Chapter 25
Danli Yeonmuk probably would have said his name, but he seemed too dejected to think of it now.
"Could you at least tell us your sect?"
Thinking that he wouldn't try to hide the name of his sect, he asked quite persistently, but Yeon Cheongha shook his head.
"Wouldn't it be okay to say that? Haven't all sorts of false rumors spread about the people of our sect because people didn't know about it properly? I don't think this opportunity is a bad one."
Pae Maseong said, as if he were disappointed by the opportunity.
At that, before Yeon Cheongha could answer, a few people asked first.
"When you say 'our sect,' are you perhaps referring to the Heavenly Demon Sect? Are you from the Heavenly Demon Sect?"
Starting with those words, a murmur began among the people.
They must have also heard things about the demonic path, so they seemed to have been scared when they heard those words.
However, after being trapped in Mohwa Mountain Manor and experiencing even more demonic people, and then being saved by us, they seemed to have realized that the rumors they had heard were wrong.
I thought it might have been for the better.
Looking at Yeon Cheongha, he also seemed to think that since it had come to this, there was no need to continue to deny it.
Still, since Danli Yeonmuk's rank in the Heavenly Demon Sect was definitely higher, he looked at Danli Yeonmuk as if he wanted to follow his decision.
Danli Yeonmuk, noticing how the atmosphere was turning, looked at us once and then said to the people.
"That's right. We are people of the Heavenly Demon Sect. We came to save you because we heard that many common people were suffering due to the Blood Flesh Herb created by Mohwa Mountain Manor."
The Danli family had lost many martial artists, but this could also be a way for the Heavenly Demon Sect's proselytizing to happen naturally.
I thought he would even say the name of the Danli family, but he didn't go that far.
"I thought your martial prowess was amazing, and we have received a great favor from the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Sect today."
They continued to express their gratitude after that, and it was only after a long time that we were able to leave Mohwa Mountain Manor. We didn't make much speed.
We couldn't leave the corpses of Danli Yeonmuk's team members there, so we loaded them onto a large carriage that was in Mohwa Mountain Manor and each drove a carriage.
On the way, Yeon Cheongha asked Danli Yeonmuk what he wanted to do with their corpses, and Danli Yeonmuk said that they should be buried.
It seemed there was no other way, but even after saying that, he seemed to have something on his mind.
Then, when we stopped for a meal, he said to us cautiously.
"I haven't said this before, but there was an important person from the family among the team members. Danli Zong, his dantian was deformed since he was young, so he was pushed out of the succession fight early on, but he is still a direct descendant of the family head. He said he really wanted to come this time, so I brought him. He followed me well since he was young... I really wanted to go back together, but things turned out this way. I think I have to take his corpse to the sect."
The distance from here to the Heavenly Demon Sect was considerable, so the corpse would decompose on the way.
Danli Yeonmuk probably wasn't unaware of that, so I didn't understand what he was thinking when he said that.
Still, if he had said such a thing, it seemed he would have a plan, so I looked at him, and suddenly, something I had read in the novel came to mind.
'Could it be a jiangshi?'
As I was thinking that, Yeon Cheongha brought it up first.
"It seems you want to make him into a jiangshi and take him with you. It doesn't matter what you do. It's not something you have to tell us either."
I also thought that was right.
Whether Danli Yeonmuk made Danli Zong's corpse into a jiangshi and took it with him as he returned to the Heavenly Demon Sect or whatever, what did it have to do with us?
But Danli Yeonmuk did not say anything definite about it.
Then, after going some distance, he stopped and said that we should bury the team members here.
It was the entrance to a mountain, and we helped him bury the corpses.
After that, when four corpses were left, Danli Yeonmuk hesitated as if he couldn't make a decision.
I knew that he wanted to take Danli Zong to the Heavenly Demon Sect and deliver the corpse to the family head, but I couldn't understand why he was doing that with the other corpses.
And to be honest, I also wondered how long we had to stay with him.
Now that the problem of Mohwa Mountain Manor and the Blood Flesh Herb was solved, we also had to find a new base and focus on our training.
As I was thinking that someone had to say something, Danli Yeonmuk finally spoke first.
"The people here are people I have shared joys and sorrows with since I was young, so I really want to take them to the sect. So I want to ask a favor. I will pay you sufficiently, so could you take these people to the sect with you?"
If he was going to pay, the story changed.
Pae Maseong also had to return to the Heavenly Demon Sect, so he could help out on the way.
If there were only four corpses to move, not everyone would have to drive a carriage, so the speed would be much faster.
As I was thinking that and waiting for Yeon Cheongha's decision, he looked at me.
"What should we do, Socheong?"
"Why are you asking me..."
"Then who should decide if not you? Maseong will go back to the Cho family anyway, and you are my only disciple, so shouldn't I be mindful of you?"
