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Chapter 32: A Night with the Song of the Evening Cicadas
Five Peaks Mountain.
In the early hours of the morning, the gates of the Five Peaks Mountain base swung wide open.
Shortly after, eleven bandits with backpacks walked out. They were the Ten Heroes of the Five Peaks Mountain and their guide, the Immortal Sword Demon, Shim Yanggak, heading towards Mansapyeong in Gangnam.
Shim Yanggak, leading the group, glanced sideways at the Ten Heroes and nodded in satisfaction.
With their clean and tidy clothes, there was no reason for anyone to suspect them of being bandits. The swords hanging from their waists were inevitable since they couldn’t attend the Nokrim meeting empty-handed.
‘At most, they’ll take us for Murim people.’
That was the ideal scenario.
If they were discovered as bandits, it would complicate things for everyone.
When Shim Yanggak and Pung Yeoncho happened to exchange glances, their eyes met.
“Brother Shim, what’s wrong? Do you have something to say?”
“No, nothing. But if someone asks who we are, what will you say?”
“Do people usually ask such questions when they meet?”
“Hehehe, when a group as large as ours is wandering around, there’s always someone curious.”
“Really? What should we say then?”
The Ten Heroes began suggesting names as they walked.
“How about Five Peaks Clan?”
“I prefer Five Peaks Hall.”
“Why not Five Peaks Pavilion?”
“Brothers, why do you always have to include ‘Five Peaks’? How about Ascending Dragon Clan? We’ve all learned the Flying Dragon Ascension.”
Han Chaeyeon chimed in, but Hu Yimdal immediately countered.
“Then I say Ascension Clan.”
“That sounds good.”
“I prefer Ascending Dragon Clan.”
“Damn it!”
The Ten Heroes couldn’t agree between Ascending Dragon Clan and Ascension Clan.
Finally, Tak Gomyung shouted:
“Those who prefer Ascending Dragon Clan can call it that, and those who prefer Ascension Clan can use that name!”
When they had almost descended entirely from Five Peaks Mountain, Pung Yeoncho declared they would use Ascending Dragon Clan, as the dragon symbolized good fortune.
He added:
“We will all be disciples of the clan, and Brother Yeon will be the master. Agreed?”
“Big brother, won’t there be a clan leader? You should be the one.”
Tak Gomyung asked, but Pung Yeoncho shook his head.
“We don’t need a clan leader. If a situation arises where a leader needs to intervene, it will be a problem. I don’t want that role.”
“Hehe, so should I take it?”
“There’s no difference between you and me. No, we don’t need a clan leader to avoid responsibilities.”
Shim Yanggak interjected:
“The boss is right. If we say we have a clan leader, problems could arise from everywhere.”
“See? Understood?”
Pung Yeoncho smiled, satisfied, shrugging his shoulders.
This time, Ha Sobaek asked curiously:
“Brother Pung, why are we going to Namjiglyeseong?”
“We’re going because… because…”
Pung Yeoncho was searching for a suitable answer when Hu Yimdal interrupted again:
“There’s an Ascension Clan in Namjiglyeseong. We’re going to help them.”
“Really, Hu Yimdal? Are you still insisting on the name?”
Tak Gomyung burst into laughter.
But the story seemed to please Pung Yeoncho, who nodded:
“Yes, that’s fine. Did everyone hear that? If someone asks, we are martial artists heading to the Ascension Clan in Namjiglyeseong.”
The Ten Heroes laughed and responded:
“Understood, brother.”
“Yes, big brother.”
Then Lee Cheolsan, curious, asked:
“But brothers, does an Ascension Clan really exist in Namjiglyeseong?”
“Who cares?”
“Hey, don’t think too much about it. What does it matter if it exists or not?”
“Our Cheolsan is too innocent!”
Amid the Ten Heroes’ teasing, Lee Cheolsan lowered his head, embarrassed.
Upon reaching Haga Village, the Ten Heroes bought ample provisions and continued walking southeast along the main road.
-----------------
Mid-September.
