Chapter 292 – People Who Are Meant to Meet Will Meet (2)

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The man was extremely thin. He was so emaciated that his cheekbones protruded sharply and his eyes were deeply sunken, adding to his sinister appearance.

Most striking of all was the clothing the man wore. The man’s attire was exceedingly strange. It was reddish-brown and resembled a blood-colored windbreaker robe, but it writhed on its own even without any wind. It looked exactly like a living creature.

The man was kneeling on one knee, examining the traces remaining on the ground. His eyes gleamed eerily.

“So he did head toward the snowy mountains after all?”

He raised his head and looked north. Beyond the vast plain, snowy mountains stood tall and majestic.

It was spring, when all things came to life. As if to prove this, the plain was covered in deep green foliage. But the mountains visible in the distance were covered in pure white snow, as if denying the season itself.

At first glance, they didn’t seem very far away, but they actually existed at an extremely distant location. The residents of this area called the snowy mountains sacred mountains and revered them.

As the man gazed at the snowy mountains with gleaming eyes, it happened.

Rustle!

With the sound of rustling clothing, someone revealed themselves.

It was a woman.

Her appearance was also far from ordinary. Like the distant snowy mountains, she wore a pure white long robe over which jet-black hair cascaded like a waterfall, and beneath the black hair was positioned a small face the size of a fist.

She was a beauty with snow-white skin and ice-cold eyes positioned beneath half-lowered eyebrows that were particularly impressive. At her waist hung a sword that looked as if it were made of frozen ice.

The man raised his head to look at the woman.

“Ha-gyeong.”

“Did you find his traces?”

Instead of answering, the man looked at the distant snowy mountains. That served as his answer.

“He went to the snowy mountains.”

“That was the only choice he had.”

“If he really went to the snowy mountains, it might actually become easier.”

“Do you think so?”

“Isn’t it?”

“A man of his caliber wouldn’t have headed to the snowy mountains without any calculation.”

At the man’s answer, the woman furrowed her brow.

The man before her was named Baek On-woo, owner of the Demon Weapon called Demon Dragon Robe. Though his outward appearance was gaunt and unimpressive, he was by no means someone to be taken lightly. Above all, he was skilled in tracking.

Even Jeong Cheon-ak, the leader of the Ten Soldiers, would acknowledge his superiority when it came to tracking, stealth, and infiltration.

Baek On-woo was a member of the Ten Soldiers. And the woman, Seomun Ha-gyeong, was also one of the Ten Soldiers like Baek On-woo.

The Ten Soldiers referred not to weapons but to people. Ten humans who possessed killing power as formidable as divine weapons with their human bodies – these were the Ten Soldiers.

The Ice Jade Blade hanging at Seomun Ha-gyeong’s waist was a Demon Weapon no less powerful than Baek On-woo’s Demon Dragon Robe. It possessed equally terrible destructive power. But more important than that was Seomun Ha-gyeong’s martial prowess.

Though she appeared delicate on the outside, her martial power ranked among the upper tiers of the Ten Soldiers. Because of this, even Baek On-woo couldn’t look down on her.

Baek On-woo asked:

“Where’s Cheon-ak?”

“He’s already here.”

“Is that so? That’s just like him.”

“That’s his original personality, isn’t it? He’s someone who can only be satisfied when he handles everything himself.”

“Well, that’s probably why he became the leader of the Ten Soldiers. Anyway, now that Cheon-ak has joined us, things should become easier.”

“Still, we can’t let our guard down. You saw it too. His martial prowess.”

“He was impossibly strong.”

Baek On-woo nodded and lifted his Demon Dragon Robe. This revealed his side, stained red with fresh blood. It was a wound he had received from him.

Even though he had protected his entire body with the Demon Dragon Robe, he had still suffered this degree of injury. Without the Demon Dragon Robe, he would have died instantly.

“However, he’s tired and wounded. He will definitely die by our hands.”

“Now that all the Ten Soldiers have been mobilized, it’s impossible for him to survive. But we must be careful. Even a mouse will attack when cornered, let alone a master of his level.”

