Swordless Demonic Path

Chapter 28 : Break (2)

Jang Oh stood with his arms crossed, looking at Jin Sa-wol with an interested expression. His team members also stood with similar faces.

Jin Sa-wol showed no particular change in expression.

The warrior standing in front of Jin Sa-wol spread his shoulders and said.

"People call you the Lone Wolf and treat you like a martial artist, so it seems you have no fear in your eyes, right? You arrogant bastard."

"Is that the only reason?"

"Yes. It's annoying to see you walking around with your head held high."

The warrior, who spoke with a cold expression, showed a posture as if he would attack Jin Sa-wol at any moment.

Jin Sa-wol observed the warrior.

He had broad shoulders and a sturdy build, with traces of having trained in martial arts for many years, and his age was also in his mid-twenties, similar to his own.

"Go easy on him. He's a newcomer."

Jang Oh's voice was heard. He had thrown those words not at his subordinate, but at Jin Sa-wol.

Jin Sa-wol took a step forward. The opposing warrior also stepped forward.

At that moment, Jin Sa-wol approached the warrior at a fast speed.

Thud! Thud!

Seeing Jin Sa-wol walking towards him in a defenseless state from the front, the warrior, thinking he was being ignored, shouted loudly and raised his fist.

"This bastard, do I look like a rag to you!"

Thwack!

Just then, with the sound of flesh being hit, the warrior's waist bent at a right angle, and he trembled before collapsing.

When he raised his head, Jin Sa-wol was standing there.

Jin Sa-wol had already approached the warrior and had pierced his solar plexus with his fist.

"Ugh!"

The warrior clutched his stomach, his whole body trembling, and drooled with snot and saliva.

Jin Sa-wol cupped his fist to Jang Oh and then walked his own way as if nothing had happened.

Jang Oh smiled, nodded, and then approached his subordinate and helped him up.

"Get up."

"Yes."

"Does it hurt?"

"It hurts."

"Hahahaha! He's a guy who has fought with unorthodox bastards in the martial world for three years. Do you think he's a third-rate? You foolish bastard."

The other team members laughed out loud and comforted him.

Jin Sa-wol, who had entered a tavern for a meal, sat on the second floor, watched the people coming and going on the main road, and moved his chopsticks.

Wetting his throat with cheap liquor and eating greasy pork and fish while watching people was a small pleasure for him.

Thud-thud-thud-thud!!

"Get out of the way!"

"Move back!"

With a sound that shook the earth, a dozen or so horses galloped down the main road. It was extremely rare for someone to be able to run with horses like that in the city.

'Namgung family.'

Jin Sa-wol watched the warriors of the Namgung family pass by and waved his hand as dust rose.

The most frightening people in Nanchang City were not the government officials or the unorthodox, but the Namgung family.

They owned the wide plains south of Poyang Lake, and countless warriors were loyal to the Namgung family.

Since one couldn't see with their own eyes where the land of the Namgung family began and ended, there were talks that half of Jiangxi Province belonged to the Namgung family.

Thud-thud-thud!

As the horses moved away, Jin Sa-wol drank wine again.

'It seems they're going to Azure Sword Sect.'

Azure Sword Sect was one of the branch sects of the Namgung family, the largest in scale, and was within Nanchang City.

"They say the head of Azure Sword Sect died suddenly yesterday. The reason is not yet known, but it seems the Namgung family is in an uproar because of that."

"Sudden death? How can such a healthy person die suddenly?"

"I don't know. Was he killed by an assassin?"

"What assassin in the world would dare to kill the head of Azure Sword Sect? If he was killed by an assassin, the Namgung family would chase not only the assassin but also the assassin organization to the end and annihilate them."

Middle-aged men were talking at a table a little away. Since their voices were loud, Jin Sa-wol also heard them.

Jin Sa-wol, as if he were not interested, ate with an indifferent face and then headed home.

* * *

The next morning. Jin Sa-wol, who had left the house with his sword, headed for the city gate to go to Doksan.

