novelraw Chapter 81 : Intestinal Ambush (1)
Chapter 81 : Intestinal Ambush (1)
The Ghost Gate was one of the two major killing veins in the Central Plains, along with the Drunken Flower Garden.
The two sects showed a clear difference in their killing methods.
The Drunken Flower Garden took on as targets those inhuman people who could not be openly revealed even if the killing was discovered.
On the other hand, the Ghost Gate did not discriminate against its targets. They killed indiscriminately. They were willing to accept being attacked if the killing was discovered.
Where did this confidence come from?
Thorough concealment!
The Ghost Gate had hidden its sect in several layers. So even if you wanted to attack, you couldn’t.
“You bastards! Come out!”
Even if you couldn’t hold back your anger and raised your sword, there was no one to face.
After killing the target, the Ghost Gate would disappear without a trace. As if they had never existed in the world.
The Ghost Gate? Everyone in the Central Plains knew about it.
Who was the Ghost Gate Master? It was a person named Ma Guyeong. Then was the Ghost Gate Master a man or a woman? How old was he, and what kind of martial arts did he use? What was his weapon?
There was no one who could answer these questions. From here on, it was completely hidden.
Although the Drunken Flower Garden Master was widely known, there was nothing known about the Ghost Gate Master.
Even the Drunken Flower Garden did not know this part.
That was why Mongseol had asked Ah Geol to eliminate the Ghost Gate Master without a trace.
The Drunken Flower Garden had no way to catch the Ghost Gate Master. But she thought that it might be possible for Ah Geol. Although it was an order to find a needle in a haystack, she thought that Ah Geol could do it.
Then where was the Ghost Gate? It was at the Toad Rock in the Fifth Valley of Sangryang Mountain.
Was it really at the Toad Rock in the Fifth Valley of Sangryang Mountain? No. It was not there. At the Toad Rock, there was only the person who received the contract, the Contract Messenger. Other than that, there was no one.
No one knew where the Ghost Gate was, how many disciples it had, or how they lived.
The Ghost Gate was a secretly hidden assassin sect.
Swoosh! Swish!
Ah Geol and Mongseol descended onto a tree where they could see the Toad Rock.
“That’s the Toad Rock.”
Mongseol pointed to a large rock.
Ah Geol nodded.
The Toad Rock was a large rock that was probably a hundred zhang high.
The front of the rock had a gentle slope, and only the upper part of the rock had a slight toad shape.
Since it was called the Toad Rock, you could see the shape of a toad, but it was just a large rock.
“If you shout ‘Ghost Gate’ three times at the bottom of that rock, the Contract Messenger will come out.”
And the deal was made.
The contractor had to specifically state the personal details of the target.
He had to be able to clearly state the residence, family relations, property, and whether or not he had martial arts.
The answer was heard the next day.
The Ghost Gate would investigate the target for a day. They would judge whether the contractor’s words were correct, whether there were any other variables, and what the appropriate price for the contract was.
The next day, they would state the contract price, and if the contractor agreed, the deal was made.
There were also times when they refused the contract.
If the contractor’s words were too wrong, or if there were too many variables, they would refuse immediately.
Other than that, most contracts were accepted.
“They receive the contract fee in advance. So when the killing is over, the case is closed without even having to meet the contractor. In other words, even if the contractor changes his mind and has to withdraw the contract, he can’t. Because the killing is already in progress.”
“What if the killing fails?”
“Re-execution. If the re-execution also fails, they pay twice the advance payment.”
“Do they keep their promises well?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never heard of them giving a refund. In that case, the contractor also has to be careful.”
“Hmph!”
Ah Geol smirked.
Betrayal was rampant in the assassin sects. It was a group made up of people who could not be trusted at all.
Just twenty years ago, the assassin sects were a garbage group.
It was good if they did it when you put in a contract, and even if they didn’t, you couldn’t say anything… but because it was so unfair and there was nowhere to complain, it was a place where you put in a contract with the thought of losing money.
