Chapter 106
Blood Saber was a master who had roamed the Martial World a hundred years ago, reigning over the Shaanxi region with a single crimson blade.
In his later years, he retired to Buddha Peak Mountain and quietly passed away—until a man named Wang Jeong discovered his martial arts manual.
"Wang Jeong has claimed Buddha Peak Mountain as his territory and has been wreaking havoc on those who pass through the area. Because of him, the price of escorting goods through that region has doubled."
"That doesn't make sense. If that's the case, the Righteous Faction—always eager to intervene—wouldn't have stayed idle."
"There are two reasons. First, Buddha Peak Mountain has treacherous terrain. On top of that, the location of his stronghold remains unknown."
Dam Yu-yeon explained calmly.
"The second reason is that, no matter how you look at it, Wang Jeong's actions amount to little more than banditry. For the esteemed members of the Righteous Faction, dealing with a master who lives in the mountains and acts like a common thief would be beneath their dignity."
She took a deep breath before continuing.
"In the end, the escort bureaus across Shaanxi pooled a large sum of money and submitted a request to the Wanderers' Market. After all, these kinds of matters are best handled by wanderers."
"So it still hasn't been resolved?"
When Bu Eun-seol pressed for details, she smiled faintly.
"Wang Jeong is an extremely cunning man. Whenever groups of known masters or martial artists pass through, he never shows himself."
"You're saying he doesn't reveal himself if he senses someone stronger."
"Exactly. That's why this job is perfectly suited for a young hero like you, whose name isn't widely known yet."
"And the future Designated Assignments will likely be similar."
"Young Hero Seol, you're not just skilled in martial arts—you're sharp-minded too."
Dam Yu-yeon's eyes sparkled like sunlight reflected on a lake.
"I look forward to your future contributions to our branch."
"Understood."
As Bu Eun-seol stepped outside, the smile in Dam Yu-yeon's eyes shifted. Her gaze hardened, as if she had resolved something.
"Seol-so...," she murmured, biting her lip.
"I'll make sure you never get the chance to fight Deputy Hall Master Jeong Cheon."
Heuk-pyo, who had followed Bu Eun-seol out of the Red Sky Curtain Branch, wore a displeased expression.
"Young Master."
"Speak."
"Wouldn't it be better to use the Kill-Seeking Unit's branch to gather information on strong opponents?"
"What are you talking about?"
Heuk-pyo avoided Bu Eun-seol's gaze and sniffed.
"It's just... I don't trust that Scripture Instruction Hall Master."
"Why?"
"Wang Jeong may not be known in the wider Martial World, but among wanderers, he's infamous as a formidable master."
When Bu Eun-seol remained silent, Heuk-pyo pouted.
"But that Hall Master spun some strange excuses, making it sound like Wang Jeong was just clever at avoiding strong opponents."
"Is that not the case?"
"No. He's a master with extensive experience in the Martial World and an exceptional saber technique."
Heuk-pyo wrinkled his nose.
"If we were truly new wanderers, we'd have set off for Buddha Peak Mountain without knowing any of this."
"Hahaha. Who would take the job if you scared them off first?"
"In the Wanderers' Market, accurate information is life. It's a matter of life and death for wanderers."
Heuk-pyo's frown deepened.
"The reason the market takes thirty percent of the payment is because it includes the cost of information. Yet the Scripture Instruction Hall Master deliberately concealed crucial details."
It seemed Heuk-pyo was thoroughly dissatisfied.
Bu Eun-seol recalled the fleeting emotion he had glimpsed in Dam Yu-yeon's eyes and muttered under his breath.
"She had no choice. She must want me dead."
"Huh?"
"Never mind."
Bu Eun-seol maintained an indifferent expression.
"Let's set off now."
Bu Eun-seol and Heuk-pyo unleashed a movement technique swift as a gale, heading straight for Buddha Peak Mountain.
By the time the sun was midway across the sky, the two had already arrived at a village near Buddha Peak.
Bu Eun-seol entered the village, rented a carriage, and purchased clothes worn by escorts—just in case Wang Jeong refused to show himself.
Clatter, clatter.
