Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: Journey to Shaolin
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Nine Yang Blade Geum-pyeong.
Purple Sword Myo-cho-a.
I joined up with those two early in the morning. Geum-pyeong arrived a bit late to our appointment, while Myo-cho-a showed up right on time.
"Since we know each other, no introductions needed."
Geum-pyeong of the Nine Yang Blade had the same heavy-set impression as before. He was big but serene, his very aura calm and steady.
The standout feature was the massive blade slung across his back.
Bound without a scabbard, its edge wrapped in bandages. Even the energy it gave off felt profoundly subtle.
White Night and Black Brew whispered softly. From that faint wail, I could tell the weapon was no ordinary thing.
At the very least... it had to be something akin to a Ghost Sword.
"I'm Myo-cho-a."
The Purple Sword Myo-cho-a was every bit as beautiful as I'd heard. Wasn't she called the Murim Alliance's top beauty?
Her most striking feature was her black hair, finer than silk. And those gorgeous golden eyes.
Mysterious. But beyond her beauty, she seemed to be hiding a great deal. Her meticulously refined demeanor was as calm as Geum-pyeong's.
She was polite, but it was clear she held no goodwill toward me. Both her words and actions were deliberately devoid of emotion.
Above all... that faint killing intent.
She was on her guard against me.
"Red Cloud."
After a brief greeting, we boarded the carriage prepared by the Murim Alliance.
The horses set off. Myo-cho-a spoke up.
"How do you plan to dig into the incident?"
"I'll start with the small things, one by one."
"Shaolin won't cooperate. Just the fact that the Murim Alliance sent separate inspectors will have them deeply displeased."
Myo-cho-a leaned her shoulder against the carriage wall.
"We have the pretext of resolving the incident, but if we push it too hard, we'll be outright ignored. It might not even end with mere dismissal."
"......."
"Shaolin isn't some benevolent Buddha statue. Remember they're warriors hiding their true intentions behind clasped hands. Shaolin's Buddhist heart vanished long ago."
A warning?
A threat?
It didn't matter which. My task remained unchanged.
Build my reputation. Lower the Murim Alliance's guard.
Save people. Carve out the rotten corruption.
If this scared me, I never would have left the cult. I turned my head to the window.
"You do your part."
"......."
I threw her master's words right back at her.
"I'll do mine."
...
Myo-cho-a's gaze darkened.
The carriage jolted. But she didn't budge an inch.
She was controlling her body's flow. Not with internal energy, but with her physical form alone.
How much training did it take to handle external forces like that purely on one's own?
Honestly, it was impressive. Any warrior would have to admire that sense of balance.
But that was as far as it went.
Myo-cho-a subtly flicked a thread of qi at him. No one could match her in fine qi manipulation.
Nothing.
No fluctuation in qi, no signature at all...
Not a trace.
It matched exactly what her master had said. He had no internal energy. Which meant his limits were clear.
There were certainly experts who honed only external force. But when they clashed with 'true' power, they always shattered.
"......."
Shaolin Temple.
One of the Nine Great Powers where multiple disappearances were occurring.
But they didn't want help. When something happened inside a sect's domain, they always preferred to handle it themselves.
Accepting outside aid meant losing face and pride in one go. They might say thanks on the surface, but they wouldn't let outsiders resolve their issues.
And if you poked around too much...
Retaliation was inevitable. The current Shaolin leader was Heavenly Fragrance Layman Gong-baek, after all.
A name mentioned alongside the Murim Alliance Leader. One of the Four Venerables, his martial depth so profound it defied measure.
His temperament was well-known too. Merciful to most, grounded in Buddha's teachings...
But to those who crossed the line, he granted no mercy-the supreme lord of Shaolin.
One misstep, and your head would roll.
Myo-cho-a hoped the warrior before her would lose his head. For accepting such an absurd mission in the first place.
The current murim was in chaos, and to fix it, they needed to start from the top.
Dethrone the current Murim Alliance Leader and elevate the right person.
That was the bare minimum to even hope to straighten things out, yet this man was getting in the way.
Whether his motives were justice or power, she didn't know...
But she knew one thing for sure.
He was the Alliance Leader's man.
Useless to the grand plan.
Better if someone else took him out.
If he had any brains, he'd realize he was perfectly positioned to be used and discarded... but he didn't even grasp that.
She'd tossed him some well-meaning advice out of pity, only for it to be ignored.
...Fine.
No reason to help an enemy.
Myo-cho-a neatly folded away her thoughts. She resolved to act like a single-minded blade.
He'd do his work.
She'd do hers.
From the moment Red Cloud declared he'd take the inspector role, it was decided.
He'd self-destruct digging into the corrupt forces.
