Light Novel: Volume 18 Episode 13
Manhwa: N/A
The remains of the molar were sticky.
It was because saliva and poison were mixed in.
“It’s not a real molar.”
“So they hid poison in a fake molar?”
“That’s right.”
“So, after being put in solitary confinement, they committed suicide by biting off their molars? They didn’t seem like people who would do that.”
“The material of the molar itself is made of something that dissolves in saliva. The molar probably dissolved after some time in the mouth, releasing the poison.”
“That doesn’t make sense. If it was made of such a material, how is it possible that the molar didn’t melt after traveling all this way, and that it melted exactly when they were trapped in the gambling den?”
Eunyo’s face was full of disbelief.
It was a natural reaction since it didn’t make sense to her common sense.
Pyo-wol explained to her.
“They probably didn’t know the poisoned molar would melt either.”
“What?”
“On their way here, they must have taken some kind of medicine that prevented their molars from melting. However, there’s a high chance they didn’t know that fact. They might have assumed that the molar was made of indestructible material and that the poison hidden in their mouths was just there for emergencies.”
“Then?”
“Well, since they have been staying in the gambling house and not taking the medicine, their molar must have melted little by little.”
“My God!”
“That just means they had accounted for this situation in the beginning. They must have already known those escort’s tendencies and were ready to take advantage of them.”
Eunyo couldn’t hide her surprised expression.
Though she prided herself on having experienced countless human behaviors and all sorts of schemes in the Xiaoleiyin Temple, she had never seen anyone manipulate others’ lives like this.
If Pyo-wol’s assumptions were correct then the leader of the Silver River Escort Agency had known about Chief Escort Seok and the other’s disposition from the beginning and planned to use them as a means to divert attention before discarding them.
It was a mindset so cruel it made her shiver.
“It’s my fault. If I had understood them a little more–”
“You didn’t do anything wrong. I also didn’t expect them to do such a thing.”
“Still, if I had been a little more cautious–”
“The outcome would have been the same even if you had been more cautious, so stop blaming yourself.”
“Okay…”
Eunyo nodded weakly.
“Let’s go back to the Red Pine Manor.”
“Yes, big brother.”
Pyo-wol and Eunyo left the underground gambling den.
Rain was still pouring outside.
The two walked through the rain.
The rain strongly hit Eunyo’s head and shoulders, but Eunyo didn’t feel the pain.
This was the first setback she had experienced since coming to Chengdu.
She painfully realized how arrogant she had been.
‘I’m still far off. To think I was the best at this level…’
She bit her lip and vowed to never let such an incident happen again.
Pyo-wol silently looked at Eunyo.
In order for a person to grow, they must taste failure and trial.
In that sense, Eunyo’s growth was just about to begin.
Pyo-wol walked with Eunyo, passing through the Snow Cloud Villa.
The fire that had been swallowing the Snow Cloud Villa had long been extinguished by the strong pouring rain.
Pyo-wol glanced at the Snow Cloud Villa briefly before entering the Red Pine Manor.
“Brother! Sister!”
Do Yeonsan greeted Pyo-wol and Eunyo.
“Where’s Guian?”
“He’s in the basement right now. He told me to bring you to him when you come back.”
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes!”
They headed for the underground space where Guian was.
In the basement, Guian was looking down at a desk.
A large map was spread out on the desk.
It was a map of Chengdu and Sichuan.
It was no ordinary map.
It was a map that Guan had made himself with the help of people.
Of course, there was bound to be a difference in accuracy.
The map was filled with markings.
Guian stared at the marked sections as if he was about to devour them.
Pyo-wol asked,
“Did you find anything?”
“Ah, Brother!”
Only then did Guian come to his senses and look at Pyo-wol.
From the moment he learned that Snow Cloud Villa had been attacked by the Silver River Escort Agency, Guian activated every intelligence network in Chengdu.
He had mobilized all available personnel to track down the Silver River Escort Agency.
It was only because Pyo-wol trusted Guian that he didn’t start tracking from the beginning.
