Chapter v15c20

Sa-yeong-noe Chi Sa-han’s face was creased with a deep frown as he read the report. Its contents were enough to make him feel deeply displeased.

“Is this true?”

Of course, it had to be true. He didn’t keep incompetent subordinates who would dare to fabricate a report on such a critical matter. Still, he asked again, the gravity of the situation demanding double confirmation.

“Yes, Commander. It seems we’ve been compromised.”

Sa Ma-heun, the one who had brought the “Top Priority” classified report, spoke with a heavy heart.

“The evidence should have been turned to ash along with the Peace Market! We left no trace that could lead them back to us.”

He distinctly remembered receiving a previous report confirming that everything had been burned to the ground, leaving no trace.

“Could it be that they got wind of the ‘incident’?”

It was a distinct possibility. They had caused quite a stir back then, even mobilizing soldiers from the surrounding garrisons for suppression.

“I explicitly ordered them to be careful during transport! Those fools!”

In the worst-case scenario, he might have to sever the connection entirely. However, now wasn’t the time to be cursing his subordinates.

“Which dogs are on our trail?”

Chi Sa-han asked again.

“It appears to be the Martial Alliance.”

“Tsk, those White Path dogs… This pack has a keen sense of smell! How far have they sniffed?”

“They haven’t uncovered our existence yet. But it’s only a matter of time.”

Chi Sa-han lowered his head slightly, lost in thought. Sa Ma-heun waited patiently for a moment, then spoke again.

“What are your orders?”

“How many are there?”

He was referring to the number of dogs on their trail.

“Eighteen in total.”

“Who’s leading the pack?”

“The Nine-Foot Iron Eye.”

“That grave robber… Is he really that capable?”

“Grave robber” was a derogatory term often used by those who held a grudge against him. Chi Sa-han knew of him, but his notoriety stemmed more from his unique ability than his actual competence.

“Even a blind squirrel finds a nut sometimes.”

Even luck could be considered a skill.

“He should have stuck to robbing graves! He would have lived longer!”

Chi Sa-han said, grinding his teeth. The decision had already been made.

“There’s only one option. Eliminate them all. I authorize the use of the ‘Extinction Squad.’ Deploy two battalions.”

The mention of the “Extinction Squad” startled the composed man, causing him to raise his head abruptly.

“The Extinction Squad, sir? Two battalions?!”

His surprise was understandable. It was like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. The scale was entirely disproportionate. The Extinction Squad, as its name implied, wasn’t trained to deal with insignificant adversaries. Half a battalion would have been more than enough for this situation.

However, Chi Sa-han seemed resolute in his decision.

“Yes! Deploy the killing machines. This will be a good opportunity to see how well-trained they are.”

“But… to deploy them without His Lordship’s authorization…”

That seemed to be the source of Sa Ma-heun’s unease. In truth, Chi Sa-han felt the same way. This operation could be construed as insubordination, even a breach of protocol. But he was desperate.

“We don’t have time to seek his approval. To completely annihilate a group, you need at least five times their strength. We’ll crush them with overwhelming force! If this operation succeeds, we won’t need to use them again. Spare no effort. Ensure their complete and utter destruction.”

That’s how crucial this operation was.

“Yes, sir!”

Sa Ma-heun replied, his voice firm.

“Dispose of them discreetly. If His Lordship finds out about this mistake…”

The mere thought sent a chill down his spine. Chi Sa-han shuddered, fear gripping him. He pushed down his anxiety and finished his sentence in a low, menacing tone.

“Neither of us will survive.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Chi Sa-han glared at him, his gaze intense.

“No one can know about ‘Dragonfire’ yet. Eliminate anyone who tries to learn about it. That is your duty, your mission. Go! Sa Ma-heun, the Heavenly Calamity Sword, the Sword of a Thousand Demon Slaying!”

“Your orders will be obeyed!”

And with that, Sa Ma-heun vanished from the room like a phantom.

* * *

“Huff… huff… huff…”

A thirst that felt like it would crack his throat, lungs screaming in agony, legs that felt like they would shatter… He wanted to collapse on the spot. But he couldn’t stop.

“Huff… huff… huff…”

He was surprised he was still breathing. An Myeong-hu pushed on, drawing on every ounce of internal energy he had left.

“Damn it, we’ve been discovered! Huff… huff…”

He cursed his carelessness, but there was no turning back.

“…An uncharacteristic mistake!”

The ship had already sailed. Regret could wait until he survived.

“Boss, what about the target? Hehehe…”

Gae-ko, his lieutenant, asked, gasping for air. He was just as exhausted. His overly sensitive nose was the root of their current predicament.

They had tried to be as discreet as possible… But their opponents were more perceptive than they had anticipated.

“Damn it, we haven’t even uncovered the truth yet!”

It would have been less frustrating if they had at least accomplished their mission.

