Chapter 411: The Last Bandit.

‘A mountain bandit?’

Paejon’s words, saying I looked like a mountain bandit, brought a flurry of thoughts to mind.

Back when the Demonic Realm first opened.

The water bandits and mountain bandits who had resided in the mountains and seas were all unable to withstand the demonic creatures, so they descended to the cities and joined the ranks of the unorthodox factions.

Even the few who remained had mostly had their lifelines severed according to the ‘Exterminate Evil Bloodlines’ decree issued by the Murim Alliance, which had been in effect until fifteen years ago.

Ah, though their lifelines were said to be severed, they weren’t completely gone.

There were occasional reports of encountering water bandits at sea or mountain bandits in the mountains.

Of course, upon hearing such news, the Murim Alliance would dispatch sword brigades to hunt them down like rats, so the word was that even those were nearing their end.

In such circumstances, a mountain bandit.

‘And of all places, in the territory bordering Sichuan?’

This is.

‘His crew.’

I was certain the moment I heard it.

The mountain bandit Paejon mentioned was none other than the tail of the guy I was planning to seek out as soon as I arrived in Sichuan.

There was no room for doubt.

As we were approaching Sichuan, any mountain bandits active around this time would undoubtedly be under his command.

I recalled the situation, catching my breath.

‘Even if that’s the case, it’s still strange.’

A question arose. It wasn’t now that he started making a name for himself.

Recalling the timeline, there should be a gap of one to two years.

Before then, he should have been holed up in the mountains, gathering strength and power.

Showing activity…. That seemed rather odd.

‘Nokwang….’

I recalled the giant who was called the King of Mountain Bandits in my previous life.

A demonic individual specialized in external martial arts, to the point where he could be said to have achieved indestructibility.

Even the authority Nokwang received from the Heavenly Demon was named ‘Monstrous Strength’, fitting him perfectly.

How much I struggled to pierce that formidable physique in my battle against him.

‘Perhaps it’s for the best.’

When planning this trip to Sichuan, he was the top priority right after Baekmaseok.

In my past life, he was a villain and a demonic individual, a master strong enough to lead a direct unit under the Heavenly Demon.

If I were to form my own faction, I had intended to corrupt him with demonic energy and bring him along.

‘Since he’s showing his tail willingly, I suppose it’s a good thing.’

However, there was one slight concern.

Glance.

I turned my gaze towards where the Tang Clan members were.

‘The timing, being with the Tang Clan Leader right now….’

That was the problem.

Around the time Nokwang started making a name for himself, his first epithet was precisely.

‘The Tang Clan Butcher.’

He was called that because he sought out and killed only those from the Tang Clan in Sichuan, wasn’t he?

In my past life, Nokwang would have a seizure whenever he saw anyone with the surname Dang.

The reason he didn’t like me was also ultimately related to the Tang Clan.

‘He said he didn’t like that it was me who killed Dokbi, didn’t he?’

He claimed he didn’t like that I, not him, had killed Dokbi.

Hearing that, I thought, what kind of bullshit reason is that?

I wondered if such a reason even existed, but.

I could vaguely understand why Nokwang harbored such rage towards the Tang Clan and committed slaughter.

Nokwang’s real name is Tang Deok.

As you can tell from his name, Nokwang was originally born into the Tang Clan.

I heard he was a distant half-brother or cousin of Dokwang, but I wasn’t particularly interested in the specifics.

What’s important is that he was called the Tang Clan’s failure.

‘A bitter name.’

The Tang Clan’s failure.

Perhaps because I had a history of being called Gu Family’s failure, it struck a particular chord.

I knew a little about why he was called that.

Nokwang was an individual who possessed none of the traits expected of a Tang Clan member.

Except for his dark green hair, he possessed nothing that could identify him as Dang.

He had no resistance to poison, and unlike the Tang Clan, he couldn’t cultivate poison arts.

The nature of their martial arts, specialized in assassination, didn’t suit Nokwang’s massive physique.

According to common belief.

Rumors circulated that he was expressing his rage because he was abandoned by the Tang Clan due to those traits.

The problem was that the Tang Clan never denied the rumors, adding credibility to the speculation.

In any case, looking at this, he was a monster filled with rage towards the Tang Clan.

That meant Nokwang Tang Deok was the King of Mountain Bandits.

I didn’t care why he was kicked out of the Tang Clan and became a mountain bandit.

What mattered to me was whether he was making a move now, and nothing else.

‘Either way, I’ll kill him or turn him into a demonic individual. It’s one or the other.’

There were plenty of demonic individuals in my past life, but I had already decided which ones I would corrupt myself in this life.