In front of the city gate, government soldiers and warriors of the Namgung family were standing and inspecting the people coming and going one by one.

It seemed that the security of the city had been strengthened because the head of Azure Sword Sect had died yesterday.

As Jin Sa-wol approached the city gate, the warriors of the Namgung family blocked his front.

"A sword? Are you a martial artist?"

"I'm a hunter."

Swish!

Jin Sa-wol showed the hunter's nameplate given to him by the Nanchang branch of the Martial Alliance from his sleeve.

Since it was a definite identity, the warriors of the Namgung family did not hold Jin Sa-wol back.

Behind Jin Sa-wol, who was about to leave the city gate, the voices of other people were heard.

"Was the head of Azure Sword Sect killed by an assassin?"

"We don't know yet. But we are catching suspicious people."

"So it was an assassin."

Jin Sa-wol, who had left the city while listening to the talk of the people and the warriors of the Namgung family, began to walk quickly.

"Hey! Jin Sa-wol!"

Jin Sa-wol, who turned his head at the voice calling him from behind, looked at Ha Mae-sang approaching with a luggage cart.

The owner of the voice that had been talking with the warriors of the Namgung family was Ha Mae-sang.

Jin Sa-wol stood on the road and waited for him to approach.

"Are you leaving now?"

Jin Sa-wol nodded without answering and got on Ha Mae-sang's cart. On the cart, he could see several sacks containing tea leaves and medicinal herbs.

Jin Sa-wol asked.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm on my way to deliver to Pungchon, which is right ahead."

One of Ha Mae-sang's main sources of income was small-scale deliveries.

Jin Sa-wol touched the tea leaves without a word, leaned against the sack, and closed his eyes. It would take about one shichen to get to Pungchon.

"You know that the head of Azure Sword Sect died the night before last, right? The rumor is rampant in the city, so there's no way you don't know. They say it was a sudden death, but in reality, they say an assassin killed him. According to a story that leaked from inside, a cross-shaped stab wound was found on his chest, so they are seeing it as the work of the Ten Sword Demon."

Ha Mae-sang turned his head when there was no reaction from Jin Sa-wol to his words.

"Are you listening?"

"I'm listening."

Jin Sa-wol answered with his eyes closed. Ha Mae-sang chuckled and continued.

"The deceased head of Azure Sword Sect was the cousin of the head of the Namgung family, and the two were very close. It seems the Namgung family is quite enraged by this incident. There's talk that they will put a pretty big bounty on the head of the Ten Sword Demon. Besides that, it seems they are trying to get rid of the assassin organizations near Wuyi Mountain and Luoxiao Mountain."

It was Ha Mae-sang, who explained well without being asked.

Jin Sa-wol had heard of the Ten Sword Demon and knew about him. It was said that he was an assassin who occasionally appeared in the martial world, and since his movements were like a ghost, no one had seen him.

"To break through the many guards of Azure Sword Sect and kill the sleeping head of Azure Sword Sect. He's an amazing guy. In the Martial Alliance, there's also talk that the Ten Sword Demon is an assassin of the Demonic Cult."

Although it was Ha Mae-sang who mentioned the Demonic Cult, Jin Sa-wol showed no particular reaction.

'Ghost Spirit Valley.'

Jin Sa-wol thought of Ghost Spirit Valley. If it was the best assassin of Ghost Spirit Valley, it was possible to kill the head of Azure Sword Sect.

But the Ghost Spirit Valley he knew had disappeared. Even if it were rebuilt, it would take time.

Among assassins, there were some who left their own marks. The best assassins of Ghost Spirit Valley also left marks, so they also had nicknames.

But among the Slaughter Ghosts he knew, there was no one who left a cross-shaped wound.

Jin Sa-wol asked.

"Do you know anything more about Hyung Jo-geo?"

"Nothing."

Ha Mae-sang shook his head.

"More than that, there are many rumors about the Ten Sword Demon. There's talk that he's a young man who has just reached adulthood, and there's also someone who says he's an old man. Some say that the Ten Sword Demon is a woman."

