Chapter 83

Chu Sajin’s eyes were so bloodshot that even the veins in his eyes had burst, making his eyeballs bright red. He looked like he could die at any moment, but Mang Ryo just kept speaking in riddles, driving him mad with frustration.

“Gkk, gk…”

“It’s alright, it’s alright. Ah, right!”

Mang Ryo spoke as gently as if to a grandson.

“Your wife, you know. Turns out she’s pregnant. Looks like it’s been a couple of months. You didn’t know, did you?”

“Ah… what? Uuugh!”

Chu Sajin was completely out of it.

If he’d been in his right mind, he would have jumped for joy. As the only son, he’d felt a heavy burden to continue the family line, so news of his wife’s pregnancy would have been a huge relief.

But now was not the time to be happy. Why was Mang Ryo telling him this now, of all times? Did Mang Ryo even realize how much pain he was in?

Mang Ryo clicked his tongue.

“But it’s a pity. By tomorrow morning, she’ll be found hanged, having committed suicide. Her husband died a violent death-imagine the shock, tsk tsk.”

Chu Sajin, his face twisted in agony, glared at Mang Ryo with blood-red eyes.

Until now, Mang Ryo’s words had been incomprehensible, but now the overall outline of what he was saying became clear.

“Gkk, gkkk!”

“Hm? You don’t get it? If there’s a grandson to carry on the line, your father’s heart might soften. But you know, the scariest people are those with nothing left to lose. I’m one of those madmen myself.”

Mang Ryo laughed heartily.

“Uuuuh! UUUAAAAAH!”

Chu Sajin tried to grab Mang Ryo’s ankle as he crouched beside him. He tried with all his might.

But Mang Ryo wouldn’t allow even that. Before Chu Sajin could touch him, Mang Ryo nimbly pulled his foot away and stomped on Chu Sajin’s hand.

“Un-uncle…! GAAAAH!”

Mang Ryo looked at Chu Sajin and shook his head.

“Your family’s really unlucky, you know. From the previous sect leader down to his son and grandson, three generations all died by my hand. It’s almost pitiful.”

At this point, Chu Sajin didn’t even know what kind of face to make anymore.

“Uwehh!”

He kept vomiting blood, staring at Mang Ryo, who just sighed.

“Why did the previous sect leader die, you ask? Your grandfather was actually a very clever man. He realized right away that my offer to help Five Birds Sect grow was a dangerous trap and rejected it outright. There was a reason Five Birds Sect survived so long in Yunnan, dominated by the Poison Sect.”

“Gghhh…”

“But did I just give up? Of course not. If you don’t listen, you have to die-what else can you do? He was smart, but not perceptive enough. Because he rejected my offer, now three generations are dying. Tsk.”

Mang Ryo muttered to himself, then cocked his head.

“No, wait. This is all Jin Ja-gang’s fault, isn’t it? If he’d just killed you, I wouldn’t have had to kill three generations myself! That guy’s really no help at all! Hahahaha!”

Even as he was dying, Chu Sajin felt a chill run down his spine.

Mang Ryo had deceived them for years. What could he possibly gain from all this?

“Are you curious why it had to be Five Birds Sect?”

Mang Ryo shrugged.

“You’ll be disappointed if I answer… The truth is, I just picked you at random. You just happened to be there.”

Chu Sajin was devastated.

“Gkk, gkkk…”

This is why you should never get involved with people from the Poison Sect. Mang Ryo wasn’t a savior-he was a monster who devoured them all.

‘I’m sorry… I’m sorry…’

He thought of the child he’d never get to hold, and of his wife, who would likely die by Mang Ryo’s hand as a suicide. He felt nothing but bitterness and regret.

Chu Sajin wept tears of blood.

The other warriors who’d been poisoned were already convulsing in their final moments. Soon, Chu Sajin would die the same way.

“Oh, and by the way, what he scattered earlier really was just Wawa Powder. He’s so soft, isn’t he? Good thing I got here in time. If you’d taken the antidote, it would’ve been a real headache… Hm? Nephew, are you not listening anymore? Are you already dead?”

***

Clop… clop.

Thud… thud.

A horse and an old man on crutches approached Five Birds Sect. Though the old man’s legs seemed lame, he didn’t ride the horse-because another person was slumped on the horse’s back.

The gatekeeper of Five Birds Sect, seeing this, was so shocked he ran inside.

The old man didn’t enter the gate, but stopped outside, holding the reins.

A moment later, the sect leader, Tiger Shield Sword Chu Hyo, came running out, panting.

When Chu Hyo saw his son Chu Sajin’s corpse draped over the saddle, he froze on the spot. His face twitched with an unnamable emotion, and his hands shook.

Mang Ryo, standing before him, lowered his head and let tears fall.

“I’m sorry. This is all my fault. By the time I arrived, he was already… the poisoning was too severe. If only I’d come a little earlier…”

Chu Hyo, eyes red, spoke slowly as if chewing each word.

“How… how could this possibly be your fault, brother? Anyone who lives by the sword in the martial world… we’re always prepared for this… But… but… he wasn’t the kind of child to go like this…”

He couldn’t say any more. With eyes wide open, Chu Hyo wept silent tears.

Chu Sajin’s young wife, who had run out after him, fainted on the spot when she saw her husband’s corpse.

Mang Ryo moved quickly to catch her so she wouldn’t get hurt. She hung limp, unconscious in his arms.

“It’s alright, it’s alright. She just fainted.”

Mang Ryo gently took her wrist and checked her pulse. Suddenly, his eyes widened and he looked at Chu Hyo.

“Brother, your daughter-in-law is pregnant. Did you know?”

Chu Hyo’s eyes went wide.

