Chapter 144: Jangcheon Sect (3)

The first request.

It was to catch the cat abuser, right?

As they were recalling this, the instructor explained.

“The sect leader wants to catch the culprit before the Hundred Cats Chaos begins.”

“When is the Hundred Cats Chaos scheduled?”

“Well, it seems they plan to hold it even more grandly than originally planned at the request of the Murim Alliance.”

I don’t know the exact schedule.

“Hmm. Time might be tight.”

Mo Yong So-hye bit her index finger, and Jegal Tan stepped forward.

“That might not be the case.”

“Huh?”

“Rumor has it that they plan to use the Hundred Cats Chaos to announce the execution of the Hidden Moon Flying Thief and boost morale.”

They’ll want to hold the event as soon as possible.

“Oh.”

Jegal Tan, with a thoughtful look, continued to explain.

“They plan to ask the famous figures of the Jianghu attending the event to help deal with the demonic practitioners.”

“Some of them might even be specially recruited as instructors.”

“This is confirmed because my family contacted me about it.”

“The event will start at the beginning of next month.”

About twenty-five days left?

If we count backward, considering the time needed.

“We need to handle the request within about fifteen days.”

“Smart kid, aren’t you?”

Jegal Tan snapped out of his thoughts at the instructor’s words.

Seeing the instructor’s smiling lips, he turned pale.

“Set the schedule, make the plans.”

“Why don’t you just become the instructor?”

The worst words came out.

– You become the instructor.

Nothing good ever came from hearing those words.

Realizing his mistake, Jegal Tan immediately prostrated himself.

“How could I dare take the place of someone as great as you, Instructor.”

“Five days.”

“Sorry?”

“Five days should be enough, right?”

I don’t care about the Hundred Cats Chaos or anything else.

“Find that bastard within five days.”

Grinding his teeth, the instructor made the four of them nod their heads vigorously.

***

“Crazy. Crazy!”

“Right. What were you thinking, acting smart in front of the instructor?”

Jegal Tan, with a gloomy face, received the scolding from the girls.

“I was just trying to help.”

Since the instructor is so half-hearted, I was just trying to assist with proper knowledge.

“He’s someone who values his authority in strange ways.”

“And he doesn’t like smart students.”

No matter how many mouths he had, he had nothing to say.

But Jegal Tan felt wronged.

“For some reason, I can’t control my emotions in front of the instructor.”

That’s true.

He enjoys shaking up people’s emotions.

Namgung Yun-ho quickly organized the situation.

“Five days… It’s a very tight schedule.”

Is it even possible?

Mo Yong So-hye muttered gloomily.

“It has to be possible. If we fail, he said to ‘look forward to it.'”

“…That’s serious. We can’t waste any more time.”

Puffs of smoke rose from Myojinmun’s chimney.

It was dinnertime.

Yet, no one mentioned eating.

“Let’s move right away. We can’t afford to waste any time.”

Nod.

The four of them began to move.

***

Fortunately, quite a few people were willing to help, even with the late-night request.

“We’ll help.”

The cat-loving disciples of Myojinmun were furious about the cat abuser.

There were other helpers as well.

“Are you young master Jegal? I’ve heard of your exploits.”

It was a chubby middle-aged man in official attire. However, his position was not insignificant.

He was the head of the North Gate Guard.

His reason for helping was simple.

“The magistrate’s daughter had her cat harmed. It was quite a mess for a while.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Because she cried so loudly that the magistrate’s office was in an uproar, we had to search all night for several days.”

And that’s not all.

The head guard continued.

“Important people who lost their pets are quite upset.”

“There have been numerous complaints and reports. If you can find the culprit, it would be a great relief.”

“If you want, I can send some guards.”

The first day ended with some success.

There were also surprisingly many other helpers.

According to Myojinmun’s disciples, they were all supporters of Myojinmun, and they were everywhere in Suzhou.

Now the problem was how to find the culprit.

Baek Ri Seol came up with an idea.

“They say criminals return to the scene of the crime. How about checking the cat graves?”

“That sounds reasonable.”

But with only the old traces left by the culprit, they couldn’t make much progress.

On the second day of the request.

On the third day.

They were overwhelmed by the numerous reports.

Having many helpers was good, but with various witnesses’ statements, it became more of a hindrance.

“This is driving me crazy.”

“How are we going to read all this?”

Seeing the pile of suspicious individuals’ lists, Mo Yong So-hye, who had been quiet, stepped forward.

“Let me take a look.”

Quickly skimming through, Mo Yong So-hye gave a clear answer.

“We’ll start by checking the most suspicious people one by one.”

“Can we catch the culprit just by looking at people?”

“Hehe. Leave it to me.”

Though they knew she was good at reading people, this seemed difficult.

“Let’s do what we can.”

It’s better than doing nothing, right?

“That’s true.”

Jegal Tan agreed with Namgung Yun-ho.

The result of following her lead was quite surprising.

“Young Master Jegal, over there.”

After wandering around for half a day, Mo Yong So-hye pointed to someone arrogantly walking the night streets.

“I sense [murderous intent] and [ecstasy]. He seems sadistic.”

Really?

It’s not uncommon for unorthodox martial artists to have sadistic tendencies.

Mo Yong So-hye shook her head.

“You’re wrong. That person is craving and yearning for something.”

