Chapter 13
First Mission (2)
Namgung Jun descended Mount Huang together with a senior member of the Heavenly Sword Hall.
The swordsman’s name was Heo Il, and he had apparently just reached the midpoint of his twenties. In an ordinary sect, he would still be treated as one of the younger rising talents.
But perhaps because he had joined the Blue Heaven Association early and accumulated countless experiences, his bearing and composure were polished far beyond what his age would suggest.
They said that if he accumulates a little more merit and martial achievement, he’ll be qualified to challenge for promotion to the Third Cloud rank.
Recalling the first mission assigned to him, Namgung Jun spoke.
“It seems like a task I could handle on my own.”
“You’re full of spirit, aren’t you? It’s the age for that. But you’re still a newcomer, so we have to go together. There are various things I need to teach you.”
Namgung Jun simply nodded.
Though he had displayed considerable martial ability, within the Heavenly Sword Hall he was still nothing more than a talented rookie.
Naturally, the higher-ups would want a senior to act as his guardian. They were probably also interested in observing how he thought and acted in real situations.
“Don’t misunderstand. It’s not that we don’t trust Young Hero Namgung. Every newcomer goes through this process.”
Heo Il’s narrow eyes curved into a warm smile.
Despite the noticeable age difference, Heo Il treated Namgung Jun as a fully-fledged swordsman and showed him proper respect.
“As a newcomer, most of the missions assigned to you for the time being will be within Anhui Province.”
As the topic shifted to mission assignments, Namgung Jun asked something he had been curious about.
“Senior Heo, I heard that the Blue Heaven Association operates throughout the entire martial world, not just Anhui Province. Is that really possible with only the Ten Halls?”
The martial world of the Nine Provinces and Eight Wastelands was vast.
No matter how large an alliance was, there were limits to how far its influence could reach.
Pleased by the question, Heo Il raised the corner of his lips.
“The Ten Halls are not the entirety of the Blue Heaven Association’s military strength. Branches are spread throughout the martial world. Matters that those branches cannot handle on their own are usually assigned to the Ten Halls at headquarters.”
Using the placement examination as an example, he continued.
“Only five newcomers entered the Ten Halls during the last placement test. Everyone else was dispersed and assigned to various branches.”
“Then headquarters effectively serves as the Anhui Branch as well.”
“Precisely.”
The Ten Halls of the Sword Fragrance Headquarters were, in other words, the elite forces of the Blue Heaven Association.
Issues beyond the capabilities of local branches would be forwarded to headquarters, eventually becoming missions for the Ten Halls.
Even so, it can’t be easy.
As if reading his thoughts, Heo Il smiled.
“Of course, even the Blue Heaven Association has limits when it comes to operating across the entire martial world. There are other secret organizations that assist us from the shadows. Someday, Young Hero Namgung will learn about them as well.”
“I understand.”
Namgung Jun absentmindedly touched the bamboo hat on his head.
An embroidered martial robe decorated with cloud patterns, along with a bamboo hat.
They were the common attire of the Blue Heaven Association.
“It seems you enjoy drinking, Senior Heo.”
Namgung Jun glanced at the gourd flask hanging from Heo Il’s waist.
“Ah, this? It’s not that I like alcohol. I need it when I use my sword.”
Why would someone need alcohol to wield a sword?
The question crossed Namgung Jun’s mind, but seeing the faint awkwardness behind Heo Il’s smile, he chose not to press further.
Lifting the brim of his bamboo hat and gazing beyond the mountain peaks, Namgung Jun naturally changed the subject.
“I can already see our destination.”
Tongling, in eastern Anhui Province.
Because it sat along a tributary of the Yangtze River and handled a substantial amount of logistics traffic, it was a fairly prosperous area.
“You’ve familiarized yourself with the mission details?”
“Yes. We’re investigating the Baegong Faction.”
The Baegong Faction was an unorthodox group that had established itself in Tongling.
They mainly survived by collecting tolls from merchants traveling the river and extorting money from commoners under the guise of protection fees.
