Episode 290
Sun Woo-jin threw himself into treating the wounded who had crawled up from the riverbank with all his strength.
Because of this, their journey to Yangju was delayed, but no one minded.
As they tended to the injured, the group learned that these people were members of the Yukhap Pyo-guk’s escort unit. They had been crossing the Yangtze River when they were ambushed by a band of over a thousand bandits skilled in martial arts.
Despite their near-fatal injuries, the survivors kept repeating one desperate plea:
“Please… the children… the children…”
Sun Woo-jin smiled gently to reassure them.
“Trusted people have gone to help. If you just hold on a little longer, good news will come.”
But inside, Sun Woo-jin’s heart was far from light.
Seol Poong and Jeung Chil, who had gone to rescue the children, had not returned yet.
Considering the distance these wounded had traveled, it was unlikely they had come far on their own. Even with Seol Poong and Jeung Chil’s mastery of the new martial arts techniques, the delay suggested things were not going well.
A short while later, Sun Woo-jin received a transmission from Seol Poong.
— Jin, brother, can you come over here for a moment?
Sun Woo-jin closed his eyes tightly.
He already knew what it meant to be summoned within transmission range like this.
Meeting Seol Poong and Jeung Chil away from the wounded, he saw their heavy expressions as they shook their heads.
Seol Poong spoke.
“There’s no sign they intended to slaughter the children outright. They just smashed the carriage the kids were in, and the impact caused it to roll over…”
Sun Woo-jin roughly understood.
It would have been nearly impossible for children, weak in martial arts, to withstand such a shock.
Nodding grimly, Sun Woo-jin said to the two.
“Thank you for your efforts. For now, let’s keep this from the others until these people recover.”
Leaving them behind, Sun Woo-jin returned alone to the wounded.
He gave Yeon Tae-jin and Jin So-eun, who were waiting and watching him closely, a subtle shake of his head.
Yeon Tae-jin squeezed her eyes shut, and Jin So-eun bowed her head, on the verge of tears.
But unlike them, Sun Woo-jin no longer wore a dark expression.
He quickly put on a smile and spoke cheerfully to the injured.
“You’ve waited a long time, haven’t you? Sophie was in such a hurry. Ha ha ha! Is there anywhere that still feels uncomfortable?”
His smile was brighter than before.
As if nothing had happened.
As if good news was just around the corner.
Seeing this, Yeon Tae-jin and Jin So-eun also began caring for the wounded with smiles on their faces.
It was an incredibly difficult time.
At the same time.
At the Bloodwind Clan’s camp, a thousand mounted bandits roamed the plains between the Yangtze and Yangju, ruthlessly wiping out not only the Yukhap Pyo-guk but anyone who crossed their path.
After riding all day, they finally stopped moving as night fell.
The leader of the Bloodwind Clan, a man wearing a red mask known as the Bloodwind Commander, shouted.
“We camp here tonight! If all goes well, this will be over by tomorrow or the day after. Let’s push through a little longer! Good work, everyone!”
As soon as he finished, the bandits erupted into loud chatter, gathering in groups to light fires and prepare to rest.
The Bloodwind Commander stood silently, his sharp gaze watching over them.
At that moment, a lieutenant approached and spoke.
“This is the first time we’ve all gathered like this. Was it really necessary? I thought the target was only five people.”
The Commander’s eyes sharpened as he replied.
“Do you remember the old man who withstood our charge today?”
The lieutenant nodded.
“Ah, that old man? Yes, I remember. He was quite strong. A nuisance, really.”
The Commander continued.
“Think of those five as being stronger than that old man. Don’t let your guard down.”
The lieutenant fell silent, swallowing hard.
Experienced in group combat, he knew that increasing enemy numbers fivefold didn’t just mean five times the damage.
In team battles, even one extra person playing their role could turn the tide.
If the Commander was right, the opponents they’d face tomorrow might be fifty times stronger than that old man.
Seeing the lieutenant grasp the gravity of the situation, the Commander patted his shoulder.
