WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 74: The Black Flame Dragon Surpassing the Gate (2)
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“...”
“...Ahem.”
A strange silence settled over the inn.
Not only those of us who had entered with the child, but even Bang Duchil's rowdy followers stared at him with disapproving looks over his complete lack of manners.
“Well, I told you to talk nicely, didn't I...?”
The elder had refused to speak, and Bang Duchil had tried to make them talk. That was how this mess had happened.
When I met him in my previous life, he had been boisterous, but I didn't remember him being this unreasonable.
“What does it matter to you how others live or die... Urgh.”
The elder had been ranting furiously when they suddenly clutched their waist and bowed their head.
“It is because of the Twin-Curtain Strongholds, isn't it?”
“...”
Worry deepened on the elder's face.
“Did the Twin-Curtain Strongholds take all the villagers away?”
“...”
The elder remained silent.
Just as Bang Duchil snorted and moved to grab the elder by the collar again, Baek Soryeong approached them and spoke in a clear voice.
“Elder, my name is Soryeong. It's a little embarrassing to say this so suddenly, but Brother Duchil recently subdued two mountain strongholds and obtained two Gate I Tokens for the Martial Arts Academy. You needn't be so afraid. Please tell us.”
The elder's eyes trembled at Baek Soryeong's words. Then their gaze met the child's, and they let out a long sigh.
“As the Twin-Curtain Strongholds' tyranny worsened, the Hangzhou merchants' association tried to subdue them by hiring wandering martial artists. Yet they failed every time, and each time, the bandits killed the villagers serving them and hung their bodies in the village.”
None of us could speak. The situation was far worse than we had expected.
“We've endured hunger and hardship for more than a year or two. We can bear that. But I can no longer bear seeing my child, or my friend's child, return dead and hanging from a pole.”
Whenever a subjugation force appeared, it was the villagers who suffered in the end. With no one to protect them, they had to defend the very enemies tormenting them to keep themselves alive, enduring an ordeal that tore at their hearts.
“Those rotten bastards!”
Bang Duchil roared.
I asked calmly, “What are they taking the villagers for? It's not as though they intend to turn farmers into Green Forest bandits.”
“Some are made into Green Forest bandits, but I hear most are forced to do every kind of menial work.”
Nearly a thousand people lived scattered across the mountains. Their daily food consumption alone dwarfed that of all the villages around Mount Cheonmok.
The fierce, rough Green Forest bandits would never cook for themselves. Those taken away were said to attend to them, living an inhuman existence.
“Can't they run away?”
One of Bang Duchil's followers asked, tilting their head in confusion. The elder shook their head.
“If anyone disobeys or runs away, they make an example of the village that person came from. What resistance can they offer when their families are all here?”
In other words, the bandits held hostages on both sides.
“I'd heard the Green Forest Seventy-Two Strongholds were rougher than ordinary mountain strongholds, but this goes far beyond that.”
Baek Soryeong's delicate brow furrowed.
“...!”
Bang Duchil rose without a word.
“Everyone, get your weapons.”
His grave, subdued voice made his companions turn serious as they began picking up their weapons.
“Didn't you hear them tell you not to do anything!”
Bang Duchil looked at the elder with expressionless eyes.
“Elder, is that child beside you your only remaining family?”
“...”
“When the child grows up, the Twin-Curtain Strongholds will probably set their sights on them too. Will you be able to keep them safe?”
The elder's face twisted.
“If the weak do nothing, they will only continue to suffer. At the very least, you must make them think they cannot act against you without consequence.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“I will settle matters with the Twin-Curtain Strongholds alongside my followers!”
“No!”
“Brother Duchil! That's too dangerous!”
The elder and Baek Soryeong cried out at the same time.
It was the natural response of any sensible person.
“If you rush in carelessly, the families held in the strongholds and the villagers will all die! Can you take responsibility for that?”
“Brother Duchil! The Twin-Curtain Strongholds have five hundred people each, a thousand in total. We cannot possibly face them alone.”
Bang Duchil frowned deeply.
