The Red Dragon Martial Emperor - Chapter 164

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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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Red Dragon Undefeated: Episode 164

Chapter 164 — The Young Man, Yang Chan

A small village near the Imperial Capital of Zhao Kingdom.
Yang Chan stood on the ridge overlooking the village, unable to conceal his troubled heart.
It was a place where he had lived for quite some time. Though not his birthplace, it had been home in every way that mattered, and the neighbors had treated him like family.
That village had been transformed into a military encampment.
Traces of the village remained scattered about, yet the newly constructed barracks and hundreds of storehouses lined in neat rows bore no resemblance to the village he held in his memory.
‘Seo Nam Wang…’
The one responsible for this transformation was Seo Nam Wang himself. While Yang Chan had been away in Yunnan Province, that man had driven out all the residents and constructed the military encampment, and he was still expanding it, carving into the mountainside as he went. Everything had happened in his absence.
Yang Chan settled onto a rock, raising the bottle of liquor in his hand to his lips.
Glug, glug!
Whoooosh!
The wind that blew after the rain carried a sharp chill. Yet Yang Chan’s chest burned hotter still.
“I was so pleased to have perfected the ancestor’s Poison Art…”
Yang Chan kept his eyes fixed on the village until he had drained the bottle dry.
How much time had passed?
A sound came from behind. Figures emerged, pushing through the forest.
Armed soldiers.
Yang Chan did not so much as glance back. One of the soldiers spotted him and called out, his tone sharp.
“Did you live in that village?”
Yang Chan did not answer.
The soldier’s eyes hardened. He stepped forward in front of Yang Chan and placed his hand on his sword hilt.
“Identify yourself!”
Yang Chan finally turned his gaze upon the soldier.
“Yes, I lived in that village. But I was just passing through—let me be on my way.”
“Your credential tablet!”
Yang Chan produced his ID pass and offered it.
“Yunnan Province?”
“That’s where I’m from.”
The soldier scanned Yang Chan from head to foot. Then his voice turned cold again.
“You’ll have to come with us. Get down from there.”
“Where are we going?”
“A murder occurred in this area several days ago, and we’re searching for the culprit. We’ll question you, and if you’re innocent, we’ll let you go.”
Yang Chan turned slowly to regard the other soldiers. Another one spoke with an intimidating air.
“Listen here—stare at the Crown’s soldiers like that again and you might find yourself charged with contempt. Now get down, won’t you?”
Only then did Yang Chan descend from the rock.
One soldier pressed his blade against Yang Chan’s throat.
“Try anything foolish and your head rolls. Understand?”
“Understood. Let’s go.”

* * *

As Yang Chan entered the military encampment, he observed his surroundings. Soldiers trained in scattered clusters, and among them he could see a fair number of martial artists.
A commander shouted loudly.
“Hey! Did you catch the culprit?”
“He was lurking about the area, so we’re bringing him in for questioning!”
“Be careful. We don’t want anyone poisoned to death by accident!”
“Yes, yes!”
One soldier muttered under his breath.
“That bastard spews the vilest curses—absolutely filthy mouth.”
“Didn’t you hear he’s being sent to the front lines?”
“In four days, someone said. If he’s leaving soon, you’d think he’d take it easy, but look at him—still training hard. Definitely an odd one. Hehehe.”
“Doesn’t want to be called a fool, I suppose.”
“True enough. Hehehe.”
Hehehehe!
Shortly after, Yang Chan followed the soldiers into a building. The moment they crossed the threshold, the stench of blood assaulted his senses powerfully.
Yang Chan’s eyes shifted the moment he caught sight of several corpses scattered carelessly to one side. They were covered with burlap, but so haphazardly that dried blood clung to exposed limbs jutting from beneath.
Yang Chan asked evenly.
“Why are they dead?”
“If you lie, you’ll end up like them. So you’d best answer the investigator’s questions truthfully.”
“You mean these people were dragged here like me for questioning, and they met that fate?”
“The boy’s perceptive enough, I’ll give him that.”
“Get inside!”
That was when it happened.
“Who’s this one?”
A thick, guttural voice accompanied a massive figure of a warrior who pushed open the door and stepped out. His chest was bare, his upper body glistening with blood, and in his hand he held a whip studded with iron nails driven through leather.
“Greetings, Investigator!”
“I asked who he was, you fools!”
“We found him lurking about the area, so we brought him in. He claims he lives in this village, but his credential tablet shows Yunnan Province. We thought it suspicious, so we’re bringing him for your questioning.”
“I don’t have time for this now. We’re mobilizing shortly, so you lot better get ready fast!”
“Mobilizing?”
“The Fourth Prince of Yen escaped on our watch, so our unit’s been ordered into support operations. The Emperor’s furious—what can we do? Anyone who needs to piss, do it now and assemble quickly.”
“What about this one?”
“Throw him in the dungeon for now.”
“Understood.”
Meanwhile, Yang Chan’s gaze had fixed on an unlikely target—the roof of the tallest building in the military encampment.
Clap!
The warrior seized Yang Chan’s nape in a iron grip.
“Move!”

