In the dawn before the sun had even risen, Gangchan quietly rose from his seat and headed out into the vast plains.
As the darkness slowly lifted and the world began to reveal its silhouettes, he watched the changes in silence, like an ancient, giant tree.
He repeatedly drew in and released the energy of heaven and earth through his entire body until his form seemed to gradually grow faint.
A moment later, the air around Gangchan vibrated and rippled outward in all directions.
Rumble
A low tremor of energy that shook both the earth and the sky spread far and wide.
Gangchan, who had been standing as still as a stone statue, began to move slowly.
As he always did, he began to perform the Cheonryeongmu without using any internal energy.
Meanwhile, his companions woke up one by one.
Mo Geuk-il and Na Myeong prepared breakfast.
After a simple meal, they loaded their belongings onto their horses and set out on the road again.
Their daily routine, which had been repeating for several days, began once more.
Gangchan, who had been walking a good distance ahead, suddenly stopped and stared at the distant horizon.
Du Ilchung, who was following behind him, quickly approached.
“What is it?”
“Someone seems to be hurt…”
“Hurt?”
“I’m not certain, but everyone should move with caution.”
“Understood.”
Du Ilchung ordered the team members to stay alert, warning them that there might be suspicious movement ahead.
The members followed behind Gangchan even more cautiously.
They were currently at the midpoint of a straight line connecting Gwalimgwakteuk and Seollim-hoteuk, a route occasionally used by large merchant groups.
After advancing about 300 jang, they climbed a low hill, and a gruesome sight unfolded below them.
There were two or three shattered carriages, people and horses collapsed here and there, and the faint sound of moaning.
Gangchan and the team members rushed down the hill without hesitation.
As they arrived and Gangchan spread his senses wide, the aura of those still alive washed over him like a wave.
He located the survivors and directed the members to move them to one spot.
Jo Mu moved three men who were barely clinging to life, and Mo Geuk-il found some cloth among the scattered luggage to cover them.
Gangchan checked the condition of the men once more.
Despite their desperate eyes and their struggle to say something, they finally drew their last breaths.
There was nothing more he could do for them.
Once the situation was somewhat settled, the team members whispered among themselves about Gangchan’s extraordinary ability to hear groans from 300 jang away.
“No matter how unobstructed the plains are, is it really possible for a human ear to hear a sound from 300 jang away?”
“Why are you even asking? You’re seeing it right in front of your eyes.”
Mo Geuk-il shook his head with an exasperated expression.
He already knew that Gangchan’s abilities were far from ordinary, but this defied common sense.
“It looks like they were attacked by bandits.”
Gangchan looked at Na Myeong.
“How long has it been?”
“Judging by their condition, it’s been at least 1 shijin.”
Hearing Na Myeong’s words, Gangchan looked around at the surroundings once more.
Numerous wheel tracks remained on the ground.
However, the number of destroyed carriages was significantly low compared to the number of dead people.
Gwak Sugi, who had been carefully examining the wheel tracks, spoke to Gangchan.
“There were fifteen carriages in total. Two of them were destroyed here. The tracks show that ten moved toward the northwest, and three moved toward the west.”
“They split into two directions?”
It was a situation that wasn’t easily understood.
“Then which way should we go?”
Jo Mu, the youngest, asked as he mounted his horse.
Every gaze focused on Gangchan.
Gangchan looked around at his team and smiled.
“Everyone, tell me what you think.”
“I say the ten.”
“Me too.”
Most of the team members chose the direction where the ten carriages had gone.
“Gwak Sugi, which way should we go?”
Gwak Sugi replied with a smirk.
“To the west, toward the three carriages, of course.”
“Explain the reason to everyone.”
“Look closely. If you look at the tracks where the three carriages passed, the hoofprints are dug in deep. This means they set off in a great hurry. On the other hand, the tracks of the ten carriages show relatively faint hoofprints. That means they were driven slowly.”
“So, what does that mean?”
Baek Geombi asked in an annoyed voice.
“You still don’t get it? Try using your head for once.”
Gwak Sugi clicked his tongue and continued.
“Listen. A merchant group was attacked by bandits, and many people died. But look at the corpses—there isn’t a single bandit among them. In other words, it was a one-sided slaughter. In that case, what would the survivors do? They would run away, obviously. But these are merchants. Would they abandon all their cargo just to save their lives? Not a chance. However, it would have been impossible to escape with all the cargo either. So, they took only the three carriages loaded with their most important goods and fled in a hurry. Meanwhile, the bandits are likely taking the remaining ten carriages slowly back to their hideout. Do you understand now?”
“Wow! So that’s how it is. You’re a genius!”
Baek Geombi looked at Gwak Sugi in admiration.
“If you understand, then we’ll go after the merchants.”
As soon as Gangchan finished speaking, everyone quickly mounted their horses.
Led by Gangchan, they galloped west for 2 shijin.
A cloud of dust began to rise about 300 jang ahead.
‘I finally found them.’
“Sugi was really right. He must be a genius.”
Baek Geombi marveled as he looked back at Gwak Sugi once more.
After moving about 200 jang, Gangchan and his team dismounted and hid in a suitable spot to observe the battlefield.
About twenty warriors in dark blue light armor were surrounded by three carriages, fighting fiercely against the enemies blocking their path.
In contrast, about 100 bandits had completely surrounded the twenty warriors, maintaining a relaxed attitude.
It seemed a battle had already taken place; bloodstains were vivid on the bodies of some of the besieged men, and several bandit corpses were scattered on the ground.
During a brief lull in the fighting, the warriors of the Dongbang Bureau exchanged glances and gripped their swords more tightly.
