Chapter 193
Chapter 193
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: This Job Will Be Over Soon
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< This Job Will Be Over Soon >
Dong Uyeop was a fairly well-known master within Nameless.
There were two types of masters who had established themselves in Nameless.
One was those born and raised within Nameless who became masters, and the other was those recruited from the outside.
Dong Uyeop was the latter.
Those recruited by Nameless from the outside all had one thing in common: they were not well known.
Or, if they were known, it was from so long ago that they had been all but forgotten.
Dong Uyeop was one of those not well known to the outside world.
The reason he was unknown was simple. He didn't want to be.
For a long time, Dong Uyeop had lived deep in the mountains, dedicating his life solely to martial arts training.
After decades of knowing nothing but martial arts, he descended into the world following his master's death, and the first person he met was a greenhorn river pirate.
That encounter led him to a pirate stronghold, and he later helped that man become its chieftain.
When he first started, he intended to stop there, but once he tried his hand at piracy, he found it suited him perfectly.
So, as the years idly passed, he found himself settled in the stronghold.
However, Dong Uyeop was well aware of his own limitations.
That was why he was extremely careful not to draw attention to himself.
In Nanchang, near Poyang Lake, resided the Hwangbo Family, one of the Five Great Families.
He knew all too well that no matter how skilled he was, if the Hwangbo Family got involved, he would be crushed in an instant.
He had even had the chance to witness their power firsthand.
So, he conducted his piracy far away, as if on an expedition.
It wasn't that he never had to use his strength. But among pirates, no one could stop Dong Uyeop.
Dong Uyeop was, in fact, a master capable of single-handedly destroying several ordinary pirate strongholds in an instant.
Then, the hand of Nameless reached out to him.
Nameless made him even stronger.
They also taught him a few methods to become stronger depending on the situation.
What Nameless wanted was for him to continue building his strength and, at times, use the stronghold to secretly assist with their affairs.
They also took some of the pirates.
Within the stronghold, this was considered a great honor.
They believed they were being recruited into a secret organization, given elixirs and martial arts, and undergoing secret training to become members.
Of course, that wasn't the reality.
In any case, that was the relationship between Nameless and Dong Uyeop.
And so, Dong Uyeop continued to live a life of envy in this stronghold.
He could have any woman he wanted, eat any food he desired, kill or spare anyone at his whim.
Here, at least, he was a man who could do anything.
Today, too, Dong Uyeop was savoring his usual life.
Just ten days ago, Nameless had requested men, so he had handed over twenty pirates.
Dong Uyeop rose from his bed and got dressed.
It had already been over ten days since he had last been with a woman.
It was a long-standing tradition to give each of the men a woman the night before they were offered to Nameless.
No, it was more like a ritual for Dong Uyeop to assuage the minimal guilt he felt toward them.
He sent the women along with his subordinates as well.
To the other pirates, he must have seemed like a truly great chieftain.
A subordinate is recruited into an outside organization, and he's given a woman as a gift? What other chieftain in the world would do that?
Everyone who saw it was beside themselves with envy.
Dong Uyeop smirked at the thought.
"They don't even know they're walking to their deaths. Fools. You bastards who remain are the ones truly in paradise. Don't speak if you know nothing."
Muttering this, Dong Uyeop walked to the window and looked outside.
It was a clear, windless day, and the waters of Poyang Lake were perfectly calm.
The sight of the endlessly sprawling lake was refreshing.
He saw this scene every day, but it felt new each time.
"Hm? What's that?"
In the distance, Dong Uyeop's eyes caught sight of a small black dot.
He quickly infused his eyes with internal energy.
His vision sharpened, and the black dot expanded as if magnified.
"A ship?"
A rather large and ornate ship was heading this way.
But its speed was unusual. It was definitely not a speed an ordinary ship could achieve.
The ship was coming straight for them.
At first, it was a black dot. He blinked, and the ship's form became visible. He blinked again, and the entire ship was in full view.
And before Dong Uyeop could react, the ship plowed straight into the stronghold.
CRRRRAAAASSSSHHHH!
The building shook violently.
Dong Uyeop quickly steadied himself and shouted out the window.
"Enemies! Stop dawdling and get out here with your weapons!"
Shouting this, Dong Uyeop grabbed his own weapon, a massive saber, and leaped out the window.
CRACK!
He landed hard enough to shatter the floorboards.