The carriage driven by Heuk-pyo trundled along the mountain path. The carriage itself was old, but the horse was even older, making their progress slow.
As the sun slanted low in the sky and the carriage passed over the ridge of the mountain path—
Whoosh!
With the Sound of Breaking Air, a white shadow descended from the sky and landed squarely in front of the carriage.
"Whoa there."
Heuk-pyo reined in the horses, calming their startled whinnies, as Bu Eun-seol's voice emerged from inside the carriage.
"What's happening?"
"Someone's blocking the road."
The figure standing before them was a man clad in pristine white garments.
What stood out was the white mask covering his face and his rather slight build. Yet the eyes visible above the mask were strikingly clear and beautiful—nothing about him suggested a wicked man.
"This path is closed."
The masked man fixed Heuk-pyo with a piercing glare, his voice as cold as winter.
"Turn back."
"Huh?"
The masked man frowned at Heuk-pyo, who was dressed like a servant of a wealthy household.
"Bandits of the vilest sort infest these mountain paths of Buddha Peak Mountain. You'd do well to retreat the way you came."
"Ah."
Finally grasping the situation, Heuk-pyo scratched his head awkwardly.
"No need to worry. Our Young Master has trained under a renowned master—a mere gang of bandits wouldn't be—"
"These are no ordinary bandits."
The masked man cast a disdainful glance at Heuk-pyo and the carriage before speaking in a voice both solemn and icy.
"If you value your lives, turn back."
Thud!
With that, he unleashed his Movement Technique and vanished in the blink of an eye.
"..."
Heuk-pyo stared blankly at the empty space before muttering in a troubled tone,
"Young Master... That man seemed to be hunting Wang Jeong as well."
The masked man's retreating figure moved with the swift, fluid grace of a swallow skimming water.
"Judging by his attire and movement technique, he's no rogue martial artist—likely a figure from the Righteous Faction."
"Pay him no mind."
Bu Eun-seol's voice was low but firm from inside the carriage.
"He won't be catching Wang Jeong."
"Is that so? He seemed quite skilled, though."
"If martial prowess alone could capture Wang Jeong, that man would've long since been buried in these mountains."
Bu Eun-seol's tone left no room for doubt.
"Focus on the road ahead."
How much time had passed?
By the time the carriage had wound deep into the mountains, Bu Eun-seol spoke abruptly.
"Stop the carriage for a moment."
"Huh? Right."
As Heuk-pyo hastily reined in the horses, Bu Eun-seol pushed open the door and stepped out slowly.
Then, closing his eyes, he stood perfectly still, listening intently.
'The Young Master must've heard something.'
Heuk-pyo pricked up his own ears but caught nothing beyond the rustling of leaves in the wind.
After a long pause, Bu Eun-seol tilted his head slightly—then suddenly lashed out with One Fist toward a towering Great Tree visible beyond the bushes.
Thoom!
A low vibration rippled outward, and his eyes snapped open.
"There."
Without hesitation, he activated his Movement Technique, darting toward a pair of distant cliffs.
"Young Master!"
Heuk-pyo followed suit, his own technique carrying him swiftly after Bu Eun-seol.
Swish—
Pushing through the underbrush, Heuk-pyo finally spotted Bu Eun-seol crouched at a vantage point overlooking a ravine.
Moving carefully to his side, Heuk-pyo's eyes widened.
'Those are—?'
Below the ravine, the masked man from earlier was locked in combat with a group of twenty-odd fighters.
Swish-swish-swish!
Their weapons were cheap broadswords—the kind sold at any low-end forge—but their skill was anything but ordinary.
'Must be Wang Jeong's men.'
The twenty martial artists moved with trained precision, their transitions between attack and defense seamless, their martial forms disciplined.
Moreover, they seemed to be employing a battle formation, their blades striking in coordinated waves at the masked man's vital points.
In skill alone, they rivaled the warriors of any respectable faction.
"Impressive, for a pack of bandits."
The masked man dodged their saber techniques with ease, hands clasped behind his back as he muttered under his breath.
"But your Internal Energy is sorely lacking."
Spinning fluidly between the blades, he clicked his tongue.
