Swoosh!
The moment he heard the piercing sound, he veered to the left. He was sure he had dodged it, but a sharp pain stung the back of his right thigh.
"Damnation!"
Ban Ho-yang, who had been running for his life, lost his balance and collapsed. He tumbled across the ground before springing to his feet and drawing his sword. Won Seo-gang stopped a short distance away.
Panting raggedly, Ban Ho-yang glared past the tip of his sword. Kill anyone who blocks my path. He had lived his whole life that way.
If he couldn't kill them, he would run for his life. But facing Won Seo-gang, who was exuding a fierce aura, his mind went blank. It’s all over…
Won Seo-gang was one of the top masters in their sect. A mere master of an outer branch like himself was no match for him. As his fighting spirit waned, the sword in his hand felt needlessly heavy.
Ban Ho-yang tossed his sword aside and pulled a gourd bottle from his robes. He uncorked it and drank the contents in one gulp.
"Keuhaaa!"
His head spun as the liquor entered his system after running until his heart felt like it would burst. His stomach churned, and he felt a wave of nausea. Won Seo-gang clicked his tongue in disbelief.
"This is hardly the time to be drinking, is it?"
Emboldened by the rising heat of the liquor, Ban Ho-yang wiped his mouth and asked.
"Left Guardian. Are you still carving statues of the Maitreya Buddha these days?"
"Shall I give you one? It can be a companion on your journey so you won’t be lonely on the path to the underworld."
"Do you still believe in Maitreya?"
"I do."
"Is that so?"
Despite the unwavering answer, Ban Ho-yang's face was full of doubt.
"Then do you know when he will come? That Maitreya, the representative of the Unborn Old Mother. When is he supposed to descend? Is he really coming in 5.67 billion years?"
"How can the eyes of a mortal fathom the great will of the Buddha?"
Ban Ho-yang shook his head.
"A life that rots away in less than a hundred years. What use is Maitreya after death? Earthly wealth and glory are a hundred times better than some distant paradise."
"Is that why you betrayed our sect?"
"Betrayal? I merely chose to believe in the Medicine Buddha instead of Maitreya. Aren't they both Buddhas, anyway?"
Ban Ho-yang said playfully, pulling his collar aside to reveal a tattoo of the Medicine Buddha on his neck.
"I always thought of the Medicine Buddha whenever I sold opium. For the suffering masses, there is no better Buddha than opium."
"Enough of your nonsense. Where is the list?"
"If I give you the list, will you let me go?"
"I will kill you as painlessly as possible."
Faced with Won Seo-gang's sincere murderous intent, Ban Ho-yang retorted with venomous eyes.
"There is no list."
"Have you sold it already?"
"Perhaps."
Ban Ho-yang paused with a wicked smile.
"Was it the Murim Alliance?"
"There are many places that would pay more."
Won Seo-gang glared at him murderously.
"You bastard... surely you didn't... hand it over to the Eastern Depot?"
"Keuhahahaha!"
Ban Ho-yang burst into a manic laugh, as if it was exhilarating to have landed a solid blow on the sect's arrogant Left Guardian.
"Ugh!"
Suddenly, he bent forward and coughed up blood. He fell to his knees, then slumped to the ground and lay flat on his back. Won Seo-gang, who had done nothing, belatedly frowned.
"Did you poison the liquor?"
Ban Ho-yang grinned, revealing his bloodstained teeth.
"I added plenty of paralyzing powder, too. I hate pain. Cough, cough. Left Guardian... you should wash your neck and wait. A guest will be coming from the Heavenly Mountains. Kehehe, those Mani Sect bastards were furious. They found out our sect was involved in the opium trade. Dammit, we're all just trying to survive... Cough, cough. Haaa..."
Before anything could be done, Ban Ho-yang's breathing stopped. Though his breath had ceased, Won Seo-gang plunged his sword into the traitor's heart to make sure he was dead. In Ban Ho-yang's robes, there was only a thick pouch and some trivial belongings.
He meticulously searched the clothes. He felt something long and hard in the front lapel. He used a dagger to cut open a section that had been patched with cloth on the inside, revealing a small bamboo tube.
Inside the tube was a rolled-up piece of oil paper. He held the paper, densely covered in tiny characters, up to the moonlight. Familiar names came into view.
Won Seo-gang clenched his empty fist. There was no mistake. It was a list of addresses and members of the Central Plains' outer branches.
It was a great relief that he had recovered it before it fell into anyone else's hands. If this had fallen into the hands of the authorities or the imperial court, all the remaining organizations in the Central Plains would have been annihilated.
"Hoooo."
