Chapter 318
It happened then.
As Jeong Mi-hee was being carried in Ja Gong-jin’s arms, her eyes suddenly flashed with sharp resolve.
Without hesitation, she pushed down her collar and plunged the hidden dagger in her sleeve deep into his abdomen.
Thrust!
“Ugh!”
Ja Gong-jin, who had been holding her tightly, couldn’t help but scream out in pain as the blade pierced his stomach.
In that instant, Jeong Mi-hee shoved him away with all her strength and began to unleash her inner energy, propelling herself forward with incredible speed.
She was heading straight for the main gate of the Hyung San Sect at the foot of the mountain.
Crash!
The sudden turn of events caught the young martial artists off guard, and they let out startled cries.
“W-what?!”
“W-what’s going on?!”
Meanwhile, Jeong Mi-hee was sprinting down the mountain with every ounce of strength she had left.
Though she regretted not being able to strike his heart in her nervousness, there was no turning back now.
All she could hope for was that the wounded Ja Gong-jin wouldn’t be able to pursue her.
Then—
Ja Gong-jin gritted his teeth and yanked the dagger from his wound, shouting harshly.
“What are you waiting for?! Go catch that woman immediately!”
“Y-yes! Right away!”
“Understood, Master Ja!”
Only then did the young warriors begin their chase, racing after Jeong Mi-hee down the mountain path.
“Hey, you! Stop right there!”
“Freeze!”
They shouted, but Jeong Mi-hee didn’t slow down.
If anything, she pushed herself even harder, running with desperate determination.
“Iik!”
Jeong Mi-hee was a first-rate mid-level martial artist.
No wonder the young warriors, who were only first-rate at best, struggled to close the distance.
She glanced back and saw that they weren’t gaining on her, and a triumphant smile spread across her face.
Honestly, she hadn’t been entirely confident, but her plan was unfolding perfectly.
Thank heavens.
“It’s working!” she thought just as—
Suddenly, Ja Gong-jin’s shadow dropped right in front of her.
Whoosh!
It was so sudden that Jeong Mi-hee gasped in shock.
“Aaah!”
She tried to stop abruptly but slipped and fell hard onto the ground.
And there, standing right before her, was Ja Gong-jin, his eyes burning with murderous intent.
Despite his injury, he had already caught up to her.
She couldn’t believe it.
“How… how?!”
Her gaze flicked to his abdomen.
He was clutching it with his left hand, still wincing in pain, but there was no blood flowing.
He must have already sealed the wound’s pressure points.
His right hand gripped his sword firmly, ready to strike.
Jeong Mi-hee had no choice but to accept the bitter truth.
Her last hope—the surprise attack—had failed.
Despair filled her eyes.
Ja Gong-jin raised his sword with a fierce glare and shouted,
“How dare you, you wretched woman!”
Sensing the end was near, Jeong Mi-hee squeezed her eyes shut and screamed.
“Ahhh!”
Suddenly, she felt the letter tucked inside her clothes.
The thought of dying without delivering it filled her with bitter frustration, and tears welled up.
Then—
Just as she braced herself for the cold steel, a voice rang out in her ear.
“Master Ja! Stop!”
Ja Gong-jin hesitated mid-swing, turning toward the voice.
In the distance, four figures were rushing toward them.
Squinting, Ja Gong-jin recognized one of them—someone familiar.
The man ran toward him, shouting urgently.
“Master Ja! It’s me, Mo Dong-ju! Stop your sword!”
Ja Gong-jin frowned, muttering,
“Mo Dong-ju… Master Mo? Why is he here?”
His mind was a whirlwind.
Not only had someone witnessed him about to kill Jeong Mi-hee, but he had been in the middle of a covert mission—meeting Mo Dong-ju was hardly a welcome surprise.
And Mo Dong-ju was an absolute top-tier expert, even stronger than himself.
Biting his lip, Ja Gong-jin thought,
Why is he here when he should be out on a mission?
But that wasn’t the main concern.
What should I do? Should I pretend to welcome him, then strike him down in a surprise attack?
