Cheonghae Province is clearly a border area.
Although it has a vast area and beautiful scenery, one of the largest in the world, the reality is that its abundance of materials and number of households are far short of that of the central plains.
Therefore, whenever they were compared to the central plains, which had established themselves as the center of the world for thousands of years and developed a wide range of civilizations, the people of Qinghai Province would jokingly criticize themselves like this.
– Cheonghae and Jungwon have only three things in common. They see the same sun, are connected by the same water (Yellow River), and finally, there is a beggar.
Beggars were common beings everywhere.
They lived in noisy streets, dark and dirty back alleys, or in huts near streams, regardless of whether they were in the middle of the country or on the outskirts.
The number is so large that there is a joke that if openness absorbs all the beggars in the world, it will be possible to establish a nation.
However, as dawn slowly dawned, a white-haired beggar was discovered by a scouting party exploring the surrounding area through the dim dawn fog, and was behaving like no one had ever seen before.
No, it was so unfamiliar that it made my hair stand on end.
Plop, plod.
Staggering steps, as if he would fall down at any moment. Empty eyes, as if the soul had escaped.
and… … .
“Tell it. certainly. Whoever survives.”
A fearful voice flowing from between blue lips.
Maybe that was why.
In a split-second, the scouts, who had been frozen like statues, belatedly discovered two knots tied to the beggar’s waist.
“… … “Open (丐幇).”
It’s definitely true. The beggar in front of me was a martial artist who was involved in openness.
That’s also the level below Buntaju.
And as far as they knew, there was only one reason why Gaegodo Island would appear here, a hundred li west of Seonyeong, where the scouting party had departed.
“Old man, what on earth happened at Cheonghae Lake…” … !”
That moment. The scout who was hurriedly getting off the horse and approaching swallowed a sigh and opened his eyes.
Because then I saw it.
In the whitish fog, the hair that appeared to be gray due to aging was actually frozen like a person who had been trapped in a glacier.
His white face was that of a young man, not an old man.
“What is this?”
What would it feel like if a bolt of lightning pierced the top of your head?
The twenty scouts had no choice but to remain silent as they felt a shiver run down their spines.
Without even knowing that the one word he heard the very next moment was the last spark he put all his effort into.
“Tell it. I will go. “I will go and kill and burn everything in Xining.”
“… … !”
“… … !”
For a moment, the scouts trembled with eyes filled with astonishment.
Because of the terrifying murderous intent contained in those words?
no. Wrong.
Openness.
He was smiling. He was crying at the same time.
As if he was following someone who had ordered him to spread these words.
As if mourning the deaths of his colleagues who had already become immortal guests.
And in the suffocating silence that weighed down all around, the body of Gonggae-do, who had completed the arduous journey, was tilted along with a faint voice.
“wait. I, the blood master, have returned… … .”
thud.
A body that falls apart like a rotten log.
No, the scouts who had been staring blankly at the lifeless body of Open Island suddenly raised their heads and looked west.
Why?
Is it because of the fear that has already sprouted in my heart, or is it an instinctive intuition that realizes the reality that I will soon face?
It seemed like the screams and stench of terrible monsters were coming from beyond the thick fog.
“… … “Recover the body.”
Even in his superior’s barely suppressed voice, there was fear that could not be hidden.
“I’m going back to Xinyeong. Right Now.”
* * *
The office of the Lord of Cheonghae Castle, now a headless corpse, was indescribably spacious and luxurious.
As if to prove why he had no choice but to die.
The table was carved from expensive ebony and was large enough to seat dozens of people at the same time, and Chokgeum silk, which is considered a special item even in Sacheon, was used to block the sunlight.
However, Cheonghae Castle would not have known about it.
Those flashy luxuries that he would have regretted even before his death are being used for a shabby beggar at this very moment.
“This kind of luxury for a person who pays the bills. “You have forgotten your duty as a beggar.”
Gung Gi-bang tried to think in a calm voice.
The man’s eyes were moist as he looked at the body wrapped in silk and placed on an ebony table.
“I didn’t know him that long, but he was a really nice guy. Even though he was still young, he had enough talent to be allowed to play.”
I didn’t answer.
No, not just me, but any of the leaders gathered in the office.
“He asked me to visit Jungwon at least once when the situation got better, so I told him not to be immature… … . Shit.”
Gung Gi-bang swore in a hushed voice and smiled bitterly.
“What can I do? It was just unlucky. “This guy and them too.”
Close to thirty Gyeongjae-do remained on the other side of Cheonghae Lake, but the only one who was able to return to Seonyeong was that young, unnamed Gae-do.
And even then, he stopped breathing in the middle of it.
He looked so miserable that the scouts who discovered him first could not speak properly.
——————
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But his last words, which were almost like a will, contained information more valuable than this entire damn luxurious office.
“Blood alcohol. If it’s blood alcohol… … .”
I nodded at the thought of Qing Hezi, a long-time scholar from the Kunlun sect, who suddenly opened his mouth.
“That’s the name that Jang Mun-in knows. He created the Shaolin blood history (小林血史).”
“… … !”
“… … !”
