By Zephyria 
As they entered the village, stinging gazes poured down on them.
He hadn’t been able to wash for days, his appearance was like that of a vagrant covered in dirt and dust, and his clothes even emitted an unpleasant odor.
“Looks like a martial artist…”
“I guess there was another fight somewhere?”
Gang Woong silently moved forward, not caring about the whispering onlookers.
Three years ago, he would have blushed with shame at his unclean appearance. But the boy had experienced too much to be shaken by something like this.
He entered an inn located on the main street.
“Welcome…”
The innkeeper’s face contorted as he saw Gang Woong’s appearance and the real sword hanging from his waist.
“…shop.”
“Two rooms, please.”
“Judging by your appearance, you must be a martial artist…”
The owner narrowed his eyes.
“Yes, that’s right. Why do you ask?”
Without answering, the owner pointed to a pillar of the inn with his chin. The words ‘Martial Artists Not Welcome’ were written largely on it.
“…I don’t remember seeing that when I stayed here before.”
Gang Woong muttered, flustered.
“These days, martial artists are causing fights almost every day, do you know how much damage that causes? Travelers have stopped coming, and just the other day, there was a riot at the Twin Tiger Inn across the street!”
Listening carefully, it seemed there had been a minor conflict between small Sects a few days ago. In the process, the roof collapsed because a main beam of the inn broke.
Of course, no one died or was seriously injured, so from a martial artist’s point of view, it could be considered ‘minor,’ but it was not minor at all to the common people.
Gang Woong sighed lightly.
He couldn’t completely disagree with the owner’s concerns.
In recent years, large and small incidents had occurred one after another in the Central Plains, and the atmosphere was becoming increasingly ominous. Because of this, martial artists, whose nerves were on edge, often turned minor disputes into armed conflicts.
But Gang Woong also had circumstances that prevented him from backing down.
“I’m sorry to hear that. But could you please make an exception just this once? I’m supposed to meet my Master here… I won’t cause any trouble.”
“Hmph, how can I believe that? The Twin Tiger Inn also accepted those seemingly respectable Taoists, and look what happened!”
“That’s too much! It’s not like I did anything, and it’s not like it was something my Sect did, so this treatment is unfair!”
“Ah, I don’t know. Anyway, I can’t give you a room, so please leave!”
It was then that the owner waved his hand.
“Is there a problem?”
In the quiet, footsteps echoed.
A sword was tied to the waist of the man, who was noticeably tall and wearing dark martial attire. His abundant hair, tied in a bundle, hung down his shoulders, and unlike his seemingly languid eyes, his sharp jawline and tightly closed lips gave off an aura of stubbornness.
When he appeared, even the air seemed to grow heavier. Even the guests who were eating on the first floor held their breath and stared at the man.
“M, Master…”
Baek Ryeo-il’s sunken black eyes swept over Gang Woong and the owner. Gang Woong’s complexion darkened. Now that he had appeared, they couldn’t quietly get past this.
The once-imposing owner’s face turned pale, and he closed his mouth in a straight line, like someone with taffy stuck to their teeth.
“I asked if there was a problem.”
“W, well…”
Gang Woong’s gaze went to the ‘Martial Artists Not Welcome’ sign on the wall, and Baek Ryeo-il’s eyebrows twitched as if he had also seen the sign.
Unlike Gang Woong, whose clothes were covered in blood from the recent arduous battles, making it impossible to tell the original color, Baek Ryeo-il’s attire was clean. Thanks to this, someone among the onlookers noticed the emblem engraved on his chest.
“Hwasan Sect…!”
“Could that Taoist be the famous Demon Subjugating Blood Shadow, Baek Ryeo-il?”
It was a small voice, but everyone heard it clearly because the surroundings were so quiet.
Baek Ryeo-il of Hwasan.
Demon Subjugating Blood Shadow.
He was famous before, but now there was no one who didn’t know him.
“H, Hwasan…”
The owner looked up at Baek Ryeo-il with a blank expression. Gang Woong was worried that his Master’s mood might sour, and he fidgeted.
“Room.”
“Y, yes?”
“Two.”
“H, here they are! Please rest comfortably!”
Fortunately, before his patience ran out, the owner came to his senses and handed over two keys. He was so polite that he seemed ready to give Baek Ryeo-il the rooms without even taking money, as if giving him a room was the greatest honor.
‘Hoo…’
Unlike his worry that there might be another sword fight, Baek Ryeo-il headed upstairs without a word. Gang Woong was relieved that he had safely overcome the crisis. But his ordeal was not over yet.
As Gang Woong quickly followed his Master, he suddenly noticed a piece of paper on the wall and felt a sharp pain in his chest.