He let out a heavy sigh that seemed to be squeezed from his lungs, and his whole body went limp. Suddenly, Ban Ho-yang's last words echoed in his ears. A guest will be coming from the Heavenly Mountains…
It had been over seventy years since their sect was driven out of the Central Plains and moved to the northern frontier. It had also been about that long since they began a strange coexistence with the Mani Sect, which had already established itself in the Heavenly Mountains.
There had been disputes, big and small, but they never led to bloodshed. Though they served different gods, their roots were the same, so it wasn't impossible for them to coexist. But it seemed that was now reaching its limit.
Perhaps it was natural, as everyone was struggling to survive in a barren land. Whoever comes, I will gladly welcome them. It’s not something I can avoid by running…
Won Seo-gang placed the list in his robes and stood up. Leaving the traitor's body as food for the hungry beasts of the mountain, he walked towards the Western Village. * When flames erupted from the Black Night Gang, the entire Western Village was thrown into chaos.
Residents who had been sleeping rushed out and gathered together, murmuring as they watched the fire. The houses adjacent to the Black Night Gang, separated only by a wall, hastily fetched water to douse their roofs and walls. The patrolmen on their rounds also moved busily.
It was a dry winter, and if the fire spread beyond the wall, the entire Western Village could be engulfed in flames. While everyone watched with concern, there were not a few who hoped that the Black Night Gang would fall into a fiery hell and be reduced to ashes.
I stayed the night in Won Seo-gang's detached house at the Deep Fragrance Pavilion. Jeok Chu-yeong's condition was stable. He was so weak that it wouldn't have been strange if he had breathed his last, but he was no worse than when he was at the Crouching Dragon Hall.
Hwang Kang-ju and Ho Yeon-geom's party also returned and rested in their respective quarters. There was no spare room for Jin Seok-man, so he warmed himself by a brazier in a corner of the training ground. Of the seven martial artists who had entered the Black Night Gang, only Won Seo-gang's whereabouts were unknown.
When I asked Hwang Kang-ju, who had gone with him, he said Won Seo-gang had gone to find Ban Ho-yang. Given that he was a long-awaited enemy, I figured it wouldn't end quickly. In that time, the flames that had completely swallowed the Five Phoenix Pavilion licked their red tongues toward the moon in the night sky.
The onlookers' sighs and fears reached their peak. Fortunately, the fire did not spread. It burned only the Five Phoenix Pavilion before slowly dying down.
Won Seo-gang did not return until dawn.
"Let's talk about the details later."
His face, as he wearily walked into his room, looked both relieved and bitter. It seemed he had caught Ban Ho-yang and achieved what he wanted. When the day fully broke and noon arrived, the fire was out, with only white smoke rising.
The pungent smell of smoke filled the entire neighborhood. I spent that day by Jeok Chu-yeong's side instead of returning home. Hwang Kang-ju and Ho Yeon-geom's party received their final payment from Won Seo-gang and left.
Jin Seok-man also disappeared without a word. I dozed off in a corner and ate the meals the servants brought. I had slept and eaten, but there was nothing I could do about my noticeably diminished inner energy.
It felt like I had barely used any during the hour or two I spent at the Black Night Gang, yet I had consumed a full twenty percent of my inner energy. I couldn’t believe it and checked several times, but the result was the same.
It was a disheartening waste, but it had been the best choice in that situation. The slight emptiness in my energy core was a constant bother. I considered going home to get the pills I had hidden to replenish it, but then I shook my head.
It was too dangerous to circulate my energy outside my home. Bok Ha-gyu finally came to see me the next afternoon.
"Is the cleanup finished?"
"We're still at it. The men who went to take over the Blood Snake Gang's business have returned, so that's one less thing to worry about."
Bok Ha-gyu looked extremely tired and haggard. It seemed he hadn't rested properly, dealing with the fire and its aftermath while injured from a blade. But the reward was certain.
The Black Night Gang was now completely in Bok Ha-gyu's hands. With Jeok Chu-yeong unconscious, he was the de facto master. Bok Ha-gyu pushed a large and a small wooden box that were on the table toward me.
"Open it."
In the long box was an ornately decorated sword. I gripped it with both hands to check the blade and drew it about two handbreadths. On the cold, gleaming blade, my eyes caught the engraved name of the sword.
'Sun Element Sword' I had heard that name somewhere before.
When I opened the small box, the strong, moist scent of grass wafted out. Inhaling deeply, my mind felt refreshed. On a bed of red silk lay a palm-sized medicinal herb with a broad leaf.
There was no label, but I thought I knew what it was. It was probably the Lake Water Lotus Herb. The spiritual herb offered as the runner-up prize at the White Rooster County martial arts tournament.
