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Chapter 46: I Will Be the Owner of a Good Tea House
In the afternoon, the sky suddenly darkened.
Looking at the dark sky and the humid atmosphere, it seemed like it might rain at any moment. Just as they left the city, the weather turned, leaving everyone in a state of discomfort.
Viceboss Tak Gomyung remembered something and commented:
"Wait! There’s an old shrine nearby, does anyone remember it?"
The Immortal Sword Demon Shim Yanggak exclaimed:
"Ah, that’s right! About five li (2,500 meters) ahead is the Po family shrine."
"Exactly! I remember seeing it while passing by. Let’s hurry! We can’t stay out in the rain on the road."
With Tak Gomyung’s insistence, the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks quickened their pace.
Fortunately, the Ten Heroes found the shrine before the first drops of rain fell. Although the shrine’s only strength was the four pillars holding up the roof, having a roof and walls was already something.
As soon as Tak Gomyung saw the shrine, he shouted to the Ten Heroes to gather firewood. He knew the necessity of dry wood from his previous camping experiences.
Even Boss Pung Yeoncho ran through the forest gathering firewood.
Thanks to that, a large amount of firewood was accumulated in a short time.
Yeon Jeokha also gathered firewood tirelessly.
Just as he brought the third pile of wood, the sky suddenly opened up and it started to rain heavily.
Ssshh.
Lee Cheolsan and Han Chaeyeon, who had gone farther, returned drenched like wet rats. Still, they laughed happily at the sight of the accumulated firewood.
Lee Cheolsan, always diligent, started a fire with a flint.
The Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks gathered around the campfire as if they had been waiting for it.
Pung Yeoncho looked at the ancestral tablet of the Po family in a corner of the shrine and made a joke.
"Thanks to the Po family, we can rest well here."
Tak Gomyung, who nodded, frowned as he looked at the heavy rain.
"But this doesn’t seem like a rain that will stop soon, what are we going to do?"
"Do we still have enough food?"
"Yes."
"Then it’s fine. Since we’re here, we’ll rest well. Han Chaeyeon and Ha Sobaek have been suffering from blisters on their feet. There’s no rush."
Han Chaeyeon, while stirring the fire with a branch, commented:
"Ah! It would have been great if it had rained when we were at the Tapha inn. What a pity."
"Yes, it’s a pity..."
Everyone nodded.
With the warmth of the campfire spreading, the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks began to nod off to sleep.
Yeon Jeokha, who was sleeping curled up, woke up to a slight noise.
Although it was still early, the rain made the outside look as dark as night.
Still, the inside of the shrine was dimly lit thanks to the embers of the campfire.
The Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks, tired from the long journey, slept scattered everywhere.
Beside him, Ha Sobaek groaned and moved slightly, waking up as well.
She had probably woken up due to his movements.
Yeon Jeokha thought of adding more firewood to the fire but decided not to so as not to wake the others.
As he looked at the embers, Ha Sobaek sat up slowly.
"Um, when did you wake up, brother?"
"A while ago."
Ha Sobaek looked around with a secret expression and then spoke.
"Did you know? Someday, brother, you will come down from the mountain."
"Could be."
"I’m serious. You’ll see. What I say will come true."
"I never said I would live on Five Peaks Mountain forever."
"That’s true."
Ha Sobaek nodded.
Yeon Jeokha had never talked about his future.
"When will I be able to do what I want?"
Ha Sobaek looked at Yeon Jeokha sideways.
If he accompanied her, she could live the life she wanted starting tomorrow, but she didn’t dare to say it.
"Um, if you train for two or three years, you won’t be easily defeated. Then you should start saving money diligently."
"Is it going to take me ten years?"
"You’re young, what are you worried about? Becoming the owner of a tea house in ten years is quite fast, isn’t it?"
"Ah! Yes, you’re right. You’ll help me, right?"
"Yes."
Yeon Jeokha nodded without much thought.
Ha Sobaek looked at him, biting her lips.
That wasn’t what she wanted to hear. She desired a closer relationship. But Yeon Jeokha didn’t seem to have any interest in those kinds of things.
"Um, brother..."
"Yes?"
"What kind of girls do you like?"
"None in particular..."
Ha Sobaek sighed.
It seemed he had never thought about that.
'They say some people are slow in that aspect...'
At seventeen, he should be interested in girls, right? Thinking that being so innocent wasn’t always a good thing.
Although she hated the men in the camp who looked at her with lecherous eyes, at this moment Yeon Jeokha made her desperate.
"What do you think of me?"
Ha Sobaek looked at him intently.
Recently, Han Chaeyeon had told her, "If the man is clumsy, the woman must guide him." She meant her, who always hovered around Yeon Jeokha.
"You’ll be a good tea house owner."
"..."
A bitter smile appeared on Ha Sobaek’s lips.
Beyond being clumsy in matters of love, he didn’t see her as a woman.
Sitting with a dejected face, Ha Sobaek got up and brought a pile of branches.
Just as she was about to put the branches on the almost extinguished embers, Yeon Jeokha stopped her.
