WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 170: The Sea of Blood Spreading Across Sichuan (6)

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Tiger Hall and Jin Sowoon's group finally arrived in Chengdu.

Tiger Hall, the Twelve Peak Alliance, and the others immediately rested and regrouped.

But not everyone was allowed to rest.

Nam Hwaseong, who had been excluded, exploded.

"What the hell do you mean?"

His face twisted into a deep frown.

He had expected to get at least some rest once they reached Chengdu, but Jin Sowoon had just announced they were leaving again. Anger welled up inside him.

"Even Tiger Hall and the others are resting for at least half a day before setting out again. Why do only we have to leave first?"

Jin Sowoon answered as though it were nothing.

"We need to pursue those who are furthest ahead. Where do you think we have time to rest?"

Nam Hwaseong's lips trembled.

Jin Sowoon merely shrugged.

"Don't want to? Then go back."

That damned bastard always had "go back" on the tip of his tongue.

He knew perfectly well Nam Hwaseong could not return alone when every other member of the Twelve Peak Alliance was staying here.

"...If I collapse from moving like this..."

Jin Sowoon lifted his chin at Nam Hwaseong's grave tone.

"Is Nam Hwaseong of the Samwon Sect only capable of that much?"

"Grrrk."

"Are you coming or not?"

He wanted to throw everything aside and return to the Martial Arts Academy immediately. Still, he could not.

The night before, after learning that he would be traveling with Jin Sowoon, Cheol Sunjik had secretly sent him a sound transmission.

-Remember his every move. This incident will put shackles on him.

Nam Hwaseong did not know what Cheol Sunjik was plotting, but it would surely benefit the Twelve Peak Alliance.

That was why he had no choice but to follow.

"Lead the way!"

Nam Hwaseong gritted his teeth as Jin Sowoon snickered and turned his horse around.

'He's already exhausted too.'

He would endure to the very end and wipe that smug look off Jin Sowoon's face.

Even if he could not match him in internal energy, he had never lost to anyone in stamina.

Cheol Sunjik had told him to keep watch, but crushing that bastard's pride came first.

#

Even after leaving Chengdu and entering the main road toward Badong, Jin Sowoon rode for several hours without showing the slightest sign of fatigue.

Nam Hwaseong's backside felt rubbed raw, and he finally could not hold back any longer.

"...Hey, aren't we resting?"

"You're tired already?"

Why did he always have to say things like that?

Nam Hwaseong's brow furrowed at Jin Sowoon's grating words.

"If we keep this up, we'll be exhausted before long!"

"I'm not tired."

"Then at least slow down. There are Green Forest strongholds around here!"

The road from Chengdu to Badong connected to the main route leading to Tibet.

Since merchants from the Central Plains and the Western Regions used it frequently, it was only natural for Green Forest strongholds, rather than ordinary bandit camps, to be stationed along the way.

Yet there was not a trace of concern on Jin Sowoon's face.

"Don't worry. I know how to avoid them."

"Are you really in your right mind? You're saying we'll just pass through the three Green Forest strongholds blocking the main road?"

Nam Hwaseong doubted his own ears.

No one was more sensitive to tolls than the Green Forest.

They cared even more about money they had failed to collect than money they had already taken.

"Nam Hwaseong, what did I say before we left?"

That damned absolute obedience again...

They were not even at war. Why should he owe absolute obedience just because they were traveling together?

"I don't care if you curse when you're unhappy. I never cared in the first place. But if you won't follow orders, go back now."

"..."

"Cheol Sunjik told you to watch me, didn't he?"

Nam Hwaseong flinched at the unexpected words.

"Watch me all you want, and report exactly what you see. I don't care. But if you keep interfering, I'll break both your legs so you can't follow anymore."

Despite riding hard, Jin Sowoon's voice remained utterly calm.

That calm voice sent a chill down Nam Hwaseong's spine.

'W-What is this?'

Jin Sowoon had not even released killing intent, yet Nam Hwaseong felt as though someone had pressed a blade beneath his throat.

He felt as though his head were lowering of its own accord.

Then a firm voice sounded above him.

"What will it be? Will you follow, or go back?"

Returning in anger would hurt his pride, but following with his tail between his legs would hurt it too.

Damned bastard.

Nam Hwaseong felt as though he had been grinding his teeth ever since meeting this man.

Still, faced with that pressure, he had no other choice.

"I'll follow."

Jin Sowoon smiled and nodded at Nam Hwaseong's heavy answer.

"Good. They say the Samwon Sect's Deer Horn Wind-Cloud Steps are among the finest in the martial world."

