Chapter 451

After the series of events, the way the Zigong Merchant Group’s martial artists looked at Pyo Wol’s party changed.

If before they had looked at them with questioning gazes, wondering, ‘Who are those people?’, now they looked at them with fear.

The martial prowess displayed by Do Yeon-san, the youngest of the group, was terrifying enough, but they couldn’t even begin to fathom how great Pyo Wol’s martial prowess might be.

Only then did they understand why Lee Shin-pil, the owner of the Zigong Merchant Group, had treated Pyo Wol with such extreme courtesy.

‘I shouldn’t even glance in their direction.’

‘Pretending they don’t exist is the secret formula to a long life.’

The Zigong Merchant Group’s martial artists didn’t even look in the direction where Pyo Wol was.

Pyo Wol, Do Yeon-san, and Eun-yo sat at a table by the window, watching the martial artists and workers of the Zigong Merchant Group move about.

They hitched horses to the wagons and loaded the cargo.

They were preparing to leave.

They also loaded cargo onto the wagon Pyo Wol and the others would be riding. They took special care to tie the cargo down so it wouldn’t shift or fall.

Do Yeon-san asked if there was anything he could do to help, but they said it was fine and that resting quietly was help enough.

Do Yeon-san smacked his lips and said.

“Did I go too far yesterday?”

He was still not used to being regarded with such wary gazes, and it felt awkward.

In contrast, Pyo Wol and Eun-yo’s expressions were serene.

They had fought their way through too many Asura Fields to be bothered by something like this. Their hearts had been worn down, and their emotions were less stirred than those of ordinary people.

When the preparations to leave were finally complete, Lee Shin-pil approached and said.

“Please get in the wagon now.”

“Mm!”

As Pyo Wol nodded and rose from his seat, Do Yeon-san and Eun-yo followed.

As if it were the most natural thing in the world, Do Yeon-san climbed into the driver’s seat, and Eun-yo sat beside him. And Pyo Wol lay down on top of the cargo wagon.

“We’re departing.”

At Lee Shin-pil’s command, the Zigong Merchant Group left the inn.

As the wagon moved, Pyo Wol’s body, lying on the cargo, swayed. But Pyo Wol paid it no mind, lying with his arm as a pillow and gazing at the sky.

Just then, he felt a piercing gaze.

When he turned his head to the side, he saw a group of people standing on the second floor of a nearby building.

One of the men was staring intently, but when his eyes met Pyo Wol’s, he quickly bowed his head.

Pyo Wol looked at the man’s face for a moment before looking back at the sky.

Clip-clop! Clip-clop!

The wagon carrying him slowly passed the building and moved away.

Once Pyo Wol was out of sight, the man cautiously raised his head. His face was filled with terror.

His shoulder was still twitching with residual spasms, and his heart wouldn’t calm down easily.

“Heok! Heok!”

He found himself gasping for breath without realizing it.

Just then, oblivious to his state, a subordinate standing beside him spoke.

“But is it really okay to let them go like this? The Young Master was humiliated like that, we must get revenge.”

“What?”

The man turned around. The subordinate, his fighting spirit now burning even brighter, continued.

“If we let them go like this, people will look down on our Crimson Hand Clan.”

The subordinate was Kang Shin-yeol, one of the leaders of the Crimson Hand Clan.

Kang Shin-yeol was famous for his ferocious saber technique.

The man’s eyes grew cold as he looked at Kang Shin-yeol.

The man’s name was Gwak Ho-cheol.

He was the Boss of the Crimson Hand Clan.

Seeing Gwak Ho-cheol’s unusual gaze, Kang Shin-yeol’s expression became slightly intimidated.

“Wh-what is it? Boss!”

“You, are you trying to get me killed?”

“Pardon?”

“Do you covet the position of Crimson Hand Clan’s Boss that much?”

“Boss! Absolutely not. I just thought that avenging the young master would prevent you from losing face…”

Thwack!

In that moment, Gwak Ho-cheol kicked Kang Shin-yeol in the abdomen.

Kang Shin-yeol was sent flying backward without even letting out a scream.

