Light Novel: Volume 24 Episode 14
Manhwa: N/A
“Hae-won Manor.”
“Hae-won Manor?”
Dok Gohyang repeated at his subordinate’s report.
“Yes, it is a sect that has recently emerged as the ruler of Haimen. Interestingly enough, its origins lie in the Western Regions.”
“The Western Regions? How dare someone who isn’t even from the Central Plains establish a sect in Haimen?”
Dok Gohyang’s face showed signs of anger.
There is a preconceived notion that those living in Jianghu are free and open to interacting with outsiders.
However, in reality, that was rarely the case.
On the contrary, they often ostracized outsiders more than anyone else.
Even though they might fight amongst themselves, if a martial artist from outside Jianghu stood out and rose to prominence, they would band together and become hostile against them.
This attitude was the same in the Southern Sea Jianghu.
Although the South Sea Jianghu were also part of the Central Plains, they were still considered outsiders because they were from the periphery.
Dok Gohyang, the ruler of the Southern Sea Jianghu, also looked down and distrusted martial artists from outside the Central Plains.
He couldn’t stand the thought of outsiders coming into his territory and establishing their own domain.
This inclination was already strong, and now hearing that the master of Hae-won Manor was an outsider made him even angrier.
“Are you certain that Pyo-wol is at Hae-won Manor?”
“Although we haven’t confirmed it directly, the circumstances strongly suggest it.”
“Circumstances?”
“Yes. Strange figures have recently entered Hae-won Manor, and two of them match the description of those we’re after.”
“A young man and an old man?”
“Yes.”
“Then it is almost certain.”
Dok Gohyang nodded.
Pyo-wol was an assassin.
Changing his appearance was not a difficult task for him.
It wouldn’t be surprising if he had transformed his appearance.
Dok Gohyang issued an order.
“Get the guys who came on the ship ready.”
“Aren’t we going to wait for the support ship?”
His confidant asked with a puzzled expression.
A support ship carrying reinforcements was on its way from the Martial Sword Alliance. It seemed better to wait for them.
“How close are they?”
“They should be arriving soon.”
“Send a messenger pigeon to keep an eye on the Phantom Fleet, so that if they betray us, we can take them out immediately.”
“Ah! Understood.”
“They are not to be trusted.”
Dok Gohyang didn’t fully trust Go Il-won and the Phantom Fleet.
Perhaps neither did they.
“Go Il-won doesn’t know we have reinforcements and we must keep them unaware until the end.”
“Yes, sir.”
The confidant bowed his head and replied in a loud voice.
The martial artists who were still on the ship began to disembark.
The area around the dock was already firmly under the control of the Martial Sword Alliance warriors.
Those on other ships were confined to their cabins, and the workers were herded into nearby warehouses to prevent any information from leaking.
As a result, there wasn’t a single ant in the lower docks of Haimen except for them.
Dok Gohyang briefly looked around.
The salty smell of the sea filled his nostrils.
To some, it might have been a nauseating fishy smell, but to him, it was the nostalgic scent of home.
“Good!”
Dok Gohyang smiled coldly as he walked.
Behind him, a group of martial artists from the Martial Sword Alliance followed.
Now that they knew where Pyo-wol was, there was no need to worry about attracting attention.
Suddenly, Dok Gohyang’s gaze shifted to the outskirts of the dock.
Someone was watching them from there.
It was a martial artist from the Phantom Fleet who had remained as a liaison.
One of Dok Gohyang’s subordinates ran to him and explained the situation.
The Phantom Fleet martial artist nodded in understanding and disappeared from sight.
He was going to report to his lord, Go Il-won.
Seeing that, Dok Gohyang muttered to himself.
“Hopefully, they show up on time…”
If Go Il-won was a man with brains, he would appear on time for a coordinated attack. If not, he would foolishly waste time.
Dok Gohyang believed Go Il-won would appear on time.
After all, if he had the courage and spirit to notice Dok Gohyang’s arrival and come to make a secret pact, he wouldn’t miss such an opportunity.
Of course, it didn’t matter if he didn’t show up.
He was confident that with the force he had brought with him, he would be able to wipe out Hae-won Manor in one fell swoop.
Of course, facing Pyo-wol was a different matter entirely.
In the entire region, the only martial artist capable of defeating Pyo-wol was himself, and he was confident he could defeat Pyo-wol.
It was when Dok Gohyang and the Martial Sword Alliance warriors left the Haimen dock and entered the downtown area.
“Wait! Who’s there?”
“Stop.”
A group of warriors blocked their path.
They were the martial artists of Hae-won Manor.
They had been tasked to monitor the streets on Tarha’s orders, and so when they saw the strangers, they decided to intercept them.
The price they paid was harsh.
Bam!
Some of the martial artists behind Dok Gohyang stepped forward and attacked them.
“Argh!”
“Keugh!”
The warriors of Hae-won Manor lost their lives without much resistance.
The gap between the Martial Sword Alliance martial artists and Hae-won Manor martial artists was vast.
There was a huge difference between Hae-won Manor, which aimed to dominate Haimen, and the Martial Sword Alliance, which sought to conquer the entire world.
The Martial Sword Alliance warriors were relentless.
Swish!
Swoosh!
They ruthlessly attacked the martial artists of Hae-won Manor and killed them all.
The bodies of the Hae-won Manor warriors littered the ground, and a deathly silence fell over the street.
There were many people on the street besides the warriors. However, none of them dared to make a sound.
The Martial Sword Alliance warriors were glaring at them.
Their murderous aura dominated the entire street.
Choked with killing intent, they didn’t dare to breathe out loud.
