The Qi Arts Master Chapter 36
The sworn brothers sprang into action the moment they finalized their plan. With Song Sogeol's connections and the brothers' funds, they secured the finest speedboat on Dongting Lake—and it proved every bit worth the price. They overtook their target soldiers, who were passing through Guangshan in Henan after Hubei, right on schedule. What should have taken at least three weeks, they covered in under one. It was the fruit of pouring money and manpower into the effort.
"We're back. Everything ready?" Chanho called out to Tian Ailang and Song Sogeol after returning from reconnaissance.
"We'll head out soon~ Hehe." Song Sogeol grabbed the hem of Tian Ailang's sleeve, who was shrinking behind a tree, and yanked him forward.
"Gah!" Chanho coughed roughly in shock. His eyes widened to impossible limits as he stared at Tian Ailang.
"Wh-who... are you?"
"Huh? Who? Ahahaha—hak!" Song Sogeol doubled over, clutching his stomach as laughter threatened to choke him.
Tian Ailang, head bowed deeply, shot a resentful glare at Song Sogeol. "Sogeol, is this really going to work...?"
Rubbing his aching cheek from laughing so hard, Song Sogeol gasped for breath. "Haak... huff, I nearly died laughing. You almost killed me, bro!"
Tian Ailang lifted his head and glared at Song Sogeol. Chanho gasped in response. Seeing that, Tian Ailang ducked his head again.
"Hehe, what do you think, Brother Chanho? Killer, right?" Song Sogeol chuckled beside him.
Chanho nodded dumbly at the question.
"Guys would drop dead for someone like this, yeah?"
Chanho kept nodding blankly.
"Kekekeke, world, praise Brother Ailang's beauty~!" Song Sogeol threw his arms wide and shouted to the heavens.
Tian Ailang wore a flowing purple silk skirt and a black jacket embroidered with delicate white patterns. His neatly braided hair, swept back, glittered with ornaments. One look at him made the term nation-toppling beauty feel utterly self-evident.
Chanho stared blankly before finally finding his voice. "The hair...? Ailang, you have long hair down to here."
"Wig, obviously."
Chanho nodded, then kept brushing at his chest as if to calm his racing heart. "Haa... I don't think I've ever been this shocked in my life."
"Hahaha, exactly! No issues kicking off the op, then." Tian Ailang calmed himself a bit and shot a small shout at Song Sogeol. "But why me in drag?!"
Song Sogeol widened his eyes dramatically. "Duh? 'Cause you're the prettiest, bro. Kekeke."
"No, you're pretty enough too."
"Psh~ Bro. We gotta go deep into enemy lines. How's weakling me supposed to escape? You said to follow my plan, remember?"
Speechless, Tian Ailang let out a deep sigh. "Haa..."
Song Sogeol patted his shoulder. "And Brother Chanho's got too rugged a build for this."
Chanho stroked his boldly chiseled face with visible relief.
"Sigh... So I play the desperate woman heading to Beijing?"
Song Sogeol clapped his hands. "Yep. Say your father's on his deathbed in Beijing. Or your mother. Whatever. You married into Xinxian down below Guangshan, hubby died, just you and your mother-in-law now. Then you hear about your dying dad a few days ago and rushed off to Beijing, but got lost in these mountains."
Tian Ailang's brow furrowed at the elaborate tale. "Why so detailed? Can't I just say, 'Heading to Beijing—mind if I tag along?'"
Song Sogeol wagged a finger. "C'mon, some random beauty pops up in these mountains? They'd suspect you instantly. Gotta weave a believable lie with details to avoid slip-ups."
"I... guess?"
Song Sogeol nodded fiercely, eyes bulging. "Trust me. Say you wandered lost, spotted the imperial banners, and came begging for help. Their brains'll short-circuit over your looks and they'll be all, 'Come on in~!'"
"Hmm..." Tian Ailang fell quietly into thought, already swayed.
"What about me?" Chanho asked, barely regaining his clear mirror, still waters composure amid Tian Ailang's allure.
"You stir 'em up at the right moment, Brother Chanho."
"Why not a night raid? Why hit 'em now when they're still up?"
"Look down there." Tian Ailang and Chanho followed Song Sogeol's gesture.
"Grunts are busy setting up camp. But officers from company commander up? They're kicking back in their tents, first ones up and idle."
Tian Ailang and Chanho nodded.
Song Sogeol pressed on. "That's why Brother Ailang's key. Give 'em your story and join up. Show yourself bold—they won't touch you with all the troops around. Odds are, word gets to the brass. Your beauty's that insane right now. Or just say you got important info for an officer."
