Black Forest (4)
The guides from Namgwonmun, tasked with safety oversight for the Great Expedition, vehemently opposed the new mission proposed by the instructors.
"Mukrim isn't a place you can just wander into recklessly...! Do you have any idea how many people have entered that forest and never come out?"
No Jinha sneered at Yang Japyeong's words.
"Does Namgwonmun not accept funeral payments?"
"You bastard—!"
"...Bastard?"
As Yang Japyeong bristled and stepped forward, No Jinha's face hardened coldly, and he rose from his seat.
"Who gave some dropout from Namgwonmun the right to act like this toward me, the lord of Baekho Pavilion?"
"......"
Just as No Jinha was about to pick a real fight, another man from Namgwonmun who had come with Yang Japyeong intervened between them.
He stared steadily at No Jinha and asked in a low voice.
"...You'll take full responsibility for this, right? As the academy instructors?"
"Hmph!"
No Jinha snorted instead of answering.
But the Namgwonmun man didn't back down.
"We need a clear answer on that. Otherwise, we'll withdraw immediately and report straight to the Murim Alliance."
"Ha... unbelievable."
"Will you take responsibility?"
After rolling his eyes at the repeated question, No Jinha nodded confidently.
"Fine. We'll take responsibility."
"Understood. Then Namgwonmun will handle the scouting guides. But on the condition that the academy students unconditionally follow the guides' directions."
"What about wild beasts or demon creatures encountered during scouting? Can Namgwonmun handle those too?"
This time, Yang Japyeong stepped forward and shook his head.
"Tigers or bears, maybe. But we don't have the power to subdue demon creatures."
No Jinha's face lit up with smug satisfaction.
"Then why should we follow Namgwonmun's lead?"
Yang Japyeong's expression turned serious.
"Because otherwise, you'll die."
"...Ridiculous. Just for guiding the way."
But Yang Japyeong didn't yield.
"Promise us."
No Jinha glared at him murderously but finally nodded.
"Fine. And you don't need to guide every single academy student."
"...What do you mean? Have you prepared other guides?"
"That's none of Namgwonmun's business anymore."
"Understood."
With the promise secured, Yang Japyeong stepped back, and No Jinha began assigning scouting areas to each team's leader.
Areas were decided one by one, and when it finally came to my turn last—
Tap.
No Jinha pointed to the deepest part of Mukrim.
"As the academy representative, you can handle a scout this deep, right?"
The area within Mukrim known as Magyyeong.
Ha, this guy...
"Scared?"
I'd thought he was utterly useless, but here he was showing concern?!
Maybe this guy actually likes Taeulmun?
I flashed a grin, conveying my gratitude.
"Why would I be scared? I'm not even from Cheongsung."
"...!"
No Jinha seemed genuinely moved, at a loss for words.
What a heartwarming mentor-student bond.
# The next day, as teams gathered for scouting preparations, Ilgak approached me.
"Jin layman... be careful."
Ilgak pressed his palms together, his face full of worry.
Why is this guy so damn fretful? Did all that worrying make him bald?
"It's not like I'm heading to my death. Why the long face?"
Ilgak lowered his voice with a sigh.
"Magyyeong... I've heard it's especially dangerous even within Mukrim. Our sect elder, Taesu the monk, once entered and nearly died several times..."
"......"
Baldy, what the hell are you doing right now? Is this some Buddhist curse?
Still, curiosity got the better of me since he'd been there before.
"Did he obtain any spirit herbs or spirits in Magyeong?"
"No. He said there was absolutely nothing. He warned us never to even think of going in."
"......"
Truly useless baldy.
Our team's guide was once again Yang Japyeong, the only one who'd been to Magyeong.
Unlike before, trudging through denser undergrowth slowed our pace to a crawl—slower than ordinary folk walking.
It was hard to believe the whole team consisted of martial artists and the guide managed Mukrim.
Yang Japyeong marked trees with his knife every few steps and backtracked his path multiple times.
The thick foliage blocked the sun, making directions impossible to gauge, but this seemed excessive.
"Do we have to keep going this slow?"
As I voiced my dissatisfaction, Yang Japyeong nodded matter-of-factly.
"In Mukrim, securing the way out is more important than going in. That's why we move like this, even if it takes time."
I couldn't quite grasp it. Sure, it was Mukrim, but wasn't it still just a forest? The trees were taller than anything in the Central Plains, but not impossible for martial artists to climb. From the treetops, you could spot the sun or stars for direction. Knowing position and bearing should lead straight to the goal.
"A very... Central Plains way of thinking."
His laugh carried a hollow edge.
He glanced at me, then began moving.
"...Better to show you than explain."
Yang Japyeong gathered dry leaves nearby. He pulled flint and tinder from his bosom and struck a spark.
Click, click.
The tinder caught, igniting the leaves. As the flames grew, he suddenly smothered them with wet leaves.
Moisture evaporated, flames weakened, and acrid smoke billowed.
He turned to me, who'd watched puzzled.
"Care to climb up now?"
"......"
I eyed him briefly, then kicked off the ground.
Apart from the leafy canopy, branches were sparse, widely spaced—awkward for continuous footing, but climbable.
Ping.
I hurled my Flying Dragon Claw, embedding it in the trunk, wound the Thousand Silkworm Thread around it, and used the tension to leap higher.
Repeating thrice, I neared the top.
'Definitely taller than Central Plains trees.'
