Chapter 9: Thousand-Face Fox Thief
Long Treasure Map? What Long Treasure Map?
The one said to hold ancient divine artifacts or martial arts secrets?
His dying breath made it ring true—no lies there.
But it was so out of left field that for a moment, I couldn't process the situation.
Slash!
But was now the time to worry about that?
I snapped back to reality, staring at the severed head of the Golden Thread Jade Sword floating in the air.
The head spun wildly.
Maybe it was my imagination, but for a split second, our eyes met in midair.
His lips twitched.
'Do... fuck...?'
I kicked off the floor and drew my sword.
No time for deep thoughts.
Shing!
"Gah!"
The Golden Thread Jade Sword's bombshell remark. And the Dang Clan sword aimed to silence him.
In that instant when everyone's eyes turned that way—
That brief gap was my golden opportunity.
Splatter!
I slashed the throat of the nearest Dang Clan thug.
For the crime of glancing away, he sprayed red blood and flew backward.
"No!"
"Stop him!"
The remaining three charged at once.
The one who'd beheaded the Golden Thread gripped his sword, while the other two reached into their sleeves.
I surged forward too.
Pretending to grip my sword with both hands, I whipped a flying dagger from my left sleeve with a flick.
Thwuk!
"Gaaack!"
"What?!"
Ambush success.
The startled one shook his hand in panic.
A sharp whistle followed as three or four black poison needles shot toward me. He'd probably used most of them on the Golden Thread.
I flung my sword forward to block their view, then rolled across the floor.
Whish whish whish!
The poison needles barely grazed overhead.
My sword, meant only as a distraction, somehow thunked right into a Dang Clan bastard's chest.
"Haaap!"
Even with three comrades dead in seconds, the last one didn't waver and swung his blade.
True to a prestigious clan.
I leaped high, ran up the wall.
Tap tap tap!
"No!"
He hadn't expected this move.
The instant he lost track of my feet, panic twisted his face as he whipped his head around.
I kicked off the wall and launched at him.
Boom!
I thrust my fist with full power.
Thanks to the bedchamber arts, it carried inner power.
Splat!
My rock-hard fist landed perfectly.
His face caved in. Blood burst like fireworks.
He flew across the room and crashed into the opposite wall.
"Huuu..."
I caught my breath and glanced at my right hand.
Even the blood of a Five Great Clans member was as red as any back-alley scum.
"Tch."
I shook off my hand and rummaged through the headless Golden Thread Jade Sword's corpse.
Nothing useful.
"Long Treasure Map, huh."
After spilling Dang Clan blood, all I'd gained was that one word: Jangbodo.
But it wasn't something I could just walk away from.
These bastards had killed innocents just to hide their tracks.
And now that I knew their secret, no way they'd let me live. They'd probably planned to wipe out the innkeepers too.
"Kahk, ptui! You fucking bastards. And you call yourselves righteous?"
Suddenly, the inn felt too quiet.
Had they killed the owners too?
Or poisoned them without us knowing?
I whipped my head around—and blinked, speechless for a moment.
"...?"
The innkeepers stood calmly in one corner.
"Well, well. You're way stronger than the rumors said."
"No kidding. They say you're Hubei's rising star, Iron Sword, but taking down Dang Clan killers that easily? Unbelievable."
The wife beamed at me with sparkling eyes, while the husband grumbled and started dragging the bodies aside.
This was no ordinary innkeeper reaction.
Lightning struck my mind.
"Ah! You two are...?"
"Hohoho! Yes. From Monghwan Lou, right? Late greetings—I'm Nan-sim of the Hao Sect Sichuan branch."
"I'm Chun-bok. Nice to meet ya."
They both cupped their fists toward me.
The contact here was none other than the innkeepers.
Nan-sim scanned the room, frowning.
"Not much atmosphere for talking here. Mind if we move somewhere else?"
"Sure."
"This way."
Nan-sim turned gracefully and headed into the kitchen depths.
Chun-bok ignored everything, methodically clearing the corpses with practiced hands.
I watched him a beat, then followed Nan-sim into the kitchen.
A small room lay beyond the kitchen—probably where Nan-sim and Chun-bok lived.
"Sorry it's so humble. Better than the blood stink, though."
