A Gift of Terror
Yichang in Hubei Province boasted a famous sight.
It was the spectacle of thousands of pigeons filling the sky.
These birds were carrier pigeons, specifically bred and trained through the secret methods of the Geumhwang Merchant Group.
The place where these thousands—perhaps even more than ten thousand—pigeons gathered was the Bird and Mouse Pavilion. In the Orthodox faction, it was second only to the Beggars' Sect in its ability to gather diverse information.
“Confirmed: Moyong Geon, Leader of the Heavenly Righteousness Fragrance of the Martial Alliance, has returned to the Wuhan branch. He is currently leading a reclamation force toward Tongseong County.”
“The bodies of the leader and members of the Geumseong Squad have been discovered near Mount Bang in Tongseong County! A dispatch reports that the Martial Alliance has recovered them!”
“A massive explosion has occurred near Geukrak Island! Heukpaeseong is currently at war with an unidentified force!”
Right now, the Bird and Mouse Pavilion was focusing all of its resources on a single location.
The southern tip of Hubei Province: Tongseong County.
It was no exaggeration to say they were tracking the chain of events unfolding in Tongseong County in near real-time.
Thus, the agents of the pavilion reported to their master the moment each encrypted message was deciphered.
“Ugh...”
Groans escaped the lips of everyone present, including the master of the pavilion.
The information pouring in lately was entirely unbelievable and utterly baffling.
Baffling meant unpredictable, which in turn meant uncertainty.
For a merchant group that dealt in money, uncertainty was the worst kind of news.
So, even as they busily worked their hands to collect, classify, and report the information, they blinked nervously and walked on eggshells.
For the face of their master, Oh Chu-baek, was twisted like a wrathful demon.
And with good reason, as all the recent intelligence shared a single common thread.
It was all disastrous news that could prove fatal to the Geumhwang Merchant Group.
“What on earth is the meaning of this...!”
Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Oh Chu-baek, the Golden Sovereign, roared.
To Oh Chu-baek, the current situation was completely incomprehensible.
Just a few days ago, everything had been going smoothly.
Do Ye-cheon had sent word that Jeok-un had left Sadocheon and was heading toward Tongseong County.
To capture the bastard, Oh Chu-baek had dispatched the Geumseong Squad, while Do Ye-cheon had sent the Blood Slaughter Squad.
Believing that everything was on the verge of completion, Oh Chu-baek had been grinning ear to ear even while just sitting still.
That was, until he received the news that had started pouring in a few hours ago...
I thought I would finally make that bastard kneel before me.
But what in the world was this chaotic mess of news?
As Oh Chu-baek squeezed his eyes shut against the unbelievable reality, urgent footsteps rushed toward the pavilion.
“Pant, pant! M-Master!”
“Yang Pyeong, what is it?!”
“Y-You must read this yourself, sir.”
Yang Pyeong was Oh Chu-baek's right-hand man and the chief manager of the Geumhwang Merchant Group.
Usually dignified and solemn as befitted the second-in-command, Yang Pyeong was now pale as a ghost, his robes disheveled, as he held something out to Oh Chu-baek.
It was a sealed letter.
The seal stamped on the envelope was one Oh Chu-baek knew all too well.
The Martial Alliance...!
The official seal of the Martial Alliance, with the character for "Martial" clearly stamped.
A letter bearing the official seal of the Martial Alliance meant it was for his eyes only.
This meant the matter inside was of grave importance.
And Oh Chu-baek already knew what that matter was.
After all, it was the very issue he had been worrying about the most.
Damn it! Why on earth did the leader of the Geumseong Squad clash with the Martial Alliance out of nowhere at Mount Bang?!
The skirmish that had taken place at Mount Bang, on the southern edge of Tongseong County.
There, the leader of the Geumseong Squad had attacked Dang Maeng and the Tongseong branch.
Not only were there casualties, but the branch leader, Dang Maeng, had been killed.
The Martial Alliance could not possibly let this slide.
To the Head of the Geumhwang Merchant Group, For Your Eyes Only.
Regarding the recent unfortunate incidents...
...According to the findings of the Alliance's investigators, it has been confirmed that your family's Geumseong Squad engaged in battle with the Tongseong branch at Mount Bang...
...Furthermore, there are suspicions that you, the head of the merchant group, met with the Mad Soul Fist, Do Ye-cheon, and aided the Ring-Breaking Mad Wolf, Jeok-un, in assassinating the Poison Dagger Yama, Dang Maeng. We demand an explanation regarding these matters. The deadline is...
