Chapter 350
Chapter 350
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 350
Chapter Title: Palm
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"Let's meet again if fate allows it later."
Wang Ho bowed politely to the group and returned to the inn to find the merchant.
Now, the only clue to track down Baek Hyang-a was a single corpse.
Dang Mujin made his own judgment.
'First, figure out whose body it is, then use that to pursue Baek Hyang-a.'
The first step was identifying the corpse.
Fortunately, the body had a fairly distinctive feature. There was an extra small finger attached below the pinky on his left hand.
Having six fingers was more than enough as a clue to identify someone.
Dang Mujin went around the nearby villages with his group, inquiring about any missing or dead six-fingered person, and obtained a crucial lead from a waiter in a village a little further away.
"Six Fingers? You mean that Maeng-ga bastard, right...? The one with an extra half-sized pinky below his left pinky?"
"That's right. Do you know him?"
"I know of him, sure. Did something happen to that Maeng-ga scum?"
"...He's dead."
Dang Mujin spoke in a deliberately somber tone. But unexpectedly, the waiter grinned brightly.
"Huh, birds were chirping noisily this morning, and now I hear some good news for once."
"Looks like he wasn't a very upstanding person."
"You think? That guy was one of the biggest scumbags under heaven. He was infamous in my home village. Even my front teeth got like this because of him."
The waiter opened his mouth slightly to show his front teeth. It was comical, with two front teeth completely missing.
Then the waiter unleashed a torrent of curses. From minor thefts Maeng-ga committed as a kid to vicious rumors like beating someone to death.
Dang Mujin asked the waiter,
"Do you know who might have killed him?"
"Plenty. Among the folks around my home village, hardly anyone didn't have some grudge against Maeng-ga, big or small."
"It wasn't the work of an ordinary person, so it's probably unrelated to old grudges. Any talk of a martial arts master showing up around here recently?"
"A master? A master... Ah!"
The waiter furrowed his brow in thought, then clapped his hands as if something dawned on him.
"There've been rumors lately of several martial artists freezing to death after crossing a master. Looks like Maeng-ga met the same end."
"That's correct."
"The world's gone so dangerous, but it's helpful sometimes. Anyway, I don't know who the master is. But there are plenty of rumors guessing who it might be."
"Could you tell me more?"
"In the village down below, there's the Hwang family, who learned some martial arts back in the day. And if you head west for about two days, there's a Seo fellow who's supposedly a peak-level expert. I hear his younger brother is pretty skilled too..."
Waiters usually spin tales to earn extra tips.
But the story Dang Mujin shared must have pleased him greatly, as the waiter spilled everything without asking for money.
Amid that, one particular story stood out clearly.
"In the village across the way, two blue-eyed foreigners have settled down. And get this—for blue-eyed barbarians, they're supposed to be such great masters that even decent martial artists bow their heads to them. Though no one's actually seen them fight."
Even though this was the far north, quite distant from the Central Plains, it wasn't a place where you could easily run into martial artists from the North Sea Ice Palace.
The two blue-eyed men the waiter mentioned had to be the Small Frost Hall Leader and Great Wall Hall Leader who fled the North Sea Ice Palace with Baek Hyang-a.
Dang Mujin handed the waiter a silver coin and asked,
"Could you tell me more details?"
*
The group arrived at the village the waiter had directed them to.
However, they didn't comb through every corner of the village with their usual carefree attitude. They couldn't gauge Baek Hyang-a's skill level.
Facing her without preparation could spell trouble, so Dang Mujin's group suppressed their presence, scattered, and cautiously scanned the village nooks and crannies.
While peeking around like that for a bit, Namgung Myeong's transmission voice came through.
- Come this way.
Namgung Myeong was hiding behind a cart full of thoroughly rotted manure, peeking at something.
The other members were also stealthily approaching Namgung Myeong. Dang Mujin went to his side and hid behind the manure cart. It didn't smell like properly rotted manure.
The group looked where Namgung Myeong's gaze was directed.
There were a couple of ordinary houses no different from the others, but one had a peculiarity.
A large-built man and a relatively small man—two blue-eyed foreigners—were doing odd chores.
Both men's martial prowess was respectable. The larger one was upper-tier peak expert material, and the smaller one seemed at least mid-tier, generously speaking.
The group's eyes turned to Seolhwa.
Sure enough, her expression was rigidly tense.
