novelraw Chapter 22 : Chapter 22
Chapter 22 : Chapter 22
Chapter 22 - Give me everything you’ve got
The baggage carriers, who were in charge of the caravan's luggage.
The leader among them was commonly called the head baggage carrier.
While the escort agency sometimes provided baggage carriers, the head baggage carrier was usually someone who worked for the family.
This was because their role was quite important as they had to look after anywhere from a few to dozens, or even hundreds of baggage carriers, and above all, they must not betray the merchant caravan.
In that respect, the head baggage carrier Song Ak could be said to be perfect for the job.
He had worked for the Yi Family Clan's merchant caravan for over twenty years, was sharp despite his old age, and his loyalty to the family was exceptional.
A critical situation where they encountered bandits.
A moment like this was precisely when the head baggage carrier Song Ak needed to respond swiftly.
But unfortunately, Song Ak lost consciousness shortly after.
This was because he had collided head-on with an escort who was sent flying by Jang Pae's sword.
“Keu-eung…….”
Song Ak pushed away the throbbing headache and raised his upper body.
How did he lose consciousness?
Right, they had met bandits not long after leaving Yiliang County…….
“Bandits!”
When his thoughts reached that point, Song Ak’s hazy eyes snapped open.
“Head Manager…… Head Manager, sir!!”
Song Ak, who had jumped to his feet, desperately looked around.
He felt dizzy from getting up so suddenly, but that wasn't the problem.
Urgency was palpable on his face.
I must quickly send someone to inform the main family of this fact……!
First, I need to check if the Head Manager is safe……!!
“Check…… for……?”
Song Ak was suddenly seized by a strange feeling.
It was because every single person sitting there was looking at him.
“Uh……?”
It was a completely different scene from the situation he had seen before losing consciousness.
The bandits, who had been baring their teeth like wild dogs and slowly approaching, were either half-crippled or had fallen over backwards, and the escorts who had been in trouble were receiving treatment and recovering.
Above all, the Head Manager, who had been instructing everyone to stay sharp with a resolute face.
He was now sitting with his knees neatly together, a peaceful expression on his face.
“Head Manager, sir!”
“Come and sit here.”
Jo Seom gestured calmly as he looked at Song Ak.
‘What on earth happened here?’
From Song Ak's perspective, it was a change as if the heavens and the earth had been overturned.
Until he lost consciousness, everything had been a grim situation.
He couldn't even guarantee if he could keep his life, let alone the caravan's goods.
This was because the opponent was Jang Pae, the leader of the Tree-Uprooting Stronghold, who controlled Duhua Mountain.
But when he came to his senses, the only one who was serious was himself.
‘It’s as if I’m the abnormal one.’
Song Ak felt bewildered even as he approached Jo Seom's side with bated breath.
At that moment,
Paaak!!!
“Keuak!!”
“You sold the Bluestone?! Do you know how much that’s worth!”
“I’m telling you, we didn’t sell it! It was the Tiger-Bear Stronghold guys who sold it, why are you doing this?”
“You’re a bandit too, you bastard. You have to take joint responsibility!”
“Jo-joint responsibility?!”
Huh?
What in the world is that sight?
The giant of terror, whose face he had to raise his head all the way up to see, was on his knees with a sullen face.
A sullen face?
No, it wasn't just his expression; his face was actually swollen.
As if he had been thoroughly beaten by someone…….
‘Aaah……!’
That wasn't all.
Looking at Jang Pae's chest, he saw a blood clot stuck to a large wound.
With the already unsightly wound and the thick chest hair, he looked extremely pathetic.
Where did the grandiose and spirited appearance he had when blocking the merchant caravan go, and how did he end up getting so battered?
‘That’s just like…….’
A loser.
Considering his size, it was a very unfitting expression, but Jang Pae had become a loser.
“Also! Tell me more about what the Tiger-Bear Stronghold looted from the Diancang Sect's facilities!”
“I can’t remember any more……!!”
“Then I’ll help you remember.”
Paaak!!!
“Keuak!”
What was even more dumbfounding was the person who was pressuring Jang Pae.
A young man who looked like he had barely passed the age of jihak was mercilessly striking the back of Jang Pae's head.
