Sword God Reborn

Chapter 256 : Are you going to be a grim reaper? Huh?

The influence of the Tang Clan in Sichuan was beyond Cheon Mubaeck's expectations.

Not long after Tang Su-gun had gone to the Sichuan Tang Clan, news came that they had found several strings connecting the cell organizations of the Wolya Faction.

"They say the influence of the Tang Clan in Sichuan surpasses that of the government..."

Gok Ji-heum's eyes widened as he read the letter, and he clicked his tongue.

Then, he stealthily glanced at Cheon Mubaeck.

'Should I call it "a cunning rabbit has three burrows"? It's not quite a fitting expression for the situation, but...'

A cunning rabbit has three burrows.

It means a cunning rabbit digs three burrows.

No matter what misfortune befalls, it prepares three burrows to be able to cleverly avoid it.

Cheon Mubaeck was like that.

At the same time as he had sent Tang Su-gun to the Sichuan Tang Clan, he had separately called Gok Ji-heum and activated the information network of the Sichuan Hanamun.

He didn't stop there. He had sent Hwangbo Sung to the branch of the Righteous Alliance and requested the information power of the Beggars' Sect.

The Beggars' Sect was strictly a part of the Righteous Alliance.

As Cheon Mubaeck was carrying out an important mission for the Righteous Alliance, he had the authority to request information.

'Anyway, even when handling one task, he does it without any gaps.'

Come to think of it, it was an absurd thing.

What martial artist in the world could handle the information of the Sichuan Tang Clan, the Hanamun, and the Beggars' Sect at the same time?

Gok Ji-heum's mouth went dry as he glanced at Cheon Mubaeck.

Three types of documents were on the table.

One was from the Sichuan Tang Clan, one was from the Hanamun, and one was from the Beggars' Sect.

The personal details of all the people who had had contact with the Yudang Medical Hall, from the merchants who had traded with them, the herb gatherers who had supplied medicinal herbs, the cooks who had cooked, to the servants who had cleaned... were all contained in them.

"The information from the Tang Clan is certainly more accurate and detailed."

"For the Tang Clan, which uses poison, a medical hall that is only a piece of paper away would have been a target of caution."

Cheon Mubaeck replied so to Zhuge Seol-ah's words.

Although the information investigated by the Hanamun and the Beggars' Sect was also substantial, it could not be compared to the information sent by the Tang Clan.

Because it was not just simple personal details, but also included their appearances.

In addition, there was a detailed analysis of several people who were suspected of being the strings connecting the cell organizations of the Wolya Faction.

What surprised Gok Ji-heum here was Cheon Mubaeck's next action.

'He doesn't just accept the information. He judges, contemplates, and considers the information before coming to a conclusion.'

A glimpse of his insight in integrating and analyzing all the information and making a judgment was seen.

The way Cheon Mubaeck was doing it right now was like that.

The Sichuan Tang Clan, the Hanamun, and the Beggars' Sect.

He was gathering the information of these three organizations and picking out only the cream of the crop.

Although Zhuge Seol-ah was appropriately helping from the side, it was, in fact, Cheon Mubaeck's skill.

'If he had become the Hanamun's leader instead of me, he might have surpassed the Beggars' Sect as an information organization.'

It was to the extent that Gok Ji-heum, who was watching, clicked his tongue, so what more could be said?

It didn't even take much time.

The information power of the Tang Clan in Sichuan, and the information power of the Hanamun and the Beggars' Sect, which were said to be inferior to the Central Plains.

He integrated and analyzed those three information powers and summarized only the core.

"This guy, this guy, this guy. Let's just catch these three."

Cheon Mubaeck pointed at the appearances of the three with his finger.

"It's a death list."

Although Gok Ji-heum threw a joke, Cheon Mubaeck shrugged his shoulders.

"It's not bad to be a grim reaper."

Cheon Mubaeck was sincere.

* * *

"Hey. Mr. Han. Where are you going to supply your medicinal herbs now? I heard the Yudang Medical Hall has completely gone under."

The herb gatherer, Mr. Jong, saw Mr. Han at the inn and patted his shoulder, pretending to be glad to see him.

In fact, anyone could see that he was not greeting him out of genuine gladness.

