Translator: bjgoofy
The largest Blood Cult hideout within the Central Plains was discovered in the jungles of Funing, Yunnan, just as the captured Blood Cult members in Wuhan had confessed.
A critical location, just a little to the east lay the forests of Guangxi, and to the north, Guizhou and Sichuan could be reached in a matter of steps.
That was why the Murim Alliance Leader, Zhou Zhonghe, acted swiftly.
According to the confession of the captives, aside from a small branch in Wuhan monitoring the Murim Alliance, the cult had not yet significantly expanded its influence. Now was the perfect time.
If they were even a bit late, the Blood Cult’s forces could spread uncontrollably into Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Guangxi.
The Blood Cult’s martial arts allowed its members to quickly grow stronger by drinking or absorbing blood.
Such a technique was extremely appealing to the dregs of society or certain Unorthodox Path figures.
Even during the Blood Cult Massacre thirty years ago, they had rapidly expanded their forces by enticing vermin-like people in this way.
That was why Murim Alliance Leader Zhou Zhonghe quickly organized a subjugation force and headed to Funing.
As a result, in the jungles of Funing, a Zhuang village with a population of well over a thousand people was under attack by martial artists.
-Whooshhh.
Surrounded by martial artists, the Zhuang village had begun to burn, and Zhou Zhonghe shouted angrily.
"These bastards are disguised as Zhuang people! Since they're the ones bringing harm to the Central Plains, don't leave a single one alive!"
The reason those who had come to capture the Blood Cult were raiding the village of one of Yunnan’s ethnic minorities, the Zhuang, was because the cult cunningly disguised themselves as such.
The houses the Blood Cult members lived in, and the clothes they wore, all resembled those of the Zhuang.
“Yes! Alliance Leader! Let’s go! Not a single Blood Cult bastard shall be spared!”
“““Understood!”””
With Zhou Zhonghe’s enraged command, the tightly drawn net of martial artists closed in, and the Azure Dragon Division, directly under the Alliance Leader, charged into the village at the front.
Then disciples of various sects followed behind.
“Waaaah! Kill them! Do not let a single Blood Cult bastard live!”
“Exterminate the Blood Cult bastards!”
“It’s the Murim Alliance attack! Keuhheok!”
"How, how can the Murim Alliance! Kkeok...."
Inside the burning Zhuang village, the fight between Blood Cultists and righteous martial artists continued, and after a prolonged battle.
The fight ended in a one-sided massacre by the righteous martial artists who possessed Energy Scattering Poison, which proved fatal to the Blood Cultists.
“M-My internal energy!”
"The dirty orthodox sect bastards have tampered with their hidden weapons, be careful!"
The Blood Cult bastards, struck by the rain of hidden weapons, lost their martial power and died helplessly like ordinary people.
“Alliance Leader!”
In front of the dying flames, Zhou Zhonghe crushed the neck bone of what appeared to be a Blood Cult elder.
As Zhou Zhonghe wiped the blood splattered on his forehead, the Chief of the Azure Dragon Division knelt before him.
It seemed the battle had concluded.
“Good. Is everything settled?”
Believing the man had come to report the outcome of the battle, Zhou Zhonghe looked at the Azure Dragon Chief and asked. Then came a hurried voice.
“About half, roughly five hundred have been captured or killed, but the r-rest have vanished without a trace!”
Those who had been sent ahead to scout had clearly reported that over a thousand Blood Cultists were in the village, but only about five hundred heads had been recovered.
The righteous martial artists and Murim Alliance warriors had surrounded the village tightly, so there was no chance of escape, something was amiss.
“What!? Find them! There’s no way those who were here could’ve disappeared! We cannot let them slip away like this!”
“Yes, Alliance Leader!”
Immediately, the village, where the battle had occurred, was searched thoroughly by Murim Alliance warriors and disciples from each sect, and after about an hour, what they found was a small cave.
A small cave had been discovered in the dried-up well at the center of the village.
“A cave? Send a pursuit team at once! Include those skilled in grappling techniques who can fight in tight spaces and those with excellent eyesight!”
“Understood!”
A pursuit was launched immediately, but what unfolded in the narrow tunnels and chambers of the cave was a brutal, muddy battle.
In the darkness of the cave, the fight between the Blood Cultists and the martial artists continued for three days, with death on both sides.
And at the end of that desperate battle, when the pursuit team finally reached the end of the cave, what they found were soldiers guarding the border of Great Viet Kingdom.
The long tunnel had extended beyond the borders and reached into Great Viet Kingdom.
***
-Sssizzle.
As the rabbit’s belly was split open, its innards removed, and the skin stripped before placing it on a heated stone, a delicious sound filled the air.
Spear Dragon Yang Sheng-hou sniffed the savory aroma rising from the rabbit meat and smiled pleasantly.
“Hmm. Nice.”
Catching six rabbits would normally take quite some time, but today, he had found a rabbit warren nearby and easily caught six, which lifted his mood.
Eating three today and saving two for tomorrow morning only improved his mood further.
However, that good mood did not last long.