As he expected, Guian had already mobilized all of his intelligence resources to pinpoint their escape route.
Guian explained,
“I’ll get straight to the point because it’s urgent. There was suspicious movement on both the east and south roads at the time a fire broke out at the Snow Cloud Villa.”
“Did they split into two groups?”
“That’s right! Only five people were directly involved in the incident at the Snow Cloud Villa. The rest were divided into two groups, waiting at the east and south gates.”
“Which group did the ones who caused the incident join?”
“That’s the problem. Witnesses’ accounts don’t match up. Some say they saw them at the south gate, and others say they saw them at the east gate. To make matters worse, there aren’t many witnesses because it was raining.”
Guian looked frustrated.
The pouring rain had ruined everything.
Most of the people he’d planted as informants hadn’t gone out because it was raining, so the quality of the incoming information was poor.
It was already a great thing that Guian could pierce together the information this much.
“So, we can’t currently tell which group the arsonists have joined.”
“That’s right! They definitely did that to throw off any pursuers. The problem is that their group is as large as fifty people.”
“Why is that?”
“They’re in two groups right now, but they could split up even further to confuse their pursuers. In other words, they can split into four or even five groups. That would make tracking them down even more difficult. If it were me, I would definitely do that.”
Pyo-wol nodded.
If he himself were leading a group of fifty people, he would do the same.
It was obvious that they had brought so many people for the sole purpose of creating such confusion.
“Where is the New Moon Manor located?”
“In Qiyang, Hunan Province.”
“And the Silver River Escort Agency?”
“In Shaoyang, Hunan Province.”
“So both are in Hunan Province.”
“That’s right!”
“We need to divide the pursuit teams into two for now. Eunyo and Do Yeonsan will chase the ones who fled to the south gate. Can you do it?”
“Of course.”
“You two work together to catch them. If the sacred scriptures are with that group, make sure to retrieve them.”
“So, you’ll be chasing the ones who fled through the east gate?”
“Yes.”
“Got it.”
“Stay in close contact with Guian. Eunyo knows the method. Hurry and track them down.”
“Yes!”
Do Yeonsan and Eunyo responded before going outside.
This time, Pyo-wol gave instructions to Guian.
“Investigate the sacred scriptures. Find out why they went to such lengths to secure the scriptures. It seems too organized and big a job to have done it just for a simple offering to the temple.”
“Got it, Brother! I don’t know what secret the scriptures hold, but I’ll definitely find out.”
“I trust you.”
“Don’t worry.”
Guian replied confidently.
Pyo-wol patted Guian’s shoulder and came up to the ground. There, an unexpected person greeted him.
The person who was huffing and puffing while holding a long box was none other than Tang Sochu.
“Sochu, what brings you here?”
“I heard about the disaster at the Snow Cloud Villa.”
“It reached your ears already?”
“You’re going to track down the culprits, right? Here, take this.”
Tang Sochu handed over the box he was holding to Pyo-wol.
Pyo-wol opened the box without a word.
Inside the box were a pair of gauntlets, a dagger, and a black blood robe.
Clank!
Pyo-wol put on the gauntlets first.
The gauntlets snugly fit from the backs of his hands to his forearms.
It felt as if he hadn’t worn anything at all.
“Excellent!”
Pyo-wol smiled in satisfaction as the item exceeded his expectations.
He strapped the dagger at his waist and lastly draped the robe over himself.
“I won’t explain the dagger since you’ve seen it before. The robe is made by mixing the web of the Heaven Sleeping Spider and the Fire Spirit Spider.1 It has the strength of a regular armor, and like the Black Dragon Robe I gave you before, it has the capabilities of water and fire resistance.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s the least I can do. I hope you return safely.”
“I will. I promise.”
Pyo-wol nodded before heading out.
Upon putting on the hood attached to the black blood robe, the rainwater was repelled entirely.