Buyang in Namjiglyeseong.
Around noon, eleven martial artists entered the village. They were the Ten Heroes of Five Peaks Mountain on their way to Mansapyeong in Gangnam. After a long journey, they looked somewhat disheveled, but the swords hanging from their waists gave them an intimidating air.
“Big brother, I can’t go on. It’s hot, and I’m hungry. Let’s go somewhere to eat.”
Hu Yimdal, his face covered in sweat, pleaded desperately. The heat affected him more than the others due to his constitution.
Pung Yeoncho, also exhausted, responded weakly:
“Alright, let’s rest a bit. I’m dead too.”
Shim Yanggak, surveying the surroundings, pointed to a place with his hand.
“Brother Pung, there’s a restaurant called Shinyang Banquet Hall over there. Let’s go.”
The Ten Heroes, worn out by the heat and hunger, quickly headed in the indicated direction without checking much.
Shinyang Banquet Hall was so crowded it was hard to find an empty table. But the employees, seeing the number of warriors, quickly arranged seats for them.
The Ten Heroes, upon sitting down, drank cold water in large gulps.
Afterwards, they ordered some food from the waiter and slumped in their chairs.
Pung Yeoncho, staring into space, felt something strange and turned his head. A middle-aged man, around fifty years old, at the next table, kept glancing at them as if wanting to say something.
Although Pung Yeoncho had done nothing wrong, he avoided his gaze just in case.
‘Could he have discovered we are from Nokrim?’
Fortunately, the middle-aged man seemed to lose interest quickly.
At that moment, the food arrived, and Pung Yeoncho forgot everything, eating voraciously.
However, when almost all the food on the table had disappeared, the middle-aged man beside him suddenly spoke.
“Excuse me, but are you traveling?”
At that moment, Pung Yeoncho’s heart jumped.
Like a thief caught in the act, Pung Yeoncho responded brusquely.
“Why do you ask?”
“Oh, sorry. I should have introduced myself first. I am Jang Han-yeong, the operations leader of Suwol Chambers of Commerce here in Buyang. And this is my daughter.”
Jang Han-yeong pointed to a young woman in her twenties with a sweet face beside him.
The young woman bowed hesitantly.
The stunned expression on her face indicated that Jang Han-yeong had improvised the introduction.
After a quick introduction, Jang Han-yeong continued talking.
“I suddenly have to go on a business trip, but I don’t have enough guards.”
“I suppose you’re not asking us to help someone we don’t know, are you?”
“Not exactly, but...”
Jang Han-yeong laughed awkwardly while glancing at the warriors.
Only one elderly man had a dull look; the others had clear and sincere eyes. Moreover, the aura they exuded was similar to that of disciples from a Prestigious Sect.
His mistake was due to the Ten Heroes of Five Peaks Mountain constantly reciting the Baekja Gukyul method taught by Yeon Jeokha.
That method was the essence of internal energy training taught by the Mysterious Woman of the Nine Heavens to him! Although they were bandits, the nobility they exuded was nothing to envy from the disciples of the Seven Great Sects.
Additionally, after a long time wandering, having shed worldly impurities, they even showed a touch of transcendence, leading Jang Han-yeong to mistakenly trust them.
Convinced he could trust them, Jang Han-yeong became more proactive.
“Haha! Even lifelong marriages begin with strangers. Could you tell me which school you are disciples of?”
“We are disciples of the Flying Dragon Ascension Sect.”
Pung Yeoncho didn’t hesitate in the slightest.
That question had a predetermined answer, so his lips moved faster than expected.
“Ah! So, you are from the Flying Dragon Ascension Sect. In which region are they located...?”
“In Hanam?”
Pung Yeoncho lost confidence at the unexpected question.
Although his response was in a questioning tone, Jang Han-yeong, blinded by his own biases, didn’t notice.
“So, you are from the Flying Dragon Ascension Sect in Hanam! If our routes coincide, could you accompany us? We are passing through Hainan to reach Hefei. Oh, of course, we will pay you generously.”
