Chapter 83

Chapter 83: No Matter How Long Time Passes, There Are Things You Cannot Forget (2)

Dam Ho and Bang Jin-bo returned to the West Wind Inn.

"Ugh! I'm exhausted."

The moment they entered their room, Bang Jin-bo collapsed onto the bed and groaned. In just half a day, far too much had happened. It was all too much for the young Bang Jin-bo to bear.

Bang Jin-bo lay on the bed and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Dam Ho sat in a chair and gazed out the window. Suddenly, something caught his eye. A small note was folded neatly and tucked into the window frame.

It had not been there when they had left the inn at dawn. Dam Ho opened the window and retrieved the note.

Two words were written on it.

Cheonsang.

Dam Ho clenched his fist and rose from his seat.

After confirming that Bang Jin-bo was sound asleep, Dam Ho stepped outside.

Leaving the West Wind Inn, he headed for the district where the pleasure quarters were concentrated. His destination was Cheonsang Ru.

At the entrance of Cheonsang Ru stood a familiar-faced girl. It was the one who had solicited customers the first time they had come here—Woon-jeong.

When Dam Ho appeared, Woon-jeong's expression shifted slightly.

"Where is the Pavilion Master?"

"She is waiting inside. Please follow me."

Woon-jeong led the way into Cheonsang Ru.

Dam Ho briefly surveyed his surroundings before following after her.

"Welcome."

Gi Ye-hwa greeted Dam Ho.

Dam Ho showed her the note in his hand.

"You sent this."

"That's right. I did."

"So you found something?"

"To some extent. Please, sit down."

"No. Tell me."

"You really are impatient. Still, please sit. The story is rather long."

"Then tell me quickly."

"As expected. I knew you would react this way if it were you."

A smile crept onto Gi Ye-hwa's lips, hidden behind her veil.

Dam Ho gazed at her in silence. Though his stare was burdensome enough, the smile on her lips did not fade.

"Seventeen or eighteen years ago, there was a group of bandits operating primarily in Shaanxi Province. Around thirty in number, their leader was a man in his fifties with a large scar on his left cheek. They are the ones you asked me to find. Is that correct?"

"Did you find them?"

Dam Ho's voice dropped to a low murmur. At the same time, the air in the room grew heavy.

Gi Ye-hwa's expression shifted slightly, as though the thickening atmosphere was pressing down upon her shoulders.

She moistened her lips and spoke.

"The people you are looking for are most likely the Black Tiger Band."

"The Black Tiger Band?"

"They were a group of bandits who terrorized the Shaanxi region during that time. They were infamous for raiding villages, kidnapping women, and committing assault. Wherever they passed, it was said that nothing remained—as though a plague had swept through."

"And the leader?"

"The leader's name was Jo Yun-san. Just as you described, he had a large scar on his left cheek."

The moment Gi Ye-hwa finished speaking, Dam Ho's brow twitched. Gi Ye-hwa did not miss that change.

Dam Ho, who had shown no emotion whatsoever like a statue of wood or stone, was displaying agitation for the first time.

"Jo… Yun-san. Jo Yun-san."

Dam Ho mouthed the name Gi Ye-hwa had spoken. As though he would never allow himself to forget it.

The sight was so chilling that Gi Ye-hwa was rendered momentarily speechless.

"Where is he now?"

"I was unable to determine his current whereabouts."

"Why?"

"Fifteen years ago, he disbanded the Black Tiger Band and vanished."

"He vanished?"

"Yes! He disbanded the band without warning and disappeared without a trace. His movements since have not been detected at all."

"So you're saying you cannot find him?"

In that instant, Gi Ye-hwa shuddered.

The killing intent embedded in his words made her flesh tremble.

She felt that if she did not provide the answer Dam Ho wanted, she would die. A chill ran down her spine, and every fine hair on her body stood on end.

Gi Ye-hwa hastily continued.

"Fortunately, I know the whereabouts of one member of the Black Tiger Band."

"Tell me! Where is he?"

"Providing the information is not difficult. In exchange…"

"In exchange?"

"There is something I would like you to do for me. Once you do it, I will tell you his whereabouts."

Gi Ye-hwa proposed a bargain. She believed Dam Ho would listen to her terms.

But Dam Ho's response was far beyond anything she had anticipated.

"You seem to be laboring under a misunderstanding."

"What?"

"I have already paid the price."

"That is…"

"I despise those who break promises or attach conditions above all else."

All the windows in the room were closed tight, leaving no gap for even a wisp of wind to enter. Yet the veil covering Gi Ye-hwa's face fluttered.

Through the veil, her face had gone pale with shock. She had not expected Dam Ho to reveal such killing intent so abruptly.

"Calm yourself, Young Master Dam!"

"Do as you please. Attach conditions if you wish. Break the promise if you like. But I will do as I please as well."

Dam Ho rose from his seat.

"Ugh!"

Blood trickled from Gi Ye-hwa's lips. The killing intent alone that Dam Ho radiated had inflicted internal injuries.

She stared at Dam Ho with terrified eyes.

