Book 9: Chapter 12: Scapegoat

Before becoming a subordinate sect of the Luoyang Sword Family, the Hengshan Sect was split in two over that decision.

As a result those who called themselves the Hengshan North Stream became a subordinate sect of the Luoyang Sword Family, while the Hengshan South Stream scattered around Hunan Province to walk their own paths of survival.

Hengshan, the Southern Peak among the Five Peaks of the State of Zhongyuan.

In the past, the era of the Great Hengshan Sect, which was a grand sect of that Mount Heng and one of the Nine Great Sects thus, disappeared into the shadows of history.

* * *

The construction site of the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering arena.

The Third Young Master's camp.

The physicians' tent.

A young warrior of the Luoyang Sword Family-Hengshan North Stream was confronting a physician.

His tongue licked his lips, which were dry with tension, and his hand repeatedly gripped and released the hilt of the sword at his waist.

“……”

Normally, an executive-level figure should have been controlling the medical tent.

However, in the Third Young Master's camp now, all top-ranking figures, including the executives, were gathered in the command tent.

“If you are not prepared to cut me down, step aside! I must treat the patient immediately!”

At the physician's scolding, the young warrior of Hengshan twitched his eyebrows.

“……”

Slyly, his hand moved away from the sword hilt.

'…I cannot dare to cut down a physician of the Medical Arts Academy.'

At that sight, everyone breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.

Just then, a warrior with a haggard impression approached the young warrior of Hengshan with heavy steps and spoke.

“…Just now, the youngest fellow of your squad died.”

“…Ah.”

It was the moment another comrade, who had fought shoulder-to-shoulder with him, left this world.

The face of the young soldier belonging to the government army, who was only in his late teens, came to mind.

He remembered the fellow's words about wanting to buy a cow for his mother after achieving great military merit.

The young warrior's vision turned blood red.

“……”

Through the pouring rain and the hectic noise inside the physicians' tent, the clear sound of a sword being drawn resonated vividly.

“……!”

Even before astonishment could nestle in everyone's gazes, the young warrior of the Hengshan North Stream raised his sword and spoke.

“I understand that you cannot prioritize the treatment of comrades due to your beliefs. But…”

Thick murderous intent surged from his entire body.

“There is no problem with cutting down the prisoners who are stealing the time of the physicians who should be treating our comrades!”

At that shout, screams burst out from inside the medical tent.

* * *

At the same time, the Third Young Master's camp.

The command tent.

“Just why on earth is the Main Family's Supreme Executive Council going to intervene here?!”

“Since they keep dragging their feet, isn't it a natural thing?!”

“What is the Supreme Executive Council thinking? They must know that if they intervene half-heartedly, they will ruin everything just to shift the blame onto us…?”

“Shouldn't we inform the Left and Right Grand Strategists of this fact right now?!”

“Damn it. The water is already spilled, so why are you looking for the Left and Right Grand Strategists now…?”

“Dragging our feet?! It has only been a few days. What do you mean by dragging feet?!”

“We should send someone to the Main Family to grasp the situation more accurately…!”

With the embers thrown by Elder Yu of the Fourth Young Master's camp, the inside of the command tent had become a crucible of chaos.

'No. Now is not the time to care about such things.'

It was the former Sect Leader of Diancang who barely escaped from that chaos.

'If that devilish Yeon So-hyeon fellow is involved, I must get out before I get swept away in a flash…!'

He did not know the situation properly.

However, his survival instinct, which had maintained power by selling out Diancang, was clearly sounding an alarm now.

'Then…'

His judgment was fast.

A thick smile hung on the corners of his mouth.

“Just whose responsibility is this matter?!”

Hiding behind the crowd, a thunderous voice imbued with inner force burst from his mouth.

“Who on earth is the one who ruined this matter to this extent?! Shouldn't someone naturally take responsibility for this situation?!”

At that shout, the eyes of the figures of the Third Young Master's camp, who were filling the command tent, flashed.

'Indeed…!'

'I do not know who it is, but they opened a path of survival…!'

The landscape of the Third Young Master's camp was, in fact, no different from this crucible of chaos on a regular basis.

Just as the martial alliance of the past was.

This place was also a pandemonium.

The wits of the powerholders who had survived such a pandemonium were faster than their swords.

“Isn't the security officer who failed in the initial response the problem?!”

“No! The initial response was successful! The problem is that those mysterious martial artists intervened! The intelligence officer who still hasn't grasped their identity…!”

“Shouldn't we hold the department that delayed the wages of the commoner laborers responsible?!”

Taking advantage of the mess, the former Sect Leader of Diancang, who had moved near the entrance, sent a telepathic message to his closest aide.

