Chapter 22

Pyo Wol and the children checked their condition while hidden underground.

Ordinary people would go mad or tremble in fear if they were hiding underground without a single speck of light, but the children actually felt comfortable.

They were more accustomed to darkness than light. It was in dark spaces like this that they could truly rest comfortably.

In fact, Pyo Wol had slept soundly while in hiding. Thanks to that, his body was in peak condition.

If an ordinary person had been in the darkness like this, they wouldn’t have been able to sense the passage of time, but Pyo Wol, on the contrary, knew exactly how much time had passed.

According to his senses, not even a full day had gone by.

‘Daytime?’

A look of doubt appeared on his face.

When they had arrived here yesterday, it was around evening. Since a full day hadn’t passed, it must be broad daylight now. If they were going to launch an Ambush Attack, they should have done it last night.

Darkness was the best means of concealment for an Assassin.

An Assassination in broad daylight was bound to be a burden on an Assassin. No matter how skilled an Assassin was in Stealth Skill, it was not easy to hide the body perfectly during the day, and it required several times more effort than at night.

‘Are they planning to do it tonight, then?’

He thought that might be the case.

After all, it was no problem for the children to remain hidden and motionless for a day or two.

Even so, it was strange that he felt a peculiar sense of unease.

The surroundings were silent.

This was because not only the children, but also Death Sword and the other Assassins were all using their Stealth Skill to hide.

Such silence was normal. But Pyo Wol felt a strange sense of disharmony.

He had a foreboding feeling.

Whenever he had felt this way in the underground cavern, many children had died.

It was then.

Puuuk!

Suddenly, a spear plunged into the spot where he was hiding.

Pyo Wol twisted his body by a hair’s breadth and dodged the spear. But not everyone was as lucky as he was.

“Keuk!”

A scream erupted from the child hiding right next to him.

A long spear was embedded in his chest.

Pyo Wol kicked off the dirt and shouted.

“It’s a Raid.”

As soon as his shout echoed, the children burst out of their hiding places. The first thing that met their eyes as they came out was a group of Martial Artists armed with swords and spears.

They had surrounded the hill where Pyo Wol and the children were hiding, leaving no gaps.

“What the?”

“What’s going on?”

The children, unable to grasp the situation, wore bewildered expressions.

In the midst of it all, a Martial Artist pulled out the spear he had driven into the ground. The body of the child who had been stabbed to death by the spear was pulled along with it.

“So it was true. They said Assassins were hiding here.”

He swung the spear, flinging the dead child’s body far away as he muttered.

“How dare Assassins sneak this close to Mount Qingcheng. They’ve got some nerve.”

The name of the spear-wielding Martial Artist was Yu Jin-ok.

He was a Martial Artist from a Lay Family of the Qingcheng Sect and ran the True Star Martial Hall.

Yu Jin-ok pointed his spear at the children and shouted.

“They’re the ones who came to raid the Qingcheng Sect. Don’t let a single one escape, kill them all.”

“Waaah!”

The Martial Artists surrounding the hill rushed towards the children all at once.

“What happened? Why are they…”

“Evade for now. Break through the encirclement individually and regroup.”

When the children couldn’t make a proper judgment, So Yeowol issued the command.

Only then did the children come to their senses and scatter in all directions.

‘This is bad!’

Pyo Wol also launched himself into the air, assessing the situation.

He couldn’t tell exactly how many Martial Artists were surrounding this place. Just the ones he could see numbered over a hundred. Including those out of sight, the number could be several times that.

Yu Jin-ok, the True Star Martial Hall Master, was a Martial Artist who had uniquely established a name for himself with the spear. Thus, the Martial Artists of the True Star Martial Hall were also skilled in Spear arts.

The spear was a weapon that was the natural enemy of Assassins.

This was likely because Assassins primarily used short Daggers as their main weapon. The bigger problem was that their hiding place had been exposed, leaving them nowhere to hide.

Assassins were at their most powerful when they were hidden in the dark, launching an Ambush Attack. A frontal confrontation in broad daylight like this was inevitably disadvantageous for the children.

“Kraaak!”

“Ugh!”

The children were struck down by the Martial Artists without being able to mount a proper response.

The dead children couldn’t even close their eyes properly out of resentment.

Martial Artists rushed at Pyo Wol as well.

Shwish, shwish, shwish!

From a distance, their spears stabbed at Pyo Wol’s vital points.

In that instant, Pyo Wol’s body writhed like an eel. He passed through the narrow space between the spears and approached the Martial Artists.

“Hut!”

“What the?”

The Martial Artists, who never imagined Pyo Wol would approach like this, had surprised expressions on their faces.

Kwa-deuk!