Lately, however, strange rumors had begun spreading through Tongling.
Commoners who come into contact with the Baegong Faction have been disappearing.
Namgung Jun stroked the hilt at his waist.
I can more or less guess what’s happening.
They had probably forced people to take out predatory loans with outrageous interest rates.
Then, under the pretext of collecting interest, they would continuously squeeze money from them. Once they judged there was nothing left to take, they would likely sell the victims off.
It was hardly surprising.
Such methods were practically the classic approach of the unorthodox sects.
Even after all this time, the filth of the unorthodox factions remains the same.
A cold chill gathered between Namgung Jun’s slightly lowered eyelashes.
Those who practiced martial arts bore the responsibility of the strong.
Without responsibility and righteousness to match the blade, martial arts were nothing more than violence and tyranny.
If the Baegong Faction had abandoned that responsibility and recklessly abused their martial arts, then he intended to make them witness the consequences of that choice.
With the sword in his own hand.
Strength entered Namgung Jun’s stride as he stepped forward.
***
In one corner of Tongling’s docks, a group of rough-looking men had gathered.
They were disciples of the Baegong Faction.
Among them stood a crooked-looking middle-aged man, watching the river’s surface churn with bubbling foam.
He was the faction’s vice leader.
“Pull it up!”
At the vice leader’s command, the disciples grabbed the ropes and hauled.
The fishing net submerged beneath the river rose from the water.
“Gahhh!”
Inside the net was not a fish, but a human being.
The middle-aged man trapped within convulsed violently as he coughed up water. Judging by how desperately he had struggled inside the net, his entire body was covered in wounds.
Having finally managed to breathe again, the middle-aged man coughed violently before collapsing limply.
“Hey. Pull yourself together. Decide already. Are you going to repay the debt, or are you going to sell one of your family members?”
“How... could you...”
“Let’s do this instead. Hand over your daughter, and I’ll waive the interest for the next three months. That should give you some breathing room and let you pay off the principal, shouldn’t it?”
“I cannot do that...”
The middle-aged man trembled as he barely forced out his answer.
Watching him, the vice leader grinned.
There wasn’t a trace of sympathy in that smile. It contained only amusement and enjoyment, like a child playing with a toy.
“Looks like you haven’t had enough water yet.”
The vice leader flicked his fingers, and the disciples of the Baegong Faction began loosening the ropes to dunk the man back into the river.
“Stop.”
A low voice pierced precisely into the ears of the vice leader and every disciple present.
At the end of their gazes stood a young man.
His frame was small and thin, yet there was nothing insignificant about him.
The icy blue light flowing from beneath his bamboo hat.
The relaxed, natural posture of a hand resting on the hilt of a sword.
He was not a frail youth.
He was unmistakably a swordsman.
While the disciples stared blankly at Namgung Jun, only the vice leader carefully examined his attire.
“The Blue Heaven Association?”
After counting the white cloud embroidery on Namgung Jun’s sleeve, delight appeared on the vice leader’s face.
One cloud! Judging by his appearance, he’s a brat who only recently joined the Blue Heaven Association!
Having quickly reached his conclusion, the vice leader hurriedly extended his hand toward the middle-aged man trapped in the net.
“Kh!”
Displaying considerable skill in grappling techniques, he wrapped his left arm around the man’s neck and drew a dagger, pressing it against his throat.
“I hear you people are strangely obsessed with protecting the lives of worthless trash like this.”
“Worthless?”
“Isn’t it obvious just by looking at him?”
The vice leader lightly pricked the man’s throat with the dagger, drawing blood.
“If you want him to live, throw away your sword and kneel!”
As though he were accustomed to situations like this, the vice leader naturally threatened Namgung Jun.
Only then did the other disciples move beside him, wearing sinister smiles.
They were making sure Namgung Jun could not try anything.
If they stalled long enough, other disciples would hear the commotion and come running.
Then they could easily capture the foolish boy standing before them.
“I said kneel!”