It was a wanted poster with a drawing of the most notorious public enemy in the Central Plains, Seong Mu-yeon, the Seventh Young master of the Demonic Cult.
Such wanted posters were so common that they could be found everywhere.
Swallowing something hot that surged up, Gang Woong tried to turn his gaze away from the wanted poster. But Baek Ryeo-il was also staring intently at the wanted poster.
‘Master…’
A crack appeared on his always indifferent face. His brow furrowed, and his clenched fist began to tighten.
Gang Woong, who noticed the subtle change, became uneasy. If someone else provoked him here, his Master’s patience might run out. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if that happened.
‘Hurry and get into the room…’
“Baek Ryeo-il! You bastard! You were here!”
Five young swordsmen burst into the inn.
What is it this time…
“We’ve just returned from Mt. Misan!”
Gang Woong tilted his head. Mt. Misan was also where he and Baek Ryeo-il had been.
“We went to punish the Demonic Cult bastards who were tormenting the common people, but they were already all cold corpses! How dare you steal our target? You sly bastard!”
One of them boldly drew his sword.
“We are the Five Dragons of Sichuan! We will repay this humiliation with our swords! Come on!”
Gang Woong sighed and glanced at his Master.
‘This is bad…’
Baek Ryeo-il’s black eyes were sinking, becoming even darker. A cold aura seemed to be felt on the skin.
Even before going to Mt. Misan, his Master’s mood had not been good. He had rushed there after hearing news of the Demonic Cult, but the person they were looking for was nowhere to be seen. It was already the umpteenth time this had happened.
As a disciple who had been by his side for the past three years, he knew very well that Baek Ryeo-il showed no mercy to anyone in such situations.
“M, Master! Why don’t you go ahead and soak in some hot bathwater! I’ll take care of this here!”
“…You?”
“Yes! I wanted to move around a bit because my body was stiff, so this is perfect.”
Baek Ryeo-il looked at his disciple suspiciously before nodding lightly.
“Take care of it and come.”
“Yes!”
As Baek Ryeo-il disappeared beyond the landing, Gang Woong finally relaxed and wiped away his cold sweat.
“You should know that you are lucky.”
Gang Woong took a long sigh and loosened his sword.
“Haha! The young one is arrogant. Alright, I’ll correct your manners in place of your Master! It won’t be too late to deal with Baek Ryeo-il after that!”
The Five Dragons of Sichuan drew their swords at once, and a sharp metallic sound spread, and all the guests in the inn screamed and ran for their lives.
Gang Woong suddenly felt a gaze and turned his head. He met the eyes of the owner, who was peeking out from behind the counter. Those two eyes were filled with intense emotions mixed with all sorts of grievances and betrayal. He was probably cursing at him in his mind.
Although he never intended it, things had turned out as the owner had feared.
‘I’m sorry…’
Gang Woong offered a silent apology.
A quarter of an hour later.
“Ugh, ugh…”
The Five Dragons of Sichuan were rolling around on the floor, unable to even swing their swords properly. Gang Woong stacked the unconscious men neatly in front of the door.
The roof didn’t collapse like at the Twin Tiger Inn, but a few tables and chairs on the first floor were broken.
Gang Woong carefully placed silver coins in front of the owner, who was glaring at him with his mouth shut in a straight line, and went up to his room with a very apologetic expression.
* * *
Gang Woong, who had finally fulfilled his wish to wash his body in hot water, soaked himself in the tub and left the room with a refreshed feeling.
His Master was sitting at a table in the common area, rummaging through a pile of papers. It contained brief information about the movements of the Demonic Cult.
“Is there any useful information?”
“It’s all trash.”
Baek Ryeo-il crumpled the pile of papers irritably and threw them away.
“Useless bastards. Haoh Gate and the Beggars’ Sect, none of them do anything properly. They said it was reliable information this time, but in the end, it was just another wild goose chase.A week ago, they had obtained information about the whereabouts of Poisonous Monster through Haoh Gate. They immediately raided his hideout, but only nameless Demonic Cultists greeted them.
Although the target, Poisonous Monster, was not there, the two cleaned up the hideout. It took them five days just to track down and completely eradicate all the remaining enemies. The thought of the days they spent chasing down the remnants all night without even having time to wash the blood that had soaked into their clothes still made him shudder.
“When I went to question them, the bastard who had boasted that it was reliable information had already run away with his tail between his legs.”
Baek Ryeo-il clicked his tongue.
Gang Woong sat down opposite him.
“…Shouldn’t we start heading back soon?”
Gang Woong asked cautiously, hesitating for a moment. Immediately, Baek Ryeo-il’s gaze fixed on him.