The sects that had completely changed that perception of the world were the Drunken Flower Garden and the Ghost Gate.
These two assassin sects clearly handled the contracted work. The moment the contractor put in a contract, the target was as good as dead.
The importance of the Drunken Flower Garden and the Ghost Gate in the world now was very high.
Like the Drunken Flower Garden, the Ghost Gate also kept its promises.
“Go back. I have to watch the Contract Messenger from here.”
Ah Geol said, making a place to lie down comfortably on a large tree.
“We also watched the Contract Messenger. Because he’s the only person connected to the Ghost Gate. But we didn’t get anything. It will be the same even if you watch for a few days. Do you have something else in mind?”
“We’ll have to wait and see.”
“Shall I stay with you?”
“It’s fine. I can be alone. All I have to do is watch people. Can I ask you one thing?”
“What?”
“Do you have a grudge against the Ghost Gate Master? Why are you trying to hit the master?”
“You know what our situation is. We had no place to stand even when the Wind Path Valley came out. Now even the Sacred Sword Sect… if this happens, we really have no place to be.”
“What does that have to do with killing the Ghost Gate Master?”
“Keep watching. Then you’ll know what I said. Hoho!”
Mongseol smiled brightly and pulled out her body.
The Contract Messenger had no fixed residence. Although he was in Sangryang Mountain, he didn’t know where.
Swoosh!
A person descended on the Toad Rock.
He looked around carefully, as if he were very cautious.
“Ghost Gate!”
He shouted.
“Ghost Gate! Ghost Gate!”
As was known to the world, he shouted ‘Ghost Gate’ three times in front of the Toad Rock.
A moment later, a short man appeared from the valley above the Toad Rock.
Although he was short, his muscles were firm and rugged, so he seemed to be quite strong.
He came down the valley, staring at the contractor.
“It’s the Ghost Gate. Who shall I kill for you?”
“R-Right here?”
“Then where else would I say it? Why? Are you afraid someone will hear? You’re very scared. If you’re really that scared, there’s a secret place inside, so you can go there and say it.”
“Ah, inside…”
“Let’s do that.”
The Contract Messenger led the contractor to a corner of the Toad Rock.
Ah Geol watched the contract process from beginning to end.
Many people had watched this process. Out of curiosity, or to attack the Ghost Gate.
He was not interested in the contractor. He was watching how the Contract Messenger moved.
Whik!
The Contract Messenger moved.
As soon as the contractor left, he went up the mountain along the rocky valley he had come down.
Swoosh!
Ah Geol quietly followed.
The Contract Messenger stayed in a small cave.
He sent a signal twice a day. He would light a bonfire, and sprinkle powder on the flames. Then the smoke that rose to the sky would be colored. Sometimes it was blue, and sometimes it was red.
A randomly chosen colored smoke rose to the sky.
It was a survival signal.
If something happened to the Contract Messenger, the smoke signal would be cut off immediately.
Someone was watching the Contract Messenger, but the observation range was more than ten li away.
This was also the reason why the Ghost Gate had chosen the Toad Rock as the contract place.
The area around Sangryang Mountain was a vast plain. If you sent up smoke from the Toad Rock, you could see it from more than ten li away.
Although there was definitely someone watching the Contract Messenger, finding him was like picking a star from the sky.
But there was something strange.
The Contract Messenger had received a contract from the contractor. And he had said that he would let him know the decision tomorrow. If so, the process of confirming whether the contractor’s words were true should be in progress by now.
The Contract Messenger did not move from the cave.
No one had come to see him. No carrier pigeon had flown. He had not sent a message tube by shooting an arrow.
The Contract Messenger had not done anything.
Although he must have delivered the contract details to the Ghost Gate, when, where, and in what way had he delivered it?
‘A ghost’s work…’
Ah Geol shook his head.
He understood why the Drunken Flower Garden had not been able to gather information about the Ghost Gate.
