Chapter 742: Just What Kind of Life Have You Lived?
“Can you really make jokes in a situation like this?”
Tae Soo thought that was Geom Mugeuk’s final pride. Perhaps he was trying to replace the guilt of offering himself with humor.
And yet, Tae Soo did not find this man hateful. This man who boasted that he had a thousand horses.
“Was a heart something that could be stolen with just one word?”
At Tae Soo’s question, Geom Mugeuk smiled as he replied.
“It was a single word promising to save your life.”
Tae Soo already knew that if he was dragged away like this, he would eventually die. That was why he spoke honestly.
“I don’t even know why I want to save you. I just... don’t know the reason, but I guess I liked you. And I have a request. If you ever happen to meet my father later, please tell him that I’m sorry.”
What he regretted most was that he would die without ever seeing his father again. He didn’t want his final words to his father to be ones that left a wound.
Just then—
“Bullshit.”
The one who spoke was the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils. A chilling murderous aura leaked from his eyes.
“You think I’ll spare them just because you ask me to?”
“If you kill them, I’ll never tell you the location of the Sword Tomb.”
A sneer appeared on the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils’ lips.
“Do you think I’ve never tortured anyone before? Everyone says things like you do at first. But not a single one has managed to keep their mouth shut in the end. You really think you’ll be any different?”
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils proved why he was called by that name.
“Before that, I’ll kill each and every one of them right before your eyes.”
Tae Soo panicked. This wasn’t what he wanted to happen.
“Everyone in that carriage—crawl out! Before I blow it to pieces.”
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils acted as though the world revolved around him. That was how confident he was in his strength. No matter who came out of that carriage, he was sure he could kill them.
Tap.
The carriage door opened, and One-Slash Sword Supreme stepped out.
She wore no glamorous makeup nor beautiful garments, yet the moment he saw her, a lustful glint crossed the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils’ eyes. Of all the heinous acts he had committed, was there ever a time he had not indulged in lustful deeds?
“It’s been a long time since I’ve felt such desire. You’ll be the last one I kill.”
Srrng.
The One-Slash Sword was about to be drawn.
But she barely managed to stop herself. Right—she couldn’t afford to lose a wager because of a bastard like him.
Clack.
After she sheathed the sword again, One-Slash Sword Supreme smiled as she spoke to Geom Mugeuk.
“It seems the two medicines you gave me worked quite well. To think they could even stir up lust in such a wretched old man.”
Geom Mugeuk beamed brightly as he replied.
“Do you think the result would’ve been any different if you hadn’t eaten it?”
At Geom Mugeuk’s words, One-Slash Sword Supreme let out a pleasant laugh.
Tak.
The carriage door on the opposite side flung open with an irritated motion.
From inside came the annoyed voice of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
“I don’t want to touch you.”
Both Geom Mugeuk and One-Slash Sword Supreme could tell that Blood Heaven Blade Demon was furious. And of course, they knew exactly why.
At last, Blood Heaven Blade Demon stepped out of the carriage.
“Just kill yourself.”
His cold eyes were fixed straight on the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils.
There should have been a reaction — whether it was swearing, murderous intent, or anything at all.
But the eyes of the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils, which had been staring at Blood Heaven Blade Demon, began to widen.
“You’re—!”
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils recognized him. They had met before.
“Why are you here?”
His voice trembled violently.
Instead of answering, Blood Heaven Blade Demon asked coldly.
“Don’t like it? Then I’ll kill you myself.”
He strode toward him. A terrifying demonic aura surged toward the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils — and then, in that instant—
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils struck his own crown with his palm.
Kwa-jik!
His skull shattered, and he collapsed to the ground. He had truly taken his own life.
“Ugh!”
The scream came from Tae Soo. It burst out of him before he could stop it.
‘What the hell did I just see?’
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils— that wicked monster— had killed himself? Why?
The Man of Ten-Thousand Evils he had heard about was the kind who, when losing, would resort to every vile method imaginable, and if even that failed, he would unleash the Self-Destruction Art.
Then who in the world was that old man, that even the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils would take his own life without so much as a fight?
“Ah, you’d better step back.”
As Geom Mugeuk retreated far away from Blood Heaven Blade Demon, he spoke.
“Just what kind of life have you lived?”
Blood Heaven Blade Demon smacked his lips, and One-Slash Sword Supreme laughed as she said,
“He used to have quite the fiery temper.”
He was the man who had been so terrifying that even the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils had trembled before him.
“That temper’s long gone now.”
Geom Mugeuk laughed as he picked up on Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s words.
“I like you a hundred times better as you are now. So please, don’t kill me.”
Meanwhile, Tae Soo cautiously approached the corpse of the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils. He wanted to confirm the death, but fear kept him from touching the body. It looked as if the man might leap up at any moment.
“Why did he kill himself?”
As he murmured blankly, Geom Mugeuk answered,
“Because he was scared?”
Tae Soo couldn’t help but conjure up another conspiracy.