As he pondered, three of the four had already closed in.
It was an incredible display of inner energy.
Ja Gong-jin’s gaze landed on a handsome young man beside Mo Dong-ju.
Though youthful in appearance, the young man wielded a formidable technique far beyond his years.
He might not be a peerless master like Mo Dong-ju, but he was certainly a top-tier expert.
This only deepened Ja Gong-jin’s dilemma.
Even if he killed Mo Dong-ju in a surprise attack, the young man and the elder nearby would be formidable opponents.
Then—
Mo Dong-ju, now close, called out warmly.
“Master Ja, it’s been a long time!”
Ja Gong-jin forced a smile and replied awkwardly,
“Y-yeah… Master, good to see you…”
At that moment, Sun Woo-jin, running just behind Mo Dong-ju, called out and then darted forward like a streak of light.
“Good work!”
Whoosh!
Ja Gong-jin stared blankly at Mo Dong-ju, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
The young man beside Mo Dong-ju suddenly appeared before me, and a beam of light…
That was all he saw before the young man vanished like an afterimage.
Now, only Mo Dong-ju and the elder remained in his sight.
Mo Dong-ju’s face caught Ja Gong-jin’s eye.
He stood there, looking at him with a strangely bitter expression.
Then—
A sudden sound came from behind Ja Gong-jin.
Click.
A familiar noise—the sound of a sword being sheathed.
But why from behind him?
Ja Gong-jin turned his head to look back—
But he couldn’t.
At that moment, his chest was split open, blood gushing out like a fountain.
Gush!
“Ugh!”
As his blood sprayed into the air, Ja Gong-jin’s vision blurred and his consciousness faded.
This was the end of Ja Gong-jin—the man who had dreamed of rising through flattery and scheming within the Weijeong State.
Jeong Mi-hee stared blankly at the bleeding, dying Ja Gong-jin.
She couldn’t make sense of what was happening.
Then—
Another voice reached her ears.
“Die, you bastards of the Hyung San Sect!”
Gush!
“Argh!”
“An intruder! Gah!”
Turning her head in alarm, she saw a man charging through the young warriors of the Hyung San Sect, slaughtering them with a spear like a harpoon.
Jeong Mi-hee muttered in a daze,
“Sa… Daehyup?”
He was definitely Dong Jeong-su-gwi, a fellow member of the Banhyung Association.
Suddenly, a voice called from behind her.
“Are you Jeong Mi-hee?”
Turning around, she saw a handsome young man dressed in black looking at her.
Swearing, Jeong Mi-hee thought he was the most handsome man she had ever seen.
Perhaps because he had come to her rescue in such a dire moment, she felt as if his face was glowing with light.
Staring at him blankly, she asked,
“…Are you perhaps a deity from the Celestial Realm? Or a grim reaper? Am I… dead?”
“……”
At that moment, Jung Chil, standing beside her, clicked his tongue and muttered,
“Tsk, tsk. Looks like the shock was too much. Such a pity at such a young age…”
Hearing that, Jeong Mi-hee turned to look at Jung Chil.
She realized she wasn’t dead yet.
Jung Chil’s shabby, unattractive appearance made it clear he was no celestial being.
So, she must still be alive.
After slaughtering the young warriors who had followed Ja Gong-jin, Dong Jeong-su-gwi spoke with Jeong Mi-hee.
Learning that Woo Nan-seol was with the Weijeong State, he finally received the letter she had left behind.
At last, they had obtained the information about the Yukhap Sword Technique that Sun Woo-jin had been seeking.
After handing the letter to Sun Woo-jin, Dong Jeong-su-gwi paced thoughtfully for a long moment.
Then, suddenly, he cursed loudly.
“Damn bastards!”
Everyone looked at him in confusion.
Though Woo Nan-seol had followed the Weijeong State, Jeong Mi-hee had been saved, and the information was safely delivered—why was he so angry?
Then—
With a scowl, Dong Jeong-su-gwi stomped toward Mo Dong-ju.