Dong Uyeop immediately looked for the ship that had struck the stronghold.
"Huh?"
He found the ship, but the situation was strange.
"What is that thing doing?"
Even though the ship was lodged deep within the stronghold, it was still moving.
It was as if it were making a wide turn inside the stronghold.
No, it was actually turning.
It was turning in a large arc, devastating everything around it.
This stronghold floated on the water. Pavilions were built on the water, houses were built on the water, and warehouses were built on the water.
In short, it was like an enormous pier.
But now, that entire structure was being twisted and shattered by the ship.
The twisting of the structure caused even pavilions untouched by the ship to collapse.
Dong Uyeop gritted his teeth and launched himself forward.
First, he had to do something about that ship.
Immense energy gathered on the massive saber Dong Uyeop held. His blade radiated a brilliant light.
"Hyaaaaaaah!"
Dong Uyeop leaped and brought his saber down on the ship.
CRRRRAAACK!
Astonishingly, the ship accelerated at that moment, evading his strike.
And Dong Uyeop's attack ended up shattering the floor of the stronghold instead.
"Damn it!"
Dong Uyeop scowled.
As if its job was done, the ship slipped out of the stronghold.
Dong Uyeop stared blankly at the stern of the receding ship.
"What in the world is that crazy ship?"
The ship, which had been speeding away, made a wide turn.
Dong Uyeop's eyes widened in disbelief.
The ship was flying toward him, even faster than before.
"You're insane!"
The ship flew directly at Dong Uyeop.
Dong Uyeop condensed as much energy as he could into his saber.
And the moment the ship was upon him, he brought it down.
KABOOOOOM!
Dong Uyeop's saber shattered into pieces. And Dong Uyeop was sent flying backward, coughing up blood.
What was astounding was that the ship's speed as it tore through the stronghold was faster than the speed at which Dong Uyeop was flying.
The ship passed beneath Dong Uyeop, who was suspended in mid-air.
Then, someone leaped up from the ship, snatched Dong Uyeop, and returned to the deck.
* * *
Dong Uyeop knelt before Byeok Taesan, his head bowed.
This was not a man he could do anything against. Before such a person, he could kneel as many times as necessary.
Byeok Taesan stared silently at Dong Uyeop.
"Not bad."
At Byeok Taesan's words, Dong Uyeop flinched involuntarily.
*'Not bad? After what just happened to me? Is he mocking me?'*
To be honest, what had happened earlier was truly shocking.
Dong Uyeop was confident he could split a chunk of iron the size of this ship with a single strike.
His swordsmanship had reached that level of mastery.
But he hadn't even managed to scratch this ship.
Moreover, the impact of that one blow had made him lose consciousness.
He had saved some face by not suffering any internal injuries, but that didn't lessen his humiliation.
Right now, Byeok Taesan's ship was floating a short distance from the stronghold.
The stronghold was in chaos.
Having charged through and wreaked havoc twice, not a single part of it remained intact.
The ships moored at the stronghold were all destroyed as well.
It would probably not be easy to rebuild.
Byeok Taesan shifted his gaze from Dong Uyeop to Hwaok.
"Take care of the stronghold."
Hwaok gave a slight bow.
The members of the Underworld Sect were already on their way here by boat.
It was hard to say when they would arrive, but both the Underworld Sect and the Secret Heaven Group would be here by the end of the day.
Hwaok had given the order to the Underworld Sect even before they departed.
She had told them to follow as soon as Byeok Taesan's ship set off.
But because of the vast difference in speed, it would inevitably take time for them to arrive.
Byeok Taesan looked back at Dong Uyeop.
Dong Uyeop forced a smile and looked up at Byeok Taesan from his prostrate position.
"To be perfectly honest... I know almost nothing."
Dong Uyeop continued, warily watching Byeok Taesan's expression.
"I'm just a guy who offers up some kids and gets a few scraps in return."
Byeok Taesan grinned at him.
Dong Uyeop grinned back at Byeok Taesan's smile. It was a grin born from the thought that his words might have had some effect.
Byeok Taesan grabbed Dong Uyeop's head.
Dong Uyeop's head was quite large, making it difficult to grip, yet Byeok Taesan squeezed it tightly.
"Aaaaargh!"
A pain like his head was being crushed washed over him.
Byeok Taesan stood up, lifting Dong Uyeop by his head.
"Uwaaaargh! Ack! Aaaargh!"
