Chapter 337

Hu Gae was still looking at Kwak Yeon with a touch of pity when Kwak spoke to Kang Su.

“Chief Protector Kang, you’ve been through a great deal. And I’m very relieved no one managed to follow you here.”

“Taoist Kwak, it wasn’t difficult at all.”

Kang Su shook his head and continued.

“I don’t say that lightly. At first, working as a groom did feel awkward. But after some time passed, I found myself more at peace than I could have imagined.”

“...?”

“...?”

When Kwak and Hu Gae looked at him curiously, Kang Su continued in an even voice.

“My hands always smelled of blood before. But once I started living in the stables, I stopped smelling it entirely.”

Hu Gae understood more or less what Kang Su meant.

There was no reason for his hands to literally smell of blood when they were clean.

He was describing, in a roundabout way, how he had always lived in a state of tension, with killing constantly on his mind.

But once his attention turned to feeding horses and tending to them, he had been able to escape that relentless grip of killing intent.

Hu Gae realized that Kang Su had arrived at an insight akin to the Buddhist principle that everything arises from the mind.

So that’s why he seemed like a completely different man!

Kang Su had not merely seemed different.

He truly had changed.

“If that’s how you felt, Chief Protector Kang, then I can feel even less guilty about what I asked you to do.”

Hu Gae could tell Kwak was deliberately keeping his voice matter-of-fact.

Adding unnecessary words now might interfere with Kang Su’s own realization.

At Kwak’s level, he would have seen Kang Su’s transformation even more clearly.

Come to think of it, Kwak had treated Hu Gae the same way.

He had shown Hu Gae a path and then quietly waited for him.

It started back at the Guan Yu Temple in Yueyang.

Kwak had never pressed him or hurried him, yet Hu Gae had always sensed how fervently he hoped for him and rooted for him in his heart.

More than anything, Kwak believed Hu Gae would reach that realm.

A warmth was beginning to well up in Hu Gae’s chest when Kwak took a map from inside his robe and held it out to Kang Su.

“This map shows where the Young Castle Lord and the Eight Demonic Venerables are staying. I marked the terrain and landmarks in detail, so you should have no trouble finding them.”

Hu Gae remembered how carefully Kwak had studied their surroundings after leaving the cavern of the Great Demon Prison.

So he was doing that to draw a detailed map for Kang Su.

“There is a Wind-and-Sand Formation around the Great Demon Prison, but the formation loses its power at night. Travel by comparing the constellations and landmarks marked on the map with what you see around you.”

Kwak even explained in detail how Kang Su could pass through the Wind-and-Sand Formation surrounding the Great Demon Prison.

Then he turned toward Hu Gae.

“Brother, give me the money pouch.”

Hu Gae flinched.

“Why do you need the money pouch...?”

“...”

When Kwak merely looked at him, Hu Gae reluctantly rummaged through his clothes, pulled it out, and handed it over.

The moment Kwak received the pouch, he passed it straight to Kang Su.

“Take it.”

“Taoist Kwak, no. I still have travel money that I’ve saved.”

Kwak shook his head.

“We don’t know when the Eight Demonic Venerables will recover their strength. You need to take enough dried rations that it seems excessive. And to carry that much, you’ll need several horses as well.”

“Then... shameless though it may be, I’ll accept it.”

“Before leaving Baotou City tomorrow, change your clothes too.”

“...?”

“If the elders of the demonic path see Chief Protector Kang dressed as you are now, won’t it trouble them?”

He meant that Kang Su’s present disguise as a shabby groom might remind the Eight Demonic Venerables too painfully of the condition into which the Demonic Eight Divisions had fallen.

“I will make certain to change.”

Moved by Kwak’s thoughtfulness, Kang Su lowered his head deeply.

“Taoist Kwak... I don’t know how I can ever repay this kindness.”

“You already repaid me in advance, Chief Protector Kang.”

Kang Su raised his head in confusion.

“...?”

