Return of the Sword Emperor - Chapter 15

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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 6: Acquiring a Strange Fate (2)

‘What on earth are they doing?’

Yu Seol-ran, staring into the darkened forest, bit down hard on his lip.
More time had passed than he’d anticipated, yet neither Dok-go Jin, who had gone to pursue the fleeing enemy, nor the team members sent to find him had returned.

‘I should have gone myself.’

It had been a mistake to think it a simple matter and leave the search to the team.

“This is taking far longer than expected.”

Man Gyun, who had torn his outer garment to bind the wound on his thigh, approached Yu Seol-ran’s side.

“What if…”
“It won’t be.”

Yu Seol-ran cut him off sharply, as though the very thought was distasteful to speak aloud.

“Yes, it must be fine.”

Man Gyun nodded heavily, and as he stepped back as if conceding his own mistake, the undergrowth rustled and the Sariim members who had set out to find Dok-go Jin returned.

“What were you all doing to take so long—”

Yu Seol-ran’s expression hardened abruptly mid-sentence. The one who should have been with them was nowhere to be seen.

“Dok-go… Jin. Where is he?”

Yu Seol-ran turned to Woo Gon, who had led the team into the search.
Woo Gon shook his head with a gloomy expression.

“We couldn’t find him.”
“Couldn’t find him? What have you been doing all this time!”

At Yu Seol-ran’s exclamation, Woo Gon sighed and continued.

“We confirmed the bodies of those fleeing in secret, leader. Even their apparent ringleader had his breath stopped.”
“And?”
“The problem is we don’t know where he went after that. It looks like he kept pursuing them, but at some point all traces vanished completely, so we couldn’t find him.”

Yu Seol-ran, his lips pressed tight, spoke in a low, measured voice.

“Is there a chance the worst happened to him?”
“Ambushed? No, it doesn’t seem like it.”

Woo Gon shook his head firmly.

“From what I could tell, the last man we found was their leader. And there were no signs of a major fight. He crushed them one-sidedly. He brought down even their ringleader—why would someone else get the better of him? I don’t think so.”
“Then what is it? Where did he disappear to?”

As Yu Seol-ran voiced his frustration, Woo Gon shook his head with a bitter smile.

“I don’t know. But I’m certain—the worst-case scenario you and we are imagining won’t happen.”

After holding Woo Gon’s gaze for some time, Yu Seol-ran let out a derisive snort.

“Well, of course.”
“I think we should turn back. We’re running out of time.”

Man Gyun glanced around before continuing.

“Some of our people are poisoned, and others are seriously wounded. And the main camp is probably worried sick about what’s happened to us.”
……

When Yu Seol-ran hesitated instead of answering at once, Woo Gon grabbed his arm and spoke.

“Man Gyun’s right. Time’s slipping away. He might have already headed back to the main camp on his own.”

Everyone knew this was almost certainly not the case, but none of them said it aloud.
Having decided to withdraw, Yu Seol-ran turned his head one last time before moving on.

‘Dok-go Jin. Where the hell are you, and what are you doing…….’

* * *

……

As Dok-go Jin’s eyes opened from his absorption in the Ungi Josik meditation, the luminous flower that had blossomed above his crown faded like smoke.

“Remarkable.”

Dok-go Jin broke into a bright smile, having attained Ki-yeon in an unexpected place.
Power surged through his entire body, incomparably greater than before.
Thanks to Geum-gwan Muk-sa’s Inner Elixir, he had now achieved the perfect stage of Samhwa Chwijeong, something different from his previous attempts.
Yet the Ki-yeon was not finished.
Dok-go Jin slowly rose to his feet and began surveying his surroundings.
Typically, a Yeong-mul seeks and guards a Yeong-cho for itself. And the Yeong-cho associated with Geum-gwan Muk-sa was…….

“Found it!”

Dok-go Jin’s voice trembled with excitement.
In one corner of the space, bathed in moonlight and displaying an air of serene nobility, stood a medicinal herb.
While the surroundings were overgrown with all manner of vegetation, not a single weed grew near this Yeong-cho.

‘The Jeok-un Guyeop-cho.’

The crimson patterns inscribed on its leaves resembled clouds, and so it had been given this name among the Yeong-cho.
Dok-go Jin’s gaze fixed on the leaves.

“One, two, three… ah!”

