Chapter 526: If You Have a Request Like That, Go to the Murim Alliance

TL: FoodieMonster007

Dan Ah wanted to refuse. She had a feeling that it would be for the best if she found a way to get out of this particular commission. Of course, refusing a commission was what intermediaries hated most. Naturally, they wouldn't give jobs to mercenaries who frequently turned them down. However, they had a solid reputation built over the past ten years, so they could afford to refuse this commission. And yet, one thing held her back.

Dan Ah's gaze shifted to the frightened woman who was simply waiting for her fate to be decided.

If we give up, this woman will die.

She had a powerful premonition of this. It was the thick stench of death that made her want to back out in the first place.

Dan Ah looked toward her younger sisters. After being together for so long, they could tell what Dan Ah was agonizing over just from her hesitation.

They showed no reaction. In moments like this, they always followed their older sister's decision completely.

Finally, Dan Ah made up her mind.

"We'll escort you to the Thousand Flower Palace in Guizhou."

A look of relief washed over the woman's face as she awaited the verdict.

"Thank you."

"Let's leave immediately."

As they turned to walk away, Cho Hwi spoke from behind them.

"My name is Cho Hwi."

Dan Ah answered without looking back.

"That's a pretty name."

It was at that moment, as the four of them were descending from the hermitage.

SWISH!

Hidden weapons flew swiftly toward Cho Hwi.

CLANG!

Dan Ah swung her sword to bat away the hidden weapons and shouted.

"Up in the tree on the left!"

However, even before her shout finished, the youngest, Dan Yeon, had already thrown a knife that was now embedding itself between the tree branches.

The masked man, struck by the throwing knife, tumbled from the tree.

From the opposite tree, more hidden weapons flew with a sharp whistling sound.

"Run!"

Dan Ah grabbed Cho Hwi and leaped down the stairs.

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!

The incoming hidden weapons embedded themselves in the exact spot where Cho Hwi had just been standing.

Dan Bi and Dan Yeon, who had jumped down on either side, used their swords to deflect the flying projectiles. The area around the hermitage was already ambushed by enemies. The situation was serious. A compromised meeting place meant the intermediary had been taken out.

While deflecting the hidden weapons, the three women threw their own knives. The youngest, Dan Yeon, was especially skilled in knife-throwing arts, and masked men fell one after another to her blades.

"Behind that rock!"

The four of them threw themselves behind the rock for cover.

PAPAPAPAK!

Just as they barely made it, the incoming hidden weapons ricocheted off the stone.

Despite their quick judgment, blood was flowing from Dan Bi's shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

"It just grazed me. I'm fine."

However, when Dan Yeon examined the wound, she was startled. The area around it was swelling and turning a dark blue.

"It's poison."

At Dan Yeon's cry, a curse escaped Dan Ah's lips.

"These bastards!"

She was the best at cursing among the three sisters.

Dan Yeon quickly took a medicine bottle from her robes and applied its contents to the wound. It was a medicine that would temporarily stop the poison from spreading.

"It won't last long! We have to get out of here…"

Just then, masked men leaped over the rock and attacked.

SHIIING! STAB!

Dan Ah's sword stabbed the side of a masked man who was lunging for Cho Hwi, then tore through his flesh.

SPLUUURT!

The sword, emerging from the man's side, stabbed the neck of the next masked man who rushed in. Blood splattered across her face, but she had no time to wipe it away. Sword clashed against sword, creating sparks, while hidden weapons crossed paths, drawing two lines in the air.

A throwing knife from Dan Yeon flew and embedded itself in the neck of a masked man attacking Dan Ah from behind. The descending sword lost its power and cut through empty air.

Behind the falling man, more masked men rushed forward. Dan Ah threw herself toward the gleaming sword blades that reflected the sunlight and shouted.

"Get back!"

CLUNK.

The carriage shook violently as it passed over a torn-up section of the road.

"My apologies!"

The urgent cry belonged to Seo Daeryong.

