutting through the water.
And soon, I realized a crucial fact.
“Blech!”
During our time as brigands, none of us, myself included, had washed even once.