Chapter 439

The rather large Cloud-Piercing River Crossing Ship lurched.

The river had swollen greatly from the rain that fell all night.

The water, which had turned into a muddy torrent, flowed violently.

No one in their right mind would have dared to think of launching a boat on such a river.

The captain of the Cloud-Piercing River Crossing Ship was no different.

Under normal circumstances, he would never have set sail. The Gold Taels he would receive as payment were nice, but his life was more precious.

However, he had no choice.

The amount of Gold Taels he had received from his client was simply too much.

Having received a huge sum as a down payment, he had no choice but to launch the ship even in the raging current.

“Hey, you there, secure the sail properly.”

“Helmsman, there’s a reef twenty zhang ahead to the right. Steer left.”

“Hey, you bastards! Get your heads on straight. You want the ship to capsize and all of us to die?”

The captain continuously barked orders, mixing in curses.

As if accustomed to such a scene, the sailors diligently carried out his instructions.

Kuuuuu!

The Cloud-Piercing River Crossing Ship was tossed into the air by the raging current before slamming back down onto the water’s surface. Fortunately, it didn’t capsize, but the powerful impact sent the people and horses on board tumbling.

A woman who had shot to her feet screamed.

“Captain! Can’t you steer this thing properly?”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“Seriously!”

The woman, who was furious, was Ma Seowon.

Her body was soaked from the rain that had fallen all night.

Just then, Ma Wonik placed a hand on her shoulder and said,

“Calm down.”

“Father!”

“Have you forgotten that you must remain composed at times like this?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Yes! That’s the look. Keep it that way.”

“Yes!”

Ma Wonik, having confirmed that his daughter’s eyes had calmed, looked around the deck.

On the deck, his Subordinates stood, gripping the railing.

They were all skilled Martial Artists, but their expressions were clearly distressed. They had never expected the ship to rock so crazily.

The lower deck, where the horses were tied, was probably in an even greater state of chaos.

The horses the Silver River Escort Agency had brought were all fine steeds of good lineage. He, too, was displeased with a situation where such fine horses could be injured. But he had no choice.

“By now, that man, the Reaper, will have discovered the incident and will be in pursuit.”

“Surely he hasn’t started chasing us already? He’s only human. You think he’d move through the rain that was pouring down just a moment ago?”

“Do not judge him by the standards of an ordinary person. He is a man who transcends common sense. You must always assume the worst-case scenario and prepare for it.”

“That’s why we split the group in two to create a diversion.”

Half of the total fifty men were sent out through the south gate.

Once they were a certain distance from Chengdu, they would split into two groups again and ride in different directions.

All of this was to confuse Pyo Wol’s potential pursuit.

It would be better if Pyo Wol had gone toward the south gate, but if he happened to be tracking them, who had come out the east gate, the problem would become serious.

Ma Seowon thought her father was worrying too much.

The river leaves no traces.

Even if he reached the dock where they had boarded the Cloud-Piercing River Crossing Ship, there would be no tracks, so he would surely have a hard time tracking them.

‘No matter how much they call him the Reaper, he’s still human, so he must have his limits. Father is overthinking things.’

However, she did not voice her inner thoughts.

No matter how informal their father-daughter relationship was, there were things that should and should not be said.

Now was not the time to voice her own thoughts, but to get even one step further away from Chengdu.

Ma Wonik ordered a Subordinate.

“Check the scripture again. Look carefully to see if the waterproof cover has been torn anywhere.”

“Yes!”

The Subordinate replied and ran to the cabin.

It was the Original Buddhist Scripture, obtained with great difficulty.

As soon as his negotiations with Woo Jang-rak fell through, he had led his Subordinates in a surprise attack on the Snow Cloud Stronghold.

The rain had fallen just in time to help them.

When it rains, people tend to become sentimental without realizing it, and their guard tends to drop.

Ma Wonik understood this human tendency well.

Just as he thought, the security at the Snow Cloud Stronghold had become lax.

