Chapter 17
An Unexpected Connection (2)
To the east of Hongho, in the direction opposite the Red Dragon King.
Over a hundred warriors clad in black uniforms embroidered with a blazing crimson dragon were tearing across the land at a furious pace.
They were the Red Dragon Guard—the Red Dragon King’s personal troops.
But why were they not at his side, and instead running in the complete opposite direction?
Fweeeeee—!
A signal flare rose in the southeastern sky, shrieked as it arced northward, and fell.
“North! The Young Master’s trail has been found!”
That was the reason.
Just as the Red Dragon King pursued the traces of his grandson and enemies, similar signs kept appearing before the Red Dragon Guard as well.
“Move out—!”
At their commander’s order, the hundred-man unit wheeled north in unison.
They unleashed their body techniques, racing at terrifying speed toward the point where the flare had burst and vanished.
Please, let it be the Young Master this time…
Commander So Hyuk-rin’s chest tightened with unease.
This was already the third false lead.
Twice before, they had found traces that seemed genuine, only to come up empty-handed.
Who is behind this?
A shiver ran through So Hyuk-rin.
What kind of wretch would go to such lengths for such cruel deception?
Could it be some faction?
The Martial Alliance was far too busy with the upcoming Hero’s Tournament to waste effort on a ruse like this. Then who?
Suddenly—
Hyuk-rin’s eyes flared.
In the distance, more than a hundred jang away, he saw an unusual group recklessly driving a carriage at breakneck speed.
There was no time to hesitate.
“Red Dragon Guard—! Surround the enemy!”
“Yes, sir—!”
The order rang out, and the soldiers’ pace quickened to an even more ferocious speed. In moments, they swept around the carriage and the unknown warriors, weaving a deadly net of steel.
This time… please let it be him!
The commander prayed desperately as he leapt into the air.
His drawn longsword released a chilling wave of sword-qi that split the air like lightning.
The following afternoon, at Hongho Prefecture’s harbor.
“Are you the envoys from the Alliance?”
The ones disembarking—Jegal Hyeryeong and thirty warriors of the Windcloud Division—were greeted by several swordsmen and a middle-aged beggar.
“Brothers of the High Sword Sect?”
“That’s right. I am Jin Yuseong, heir-apparent of the High Sword Sect,” said the man, smiling as if welcoming a long-lost ancestor.
“Welcome, honored heroes. We are deeply grateful for your journey on such urgent notice.”
“Well met, Young Master Jin. I am Bang Geuk, Division Leader of the Windcloud.”
And with that, Bang Geuk turned—not to Jin Yuseong, but to the beggar beside him. He clasped his fists respectfully.
“Good to see you again, Sub-Leader.”
“Heheheh! It’s been a while, Leader Bang. What, three years?”
“Haha. About that long, yes, Lord Wang Wu.”
The beggar was none other than Wang Wu, sub-leader of the Beggar’s Sect branch in Hongho Prefecture—an old acquaintance.
“Master—!”
A neatly dressed beggar stepped forward from behind the Windcloud Division, bowing excitedly to Wang Wu.
“Oh? Hah! So you’re the Windcloud’s contact here?”
“Yes, Master.”
Wang Wu laughed heartily and welcomed him.
The young beggar bowed. “Disciple Dam-u greets Master.”
It was indeed him—the disciple of Hong Rugae, sworn brother of Kang Yongun, and one of the final ten of the Hero’s Tournament.
He had been serving as the liaison between the Alliance and the Beggar’s Sect all along.
“Well done. But who is the young lady behind you?”
“Ah, that is…”
At Wang Wu’s question, Bang Geuk answered for her, his tone respectful.
“She is the Alliance’s Deputy Strategist, come personally to ascertain the situation.”
Jegal Hyeryeong stepped forward lightly.
“I am Jegal Hyeryeong, Deputy Strategist of the Military Council, Lord Wang Wu.”
“The White-Clad Divine Maiden?!”
The sub-leader’s eyes lit with recognition—her reputation was known even here.
“I usually keep my identity concealed. Circumstances being what they are, I ask your understanding for revealing myself only now.”
“Of course.”
Wang Wu nodded gravely. If the struggle between righteous and demonic sects was truly at hand, then she, as the Alliance’s brain, had every reason to remain hidden from enemy eyes.
“Well met, Deputy Strategist. I am Wang Wu, sub-leader of the Hongho branch of the Beggar’s Sect.”
Formality concluded, Wang Wu turned briskly.
“Let us be on our way.”
“Yes.”
“Are we headed for the High Sword Sect?” Bang Geuk asked.
“For now, yes. We can’t discuss such weighty matters in the open, where too many ears are listening.”
“Understood. Windcloud Division, prepare to move!”
As his men gathered, Jin Yuseong hurried forward.
“I shall lead the way.” He gestured, and his subordinates moved quickly.
“Return to the Sect. Announce that the honored guests from the Alliance have arrived.”
“Yes, sir!”
Two High Sword warriors dashed off ahead.
“This way, please.”
Wang Wu and Jin Yuseong led the group at a brisk walk. Out of consideration for the townsfolk, they refrained from using body techniques, simply striding quickly out of the harbor.
