Chapter 104
Chapter 104
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Pear Blossom (1)
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"Chief, the escort token's color is wrong."
"That's right. It should be yellow, not red."
At his subordinates' remonstrations, Black Bone Stronghold's Chief Yuk Sung quietly shook his head.
"Pretend you didn't notice."
All his subordinates around him harbored doubts, but no one raised further objections.
Yuk Sung was the most experienced and one of the top experts in the Yangtze River Water Alliance. Even at over seventy years old, he was still active as a chief, and their trust in him was absolute.
After disembarking from the merchant ship, Yuk Sung let out a sigh of relief and tremblingly removed his sweat-soaked clothes.
"Are you alright, Father?"
His eldest son, Yuk Gwan—who was still serving as deputy chief even in his fifties—asked with a worried face.
"I'm fine."
"You look exhausted."
"Exhausted?"
Yuk Sung gave a feeble smile and wiped the cold sweat beading on his forehead as he gazed at the merchant ship gradually receding into the distance.
"It's not exhaustion. It's fear."
"Pardon?"
"You wouldn't understand, but we just came face-to-face with the King of Hell himself."
Not only Yuk Gwan but all the gathered leaders wore puzzled expressions.
"Keep this in mind from now on. When dealing with women who wear veils and carry swords, be cautious—extraordinarily cautious."
"But there weren't just one or two of them..."
"Especially if their uniforms and swords bear the pear blossom emblem. You must exercise utmost care."
Yuk Gwan recalled the three pear blossoms embroidered on the women's sleeves from earlier and asked,
"What happens if we have trouble with them?"
Yuk Sung's face hardened at the question. He shuddered as if the mere thought was horrifying and said,
"We die. All of us will die."
"As expected, the chief was right."
Amid the terrified travelers, who were cowed and shrinking back, Geonwi—who had been holding his breath—unconsciously swallowed hard.
Under the deputy chief's orders, Geonwi had boarded the merchant ship early at Gukou. He had been deeply skeptical about his mission.
If the women were as fearsome as the chief warned, they had no reason to meekly pay the toll in the first place. And seeing them pay the toll to the Biwoong Stronghold bandits without resistance only confirmed Geonwi's suspicions.
That certainty shattered in an instant.
When the Biwoong Stronghold bandits who tried to toy with the women had their heads sent flying through the air, and even the renowned Gwanghae struggled desperately, Geonwi was dealt a severe shock.
But the shocks so far were nothing.
In the midst of his comrades' battle, the woman who had stood motionless, merely watching, finally moved.
When the strikingly slender woman among them took her first step forward compared to her companions, Geonwi found he couldn't breathe.
The moment she drew her sword, he unwittingly fell flat on his rear.
Was this how a herbivore felt facing the king of beasts?
As Geonwi followed the woman's sword in terror, he witnessed Deng Ja-geol—who had been swinging his twin axes freely and gaining the upper hand—being bisected clean in half.
It was a single strike.
Deng Ja-geol hadn't even mounted a counterattack or properly reacted before perishing pathetically. Then Gwanghae fell, followed by the bandits grappling with the women collapsing almost simultaneously. Among them were several old monsters who had once dominated the Yangtze alongside the previous chief.
Geonwi couldn't fathom how the woman's sword had moved.
All his eyes could catch were flashes of light in an instant, followed moments later by blood rain soaking everything around.
Watching most of the bandits on deck massacred in the blink of an eye, Geonwi felt in his bones that the chief's words—about everyone dying if they clashed with these women—were no exaggeration. He also revisited why the chief had feigned ignorance despite clearly knowing the token's color was wrong.
"If they realize the token's wrong, the Biwoong Stronghold bastards won't let it slide. And they'll definitely clash with the women. Why? Because, like you lot, they'll all lose their heads over their beauty. If I'd noticed just a bit later... Anyway, the day Biwoong Stronghold lays a hand on them, Biwoong Stronghold vanishes."
Geonwi couldn't help but admire Yuk Sung's foresight.
Just as the chief predicted, even though the women paid the toll without a word, the Biwoong Stronghold bandits—blinded by their beauty—had hastened their own doom.
It was the exact moment the chief's scheme to use the women to wipe out Biwoong Stronghold succeeded.
'Now Biwoong Stronghold's territory is ours.'
As Geonwi thrilled at the downfall of their fierce rival for territory, Deng Ja-gon—who had been leisurely negotiating with the Namgyeong Merchant Association's trader in the captain's cabin—came rushing out in horror.
"......"
In that brief time, seeing his brother and subordinates dead in gruesome states left Deng Ja-gon speechless.
'I messed up.'
Perhaps he'd grown too complacent seeing the burly man and his group—the ones he'd pegged as the biggest threats—pay the toll without complaint. Going down to the captain's cabin after they handed over the money without fuss had been a mistake. Above all, overestimating his brother and the elders' skills—believing they could handle minor provocations without issue—had been fatal. No, his own incompetence in properly assessing the experts had been the gravest error.
"Who the hell are you?"
Deng Ja-gon demanded, aiming his massive axe.
"You don't need to know."
It was a beautiful voice. But indifferent.
At the woman's tone, Deng Ja-gon felt a chill.
Even after cutting down dozens, her voice held no emotion.
"Why did you kill them?"
Before the woman could reply, a gruff voice came from behind.
"Are you an idiot?"
Not only Deng Ja-gon but the woman's gaze turned toward the voice's owner.
"Why? Bandits acting like bandits get offed for it. Isn't asking for a reason laughable?"
Cheol Woo sneered, arms crossed.
"You wanna die?"