"Wait."
"Why?"
"Shh."
Yeon Jeokha sharpened his ear.
Ssshh, plop, plop.
Among the noise of the rain, hurried footsteps could be heard.
The sound was getting louder and clearer.
Whoever it was, they were approaching the shrine to take shelter from the rain.
'At this hour?'
Yeon Jeokha, puzzled, spoke to Ha Sobaek, who was looking at him curiously.
"Don’t light the fire yet. There are people approaching."
Ha Sobaek, finally understanding, carefully set the branches aside.
Experience had taught them to be cautious.
Thud. Bang.
Suddenly, some intruders burst in noisily.
The sound of the door wobbling and falling made the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks get up hastily.
Five people entered the shrine.
One of them shouted in a sharp voice:
"Who are you?"
The Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks looked at the intruders in astonishment.
They were five young and middle-aged men, two of whom were carrying large sacks on their shoulders. At first glance, it was clear they were thieves who had stolen something and were fleeing.
They could have let them pass since they were in the same trade, but the situation was different. Invading their resting place and even raising their voice was unjustifiable.
The impetuous third brother, Ma Hyeongdo, exploded with anger.
"We arrived first and are resting here! What kind of audacity is this? I see you carry sacks on your shoulders, you seem like thieves. Where are you from? Tell me, damn it!"
At that moment, a lightning bolt illuminated the outside.
The bright light revealed that the sacks were moving.
"Damn it! Is it a kidnapping?"
Hearing Ma Hyeongdo, the men dropped the sacks to the ground.
Two of them positioned themselves at the entrance of the shrine.
The middle-aged man who seemed to be the leader clicked his tongue.
"How unlucky you are! Meeting us here, of all places."
With those words, Baek Soobeom drew his willow-leaf dao.
The other four also drew their weapons.
The faces of the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks tensed.
Drawing weapons without even asking who they were?
Although they didn’t know exactly what was happening, they felt they were in big trouble.
In the midst of the confusion, the Ten Heroes naturally grouped around Yeon Jeokha.
Instinctively, Yeon Jeokha positioned himself at the front.
It was then that Baek Soobeom looked at the young man curiously.
The coordinated movement of the ten and the fact that they put a boy at the front indicated they trusted him, but Baek Soobeom couldn’t understand why. No master acted so recklessly.
He reexamined the young man from head to toe but saw nothing special.
"Attack!"
He shouted briefly and charged at the young man.
No matter who the opponent was, he planned to kill him quickly.
A strange sound echoed in the shrine.
As Baek Soobeom raised his dao, stone slabs on the shrine floor exploded when Yeon Jeokha nervously scraped his dao against the floor. Shortly after, an explosion of dao energy shot toward Baek Soobeom like lightning.
"Ugh!"
Baek Soobeom let out an involuntary cry and used his dao to block the dao energy.
Clang.
With a dull sound, Baek Soobeom was thrown back.
Meanwhile, the other three intruders weren’t in good shape either.
The people facing them were Shim Yanggak, Pung Yeoncho, and Tak Gomyung.
The shrine was too small for all ten to fight, so only three of them stepped forward.
Although Shim Yanggak was a notorious demon of Murim, Pung Yeoncho and Tak Gomyung were also not being outdone.
While Pung Yeoncho and Tak Gomyung held their ground, Shim Yanggak decapitated his opponent in five seconds.
"Ah!"
The man fell to the ground clutching his chest.
From that moment, the situation changed completely.
With Shim Yanggak supporting Pung Yeoncho and Tak Gomyung, the two men repeatedly retreated.
Baek Soobeom looked at his subordinates with perplexed eyes.
He hadn’t expected things to go so badly in this place. From being the hunter to being the prey, he now needed to find a way to escape.
'Damn it. If it weren’t for this storm, I wouldn’t have come here.'
The saying "misfortune comes in pairs" seemed to apply perfectly. Why were there so many experts in an abandoned shrine?
'It seems I’ll have to give up the offering to the Cult.'
He had no confidence in escaping with the prisoners against such a monster.
Baek Soobeom quickly looked around.
In an instant, he threw his favorite dagger at the young man and ran out of the shrine.
As he ran through the courtyard, a heart-wrenching scream echoed in his ears.
But Baek Soobeom didn’t stop.
He could find new subordinates and prisoners, but he only had one life.
Yeon Jeokha caressed the dagger the opponent had thrown.
He had no intention of chasing him.
He didn’t care who his opponent was. Why make so much effort on a rainy night?
Yeon Jeokha was interested in the dagger.
It was a pity to use such a valuable dagger as a disposable weapon. He couldn’t understand why someone would abandon such a valuable item.
Meanwhile, Pung Yeoncho and Shim Yanggak searched the bodies but found nothing special.
Meanwhile, the other Ten Heroes opened the sacks.
To their surprise, inside the sacks were a Taoist and a monk.
They had expected to find a beautiful woman, so they frowned.
Why would they have kidnapped a useless Taoist and monk?