“You’re all in on this, aren’t you? You’re acting, right? You’re all pretending to fool me and steal my Treasure Map!”
In his mind, he imagined the moment he entered the Sword Tomb — all the people who had supposedly died would reappear, lined up before him, mocking him.
“Look, there’s another actor over there.”
Geom Mugeuk looked toward one side and waved his hand.
Then, from afar, a masked figure revealed himself. His expression was as shocked as Tae Soo’s — it was Ji Han. Tae Soo thought he would use lightness skill to escape immediately, but—
Ji Han hurled his body in this direction.
Ji Han landed in front of Geom Mugeuk. Just like that day, Geom Mugeuk was smiling at him even today.
To his left stood Blood Heaven Blade Demon with his arms folded, and to his right stood One-Slash Sword Supreme with a composed gaze.
Their opponents did not even draw their swords and had forced the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils to take his own life.
Ji Han bowed his head in greeting and then stated his identity.
“I am Ji Han, Leader of the Soul-Chasing Squad of the Evil King Sect.”
Then he removed the mask he had been wearing. His appearance matched his calm eyes.
Geom Mugeuk asked him.
“Leader of the Soul-Chasing Squad? Are you the one who applied the soul-chasing incense?”
“Yes, that was my job.”
“Why did you come to me instead of running away?”
Ji Han looked at the corpse of the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils and sighed.
“Cheon Dae-woong, Fire Dragon Division Leader, who is responsible for obtaining this Treasure Map, will never believe that the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils took his own life without fighting. He always disliked me, so he’ll frame me, saying I colluded with the enemy and killed him.”
Someone would try to pin the responsibility for the deaths of the Blood Wind Four Swords and the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils on him.
He revealed another reason as well.
“Over the past ten-odd years, by showing courtesy to someone, I obtained a piece of information.”
He was referring to the intelligence broker Songno.
“He never sold your information. And he advised me to leave. If I could not leave, he told me to run straight toward death.”
Ji Han stared at Geom Mugeuk.
“Following that person’s advice, I decided to stake my life and my future.”
Ji Han wished deeply that the death before his eyes now would be a merciful death. He hoped it would be a forgiving death.
All the while he spoke, he thought it was madness. He was entrusting his body to people whose true nature he did not fully know.
Geom Mugeuk quietly studied Ji Han. His calm gaze did not suit the Evil King Sect.
“Why did you join the Evil King Sect?”
“I was born unusually sensitive to scents. Even when all kinds of smells were mixed together, I could distinguish each one and, when a scent drifted away, I could follow it. I liked the many scents of the world. Then I met my master and learned to study incense and to track scent — the scent-tracking technique. My master belonged to the Evil King Sect. I was young and did not know what kind of place the Evil King Sect was, and at that time it was not yet so notorious.”
Geom Mugeuk felt that he was not lying.
“Have you ever killed an innocent person?”
“Most of my duties were to pursue and capture those who fled from the main body. In that process, there were times I had no choice but to kill those who threw themselves at me, not caring if they died.”
“Anything else?”
“Nothing.”
A talent that handled the soul-chasing incense was surely a talent needed by the Tenebrous Ghosts Corps.
“What do you want?”
“Take me as your subordinate.”
Blood Heaven Blade Demon and One-Slash Sword Supreme looked at each other. Tae Soo and this man named Ji Han.
―Why did everyone like the Young Cult Leader so much?
To Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s sound transmission, One-Slash Sword Supreme answered.
―Ask yourself.
Blood Heaven Blade Demon turned his head with an amused expression.
Geom Mugeuk did not accept his request immediately.
“Do you know who I am?”
“You’re the one who told me, who had looked kindly on me for ten years, to throw away your life. I trusted that person’s eye. And I have nowhere to return to.”
In fact, there was one more reason.
After researching and tracking incense for a long time, he sometimes smelled certain scents on people. Not real smells, but some imagined scent.
If Cheon Dae-woong smelled of stench, this man smelled pleasant.
At last, Geom Mugeuk made his decision.
“All right. I will accept you.”
Ji Han was rather surprised by Geom Mugeuk’s ready answer. He had not expected to be accepted so easily. He had expected all kinds of conditions: do this, or prove your loyalty.
“From now on you are my man.”
“!”
He had used the phrase “my man,” not “my subordinate.”
“Do you trust me?”
Geom Mugeuk shook his head.
“I don’t know who you are, so I can’t trust you yet.”
“Then why?”
“When you first chased me, why did you stop your pursuit?”
When three of theirs had died, he had given up the chase.
“I judged that if I continued, all my subordinates would die.”
“Because I trusted that wise judgment. Because I trusted the heart that cherished your subordinates.”
Cheon Dae-woong had mocked him for returning with only three dead and had scorned him as a coward.
Geom Mugeuk, speaking of the same fact, had called that judgment excellent.
Ji Han did not hesitate any longer. He bowed respectfully and observed etiquette.
“Ji Han, I salute the new lord. I will serve with loyalty.”
“Your ability is more important than any other. I look forward to working with you.”