Killing Woo Jang-rak and Yu Gicheon was not a very difficult task. Woo Jang-rak was a bit of a nuisance, but he was no match for him.

The problem occurred at the last moment.

Just before collapsing from a severe wound, Yu Gicheon had set fire to the Snow Cloud Stronghold himself.

He had hoped someone would see the flames and come running.

It was too late to control the fire.

In the end, Ma Wonik had no choice but to escape the Snow Cloud Stronghold with only the scripture.

“The scripture is safe.”

The Subordinate who had gone to check on the scripture came back up and reported.

Ma Wonik nodded and looked ahead.

The swollen river was not entirely a bad thing.

As the current quickened, the speed at which the ship descended the river was also faster than usual.

Thanks to this, they were able to arrive at their destination earlier than he had expected.

Thud!

The ship docked at a pier a good distance from the Golden Hall.

The captain, his face exhausted, said,

“We’ve… we’ve arrived.”

“Good work.”

“I’ve kept my promise, so please give me my payment now.”

“Of course.”

Ma Wonik nodded and looked at his Subordinates.

His trusted aide, Jwa Sekyeong, approached.

In his hand was a rather large Wallet.

“Take it.”

Jwa Sekyeong tossed the Wallet to the captain.

At the heavy feeling in his hand, the captain grinned broadly.

He felt as if all his troubles had been perfectly compensated for with this one Wallet.

The captain, holding the Wallet, shouted.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and bring out the masters’ horses!”

“Yes!”

The sailors replied and unloaded the horses that had been on the ship.

As if to prove they had made it through the rough waters, a few of the horses had broken legs and could not get up.

“Tsk!”

Ma Wonik clicked his tongue as he looked at the horses.

A horse with a broken leg could not be treated and used. Not only would it be costly, but there was no guarantee that it would be able to run like before even if it recovered.

It was better to kill it, both to relieve the horse’s suffering and to save themselves from wasting time.

At Ma Wonik’s nod, his Subordinates swung their swords and killed all the injured horses.

Hee-hee-hing!

The sorrowful cries of the horses echoed beneath the pier.

‘Cruel bastards!’

The captain and the sailors watched the Martial Artists of the Silver River Escort Agency killing the horses with eyes full of fear.

It was then.

Jwa Sekyeong secretly exchanged glances with the other Martial Artists.

The Martial Artists of the Silver River Escort Agency who were near the sailors swung their swords like lightning.

Shwaaak!

“Keuk!”

That was the signal.

All the Martial Artists of the Silver River Escort Agency rushed at the sailors.

“Ugh!”

“Help me!”

The sailors screamed and tried to Escape. But the Martial Artists relentlessly chased and slaughtered them.

“Why, why are you doing this? We definitely kept our promise…”

The captain shouted, clutching the Wallet tightly.

Jwa Sekyeong walked toward him and said,

“We kept our promise too.”

“What?”

“Did we not pay you? It should be more than enough for your journey to the afterlife.”

“You planned this from the beginning. You vile bastards!”

“Huhu!”

Despite the captain’s condemnation, Jwa Sekyeong’s expression did not change. Instead, he quickened his pace, his face full of scorn.

“Eek!”

The captain threw the Wallet at Jwa Sekyeong and tried to Escape. But before he could take even a single step, he felt a fiery pain in his back and screamed.

“Kuaaack!”

Jwa Sekyeong’s sword was cutting deep into his back.

The captain collapsed to the ground, his breath cut short.

Ma Wonik approached Jwa Sekyeong.

“You’ve taken care of it for sure, I trust?”

“Yes!”

Thwack!

With his reply, Jwa Sekyeong stabbed the back of the captain’s head with his sword.

Ma Wonik nodded, as if pleased.

He picked up the Wallet that had fallen to the ground and handed it to Jwa Sekyeong.

“Use this for your travel expenses until we regroup.”

“Yes!”

“Then, take care of yourself until we meet again.”

“Agency Master, you must be careful as well.”

Jwa Sekyeong gave Ma Wonik a Fist-Palm Salute.

