Chapter 375
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 375
Chapter Title: Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest
Clack-clack. Clack-clack.
Four horses pulled the baggage wagon at a brisk trot.
Two men sat in the driver's seat.
Ha Mu-baek and Pyeong Deok-jo.
They had set off from the Dragon Training Pavilion with a four-horse carriage provided as support.
Pyeong Deok-jo, who had watched the whole process unfold, was utterly dumbfounded.
It had all gone off without a hitch.
No one had told them to get approvals from anywhere or check with higher-ups first.
Everything had proceeded smoothly the moment they heard the name "Senior Instructor Ha Mu-baek of the Fierce Dragon Corps."
This was all thanks to Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul's orders: anything concerning Ha Mu-baek that wasn't of utmost importance could be handled at the man's discretion, without needing prior approval.
Of course, Pyeong Deok-jo had no way of knowing that.
Which was why he could scarcely believe it.
The Fierce Dragon Corps existed to raise meat shields.
There was no way a mere senior instructor— not even the corps leader— could wield that much authority. That was the only thought swirling in his mind.
And besides...
Where the hell were they headed in a baggage wagon like this?
One thing he could tell: they were heading east.
"Instructor Ha."
Pyeong Deok-jo, who had been silently following along until now, finally spoke up.
"Where are we going?"
Smooth.
Ha Mu-baek, gripping the reins as he drove, turned his gaze toward Pyeong Deok-jo.
"Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest."
He gave the short, direct answer Pyeong Deok-jo wanted.
"Gasp."
Pyeong Deok-jo jumped in shock the moment he heard it.
And who could blame him?
He had never been there even once.
"Have you been there before?"
"No, sir."
"I heard you've wandered the jianghu quite a bit."
"I was a third-rate ronin. I'm not stupid enough to go somewhere that'd threaten my life just because I scraped up to second-rate."
Ha Mu-baek stared at him steadily.
"Those are the eyes of someone who's overcome death a few times."
"Not in a place like the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest."
In other words, he'd be dead if he had.
Ha Mu-baek chuckled softly.
One more thing to like about the man.
The ability to view himself objectively.
Such people were rarer than he'd thought.
"You know how to make sound judgments."
"And yet now we're heading there..."
"Scared you'll die?"
Pyeong Deok-jo shook his head.
He had at least some idea of how strong his senior instructor was.
In truth, he'd only fully realized it recently.
After seeing Wa Dragon Corps Instructor Un Gyo-tak get beaten by Ha Mu-baek.
"With Instructor Ha here, I won't die."
"Why'd you come to the Dragon Training Pavilion? No— more precisely, why volunteer to be a Fierce Dragon Corps instructor?"
"..."
Pyeong Deok-jo stared off into space for a moment.
He'd almost forgotten.
Why he'd come to the Fierce Dragon Corps.
"I was pissed off. That's probably why."
He dredged up the memory and answered.
It hadn't been that long ago.
But the shock of joining the Fierce Dragon Corps had made him forget.
The man now sitting beside him, holding the reins.
The impact that man had made was so great that Pyeong Deok-jo had forgotten his original reason for volunteering.
"Why?"
"It's filthy and underhanded. Sending out powerless third-rate ronin or clueless rookies to die."
"Heh."
A laugh escaped Ha Mu-baek.
He thought the same.
Though he'd only realized what this place was truly like after being assigned as a Fierce Dragon Corps instructor himself.
A mere second-rate ronin.
For him to volunteer out of righteous indignation was remarkable.
Most instructors came for the money.
The corps leader, Moyong Jin-ho, was just doing his duty after being assigned, hoping for a promotion to the Righteous Heaven Alliance.
Someone furious at the Fierce Dragon Corps' reality and volunteering to become an instructor?
"You're right. Filthy and despicable."
"I heard the pay used to be shit too. Wonder how they even recruited anyone back then."
"They weren't being thrown into the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest then."
Another fact he'd learned only after becoming a Fierce Dragon Corps instructor.
The Fierce Dragon Corps wasn't made to feed meat shields to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
It was for the Righteous Heaven Alliance's meat shields.
