WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Chapter 102: Subjugating the Mountain Lord (3)

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The allied force that had set out from the foot of the mountain regrouped after setting up camp halfway up.

Venerable Unjeong looked as if he had fought a fierce battle. His once spotless robes were soiled in several places.

"How were your casualties?"

Venerable Unjeong shook his head at Lord Choi's question.

"First-generation disciple Hyegak and several other disciples were killed or wounded."

"A tragic loss. Tsk, tsk..."

Cheonghak had suffered considerable casualties as well.

The ninja Chang-gwi had secretly descended the mountain and ambushed them from behind.

Everyone's attention turned to the Dragon Maiden Bodhisattva, the Society Head of the Black Lotus Society.

"How did the Black Lotus Society fare?"

"Several Dragon Gods became Chang-gwi and had to undergo spirit banishment. Could ghosts be turned into Chang-gwi to begin with?"

"This is the first I've heard of it. They called it a great tiger among great tigers, but it could do that as well?"

This was the first time they had learned that the Mountain Lord could command even ghosts as its Chang-gwi.

Cheonghak and the Diamond Sect, who had planned to push forward with the Black Lotus Society's proud Dragon Gods, were dismayed.

"But you drove back the Mountain Lord?"

"Yes, thanks to Gari Bodhisattva's big brother here."

Bang Seoryeong recounted the battle with the Mountain Lord.

The Mountain Lord had pushed deep into their formation, determined to target Bang Seoryeong, and she and I had driven it back.

"I heard you were skilled enough to receive a Black Knot from Layman Park, but I didn't realize you were this capable."

"We would have been in trouble without Baek-gunja's skills."

"What should we do? Continue with the plan?"

Lord Choi and Venerable Unjeong fell into thought at Bang Seoryeong's question.

"Layman Gari. What do you think your odds would be if you fought the Mountain Lord?"

"Hmm... In a head-on fight, I think I'd win without much trouble."

"What confidence. You have the ability to back it up, too."

Venerable Unjeong nodded and continued.

"But that cunning tiger has no intention of fighting head-on. You could tell from how quickly it fled once the situation turned against it."

"Anyone who calls itself lord of a mountain should possess the strength to uproot mountains and the spirit to overwhelm the world. Yet that beast flatters with honeyed words and schemes like a treacherous villain."

"Old man, I point this out every time, but you talk way too much."

"Tsk! Listen closely and consider it study, Dragon Maiden Bodhisattva."

Either way, I would not lose in a direct fight.

Honestly, that result had been decided from the start.

Hadn't the Japanese Army succeeded in sealing the Mountain Lord?

No matter how powerful it was, if humans truly committed themselves and brought in an army, it could be subjugated somehow.

"The problem is that the losses will be too great. If we keep this up, several people might die."

"That is exactly the problem. So we have two options."

We could slowly push our way up the mountain as we had been doing.

Or we could form a special assault unit and subjugate the Mountain Lord.

"A special assault unit?"

"The method would be the same as before. We would slowly occupy the mountain and drive back the Chang-gwi it controls."

"But the real plan would be for an elite assault unit to infiltrate behind it and subjugate the Mountain Lord. Openly repair the plank road, secretly cross at Chencang."

"That's the eighth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems."

It meant pretending to repair one road while sneaking in along another route, if I remembered right.

"Exactly! As expected of Baek-gunja, you hear one thing and understand ten!"

"You two are really hitting it off. I've never seen anyone get along with the old man this well."

"No, not quite that well..."

"Dragon Maiden Bodhisattva, do not let jealousy and envy lead you astray. Baek-gunja and I already understand each other without words. Baek-gunja grasps three more from one thing, and we can communicate even without relying on language."

"...Do you actually understand all that?"

"Well... He's not making it that difficult."

In the end, we decided to form a special assault unit and subjugate the Mountain Lord.

We agreed that it was better than letting several people die.

The problem was the sorcerers from North Korea.

"We will take part in that operation as well."

Bang Seoryeong tilted her head at Ri Gicheol's words.

"Do you really need to? It's a pretty dangerous mission."

While the main force pushed upward, the special assault unit would sneak behind the Mountain Lord and attack it.

It sounded simple, but it was actually the most dangerous role.

It was only natural to be puzzled when the North Korean sorcerers volunteered for it.

"Chang-gwi came down and killed eighty citizens of the Republic. As warriors of the Republic sent here under a special order from the Party, should we not avenge them?"

"..."

We ultimately accepted Ri Gicheol's offer.

There was no reason not to. If they wanted to share the dangerous work, what could we say?

Still, we all knew one thing.

"They're up to something."

