 |
| Reaper of the Drifting Moon Chapter 368 |
Type- Light Novel, Web Novel
Manhwa- N/A
Translation-MTL
Pyo Wol rubbed his shoulder and started to walk.
His clothes were intact, but deep bruises had formed on the muscles underneath. If he had dodged a little slower, not only his clothes but also a piece of his flesh would have fallen off.
The look Gu Ja-hwang felt was not an illusion.
Pyo Wol was hiding behind the military tent, watching him.
The intense presence that Gu Ja-hwang radiated stimulated Pyo Wol. He unconsciously strained his eyes and Gu Ja-hwang did not miss this subtle change and felt it.
It was like an animal sense.
It was clear that if Pyo Wol had been any slower in leaving the military tent, he would have been exposed.
Pyo Wol moved to a place Gu Ja-hwang's senses couldn't reach and thought.
This place is a prison.
It was unclear when exactly the prison had existed here.
Even the Hao Clan, who were said to have the best information in Kangho, did not know about this place.
This meant that they kept the secret very carefully.
It would have been impossible to keep such a secret without the protection of a powerful force, no matter how long ago humans stopped coming to the Dragon Tiger Mountain.
The question was what mighty power protected this place.
Pyo Wol had a feeling. The problem was much more complicated than he thought.
It was frightening to think that most martial artists didn't know that such a dirty deed was happening behind the peaceful face of the martial world.
It was certain that Hong Yushin was imprisoned here somewhere.
The first priority was to find Hong Yushin.
Pyo Wol looked around with sharp eyes.
There were numerous caves in addition to the area where he had followed Hwang Akchu earlier. Most of them were naturally formed, with stalactites hanging down.
Like the cave where Pyo Wol had been trapped earlier, it was clear that they had turned this place into a prison by using the naturally formed terrain.
Pyo Wol's gaze turned to the cave on the other side of where So Geoksan was imprisoned. This place was also blocked by an iron door.
Pyo Wol approached the iron door.
There was a big padlock on the iron door.
It was impossible to open the padlock, which was the size of an adult's body, without a special key. So it was obvious that the martial artists who guarded this place hadn't bothered to set up a special guard and had left the place unattended.
Pyo Wol gently touched the padlock with his hand for a moment and took out the ghost key.
He inserted the ghost key into the lock hole and moved it gently. He used the ghost key as a substitute for the real key.
Such a padlock might be able to prevent other martial artists from entering, but it was impossible to stop an assassin who had reached Pyo Wol's level.
The people who first built this prison here couldn't have had any idea that an assassin like Pyo Wol would be an intruder.
Click!
Pyo Wol easily picked the lock and entered.
The inside of the cave was pitch black.
Without a torch, it was not easy to even take a step in this environment, but Pyo Wol moved forward without hesitation.
Pyo Wol was very familiar with this kind of environment.
Not only could he identify terrain and objects through wind, moisture and sound, but he also had eyes that could see through the darkness.
This level of darkness was no obstacle to him.
Kwoong!
At that moment, a strong reverberation came from somewhere and reached Pyo Wol's ears.
Pyo Wol moved towards the source of the sound.
Koong! Kwoong!
The echo became stronger.
Pyo Wol thought that there was anger in the sound.
Eventually, Pyo Wol arrived at a small iron door.
It was the same size as the iron door where So Geoksan had been imprisoned.
Sreeeeng!
Pyo Wol opened the small window of the iron door.
Suddenly, a pair of eerie, glowing eyes appeared in front of the window.
"Hong... Yushin!"
The one with the seemingly glowing eyes was none other than Hong Yushin, the Chief Inspector of the Hao Clan.
He had a cut on his forehead that was bleeding profusely.
Hong Yushin's lips twisted.
"Who are you? Are you here to convince me? It's useless, no matter what. I'll never be on your side."
Ddu-du-duk!
At that moment, Pyo Wol's face returned to normal.
Hong Yushin's eyes widened.
"Pyo... wol?"
"You were trapped here."
"How did you do that? No, I mean, are you really Master Pyo?"
"Yes!"
"My goodness!"
At Pyo Wol's reply, Hong Yushin's legs gave way.
Nobody else could have such a white and elegant face in the darkness but Pyo Wol.
"H-how did you find me?"
"The Hao Clan requested it."
"Requested? To find me?"
"Yes!"
"Haah!"
Hong Yushin finally collapsed to the ground.
He was silent for a while.
Pyo Wol watched Hong Yushin calmly.
Hong Yushin stared blankly at the iron door. His eyes and expression were filled with a mixture of emotions.
All the events that had taken place so far were running through his mind like a revolving lantern.
He had followed So Geoksan's Heavenly Flower troupe and approached this area. Then he was ambushed and captured by the warriors guarding this place.
He didn't even have a chance to resist.
They were incredibly cunning.
They ambushed him and overpowered him like a tiger catching its prey in the blink of an eye. Then they imprisoned him here and tried to win him over.
"Convince?"
"They must think I have some value. As Chief Inspector of the Hao Clan, I can easily obtain important information."
"I've seen others imprisoned elsewhere, and it seems they're trying to brainwash them with a drug."
"It is likely that they just want to use them as tools. Tools don't need to think."
Pyo Wol nodded.
Hong Yushin's words made sense.