The vice leader raised his voice threateningly, but Namgung Jun did not even acknowledge him.
He simply asked in a calm tone:
“Can you see it?”
“What...?”
The vice leader could not finish his sentence.
Splurt!
Blood suddenly burst from the centers of the foreheads of the vice leader and every disciple around him.
Click.
As life faded from their eyes and their bodies slowly began to tilt, Namgung Jun was already sheathing the sword he had drawn without anyone noticing.
The Thirteen Lightning Sword Forms.
Third Form.
Third Edge.
Executing Third Edge in rapid succession, Namgung Jun slew the vice leader and five disciples of the Baegong Faction in a single breath.
They had not even managed to react before their heads were pierced through.
“Uh...”
The middle-aged man who had been held by the vice leader let out a stunned sound.
The hand choking his neck was slowly loosening.
Only moments ago, with the cold dagger pressed against his throat, he had been certain he was about to die.
Yet in an instant he was free.
For the briefest moment, he felt liberated.
As though he had finally escaped the vice leader’s gaze and grasp that had endlessly tormented both his body and mind.
Perhaps because the tension had suddenly vanished, all strength left his body.
He sank awkwardly to the ground, unable to move.
Helping him up, Namgung Jun asked,
“Are you all right?”
“Yes... thanks to you, Young Hero.”
The middle-aged man stared blankly at Namgung Jun before finally coming back to his senses and repeatedly bowing his head.
“Thank you. I don’t know how I could ever repay this kindness.”
Even while expressing his gratitude, however, he kept glancing nervously at the vice leader’s corpse.
Relief and worry were tangled together in his eyes.
Reading the fear hidden there, Namgung Jun spoke gently.
“You need not worry about future retaliation.”
“What?”
“As of today, the Baegong Faction will disappear from Tongling.”
Releasing a stream of internal energy from the Heavenly Thunder True Yang Art to drive the cold from the man’s body, Namgung Jun rose to his feet.
Watching from behind, Heo Il’s narrowed eyes deepened.
His right hand, which had already slipped inside his robe at some point, quietly withdrew again.
There was no hesitation in his swordsmanship. And he remained calm.
Most people, when faced with a dirty hostage situation like this for the first time, would find their judgment shaken.
The pressure of knowing another person’s life rested in one’s hands was not something a young martial artist fresh to the jianghu could easily bear.
That was why Heo Il had deliberately refrained from intervening.
He had been ready to step in and save the civilian at any moment while observing how Namgung Jun would respond.
Yet Namgung Jun had not shown the slightest panic.
His judgment had been swift.
His strike even swifter.
He accurately measured both his own abilities and the opponent’s level before acting decisively.
Having watched Namgung Jun spar at the Heavenly Sword Hall, Heo Il knew that the lightning-fast sword strike just now was nowhere near his full strength.
Which meant Namgung Jun had precisely controlled his power to the exact level needed to eliminate the threat.
He’s seasoned. Those aren’t the actions of a young rookie. He keeps surprising me.
By the time he realized it, Heo Il had already moved to Namgung Jun’s side.
Toying with his bamboo hat, he smiled.
“For this mission, I’ll follow your judgment, Young Hero. If you require assistance, feel free to say so at any time.”
Originally, Heo Il had intended to take command of the mission himself while assigning Namgung Jun simple tasks and observing him.
But after witnessing that display, he changed his mind.
The newcomer before him was more than capable of handling the mission.
“Then there is something I would like to ask of you.”
“Oh?”
Interest flickered in Heo Il’s narrowed eyes.
Talented newcomers usually tried to solve their first mission entirely on their own to prove their abilities.
They rarely asked for help.
That Namgung Jun requested assistance so readily was unexpected.
And because Namgung Jun’s talent was clearly extraordinary, Heo Il was even more curious about what kind of help he wanted.
“Let’s hear it.”
As the two walked and conversed, the signboard of the Baegong Faction gradually came into view in the distance.
Even so, neither man slowed their pace.
They advanced without the slightest hesitation.