Ha Mae-sang talked cheerfully, but Jin Sa-wol was silent with his eyes closed.

Ha Mae-sang, who turned his head, grumbled as if he thought Jin Sa-wol was sleeping and then closed his mouth.

* * *

Among the things necessary for a person to live, what is prioritized is food, clothing, and shelter.

When food, clothing, and shelter are resolved, one now turns one's eyes to other things. One of them was sexual desire, which was prioritized among various desires.

On the bed in a room lit by an oil lamp, a man and a woman were entangled, sweating.

The two embraced each other for a long time, and when their desires were resolved, they separated.

The man was a man in his prime with a sturdy build and hard muscles. He sat on the edge of the bed and turned his eyes to the naked woman lying down.

She smiled, then pulled the blanket to cover her body and said.

"If we do this every day, I might have a child."

"We should. Isn't that why I'm coveting your body?"

"You'll go to another concubine when I have a child."

"Don't worry. Even if you have a child, I'll come to your side often."

At the man's words, she nodded.

The man in his prime stood up from the bed, got dressed, and said.

"I'll go to the valley with my brothers, wash up, and check the fence."

"Have a safe trip."

At her smile, the man in his prime put his sword on his shoulder and left the house. As he left the house, several thatched houses came into his view.

Since it was a village formed on a sloping mountain ridge, the houses were lined up like stairs.

If you went down the road, a small basin appeared, and there were rice paddies there.

Beyond the rice paddies, a rock wall stood like a folding screen, and a little away, there was a valley with clear water flowing.

It was a peaceful mountain village located deep in Doksan.

"Brother."

As he left the village, a large, well-built man ran towards Hyung Jo-geo. He was a man named Jang Sa, a brother who had come here with Hyung Jo-geo.

He was bald with half of his head shaved, but he was strong and wielded a large executioner's sword.

Even now, he had an executioner's sword on his shoulder.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the valley to wash up."

"Let's go together. It's a bit hot inside the house, so I need to wash my face with cold water."

Jang Sa showed a subtle smile and headed for the valley with Hyung Jo-geo.

The two, who had entered the water of the valley where clear water flowed, felt the coolness, bathed, and then came out.

The two, who sat on a flat stone, looked at the distant sky visible beyond the rock wall.

"How many years has it been since we came here?"

"It's been seven years this year."

"Seven years... It's long."

Hyung Jo-geo muttered and recalled the seven years.

When he first came to this village, he was surprised that there were no men. When he asked for the reason, they said that they had all been killed at the bandit fortress over the mountain.

At that time, there was a small bandit fortress, and the number of bandits was about thirty. Since they were ordinary people holding weapons, to Hyung Jo-geo, they were no different from scarecrows.

Hyung Jo-geo went to the bandit fortress with his brothers who had come with him, killed all the bandits, and then returned to the village with the captured children.

After that, the village treated them as heroes.

Hyung Jo-geo naturally became the village chief, and his brothers formed families and lived.

There was no one in the world without a story, and his brothers also each had a story that others did not know.

"It doesn't seem bad to retire from the martial world and live like this."

At Jang Sa's words, Hyung Jo-geo smiled.

If you lived in a deep mountain like this for a long time, there were times when you often forgot the passage of time.

Although it was said to be a disconnection from the world, it was not a bad thing. Compared to the complicated life of the world, it was a comfortable life.

If there was one thing that bothered him, it was the people who had died at his hands.

Hyung Jo-geo, who had killed dozens of people in Jiujiang Prefecture, had a bounty on his head, but he had been able to survive safely until now.

Hyung Jo-geo, who had trained in martial arts at the Wudang Sect for five years and had briefly returned to his hometown, had brandished his sword while quarreling with the local dignitaries.

Because of that, he was expelled from the Wudang Sect, and he was in a situation where he couldn't even mention that he had been a disciple of the Wudang Sect.

Now, he thought it was good to just live like this and grow old.

As Hyung Jo-geo was lost in reminiscence, a low voice seeped into his ear.

"Hyung Jo-geo."

(End of Chapter)