Pyo Wol grabbed the neck of the nearest Martial Artist and twisted it.

With a gruesome cracking sound, the Martial Artist’s neck broke, and he died.

“That bastard killed Yuk-san.”

“Die!”

The Martial Artists, who had unexpectedly lost a comrade, hurriedly swung their spears to attack Pyo Wol. But Pyo Wol had already kicked off the dead Martial Artist’s body and thrown himself into the forest.

Pyo Wol had no intention of getting into a scuffle with the Martial Artists here.

Breaking through the Encirclement and escaping this place was the top priority.

As he flew through the air, he glanced to the side and saw So Yeowol and a few other children breaking through the Encirclement and escaping.

Pyo Wol also picked up his pace.

“Chase them!”

“Not a single one must escape.”

The ones who had surrounded the children were not just the Martial Artists of the True Star Martial Hall. There were also many Martial Artists mixed in who used Martial Arts of a different style.

They mercilessly attacked the children.

The children fought with all their might to break through the Encirclement they had formed. Still, more died than broke through.

“I, I don’t want to die.”

“What did we do wrong?”

Tears flowed from the eyes of the injured and dying children.

They had done nothing wrong.

At least, not after coming out into the outside world. They only felt it was unfair that they had to die.

“How dare a mere Assassin covet the prestigious Qingcheng. That alone is reason enough to die.”

“There is no place on this earth for the likes of Assassins to set foot.”

The faces of the Martial Artists killing the children were even tinged with madness. They mercilessly unleashed their killing techniques.

Pyo Wol evaded the Martial Artists and climbed up a tree.

He moved between the trees like a squirrel, avoiding the Martial Artists’ attacks. A few Martial Artists who spotted Pyo Wol tried to climb up the trees, but they couldn’t keep up with his speed.

‘I have to get to a safe place as quickly as possible.’

Pat!

Pyo Wol finally broke through the Encirclement.

He had sustained a fair number of injuries in the process, but none were fatal. Pyo Wol ignored the pain he felt throughout his body.

What was important now was to get as far away from here as possible.

Pyo Wol ran at the fastest speed he could muster and thought.

‘What happened?’

They had definitely moved stealthily.

They hadn’t encountered a single person on their way to the hill. So their movements hadn’t been exposed along the way.

Pyo Wol recalled Yu Jin-ok’s words.

—So it was true. They said Assassins were hiding here.

He had definitely said that.

That meant he had acted on information received from someone that Pyo Wol and the children were hiding here.

Someone had leaked the information beforehand.

‘Who would leak the information?’

Except for Pyo Wol, the children didn’t even know who the Assassination target was.

They hadn’t had contact with anyone after coming out into the outside world. In other words, there was no possibility that the children had leaked the information.

That left two possibilities.

‘Either the Bloody Shadows Guild leaked it, or the person who commissioned the Assassination deliberately spread the information.’

Pyo Wol bit his lip.

Shhh!

At that moment, a sharp sound of something cutting through the air rang out.

Pyo Wol almost instinctively twisted his body and kicked off from his spot.

Puk!

In that instant, a Flying Blade embedded itself in the spot where he had been.

Someone had launched an Ambush Attack.

“Over here.”

The Martial Artist who had thrown the Flying Blade shouted loudly. At that, the nearby Martial Artists swarmed over.

“Get him.”

“We must wipe out the likes of Assassins.”

The Martial Artists charged at Pyo Wol like hunting dogs.

Pyo Wol launched himself away to evade them.

The Martial Artists’ momentum was fierce, but it wasn’t as if he couldn’t fight them if he put his mind to it. If he had his way, Pyo Wol wanted to fight too. But if he fought here, he would eventually be tied down.

He didn’t know how many enemies there were; he had no time to waste in a place like this.

Pyo Wol ran like a madman.

He thought he would have shaken them off by now, but Martial Artists popped out from somewhere and attacked him.

‘Have they spread a Celestial Net?’

Pyo Wol was dumbfounded.

To think a Celestial Net would be spread to catch mere Assassins. Even Pyo Wol, who didn’t know much about the Jianghu, knew how ridiculous the current situation was.

‘Come to think of it, I didn’t see Death Sword or his Subordinates.’

Even while being ambushed, Pyo Wol had grasped every detail of his surroundings.

In the scene he had witnessed, Death Sword and the other Assassins were definitely not present.

‘It’s clear they pulled out before the Ambush Attack.’

It was certain that they knew in advance that the Martial Artists would attack. That’s why they had pulled out beforehand.

‘I don’t know the reason, but the client changed their mind. A situation arose where the Ambush Attack shouldn’t be carried out. So they’re trying to destroy the evidence. It would be troublesome for them if we succeeded in the Ambush Attack, or if the fact that we’re connected to them was revealed.’

