The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 319

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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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The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 319

Chapter 319. In Lanzhou (6)

Palgap applied the clear water I’d handed him in a basin—which was actually Geumryeong’s saliva—to the Great Heroes’ wounds.
“Huh? Wh-what? Ack!”
Palgap cried out in surprise. And with good reason—the Great Heroes’ wounds were beginning to heal at an astonishing rate.
“What an incredibly miraculous deity you are, sir.”
Everyone nodded at Palgap’s words. There was no other way to explain it.
Where bone had been visible moments before, new flesh was already growing, and the smaller scars vanished without a trace.
Watching this unfold, I wore a satisfied expression.
All my effort in collecting Geumryeong’s saliva in the basin had been worthwhile. But I intended to keep the fact that it was Geumryeong’s saliva a secret.
Not for any other reason—Geumryeong could be put in danger if it became known.

That afternoon.
Bang Nosa proposed a strategy.
“If we were simply to sweep them all away, it would be possible with our current forces, but the problem is that we must rescue the children.”
“That’s true.”
“So here’s what I’m thinking—let’s use a sleeping poison.”
“A sleeping poison?”
“Yes, I brought along a sleeping poison I used to employ frequently, just in case.”
Bang Nosa withdrew a small vial from his sleeve.
“This is far more effective than you’d think. I was quite the rogue back in the day, you see? But since I can no longer employ martial arts, I’ve found such things become necessary at times.”
Bang Nosa asked me a question.
“You don’t think me cowardly for suggesting this, do you?”
“Why would I criticize you, Nosa? By any means necessary—as long as we resolve this matter, that’s what counts, isn’t it?”
“Words I’m pleased to hear. Hehehehe.”
Bang Nosa spoke with a smile.
“But here’s the thing—we need to get them to consume it. So I’ve devised a method….”

* * *

The man called Gae Seung scratched at his groin.
Gurgle, gurgle.
He sighed at the sound coming from his stomach since earlier. It had been over two weeks since the supplies from headquarters had stopped arriving.
“I’m so hungry I could die.”
“At this rate, won’t we all starve to death?”
“Don’t say such ominous things! You bastard!”
Yet that anxiety was gradually becoming reality. They were catching wild game and peeling bark to eat out of necessity, but it was woefully insufficient.
Moreover, it was the lean season.
Even ordinary farmers were beginning to go hungry—where could they possibly find food?
Perhaps because of this, or perhaps because rumors spread that merchants passing through here were robbed, no merchant caravans had been seen.
Then it happened.
Clatter, clatter.
At the sound from below, Gae Seung and his companions perked up their ears.
“That’s definitely the sound of wagon wheels!”
“A merchant caravan?”
“W-what do we do?”
“What do you mean what! Tell the Stronghold Master at once!”
One of them hurried to the Mountain Stronghold and reported to the Stronghold Master.
The Stronghold Master then urgently led his subordinates down.
How long had they waited?
Finally, the wagons appeared.
They were wagons bearing the mark of the Eunhae Trading Company, and the sacks loaded on them were clearly provisions.
“Hehehehe! It seems we’re not meant to die after all!”
“Let’s eat our fill for once!”
They waited for the wagons to draw near, then at the Stronghold Master’s signal, they unleashed their arrows.
Thwack!
Thwack, thwack!
The sudden ambush threw the merchant company into chaos.
“Damn it! The Green Forest Bandits!”
“Abandon the cargo!”
“B-but those sacks of rice….”
“Flee now! Do you want to die?”
And so the merchants abandoned their cargo and began to flee.
“Should we pursue them?”
At that question, the Stronghold Master shook his head.
“There’s no need. Don’t waste your strength needlessly.”
“Yes!”
“At last we can fill our bellies with rice. Let’s go!”

* * *

I watched the carriage disappear into the distance.
Well, the operation was a success, then?
“You’ve all worked hard.”
At my words, everyone grinned widely. Myeong-jong Warrior and Chang-un Warrior in particular looked remarkably refreshed.
“Serving alongside our lord makes us feel like characters from a heroic tale.”
“I feel the same way.”
I responded to them gently.
“I’m glad you don’t dislike it, but still—you must be careful in all things. You only have one life, after all.”
“We shall remember that.”
“Then, Jin Yu Warrior, please observe their movements.”
“Understood.”
“We’ll head back and finish our preparations.”