So read the first line of the letter.
The elegant yet powerful handwriting clearly belonged to Jegal Mun, the Chief Strategist, who was renowned for his brilliant prose.
Jegal Mun's letter was cold and formal from start to finish.
Despite their personal connection as father-in-law and son-in-law, the fact that he maintained such a dry, rigid tone meant one thing.
He was demanding an explanation for the disaster in Tongseong County not as a son-in-law, but as the Chief Strategist of the Martial Alliance.
Oh Chu-baek grit his teeth and read on.
Rip!
Unable to read any further, Oh Chu-baek tore the letter to shreds.
“Jegal Mun...! How dare you!!”
Oh Chu-baek gnashed his teeth at Jegal Mun, but there was a far more pressing matter at hand.
The worst-case scenario he had feared was unfolding: he was suspected of betraying the Martial Alliance and defecting to the Unorthodox faction out of a personal vendetta.
The Martial Alliance viewed the disaster in Tongseong County as evidence of this, but out of respect for their past ties, they were giving him a single chance to explain himself.
As a result, the Geumhwang Merchant Group was now treated as a potential traitor within the Martial Alliance's territory.
All of their merchant activities were restricted, and various conflicts were breaking out.
Their relationship had frozen over in the blink of an eye.
It was only natural.
They had gone from allies to traitors, and now they had to pay the price.
Yet Oh Chu-baek had gained absolutely nothing, only left to pay the steep price.
“Ugh...”
Oh Chu-baek closed his eyes, groaning, before forcing the words out.
“……What about Do Ye-cheon? Any word from him?”
Since things had come to this, it would be wiser to abandon the Martial Alliance and align with Sadocheon.
But...
“W-We cannot reach him.”
“……What?”
“He seems to have completely severed all lines of communication. It appears he intends to play dumb...”
Oh Chu-baek's body swayed.
Do Ye-cheon had cut ties with him as well.
Considering Do Ye-cheon's ultimate goal, this was only natural.
Although the Geumhwang Merchant Group possessed immense wealth as one of the three great merchant groups of the Central Plains, Do Ye-cheon's ultimate goal was the seat of the Lord of Sadocheon.
To achieve this, he planned to assassinate Dok-go Cheon or remove him through underhanded means.
If it became known in the midst of this that Do Ye-cheon had allied with the Geumhwang Merchant Group—which had crossed the Martial Alliance—the Lord of Sadocheon might move against Do Ye-cheon first.
Thus, Do Ye-cheon had severed his ties with the Geumhwang Merchant Group before the Lord of Sadocheon could make a move.
“Aaaagh! Do Ye-cheon! Jegal Jeok-un!”
Crash!
His patience snapping, Oh Chu-baek swept his arms and threw whatever he could grab.
Silks, famous calligraphies, white celadon...
Priceless treasures shattered into pieces.
But none of it could soothe Oh Chu-baek's burning rage.
“T-There are no unusual movements, right?”
Yang Kang, the Tongseong branch leader of Sadocheon, could not help but tremble.
Though he had lived by the blade for decades, a situation this bizarre and terrifying was a first even for him.
“Yes, sir. For now, the Martial Alliance branch has been completely demolished.”
“I-I see...”
“But it is too early to let our guard down.”
*Click, click.*
Listening to his deputy's report, Yang Kang bit his nails in anxiety.
“The current situation is barely being held down. If a large force from the Martial Alliance arrives to reclaim their relic and territory, there is no telling what will...”
Hearing his subordinate's report, Yang Kang closed his eyes tightly.
The dark circles under his eyes were already severe.
The sheer weight and pressure of the situation had turned the skin beneath his eyes as black as a panda's.
Damn it. Damn it all. I only needed one more month before I could return to headquarters.
The moment Yang Kang confirmed what Jeok-un had done, he had immediately mobilized his troops.
If a normal branch leader's logic was to secure the area because they didn't know what the surviving Martial Alliance members might do... Yang Kang, a born coward, had mobilized his troops solely out of fear that Jeok-un—an unpredictable natural disaster—might turn his sights on him.
So, he had replaced the Martial Alliance flags with Sadocheon's and waited for Jeok-un.
“W-Where on earth is he? Why isn't he coming...?”
Jeok-un, who had annihilated Dang Maeng and the Martial Alliance branch, had not shown his face since.
One might think he was dead by now, but even after several days, no corpse had been found.
