Chongqing
Tang Mujin faced an unexpected situation.
To be honest, after Hong Geolgae pulled that idiotic stunt of jumping into the Yangtze on a rainy day, Mujin thought this new request would be something trivial.
Maybe a new set of clothes. Or wanting a decent sword of his own. Something like that.
But what Hong Geolgae proposed was storming the pirate den called Jang Sangchae—or whatever it was—just the two of them, without any backup.
Naturally, Mujin thought it was a joke. But Hong Geolgae's expression was far too serious.
"You wouldn't have brought this up unless you had some brilliant plan ready to slap your knee over, right?"
"No. I've never even been there, what plan could I have?"
There was no confidence in Hong Geolgae's voice.
Mujin narrowed his eyes. Just what was this guy thinking, bringing up something like that?
Still, it was too late to pretend he hadn't heard. To back out after agreeing to listen would be too disgraceful.
And besides, the bigger problem was that he had already listened to that child Soseon's story.
If he had remained ignorant, it would have been mere negligence—but knowing and still doing nothing? That would be a sin.
"…First, let's head to the inn."
All the things Tang Mujin forged at the smithy weren't stored at Feng's Forge, but at the Xin Yue Inn.
If he left them at Feng's Forge, crazed blacksmiths would sneak in to steal them.
They didn't even wait until the items were complete.
Half-forged lumps of metal, roughly hammered thin plates of iron, even poorly made practice swords meant only to loosen his shoulders—none of it was safe. They took everything.
And, bizarrely, they even left a few silver coins behind, as if they had properly paid for what they stole.
Because of this constant petty sabotage, Mujin hadn't made much during his time in Chongqing.
One sword meant for Goiyi, a few spare needles, and a single metal case for storing medicinal herbs. Among them, only the sword was of use in rescuing Soseon.
He thought to just take the sword, but after a moment of hesitation, he gathered everything.
Not only what he'd made himself, but even the odds and ends he had brought from home.
"Why bring the junk too?"
"Because if things go wrong, we might not make it back to the inn and will have to flee."
Success would be best. But coldly speaking, the chances of saving Soseon were slim.
If luck was with them, even failure might still leave them alive enough to run.
But to then return to Chongqing afterward—that was impossible.
He had even heard that the Beggars' Sect wasn't on bad terms with the pirates, which made it all the more dangerous.
Who knew if the beggars would try to capture Mujin themselves, just to avoid friction with the bandits?
Hong Geolgae didn't complain about Mujin carrying so much. He was already grateful enough that Mujin was even helping at all.
"Let's go."
The two headed downriver along the Yangtze.
The pirates' stronghold was called Jang Sangchae (長上寨)—but that name only came from its location upriver along the Yangtze.
From Chongqing, which lay at the far upper end of the river, Jang Sangchae was relatively downstream.
The hideout sat nestled between two hills on the riverbank.
Whether ships were traveling upstream or down, it was the perfect place to leap out and rob them.
For boatmen, it was a nightmare. But for Tang Mujin and Hong Geolgae, it was an ideal spot to observe.
From atop the hill, the two looked down at Jang Sangchae.
"Huh. They're living more shabby than I expected. Thought they'd be swimming in money."
"Wouldn't it be stranger if pirates lived in splendor?"
"True enough."
They saw four buildings. All sturdy, but far from stylish. And it was unclear whether they were living quarters or just storage.
Luckily, the timing was favorable. Like the Beggars' Sect who were busy building embankments, the pirates of Jang Sangchae too were frantically piling up dirt for flood protection.
The only difference was that these pirates looked far more desperate.
While the Beggars' Sect inns had been built on higher ground with a good view, the pirates had deliberately chosen low ground near the water for quick escape by boat.
Now the water was lapping right at their ankles as they worked on the embankment.
"At this point, wouldn't it be smarter for them to abandon the base and run?"
"They can't just abandon it. Unlike others, they can't exactly blend into Chongqing city life."
"Hmm… maybe so. Anyway, what's the plan?"
Hong Geolgae turned to him, as if expecting Mujin to provide the answer despite being the one who dragged him here in the first place.
Before laying out any plan, Mujin asked an important question.
"Just to be sure—you're not thinking of wiping out all those pirates, are you?"
"Of course not."
"Good. Then all we need is to find Soseon and escape. The biggest problem is we don't know where he is."
The two lay hidden behind trees on the rain-soaked hill, pondering.
The downpour helped conceal them, but it was impossible to storm the four buildings in search of Soseon.
There were at least forty or fifty men working on the embankment. If even half a dozen of them noticed and approached, it would be over.
"Should I sneak in and look around?"
Mujin clicked his tongue at Hong Geolgae's reckless instinct.
"Idiot. Even if the rain hides you, strutting among ragged pirates in your expensive armor—how long before you're spotted?"
"Then what if I strip and sneak in?"
"How about thinking before you speak?"
"Then what do we do?"
"We think. That's what."
As they debated while watching the pirates, a rustling sound came from behind them.