“Don’t be careless, but don’t be afraid either. According to our intel, they’ll cross the Yangtze tomorrow, and they won’t expect us to be waiting. As long as we stay alert, victory is ours.”
That was the Commander’s unvarnished truth.
Martial arts masters often underestimated the power of group tactics.
They didn’t understand why cavalry charges were feared in real warfare.
In actual battles, a thousand horsemen could sometimes rout tens of thousands of foot soldiers.
And if those horsemen were all martial artists?
Given enough time to charge across open ground, even the most elite masters would be no match.
To be honest, the Bloodwind Commander thought that even a ‘Sawang’—a top-tier warrior—would be helpless in such conditions.
Tomorrow would be no different.
Masters ignorant of the terror of mounted charges would only serve to enhance the bandits’ reputation as trophies.
The next morning.
The group had spent the night almost sleepless, tending to the wounded.
Though they took brief turns resting, nearly everyone stayed awake, and thanks to that, no one among the injured died overnight.
Sun Woo-jin checked each pulse and sighed.
“Everyone’s improved a lot. Whether they can use martial arts again depends on proper treatment, but at least no one’s going to die right now.”
Relieved, everyone exhaled deeply.
Yeon Tae-jin, her tension easing, spoke with a weary face.
“I always feel that saving people is such a hard task. Killing is so much easier.”
Jin So-eun squeezed her hand tightly.
“Maybe that’s why saving lives is more valuable. It’s truly a blessing.”
The two women exchanged warm smiles, their bond like that of true sisters.
Watching them fondly, Jeung Chil suddenly asked Sun Woo-jin.
“So, what’s the plan now? We can’t take all of them with us, can we?”
Sun Woo-jin nodded.
“First, we’ll call the Yukhap Swordmasters and bring them to the harbor where we came from.”
“Eh? Back to the harbor? Why not head to Yangju?”
Jeung Chil asked, and Seol Poong answered.
“Because of those bandits. If they’re still on the road to Yangju, it could be dangerous.”
Jeung Chil scoffed.
“Hmph! What’s so great about some bandits? I could handle them all by myself on land, no problem!”
His loud boast made Yeon Tae-jin smile and tease.
“Oh? Why so confident, Brother Jeung? With your skills, you could probably handle them on water too!”
“Uh, well, of course,” Jeung Chil stammered, embarrassed.
Sun Woo-jin chuckled briefly before speaking again.
“A famous top-tier master who fought alongside us yesterday was defeated by those bandits. Don’t underestimate a bandit group trained in martial arts. If we meet them in open terrain, we could be in danger.”
Honestly, Sun Woo-jin was glad to have met these people first and learned about the bandits.
Though it was unfortunate for them, if they hadn’t encountered the earlier victims, they might have run into the bandits without any information while heading to Yangju.
What they’d heard was shocking.
Just two charges had killed a top-tier master, and the bandits’ losses were minimal.
This fight would require a different approach than usual.
Sun Woo-jin began to map out a plan in his mind.
“Meeting them in open ground is bad. So rather than on the way to Yangju…”
At that moment, Sun Woo-jin and Seol Poong sensed a faint movement and turned sharply.
Seol Poong’s face hardened.
“The sound of hooves—there are many. It’s them!”
Sun Woo-jin nodded.
“They’re coming this way. Looks like they’re heading toward the harbor.”
The others looked at Sun Woo-jin tensely.
True to form, Sun Woo-jin quickly made a decision.
“Let’s call the Yukhap Swordmasters and move the wounded to the harbor. Some of us will have to lure the bandits away so they can’t reach the harbor.”
They would split into two groups: one to transport the injured, the other to distract the enemy.
Yeon Tae-jin nodded.
“Poong and Master Sun Woo should lead the Swordmasters. Then naturally, So-eun, Brother Jeung, and I will handle the lure.”
That made sense.
Seol Poong and Sun Woo-jin would be busy moving the wounded.
But Sun Woo-jin wasn’t entirely confident in that plan.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the three, but he didn’t have a clear grasp of the bandits’ full strength.