Near the summit, dense branches eliminated the need for the claw. As I prepared to leap branch to branch over the forest—
"Huh!?"
Instead of soaring above, my body plummeted straight down.
Swoosh.
# "Crazy!"
My vigorous launch made the fall terrifyingly fast.
I fired the Flying Dragon Claw to anchor myself, then scanned above.
I'd clearly climbed via branches. Yet inexplicably, I was dropping to the ground.
"Big bro! What are you doing up there?!"
Worse, my team was ten zhang away.
'What the hell is this?'
I kicked off again upward, but cautiously this time, bracing for another drop.
Fortunately, I reached above the canopy and spotted the sun.
But...
'What in the world?'
The smoke Yang Japyeong had signaled rose twenty zhang away—not from his fire or another team's.
Impossible to explain otherwise.
I bounded branch to branch toward the smoke, but it receded farther.
"This is insane."
Then Yang Japyeong's transmission voice arrived.
-Can you follow the smoke?
Weird. It was clearly visible, scent sharp.
Why did it keep distancing?
-Saw you have an interesting tool. Release and come down. I'll go to you.
I released the claw and descended as instructed.
By landing, Yang Japyeong pushed through brush toward me.
"How was it?"
"...What trickery is this?"
"The spirit veins' influence."
"Spirit veins?"
Yang Japyeong nodded gravely.
"Mukrim forms natural formations both on the ground and canopy, like a single massive cave. Dust from insects living here further scrambles human senses."
Natural formations in mountains weren't rare, but one encompassing the treetops was bizarre.
And constantly inhaling unknown hallucinogenic powder?
"If you could tread air and fly beyond the spirit veins, you might escape as the representative suggested."
Yang Japyeong continued calmly.
"But the moment your foot touches a tree, direction warps. Representative... can you navigate flawlessly?"
He spoke casually of reaching Void Step or Air Walk realms.
This wasn't mere disorientation—it scrambled senses entirely.
Now I understood why a mere forest was forbidden, why countless martial artists entered boldly and exited mad.
"I won't..."
I admitted readily.
"...mess around again."
As I bowed lightly, Yang Japyeong looked astonished.
"Why that face? Did I do something wrong?"
After hesitating, Yang Japyeong spoke.
"...No. I just think you have many facets."
"...?"
Whatever. I'd been reckless, so I showed proper respect.
"Please take good care of us."
We resumed. My team, witnessing my folly, meekly followed Yang Japyeong without complaint.
I didn't nag about speed, but boredom set in.
At least, deeper in, poisons were easier to procure.
"...You're gonna keep doing that?"
"Will you, Lady Seong?"
Clang!
"Get that away! Before I kill you!"
I flinched. She'd never been this prickly before...
"I said get rid of it!"
"Yep."
Initially, I'd asked Yang Japyeong about each poison's strength, but patterns in color and shape let me distinguish them.
Thus, neutralizing thirty poisons, I felt resistance building.
Day-long practice—neutralize, procure new, repeat—proved oddly fun.
Once neutralized, repeats lacked potency.
By expedition's end, only dire poisons might threaten. Such confidence grew.
Greed followed; I eyed my juniors hungrily.
'Tch, they should train too.'
Not for all, but Taeulmun folk needed poison resistance. Saryeon wouldn't allow it, though.
Geum Pyo and Eunho didn't want it either.
Only...
"Big bro, can I eat this?"
Dongryong's eyes sparkled innocently, waving a purple mushroom.
Obviously venomous, but he'd digested over twenty already.
I smiled warmly at him.
"Go ahead. Spit if it feels off."
Worst case, I'd expel the toxin with qi.
By day three, even Yang Japyeong stopped protesting.
On the fourth day to Magyeong, something amusing happened.
"...Why don't big bro and Dongryong get bitten by bugs?"
Geum Pyo, face swollen like a balloon from overnight bites, tilted his head.
I carried the wind spirit, bug-repellent since entering Mukrim.
Dongryong suffered till day two, then bites dwindled.
"......"
Yang Japyeong hesitated, then spoke.
"...Truthfully, Dang family folk rarely get bitten in Mukrim."
"...!"
"......"
"......"
Unclear cause, but it fit.
Dongryong and I grinned smugly; others scowled. Seong Moran's face darkened like death's door.
I asked Eunho.
"Wanna try?"
"......"
After agonizing, Eunho sighed deeply.
Sleepless bug torture on night two lingered.
"You're not buying me Baekdokdan anyway, right?"
I said nothing.
"Damn it..."
Why ask and tire your mouth?
Eunho approached with a teary face.
"Come on."
I caught a suitable bug from our resistance work and let it bite his arm.
"Kuhk...!"
Eunho's face yellowed instantly. He circulated qi immediately.
Geum Pyo, Jaehwa, Seolran followed.
I eyed the rest.
"Haa... to do this willingly."
Finally, Saryeon and Namgung Seonhwa extended arms.
No one escaped Mukrim's bugs unscathed.
Amid it...
"Kyaaak! No! I hate it! Rather a snake!"
Even bug-phobic Seong Moran got bitten. Yang Japyeong stared, exasperated.
"No one in my sect would believe this."
"Can't train outer arts instantly."
"......"
Plus poison resistance. Perfect.
Five days from base.
"Shh—."
Leading Yang Japyeong raised a hand, halting us.
After tense silence, he whispered.
"A demon beast."
Finally, the first treasure chest had appeared.