The Heavenly Demon Cult’s Strongest Maid - Chapter 97

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 97

Salmak was a single organization, or rather a society , formed by a total of five branches.

Mak-gon, commonly called the Skull White Death King and master of Salmak, could be said to be the society leader served by the assassination masters of those five branches.

Not all assassins belonging to Salmak killed people in the same way.

Some used poison to slowly end lives, others used disguises to target their opponent’s weaknesses for fatal strikes, and still others hid in darkness to deliver death through moments of carelessness.

There were countless ways to kill people, and accordingly, each assassin’s specialty and method of killing differed.

Salmak’s five branches were divided according to their respective methods.

Po-gwak, the assassination master of one of them, the Wind Assassination Faction , was having a simple meal of noodles at a shabby inn near the main road connecting Sichuan Province and Qinghai Province.

“Assassination Master.”

A black-masked assassin silently descended from the roof and prostrated before him.

“The little rat has left the thicket.”

Po-gwak’s chopsticks paused for a moment, but he soon finished his bowl.

As he slowly rinsed his mouth with tea, he asked his subordinate.

“Direction?”

“As expected, heading this way.”

The fastest route to Maegyo was through Qinghai Province. He had luckily overcome the crisis, but must certainly be frightened.

“The snake?”

It was their own code word derived from “beating the grass to startle the snake” .

Thicket meant Sichuan, snake meant Cheon Su-dok-hwa Dang Yeong-ryeong. And the little rat was Gong Pae-cheon, whom they absolutely had to kill.

Through damned coincidence upon coincidence, Dang Yeong-ryeong had interfered just as they were about to kill Gong Pae-cheon.

No matter how outstanding the skills of Cheon Su-dok-hwa, the head of the Martial Arts Alliance Dark Affairs Unit, if the Wind Assassination Faction was determined, there was nothing they couldn’t kill.

The problem wasn’t Dang Yeong-ryeong, but the Sichuan Tang School behind her.

The Dang Family’s influence was one thing, but they had been notoriously famous since ancient times for their obsession with grudges.

Therefore, armed conflict with them was a great burden even for Salmak.

“She coiled up in the forest last night and hasn’t moved since.”

“Are you certain?”

“Neither we nor the Hao Clan side detected anything.”

Dang Yeong-ryeong had been refraining from going out ever since entering the main house.

No matter how skilled that Dang Yeong-ryeong was, unless she was a ghost, she couldn’t escape their eyes.

Po-gwak picked up the chopsticks he had set down again.

“Has everyone eaten?”

“Yes, everyone has finished.”

Po-gwak nodded and turned his gaze toward the kitchen.

Swish—

Thunk!

The chopsticks flew from his hand like arrows, piercing through the thin wooden boards.

“Guk!”

“Keuk!”

The innkeeper couple’s final screams of life flowed out from the kitchen.

“Let’s go!”

At Po-gwak’s command, dozens of assassins began moving silently as a group.

Though Gong Pae-cheon had entered the main road, Po-gwak was in no hurry. Patient waiting was the foundation of being an assassin.

“How is the Qinghai side? Still quiet?”

“There are still no particular abnormalities reported.”

Gong Pae-cheon hadn’t taken a single step outside the clinic.

As a result of surveillance without taking their eyes off him for even a moment, they confirmed he hadn’t sent any messenger birds requesting help from Maegyo.

Even so, Po-gwak couldn’t shake his suspicions.

“How about striking in Qinghai instead? It’s a thousand li from Maegyo to here. It would be tight for reinforcements to arrive.”

“I’m not worried about reinforcements. I’m concerned about Maegyo’s eyes hidden in the Qinghai area.”

Worry appeared on Po-gwak’s face.

“This assassination must absolutely leave no evidence. There may be circumstantial evidence, but there must be no physical proof.”

Unless Maegyo were fools, they would immediately realize it was Salmak’s revenge.

But without evidence, there would be nothing they could do even if they denied it to the end.

Hadn’t those bastards already taken a huge compensation payment?

“Then in Sichuan…”

Po-gwak raised his hand to stop his subordinate’s words.

“We strike at the border as planned. Right at the border, neither Sichuan nor Qinghai. I won’t tolerate mistakes. Prepare thoroughly!”

“Yes!”

Watching his subordinate withdraw, Po-gwak bit his lips.

Things had gotten damn complicated because of Dang Yeong-ryeong alone.

‘This time for sure!’

He was determined to repay the humiliation from Chongqing.

Gong Pae-cheon, who had been diligently moving forward, had now entered a treacherous mountain path.

‘Once I cross this mountain, it’ll be Qinghai.’

The boundaries between provinces were truly ambiguous.

