Chapter 221
Chapter 221
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 221
Chapter Title: The Emergence of the Dark Heaven Cult
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Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
Pouring rain had been hammering the region from Fujian Province all the way to Southern Barbarian lands for days now.
Roooaaar!
“Man, it’s really coming down. I hope this doesn’t turn into a total disaster.”
“Damn rain had to pick the exact moment I’m on sentry duty to unleash like this. Now we’ll be the ones stuck with all the repairs later. Shit!”
“That’s just your bad luck.”
“What’d you say, you bastard?”
“Quiet down. The captain’s coming.”
On the southern side of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains stood the Qin Kingdom’s army camp.
Even though it was a rear position far from the borders with Zhao and Yeon Kingdoms, the Qin Kingdom had established a camp here because of the bandits using the mountains as their base.
The bandits weren’t just some ragtag group of thieves—their forces were larger than any martial sect in the world.
Lately, they’d been clashing with the authorities without hesitation and rampaging with raids, so the Qin court was keeping a close eye on them.
One soldier asked,
“Rumor has it the Namgung Clan is sending reinforcements. That true?”
“I heard the same, but they’ll come when they come. When have those guys ever kept a promise?”
“Fair point.”
“With the troops we have here, we can’t handle the bandits alone, so the Namgung Clan or anyone else needs to show up quick.”
“They’ll come from somewhere. If these mountains fall to the bandits, even Fujian Province could be at risk. No way the higher-ups just sit back and watch.”
The soldiers chatted idly in the outpost, waiting for the downpour to let up.
Some time passed like that.
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Did the forest up ahead just shake?”
“Probably the wind. You think bandits are crazy enough to crawl out in this weather?”
“Maybe.”
“This guy’s scared now, huh?”
“What’d you call me, punk?”
“Heh heh heh!”
That was when it happened.
Swoosh!
An object flew through the air and landed right in front of the soldiers. They widened their eyes and staggered back.
“Gasp!”
“T-The captain!”
It was someone’s severed head. The captain who’d been patrolling the area.
“Didn’t you just call them bandits?”
A chilling voice rang out as figures emerged.
“Think you called them ‘those guys’ too.”
Clang clang clang!
“B-Bandits!”
The soldiers drew their swords in unison.
“About time you got it right.”
The intruders pushed through the rain. They wore green cloaks, but their weapons varied wildly, and the aura they exuded was like that of ferocious beasts.
They were the bandits who claimed lordship over the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains. They advanced without a care, as if the soldiers were beneath notice.
The soldiers didn’t dare step forward and kept retreating.
“Kill them all.”
“Yes, sir!”
* * *
White-robed figures entered the blood-soaked site, trapped by the relentless rain.
A young man at the front frowned down at the soldiers’ corpses.
“It hasn’t been long since they were hit.”
The youth had striking features and eyes that sparkled like jewels. He was Namgung Jang-cheon, the Namgung Clan’s eldest son and a rumored prince consort of the Qin Kingdom’s imperial family.
A general with him swallowed his anger and spoke.
“Lately, they’ve been targeting outposts like this. Over two hundred soldiers have already fallen to them. The worst part is they leave no survivors.”
“Given the situation, why haven’t you requested reinforcements?”
“Why do you think? We’ve sent dozens of requests over the past six months.”
Namgung Jang-cheon furrowed his brow.
It had only been recently that the emperor himself mentioned the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains situation, ordering the ministers to resolve it. After deliberations, they’d decided to dispatch the Namgung Clan.
That was when Namgung Jang-cheon had first learned of the crisis here.
But requests had been going out for half a year?
He couldn’t fathom why they’d only just decided to send them now.
“I’m sorry to bring you to a place like this right after your arrival.”
“No need. If we’d come even a little sooner, we might have saved them. It’s regrettable we didn’t.”
Namgung Jang-cheon examined the dead. His eyes sharpened when he spotted the wounds on one soldier’s body.
“Hmm. The work of a considerable expert.”
A burly warrior replied.
“Exactly. Struck the vitals with just enough force to kill instantly. The soldier probably didn’t even have time to scream.”
The warrior was a renowned expert from the Namgung Clan, assigned as Namgung Jang-cheon’s bodyguard for this mission. He inspected other corpses and continued.
“They must have broken the soldiers’ will with fear before the fight even started. That’s why they sent an expert right from the beginning.”
Namgung Jang-cheon nodded silently. He turned to the general.
“Is this the most remote outpost?”
“Yes. There are no more beyond here. We were actually planning to pull back the nearby ones to the rear.”
Namgung Jang-cheon looked ahead. Visibility was poor in the storm, but his profound inner energy let him scan quite far.
“The bandits’ main stronghold is likely just beyond.”
“Yes. That’s what everyone thinks.”
“Understood. We’ll stop here for today.”
“Very well. I’ll escort you to the main camp.”
At that moment, the bodyguard’s eyes gleamed oddly.
“First, there’s something to take care of.”
“You’ll handle it yourself?”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Flash!
The bodyguard suddenly dashed into the rain. He vanished into the forest and soon returned, holding a dripping severed head.
“Seems someone was watching us.”
“We should at least greet our guests who know we’ve arrived.”
The watching general was stunned.
‘Sensing someone that far away in this storm...’
The shock soon turned to reassurance.
The Namgung Clan’s famed prowess wasn’t just talk. With them here, even the bandits’ experts could be dealt with.
“Shall we go?”
“Yes, Young Master.”
* * *
Qin Kingdom army camp in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
After meeting the camp commander, Namgung Jang-cheon headed straight to his tent. In deference to the man who might one day become prince consort, the commander had given him the largest and finest one.
Danri Mok, his close friend, greeted him as he entered.
“You got here fast.”
“When the prince consort’s coming, of course I hurry.”
