Chapter 310
Chapter 310
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 310
>Chapter Title: God (4)
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Twice he had repeated the long journey from Gansu to the Western Regions.
Now, for the third time, Il-mok was crossing the grasslands after leaving Gansu.
‘Has it already been about half a year?’
A round trip from Gansu to the Western Regions and back took at least seventy days.
Add to that the two repetitions, plus the time wasted initially opening the trade route to the Western Regions and the period when the advance team had gone north first, and half a year had passed.
‘Time flies like that arrow.’
Il-mok’s gaze, half-dozing on horseback, turned toward the arrow slicing through the air with tremendous whistling.
It was too large to call an arrow, too small for a spear—an odd weapon fired by Jeong-hyeon.
Ever since Il-mok had gifted her the massive bow and arrows, she often practiced shooting like this on the open grasslands.
It was far too dangerous to try anywhere near people.
“Excellent, Jeong Sojeo. It looks like the bow’s finally become an extension of your hand.”
“Th-thank you, Young Master.”
Jeong-hyeon bowed her head at Il-mok’s praise.
In the first few days after receiving the bow, she hadn’t dared even try it.
It wasn’t fear of hurting someone—it was just embarrassment. The bow was so eye-catching.
Then Il-mok suggested it.
“The grasslands are wide open, easy to spot anything, and no one comes through here. Why not practice here?”
Taking his advice, Jeong-hyeon mustered her courage and fired the massive bow.
Whiiiiiing!!!
The arrow flew with a huge whistle, embedding itself far from her intended target.
“Oh ho. Impressive.”
At Il-mok’s unknowing praise, Jeong-hyeon hung her head.
“I-it wasn’t aimed there, Young Master.”
From that day on, whenever the grasslands were empty, she’d pull out the bow and practice archery.
She’d realized she needed to get used to a completely different feel from her old bow.
Humans struggle to exert full power while maintaining precision, and this new bow required her to draw it with full inner energy.
But thanks to the Ghost Spirit Divine Bow’s gift of extreme sensitivity, after three months, she had fully adapted.
Screeeeech.
Whiiiiiing!
Her consecutive shots landed right next to the previous one, showing exquisite skill.
After firing a few spear-like arrows and taking a brief rest.
Their horses and carriage reached the spot where her arrows had fallen.
Hop.
Jeong-hyeon leaped from her horse and retrieved her arrows.
Made specially for her massive bow, they had the minor hassle of needing recovery after each use.
* * *
A few days of peaceful travel across the grasslands.
They rested one day at the outpost, then headed toward the entrance to the Heavenly Myriad Mountains.
Arriving near the eastern edge, they stopped their horses and carriage.
The sky was still blue, but it was already evening. The northern grasslands simply stayed bright because the sun set late.
As always, they planned to sleep here one night and cross the foothills into the New Frontier starting tomorrow morning.
“Young Master.”
“I see it too.”
At Jeong-hyeon’s call, Il-mok frowned and looked toward a certain spot.
“Everyone, masks and weapons ready.”
With his order to prepare for battle.
At the same moment, nomads hidden among the foothills ahead began emerging.
“Ha.”
Il-mok let out a hollow laugh at the sight.
There were at least three hundred. He marveled at how that many had hidden behind bushes and rocks.
“Young Master. They’re approaching from the rear too.”
Turning at Jin Ha-yeon’s report, he saw horse-mounted nomads closing in from all sides, surrounding them.
The plains gave clear visibility, but they were still at a distance.
‘Escaping… won’t be easy.’
Though approaching from afar, they formed a perfect circle with no gaps.
And since they were so distant, if his group tried breaking through one side, the enemy could reform and envelop them even thicker.
Factoring in the ambushers ahead who’d chase from behind, breaking the encirclement seemed even more impossible.
Combining the front ambushers and the distant encirclement, there were at least a thousand.
For Il-mok’s group of just over fifty, it was a tiring number.
If the enemies were all small fry, maybe.
“Who gave you permission to cross Oirat tribal lands?”
Even that one bellowing up front wasn’t pushover material.
Noticing that, Il-mok wasn’t the only one—the shouting man stared straight at him.
“Could you be the Oirat Kagan?”
When Ohal-lak translated Il-mok’s question, the fierce-looking middle-aged man nodded.
“I am.”
Locking eyes, the two men instinctively knew: neither was an easy opponent.
“I didn’t know this was Oirat territory. I heard your base was far northwest.”
“Hahaha. From this moment, it is our land.”
Il-mok curled his lip at the bold reply.
“And so, with this warm welcome, what do you want from us?”
“You ask the obvious. We shall deliver heavenly punishment to those who dared invade our land without permission.”
