Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: What True Fear Is
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“Ha! Look at these crazy bastards.”
Jongli Sang, captain of the Flying Tiger Brigade, one of the Jongli Family’s main warrior units, wore a look of disbelief at the news his subordinate brought.
Although the Flying Tiger Brigade was a warrior unit of the Jongli Family, its recent role was to manage the underworld sects near the family’s territory and collect protection money from them.
Having faced near-ruin at the hands of the Heavenly Demon, they had no choice but to procure funds this way.
And this method turned out to be quite lucrative.
The risk of being found out was not that high.
As long as the underworld sects didn't cross a certain line, all they had to do was turn a blind eye to their activities.
There was little chance of trouble later on.
The key was to never get caught in the act of exchanging money.
Not all families of the Orthodox Faction bothered to clean up the nearby underworld.
Most of them simply weren't interested.
Sometimes, when the underworld's power was greater, they would draw a line and compromise.
So, bleeding the underworld sects dry like this posed no real problem.
Until now, that is.
But today, a problem had suddenly arisen.
It was truly laughable.
“They refused to pay?”
“Yes. They said they couldn’t.”
“So you just said, ‘Understood,’ like an idiot and came back?”
“What was I supposed to do by myself? They were acting so high and mighty. They must have someone backing them.”
Jongli Sang scoffed.
“Backing them? What nonsense. Did they hire some master warrior? But didn’t something similar happen once before?”
“It happened once, five years ago. The master they hired back then… I can’t quite recall.”
“I don’t remember either. Did we cut off the Blood Axe Sect leader’s arm? Or was it his wrist?”
“We cut off both his arms and legs. The current leader was the second-in-command back then.”
“Right, that happened. And they’re pulling the same stunt again?”
“Well, maybe the master they hired is stronger than the last one.”
“So you just bowed your head and came back because you were afraid of getting hit by this master?”
“It just felt really ominous.”
His subordinate remained defiant to the end.
Jongli Sang smirked and rose to his feet.
“Let’s go. It’s about time we showed them who we are. Painful memories tend to fade if you don’t get a regular beating.”
Just as they were about to move, another subordinate came rushing in from outside.
Jongli Sang’s expression hardened. This man had also gone to collect protection money from one of the underworld sects.
“Captain, they said they can’t pay the protection money.”
“Did you also come back like an idiot because it felt ominous?”
“Huh? How did you know? They must have someone backing them. They were so full of themselves.”
Before Jongli Sang could reply, another subordinate rushed in with the same frantic expression.
Only then did he realize the situation was far from ordinary.
“Did these crazy bastards all take some kind of drug?”
* * *
“Young Master, is this really alright?”
“What is?”
“Spreading the weaknesses of the Jongli Family’s martial arts so widely will surely cause problems later.”
Byeok Taesan smirked.
“Problems? What problems?”
“Do you think the Jongli Family will stand by idly when they find out about this?”
“How will they know who did it?”
“Pardon? But you and I…”
“That’s why we wore masks.”
Cheon Gyeongwan was dumbfounded. This was just a flimsy attempt at deception.
“But they can figure this out easily with a little investigation. If they find out that you and I came here, they can deduce the rest.”
“They won’t have the time for that.”
Cheon Gyeongwan shook his head. In his view, Byeok Taesan was being far too optimistic about the situation.
“Young Master, the Jongli Family won’t face a major crisis just because a few underworld sects rise up. It will be a nuisance, but they will eventually deal with all of them.”
That was the power of a prestigious family.
Hadn’t the Jongli Family, which had been on the verge of ruin because of the Heavenly Demon, managed to rise again to this point?
“Don’t you know what it means for a prestigious Orthodox family to be taking money from the underworld?”
“Pardon? Well, that’s…”
“It means they’re strapped for cash. They’ll probably stumble a bit.”
“But that’s all. They will eventually resolve everything.”
Honestly, he didn’t think the underworld thugs could properly face the Jongli Family’s warriors, even if they knew their weaknesses.
“The underworld’s advantage is their numbers. If they all rise up at once, the Jongli Family will have to divide their forces, and that will be their downfall.”
Of course, that alone wouldn’t be enough.
No matter how well you know an opponent’s weakness, it’s almost useless if there's an overwhelming difference in skill.
Exploiting a weakness required a certain level of proficiency.
“They might win a few flashy victories at the start, but it will be difficult after that.”
“That’s true.”