Sun Woo-jin and Jung Chil exchanged glances and prepared to intervene, just in case Dong Jeong-su-gwi suddenly attacked.
For some unknown reason, he looked furious.
Mo Dong-ju met his gaze tensely, unsure why he was suddenly the target of such anger.
Stopping just in front of Mo Dong-ju, Dong Jeong-su-gwi glared at him fiercely.
Mo Dong-ju swallowed nervously.
Then—
Dong Jeong-su-gwi clenched his teeth and barely managed to speak.
“Th-thank you.”
“…What?”
Mo Dong-ju was momentarily stunned.
He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.
He understood the words were meant as thanks, but he couldn’t believe Dong Jeong-su-gwi had actually said them.
Then, suddenly, Dong Jeong-su-gwi shouted angrily—
“Thank you! I said thank you! Is that clear?!”
Then, without another word, he spun around and started walking away again.
Seeing that, Sun Woo-jin and Jeung Chil exchanged glances and chuckled softly.
The truth was, it was mostly Mo Dong-joo’s doing that they’d been able to save Jung Mi-hee just now.
He was the one who stopped Ja Gong-jin-in from killing her, yes, but even before that, when they were hesitating about whether to join the Hyeongsan Sect or head straight to the Repentance Cave on the mountain behind, it was Mo Dong-joo who suggested, “Why don’t we just check it out, just in case?”
He’d offered to guide them inside quickly, saying he knew the place well.
Without him, there was no way they could have saved Jung Mi-hee or gotten any information about the Yukhap Swordsmanship.
Though gruff and prickly, Sa Woo-rim was the kind of person who, deep down, knew when to be grateful—even if it meant forcing the words out.
Understanding the situation now, Mo Dong-joo grinned slyly and called out to Sa Woo-rim.
“Master Sa! Lately, my hearing’s been going—didn’t catch what you just said! Did you say thank you?!”
Gritting his teeth, Sa Woo-rim didn’t even look back and started walking faster.
But Mo Dong-joo wasn’t about to give up his teasing so easily.
He followed behind, shouting again and again.
“Master Sa! I’m asking if you just said thank you! Did you really mean it? Well, well! Master Sa saying thank you to me—now that’s something to be grateful for, isn’t it?”
Finally, Sa Woo-rim couldn’t take it anymore. He spun around, shouting furiously.
“Cut it out this instant! Say one more word and I swear you’ll die by my hand!”
But Mo Dong-joo wasn’t one to back down from a threat.
Ignoring the warning, he kept shouting.
“No, what I mean is, Master Sa, you just said thank you—!”
With a roar, Sa Woo-rim lunged at him.
“Arrgh! You bastard! Die!”
But he couldn’t catch Mo Dong-joo, who darted away, still shouting.
“Master Sa! Why are you acting like this? Are you embarrassed to say thank you? If so, don’t worry! I won’t tell a soul that Master Sa said thank you to me…!”
“Arrrgh!”
Their chase went on for a while.
As a top-tier martial artist, Sa Woo-rim simply couldn’t catch the even more extraordinary Mo Dong-joo.
At first, Sun Woo-jin had thought about stepping in, but after using his keen eyesight to confirm there was no one else nearby, he decided to just let them be.
“Well, kids usually get closer by fighting like this anyway.”
Granted, both of them were much older than Sun Woo-jin, but judging by their behavior, their mental ages seemed far from even reaching their twenties.
Shaking his head with a small smile, Sun Woo-jin glanced down toward the foot of the mountain.
That was probably where the Weijeongguk forces had set up camp.
Seol Poong would be slowly making his way toward them.
So, while there was still a little time, if they wanted to finish things before the battle started, they’d have to get moving again—quickly.
With that in mind, Sun Woo-jin turned back toward the two reckless fools still playing their chase game.
“Master Sa! Why won’t you answer? You clearly said thank you to me earlier…!”
“Shut up, you bastard!”
Sun Woo-jin sighed and looked over at Jeung Chil, who was watching the two with a disapproving click of his tongue.
For once, Jeung Chil looked like the more mature one.
It was surprising, to say the least.