Chapter 149

We rode toward the Iron-Soul Workshop on horseback.
The strategist who had delivered the letter rode alongside me and explained the situation in detail.
The Sun Wheel Unit Commander had sent seven or eight martial artists, all of whom were highly trusted within the organization.
In short, they were the Sun Wheel Unit’s elite.

‘Something’s off.’

I frowned.
Something didn’t sit right.
Seven or eight was an oddly ambiguous number.

It seemed the person who had posted the proclamations really was in the Black Spirit Division, near the Iron-Soul Workshop at that.
But if that person was who I suspected, a group this size would have trouble even brushing the hem of their clothes.
Silencing them would be even more impossible.

Then perhaps their objective wasn’t elimination, but persuasion.
They might be trying to convince the culprit to lie low until things settled down.
But there were too many people for simple persuasion.
Why send seven or eight people and draw the Strategist Department’s attention when one person could have moved discreetly?

‘Are they planning to drag them away by force if persuasion fails?’

That would make sense.
The person who posted the proclamations wasn’t a member of the Heaven Rebelling Society.
They may have been cooperating, but that person had an objective of their own.
The Sun Wheel Unit Commander probably knew that much vaguely, but he wouldn’t know the culprit’s true identity.
He probably thought of them as nothing more than ‘someone fast.’

If they had time, they would have approached through the Heaven Rebelling Society.
But an inspection was already underway.
Pressed for time, he had made a reckless move.
Either way, there was a good chance his plan would go wrong.

‘I have to secure that person.’

I had never met them before.
But judging from what had happened in my previous life and the stories I had heard from Man Bak-ja, this was no easy person to deal with.
They would surely have taken precautions before acting.
There was a good chance they knew who was closely connected to the proclamations.
Or at the very least, the location of the Heaven Rebelling Society’s base.

The future in which the Heavenly Demon would become a demonic fiend.
If I followed the clues, I should eventually learn how that information had made its way into the proclamations.

We entered the Black Spirit Division and rounded the corner leading toward the Iron-Soul Workshop.
A bustling commercial district came into view.
Hadn’t I heard that the Iron-Gold Wi Family paid its smiths generous monthly wages?
Perhaps because of that, a commercial district had naturally formed here, and it was always crowded.
There were smiths drinking merrily after finishing work and families grabbing a quick meal.
My group and the Strategist Department personnel stopped near the entrance, where it was still relatively quiet.

Someone approached us.
He appeared to be one of the Strategist Department martial artists who had followed the Sun Wheel Unit.
He gave a brief report.
The strategist said,

“One entered Twin Phoenix Inn, while the others seem to be hiding in and around it. They were unable to determine their exact positions.”

That was understandable.
There were simply too many people around.
Unless they had taken up positions well in advance, tracking the movements of several people would be difficult.
And moving closer would greatly increase the risk of being discovered.
Simply identifying Twin Phoenix Inn meant they had done their job more than adequately.

I looked over the strategist and my group.

“Everyone wait here. I’ll go in alone.”
“That is dangerous, Young Lord.”

Im Yeon immediately objected.

“I came back alive from somewhere much more dangerous only a few days ago.”
“But-”
“I’ll be fine, so don’t worry.”

This wasn’t the kind of place where moving around as a group would help.
As Ak Mu-jin’s Corpse-Body Reinforcement Art advanced, both the aura he gave off and the intensity in his eyes had grown stronger. He still couldn’t control them himself.
Im Yeon was a woman.
If we entered an inn together this late at night, we might attract the attention of lecherous busybodies. Especially since she was fairly attractive.

The top priority was confirming whether the culprit was the person I suspected.
After that, I would act according to the situation.
Capturing them would be ideal, but if that proved impossible, I at least needed to make sure they heard a few things from me.

“Everyone from the Strategist Department should wait farther back too.”
“Understood.”

The young strategist nodded.
Then he immediately pulled something from his robe and held it out.