"You must've never been taught a proper Divine Art Method."
Swish.
The masked man drew the treasured sword from his waist.
Its shape was exceptionally unique—the blade unusually narrow, its entire length faintly tinged with gold.
Heuk-pyo's eyes gleamed upon recognizing it.
'So he's a master from the Namgung Clan!'
The weapon now in the masked man's grip was none other than the Golden Needle Sword, wielded exclusively by the Namgung Clan's elite.
Still crouched low, Heuk-pyo whispered urgently to Bu Eun-seol:
"Young Master. That's a master of the Namgung Clan."
"I know."
"Then perhaps we won't need to intervene."
The Namgung Clan was so renowned for its swordsmanship that it was often called the Namgung Sword Sect.
Among their techniques, the Heavy Sword Art stood as one of the finest in the martial world.
And then there was the Emperor Sword Form—a technique that unleashed crushing pressure akin to hurling Mount Tai, despite its blade being slimmer than a standard longsword. Its sheer majesty alone was enough to chill the hearts of swordsmen.
Pah-pah-pah-pat!
With a single flourish of his blade, the masked man unleashed a barrage of sword strokes, like dozens of steel needles raining down.
The rapid, piercing thrusts left no doubt—he was executing the Sky Vault Flying Swallow Sword.
Clang-clang-clang!
A metallic chorus rang out as the swords of the warriors before him clattered helplessly to the ground.
"Surrender!"
The masked man barked the command after disarming five men in a single stroke.
Cowed by his overwhelming presence, the bandits began retreating hesitantly.
"Wang Jeong—where is that bastard hiding?"
The masked man's shout sent the retreating mob into a frenzy.
"Fall back!"
As one, they whirled around and scattered like cockroaches, fleeing in all directions.
"Pathetic tricks."
Sheathing his sword, the masked man flicked his fingers, sending Finger Wind slicing through the air.
Pah-pah-pak!
But something astonishing happened.
Despite the strikes landing squarely on their backs, the fleeing warriors didn't falter.
"Protective clothing, is it?"
The masked man smirked before activating his Movement Technique, darting after the escaping figures through the ravine.
"Hm."
Bu Eun-seol, watching from above, shook his head.
"He's doomed."
"Given the atrocities they've committed... isn't this just retribution?"
"No. I mean him."
Bu Eun-seol's gaze remained fixed on the masked man.
"That... Namgung master?"
"Young nobles from renowned clans, inexperienced in the ways of the martial world, are always vulnerable to dirty tricks."
"Eh?"
"He should've questioned why they abandoned their geographical advantage to trap him in this clearing."
Before the words were even out—
Whoosh!
The masked man's foot plunged through the ravine's floor, sending up a cloud of dust as he vanished into the earth below.
The trap had been too sudden—no time to react.
Now it was clear: the fleeing bandits had lured him over a pit, thinly veiled with branches and dirt.
Tha-thump!
Yet the moment he fell, the man kicked off the sharp spikes lining the pit's bottom, using them as footholds to propel himself upward.
Even in crisis, his Peak Realm Movement Technique turned peril into opportunity.
Fwoosh!
But as he erupted from the ground, a white powder swirled around him, carried by the wind.
The pit hadn't just held spikes—it was laced with Qi-Scattering Powder.
"Tch."
He immediately held his breath, but the fine particles had already invaded his lungs.
Flash!
Then, from among the fleeing figures, one man spun abruptly, slashing his blade in a cross-shaped strike.
Clang!
The masked man parried swiftly, but the motion forced another gasp—and another dose of poison.
"Hahaha!"
The attacker laughed triumphantly.
"All that skill, yet still a greenhorn."
The masked man staggered back, lips pressed tight as realization dawned.
"You... You're Wang Jeong."
"Correct."
The man sauntered forward, nodding leisurely.
"I am Wang Jeong."
Unbelievably, Wang Jeong had hidden among his identically armed and clothed subordinates all along.
"I see. That's how you've evaded capture."
The masked man finally understood.
Exploiting the obscurity of Appearance Breaking Energy, Wang Jeong had moved undetected within his own ranks, pillaging without ever being singled out.