Chapter 22

Chapter 22. I Knew This Would Happen

Jaha secretly called Hanseol and Jo Unryong over.

It would be best to leave Inui Manor while the masters of Seohyeop Gang had their attention drawn to Deung Hwahong.

Ha Seonbaek had already regained consciousness and only needed to rest and recover, so there was no longer any need for Goeui's treatment.

“We’re leaving this place. But the people of Seohyeop Gang definitely won’t let us go peacefully.”

At Jaha’s words, Jo Unryong replied.

“Why? Shouldn’t they be grateful to us?”

“Because the girl we brought here isn’t an ordinary girl.”

“Then who exactly is she?”

“I don’t know either. But they probably believe the fewer people who know about this, the better. That means they’ll try to kill us and erase all witnesses.”

Jo Unryong and Hanseol stared at Jaha in shock after hearing those frightening words.

Neither of them thought their Second Senior Brother was speaking nonsense.

If their senior brother had been careless enough to make baseless assumptions, they would have all died before ever reaching this place.

“Then what should we do? Master still hasn’t fully recovered, so it won’t be easy for us to move.”

“I’ve already thought of a way to stop them. You two just need to trust me and do exactly as I say.”

Jo Unryong answered in a firm voice.

“Understood, Senior Brother Byeok.”

“Right now, we can only trust our fellow disciples. One mistake, and every one of us could be wiped out here.”

Hanseol nodded with a grave expression.

However, although her face was serious, there was no fear in her eyes.

Perhaps it was because the two of them had already overcome several dangerous situations before arriving at Inui Manor.

Seeing how calm and resolute they were made Jaha feel much more at ease.

More than anything else, Jaha wanted to leave Inui Manor because there was a high chance that Hwancheonma or his subordinates would come charging into this place.

And if the leader of Seohyeop Gang appeared as well, they might not even get the chance to escape.

They could end up burying their bones here.

Jaha had concluded that their only chance of survival was to leave Inui Manor before that happened.

Of course, dealing with Seohyeop Gang's two Bonggong and three Guardians would not be easy either.

But Jaha had already made preparations for them.

That was why he was willing to take the risk.

“Master, we’re going to leave this place now. Please bear with it a little longer.”

Ha Seonbaek knew nothing about the situation, so he simply followed Jaha's instructions.

“All right.”

After moving Ha Seonbaek into the carriage, Jaha waited for the right moment.

From some distance away, Goeui watched Jaha closely.

However, he made no attempt to help.

In truth, Jaha was already grateful enough that Goeui hadn't told the people of Seohyeop Gang that they intended to escape.

Before leaving, Jaha went over to say goodbye to him.

“Elder Goeui, once I find somewhere safe, I’ll come visit you again.”

“If you manage not to die, perhaps you will.”

After leaving those strange words behind, Goeui turned away.

Jaha put Jo Unryong and Hanseol into the carriage.

Seeing no one nearby, he climbed into the driver's seat and cracked the whip.

“Let’s go!”

As long as they could get out of Inui Manor, Jaha was confident they could disappear.

The carriage began moving.

But just as it was about to pass through the main gate of Inui Manor, someone suddenly appeared and slammed the gate shut.

Bang!

Jaha glared at the man who had closed the gate.

It was Seo Donggoe Saeng Goryang.

“And where do you think you're going without saying a word?”

Then Saeng Goryang gave a long whistle.

Go Deung and Bang Baekji appeared together with two Guardians.

Jo Unryong and Hanseol immediately climbed down from the carriage.

Both of them were holding swords.

With their path blocked, they had come out prepared to fight.

“You people aren't leaving this place. If you really want to leave, you can do so after you're placed inside coffins.”

Jaha asked,

“Then if we stay here, will you spare us?”

“No. You'll die here.”

“Why do we have to die?”

“First, because Geol Jejong wants it. Second, because we want it.”

Jaha's thick eyebrows twitched.

“Geol Jejong wants us dead?”

“That's right. A carrier pigeon arrived from him not long ago. Apparently, he'd prefer it if none of you returned alive.”

A curse escaped Jaha's mouth.

“Those bastards from the Black Path really have no loyalty whatsoever. They don't even keep their promises. Why the hell does he want us dead?”

Now that the people of Seohyeop Gang had revealed their true intentions, Jaha completely dropped his politeness.

Saeng Goryang chuckled.

“Hehehe. The more I see you, the more interesting you become. Once all of you are dead, he can take over your martial arts school and keep the secret hidden at the same time. Isn't that killing two birds with one stone?”

“So when Geol Jejong first offered us this escort mission, his plan was to send us here to do the work, then kill us afterward and take over our martial arts school?”

Hearing this, Jo Unryong bit his lip and spat out the words through clenched teeth.

“Traitors!”

“Don't think of it as betrayal. Only strong people are worthy of using that word. Weaklings like you weren't betrayed. You were simply used.”

Jaha stared arrogantly at the masters of Seohyeop Gang.

Then he spoke.

“I'm warning you. The moment any of you take three steps, you'll die. So you'd better stay exactly where you are.”

“What kind of ridiculous trick are you trying to pull?!”