“Use this.”
“What is it?”
“A special pigment. Applying it changes the color of your skin.”
“Oh.”

I let out a small sound of admiration.
I had already been planning to ask whether anyone had something I could use to disguise my face.
I had become fairly famous, so inevitably some people would recognize me.
But I hadn’t expected to conduct surveillance, so I hadn’t prepared anything beforehand.
I asked the strategist,

“Why do you carry something like this around?”
“There are quite a few occasions when it comes in handy.”
“You’re more of a man of action, then.”
“I’m not exactly the type who can sit in some back room pushing a brush all day.”
“Your name?”
“Yang Woo-yeon.”

I committed the name to memory and opened the bottle.
The sticky liquid coated my fingertips.
I rubbed it over several parts of my face.
Without a mirror, I had no choice but to apply it by feel.

“How is it? You can’t tell it’s me, right?”

Human perception was surprisingly imprecise.
Changing one’s skin tone or slightly altering the eyebrows could fool people more easily than expected.

“This side and… over here are a little……”

Im Yeon carefully examined my face and frowned.
Apparently, something bothered her.

“Forgive my impertinence, but may I apply it for you?”
“Go ahead.”

Im Yeon carefully put some pigment on her hand and applied it to my face.
She smoothed it across my forehead several times and blended the edges along my cheekbones.
She carefully worked beneath my jaw as well.
But as Yang Woo-yeon and Ak Mu-jin watched, their heads gradually tilted to the side.

‘…I have a bad feeling about this.’

“Does it look strange?”

I asked them.
Yang Wooo-yeon answered without hesitation.

“It does.”
“Frankly, it’s a mess. I think you’ll stand out even more.”

Ak Mu-jin chimed in.
Flustered, Im Yeon muttered,

“W-why did it turn out like this? It looked fine when I pictured it in my head……”
“Are you doing this on purpose?”
“I-I’m sorry, Young Lord!”

Im Yeon hurriedly bowed her head.
I roughly wiped my face with my sleeve.
The pigment smeared into uneven blotches.

“How about now?”
“…At least you no longer look like the Seventh Young Lord.”

Im Yeon’s face reddened.

“Well, I guess that’s good enough. Strategist Yang.”
“Yes, Seventh Young Lord.”
“If the culprit tries to escape from that inn, what do you think would be the best route?”
“Hmm. There is a secluded alley behind Twin Phoenix Inn. It is dark and sees little foot traffic, so an escapee would likely prefer it. Can you wait there?”
“You mean lie in wait?”
“Yes. Don’t try to stop them. Just watch and determine which way they flee.”
“Understood. I will position Strategist Department personnel throughout the alleys.”

I turned toward Im Yeon and Ak Mu-jin.

“You two wait near the rear windows of Twin Phoenix Inn. Stay close enough to appear whenever I call.”
“Understood, Young Lord.”
“I’ll be back.”

Leaving them behind, I headed deeper into the commercial district.
I lowered my head slightly to keep my face less visible and staggered as I walked, pretending to be drunk.

After a short walk, I reached Twin Phoenix Inn.
Bright light and boisterous voices spilled out from inside.
I entered naturally.

Inside was just as crowded as the street.
Smiths were drinking and talking loudly throughout the room.
People who looked like merchants had gathered in their own groups as well. One large man stood out.
He was enthusiastically telling them stories about things that had happened on his latest trading journey.
And in the center sat a man alone.

‘Sun Wheel Unit.’

I took a seat in a corner where I could see the entire inn and extended my senses.
I sensed the presences of several Sun Wheel Unit members.

‘Four. No, five?’

I couldn’t identify all of them.
But I could make out their general positioning.
They were spread out around the man in the center as though forming an encirclement.
It seemed my earlier guess had been right.
If necessary, they intended to attack together.

My drink arrived.
I sipped it while watching the situation.
A little while passed.
The Sun Wheel Unit man, who had remained composed until then, suddenly changed expression.
His eyes widened and his lips moved rapidly.
He was exchanging voice transmissions.