Jegal Hyeryeong and the Windcloud Division followed.
Inside the High Sword Sect’s council hall.
The Sect Master, the heir Jin Yuseong, Jegal Hyeryeong, and the Windcloud leaders sat around a table, listening as Wang Wu outlined the situation.
“…And that is everything thus far.”
A heavy silence followed.
“This is dire indeed.”
The Sect Master’s face was dark as thunder. Even Jin Yuseong trembled.
“The Red Dragon King… and the Red Dragon Guard as well…”
“With only our strength, how can we possibly resist them…?”
The Windcloud captains looked shaken.
Deputy Strategist… show us your famed insight.
Wang Wu’s eyes shifted toward Jegal Hyeryeong, testing her. He had long heard of her reputation and wanted to see her abilities firsthand.
Perhaps sensing his thoughts, she suddenly smiled coldly.
“Strange, isn’t it?”
Her gaze fixed sharply on Wang Wu.
“If the Red Dragon King and his Guard are moving, then surely the true core of the Black Lotus Sect must also be on the move, don’t you think?”
In other words—you’re still hiding something from us.
Wang Wu chuckled and nodded, finally revealing the rest.
“The Black Lotus Sect as a whole is moving.”
“I thought so.”
“Not just their main forces, but even their subordinate branches are stirring.”
“Then the Red Dragon King and his Guard are merely the vanguard, while the main host advances northward behind them?”
“Exactly.”
They exchanged terrifying revelations as calmly as if discussing the weather.
“What?! The entire Black Lotus Sect?!”
“Even their branches? This is war—!”
“The Sect means to overthrow the righteous factions entirely!”
The High Sword Sect Master and heir turned pale and shook violently.
Pfft.
Dam-u snorted in contempt.
Such dramatics. If you were truly this frightened, how did you manage to live this long with the Black Lotus on your doorstep?
Even the Windcloud captains’ nervous faces displeased him.
No wonder our division is looked down on by the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise divisions…
Jegal Hyeryeong, meanwhile, remained utterly calm.
“Have they issued a formal declaration of war?”
“Not exactly—but they’ve said things to the same effect.”
“Such as?”
Wang Wu gestured to the High Sword Sect Master.
He recalled grimly, “When we first encountered the Red Dragon Guard, they told our men, ‘Do not bar our way, and we shall spare your lives.’”
“I see.”
Jegal Hyeryeong fell silent, analyzing. Then, with her thoughts clear, she asked,
“Do you have a map of this region?”
“Of course.”
Wang Wu produced a folded map from his robe and spread it across the table.
“Here lies Mount Akrok, the Black Lotus stronghold. The Red Dragon King broke the pact and rode up the main pass, sighted now near the High Sword Sect and especially around Hongho.”
“Indeed. They keep pressing north, circling near the Hongho region.”
She and Wang Wu pointed out places on the map in turn.
“Yes… as I thought.”
Her eyes sharpened as she traced their movements. Patterns emerged.
“And where are the subordinate forces of the Black Lotus now?”
“They’re encircling slowly from the south—through Sangshik, Seokmun, Anyang, Laeyeon, and Seokrim counties.”
Jegal Hyeryeong closed her eyes, thinking deeply, then nodded firmly.
“Ah. No wonder there’s been misunderstanding.”
“Exactly so, Deputy Strategist!” Wang Wu beamed.
Her eyes flared. You had that answer too ready.
There was no way he could have drawn such a conclusion from mere scraps of information. Which meant someone else had told him—someone with insight equal to her own.
Her uncle, the Grand Strategist.
If he warned the Beggar’s Sect, then the Alliance’s main forces are already moving. They must be far closer than anyone expects.
She exhaled slowly.
“The Black Lotus’ maneuvers form a net of encirclement, don’t they?”
“Heheheh. Precisely so.” Wang Wu laughed heartily.
“Then let us move!”
“Yes, Deputy Strategist.”
The two rose together.
At the northern edge of Hongho.
Kang Yongun marveled at the swiftness of his own strides.
“At last… it’s nearly like my normal walking pace.”
Though still slightly slower, his footwork was no longer the sluggish crawl it had been.
In only five days, he had advanced his Supreme Art that far.
“At first I moved like a dying worm… practically frozen in place.”
Now, even without seated meditation, his inner flow had strengthened as though he had trained for days.
“So this is what the elders meant. The first mark of a true master is an inner current that never falters.”
If only he could discover how to meet Master Jwa Pojeong before reaching Honam Province…
Suddenly—
A strange light flashed in his eyes.
Far ahead, nestled in a nameless mountain range along Hongho’s edge, a massive glow pulsed.
“What… what is that?”
A red radiance enveloped an entire hill, blazing as though born of immense inner power.
It’s unlike the Martial Alliance’s energy…
Back then, he had seen countless colors, each distinct, reflecting different techniques and temperaments.
But this—this was a single, uniform wall of crimson.
“It can’t be just one person. A group, then?”
And yet, why did it look like a single mass? Was it merely distance?
“In the Alliance, even groups shone like a cluster of fireflies—distinct from one another. But this…”
That luminous barrier of red drew him like a moth to flame.
Before he realized it, Kang Yongun’s steps had already turned toward it.