A regretful sigh escaped Dok-go Jin’s lips as he counted.
The Jeok-un Guyeop-cho is born with five leaves.
One leaf increases every hundred years, until at four hundred years it possesses all nine leaves.
Then, after another hundred years pass, it finally flowers and bears fruit, at which point its medicinal properties are said to rival any Yeong-yak in all the realm.
The Jeok-un Guyeop-cho before him had only eight leaves.
It carried three hundred years within it, yet for Dok-go Jin’s purposes, it fell just short.

“A single leaf makes all the difference in efficacy, they say.”

Dok-go Jin turned his head toward the fallen Geum-gwan Muk-sa.

“Still, if it had reached nine leaves and flowered, you would have already consumed it.”

At the same time, a faint look of regret crossed his face.
Considering that Geum-gwan Muk-sa was a relatively young specimen, he had likely grown up from youth guarding the Jeok-un Guyeop-cho alongside it.

“I’m sorry, but I’m sorry.”

Dok-go Jin snapped the stem of the Jeok-un Guyeop-cho without hesitation.
Spirit herbs like the Human-Form Ginseng or the Ten-Thousand-Year Fleece Flower concentrated their medicinal properties in the roots, but the Jeok-un Guyeop-cho’s roots were closer to poison—the herb’s true potency lay in the stem and leaves.
Careful lest any impurity cling to it, Dok-go Jin broke off the stem, held it in his palm, and methodically chewed seven leaves along with the stalk before swallowing. Then he immediately folded into a meditation pose.
That night, the Ki of heaven and earth converged upon Dok-go Jin.
As though bestowing a blessing, moonlight and starlight rained down gently upon his head as he performed the Ungi Josik.

* * *

Before Sariim, the escort corps had pitched their encampment.
Well past midnight, yet many still lay awake, unable to find sleep.
The atmosphere had grown heavy and taut, the very air sharp with tension.
The mood among the Bokma-dan was especially grim—they had suffered casualties in Gwisalgak’s surprise assault.
Unlike the Bokma-dan, who had struggled against the assassins, the Milgeom-dan had fought brilliantly, yet their spirits were no lighter.
Dok-go Jin, who had chased the fleeing enemy and vanished in pursuit, had still not returned.

“How much time has passed, senior?”

Yu Seol-ran stood motionless before the three tents where the Milgeom-dan were sheltering, his voice quiet.

“It’s nearly the Hour of the Ox—almost four hours have gone by.”

Woo Gon, holding a wine bottle, sighed and gazed toward Sariim.

“It’s my fault. I should have gone after him.”
“How could you chase after someone who announced he was going after stragglers and then simply disappeared? We didn’t even know the exact state of the battlefield at that moment.”
“Or I should have stayed in Sariim and conducted a thorough search instead…….”
“Enough.”

Jong-gak emerged from the tent where he had been resting.

“If he were someone to be found, we would have found him by now. And why do you keep blaming yourself as though something has happened to him?”
“…….”

At Jong-gak’s question, Yu Seol-ran couldn’t answer and bit his lip hard.

“Don’t worry so much. We know better than anyone how monstrously strong he is. He was the one who held back the enemy’s assault in the first place, wasn’t he? He’ll surely return safe and sound.”

As Jong-gak offered these words of comfort, Woo Gon casually handed over the wine bottle.
Yu Seol-ran, whether thirsty or not, drained it in one long gulp.

“We’ll need to search again as soon as dawn breaks.”

Yu Seol-ran returned the empty bottle to Woo Gon as he spoke.
Jong-gak grinned and shook his head.

“No, I don’t think that will be necessary.”
“Pardon? What do you——”

Yu Seol-ran, confusion plain on his face, followed Jong-gak’s gaze and turned his head sharply.
A murmur arose from the far edge of the encampment, where it bordered Sariim.
Moments later, escorted by the sentries, a figure emerged—none other than Dok-go Jin.
Yu Seol-ran’s chest heaved.
Relief and anger surged up together.

“You!”

As Yu Seol-ran rushed forward, relief vanished from his face in an instant, replaced by a cold, cutting chill.

“I apologize for arriving so late.”

Dok-go Jin bowed his head.

“What in the world happened to you…….”
“Never mind that — are you all right? Your body, is it sound?”

Jong-gak caught Yu Seol-ran’s arm lightly as he asked, his excitement barely contained.

“Yes, I’m somewhat dizzy and tired, but otherwise unharmed.”

