Episode 263
“As the head of the family said, the distribution of personnel and deployment of power was not done evenly. But I don’t think this is an equitable decision.”
“…….”
“United units with arge number of personnel and a high level of assigned unmanned personnel will naturally be dispatched to high-risk areas. Conversely, small units will travel to rtively safe areas.”
The air inside the barracks became cold.
The first speaker, the Hong n, also quietly jumped on the bandwagon and led the mood.
With a perplexed expression, I could only look at the people around me and could not easily open my mouth.
I looked straight at the Hong family and asked.
“Let me ask you. What does the head of the family think is ‘equal distribution of power’?”
“…I’m sorry. I was too careless. As you said, it would not have been toote to file aint after listening to the whole story.”
The Hong n bowed its head with a disappointed expression.
He seemed to know that if he was unnecessarily stubborn, he would suffer the loss.
“I understand that there are no moreints regarding the organization of the unit.”
“…….”
“If anyone still thinks there is a problem with equity, please speak up now. “I would be happy to change your assignment.”
The soldiers in the barracks cleared their throats and turned their heads.
No one wanted to make eye contact with me.
It was a natural reaction.
No matter how much he moves with the poison king, who would want to visit Lanju in these times?
The situation is resolved.
“Is there anyone who would like to make an additional suggestion? If not, we will move on to the next step.”
The meeting resumed.
Since then, various topics havee up and down.
By the time all details of the mission had been delivered, it was dawn with silence covering the entire camp.
The soldiers who were crowded inside the barracks left their seats.
A few people who had stayed until the end gathered around me.
“You too have suffered a lot.”
“Because there are so many people, it is not easy to coordinate opinions.”
“Still, I’m d it ended well.”
Sogeolgae and Jangkang Johyeop took turns giving me words offort.
It was a very strange feeling to receive sympathetic looks from no one else but the Yangtze Cooperative.
I couldn’t figure out what to say.
I stretched out with a tired expression and asked Sogeolgae.
“Anyway, are you sure?”
“What do you mean?”
“Senior Maehwashingeom (梅花神劍) is in Lanju.”
“To be exact, the area where hest appeared was Lanju. “It already happened two days ago.”
“He might have escaped to another area by now.”
“It may be so, but I think the possibility is low. A punitive force believed to be led by the Eight Great Demons is pursuing him. No matter how much of a sword demon you are, it will be difficult to escape the siege without causing any trouble. Especially if you have surviving disciples with you.”
For at least two days, no news of amotion in Lanju had reached the rescue team.
Therefore, So Geol-gae’s opinion was that there was a high probability that the Sword Demon was still in Lanju.
This was why I decided to lead the main force of the rescue team to Lanzhou.
The sighting information of the Plum Blossom God Sword Hyeongun Dojo was cut off from Lanju.
In order to find out his whereabouts, it was necessary to first go to Lanju.
“All right. “What is the trend in major countries?”
“As you expected, the main force of the Demonic Cult is now crossing the border of Gansu and marching east. Since they have destroyed the main force of the Huashan Sect and the Xinchangyang Family, they are probably nning to use this momentum to engulf Shaanxi as well. Maybe even Shanxi…”
“It won’t be that much of a stretch. Although the Xinchang family suffered great damage, unlike Shaanxi, the Wulin forces in Shanxi are still alive and well.”
Most of the Wulin forces in Shaanxi joined the allied forces and worked to keep Maqiao in check.
Because they knew that if Gansu copsed, they would be next.
On the other hand, the Wulin forces in Shanxi showed a rtively lukewarm attitude.
Since Gansu and Shaanxi served as breakwaters, the sense of crisis was rtively less felt.
‘I feel like my feet are on fire right now.’
I leaned against the back of the chair and gathered my thoughts.
History was progressing differently than in my previous life.
Ma Jyoju of the time was a person with a thorough personality.
His method was to invest a long time in stabilizing an area once he had it in his hands.
But let alone stabilizing the region, they crossed over to Shaanxi before even conquering Chae Gansu.
‘Is it because of me that some of the arrangements he prepared became useless?’
The demonic forces were moving more actively.
If this trend continues, it seems that the martial arts world will be divided into South and North faster than in the previous life.
‘Well, it could be said that thanks to the main force rushing to Shaanxi, the conditions for the rescue team to work actively were created.’
If the main force of the Demonic Cult had been concentrated in Gansu, there would not have been much that the rescue team could have done.
At best, the limit would have been to leave the area with only important people, including Plum God Sword.
The fact that the Demonic Cult was focusing on expanding its territory rather than chasing down survivors was at least beneficial to the rescue team.
“You four seniors will join me at the vanguard of the unit heading to Lanju.”
“It’s the bar I was hoping for.”
Sogeolgae nods his head with a scary expression on his face.
The area where the Blood Witch wasst seen was also Lanju.
