Chapter 169
After traveling several more days, Jaseong and his group arrived at Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province.
Lanzhou was the starting point of the Silk Road and a vast trading city where the cultures of the East and West intersected.
The moment they passed through the city gates, an exotic scene unfolded before their eyes.
Not only people from the Central Plains filled the streets, but also traders from the Western Regions with blue eyes and high noses, and Persian merchants with turbans.
They were all shouting in their own languages, selling their wares.
Camel caravans jingled with bells as they passed through the street, and the air was thick with the unfamiliar scent of spices.
"Wow... this is amazing! It really feels like we've entered an entirely different world now!"
Lee Rin, her eyes sparkling with wonder, looked around.
For her, who had lived her whole life in the ice palace of the Northern Sea, this lively and exotic scenery was an entirely new paradise.
Jaseong led the group toward Lanzhou's market.
Before setting out for Xinjiang, they needed to stock up on supplies and gather information.
Murmur―murmur―
The market was truly packed with people.
Colorful carpets, fruits shining like jewels, and crafts of strange shapes lined every stall.
Lee Rin lightly tugged at Jaseong's sleeve.
"Great hero, let's look around the market for a bit!"
"Hmm. We don't have much time..."
"Just a moment! Really, just for a moment! I'll be quick!"
Lee Rin's eyes sparkled even brighter. Sighing as if he had no choice, Jaseong nodded.
"... Don't go too far."
"Yes! I'll be right back!"
Lee Rin dashed off toward the shops, delighted. She enjoyed herself, browsing here and there.
The vibrant accessories, colors unseen in the Northern Sea, captured her eyes.
Then, she suddenly stopped in front of a shop.
It was a shop selling hairpins. Unique hairpins, blending western gemstones and Central Plains craftsmanship, were displayed.
Lee Rin picked up one of them.
It was a hairpin made of jade, with a delicately carved snowflake pattern at the end.
It looked as if a snow crystal from the Northern Sea had been moved here.
"So pretty..."
Lee Rin murmured softly. She held the hairpin up to her head and looked at herself in the mirror.
It suited her well.
But soon, she set it down with a bittersweet expression.
'Now's... not the time to buy things like this.'
A fierce battle with the Demonic Cult would soon break out.
In a battlefield stained with blood and flesh, accessories like these were nothing but a hindrance.
With a longing gaze, she looked once more at the hairpin, then turned away.
Jaseong, from afar, had been watching.
'I thought she'd come running back with a bunch of things, but she just browsed and left. I really can't understand women's hearts.'
While Lee Rin was looking at other items, Jaseong quietly approached the accessory shop.
He pointed at the jade hairpin Lee Rin had admired and spoke to the merchant.
"I'll take this one."
"You have a good eye, my lord! This is made from top-rank jade brought from the Western Regions."
The merchant chatted as he packed the hairpin.
Jaseong handed over several taels of silver, received the hairpin, and tucked it into his robes.
'I'll give it to her... when all this is over.'
Wearing an indifferent expression, Jaseong returned to his group.
Yet a small warmth lingered in his chest.
It was a small secret that let him, walking down the ruthless path of vengeance, feel a hint of human warmth for a moment.
* * *
Night had deepened.
The desert night blew a cold, dry wind, as if trying to cool down the heat of the day.
After a simple dinner, Jaseong climbed to the roof of the inn.
Along with Mansul, he sought to organize his thoughts under the night sky.
"Kiruruk!"
Mansul, with snow-white fur, nuzzled into Jaseong's arms and uttered a cry.
But just as Jaseong was enjoying a peaceful moment with Mansul, Lee Rin-nimbly used her lightness skill to bound up to the roof.
"Great hero. What are you doing up here?"
"I just wanted to sort out my thoughts while looking at the night sky."
"Oh, I didn't know you had such a romantic side! Then, I'll join you."
At Lee Rin's words, Jaseong smiled faintly and made room beside him.
Sitting side by side, they looked up at the night sky.
It was certainly different from the night skies in the Central Plains.
Countless stars, like scattered jewels, filled the pitch-black sky completely free of clouds.
The Milky Way flowed like a grand river, and occasionally shooting stars dragged long tails as they fell.
"I've never seen so many stars before. It's as beautiful as the Northern Sea's aurora."
Lee Rin let out an exclamation. The stars in the night sky were reflected in her eyes, sparkling brightly.
Surrounded by this beautiful scenery, Lee Rin suddenly asked an out-of-the-blue question.
"Great hero."
"Hm?"
"Once your revenge is over... what do you want to do after?"
Jaseong's brow twitched imperceptibly. After revenge. It was a subject he had never truly considered.
Since the day he lost his family in the Red Light District, his life had been devoted solely to the goal of revenge.
He had never imagined what would be at the end of that path or what kind of life might await him beyond.
"I haven't really thought about it."
At Jaseong's calm answer, Lee Rin looked at him for a moment.
"Then..."
"?"
"How about traveling together with me?"
"Travel?"
"Yes. Not traveling as fugitives like now, but a real journey. Eating lots of delicious food, seeing strange sights... I'd love to see the scenery of Jiangnan and watch the sunrise by the East Sea."
Jaseong looked at Lee Rin. Her gaze was unwavering and pure.
Meeting her eyes, a strange warmth bloomed in the corner of Jaseong's heart.
"A journey... That sounds nice."
"Really? You promise?"
"Yes."