The Samwon Sect's Deer Horn Wind-Cloud Steps truly were considered one of the martial world's greatest movement arts.

Why bring that up all of a sudden?

Nam Hwaseong was seized by an inexplicable sense of unease.

"We're leaving the horses behind."

"...We're cutting across the mountains?"

His unease soon became reality.

"Yes."

Nam Hwaseong stared in horror.

"Didn't you just say we would avoid the Green Forest strongholds?"

The Green Forest was even warier of people approaching from the mountains than of people traveling the main road.

Those on the road were likely customers, while those coming through the mountains were far more likely to be enemies.

"We'll avoid them."

Jin Sowoon looked at Nam Hwaseong and grinned.

"It may get a little rough, though."

"..."

A little?

Nam Hwaseong's knees suddenly felt weak.

#

Piiiiiiing!

A shrill whistle echoed through the mountains.

One of the Green Forest strongholds perched along the ridgeline stirred, as though it had received the signal and was already preparing to move.

"We've been spotted."

Nam Hwaseong cursed inwardly at Jin Sowoon's composed words.

'Of course we were spotted.'

In broad daylight, two martial artists without stealth clothing were climbing through the mountains, clearly visible from the bandits' watchtowers scattered throughout the area.

Even an ordinary herb gatherer would have noticed them.

"Let's pick up the pace."

"...What?"

Had they not been running at full speed until now?

Whether Nam Hwaseong answered or not, Jin Sowoon surged ahead.

His direction was strange.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Where are you going?"

Forgetting that they needed to avoid the Green Forest's attention, Nam Hwaseong shouted after him.

Jin Sowoon was running straight for a watchtower in the mountains.

"That, that crazy bastard..."

Jin Sowoon raced up the steep mountain path as though it were a downhill slope, then drove his fist into the watchtower.

More than ten fist images lingered around his hand as his strike smashed into the tower's supports.

Crack!

"Aaargh!"

"Intruders!"

"An attack!"

The watchtower collapsed, kicking up a cloud of pale dust.

"C-Crazy!"

Bandits who had been standing guard in every direction began gathering around the watchtower when they saw the dust.

By the time Nam Hwaseong belatedly reached the area, Jin Sowoon was running toward him.

"We're going down this way."

"What?"

"We drew their attention. Now we break through their encirclement."

"What kind of..."

"Didn't they teach you the Appear East, Vanish West Operation?"

Could you call it an operation just by attaching the word operation to an idiom?

Nam Hwaseong could not even object to Jin Sowoon's nonsense.

With the watchtower destroyed, Green Forest bandits were charging toward them with fire in their eyes.

Nam Hwaseong desperately used the Deer Horn Wind-Cloud Steps and barely managed to keep pace with him.

"Fuck, I knew it from the moment you gave it such a ridiculous name!"

"What are you complaining about?"

"Why are we carrying out a plan that's bound to fail?"

There were too many bandits charging at them with sabers and axes to count.

"What are you talking about? It isn't a failure if we break through."

You lunatic, you said we were avoiding them!

Clang!

Jin Sowoon drew his sword and charged straight at ten bandits.

The bandits were not lacking in momentum either.

"Kill them!"

"How dare these bastards come here!"

"Surround them!"

Before the bandits rushing at him from all sides, Jin Sowoon moved at least twice as fast as they did, cutting them down one after another.

"Urgh!"

"Guh!"

"He's fast..."

In the blink of an eye, Jin Sowoon was running again. Only afterward did the bandits collapse where he had passed, an unreal sight.

'What the hell was that?'

His victory over Ilgak alone had caused an uproar throughout the Martial Arts Academy.

But what Nam Hwaseong had just seen was on a completely different level.

It was hard to believe Jin Sowoon had improved so much in only two months that he seemed like a different person.

"Nam Hwaseong, get your head in the game!"

At Jin Sowoon's shout, Nam Hwaseong looked forward and saw four bandits bringing down their sabers at once.

He wildly swung his fists, protected by fist guards.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Energy clashes burst out in every direction, sending the bandits flying like stones.

Jin Sowoon immediately complained.

"Idiot. If you make that much noise, doesn't that make the Appear East, Vanish West Operation meaningless?"

"No, your plan was flawed from the start..."

Without even listening properly, Jin Sowoon set off first.

"Let's go. Because you ruined the operation..."

His cold gaze pierced Nam Hwaseong.

"You'd better run properly."

You crazy bastard, I didn't ruin it!

Jin Sowoon threw something toward the bandits rushing down from the watchtower before taking off again.

'A flower bud?'

The brass-colored flower bud fell among the bandits, then opened with a click.

