Echoing Rock Valley (2)
‘I’m screwed.’
Jang Cheon-ik’s face stiffened.
The spot where Jin I-gang had planted his right foot was exactly where his own left foot needed to go. Only by stepping there could he keep his balance and prepare for the next attack—or launch a counter.
But Jin I-gang had claimed that spot with surgical precision. In his current state, his center of gravity was ruined, and if he forced his foot down anyway, an opening would yawn open and he’d be wide open to attack.
‘What do I do?’
He threw his upper body backward, left foot still hanging in the air. It was the Naryetagon—the Lazy Donkey Roll—a movement art that, as its name suggested, looked like a lazy camel rolling around. Calling it a movement art was generous; it was the worst possible way to dodge an enemy’s strike, which was why martial artists despised using it. It amounted to curling yourself into a ball and letting the enemy hammer you with indiscriminate blows. But for Jang Cheon-ik, it was the only option left.
THUD!
His back slammed into the ground.
‘Ugh!’
The glider wings strapped to his back jabbed into him, and searing pain shot up his spine.
Whoosh!
At that very moment, Jin I-gang launched himself into the air. The height he gained was barely two ja.
‘That bastard picked the absolutely perfect height, didn’t he?’
Jang Cheon-ik was stunned. The height Jin I-gang had jumped was neither too high nor too low—it was exactly right. An elbow strike delivered from that elevation, without giving the enemy time to counter, could unleash maximum force. Spinning through the air, Jin I-gang drove his right elbow down.
Shrrrk!
Jang Cheon-ik rolled his body up like a folded mat.
The instant he rolled, Jin I-gang spun too. His elbow plunged into the earth again. Jin I-gang pushed off the buried elbow, springing his body up and rotating. In that span, Jang Cheon-ik had rotated as well, covering the same distance.
THUD!
Four times they spun and moved like that.
“This time it’s my turn.”
Jang Cheon-ik gathered force as he spun.
The moment his rotating body twisted sideways, Jin I-gang flung his left arm wide open. He should have kept it tucked tight against his body while spinning—instead he spread it wide and caught Jang Cheon-ik mid-escape.
“Hup!”
Jang Cheon-ik snapped his head down.
It was an application of the Dae-nae-shin Art. If luck was with him, he could deflect Jin I-gang’s fist, and even if he took the hit, it would blunt the impact—the best move available in his situation.
At the same time, he shoved both hands upward.
It was a situation where he had no choice but to trade flesh for bone.
Crack!
In that instant, Jin I-gang planted his left palm on the ground beside Jang Cheon-ik’s face. Using that planted arm as a pivot, he lifted his legs, steadied his center, and whirled around to land above Jang Cheon-ik’s head. Falling downward, he straddled wide and clamped Jang Cheon-ik’s head between his knees, then hoisted a massive rock above his head. Jang Cheon-ik’s two hands were still slashing violently through empty air. If Jin I-gang had pressed the attack, those hands would have caught him for sure.
Whoosh!
Jin I-gang brought the rock—bigger than Jang Cheon-ik’s head—down without mercy.
“S-surrender, you bastard!”
THUD!
“Gwaaak!”
Jang Cheon-ik squeezed his eyes shut and screamed.
“You’re not dead.”
Jin I-gang said quietly.
Jang Cheon-ik opened his eyes.
“You admit you owe me your life?”
“I admit it, you son of a bitch.”
“Good boy.”
Jin I-gang tossed the rock aside and stood up.
“Wah—! Shit……. How embarrassing is this.”
Jang Cheon-ik got to his feet. In his eyes, several holes came into view—holes Jin I-gang’s elbows had punched into the ground.
“You sure that guy has no martial arts?”
He asked, staring hard at the other side.
“That one’s the weakest of us.”
“Grr, then that makes me…….”
“Absolutely bottom of the barrel, that’s what.”
“Come here.”
Then Jin I-gang’s voice rang out.
Jang Cheon-ik scrambled up and walked over to him.
“Talk.”
“About what?”
He plopped down in front of Jin I-gang and asked.
“You owe me for saving your life.”
“Who saved my life?”
“I just did, back there.”
“Why is it that all I remember is you trying to kill me?”
“I could’ve killed you and didn’t—that means I saved you.”
“Jin I-gang, your math is completely hilarious.”
Jang Cheon-ik looked at him, dumbfounded.
“Do you know me?”
“Very well. You are…….”
“That’s enough.”
Jin I-gang cut him off.
“……!”