“If you don't believe me, then try moving.”

Rather than believing Jaha's warning, they looked at him as though he were insane.

From a distance, Goeui stood with his arms crossed and watched the scene with great interest.

Goeui had neither a reason nor an obligation to help Jaha.

He wasn't some righteous hero who couldn't tolerate injustice whenever he saw it.

He was, above all else, thoroughly selfish.

So even in this situation, he merely stood there and watched.

Wang Gyeong, however, had shared life-and-death struggles with Jaha throughout their journey here.

He watched them with gloomy eyes.

Goeui turned to him.

“What do you think will happen? Do you think the disciples of that martial arts school are going to die here?”

Goeui wasn't expecting much from Wang Gyeong's answer.

Nine people out of ten would surely say they were going to die.

Yet Wang Gyeong's response was unexpected.

“If Young Hero Byeok says they'll die, then they'll really die. Now that I think about it, Young Hero Byeok must have already prepared some kind of plan.”

“Huh? You actually believe that brat? Even I couldn't kill all of them within three steps. How exactly could he possibly do it?”

Goeui stared at Wang Gyeong in disbelief.

“Young Hero Byeok has never spoken nonsense.”

“What's so impressive about anything a brat like him says?”

Goeui had noticed something strange, so he deliberately tried to provoke Wang Gyeong.

Just as he'd intended, Wang Gyeong immediately became angry.

“Young Hero Byeok isn't just some brat. Once you understand what kind of person he really is, he's terrifying.”

“What's so terrifying about some disciple from a countryside martial arts school?”

Wang Gyeong hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

There was a hint of protest in his voice, making it slightly louder than usual.

“I promised Young Hero Byeok that I wouldn't speak about what happened, so I've kept quiet until now. But do you have any idea how many times we were attacked before reaching Inui Manor?”

“Attacked? By whom?”

“Young Hero Byeok said they were warriors from the Demonic Cult. Personally, I think they were Hwancheonma's subordinates.”

“Huh... Is that really true?”

“Yes. Young Hero Byeok killed dozens of them.”

“How?”

Wang Gyeong was about to answer, but hesitated.

Seeing that, Goeui deliberately provoked him again.

“Hmph. If you're going to lie, at least make it believable. What kind of people do you think those Demonic Cult bastards are? You expect me to believe they were defeated by someone like him?”

“I'm telling you the truth. He trapped more than ten of them in water and killed them by calling down lightning. Then, after they recovered from the damage and chased us again with everything they had, he lured them into the Poison Beast Forest and controlled wild beasts and venomous insects to kill every last one of them.”

“What?”

Goeui's eyes widened.

What Wang Gyeong had just described was absolutely not something that could be dismissed lightly.

“He trapped them in water and called down lightning?”

“That's right. It happened about a month ago, when it had been raining for several days. He stopped the carriage in a place where lightning frequently struck, then set up a formation around the area and trapped them inside.”

“That brat knows the Water-Thunder Formation?”

As soon as he asked the question, Goeui turned his gaze back toward the main gate, where the situation was on the verge of exploding.

Then what that brat said about meeting Yeomraui wasn't a lie after all.

In truth, Goeui had only believed about half of what Jaha had told him.

It was difficult to accept Jaha's claim that he had met Yeomraui and learned various things from him.

Yeomraui was every bit as eccentric as Goeui himself.

On top of that, he was a member of the Demonic Cult, making his personality even harder to predict.

But after hearing that Jaha had actually used the Water-Thunder Formation, Goeui could no longer doubt him.

Just like Jesaeng Chongyong, the Water-Thunder Formation was one of the Demonic Cult's ancient supreme formations.

Unless Jaha had learned it from Yeomraui after he left the Demonic Cult, how could he possibly know something that only the upper leadership of the Demonic Cult should know?

Then his warning wasn't a bluff either.

If he says they'll die after taking three more steps, then he must have prepared something.

And whatever that something is... even I can't figure it out.

Goeui asked Wang Gyeong,

“Then you're truly saying that brat has something prepared?”

“I'm certain of it. Young Hero Byeok would never act like this without having some kind of countermeasure ready.”

Seeing that Wang Gyeong didn't merely fear Jaha but almost revered him, Goeui became curious about what exactly had happened during their journey.

When I have some time later, I'll have to question this fellow properly.

While Goeui was thinking that, one of the three Guardians, Gwibita Sangpa, took a step forward.

“Then let's see if things really happen the way you claimed.”

Gwibita Sangpa held a dagger in his hand and circulated his true qi.

He lowered his foot while remaining alert enough to evade any surprise attack Jaha might launch.

He wasn't walking slowly because he was afraid.

He was only doing it to mock Jaha.

Hoo... Hup!

After slowly taking three steps, Gwibita Sangpa secretly breathed out in relief.

Then he realized that, without even noticing it, he had actually been wary of Jaha.

Embarrassment washed over him.

So he decided to immediately charge Jaha and tear off one of his limbs.

He poured true qi into the Yongcheon acupoint on the sole of his foot.

At that exact moment—

A sharp prick stabbed into his sole.

And the true qi he had been circulating suddenly began flowing backward.