* * *

“Do you think he saw us?”
“Hard to say.”
Go-mi and Hwa Ryeong watched as Yang Chan was dragged into the building, their brows furrowed. Before being taken inside, he’d been staring directly at this spot.
Hwa Ryeong tilted her head.
“From that angle, there shouldn’t be any line of sight to us at all, should there?”
“He looks like a prisoner. Let’s not worry about it.”
“Fair enough.”
Go-mi and Hwa Ryeong began surveying the encampment. Shortly after, troops began pouring in from the southern end of the camp in a great rush.
“Why are they in such a hurry?”
“Most of them aren’t heavily armored, so they don’t look like they’re heading into battle. Once that force clears out, we’ll make our real move.”
“Got it. Ah, finally some peace.”
Hwa Ryeong suddenly stretched out on her back, gazing at the sky. To Go-mi, she seemed almost to be enjoying the situation.
‘Is she just bold, or is she fearless?’
Go-mi soon turned her attention back to the building where Yang Chan had been taken.
The men who’d brought Yang Chan were hastily making their exit, and behind them, dozens more came flooding out.
‘There’ve been screams coming from there the whole time. So that’s where they torture or lock up prisoners….’
That was when.
Cheol Mu-ok and Ju-tae appeared on the roof of the building Yang Chan had entered.
‘When did they get up there?’
Ju-tae grinned and waved, prompting Go-mi to turn away with an embarrassed expression.
‘What’s he doing?’