“Rabbit again today? I feel like my mouth is going to reek of rabbit at this rate.”
It was because Blade Dragon Peng Gue-sung, who had gone out to check if there was anything edible like tree fruits nearby, wrinkled his nose and made a disgusted face as he entered the cave and saw the rabbit meat roasting.
“You should be grateful we even have this much! How did the two of you even get assigned to support the search when you can’t do anything!?”
At Peng Gue-sung’s words, Spear Dragon, who was roasting the rabbit, flared up and even lashed out at Sword Phoenix, who was entering behind him.
Sword Phoenix replied coldly.
“Wait, why are you mad at me? I didn’t even say anything.”
The reason he was so angry was because the two who had volunteered to help search for traces of the Blood Cult members who had fled into Great Viet Kingdom with him were, in truth, completely useless.
Not only were they hopeless at hunting, they couldn’t do laundry, couldn’t start a fire, and didn’t even know the basics of tracking. Not a single skill was helpful.
He hadn’t realized it at all back when they were running around the Central Plains together as companions.
Unlike himself, who had learned many things due to having elders in the family involved in the military, Blade Dragon was from that Peng Family, and Sunhwa, a priestess of Diancang Sect, was the sect's top disciple, so apparently, all of these things were handled by junior disciples for her?
It turned out his close friends had lived truly pampered lives.
Even so, he could understand someone like Blade Dragon Peng Gue-sung.
The Peng Family was based in Hebei, and it was widely known that they cared for nothing except martial arts.
Frankly, it was a family where expecting anything outside of martial arts was a mistake.
But it was Sword Phoenix Sunhwa of the Diancang Sect that annoyed him more.
Since the Diancang Sect was located on Mount Diancang within Yunnan’s jungles, he had assumed she’d be well-versed in the jungle, but she knew nothing at all.
She claimed she avoided the jungle because there were too many bugs?
"Sigh. I should just keep my mouth shut...."
Shaking his head, Spear Dragon Yang Sheng-hou flipped the rabbit meat he had been roasting, thinking it was pointless to speak any further.
-Sizzle.
The reason he didn’t say more was because, just a few days earlier, when he had finally tried confronting them about how they knew absolutely nothing, both Blade Dragon and Sword Phoenix had said the exact same thing.
“One who has mastered the dao only needs to wield their saber well, when would we find time to learn anything else? Hahaha.”
“That’s right. As long as a swordswoman knows her sword, that’s all that matters.”
Truly, their heads were filled with nothing but sabers and swords.
Remembering the responses he’d heard days ago, Yang Sheng-hou shook his head and flipped the meat once more, then turned to ask Sword Phoenix,
“By the way, I think we should stop by the rendezvous point to check on the other teams, what do you think?”
Twelve squads, each composed of three people, had crossed into Great Viet Kingdom under the Murim Alliance Leader’s secret order.
It had already been fifteen days since they entered the jungles of Great Viet Kingdom. His suggestion was to stop by the rendezvous point and see how the others were faring in their pursuit.
“It is about time we stopped by, isn’t it?”
“Exactly. It’s the fifteenth day today, there might already be a team that’s found something.”
“Hmm... Indeed, it’s quite possible they’ve found something by now.”
When he proposed they check the rendezvous point the next day, both Sword Phoenix and Blade Dragon nodded in agreement.
“Then let’s eat well tonight and head to the rendezvous point tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.”
“Okay.”
With that simple meeting wrapped up before dinner, they checked the doneness of the rabbit meat one last time.
That was when a clear voice suddenly rang out from somewhere.
"Excuse me!"
-Swiiing.
"Who, who is it!?"
Startled by the sudden voice, Yang Sheng-hou shot to his feet.
And then, he grabbed the spear that had been propped up against the cave wall and scanned the surroundings.
The moment he realized that the sound was coming from the ceiling.
From the cave ceiling, a large...
A large...
“C-centipede?”
A familiar young hero, seated astride a large centipede he had never seen before, was slowly descending from above.
“Th-That is!?”
“No way, how is Young Hero Wei here!?”
Just like Spear Dragon, Sword Phoenix and Blade Dragon shouted in surprise at the appearance of the young hero, who descended like an immortal.
The young hero, riding the large blue centipede down, smiled and said,
"Spear Dragon, I've saved your life twice, but it seems you still haven't fixed that habit of drawing your spear at any time."
At those words, Poison Flower, who was sitting behind the young hero, widened her eyes and looked at Spear Dragon.
And Spear Dragon quickly hid the drawn spear behind his back.
Though he had made up his mind, he still didn’t want to be hated.
***
[Why? Are they people you know?]
[Yes, noona. I do know them.]
[Then, are those bastards members of the Five Poisons Sect hiding in the murim!?]
Since the ones gathered outside the underground tunnel of the Five Poisons Sect looked suspicious, noona seemed to think they might be operatives of the sect lurking within the murim.
But those people were the sons and daughters of the orthodox sects.
And not just anyone, but some of the most prominent next-generation elites in the murim.
There was no way that could be true, so I shook my head in response to Seol noona’s question.
