Chapter 10
Chapter 10
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Millennium Snow Ginseng
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The journey to Yellow Mountain would take about fifteen days. Of course, that was on horseback. If I just wandered around on foot without a plan, it would definitely take more than a month.
Before heading to Yellow Mountain, I felt the need to exchange the silver ingots I had obtained.
This world wasn't so easy that you could just plop down a silver ingot and everyone would bow down saying, "Oh my, how impressive!" The moment I carelessly exposed the silver ingots, riffraff would start swarming, and soon martial artists would fight over them. I needed to hide this silver vault as much as possible while converting some of the ingots into appropriate pocket money.
'The silver vault is too conspicuous. It'd be better to bury it somewhere and come back for it later.'
It was too bulky to carry hugged to my chest. As I ventured deep into the mountains, a sudden thought struck me.
'Oh right! Should I look for that cave where I died in my previous life?'
That cave where I had no choice but to die suddenly due to the trap mechanisms!
Maybe it was the treasure inside that cave that sent me back in time?
'I need to change my plans.'
Once that thought hit me, I couldn't delay for even a moment. First, I stopped by a nearby village and bought an iron pick, a bundle of rope, and a copper shield. No one knew the terrain of this area better than I did, so I navigated the treacherous forest straight to my destination.
Yellow Mountain could wait.
Unraveling the cave's secret came first.
Soon, night fell.
I snapped some dry branches to build a fire and prepared to camp. Unlike three years ago, I had a proper sleeping bag and gear for overnight stays, and I could protect my body from the cold with my internal energy. If I just cleared the pebbles and stones from the ground, I could lie down and sleep comfortably.
Crackle...
The flames rose. I warmed myself by the fire and fell deep into thought.
Why had I returned to the past?
I had died to the trap mechanisms, but in my final moments, I reached into that box.
What I grabbed was a book, as far as I could remember.
Of course, my last memory was hazy, so I couldn't tell what kind of book it was.
'Could grabbing that book have sent me back in time?'
There were too many uncertainties. I shook my head and decided to sleep first. I could think after finding the cave.
The next dawn, I rose and began scouring the mountains. I knew exactly where I had holed up to practice swordsmanship in my previous life. It was a valley near some houses but not too rugged. Soon, I spotted the familiar stream and the flat area where I had built a thatched hut.
Now I just needed to find the 'cave' nearby. I calmly retraced my memories. I was descending the mountain path slowly, sunlight rising over the peak.
"......!!"
I stopped midway. Right in front of me was a three-zhang cliff cleverly hidden, where one wrong step could send me tumbling. A large tree branch growing between the cliffs had probably obscured it.
Glancing down, I saw the cave just as I remembered. Clutching my pounding heart, I set down the silver vault temporarily. I drove the pick into the ground, tied the rope around my body, and slowly descended the cliff. Feeling a foothold, I shuffled forward like before and entered the cave.
The inside was pitch black, as expected. I untied the rope from my body and moved deeper, sensing light filtering in.
Whoosh!
"Urgh... just as I thought..."
I swallowed hard at the sight I had seen before dying. A box that looked like a Fortuitous Encounter glowed in the cave's light, and the inner space was fairly spacious.
'There are trap mechanisms here. The arrows fly incredibly fast...'
Even with my current abilities, I wondered if I could dodge them easily. Tense, I watched the box and tossed a dagger from my bosom at it.
Clang!
The dagger struck the box's edge precisely and flew off to the side. Since no mechanism triggered, it seemed designed to activate only when a human body approached. There were probably sensors on the floor or walls, but I couldn't detect them with my skills. It would take a professional thief or tomb raider.
"But humans use tools."
I picked up the copper shield I had bought from the village blacksmith. Rather than dodging arrows with footwork alone, it was more practical to advance while quickly shielding my vitals with the copper shield. Pride as an expert meant nothing against such mechanisms.
Tap.
Clang!
'I did it!'
An arrow bounced off the front of the copper shield. The arrow's speed was barely visible to my dynamic vision, and with my current skill, dodging was out of the question. All I could do was position the shield to block anticipated launch points.
The arrows from the mechanism were several times faster than those shot by a person. I sighed in relief and took another step toward the box.
No more mechanisms seemed to activate. Cautiously, I tapped the lid with my scabbard and opened the box.
Creak...
"......"
I pulled out the single book inside. For a moment, I feared grabbing it would send me back in time again, but nothing happened. I sat right there and examined the book closely.
The title was Heavenly Dark Secret Book.
'What is this...?'
It was an odd name for a martial arts manual. Not the bombastic title of a demonic art from a demonic sect, nor the feel of a righteous faction's technique manual. Tilting my head, I turned the first page to check the contents—and froze in shock.