Dok-go Jin offered an awkward smile.
By consuming Geum-gwan Muk-sa’s Inner Elixir and the Jeok-un Guyeop-cho, he had gained power beyond his expectations. Yet in the process of absorbing those two disparate forces, his body had suffered some strain. Moreover, he hadn’t fully integrated the power.
Had he been more patient, he could have stabilized things further and claimed the remaining strength he hadn’t yet absorbed — but time had run short, so he’d simply returned as matters stood.

“Your complexion troubles me.”

Jong-gak nodded and stepped back with a worried expression, whereupon Yu Seol-ran pressed further.

“Explain what happened.”
“We pursued the remnants.”
“We already know that.”
“Among those we chased was the leader of the assassins. He proved to be more skilled than I’d anticipated.”
“The traces of combat suggested it wasn’t much of a close battle, though.”

Woo Gon interjected quietly. Dok-go Jin glanced at him and let out another awkward laugh.

“Fortunately, I was able to bring him down without much difficulty. The trouble was that I fell victim to a poison he wielded.”
“Poison?”

Yu Seol-ran and Woo Gon both spoke at once, their surprise evident.

“Yes.”
“So you were delayed treating the poisoning — that’s why you’re late.”

Dok-go Jin nodded at Jong-gak’s words.

“Correct. The poison spread faster than I’d calculated.”
“Tsk!”
“Fortunately, I found a suitable place for treatment — a vine-covered space where one cannot see inside from without.”

Dok-go Jin’s gaze shifted to Woo Gon as he continued.

“It was roughly three hundred paces north of where I felled the leader.”
“Ah, that place — where the vines tangled particularly thick.”

As Woo Gon spoke up with sudden recognition, Won-jong, who had searched for Dok-go Jin alongside him, chimed in.

“That is strange — we did think it suspicious. I suggested we investigate further, didn’t I, senior?”
“No, that wouldn’t have done. You said he was poisoned — he might have been performing Ungi Josik. We can’t go blundering about and startling him mid-technique; that could prove catastrophic.”
“That’s true, I suppose.”

Won-jong nodded and gave Dok-go Jin’s arm a light pat.

“In any case, we’re relieved you’re unharmed. I didn’t truly expect trouble, but I was uneasy nonetheless.”
“My apologies. I let ambition get the better of me.”

As Dok-go Jin lowered his head, Yu Seol-ran’s cold voice cut through the air.

“You overdid it. In a joint operation, moving solo without permission is a serious breach. We’re fortunate the outcome turned out well, but if you keep acting like a lone wolf, you’ll invite calamity down on yourself one day.”
“I’ll remember that.”

Dok-go Jin bowed his head again. Yu Seol-ran watched him for a moment, then exhaled slowly.

“So the poison—are you truly well now?”

Yu Seol-ran’s tone had softened slightly as he asked.

“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Fine? Your complexion tells a different story. There’s still toxin in your system, isn’t there?”

Won-jong’s outburst drew agreement from Yong Cheol-seung.

“That’s right. I noticed earlier that Bokma-dan seems to carry a decent antidote. Should I go fetch some?”
“Go at once. They’re indebted to us for saving their lives—they’ll hand it over gladly.”

Woo Gon pushed Yong Cheol-seung forward by the shoulder.
Dok-go Jin felt an inward smile tugging at his lips as his comrades fussed over him, but he composed his face.

“Did we take any prisoners?”
“No. They resisted to the last man and all fell.”

Won-jong shook his head.

“I apologize. I should have captured them alive so we could establish their identities and trace the ones behind them.”

As Dok-go Jin expressed his regret, Jong-gak shook his head.

“It doesn’t matter. We’ve already identified them.”
“Is that so?”
“They’re from Gwisalgak—just another run-of-the-mill assassin band.”
“But you said there were no prisoners?”
“No prisoners, but the bodies left traces. I heard a report that they all bore strange markings on the back of their necks—and it happens I recall seeing such markings before. I’ll confirm it again tomorrow, but I’m certain it’s Gwisalgak. As for who’s behind them, well, that hardly needs explanation.”
“I see.”
“In any case, we’ve kept our weary friend here far too long. Listen, all of you—don’t pester someone exhausted. Let him rest properly.”

Jong-gak’s reminder earned nods from everyone present.

“Understood.”

Yet Namgung Ho, too anxious about Dok-go Jin to stop gnawing at his fingernails, tilted his head with a dubious expression rather than reply.

‘Something feels off. Like he’s not telling the whole truth…….’

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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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