“Prince consort, my ass. Anyway, this is unexpected. I figured you’d be pissed about being sent to a dump like this.”
“If they’d dumped it on me out of spite, sure. But I decided to treat it as training. So, you checked out the outpost?”
Namgung Jang-cheon shrugged off his robe and sat, frowning.
“The situation’s worse than I heard. We don’t even know their full strength, and the casualties are already heavy. Quite a few more today.”
“Why’d those bastards have to hole up on Qin soil? They’d fit right in with savage Zhao. Heard the news?”
“What news?”
Danri Mok’s expression grew serious.
“Yeon Kingdom’s crown prince ascended to the throne smoothly. I thought the empress would make some move, but there wasn’t even any resistance.”
“More anticlimactic than expected. I figured it’d be a brutal fight.”
Namgung Jang-cheon thought of Yi Hwan.
‘Without him, the crown prince never would’ve taken the throne so easily.’
He knew the full details of Yeon’s turmoil. Yi Hwan had used the Golden Army to seize complete control of the Imperial Palace and the capital.
When he’d heard that, Namgung Jang-cheon had been certain of the crown prince’s victory. And that’s how it turned out.
“Lost in thought again?”
“Just pondering Yeon’s Great Prince. Wondering who would’ve won without him.”
“The empress, obviously. She had the upper hand until he showed up. Makes you realize how incredible he is—taking the heart of Yeon’s politics in that short time.”
“The crown prince has all the luck with people.”
Namgung Jang-cheon stood.
“Hungry? Let’s grab a bite.”
“My stomach was just about to growl.”
They headed out.
Just then, thousands of troops were marching into the camp—the reinforcements who’d come with Namgung Jang-cheon.
“Friend.”
“Yeah?”
“Here, we’ve gotta fight proper. Someone put their crown prince on the throne—we can’t lag behind.”
Danri Mok grinned at his words.
“Exterminate the bandits, and we’ll make a name as big as Yeon’s Great Prince?”
“Can’t fall further behind. Gotta do something.”
“Alright. Let’s give it a shot.”
Danri Mok was still smiling, but Namgung Jang-cheon wasn’t. Recalling Yi Hwan, he felt a strange competitive fire.
‘We’ll meet again someday. Before then, at least my fame can’t trail his.’
* * *
Somewhere in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
Fortifications clung to sheer cliffs, and at the center, a massive structure thrust toward the sky.
It was the bandits’ main stronghold.
In its highest chamber, a middle-aged man and a youth stood side by side at the window.
“Word is the Namgung and Danri Clans have arrived, along with their eldest sons. The troops they brought number five thousand.”
“Troop numbers mean nothing. The issue is how many experts from those clans came. We need to scout that first.”
“We’ve got eyes on them. We’ll know soon.”
Rumble!
Crack!
Lightning spiderwebbed right in front of the cliff.
As the world flashed white, the middle-aged man’s eyes gleamed just as brightly.
“Sending Namgung Jang-cheon, who might become prince consort... The emperor’s dead serious.”
“Will you kill him?”
“Are you saying we shouldn’t, to avoid the emperor’s wrath?”
“I was merely curious, Master. Your disciple follows your will.”
The middle-aged man fell silent for a moment.
Then he spoke.
“Our predecessor, the former cult leader, stood unbowed even against the Lord of Daye Fortress, who had three kingdoms’ emperors under him. We can’t cower before a mere one kingdom’s emperor.”
He placed a hand on the youth’s shoulder.
“If the chance comes, take that boy’s head yourself. The entire cult will revere you.”
“If you command it, Master, I’ll bring you Namgung Jang-cheon’s head.”
“The Namgung Clan’s strength is not to be underestimated. Never let your guard down. Understand?”
“Yes.”
The youth brimmed with confidence.
The middle-aged man was certain he’d claim Namgung Jang-cheon’s head. He only worried about overconfidence, the sole weakness of the strong.
Rumble! Crack!
Lightning struck again.
Clang clang clang!
Fierce winds hurled rain at the window like it might shatter it.
Then, a blood-robed figure entered quietly from behind.
He bowed toward the pair gazing out the window.
The middle-aged man asked without turning.
“What is it?”
“Yeon’s crown prince completed his ascension ceremony without issue.”
“No disturbances?”
“None. The empress didn’t even appear.”
“Hmm. Must be because Daye Fortress’s descendant seized the Imperial Palace and capital with the Golden Army.”
“That’s the consensus.”
The middle-aged man finally turned. He sat in a chair covered with tiger skin, crossing his legs.
The youth sat opposite.
“First the Light Demon’s heir backs one kingdom, and now Daye Fortress’s heir does the same.”
“Shouldn’t our cult move in earnest now?”
The middle-aged man shook his head at the blood-robed man’s words.
“If they’ve backed one kingdom, we’ll back the world. If Yeon and Zhao’s people follow our doctrine, wouldn’t that be the ultimate power?”
“Indeed. Just thinking about it swells the chest with pride, Master.”
“We need to shake them up first. Best if we make them fight each other.”
As the middle-aged man smiled with satisfaction, the blood-robed man spoke up.
“With the Southwest King’s movements already restricted, can we really make them clash?”
“If it’s not possible, make it so. Isn’t that your job?”
“...”
“You lack confidence.”
The blood-robed man bowed hastily.
“This subordinate will find the best way.”
“Of course you will. But don’t rush. Even if it takes time, ensure they have no choice but to fight.”
“Your will be done!”
Rumble!
Crack!
Lightning flashed again, illuminating the room. It faintly revealed the massive plaque hanging over the middle-aged man’s head.
Dark Heaven Cult.
‘The bandits are mere shell. Soon, all will bow to the Dark Heaven Cult’s greatness.’
* * *