“Boss, huff… huff… what do we do? Huff… huff… They’re still on our tail!”

Gae-ko cried out, his voice strained. He was on the verge of collapse. His face was as pale as a corpse, his eyes unfocused. His Qinggong was faltering.

“You idiot! If you stop now, you’ll die! Run! Even if you die from exhaustion, even if your heart bursts, run! If you’re going to die anyway, might as well die running!”

An Myeong-hu shouted, his voice raw with desperation.

“Huff… huff… You’re making me lose my breath!”

He complained. He was exhausted too.

‘Is there no other choice…?’

He knew it was dangerous, that the side effects would be severe, but it was better than being caught and killed like a dog.

He made his decision.

“We have no choice. Take the ‘Qi Explosion Pills’!”

“The… the Qi Explosion Pills, sir?”

“Yes! Our bodies are at their limit! We have no strength left to run! Our internal energy is depleted! There’s no other way!”

He understood their reluctance.

‘I don’t blame them! I feel the same way…’

The Qi Explosion Pills, as their name suggested, were pills that forcibly ignited the latent potential within a depleted body, allowing the user to temporarily access superhuman strength. But they came with a heavy price. They drained the user’s life force, and in the worst case, could cripple them permanently. They were a last resort, a double-edged sword.

“My mother always warned me about junk food…”

Gae-ko grumbled, pulling out a sealed wooden box from his pocket. It was waterproof, designed to withstand rain and even submersion. An Myeong-hu and the other two men did the same, their movements fluid despite their exhaustion. The pills were blood red, as if warning of their danger. Gae-ko thought they lacked a certain finesse.

“Alright!”

They exchanged glances and nodded. They swallowed the pills. They were bitter and pungent. ‘Good medicine tastes bitter, but bad medicine doesn’t have to taste this bad!’ someone complained. An Myeong-hu resolved to file a complaint about the taste of the pills when he got back. (If he got back.) They lacked a certain consideration for the field operatives.

“The people who made these pills have no idea what they taste like. That’s what happens when you spend all your time behind a desk.”

He grumbled, nitpicking. But he wasn’t doing it for fun. He needed to distract himself from the despair. They were all desperate.

The effect was immediate. It wouldn’t make sense for emergency medicine to take as long to work as regular tonics.

The pills dissolved instantly, their essence absorbed into their bodies. And then, a surge of energy erupted from their dantians.

“Gasp!”

An Myeong-hu was overwhelmed by the power. His depleted dantian was now a raging torrent of Qi.

“It… it works!”

His breathing steadied, his sweating stopped. His fatigue vanished, his limbs felt light and strong.

They might be poison, but they were a godsend right now. He decided to forgive their terrible taste.

“We’ll split up now. Remember our mission. Our mission is not to fight, but to deliver information. At least one of us has to survive and report back to the Alliance. Understand?”

“Yes, sir!”

He had a lot of complaints to file. Most of them would be rejected, but it didn’t matter. He just wanted to sit at his desk and write, to savor the normalcy of it all.

‘Damn it! I’m going to bury that female official in complaints!’

He would smile even if she hated him for it.

“Survive! No matter what! We’ll meet again on Mount Hua! Even if you have to crawl, even if you have to beg, survive!”

Their faces hardened with determination. But then they smiled. The surge of energy had given them a moment of respite.

“Hey, Gae-ko! Let’s meet again! You still owe me money!”

Gae-ko laughed at the unexpected debt collection.

“Of course, Boss. You survive too. I need someone to exploit. But seriously, you’re worried about money at a time like this? Do you really need it that badly?”

“Of course I do! It’s bad luck to die with unpaid debts!”

An Myeong-hu said without hesitation.

“So you better survive! I’m going to collect every last penny, with interest!”

“You’re ruthless! I guess I have to survive to pay you back!”

Gae-ko shook his head, chuckling. An Myeong-hu nodded emphatically.

“Damn right! You’re destined to die in debt to me! Don’t you dare die before then!”

“Hey, that’s not fair! You’re not the only one he owes money to! He owes me three taels of silver!”

Yi Myeong, his second-in-command, chimed in.

“Me too! Me too! He owes me two taels of silver! I lent it to him three months ago!”

Oh Jeong, his third-in-command, added. An Myeong-hu looked at Gae-ko, his eyes narrowed.

“How many people do you owe money to?”

“Hehe!”

Gae-ko scratched his head, grinning sheepishly. He had lost count.

An Myeong-hu chuckled. He was surprised by how much he cherished these small moments, these mundane interactions. But he couldn’t afford to be sentimental.

“We’ll split up here! You all know the rendezvous point, right?”

They nodded.

“Good luck!”

They smiled at each other, their camaraderie a beacon of hope in the darkness.

They all knew that they might never see each other again.

But they smiled anyway.

It was a soldier’s farewell.