Dong Uyeop screamed like a madman. The pain was immense, but the fear was even greater. He felt as if his head would burst like a watermelon.
Holding Dong Uyeop like that, Byeok Taesan entered the cabin.
"Kuaaaaaaaargh!"
A bloodcurdling scream, incomparable to the ones before, poured out of the cabin.
Everyone on deck flinched at the sound.
It was a desperate scream that seemed to shake one's very soul.
The scream was so loud that it seemed to have been heard even at the stronghold.
The pirates were running around in confusion.
The screams pouring from the cabin were incessant.
"In my experience... this will take at least a couple of hours. Why don't we clean up the stronghold in the meantime?"
Hwaok asked, looking around at the group.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
It was better to go smash some pirates than to stand here listening to those screams.
"I'll move the ship."
Cheon Gyeongwan stepped forward and unleashed his energy at the stern.
The ship began to glide toward the stronghold.
* * *
Byeok Taesan handed the information extracted from Dong Uyeop's soul to Hwaok.
It was highly disorganized, and sorting through it was no small task, but this wasn't the first time for Hwaok, so she recorded it with practiced ease.
It seemed it could be used to supplement their existing information once it was properly organized after this mission.
While Byeok Taesan was extracting and burning the soul, the rest of the group had tidied up the stronghold, so there wasn't much left for the members of the Underworld Sect and the Secret Heaven Group to do when they arrived.
All that was left was to sort through the treasure and deal with any remaining stragglers.
Watching the Underworld Sect members clean up the stronghold from the ship's deck, Byeok Taesan spoke to his companions.
"Let's get going. The second one is really in Nanchang, right?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Heading straight east from Changsha leads to Nanchang, and Poyang Lake is further northeast from there.
"There are many targets to take care of in Nanchang."
It was a big city, so that was to be expected. Besides, wasn't Nanchang home to the Hwangbo Family, one of the Five Great Families?
Nameless would never have left a place like that alone.
"Good. This job will be over soon."
Everyone looked at Byeok Taesan with expressions of agreement.
They were starting to feel ready to wrap things up here and return to Wuhan.
Going home wouldn't necessarily be more comfortable, but there's a certain peace of mind that only comes from being home.
Byeok Taesan lightly released his energy, enveloping the ship tightly.
The ship began to move, then immediately accelerated.
It moved so smoothly that it was impossible to tell if it was cutting through water, gliding over ice, or flying through the air.
It wasn't as fast as when it had charged the stronghold, but it was still incomparably faster than any ordinary ship.
Byeok Taesan's ship pressed on toward Nanchang.
Some time passed. In the distance, several ships came into view.
Seeing them, Hwaok's eyes lit up.
"Those ships... if they keep on that course, they'll reach the stronghold we just left."
At Hwaok's words, everyone looked at the ships. After gauging the distance and direction, they nodded.
"Definitely..."
"But isn't that the Hwangbo Family's flag?"
"It is. It's the Hwangbo Family."
"So the Hwangbo Family is on their way to subjugate the stronghold?"
"Seems like it, doesn't it?"
"Then they'll run into our people, won't they? Is that okay?"
"Well, it's not like it's forbidden... but it's probably better if they don't meet, right?"
"Huh? They're turning this way."
Hearing his companions' conversation, Byeok Taesan turned his head to look.
A total of five ships were slowly turning to head in their direction.
Byeok Taesan slightly reduced his speed.
And when the ships were reasonably close, he began to gradually increase his speed.
The Hwangbo Family's ships also picked up speed.
The corner of Byeok Taesan's mouth lifted slightly. The ship went faster.
"Oh? They seem a bit flustered over there."
The Divine Doctor of the Ages said excitedly.
He was at the stern, using his internal energy to observe the Hwangbo Family's ships.
"Someone's right at their stern. Looks like they're about to shout something."
The moment the Divine Doctor of the Ages finished speaking, Byeok Taesan drastically increased the ship's speed.
In an instant, they were so far away that the Hwangbo Family's ships were no longer visible.
Maintaining that speed, Byeok Taesan entered the waterway leading from Poyang Lake to Nanchang.
Upon arriving in Nanchang and docking the ship, Byeok Taesan's group immediately headed into the city.
Of course, they disposed of the ship.
And a long time later, the Hwangbo Family's ships arrived at that spot.
< This Job Will Be Over Soon > End