Pyo Wol chewed on his lip.

Whatever the reason, it was clear that they had been abandoned.

It was foolish to expect help from the Bloody Shadows Guild.

He had to get out of here on his own.

Even as he ran at full speed, Pyo Wol carefully examined the surrounding terrain.

The place he was sprinting through was a vast plain with nowhere to hide. Being chased relentlessly by the Martial Artists, he had been driven into such a disadvantageous place.

The Martial Artists had intentionally driven Pyo Wol and the children towards the plain. This was because it was the most disadvantageous environment for an Assassin.

Here, there was not even a place to hide by using the Breath Concealment Art. But Pyo Wol did not give up.

There was no such thing as perfection in the world.

No matter how disadvantageous the environment, there was always a foothold for a comeback.

Just then, the faint sound of water reached Pyo Wol’s ears.

‘A river.’

There was no need to think further.

Pyo Wol ran in the direction of the river.

Puk!

“Keuk!”

At that moment, Pyo Wol’s body staggered greatly.

A long object was now embedded in his shoulder.

It was an arrow.

Someone had shot an arrow at Pyo Wol.

Pyo Wol almost tumbled forward. But he gritted his teeth, forced his body up, and ran.

He had no time to check who had shot the arrow. In that time, he had to run even a little further.

Puk, puk, puk!

Arrows landed one after another on the spot Pyo Wol had just passed.

“Tch!”

The Martial Artist who had shot the arrow at Pyo Wol made a regretful expression.

The Martial Artist’s name was Zhongli San of the Ghost Face Bow.

He was a Martial Artist who had mastered archery, a rare skill in the Jianghu. He was a master archer, capable of hitting a sparrow’s head from a hundred paces away.

Three children had already lost their lives to his arrows.

Opportunities to hunt humans so openly were not common.

“I will be the one to catch you.”

He used his Lightness Art to chase after Pyo Wol.

The fact that he had shot four arrows and only managed to hit one had wounded his pride.

He ran, following Pyo Wol’s tracks left on the ground.

An expert in archery was also an expert in Lightness Art. And he also had a knack for tracking.

For him, tracking Pyo Wol’s trail was a piece of cake.

Moreover, the arrow he had shot was stuck in Pyo Wol’s shoulder. The blood he had shed remained on the ground.

If he lost him even with such clear tracks, he was not qualified to be a hunter.

He would have to discard his Alias, Ghost Face Bow.

He operated the Azure Void Jade Heart Art.

The Azure Void Jade Heart Art was a unique Mind Method he had mastered, and it had the wondrous effect of maximizing his senses. For an archer like him who used a bow as a weapon, there was no better Mind Method.

Until now, no Martial Artist had ever escaped his Azure Void Jade Heart Art.

Zhongli San thought it would be the same this time.

It was then.

In the distance, the Martial Artists who were chasing the children suddenly pointed their fingers at him and shouted something.

They were too far away for him to hear their voices clearly.

‘What are they saying?’

He could see them pointing their fingers at Zhongli San’s back.

As Zhongli San unconsciously turned his head to follow the direction their fingers were pointing, his eyes widened.

Someone was following behind him like a ghost.

It was none other than Pyo Wol, whom Zhongli San had been chasing.

“What? You…”

Puk!

In that instant, Pyo Wol’s finger stabbed him in the Adam’s apple.

Pyo Wol’s finger dug into Zhongli San’s neck as if it were digging into tofu.

“Keuk!”

Zhongli San coughed up blood.

He looked at Pyo Wol with an expression of disbelief.

He was sure he was the one chasing Pyo Wol. He had even been on guard, using the Azure Void Jade Heart Art, so he couldn’t understand how on earth Pyo Wol had gotten behind him.

“Keuk! H-how?”

Pyo Wol had no time to answer his question.

This situation itself was quite a stretch for him.

He had used his Stealth Skill and the Breath Concealment Art simultaneously. Since he had deployed them in a hurry, there were many flaws.

If Zhongli San had been just a little more composed, he would have surely discovered Pyo Wol. But Zhongli San had been too careless.

He had made the mistake of tracking only the bloodstains Pyo Wol had intentionally left behind. That was why he had passed by the spot where Pyo Wol was hiding.

It was a scene clearly visible to the Martial Artists watching from afar, but he alone had failed to see it.

The price for that was death.

He might let the others go, but Zhongli San had to be killed.

This was because he was a master of tracking and archery.

Knowing how dangerous this combination was, Pyo Wol had no choice but to make a life-or-death gamble.

The other Martial Artists were rushing over.

Pyo Wol dodged them and jumped into the river.