Whirrrr!

The metal flower bloomed and spun wildly in place.

Nam Hwaseong stared at the fascinating sight blankly, but his face soon stiffened.

"Aaaaargh!"

"Guh!"

"Aaargh!"

Dozens of bandits running down the ridge clutched their faces and throats before collapsing to the ground at once.

"Nam Hwaseong, aren't you coming?"

It was surely related to the flower bud Jin Sowoon had thrown.

But Nam Hwaseong could not begin to guess what it was.

-A metal flower bloomed, and dozens of Green Forest bandits collapsed at once.

What expression would Cheol Sunjik make if Nam Hwaseong reported that?

Would he even believe it?

"I wouldn't believe it either."

For some reason, Nam Hwaseong felt he would not be able to report this.

"Nam Hwaseong!"

"I'm coming, damn it! Your voice is giving us away!"

Nam Hwaseong moved at full speed again and barely caught up to Jin Sowoon.

"Wouldn't it be better to just take the main road at this point?"

Climbing to the mountaintop and descending again had already made this twice as exhausting.

"Don't worry. This time, we'll definitely avoid them."

"..."

"Why are you making that face? Don't you trust me?"

Why would I?

Nam Hwaseong could not understand why Jin Sowoon was so confident.

Still, he found himself following after him.

#

'Hmm... Wasn't I supposed to be part of the White Path Society in the first place?'

Moyong Jaehwa stopped while carrying a tray of food and tilted his head.

He was a direct descendant of one of the Five Great Clans, and though he lacked the qualifications, he was still an heir who might one day lead the Moyong Clan.

His personality could be a little strange, but he was also the only grandson of the Wind-Splitting Sword, one of the martial world's absolute masters.

If he had not chosen to follow Brother Jin Sowoon, he would have joined the White Path Society long ago and secured a leadership position.

'Hmm... Then what is this?'

He could not understand why someone like him was attending an event led by the Orthodox Society, not the White Path Society, and doing menial work.

Scratch, scratch.

"Hey! What are you doing? The elder says they're hungry!"

At the call, Moyong Jaehwa hurried over with a "Y-Yes!" and delivered the food.

He suppressed his growing doubts and brought the food with a smile, but the Mount Cang disciple who received it immediately frowned.

"What is this? The food's all cold!"

"We're in a high mountain region and a forest. It gets cold quickly."

Moyong Jaehwa tried to smooth things over, but the Mount Cang disciple threw the food away and shouted.

"You can't even do what you're told properly! Do you think this is fit to serve to an elder?"

Moyong Jaehwa stared blankly at the food rolling across the ground.

The Mount Cang disciple loomed over him.

Something was strange. Very strange.

"But why am I doing this kind of errand?"

Moyong Jaehwa asked, tilting his head.

"What?"

"I'm the eldest son of the Moyong Clan, a direct descendant, and the Wind-Splitting Sword's grandson. Why am I doing this?"

"...You said you'd do it!"

"I did?"

"Yes! Didn't you say you'd do it instead of Eun Seollan?"

Only then did Moyong Jaehwa come to his senses. He struck his own head several times with his knuckles.

"Ah! Ah, right! That's right. I did."

When he returned from scouting and was about to sleep, he had seen Eun Seollan serving the others. He had flown into a rage and snatched the plates away.

"Bring it again! If you fail to do it properly this time..."

"Hey."

The mood instantly turned cold. The Mount Cang disciple frowned, as though wondering whether they had heard wrong.

"Did you just say, 'Hey'?"

"Are you someone important?"

"...What?"

"I asked if you're someone important. Are you set to inherit Mount Cang?"

"..."

These people had entered without even taking a proper examination, unlike Brother Jin Sowoon.

They had already been looking down on Jin Sowoon. Now they were strutting around with borrowed authority without even knowing their place.

His fingertips itched, and he clenched and unclenched his fists.

"No, right? I don't want to, but I might inherit my clan. Are you going to spend your Academy days and then retire from the martial world? Can you stand proudly before the Moyong Clan?"

"..."

"No, right? Then stop acting out."

"..."

The Mount Cang disciple pressed their lips together before personally heading to the cooks.

Moyong Jaehwa watched the disciple's back with cold eyes.

'I... I haven't slept enough...'

He could not even remember how many days it had been since he had last slept properly.

Even when he slept, it felt as though he were awake. Even when awake, he felt as though he were asleep.

'Damn it. I should've just followed them to Yueyang...'

At least he would not have come all the way here only to suffer like this.

"I'm sorry, Young Master Moyong. I could have done it myself."