No, it was not just the Drunken Flower Garden’s problem. The Ghost Gate had many enemies, but they had all been unable to go further than the Toad Rock. They had all had to turn back here.
‘If I can’t figure it out, there’s also the method of clashing directly.’
Ah Geol stood up.
The Contract Messenger was not very surprised even when Ah Geol suddenly appeared. As if he had expected this to happen, he held out a bowl of food to a wild kitten with a calm expression.
“Eat. You have to eat diligently so you don’t get eaten by other guys. Hurry up and eat.”
He gave the food to the cat and stepped back to watch.
The cat was not scared of the Contract Messenger and slowly approached and ate the thick porridge, smacking its lips.
“I came because I was curious about the Ghost Gate. We both don’t want to get angry, so shall we talk it out?”
“Kukukuk…!”
The Contract Messenger chuckled.
“Ah! I know that if I touch you, I’ll become an enemy of the Ghost Gate. They say they’ll chase you until you die, right? Don’t worry about that. I know how to kill very naturally. The Ghost Gate guys, when they see you, they’ll think you died of a heart attack. I have that much skill, so believe me.”
Ah Geol began to search the stone cave while speaking.
Although the Contract Messenger was there, he didn’t care.
Although he could have ambushed him or run away, he didn’t pay attention to any action.
The Contract Messenger had returned to the stone cave right after sending the contractor away. And he had not taken a single step out of the stone cave. So right here, there was a way to communicate with the Ghost Gate.
Tuk!
He kicked a sack of rice.
“Kukuk! You bastard, you… kick… food?”
The Contract Messenger sneered.
But… his pronunciation was very strange. He couldn’t speak properly, as if his tongue were twisted.
Ah Geol looked at the Contract Messenger.
Black blood was flowing from the corners of the Contract Messenger’s mouth. His eyes were already unfocused… and while he was looking at him, a nosebleed also poured out. Ah! Blood was also flowing from his ears.
The Contract Messenger had swallowed a poison pill.
The Ghost Gate had already set up a countermeasure in preparation for this.
If the Contract Messenger died in this way, it could not be disguised as a natural death. He would not be able to send a smoke signal… and in about one or two two-hour periods, the Ghost Gate assassins would rush in.
“Lack of experience. I didn’t think he would commit suicide. He’s more than capable of this.”
Ah Geol glanced at the collapsing Contract Messenger, and continued to search the stone cave.
And he finally found the Ghost Gate’s communication method.
In a corner of the stone cave, bamboo tubes were neatly stacked.
The inside of the bamboo tubes was hollowed out so that a letter could be put in, and the outside was coated with oil.
You put a secret letter in a bamboo tube, close the lid, and seal the gap with wax.
A message tube was made in this way, but what was the method of delivering the message tube?
Ah Geol looked at a small waterway in a corner of the stone cave.
The water that had flowed from the ceiling of the stone cave was entering a crack in the rock.
There was nothing strange about it. It was a small waterway that could be commonly seen in a mountain with water.
But there was wax on the crack in the rock where the waterway entered.
He had sent a message tube that had not yet completely hardened, and as it had entered the crack in the rock, a little of the candle had been rubbed off.
The message tube was delivered through the waterway.
“This is!”
Ah Geol’s expression distorted.
A king bamboo was buried in the crack in the rock.
The waterway was not naturally made. The Ghost Gate had done a major construction. They had connected king bamboos on a long road that could be tens of li, or even hundreds of li.
The waterway did not shoot up to the ground. There was a waterway underground. The message tube would flow along the smoothly polished king bamboo and would be caught in the hands of some Ghost Gate disciple.
The clue to the pursuit was completely cut off.
The only way was to dig up the ground where the king bamboo was buried and follow the tail. But since he didn’t know how long the king bamboo was connected, or what kind of land it was buried in, he was scared to even dig it up.
“Hmph! They completely cut off the tail by killing the Contract Messenger. A thorough cell organization, is that it? Good.”
Ah Geol smirked.
(End of Chapter)