At that moment, Lee Rin gave a bright smile.
Jaseong chuckled softly and reached into his robes. He pulled out the item he had bought at the Lanzhou market.
"Take this."
Jaseong took out the hairpin and handed it to her.
It was the Western Region's hairpin of jade, with a delicately carved snowflake at the end.
"Great hero. This hairpin is...?"
"Take it. You wanted it, right?"
Jaseong said. The moment Lee Rin's smile grew even brighter.
Because at that moment, she realized just how much Jaseong had been paying attention to her.
The kindness hidden beneath his blunt words was, in truth, something she couldn't help but love.
* * *
It had been two months since they'd set out for the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range.
Jaseong and his party passed through Gansu Province and entered the Hexi Corridor on the road to Xinjiang.
Endless sand dunes stretched on in waves.
On this desolate land where not a single blade of grass would grow, the sun blazed in the day with a suffocating heat, while at night a chill that cut to the bone swept in.
It was the land of death that seemed to reject human footsteps.
Jaseong's group walked that path in silence. Around them, merchant guilds heading for the Western Regions traveled in lines.
Thanks to that, Jaseong was able to make his way toward his destination without losing his bearings, even in the vast desert.
Then, one afternoon as they were crossing the Gobi Desert—
Whooosh—
Suddenly, the sound of the wind changed. The sand struck their faces with increasing force.
The horses began stamping nervously.
"Sect Leader! Look over there!"
Gu Janghu, who was at the front, urgently shouted and pointed ahead.
Jaseong raised his head.
Far off beyond the horizon, a vast wall connecting heaven and earth was approaching.
It was a black and crimson sandstorm.
"A sandstorm!"
"The heavens are enraged! We're all going to die!"
The people of the following merchant guilds screamed and fell into panic.
Camels sat down, and wagons wobbled.
There were many women and children included among the merchants. Before such a massive natural disaster, they were helpless.
The storm was approaching at terrifying speed. The wall of sand, large enough to block out the sun, rushed forward as if to swallow the world.
The earsplitting roar, mixed with crushing pressure, made it difficult to even breathe.
"Great hero! We have to take cover!"
Lee Rin shouted, but there was nowhere to hide. They were in the middle of the open desert.
Jaseong dismounted. While everyone else panicked, his expression remained calm.
More than fear, there was a fighting spirit within him—a desire to test himself against this vast force before his eyes.
"Everyone, stand back."
Jaseong's voice, carrying his inner force, rang out.
Those in confusion snapped to attention at his overwhelming presence.
"Did that young man just say something?"
"How can a voice be that loud? Is that the 'Lion's Roar' that only absolute experts are said to use?!"
As the merchants murmured, Jaseong stood facing the storm.
By now, the sandstorm had approached to within about fifty zhang. Because of that, his robe fluttered violently.
'Celestial Gate Opening Art.'
Jaseong opened the Immortal Gates within his body. From the First Gate to the Ninth, all were opened in an instant.
But he didn't stop.
'Tenth, Eleventh Gate—Heavens' Opening!'
KWAaaaANG!!!
A burst of golden ki exploded from Jaseong's body.
It was a strength that had reached the transformation realm, surpassing human limits.
Around him, sand whirled upward, forming a massive vortex.
Srrrring!
Jaseong drew the Wicked Flame Sword. Crimson fire blazed along the black sword hilt.
Resonating with its master's will, the sword released demonic ki.
Whooosh!
The golden immortal energy and black demonic ki fused, enveloping Jaseong's sword.
It looked like a great pillar of light ready to cleave the world.
Holding that stance, Jaseong glared at the advancing sandstorm.
A vast calamity that covered the sky. Yet in Jaseong's eyes, it was but an obstacle to be cut down.
"Sever."
Jaseong swung his sword. He unleashed the Heaven Evading Flash Sword's secret essence—Heaven Evading Shadow Annihilation Sword.
KWAaaaaAANG!
A gigantic black-and-gold sword aura was fired at the storm.
With a tearing sound as if ripping space itself, the sword aura struck the heart of the sandstorm.
BOOM!
At that moment, an unbelievable scene unfolded.
The massive sandstorm covering the sky was split perfectly in two by Jaseong's sword strike.
Like a god parting the sea, the storm divided on both sides, opening a path.
Whooosh—
The divided storm bypassed Jaseong's group and the merchant guilds.
The immense sand clouds scattered to both sides, revealing the blue sky in between.
An absolute power that could even cut through the calamities of nature.
At that overwhelming spectacle, the people of the merchant guilds stood dumbfounded, mouths agape, barely able to breathe.
"T-That...!"
Gu Janghu's mouth hung open in shock.
He, too, was an expert at the peak, but the might Jaseong had just shown was beyond human reach.
Even Gal Seo-ryeong could not hide her astonishment.
"He's... truly reached the realm of a demigod."
Gal Seo-ryeong shuddered as she looked at Jaseong's back.
Having forced open the Immortal Gates and reached the transformation realm, Jaseong had clearly surpassed human limits.
"Hoo..."
With a long exhale, Jaseong slowly sheathed his sword.
As the golden energy faded, he returned to the appearance of an ordinary young man.
But the way people looked at him had completely changed.
They were all now gazing at him as if he were a god.
"Let's go."
Jaseong climbed onto his horse, as if nothing had happened.
His party, once again stunned by his nonchalance, followed after.
'With power like that, he might truly accomplish his goal, even in the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range.'