From inside the carriage, Geom Mugeuk's voice could be heard.

"Father was drinking tea and spilled it on his face."

Of course, Geom Mugeuk was joking. He hadn't forgotten the joke he'd made when they first set out, when Seo Daeryong had offered to drive, saying that if the carriage jolted, his head would be lopped off too.

His mind snapping to attention, Seo Daeryong asked Hwi.

"Would you like to drive yourself?"

He might have taken the reins after the mistake, but Hwi shook his head and let Seo Daeryong continue to drive.

"The road is rough, so please focus."

At first, he drove with intense concentration. But the human mind is fickle, and as he grew a little more accustomed to it, his thoughts began to wander. He found himself unconsciously thinking of the woman he had met at the inn.

While driving the carriage the Cult Leader is in. I must be crazy.

Seo Daeryong forced the distracting thoughts away and gripped the reins tightly.

Geom Mugeuk stuck his head out the window. As the carriage moved from an open area into a narrow path, the scenery, which had been moving slowly, sped up, as if switching from a heavy sword to a swift sword.

"Why does the return trip feel so much faster than when we set out?"

At that, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon said, his eyes still fixed on the book he was reading.

"Young Cult Leader, what is it you regret so much?"

Geom Mugeuk replied, feeling the blowing wind.

"I wonder. What is there to feel so regretful about?"

Geom Mugeuk's gaze turned to Seo Daeryong in the driver's seat. It was clear that his melancholy from yesterday and today wasn't just because of his memories with his father.

"Director Seo, watch out for that pothole!"

CLUNK.

Closing the barn door, Dan Ah was covered in blood. Fortunately, the blood belonged to their enemies, but the problem was her second sister, Dan Bi. The poisoned wound from earlier was continuing to swell.

Dan Ah grabbed Cho Hwi by the collar.

"You! What the hell have you gotten yourself into?"

Having run when told to run and ducked when told to duck, Cho Hwi, who had frantically made it this far, finally came to her senses.

"I'm sorry."

She had asked for a bodyguard knowing she was in great danger. It had been an unavoidable choice, but because of her, they were now in grave peril.

"Do you even know who those people attacking us are!"

Dan Ah had despaired when she realized who they were up against.

The Seven Roads Pursuit Squad.

The Seven Roads Pursuit Squad were also mercenaries. They were a group that primarily handled pursuits and assassinations, and among such squads, they were known for being particularly vicious and notorious. If they were mercenaries on the side of the light, the pursuit squad belonged to the darkness. And among them, the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad was the deepest shadow.

Just breaking through a single team of the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad was a miracle. However, this job wouldn't end just by killing a dozen of them. They swarmed endlessly like a colony of ants and would eventually eliminate their target.

Mobilizing the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad meant someone was spending a fortune to hunt Cho Hwi.

But why, for a mere gisaeng?

However, there was no time to argue with her about such things now. The bastards would be descending on this place soon.

"How's Bia?"

Dan Yeon answered Dan Ah's question worriedly.

"I've barely managed to stop the poison from spreading, but if she moves too much more, it'll spread through her whole body."

Then, Dan Ah's gaze fell on Dan Yeon's side. Pushing aside the blood-soaked fabric of her clothes, she revealed a sword wound.

"When were you stabbed?"

"A little while ago. I stopped the bleeding, but it opened up again when I ran."

She had been so focused on fighting that she hadn't even realized her younger sister was injured.

"You!"

"I'm fine. I'm not gonna die, it's okay!"

However, the lack of color in her face showed that the youngest sister's condition was not good either. Dan Ah pressed the acupoints around her sister's wound again to stop the bleeding, then took out some golden wound medicine and applied it.

"Just lie down and rest for now."

"Okay, I'll lie down for a bit."

Watching her two younger sisters lying down, Dan Ah felt a pang of regret. She shouldn't have taken this commission. Her premonition had been so bad.

"I'm sorry."

