Chronicles of the Martial God’s Return - Chapter 101

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Wow!”
Dan So-mi, gazing out the window from inside the carriage, was delighted.
For the first time in her life, she had left Honam.
She was even riding in a carriage—something she’d once thought she’d never experience in her lifetime—so her joy knew no bounds. The girl beamed with an open smile, resting her chin on the carriage window frame as she peered outside.
The way her gaze refused to leave the glass told Dan Woo-hyun everything about how excited this child truly was.
“Are you having that much fun?”
At Dan Woo-hyun’s question, Dan So-mi nodded readily.
They were now traveling north along the tributary of Dongting Lake, having crossed the boundary between Honam and Hubei. More precisely, they had just entered Hubei.
To reach Anhui, there were two routes: one cutting eastward through Ganzhou in eastern Honam, and another heading east from Hubei. Of these, Namgung Cheon had chosen the fastest path.
The surrounding landscape had changed little.
Crossing a single border didn’t transform the world or the way people lived. Yet for Dan So-mi, who was venturing beyond Honam for the first time in her life, even that was enough to make her eyes sparkle with wonder.
“But… why do you two look like that?”
Dan Woo-hyun glanced sideways at Namgung Cheon and Sa Do-hak.
Both of them were wearing masks.
Namgung Cheon wore the Gunjasal mask, just as before. By now, having grown quite accustomed to it, it wouldn’t be strange to say it suited him well.
And yet—
Sa Do-hak, of all people, who never seemed like he’d go to Anhui.
What possessed him to choose this journey to Anhui was a mystery. He’d appeared just before departure and climbed into the carriage on his own terms. And Dan Woo-hyun felt no particular urge to ask him why.
But.
What Dan Woo-hyun wanted to ask about was his appearance.
He wore black robes, and a mask covered his face.
That mask was rather peculiar.
The one Namgung Cheon wore was an ordinary mask without any distinctive features. And Sa Do-hak’s mask was hardly any different from it.
In shape, they were nearly identical.
The only difference was color.
Black.
Did it symbolize the deepest black?
“I’m Macheonggun.”
“…….”
“…….”
Dan Woo-hyun stared at Sa Do-hak with an expression of bewilderment.
His eyes seemed to regard him with contempt.
“Macheonggun is amazing! He’s the only person who ever fought Gunjasal to a draw!”
Dan So-mi’s voice rose with delight.
Though she no longer attended the School, she hadn’t severed ties with her friends. Since she visited Ak-yang from time to time, the students would see each other then and discuss the things they enjoyed and learned.
So she knew well.
Macheonggun.
A master of renown second only to Gunjasal, and his notorious rival.
Watching Dan So-mi’s eyes light up brightly, Dan Woo-hyun turned his head away.
What could he even say……?
After mulling it over for a long while, he finally let out a small sigh.
“Like gathers with like, I suppose……”
“What in the world are you talking about?!”
Namgung Cheon’s voice erupted loudly.
His face flushed deeply, clearly mortified. After staring at Dan Woo-hyun in silence for some time and receiving no response, he eventually turned away and reached out his hand.
He was trying to tear off Sa Do-hak’s mask.
But Sa Do-hak deftly dodged his hand.
“What are you doing?”
“You’re embarrassed, so you’re trying to take it off!”
“Embarrassed about what? You’re the one who started this, not me. I don’t mind. Macheonggun! Isn’t he magnificent!”
He laughed loudly and struck a pose.
It was exactly the kind of stance Macheonggun would assume when making an entrance.
Dan So-mi gasped “Wow!” and let out another cry of admiration, but Namgung Cheon, by contrast, turned his head away as if he wanted to disappear into a mouse hole.
Heat rose intensely to his cheeks.
Just then, a voice came from the driver’s seat.
“My lord, there’s a peculiar group ahead of us.”
Jang Sam-tae and Kwon Mu-jin, sitting on the driver’s bench, furrowed their brows. They’d been hearing the faint ring of swords for a while now, and soon enough, the scene unfolded before them.
Several people stood before them.
Three carts laden with cargo, surrounded by guards to protect the goods—by all appearances, merchants, though their numbers seemed surprisingly thin.
The reason was simple enough.
Most of them were already dead.
The acrid stench of blood hung in the air.
The survivors appeared mostly to be hired guards. They held swords, certainly, but the way they gripped them and the stance they took against their attackers made it clear they were no true warriors.
As for their opponents……
“Bandits?”
“So it would seem.”
Dan Woo-hyun stroked his chin thoughtfully.
If he gave the order, Kwon Mu-jin and Jang Sam-tae would charge forward without hesitation. A mere band of bandits would be no match for either of them.
Jang Sam-tae’s recent training under Sa Do-hak—rolling about like a dog, groveling through drills—had sharpened him considerably.
But where was the sport in that?
Dan Woo-hyun smiled faintly, his gaze settling on the two old men before him.
“This is your moment.”
“What?”
“W-what are you saying now?”
“Isn’t this precisely when the Gunjasal should act? When the Gunjasal steps forward, surely the Macheonggun must follow.”
Namgung Cheon felt cold sweat beading on his brow.
True, he had been playing at the role of the Gunjasal in Ak-yang—half for amusement, half for sport. And with Dan So-mi so clearly delighted by it, he found it difficult to stop.
Besides, given that he could not reveal his true face, wearing a mask had proven efficient in many respects.
It had been nothing more than that—yet now Dan Woo-hyun seemed intent on actually creating the Gunjasal and the Macheonggun as genuine legends across the Central Plains.
A thin, whistling sound escaped him.
More sweat trickled down his temples.
He cast a desperate look toward Sa Do-hak.
He was asking for help.