Because the smile that was plastered on his mouth was not something one could even make when thinking about the other person's predicament.

It was understandable.

Mr. Han, who supplied a large amount of medicinal herbs to the Yudang Medical Hall in Sichuan, was the target of all sorts of jealousy.

It was a story that circulated secretly among the herb gatherers of Sichuan that if you just had a good connection with the Yudang Medical Hall, you wouldn't have to worry about your livelihood.

But Mr. Han, with some kind of skill, had continued to trade with the Yudang Medical Hall.

How envious he had been. He had even been angry when he had been coldly rejected when he had asked for a connection several times.

But hadn't the great Yudang Medical Hall disappeared overnight due to a fight between martial artists?

So Mr. Han, who had been trading with the Yudang Medical Hall, was no different from being ruined overnight.

Mr. Jong, who was quite pleased with that, was planning to tease Mr. Han to his heart's content.

"Huh? Mr. Han. If it's really not working out, should I introduce you to the medical hall I'm connected with? It's not a difficult thing..."

"Shut up."

"......!"

But the moment he saw Mr. Han's face, who had turned his head, Mr. Jong literally froze.

The face of the good-natured Mr. Han was contorted as if he were a demon.

Although one could think that he was angry because of what had happened, this was somehow different.

Mr. Jong's body trembled.

'What's with his gaze...'

Herb gatherers are brave. They have to climb mountains and go through forests. It's a common occurrence to meet mountain bandits and wild beasts. So they have a lot of guts.

But now, Mr. Jong felt as if his breath was stopping.

His whole body trembled at the single gaze filled with ferocity.

Mountain bandits? Wild beasts? It was a gaze that couldn't even be compared to those things.

He could only sweat profusely, as if his feet were nailed to the floor, and he couldn't move.

He had been consumed by the presence.

Mr. Han's lips twisted.

"Get lost."

"...Ugh, ugh."

Mr. Jong fled from the inn in a hurry.

"Even worthless things are ruining my mood."

Mr. Han, who was left alone, gritted his teeth.

It was then.

"May I join you?"

"...?"

At the voice that suddenly came, Mr. Han frowned.

When he glanced, it was an ordinary young man wearing a sword. He had been in a corner of the inn since a while ago...

Mr. Han raised his hackles.

"There are plenty of seats, why do you need to join me?"

"I see you're an herb gatherer. They say an herb gatherer knows all the mountain paths in Sichuan, so I'd like to personally ask for a guide."

"A guide? I'm not available. Find someone else."

"No, it has to be you. Mr. Han."

"..."

Then, the young man sat down opposite him.

A sense of tension flowed across Mr. Han's face for a moment.

His hand moved secretly under the table.

At the same time, his mouth opened.

"A guide. How much are you willing to pay? And where are you going?"

"I'll pay you handsomely, and as for where we're going..."

It was then.

While he was talking, Mr. Han's foot shot out from under the table like a thunderbolt and struck the young man's shin.

Kwaang!

"...Heop!"

But the one who was shocked was Mr. Han.

It was a pain as if his ankle had been shattered, with a strong impact as if he had hit steel. But Mr. Han was a vicious man with a venomous spirit.

He didn't stop and extended both his hands.

The young man also smiled and extended both his hands.

The palms of the two people met in the air and stuck together.

Kwaaaang!

Was this a sound that could come from a human body?

After exchanging a single palm strike, Mr. Han couldn't pull his hand away.

'The moment I pull away, I die!'

He knew after a single exchange of palm strikes.

His chest heaved.

Every time he breathed, it was as painful as if his lungs were being squeezed by a fist.

The opponent's palm strike had pushed in at once and struck his chest. With his bloodshot eyes wide open, Mr. Han said as if he were chewing and swallowing.

"Who... are you!"

"Hey, I'm looking for a guide. Are Sichuan herb gatherers always this strong? Good grief."

The young man smiled.

Only then did Mr. Han realize and sigh.

He was desperately trying to push back the opponent's palm strike with all his strength, but the opponent was smiling while exchanging palm strikes.

This was just going easy on him.

He was a skilled person who could crush his heart with just his internal energy at any moment.

Only then did an alarm bell ring in Mr. Han's mind.

