Chapter v20c10

“Hey, Hwan-Mu! Why are you still holding that club? Isn’t that the one from earlier?”

“Hmm? You’re right.”

Hwan-Mu said, as if she had just realized it.

The captain flinched at their cryptic conversation. It was a primal fear.

“Could you please get rid of that… thing? Actually, just throw it away. As far as possible.”

The captain approached them cautiously, his voice polite, but his posture defensive. There was something about that ordinary-looking club that triggered an instinctive fear.

“Alright. I don’t want to pollute the water, but I can’t keep carrying it.”

Hwan-Mu nodded readily. Mong-Mu’s eyes suddenly sparkled with mischief.

“Hmm, we don’t have to throw it away. It looks sturdy. We could use it for self-defense, or carve the date on it as a souvenir…”

She took the club from Hwan-Mu and pretended to carve something on it.

“T-throw that thing away! Now!”

The captain shouted.

“Yes, throw it away!”

One of the crewmen, who had appeared out of nowhere, echoed his sentiment. She noticed that there were quite a few crewmen on deck now.

“Why? It’s a shame to waste it.”

She swung the club playfully, and the men flinched, backing away.

*Slap!*

“Stop it, Mong-Mu!”

Hwan-Mu slapped her on the head.

“Throw that thing in the water. It’s filthy.”

“I agree.”

Yeong-Ryeong, who had been pretending to ignore them, finally spoke up.

“Tsk, this would have been fun…”

Mong-Mu reluctantly tossed the club into the lake. Sighs of relief were heard from all around, as she pouted, her eyes filled with regret.

* * *

The ship glided across the blue waters of Dongting Lake. As the morning sun rose higher, dispelling the mist, their vision widened, and the blurry images sharpened. The passengers, perhaps emboldened by the clearer view, looked around curiously, wondering where they were headed. But Dongting Lake was so vast that those unfamiliar with its waterways couldn’t tell where they were going. Yeong-Ryeong was no exception.

After about half an hour of rowing, they started seeing patrol boats with small flags on their sterns. The patrolmen, in groups of three, were all armed, and one of them was wearing a black diving suit, which provided protection from the water and made swimming easier. It was a thorough formation, ready for any contingency.

“That’s ‘Purple Bamboo Island,’ the nest of Machun Pavilion, where you wish to go.”

“Purple Bamboo Island…”

A small island emerged from the thinning mist.

“Oh my, it’s smaller than I expected.”

The island’s shadow was surprisingly small. Not tiny, but not large either.

“You’re right. It’s too small, Miss.”

Mong-Mu agreed, her voice filled with disappointment.

It didn’t seem large enough to house many facilities. Three buildings would probably fill it up.

“Agreed. Gross.”

Hwan-Mu nodded in agreement.

The man shrugged.

“What are you looking at? That’s just one of the four small islands surrounding the main island. Look behind it. It was hidden by the mist, but it’ll appear soon.”

The shadow that appeared behind it was at least ten times larger. It looked like a mountain rising from the lake. As the sun climbed higher, pushing away the mist, the island’s shape became clearer.

The island was covered in bamboo. The top, the bottom, everything was green bamboo. Even the water was dotted with bamboo. And the island was surrounded by a green wall, which, upon closer inspection, turned out to be a bamboo fence. The long bamboo stalks, at least ten feet tall, had been stripped of their branches and leaves, their tops sharpened and woven together tightly. Judging by the density of the bamboo, there were probably multiple layers of this fence.

“That’s ‘Purple Bamboo Island,’ the headquarters of Machun Pavilion.”

The man explained.

“There’s a lot of bamboo.”

“Bamboo is everything here. Weapons, walls, traps, tools… Its uses are endless.”

They saw the bamboo fence, the hidden wall behind it, and the medium-sized islands surrounding the main island. The wooden poles marked the location of underwater reefs.

“Don’t even think about jumping in. You’ll be skewered.”

He said gruffly. They had sharpened bamboo stalks planted in the shallow water to deter intruders.

“Don’t worry. I’ve lived in the mountains all my life. I’m not interested in swimming.”

“But you seem…”

He trailed off.

“What?”

“Never mind. You seem comfortable on a boat. You’re not even seasick. Just a feeling. Forget it.”

She couldn’t forget it.

* * *

They followed the bamboo fence surrounding the island and reached the entrance. It was a unique gate, with two massive pillars supporting a huge beam. How did they manage to erect those thick, iron pillars, as thick as ancient trees, on the water? It was a marvel of engineering, its sheer scale awe-inspiring. Or maybe they were made of something else. There were inscriptions on both sides of the pillars:

*Even if Dongting Lake turns red with blood, you shall not pass.*

The ship stopped at the entrance.

There were watchtowers on top of the pillars.

“What opens the green bamboo?”

A voice called out from the watchtower. It was a challenge.

“Only the red sunset that paints the lakeshore.”

The man replied, looking up. The voice called out again.

“Open the gate!”

The entrance to the bamboo fence opened, and the ship glided through. A wide cove, shaped like a crescent moon, appeared. The entire cove was surrounded by a high stone wall. The only entrance was a massive iron gate in the center. It was so large that it was visible from afar. On both sides of the gate were huge bronze demon masks, their expressions grotesque and menacing. They looked like guardians of the underworld. Mong-Mu gasped, her eyes widening.

“Miss, look! There’s someone floating on the water!”