“That’s true. What I’m curious about is how a master of his level remained unknown to the world until now. Especially when he’s supposedly from our sect.”

At Baek On-woo’s words, Seomun Ha-gyeong frowned slightly. And Baek On-woo didn’t miss her reaction.

“So you did know after all.”

“…”

“Come to think of it, you’re also from the Heavenly Gold Demon Palace, aren’t you? In that case, it would be stranger if you didn’t know him.”

Baek On-woo’s eyes gleamed.

“You’re right. I knew him.”

“You’re not sympathizing with him, are you?”

“Sympathizing? Why would I?”

“Aren’t you?”

“Hmph! Just because we stayed in the same space doesn’t mean everyone was friendly. Especially with someone as cunning as him…”

Seomun Ha-gyeong’s voice contained subtle hostility. Indeed, her reaction had noticeably intensified ever since she mentioned ‘him.’

“Then that’s settled.”

Baek On-woo nodded and turned around. Having heard the answer he wanted, he acted as if nothing else mattered. Looking at Baek On-woo’s back, Seomun Ha-gyeong’s eyes gleamed.

‘Annoying bastard.’

The Ten Soldiers were largely divided into two groups.

Those who had spent their childhood at the Heavenly Gold Demon Palace and those who had not.

Seomun Ha-gyeong belonged to the former, while Baek On-woo belonged to the latter.

A subtle gap existed between them, and sometimes it was as irritating as a small pebble stuck in one’s mouth.

Baek On-woo walked ahead and said:

“Let’s hurry. We don’t know what tricks he might pull next.”

“Understood.”

Seomun Ha-gyeong nodded and followed behind him.

Baek On-woo, who had been walking ahead, suddenly raised his head to look at the sky.

“The Demon Mother will arrive soon.”

***

Dam-ho, Eum Yu-kyung, and Shin Moo-wol were aboard a small boat. Since Shin Moo-wol’s physical condition wasn’t good, they had chosen to travel by boat instead of on horseback.

Fortunately, there was a river connecting from Dujiangyan to the vicinity of Muli, so Eum Yu-kyung had rented an entire boat.

The boatman’s skills were quite excellent, skillfully handling the boat by himself. Thanks to this, Shin Moo-wol was able to sit cross-legged and practice energy circulation throughout the boat journey.

Even on the swaying boat, Shin Moo-wol’s concentration didn’t waver. He was doing his utmost to completely expel the poison he had pushed to one side of his body.

Eum Yu-kyung watched him for a moment before shifting her gaze to Dam-ho. Dam-ho stood at the bow like a statue.

His back view, standing motionlessly with arms crossed, reminded her of Mount Hua.

His appearance, like a great peak that had endured in that place for countless eons, perfectly matched Mount Hua… 

‘Mount Hua Fist Demon.’

Now people don’t simply call Dam-ho the Fist Demon. They attach the two characters for Mount Hua and call him the Mount Hua Fist Demon.

In Mount Hua’s history, there had never existed a martial artist who stood tall in the world with as intense a presence as Dam-ho.

He was Mount Hua itself, and Mount Hua was Dam-ho himself.

Accompanying such a Dam-ho was both very reassuring and burdensome.

As always, controlling Dam-ho was nearly impossible.

The current companionship was because their interests aligned, not because Dam-ho purely wanted to help Eum Yu-kyung. So while it was reassuring, she also felt somewhat anxious on the other hand.

“Sigh!”

Eum Yu-kyung let out a sigh.

Lately, Eum Yu-kyung had been sighing much more frequently. But Eum Yu-kyung herself wasn’t aware of this fact. That’s how complicated her state of mind was.

‘Master…’

The face and name she had tried so hard to forget suddenly came to mind.

She still vividly remembered the warm embrace of the woman who had held her as a child. At that time, she had really taken care of Eum Yu-kyung devotedly.

To young Eum Yu-kyung, she had been a mother substitute and everything in the world. But the fact that she now had to face her as an enemy made her suffer.

Suddenly feeling a chill, Eum Yu-kyung hunched her shoulders and wrapped her arms around them.

At that moment, the boatman’s voice broke everyone’s reverie.

