Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: A Silver Tael Stained with Blood
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Se Yeong placed a single silver tael in the child's hand.
"Too... too much, mister."
The startled child clutched the silver coin, unsure what to do.
A single silver tael was an enormous sum—not just for a child, but for any adult.
"It's because you earned every bit of it. And why are the pretty ladies 'big sisters' while I'm stuck with 'mister'?"
Haha...
"Just... force of habit, I guess. They say it at the inn all the time."
Se Yeong ruffled the child's hair as he smiled.
"When you head back to the inn, take a different route. You might run into those guys on their way here."
"What if I do?"
"They'll grab you and start grilling you with questions. If they figure out you came here, it won't end well. If you're lucky, they'll just let you go—but if your luck runs out, you might even lose your life."
The child paled, fear gripping him tight.
"Got it... I'll take the long way around."
"Take care."
The child dashed back along the field path instead of the way he'd come.
Se Yeong stood there watching until the boy was completely out of sight.
'He'll be fine, right?'
Panting hard, the child running through the fields finally stopped to catch his breath.
Haa... haa...
It was already a long way back, and taking the detour made it even tougher and farther.
On top of that, coming back late would mean the innkeeper chewing him out big time.
'No way I'll actually run into them, right?'
Exhausted and fed up, the child left the field path and cut back onto his usual route.
But moments later, he spotted martial artists in the distance.
Startled, he bolted for the woods to hide.
The instant he plunged into the trees, the old woman from the inn stood right in front of him.
"Uh...?"
The child toppled backward, landing hard on his butt.
"Aren't you the inn's errand boy? Where have you been?"
The old woman's eyes were ice-cold, impossible to meet.
Terrified, the child stammered out a lie.
"In the fields... my dad... he was working..."
But the old woman—the Sword Empress—didn't buy it for a second.
"Clever little brat, aren't you? Think a kid like you can fool a grown-up?"
Harvest was long over; there wasn't much farm work left on barren fields.
A blue glint flickered in her eyes, and the child's crotch soaked through in terror.
"Please... spare me... I'll tell the truth... please... just spare me..."
Tears welled up as he clasped his hands in desperate plea.
"Speak."
"I went... to the manor... You and the pretty sisters were at the inn..."
Old woman, she says—leaving me out.
The Sword Empress barely suppressed a surge of killing intent.
How could the Sword Empress of the world slaughter a mere child herself?
"Did they pay you for it?"
The child pulled out the silver tael without hiding it.
Ha ha...
The Sword Empress let out a hollow laugh from sheer fury.
To sell out one of the Five Absolutes of the Martial World for a single silver tael.
Even if he didn't know her identity, it was unforgivable.
How could this child side with a public enemy of the martial world?
"Go."
She let him walk away freely.
Trembling, the child shuffled out from between her and the martial artists.
"A kid that sly will pull the same stunts grown up. No reason to let him live."
At the Sword Empress's words, the Emei Sect disciples glanced at the martial artists.
"The Sword Empress says the boy's useless."
The martial artists caught on quick.
Slash...
Thud... roll...
The crescent blade flashed, and the child's head tumbled to the ground.
His body crumpled, spraying blood everywhere.
The blood soaked the hand still clutching the silver tael.
The martial artist who'd beheaded him pried open the bloody fingers and took the coin.
"Lead the way."
It wasn't the Sword Empress who'd killed the child—it was the martial artists.
She wouldn't violate the codes of the jianghu.
"Yes, ma'am."
The martial artists left the corpse behind and hurried ahead.
"Once I take Han Se Yeong's head, I'll head straight back to Mount Emei. You lot take his head to the Murim Alliance and report everything you've seen and heard here. They'll reward you handsomely."
"No question about it, Sword Empress. We follow your orders, nothing more."
"They're coming, bro."
Paeng Se Gi peeked over the wall and came running with the news.
Se Yeong issued calm orders in response.
"Leave the manor gate wide open. When the Sword Empress arrives, guide her to the woods."
The training ground behind the manor wasn't small.
But the Heaven Dominating Blade King and Black Face Ghost Venerable had wrecked not just the grounds but entire halls.
And the Sword Empress stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the Blade King as one of the Five Absolutes.
"What about the workers?"
Repairs weren't done yet, so laborers were still toiling around the manor.
"Leave 'em be. You think the Sword Empress will even notice them?"
"Word is the Sixfold Sword Empress has a cruel streak."
Se Yeong didn't take Paeng Se Gi's words too heavily.
No matter how vicious a righteous sect warrior, they wouldn't slaughter innocent commoners outright.
"It's fine. Even if I lose, I'll drag her down to the underworld with me."
"Don't jinx it, bro."
Se Yeong turned to Squad Leader Kang.
"Keep them from getting near the woods, Squad Leader."
Squad Leader Kang gave Se Yeong a slight bow.
"Win your duel with the Sword Empress."
Paeng Se Gi and the squad members eyed him curiously.
The squad leader never pulled punches with them, but he was extra deferential to Se Yeong.
And it was only getting worse over time.
