30 – 03# A Needle in a Pouch 囊中之錐 (1)

A mere decade past, and a traveling merchant had no cause to fret over brigands. Such peaceful times did we enjoy. Alas, of late, villainous thieves have begun to run rampant across the land.

Had it only been the Green Forest gangs, the worry would be lessened, perhaps. For all they pilfered was a poor traveler’s baggage, at best, and otherwise, they only exacted a toll.

Even the Green Forest bandits are no fools. They know full well that the stronger their numbers, the more deaths they cause, the sooner the attention of the government soldiers will turn to them, culminating in their eventual extermination.

Therefore, they would settle upon a suitable choke point and merely fleece the passing unfortunates or small-scale security bureaus, and then be done with it. But recently, things have taken a dark turn.

Murder is now commonplace, and even outright kidnappings are rumored throughout the city. Fear swelled, growing larger with each passing day.

Bang Hyeok, chief of the Golden String Security Bureau, had certainly heard these tales, but the bureau’s circumstances were less than ideal, and until recently, nothing untoward had occurred.

This time, however, that complacency invited misfortune. Bang Hyeok stared, stricken, as the bureau’s warriors fell before his eyes.

“S-stop them! Stop them at all costs!!”

“W-we can’t stop them!!”

“aaargh!!”

“What sort of hell is this, truly?”

The third-rate martial artists were utterly defenseless, collapsing like paper dolls. Even the few second-rate warriors within the bureau struggled to endure, and their strength was at its breaking point.

At first, seeing so many ragged figures clutching gourds on the roadside, they had thought them beggars. But the instant they approached for passage…

They revealed their true colors with sudden fury. Drawing weapons hidden within their garments, they swiftly extinguished the lives of the bureau’s warriors, launching this devastating surprise attack.

But even if they were only escorts from a rural security bureau, they possessed skill worthy of being called martial artists, and it wasn’t a title to be ashamed of. How could they be so easily subdued?

“I will give you whatever you desire! So please, spare my life!!”

Bang Hyeok attempted to negotiate, hoping to salvage something of the situation. But they did not even deign to listen. Instead, they laughed, replying:

“What we desire is your life.”

“All martial artists of the second-rate level and above have been captured.”

“Well done. Now, kill the remaining dregs, gather the valuables, and let us return.”

“As you command!”

They never intended to let a single one live. Thus, Bang Hyeok’s desperate pleas vanished into the void. If only he hadn’t been so stingy with his money…

He could only repeat these futile regrets as he awaited the approaching death. Just then, without warning, a flash of searing light sliced through the air, severing the necks of two villains before his very eyes.

*Flashing Cloud-Dividing Sword 閃光分雲劍, First Form 第一式: Silver River Flash 銀河一閃*

The villains, who had been toying with the bureau’s warriors as if they were mere playthings, fell lifeless, unable to even react. Seeing this, the hope that had been fading from his eyes rekindled, burning once more with fervent intensity.

Bang Hyeok’s eyes darted around, seeking the unknown master who had suddenly appeared. At this moment, his only chance for survival was to rely on this expert.

But the moment he realized that the master of that strike was no more than a youthful boy, even Bang Hyeok could not help but be utterly bewildered. What in the world is happening?

“I thought things were taking longer than usual today… so, as expected, there was an attack.”

“Indeed, you are as ever, Teacher.”

“Sifu! I want to fight too!”

“Seolhwa, I cannot allow it yet. Your fundamentals are too lacking; you could be hurt badly.”

“……”

What in the world was this spectacle?

The sight was so bizarre it defied description, leaving Bang Hyuk utterly speechless. To look at them, one might think he was simply an old man out for a stroll with his grandchildren.

But their conversation suggested otherwise. And they were having it right in front of these brigands who killed people without a second thought. What was even stranger was the brigands’ reaction.

They had slaughtered the guards of the escort company without any compunction. Yet here they were, seemingly at a loss, facing down two children and an old man? It was utterly incomprehensible.

But this was only the perspective of a clueless country bumpkin. The brigands who attacked the escort company immediately recognized that the old man was no ordinary figure.

‘Though his appearance is undeniably shabby… the aura he emanates is far from ordinary.’

‘Just now, that young girl’s attack, in terms of sheer sharpness, was close to that of a master. Which means the old man who seems to be her teacher must be a master of the highest caliber.’

‘There’s no choice then. We must unleash our Demonic Art to its fullest and attack with all our might.’