It seemed as if the Martial Sword Alliance martial artists would be provoked to attack them if they let out as much as a cough. Unable to even swallow their dry saliva, they could only stare at the Martial Sword Alliance warriors.
Step, step!
Led by Dok Gohyang, the Martial Sword Alliance warriors began to move again.
The sight of the tightly united warriors moving in unison was like that of a giant, single organism.
The people of Haimen had never seen such a sight before.
They had never even heard of hundreds of people uniting as one and exuding such an overwhelming murderous aura.
It was only after the group had long disappeared into the distance that the people could finally breathe.
“Hoo!”
“I thought I was going to die.”
“Unbelievable!”
With pale faces, the people looked in the direction where the Martial Sword Alliance warriors had gone.
* * *
“The Martial Sword Alliance has moved.”
“The target?”
“Hae-won Manor. They say the Reaper is there.”
“So, he was there after all.”
At Cho Pyeong-rak’s report, Go Il-won nodded as if he had expected it.
“The Martial Sword Alliance has requested reinforcements. What should we do?”
“Of course, we must send them. We made a promise.”
“Do you really intend to keep the promise?”
“When have I ever not kept a promise?”
“That’s true, but—”
“Send the reinforcements as promised. However, our objective is slightly different.”
“What?”
“Destroy all of Haimen.”
Cho Pyeong-rak’s mouth dropped open in surprise at Go Il-won’s unexpected words.
“Simply killing him won’t satisfy me. By destroying Haimen, we will further plunge the world into chaos.”
Go Il-won was not doing this simply for revenge.
Revenge was just a secondary outcome.
His true purpose was to plunge the world into chaos.
That was the original goal of the Kowloon Assassin Guild in the first place.
By wreaking havoc on the world, countless opportunities would be created, and those opportunities would be used to expand the influence of the Kowloon Assassin Guild.
Although the Kowloon Assassin Guild had been ruined and destroyed by Pyo-wol, Go Il-won had not given up yet.
He would rebuild the Kowloon Assassin Guild in the same way his grandmother and father had. For that, he would need to spread chaos in the world.
The flames of turmoil were already rising throughout the world.
The clash between the Golden Heaven Society and the Silver Lotus Society.
The war between the Wudang Sect and the Dragon Sky Valley.
Add to that the catastrophe at Haimen, and the world will be pushed into even greater chaos.
“Begin!”
“As you command!”
Cho Pyeong-rak made a palm and fist salute towards Go Il-won before heading out.
The ships of the Phantom Fleet soon headed straight for the docks of Haimen.
More than a dozen ships broke through the waves in unison and entered the dock.
The dock was already occupied by ships that had docked earlier.
Under normal circumstances, they would have waited for the other ships to leave before entering. However, the Phantom Fleet showed no hesitation.
Crash!
The Phantom Fleet’s ships mercilessly pushed against the docked ships. The hulls of the previously docked ships cracked and broke apart.
“What, what is this?”
“Ahh! Get out of the way!”
“Jump off!”
The sailors on board the docked ships frantically jumped off.
Some jumped into the sea, while others luckily landed on the dock.
Those who managed to land on the dock had to watch their ships being destroyed to pieces.
Crack! Crunch!
The ships of the Phantom Fleet pushed against the docked ships without a care in the world.
In terms of size, height, and strength, there was no comparison.
The ships that were docked first ultimately broke apart and sank into the sea, and the Phantom Fleet’s ships took their place.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“You scoundrels!”
A few people, unable to contain their anger, approached the Phantom Fleet to protest.
At that moment, ladders were lowered, and the martial artists of the Phantom Fleet descended en masse.
The intimidating aura of the warriors silenced those who wanted to protest, leaving them gaping in fear.
The moment they saw the martial artists from the Phantom Fleet, their bodies froze.
Their bodies instinctively recognized the danger even before their minds did. However, their minds were so blank that they couldn’t even comprehend what was happening.
Shing!
A cold blade flashed above their heads.
“Argh!”
“Geugh!”
The brave souls who attempted to protest fell with screams, breathing their last.
“Ahhh!”
“R-Run!”
The people who saw the scene scattered in all directions like a swarm of locusts.
The Phantom Fleet martial artists did not chase after them.
They had a clear objective: to destroy Haimen.
There was no reason to waste energy on trivial matters in the face of such a grand goal.
Creak!
Goods loaded on the ships were lowered onto the dock, tied with ropes.
The goods, enough to fill three or four carts, were tightly wrapped in waterproof tarps.
The martial artists of the Phantom Fleet carefully unwrapped the tarps and began distributing the items inside. Their movements were extremely cautious.
Go Il-won watched the scene from the flagship.
The items that the Phantom Fleet martial artists were distributing were similar to bombs and grenades. The difference was that they could control the time of the explosion using a wick.
One of the advantages of being a sailor was the ability to freely travel to foreign countries, including the Western Regions, and plunder their ships.
While precious goods could be sold at high prices, there were also items that couldn’t be sold.
The bombs and grenades being distributed now were among those unsellable items.
He didn’t remember exactly which ship they had looted these from, but it was one operated by the royal family of the Western Regions.
The Western Regions had always been rich in saltpeter and sulfur, which are the ingredients needed to make gunpowder. As a result, devices such as bombs and grenades were highly developed there.
The ship plundered by the Phantom Fleet had been loaded with bombs and grenades intended for royal use.
Until now, they hadn’t had a reason to use them and had kept them stored in the hold.
Originally, they hadn’t intended to use the grenades, but the convergence of revenge and grand plans led to their deployment.
The martial artists who received the grenades soon spread throughout Haimen.
Go Il-won watched the scene with his arms crossed.’
LUNACAVE
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