I quickly swept my gaze around.
The customers, the servers, the owner.
Nothing seemed different.
But the person who had posted the proclamations was here.
I simply couldn’t find them.
Even extending my senses to their limit did nothing.
They seemed to have learned a special martial art for concealing their energy.

‘Of course. If it’s the Flying Swallow.’

The Flying Swallow.
A daring thief who sought to inherit the title of Divine Thief from her ancestor.
Someone like her would have learned numerous specialized techniques for erasing her energy and presence.
Her lightness arts had also reached an extraordinary level. Otherwise, she could never have posted proclamations in more than thirty places in a single night.
Without even being spotted.

‘Though I still can’t be certain it’s her.’

Kwaang!
Just then,
the Sun Wheel Unit man suddenly slammed the table.
Several people turned toward him.
He paid them no attention and moved his lips again.
Apparently, the conversation wasn’t going well.

Sure enough, the Sun Wheel Unit man abruptly stood.

“Block every exit!”

At his signal, the people hidden inside and outside the inn began moving.
The first-floor doors and windows were quickly sealed off.

“What’s going on?”
“Is there going to be a fight?”

The customers grew restless.
I calmly tipped back my cup.

‘Looks like I got myself some new entertainment to go with my drink.’

This was getting interesting.
Since they didn’t know where the culprit was, they had simply sealed off the entire place.
Primitive, but effective.

“What a pointless thing to do.”

An unusually grating, deep voice rang through the inn.
Everyone’s gaze turned toward one place.
A table against the right wall.
The large man who had been sitting with the merchants slowly stood.

“Huk.”

The merchants at his table recoiled in alarm and hurried away.

The Sun Wheel Unit man asked warily,

“Who are you?”
“You were talking to me just now and you still don’t know?”

The Sun Wheel Unit man’s eyes widened.
Mine did too.

‘That’s not the Flying Swallow?’

The Flying Swallow I knew was a woman.
No matter how I looked at this person, he wasn’t. He was far too large.
Had my guess been wrong?
Because of the incident she had caused inside the Cult in my previous life, I had been sure it was her.
If it wasn’t, things had just become complicated.

‘…No. Wait.’

Looking more closely, something felt off.
First, the outline of the body looked unnatural.
It looked as though bundles of cotton or cloth had been stuffed beneath the clothing.
The face was the same.
The texture of the skin and the facial features were subtly off, characteristic signs of disguise techniques.
Naturally, the voice had probably been altered as well.

“You suddenly tell me to go into hiding? What kind of bullshit is that? Things are only getting started. Why would I leave now?”

The Flying Swallow spoke.
Unlike her, the Sun Wheel Unit man moved only his lips.
He had more to hide, so he answered through voice transmission.

“I told you, I still have things to do. If I hide now, everything will go to waste. Go back and tell your boss to sit still and stop bothering me.”

The Sun Wheel Unit man’s expression hardened.
A moment later, he raised a hand.

“Capture him.”

Several martial artists who weren’t guarding specific exits rushed at the Flying Swallow.
They reached for her, but the Flying Swallow slipped between them like an eel.
Her movements were extraordinarily fast.
Even my eyes could barely follow her.
The martial artists’ hands swept uselessly through empty air.

I was inwardly impressed.
The Six Extremes Demon King Step created the most efficient path for killing an enemy.
What she used followed the opposite principle.
It was a movement art that existed solely for survival.

‘It really is the Flying Swallow.’

She was exactly as she had been described to me in my previous life.
Even if you searched the entire Murim, there wouldn’t be many people capable of such a movement art.

‘Even I’d have trouble catching her.’

The Flying Swallow kept moving.
She avoided the Sun Wheel Unit martial artists’ hands, vaulted over tables, and slipped between people.
But she couldn’t get anywhere.

‘She can’t choose an exit.’