Deng Ja-gon's killing intent, aimed at the woman, shifted to Cheol Woo.
Even against the ferocious aura pouring out, Cheol Woo didn't lose his composure one bit.
"Who? Me? Or you?"
Unable to endure Cheol Woo's mockery any longer, Deng Ja-gon launched himself forward, swinging his axe.
He never imagined the thick blade, infused with his full power, would shatter against a mere human fist. To be precise, his fear of the woman who massacred his men had blinded him to properly gauging his new opponent's strength—the one who'd become his escape route.
Gaping at the axe crumbling like dry twigs, Deng Ja-gon twisted his body sharply.
Cheol Woo's fist, which had shattered the axe, grazed Deng Ja-gon's shoulder as he turned.
"Damn it!"
A curse escaped involuntarily.
This pain from a mere graze—what the hell!
He had no time to be shocked as Cheol Woo's follow-up attack came immediately.
Seeing the qi bursting from Cheol Woo's fist, Deng Ja-gon didn't dare clash head-on and leaped aside.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The qi Deng Ja-gon dodged smashed into the ship's sails, cabin door, and railings, creating deafening crashes.
Seeing wooden shards flying everywhere, the captain who had just come up on deck and the Namgyeong merchant wore grimaces.
"Ha! Not bad."
Cheol Woo grimaced at Deng Ja-gon's nimble evasion.
The cramped ship space and surroundings prevented him from going all out, and with Deng Ja-gon—who was notable enough among the Yangtze River Water Alliance elders—desperately dodging, it wasn't ending as quickly as thought.
"Sigh, the ship's gonna be wrecked. Let's get serious."
A jeering voice rang out.
It was a thunderbolt.
Cheol Woo whipped his head to glare at the thunderbolt wielder and unleashed his Ink Gang Asura Qi at full power.
A momentum utterly distinct from before surged around Cheol Woo's body. Deng Ja-gon, who had just snatched up his brother's twin axes while rolling on the deck, paled to ashen.
Even the qi transmitted through the air told him a clash meant certain death.
'I have to dodge.'
On the narrow ship, evasion space was limited, and luck wouldn't hold forever.
Deciding he needed to get off the ship first, Deng Ja-gon targeted the huddled travelers on one side.
"Arghhh!"
As Deng Ja-gon charged with a demon-like face, the travelers screamed. They scattered every which way, but not all could escape.
"Stay still!"
Deng Ja-gon snatched the arm of a young woman holding a baby and bellowed. A young woman with a child was the perfect hostage.
"P-please, spare us."
The woman clutched her baby tight and collapsed to the ground.
"Shut up and follo......"
As Deng Ja-gon threatened her, he sensed an eerie aura and turned his head.
A single ray of light flashed.
That was the last sight of his life.
Blood spurted from the limply collapsing Deng Ja-gon's neck.
A fresh scream erupted from the blood-soaked woman.
"Hey, why butt in?"
Cheol Woo growled at the woman who stole his prey.
Sheathing the sword that had just decapitated Deng Ja-gon, the woman glanced at Cheol Woo and said,
"You're the one who butted in first."
"No, you're wrong. That bastard swung at me."
"Causing near-misses to innocents and not even ashamed."
At her rebuke, Cheol Woo's lip curled slightly.
"Near-misses? I guarantee, even if you hadn't stepped in, nothing would've gone wrong."
The women's faces around changed at Cheol Woo's crude language. Especially the one who had clashed with Gwanghae wouldn't let it slide.
"Shut your trap! How dare a mountain bandit-lookalike wag his tongue?"
"Hmph! Big as a bear but hid like a rat—where do you get off yapping?"
"Relying on brute strength wrecked everything around."
Stunned momentarily by the barrage of insults, Cheol Woo soon exploded in rage.
"Ha! You crazy bitches for real!"
A storm-like aura erupted from Cheol Woo's entire body, draining the color from the faces of the women who'd mocked him.
"Mountain bandit? Rat? You pathetic things."
As Cheol Woo stepped toward them,
"That's enough."
Sima Geon—who had watched silently until now—blocked Cheol Woo's path.
"Boss!"
"Stand down."
With one word, Sima Geon quelled Cheol Woo's momentum and turned his head.
"You lot stop too."
Sima Geon fixed his gaze on the woman about to swing at Cheol Woo and spoke to the group.
The woman and Sima Geon's eyes met in midair for a moment.
Her cold eyes, appraising Sima Geon, wavered slightly.
The clear, transparent gaze held unmistakable surprise.
"All of you, fall back."
At her order, the sword-drawn, vigilant women quietly retreated.
"My thanks."
Sima Geon gave a slight bow and turned to the disgruntled Cheol Woo.
"You still wanna smash it to bits?"
"What?"
"This ship. Fighting that woman would wreck it in a blink. This much is enough."
Sima Geon pointed at the broken mast.
"Why go that far? One strike and done."
"You really think that?"
At Sima Geon's serious question, Cheol Woo shut his mouth.
"Heh, nah."
Cheol Woo knew well how strong the woman who'd tried to point her sword at him was. That's why he'd provoked her with insults in the first place. Though her counter was fiercer than expected.
"Shame. Pretty strong for a woman."
As Cheol Woo smacked his lips, unable to hide his fighting spirit, Sima Geon chuckled.
"Pretty strong? Still haven't wised up. Fight with that mindset and you're dead."
As the surprised Cheol Woo's eyes widened, Sima Geon murmured quietly while looking at the woman.
"That woman's at least stronger than the North Heaven Sword Demon."
At Sima Geon's assertion, Cheol Woo fell silent for a long while.