"What the hell?"
Strange script!
It was filled with bizarre words that looked nothing like any language of this world, wriggling like insects. They were clearly written with care, forming a systematic language—but I had never seen anything like it. As an escort warrior, I had seen Buddhist scripts and Western Region characters, but this was on a completely different level.
One thing was certain: with my abilities, I couldn't interpret or read the Heavenly Dark Secret Book. But it was undeniable that this book had rewound time and sent me back.
What should I do with this suspicious book?
I furrowed my brow and stared at it for a long time, but reached no conclusion. Crossing my arms in thought, I eventually picked up the Heavenly Dark Secret Book and tucked it into my bosom.
'I'll have to carry it with me.'
In a way, this book was far more important than the silver ingots. I climbed back up and down the cliff again, stashing the silver vault and ingots deep inside the cave before exiting. With just one ingot to exchange, travel expenses wouldn't be an issue.
It was an adventure I thought would be grand, but the cave exploration ended up feeling anticlimactic and deflating. The mysteries weren't fully resolved, leaving a nagging feeling, but I had only risked my life once and gained just a single book.
Yet, for some reason, an ominous premonition gripped me.
I sensed that the Heavenly Dark Secret Book hid a tremendous secret beyond any ordinary martial arts manual.
'I'll have to seek out great scholars later. Among the world's sages, there must be someone who can decipher the Heavenly Dark Secret Book.'
After leaving the cave, I headed straight for Yellow Mountain.
Days had passed since I raided the village chief's house and took the silver ingots, but the constables didn't look at me suspiciously. It might be that the wanted notice hadn't reached this area yet—but more likely, the village chief hadn't told anyone.
It had to be that way. What I had actually done was beat six or seven village thugs to death, and with no witnesses, no one knew it was me.
Moreover, if word of the deal with the village chief got out, his status as a wealthy man would be exposed to the world. Countless wandering martial artists would come asking if he had more silver ingots, so he wouldn't report it to the authorities and hunt me down.
'I can't relax yet. He might hire martial experts to chase and kill me...'
But that was just a possibility. Top First-Class Experts or Peak Experts had too much pride to accept a commission from someone like the village chief. Hiring someone I couldn't even touch might cost as much as the silver vault I took.
In other words, I didn't need to fear the village chief's retaliation right now.
The walk to Yellow Mountain felt too tedious and exhausting, so midway I rented a horse from a post station. Horses were indeed fast, shortening the distance three times quicker and more comfortably than walking. Days later, arriving at Yellow Mountain and looking up from the foothill village, I felt the hardships were nearly over.
Clop clop.
Sitting on the horse, complaints naturally arose. Seeing the fog clouds around the peaks made the tough road ahead feel real.
'Whew... but Yellow Mountain is enormous. This won't be easy.'
Yellow Mountain.
It was a famous peak even more highly regarded than the Five Great Mountains, boasting such stunning scenery that the saying went, "See the Five Great Mountains and forget other mountains; see Yellow Mountain and forget the Five Great Mountains."
Moreover, Yellow Mountain consisted of seventy-two peaks, each towering five to six hundred zhang high. Though some peaks bore human marks, many dangerous areas remained untouched, requiring careful search.
Find all seventy-two peaks!
To locate the elusive Millennium Snow Ginseng!
It was utterly mad, but I had no choice. If I didn't know about the Millennium Snow Ginseng Fortuitous Encounter, it wouldn't matter—but I was certain from experience that it existed on Yellow Mountain. And I knew three crucial clues to find it.
First.
The Millennium Snow Ginseng didn't exist on the outer twenty-four peaks.
I had heard that Danmok So, the young master of the Danmok Family—the first discoverer—found it in one of the inner forty-eight scenic spots. Unlike the outer peaks, the interior held many untouched secret vistas. This alone greatly narrowed the search area.
Second.
The Millennium Snow Ginseng didn't exist near the Yellow Mountain Sect's peaks.
From what I heard, the Yellow Mountain Sect—based on the mountain—only joined the struggle for the Millennium Snow Ginseng much later. The reason was simply that the discovery site was quite far from their headquarters. Excluding their vicinity further reduced the search area.
Third.
The Millennium Snow Ginseng was found 'where white and black lotus flowers bloom together.' Whether metaphorical or literal, it was the most reliable info, so keeping it in mind would surely lead me to it soon.
I chuckled dryly, envisioning the search ahead.
'Exchanging one ingot at a nearby money changer should yield at least a hundred taels... Enough for search and food expenses. Generously, a year should suffice to find the Millennium Snow Ginseng.'