Ma Wonik nodded and said to his Subordinates,

“Let’s go!”

“Yes!”

Half of the Martial Artists who had come ashore, along with Ma Seowon, followed Ma Wonik.

They left the pier with the Original Buddhist Scripture.

Jwa Sekyeong stared blankly at their receding figures for a moment before speaking to the remaining Subordinates.

“We will move in the opposite direction. Let’s go!”

They could have moved together, but moving separately like this was to confuse Pyo Wol’s potential pursuit.

Jwa Sekyeong mounted his horse and muttered,

“I hope he follows me.”

Pyo Wol was certainly a fearsome being. But on the other hand, he was also a coveted prey.

If he could just hunt him, Jwa Sekyeong would be able to climb to a higher position.

Jwa Sekyeong suddenly let out a smirk.

“I wonder if he can even make it this far.”

If they had traveled by land, they would have surely left traces. But since they moved along the river, no traces remained.

No matter how skilled Pyo Wol was, it was impossible for him to track them here.

Jwa Sekyeong smiled and left the scene.

＊＊＊

Pyo Wol raced along the river.

Kwa-kwa-kwa!

The river flowed with a force that seemed ready to swallow the whole world.

On the surface, it looked like mere muddy water, but within it churned house-sized boulders, large logs, and all sorts of objects washed down from upstream.

The swollen river lapped at the very edge where Pyo Wol was running. Thanks to this, his ankles were submerged in water.

One wrong slip, and he would be crushed by a rock and lose his life before he could drown. Yet, Pyo Wol sprinted at full speed, as if he felt no sense of danger whatsoever.

By the time the sun was high in the sky, Pyo Wol spotted a large, stranded ship on the other side of the river.

The moment he saw the ship, he knew instinctively.

It was the ship he had been chasing.

The problem was crossing the river.

The distance from where Pyo Wol stood to where the ship was stranded was over three hundred zhang. Yet, Pyo Wol launched himself toward the river without any hesitation.

Pat!

His body, kicking off the ground, flew through the air like a bird. But after about ten zhang, he began to descend.

Just before he fell into the river, Pyo Wol precisely landed on a piece of driftwood and launched himself again.

Soaring high into the air, Pyo Wol scanned the river’s surface with the eyes of a hawk, looking for his next landing spot.

This time, too, Pyo Wol landed on a piece of wood floating on the water.

As he landed, the wood rocked violently and submerged. But in that instant, Pyo Wol was already gone, having launched himself toward the next piece of flotsam.

Ta-ta-tak!

Pyo Wol continuously launched himself without a single moment of hesitation or doubt.

Finally, after stepping on an unidentified piece of debris and leaping into the air, Pyo Wol executed the Bow Body Spring Shadow.

Tracing a long parabola through the air, Pyo Wol finally landed on the opposite bank. It was the very pier where the ship was stranded.

Pyo Wol looked inside the ship.

The corpses of sailors and the carcasses of horses came into view.

‘They destroyed the evidence.’

The sailors’ corpses were one thing, but he wondered why they had killed the horses. Only after carefully examining the horse carcasses did he realize all their legs were broken.

‘Their legs were broken, so they couldn’t carry people. That’s why they were killed.’

Pyo Wol came out of the ship and examined the tracks left on the ground.

Hoofprints and human footprints were mixed together.

Pyo Wol realized that the group had split into two directions from here.

Even Pyo Wol couldn’t tell which way Ma Wonik and the scripture had gone.

One group was entirely on horseback, while the other had a mix of hoofprints and numerous footprints.

It seemed those who had lost their horses on the ship were mixed in with that group.

Pyo Wol decided to choose the path with the higher probability.

The path he chose was the one where everyone was on horseback.

Logically, it made sense for the group with better mobility to be transporting the important item. That was why he intended to track the group that was entirely mounted.

Even Pyo Wol couldn’t be certain if his choice was correct. But he knew that it was far better to pursue them even a little bit faster than to hesitate.