Longevity - Chapter 33

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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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Chapter 33: The Orae Daebeop
After Baturru’s cry echoed through the Bamboo Forest, no one spoke immediately.
Jangsan slowly lowered the hand he’d stretched out to grasp Baturru’s sleeve. Jin Ipchu clenched his teeth and glared at his senior, while Yi Jungyong exhaled sharply.
The reaction from across was different. Pung Bulbum’s gesture halted, Gongsun Seungwi raised the Staff Weapon he’d lowered, and Song Bo’s laughter froze momentarily.
The Geumgang Bulgae Ssingong

was a secret art of the Buddhist Sect. It was said to be the origin of the Geumjong Jwah

and the Cheolpo Shim,

but it was a lost martial art of long ago.
The fact that Baturru had mastered that art meant one thing: the possibility had grown that what emerged from the Medicine King Tomb was not merely a handful of medical texts.
Yeowol was the first to break the silence.

“The Geumgang Bulgae Ssingong is originally a martial art of the Buddhist Sect. Where did you obtain it?”

Baturru seemed to realize his slip only then, and pressed his lips firmly shut. He turned his head to the side and did not look at Yeowol.
Yeowol smiled again, but this time asked no further questions. Pung Bulbum gazed at the two Wooden Chests, while Gongsun Seungwi’s eyes swept across the bodies of the four disciples and then to what hung at Jangsan’s waist.
Only Song Bo pushed an abacus bead once. The clicking sound lightly scratched the hushed Bamboo Forest.
Jangsan felt their gazes no longer lingering solely on Na Yangja’s face. Their eyes moved slowly, taking in the two Wooden Chests, what lay in the disciples’ bosoms, and the objects worn at their waists. The four men who had moved separately until moments ago were now looking at the same things.

“Master Na, having spent much time in the Kangho, you must know better than I do how binding a grudge can be.”

He continued, examining the faces of the four men in turn.

“It is better to resolve resentment than to nurture it, and bloodshed rarely settles these matters. Though I am humble, I do not believe you are the sort to disregard the honor of the Taepyeong Guest Inn lightly. What would you say to my arranging a reconciliation today?”

No one answered. Song Bo did not take the silence as a refusal, and pressed his palms together toward all directions.

“Thank you. I shall take it that you all consent.”

Pung Bulbum let out a scoffing laugh but did not object. Gongsun Seungwi remained in place, still gripping the Staff Weapon, and Yeowol did not take her eyes from Baturru.
Song Bo paused, then turned to regard Jangsan’s group. His smile remained unchanged, but his gaze flickered once between Na Yangja and the disciples.

“Master Na, it seems we elders must now discuss matters of goods. Would you permit me to take your disciples aside for a moment?”

Na Yangja raised his hand as if he had been waiting for this.

“Go wait by the carriage.”

Jangsan’s feet were rooted to the earth. Even knowing the order he had just received and what would unfold, when he tried to turn his back, his knees would not obey.
Baturru did not release his grip on the Wooden Chest’s handle, and Yi Jungyong could not answer at once either. The smile vanished from Jin Ipchu’s face, and Jeon Jingung simply stared at Na Yangja, his lips sealed.
The enemies seemed to interpret that hesitation differently. Pung Bulbum’s gesture lowered slightly, and Gongsun Seungwi made no move to block the disciples’ path of retreat.
Na Yangja’s voice grew even lower.

“I will be fine. Do not worry. Go.”

Yi Jungyong bowed first.

“I shall remember your words, Master.”

The others followed with their respects. Jangsan could not lift his head until the very last moment, and only when he saw Yi Jungyong turn did he move his feet.

“Leave the chests behind.”

Pung Bulbum’s voice flew at them from behind.
Baturru stopped at once. Jin Ipchu, still holding the handle on his side, turned back to look at Na Yangja.
The two Wooden Chests now held only refuse. The contents of the Secret Manual had been memorized and divided among the four disciples, and the important items taken from the Medicine King Tomb were already distributed among their bodies.
Yet none of them set the chests down of their own accord. They waited for Na Yangja’s command rather than yield to Pung Bulbum’s threat.

