Chapter 82
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Why Should I?
Over four hundred warriors had been reduced to just around three hundred.
In the fortnight since entering the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest, a staggering hundred or so had fallen victim.
'So this is why the Elder Council abandoned the Demonic Forest...'
Yeon Baek-ryang now deeply understood why the Elder Council had built the Mountain-Crossing Great Wall.
Even though they had handpicked the Yeon Clan's elites, a full quarter of their forces had vanished in a mere fortnight.
And that was despite shuttling back and forth to the camp beyond the wall to clear paths.
Had they simply plunged blindly into the forest, the casualties would have been far worse.
Yeon Baek-ryang glanced sideways at Yeon Gong-hu.
He was a nephew he could have devoured whole in rage, but this time, his advice had been spot on.
They had spent the first two days adapting to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest by using the camp, which allowed them to reach this point after just a fortnight.
In truth, Yeon Gong-hu had insisted on using the camp for the first three days.
But Yeon Baek-ryang had ignored him and pressed deeper into the forest, losing fifty warriors in the overnight camp on the first night alone.
Only then did he spend two days adapting at the camp outside the wall.
After that initial sacrifice of fifty, the losses over the next fourteen days had been around another fifty—so had they followed Yeon Gong-hu's advice from the start, the toll would have been even lighter.
'Ha Mu-baek. What a terrifying man.'
Yeon Gong-hu thought this as he watched Dong Ju-san's back while he searched for traces.
The journey over the past fortnight.
It was clearly the path Ha Mu-baek had intended.
They had simply followed the traces he left behind. Every segment was perilously dangerous.
The frequent appearances of blood cadavers had been especially deadly.
It felt as if every blood cadaver in the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest was converging on their path.
Given those conditions, losing only a hundred was possible only because they were the Yeon Clan's elites.
Had they been mediocre fighters, they would have been wiped out before even reaching this point.
"It should be soon."
Dong Ju-san's low voice rang out then.
It was because of the evil cadavers that were unusually sensitive to sound.
"From the traces, he passed through here not long ago."
At those words, Yeon Baek-ryang's eyes gleamed fiercely.
Finally, he would confront the culprit.
He would devour him whole.
"Correct!"
An unfamiliar voice echoed at that moment.
All eyes turned toward the source.
A man stood there, smiling.
"H-Ha Mu-baek..."
Dong Ju-san, who recognized his face, reacted first.
"It's you!"
Yeon Baek-ryang's roar exploded forth.
"Whoa, whoa. Better calm down. Otherwise, the cadavers will come swarming because they like it."
Ha Mu-baek said calmly. Yeon Baek-ryang ground his teeth at the words.
Having endured the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest for a fortnight, he knew exactly what Ha Mu-baek meant.
"W-Where's Min-ah? Where is that child?!"
The urgent question spilled from Yeon Baek-ryang's lips.
From roar to desperation.
It perfectly mirrored his inner turmoil.
"Who knows... where could she be? After what you've been through getting here, what do you think? Could that child possibly still be alive?"
The response was a question in return.
But it made Yeon Baek-ryang's eyes tremble violently.
That very thought had been choking him as his clan's warriors fell one by one.
Even with elites, things were this dire—could a child who hadn't even learned a single basic technique survive such a horrifying place?
She had learned martial arts in the Fierce Dragon Corps, but weren't those just the standard forms?
"You... you bastard... you really..."
His voice shook fiercely.
"I am Yeon Gong-hu of the Yeon Clan."
Yeon Gong-hu then stepped forward with a cupped-fist salute.
Ha Mu-baek's gaze shifted from Yeon Baek-ryang to him.
"Is my younger sister safe?"
His question carried deep earnestness.
He trusted his father, and thus trusted Ha Mu-baek as well. Still, anxiety lingered.
He needed confirmation.
"What do you think?"
Ha Mu-baek asked with the same sly smile.
Seeing that smile, Yeon Gong-hu replied with a relieved one of his own.
"She's safe."
Curiosity flickered across Ha Mu-baek's face.
"Why do you think so?"
"Because I trust my late father."
"Your late father?"
"Yes. The White Scholar, Un-ja."
His voice was calm yet brimming with pride.
"Yeon Baek-un... A fine warrior indeed."
"And your comrade in arms."
Yeon Gong-hu added to Ha Mu-baek's words.
"That's what my father said. That Ha Mu-baek is an outstanding martial artist and comrade. A man who never abandons his allies, someone you could trust with your back even in the hells of the mortal world."
A faint smile touched Ha Mu-baek's lips.
"He wouldn't just abandon such a comrade's daughter."
"Even thinking that, why did you ask me?"
"Confirmation was still necessary."
Ha Mu-baek nodded slowly.
"Fair enough. She's safe. In the deep reaches right now, in the thick of practical training."
Since they had drawn near, Ha Mu-baek had come out to greet them.
Near, but still half a day's journey away.
He had decided it was time to take charge personally from here, so he revealed himself.
"Thank you."
Yeon Gong-hu bowed deeply once more with cupped fists. Sincerity filled his voice.
"Ha Mu-baek..."
A voice thick with killing intent pierced Ha Mu-baek's ears.
"Bring Min-ah to me right now."
Ha Mu-baek chuckled at that.
He stared steadily at Yeon Baek-ryang. Then his lips moved.
"Why should I?"
"You... She's a child of the Yeon Clan! As the young clan leader, it's my duty to protect her!"
"And she's my assigned student. I have a duty to protect her too. Especially from a beast in human skin."