Excluding the Yellow Mountain Sect's area would narrow it down a lot. Searching one peak per week thoroughly, I could find it within one to two years.
My stomach growled just then, so I entered a nearby inn to grab a meal.
That's when an ominous premonition hit me.
"Hey, young man! Nice to see you!"
At the inn's entrance, a man in flowing black clothes waved at me, pretending to be friendly.
'What the hell?'
Ignoring the stranger, I tried to brush past, but his next words were impossible to ignore.
"What's your name again... Baek Woong, right? There's a five-hundred-tael bounty on your head. Kindly stick out your neck nice and easy."
Clang clang clang!
At that instant, sword-drawing noises erupted noisily from the inn's first and second floors, as if on cue. From the sounds, I sensed at least twenty to thirty warriors.
"......!!"
"Why the long face?"
The black-clad warrior smirked.
"Don't worry. We don't enjoy torture, so we'll just behead you cleanly in one stroke."
Not comforting at all.
'I... I can't win this!'
Scanning the warriors surrounding the inn, my body froze and my mind reeled. Their sword grips, killing intent, internal energy—none were third-rate. Every one was a properly trained elite. Against them, I doubted I could handle even three-to-one, let alone ten-to-one. If they rushed me at once, I'd be skewered helplessly.
They're insanely strong!
The question was why a sect that could mobilize such elites was after my head. With a trembling voice, I asked.
"Who... who are you? And who sent you to kill me?"
"Of course I'll tell you. Killing a young lad sits wrong with me."
The black-clad warrior, sitting properly, stroked his chin.
"We're the Black Night Sect's Assassin Squad. Know us?"
"...Eight Demonic Sects!!"
"Oh, you do."
I cried out in shock.
Eight Demonic Sects!
It referred to the eight great evil and demonic sects that rivaled the Nine Great Righteous Sects and Five Great Families in power. Among them, the Black Night Sect specialized in assassination commissions, famed for having the highest individual skills in the Eight Demonic Sects. Their Assassin Squad was particularly dreaded even by the righteous factions, akin to grim reapers.
Even a flying eagle Peak Expert couldn't survive if targeted by the Black Night Sect's Assassin Squad. The rumor had spread across the martial world and become accepted fact—the Black Night Sect and Assassin Squad were terrifying.
My vision darkened, but I clung to my fading senses and asked.
"By the way, I'm the Assassin Squad Leader. Nice to meet you, Baek Woong."
The black-clad man grinned as he introduced himself. Of course, it wasn't nice at all.
"Who sent you?"
The Assassin Squad Leader shrugged.
"You know who, right? Only one person you've recently wronged."
"The village chief..."
"Yeah, that's how it goes. It cost the client big, but he wanted revenge even if it bankrupted him."
I glanced at him and said.
"Spare me, and I'll give you double the money. For real."
The Assassin Squad Leader burst into laughter.
"Hahaha... Even if true, we can't accept. Betraying for more money? Who'd trust us for commissions then? Use the spare cash as funeral money in the afterlife."
As the Assassin Squad Leader moved to give orders, I desperately shouted again.
"Then hear another proposal!"
"What?"
"If I beat you one-on-one, call off the pursuit."
As the strongest in the Assassin Squad, he couldn't easily refuse. It was why the Black Night Sect avoided being branded public enemies despite taking assassination jobs. They prided themselves as warriors, never rejecting righteous challenges or duels from other sects.
"Hoo... Bold!"
Murmurs.
The Assassin Squad warriors looked at me like I was insane. The Leader just smirked amusedly.
"If it's your dying wish... I planned to behead you myself anyway. Saves effort."
Shing.
He drew the long sword from his back and stood slowly opposite me. The squad surrounded the inn to prevent escape. Clutching my iron sword in one hand, I gritted my teeth and stoked my fighting spirit.
I have to survive.
I must unleash everything I've learned up to now and survive.
I haven't even properly searched for the Millennium Snow Ginseng—I can't die here!
"Let's do this."
The Assassin Squad Leader grinned refreshingly and swung his sword.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Slash!
In ten exchanges, my sword broke, I took a Empty Air Palm to the solar plexus, and flew through the air. I couldn't comprehend the skill gap.
'Huh...?'
This feeling... I've felt it before...
Whoosh.
"Farewell."
Seeing the blue sword qi the next instant, I finally understood. The Assassin Squad Leader was a Peak Expert on par with or surpassing Chief Instructor Jin So-cheong.
Soon, my head flew.
Excruciating pain flooded me as memories overflowed as my breath faded.
'Aw, fuck....'
This was my second death.
============================ Author's Note ============================
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