She added confidently.

“He’s not normal. He’s very deep and dark.”

Holding the trembling Mo Yong So-hye, Baek Ri Seol said.

“What are you waiting for? Go follow him.”

At Baek Ri Seol’s urging, Jegal Tan and Namgung Yun-ho reluctantly followed the man and crouched near the water.

“He seems to be getting on a boat?”

“Shh. Let’s watch for now.”

How long had they been hiding in the darkness of Suzhou’s promenade?

“Click click click.”

With a chilling laugh, there was a splash in the water.

It wasn’t just once.

Splash! Splash!

The sound continued for a while and ended when the man left on the boat.

Running to where the man had been, the two were shocked to see what was floating.

“There’s definitely something suspicious here.”

“Ducks, geese, even dogs.”

The horribly mutilated bodies floated on the surface of the water.

‘Why would someone do this?’

The fourth day had begun.

***

After investigating, Jegal Tan easily identified the suspect.

“He’s the leader of the Jangcheon Sect?”

“It’s quite a large organization.”

They ran three gambling dens and even a brothel, so it wasn’t just an ordinary unorthodox sect.

“It won’t be easy to confront them.”

Going into an unorthodox sect to find a cat killer?

It would only be a joke.

In the end, Jegal Tan decided to use a strategy.

“If there’s no evidence, we’ll create it.”

Namgung Yun-ho smirked.

“Are you becoming like the instructor?”

“I don’t want to admit it, but I can’t deny it either.”

Jegal Tan disappeared and returned late at night.

“How did it go?”

Mo Yong So-hye, pacing anxiously, saw Jegal Tan give a thumbs-up.

“You’ll find out tomorrow.”

***

The next day.

News came that the leader was moving again.

This time, to a more secluded place than usual.

For some reason, Jegal Tan seemed to know the leader’s route and moved quickly.

Though unsure, Jegal Tan’s face was quite stern.

“It seems we’ve caught the worst opponent.”

“The worst opponent? What do you mean?”

“Actually, I spread a rumor in the Jangcheon Sect. I scattered different scents along five different promenades.”

Jegal Tan counted on his fingers as he explained.

“First, the scent of alcohol, which only addicts can smell. The more addicted, the more ecstatic it feels. The second was the scent of opium, enjoyed by drug addicts.”

Why did he have such things? Jegal Tan explained.

“I got them from my family. Specially made scents.”

They were used when interrogating people with special quirks.

“…The fifth scent was.”

Before he could finish, a Myojinmun disciple came running from a distance.

“It was just as Young master Jegal said.”

He pointed in one direction.

“Come this way.”

***

Following him, they found various animals brutally killed.

Not only cats and dogs but even cows and chickens were mercilessly slaughtered.

“He seems like a real lunatic.”

Just as Baek Ri Seol said.

Anyone who could do such things was undoubtedly not normal.

Namgung Yun-ho looked at Jegal Tan.

“What was the fifth scent?”

Gritting his teeth, Jegal Tan answered.

“The scent of blood. Highly concentrated.”

And those who are drawn to such things.

“Are mostly demonic practitioners.”

***

*Whistle!*

Blowing a whistle, other Myojinmun disciples arrived.

Seeing the scene of the massacre, they gritted their teeth in anger.

“That damned bastard.”

At the same time, they seemed pleased.

“It was just as Young master said.”

“The guards witnessed the scene too.”

“With this evidence, he won’t be able to deny it.”

Now, only the punishment remained.

But strangely.

“Let’s stop here.”

Jegal Tan chose to step back instead of punishing him.

***

“Why are we stopping?”

Mo Yong So-hye looked confused.

“We finally found the culprit and gathered evidence, and now you want to stop?”

Jegal Tan’s answer was consistent.

“It’s right to stop here.”

“Why?”

“We can’t pressure an unorthodox sect just for killing cats.”

“But he’s a demonic practitioner? With a plausible reason…”

“Nothing is certain.”

It’s only a possibility.

Jegal Tan clicked his tongue.

“The best option is to hand him over to the guards. Let the law handle it, not martial artists.”

It was a frustrating but unavoidable reality.

“Let’s go back.”

Though disappointing, they had fulfilled the client’s request.

On the fifth night.

The request was completed.

Or so they thought.

***

“What? You actually found him?”

With an annoying voice, the instructor expressed genuine surprise.

“Geez. If you knew it was impossible, Why would you ask us to do it.”

Mo Yong So-hye muttered quietly, but the instructor, seemingly in a good mood, pretended not to hear.

“Hmm. Let’s see.”

Flipping through the request resolution report, the instructor spoke indifferently.

“What? He’s just a small fry?”

“But he’s part of a significant unorthodox sect. We should hand him over to the authorities.”

“Yeah. It’s best to hand over such troublesome matters to the authorities… Huh?”

Wait.

The instructor’s gaze stopped on a part of the document.

“Jegal.”

“Yes, Instructor.”

The instructor’s eyes sparkled as if he had found gold.

“They have gambling dens?”

“Yes, but…”

“And they deal in cash.”

“…Isn’t that illegal?”

*Bang!*

Jumping up from the bed, the instructor declared righteously.

“Such heinous people shouldn’t be handed over to the authorities!”

The instructor declared ominously.

“Come with me. I’ll show you how to live as a righteous hero!”