Gwak Ho-cheol beckoned to Kang Shin-yeol with his finger.

“Come here!”

“B-Boss?”

Kang Shin-yeol staggered toward Gwak Ho-cheol.

Pow!

“Keok!”

In an instant, Gwak Ho-cheol’s fist struck Kang Shin-yeol’s face.

Kang Shin-yeol’s head snapped to the side, and three or four of his teeth flew out.

“B-Boss! Why are you doing this…”

“You son of a bitch! If you want to die, die alone. Why are you dragging me into it? You want to kill me and become the Boss? Huh! Is that it?”

“No, Boss! I would never think of such a thing.”

“Fuck! Then stay crumpled up. Don’t go trying to incite me.”

“Yes! I… apologize.”

In the end, Kang Shin-yeol had to bow his head and apologize.

It wasn’t that Gwak Ho-cheol didn’t want to take revenge on Do Yeon-san for humiliating his son.

Last night, when his son had returned, utterly terrified, he had been determined to get revenge. But his desire for vengeance vanished without a trace the moment he saw a man who paid him a quiet visit at dawn.

Gwak Ho-cheol surreptitiously touched his neck. Hidden by his collar, a red line had appeared on his throat.

‘Damn it!’

It was the mark left by that man.

If he had put just a little more strength into his hand, his head would have been severed from his body.

“Forget it. Both my son’s incident. And the fact that I visited.”

“Yes, yes! I will forget everything.”

“If word gets out that I stopped by here, I will come back. You know what I mean, right?”

“O-of course. I will ensure everyone’s silence.”

The man had not revealed his identity. But Gwak Ho-cheol had recognized him at once.

An inhuman appearance that shone ghostly white in the darkness.

A man with such an appearance couldn’t possibly be common in the world.

‘Pyo Wol!’

It truly felt like he had received a visit from the Reaper.

He still couldn’t believe he was alive.

Gwak Ho-cheol knew.

To avoid a second visit from the Reaper, he had to keep his mouth shut.

Gwak Ho-cheol issued an order to the members of the Crimson Hand Clan.

“Keep silent about the fact that the Zigong Merchant Group stopped here. If word gets out that they were here, you will all die by my hand. Understood?”

“Yes!”

“Understood.”

Having seen Kang Shin-yeol get mercilessly beaten, the subordinates answered in loud voices.

＊＊＊

The Zigong Merchant Group’s journey after leaving Chishui was smooth.

They stopped in several cities, and each time, they bought goods made by the local people.

They didn’t sell the goods they had brought but only bought new ones, so eventually, the wagons reached their full capacity.

Lee Shin-pil purchased several new wagons and filled them to the brim with cargo.

As the number of wagons increased, their speed inevitably slowed. Still, no one complained.

This was the nature of a trading company’s work.

If they found an item on the way that could be sold for a high price at their destination, they had to buy it and sell it.

Extracting the maximum profit from a single trade journey was the very essence of a trading company.

Pyo Wol knew this as well, so he said nothing even when the schedule was delayed.

The one who showed interest in this was Eun-yo.

Although she had managed numerous brothels in Chengdu and handled a lot of gold taels, she had never seen trading done at the heart of a merchant journey like this.

Though she couldn’t see, she listened to Lee Shin-pil’s voice as he traded with the locals and learned the basics of commerce.

She learned firsthand how to buy goods as cheaply as possible and how to sell them for the highest possible price.

As she hovered around during every transaction, Lee Shin-pil eventually included Eun-yo in the negotiations. Thanks to this, Eun-yo’s merchant skills improved rapidly.

‘I can use this later.’

For her, it was a more useful time than any other.

Naturally, where Eun-yo was, Do Yeon-san was too. But unlike Eun-yo, Do Yeon-san had little interest in trading.

His only interest was Eun-yo.

Thanks to him, Lee Shin-pil had to conduct his business with an extra person tagging along, but he didn’t feel it was much of a burden.

On the contrary, he felt reassured.

It was because he knew how formidable Do Yeon-san’s martial prowess was.