[Tell all our kids to pack up. We are leaving here right now!] the aide's eyes widened.

[R-right now? In this dark night with this pouring rain? Is there perhaps a reason…] opinions were gradually converging.

[It is not a situation to waste time!] after glancing at his aide running toward the entrance as if his tail were on fire, he turned his gaze.

“If you put it that way, the food distribution was the bigger problem!”

“Correct! No matter how much the wages were delayed, if only the meals had been served properly, those fellows would not have revolted!”

“That is true!”

“They were starving, so how could they work properly?!”

“Where was the place in charge of the food distribution for those commoners?!”

“Wasn't that the responsibility of the Hengshan Sect?!”

The general manager related to food was the Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream.

“N-no! What is everyone suddenly talking about?!”

Having embezzled the food budget for the laborers, he backed away, and the others approached him as if to devour him, shouting.

“Sect Leader!”

“Like the great elder of a sect, show a proper responsible appearance!”

“Where did you throw away Hengshan's pride?!”

Watching that scene for a moment, the former Sect Leader of Diancang wore an blatant sneer.

'Indeed, controversy over responsibility is the best at a time like this.'

Leaving behind his giggling laughter, the former Sect Leader of Diancang stepped out of the command tent.

In this situation, no one would know that he and Diancang had disappeared from the camp.

The sneering laughter he left behind was buried and vanished in the voices of those who 'made' a scapegoat and questioned him.

* * *

The medical tent.

“Ugh, ugh…!”

The raised sword was trembling.

Comrades must be cherished like family, and enemies must be treated like mortal foes.

It was a teaching handed down since the days of the Great Hengshan Sect, but.

Clutching his bleeding abdomen on the field bed and looking up at him with an anxious expression, the prisoner was too young.

Just like the youngest of the squad he had just lost.

“Young warrior of Hengshan…”

Elder Yu, who had approached before he knew it, gently placed her hand on his shoulder.

“…If you are a martial artist who knows pride, you would not slaughter a helpless opponent. They are no longer your enemies.”

“……”

At her words, the young warrior of the Hengshan North Stream finally lowered his sword.

“You chose well.”

Sensing that his uncontrollably bursting murderous intent was gathered back, Elder Yu continued as if comforting him.

“The affairs of the world are complex, and inside them, there are not only enemies and allies. If you open your mind wide, that much more things will—” the young warrior brushed her hand off.

“That is enough.”

“…Did you say there are not only enemies and allies?”

He turned his body, and as he walked out of the medical tent with heavy steps, he spoke.

“If the enemies are not just enemies, then why? For what did my comrades die? Who killed them?”

He did not wait for an answer.

Holding his sword, as his back walked out into the pouring rain elder Yu expressed her regret and spoke with a sigh.

“…Because of human greed that knows no end, there are far too many sacrifices that did not need to be.”

The night was growing deeper.

However, the pouring rain showed no sign of stopping, pouring down even more harshly.

“……”

Coming out of the physicians' tent, the young warrior let his sword hang loose and blankly looked up at the sky where the heavy rain poured.

“You.”

He raised his blurry eyes and looked at the opponent.

“Did you lose comrades?”

The opponent was a heavily armed middle-aged warrior.

At his question, the young warrior of the Hengshan North Stream slowly nodded.

“…Indeed.”

Patting his shoulder, the middle-aged warrior spoke.

“I was looking for people like you right now.”

“…What do you mean?”

“They said the Supreme Executive Council will intervene soon.”

“…Does that mean this fight is over?”

The middle-aged warrior shrugged.

“At least our battle is over.”

“……”

The face of the young warrior, who was getting completely drenched by the heavy rain, became even more vain.

“That is why. I was gathering figures like you.”

Even in the darkness and the pouring rain, the middle-aged warrior's bared teeth were clearly visible.

“Don't you want to get proper revenge on them, for one last time?”

After contemplating for a moment, the young warrior shook his head.

“…If it is over, that is enough now.”

No matter how much a warrior's destiny lay in killing and dying at least for the time being, he was in no mood to see blood anymore.

“Is that so? What a pity.”

The middle-aged warrior clicked his tongue.

“Sajil! Is that you, sajil?!”

Just then, the young warrior's martial uncle ran hurriedly through the pouring rain.

“…Martial uncle?”

At the sight of the martial uncle who had dragged him out from the command tent, the young warrior's eyes widened.

The martial uncle was fully armed.

“Indeed, it was you!”

“What…?”

His martial uncle spoke.

“The Sect Leader has summoned the entire reserve force of our sect!”

“……!”