Old resentments of being treated like a hunting dog within the organization surged up, and his eyes turned red. Those were words he had longed to hear.
Watching, Tae Soo suddenly felt envious of Ji Han. In that moment, Tae Soo realized he wanted someone to recognize him.
Perhaps his constant anger and dissatisfaction were not because of his father’s rule to steal only the possessions of evildoers, but because his work was not being honorably acknowledged.
And yet, someone right before his eyes was changing another’s fate. They were showing that if one tried to change fate, it could be changed like this.
Ji Han looked at Tae Soo and spoke.
“I can’t completely remove the soul-chasing incense smeared on that man’s hands, but I can dilute it. That will buy you time to shake off the Soul-Chasing Squad.”
Even if he were absent, the Soul-Chasing Squad’s subordinates would pursue.
“Do it.”
Ji Han took a few small vials from his bosom and poured them, in order, onto both of Tae Soo’s hands.
“Now I won’t have to cut off your hands.”
At Geom Mugeuk’s joke, Tae Soo laughed broadly and felt relieved. He had been uneasy, feeling that his hands had been a shackle to everyone.
Geom Mugeuk said to Ji Han.
“Guide us.”
“To where?”
Where Geom Mugeuk intended to go was an unexpected place.
“To where Fire Dragon Division Leader is.”
“!”
The reason was even more surprising.
“He tormented my people and tried to kill them; I’ll kill him.”
Ji Han understood. He knew Geom Mugeuk meant it sincerely. He also knew Geom Mugeuk might actually kill Cheon Dae-woong.
Tae Soo, who was listening, leapt up.
“You want to strike at the Evil King Sect’s martial artists from here first? No way!”
“Didn’t you hear advice from your friend? If you want to live, throw yourself into death!”
Tae Soo stopped them out of fear, and Ji Han restrained them for a different reason.
“You mustn’t kill him.”
“Why not?”
“If we fail to recover the Treasure Map this time, he will be in serious trouble anyway. But if we kill him now, the Evil King Sect will fully intervene in this matter. I think it’s wise to leave the fool in the enemy camp alive.”
Geom Mugeuk looked pleased at Ji Han’s sound judgment.
“I’ll follow your counsel. But in return, you must die.”
“!”
Ji Han and Tae Soo both flinched.
Of course, he did not mean to actually kill him.
“Is there any of the soul-chasing incense left that was applied to the Treasure Map?”
“Yes, there is.”
Geom Mugeuk looked at the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils’ corpse and said,
“Apply it to his hands.”
Ji Han followed orders and smeared the soul-chasing incense onto the corpse’s hands.
“That bastard killed everyone here and stole the Treasure Map.”
Only then did Geom Mugeuk’s plan become clear. He intended to make it look as if the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils had ambushed and seized the Treasure Map. Given the villainy he had committed, no one would suspect otherwise.
Geom Mugeuk whistled a long note.
A martial artist then appeared. He was a warrior who shuttled between Geom Mugeuk and the Heavenly Communication Pavilion, delivering information. He was skilled enough to be called a master of lightness skill, and stealth.
“Take this corpse and go toward Shaanxi.”
Shaanxi was the opposite direction from Zhejiang, where they intended to go.
“There will be pursuers after you. Go as far as possible, drop the corpse, and get away. The corpse’s hands have soul-chasing incense on them, so do not touch them under any circumstances.”
“Yes, understood.”
The man tied the corpse’s hands behind its back, secured them, then hoisted the body onto his back and left the place. Since a master of lightness skill had departed first, there would be no chance for any later pursuers to catch up.
“If the body is found with the soul-chasing incense still on its hands? They’ll assume he fled all the way to Shaanxi, had the Treasure Map stolen by someone else, and was killed.”
Ji Han was impressed. It was an excellent plan.
First, it would create confusion, making them believe the location written on the Treasure Map was in Shaanxi.
Next, because he himself would be considered dead, he would be free from the organization’s pursuit.
In the end, Cheon Dae-woong would have to bear the responsibility for having entrusted this task to the Man of Ten-Thousand Evils.
Tae Soo cautiously asked.
“Who was that person who took the corpse? An escort agent? Or a porter?”
At the word “escort agent,” Ji Han looked at Tae Soo with a puzzled expression.
Tae Soo felt an unnecessary sense of pride, as if saying, ‘I know more about Geom Mugeuk than you do.’ A pointless sense of rivalry was rising.
But Ji Han instinctively understood. Geom Mugeuk and the two masters were absolutely not people from an escort bureau.
“Now, let’s go too.”
The two of them sat on either side of Geom Mugeuk.
“One of you is a master of escape, and the other is a master of pursuit. The balance fits perfectly, doesn’t it?”
Tae Soo and Ji Han exchanged glances. They had never imagined that the pursuer and the pursued would one day sit side by side in the same carriage.
“Now then, let the Evil King Sect fools suffer all they want in the wrong place.”
The carriage began moving once more, heading toward Zhejiang Province.
“Let’s go eat some five-spice braised pork!”