Sichuan's Mad Dragon (Novel) - Chapter 34 - Among Prickly Martial Artists

Chapter 34 – Among Prickly Martial Artists

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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The Martial Alliance pursuit squad, the Five Poisons Valley martial artists, and the two unidentifiable vagrants… these three groups ran madly while maintaining a precarious distance from each other.

The Martial Alliance pursuit squad was on horseback, so though unintentionally, they became the standard by which the other groups regulated their pace.

To be a martial artist meant to be someone who could consistently run at the speed of galloping horses.

Of course, the horses the pursuit squad was riding had run almost non-stop from Sichuan to here, so even with stimulants, they were a bit slower than ordinary horses.

Red Beggar at least managed to keep up while running on all fours, but Ju-seong was in absolute agony.

The Five Poisons Valley martial artists were lower in realm than Ju-seong, yet they had learned good qinggong and glided ahead with ease. Ju-seong, sweating profusely as he ran, began to steal and learn from their qinggong.

Their running style somehow resembled a great python writhing and surging powerfully forward.

Of course, Ju-seong had never actually seen a huge snake. Even so, if a giant serpent or python were before him, he thought it would look like that.

Ju-seong corrected his footwork slightly again, changing the operation of his internal energy to be delicate yet powerful.

Before long, Ju-seong’s footsteps also began to slide smoothly along the ground, tracing a trajectory like the undulating body of a python.

Red Beggar, running beside him on all fours, looked at Ju-seong with an absurd expression.

‘What kind of talent does this man have…’

A man who created qinggong while running. That was Ju-seong.

A mere first-rate martial artist was imitating another’s qinggong and integrating it with his own gait to find movements suited to himself.

‘But why is he not copying Ten-Thousand-Li Roving Hound?’

Red Beggar ran hard, alternating arms and legs, wondering to himself.

Ju-seong glanced at Red Beggar running like a dog beside him. When their eyes met, he clenched his jaw tightly.

‘Ah, almost laughed.’

Ju-seong focused on the qinggong, moving his feet quickly. Laughing at another’s martial arts was a breach of etiquette.

After about half a day, the chase paused briefly because the pursuit squad at the front had stopped.

The martial artist at the very front had a hawk perched on his forearm and looked troubled.

“What is wrong, Blue Hawk? Did the fiend’s trail go cold?”

-Kieee!

The hawk threw back its head and cried out shrilly.

Among the spirit beasts raised by the Martial Alliance, there were creatures called Snow-Wing Blue Hawks. With wings white as snow and bodies like ordinary hawks but subtly radiating blue light depending on the angle of light, they were fierce raptors.

Ju-seong, having studied various miscellaneous subjects while with the Divine Physician, roughly knew their identity.

Once airborne, they could fly a thousand li easily, and everything within a hundred-odd li was within their sight. Moreover, they had a unique vision that could detect the body temperature of animals or humans, making them excellent for tracking or hunting.

They were by no means legendary spirit beasts like qilin or auspicious birds, just low-tier spirit beasts that naturally absorbed a little natural energy as they grew.

Ju-seong casually walked forward.

When Ju-seong approached, ignoring the tacit distancing, the Five Poisons Valley martial artists showed wariness first.

-Rustle.

Something metallic gleamed from beneath all their sleeves at once.

Ju-seong performed a cupped-fist salute.

“Heroes of the Five Poisons Valley, may I, a certain Ju, pass by? I have business with the hero from the Martial Alliance over there.”

The one who appeared to be the leader of the Five Poisons Valley martial artists fixed his eyes beneath his jet-black bamboo hat and replied briefly.

“…Pass.”

Ju-seong’s lip twitched into a crooked smile, then he walked past, muttering.

“Short speaker, cold bastards. Black bastards.”

One of the Five Poisons Valley martial artists narrowed his brow and was about to step forward, but the leader stopped him.

“He is a strong one, about my level. Do not act rashly.”

The leader had been unable to properly gauge Ju-seong’s level until he passed right by.

The Flame Crow Six Stage Art that Ju-seong had learned had been refined over a long time. That meant it had passed through many hands.

Among them, there must have been predecessors who were obsessed with hiding themselves and not revealing themselves. Thus, the Flame Crow Six Stage Art, despite being a powerful martial art harnessing extreme yang energy, did not show much on the outside.

Even old martial arts of authentic famous sects did not have such characteristics, but the Flame Crow Six Stage Art had undergone various modifications from passing through so many hands.

Thus Yeo Hong-pa, the White Scorpion Squad leader of the Five Poisons Valley, had initially dismissed Ju-seong as a nobody and spoken down to him.

‘Damn. To make such a mistake.’

The young man had little martial world experience and had lived his whole life in Yunnan, so he was used to others’ deference and courtesy.

He rarely encountered martial artists more skilled than himself.

He watched the young master walking toward the Martial Alliance martial artists with an uncomfortable feeling, then turned his head to look at his companion.

‘That strange fellow…’

Running with all fours was truly a first in his life. The fact that the speed was faster than expected made it even more absurd.

That one also did not reveal his energy well, but from the subtly emanating atmosphere, he did not seem to be an easy person either.

‘Well, perhaps it is for the better. We will need many experts to rescue Hong-yeon…’

He clenched his molars and thought of his younger sister. He could not even imagine what was happening to her right now.

Ju-seong, having approached the Martial Alliance’s men and horses, stopped at a distance and showed respect to the man with the Snow-Wing Blue Hawk on his forearm.

“I greet the heroes of the Martial Alliance. I, a certain Ju, ask with confidence: it seems you have lost the trail tracking the sexual predator. Am I correct?”

The man looked Ju-seong up and down for a moment, then slowly spoke.

“This is Martial Alliance business. The young hero need not become involved.”