And she'd just bring back his corpse...
That was the story.
...
We arrived at Shaolin. Since it was official business, they came out to greet us.
But their gazes weren't kind.
"Young hero Jeok. Welcome to Shaolin."
The man who introduced himself as Dam-yang led us inside.
And as expected, we didn't get to see the current head, Gong-baek.
"The abbot is occupied with duties and away at the moment."
"I'd like to hear the details of the incident."
"We've prepared a summary document. Please read it. We'll leave you to it."
I skimmed through the document the young monk brought.
Nothing unusual. Just your standard report.
No common traits among the missing. Not limited to any specific gender.
Information was scarce. I asked for more, but Dam-yang refused.
"That's all the information we have."
Access to internal Shaolin records was also denied.
All I was permitted was to patrol the areas around Shaolin in Henan Province.
"Young hero Jeok. We ask for your understanding."
It wasn't a request.
His eyes said we should handle our own affairs-why was a third party butting in?
I ignored him and headed into Henan Province.
I couldn't ask for help from the two silently trailing me, so I had to handle it alone.
The top priority was...
Meeting those connected to the missing.
I spoke with the people who'd formally petitioned Shaolin. All of them were unwell, living in crumbling homes on the verge of collapse.
"S-Sir! P-Please find my daughter! Please...! I'll do anything!"
"M-My wife vanished. No matter how much... how much I search, she doesn't come back. Please... please..."
"D-Dad hasn't come home. Dad said he'd come back... but he hasn't..."
Total missing: 63.
And they usually took two at a time, so...
Over 30 incidents, and they hadn't resolved a thing.
A little girl grabbed the hem of my robe. She looked up with grubby, tearful eyes.
"P-Please... find my dad..."
"......."
What crime could this child have committed?
I rolled up my sleeve myself. Carefully wiped her face.
"...Don't worry. I'll find him and bring him back."
I traced the missing persons' trails. They vanished without a sound one day, or slipped away in the dead of night.
Most incidents happened after sunset, when people were scarce.
The fact that they couldn't find any of the missing pointed to organized activity.
Shaolin monks were among those searching too. But they seemed to know my face already-they wouldn't respond even when spoken to.
All I got were cold words like "We don't know."
The investigation hit a wall.
If only Black Pearl and Black Wind were here, this would be so much easier- the thought lingered.
But even so...
In the end, relying on no one and handling it alone was the only way.
"......."
I arrived at the inn set aside in Henan Province. Ignoring the two who went to their rooms, I lit the lamp in mine.
What were they doing with the abducted missing people?
Killing them wasn't the goal. No way they'd kidnap from such a wide area if it was.
...Human trafficking? Or cannibals at work?
No. If so, they wouldn't act so openly on the surface.
An incident everyone in Henan Province knew about.
The enemy didn't care about being exposed. So why?
Why commit crimes without worrying about getting caught?
Did they believe their crimes were flawless?
Or...
Did they think there was no one in Henan Province who could catch them...?
"...Hmm."
With so few clues, speculation was limited.
But one thing was certain: the culprit operated at night.
No information, no cooperation-footwork was all that remained.
I extinguished the lamp. Leaned against the window frame, feeling the breeze.
"...Hoo."
I began circulating the qi hidden within Heavenly Tribulation, bit by bit.
Recall what your master taught you, Red Cloud.
I couldn't blanket an entire venue like Master...
But with focus, I could sense a small area with qi perception.
-Thud.
I leaped lightly from the roof.
Patrolled the night streets. Searching for traces.
Nights passed with no results. Still, I kept racing through the dark streets.
I minimized sleep. The thought of an innocent vanishing while I rested kept me awake.
Finding the missing was now my duty as inspector.
I prioritized every extra step over a moment's rest.
On the sixth night like that.
In my diligent patrols, I crossed paths with someone wearing a mask pulled over their face.
"......."
"......."
We halted simultaneously and stared. And in that moment, I sensed something familiar.
Soundless lightness skill. A hazy presence even right in front of me.
That's...
The feel of Black Wind under the full moon.
The footsteps unique to information brokers.
"...Who are you?"
"Murim Alliance Inspector Red Cloud. Don't you need information?"
"State your affiliation."
"This girl is called Su-ryeon."
The woman in the fox mask moved to bow in greeting.
"Seems we can get what we each want from one another... What do you think?"
"Money your goal?"
"No. Something more precious than money."
"......"
"This might take a while, so how about we move somewhere else?"
Su-ryeon, who'd targeted me from the start.
I placed my hand on my sword.
"If you want to talk, clear out the extras first."
"...Pardon?"
I jerked my chin.
"I said get rid of all four of those hiding."