"Still meat shields all the same, aren't they?"
"Exactly. Truly filthy and petty. Unbefitting of the righteous sects."
At Ha Mu-baek's agreement, Pyeong Deok-jo's expression lightened with relief.
He'd never been able to vent his true feelings so freely while at the pavilion.
Just knowing someone shared his thoughts made him glad.
And that it was Ha Mu-baek, of all people.
"So, what were you planning to do about being pissed off?"
Back to questions directed at him.
"Help at least one more person come back alive."
Pyeong Deok-jo vividly recalled his mindset at the time and answered.
"And the result?"
At the relentless questioning, Pyeong Deok-jo bowed his head.
"Foolish hot-bloodedness. Especially at my age. Instructor Jegal felt the same... There are definitely people who care about the Fierce Dragon Corps."
How shocked he'd been seeing the shield techniques practiced for the first time last year.
And shocked again this year at the naming ceremony.
"My skills were too lacking. Weaker than the cadets, even."
A bitter smile tugged at Pyeong Deok-jo's lips.
Cadets stronger than their instructor.
He meant the cadets in Ha Mu-baek's Squad Seven.
"They're the weird ones."
Ha Mu-baek said it, but it offered no comfort.
He knew exactly what Squad Seven's cadets had been like when they first entered.
After the commotion they'd caused with Hidden Dragon Corps Squad One, how could he not?
"And your skills have improved leaps and bounds since I first saw you last year."
The follow-up remark.
Pyeong Deok-jo couldn't help but smile faintly at that.
His efforts had been acknowledged by an instructor like Ha Mu-baek.
When someone recognizes the fruit of your desperate labor, it feels good.
Especially if it's a powerhouse like Ha Mu-baek.
"Thank you."
"Even in group training, you worked harder than the cadets."
The praise continued.
"You're too kind. As an instructor, I had to do that much just to survive."
Pyeong Deok-jo's response.
"Other instructors dragged along during preliminary training, swallowing their curses— you could see it plain as day. But you, Instructor Pyeong? You were different. Desperate to grow stronger yourself."
"Because I'm weak."
"Looks like you want to get stronger."
Pyeong Deok-jo nodded at Ha Mu-baek's words.
Who among swordsmen doesn't crave strength?
Wasn't everyone's dream when first picking up a sword to be the best under heaven?
Most face their limits, accept their talents, and settle into reality.
But Pyeong Deok-jo was still struggling.
That struggle had caught Ha Mu-baek's eye.
"You started martial arts late, didn't you?"
"Yes. A wretch like me had no way to learn. This is only possible thanks to a fateful connection. Elder Brother Cho is my lifelong benefactor."
He didn't know who Elder Brother Cho was.
Just that it was the man who'd taught him martial arts.
"So why head to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest?"
Now Pyeong Deok-jo asked.
This was what he'd wanted to ask from the start.
But answering Ha Mu-baek's questions had taken them on a detour.
"Even you haven't been to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest."
"Yes."
"Then how many at the Dragon Training Pavilion, including the Pavilion Lord, have actually been there? Out of all the instructors."
"..."
Pyeong Deok-jo had no answer.
He couldn't even guess.
"Most haven't. And yet we're sending cadets there. Absurd. They're being driven out without even knowing what they'll face."
Pyeong Deok-jo nodded.
True enough.
And shame washed over him at the same time.
He hadn't even been to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest himself, yet he'd volunteered to help Fierce Dragon Corps cadets.
"That's why. To show the cadets what's lurking in the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest. If they see and experience it firsthand, at least they'll be somewhat prepared mentally."
At Ha Mu-baek's words,
Pyeong Deok-jo recalled what Ha Mu-baek had done in Wuchang after securing the wagon.
He'd gone to a coffin maker and bought enough coffins to fill most of the cargo hold.
The remaining space was barely enough for two men to sit or lie down.
Not knowing the destination was the Demonic Forest, he'd wondered what was up.
Even upon hearing the name, he'd doubted.
"Planning to capture the jiangshi from the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest?"