“Put it down at once. Don’t force me to act.”

Pung Bulbum stepped forward. Song Bo made no move to stop him, and neither Yeowol nor Gongsun Seungwi took their eyes from the two chests.
Na Yangja studied the four of them slowly, then nodded.

“Set them down and go.”

Baturru and Jin Ipchu lowered the chests to the ground. Though the weight had left their hands, their footsteps grew heavier than before.
Yi Jungyong led the way, and the rest followed. Jangsan had not taken ten paces before he turned back to look.
Na Yangja still stood where they’d left him. When their eyes met, he smiled faintly and raised his hand.
It was a gesture to hurry on.
Jangsan turned to follow, but a few steps later he looked back again. This time, Na Yangja’s hand remained raised.
Beside him, Baturru and Jin Ipchu also glanced over their shoulders every three paces. Jeon Jingung’s eyes drifted back toward the way they’d come even as his legs slowed, while Yi Jungyong, unable to hurry them along, merely shortened his stride.
When they had put a dozen or so paces between themselves and the Bamboo Forest, Song Bo suddenly tilted his head.

“Hmm?”
“Chief Song, is something the matter?”

At Yeowol’s question, Song Bo waved his hand.

“Nothing at all.”

Then he raised his voice toward Na Yangja.

“Master, your youngest disciple’s sword appears quite aged. It seems no ordinary blade—might I have the opportunity to examine it more closely later?”

Jangsan’s hand drifted to the sword at his waist. Na Yangja did not answer. Instead, he walked to where the two wooden chests lay and gathered the separated one with the other.
Song Bo’s gaze shifted to follow this movement. Pung Bulbum and Gongsun Seungwi also edged a little closer to the chests.
Jangsan was drawn forward again, walking as though pulled. Their slow pace and constant glances backward must have seemed to their enemies like the anxious movements of those whose plans had come undone.
Na Yangja was still smiling the last time Jangsan looked back. He waved his hand lightly, urging them not to turn around again.
Once they had left the Bamboo Forest and entered the eastward curving path, his figure was hidden behind the trees. Jangsan stopped and looked back, but now only moonlight caught on the tips of the bamboo.
* * *
For a time, no one spoke. Only the sound of dry leaves crumbling beneath their feet followed the five of them.
Jin Ipchu broke the silence first.

“We’ll come back. Someday, I’ll hunt down every last one of those four factions.”

His voice was low, but his teeth were clenched audibly.

“Words spat out in anger don’t kill anyone.”

Yi Jungyong glanced around and lowered his hand.

“There are over a hundred thousand sects and factions in Kangho. If you start shouting that you’ll kill them all indiscriminately, we’ll be surrounded before we know it.”

Jin Ipchu turned his head.

“Must I avenge my master’s death alone? Will my brothers do nothing?”
“We will help.”

Baturru and Jeon Jingung answered nearly at the same moment. Jangsan nodded at once.

“I will help as well.”

Yi Jungyong raised a finger to his lips.

“Keep your voice down. Only the leaders have shown themselves. Their subordinates are still scattered through the mountains and forests.”

The five crouched lower and quickened their pace. Soon, horses and a carriage tethered to the trees emerged from the darkness.
All their valuables were already on their persons, so there was nothing to pack. After Yi Jungyong confirmed they had seven horses and the carriage, he gathered the others inside the circle of wheels.

“We take the carriage with us.”

Yi Jungyong checked the carriage wheels and harnesses in turn. By letting the exhausted ride inside while the empty horses followed without cargo, he could preserve the strength of all seven animals far longer.

“Even if someone drops out of our column, the enemy won’t be able to count heads inside for a while. Being large and conspicuous, it can serve as bait too.”

Jangsan looked back and forth between the sealed carriage door and the tethered horses. The same carriage that now carried them all would later become a tool to hide some and draw danger onto others.
Baturru swallowed hard.

“We’re leaving the Master behind?”
“Not leaving—there’s nothing we can do if we stay.”

Yi Jungyong paused, then met Baturru’s eyes directly.

“Our task is to see through the Master’s final will to the end.”