He chuckled, then sobered under Tian Ailang's sharp glare. "Ahem. Anyway, get to the officers. Scout the kidnapped folks' location, then... slice." Song Sogeol mimed slitting throats.
"Hmm. Won't the commotion give us away?"
Song Sogeol nodded. "Exactly. Silent kills only."
He suddenly held out his palm to Tian Ailang. They tilted their heads.
"That Explosive Force from last fight—bam! right into a dozing officer's heart. With your inner power back, instant death!" He mimed a palm strike like an enemy's heart was there.
Tian Ailang nodded faintly as he listened. It sounded absurd, but not impossible. A thousand-man unit meant about ten company commanders and one battalion chief. Kill them stealthily, find the five brothers, done. No guilt over scum who'd slaughtered innocents. And with his restored inner power and elevated realm, his condition was prime.
Song Sogeol smirked at Tian Ailang's blazing eyes. "Bro, stay stealthy. Don't overdo it. If you're made and things go loud!" He clapped sharply and eyed Chanho. "That's when Brother Chanho wrecks the camp—diverts eyes from you. Oh! And if either of you senses danger, run. Too many troops; deep encirclement's fatal. Rescue op or not, prioritize your lives."
Tian Ailang and Chanho nodded.
"But where're you in all this?" Chanho eyed Song Sogeol.
Song Sogeol grinned confidently. "Haha, weakest martial artist here preps your escape route."
"Escape route?"
"Look." Song Sogeol picked up a stick and sketched on the dirt. "This mountain to the right—us. Plains-mountain edge down here—their camp."
"And?"
"Yep. You head here, Brother Ailang. Brother Chanho hides nearby."
They nodded at the spot near the mountain.
"After you execute and bail, I hit here." He circled a peak. "Mountain's heart, strongest qi flow. I'll set a Illusion Array. Run straight here—rescued or not. You pass through, I trigger it, we bolt. By then, sunset—darkness helps."
Tian Ailang's face hardened. "Sounds solid. Let's do it."
Song Sogeol gazed rapturously at his determined brother. "Ah... falling for your vibe~."
Tian Ailang glared; Song Sogeol grinned sheepishly. "Hehe. No time to waste—let's roll!"
* * *
"Huh?" The sentry rubbed his eyes. A fairy from the mountains was walking right toward him. No vanishing act even after rubbing—they grew clearer. Mouth agape, he stared.
"Excuse me..."
Her ethereal, pure voice snapped him from fantasies of hiding his "three-kid secret outfit" forever. "Y-yes!"
"Is this the imperial army heading to Beijing?"
"Y-yes..." He felt himself melting.
Troop rumors claimed a man hitting thirty without female experience gained ten years' worth of inner power overnight. This sentry would've gladly, fully surrendered that potential year-from-now prize to the fairy before him.
"Hehe, I need help. Could you take me to your superiors?"
"Yes sir! Happy to!" Without verifying a thing, he led her in with a dopey grin.
Damn, what am I doing... Tian Ailang sighed at the sentry striding ahead boldly.
"Something wrong...?" The sentry asked, deeply concerned.
"N-no. Haha... hehe." Tian Ailang forced an awkward smile, hastily shifting to a feminine laugh.
The sentry blanked out again at the sound. Tian Ailang prodded. "Ahem, sooner the better~."
He jolted and nodded. "Yes! Right this way!"
As Tian Ailang and the sentry entered camp, every soldier froze mid-task, staring slack-jawed. Tian Ailang squirmed under the piercing gazes but kept his composure.
Then a soldier approached, wearing yellowish shoulder guards. "Who're you?" he barked pretentiously.
The sentry stiffened. "Company commander, sir! This lady seeks our aid."
"Aid?" The commander raked Tian Ailang with sharp eyes.
Whoosh—like ants crawling over his skin. Tian Ailang felt like dying as the man leered slowly. Time to sell the story. Lips twitching, he itched to spit out Song Sogeol's drilled lines before forgetting.
The commander gulped at those lips, then puffed up nobly. "Welcome. I'll help."
The sentry and nearby troops sighed inwardly. Of all people, they'd run into Mad Dog Company Commander—preaching women needed top looks and bedroom skills, infamous for wartime looting and rape. Grunts like them couldn't save a fairy from him.
Thus, the sentry sighed pityingly at Tian Ailang.
"Follow me." The commander beckoned with a beaming smile.
Tian Ailang trailed him with a forced grin. Why aren't they asking my identity or story?
The commander then bellowed at the dawdling sentry. "You forget your place, imperial soldier?! Back to post—now! Need punishment to wise up?!"
The sentry saluted in panic and scurried off; gawking soldiers snapped back to work.
With the area cleared, the commander smiled. "This way."
Tian Ailang poured every ounce into his expression as he followed.