As Se Yeong vanished toward the back, the squad headed for the front gate.
They flung it wide open, revealing the approaching martial artists and Emei disciples in the distance.
The Emei nuns in white uniforms looked like celestial maidens.
The Sword Empress outshone them in splendor.
Her white robes embroidered with gold threads looked regal even to the squad's eyes.
Haa...
"Om mani padme hum."
Yeong-gak let out a long sigh mixed with the Six-Syllable Mantra as he eyed the Sword Empress and her disciples.
In the end, just as Se Yeong predicted, the martial artists had shown up here again.
'No idea how they hooked up with the Sword Empress, but they couldn't refuse her orders.'
He tried to see it in a positive light.
Paeng Se Gi recognized the martial artists too.
"Those guys are back. You're in deep shit now."
He cracked a light joke to ease the tension.
Kekeke...
"Se Gi's right. Big Bro Han's gonna beat you to death."
The squad chuckled along, lightening the mood with banter.
But Sa Sa Un wasn't amused.
"This isn't the time for laughs..."
"Shut it, Sa Sa Un."
The lead martial artists pointed at the manor wall and the cliff as they walked.
"That's where the formation array was set up. It sent our comrades plummeting to their deaths, Sword Empress."
They lamented their fellows' unfair demise, but she just snorted dismissively.
Hmph.
"As if some puny formation array is worth a damn..."
She dismissed it outright.
Smash everything around, and the array crumbles.
Her gaze shifted to the open manor gate.
The squad outside bowed in unison as one.
"We greet the Sixfold Sword Empress."
"Please, come in."
"Om mani padme hum."
Killing intent gleamed in her eyes as she scanned them.
"Family traitors and sect betrayers—scum of the earth."
The squad heard her clearly.
But not a hint of shame crossed their faces.
"Where's Han Se Yeong?"
"Waiting inside."
The Sword Empress raised her voice at Yi Cheon Yeong's reply.
"Lead on."
The squad turned and entered first.
Yeong-gak, following, glanced back at the martial artists.
They met his eyes with sleazy smirks.
Inside the manor, the Sword Empress's eyes locked with Squad Leader Kang's.
"Kang Seok Hyeon offers his respects to the Sword Empress."
He bowed first, but she replied coldly.
"Demonic Cult riffraff can't be trusted after all."
Meant to shame him, but his expression didn't flicker.
"We didn't betray the Murim Alliance—we just left when it was time."
Hmph...
"I'll take Han Se Yeong's head, then yours, old man."
"I'll be waiting."
"The old coot's got guts."
The Sword Empress itched to lop off his head first.
But she didn't want to waste energy before facing Han Se Yeong.
"Where's Han Se Yeong?"
"Waiting in the woods behind the manor."
The squad led the way to the back.
The Sword Empress, her disciples, and the martial artists followed.
Workers patching the roof tiles spotted them and recognized the Sword Empress and martial artists.
"Who's that, sir?"
They'd heard about Se Yeong's identity.They'd guessed the manor residents were jianghu folk, but never dreamed it was the infamous Han Se Yeong and the Elusive Squadron's Tenth Squad.
Still, they didn't want to abandon the job.
The pay was generous, and Se Yeong and his crew didn't seem like public enemies.
"Nobody important. No matter what racket you hear from the woods behind, stay far away."
"Don't worry, sir. We'll plug our ears and eyes and keep working."
Squad Leader Kang warned the workers, then headed to the back.
'What a tough spot. Young master should aim for the cult leader's seat...'
In the heart of the woods, Se Yeong and the Sword Empress faced off.
"You're Han Se Yeong?"
"That's me."
She was genuinely impressed by his composure.
How many in the jianghu could stay this calm before the Sword Empress?
'Even the aura flowing off him naturally screams he's no ordinary man.'
"After I take your head, I'll claim that Kang Seok Hyeon bastard's too, and raze this whole manor."
Se Yeong nodded and accepted her words.
"Cut mine off first, then."
"Gladly."
The moment she spoke, a sword flew from her waist on its own.
As if to showcase her supreme art from the start, she unleashed her flying sword technique.
The blade shot toward Se Yeong's neck in a flash.
Bang...!
He whipped out Shi Wol in an instant, smacking the sword aside amid a heavy shockwave that rattled his body.
Her inner power was monstrous, rivaling the Heaven Dominating Blade King's.
Before he could swallow his grunt, the deflected sword curved back toward his chest.
Kwabang...!
Se Yeong swung Shi Wol in a brilliant arc, battering the sword charging from all sides.
The moment it shifted to target his whole body, the Sword Empress was suddenly right in front of him.
Her sword returned gracefully to her hand, tracing an elegant path to slice his neck.
Slash...
As Se Yeong raised Shi Wol, it clashed with the incoming blade.
Bang...!
Unable to withstand the impact, he staggered back five or six steps.
His head had nearly flown in that instant.
'Black Face Ghost Venerable.'
Se Yeong's mind flashed to the Ghost Venerable's swordplay in hers.
Elegant and seemingly slow, yet faster, sharper, and heavier than any style.