The Woo Sword Vies for Supremacy
Even in the dark of night, the Cloud Horse river ferry did not stop.
The stretch it was now passing through lay on gentle terrain with a weak current, presenting almost no danger.
Moreover, the captain and crew operating the Cloud Horse river ferry were all members of the Red Tide Faction.
The Red Tide Faction was one of the Seven Great Water Gates that held shipping rights.
On land, they wielded little influence—but on the water, it was a different story.
They knew the upper-to-middle reaches of the Yangtze where they held shipping rights as intimately as the lines on their own palms. That was why they could navigate the Yangtze by nothing more than a single lantern, even on a moonless night.
The captain operating the Cloud Horse river ferry was a seasoned boatman who had sailed the Yangtze for thirty years.
He could read the conditions around him from the current alone.
He surveyed his surroundings and spoke.
"Good. No rain, so the current isn't too strong. Once we pass the Thousand Buddha Wall up ahead, we'll have nothing to worry about."
The Thousand Buddha Wall was an enormous cliff face that soared over a thousand feet high and stretched for miles.
On a dark night, shining a torch upon the vast rock wall cast countless shadows shaped like Buddhas. That was how it had earned its name.
Rockfalls occasionally tumbled from its face, demanding special caution whenever a vessel passed beneath it. But once past the Thousand Buddha Wall, there was nothing left to worry about.
The captain called over a crewman in his late forties who stood nearby.
"First Mate!"
"Yes, Captain."
"Once we're past the Thousand Buddha Wall, you take the helm. I'm going to my cabin to catch some shut-eye."
"Don't you worry about a thing."
The first mate grinned, baring yellowed teeth.
He, too, had spent long years on the water—just as many as the captain.
Naturally, he knew the local waterways inside and out.
"The current's calm and there are no river pirates. Rest easy and sleep well."
"Even so, don't let your guard down. New river pirates might have set up shop."
The Red Tide Faction periodically swept the waters clear of river pirates. But no matter how often they were purged, they kept coming back.
A single Cloud Horse river ferry laden with precious cargo could change a pirate's fortune for life.
Of course, since the Red Tide Faction had fully established its hold, not a single pirate raid had ever succeeded.
The first mate patted the straight blade at his hip and spoke.
"Heh heh! Worry's a luxury, Captain. Any scum that tries to board gets his head lopped off with this. Besides, we've got plenty of martial artists aboard, don't we? Any fool who climbs up uninvited will be fish food before he knows it."
"True enough......"
The captain nodded.
His Cloud Horse river ferry was carrying dozens of Silver River Trading Company personnel and Black Forest Corps martial artists.
The aura emanating from the Black Forest Corps fighters alone spoke volumes about their strength.
Having such martial artists aboard was a stroke of great luck. It made the vessel that much safer.
He could focus solely on safe navigation without sparing a thought for river pirates.
While the captain and first mate exchanged idle talk, the Cloud Horse river ferry entered the gorge where the Thousand Buddha Wall stood.
The ship's lantern illuminated the Wall, casting countless shadows across the rock face. Among them were some that truly resembled Buddhas.
Passengers still awake on the deck marveled at the Buddha shapes on the cliff wall.
"Oooh!"
"They really do look like Buddhas."
"What a sight!"
Among those filled with wonder were Baek Ho-yang and Woo Geom-san.
"It truly feels as though a thousand Buddhas are watching over us."
"It's beautiful. I never imagined I'd see something like this."
It was worth staying awake for.
If they missed it now, there was no telling when they might see such a spectacle again.
The two gazed at the shadows on the Thousand Buddha Wall, transfixed.
As the lantern-bearing vessel moved forward, the shadows seemed to dance and sway.
"Hye-gong would have loved this sight, that old friend of mine."
Baek Ho-yang smiled ruefully.
The lifelong wish of his only true friend, Hye-gong, had been to see the Thousand Buddha Wall.
Remembering Hye-gong, who had died at his disciple's hand at the Heavenly Mandate Society's stronghold, brought a dull ache to a corner of his heart.