"It's the Great Wall Hall Leader and Small Frost Hall Leader. The big, sturdy one is the Great Wall Hall Leader. The small, roundish one is the Small Frost Hall Leader."
Seolhwa said that and tried to jump up from her spot.
But Hyeon-gong grabbed her hand and pulled her back down. The presence of the Great Wall and Small Frost Hall Leaders meant Baek Hyang-a was likely with them.
Yet, even after quite some time, Baek Hyang-a didn't appear. Even subtly shifting angles to peer inside the house yielded nothing.
While pondering what this meant, the Small Frost Hall Leader suddenly flinched.
His gaze was fixed on the spot under the cart where the group was hiding.
'Oh no!'
Seolhwa's foot was exposed under the cart. Unlike the others, she wasn't used to concealment.
Seolhwa hurriedly pulled her foot back under the cart, but it was too late.
The Small Frost Hall Leader strode toward the cart and soon locked eyes with Dang Mujin's group.
The Small Frost Hall Leader was far more shocked than Dang Mujin's group. He looked like he might stop breathing.
It was only natural. Who in the world would expect three absolute peak experts and two peak experts to be hiding behind a shabby manure cart?
"Whew..."
Namgung Myeong sighed, stood up, and smoothly drew his sword.
The Small Frost Hall Leader's hand crept toward his waist, but he ultimately didn't grasp his sword. There was no chance of victory.
Instead, he prostrated himself flat on the ground and bowed deeply.
"Oh dear! Isn't this the young lady!"
"...?"
An unexpected reaction. But Seolhwa didn't return the greeting lightly.
"You criminals have the gall to call my name? Where's Baek Hyang-a? The Eternal Ice Crystal? The manual?"
"Oh dear, it's a misunderstanding! Baek Hyang-a isn't here! No manual, no Eternal Ice Crystal! We'll explain everything, so please hold steady!"
The Small Frost Hall Leader glanced back. Unlike him, who kept bowing obsequiously, the distant Great Wall Hall Leader flinched as if wanting to flee at the sight.
But the Great Wall Hall Leader didn't run in the end. Given Dang Mujin's group's prowess, escaping would just mean getting caught and killed—it was obvious.
The Great Wall Hall Leader shuffled over hesitantly and prostrated himself next to the Small Frost Hall Leader.
Seolhwa drew her sword from its sheath with a chilling expression. A clear threat.
"You want to make excuses, huh? Give it a try. But if you don't convince me, you'll die right here. And not easily—you'll taste unimaginable agony. Right beside me is the world's greatest torture expert!"
"..."
Not the most flattering introduction. But it wasn't a lie either, so Dang Mujin said nothing.
The Small Frost Hall Leader began explaining the situation with surprising composure. His Central Plains speech was even more fluent than Seolhwa's.
"I can guess what misunderstanding you're under. The North Sea Ice Palace folks must think the Great Wall Hall Leader and I are in cahoots with that Baek girl, right?"
"Then you're saying it's not true? Shameless!"
"It's really not! The Great Wall Hall Leader and I were just tricked by Baek!"
Not entirely trustworthy, but worth hearing out once. Seolhwa pointed her sword at the Small Frost Hall Leader.
"Tell me in detail."
"As you know, young lady, the Great Wall Hall Leader and I didn't have much direct contact with Baek before. He taught her martial arts, and I, who managed the spirit herbs, taught her how to absorb their energies."
"Close enough to conspire with Baek Hyang-a to steal the manual and Eternal Ice Crystal and flee, right? Doesn't leave much room for mercy."
Seolhwa's tone in pressing him was oddly triumphant.
She seemed proud of herself for using the tricky word "mercy."
The Small Frost Hall Leader bowed his head again and continued.
"No! We were deceived! As you know, Baek already knew the locations of the Eternal Ice Crystal and the manual. She secretly stole them, then played innocent and came to us. She said she was suffocating in the stuffy Ice Palace and wanted to sneak out for just one night to see the outside—could we help? We have soft hearts and couldn't refuse."
"That's right."
As the Small Frost Hall Leader rattled off his excuse, the Great Wall Hall Leader next to him bowed along and chimed in. He didn't seem as fluent in Central Plains speech as the Small Frost Hall Leader.
The Small Frost Hall Leader excused again.
"But the moment we left the Ice Palace, Baek ambushed us. Embarrassingly, we were off guard and got taken down without a fight, losing consciousness. When we came to after a long while and tried to head back, the Ice Palace atmosphere already felt off even from afar."
