Chapter 257
Chapter 257
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 257
Chapter Title: Rescuing My Brother-in-Law (8)
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“Let's go.”
With a sharp crack, I ripped the iron bars off the temporary cell inside the ice cavern. Myo San stared at me with feigned surprise.
“How… did you get here?”
“What do you mean, how? I came to rescue you.”
“All this way?”
“It wasn't as far as I thought. The boat ride was quick.”
Though, to be fair, it was a custom high-speed boat.
Helping the staggering Myo San to his feet, I felt his body was as cold as ice.
To think they'd lock them up in a freezer, even if they are a band of traitors.
Just like the martial world to disregard the human rights of criminals.
Rumble.
As I helped him out, I could see Woo Je-jun, Yu Ryong, and his men moving through the ice cavern, rescuing the other scholars.
Myo San's expression instantly brightened as he expressed his gratitude.
“Thank you.”
“If you're grateful, you can pay me back later.”
“…”
Crack.
I kicked down the bars of the adjacent cell, and an old man with a long, white beard walked out.
Even at a glance, he radiated an aura of authority. He was probably the head of the Royal Academy.
“Who are you? How did you manage to break through the Golden Guards?”
A question clearly filled with suspicion. He seemed to be wondering if this was a trap.
“What a pain. If you don't want to come out, feel free to rot in there.”
“That is the Grand Scholar. Show some respect, Mujeon.”
Myo San flinched at my blunt reply.
“Grand Scholar, my ass. What good is scholarship in a country on the brink of collapse? What are you doing? Not coming out?”
“Mujeon!”
Only when Myo San shouted did the so-called Grand Scholar's suspicion subside.
“You must be San's friend.”
“My apologies. He is but a simple warrior, short on learning.”
“Not at all. What use is learning to a man who risks his life to save a friend? His heart is already full of righteousness.”
“Stop with the bullshit and follow me. The Imperial Guard will be here soon.”
“…”
Just then, Yu Ryong, having rescued all the scholars, ran over.
“What's the plan now?”
“I've prepared a hideout near the South Gate. Once we get there, not even the Left Commander will be able to touch us.”
“All the way to the South Gate?”
Considering the size of Nanjing, it was a distance you couldn't call close even as a joke.
“There weren't many suitable places, so we had no choice.”
“Hmm…”
Taking the frail scholars of the Royal Academy, whose bodies were stiff from being locked in the cold, was an enormous risk.
Besides, my only objective was Myo San.
My cooperation with Yu Ryong was only supposed to last until the scholars were rescued anyway.
‘Should I just ditch them?’
For a moment, I was tempted to leave them all behind.
“…If you're not up for it, you can go on your own.”
“Hitting me with a preemptive strike like that?”
“Pardon?”
That preemptive strike stirred the conscience hidden deep inside me.
“I'll secure the escape route, you follow me. No matter what, protect this guy.”
“Of course.”
Yu Ryong replied with a bright expression.
“Je-jun, let's go!”
“Yes!”
And so, the escape began.
I immediately ran out and opened the door to the ice cavern.
“You succeeded.”
Sama Heun greeted me, his face lighting up.
I extended my Seventh Sense to scan the area; thankfully, there were no Imperial Guards.
“Phew.”
A sigh of relief escaped me.
Encountering the army now, while burdened with so much baggage, would have been quite troublesome.
“We're heading to the South Gate. Follow me.”
“Yes.”
With Woo Je-jun and Sama Heun following, I moved forward at a pace that was neither too fast nor too slow.
‘Why is it so bright tonight?’
Of all nights, it had to be a full moon. The streets of Nanjing were clearly visible.
“Who goes there!”
A shout rang out at that moment.
Thud. Thud.
Woo Je-jun shot out like lightning and subdued them.
Seeing there were only two of them, they seemed to be patrolmen.
Meanwhile, their appearance put me on alert, and I looked back.
Yu Ryong was following with the scholars.
The problem was.
‘They're even slower than I thought.’
Their pace was slower than that of an average adult man.
It seemed the aftereffects of being trapped in the ice cavern were much worse than I'd anticipated.
‘Geez, they should have exercised more…’
…for times like these.
Anyway, at this speed, it would take more than two hours just to get to the South Gate.
It would be stranger if we didn't run into the Imperial Guard.
‘I have no choice.’
I'll have to take drastic measures.
“You two keep going. I'll create a diversion.”
“No. This is the heart of enemy territory. I should be the one to create the diversion.”
“How?”
“W-well…”
“Forget it, man. I'll be back safely, so don't worry. Besides.”
“…”
“There's no one here faster than me, right?”
“…Yes. Understood.”
As I ran back, I sent a telepathic message to Yu Ryong, and he replied immediately.
[Once you're done, come to the Chusu Inn next to the South Gate. We will be waiting there.]
Boom.
I thought as I unleashed the Flying Heavenly Wind.
It looks like tonight is going to be a long one.
* * *
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“We have a huge problem, Commander!”
The Left Commander, Lee Mu-cheong, who had been deep in sleep, shot his eyes open at the sudden noise.
Being woken at this early hour meant something was seriously wrong.
Hurriedly collecting himself, he opened the door to find the military officer on duty for the dawn watch.
“What is all this commotion?!”
“W-we've been attacked!”
“What?!”
His eyes widened at the unexpected news.
“What were the resident masters doing?!”
The officer hurriedly answered Lee Mu-cheong's question.
“By the time I arrived, they were all dead, their bodies mangled beyond recognition. The escort guards were also either all dead or missing.”
He had spent a fortune recruiting martial artists.
Naturally, every single one of them was a master.