When we returned, Bang Nosa greeted us.
“Well, did everything go smoothly?”
“Yes.”
We needed to administer the sleeping powder to them, and so the method we devised was to deliberately allow the rice to be stolen.
Since we brought intentionally processed rice, even if sleeping powder granules were mixed into it, they would never notice.
They could wash the rice while cooking, but that wouldn’t matter.
A brief contact with water wouldn’t dissolve it.
Hot water might dissolve the poison, but by then it would already be in the rice cooker.
Bang Nosa said he usually dissolved it in tea to put his targets to sleep.
As the rice cooked, the sleeping powder would disperse completely, and once they ate that rice, they would fall into a deep sleep within an hour.
That would be when we made our move.
“Then let’s begin preparations.”
We pulled a covered carriage down the mountainside.
We needed to transport the children, after all.
At that moment, Lee Pil Warrior approached me.
“My lord, reinforcements have arrived from the military camp.”
The Geumui Guard heroes had gone to the Gansu military camp and returned with reinforcements.
If we requested reinforcements from Beijing, it would take considerable time, and information could leak to the forces operating covertly in Beijing, so we decided to request support from the Gansu military camp here.
They wouldn’t be elite soldiers trained in Imperial Palace martial arts, but they would still be helpful.
That’s precisely why the sleeping powder was so necessary.
We had to minimize casualties as much as possible.