Byeok Taesan agreed so casually that Cheon Gyeongwan stared at him in bewilderment.
“Then isn’t this a huge problem?”
“A problem? What problem? We’re going over there so it doesn’t end with a flash in the pan.”
Cheon Gyeongwan’s eyes widened as he looked where Byeok Taesan gestured with his chin.
“The East Lake Escort Agency?”
“Ever heard of it?”
“Never.”
“Doesn’t seem to be a famous agency, then.”
“No. But why are we here…?”
“They’re going to fight the Jongli Family.”
“Pardon? That escort agency? Why would they fight the Jongli Family? And even if they did, would they be a match for them?”
“They will be.”
Byeok Taesan strode toward the East Lake Escort Agency.
Cheon Gyeongwan stared blankly at his back for a moment before snapping to his senses and hurrying after him.
He trusted Byeok Taesan, and he believed him to be a genius, but this just didn’t seem right.
But what could he do? He had to trust him to the end.
Frankly, he hadn’t even expected the underworld thugs to follow Byeok Taesan’s orders like this.
It was all so unbelievable, yet Byeok Taesan kept making the unbelievable happen.
* * *
“How may I help you?” an escort guarding the agency’s main gate asked cautiously.
Byeok Taesan spoke with a calm expression.
“I’m here to see the Agency Head.”
“Pardon? The Agency Head?”
Byeok Taesan gestured with his chin.
“Lead the way.”
At Byeok Taesan’s command, the guard found himself leading him inside without thinking.
“Uh… this way, please.”
His fellow guard watched the scene as if it were perfectly normal.
The two only realized something was strange when Byeok Taesan had almost reached the Agency Head’s office.
“W-well, the Agency Head’s office is over there. But… who should I say you are…?”
Byeok Taesan raised a hand, cutting the guard off.
“Wait. I haven’t remembered everything yet.”
“Pardon?”
The guard looked back and forth between Byeok Taesan and Cheon Gyeongwan with a baffled expression.
And Cheon Gyeongwan, feeling utterly restless, anxiously glanced back and forth between Byeok Taesan and the guard.
When his eyes met the guard’s, Cheon Gyeongwan furtively looked away.
The guard’s expression turned cold, his suspicion finally aroused.
At that moment, Byeok Taesan clapped his hands together.
“Ah, I remember now.”
Startled by the sound, the guard and Cheon Gyeongwan simultaneously looked at Byeok Taesan.
He had clapped at such a perfect moment that it had stolen both their breaths.
“Go and tell him I’m here to send goods to Hyeonwol.”
The guard tilted his head. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out where Hyeonwol was.
“Is that all I need to say?”
Byeok Taesan waved his hand dismissively.
The guard quickly entered the Agency Head’s office.
And almost immediately, a middle-aged man who appeared to be the Agency Head burst out, slamming the door open as if to break it, and rushed over.
He bowed to Byeok Taesan, nearly prostrating himself, and extended both hands toward his office.
“I am honored to receive such a guest! Please, come inside, inside!”
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, Byeok Taesan leisurely walked into the Agency Head’s office.
The Agency Head remained bowed, not straightening up until Byeok Taesan had passed.
Cheon Gyeongwan watched the scene, his jaw hanging open.
He was so shocked he couldn't even control his expression.
* * *
Jongli Sang wanted to handle this matter himself.
Among the three main warrior units of the Jongli Family, the Flying Tiger Brigade held the lowest rank.
Jongli Sang had always been discontent with that.
The skills of the three units were all similar. At least, that’s what Jongli Sang thought.
He believed the reason the Flying Tiger Brigade had the lowest rank was due to its history and track record.
The Flying Tiger Brigade was an organization formed after the incident with the Heavenly Demon.
The other main warrior units had served as a solid bulwark, preventing the Jongli Family from being annihilated during that incident.
Their contributions could not be ignored.
That was why Jongli Sang and the Flying Tiger Brigade took on all the dirty work.
Squeezing funds out of the underworld was one of those jobs.
They had handled countless other messy tasks that had to be done away from prying eyes.
Therefore, he couldn't afford to fail at handling a mere rebellion by a group of underworld thugs.
Not if he didn’t want to remain in this position forever.
“We manage a total of thirteen underworld sects, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
And those thirteen underworld sects would, in turn, manage the rest.
In effect, the Jongli Family held all the underworld sects in this area in its grasp.