Pung Yeoncho could only blink, surprised.
He wanted to refuse the offer, but unfortunately, their routes did coincide.
While Pung Yeoncho prepared a refusal, Lee Cheolsan, who was listening, murmured.
“Eh? We also have to pass through Hefei...”
‘Damn it! This idiot with no common sense.’
Pung Yeoncho glared at Lee Cheolsan, but the damage was done.
Jang Han-yeong, the operations leader of Suwol Chambers of Commerce, looked at them with an expression of “gotcha.”
----------------------
Late at night, in the ancestral temple on the outskirts of Buyang.
About ten men and two women sat around a bonfire in the blue stone courtyard. They were the Ten Heroes of Five Peaks Mountain. Due to the cold and dampness of the early morning dew, they lit a bonfire despite it being summer.
Though they lit the bonfire out of necessity, it also had many beneficial side effects. One of them was that time passed more quickly. When the sun set, there wasn’t much to do. At those times, lighting a bonfire made two hours pass quickly.
The Ten Heroes of Five Peaks Mountain stared at the fire with vacant eyes without anyone ordering them to. There were no usual obscene jokes, but looks full of remorse.
Though they were now bandits from Nokrim, they had once been poor farmers. The sight of the flames turning to ashes reminded them of the fleetingness of their own lives, making them melancholic.
People change according to their environment. While they were bandits on Five Peaks Mountain, they only thought about having fun, but after a long journey, they began to remember their forgotten past.
Ha Sobaek, while poking the fire with a long stick, looked at Pung Yeoncho.
“Brother Pung, why did you refuse the operations leader’s offer this afternoon? After all, we were going in the same direction. We could have earned some money.”
“Have you forgotten who we are? If we encounter Nokrim while traveling with them, it will be a disaster. Ugh.”
Pung Yeoncho shuddered, thinking how unpleasant it would be.
“The big brother is right. We can’t afford to travel with a commerce group.”
Tak Gomyung also shook his head.
“Ah, I see.”
Ha Sobaek’s face showed inexplicable sadness.
In reality, she had dreamed for a moment of an ordinary martial artist's journey in the Jianghu (World of Martial Arts). The romantic life of martial artists that common people knew.
Han Chaeyeon, knowing Ha Sobaek’s inner thoughts, smiled.
“Did you want to imitate a Jianghu heroine?”
“Well, a bit. Didn’t you want it too, sister?”
“Hehe, I can’t say no.”
The two began talking about the dreams they had about life in the Jianghu.
Pung Yeoncho watched them with a somewhat complicated expression.
‘Heroines, huh...’
Like everyone, he had also dreamed of that in his youth. Of course, reality was trash. His poor parents handed him over to a peddler, hoping to reduce a mouth to feed. And so, he became what he is now: a bandit.
But since Yeon Jeokha taught them the Baekja Gukyul method, every day felt new. Immersing in deep breathing and coming out of it, sometimes felt like wearing clothes that didn’t fit well.
“Haa!”
A long sigh escaped Pung Yeoncho’s mouth.
“Why did you sigh suddenly?”
Tak Gomyung, speaking without much interest, threw the stick he was holding into the fire.
“Did I ever mention that I have a wife and children?”
“It’s the first time you mentioned it.”
“They’re probably in Kaifeng. I don’t know if they’re alive or dead. I haven’t seen them in ten years.”
He had hidden in the mountain to escape persecution and forgot about them.
“Wow! You have such a cold heart.”
“Lately, I’ve been thinking about them. They say when you change suddenly, you’re dying. Is my time near?”
“Hehe! Big brother, it’s not that you’re dying, you’re becoming human. It’s natural to want to see your family.”
Tak Gomyung, who grew up in a temple, seemed rather envious.
He had never had a family of his own and was already in his forties, so it was understandable.
After a while of chatting, the Ten Heroes of Five Peaks Mountain began to fall asleep one by one.
The bonfire’s light gradually dimmed.
Chirping, chirping~
In the quiet night, only the loud song of the cicadas could be heard.