His wariness toward the unfamiliar Ju-seong was evident.

“Please, let us not be so tiresome. In a situation where we must catch that man immediately, we should combine our strength. That Snow-Wing Blue Hawk can detect human body temperature. If it has lost the sexual predator’s trail, the reason is obvious. The sexual predator noticed the tracking and wrapped yin energy around his body to hide his temperature.”

“You! How do you know about the Snow-Wing Blue Hawk!”

A warrior roared and exuded pressure.

Whether Five Poisons Valley or Martial Alliance, even in such circumstances they were wary of outsiders.

Ju-seong mentally pressed his forehead and sighed.

‘Ah, living among prickly martial artists is so hard. Not even a fifteen-year-old maiden, why is everyone so prickly?’

It was a chronic ailment of those called prestigious in the martial world, but Ju-seong simply felt his annoyance surge. He was not a good-natured person in the first place.

He slightly moved aside the Stillness-Bright Incantation covering his upper dantian and released the killing intent he had been aging like fine wine.

“Come on, let us talk, brother. I am speaking to your leader, so why does a subordinate butt in? That is rude.”

-Hisss…!

The Martial Alliance warrior felt goosebumps prickling all down his spine and shuddered. The horse he rode also sensed something and stomped its hooves and balked.

Because Ju-seong had directed his killing intent precisely at him alone, the others did not even properly understand what had happened.

Ju-seong turned his gaze to the leader looking down at him with a grave expression and continued.

“In any case, from this we can infer one fact. The woman from the Five Poisons Valley that he kidnapped is most likely already dead. It is not easy to circulate energy to hide even another’s body temperature.”

“What do you mean! Hong-yeon is dead!”

Yeo Hong-pa, the leader of the Five Poisons Valley martial artists who had been listening from behind, shouted.

Ju-seong answered without even turning around.

“That the probability is high, I said. I made a judgment based on the given situation; I did not curse anyone. Anyway, I can help in this situation.”

“How so?”

Ju-seong, instead of answering, suddenly began rambling like a street fortune-teller.

“First of all, you have not washed since leaving the Martial Alliance main base. It was such a hard march. You are heading straight south from Sichuan.”

Then he pointed at the leader and continued.

“Men who carry fragrance pouches are usually pampered young masters who frequent brothels, but you, hero of the Martial Alliance, do not seem that sort of person. Your body smells of a young woman, but that is not a smell from briefly visiting a brothel. It is a scent that has clung to your clothes and skin over a long time. You have an old lover, or a wife. The fragrance pouch was also a gift from that woman.”

Helian Qiu, the Third Pursuit Squad Leader of the Martial Alliance, widened his eyes. He had indeed been lovers with a beautiful woman from a martial family for a long time. Before marriage, but they had slept together several times.

Before deployment, she had given him a fragrance pouch matching her own, asking him to think of her often. By now, with considerable time passed, the scent of the pouch had mostly faded.

Helian Qiu narrowed his eyes and spoke.

“…Uncanny. Though there is also the possibility you investigated beforehand.”

“Want me to do more? Over there, the warrior who made trouble with me earlier! Goodness, warrior, you have been riding so long that doing your business must be quite an ordeal these days. It is all chafed. Completely chafed…”

The warrior widened his eyes and shouted urgently.

“Enough! Enough, please! Captain, I am fine.”

Helian Qiu cleared his throat lightly, waved his hand, then admitted.

“You have a peculiar talent.”

Even as he spoke, he somehow thought Ju-seong’s speech and manner resembled a street medicine peddler.

“I have learned an art that temporarily heightens my sense of smell. I am confident I am better than most hunting dogs. I shall guide you, and you need only follow my lead and catch the sexual predator.”

Helian Qiu nodded without even hesitating.

“Good. Your identity is unclear, but your skill is confirmed, so for now there is no better alternative.”

He also spoke to the Five Poisons Valley martial artists for the first time.

“You are martial artists of the Five Poisons Valley, correct? When we confront the sexual predator, let us attack together. Please provide support.”

Yeo Hong-pa answered.

“Understood. Time is of the essence, so let us depart immediately. Young hero, I apologize for speaking down to you earlier. We are all on edge.”

Now that Ju-seong held the key to the pursuit, he had no choice but to lower himself. Moreover, he had been bothered about speaking down to a strong one.

“It is fine. Well, let us begin.”

Ju-seong, after briefly accepting the apology, abruptly pressed his nose to the ground.

“Hm?”

“Mmm…!”

A strapping young man suddenly crawling on all fours and sniffing could not help but bewilder the martial artists.

Ju-seong operated his Celestial Nose without minding the reactions around him.

‘It is not easy for me to track by scent, you know.’

Not much human scent could be left from walking across the ground.

He had to catch things like the sweat that had barely seeped from the soles of the feet, or the faint blood smell that had rubbed off from the sexual predator’s robes brushing the ground.

“Sniff sniff sniff sniff sniff.”

He crawled on the ground sniffing for a long while, then struck the ground with a tap, raising fine dust, and held it in his hand.

Then he suddenly stood up.

Then he blocked one nostril and inhaled hard.

“Sshhhhhhp!”

Then he suddenly threw back his head and trembled.

“Ugh.”

“Goodness, with a normal-looking face…”

It looked quite improper, but blocking one nostril was to make the scent shoot directly into the membrane through a narrow passage.

The trembling was from being overwhelmed by too much olfactory information flooding in at once.

Shortly after, coming to his senses, Ju-seong pointed in one direction and raised his voice.

“This cunning and crafty villain of the world! He changed direction. He went toward that mountain slope over there. Heroes, let us go!”

Red Beggar had already run over on all fours and was beside him.

One man and one dog led men and horses as they began running through the humid plain.