He had reasoned that a man of Sa Do-hak’s considerable pride would refuse to bend to Dan Woo-hyun’s will, no matter how formidable his young master might be.
But that hope crumbled instantly.
Sa Do-hak—or rather, the Macheonggun—stepped out of the carriage as naturally as if it had always been his intention.
Then he strode purposefully forward.
“W-wait!”
Before Namgung Cheon could call him back, the Macheonggun approached the bandits attacking the merchants, a thin smile playing across his face.
His mouth curved upward, visible through the gap in his mask.
“Captain! Look there! Someone strange is coming!”
“Huh?”
The bandit leader’s eyes narrowed as he studied the masked figure.
He had already noticed the approaching carriage. The path was narrow, a single lane with no room to turn around, so he had assumed they would attempt a desperate breakthrough. But now this peculiar fellow had appeared.
“Leave the goods and be on your way. We won’t take your lives.”
At those words, the Macheonggun laughed.
The sound of genuine amusement rang out so loudly that all could hear it. The captain scowled and glanced at his men. In their line of work, a fool eager to die deserved swift execution.
His subordinate advanced without hesitation.
His movements carried absolute confidence—no words exchanged beforehand.
He lifted his blade smoothly and swung it down with force. He did not waste breath on words like “I’ll kill you!” or “You’ll be dead soon!” No such utterances passed his lips.
A man accustomed to death, he saw no reason to spend words on one already condemned.
By this alone, one could tell these were men for whom murder was as routine as breathing.
And yet, the Macheonggun’s hand extended with casual ease.
His palm unfurled in the Golden Claw Hand, and with a gentle motion, he plucked the sword from his attacker’s grasp. The subordinate had no chance to defend himself—in fact, he did not even realize his weapon had been taken.
And then.
A sharp whistle of air!
“Aaaahhhhh!”
An anguished cry!
The scream of the bandit subordinate tore through the air.
The sudden turn of events left them powerless to mount any true defense. Before the wounded subordinate’s body could even stumble to the ground, an invisible blade—no glint of steel, no sound of steel—hurtled toward them.
Whistle-whistle-whistle-shriek!
Dozens of bandits suddenly erupted in blood and collapsed. Even the captain gasped as he felt the long wound across his chest, his legs giving way beneath him.
He had no time to cry out.
The moment his awareness registered what was happening, steel was already cutting through his body, and before pain could even register, his limbs went slack.
“Urrgh……!”
The Macheonggun gazed down at the fallen bandits and clicked his tongue.
“No spirit at all. Is this really all they have? How disappointing.”
Even as Macheonggun watched the bandits sprawled on the ground crawling like animals, he showed not a shred of pity—only nudging them repeatedly with his boot.
The bandits tumbled across the earth like discarded dolls.
“Th-thank you! Thank you, esteemed warrior!”
The merchant, grasping what had happened, bowed with trembling gratitude. His companions did the same, heads lowered in unison.
They had been moments from death.
With their hired escorts slaughtered to the last, there was nothing—nothing at all—they could have done.
And then he appeared.
A shaft of light.
They bowed again and again, overwhelmed with thanks.
It felt like being pulled back from the brink of the abyss itself.
But then.
Something sharp whispered against his throat.
‘What—?’
The merchant’s eyes flicked downward.
A blade rested against his neck.
“I—great warrior, what—what is this?”
“You receive the gift of life itself, and all you offer is gratitude? Trying to wipe your hands clean and walk away?”
“What madness is this!”
Namgung Cheon rushed in and flicked the blade away with a sharp parry.
The sword sang as it flew upward. Macheonggun’s eyes narrowed—genuine bewilderment flickering across his gaze.
“Why?”
“Why? Why indeed! How can you ask ‘why’ at a moment like this? How is what you’re doing any different from the bandits standing here before us?”
The merchant’s forehead beaded with cold sweat.
The carriage door suddenly swung open, and another masked figure emerged—the colors of his mask different from the first. Before the merchant could think, they were quarreling fiercely.
‘That mask… I’ve seen it before.’
Yes, now that he thought about it, his daughter had been fascinated by something like this on Market Street.
What did she call them—the Gunjasal and Macheonggun? The merchant’s palms went clammy as he slowly backed away.
Something told him not to entangle himself further with these people.
Call it instinct.
Though he was deeply grateful for the rescue, these two seemed to possess… significant mental disturbances.
The merchant signaled quietly to his men and began edging backward with measured steps.
Then.
Shiiing!
Macheonggun’s blade suddenly shot out, carving the air inches from their faces.
Crack-crack-crack!
The earth split open.
The entire merchant caravan froze mid-retreat.
“Aaaahhh!”
“Please—spare us!”
“Where do you think you’re running? Abandoning your savior like this?”
The merchant wilted under Macheonggun’s blazing stare.
The Gunjasal’s voice rose to cut through the moment.
The two began shouting at each other again in the same spot, and this time the bandits themselves tried to slink away.
But it was only a dream.
Thud!
“Kgh!”
Jang Sam-tae strode forward and kicked the fleeing men down. Not a single one escaped as he beat them into the dirt.
Then another man descended from the carriage.
As the merchant stared in bewilderment, the newcomer began methodically patting down the bandits, collecting their coin purses one by one.
“You… what in heaven are you doing?”
The presumed Gunjasal spoke in exasperation. The man simply chuckled and opened his mouth.
“Recovering the fallen coin.”
The merchant’s entire body went rigid.
This group…
They were utterly, hopelessly mad.
And when the man spoke again, all doubt vanished.
“Keep those bandits intact. We can sell them to the Government Office for coin.”
“Hehe, no need to worry. We’re being careful. Very careful. Hehehehe.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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