But now, those thirteen sects had rebelled.
If he let this slide, he would lose his grip on every underworld group that had fallen into his hands.
“I’ll go to the Blood Axe Sect myself… The rest of you, divide up the others. How many men do you need?”
“Well… I think about five should be enough for me.”
“The Flying Tiger Brigade has sixty men in total. If you take five, what about the rest?”
“Then… a tight four? No less than that. Captain, if you had seen the look in their eyes, you would have said five wasn't enough.”
“Alright. Then I’ll take just two men. The rest of you, divide them up well. Don’t forget, this has to be dealt with swiftly. And remember, if we don’t punish them properly, they’ll get cocky again in no time.”
“Have we not been doing this for a day or two? Sometimes I get confused if I’m in the Orthodox Faction or the underworld. So don’t you worry about a thing. I’ll handle it the underworld way.”
Jongli Sang waved his hand in acknowledgment and started walking.
It was time to punish these insolent fools.
*How dare they rebel? I spared their lives, and this is how they repay my kindness.*
With every step toward the Blood Axe Sect, Jongli Sang’s anger grew.
By the time he arrived, that fury was radiating from his entire body.
The Blood Axe Sect was thrown into chaos by the sight of Jongli Sang standing before them, unleashing his intense aura.
Jongli Sang simply watched as the inside of their headquarters, a large pavilion, grew chaotic.
There was no need to go inside.
The leader of the Blood Axe Sect would come out soon enough.
And just as expected, Chu Jogwang, the leader of the Blood Axe Sect, came rushing out.
Behind him, members of the sect swarmed out, each one holding an axe.
“All of you who just came out, cut off one of your own arms and kneel. Then I’ll let you live.”
Jongli Sang’s voice was laced with killing intent.
But no one from the Blood Axe Sect answered. Instead, they completely surrounded Jongli Sang and his men.
Seeing this, Jongli Sang let out a hollow laugh.
“Are you insane? Do you really think scum like you have even a feather’s chance of beating us?”
“Shut the hell up!”
Jongli Sang fell silent at Chu Jogwang’s shout. He was too dumbfounded to speak.
“You son of a bitch, have you really lost your mind?”
“Who the hell’s lost their mind! I’m doing this so I don’t lose my mind! Dying by your hands today is a hell of a lot better than dying while shitting myself in madness!”
Jongli Sang’s expression hardened. Hearing those words made it clear. There was someone behind this, someone who had driven them to this.
Although Chu Jogwang’s words had angered him, now was not the time to be getting worked up over something like that.
“Hoo. Let’s talk this through. Tell me who put you up to this. We’ll take care of them for you. The Jongli Family will take responsibility and solve this, so just tell me what’s going on.”
“Shut the hell up. A bastard who doesn’t even know what true fear is should just shut his mouth! What are you all doing! We’re all going to end up like that!”
At his signal, the members of the Blood Axe Sect charged forward.
Their eyes were filled with venom and desperation.
Jongli Sang was taken aback, but his body was soon consumed by rage as he swung his sword.
*Swish!*
Several members of the Blood Axe Sect were sent flying, spraying blood. But none of them died.
At this, the Blood Axe Sect thugs charged with even greater arrogance.
What happened next was astonishing.
While Jongli Sang was briefly distracted, the two Jongli Family warriors he had brought with him were defeated.
This was unbelievable.
The biggest reason was likely their carelessness. But no matter how careless they were, being defeated by thugs like these was absurd.
Jongli Sang gritted his teeth and swung his sword.
The Blood Axe Sect thugs were no match for him, no matter how much they knew about the weaknesses of the Jongli Family’s martial arts.
But it wasn’t the Blood Axe Sect thugs who were truly fighting him.
An escort leader from the East Lake Escort Agency, disguised as a member of the Blood Axe Sect, precisely struck Jongli Sang’s opening.
*Stab!*
Jongli Sang staggered. His eyes filled with shock.
“Get him!”
At Chu Jogwang’s shout, a storm of axes descended upon Jongli Sang.
The Blood Axe Sect thugs didn’t use the blades of their axes, but the flat sides to beat him down.
*Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack!*
Unable to move properly due to the wound in his side, and with blows raining down on his entire body, even Jongli Sang couldn’t endure it.
His vision blurred, and soon he lost consciousness, his body slumping over.
A similar scene unfolded at almost the exact same time at all thirteen underworld sects.