At Cho Hwi's words, Dan Ah didn't take her anger out on her. She was the client, just a customer. The one who decided to accept the job was her.

"It's not your fault."

"Shouldn't we find a physician for your sisters first?"

If only they could. They couldn't take them to a physician. In a situation like this, the enemy would search the physicians first. That was a basic rule of pursuit.

"If the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad is on our tail, we'll never make it to Guizhou. We have to ask someone for help first."

She took a map from her robes. It was a map she had made herself for use in emergencies. On it were marked the sects they could ask for help, sects with which they had at least some small connection.

However, with the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad in pursuit, they couldn't ask for help from ordinary sects. The Seven Roads Pursuit Squad were the kind of bastards who would invade and massacre even a normal sect to kill their target.

"We should ask the Murim Alliance for help."

But it was too far. They would have to leave this town and travel another thirty li to reach a Murim Alliance branch. It was impossible to get there with her injured sisters, especially while also protecting Cho Hwi. Besides, the enemy might anticipate them seeking help from the Murim Alliance and be watching the road.

Then, one place on the map caught Dan Ah's eye.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Zheng'an Branch.

Not far from here was a branch of the Demonic Cult. However, if they recklessly went to the Demonic Cult and asked for help, they might end up in a worse predicament than being caught by the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad.

Then, she suddenly remembered the man she had seen yesterday.

[I belong to the Divine Cult.]

The characters engraved on the giant dao of the man who had turned away after saying those words.

Peerless.

It was a word that didn't suit the pure, shy gaze he had given her at all.

Just then, Dan Yeon, who was lying down, asked quietly.

"What are you thinking about?"

Dan Ah bit her lip slightly and answered.

"A crazy idea."

The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Zheng'an Branch was a small branch with only about twenty resident members. Unless a war broke out, what could possibly happen at a Demonic Cult branch? The person in charge of this peaceful place was Branch Leader Kang Dal.

"Branch Leader, I think you need to come see this."

At the entrance of the Zheng'an branch, four women stood with their backs to the gate, surrounded by a large number of masked men.

He came out at his subordinate's report to find an unexpected situation unfolding. The women were Dan Ah's group, and the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad had chased them all the way here.

"Please open the gate! I have something to tell the Branch Leader."

Because of the cultists guarding the entrance, the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad had only surrounded them and hadn't yet attacked.

Just then, the gate opened and Kang Dal came out. A dozen or so branch cultists who had been waiting at the entrance followed him.

Kang Dal looked first at Dan Ah's group. The only one standing straight, holding a blood-dripping sword, was Dan Ah. Cho Hwi was tending to the unconscious Dan Bi, whose head rested on her lap, while Dan Yeon lay sleeping beside them. They were a sorry sight, covered in wounds, and it was a wonder they had made it this far.

In front of the four women, a dozen masked men stood in a semicircle.

Kang Dal looked up at the sign above the entrance. He wondered if this whole mess was because the sign had fallen off, but the plaque for the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Zheng'an Branch was still firmly in place.

Then, his subordinate said quietly.

"The masked ones are from the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad."

At the mention of the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad, Kang Dal frowned. He knew them well. They were vicious bastards who would kill friends and family for money.

"Those guys are crazy bastards, so that's one thing, but who are you?"

Dan Ah answered Kang Dal's question.

"We're mercenaries called the Three Dan Sisters. Please help us."

"If you have a request like that, you should go to the Murim Alliance branch."

Kang Dal looked at the masked men and said.

"Clean this up and get going. If you leave even a single drop of blood, you're dead."

He was telling them to kill them and get lost. Kang Dal turned to go back inside.

"A master from the Divine Cult sent us here."

For a moment, Kang Dal froze. His eyes were cold as he turned back to her.

"Which master?"

Naturally, Kang Dal assumed the woman was lying to save her own skin. He hadn't received any such message.

"He left the Yuyeong Inn yesterday. He's short and uses a large giant dao. The word 'Peerless' is written on that giant dao."