There was a high possibility that she would be the one leading the chase team chasing the Plum Blossom God Sword.
It was his fault that Sogeolgae looked so excited.
Wasn’t the purpose of him joining the rescue team in the first ce to get revenge on the Blood Witch?
“Just go back and rest. “We n to leave as soon as the sun rises, so it would be a good idea to make sure your physical condition is in perfect condition.”
“I understand.”
Lanzhou (蘭州) is a region adjacent to Zhengzhou (定西), but due to topographical problems, it was not possible to move through it in a straight line.
The most ideal way was to travel via White Silver, but the problem was that as the travel distance increased, the risk inevitably increased.
It was clear that it would be a difficult journey.
After ordering the soldiers waiting outside to clean up after themselves and leaving the barracks, I looked up at the sky full of the full moon and sighed.
The upation of Baekmakmun was, so to speak, nothing more than a preliminary battle.
Now was the real beginning.
‘It should work out as nned.’
* * *
At the same time, Mt. Cheongseong.
Dokgo Woo-jin asked the guest who visited his house without a message with a surprised expression.
“What are you doing here? “And at thiste hour.”
“I came here to see your face after a long time. I was so busy that I couldn’t make time during the day. “I hope you understand.”
“…Aren’t you apanied by an escort?”
“Do I need an escort to have a drink with a friend?”
Dokgo Woojin smiled bitterly.
He said that, but in reality, he was considerate of himself and his family.
Sogeolgae knew that there was a close rtionship between ‘him’ and himself.
It was obvious what would happen if it became known that ‘he’ had visited Mt. Qingseong at a time when the opening forces were searching for his whereabouts.
“Thank you for your concern.”
“Why to this extent? I have no intention of waking up my sleeping family. “Why don’t you move somewhere first?”
“Sure.”
Prince Dangbaek, head of the Four Rivers Tang family, took a step forward with a smile on his face.
* * *
Dokgo Woojin, who had brought alcohol stored in a nearby storage room, handed the ss to Dangbaekgun, who was sitting on a wide rock, and asked.
“So what brought you all the way to Ye?”
“Didn’t I tell you? “I came to have a drink with a friend.”
“Is that really all it is?”
“I would also like to confirm your intentions.”
“As expected, there was a n.”
“If anyone hears that I’m nning something, they’ll think I’m plotting some kind of dark n.”
“Has that old Dangbaek-gun learned how to joke around now?”
“Because I’m older too.”
“So what do you want to ask?”
“Are you nning on just sitting here and waiting?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m talking about your disciple. You’ve grown so well. “I feel like I want to hook up with Yuna and have her be my son-inw.”
“…….”
“Hwa-kyung at the age of 21. Immense influence that can summon over a thousand elite warriors. “There are more than one martial arts faction that would like to form a rtionship with your disciple.”
“Be clear about what you want to say.”
“You’re not asking because you really don’t know, right?”
“…….”
“How long are you going to stay curled up like this? “Aren’t you embarrassed to see me as a disciple?”
“It’s not that I don’t know what I want to say, but for me, the thing thates first above all else is family.”
“Isn’t that family’s life being threatened? To the first disciple of the Demonic Cult. “When I heard about it, I heard that he came out afterpleting training at the closed facility.”
“…….”
“You know. I can’t stay hidden like this forever. “The limit is slowly approaching.”
Dokgo Woojin nodded heavily.
It was just as Dangbaekgun said.
Qingcheng Mountain is the territory of the Qingcheng sect.
Therefore, outsiders could not ess it without permission.
It wasrgely thanks to him that the Dokgo family was able to remain in hiding safely until now.
However, as the political war dragged on and people from the past started looking for Dokgo Woojin, his location was bound to be revealed at some point.
Isn’t Sogeolgae already mobilizing the public to inquire about his whereabouts?
“The moment of choice has already arrived. You probably know yourself better than anyone else. “I’m just putting off making decisions because I’m afraid of the consequences.”
“…….”
Dangbaekgunughed and took the bottle from Dokgo Woojin’s hand.
Dokgo Woojin looked at him nkly.
“Well, I don’t know when my best friend became such a coward.”
“…….”
“Pleasee back.”
“Where?”
“Where is it? I’m talking about persimmon. Are you really the Dokgo Woojin I know? What a waste of a disciple. “Please give it to me.”
“…….”
“I can clearly see that you are worried that your hard-earned disciple will get hurt. “If you’re going to be so restless, I’d rather be there to help you.”
“…….”
“I will protect your family for a while. “Don’t worry ande back with peace of mind.”
Dokgo Woojin, who was scratching the back of his head, finally nodded.
“…Thank you.”
A voice creeping in.
Dangbaek-gun, who poured the alcohol in his ss in one gulp, answered in an indifferent tone.
“I just gave you a push.”