So Geoksan was an skilled assassin.
Even without a reason, he was a good enough tool to be manipulated. But Hong Yushin was different.
If someone with access to important information was brainwashed with drugs, it would surely leave a trace. So it was clear that they had kept him separate to make him cooperate voluntarily, Pyo Wol asked,
"Can you move?"
"It's difficult, but I can move."
Hong Yushin gritted his teeth as he replied.
Even if he couldn't move, he had to.
He had to train his body consistently. Even when he ate the gruel he was given once a day. He knew that if his body weakened, his mental strength would weaken even more.
Thanks to that, he had been able to withstand their pressure so far.
Hong Yushin struggled to get to his feet.
Pyo Wol injected his internal energy into the lockpick and cut the lock.
Clang!
When the door opened, Hong Yushin staggered out.
A look of immense relief crossed his face.
For the first time in four months, he was free. But it was too soon to relax.
He had not yet escaped the prison; he had only just left a small room.
Pyo Wol said,
"Follow me."
"Are we escaping now?"
"No! There's someone else we have to take with us."
"Who?"
"So Geoksan!"
"Is he trapped here too?"
"Didn't you go after him?"
"Yes, but I was captured first, so I don't know what happened after that. Phew!"
Hong Yushin sighed tiredly.
Pyo Wol didn't ask any more questions, as his condition wasn't suitable for a long conversation.
What was important now was to get Hong Yushin and So Geoksan out of here.
Pyo Wol went out with Hong Yushin.
To reach the area where So Geoksan was, they first had to go through the underground common area. Since there were guards guarding the area, Pyo Wol had to be extra careful.
It wouldn't be difficult for him to avoid their gaze alone, but hiding Hong Yushin as well was no easy task. This made Pyo Wol very nervous. However, to his surprise, many of the guards had left the underground common room.
Thanks to this, Pyo Wol could easily enter the area where So Geoksan was trapped.
.
On his way to the area where So Geoksan was, Hong Yushin's face turned uncomfortable.
It was the first time he had entered this area.
He thought that many people would be trapped here besides himself, but seeing it in person felt different.
The moaning and the repulsive smell of the people locked up like animals made Hong Yushin feel nauseous.
"Ugh!"
Clutching his mouth tightly, he barely managed to hold back the urge to vomit.
After going further inside, another large iron door appeared.
Pyo Wol easily opened it, revealing the area where So Geoksan was trapped.
He opened the window of the room where So Geoksan was locked. Then, So Geoksan's eyes, filled with a burning fury, met his.
So Geoksan had been staring at the window even after Pyo Wol left, not knowing when he would return.
So Geoksan opened his mouth.
"Pyo... Wol! It was you after all."
Having taken the deadly drug, his voice was muffled and filled with intense killing intent.
"What happened?"
"I got caught."
"You?"
"Yes! I took a job. It was to escort someone to this place. It was unsettling, but I trusted myself. I was confident that I could protect myself and the escort in any situation. But I was wrong."
"Were you betrayed?"
"Yes! Haha! I was utterly betrayed."
So Geoksan laughed sinisterly.
Every time he laughed, a deadly poison and murderous aura flowed out of him.
"The client asked me to bring a certain person to this place, Unreturnable Prison."
"Unreturnable Prison?"
"Didn't you know? Well, you might not. It's such secretive name."
That's when it happened.
"Was this place the Unreturnable Prison?"
The person who suddenly spoke was Hong Yushin.
"Hehe! What else did you think it was? What other hellish place like this brain prison could be besides the Unreturnable Prison?"
"I see! So that's what it was."
Hong Yushin had also heard the name Unreturnable Prison.
It was because it was captured in Hao Clan's intelligence network. But he had only heard the name, and the actual place remained shrouded in mystery. So, Hong Yushin suspected that it might be a false rumor spread by someone.
So Geoksan continued talking.
"They wanted to keep it a complete secret."
"Who?"
"The client. They didn't want their job to be known to the world. So they trapped me here as well, who carried out their request."
So Geoksan gritted his teeth.
The client asked him to bring a certain person to Unreturnable Prison. It wasn't difficult for So Geoksan to bring him to this place.
The troupe was the best means of transportation.
The problem occurred when they arrived here.
"The moment I handed over the person the client asked me to transport, they attacked us too. I... except for me... everyone died."
So Geoksan's shoulders trembled, and the anger in his eyes intensified.
For So Geoksan, the heavenly flower troupe was not just a means for his hobby.
It was his life's goal and the only path that made him human.
He hadn't taken the path of an assassin after leaving the underground cave because the heavenly flower troupe existed.
The heavenly flower troupe was everything to him.
And the heavenly flower troupe had collapsed.
The woman who loved him, Lee Ok-ran, also died at that time.
The foolish woman who looked only at him even as she was dying.
Why did she look at him, who was no better than a worm, with such tender eyes?
Her gaze in the last moments still burned in his heart like a brand.
"Pyo Wol!"
"Tell me!"
"Get me out of here. If you can help me regain my martial arts... and let me take revenge, I'll live the rest of my life for you".
"..."
"I swear to be loyal to you. Even this soul... so please show me some mercy."
"Do you want revenge?"
"From now on, I will be the assassin So Geoksan again."
That was enough of an answer.
0 Comments
Share this post with your friends who want to enjoy light novels.