Jang Cheon-ik shut his mouth at once. For a single instant, a chill so cold it could be felt on the skin had radiated from Jin I-gang’s body. It was killing intent that only a man who had stood at death’s very door could give off.
“Who’s waiting for us?”
“Warriors of the Demonic Prison Ministry.”
“The Demonic Prison Ministry—that’s imperial, isn’t it?”
“Correct.”
“Didn’t the imperial forces withdraw by imperial decree?”
“Officially, they withdrew.”
“So an unofficial force stayed behind?”
“Correct.”
“What kind of people?”
“The Blood Evil Army.”
“Go on.”
“The Blood Evil Army is made up of convicts from the Demonic Prison Ministry—five hundred strong. Their commander is Jeokbal, the Blood Sea Demon Lord.”
“There’s a supreme commander above him, isn’t there?”
“You know your stuff. Nam Se-ok, grandson of Nam Taecheon, the Great Heavenly Demon Venerable and Deputy Chief of the Demonic Prison Ministry.”
“And that one’s wearing a mask too, I bet?”
“Correct.”
“Where?”
“That’s…….”
“Your life.”
“Echoing Rock Valley.”
Echoing Rock Valley was a gorge filled with stones, so named because when the wind blew, the boulders wailed and moaned.
“That’s my favorite kind of place…… Is it just them there?”
“Nothing else.”
“You approached us just to tell me that?”
“You think I approached you?”
“No?”
“Kid, your instincts are…….”
Jang Cheon-ik snorted a laugh.
“What’s the situation?”
“The Demonic Cult and the former imperial house have joined hands.”
“Seriously?”
“I saw a man of the former imperial house giving orders to the Nine Demons of the Demonic Cult.”
“Who from the former imperial house?”
“Danmok Cheon-ri.”
“Danmok Cheon-ri? The one who occupied that room?”
“The same.”
“What talent, wasting itself like that.”
“What will you do?”
Jang Cheon-ik asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Strictly speaking, you could count as being on their side.”
“You think they’d take me in if I went to them?”
“They need talent.”
“No. What ruined men need isn’t talent—it’s money. A man without money is useless even if you haul him in on a cart. I have to reach the Invincible Fist King’s Domain with the treasure map, and they’re trying to take it from me. Strictly speaking, they’re the enemy.”
“…….”
“I’m going.”
“Where?”
“The Invincible Fist King’s Domain.”
“You know where it is?”
“No, that’s why we’re going. Why else would I head into the mountains if I knew the way?”
“So then…….”
“You’re coming with us. Yes or no?”
“Of course I’m coming. But…….”
“Sit down for now. And come over here.”
Jin I-gang called his party over.
Soon the Absolute Five Recluses, Gung Yo, Bukgung Hansang, the Je sisters, Mu Dae-bo, Gwang Bul and Gwang Do, Na Seok-jin, and Mak Hong gathered at his side.
“There are two routes through Echoing Rock Valley. One cuts straight through the center. The other is a hidden path along the top of the gorge.”
Jin I-gang explained the hidden route in detail.
“Once we pass the hidden path, we come out behind Echoing Rock Valley. From there, we run without rest all the way to Noryeong Pass on Mount Nogun.”
Jin I-gang’s gaze turned to Na Seok-jin and Mak Hong.
“Understood.”
The two men nodded.
“You weren’t just saying Noryeong Pass for show, were you?”
Mu Dae-bo asked. Earlier, before the Devil Sword Barrel gamble, Jin I-gang had mentioned Noryeong Pass to deceive Namgung Won-mu and the other Eight Kings. And now he was telling Mak Hong and Na Seok-jin they would run to Noryeong Pass without rest.
“That’s the place.”
“The Invincible Fist King’s Domain is at Noryeong Pass?”
Mu Dae-bo asked again.
“Yep.”
Jin I-gang nodded.
“Good heavens.”
The faces of the party flushed with excitement.
“But getting there won’t be easy. First we have to dodge the bastards lying in wait in Echoing Rock Valley and run to the Black Bamboo Gorge.”
“How many days to the Black Bamboo Gorge?”
“Three. Then two more from the Black Bamboo Gorge to Noryeong Pass.”
“Without resting?”
“Yep.”
“Three days…….”
“We eat and sleep on the move.”
“Hey!”
“And now and then we’ll pick off one of their men and raise hell with their map.”
Jin I-gang looked at Jang Cheon-ik.
“Why are you looking at me?”
“You’ve got wings—you can fly off and escape. Provoking the enemy is entirely the Haomil Sect Leader’s job.”