“Please stop hitting me!”
“Why. I’m trying to make you like the nickname you use. Overflowing Stab without Form.”
“Overflowing Stab without Form doesn’t mean that!”
“Oh? Talking back? You’re talking back?”
When Biyoung raised his hand again, Jang Pae flinched his neck like a turtle.
‘Am I dreaming right now?’
Song Ak had to wonder that for a moment.
The situation where a man who didn't even look half his size was treating Jang Pae like a rat in a trap.
The problem was that no one around found that fact strange.
Song Ak sat down next to Jo Seom and asked cautiously.
“Head Manager, sir. Who is that child?”
“I don’t know either. Only that his name is Biyoung.”
“Who were the ones who helped us? I don’t see anyone.”
“That young master did it.”
“What?”
“That young master did everything, from turning the bandits over there into pulp to making Jang Pae kneel. And he did it all by himself.”
“By himself!?”
Even though he knew it was rude to ask back like this, Song Ak couldn't help it.
Does this make any sense?
They say anything can happen in the Murim, but still.
Looking at the two's physiques, the expression ‘an egg hitting a rock’ seemed perfectly fitting.
How did he subdue Jang Pae, and when did he take care of all those bandits?
“Haha…… Even we who witnessed it ourselves still can't believe it, so it must be even more absurd for you who didn't see it.”
“That’s right, Head Manager, sir.”
Of course, it was an unbelievable story.
It was incomprehensible from a common-sense perspective, but on the other hand, Song Ak was also a person who blindly followed Jo Seom's words.
“Then isn’t he a truly great prodigy? That young master, I mean.”
Song Ak's title for him had already changed from ‘child’ to ‘young master’.
As if sensing the change, a faint smile spread across Jo Seom's lips.
“Yes. He must be a rising star of a prestigious orthodox sect or the child of a renowned noble family. But……”
“……?”
“……Seeing that sight, I wonder if that’s not the case.”
Jo Seom’s troubled gaze turned towards the two men.
“Why are you digging up the floor of the Martial Arts Hall? You crazy bastards! Are you guys moles?!”
“Keok!”
Every time something done at the Tiger-Bear Stronghold was revealed, Jang Pae was beaten on their behalf.
From his own perspective, it was a very unfair situation.
To be beaten like this for something he didn't even do.
And that, for the ridiculous reason that ‘all bandits are one’.
Watching Jang Pae being mercilessly beaten like a dog on a hot day, Jo Seom and Song Ak met eyes.
Then, as if in unspoken agreement, they nodded.
That bastard isn’t from an orthodox sect.
Of course, an orthodox sect member couldn’t be like that.
“Right. Did you find anything by digging up the ground? You pathetic fools.”
Biyoung was convinced that there was nothing under the ground of the Martial Arts Hall.
He had never heard of anything being there in his life.
But a different answer than he expected reached Biyoung's ears.
“Yes…… yes!”
“Huh? You found something? There was nothing like that in my time?”
“In your time?”
‘In my time,’ he says.
A young brat whose head hasn't even dried of blood?
Jang Pae was puzzled but soon dismissed his doubt.
Seeing Biyoung narrowing his eyes suspiciously, it seemed like another fist was about to fly.
“For real?”
“It’s true! That’s why I went to the Tiger-Bear Stronghold in the first place!”
“Hoh.”
As his interest was piqued, Biyoung leaned his upper body slightly more forward.
“Keep explaining.”
“The leader of the Tiger-Bear Stronghold is a guy named Wi Sung…… We’ve been close since we were young.”
“Tsk tsk. Birds of a feather flock together…… I guess those who are destined to be bandits can feel each other from a young age? Do you feel some kind of trashy aura?”
“…………”
“What. You pissed?”
“N-no, sir. We didn’t meet often since we have our own territories, but a while ago, I received a message from Wi Sung. He said he needed my help with something.”
“What can you help with?”
At that, a rare look of vitality appeared on Jang Pae's face.
“I may not be good at other things, but I’m a man of great strength, am I not! The Tiger-Bear Stronghold only has delicate, fern-like hands, so they came to need me.”
“Strong? You?”