* * *

Clang!
Yang Chan was locked in the dungeon.
He surveyed the dungeon through the bars. Moans of agony echoed from every corner. In the cell across from his, two figures lay collapsed—motionless, as if already dead.
Just then, a guard who looked like a warrior entered the corridor. Yang Chan called out to him immediately.
“You there.”
“What?”
“Were those people arrested because of the murder case as well?”
“That’s none of your concern. Keep your mouth shut and stay quiet until I call for you.”
“I understand, but please take a look at those people over there. They’ve been lying like that since before.”
“Quiet!”
Crash!
A soldier swung an iron hammer at the prison bars, and the sound rang through the entire corridor.
“Say one more word and I’ll start with you next, got it?”
Yang Chan retreated silently and sat down on the floor. The soldier glared at him sharply before moving on.
Yang Chan leaned against the wall and smiled bitterly.
‘That peaceful place… it’s changed so much.’
The image of the peaceful village came vividly to mind. Along with it, his resentment toward Seo Nam Wang Zhao Yun, who had driven out the villagers and turned this place into a military encampment, grew stronger by the moment.
Yang Chan lay flat on the floor.
Then he recalled the conversation the soldiers in the encampment had been having earlier.
‘Why are they trying to capture the Fourth Prince of Yen Kingdom?’
Yang Chan had heard rumors about Yen Kingdom and Fourth Prince Yi Hwan before. The story that he had beheaded Han Seom, the Greatest General Under Heaven of Zhao Kingdom, had already spread throughout the realm.
But Yang Chan didn’t believe the rumor.
‘It must be a false story. Han Seom is certainly not the kind of man a mere royal prince could kill. But what am I going to do about this place?’
Then it happened.
“Excuse me.”
Yang Chan sat up from where he’d been lying. Beyond the bars of the dungeon cell across from him stood a man.
Yang Chan’s eyes widened considerably.
“Village Elder!”
The old man beyond the bars was the village elder. He had always cherished Yang Chan like a son.
“Ah! So it was you after all!”
“Why are you locked up here, sir?”
“I came to demand the promised compensation, and this is what happened. But how did you end up being captured?”
Yang Chan asked in return.
“Where are all the others?”
“They were all driven to the Bamboo Forest. As you know, the Bamboo Forest isn’t a place where people can live. But what choice do we have? They threatened us with blades and guns, so we had to leave just to survive.”
“Are all the children safe?”
The Village Elder shook his head weakly.
“The butcher’s two sons rushed at the soldiers and lost their lives. Those poor children… what could they have known? And yet they died so brutally… sigh…”
A tremor ran through Yang Chan’s eyes.
The butcher’s two sons were only twelve and fourteen years old. They had followed Yang Chan so closely that he cherished them like his own younger brothers.
“Overcome with grief at losing their children, the butcher and his wife took their own lives. That was just five days ago. Heaven is indeed heartless. How did such a brutal man ever come to seek the throne? Sigh…”
He spoke of Seo Nam Wang Zhao Yun.
Yang Chan clenched his eyes shut.
Then it happened.
“Hey, you old fool!”
With a harsh voice, three soldiers approached the Village Elder’s cell. One of them shoved an iron cudgel through the bars and struck the Village Elder’s face hard.
Thud!
“Ow!”
“This old man won’t listen to words. Open the door!”
“Yes, sir!”
The soldier who had struck the Village Elder stepped toward Yang Chan and issued a threat.
“I clearly told you to shut your mouth and stay quiet. Hey! Open this one too!”
“Yes, squad leader!”
While another soldier unlocked the door, Yang Chan stared at the Village Elder lying motionless and bleeding.
“Hands over your head and come out!”
Yang Chan stepped outside. Then he immediately moved toward the Village Elder.
The soldier who had first tried to lift the Village Elder collapsed limply. The one who had opened the door convulsed, clutching at his throat, and the squad leader’s face was already melting away.
“Gaaahhh…”
Yang Chan lifted the Village Elder into his arms.
The Village Elder had already lost consciousness.
“What’s happening!”
“Stop right there!”
Soldiers rushed out from the end of the corridor. But they collapsed spitting blood before they could take more than a few steps.
“Gack!”
“Cough!”
Thump!
Crash!
Yang Chan carried the Village Elder outside.
Outside was quiet, unlike when he’d arrived. Most of the soldiers had set out to search for Yi Hwan.

But not all of the guards had managed to slip away.
“Hey, who are you!”
“A prisoner’s escaped!”
Guards came rushing from every direction.
In the depths of Yang Chan’s ice-cold gaze, a murderous aura flickered to life — yet it never crossed the threshold into killing intent.
For now, getting the Village Elder out of this place was all that mattered.
Bang!
“Gasp!”
“Ngh!”
The guards who had charged forward found only empty air before them, unable to comprehend the fearsome Lightness Technique that Yang Chan deployed. It was a realm they could never have dreamed of reaching.
“How… how could anyone have captured such a master…?”

* * *

“Hmm?”
Cheol Mu-ok and Ju-tae spotted Yang Chan suddenly launching himself skyward across the rooftops, their eyes narrowing.
“That’s an extraordinary Lightness Technique.”
“What’s a master like that doing locked up in a place like this? Or rather — how was he even captured?”
“He wasn’t captured. He came of his own accord.”
Even as they voiced their bewilderment, Yang Chan had already dissolved into a dark speck, receding from their sight with impossible swiftness.
Ju-tae let out a low whistle.
“To witness such Lightness Technique in a place like this… it seems the saying is true after all — the world is vast, and men of exceptional talent are as countless as grains of sand along the shore.”
“I hope it’s taught you something valuable.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve always worried about you, boasting so carelessly, never knowing how wide the world truly is, how high the heavens stretch above us.”
“That’s rich coming from you.”
A soft chuckle.
“Let’s go. Go-mi will be arriving soon.”

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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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