“You’re just going to work me to the bone?”
“By the way, haven’t you heard the rumor?”
“What rumor?”
“The one about the Nine Kings losing two million nyang apiece to a scholar in a Devil Sword Barrel gamble.”
“And the man in that story is you…….”
“So, will you do it?”
“Does that mean you’ll cut me in on the winnings?”
“If things go well, maybe.”
“Then I’ll do it.”
Jang Cheon-ik nodded.
“Sooner or later, thanks to its brilliant Sect Leader, the Haomil Gate will become the finest sect in the Central Plains.”
Jin I-gang smiled broadly and rose to his feet.
The party set out after him. They reached Echoing Rock Valley at dawn the next day. They slipped into the secluded gorge, passed the day in hiding, and when night fell, made ready to move.
“Empty yourselves completely. Squeeze out every drop of piss, push out the big one too. If nothing comes, give yourselves an enema if you have to. Remember this: once we start running, there is no rest until we reach Noryeong Pass. Anyone who falls behind goes back to the Jecheon Medical Sage Family. In exchange, anyone who makes it to the end gets brought into the Invincible Fist King’s Domain if they want. Move out!”
Jin I-gang ran at the head of the column.
Before long, they reached the upper reaches of Echoing Rock Valley.
Heeeeeeng! Woooom! Gugugugu!
All manner of sounds poured out from every direction.
It was like the mountain itself wailing in grief. Because of that din, there was no way to detect the presence of those hiding in the valley.
Just as Jin I-gang had said, there was a path along the upper reaches. Trees and boulders formed an impossibly seamless boundary, stretching on in a long line—and that line was the path.
It was narrow as a game trail.
The trees on the right side of the path draped their branches over the rocks, making it look like a tunnel.
The undergrowth grew thick, as if no human had passed in ages.
Jin I-gang turned his head toward Gung Yo.
—You want me to scout?
The sound of the boulders was so thunderous that speaking aloud seemed pointless, so he asked through transmitted voice.
“Yep.”
Jin I-gang nodded.
—Alone?
“You’re coming with me.”
Jin I-gang cut grass from around them and tucked it into his clothes. Gung Yo tucked in a few sprigs for him. Camouflaged, Jin I-gang dropped low and slipped onto the path. Gung Yo veiled herself in stealth arts and followed in his wake.
‘He’s a complete animal.’
Clinging to branches and crawling along, Jin I-gang looked less like a man and more like a beast on the prowl.
They covered some fifty jang, but found no enemies.
Jin I-gang turned back to Gung Yo.
—Should I go tell them to come?
Gung Yo asked through transmitted voice, and he nodded.
Gung Yo turned back at once. Jin I-gang advanced slowly from where he stood.
He moved forward some ten jang, then stopped.
There were no trees there. He climbed the slope on the left and looked down. The sounds of Echoing Rock Valley came from holes riddling the boulders—countless hollows catching the wind and moaning.
‘There they are.’
Figures moving covertly in the lower reaches of the valley came into view. As he scanned left and right, Gung Yo returned leading the party.
At the head stood the Absolute Five Recluses, behind them the warriors of the Jecheon Medical Sage Family, in the middle those burdened with boxes, and at the very rear, the ronin.
Jin I-gang’s gaze stopped on one point in the middle. Je Chu-yeong was carrying a box too—and it was the red box holding the jiangshi. No, a coffin. He found himself suddenly wondering where that jiangshi was being taken.
‘None of my business.’
Jin I-gang moved forward again. The rest of the party followed in his tracks.
But someone was watching them in silence. The spot where that man lay hidden was the very place Jin I-gang had looked down from moments before. The man stared at the Jecheon Medical Sage party, then flung himself downward.
Before long, the man arrived beneath an enormous boulder. Seated there was a hulking old man. The red-haired giant was none other than Jeokbal, the Blood Sea Demon Venerable, commander of the Blood Evil Army.
“I bring a report!”
“So they’ve come?”
“Yes. They’re moving along the beast trail up above.”
“As I thought…….”
Jeokbal nodded.
The moment he had arrived here, he had combed the area in every direction. Every member of the Blood Evil Army was a former convict, a master at sniffing out escape routes. When asked to name the best way out of Echoing Rock Valley, they had all pointed to the beast trail along the upper reaches. So he had stationed his men up top in force, rather than below.
“Order them to prepare.”
Jeokbal said in a low voice.
“Yes, sir.”
The reporting man left his post at once.