One corner of Biyoung’s mouth curled up.
In contrast, Jang Pae's proud face crumpled like a piece of tissue paper.
This was because the person who had blocked his signature technique, ‘One Sword Cuts the Heavens,’ with one hand was right in front of him.
“Y-young Master is the exception. I’ve never been pushed back in terms of strength anywhere else.”
“Cut the crap. There are plenty of guys like you in the orthodox Murim. You’re just cooped up in the mountains playing king, so you can’t grasp reality.”
“……”
Come to think of it, there was nothing wrong with what he said.
No matter how strong Jang Pae was, he couldn't stand against the peerless masters of the Murim.
But.
Why is he so annoying?
Couldn't he say the same thing in a slightly less hurtful way?
Jang Pae's anguish did not last long.
“So, what did you use your strength for?”
“Ah, that…… Wi Sung said that after they dug up the floor of the Martial Arts Hall, a firmly fixed safe came out.”
“!”
A safe?
A safe, huh.
There was no such thing in my time.
It was either buried in the past that even I didn't know about, or it was buried after I died.
“How did they come to discover that safe?”
“There’s one meticulous guy among the Tiger-Bear Stronghold members, and he said he carefully examined the area around the Martial Arts Hall after it rained heavily last time. He said the overflowing soil and water looked just like a grave.”
“Hmm.”
“It was good that they found the safe, but they couldn't open it at all. It was buried so deep that they couldn't even pull it out, and the door wouldn't open no matter how much they hit it. Wi Sung said he thought the safe’s door was made of Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron.”
A safe buried deep under the ground, locked with Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron.
At this point, anyone would have the same thought.
That something extraordinary was contained within the safe.
“So. Did you open it?”
“……No. Even after striking it countless times with ‘One Sword Cuts the Heavens,’ the safe didn’t even blink. On the contrary, only the blade of my sword was damaged.”
“Well. It’s impossible to break Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron with such a pathetic technique.”
Jang Pae's face, who had suddenly become the owner of a pathetic technique, crumpled completely.
“Straighten your face. Or else.”
Hearing the story, I could roughly guess what was going on.
It seemed that safe was buried after I died.
There had been a few times in the past when the soil overflowed due to heavy rain.
But at that time, no one had discovered anything strange.
Was the safe part of the Sect Leader's plan?
Unfortunately, there was no one left to ask now.
“So. Is the safe still buried there?”
“Probably. Seeing as it didn’t budge even when I tried to pull it out by force……”
“How strong do you think your strength is. Anyway, that’s enough.”
Biyoung said that and then suddenly grinned.
That sight was so chillingly cold and eerie that Jang Pae's heart sank.
Pababak!
Biyoung's fingers poked Jang Pae's lower abdomen several times.
“Eu…… euwaaaaaaaack!”
Jang Pae let out a terrible scream and vomited a torrent of dark red blood.
It was a voice far more desperate than the sounds he had made several times before.
“You won't have to use your strength anymore from now on.”
The faces of a few individuals who had practiced martial arts turned pale.
They had realized that what Biyoung had just done was to destroy Jang Pae's Dantian.
Jang Pae, who had been rolling on the floor in agony, soon fainted, and the bandits watching this turned ashen.
‘He had no intention of letting him off from the start……!’
‘For a young kid, his methods are so ruthless.’
“You guys, come here too.”
“!”
Biyoung personally destroyed the Dantian of a few bandits he had singled out, then dusted off his hands and stood up.
“Good. Bugs should always be squashed thoroughly. Of course.”
They were guys not even worth dirtying his hands with blood for.
For them, destroying their Dantian would be a punishment worse than death.
Biyoung pointed his finger at a couple of remaining small-fry.
“You guys, come here too.”
“W-we haven’t learned martial arts?”
“Not that, give me everything you’ve got.”
“Yes?”
“If you make me repeat myself, you die. I said give me everything you’ve got. Your entire gang.”
At Biyoung's words, Jo Seom's eyes widened.
‘No matter how I look at it, that’s……?’
Banditry.
It was banditry itself.
In the barren mountains, there was a strange man committing banditry against bandits.
With an endlessly pure smile, looking incomparably noble.