Chapter 348
Ma Cheon-deuk, who was in the middle of a meal, frowned at the subordinate who had entered his room without permission.
He hated having his personal time disturbed.
Once, he had even cut a subordinate in half with a single stroke for recklessly entering while he was bathing, claiming it was an urgent matter.
"L-Lord of the Green Forest...! I know you hate to be disturbed, but I thought you should know as soon as possible, so I came in knowing it was rude."
"...... What is it?"
Although he tried to speak calmly, the subordinate felt a strong killing intent in Ma Cheon-deuk's voice.
It was a voice that made him feel instinctively that he might lose his life if the news he was delivering was not a big deal.
"It is said that Lord Wang-ho is dead. And most of the Wang-ho Brigade has been scattered in an instant. It is thought that many have died, and many have fled in fear."
"What?!"
Ma Cheon-deuk's chopsticks stopped.
The subordinate let out a sigh of relief inwardly. The news he had just delivered was big enough to stop his meal.
"It's possible that the Wang-ho Brigade has been disbanded. After all, although they were named the Wang-ho Brigade, they were ultimately a group of riffraff. But, the one who became the central point that brought them together was Lord Wang-ho. And he's dead? Did you hear how he died?"
"Yes. The survivors of the Wang-ho Brigade came back and told what they had seen and heard. It is said that Lord Wang-ho... couldn't even withstand a single blow and was cut in half with one stroke."
"In one blow?"
Ma Cheon-deuk is not a person who usually asks so many questions.
But he suddenly realized that he had been speaking in a questioning tone for a while now.
That's how unrealistic the story he was hearing was.
Lord Wang-ho is a subordinate who has a martial arts level that is about the tenth among his subordinates.
And such a Lord Wang-ho died with a single stroke? It means the opponent is a considerable master.
"And there is one more thing I have to tell you."
"What else?"
"The one who killed Lord Wang-ho is the very person who knows the whereabouts of Lady Green Snake. It is said that he said a similar thing again this time. That if you want to know the whereabouts of Lady Green Snake, the Lord of the Green Forest must come himself..."
"Such an arrogant...!"
As if the chopsticks Ma Cheon-deuk was holding were breaking, they turned into powder and scattered in the air.
It was truly a formidable internal energy.
The subordinate, flinching at the almost divine internal energy, barely opened his mouth.
"I-I will immediately gather the personnel and prepare to depart. I will call all the other five tiger lords except for Lord Wang-ho, and I will also gather the skilled fortress lords."
"Tsk. Don't talk nonsense. You fool."
"Yes...?"
"Didn't you say that Lord Wang-ho died with a single stroke? What do you think that means? It means that the other lords will not be able to avoid a similar fate. Although the fortress lords are better than them in skill, they are not at an outstanding level. In the end, it means that they could also be killed by that person. Let's say I killed that person. But if another lord or fortress lord dies, can the Green Forest be maintained any longer?"
"Ah..."
"Don't call them. And one more thing. Tell them to operate the Green Forest fortress without any gaps while I'm gone. I will go there with a small number of people I have chosen."
"Yes. I understand!"
The subordinate, after bowing his head so low that his forehead almost touched the ground, stealthily stepped back and left the room.
"Tch. I've lost my appetite."
Ma Cheon-deuk, with a frown, got up from the dining table and went to the window.
He, looking out the window, said to himself, "Green Snake. Where on earth are you."
He said with a wistful face.
It seemed he could go anywhere, as long as the Green Snake was there.
***
Another week after chasing away the mountain bandits.
Although my senior brothers hadn't shown any signs of boredom so far, I could feel that their patience was slowly running out.
They had come here thinking they would be performing some great mission, but since all they were doing was training while looking at the waterside, of course, they would be getting antsy.
Thanks to the mountain bandits attacking once, they would have realized that they were now performing a mission.
Even that was too weak and bland.
"Hwi-ya. I don't know much, so I'm asking, but are mountain bandits usually that weak?"
"Yes. They're mountain bandits because they're weak. If they were a little stronger, many of them would have entered an evil faction, or on the contrary, would have lived a good life. The existence of a mountain bandit itself is originally those who are trying to make a living somehow with an ambiguous strength. There are not many people who are mountain bandits from birth. Most of them were tenant farmers or slaves who ran away to the mountains and became mountain bandits."
"But why is that person named Ma Cheon-deuk so strong? Isn't he also a mountain bandit in the end?"
"I don't know for sure either, but if I were to guess, Ma Cheon-deuk was probably not a mountain bandit from the beginning."
"Then?"
"He's a person who was intentionally made to become the king of the mountain bandits by someone. Although I said the mountain bandits were weak a little while ago, they become incredibly strong when two conditions are met."
"What conditions?"
Although it started with a conversation between me and Un Gwang, the other senior brothers, as if they were interested in our conversation, gathered one by one and were listening to our story.
"First, they are literally mountain bandits, right? Their combat power increases dramatically when they fight in the mountains they know. Of course, it doesn't mean that their internal energy is enhanced or their martial arts level is raised as if they were on a formation. They know how to climb the mountain faster, how to get to the destination the fastest. Where there are large trees or rocks that can be used as cover, which rock to roll to hit the enemy. And so on, they can make full use of the terrain."