But his reverie did not last long.
"Hm?"
Something alien stirred near the top of the Thousand Buddha Wall, which he had been gazing at so absently.
RUSTLE......
Sharpening his senses, he detected the stealthy movements with perfect clarity.
Scores of people were moving along the top of the Thousand Buddha Wall, their presence concealed as completely as assassins.
"Bandits...... is it?"
"Pardon? Bandits?"
Woo Geom-san looked at Baek Ho-yang in alarm.
Baek Ho-yang stepped in front of Woo Geom-san and spoke.
"They know how to fully mask their presence. These are no common fighters."
"Then we need to warn them......"
Woo Geom-san looked toward where Ha Baek-jin was.
"They need no warning. They seem to have noticed just now."
Led by Gwak Pung and Ha Baek-jin, the Black Forest Corps sprang to their feet.
They, too, had clearly detected the anomalous movement atop the Thousand Buddha Wall.
It was then.
FLUTTER—!
Robes snapping in the wind, a host of martial artists leapt from the top of the Thousand Buddha Wall.
They had thin ropes tied around their waists.
Even with ropes to rely on, men who would hurl themselves without hesitation from a cliff of over a thousand feet were anything but ordinary.
"Damn it!"
"We're under attack!"
The Black Forest Corps drew their weapons and shouted.
"Aaaaaah!"
"Get out of the way!"
Passengers on the deck shrieked in terror, and the scene plunged into utter chaos.
Ha Baek-jin drew up his martial power and muttered.
"Damn! Are they after the Silver River Trading Company?"
The attackers, plummeting at terrifying speed, gripped their ropes and slowed themselves just above the ship.
Having bled off their momentum, they severed their ropes and landed softly on the deck.
As if to conceal their identities, every attacker wore a mask.
Their leader barked an order.
"Kill them all. Leave no witnesses."
"Understood!"
"Hyah!"
The attackers surged toward the people on deck with terrifying speed.
"Not a chance."
"Hyaah!"
Those who stood against them were the Black Forest Corps under Gwak Pung's command.
Composed entirely of lay disciples from the Nine Great Sects, the Black Forest Corps' martial prowess was formidable.
CLANG—! CLANG—!
Not only did they block every attack aimed at the ordinary passengers, they also managed to inflict deep wounds on the attackers.
"Aaagh!"
"Gack!"
Several attackers fell with screams.
But the attackers' own martial prowess was no trifle.
"Sons of bitches......"
"You're dead!"
They drove their aura to an even more savage pitch and pressed the Black Forest Corps.
Across the deck, the Black Forest Corps and the attackers clashed in every corner.
Black Forest Captain Gwak Pung drew his sword and advanced on the attackers' leader.
"Where did you come from?"
"You don't need to know that. All you need to do is hand over the gold ingots and the weapons."
"So you did come for the Silver River Trading Company."
"Listen here, boy. You'd be wise to surrender while I'm asking nicely."
The leader's eyes, visible between the folds of his mask, were anything but ordinary.
A gaze so sharp and cold it raised the hairs on one's neck—it spoke clearly of achievements far above the common.
Gwak Pung flared his own presence and spoke.
"Why would a martial artist of your caliber stoop to something like this?"
"You don't need to know why, boy."
"Hmph! We will see who is the boy soon enough."
Gwak Pung's gaze turned chilling.
For an instant, the leader's pupils wavered.
'What kind of eyes...... I was told they were a bunch of greenhorns, but this is nothing like what I heard.'
The thought that his information had been wrong crossed his mind, but it was too late to turn back.
There was no undoing this now.
"Hyaah!"
The leader swung his sword at Gwak Pung.
Sword qi erupted from his blade and streaked toward Gwak Pung's neck. But Gwak Pung showed no alarm and unleashed the Mount Hua Sect's supreme technique—the Thirteen Plum Blossom Swords.
In an instant, dozens of white plum blossoms bloomed in midair.