With a worried look, Sun Woo-jin spoke.
“Lure them in a different direction. Under no circumstances should you engage them head-on out in the open. We’ll be there soon.”
At his words, the three of them nodded in agreement.
“Heh heh heh! Don’t worry, kid. I’ll drive those bastards straight into the river and dunk them good,” Jeungchil said confidently.
Sun Woojin looked at him with a worried expression.
Honestly, he was the one he worried about the most.
But knowing Jeungchil’s personality, he realized there was no point in arguing here and now.
It was better to get this over with quickly and follow.
“All right, then. Let’s get started!”
With that, Seolpoong and Sun Woojin headed toward the wounded, while Jeungchil, Yeon Taejin, and Jin Soeun dashed toward the direction where the horses were coming from.
As Jeungchil, Yeon Taejin, and Jin Soeun ran in the direction Sun Woojin had indicated, they couldn’t help but marvel once again at the sharp perception of Seolpoong and Sun Woojin.
They had to pick up the sound of hooves only after running quite a distance at full speed.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
The sound of galloping horsemen grew louder, and soon they saw a cloud of dust rising thickly on the horizon.
“They’re here!”
The three stopped where they were.
They planned to wait until the enemy got closer.
Soon, they spotted dark specks gathering on the horizon.
Whistling, Yeon Taejin said, “I thought a thousand horsemen wouldn’t be much, but seeing them in person is something else.”
She was right.
More than a thousand horsemen charging at full speed, spread wide across the plain, was a far cry from just a thousand people standing around.
Even Yeon Taejin, an elite martial artist, found their sheer force intimidating.
Jeungchil scoffed. “Hmph! What’s the big deal? If I fight properly, they won’t even get half a shi-jin away.”
Yeon Taejin glanced at him and asked, “Jeung brother, you remember what Sun Woo said, right?”
Jeungchil looked uneasy, and Yeon Taejin was no less worried.
But then Jeungchil nodded confidently.
“Of course! I can win if I fight, but we can’t ignore our youngest’s request. Today, we’re just luring them.”
Yeon Taejin and Jin Soeun breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Moments later, they confirmed the bandits had noticed them.
The enemy began shouting as they charged.
“Yi-yaah!”
“It’s a woman! Ha ha ha!”
“That woman’s mine!”
“Hey! I’ll take down that ugly old man!”
Jeungchil’s veins bulged at the insult.
Without wasting time, Yeon Taejin said, “Let’s go! We’ll lure them that way!”
The three turned right and started running.
They wanted to draw the bandits to the left.
The bandits, determined not to lose sight of them, veered left in pursuit.
“Think we’ll lose them?!”
“Ha ha ha! This morning’s a real hunt!”
“The short-haired woman’s mine!”
But then, a deep, powerful voice rang out.
— Do not change direction! Everyone, head straight for the harbor!
The voice carried a strong internal energy.
It was the voice of Hyeolpung Dae-do, leader of the Hyeolpung bandits.
He remembered their target was the young man among the five travelers.
But now, only an old man and two women remained.
Their attempt to lure them was painfully obvious.
‘The other two must be nearby. If they want to draw us away from the harbor, the rest will be there,’ he thought.
The bandits frowned but dared not disobey the order.
They turned back and charged toward the harbor.
“Tch! We’ll meet again!”
“Damn it!”
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
Jeungchil and the others, trying to lure the bandits, were left stunned.
Jeungchil shouted in disbelief, “Th-they’re…?!”
Yeon Taejin was equally shocked.
“Bandits ignoring me and heading somewhere else? How is that possible?”
Jin Soeun asked with a serious look, “What do we do now? There are not only the wounded but others near the harbor.”
She was right.
Sure, Seolpoong, Sun Woojin, and the Six Harmonies Swordmasters were there, but no matter how strong, they couldn’t protect all the civilians working at the harbor while fighting.
Jeungchil’s eyes gleamed as he said, “No choice then!”