Since they hadn't found a body despite expanding the search area, they had to assume he was alive.
On top of that, a report had come in just a few hours ago that a massive explosion had been detected near Geukrak Island.
Did he... did he really mess with Heukpaeseong too?
Yang Kang entertained the horrifying thought for a moment before shaking his head vigorously.
No, that's impossible.
What kind of madman would attack the Martial Alliance and then immediately go after Heukpaeseong?
Besides, he had practically decimated the Tongseong branch, so his body couldn't possibly be intact.
Right. After such a fierce battle, he must be recovering in a cave somewhere.
He's recovering. He has to be.
Just as Yang Kang was painting the most optimistic scenario in his mind—
Thud, thud, thud!
“B-Branch Leader!”
“What! What is it now?!”
Already anxious, Yang Kang snapped at his subordinate's frantic entrance.
But the news the subordinate brought was not something to be dismissed so easily.
“H-He's here! No, he has arrived!”
“What?!”
There was only one person who could warrant such a grand arrival right now.
It had to be the Ring-Breaking Mad Wolf, Jeok-un, the architect of this entire disaster.
“W-Where is he?!”
“At the main gate, sir!”
The moment he heard the location, Yang Kang ran to the main gate in his stocking feet, not even bothering to put on his shoes.
Standing at the main gate—which was still heavily damaged from Jeok-un's rampage—was a man who looked extraordinary at a glance.
Is that him...?
Yang Kang carefully sized up the man's martial prowess and spoke hesitantly.
“A-Are you Lord Jeok-un—”
“I am Jang Bo-heum, leader of the Ghost Dream Squad. I am here to deliver the orders of the White Night Leader, Lord Jeok-un!”
“……?!”
The Ghost Dream Squad was one of the Ten Heavenly Squads, wasn't it?
Why was the leader of the Ghost Dream Squad, one of the ten strongest units in their entire faction, acting as a mere messenger for Jeok-un?
Such questions flashed through the minds of Yang Kang and his men.
But right now, Jeok-un's message was all that mattered.
They focused entirely on Jang Bo-heum's words.
“I, Jeok-un, declare to all brothers of the Tongseong branch!”
“Because your laziness caused the front lines in Tongseong to stagnate, I personally stepped in and crushed Dang Maeng and the Martial Alliance. You may thank me.”
“However, the Martial Alliance will not abandon Tongseong County so easily. They will undoubtedly dispatch reinforcements.”
Jeok-un was warning them of the incoming reclamation force.
Naturally, Yang Kang thought:
He's going to protect us now, right? He won't just make us give back the territory we secured, will he?
Gulp.
As Yang Kang swallowed hard, Jang Bo-heum delivered the final part of the message.
“……Prepare yourselves. Hold the line to the very end!”
“……Huh?”
Why was there no mention of him coming to help?
Yang Kang's confusion was resolved immediately.
“I have urgent business to attend to elsewhere. Therefore, stand firm!”
“……!”
“If you foolishly lose or abandon the territory I secured before I return...”
Jang Bo-heum cut himself off, untied the bundle slung over his back, and tossed it forward.
The bundle hit the ground, its knot unraveling to reveal what was inside...
As the round bundle hit the dirt, the object inside rolled out.
“T-That's!”
It was a severed head.
“Eek!”
“Gasp!”
Everyone at the Tongseong branch shrieked or shut their eyes in horror.
Yang Kang fainted outright, collapsing backward.
And for good reason.
The head that had rolled out of the bundle belonged to none other than...
The Lord of Geukrak Island.
The Sea Overflowing Fist Madman, Seo Do-yeom.
“Tsk, tsk...”
Jang Bo-heum looked down at the unconscious branch leader, Yang Kang, with pity, before delivering Jeok-un's final warning.
“……You will all end up just like this fool.”
Therefore, they had to defend it even if it cost them their lives.
A desperate order to defend to the death had fallen upon the Tongseong branch of Sadocheon.
The three great factions that divided the Murim: the Martial Alliance, Heukpaeseong, and Sadocheon.
With the branches of two of the three great factions decimated, a massive power vacuum had opened up.
With the eyes of the entire Jianghu focused on this unprecedented crisis since the division of the land,
“I have kept you waiting a long time, sacred relic.”
the culprit behind this chaos, Jeok-un, was nowhere to be found in Tongseong County.
Right now, Jeok-un was at Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province, one of the region's most scenic spots.
It was the very place where one of the Patriarch's Seven Sacred Artifacts lay sleeping.