'No way?'

A mysterious young master who had suddenly come looking for him.

And the Wolya Faction's base, the Yudang Medical Hall, which had disappeared overnight.

Mr. Han's eyes widened as if they would tear.

"It's you! You, you...!"

"Hey, are you going to be a guide or not?"

"A guide, what on earth!"

"A guide to take me to your main base. Or a guide to show me the way to a 'string' that connects bases like yours, who knows the main base."

"......!"

"Choose. Be a guide, or be a guide."

Mr. Han's face contorted strangely.

What kind of choice was this?

"How generous. There's no option to kill you, only the option to be a guide. I am generous, so choose."

Mr. Han's face contorted.

"What if I choose nothing?"

"Then you'll meet the grim reaper. You're not choosing? Then from that moment on, huh? Instead of a smiling face, I'll become a grim reaper. Got it?"

Mr. Han closed his mouth. And he bit the poison pill that was between his molars.

"Huh...?"

The young man clicked his tongue as he saw his face turning dark.

Mr. Han sneered as he felt the extreme poison spreading.

"Fuck you. You bastard."

Mr. Han glared, expecting to see that confident face contort.

But the young man, although he clicked his tongue, was not flustered.

Rather, he said with a pitiful look.

"Tsk. No matter how little there is to eat, is it right to eat poison? Don't worry. One of my monikers is Cheon Mubaeck, the Divine Physician of Henan."

"Cheon Mubaeck...!"

"So this poison is nothing."

Cheon Mubaeck's palm strike pushed in relentlessly. Since it was the moment the poison was spreading, Mr. Han couldn't block it anymore and had no choice but to let it in.

A strange energy pushing into his eight extraordinary meridians.

The pure white energy began to slowly push out the extreme poison that was spreading throughout his body.

'This crazy...!'

Mr. Han was astonished.

Controlling poison with internal energy was in itself an advanced study.

Moreover, the extreme poisons used against martial artists had been continuously improved.

They had come to possess a poisonous qi that could not be pushed out with ordinary internal energy.

The poison pill that Mr. Han had bitten was like that.

To be honest, no matter how hard Mr. Han tried, he couldn't control it with his internal energy. So wasn't it a poison pill used for suicide?

Because he could change his mind at the moment of death and drive out the poison.

But to push out the poisonous qi that had seeped into another person's body with internal energy?

What on earth was this level!

It was Cheon Mubaeck. The opponent was Cheon Mubaeck.

He was the monster who had brought down the Yudang Medical Hall. He was the monster who had killed two special-grade assassins and a swarm of elite assassins when they had rushed at him for the first time.

Only then did Mr. Han's face turn pale.

His dark complexion had returned to normal because Cheon Mubaeck had pushed out all the extreme poison.

Cheon Mubaeck grinned and instantly pressed Mr. Han's pressure points.

Peopeopeok!

"......!"

"The choices are the same. Be a guide, or be a guide with all your heart. But since I only presented the choices with words, it seems you don't quite understand. It seems the explanation was insufficient."

Cheon Mubaeck said with a still smiling face.

"First of all, I didn't completely push out the poison. I sealed it right near your heart."

"......!"

"And I'll release the poison little by little. Ah, don't worry. I won't kill you. There's no option to kill you in the choices, right? How generous a measure. Right? But it will be painful. I'll push my internal energy so you don't die, but I can't help it spreading slowly throughout your body. Right?"

"..."

"If the poison spreads slowly, I'll have to cut off your arms and legs. Don't worry. As long as your mouth is alive, there's no problem in guiding, right?"

"......!"

"So, I mean. Your choice is to guide me to the main base on the fastest and most certain path. That way, the pain will be less. And your arms and legs will be intact. Now. Choose. Mr. Han."

Although they were just clear eyes, Mr. Han was feeling a terrible fear.

A terrible fear that he had never felt before as an assassin of the Wolya Faction.

No matter how much of an assassin he was, no matter how much of a man with a venomous spirit he was, in the end, he was human.

And Cheon Mubaeck was a transcendent being who had endured countless human lives.

"...I will be a guide."

Mr. Han submitted.

Cheon Mubaeck smiled.

(End of Chapter)