The Demonic Art allowed one to accumulate inner energy by any means necessary. As a result, the speed at which one’s inner energy grew was unparalleled, but the drawback of the Demonic Art was its instability.

A righteous sect’s master cultivated slowly, but could unleash techniques with great stability. On the other hand, a master cultivated through the Demonic Art often exploded while attempting to unleash a technique.

Therefore, those who practiced the Demonic Art usually suppressed it, only releasing it at crucial moments, and even then, they could not maintain it for very long.

That alone was enough to easily deal with martial artists below the second-rate level… but the situation was different when facing a master. A master of the level one would only see in the Five Great Clans or the Nine Sects.

Even if our lives cannot endure the battle…

It will be enough to give our all in the fight.

The remaining five warriors, their spirits ignited, simultaneously unleashed the Demonic Art they had been suppressing. An immense inner force, comparable to that of a first-rate master, weighed down the air.

However, Moomyung remained unnervingly calm, even as he faced the untamed and violent energy that was as uncontrolled as a beast. For the weaker the dog, the louder it barks.

Finally, facing the five beasts who charged at him at once, Moomyung drew his sword. It was too early to call the horizontal slash he delivered “Sweeping a Thousand Armies,” for he had not yet reached the ultimate level.

The Three Harmonies Swordplay, a sword art that encompassed the mysteries of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, the beginning and the end of all swordsmanship. How could he dare say that he had grasped its mysteries?

Its depth was still too shallow to even be called a technique.

Its name was simply.

Horizontal Slash.

◇

The summer heat was apparently unrelenting, even for beasts. Or perhaps pulling a cart loaded with all sorts of goods and people was more arduous than one might think.

The horses pulling the Golden Crest Escort Company’s wagons were drinking the river water as if they intended to drain it dry. It was fortunate that the guests did not seem inconvenienced.

Otherwise, the situation would have gone awry from the start. Bang Hyuk forced a benevolent smile onto his chubby cheeks to hide his impatience as he approached the young girl.

The girl with the rare, ghostly white hair and red eyes seemed fascinated by the horses. She had taken a spot next to the horse drinking water, pulling and tugging at its mane.

“Does young miss find the horse remarkable, perhaps?”

“Aye, never seen one like it before.”

‘Such a young sprout, already tossing about casual speech… Tsk, tsk.’

To hear such familiar words from a girl barely older than his own children, Bang Hyuk felt a surge of heat rise within him. But, recalling the myriad abuses endured as the head of a small trading guild, he managed, with no small effort, to restrain himself.

“Seolhwa, come now. It’s nearly time for supper.”

“Alright! Sifu!!”

‘Yes, restrain yourself. She is, after all, a disciple of a Great Warrior! This present patience may yet bear future fortune.’

A fortnight past, near Mount Geumhyeon, Bang Hyuk had encountered brigands and nearly lost everything, including his very life. By sheerest stroke of fate, he had secured a most fortuitous opportunity to survive.

But, the truly exceptional seize opportunity even in crisis. Though outwardly, the old man appeared a mere beggar in tattered rags, Bang Hyuk had perceived his true worth: a master of supreme martial skill.

Thus, Bang Hyuk was determined to elevate this happenstance into a profound connection. He single-handedly decided to redirect his travels to Henan, a journey entirely unplanned. And to add to it, not only did he offer compensation, but also pledged to provide meals.

Though the old man had indeed saved his life, the excessive generosity was so overwhelming that even Moomyung found himself hesitant. And, naturally, the martial artists of the trading guild did not view it favourably either.

“Do you truly believe that old man is a supreme master?”

“Of course, I concede he’s no common second-rate martial artist… But why would a supreme master linger in such a backwater place?”

“A first-rate master is probably the limit…”

It was true that they had been defeated by the brigands, but it wasn’t as if they had been utterly crushed. Had the number of second-rate warriors merely been equal, they would have had a good chance of victory.

Inevitably, their own skills were so lacking that they couldn’t even grasp that their opponents weren’t fighting at full strength, and chose instead to allow envy and spite to cloud their vision.

“This time, I have a true intuition! The Great Warrior rivals none other than the very leader of the Righteous Alliance of the Murim!”

“Wasn’t it trusting your intuition last time that ruined our entire trading journey?”

At Bang Hyuk’s enthusiastic pronouncements, the martial artists of the trading guild sighed and shook their heads. A supreme master, on par with the leader of the Murim Alliance, in a place like this?

One ought to speak of things that are plausible.