Baturru struck his own forehead with his fist. At the dull sound, Yi Jungyong caught his wrist and lowered it.

“Steady yourself, brother. The Master has already passed. While he holds on with the Soul-Binding Art,

his suffering only grows longer.”

Baturru covered his face with his palm. His broad shoulders heaved once, hard, but he made no sound.
Yi Jungyong did not wait for his answer. To honor the purpose Na Yangja had entrusted, someone had to make the next decision now.

“From here on, it gets far more dangerous. The Master can’t eliminate every pursuer. Since the Geumgang Bulgae Ssingong is known, word will spread faster, and if we head straight for Gakjo Mountain, we’ll be cut off before we’ve gone half the distance.”
“I thought the same.”

Jin Ipchu crouched beside the carriage. Jangsan looked at Yi Jungyong.

“You’ve already thought of a way, haven’t you, brother?”
“First, we go as far south as we can. They don’t know where we’re headed, so they can only chase from behind rather than block our path ahead.”

Yi Jungyong drew a long line on the ground with his finger, then marked small dots along it.

“When pursuers catch up, someone must stay and hold them. While that person buys time, the rest gain distance.”
“How does the one left behind escape?”

As Jangsan asked, Yi Jungyong’s finger stopped.

“By that point, we may not be able to choose an escape route.”

No one objected. Yi Jungyong drew two branches from the middle of the line.

“If the pursuit doesn’t break off, we split again. Some deliberately leave a trail to draw the enemy down a different path.”

His finger ended finally before Jangsan.

“The carriage is fast but too visible. If needed, we drop you halfway and drive the carriage to draw the pursuers away. You walk the final stretch alone.”

Jangsan looked down at his own legs. The thought of his brothers standing before the pursuers because of him weighed heavier than any distant road walked in solitude.
Jin Ipchu tapped his belt as he spoke.

“There’s no other choice. You’ve never traveled far and your legs are troubled, but if we move together, they’ll chase us to the bitter end.”

He turned his body toward Jangsan.

“We clear the way, and you carry the thing to Gakjo Mountain. That’s what each of us must bear.”

Jangsan nodded slowly.

“I understand, Third Brother. Those of you leading pursuers away are in greater danger than me staying behind alone.”

Jin Ipchu couldn’t manage a smile, only lowered his hand.

“Once you reach Gakjo Mountain, we won’t head in that direction. If we come looking, we’d expose your trail.”

His voice trailed off for a moment.

“From now on, we scatter. If we all survive, we’ll meet again someday.”

Jangsan bit his lip instead of answering. He wanted to cling to that promise like a vow, but he knew it was something no one could truly make.
Yi Jungyong looked at Baturru.

“Elder Brother, you heard?”
“Yes.”
“From this moment on, the name Gakjo Mountain must never leave our lips.”

Baturru lowered his hand and nodded.

“Understood.”

Jin Ipchu untied the Money Pouch from his waist and held it out to Jangsan.

“Use it for travel expenses. Keep it safe.”
“I have money as well. Surely Third Brother needs it too……”

The moment Jangsan waved his hands to refuse, the moonlight vanished.
A massive black cloud formed overhead without warning, swallowing the Bamboo Forest and the path in one sweep. The horses pricked their ears and pawed at the ground.
Jangsan lifted his gaze. The dark cloud gathered thick and round in the very center of the night sky, and beneath it lay the western Bamboo Forest where they had left Na Yangja.

The Five Thunder Heaven Strike Technique!

Be careful! He’s willing to die with us!”

Gongsun Seungwi’s cry erupted from beyond the Bamboo Forest. In the next instant, the sky split open.
Crack!
Five bolts of lightning crashed down from within the black cloud. The western Bamboo Forest lit crimson in an instant, and dirt and flame surged up over the bamboo stalks.
The thunder was the signal Na Yangja had arranged.
Baturru’s head rose, and the Money Pouch slipped from Jin Ipchu’s hand. Jangsan’s chest collapsed inward, but there was no time for sorrow.
Before the smoke had even cleared, Yi Jungyong vaulted into the saddle. His voice cracked, but the command did not waver.

Go!

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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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