#74. Black Flame Dragon Leaping Over the Pass (2)
“……”
“……Ahem.”
A bizarre silence hung over the room.
Not just us who had entered with the little kid, but even Bang Du-chil's rowdy crew, who had been chattering away without any regard for hierarchy, were now all glaring at him with looks of utter disdain.
“I-I mean, I told you to just spill it honestly, didn't I…?”
The old man was reluctant to speak, and Bang Du-chil was eager to hear him out, which had led to this mess.
When I first met him, he had a bold side, sure, but I didn't remember him being this thick-headed.
“What business is it of yours how others live and die… Urk.”
The old man, growing agitated, spat out his tirade before clutching his waist and bowing his head.
“It's because of Ssangmak Stronghold, isn't it?”
“……”
A deep shadow crossed the old man's face.
“Did Ssangmak Stronghold drag the entire village off?”
“……”
The old man still said nothing.
As Bang Du-chil snorted furiously again and reached to grab the old man's collar—
Baek So-ryeong approached him with a clear, melodic voice.
“Elder, my name is So-ryeong. This might sound a bit sudden and embarrassing, but our leader recently wiped out two mountain strongholds and secured both first-place passes from the Murim Academy's first gate. So please, don't be afraid—feel free to speak freely.”
At her words, the old man's eyes trembled violently.
Then his gaze met the little kid's, and he let out a long sigh.
“As Ssangmak Stronghold's atrocities grew worse, the merchant alliance in Hangzhou hired ronin to wipe them out. But they failed every time, and each failure, those bastards slaughtered the villagers they had conscripted and hung the bodies up in the village as a warning.”
The situation was even graver than we'd imagined. None of us could find words.
“We've endured famine and starvation for years— that's nothing new. We can tough it out. But seeing my child, my friend's child, strung up on poles like that… I can't bear it anymore.”
Every time a punitive squad showed up, the villagers ended up suffering the most.
Unprotected by anyone, they were forced to shelter the enemy for their own sake—a heart-rotting nightmare.
“Those rotten sons of bitches!”
Bang Du-chil bellowed at the top of his lungs.
I asked calmly,
“What do they do with the villagers they take? They're not turning farmers into bandits, are they?”
“Some get drafted as bandits, but most end up doing menial labor.”
Nearly a thousand people scattered across the mountains—that was no small feat.
Even just the daily food consumption dwarfed what the nearby villages of Cheonmok Mountain could provide.
Ferocious, rough bandits weren't about to cook for themselves, so the captives slaved away, living worse than dogs.
“Can't they just run?”
One of Bang Du-chil's men tilted his head and asked. The old man shook his head.
“If anyone disobeys or flees, they make an example—raze their home village to the ground. With all their families here as hostages, how could they rebel?”
In short, Ssangmak had hostages on both ends.
“I've heard the seventy-two bandit strongholds are rougher than regular ones, but this is beyond the pale.”
Baek So-ryeong's delicate brows furrowed.
“……!”
Bang Du-chil rose silently from his seat.
“Boys, grab your weapons.”
His voice was solemn, sunken low. His companions shifted to serious expressions and began arming themselves.
“Didn't you hear? Do nothing!”
Bang Du-chil stared at the old man with impassive eyes.
“Old timer, is that kid your last remaining family?”
“……”
“She'll grow up, and Ssangmak will come sniffing around. You okay with that?”
The old man's face twisted.
“Sitting idle just means endless suffering—that's the weak's lot. You have to make them think twice before messing with you.”
“What do you plan to do?!”
“I'll take my men and have a word with Ssangmak!”
“No!”
“Leader! That's impossible!”
The old man and Baek So-ryeong cried out in unison.
A perfectly reasonable reaction for any sane person.
“If you barge in recklessly, not only the hostages in the stronghold but all the villagers will die! Can you take responsibility for that?”
“Leader! Ssangmak has five hundred each— a thousand total. We can't do it alone.”
Bang Du-chil's face darkened.
“So-ryeong, I don't lose to anyone. And don't worry, old timer. I'll bring everyone's families back safe. I stake my name on it.”
Bang Du-chil was already tuning everyone out.
Baek So-ryeong, knowing his temperament, just shook her head, while the old man looked on the verge of fainting.
“I oppose this too.”
“Huh?”
Bang Du-chil and his men, heading for the door, turned back.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Me?”
I approached the kid and held out my hand. She stared blankly before placing a single silver tael on my palm.
“Jin Sowoon of Tae-eul Gate, hired by this child.”
#
“Jin Sowoon of Tae-eul Gate…? You?”
I was starting to get recognized more these days.
Bang Du-chil's men murmured among themselves at my name.
“Jin Sowoon… the Black Flame Dragon Jin Sowoon?”
“The divine star of the black path?!”
“That sneaky fledgling dragon?”
Rumors never quite matched what I wanted, that was the problem.
I ignored the grating remarks and pressed on.
“No matter how strong you are, taking down Ssangmak with a small group is impossible. Especially with hostages in play.”
For the first time, Bang Du-chil nodded at my words.
“As expected of the black path's divine star—siding with Ssangmak, eh?”
“……”
No! Convincing someone with absolute faith in their own power was a lost cause from the start.
I turned to Baek So-ryeong.
“Could you help me out for a moment?”
“Me?”
“If we don't talk him down, he'll charge straight into Ssangmak. Then he'll die, and so will the hostages.”
“……Alright.”
She nodded, and I pulled her toward me with one hand.
“Eek!”
Her body carried the same violet flower scent as in my past life.
Bang Du-chil raised one eyebrow.
