Heading to Song Mountain (2)
"Thank you. You saved my life."
Yeon Daecheon, the leader of the Gold Amount Escort Agency, expressed his gratitude for Hyeon Yucheon's exploits.
Regardless, Yeon Daecheon turned his head in fury, his anger boiling over.
His gaze fell upon none other than Wang Ho, the master of the Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold and wielder of the Giant King Blade.
Wang Ho was a massive figure, his muscular build imposing, his bald head crowned with thick, writhing veins that made a striking impression.
His blade arts, powered by heaven-given natural strength, were ferocious.
"Stronghold Master Wang, why in the world are you attacking us?"
Yeon Daecheon couldn't comprehend it.
He had believed the Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold was not an enemy and would never launch a sudden ambush.
Even a skilled expert like him had been caught off guard because of that trust.
"Exactly, this makes no sense."
"We always pay the Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold more than enough in toll fees."
The other escorts were just as shocked by the stronghold's sudden aggression.
They had expected a smooth, uneventful escort mission, never dreaming the stronghold would ambush them.
"Sorry about this, Leader Yeon."
In response to Yeon Daecheon's angry voice, Wang Ho grinned slyly.
His face didn't look sorry at all, despite his words.
"I usually like and respect the Gold Amount Escort Agency and its Golden Light Sword, Leader Yeon... but I can't pass up a manual of Shaolin martial arts for that."
Wang Ho's words unleashed a massive shockwave.
"W-what did you say?"
"What... what do you mean?"
"A Shaolin martial arts manual?"
The Gold Amount Escort Agency members all tilted their heads in bewilderment, but Wang Ho and his bandits burst into laughter.
Puhahaha!
From the situation, the bandits believed the escorts were feigning ignorance.
"Stronghold Master Wang, explain in detail. A Shaolin martial arts manual? Where did you hear such nonsense?"
Yeon Daecheon was pounding his chest in frustration.
"No need to play dumb. We already know. That your cargo is headed to Shaolin on Song Mountain."
Wang Ho scratched his bald head vigorously as he spoke.
"No, our cargo isn't—"
"Hey! You're sticking to denial to the end. The rumors are all over the jianghu right now. Word is, a lost supreme Shaolin technique manual was recently discovered."
Indeed.
Wang Ho and the Da-byeol Mountain bandits were under a massive misunderstanding.
Coincidentally, a lost Shaolin manual had truly been discovered not long ago.
Thus, bandits and various martial artists alike were on high alert around Song Mountain near Shaolin.
"An escort heading to Song Mountain at a time like this. What else could it be but that lost martial arts manual?"
Wang Ho smirked slyly.
His words carried undeniable logic.
The Gold Amount Escort Agency's mission was more than enough to invite suspicion.
"I'll say it clearly once more. We're not headed to Shaolin's main temple but to the Buloe Hall where their lay disciples gather... and the recipient is none other than Buloe Hall Master Hongbulgeom Jonghun!"
Yeon Daecheon was so frustrated that he blurted out facts he shouldn't have shared with bandits.
"...!!"
But Yeon Daecheon's words shocked not Wang Ho, but Hyeon Yucheon.
Hongbulgeom Jonghun—he's the one who commissioned the cargo?
Hyeon Yucheon was briefly stunned but then thought it was for the best.
Once the escort was complete, he could hunt Jonghun down without implicating the agency. Perfect.
"Heh heh, Leader Yeon. As you know, the world is chaotic these days. If it's really not a martial arts manual, just unseal the cargo and show us?"
Was it because Yeon Daecheon was humbling himself?
Wang Ho crossed the line.
All escort cargo was sealed for protection and concealment.
Only the recipient could unseal it.
Not even escorts or leaders could touch it casually.
For a bandit chief to demand its opening?
That meant one thing.
Hand over the cargo for inspection.
"You mad bastard!"
"Are you out of your mind?!"
As expected, the Gold Amount Escort Agency erupted in outrage.
The Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold's demand was beyond rude—it was suicidal for the agency.
An escort agency handing cargo to bandits for inspection?
If word got out, they'd face not just closure but condemnation from clients and the jianghu.
In other words, the agency's foundation would crumble.
"Just a quick peek, that's all."
Wang Ho kept grinning, pressing his unreasonable demand.
As stronghold master, he had no rush.
This was their turf, armed with arrows and traps.
Though individually weaker than the escorts, the bandits numbered over a hundred.
Especially Wang Ho, the Giant King Blade—one of the top five among the Eighteen Bandit Strongholds, strong enough to hold Yeon Daecheon.
"...Are you truly set on seeing this through to the end?"
Even the ever-polite, noble Yeon Daecheon was enraged now.
"The end? Do you have the forces for that?"