As evening fell, Jin Yu Warrior returned to us.
“How did it go?”
“Yes. They cooked rice using the grain they stole from us and ate. I confirmed that several of them have fallen asleep.”
Then it was time to move.
I spoke to Lee Pil Warrior.
“Please inform the military camp commander that we are also ready.”
“Understood.”
My party and I tied red cloth around our left arms. It was the mark of our side.
While they subdued the Mountain Stronghold members, we would rescue the children.
Rescuing Chung-gwan Duke would come later.
That was when it happened.
An arrow flew up into the sky.
It was their signal to move.
We infiltrated quietly and entered the Mountain Stronghold.
By the way, the sleeping poison Bang Nosa gave us is incredibly effective. They were all leaning against the walls, snoring away.
How on earth did he obtain it?
Well, he’s famous for his resourcefulness after all.
Thanks to that, we were able to enter the Mountain Stronghold easily and headed straight for the underground basement.
In the basement were the young children I had seen before.
“Can you move?”
Upon seeing us, the children stepped back with expressions full of fear.
“W-who are you?”
“We’ve come from the Imperial Palace. We’re here to rescue you.”
“You just left before though.”
They remembered us from that time after all.
“That’s true.”
I didn’t deny it.
“Back then, we weren’t prepared. If we had taken you with us then, you all would have died.”
“What about now?”
“This time, we’ve made all the necessary preparations.”
I looked at Seo-woo Warrior, and Seo-woo Warrior cut through the iron chains binding the children in the prison with his sword.
Screech—
Clang!
The chains snapped and the door opened. I stepped inside and spoke to the children.
“Let’s go now.”
At my words, the children rose one by one and left the prison.
Above, we could hear people moving about busily.
At that sound, the children shrank back in fear, and I calmed them.
“It’s alright. Those are good men who’ve come to capture the bad men in this Mountain Stronghold.”
Saying so, I led the children upward.
At that moment, a child spoke up.
“A man was taken away over there.”
“Is that so?”
“The bad men hurt that man terribly.”
It seemed to be about Chung-gwan Duke.
“But that man deserved it. He sold the other men who were brought here before.”
Children may lack experience, but they are not without thought.
Even while confined, they had listened to the stories that reached their ears and pieced together the situation.
“Are you going to save that man too?”
“I should save him, but later. For now, getting all of you to safety is the priority.”
With that, we led the children out of the cave. Most of the Mountain Stronghold had already been secured.
All that remained was to arrest those who were asleep—it was practically effortless.
They raised their weapons in unison at our sudden appearance, but quickly lowered them.
They had noticed the red cloth tied around our left arms.
“So you are the ones sent by the Emperor.”
“Yes, that is correct. We are currently rescuing the children. What is the situation here?”
One of them answered my question.
“There are only a few left now.”
“That is fortunate. Please see this through to the end.”
“Of course.”
Just as we were about to leave the Mountain Stronghold with the children.
“…!”
Every hair on my body stood on end.
I instantly drew my blade and blocked the path ahead.
Clang!
Something heavy struck my sword. Looking up, I saw a man with metal claws on his hands, his weapon now stopped by my blade.
I quickly grasped the situation. Since the Mountain Stronghold was built above a cave, there were places in the floor where one could hide.
He had been lurking there and launched a surprise attack.
His skill was that of a refined first-rate master.
Then he must be the Stronghold Master.
But how did the sleeping poison not work on him?
“So it’s you! The one who made a fool of me!”
“Are you the Stronghold Master?”
“That’s right, I am the master of this Mountain Stronghold. From that expression, you’re curious about why I didn’t fall asleep, aren’t you?”
“….”
“You should have investigated me more thoroughly. I have resistance to most poisons. And the moment I tasted a spoonful of rice, I knew. There was sleeping poison in it.”
At his words, I immediately issued an order.
“Everyone, leave this place at once.”
“Sir?”
“Master! We will help as well.”
I spoke firmly in response to Seo-woo Warrior and the others.
“This is an order. I will not entertain any objections. Withdraw everyone from this place immediately!”
I swung my blade and drove him outside the Mountain Stronghold.
Clang!
He blocked my sword and let out a low chuckle.
“So you want to do this properly, then?”
The reason I had everyone withdraw from me was because of the Stronghold Master’s martial characteristics.
A sensitivity keen enough to recognize sleep toxins.
And resistance to most poisons.
Finally, the tips of the tiger claws on the Stronghold Master’s hands were tinged blue.
That meant the Stronghold Master was a practitioner of poison martial arts.
Poison martial arts could inflict widespread damage to those nearby due to their nature, so I had everyone withdraw.
Fortunately, because I had mastered the Taiyin Ice-Sea Divine Art, I was not easily susceptible to toxic qi.
That is why I decided to face the Stronghold Master myself.
Clang! Clang-clang!
My blade and the Stronghold Master’s claws collided in rapid succession.
Considering the difference in cultivation between the Stronghold Master and me, I thought I could subdue him easily, but the tiger claws as a weapon proved more troublesome than expected.
There was the constraint that I could not afford to be scratched even slightly.
Whoosh! Slash!
Screech!
Moreover, because my opponent was resisting with the resolve to die, it was all the more difficult.
At this rate, a quick resolution seemed unlikely.
Then a thought suddenly occurred to me.
Wait—I’m immune to poison, aren’t I?
So even though I had driven everyone else away, I had overlooked that fact.
Then it was worth trying. I raised my blade and drew upon my inner energy once more as I faced him.
The Snow Wind of the Jinseol Twelve-Form Sword Technique.
Against such swift movements, I too would need to respond with speed.
And then.
Whoosh!
Swish!
We both charged toward each other.
As the Stronghold Master’s claws grazed my ribs shallowly, I felt exhilaration flash in his eyes.
He didn’t realize I had let him strike me deliberately.
Now was the moment.
Crunch!
I swung my blade wide toward the Stronghold Master, and my sword severed both his arms.
Thud, thump.
The Stronghold Master’s severed arms fell to the ground.
“Arghhhh!”
The Stronghold Master collapsed on the spot, letting out a scream filled with agony.
But then, catching sight of the wound on my side, he let out a sinister chuckle.
“Hehehehe, now that you’ve been poisoned by my toxin, you’re as good as dead.”
“I’m afraid not. I’m not the only one with immunity to poison.”
The crystalline energy within my body was already purifying the poison that had seeped into my flesh.
Truly, this is a formidable cultivation method.
“So perhaps you should worry about yourself instead.”
“Hehehehe, I suppose you’re right.”
The Stronghold Master’s expression twisted with derision.
I sensed instinctively that he was about to bite his own tongue to end his life, so I rushed forward and kicked his jaw upward.
“Ugh!”
“How cowardly! Where do you think you’re escaping to now?”
Crack!
Then I struck the back of his head, knocking him unconscious.
This man cannot die.
He’s a crucial figure who knows the whereabouts of the kidnapped children.
Even if he dies, he must first divulge what he knows.

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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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