The Small Frost Hall Leader spoke with deep emotion.
"That's when we realized. Ah! We've already been branded her accomplices! If we go back, we'll die or face severe punishment! If guilty, we should accept the consequences. But we couldn't bear punishment for a misunderstanding—it terrified us. In the end, we fled. We're sorry."
The Small Frost Hall Leader teared up, overcome with emotion.
But Hyeon-gong watched him with arms crossed and a bored expression.
Finally, the Great Wall Hall Leader stammered,
"Young lady. Give us a chance. Give us orders. Let us redeem ourselves at your side."
That was the end of the excuses. The Small Frost Hall Leader and Great Wall Hall Leader prostrated flat again, leaving their fate to Seolhwa.
Seolhwa's mind was a whirlwind; she couldn't give a clear answer.
The others felt the same.
They needed to discuss and exchange opinions for a bit.
Dang Mujin asked Hong Geolgae, the one in the group farthest from scheming.
"Hong Geolgae. Watch these guys for a moment."
"Why all of a sudden?"
"We'll talk and be right back."
"Got it."
As expected, Hong Geolgae agreed readily.
Dang Mujin took Namgung Myeong, Hyeon-gong, and Seolhwa behind a nearby building.
Namgung Myeong spoke first.
"It sounds plausible enough, but something feels off. I just can't put my finger on what."
Dang Mujin and Seolhwa nodded. Their impressions weren't much different from Namgung Myeong's.
In such cases, consult an expert. Naturally, all three gazes turned to Hyeon-gong.
Hyeon-gong, thinking this was his chance to look cool in front of Seolhwa, cleared his throat and spoke.
"Ahem. Let's go through it step by step. Seolhwa, did Baek Hyang-a really know the locations of the Eternal Ice Crystal and manual?"
"Yeah. She was fostered there long enough to know most Ice Palace secrets."
"But it wouldn't be something just anyone could touch. Stealing the Eternal Ice Crystal and manual wouldn't have been easy for Baek Hyang-a either. And then she asks those two for help just to get past one gate? Doesn't add up. I don't know how impressive the North Sea Ice Palace gates are, but still."
"Hearing it now, you're right."
Not just Dang Mujin and Namgung Myeong—Seolhwa nodded too.
Hyeon-gong continued.
"The Great Wall Hall Leader taught martial arts, and the Small Frost managed spirit herbs, right?"
"Yeah."
"Instead of thinking Baek sneaked them out alone, it's far more realistic that the Small Frost stole the herbs himself and the Great Wall grabbed the manual."
The group unwittingly nodded.
The more they thought, the more Hyeon-gong's points rang true.
"And they survived her ambush without major injuries? After getting everything from the Ice Palace and escaping, why leave those two alive if she led it? We can't know if Baek or those two masterminded it, but circumstances alone make it clear they're no victims. At best accomplices, at worst the main culprits."
"That makes sense too."
"And above all, it doesn't match what we heard at Gongdong Mountain. The man who died there said it like the Small Frost and Great Wall were leading things."
"Mm, that's right too."
Seolhwa smiled warmly.
Hyeon-gong's seamless reasoning felt intellectual and dashing.
Namgung Myeong said,
"Alright. Shall we squeeze out what else they know and kill them?"
But Hyeon-gong shook his head.
"No. Bad choice. There's no surer lead to Baek Hyang-a than those guys. Kill them rashly, and she catches wind and vanishes—we'd be in trouble. Worst case, we never find her."
Dang Mujin frowned, thought a moment, then pointed out sharply,
"Those guys earlier didn't just beg Seolhwa to 'spare them.' They said 'give us a chance to redeem at your side.' It's not just about survival. They want to stick with us and wait for an opportunity."
Hyeon-gong agreed with Dang Mujin.
"I think so too."
"No matter how you look at it, they plan to travel with us and stab us in the back. You gonna let that slide?"
Hyeon-gong scoffed.
"Dang Mujin. Even sharp hunters chasing deer miss the tiger sneaking up behind."
"What's that mean?"
"Someone plotting to stab you in the back can't guard their own. Scheming? Let them scheme away. Aiming for the back? Let them try. It'll all be in the palm of my hand anyway."
Hyeon-gong smiled.
An arrogant smile bordering on madness. Yet one no one could doubt.
Yes. It was the smile only the world's best in his field could wear.
Hyeon-gong said,
"I've always been the first to strike the back of the head."