“From here on, two rivers merge and flow as one, so we must be especially careful. There will probably be many more boats too.”

Dam-ho raised his head, and Shin Moo-wol also finished his energy circulation and stood up from his position.

“Whew!”

Shin Moo-wol let out a sigh of relief.

In just one day, his complexion had improved considerably. Though some poison still remained, this much seemed sufficient for movement without hindrance.

Shin Moo-wol approached Eum Yu-kyung.

“Fourth Sister.”

“How’s your body?”

“Much better.”

“That’s a relief.”

“I’m only sorry for causing you worry.”

“No!”

Eum Yu-kyung shook her head. But the shadow that had fallen over her face showed no sign of lifting easily.

Shin Moo-wol looked at Eum Yu-kyung with a worried expression.

“Fourth Sister.”

“Hmm? What?”

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

“Sigh! There’s no way you could be fine.”

Shin Moo-wol let out a sigh. Shin Moo-wol had always been full of laughter and composure. If even Shin Moo-wol’s heart was disturbed, it would be stranger if Eum Yu-kyung were perfectly fine.

“I only know some of them, but Fourth Sister knows all of them, don’t you? The very fact of meeting them again will be an ordeal.”

“Yes! My heart isn’t very comfortable.”

“That’s natural.”

“Of all things, they had to appear under the name Ten Soldiers.”

“Indeed.”

Eum Yu-kyung’s eyes were shaking.

Those united under the name Ten Soldiers had once been Eum Yu-kyung’s comrades and friends with whom she had shared affection. Though they had parted ways in childhood due to taking different paths, it was hard to easily accept the fact that she now had to cross swords with them.

“Hell will unfold. We must steel our resolve.”

Former friends had become enemies. To point swords at them required firm resolve on this side as well.

Shin Moo-wol was speaking of this point.

Eum Yu-kyung nodded.

“I know. It’s just… my heart aches. That it has to be this way.”

“I understand.”

“Sigh! How much further do we have to go to reach Muli?”

“If we continue like this, we should be able to arrive within two or three days.”

“I hope we won’t be too late.”

“Don’t worry. Elder Brother isn’t someone who would be defeated so easily. Have you forgotten who he is?”

“Yes! He is unyielding.”

At Eum Yu-kyung’s answer, Shin Moo-wol smiled.

Unyielding.

Geom Yul-cheon was a man who would never yield under any circumstances. That’s why they believed in and followed him.

Shin Moo-wol’s gaze suddenly turned toward Dam-ho standing at the bow.

No matter how calm the river water might be, the boat was constantly swaying without staying still for a moment. Even on such a boat, Dam-ho had been showing an unwavering appearance for several hours.

‘That man also walks the path of the unyielding.’

Dam-ho’s course of action so far had been like this. Now he had to acknowledge it.

Though their routes were different, Dam-ho had never once retreated or taken a detour. His course of walking silently forward, looking only ahead, made even Shin Moo-wol admire him.

‘Elder Brother and that man will someday clash at the summit.’

There couldn’t be two tigers on one mountain. Especially if the two tigers were incomparably larger and more ferocious than other tigers.

Shin Moo-wol shook his head and said to Eum Yu-kyung:

“Let’s go into the cabin. Now is the time to rest even a little and conserve our strength.”

“We should.”

Eum Yu-kyung nodded and entered the cabin with Shin Moo-wol.

Left alone, Dam-ho didn’t even glance at them.

As the boatman had said, two rivers were merging. Along with this, the boats floating on the river had noticeably increased.

There were boats not much larger than the one Dam-ho was on, and there were also huge cargo vessels that could carry many people.

Among them, one fairly large ship caught his eye.

The ship itself was ordinary. But the appearance of the people glimpsed on the ship was not ordinary.

Instead of the typical sailors one would see on a regular ship, they were women wearing large bamboo hats and covering their entire bodies with blood-colored windbreaker robes.

They were navigating the river skillfully like experienced boatmen, cutting through the water.

At the bow of the ship stood a woman dressed in red clothing. The gazes of the woman whose face was covered with red silk and Dam-ho met in mid-air.