Suddenly, Lee Shin-pil raised his head and looked ahead.

The sun was now setting over the western mountains, but there was no sign of a city, not even a village.

Lee Shin-pil said to Gu Sanghak.

“It looks like we’ll have to camp out tonight, so hurry and find a suitable place to camp.”

“Yes! Unit Leader.”

Gu Sanghak replied and galloped ahead with his subordinates.

Finding a place for such a large group to camp was by no means an easy task.

It had to be a place where it was easy to secure drinking water and easy to spot any potential enemy raids.

If it were a route they traveled often, they would know of such campsites, but this place was unfamiliar to them as well. So they had to find one themselves.

Lee Shin-pil and his subordinates rode their horses slowly, waiting for Gu Sanghak and his men to return. But no matter how long they waited, Gu Sanghak and his men did not come back.

A deep furrow formed between Lee Shin-pil’s brows.

“Did they run into some kind of accident?”

Otherwise, there was no reason for them to be gone this long.

At the same time, he found it strange.

Gu Sanghak was an expert.

An expert whom Lee Shin-pil trusted and relied on.

He couldn’t imagine such an expert getting into an accident.

‘What if he really did get into an accident?’

Lee Shin-pil turned his head and looked at Pyo Wol.

At this moment, the only one he could trust was Pyo Wol.

Dududu!

Just then, the sound of horse hooves was heard. Fortunately, it was Gu Sanghak returning with his subordinates.

“Why were you so late?”

“I apologize for worrying you. We have found a campsite.”

“Did anything unusual happen?”

“Ah, about that…”

“What is it?”

“You’ll have to come and see for yourself. And if possible, if Great Hero Pyo Wol could also…”

Gu Sanghak glanced at Pyo Wol.

Reading the unusual atmosphere from his expression, Lee Shin-pil looked at Pyo Wol.

“He is not one to speak nonsense. If you don’t mind, would you please accompany us?”

“I’ll go.”

“Thank you.”

Lee Shin-pil was relieved that Pyo Wol did not refuse.

Lee Shin-pil pointed to the subordinates who had gone with Gu Sanghak and gave an order to the Zigong Merchant Group’s martial artists.

“You all follow them and prepare for camping.”

“Yes!”

After the subordinates replied and left, Lee Shin-pil and Pyo Wol’s party followed Gu Sanghak.

The place Gu Sanghak led them to was a remote spot far from the main road.

“It’s here.”

“Umm!”

Upon arriving at the destination, Lee Shin-pil let out a groan.

The place Gu Sanghak had brought them to was littered with dozens of corpses.

The condition of the brutally slaughtered bodies was, without exception, gruesome.

“What is this?”

Lee Shin-pil’s body trembled.

He was Lee Shin-pil, who had traveled all over All Under Heaven leading a trading company. He had seen many harsh sights, but what lay before his eyes was unequivocally the most horrific thing he had ever seen.

The bodies were cut into three or four pieces, as if they were filleted fish.

Arms and legs were scattered everywhere, and some bodies had their intestines spilling out.

Having caught the scent of the corpses, flocks of crows and vultures were already circling in the sky.

“Ugh!”

Unable to bear the nausea, Lee Shin-pil turned his head away.

Pyo Wol, without so much as a frown, approached the area where the bodies were scattered.

After closely examining the corpses, Pyo Wol came to a conclusion.

“They seem to be bandits.”

“You mean they were plunderers? How can you tell?”

“The insides of their pants are reinforced with leather to prevent wear. Those who live on horseback often do this. Look at their upper garments. They’re loose-fitting to make it easier to wield weapons on horseback. The calluses on their left palms are also unique. Such marks usually appear on those who frequently hold horse reins.”

“Ah!”

“It seems they tried to launch an ambush attack on someone and were annihilated in return.”

“Someone? Does that mean the one who dealt with them was a single person?”

“To be precise, there were two. They used the same technique, but one’s power is strong, while the other’s doesn’t quite measure up. There’s a high probability they are master and junior martial brother.”

“Master and junior martial brother…”