Hearing that conversation from the side, the middle-aged warrior grinned.

“Indeed, you were destined to be with us.”

His smile, momentarily revealed by the flash of lightning, was ominous.

* * *

“Line up! Line up!”

“Those who did not bring reserve armaments, step out to the left and receive them!”

Over the past few days numerous scouting teams had carried out forced reconnaissance of the operation area, and even more personnel had been mobilized for the operation that ended in failure today.

All of them were excluded.

Even the soldiers of the government army who filled the numbers were all left out.

Those belonging to the sects that shifted the blame were also all left out.

Nevertheless, the number of warriors gathering one after another was already exceeding several dozen.

It was an example showing why the Third Young Master's side was a powerful force despite being in such a mess.

Among them were those who wanted revenge.

There were those who hoped to achieve merit.

And like the young warrior of Hengshan, there were those mobilized by receiving orders.

“……”

Even while looking down from the platform at the warriors who were still increasing in number, the Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream looked highly displeased.

'…Damn bastards!'

The faces of those who pushed him in the command tent came to mind.

Anger flared up inside him, to the point where he wanted to slash open the tent hanging over the platform and face the pouring rain with his body.

'Even though all of them, without exception, embezzled the budget in their respective areas…!'

“Still, with this much, it should be worth a try.”

“Wouldn't it be enough?”

“In the end, they are just a bunch of beggars with a few martial artists mixed in. Of course it is enough.”

There were other figures on the platform.

Toward those who were chattering beside him, the Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream clasped his hands to express gratitude.

“…Thank you, everyone. If it were only our Hengshan, we would not have dared to dream of it.”

At his words, those standing on the platform with him waved their hands.

“Haha. We also would not have dared if not for Hengshan.”

“To be able to work together with the Sect Leader of Hengshan, whom I usually admire. How could I miss such an opportunity?”

“Of course, of course. We are old now, but we are still warriors. How can those who are warriors step back and just cross their arms because the situation is bad?”

“Aren't we all brothers of the same Sword Family?”

Although they were plausible words to hear, they were merely lip service.

The Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream did not believe those words.

'The same Sword Family?'

Rather, the way they bragged for no reason was only displeasing.

'Mere rabble who joined to achieve merit even by overexerting themselves because they thought it was their chance…'

Normally, they were far below being able to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him, the Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream who carried on the lineage of the grand Hengshan Sect.

They were leaders from 'small and medium sects' that were once part of the martial alliance in the past.

“Haha. This old man will not forget your help until the end.”

Duplicity.

Contrary to his thoughts, words of gratitude came out of his mouth once again.

'Since in this kind of situation, even one more is precious.'

“By the way, as expected, the Sect Leader of Hengshan is different.”

One of the sect leaders from a small to medium sect spoke, shaking his head.

“To think of the idea of sweeping away the enemies' leadership by taking advantage of a gap in this kind of situation…”

“To target that gap before the command of the Supreme Executive Council is properly handed down!”

“As expected, you are amazing.”

At those words, the Sect Leader of the Hengshan North Stream showed a smile.

“…It is nothing.”

The Supreme Executive Council had only placed a restriction on the temporary use of force through Elder Yu.

A proper command had not yet been handed down.

If time passed like this, there would be no way to do anything then.

'Targeting the gap is only possible now…!'

Operation of a temporarily formed Decapitation Unit.

They planned to eliminate the enemies' leadership all at once before the Supreme Executive Council intervened.

He knew it was an unreasonable plan.

However, it was the only way to break through the situation he was currently facing.

'If that happens, I will not be a scapegoat taking responsibility for this incident, but the protagonist of resolving the situation.'

The enemies could blow up more buildings, but rather, that would serve as a justification for him.

'Since those fellows carried out the explosion first—'

* * *

Inside the siege, a tower nearing completion.

At the top of the tower, where the lights of the Third Young Master's camp could be seen far off in the pouring rain, someone was standing.

Although a wild, fierce wind whipped his body and heavy rain lashed at him, his body did not budge.

“In the end, you crawl into the land of death on your own feet.”

The black fine-silk coat hanging on his shoulders blended into the darkness, fluttering wildly.

“Foolish ones who entrusted their bodies to desire.”

A bolt of lightning tried to strike the tower, but it went astray as the space warped due to demonic qi.

Under that lightning, the white mask shone even whiter.

“Although the law of the world is incomplete, so the karma built will not be judged after death.”

The surroundings lit up by the lightning sank back into darkness.

“Do you think there will be no entity to question that sin even while alive?”

In that darkness, the two lines of ghost fire hanging on the white mask fluttered even more vividly.