“Soryeong, I lose to no one. And don't worry, Elder. I will bring every family member back safely. I swear it on my name.”
Bang Duchil was no longer listening to anyone. Baek Soryeong seemed to know his temperament and could only shake her head, while the elder looked as though they might faint at any moment.
“I oppose it too.”
“Hm?”
Bang Duchil and his followers, who had been about to leave, turned toward me.
“Who are you?”
“Me?”
I approached the child and held out my hand. The child stared blankly for a moment, then placed the one tael of silver in my palm.
“I am Jin Sowoon of the Taeul Sect, hired by this child.”
#
“Jin Sowoon of the Taeul Sect...? You?”
More and more people seemed to recognize me these days.
The moment Bang Duchil's followers heard my name, they began whispering among themselves.
“Jin Sowoon... The Black Flame Dragon Jin Sowoon?”
“The rising star of the Black Path martial world?”
“The most despicable Hidden Dragon?”
The problem with rumors was that they didn't always spread the way I wanted.
Ignoring the remarks that grated on my nerves, I continued.
“No matter how strong you are, it is impossible for a small group to subdue the Twin-Curtain Strongholds, especially when they are holding hostages.”
For the first time, Bang Duchil nodded at my words.
“Are you taking the Twin-Curtain Strongholds' side, as expected of the rising star of the Black Path martial world?”
“...”
No, I wasn't!
It was impossible to persuade someone who had complete faith in his own martial strength.
I looked at Baek Soryeong.
“Could you help me for a moment?”
“Me?”
“If we can't persuade him, he'll go straight to the Twin-Curtain Strongholds. Then neither he nor the hostages there will be safe.”
“...All right.”
After Baek Soryeong nodded, I pulled her toward me with one hand.
“Goodness!”
She smelled of violets, just as she had in my previous life.
Bang Duchil raised an eyebrow.
“...What are you doing?”
“Try saving her.”
“What?”
I lifted the Black Dragon Sword, scabbard and all, and held it to Baek Soryeong's neck.
“I said, save her.”
“...”
The instant Bang Duchil stepped forward with a fierce glare, I drew the sheathed sword across Baek Soryeong's neck.
“Ah!”
“She has died once.”
“...”
Bang Duchil's eyes turned cold as he drew up his internal energy.
Whoooosh.
Wind began to whirl around him.
Though the Gale Art Bang Duchil cultivated was a Daoist cultivation method, it forced vast amounts of internal energy together. If practiced improperly, it carried a high risk of qi deviation or losing the ability to speak.
Yet for Bang Duchil, whose Heavenly Vajra Limitless Physique perfectly compensated for the Gale Art's weakness, it was the ultimate cultivation method. It allowed him to gather and unleash internal energy faster than any other martial art.
Boom!
The pulling force of the Gale Mad Demon Fist dragged Baek Soryeong and me toward it.
I used the Taeul Eighty Thousand Divine Steps, leaving behind an afterimage as I evaded the Gale Mad Demon Fist, then once more drew the sheathed sword across Baek Soryeong's neck.
“She has died twice.”
“...You bastard!”
Bang Duchil had developed the Gale Fist and Gale Kick, both derived from the Gale Art, into martial arts unique to himself.
His not-yet-complete Gale Linked-Exchange Kick exploded forth.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Old furniture burst apart as Bang Duchil's feet struck in every direction, but they only hit afterimages. Not one attack touched Baek Soryeong or me.
“She has died three times.”
“...Damn it!”
Growing increasingly agitated, Bang Duchil gathered true qi in both hands.
He was about to unleash the Gale Divine Palm, the most destructive use of his internal energy.
“...If you fire that, this young lady will be hit as well. Do you want to kill her with your own hands?”
“...”
The shattered debris on the floor resonated and trembled, then soon fell still.
The wind whipping around him vanished as well.
He wore the expression of someone unwilling to admit he was wrong.
“...”
Silence settled over Bang Duchil's companions as well.
“When hostages are involved, we cannot act recklessly.”
Baek Soryeong nodded at my words.
“Brother Duchil, Young Master Jin is right.”