“Why don’t you just give up now?”
“If you surrender, I’ll give you a painless death.”
“Especially that girl—we won’t kill her; we’ll treat her very well. Hahahaha!”
The bandits mocked them and laughed boisterously.
Among those surrounded, Dongbang Seollin was the only woman.
Ultimately, those words were an explicit sexual harassment directed at her.
Unable to bear it any longer, Dongbang Seollin gripped her sword and was about to attack again when Dongbang Hwi stepped in front of her.
“Endure it for a moment.”
“If you show yourself openly, those bastards will only grow bolder. Fall back and hide as much as possible for now. I will try to negotiate somehow.”
At her father’s earnest persuasion, Dongbang Seollin bit her lip and took a step back.
Once his daughter retreated, Dongbang Hwi stepped forward with a desperate expression.
“We are the people of the Dongbang Bureau from the Dongbang Clan of Jilin Province. We have offered small tokens of respect to many heroes while passing through here, but today, it is truly disappointing that we aren’t even given the chance to say hello. I ask you to please think about this one more time.”
Just then, a man among the bandits slowly rode forward on his horse.
“I am Muchideok, the Deputy Leader of the Blood Wolf Band. Who are you?”
Dongbang Hwi looked the opponent straight in the eye.
It was a familiar face.
It was the second-in-command of the Blood Wolf Band, the Blood-Drenched Hand, Muchideok.
Muchideok surely knew who he was as well.
Yet, the fact that he was asking for a name meant he intended to kill him.
However, Dongbang Hwi could not let his feelings show.
He had to find an opportunity calmly.
If things went wrong, not only would this escort mission fail, but everyone could be annihilated.
The fate of the family depended on this mission, so most of the clan’s warriors had accompanied him.
In the first battle, thirty Jaengjasu and fifteen family warriors had been killed.
The bandits had launched a relentless attack, sparing neither warriors nor porters.
If they were wiped out here, the Dongbang Clan could no longer exist.
“So you were the Blood-Drenched Hand, Muchideok. I was foolish not to recognize you. I am Dongbang Hwi, though I am unworthy, I currently hold the position of the Master of the Dongbang Family.”
Dongbang Hwi bowed as politely as possible.
“So you are the Master of the Dongbang Family. But why did you try to pass through here? Did you not know the newly changed laws of the plains?”
“The changed laws of the plains? I truly did not know.”
“It’s a pity you didn’t. The laws of the plains have changed; one must receive prior permission to pass through here. Otherwise, it is the rule to regard everyone as an enemy and execute them. You’re saying you didn’t know?”
“Haha… I really did not know. It has been three years since I last passed through here; I had no idea such a change had occurred… Deputy Leader, please, if you could show us mercy just this once, I will surely provide a suitable reward in return.”
How could he have known such a law was newly created?
And Dongbang Hwi himself knew that those words were nothing more than a mere excuse.
However, he was well aware that almost no merchant groups or bureaus used the plains these days.
The number of merchant groups traveling through the plains had been steadily decreasing, and the number of people losing their lives there grew day by day.
Therefore, he had tried to avoid the plains if possible, but for this particular request, it was impossible to meet the deadline without passing through them.
Muchideok silently watched Dongbang Hwi.
The Master of the Dongbang Family.
He was a man known for his bold personality, though his martial arts weren’t outstanding.
In the past, Muchideok would have accepted a generous passage fee, taken a few jugs of wine, and sent them on their way.
But now, he was in a position where he couldn’t do that.
Since the fighting between bandits had intensified several years ago, only three bandit bands had ultimately survived.
They divided the plains into three sectors and took control of their respective territories.
Soon after, an order came down from the Danju to control everyone entering or leaving the plains.
‘Control’ was just a word; in reality, it meant killing all outsiders who set foot on the plains.
Furthermore, a specific target had been set this time.
The information delivered along with the order included detailed records of the bureau’s personnel, travel route, and dates.
And the content of the order was simple.
Stop the Dongbang Clan’s escort and kill everyone.
However, never touch the woman and the goods included in the group.
It was a simple mission where he just had to follow orders without question.
Since the outcome was already decided, there was no need to step forward and talk with Dongbang Hwi.
However, after launching the first attack, Muchideok lost the desire to follow this order.
Indiscriminate slaughter, and now even kidnapping.
Most of his subordinates, including himself, had become bandits because they had no choice but to do so to survive; they hadn’t wanted to become murderous demons from the start.
From the beginning, there was no choice, and to survive, they had to steal to eat.
But the situation was different now.
Twelve years ago, after returning from finding the Stone of Gold, the Blood Wolf Band’s warehouse was overflowing with food.
There was no longer a reason to plunder for survival.
It started from then.
Orders began to arrive that made it hard to distinguish whether the goal was the goods or the murder.
And all the matters occurring within the Blood Wolf Band were decided by the Danju and a few trusted squad leaders.
The rest of the people were being reduced to nothing more than killing tools.
While their combat experience and martial arts improved, the price they paid was the loss of their humanity.
Muchideok felt that change more painfully than anyone.
Recently, there were many days when he couldn’t sleep properly after committing a murder.
Others might laugh if they heard it.
But even if he was a thief, he didn’t want to be a murderous monster.
That desperate inner cry made him suffer even more.
Thus, he did not want to kill the people of the merchant group who could barely even resist.
He wanted to kidnap the woman among them even less.
“…This is a matter beyond my authority, but since the Master’s situation is pitiful, leave all the goods and go back.”
In this way, he decided to defy his leader’s orders and let the people of the Dongbang Clan live.