"How many people are in here? Fifty? A hundred?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I will find them one by one and kill them all. Women, children, the elderly—it makes no difference. I will kill every last one. Until you tell me everything you know."

"That—that won't work. Our Haomun will never bow to any threat."

Though she had been overwhelmed by Dam Ho's presence, Gi Ye-hwa was a seasoned woman who had served as the Haomun's branch leader for years. She was not the type to yield easily to threats.

Unfortunately, her opponent was not ordinary.

Her opponent was Dam Ho. Once he set his mind to something, he never looked back or retreated.

"It doesn't matter. If I don't get answers here, I will go to the next Haomun branch. If I find nothing there, I will kill everyone in that branch as well. And then I will move on to the next."

"Do you think that would be possible? The main headquarters will issue an assassination order. Even someone like you would not be able to withstand it."

"I told you. It doesn't matter. Even if I die in the process, even if my limbs are severed—I don't care. But until I die, I will keep moving, killing as many of you as I can. Stop me if you can."

"Ah!"

Gi Ye-hwa could say nothing.

She had never encountered a man like this before. No negotiation, no bargain would work on Dam Ho. It seemed no words could ever persuade him.

A cold sweat trickled down her spine.

Her own reflection stared back at her from Dam Ho's dark eyes. Gone was her usual composed demeanor—instead, she saw a flustered stranger with a flushed face, her panic all too evident.

There was no time to feel embarrassed by the sight, for Dam Ho's killing intent was growing ever stronger.

"Young Mistress!"

Seol-hui, who had been hiding until now, could bear it no longer. She leapt out and placed herself before Gi Ye-hwa.

From her radiated an unwavering resolve to protect Gi Ye-hwa at all costs. But even that iron will seemed insignificant against the monster that was Dam Ho.

Dam Ho's gaze turned to Seol-hui.

"Let's start with you."

Shudder!

Seol-hui involuntarily crossed her arms to shield herself.

Boom!

"Kuhuk!"

With a muffled groan, Seol-hui's body was sent flying backward. Dam Ho's Fortress Breaking Fist had struck.

As she flew backward, both of her arms were swollen to twice their size.

It was fortunate that she had concentrated her internal energy in her arms. Otherwise, both her arms and her ribcage would have been shattered beyond recognition.

Seol-hui tried desperately to stop herself, but Dam Ho was faster.

Whoosh!

Dam Ho was closing in with terrifying speed.

His black hair whipped about, and through it, his dark eyes gleamed. Within those chillingly bright eyes, Seol-hui's terrified figure was reflected.

Her body seemed far too fragile to withstand the storm of killing intent Dam Ho radiated.

"Hup!"

Seol-hui involuntarily shut her eyes.

Thwack!

Dam Ho's hand seized her by the throat. Her feet lifted from the ground.

The Heaven-Shaking Strike was about to be unleashed.

"Wait! I'll tell you. I'll tell you, so please stop!"

Gi Ye-hwa's desperate scream echoed through the room.

Whoooosh!

The fierce wind that had been threatening to tear at their skin stopped as though it had never existed. At the same time, Seol-hui's feet touched the ground once more.

"I'll tell you. Without any conditions."

Only then did Dam Ho release Seol-hui's throat and look at Gi Ye-hwa. Fearing that Dam Ho might change his mind, she hastily spoke.

"Not far from here, in Seongeum, the main branch operates a gambling house. There is a man who frequently visits, claiming to have been a member of the Black Tiger Band. If you find him, you should be able to learn the whereabouts of the others."

"Seongeum, you said?"

"If you hurry, you can reach it within a day."

Gi Ye-hwa explained in detail how to find the gambling house. She feared that Dam Ho might change his mind at any moment.

Dam Ho's martial arts were terrifying, but what was even more frightening was Dam Ho himself. She had served as the Haomun's Agyang branch leader for years, and before that, as a courtesan, she had observed countless types of people—but none had made her feel fear the way Dam Ho did.

A man for whom dialogue and negotiation were meaningless.

For someone like her, who maintained complex relationships to balance power, he was the worst possible opponent.

"Protect Jin-bo while I am gone."

"That is…"

"This is not a request."

"Understood."

In the end, Gi Ye-hwa had no choice but to comply. There was no other way.

Dam Ho turned and left.

"Cough!"

Only then did Seol-hui cough dryly and slump to the ground.

Gi Ye-hwa stared blankly at the place where Dam Ho had vanished.

"I need to completely reassess everything about him. His martial prowess, personality, decisiveness, intelligence—everything exceeds danger levels by an immense margin. If we are not careful, he could become Haomun's worst enemy."

"Young Mistress!"

"Until orders come from above, we will cooperate with him fully for now."

"Is that really alright?"

"We have no choice. The main headquarters is far away, and he is right here. If we want to protect the one hundred and twenty lives of Cheonsang Ru, cooperation is our only option."

"I understand."

"Becoming his enemy will have to wait until we have secured a means of absolute subjugation. Though whether such a means even exists is questionable."

Gi Ye-hwa's voice trembled with unease.