The white plum blossoms not only shattered the leader's sword qi but carved wounds into his shoulder and arm.
"Ngh! Plum blossoms? A disciple of the Mount Hua Sect?"
"That I am."
"Damn it! What is a Mount Hua disciple doing here?"
The leader desperately launched a survival technique.
WHOOSH—!
The sword qi that had momentarily vanished erupted again like fireworks, assailing Gwak Pung.
The powerful strike stalled Gwak Pung's offensive for a moment. But he quickly regained his composure and began methodically pressing the leader.
On another front, Ha Baek-jin was putting on a dazzling display.
He focused on protecting the passengers.
"Hyaah!"
Every time his fist struck out, an explosive blast erupted and attackers went flying backward.
"Gack!"
"Damn it!"
What Ha Baek-jin had unleashed was the Shaolin Temple's supreme technique—the Hundred-Step Divine Fist.
Ha Baek-jin had learned Shaolin's fist arts broadly, but he had dug especially deep into the Hundred-Step Divine Fist, achieving full mastery.
He had not yet reached the legendary level of killing an enemy from a hundred paces, but he possessed enough power to strike down foes anywhere within fifteen to thirty feet.
He shielded every passenger within his range and fought off the attackers.
Meanwhile, the other Black Forest Corps fighters were steadily cutting down the enemy.
It was at the very moment the Black Forest Corps had all but seized the upper hand.
"Ngh!"
"Gack!"
Suddenly, Black Forest Corps fighters at the rear screamed and collapsed. Someone had struck them from behind.
"What?"
"Damn it!"
Shock appeared on the faces of the Black Forest Corps fighters who saw their attackers.
And no wonder—the assailants were people no one had expected.
"Why would you—?"
"Don't tell me you betrayed us?"
Those who had attacked the Black Forest Corps from behind were none other than the martial artists who had been guarding the gold ingots.
At their center stood Gi Pyeong-wi, vice-leader of the Silver River Trading Company.
Gi Pyeong-wi was a potbellied, middle-aged man standing barely five feet tall.
Under the pretense of guarding the gold ingots, he had not set foot outside the carriage even once.
Yet here he was—not only leading the guards out, but ambushing the Black Forest Corps fighters.
Gi Pyeong-wi spoke.
"I never expected my brother would contract Nine Sects lay disciples for the escort."
"What do you mean by that?"
"That suspicious wretch played me to the very end."
Killing intent bloomed on Gi Pyeong-wi's face.
He was the vice-leader of the Silver River Trading Company in name, but in practice he held no real power.
Without real power, he could not siphon off much wealth.
His elder brother and the Company's leader, Gi Cheon-wi, was a man consumed by greed and suspicion.
He kept a wary eye on his own brother, Gi Pyeong-wi, fearing he would covet his wealth.
A lifetime of being checked by his brother had pushed Gi Pyeong-wi's patience to its breaking point.
The moment he learned that a substantial quantity of gold ingots was being transported to a certain destination, he set things in motion in secret.
On the day the gold ingots were to be shipped, he deliberately sent the Silver River Trading Company's elite fighters elsewhere, creating a gap in their forces.
Left with no choice, Gi Cheon-wi had to entrust the transport to his brother, Gi Pyeong-wi.
Of course, Gi Cheon-wi had not left things entirely in his hands.
He had contracted the Black Forest Corps—composed of lay disciples from the Nine Great Sects—as a check against Gi Pyeong-wi.
That was how the Black Forest Corps came to receive this commission.
Meanwhile, Gi Pyeong-wi, as soon as the transport mission was confirmed, reached out to the Blue Wolf Band—a band of wanderers he had long been acquainted with.
The ones who had attacked the Cloud Horse river ferry were the Blue Wolf Band.
Gi Pyeong-wi drew martial power into both hands. Blue-green energy gathered around them.
It was his supreme technique—the Azure Thunder Demon Hands.
"All of you, die!"
RUMBLE—!
Azure lightning swept across the deck.