The entrance, the windows, the stairs leading to the second floor.
Every potential escape route had a martial artist who looked at least first-rate waiting there.
You might think she could simply beat them down and leave, but unfortunately the Flying Swallow had one major weakness.
Her movement art was extraordinary, but her combat skills were woefully lacking.
The Flying Swallow was a thief through and through, built for stealing and little else.

‘I’ll have to open an exit for her.’

My group was waiting behind the inn.
Conveniently, the martial artist blocking that side had an unstable stance and an uncertain gaze.
He didn’t seem very experienced.

I rose from my seat and walked straight toward him.
The young martial artist guarding the way extended a hand.

“Stay back!”
“No.”

The martial artist tried to draw his weapon, but I was one step faster.
I closed in with Soul-Extinguishing Flash Step and struck his temple with the top of my foot.

“Kuk.”

I had intended to drop him with that blow, but it only made him stagger.
True to his status as one of the Sun Wheel Unit’s elite, he had instinctively twisted his body to lessen the impact.

He tried to draw his weapon again, but he was too late.
I had already closed in and driven a hard strike into his solar plexus.
This time, his eyes rolled back and he collapsed to the side.

“That bastard’s with her!”
“Stop him!”

Whatever the Sun Wheel Unit members shouted, I was already through the window and outside.
Quick on the uptake, the Flying Swallow followed immediately, not wasting the opening I had created.

“Block the windows.”
“Yes, Young Lord.”

Im Yeon and Ak Mu-jin each took one window.
Two Sun Wheel Unit martial artists kicked off the window frames and leaped out.

Kkang!
The warrior’s saber struck Ak Mu-jin’s torso.
Ak Mu-jin was completely unfazed, while the man who had swung the saber looked far more shocked.
He probably couldn’t believe a human body could be that hard.
Ak Mu-jin grinned, grabbed the man by the collar, and slammed him into the ground.
With a dull thud, the martial artist lost consciousness.

“Go around!”

The order came from inside.
Apparently, they had decided the windows weren’t going to work.
It would take them time to force their way through the customers.

I turned toward the Flying Swallow.
Her eyes narrowed.

“Who are you? Why did you help me?”
“You did something pretty crazy last night.”

The Flying Swallow’s gaze wavered.
Her easygoing attitude from moments ago vanished.

“So I came to catch the gutsy bastard responsible, but unexpectedly, those movements look familiar.”

I stepped closer.
The Flying Swallow stepped back.
She was maintaining enough distance to escape.

“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Let’s just say I can see the shadow of Thousand-Li Roaming Body in your movements.”
“……!”

The Flying Swallow’s face stiffened.
Her eyes trembled faintly.
Her lips pressed tightly together.
Her face had been altered through disguise techniques, but even that couldn’t hide her agitation.

“How do you know Thousand-Li Roaming Body?”
“I seem to recall hearing that it was a movement art meant to be passed down to the descendants of Shadowless Thousand-Hand, but that it had been lost. Funny thing is, I happened to see its secret manual somewhere.”
“……!”
“Feeling like having a more detailed conversation now? Then come to Dragon-Severing Falls in two hours.”
“There’s something you want to ask me?”
“I want to ask about the Heaven Rebelling Society.”

The Flying Swallow’s eyes narrowed.

“I don’t know anything about the Heaven Rebelling Society.”
“That excuse isn’t fooling anyone. If you want Thousand-Li Roaming Body to stay out of your reach for the rest of your life, suit yourself.”
“…How am I supposed to trust you?”
“I’ll go alone. And even if I don’t, you’re confident you can escape, aren’t you?”

A brief silence passed.
The Flying Swallow looked me over.
From head to toe.
Her gaze measured whether I posed a threat.

“Leave your weapons behind. Don’t have anyone else waiting nearby, and be there before me.”
“Fine.”
“From the moment I arrive until I leave, don’t move from that spot. And-”

The Flying Swallow added several more conditions.
They were fairly demanding, but not enough to refuse, so I agreed.

“Don’t forget. Two hours from now, at Dragon-Severing Falls.”

The Flying Swallow nodded and disappeared in an instant.