The problem was that none of us knew what.

* * *

The Mountain Lord watched the allied subjugation force begin climbing again.

They were attempting the ascent the same way as before.

The difference was that the male shamans now had Greater Dragons leading the way.

The Greater Dragons, including an enormous Tyrannosaurus, were slowly breaking through the Japanese Army Chang-gwi without being intimidated by the Mountain Lord's roar.

This was not good.

It could turn the Dragon Gods into Chang-gwi and use them against the enemy as before, but the Eight-Foot Sister holding out halfway up the mountain troubled it.

That strange being's master had to be the one commanding it.

The Mountain Lord instinctively knew that it would be difficult to contend with such an existence.

That was something different.

It had understood the moment they met.

It had understood so clearly that it set aside the noble pride of a lofty lord of the mountain and acknowledged it.

That did not mean it had accepted defeat.

It still had this mountain.

The Mountain Lord had set countless traps and ambushes around the middle of the mountain.

At least the last people it had devoured and turned into Chang-gwi were soldiers.

Chang-gwi carrying the karma of soldiers had become ghosts while retaining their weapons and organizational structure.

Since they had been members of the subjugation force sent to capture the Mountain Lord, they were elite among elites.

It only needed to drag out the battle with them and gradually increase the number of Chang-gwi.

A few especially powerful humans were troublesome...

"Advance slowly with the Greater Dragons in front! Don't overextend yourselves. Focus only on reducing the enemy's strength!"

There was the leader of those who controlled dinosaurs.

Even among the ancient Dragon Gods, that particularly powerful being threatened the Mountain Lord.

Then there were two more: the old leader of the Confucian scholars and the leader of the shaved-head monks.

It could deal with them.

But the most dangerous one among them was nowhere to be seen.

Where was it? Where was it?

The Eight-Foot Sister that person commanded was beside the shaman bitch.

Then was it waiting beside the shaman bitch as it had yesterday?

It could not see it.

Where was it? Where had it gone?

The Mountain Lord gathered Japanese Army Chang-gwi skilled at scouting and ordered them to find Yohan.

But Yohan was nowhere to be found.

If he was moving with a monster that large, he should have stood out whether anyone wanted him to or not. So why could it not see him?

* * *

This was not something I wanted to do twice.

That was the conclusion I reached while hanging from Gugu and Jjaekjjaeki as they carried me through the air.

"This is way too unstable..."

Gugu! Gugu!

"Is it really that bad?"

"Kohaku, you're small, so I can understand you managing it. But me..."

We had gathered dozens of pigeons, but carrying even one person was no easy task.

For one thing, birds could not fly packed tightly together.

They needed room to spread their wings, so they had to fly with gaps between them. If someone stood on top of them, they would be bound to fall through.

We eventually decided to carry a basket together, but even moving one basket in perfect formation was difficult for birds with their limited intelligence.

"Ah, I think this is about to fall."

"Y-you fools! Can't you hold on tighter? If my lord falls, you'll all be in for it!"

Gugugugu!!

Kohaku shouted at them, but that was all she could do.

Just as Gugu and the others were reaching their limit, I realized I could see the summit.

"That's enough. Let's stop here."

"My lord?"

Rather than force them to fly farther, I decided to land halfway up the mountain.

Gugu!

"Good work, everyone."

All right. Since I had made it this far, I needed to bring everyone else over.

I used Spatial Leap to reach Cheonghak's main camp, where Lord Choi, Venerable Unjeong, Gari, and the North Korean sorcerers were waiting.

"Everyone ready? We're going all at once."

There were around ten people, but I could make several jumps without much trouble.

When I opened my eyes again, we were halfway up the mountain.

"A Spatial Leap with this many people at once..."

Not only Ri Gicheol and the North Korean sorcerers, but many others looked stunned by Spatial Leap.

Cha Hyeran blinked and asked me, "Could you perhaps... be using the power of a demon?"

"You shouldn't say something like that to a guy who believes in Jesus."

"I-is that so?"

What was she, a mind reader?

For a moment, I wondered whether the power of Bathin, the eighteenth-ranked Demon of Space, had become known. Apparently not.

Still, bizarre things like this in this world usually seemed to involve demons.

"We will split up here."

Lord Choi frowned at Ri Gicheol's words.

"What do you mean by that?"

"It means the warriors of our Republic will track down and hunt the tiger ourselves. The South Korean comrades may handle things their own way."

"Wouldn't that be dangerous?"

"Don't underestimate the strength of the Republic. The five of us are more than enough for a mere tiger."

What was with them all of a sudden?

I had expected them to have an ulterior motive, but I had not thought they would make it this obvious.