When he returned, Eun Seollan wore a guilty expression.

Those bastards were the ones at fault, so why did Eun Seollan feel guilty?

"It's all right. Their own people should be serving food to their own elders. But Miss Eun, aren't you cold?"

Since entering the highlands, the others had been unable to endure the cold. They wore two or three layers of blankets and outer garments.

"I'm fine. My homeland is cold to begin with, and the martial art I cultivate has strong yin energy."

"Ah, you said you came from the Northern Sea."

Even memories he had known before no longer came to mind properly.

"But are you all right?"

"Me? What do you mean?"

Eun Seollan looked worriedly at Moyong Jaehwa, whose eyes were bloodshot from burst vessels.

"You look very tired..."

"Me? No, I don't."

Despite his words, Moyong Jaehwa looked terrible.

He had been staying awake at night and continuing reconnaissance work, barely able to eat or sleep.

"Young Master Jaehwa, don't you think you're working too hard? Everyone else is only pretending to scout."

"...Still, you never know..."

Moyong Jaehwa began nodding off as he spoke.

Then he suddenly opened his eyes wide.

"...Young Master Jaehwa."

"...Haha."

Moyong Jaehwa scratched the back of his head awkwardly before carefully asking, "Can I sleep for just a little while?"

"Yes. Please do."

Eun Seollan quickly covered him with the blanket allotted to her, then added more firewood.

"Thank... you..."

Moyong Jaehwa fell asleep before he even finished speaking.

"...You really were tired."

Eun Seollan looked at him pityingly.

They had been forcibly dragged to the Orthodox Society's event, but there was nothing particularly eventful about it.

The advance party, centered around Mount Cang and the Shaolin Sect, was focused only on how well the subordinate sects served them.

They claimed to have come to investigate the regular examination incident, yet they had not even gone near the area.

'What a disgrace.'

All she could think about was returning quickly and completing the Lesser Jade Maiden Divine Art.

After attaining enlightenment within the Soul-Destroying Formation, she had discovered a new path for the Lesser Jade Maiden Divine Art. Yet she was still far from being able to unleash the power described in legend.

'I should ask Brother Jin for advice.'

With that thought, she stared blankly into the campfire.

"Is it... getting colder?"

The temperature in the mountains was falling rapidly.

Perhaps because of that, even the Academy students who had chattered nonstop as though they were on a trip had wrapped themselves tightly in blankets and fallen asleep before the fire.

In the freezing cold, something broke through the silence.

Slither.

A red centipede crawled beside the campfire.

Eun Seollan stared blankly at the disgusting centipede, then became puzzled.

'Don't centipedes live in hot, damp places?'

The snow in this area had not even fully melted, and not a single fallen leaf lay on the hard ground.

"Huh?"

The centipede crawling out of the hard ground slowly headed toward one of the Academy students.

Slither. Slither. Slither. Slither.

Another one.

Then another.

Dozens of red centipedes appeared from somewhere and began approaching the people.

Eun Seollan tried to rise and catch the centipedes, but she could not move a single muscle.

'Huh?'

When she lowered her head, she saw centipedes already covering her entire body.

Ah! Ah! Ah!

She opened her mouth and screamed, but no sound came out. Instead, the red centipedes began crawling into her mouth, nose, and ears.

Her body trembled at the horrific sensation.

-...Seollan... Miss... are you all right?

A hurried but warm voice came from somewhere.

She wanted to answer but could not. Tears were about to spill from her eyes.

"Miss Seollan!"

Eun Seollan snapped awake from the dream.

Moyong Jaehwa, who had apparently woken up at some point, was looking at her with worried eyes.

Remembering the red centipedes that had covered her body, Eun Seollan leaped to her feet and frantically brushed herself off.

"Aah!"

"Are you all right?"

"Gasp! Gasp! Gasp!"

There had been countless red centipedes, enough to cover her entire body.

'They... they're gone?'

The centipedes had vanished without a trace.

Bzzzzzzzz!

A sharp sound pierced the inside of her head like a needle. Eun Seollan hurriedly covered her ears, but the unpleasant noise continued stabbing into her mind as though that made no difference.

"Recite the Demon-Subduing Mantra, Miss Seollan!"

At Moyong Jaehwa's voice, Eun Seollan quickly began murmuring the Demon-Subduing Mantra.

Strangely, the pain stabbing into her head eased.

Then another bizarre sound began echoing around her.

Jingle. Jingle.

"Th-This is?"

"I think... it's an enemy."

"An enemy?"

Jingle. Jingle.

An eerie bell was ringing throughout the area.

Footnotes:

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