“You helped Sa Gwirang of Hidden Moon Forest, didn’t you?”

“But that wasn’t directly helping you, Taoist Kwak...”

Kwak answered calmly.

“I am also one of the people under heaven. You helped someone under heaven, Chief Protector Kang. Therefore, you helped me as well.”

“...!”

In those few words, Kang Su sensed not only advice meant for him, but also a faint indication of the path his martial arts should take.

Ten thousand streams return to the same source!

Whether orthodox martial arts or demonic martial arts, once taken to their ultimate end, all paths converged upon the same place.

“I will keep Taoist Kwak’s teaching firmly in mind.”

Kwak thought it would be fortunate if Kang Su understood the question for contemplation he had placed before him.

But it would not matter even if he did not.

Kwak had merely wanted to offer a little help to a martial artist who had found the first thread of enlightenment.

Since Kang Su appeared to have understood, Kwak could turn away with a lighter heart.

“We should be going.”

*****

Not long after the exhaustive search of the Gathering Demons Division headquarters was completed, the main body of the campaign force entered the fortress at Sword Demon Valley.

“Welcome.”

As commander of the advance detachment, Taoist Hyeonam received Uncheon Zhenren and the Clan Masters.

He immediately gave them a detailed report on the outcome of the operation and the situation they now faced.

“...The ending was far more anticlimactic than we anticipated, so I admit it has left me somewhat unsettled.”

With that bewildered assessment, Taoist Hyeonam concluded his report.

Uncheon Zhenren, Sword of Wudang and commander of the campaign force against the Gathering Demons Division, addressed the assembled Unit Leaders of the advance detachment.

“You have all worked hard. First, establish a medical station in one of the halls and make sure the wounded receive proper treatment. Then rotate out the men currently standing watch and let them rest.”

“Understood.”

Once the Unit Leaders other than Taoist Hyeonam had departed, Uncheon Zhenren turned to the Clan Masters.

“What do all of you think?”

Yue Gun-yeong, Clan Master of the Shandong Yue Family, replied with a lukewarm expression.

“Commander, we may have taken Sword Demon Valley, but unless we capture the Gathering Demons Division’s leaders, I cannot call this a complete victory.”

Peng Cheon-hwi, Clan Master of the Hebei Peng Family, nodded as well.

“Clan Master Yue is right. The purpose of this campaign is to tear the Demonic Eight Divisions out by the roots and eliminate this source of calamity from the martial world once and for all.”

With the Hebei Peng Clan Master backing him, Yue Gun-yeong added pointedly,

“Commander, judging from the evidence, the Gathering Demons Division’s leaders cannot have been gone long. We should use the momentum of this victory to pursue them and finish this.”

“I understand how the Clan Masters feel.”

Uncheon Zhenren nodded before continuing.

“However, I believe we still need to exercise caution.”

Peng Cheon-hwi immediately asked,

“Commander, why must we still be cautious?”

“We don’t know which route the Gathering Demons Division’s leaders used to retreat. To pursue them, we would have to split our forces among several mountain trails. I suspect that may be precisely what they want.”

“Hah. Commander, you have been cautious from beginning to end.”

Yue Gun-yeong let out a low sigh and countered,

“Didn’t every Unit Leader who searched the fortress agree that the Gathering Demons Division’s leaders fled in a panic? The evidence supporting that conclusion is everywhere.”

Peng Cheon-hwi joined in.

“Commander, whatever else may be true, the Gathering Demons Division’s strength was clearly weaker than we expected. They tried to frighten our campaign force into retreating with those ambushes, but once we reached their headquarters, they had no choice but to tuck their tails between their legs and run. If we let this opportunity slip now that we have the advantage, we will regret it later.”

Under the Clan Masters’ relentless pressure, Uncheon Zhenren briefly closed his eyes.

Haa...

He knew why the Clan Masters were so impatient to pursue.

It was because of the Martial World Pact.

Territories were to be distributed among the various sects and great families according to their achievements in this campaign.