“……What the hell are you doing?”
“Try saving her.”
“What?”
I lifted the Black Dragon Sword, still in its sheath, and pressed it to Baek So-ryeong's neck.
“I said, save her.”
“……”
The moment Bang Du-chil stepped forward with his fierce glare—
I slashed her throat.
“Ack!”
“One death.”
“……”
His eyes turned icy as he gathered his qi.
Whoooosh.
Wind began swirling around him.
The Stormwind Technique he cultivated was a righteous path art, but it forcibly amassed vast inner energy in a way that risked qi deviation or paralysis if mishandled.
But for Bang Du-chil, with his otherworldly Heavenly Gang Infinite Body, it perfectly offset those flaws—becoming the ultimate technique for rapidly gathering and unleashing power, unmatched by any other.
Whoosh!
The suction of his Stormwind Demon Fist pulled at me and Baek So-ryeong.
I stepped into Tae-eul's Eight Myriad Divine Steps, leaving an afterimage, dodged the fist, and slashed her throat again.
“Two deaths.”
“……You bastard!!”
Bang Du-chil had evolved the Stormwind Fist and Stormwind Kick—derivatives of his Stormwind Technique—into his own unique arts.
His still-unperfected Stormwind Whirlwind Kick exploded forth.
Bam-bam-bam-bam-bam!
Old furniture shattered everywhere as his feet lashed out wildly—but only hit illusions.
Neither I nor Baek So-ryeong was touched.
“Three deaths.”
“……Damn it!”
Growing heated, Bang Du-chil gathered qi in both palms.
He was about to unleash the Stormwind Divine Palm, his inner energy's most destructive form.
“……If you fire that, she'll take the hit too. You want to kill her with your own hands?”
“……”
The debris on the floor trembled in resonance before going still.
The whirlwind around him died down.
Even knowing he was wrong, his face twisted—he couldn't admit it easily.
“……”
Silence fell over his crew as well.
“You can't act rashly with hostages involved.”
Baek So-ryeong nodded in agreement.
“Leader, Young Master Jin is right.”
“……That doesn't mean we sit on our hands.”
“I'm not saying to do nothing. We need a different strategy.”
“You got one?”
His crew, the gold-silver-bronze brothers—all eyes turned to me expectantly.
“Yes. Of course.”
“What's that?”
Crash!
Just as I opened my mouth, the sound of a building crumbling echoed from outside.
Bang Du-chil and the rest of us rushed out of the restaurant in unison.
“Kyahahaha!”
“Smash it! Tear it down!”
“You! You're coming with us to Hwamok Stronghold.”
Around twenty bandits had surrounded a house, dragging out a family while demolishing it and setting it ablaze.
Bang Du-chil and his men looked ready to charge.
“If you jump in now, we can't save the hostages properly.”
Bang Du-chil flinched and glared at me murderously.
“We can save them as long as they don't die. But if we act now, we'll be fighting with hostages in their grasp.”
“……”
I heard his teeth grinding.
He was itching to leap out and smash their skulls.
Sensing it, some bandits approached us.
“What're you lot? Why're you glaring?”
I quickly stepped in front of Bang Du-chil.
“Hello. I'm Jin Sowoon of Tae-eul Gate.”
“Jin Sowoon of Tae-eul Gate?”
“Oh… the Black Flame Dragon…”
Even these stronghold bandits, holed up in the mountains, knew their Murim news—they eyed me with curiosity.
“What's your business in this village?”
“Ah, you might not have heard, but Tae-eul Gate recently took over Changgung Merchant Group. We're linking up with an escort agency for trade runs, so we came to scout the route to nearby Hangzhou.”
“Hm… To get to Hangzhou, you pass through Cheonmok Mountain. How come we haven't heard?”
The bandit slinging a cleaver over his shoulder glared with faint killing intent.
He was asking why we hadn't paid our respects first.
“Of course we were just about to. Haha.”
I shook a pouch heavy with silver coins and approached, offering it politely.
“I hear escort agencies and merchants must perform the greeting ritual on their first pass. Please tell your stronghold lord we'll visit soon.”
“Heh, you've got a good head for business, kid.”
“You're too kind. Thank you.”
“But what's with that guy glaring daggers at us?”
The cleaver bandit pointed his blade at Bang Du-chil.
“Ah, our escorts. They're fresh ronin-turned-guards, so please forgive their rudeness.”
“Hmph! Daring to glare at Hwamok Stronghold like that.”
The cleaver bandit strode right up to Bang Du-chil, who towered a head above him, and barked,
“Eyes down, punk!”
“……”
Bang Du-chil's lip twitched.
His flushed face looked ready to explode.
—Screw this up now, and the hostages are done for.
At my transmission, he shot me a venomous glare before hanging his head.
“……Sorry.”
“……Hmph. Pathetic.”
The bandit turned away, oblivious to Bang Du-chil's murderous stare from behind.
As Hwamok's bandits left, Bang Du-chil stormed over and gripped my shoulder like he meant to crush it.
“You'd better take responsibility for your words!”
“Of course.”
“……If you don't.”
He fixed me with eyes full of grudge.
“You'll have to deal with Ssangmak and me.”
“I'll take responsibility.”
“……”
Bang Du-chil returned to the restaurant with his crew, leaving only Baek So-ryeong behind.
“Thank you, Young Master Jin. You stopped our leader.”
“No, my apologies for earlier.”
“Eek, what are you saying! Being held by a stranger after so long wasn't half bad.”
With a radiant smile like rapeseed flowers, Baek So-ryeong headed back inside.