Wang Ho's mocking words, belittling Yeon Daecheon and the agency, drew laughs from his men.
Anyone could see the stronghold held the advantage.
Tremble!
Golden Light Sword Yeon Daecheon seethed with humiliation at the bandits.
In the end, he had no choice but to draw his sword.
"Strike down these vile bandits!"
Regardless of odds, the agency protected its cargo above all.
Nothing took precedence.
Waaaaah!
Thus began a massive clash between the Gold Amount Escort Agency and the Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold.
The agency had about fifty men; the stronghold over a hundred— a full-scale battle.
"Above all, protect the cargo!"
Yeon Daecheon drew his signature golden blade and bellowed.
Their target was obvious: the cargo. So Yeon Daecheon, Yeon Jinjin, and the leaders stayed to guard it.
As the other leaders and escorts engaged the arrow-firing bandits in fierce combat—
Paaaat!
Suddenly, a figure pierced the arrow rain, charging forward.
"Huh?!"
"Young Master Hyeon?"
It was, of course, Hyeon Yucheon.
The one who had been silently pondering the new Buloe Hall Master Jonghun.
Hyeon Yucheon finally entered the fray.
In battles of this scale, experts and leaders typically stayed back, conserving energy.
But not him.
I'll take out that Wang Ho first!
Bandits weren't trained soldiers.
Felling their leader would shatter their morale.
Yeon Daecheon and Yeon Jinjin knew this, but Wang Ho's skill was the issue.
An upper-peak realm expert, top among bandit chiefs in the region and beyond.
Only Yeon Daecheon or the deputy could handle him.
But Yeon Daecheon couldn't leave the cargo unguarded.
—Cheonha Gunrimbo!
Hyeon Yucheon unleashed his peerless movement technique, shooting forward like an arrow.
'The leader guards the cargo, and I'll handle Wang Ho.'
That was his plan.
The bandits panicked at Hyeon Yucheon charging their leader.
But only briefly.
"You bastard!"
"Has this kid lost his mind?"
The Da-byeol bandits were skilled enough to recover quickly, hurling axes and spears at him.
Of course, they missed.
How could mere bandits hit the heir of the Demon Sword Ghost Lord wielding Cheonha Gunrimbo?
Slash, slash!
Instead, Hyeon Yucheon's invisible formless blade took their heads.
"Aaaagh!"
"I-it didn't even... I couldn't see it!"
As bandit heads rolled one by one, they doubted their eyes.
At first, they held firm.
Decapitations were commonplace for vicious bandits.
But as time passed, his godlike movements claimed more allies, turning fear into pants-wetting terror.
"It's a ghost!"
"Demonic sorcery!"
To the bandits, Hyeon Yucheon's mystical, eerie arts seemed like witchcraft.
With Hyeon Yucheon blazing a path alone, the stunned Gold Amount escorts finally moved.
"Everyone, charge!"
"Support Young Master Hyeon Yucheon!"
In the end, Hyeon Yucheon alone shifted the battlefield's momentum.
He even shattered the stronghold's defensive line of archers on high ground.
The agency, previously overwhelmed, regained momentum and matched the bandits evenly—thanks to him.
"They still have bows and arrows. Stay vigilant."
At the same time, Hyeon Yucheon displayed magnanimity.
The escorts had mocked him, but he advised them, showing true leadership.
He'd ignored their envy from the start.
Once he proved himself, they'd accept it naturally.
"Damn it! Who the hell is that young escort?"
As agency morale soared, one figure despaired in rage.
Giant King Blade Wang Ho, master of the Da-byeol Mountain Stronghold.
He couldn't believe the situation.
'Even a martial expert struggles in battles this size.'
Arrow barrages, distance, variables—it was tough.
Even Golden Light Sword Yeon Daecheon planned to endure while guarding the cargo.
But now?
A freak expert flipped the field entirely.
"Boss! Where's the chief?!"
Hyeon Yucheon bellowed boldly, befitting a Demon Sword Sect heir.
"Youuuu braaat!"
Enraged at being called out by a kid half his age, Wang Ho lost reason.
Had he been cooler-headed, he'd send underlings to wear him down—but Wang Ho was brute and stubborn.
Bwoooong!
Veins bulging across his head in fury, he swung his massive blade.
His signature weapon, the Cattle-Slaying Blade—named for cleaving a cow's head in one stroke—surged with inner power toward Hyeon Yucheon's crown.
Combined with his divine strength, it looked set to split Hyeon Yucheon's skull.
Pshuk!
But of course, it didn't.
No matter how heavy or powerful, an attack must land to matter.
Incredibly, the Cattle-Slaying Blade halted before reaching Hyeon Yucheon's head.
Hyeon Yucheon's invisible formless sword qi had pierced Wang Ho's forearm.
"GaaAaAaAaK!"