"No problem. Don't worry about it."
"Have a seat."
I sat where Nan-sim guided me, against the far wall.
It was modest but clean.
Suited the warm, approachable Nan-sim.
"Thank you. Without you, we'd have been in real trouble today."
Nan-sim bowed politely.
"No need for that. Sit."
"Hoho! Plenty of women swoon over Iron Sword, they say. Now I see why."
Nan-sim looked mid-thirties, but her gaze was full of girlish curiosity.
I chuckled, meeting her eyes.
"News to me. Most folks run the other way."
"Oh, come on!"
"Anyway, what the hell's going on? Why are Dang Clan goons flipping out like that?"
"Hmm..."
The jewel lead was one thing, but now I'd bathed in Dang Clan blood—serious business.
"About a year ago, rumors spread through Sichuan that the Dang Clan got their hands on something precious."
"Precious?"
"Yes. Stories varied—some said a spirit beast's inner core, others a legendary technique. But the Dang Clan clamped down hard, so no one knew the truth."
"Hm. And that's the Jangbodo."
"Seems like it, from the circumstances."
Nan-sim and I fell silent, lost in thought.
The Jangbodo hidden by the Sichuan Dang Clan, one of the Five Great Families.
I didn't know what secrets it held, but it was clearly no trinket.
"Nothing comes to mind?"
"Not really. Treasure maps like the Jangbodo pop up every few years, stirring up the jianghu."
"Hm."
"Ah! Our branch leader might know something. He's lived in Sichuan his whole life."
Mid-sentence, Nan-sim fetched something from a corner cabinet.
"Here."
"...?"
A weathered iron coin in her hand.
I took it and examined it closely.
Nothing special at first glance.
"Take that to find the branch leader. He'll help."
"Ah, got it."
"Hohoho! Yes."
Probably a Hao Sect Sichuan token, marked with a secret sign only they knew.
I pocketed it readily.
"There's a bookstore called Cheonun Pavilion on a street in Seongdo. The owner is our branch leader."
"Thanks. I'll check it out."
"No, no—you saved our lives. This is the least we can do. Sorry we can't offer more."
"Nonsense. Anyone would've done the same."
Nan-sim's lips curved softly.
Easy to say—who else would draw steel on the Dang Clan?
"What about you two?"
"We'll leave too. If their poison users don't report back, they'll send trackers. Might buy a day or two."
"Better hurry."
"Don't worry. We're pros at running."
From how they handled things, no need to fret.
Things had tangled up, but I had a main goal here, so I cut to it.
"Anyway, any leads on the jewel?"
"Oh, right! Yes! We finally tailed it."
"Tell me what you know."
"One moment."
Nan-sim stood and went to the corner again.
This time, she flipped the floor to reveal a hidden stash.
"Here."
She returned and set it on the floor.
A small jewelry box.
"Open it."
I lifted the box and carefully pried the lid.
Inside: a small red ring, like carved ruby.
"What's this?"
"A ring made from the same gem as the one headed to the capital."
"But why?"
"The thief is slippery as an eel. We're always a step behind. But you—you can catch them."
I held up the ring, inspecting it closely.
Blood-red jade.
Staring at it stirred something uneasy, but yeah, some capital noble would pay top coin for it.
"The stolen gem's bigger—thumb-sized, I heard."
"What's the connection?"
"It's called blood jade. Blood jades glow when near each other. That's how we track the thief."
"Sounds vague..."
Nan-sim smiled with her eyes.
"Don't worry—we've narrowed the range. But the thief's a master of disguise, the Thousand-Face Fox. Too much for us."
"Ah! So the Thousand-Face Fox stole the jewel?"
"Yes."
The fox with a thousand faces, Thousand-Face Fox Thief.
A infamous jianghu robber whose gender was still unknown.
Mostly robbed corrupt officials to aid the poor, earning a heroic rep.
A capital lady commissions a jewel, and blood jade becomes the prey.
"Was wondering who it was. Guess I'll find out now."
"Hohoho! The Fox's identity revealed at last. Iron Sword as the hunter? Poor Fox."
Nan-sim didn't doubt I'd catch the fox one bit.
"Where's the Fox now?"
The smile slowly faded from Nan-sim's bright face.
"In Seongdo."