A moment of silence passed.

Kang Dal asked again.

"And who is that?"

After a brief pause, she answered.

"I don't know who he is either."

Then, a cold word slipped from Kang Dal's lips.

"This crazy bitch."

Yes, even she thought this was a crazy thing to do. But she had already made her choice, and now there was no way out. The Seven Roads Pursuit Squad was in front of her, and the Demonic Cult was behind her.

"The man who didn't give his name told me to get help here if I ran into trouble."

Lying to a Demonic Cult branch leader was truly a life-or-death gamble. Even if they could get help, if the man from the inn wasn't a cultist, or if he was just a low-ranking martial artist, they would be killed by these cultists.

"I'm sure he's someone of higher rank than you. If you save us, you'll live too. If we die here, you'll die too."

It was at that moment that more members of the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad arrived. With a dozen more added, their numbers now reached about twenty. It seemed they were all gathering here. The bastards showed no sign of fear even when they saw him and the branch cultists. Instead, they revealed their killing intent, their attitude saying, 'Just wait until we're all here.'

These sons of bitches, they've got a death wish!

However, Kang Dal turned and said.

"Close the gate."

Then came a desperate plea.

"Please, just let these three in."

Kang Dal turned back to Dan Ah.

"I'll be fine, just let these three in. When that man arrives later, you'll need to have something to say to him, won't you?"

Dan Ah was prepared to fight and die alone.

Kang Dal stared at her silently, then said something unexpected.

"If you sisters are mercenaries, then the one the Seven Roads Pursuit Squad is after must be that woman."

Kang Dal looked at Cho Hwi.

"Since their target is that woman anyway, I'll take you three in and leave her behind."

Dan Ah looked at Cho Hwi. The woman, holding Dan Bi, nodded. Her eyes were telling her to just save the three of them.

Dan Ah said to Kang Dal.

"Please just take my sisters. This woman and I will stay."

If she could save her sisters, that was enough. Cho Hwi shook her head, telling her not to, but Dan Ah was not the type of person to abandon a client, even if it meant giving up her own life.

Kang Dal looked at Dan Ah and said abruptly.

"If you had tried to come in by yourselves, none of you would have gotten in."

Which meant.

"All of you, come in."

The Zheng'an Branch had accepted them.

"Thank you."

"Thank you so much."

Dan Ah and Cho Hwi looked at each other in relief. Cho Hwi bowed her head to Dan Ah, expressing her gratitude. Her sisters were moved inside, and Dan Ah and Cho Hwi followed.

Kang Dal suppressed Dan Ah's inner arts and took her sword. She didn't resist and accepted it meekly. His suspicion was only natural.

Kang Dal gave an order to his subordinate.

"We don't know what those crazy bastards outside will do. Sound the alarm and wake everyone up."

"Understood."

"And send an urgent messenger pigeon to the All-Knowing Hall! Report the current situation."

Then, Dan Ah took a step forward. It was a gesture asking him to relay what she had said as well.

"Add what that woman said earlier. Short, uses a giant dao with the word 'Peerless' on it. What was the inn called?"

Dan Ah quickly answered his question.

"The Yuyeong Inn."

"Say we're urgently looking for someone who left the Yuyeong Inn yesterday."

"Yes!"

The cultists began to move busily. Martial artists wearing armor and carrying weapons came out of the buildings, and they started distributing hidden weapons from a chest.

"If you spouted that nonsense just to escape those bastards, you'd better be prepared."

Despite Kang Dal's threat, Dan Ah wasn't intimidated at all. The wheels of fate had already begun to turn.

"Return my sword and release my inner arts. If a fight breaks out, you're going to need me."

She was confident even in front of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's branch leader. In fact, it was this confidence that had moved Kang Dal's heart. The courage to stay behind alone to protect her client.

And then, a sentence was added that Kang Dal could never understand.

"Because I want to live and hear that poem again."