Chapter 26
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Assassin's Hell (3)
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“Wait, isn’t that the Wudang’s Supreme Polarity Wisdom Sword?”
Ha Hyeol-ran shrieked in astonishment.
Her eyes were fixed on the Yellow Wind Poisonous Mist, which was swirling around Jin Je-yong and spiraling up into the sky.
“No, it can’t be. How would Great Hero Jin know the martial arts of the Wudang Sect, all the way in Hubei?”
“But then, what other martial art creates such a sword wind while drawing a taiji symbol?”
The sight of Jin Je-yong drawing in the Yellow Wind Poisonous Mist with his sword could only be described as an act of divine power.
Masters of palm or fist arts had achieved similar effects with techniques like Grafting Flowers onto Trees or the Heaven and Earth Grand Shift. But to do it with a sword, not one’s hands, and to pull in a poisonous mist that had blanketed an entire village—it was an indescribable phenomenon.
“Incredible.”
“That’s Young Master Jin for you.”
Dang Jin-seong, who had been analyzing the Yellow Wind Poison, emerged late with Lee Geum-yeong.
The two watched Jin Je-yong's divine display, unfazed.
“How can you see that and only say something so mundane?”
“The Young Lord of the Tang Clan may not be a swordsman, but you’re a warrior, aren’t you? As a man of the sword, you must know how difficult that is…”
Pyo Il-jeon and Ha Hyeol-ran questioned Dang Jin-seong and Lee Geum-yeong, almost demanding an explanation for their lukewarm reactions.
But Dang Jin-seong had seen Jin Je-yong dominate the Sichuan Tang Clan with a single sword, and Lee Geum-yeong had witnessed Jin Je-yong's unbelievable feats several times.
“Sect Leader Pyo, if you get surprised by every little thing like this, your heart won’t be able to take it.”
“Sect Leader Ha, this is nothing special.”
Creating a sword wind with a sword? Extracting Gu poison with a sword was far more astonishing.
However, Pyo Il-jeon and Ha Hyeol-ran themselves didn’t know how Jin Je-yong had removed the energy of the Soul-Returning Pill from their bodies, for his sword had been too fast to see.
“I’ll leave the poisonous mist to Instructor Jin and continue making the antidote.”
“Then Sect Leader Pyo, Sect Leader Ha, and I will gather the villagers here.”
“Ah! The villagers!”
“That’s right! Let’s go!”
The two sect leaders, who had been marveling at Jin Je-yong's incredible swordsmanship, finally registered Lee Geum-yeong's words and kicked off the ground.
* * *
“My, what a monster.”
Watching the Yellow Wind Poisonous Mist rise into the sky from a distance, Myo A-rang let out a small laugh.
Gu A-jo's unscrupulous methods were notorious, not just to her, but throughout the entire assassin underworld.
That was why she had worried Gam Mok-seo might have handled the job first, but her fears turned out to be unfounded.
‘How am I supposed to catch that thing?’
Instead, a different worry surfaced.
Even from afar, the sword dance radiated a menacing aura.
Myo A-rang wouldn't want this job for ten thousand gold nyang, not even for ten million.
‘If I refuse the request… the Great Emperor will kill me.’
The invitation that had summoned the Joyful Troupe and Gu A-jo bore a name she could not refuse.
The name of one of the Twenty-Two Masters Under Heaven: the Great Emperor of the Greenwood, Kang Gwi-jong.
Myo A-rang didn't know what connection the man with the catfish whiskers who had found her had with the Greenwood, but she lacked the courage to defy the Great Emperor of the Greenwood.
“But a young man can’t possibly resist the temptations of our Joyful Troupe.”
Since she had accepted a request she couldn't refuse anyway, Myo A-rang steeled her resolve.
She adjusted her flowing clothes and turned to leave. Now that she had confirmed their destination was the Yangcheong Escort Agency, there was no need to remain.
‘I’ll prepare a thorough trap. With the Rapturous Divine Art…’
The Rapturous Divine Art was the Joyful Troupe's ultimate technique, said to be able to melt even a man of stone.
A sly smile graced her lips as she mounted her horse.
* * *
“These are from Gu A-jo.”
Lee Geum-yeong said after examining the assassins’ corpses.
He ground his teeth as he turned over the bodies one by one.
“Gu A-jo?”