If clothes get wet in the rain, it naturally saps one’s stamina. Although it wouldn’t likely weaken his strength to a considerable extent, moving in dry clothes preserves energy. Pyo-wol realized once again just how good Tang Sochu is.
He wasn’t just good with steel, he could craft top-quality equipment from any material.
The robe he was currently wearing was a testament to that.
Even though the rain was pouring down heavily, the inside remained completely dry.
Seeing the craftsmanship of the robe, one could infer the capability of its creator even without testing it.
Pyo-wol began moving towards the eastern gate.
There were puddles of rainwater all over the ground.
In front of the gate, a middle-aged man was waiting for him.
With his hands clasped in front of him, the man stood in a respectful manner, and upon seeing Pyo-wol, he hurriedly approached.
“Your subordinate greets you, master.”
“Master?”
“Yes! Guian told me to call you that.”
“Guian?”
“Yes!”
There was no time left to ponder the situation.
It was highly likely that the man was part of the information network operated by Guian in Chengdu.
Pyo-wol asked,
“What did you find out?”
“They were confirmed to have headed in the direction of Jintang.”
“Jintang?”
Pyo-wol unknowingly furrowed his brows.
This was because a large river flowed through Jintang.
The origin of Sichuan’s name was due to the four major rivers that flowed throughout the region.
These four major rivers were connected like a spiderweb to various smaller rivers and streams. Once on a river, it was impossible to predict which tributary or stream one might take.
“Do we have people in Jintang?”
“Yes, we do, but there’s no way to get the word out right now. Since it’s raining, we won’t be able to send out any messenger pigeons.”
“How many docks are there in Jintang?”
“There are three, but there is only one where you can sneak a boat.”
“Where is it?”
“It’s a small dock downstream in Jintang. If you follow the main path, there’s a path that splits off in front of Jintang, take the left and you’ll find it.”
“I see.”
“I’m sorry that I couldn’t be of more assistance.”
The middle-aged man bowed his head apologetically.
“This is more than enough.”
Pyo-wol then started walking outside the eastern gate.
Once he stepped out of the city gates, an overwhelming darkness, devoid of any light, greeted him.
The torrential rain made it impossible to light a torch, creating the worst environment possible.
But despite the heavy downpour and the pitch-black darkness, Pyo-wol didn’t hesitate and rushed forth.
The distance from Chengdu to Jintang was about a hundred li.
If he hurried, he could get there in less than an hour.
Pyo-wol sprinted through the rain, using qinggong.
Tzzz!
The pouring rain splashed against his robe, scattering in all directions.
Neither the intense rain nor the darkness could disrupt Pyo-wol’s senses, honed from training in underground chambers.
He ran straight towards Jintang without a single misstep.
As he was about to reach Jintang, the rain stopped, and the sun began to rise.
At the fork, Pyo-wol chose the left path.
As the middle-aged man had said, a little further on, a small dock came into view.
It was situated in such a discreet location that only someone in the know could find it.
Due to the rain that had poured all night, the river had risen significantly, submerging half of the dock.
There were no boats in sight, perhaps washed away by the rainwater.
Pyo-wol began examining the ground.
The ground was flooded with puddles from the overnight rain. Finding any traces of human activity in such a place was no easy task.
Any ordinary person would have given up tracking in these conditions. But Pyo-wol was different.
He remained focused and observed carefully.
‘More than twenty horses moved. If they truly came here, there must be a clear trace left behind.’
After searching for a while, Pyo-wol soon found a clear trail.
It was an indentation on the wooden dock.
The mark was likely made by a significantly large boat that had bumped against the pier. Given the size of the dock, the boat seemed unusually large.
“It must be a horse-ferry boat.”
It was clear that they had stationed a horse ferry boat here and loaded the horses.
Now, all that was left was to determine the direction the boat had taken.
Upstream or downstream.
Pyo-wol chose downstream.
The river had swollen from the heavy downpour all night, making the currents fierce.
Navigating upstream in such conditions would be a life-threatening gamble.
Pyo-wol believed they wouldn’t take such a risk.
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