To think I had braced myself and participated in the tournament just to get this, and now it had fallen into my hands in this way… One truly never knows what lies even a step ahead in life. My heart pounded violently at the thought that I could train for a while without worrying about my inner energy.
If I were alone, I would have rejoiced freely, but Bok Ha-gyu was in front of me. It was forbidden to show an excessive reaction to a spiritual herb. After calming my heart with a blank expression, I asked with feigned nonchalance.
"The sword looks useful, but what is this weed?"
"It belonged to that old man, Ha Eul-san."
"Is it edible?"
"If you don't want it, I'll give you something else."
Bok Ha-gyu reached for the wooden box. I quickly pulled the box back and closed the lid.
"No, this will do. It doesn't look too bad."
The sword could be sold through the Underworld Information Clan, and the spiritual herb was a genuine article vouched for by a black market herbalist. If I processed it into pills, it would be more than enough to replenish the inner energy I had used at the Black Night Gang, with plenty to spare.
"Is there something you want from me?"
"I must take Master back to our headquarters."
Just as I thought. He wouldn't just give away a precious treasured sword and a spiritual herb, not to mention silver taels or banknotes. This was Jeok Chu-yeong's ransom.
It seemed he was worried that I might hold Jeok Chu-yeong captive at the Underworld Information Clan’s branch and refuse to release him. Bok Ha-gyu had also suffered considerable losses in this internal strife at the Black Night Gang. If he clashed with the Underworld Information Clan now, his faction itself could be finished.
But he couldn't leave his master in someone else's hands indefinitely. From my perspective, it was also difficult to keep Jeok Chu-yeong. This was Won Seo-gang's detached house, and it was the Underworld Information Clan.
Won Seo-gang had no need for Jeok Chu-yeong. The pavilion master also had no reason to detain the head of a dark path faction and clash with Bok Ha-gyu. If I took him to my home, Bok Ha-gyu would not stand idly by.
"Take him. But in return, let me see Master Jeok from time to time."
"I will. I'll inform my men, so you can visit the Black Night Gang anytime."
As I readily agreed, Bok Ha-gyu's expression softened with relief.
"The head of the Underworld Information Clan's branch wishes to speak with Squad Master Bok about the future of the Western Village."
"Hmph, alright. I'll arrange a meeting soon."
"I have requested a safehouse and protection from the Underworld Information Clan. I haven't settled the bill yet."
"I'll take care of it."
Bok Ha-gyu nodded without much thought, as if he wanted to return quickly. There was one last issue to resolve.
"What will you do about the Blue Cloud Martial Academy? You also need to deal with the remnants of the Blood Snake Gang who put out the contract."
"As a matter of fact, I've already put out a kill contract with a guild of assassins. For both the Blue Cloud Martial Academy and the remnants of the Blood Snake Gang."
I thought he would just storm in and crush them, but a contract killing. And with a guild of assassins, no less…
"I didn't know you had connections to a guild of assassins."
"I managed to arrange it through a few connections of the former master. It was difficult. They extorted a huge brokerage fee. I won't be doing that a second time."
"Did you use that token of authority or whatever it's called?"
Bok Ha-gyu frowned and asked back dubiously.
"Where did you hear about a token of authority?"
"Seon Do-mu said so. That with it, he'd be the master."
"Hmph, that idiot might think so."
"The Blood Snake Gang is one thing, but isn't the Blue Cloud Martial Academy unrelated to the guild of assassins?"
As far as I knew, only a guild of assassins trained child assassins.
"The master there is indeed a former member of a guild of assassins."
"And yet you placed a contract with a guild of assassins?"
It was utterly absurd, but Bok Ha-gyu was not such a careless man.
"I looked into it, and he's an assassin who deserted during a mission. He's been secretly raising child assassins for his own business."
"The guild of assassins has been looking for him with fire in their eyes. He was so secretive that they couldn't find his base until now."
"Now that they've accepted the contract, the Blue Cloud Martial Academy is as good as finished."
"Every faction's punishment for traitors is severe, but the guilds of assassins are notorious for their cruelty and thoroughness. The same goes for the Blood Snake Gang bastards."
After talking a little more, Bok Ha-gyu put Jeok Chu-yeong in a carriage and returned to the Black Night Gang. I saw him off to the gate of the detached house, then returned to my room, strapped my long blade to my back, and slung my bundle over my shoulder.
I left the Deep Fragrance Pavilion, ignoring the strangely staring gazes of the gatekeepers. I wanted to go home immediately and replenish my inner energy. But there was something I had to do first.
I wonder if he has woken up. I glanced back toward the Wind River Inn, where Pung-chil was probably sating his hunger with some noodles, then headed for Physician Sang's clinic.