Chapter 22
I was a little dumbfounded because I didn't think Yeon Cheongha's method would work so well.
Yeon Cheongha himself had a somewhat surprised face.
Yeon Cheongha nodded and then looked at them and said.
"Thank you. If you wait a little, I will bring the Blood Flesh Herb. Since we have plenty of what we have, we can give it to everyone. If we go to Mohwa Mountain Manor like this, we can get as much Blood Flesh Herb as we want, so it's not something to be stingy about."
They had eyes that shone as if they had hit a great jackpot.
Because of those words, they lost the opportunity to follow us.
If it weren't for that, they would have known that we were going to Mohwa Mountain Manor and would have headed there right away.
If that had happened, we would have had to carry out our work in a state of tension, wondering if the people of Mohwa Mountain Manor would know that we were going there first. But by making the informants betray them, we were able to relieve that worry a little.
With just a few trivial words, the work became much easier, and I looked at Yeon Cheongha again.
I thought that once we knew where Mohwa Mountain Manor was, the rest would be smooth sailing, but that was our misunderstanding.
The area where Mohwa Mountain Manor was located was all thoroughly managed.
Even before we reached the entrance, there were people guarding it, so it was not easy to get inside.
Fortunately, the people guarding the place were not people who had been strengthened by the Blood Flesh Herb, so it was easy, but if it was this much even before entering the entrance, I couldn't even predict how strict the security would be inside.
Above all, we had to hurry from then on, as we couldn't let them know we were coming and run away.
If they ran away with the Blood Flesh Herb, the work could be for nothing.
From then on, without anyone having to say anything, we each used our lightness techniques.
Yeon Cheongha looked back at me a few times.
He seemed to be trying to take care of me if I couldn't keep up, but I also managed to keep up without falling too far behind.
Then I later realized that it was not something to be said easily.
Come to think of it, a few people glanced at me and tilted their heads as if it were strange.
'When did it become like this?'
I was also a little amazed.
Pae Maseong, as if he were preparing for when I would fall behind, went with me and was constantly amazed.
It was nothing new for Pae Maseong to be like this.
After going some distance, Yeon Cheongha suddenly raised his hand at the front.
The people, thinking that someone had appeared in front of them, stared ahead with tense faces.
Then Yeon Cheongha looked back at them.
"I don't think I'll have another chance to talk about this, so I'm going to say it now. Even if you find the Blood Flesh Herb here, I hope you won't try to take it. If you get greedy for the Blood Flesh Herb, there will be an opening. With our current strength, we will win, but if you try to take the Blood Flesh Herb, there will eventually be a hole, and your mind will be distracted."
Those who heard those words would have been startled.
In fact, that was what I was most worried about.
It was really unexpected that the people at the pawnshop had fallen for Yeon Cheongha's words so easily.
But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered how many people would not fall for it.
Danli Yeonmuk looked at his team members.
"If you are caught taking the Blood Flesh Herb, you will be beheaded on the spot. Do not disgrace me."
With that one word, the situation was settled.
If Danli Yeonmuk said that, who could avoid his eyes?
If he had said that much, he wouldn't have checked carelessly.
But in addition to that, Yeon Cheongha said.
"I would like to be by your side while you search, team leader. I would be grateful if you would allow it."
It could have been offensive depending on how you heard it, but Danli Yeonmuk readily nodded.
I thought that the expressions of the other Danli family martial artists had become a little relieved.
It seemed that with those words, their lingering attachment had completely disappeared.
When they thought, 'Is there a chance? Isn't this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?', their minds would have been scattered, but if Yeon Cheongha, following Danli Yeonmuk, also guarded and searched, it was clear that they would not be able to avoid their eyes.
As a result, it seemed that they were no longer distracted and were able to focus only on the task at hand.
After stopping for a moment, we started moving again.
As a result, we had to deal with people who had noticed our intrusion, but that did not mean that our delay was meaningless.
It was because that brief conversation had made it terrifyingly clear what we had to focus on.
The people who rushed at us were those who had eaten the Blood Flesh Herb.
It seemed that they were trying to drain our strength or cause as many casualties as possible by using them from the beginning.
We had dealt with countless people who had eaten the Blood Flesh Herb, but since many changes had appeared among them, we had expected that faster and stronger people might appear.
The people we met then were also like that, but I wasn't just scared.
Danli Yeonmuk and his group fought together, and Yeon Cheongha and I each took one.
In the meantime, Pae Maseong swung his sword with terrifying speed and ferocity, and each time, the guys' heads and bodies exploded.
'That's sword ki.'
To be able to emit sword ki at Pae Maseong's age was almost a miracle.
Even Danli Yeonmuk's group was surprised as they glanced at Pae Maseong.
As we headed towards the largest and most magnificent building in Mohwa Mountain Manor, more and more people blocked our way.