“They’re a famous group of assassins in Sichuan, Young Master Jin. Though I’d call them less assassins and more scoundrels from the Evil Faction. They’re the kind of scum who kill not only their target but everyone around them without hesitation.”
“‘If you kill all the witnesses, no one will know.’ Is that their idea of an assassination? Are they morons?”
I was dumbfounded by Gu A-jo's idiotic thinking.
Lee Geum-yeong shook his head.
“No. Assassin organizations must leave a sign that they were the ones who committed the murder. If no one knows who did it, there’s no way to know if the job was done.”
Leaving a trace but not getting caught was what made being an assassin so difficult.
Despite the hardship, there were still those who chose the path of killing people, and assassin organizations were the trash cans where such scum gathered.
Gu A-jo was the worst of the worst.
“Why would Gu A-jo be after us? With their methods, we can’t tell which one of us is the target…”
“It must be the Soul-Returning Pill.”
The current purpose of our party was to solve the Soul-Returning Pill problem. Unless someone was hiding their identity like Lee Geum-yeong, the culprit was obvious.
“The Yangcheong Escort Agency would hire assassins to get us? They’re a righteous faction, aren’t they? A secular branch of the great Qingcheng Sect…”
The Yangcheong Sect, a secular branch of the Qingcheng Sect, was naturally a proud orthodox sect. The Yangcheong Escort Agency, which borrowed its name, was also famous for its integrity.
Lee Geum-yeong seemed to think that such a clean organization would never commission an assassination.
What a joke.
“They’re already dealing in drugs. What’s so difficult about hiring a few assassins?”
As I scowled and grumbled, Dang Jin-seong approached, his face weary.
“Whew, Instructor Jin, the villagers’ detoxification is mostly taken care of for now.”
Fortunately, a short, small inhalation of Gu A-jo’s Yellow Wind Poisonous Mist didn't have a major effect on the body.
Still, he had gone around the village to examine the children and the elderly, who could be in great danger even from a small amount.
“Good work.”
“Haha! For me, Dang Jin-seong, the Young Lord of the Sichuan Tang Clan, a poison like this is just slightly spicy smoke. It was nothing.”
Dang Jin-seong said with a show of confidence.
Though he had been confined in the Tang Clan Fort, it wasn't due to a lack of skill.
He possessed the extensive medical knowledge and detoxification abilities befitting his position as an heir to one of the Five Great Clans.
“Is that so? Then stay here.”
“Pardon?”
“We don’t know what aftereffects the poison might leave.”
“That’s impossible. My detoxification skills are the best in Sichuan, no, the best in the Central Plains.”
I couldn't help but laugh at how shamelessly Dang Jin-seong praised himself.
But with the uncertainty of how the Yellow Wind Poisonous Mist would affect the people of Suan Village, I couldn't take Dang Jin-seong, an expert in detoxification, with me.
‘Besides, I can’t just let the Yangcheong Escort Agency be.’
I considered using my movement arts to go to the Yangcheong Escort Agency alone, just as I had when I went to the Tang Clan.
But that would lead to nothing but war with them.
‘To create a pretext, a trap, it would be best to take Pyo Il-jeon and Ha Hyeol-ran.’
The word of Dang Jin-seong, the Young Lord of the Tang Clan, would carry weight, but considering the situation in Suan Village, he was a resource I couldn't spare.
More importantly, Dang Jin-seong's face was slightly flushed, and despite his words, he didn't seem to mind staying behind.
‘He looks just like a disciple trying to skip out on sparring.’
Dang Jin-seong reminded me of Jeok-sam.
Didn't he, too, foam at the mouth and run away whenever I picked up a wooden sword?
“I’m counting on you.”
“Ah! I’ll do it. Wha… you’re counting on me?”
Dang Jin-seong's eyes widened as if he had misheard something.
It seemed his hearing wasn't very good. I nodded and added.
“I’m entrusting them to you. I’ll speak to Sam-i for you.”
The reason Dang Jin-seong was following me was because Jeok-sam was in charge of cleaning up the rebellion at the Tang Clan Fort.
“Ah, w-well, since you’re asking me like this, Instructor Jin, I have no choice.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“So, are you heading straight to the Yangcheong Escort Agency, Instructor Jin?”
“I have to. This probably won’t end with Gu A-jo, and I can’t let you suffer the same fate.”
On the other hand, the assassins sent by Go I-hyeon had revealed something.