Nokwang, whom I planned to deal with while I was in Sichuan, was one of them.

And so was Cheonsalseong Geomma, who was likely sharpening his sword right about now.

Those who would cause problems later, I would either kill or absorb as discarded pawns.

That was the method I intended to employ.

“…Elder.”

“Hmm?”

“Then, what did Amwang say he would do?”

Was it Amwang who discovered the mountain bandits?

I don’t know their objective, but they probably don’t know that this group is full of monsters.

Among them, Amwang held an absolute position regarding matters like this.

‘It would be problematic if he decided to eliminate them.’

It would be troublesome if Amwang decided to kill all the nearby mountain bandits because they bothered him.

Since opportunities like this are rare, it was a situation I needed.

Just as I was worrying about that, Paejon chuckled and said to me.

“What’s there to do or not do?”

His voice was filled with a sense of disbelief.

“We just leave them be.”

“Amwang, you mean?”

At my question, Paejon’s expression turned slightly strange.

“So, should I go find them and kill them all?”

I thought that was naturally what he’d do…?

That was the impression I had of Amwang.

“Tsk, looking at your expression, I can tell without you answering.”

“…”

“I don’t know what the common perception is, but that fellow doesn’t particularly enjoy killing.”

“Is that so…?”

That was quite strange. The King of Assassins supposedly not enjoying killing.

“He tends to kill only when necessary.”

“…Oh.”

“Ah, of course, if things go south, he’ll kill everyone…. But as long as things don’t go south, there’s no problem.”

“…”

Is he really not enjoying it? Listening to him, I found myself unconsciously looking around.

Wondering if Amwang might be listening.

‘…Ugh.’

I already tended to flinch slightly when seeing Amwang, but.

After a month of repeated training, that feeling seemed to have intensified.

Imagine dying dozens of times a day for over a month at the hands of the same person… it’s enough to make one break out in a cold sweat just looking at him.

‘This is hopeless too….’

I tried everything imaginable every night, but I still couldn’t reach him even slightly.

By now, even an idiot like me would realize.

That a different method was needed to overcome this training.

The problem is that I don’t know what that method is, so I keep dying every night.

‘For now, let’s put this aside…. Mountain bandits.’

Just because they’re nearby doesn’t mean I’m convinced they’re connected to us yet.

It seems only Amwang is aware of this right now.

The fact that not only I but also the other Clan Leaders haven’t grasped it means they are quite a distance away.

Since I couldn’t rashly assume they were plotting something against us, I needed some time to figure things out, but.

The moment Paejon told me, I already felt a sense of unease.

Then Paejon looked at me and asked.

“Ahaeya.”

“Yes.”

“Judging by your expression, you seem to have something brewing.”

“…”

How did he know? I was just closing my eyes, yet he noticed.

That old man certainly had a sharp side.

As I closed my eyes as if caught, Paejon grinned.

“Whatever it is, do it moderately. Just enough so it’s not obvious.”

“…Yes.”

What did he think I was going to do to do it moderately?

Paejon wouldn’t know I had experienced regression. Yet, I felt an unintentional sharpness in moments like these.

It felt like even if he noticed, he wouldn’t pay much mind.

Paejon didn’t care what I did, as long as it didn’t interfere with my training.

Conversely, if it interfered with my training, it would be different….

“Are you planning to do it today?”

“Do… what?”

“Anything.”

“…”

“You seem interested. Lingering like this will cause problems with your training, so finish it quickly.”

Hearing that, I inwardly held my breath.

Just how much does this guy see?

As if sensing my thoughts, he said with a smile.

“Shall I ask that bat fellow? Where he saw it.”

“…”

This is absurd, really….

It’s getting scary now.

Ah, of course.

“Yes…. Please do.”

I didn’t refuse, though.

---

A forest entering the territory of Sichuan.

A midway path slightly ahead, the time when the moon was gradually rising, and moonlight began to filter through the leaves.

In such a forest.

Behind the densely piled bushes, several men were moving stealthily, holding their breath.

Around the moving men, something was subtly unfolding.

It was something martial artists called ‘Gimak’.

It’s a method used not only to silence outgoing sounds but also to hide one’s presence while moving stealthily.

While the men, employing Gimak, were heading somewhere.

“Ugh, fuck….”

One of the men in the group quietly uttered a curse.

Immediately after, the one at the very front looked back in surprise.

“You crazy bastard, shut your damn mouth? Are you out of your mind?”

“Ah, hey, hyung-nim. Do we really have to go this far?…”

“You son of a bitch, now you’re talking back? Did I tell you to? The Chaeju did!”

As the man spoke angrily like a growl, the one who had cursed shut his mouth tight.