The Clan Masters were therefore anxious that, while they hesitated here, the other campaign forces might earn greater achievements.

But Uncheon Zhenren cared far more about minimizing casualties than increasing his campaign force’s accomplishments.

Because of that, he had repeatedly clashed with the Clan Masters ever since they set out.

And now they had captured the Gathering Demons Division’s headquarters itself and received reports that its leadership had broken apart and fled.

It was only natural that the Clan Masters’ dissatisfaction would flare even more fiercely, like oil poured onto fire.

After pondering the matter with his eyes closed for a time, Uncheon Zhenren opened them.

“...!”

“...!”

The Clan Masters and the other respected senior figures of the martial world all fixed their eyes on his mouth.

“Even so, I believe avoiding unnecessary danger must come first.”

“Ha! Commander, you truly are frustrating.”

Yue Gun-yeong let out a long sigh and continued with an exasperated expression.

“Wasn’t it our excessive caution during the advance that gave the Gathering Demons Division’s leaders time to disappear in the first place? And now you mean to give those demons even more time to escape? That could become a regret lasting a thousand years. And how do you intend to bear the resentment of our fellow martial artists throughout the realm?”

Uncheon Zhenren answered firmly.

“As commander, I will bear all of that resentment myself.”

Faced with his unyielding answer, Peng Cheon-hwi asked,

“Commander, are you worried that our members will be harmed by the Gathering Demons Division’s evil sorcery? If so, I believe your concern is excessive.”

Uncheon Zhenren silently watched as the Hebei Peng Clan Master continued, effectively answering his own question.

“The blood fiends produced by that great evil art were indeed terrifying, but thanks to the Grand Strategist accurately informing us of their strengths and weaknesses, we suffered no major losses, did we? So long as our formation does not break apart during the pursuit, there is little reason for our campaign force to fear the blood fiends.”

Uncheon Zhenren listened to Peng Cheon-hwi’s lengthy argument, then said,

“Since you have brought up the Grand Strategist, there is something else troubling me. We have been unable to contact him for the past two days.”

As though he had been waiting for exactly that objection, Yue Gun-yeong immediately replied,

“Commander, surely that is simply because the Grand Strategist is extremely busy. He must maintain contact with all eight corps. Since our campaign force has suffered no serious difficulties, perhaps communicating with us simply did not seem urgent enough and was overlooked.”

There was a subtle barb in his description of their campaign force as having suffered “no serious difficulties.”

Peng Cheon-hwi backed him up.

“We are deep in the mountains. The carrier pigeons might simply have been caught by birds of prey along the way.”

Uncheon Zhenren had initially thought the same.

Ever since they had entered the depths of the mountains, more and more of their carrier pigeons had failed to return.

But when not a single pigeon arrived for two full days, he could not help becoming concerned.

He had therefore sent a fleet-footed Wudang disciple outside the mountains carrying a cage of carrier pigeons.

Yet no word had arrived from that disciple either.

“Well, if the Commander in chief insists we cannot pursue them immediately, there is little we deputy commanders can do about it.”

Peng Cheon-hwi shook his head several times before asking,

“So what do you intend to do, Commander?”

Now that the two Clan Masters had finally stopped insisting, Uncheon Zhenren explained his plan.

“First, I will organize a scouting party from members skilled in tracking and send them ahead to locate the Gathering Demons Division’s retreat route. Once we determine their movements and destination, we can take a route around them in pursuit. That should allow us to save time without rushing blindly.”

There was no guarantee events would unfold exactly as he hoped.

But for the moment, it was the best way to pursue victory while minimizing casualties.

Yue Gun-yeong nodded, clearly dissatisfied.

“If that is the Commander’s decision, then so be it.”

Peng Cheon-hwi also gave a bitter smile.

“Commander, then let us organize the scouting party and send them out without delay.”

At that moment, the piercing blast of a horn rang through Sword Demon Valley.

BWEEEEEE!