“...That doesn't mean we can simply stand by.”
“I am not saying we should stand by. I'm saying we need another plan.”
“Do you have another plan?”
Bang Duchil's group, along with the three brothers, looked at me with expectant eyes.
“Yes. Of course I do.”
“What is it?”
Crash!
Just as I was about to continue, the sound of a building being destroyed came from outside.
Bang Duchil, the others, and I all rushed out of the inn.
“Kyahahahaha!”
“Smash it! Tear it apart!”
“You! You are coming to our Hwamok Stronghold.”
Around twenty bandits had surrounded a house, dragging the family out while destroying the building and setting it on fire.
Bang Duchil and his group looked ready to rush out at once.
“If we act now, we won't be able to save the hostages properly.”
Bang Duchil flinched at my words and glared at me with wide eyes.
“As long as those people don't die, we can bring them back alive. But if we act now, we'll have to fight while the bandits hold hostages.”
“...”
I heard his teeth grind together. Bang Duchil clearly wanted to rush out and smash their heads in.
Perhaps sensing that hostility, several bandits came toward us.
“What? Who are you bastards? Why are you staring at us like that?”
I quickly stepped in front of Bang Duchil.
“Greetings. I am Jin Sowoon of the Taeul Sect.”
“Jin Sowoon of the Taeul Sect?”
“Oh... The Black Flame Dragon...”
Despite being bandits stationed in a mountain stronghold, they seemed surprisingly well informed about the martial world and looked at me with curiosity.
“What business brings you to this village?”
“Ah, I don't know if you've heard, but the Taeul Sect recently acquired the Changgung Merchant Group. We were considering trying our hand at trade alongside an escort agency, so we came to inspect the nearby route to Hangzhou first.”
“Hmm... To reach Hangzhou, you must pass through Mount Cheonmok. Why haven't we heard about this?”
A bandit with a eunuch saber slung over their shoulder glared at me as they faintly released killing intent. They were asking why we had not paid our respects to them.
“Ah, of course. We were just about to do so. Haha.”
I shook a pouch containing several silver coins, approached them, and respectfully offered it.
“I heard that an escort agency or merchant group must properly pay its respects before using this road for the first time. Please tell your Stronghold Leader that we will visit soon.”
“Oh, you are perceptive. You seem like you'll do well in business.”
“You flatter me. Thank you.”
“But what is with that bastard? Why is he glaring at us like that?”
The bandit holding the eunuch saber pointed the blade at Bang Duchil.
“Ah, they are our escort warriors. They only recently went from wandering martial artists to escort warriors, so please excuse them.”
“Hmph! To dare look at the Hwamok Stronghold like that.”
The bandit with the eunuch saber strode toward Bang Duchil.
Looking up at Bang Duchil, who was more than a head taller than them, they said, “Lower your eyes, bastard!”
“...”
Bang Duchil's lips twitched.
His reddened face looked ready to explode at any moment.
-If you cause trouble now, we cannot save the hostages.
At my sound transmission, Bang Duchil looked at me as though I were his mortal enemy, then lowered his head deeply.
“...I apologize.”
“...Hmph. You are nothing special.”
The departing bandit had no idea Bang Duchil was glaring at their back as if he wanted to kill them.
Once the Hwamok Stronghold bandits left, Bang Duchil strode up to me and gripped one of my shoulders so hard it felt as though it would break.
“You will take responsibility for your words.”
“Of course.”
“...If you fail to do so.”
Bang Duchil stared at me with deeply resentful eyes.
“You will have to deal with not only the Twin-Curtain Strongholds, but me as well.”
“I will take responsibility.”
“...”
Bang Duchil returned to the inn with his group, leaving only Baek Soryeong behind.
“Thank you, Young Master Jin. Thanks to you, I was able to stop Brother Duchil.”
“I was the one who acted rudely earlier.”
“Goodness, what are you saying? It wasn't bad, being held by an unfamiliar man for the first time in a while.”
With a smile as bright as fields of canola flowers, Baek Soryeong went back into the inn.
Footnotes:
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