She pointed excitedly.

“Are you dreaming? How can someone float on water…? Oh my…”

Hwan-Mu, who had thought she was mistaken, was also surprised. A man, armed with a long, spear-like weapon, was indeed floating on the water. There was no boat. And he wasn’t alone. Ten men in black, their cloaks billowing, were standing on the water, spaced evenly apart.

“Those are the ‘Ten Guardians of the Demon Gate,’ who guard the entrance to Machun Pavilion. They’re masters of water combat, unmatched in the water, above or below. No one can enter without their permission.”

The captain explained.

“So they can float on water with their internal energy? All day?”

Mong-Mu asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“Well… I don’t know. And even if I did, I couldn’t tell you.”

He was a man of few words.

“That’s impossible. Even if they’re masters, they can’t float on water all day with their internal energy. There must be countless stakes hidden beneath the surface. We just can’t see them because they’re right below the waterline.”

The captain was impressed by her observation.

“Hmm, impressive eyesight! You figured that out with just one glance.”

He didn’t deny it.

“You’re not denying it?”

“Why would I? They’ll still be invincible in the water, even if you know about the stakes.”

Even if there were stakes, only they knew their location. And it would take considerable training to fight on top of them.

“That’s the entrance to Machun Pavilion, also known as the ‘Demon Gate.'”

He pointed at the menacing iron gate.

“Whoever named it has a terrible sense of humor.”

Was this the northeast direction? She couldn’t be sure without a compass, but judging by the faint position of the sun, it was close.

‘Does it mean you have to be prepared to become a demon to enter?’

The black iron gate, adorned with eerie demon carvings, shrouded in mist and smoke, looked like the entrance to hell. The cove wasn’t shallow. Even the area right next to the wall seemed quite deep. There was nowhere to dock the ship.

‘Are they going to dock right next to that creepy gate?’

There were no obstacles between the entrance to the bamboo fence and the Demon Gate, but the ship wasn’t heading straight towards it. It was taking an oblique course.

“Why are we taking this route? There are no reefs or obstacles.”

She asked, unable to contain her curiosity. He replied casually,

“It’s my hobby.”

“So it’s not a hobby.”

His evasive answer was an answer in itself.

“You’re saying there’s something hidden where we can’t see it?”

He chuckled.

“You have exceptional eyesight, Miss. I almost don’t want to let you go. You know what happens when you know too many secrets, right? That’s right. Only those who want to capsize their ship sail in a straight line at Machun Pavilion.”

It was a meticulously designed defense system, ready for any contingency. Even Mount Liangshan wasn’t this heavily fortified.

“Are you preparing for war? Against the government?”

“It’s purely defensive. We just want to be prepared in case the government forces attack.”

It was hard to believe. And then the ship stopped.

There were two bronze demon masks, with long horns, on both sides of the Machun Pavilion entrance. Their eyes and mouths were hollow, making them even more eerie.

“Who seeks to enter this hell?”

“Kyaaa!”

Mong-Mu screamed, startled by the booming voice coming from the demon mask, and clung to Yeong-Ryeong. It sounded like a demon was speaking.

“Calm down. They’re just trying to scare us. Someone’s probably speaking through a metal tube. That’s why it sounds so distorted.”

It was clearly a deliberate attempt to intimidate visitors, especially potential applicants.

“One who seeks power in exchange for blood.”

The man replied, speaking into the demon mask’s hollow mouth.

It was the password.

“Your affiliation?”

“Captain Hae Dae-Gyeong of the First Ghost Spirit Ship. I’ve returned with a Machun Pavilion applicant.”

“Wait a moment.”

A voice called out from the wall.

“Raise the pier!”

‘Raise the pier?’

A voice echoed from below.

“Raise the pier! Ascend!”

“Ascend!”

Everyone, including Mong-Mu, was confused. And then the pier actually started rising. The sound of chains winding around a giant pulley echoed through the air, as the pier slowly emerged from the water.

“It’s really rising!”

Mong-Mu exclaimed, her mouth agape.

“That’s amazing.”

Yeong-Ryeong was also surprised.

“What a waste of effort.”

Only Hwan-Mu scoffed.

“It’s another measure to prevent government forces from docking their ships. It can also be used as a trap. It’s very useful.”

Hae Dae-Gyeong explained. The ship came to a complete stop. A gangplank was lowered. He led the way, and they followed him.

He stopped in front of the massive iron gate. It was adorned with terrifying demon carvings, as if it were the gate to hell. It seemed like they had to pass another checkpoint.

“Who seeks to enter this hell?”

An eerie voice emanated from the bronze demon mask on the right side of the gate.

“One who seeks power in exchange for blood, one who fears not to become a demon, one who walks the path of Asura, one who desires to spill blood.”

He replied.

“How much blood will you spill?”

“One drop of blood and two drops of water.”

It meant one applicant and two maids.

“What a complicated procedure.”

“Be quiet.”

Hwan-Mu scolded Mong-Mu, who was grumbling telepathically.

*Creak!*

The heavy gate slowly opened, with a sound that seemed to come from the depths of hell. Hae Dae-Gyeong turned around and spread his arms wide.

“Welcome to the hell of the mortal world! Hell welcomes you.”

She didn’t hesitate.

“Let’s go!”

She took the first step, and her maids followed her. The darkness swallowed them whole.

*Creak!*

The gate closed with a deafening roar.