They must have ended up here by coincidence or due to some unknown reason.
[No. They’re friends of Hwa-eun.]
[They’re not friends. Soryong.]
But even before I could finish my sentence, Hwa-eun cut in and flatly denied it.
Lately, she had become more talkative following me and Seol noona around and helping with the kids, but her personality still hadn’t changed.
Smiling at the words that would’ve hurt Spear Dragon had he heard them, I spoke to Noona and Hwa-eun.
[Noona, judging by the fact that those people are here, this probably isn’t a dangerous place. Why don’t we go get a bite of that meat they were roasting?]
[You want to go get meat from them?]
[Yes, I saved his life twice, so he won’t be able to refuse.]
[Soryong, you saved his life?]
[It’s one of those things between men.]
While Hwa-eun and Noona wore surprised expressions at the mention of saving his life, I shouted downward.
"Excuse me!"
-Swiiing.
"Who, who is it!?"
As Spear Dragon shouted and Sword Phoenix and Blade Dragon cried out in alarm, I descended with Hwa-eun riding Cho and said to Spear Dragon,
"Spear Dragon, I've saved your life twice, but it seems you still haven't fixed that habit of drawing your spear at any time."
Startled, Spear Dragon quickly hid the spear behind his back.
All eyes turned to him.
***
“By the way, Young Hero Wei- ah, since you’re now a member of the Beast Palace, should we call you Hero instead?”
“Just call me Soryong.”
“Alright, Soryong. But what did you mean earlier when you said you saved Spear Dragon’s life twice?”
After a slightly long introduction that started with explaining who Cho and Yohwa were and why everyone had ended up here,
Once we were seated around the campfire and handed the rabbit meat, Sword Phoenix asked what I meant about saving Spear Dragon’s life twice.
Smiling toward Spear Dragon, I said,
“It’s just a matter between men. Isn’t that right, Spear Dragon?”
“O-Of course, Soryong.”
Spear Dragon nodded with a pale face.
He thought this was something he could milk for a while and tore off a rabbit leg, shoving it into his mouth.
‘He said Spear Dragon grilled this, but why is it so delicious?’
They say stealing food just before it enters someone else’s mouth tastes best, and this rabbit, grilled by Spear Dragon, was the best I’d ever had.
-Sluuurp.
Just as I devoured a rabbit leg and tossed the leftover bone into the fire.
Blade Dragon’s voice came from beside me.
“You eat with such vigor. Here, have this too.”
“No, Hyung-nim Gue-sung, you should eat as well.”
Blade Dragon tore off both hind legs of his rabbit and held them out.
I waved my hands to decline, but he thrust the meat toward me forcefully and loudly.
“Come now! Just watching you eat fills me up. Come on, don’t refuse.”
It was only the second time we had met, and the last time we barely exchanged greetings, yet the reason Blade Dragon was treating me with such warmth.
And the reason I was calling him Hyung-nim.
There was a good reason for it.
‘Turns out he’s Yingying’s older brother.’
When Hwa-eun had introduced him to me at the Murim Alliance, I had just assumed they happened to share a surname. But it wasn’t that. He was actually Yingying’s eldest brother.
During our first meeting, we were in such a rush trying to gather food for the lizards that Hwa-eun hadn’t even had time to explain. But earlier, the moment he recognized us, he greeted us warmly and familiarly.
“Look who it is! Isn’t this Young Hero Wei!? I heard about you from my father. Thank you for saving my sister! I never imagined I’d meet my benefactor in a place like this!”
“Huh?”
“I mean Yingying. Yingying.”
“Oh! Yingying! Then you’re the Peng Family Head’s-?”
“That’s right, I’m the first son of the Family Head.”
When the Peng Family Head had returned home after entrusting Yingying to me, he apparently stopped by the Murim Alliance and mentioned that I was treating Yingying. That was why Blade Dragon was treating me so graciously now.
Since I had formed a sworn sibling bond with Yingying, I was considered his younger sibling too?
“You took care of Yingying like your own sister and even formed a sworn sibling bond with her? My friend, that makes me your Hyung-nim!”
“Uh, what?”
It felt a little awkward to call someone I didn’t really know Hyung-nim, but regardless of everything else, the fact that he was neither a thief nor a hunter but a proper tank made me decide to accept his goodwill.
Thinking back to the martial arts the Peng Family Head had displayed when I went to meet Seol and Bing, I knew the Peng Family was naturally born tank material.
After the Flying Celestial Serpent raid, I’d realized that if we wanted to take down more venomous creatures, we definitely needed a solid tank list.
I politely accepted the rabbit leg he handed me and said,
“Thank you, Hyung-nim. Ah, and the Man of Ten Thousand Poisons will be arriving soon, and we’re also looking for traces of the Five Poisons Sect, so let’s move together. Hyung-nim.”
“Oh, that’s right! If we follow the Five Poisons Sect’s trail, we might run into those Blood Cult bastards too. That works out perfectly!”
It was a situation where we could be helpful to one another.
However, even after two more days passed, neither my foster father nor the Man of Ten Thousand Poisons had arrived.