“B-brother. Are you sure?”

“Yes. About two months, I’d say.”

Chu Hyo was so shocked he looked up at the sky, mouth agape.

“Heaven and earth, thank you! Thank you so much!”

Tears streamed down Chu Hyo’s face in joy. It was a small blessing in the midst of tragedy.

“This is wonderful, truly wonderful.”

Mang Ryo also shed tears and congratulated him.

Chu Hyo composed himself and ordered the servants.

“What are you doing? Take my daughter-in-law inside-carefully!”

But Chu Sajin’s young wife, unable to bear her husband’s death, was found the next day hanged from a beam.

In a single day, Chu Hyo lost both his son and grandchild.

Chu Hyo became half-mad, drowning himself in drink. No one’s comfort could reach him.

Only Mang Ryo stayed by his side, silently drinking with him.

Three days and nights passed.

Chu Hyo, now just a shell of a man, kept drinking. Even with Mang Ryo there, the despair of losing everything could not be filled. No matter how much he drank, his heart remained empty.

Mang Ryo watched Chu Hyo with a faint smile, then quietly got up and disappeared without a word.

* * *

Meanwhile, after passing Danya Mountain, Jin Ja-gang arrived at Iron Umbrella Sect after four days.

Perhaps because word of the Shadow Bureau incident had spread, Iron Umbrella Sect’s defenses were ironclad.

From the main gate, six armed guards searched every traveler’s belongings and checked their identities. Armed warriors patrolled inside and outside the manor at all times.

‘This won’t be easy.’

But he couldn’t give up now that he’d come this far.

Jin Ja-gang spent another day lurking around, trying to find a way into Iron Umbrella Sect.

Then, something unexpected happened.

Three warriors in light armor came out of Iron Umbrella Sect, chatting with the gate guards. They each carried light packs.

‘What’s this?’

Jin Ja-gang thought he needed to listen in.

He’d learned techniques from the Medicine Sect for enhancing hearing, but with his blocked meridians, he couldn’t use them. He could only circulate energy to his right hand and foot.

Hiding in an alley, Jin Ja-gang smeared dirt on his face and tousled his hair.

He calmed his breathing and walked out, passing naturally in front of Iron Umbrella Sect’s manor.

As he got closer to the gate, his heart pounded, but he kept his pace slow and steady.

Finally, he could hear their conversation.

“We’re leaving today?”

“Yeah, we’re going ahead to reserve the whole inn on the way. It’s safer that way.”

“Weren’t we supposed to leave in four days?”

“The sect leader and the experts from Poison Valley are leaving tomorrow. I guess the sect leader decided it’s better to go early.”

“What if the enemy comes for us after the sect leader leaves?”

“Would they really? There’s no one left to attack us. Once we get to Poison Valley, they’ll discuss what to do about those guys.”

“Who the hell are these crazy bastards running around causing all this? I haven’t slept a wink.”

“Tell me about it. My wife begs me not to go out every time I’m home.”

Jin Ja-gang realized things were more serious than he’d thought.

The sect leader of Iron Umbrella Sect was leaving for a general assembly hosted by Poison Valley the next day.

‘If they leave tomorrow, there’s not enough time.’

With such tight security, he hadn’t even figured out the situation inside-how could he infiltrate now?

Once they left, Jin Ja-gang, who couldn’t use lightness skill properly, would have no way to catch up.

‘Should I attack the leadership, or go after those left behind? I have to choose.’

But if the leaders joined up at Poison Valley, attacking would be much harder. It was best to eliminate as many experts as possible before they could regroup.

‘Either way… if I can’t buy time, it’ll be tough. What should I do?’

As Jin Ja-gang pondered, he found himself right near the main gate.

“Oh, did you hear?”

“Hear what?”

One of the guards spoke in a creeped-out tone.

“The heir of Five Birds Sect was poisoned to death.”

“What? What’s Five Birds Sect got to do with anything?”

“They say he was killed while chasing the suspect who attacked Shadow Bureau.”

“Damn, this is bad. Are we just going to keep dying like this?”

Jin Ja-gang’s hair stood on end.

A chill ran down his spine.

‘Him… again!’

The poison Jin Ja-gang used only caused stomach pain-not death. He’d just wanted to make them stop chasing him.

But now they were dead.

He hadn’t killed them, but he was the one being blamed.

He never imagined someone would go so far as to kill the Five Birds Sect’s warriors. There was no reason to.

‘Was Five Birds Sect really working for him?’

It seemed like they were, but maybe it wasn’t such a close relationship.

Then, a thought flashed through Jin Ja-gang’s mind.

‘Eliminating witnesses?’

Now that he thought about it, anyone Jin Ja-gang had used tricks on, no matter how minor, had been killed. Even ordinary villagers who might have witnessed something were all slaughtered.

They weren’t erasing their own tracks-they were erasing Jin Ja-gang’s!

Listening to the Iron Umbrella Sect guards, Jin Ja-gang realized they had no idea how many people had attacked Stone Forest Gang and Shadow Bureau.

‘He’ had killed all witnesses to monopolize information.

A creeping discomfort gnawed at Jin Ja-gang’s mind.

His teeth clenched.

‘He plans to keep using me…?’

A small, angry smile appeared on Jin Ja-gang’s lips.

‘In that case, I’ll use you, too.’

Jin Ja-gang started to walk past the main gate, then abruptly changed direction.

He headed straight for the gate.

The light-armored warriors and guards glanced at Jin Ja-gang as they wrapped up their conversation.

“Anyway, take care out there.”

“Yeah, you too.”

The warriors dashed off, using lightness skill as they left the manor.

Jin Ja-gang stepped aside for a moment, then headed for the main gate once more.