He was unhappy that they, as mountain bandits, had to move so stealthily, but.

Recalling that the one who gave the order was none other than the Chaeju, he had nothing more to say.

‘Damn it.’

He could only curse inwardly and endure.

“…Hyung-nim, how much further do we have to go?”

“At this pace, we’ll need another day or two.”

If we ran using Nei, it would take less than an hour, but.

Since we’re moving almost crawling, it would take that long.

Hearing this, the man sighed and cursed again.

“Ha, damn it.”

Perhaps because that was the problem, the man at the front had to frown again.

“Stop grumbling and just follow properly. We’re just observing from a distance anyway, so it’s not dangerous.”

All the Chaeju ordered was to observe their movements and map out their route.

Since infiltration or ambush wasn’t required, it was far from combat, but.

“Hey, what if we get caught? It’s not dangerous, my ass.”

It wasn’t entirely safe, either.

“You son of a bitch, really? Why do you keep spewing annoying things?”

The man who seemed to be the leader of the group eventually took something out of his pocket and showed it to the other man.

“As long as this is here, there’s no need to worry about getting caught!”

A round, dark green bead held in his hand.

Aside from being the size of a typical man’s fist, the bead seemed unremarkable.

Surprisingly, that bead was a ‘Gwimul’.

It was a Gwimul that erased traces within a certain radius of the holder.

The Chaeju said that as long as one possessed this, even a martial artist who had reached the Hwagyeong realm wouldn’t easily notice them. And with Gimak employed, they couldn’t possibly be discovered.

Unless the target, the Tang Clan’s transport, happened to have a monster commonly known as ‘Cheonwaecheon’ from the Central Plains.

“According to the report, at most it’s just the Tang Clan or the Pae Clan Leader. Why are you so jumpy?”

“Still….”

“Ha, honestly. Kid, if you’re scared, just go back to the mountains. But then you’ll die by the Chaeju’s hand, so are you okay with that?”

“…”

“We just need to do what we’re told. As long as you don’t try anything extra, you’ll be fine. So if you say one more word, I’ll bury you right here, so consider yourself warned.”

The leader turned his head, breathing heavily.

Hearing that, the man stopped talking. What else could he do if he was threatened with being buried alive?

‘…I feel uneasy somehow.’

The man felt uneasy.

No matter how powerful the Gwimul was, this was the transport of Dokwang, the most dangerous among those with royal epithets in the Central Plains, not some random place.

It was a situation where one could rot and die if things went wrong.

How could he not worry?

He hadn’t joined this mountain bandit den intending to die.

After pondering for a while, just as the man was about to speak to the leader again, bracing himself for a scolding.

“Hyung-nim…. It seems…”

Hwaruk-

The man saw sparks fly into his eyes.

We had to move carefully, so we weren’t even carrying torches, but what was that spark just now?

The man was taken aback by the unexpected anomaly.

At that moment.

Odeudeuk-!

A sound of something breaking came from behind.

Hurriedly turning around.

“…!”

Seeing the situation that unfolded there, the man’s eyes widened.

The others following behind had their necks snapped and lay dead.

One was kneeling, his mouth covered by the hand of an unknown individual.

Meanwhile, the man could clearly see the attacker’s appearance.

He wasn’t exactly hiding his face, and besides, flames were subtly clinging to his body, making him impossible to miss.

Upon confirming the face, the man’s brow furrowed.

‘…A kid?’

Because the face looked incredibly young.

The leader confirmed it as well.

“Wh-what are you! Who are you!”

The leader drew his sword from his waist, raising his battle spirit, but.

The young one merely glanced at them dismissively, as if uninterested.

And then he spoke.

“Three, is it?”

“…What?”

“Yes, three should be enough. As I carry two, the last one will talk.”

The youth uttered such cryptic words, and then.

Kwadeudeuk-!

“Kkeueup-eup!”

He stomped on and crushed the leg of the person he was holding.

There wasn’t a shred of hesitation in that brutal act.

“You bastard…!”

At that action, the leader charged at the youth.

The youth’s gaze remained fixed on the man, not moving.

“Hyung-nim…! Wait…!”

Seeing that, the man urgently tried to stop the leader, but.

It was already too late.

The leader was already charging at the guy.

The youth continued speaking in the same tone.

“Even if I’m slow, I need to return by the Chuksi hour, so I don’t have much time. Let’s finish this quickly.”

Simultaneously, the leader’s scream could be heard.

Something was wrong. The thought immediately crossed the man’s mind.

However, that wasn’t the only problem.

The man soon realized.

That the one he should have feared wasn’t Dokwang, but someone else.