Invisible waves spread around.
Those who had already known about the existence of the blood vessel just muttered in silence, while those who did not know the details opened their eyes in surprise.
And the Fire King Jeokcheongang was one of the very few people who did not belong to any of them.
“That’s the name I missed.”
A low voice and an expression that shows no significant change.
But I know better than anyone else.
How angry Jeokcheongang is at this moment.
At the same time, how hard are you trying to suppress that anger?
“Now I can finally stand up to that Daengjung.”
He was the head of the Shaolin Temple, known as the Taesanbukdu of the martial arts, and was highly respected enough to be given the title of King of the Law, but Jeokcheongang always called him Daengjung.
One of the few times in my entire life. No, it was because he was a close friend who may have been the only one.
That’s why I wouldn’t have forgotten a single moment.
I have a grudge against the blood lord, the person who killed such a monster.
But now there were more important issues than his resentment.
“In the end, they are determined to launch an all-out war.”
The young Taoist monk, Cheong Heo-ja’s second disciple, Hae-ui, opened his mouth in a voice so calm that it felt cold.
“The fact that we released the already captured Openness means that we are confident of victory.”
“Two, the second child.”
Unlike him, his brother, Hak-su, who was watching from the seat next to him, tried to dissuade him, but Hak-ui didn’t care.
He had gained some say after the last meeting related to Cheonghae Castle.
“But it is unfortunate that the most important information was not delivered. If we could have known at least the number of enemies, we could have taken much better measures… … .”
It was that moment.
“what?”
Gung Gi-bang, who had been staring at the body in silence until then, had his eyebrows furrowed.
“What did you say now?”
Towards Gung Ki-bang, who was showing his anger, Hak-ui responded in a calm tone.
“I just told you my thoughts out of regret.”
“so? Are we going to hold accountable someone who died while taking risks for everyone? “Why didn’t you try harder?”
“that… … .”
Just when Hak-ui was about to respond to Gung-gi-bang’s emotional state, a person who had been quietly observing the situation suddenly spoke up.
“Second.”
It is none other than the teacher, Cheongheoja.
The crane stopped at his soft call and immediately lowered its head towards the palace room.
“I made a mistake because I was immature. “I hope there are no further misunderstandings.”
At that moment, when Gung Gi-bang’s expression became even more grim due to the stiff apology that showed no particular emotion, Cheong Heo-ja opened his mouth again.
“Bindo raised his disciple incorrectly. “I apologize sincerely.”
It was an apology handed to me not by anyone else but by a very senior person, a Jang Mun-in of the Kunlun Sect.
Is it just that?
There are people higher than him here now.
No matter how much the Gunggibang continues to open up, any further disruption can be considered a huge disrespect.
As I was staring at the guy biting his lip and the crane, I let out a telephonic sound just in time.
– Let’s move on, for now.
“… … !”
– Or I could kill that social misfit bastard half to death right now. Just tell me which is better.
Only then did Gung Gi-bang, with a bitter smile, shake his head.
“All right. “I also apologize for disturbing the mood.”
The brief commotion ended like that, but Hakui opened his mouth without any signs of flinching.
“Fortunately, there is still time before the enemies reach Xining. “We need to prepare sufficient preparations for that.”
For some reason, it has a strange tone.
I, who had been watching him with deeply sunken eyes, could not help but ask now.
“What is it? “What are the preparations for that?”
“Don’t you already know, Grandmaster Jin?”
Of course I know. The problem is that you know too well.
That made it even more surprising.
The scholar in front of me, who followed the path of the Kunlun sect, had such thoughts.
“It’s not too late. “We must leave now before our rear is completely blocked.”
“Priest, what is this now!”
However, even though Hak-soo couldn’t stand it anymore and jumped up from his seat, and even though his teacher, Cheong Heo-ja, cried out loud, he didn’t stop.
“This is not a battle, this is a war. Although I know it’s not right to say this… … . “Can’t we commit the mistake of small gain and large loss?”
“… … !”
“… … !”
At that moment when the air inside suddenly froze, I opened my mouth.
“Well, first of all, there’s so much bullshit that it’s hard to refute them all. “Let’s address this first.”
He added softly to the crane doctor, whose face was stiff.
“Blood lord, does that bastard look like such an easy guy?”
I immediately pointed to the table with my hand.
No, to be exact, it was a corpse lying in the open island with frost covered parts here and there.
I knew it from the moment I first saw it.
That terrible coldness that remains in various places of the dead body. I felt a familiar trace that only I among them could find.
‘Blizzard.’
The highest level of ice magic with tremendous power.
This meant two things.
First, as expected, the great sorcerer is with them.
And second.
“They have already crossed Cheonghae Lake.”
There would have been no need for ships. All I had to do was cross the frozen lake using freezing magic.
Releasing the degree of openness in the first place was nothing more than a play on bloodshed.
“therefore.”
I added softly to the crane doctor who was making an incomprehensible expression.
“If you want to run away, leave now. “You coward.”
And that moment.
Suddenly. Clang.
The office began to tremble due to a vibration that came from somewhere.
No, the whole of Xinying.