Yeon Baek-ryang's face flushed crimson, as if ablaze.
From rage? Or shame?
Ha Mu-baek figured it was the former.
If he knew shame, he wouldn't have harbored such vile desires in the first place.
"The clan comes first!"
The words carried fierce conviction. Or perhaps not conviction, but desire.
"Then go find her and take her away."
With that, Ha Mu-baek vanished.
It happened in an instant.
"Y-You..."
Yeon Baek-ryang had been on the verge of ordering an attack when it happened, leaving him flustered and pointing futilely.
"I shall return to the clan now."
Yeon Gong-hu spoke up then.
"What?"
Yeon Baek-ryang's face twisted at the sudden declaration of departure.
"The young clan leader is here—do you think you can just act on your own?"
Yeon Gong-hu smiled faintly in response.
How long had it been since he last showed such an expression, such emotion?
"Then will you chase after me?"
Yeon Baek-ryang's fists trembled, but he had no reply.
With Yeon Ha-min right before his eyes, he couldn't pursue Yeon Gong-hu.
"Do as you please, you insolent brat."
That irritable retort was all he could manage.
"Then I'll take my leave. Take care."
With a slight nod, Yeon Gong-hu launched himself toward the direction of the Mountain-Crossing Great Wall.
His speed was like a bolt of lightning.
Yeon Baek-ryang's eyes widened in shock at the sight.
"He was at that level?"
Yeon Baek-ryang couldn't help but be astonished by the unexpected mastery of lightness skill.
At that caliber, he might even be a match for Yeon Baek-ryang himself.
"That lecherous bastard..."
Yeon Baek-ryang muttered under his breath, then turned his gaze to Dong Ju-san.
"Chase him. Now."
"Yes."
At Yeon Baek-ryang's order to pursue the traces, Dong Ju-san sharpened his hawk-like eyes and scanned the surroundings once more.
Yeon Gong-hu moved swiftly.
Over the fortnight, he had mastered survival techniques in the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
Evil cadavers or blood cadavers held no fear for him.
At his current level, he could handle three or four at once without issue.
But he didn't want to waste time, so he ran as fast as possible.
He leaped from tree to tree without touching the ground.
Maximizing his lightness technique, he minimized the noise of his movements.
Cadavers were sensitive to sound and vibrations.
Stray noises in the air or tremors in the earth drew them out.
Thus, Yeon Gong-hu traveled using the towering trees.
The forest's dense canopy made movement effortless.
He slept in the highest trees.
Trees at least thirty feet tall.
The ground here supported such massive growth.
As Yeon Gong-hu raced full speed toward the forest's edge, his mind sorted through many thoughts.
'Uncle will die. Here, without fail. The warriors who came with him will likely be annihilated too.'
Yet Yeon Gong-hu couldn't stop it.
Uncle would never back down.
'Then my task is to return to the clan as soon as possible and prepare...'
Once word of this reached the main headquarters, the clan head would return.
He needed to arrive first and make preparations.
Ha Mu-baek's reason for luring Uncle here was obvious.
To write him off as missing.
Both entered the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest, but if they moved separately in the depths without meeting, what could anyone say?
Without witnesses or evidence, no one could refute it.
So Ha Mu-baek planned to eliminate them all without leaving a single survivor.
Using the cadavers, no less.
He truly intended to keep his own hands clean.
'Not sure what will become of Uncle.'
If Ha Mu-baek planned to act personally, he wouldn't have vanished like that.
He was luring Uncle deeper.
And unimaginable perils awaited there, beyond anything so far.
His thoughts reached that point, and so Yeon Gong-hu departed alone.
Now that he had confirmed no threat remained to Yeon Ha-min.
Sending her to the Fierce Dragon Corps hid her identity well and allowed her to learn basic martial arts despite her lack of skill.
It also avoided mid-term expulsion leading to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
But who would have thought she would cross paths with Ha Mu-baek.
An unforeseen event, and the situation had turned even more favorable.
He might be committing the sin of filial impiety by standing by as Uncle met his fated end, but wasn't Uncle the one committing impiety first?
And Uncle was still undeniably alive.
Yeon Gong-hu had already warned him multiple times.
Told him to turn back.
Even pointed out the trap.
With that, he felt he had fulfilled his duty as a nephew toward an uncle intent on his own impiety.
"Urk... uuurk... P-Please... spare me..."
A warrior bitten in the nape by a blood cadaver pleaded desperately with his comrade before him.
The comrade's face was cold as he swung his sword.
Deep anguish lurked in his eyes, but his blade did not hesitate.
Hesitation could doom him too.
Thus, both the warrior's and the blood cadaver's heads fell.
"Form up! Never show them your backs!"
Yeon Baek-ryang bellowed, sweat pouring down his face.
His sword never rested.
Grab.
Suddenly, a hand burst from the ground and seized Yeon Baek-ryang's ankle.
"You dare with that filthy hand!"
Yeon Baek-ryang's sword severed the wrist without pause. He had to cut it off before those nails could wound him.
His blade then plunged into the earth, slicing the throat of the evil cadaver hidden below.
It had been just a day since encountering Ha Mu-baek and giving chase.
Yet the swarms of cadavers now were on another level entirely.
Nearly double the numbers.
And they came without warning.
No one had slept a wink.
Bloodshot veins marred Yeon Baek-ryang's eyes.
"Ha Mu-baek..."
The name spat out like poison. A voice brimming with hatred.
"W-What is that?"
Then a warrior's cry drew Yeon Baek-ryang's gaze.
There, it stood.