Not everyone in the Yangcheong Escort Agency or the Yangcheong Sect was involved in the Soul-Returning Pill scheme.
It meant they didn't have their own people to handle the dirty work directly.
‘This is actually more troublesome.’
If everyone at the Yangcheong Escort Agency was an enemy, I could just smash them all indiscriminately. But as it stood, innocent, unwitting warriors would become sacrifices.
I recalled my master’s words.
‘Master said the strong must protect the weak, that those with power must take responsibility for it and not use it recklessly.’
He called those who used their power for their own selfish desires the Evil Faction, and he said that indiscriminate use of power was the way of demons.
Master gave me that lesson around the time I started teaching the children.
“So I have to go.”
I said to Dang Jin-seong and called the rest of my party.
We couldn't impose on Suan Village any longer.
* * *
“Young Master, are you leaving already?”
The chief of Suan Village called out to Dang Jin-seong, who was checking on the children.
His face was filled with anxiety and fear.
Dang Jin-seong figured it was understandable, given that a poisonous fog had descended upon their village overnight.
“I plan to stay and monitor the poisoning, but Instructor Jin will be leaving.”
“Is that so? We haven’t even been able to express our gratitude for saving the village…”
“Well, this happened because we came here, so we should be the ones apologizing.”
Dang Jin-seong bowed his head, looking apologetic.
Innocent people had been harmed by the affairs of the martial world.
Jin Je-yong had been furious and had killed every last one of Gu A-jo’s assassins.
“No, no, please don’t say that. Young Master Dang, you are also busy, yet you remain to help us, do you not?”
“It’s a request from Instructor Jin, no, the Sword of Completion.”
He had been skeptical at first, but now it no longer felt awkward to call Jin Je-yong the Sword of Completion.
He had seen how Jin Je-yong dealt with the poisonous mist and had confirmed the assassins' corpses.
The assassins hadn't even been able to react to Jin Je-yong's sword. He hadn't used any grand techniques like sword ki or sword force; it was as if he were simply sticking a knife into dead fish.
‘Instructor Jin, Je Yung-geon, and that guy Jeok-sam… What kind of place is the Sinnae Sword School?’
Even Dang Jin-seong, who was well-versed in the geography of Sichuan from his education as the young lord, didn't know where Sinnae Village was located.
Naturally, he had first heard the name of the Sinnae Sword School only after Jin Je-yong appeared.
And yet, a man from that place was the Sword of Completion.
Je Yung-geon was a man who had hidden within the Tang Clan Fort for a long time, turning the clan upside down. Jeok-sam remained at the Tang Clan, laying the groundwork for its recovery.
Not a single one of them was an ordinary person.
“The Sword of Completion, did you say?”
“Yes, Instructor Jin Je-yong of the Sinnae Sword School.”
He had scoffed when Jeok-sam called Jin Je-yong the Sword of Completion, but the more he saw, the more he understood that such a title was the only way to describe him.
His swordsmanship, which defied common sense, was enough to bewilder even Dang Jin-seong, who knew little about the sword.
“His disciples say he is one who has perfected the sword.”
“Ho ho, he is truly a great man.”
“Well, yes. Haha.”
But Dang Jin-seong simply couldn't believe that his master was the Divine Sword.
‘The Divine Sword… No, that’s just too much of an exaggeration.’
* * *
“There are several renowned assassin organizations in Sichuan. Gu A-jo is famous among them for their vicious methods. Yeongsal Gate is a traditional assassin group. The Cheolsoe Sect is a school composed entirely of martial arts masters. And the Joyful Troupe is an assassin group made up of women…”
"So, which group do these guys belong to?"
Lee Geum-yeong paused in his explanation.
I flicked the blood off my sword and asked.
“All of them.”
“The Joyful Troupe?”
A pile of cold corpses lay at my feet.
“No. All the groups you just described.”
Lee Geum-yeong spoke with a look of utter disbelief, as if he couldn't believe what he was saying.
‘I guess there was someone who wasn’t an assassin mixed in?’
Just as I was thinking that, Lee Geum-yeong let out a deep sigh.
“This will create a huge vacuum in the Sichuan assassin world. I don’t know whether to see that as a good thing, or if the market's chaos should be seen as a bad thing…”
Lee Geum-yeong laughed hollowly and kicked a corpse rolling on the ground. A face, pale with terror, turned toward me.
I looked at the corpse's expression and tried to recall what had happened.
How did it come to this…?