For them to be annihilated meant that, in all likelihood, an unimaginably powerful master was involved.
“How could this be…”
Unable to hide his distress, Lee Mu-cheong quickly composed himself.
What's done is done.
Dealing with it is the priority.
“Let's go to the ice cavern. I'll bring the Golden Guards stationed there.”
It was an order aimed at securing his own safety first.
“Understood.”
At that moment, Lee Mu-cheong realized something.
Wasn't it strange?
The manor's soldiers, resident masters, and escort guards had all been neutralized.
They could have easily taken his life.
The fact that he was still alive meant the enemy was after something else.
Realizing the truth, Lee Mu-cheong's eyes flew wide open.
“That bastard, Jo Myeong-san!”
The Right Commander, Jo Myeong-san, had made his move.
The timing fit perfectly, too.
It was just yesterday that he'd argued before the Emperor that the scholars' rebellion was a fabrication.
Considering Jo Myeong-san's nature—he never acted without confidence—it was safe to assume the ice cavern had already been taken.
Heading there would be nothing short of suicide.
Having reached a conclusion, Lee Mu-cheong ordered the officer.
“To the Imperial Palace!”
“Yes.”
Now that Jo Myeong-san had drawn his sword, he had to gather all the Imperial and Golden Guards under his command and regroup.
If he were caught in a preemptive strike, he wouldn't survive.
With that resolve, Lee Mu-cheong hurried on his way.
“…!”
Whoosh.
And saw the Imperial Palace engulfed in flames.
* * *
Fire-!
Put out the fire-!
Water, find water!
Secure His Majesty the Emperor's safety!
There's an old saying.
That watching a fire and watching a fight are the best entertainment.
If that saying was popular even in the modern era with its endless amusements, it was all the more true in the martial world, where there was jack squat to do.
So I decided to provide the people of Nanjing, who were living out their boring lives, with some entertaining fire-watching.
It was the only way to paralyze Nanjing's military system and allow Myo San and the other scholars to escape safely.
Getting a spark wasn't difficult.
There were hundreds of large lanterns scattered throughout the Imperial Palace, illuminating the dawn.
Thud.
“W-who's there!”
As I landed like a butterfly using the Flying Heavenly Wind, a soldier running with a bucket shouted in surprise.
“The name's Pyro, asshole.”
“Py-pyro…? Gack!”
I knocked the soldier out with a single neck chop and picked up a nearby lantern.
Thud.
I used the War King Step again.
I entered a random nearby pavilion and tossed the lantern onto a pile of flammable-looking books.
As expected of a palace lantern, it must have used high-quality oil, as the flames spread in an instant.
Boom!
I immediately climbed to a high spot and surveyed the surroundings.
Whoosh.
The pavilions clustered at the entrance to the palace were burning fiercely.
Focusing my vision, I could see all the Imperial Guards from inside the capital rushing over.
This was the picture I had wanted.
Above all.
‘Th-this is fun…!’
It was incredibly fun.
So much so that it reminded me of my childhood, when I used to light the tails of paper airplanes on fire and throw them.
But this was an urgent situation. I couldn't just stand around giggling, so I quickly moved toward my next target.
Thump.
As I flew deeper inside.
Swoosh!
Dozens of iron arrows greeted me.
“Hup!”
I used the Battle Lord Arrow to deflect all the iron arrows.
The force of the rebound was considerable, suggesting they were imbued with significant internal energy.
There was only one group within the Imperial Palace, where the Emperor resides, capable of displaying this level of martial prowess.
“The Golden Guards.”
“You know your stuff.”
Led by two supreme masters, thirty Golden Guards blocked my path.
“Lest there be any misunderstanding, I'm not here to kill the Emperor. I just came to set the palace on fire.”
“…You're insane.”
“You're not going to let me pass even if I ask nicely, are you?”
“Stop your nonsense and offer your head.”
I did kill a supreme master back at the ice cavern, but that was only because Yu Ryong was there.
Even for me, the peerless hero born of the Nine Dragons Fortress, there was no way to win a direct confrontation against such a force.
In the end, I'd have to fight while on the run…
But before that, I tried to make a deal.
“Do you remember a man named Yuk Hak? I heard he was your former commander. We're quite close, you see.”
The so-called 'Aren't we all brothers?' strategy.
If it worked even a little and made them hold back, that would be a gain in itself.
However, their reaction was completely different from what I'd expected.
“The fact that you mention that son of a bitch proves you're one of the traitors!”
“What.”
Wasn't he framed and kicked out?
‘Just what kind of work life did that old man have?’
If I'd claimed to be half his disciple, wouldn't it be human nature for them to show even a little nostalgia?
Anyway, since my attempt at negotiation had failed, I had no choice but to run around and set as many fires as possible.
“Gasp! H-His Majesty the Emperor?!”
Crack! Snap! Crunch.
After distracting them with a high-level feint, I unleashed the War King's Thirteen Strikes and crushed one of them.
“Grr! Kill him!”
They gnashed their teeth and charged at me.
The enemies at the rear fired their iron arrows.
But, not to worry.
Thud.
I have the invincible War King Step…
“Ugh!”
Thwump.
An iron net flew out of nowhere, covering my entire body.
The net had come from the hands of one of the vice-commanders.
Against multiple opponents, there's nothing worse than being immobilized.
“Hup!”
Roooar!
I immediately unleashed my War Dragon Ki to rip the iron net apart, but…
“Hah.”
For some reason, the iron net only bulged slightly and remained perfectly intact.
“Well, I'm completely screwed…”
It seems to be an imperial treasure.
“Die!”
From outside the net, dozens of weapons shrouded in a blue aura came flying at me.
Geez, I told you we should talk this out.