Even after gauging Il-mok’s skill, the man oozed confidence.
Born of numerical superiority.
Il-mok knew it too, so he tried a ploy.
“Why not think long-term? If we keep using this route and pay tolls, it’d benefit you too, no?”
“Heh heh heh. You thought that cheap trick would fool me?”
The northern grasslands were absurdly vast, with much unfit for habitation.
To a man raised in such a world, hoping a released prey would return was foolish.
The Oirat Kagan drew his scimitar, pointing at the Central Plains merchants and shouting.
“Charge!”
At his command, half the ambushers from the foothills raised bows and nocked arrows.
They acted like bandits, but they were true nomadic warriors, skilled with bows.
As they quickly aimed and prepared to loose.
Whiiiiiing!
A fierce arrow pierced one nomad’s body.
“Gah…”
Jeong-hyeon had sniped one instantly, but they were outnumbered.
Taking her shot as cue, over a hundred arrows rained from the foothills.
“Tch.”
Some targeted people, but most went for the horses to prevent escape.
Il-mok swung his Ascension Sword to form a sword barrier, blocking arrows. Jin Ha-yeon used yin energy to erect an ice wall.
Joo Seo-yeon and the other warriors swung weapons furiously, protecting themselves and their mounts.
Meanwhile, under Il-mok’s protection, Jeong-hyeon fired again, sniping another nomad—but a greater arrow storm followed.
With arrows pinning their feet.
“Waaah!!”
“Kill them!!”
The remaining half from the foothills charged with scimitars and spears.
Il-mok, batting arrows, ordered his group.
“We’ll break straight through.”
Fleeing would just bring them closer to the distant encirclement.
Instead, Il-mok chose frontal breakthrough. Plus, once allies and enemies mixed, their archery would falter.
Leading, he charged with Heavenly Net Sword deflecting arrows, his group following.
As Il-mok’s group closed with the Oirat warriors, the arrow fire abruptly stopped.
Then blood fountained across the battlefield.
Slash!
Leading, Il-mok swung his Ascension Sword mercilessly; with each stroke, Oirat warriors were cleaved.
Following in wedge formation like his escorts, the group dispatched those his sword missed, carving a path.
But the one-sided slaughter lasted only briefly.
“You’ll face me, Taragai, personally!”
Roaring forward, Taragai—unlike the others—blocked Il-mok’s sword easily.
As Il-mok unleashed sword thunder, Taragai laughed ferociously.
“Hahaha! What an amusing technique!”
Qi on his scimitar whirled with a roar, like a sawblade.
Each clash of Il-mok’s sword thunder and Taragai’s unique qi application boomed thunderously.
While Il-mok, path-clearing vanguard, was blocked by Taragai, his group caught up.
“I’m fine—keep breaking through!”
At Il-mok’s order, Jin Ha-yeon gritted her teeth and swung her twin claws.
The cool-headed woman instantly knew: joining those two masters’ fight with her skill might hinder Il-mok instead.
Boom!
Unlike her, foolish Oirat warriors rushing to aid their Kagan were shredded by qi shards.
Dodging the masters’ clash, Jin Ha-yeon advanced sideways; wherever her yin-qi claws danced, blocking nomads froze solid.
Pioneering ahead in Il-mok’s stead for a moment.
Clang!
A warrior survived clashing with her Bare Hand Demon Art.
He poured energy into his scimitar, blocking her yin qi from invading his body.
Shaking off impatience, she unleashed Bare Hand Demon Art, exchanging several bouts.
Clang!!
As her right claw met his scimitar again.
Whiiiiiing!
A spear-like massive arrow whistled past Jin Ha-yeon’s ear, straight for the warrior’s heart.
He twisted desperately to dodge.
Crunch!
“Gah…”
A warrior behind him was unfairly pierced instead.
The arrow had power left, piercing yet another warrior ahead.
While Jeong-hyeon’s arrow felled two.
Jin Ha-yeon seized the opening.
Her left claw struck the twisting warrior’s gap.
Thud!
A glancing palm, but cold qi seeped into him along her hand.
“Urk…”
He thrashed to resist, but Jin Ha-yeon impassively smashed his slowed head.
Thud!
Clearing the blocking master, Jin Ha-yeon resumed footwork, carving path.
Meanwhile.
Protected at the formation’s center, Jeong-hyeon—uncharacteristically calm—scanned the battlefield, bow drawn.
Screeeeech.
As the bowstring, groaning under tension, released.
Whiiiiiing!
The arrow whistled fiercely, grazing a swinging swordswoman to embed in a nomad warrior’s forehead.
No—shattering his skull, it pierced the warrior behind too.