"That's right. The use of terrain is incredibly important."
"And the second is numbers. It's a continuation of what I said about the terrain a little while ago, but they use the terrain to lure the enemy to a position where many people can attack one person at the same time. No matter how much of a master you are, you can't block all the attacks coming from all sides like that. Then if you get grazed by a blind sword, you bleed, and if you bleed, your body gets slower and slower... in the end, you get hunted."
My senior brothers swallowed hard.
Wolves can hunt a bear when they gather in a pack.
It seemed they had imagined such a scene.
"And a war can be fought in the mountains or on the ground, right? So if you can unite the mountain bandits and use their power, it's as good as ruling the mountains of the Central Plains."
As I spoke, things became clearer and clearer.
Whether the Evil Faction Alliance tried to swallow the martial world, or the Demonic Cult tried to swallow the martial world, they had been preparing for it little by little for a very long time.
No, in the end, even if the Evil Faction Alliance had conquered the martial world, the result would have been the same.
Because the Evil Faction Alliance would have offered the entire martial world to the Demonic Cult.
"Ah... then the reason you set up camp in a place like this is...!"
The moment my words ended, Un Gwang, as if he had realized something, opened his mouth and shouted.
He looked around and then said in a voice as if he knew everything, "I see. If we're here, there's only water around, so the mountain bandits can't use the terrain, and since they can only come in from one side, they can't attack from all sides. It completely erases the two strengths of the mountain bandits."
"Exactly. In fact, the reason why the government troops or other sects can't cleanly subdue the mountain bandits is precisely because of that. The bastards are specialized in defending in the mountains rather than sieging, so you have to take a considerable risk."
"I see."
My senior brothers all nodded their heads.
Experiencing things one by one with your body like this is all experience.
My senior brothers who have gained experience in this way will go back to the Wudang Sect and tell the other senior brothers about this, and this experience will spread to everyone and in the end, make us stronger once again.
"So even if it's a little boring, let's wait a little longer. In the end, waiting here is the best choice. We don't have to go to a place that is advantageous to the enemies, we just have to wait for the enemies to come."
"I get it now. So to make the most of the opportunity when the enemies come to us, we have to keep our physical condition at its best."
"That's it."
My senior brothers nodded their heads and then went back to their respective places and began to train again silently.
Of course, there is much more power in their movements than when they were training without thinking a little while ago, and there is sincerity in each and every movement.
Looking at such senior brothers, I felt a slight thrill.
They know the reason why they have to do something, and if they are convinced of that reason, they work harder.
Although it may sound like a natural story, it is also a very difficult thing to do.
Because people are not as rational as they think.
Most of the time, even if they know they have to do it, they don't do it because it's hard or difficult.
'Wudang can become much stronger than it is now.'
I saw the hope of the Wudang Sect in my senior brothers like that.
Although my senior brothers are called the Five Swords of Wudang and are the most outstanding junior disciples in the Wudang Sect, it was because I knew that the other senior brothers also had talents and passions that were by no means inferior to them.
'Then I have to set an example.'
I, looking back at my senior brothers with a pleased expression, began to continue my training again.
To make someone else do something, I have to show them by example first.
I have to work the hardest to be able to tell others to work hard.
So I will do my best today as well.
***
And so, three more days passed.
It seems the wind is blowing a lot today.
Because the wind was blowing a lot on the river, the sound of the water echoed as if waves were crashing on the sea.
On a day like this, perhaps because the water splashes against the rocks and breaks into a white foam, the fog is also particularly thick.
Today was just such a day.
In the midst of the thick river fog, I felt something strange, so I gathered my senior brothers, who were warming up to train as usual today, to my side.
"Someone is coming."
As if Un Gwang had also felt it, he nodded his head with a firm expression.
Perhaps the other senior brothers also felt it.
'They're approaching while making it so obvious, how can we not know? Are they not planning to hide themselves at all?'
Although I couldn't see because of the fog, a sinister energy was gradually approaching this way from the end of the road.
It's obvious who the owner of that energy is without even saying it.
Because there are not many people who can emit that much energy among the people who would come to find me here.
It is surely the Green Forest King, Ma Cheon-deuk.
'What is Ma Cheon-deuk's relationship with the Green Snake?'
On the contrary, I began to have a question.
Why on earth is Ma Cheon-deuk looking for the Green Snake so much? And why is he so angry?
At some point, five men broke through the fog and appeared before us.
The moment I saw the man standing in the middle of them, I knew that he was Ma Cheon-deuk.
Because his attire and appearance, which were closer to a scholar than a martial artist, and that appearance, which was very unbecoming of the name 'Green Forest King', completely matched the Ma Cheon-deuk I had heard of.
"Ma Cheon-deuk. You're finally here."
"You arrogant bastard. Who are you? Do you really know the whereabouts of the Green Snake?"
"Of course. If you want, I can even send you to the Green Snake's side."
"Where is the Green Snake...?"
"She's probably locked up in the Martial Alliance's prison. If you want, I'll send you there right now."
Ma Cheon-deuk's eyebrows twitched.
Although he seemed like he would rush at me right away, he soon regained his composure.
Although I had provoked him to make him angry, he had endured it.
I thought it wouldn't be an easy fight.
(End of Chapter)