“Kugh...!”

At first, only a small groan escaped his lips.

Having one's true qi reverse felt somewhat similar to vomiting.

Vomiting made the stomach burn.

But reversed true qi felt as though a red-hot iron skewer had been driven through the body from the soles of the feet all the way to the crown of the head.

“Aaaaaaaaargh!”

Sangpa screamed uncontrollably from the unbearable pain.

For an expert of Sangpa's level to scream because he couldn't endure the pain was extremely rare.

Watching him, Go Deung and Bang Baekji frowned.

They thought Gwibita Sangpa was going too far with his ridiculous acting just to mock Jaha.

But that wasn't what was happening.

Suddenly, Sangpa's limbs began violently trembling.

His eyes widened so much that they looked ready to pop out.

In fact, his eyeballs really did bulge halfway from their sockets, startling everyone even further.

“Kuuuuurgh!”

Blood poured from his wide-open mouth like a waterfall.

Everyone flinched and took a step backward.

Gwibita Sangpa's body went limp like a boneless creature.

Then he collapsed to the ground.

Everyone stared in shock at the dead Sangpa before looking toward Jaha, who remained standing there with an utterly calm expression.

The experts of Seohyeop Gang had never imagined that Sangpa would truly die such a horrible death after taking exactly three steps, just as Jaha had warned.

They couldn't hide their shock.

Jo Unryong and Hanseol were even more stunned.

They had assumed their Second Senior Brother's warning had merely been an attempt to frighten them.

But after seeing his words come true, Jaha suddenly seemed like a completely different person.

Even after witnessing such a horrifying death, his expression didn't change in the slightest.

There was no trace left of the innocent Second Senior Brother they once knew.

Instead, he gave off the presence of an absolute master who would never be shaken by anything.

Did Second Senior Brother seal Master's acupoints because he predicted this situation from the very beginning?

At that moment, Jaha swept his gaze across everyone.

“Anyone who wants to die, come to me.”

It wasn't their imagination that Jaha's informal tone now sounded far more oppressive.

Even Goeui felt goosebumps rising across his entire body.

Goeui glanced at Wang Gyeong beside him.

Yet Wang Gyeong was watching Jaha with an expression that showed no surprise whatsoever.

It was a look that could only come from someone who completely believed in Jaha's abilities.

“You bastard!”

Sailgeom Hwang Ilhyeok, who had been close friends with Sangpa for many years, pulled the longsword from his back.

“I'll kill you without taking three steps!”

Hwang Ilhyeok's fierce killing intent spread outward like a raging wildfire, reaching nearly three jang.

At the same time, his body shot forward in a straight line.

He rushed directly toward Jaha.

Jaha avoided Hwang Ilhyeok's sword simply by leaning backward.

Then he slowly retreated.

Hwang Ilhyeok, however, remained frozen in the position where he had thrust his sword.

He couldn't continue into his next movement.

“W-What the hell is... Kugh!”

After forcing out those words, Hwang Ilhyeok's limbs began trembling violently.

“Aaaaaaaaargh!”

Soon, Hwang Ilhyeok showed exactly the same symptoms as Sangpa.

Then he collapsed sideways onto the ground.

Seeing this, Bang Baekji of the Cheonghong Twin Swords spoke.

“Don't move. Circulate your qi and check whether you've been poisoned. I'll deal with this bastard in the meantime.”

Bang Baekji stared at Jaha without even blinking, keeping his guard raised.

Meanwhile, Go Deung and Saeng Goryang stood perfectly still and circulated their true qi, examining their bodies.

“We haven't been poisoned.”

Since Go Deung had said it, his judgment was probably accurate.

Yet Saeng Goryang asked in confusion,

“Then what in the world is happening?”

Unable to hide his unease, Saeng Goryang stared at Jaha with fear in his eyes.

Sailgeom Hwang Ilhyeok and Gwibita Sangpa were both among the strongest of Seohyeop Gang's Twelve Guardians.

Yet masters of that level had died absurd deaths without even being able to resist.

Naturally, fear began creeping into his heart.

Go Deung and Bang Baekji felt the same.

“What kind of poison is this? Is it the Tang Clan's Formless Poison?”

If even a master like Go Deung couldn't detect it, the Tang Clan's Formless Poison seemed like the most likely possibility.

Jaha replied,

“Why should I tell you?”

Then he continued in a lecturing tone.

“And if those two hadn't tried to kill me, they wouldn't have died like that. They died because they tried to kill me. So don't blame me.”

Jaha continued.

“I'm leaving this place. But if you still try to chase me down and kill me, I guarantee you'll end up exactly like them.”

Jaha turned around and climbed into the driver's seat.

Hanseol and Jo Unryong hesitantly climbed back into the carriage as well.

Jaha smiled at Go Deung and Bang Baekji, who couldn't bring themselves to move even a single step.

It was clearly a mocking smile.

“That son of a bitch!”

Bang Baekji cursed.

But he didn't dare move.

Just before setting off, Jaha's eyes met Goeui's.

Jaha gave him a small bow of his head.

Goeui responded with a satisfied smile.

That smile contained genuine admiration.