Ha Mu-baek confirmed it at Pyeong Deok-jo's question.
"That? Not a big deal."
But his tone...
It didn't seem like that was the only goal.
Just as that suspicion arose,
"You said you want to get stronger?"
Ha Mu-baek's question sent a chill racing down Pyeong Deok-jo's spine.
"Here's the latest shipment."
Kongtong Sect Leader Cheon Gi-buk came to see Yeon Ja-kyeong.
To deliver the Hundred Flower Bone-Light Grass sent from the Demon-Sealing Corps.
Yeon Ja-kyeong gazed at it with a pleased smile.
It was the largest batch yet.
This would soon become the lethal Bone-Light Energy-Dispersing Poison.
It had nearly gone to waste.
The culprit behind the Southern Barbarian incident had targeted Yeo Hong-gi's sect.
Yeo Hong-gi had returned to Heavenly Poison Valley to prepare.
He'd received a good amount of Bone-Light Energy-Dispersing Poison and antidote.
But not the recipe.
Since it involved Heavenly Poison Valley's secrets, he couldn't demand the formula.
If Yeo Hong-gi had died there, it truly would have been useless.
But then,
That culprit, that villain— Ha Mu-baek had taken care of him.
A real pain in the ass.
'Sometimes even he can be useful...'
And now he wasn't even a problem anymore.
Thanks to the Bone-Light Energy-Dispersing Poison.
Ha Mu-baek had been poisoned, losing all his internal energy.
With that settled, Yeo Hong-gi would return soon.
They needed more Hundred Flower Bone-Light Grass.
The poison that could neutralize Ha Mu-baek.
The more trump cards like this, the better.
It had been developed to deal with Ha Mu-baek, but no rule said it had to be used only on him.
"Quite an increase in quantity."
Cheon Gi-buk smiled at Yeon Ja-kyeong's remark.
"They found a new growth site. Recent changes in the jiangshi movements led them to it."
He spoke proudly.
Yeon Ja-kyeong nodded.
'Blood Cult's First Elder. Keeps his promises.'
The man knew how to deal.
In exchange for a stable supply of Hundred Flower Bone-Light Grass, they'd provide sacrificial lambs to maintain the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest's jiangshi population.
When the poison tested secretly in Wuchang by the Blood Cult started wreaking havoc,
They'd discussed methods via secret letters exchanged for the deal with First Elder.
Yeon Ja-kyeong had demanded the grass first.
That delay had pushed back the schedule.
In the end, the Blood Cult's First Elder had raised the white flag.
And now, this large haul of Hundred Flower Bone-Light Grass.
Now it was Yeon Ja-kyeong's turn to uphold the deal.
"Good. With this much, we can start paying attention to the Demon-Sealing Corps' main duties too. Something new might come up soon."
Cheon Gi-buk, smiling at the praise, tilted his head at the follow-up.
Something new?
"Something I'm pushing forward. Regarding the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest."
Yeon Ja-kyeong added.
"Shouldn't you inform the Demon-Sealing Corps leader in advance to prepare?"
Cheon Gi-buk asked cautiously.
'Ha Mu-baek. Who would've thought your antics would help.'
Yeon Ja-kyeong recalled that time.
The incident where his son had been killed by a jiangshi, screaming his last.
Back then, Ha Mu-baek had invoked instructor discretion for "field training" and taken Yeon Ha-min and Fierce Dragon Corps cadets to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
As bait to lure his son and Yeon Clan warriors.
The Blood Cult First Elder's secret demand for sacrifices.
The moment Yeon Ja-kyeong read it, rage had surged as he thought of his son.
The need for the grass forced him to calm down and plan.
His son's death resurfaced.
Thus, he'd timed it for the end of the Summer Combat Festival.
But various matters had delayed it.
If he pushed now, it might align with the Winter Combat Festival.
"It's about the Dragon Training Pavilion. The cadets are struggling in a narrow well, only to be tossed into the wide world after graduation."
"Ah..."
Cheon Gi-buk let out a low exclamation at Yeon Ja-kyeong's words.