"From what I can see, that tiger bastard is hiding somewhere in the mountain. South Korean comrades, find it on your own, all right~?"

Ri Gicheol snickered and quickly left with the North Korean sorcerers.

Finding where the Mountain Lord was hiding was work in itself.

Judging by Ri Gicheol's confidence, he seemed to have a way to find it and a way to subdue it...

"Tsk, tsk. They're all going to die like that."

"You're right."

Lord Choi and Venerable Unjeong clicked their tongues as they watched the North Korean sorcerers leave.

"This is troublesome. I had some faith in them because they said they had a way to track the Mountain Lord."

"Baek-gunja. Could you leap back to the main camp and bring more disciples?"

"I can, but isn't the problem how we're supposed to find the Mountain Lord?"

"That's right."

"We have no shortage of fighting strength."

There were two Great Elders among the leaders of the Five Great Lineages.

With Gari and me included, we had more than enough power to crush a Mountain Lord.

We had bypassed the Japanese Army Chang-gwi too, so the question was how to find the thing.

Sniff! Sniff sniff!

"Just follow me."

All we had to do was follow this spectacularly nasty, godawful stench, wasn't it?

It smelled like a beast, all right. The reek was no joke.

* * *

Ri Gicheol and the North Korean sorcerers had something they were relying on as well.

"Comrade Cha Hyeran. Can you see its spiritual power?"

"Yes, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. Its spiritual power is hiding near the summit."

Among those with innate spiritual abilities, Cha Hyeran was one of the rarest: a holder of spiritual sight.

She possessed powerful spiritual sight that could see through disguises, illusions, and deceptions.

She was not quite on the level of that con artist thief who could see the colors of souls, but even so, she was among the very best innate spiritual ability users, with no equal.

Otherwise, why would the evil ghosts and rakshasas that had flocked to Cha Hyeran from every direction since childhood have turned Aoji Reeducation Camp into a wasteland?

Only after bringing Cha Hyeran to Pyongyang, where all kinds of spiritual barriers had been set up, could they guarantee her survival.

"They may be fast, but it will take time for them to find the Mountain Lord on such a large mountain. We'll get there first, subdue it, and make it serve us."

"..."

Cha Hyeran looked at the talisman Ri Gicheol confidently produced.

It was a Demon-Subduing Talisman on an entirely different level from the one used to control the fire snake.

Rumor had it that it was drawn on yellow demon paper using condensed vital energy made by mixing the bodies and souls of a thousand people.

Its effectiveness had already been proven when they controlled the fire snake.

Cha Hyeran had wondered whether the Republic had a sorcerer capable of making such a talisman, but with this, they could surely force even the Mountain Lord into submission.

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel... Is this really all right? No matter how I think about it, that is... an impious spell..."

"Comrade Cha Hyeran. Have you been thinking too much?"

"S-sorry!"

Ri Gicheol looked down coldly at Cha Hyeran as she immediately lowered her head.

"Don't forget. The Republic has overlooked the fact that your parents are reactionary Jesus-believers serving as lackeys of the American imperialists. Or did it not show mercy by bringing a reactionary brat to Pyongyang, feeding and raising you?"

"..."

Cha Hyeran trembled and bowed her head deeply.

"This operation is a critical mission. We will offer that tiger to the Supreme Commander Comrade for the glory of the Republic. Remember that if you fail, neither you nor your Jesus-believing parents will escape unharmed."

"I-I will remember!"

That was enough to crush her spirit.

Ri Gicheol patted Cha Hyeran's stiff shoulders and spoke.

"Don't worry. As long as Comrade Cha Hyeran's loyalty does not waver, the Republic will continue to guarantee the safety of you and your parents."

"Yes! Yes! Long live the Republic! Long live the Supreme Commander Comrade!!"

"Long live the Supreme Commander Comrade!!"

Only after the North Korean sorcerers joined in with three cheers did Ri Gicheol step forward, seemingly satisfied.

"Hurry. If we want to capture the tiger before those South Korean reactionaries do, we'll need a forced march."

"Yes! Comrade Lieutenant Colo──"

Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble!!

That was when a monstrous lifeform tore past them, sweeping everything aside.

It was the bizarre creature that had driven the Mountain Lord away on the first day of the subjugation operation.

"What, what is that?! Did it come after us?"

"I-it's already ahead of us!"

"Bastard! Like it knows where the tiger is!"

They had Cha Hyeran, but what did those things know to charge so noisily through the mountain?

Ri Gicheol was flustered by their simple-minded behavior.

At the same time, the Mountain Lord saw Yohan rushing straight toward it, panicked, and fled.

Footnotes:

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