Though they were usually divided by mountains or rivers, it was difficult to clearly distinguish where Sichuan ended and where Qinghai began.

‘Is this mountain Sichuan or Qinghai?’

An ambiguous region that might be both, or neither.

As soon as he set foot in that place, Gong Pae-cheon perceived the change in the air.

Chilling killing intent constricted his entire body.

‘They’ve come.’

A welcoming smile faintly appeared on Gong Pae-cheon’s previously expressionless lips.

“How were you so certain that Salmak would make their move at the border between Sichuan and Qinghai?”

“Because they failed once.”

“…?”

“Sichuan has the Dang Family’s eyes, Qinghai has Maegyo’s eyes. They cannot tolerate any more failures. The moment they let me slip away, Salmak will face the beginning of a nightmare.”

Even with Gong Pae-cheon’s explanation, Dang Yeong-ryeong still looked quite suspicious.

“You seem to find me untrustworthy.”

“No. I trust you.”

“It doesn’t seem like it.”

Gong Pae-cheon narrowed his eyes and smiled.

“Then how about making a bet with me?”

“A bet?”

The corners of Dang Yeong-ryeong’s mouth slightly rose.

“Granting a wish in the future. Ah, don’t worry. You can refuse if you don’t like it – just grant one such wish.”

At Gong Pae-cheon’s strange bet proposal, Dang Yeong-ryeong burst into laughter.

“Aren’t the conditions too easy?”

“That’s enough for me.”

Gong Pae-cheon answered calmly.

“Alright. Let’s do it. Since you’re making a bet while putting your very life on the line, in good conscience I should accept.”

It was a moment when some leisure arose between them, the rising stars representing the righteous and demonic paths.

As the assassins’ killing intent tightened like a snare, Gong Pae-cheon moved first.

Bang!

Drawing up all the internal energy he had been saving in one instant, he raced through the mountains.

Then, as if they had expected this, countless killing intents followed after Gong Pae-cheon.

“Gasp!”

Sensing something flying toward him, Gong Pae-cheon urgently twisted his body to the side.

Pababababak!

Dozens of daggers flew and embedded themselves in the direction he had been running.

All sides were already blocked by assassins. From the trees, the thicket, even from underground, Salmak Assassins burst out targeting Gong Pae-cheon’s neck.

“Eek!”

Clang!

Kkagagang!

Gong Pae-cheon deflected the continuously pouring swords with his folding fan and quickly kicked off between the trees to leap up.

But he had no time to rest.

“Huff, huff!”

Though he had prepared himself, he couldn’t keep his wits about him under the relentless wheel formation attack.

The clothes borrowed from the physician had become half-tattered, and red blood seeped through the torn fabric.

‘Damn!’

The problem wasn’t the torn clothes or cut wounds.

Being pushed around and wandering through the mountains, he had lost his sense of direction.

‘First, I need to make a large circle to find her…’

Just as Gong Pae-cheon was desperately trying to devise a plan, a familiar voice rang in his mind.

“Twenty-three jang to the left.”

Dang Yeong-ryeong’s telepathic message came like sweet rain in a drought.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Gong Pae-cheon flew in the direction she instructed.

Bang!

The fierce attacks continued without giving him a moment to breathe, but strangely, his heart felt much lighter.

As the thousand-li fragrance brushed past her nose, Dang Yeong-ryeong’s closed eyelids trembled slightly.

She gradually awakened her consciousness that had been sinking into deep sleep.

And while maintaining the Gui-sik Daebub, she followed the scent of the thousand-li fragrance.

‘Gong Pae-cheon.’

As soon as she found him, she felt the swirling killing intent nearby.

The number was too many to count, and the situation looked increasingly dangerous.

Even in the midst of this, Gong Pae-cheon was desperate to lure the assassins away.

However, it seemed things weren’t going according to plan as he was overwhelmed.

‘As expected, a strategist is a strategist.’

He was someone better suited to using his head rather than his body.

At least it was fortunate that he got lost near the end.

“Seven jang to the right.”

Dang Yeong-ryeong continuously gave him directions.

“Three jang back.”

Though Gong Pae-cheon couldn’t move to the exact positions while being chased by assassins, Dang Yeong-ryeong constantly corrected his path.

And so the two finally reunited.

“Stop!”

When Gong Pae-cheon reached above Dang Yeong-ryeong’s head, she quickly broke the Gui-sik Daebub and reached up from underground to grab his waist.

Thud!

Their positions switched in an instant.

As she pulled Gong Pae-cheon down, Dang Yeong-ryeong burst out from below.

On the faces of the two who briefly touched in passing, smiles lingered.

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