It seemed that those who had the Blood Flesh Herb were no longer sparing it and were creating human weapons.
If we didn't hurry, it seemed that more people would lose their reason and die fighting as someone else's weapon.
At that thought, my heart became more urgent, and mistakes poured out from there.
Yeon Cheongha seemed to have noticed why I was doing that.
"You can't solve everything, Socheong. You have to accept that what you can't do, you can't do."
"Yes, master."
At that moment, those were probably the most necessary words.
I maintained my pace again, and Yeon Cheongha looked at Danli Yeonmuk's group and said.
"We will go and find the people who are trapped. The manor lord will probably be there."
Since there was a high possibility that weapons were being made there, it seemed that it would be dangerous from now on.
"Let's go, Pae Maseong."
When I said that to him, who was hesitating, not knowing where to go, Pae Maseong followed us.
I thought we had taken on a very difficult and dangerous task, but for some reason, Yeon Cheongha seemed to think that we were enough.
Thinking that he was at ease because Pae Maseong was here, I also forced myself to be brave.
Numerous people gathered in front of the building with the splendid signboard.
They seemed to be trying to stop us from entering it at all costs.
Seeing that, the reason why we had to go inside became even clearer.
They were not people who had eaten the Blood Flesh Herb, and they collapsed too easily in front of the sword.
After dealing with such strong people, it was rather strange to meet people who would fall down with just one swing of the sword.
I had to check several times to see if they were really dead.
Yeon Cheongha, like me, looked at the people who had collapsed on the floor several times.
We didn't kill all the people who were trying to hold us back and block our way, but first ran into the building.
When we went inside, a thick door was firmly closed, but when Pae Maseong swung his sword, sword ki flew out and broke it.
The sight of the door, which seemed like it wouldn't budge, shattering into pieces was even wondrous.
As we ran inside, we heard the groans and screams of people.
From then on, we used our lightness techniques.
And finally, we reached a place where numerous people were packed tightly.
The people, who looked as if it would not be strange if they died soon, were trembling in fear at the sight of us.
They were old men and young boys.
The children seemed to be scared, but they couldn't cry out loud.
Seeing that, I was reminded of when I was first taken to Nether Shadow Valley.
The ones who yelled at us not to cry, and who were about to swing their swords because we cried.
I was no longer part of that group, but these children were not.
There were also people who looked out of place in that spot.
They were people who were well-fed and well-rested, and they were squeezed in between them as if they were part of them, wanting to avoid us who had suddenly rushed in.
"We will save you, so please wait a moment."
When I said that, the people looked at me with disbelief.
I also couldn't believe that I was saying such a thing.
"We will go out and help the others, so you take care of this place, Socheong."
At Yeon Cheongha's words, I nodded.
Releasing the restraints was not an urgent matter.
If I just weeded out the people who were hiding, even if they didn't run away from here right away, the other people would be safe.
I went around and beheaded the guys from Mohwa Mountain Manor.
They weren't even tied up in restraints in the first place, and when I approached, they would wrap someone else's chains around their arms and try to cover their eyes.
It wasn't that there were no attempts to resist, but they all came to nothing. I thought they might counterattack in a group, so I focused only on beheading them all. I couldn't tell how many heads I had cut off.
The people who were trapped in that place couldn't even scream at the sudden slaughter. As I was trying to reassure the people who must have been scared, I saw a pile of grass on one side.
I had never seen the Blood Flesh Herb directly, but the moment I saw it, I felt that I knew it was the Blood Flesh Herb.
Although Yeon Cheongha had warned people, I thought that if they actually saw it, they might become greedy.
Even if Yeon Cheongha and Danli Yeonmuk searched, couldn't a few people conspire to attack and run away?
To prevent such a thing from happening, I took the Blood Flesh Herb on the spot.
It was a plant, but since it was said to grow by sucking the yang energy of a living person, it looked somewhat eerie.
When I put them in the bag next to me, the people around me shuddered at the sight of the Blood Flesh Herb and dragged their buttocks back to get away from it.
Since they would have seen how the people who were forced to eat it had changed, I understood why they were doing that.
"You don't have to worry."
I put everything there in, but the amount was considerable, so I couldn't carry it around.
I first went outside, hid it out of sight, and then went back and started to release the people's restraints.
I told them to wait and not go out yet, but there were people who didn't listen and rushed out.
When a few people went out like that, the others, perhaps thinking that they might not be able to escape if they didn't go out now, followed them.
I thought they might become hostages, and sure enough, a few of the people who went out first were caught by the people of Mohwa Mountain Manor and became human shields.
"If you wait here, others will come to save you. If you go first, you will only be used."
At that, this time everyone listened to me.
When I went outside, Yeon Cheongha beckoned me with his hand, and I followed him without knowing why.