He said with a laugh, so I also laughed.
"If there is nothing particularly urgent, I think this would be fine. It seems it would also be helpful to meet people on the way and experience major and minor real battles."
At that, Yeon Cheongha nodded.
Pae Maseong's expression brightened as if he had been waiting for it to happen.
If it hadn't been for that, he would have had to say goodbye soon, so his face was full of smiles.
Danli Yeonmuk looked at him as if he found it strange.
I could see why he was making such an expression. Pae Maseong was famous for having no expression and always having a cold and cruel face. I'm not saying that's how he is now, but it's a rumor that spreads when his name becomes widely known later, but it seemed that Danli Yeonmuk already knew that fact.
Without even needing to hear rumors from others, if you just spent a little time with Pae Maseong, you would naturally find out.
But since that Pae Maseong always had a bright face like a gentle puppy while he was with us, it must have been strange.
"But I heard that if you entrust it to a security escort agency, you can transport the corpses much more cheaply and comfortably."
I didn't know how much he was thinking of paying us, but it seemed like it would be more than that, so I said that, and Danli Yeonmuk nodded.
"I know that too. But if we want to entrust the work to a security escort agency in the Central Plains, we have to reveal who we are, and I don't think there's any security escort agency of the righteous or evil factions that would take our corpses. Even if there were, I don't want to transport these people's corpses by treating them like cargo. Even if they have to be treated like objects during transport, I want to put my heart into it."
It seemed he was saying that he didn't want to leave them to be treated like luggage by people he didn't even know well.
Yeon Cheongha said he understood and accepted the job, but I pointed out that the fee had not yet been set.
"I think you should tell us how much the fee will be first. We can only accept the request if the fee is appropriate."
It was something Yeon Cheongha should have said, but since he was sometimes too soft, it often became my job.
At that, Danli Yeonmuk laughed and then nodded.
"The distance is far, and as a sign of respect for them, how about one gold tael?"
I asked, but that was a story to be shared with Yeon Cheongha, and he also said it to Yeon Cheongha.
Yeon Cheongha had a surprised face, as if he hadn't expected him to say such a large amount.
The two of them talked about the matter after that and discussed the procedure.
It wasn't about making them into jiangshi and transporting them as I had thought.
Making a dead person jump and move on their own was a different realm from ordinary martial arts.
What we were doing was treating the corpses so that they would not decompose for a considerable period of time and moving them, and Yeon Cheongha and Danli Yeonmuk were discussing that.
After the conversation was over, we disposed of the other carriages we had brought from Mohwa Mountain Manor.
The carriages and horses were all of good quality, so we got a considerable amount of money from that.
Yeon Cheongha tried to give some to Danli Yeonmuk, but Danli Yeonmuk politely refused, and Yeon Cheongha did not say it again.
Every time Yeon Cheongha acted shrewdly, I was relieved.
He said he would save up money quickly and buy me a good sword, and he was really saving up diligently.
* * *
Four corpses were loaded onto the carriage, and we rode on horseback next to it.
I didn't ride a horse often, but it seemed that my horsemanship would improve a little with this opportunity.
Looking at it, I was a fast learner of many things.
At first, Yeon Cheongha and Danli Yeonmuk took turns pointing out various things, but later, they didn't even say that.
I also thought I was doing well, so I was constantly surprised at myself.
"I see an inn ahead."
At Yeon Cheongha's words, we decided to eat there and rest.
And there, we heard an unexpected story.
People sitting at a large table were eating and talking loudly.
"If that's true, doesn't that mean the Heavenly Demon Sect is not such a bad place?"
"That's what I'm saying. If it weren't for the people there, it would have been a big problem. The government office only steps up for the rich and powerful, do they care about what happens to people like us? Didn't they say that the people who were captured this time were all such people? But the masters of the Heavenly Demon Sect saved such people, so how grateful is that?"
"But why did such bad rumors spread until now?"
"Wasn't that also because they had something they were aiming for? It could have been because they were anxious about us thinking well of the Heavenly Demon Sect."
It seemed that the story of Mohwa Mountain Manor had spread.
We were surprised at each other but didn't show it and ordered beef noodle soup and stir-fried dishes while listening to what they were saying.
Originally, in the novel, Pae Maseong would gain fame through the matter of Mohwa Mountain Manor, but this time it felt like that was being pulled forward much faster.
"But I heard there was a strategist there who was as good as the Zhuge family? I heard he was very young too."
"That's what I'm saying. They said that if it weren't for that person, they wouldn't have been able to destroy all of the Blood Flesh Herb or whatever. They said all the masters listened to that person's words?"
I wondered what they were talking about, but Yeon Cheongha, who was eating across from me, looked at me and smiled.
'Could it be... that's about me?'
(End of Chapter)