At first they thought it was just some rain-drenched animal moving among the thick trees—but soon, they heard voices.
"Damn it, I'd rather be building the embankment. Climbing up and down this hill in the rain is torture."
"At least you're on rotation. I'm covering for Jungchil's shift."
Pirates.
Mujin had thought such rootless bandits wouldn't bother with patrols—but unexpectedly, they seemed to have some discipline.
The problem was that the pirates were moving directly toward where Tang Mujin and Hong Geolgae were hiding.
The two men exchanged quick glances, then quietly crawled apart to opposite sides, slipping into the undergrowth.
No words were needed. Mujin smiled in satisfaction.
"I thought he was an idiot, but he's quick on the uptake at times like this."
Fighting the pirates here would be the worst possible choice.
Even if the sound of battle was drowned out by the rain, if those pirates failed to return on time, their comrades would immediately realize something was wrong.
That would only make security tighter, and their chances of rescuing Soseon would drop dramatically.
The two crouched in the bushes, waiting for the pirates to pass.
At least, that's what Mujin thought.
The problem was—he was the only one who thought that.
Just as the pirates reached the spot beside them, Hong Geolgae suddenly sprang to his feet. Mujin's eyes went wide at the reckless move.
Then came the swing of Hong Geolgae's staff.
"Staff Strike on Twin Dogs !"
The two pirates leapt back in a hurry, narrowly dodging the blow.
Despite the flashy name—striking down two dogs at once—not a single pirate was actually hit. Likely because of Hong Geolgae's idiotic habit of shouting the technique name as he attacked.
"Hey! Why didn't you get up on time?" Hong Geolgae yelled at Mujin, his voice full of indignation.
But of course, Mujin was the one who truly felt wronged. He scrambled to his feet, drawing his sword.
"You idiot, why get up when we were hiding so well?"
"What? I thought we were waiting for the right moment to ambush them?"
"Then why did you talk about sneaking in before? We should've stayed down until they passed!"
"No, I just assumed you meant we'd attack…"
Indeed, fighting in perfect sync without words was something that simply didn't apply to Tang Mujin and Hong Geolgae.
Both men stood before the pirates, feeling a mix of frustration, disappointment, and exasperation toward each other.
"I'd rather beat up Hong Geolgae first than the pirates." Mujin thought bitterly.
The pirates, startled at the sudden attack, were tense at first. But after overhearing the two men's squabbling, their tension eased. Their words sounded like they were shouting to the world how much of amateurs they were.
The pirates drew their curved sabers with mocking grins.
"Puny brats daring to block the path of our elder?"
"You look like you've got some money. Let's see what you're carrying."
This time, Mujin and Hong Geolgae stiffened. The two pirates, sabers in hand, reminded them uncomfortably of the twin killers from Jiayang.
The fear hit Hong Geolgae especially hard. Hadn't Ma Jeonggae lost his life in the fight against those very killers?
The pirates kept jeering and pressing in.
"Don't know what you were thinking coming here, but if you want to live, drop your weapons and get on the ground. We just happen to need more hands to build the embankment."
"If you're obedient, maybe we'll even take you in as lowly recruits of Jang Sangchae!"
Terrifying as they were, surrender was another matter.
There was no guarantee the pirates would spare them if they gave up.
Better to resist while they still had the chance. If they truly couldn't win, surrender could be considered later.
Mujin and Hong Geolgae locked eyes. A moment later, they gave each other a sharp nod. Both tightened their grips on their weapons.
For once, their thoughts aligned. They charged the pirates together.
"Insolent fools!"
A pirate swung his curved blade in a wide arc.
Once, Mujin would have shut his eyes in fear. But today, he glared at the incoming strike with eyes wide open.
He might have suffered defeat after defeat, but the month of sparring on the road to Chongqing had not been meaningless.
The trajectory of that blade was familiar. How many times had he been struck by practice swords swinging in just that way?
And because the attack was familiar, he knew how to avoid it. His body moved instinctively, lowering his stance. The saber swept past just above his head.
From the dodge came the natural counterattack—borne of instinct and repetition.
From his crouch, Mujin raised his sword in a vertical slash to drive his foe back, then immediately followed with a thrust aimed at the heart. It was one of the fundamental forms of the Heart-Piercing Sword, the Sparrow Wasp (雀蜂). Mujin swung upward, praying inwardly:
"Please let this work!"
But the technique never reached completion.
The move should have ended with a thrust once the opponent dodged the rising cut—but instead, the pirate failed to avoid it and his throat was sliced open.
"Uh…?"
The pirate was shocked, but Mujin was just as stunned. He hadn't meant to land a fatal blow.
Blood gushed over Mujin's head as the man clutched at his throat.
The pirate dropped his saber, gripping his neck with both hands.
With eyes wide in disbelief, he stared down at Mujin and rasped through bubbling blood:
"A master… why is a master here…?"
The nameless pirate collapsed with a thud, trembling a few times before going limp.
Frozen in shock, Tang Mujin remained crouched in that stance for a long while, unable to move.