―'Since I must prove my path amidst the myriad people (蒼生之中證其道),
I must surely set out alongside the wandering martial artists (必與遊俠共征蹤).'
'So that is why she told me to mingle with the wanderers.'
Recalling Dali's message, Bu Eunseol nodded.
Surprisingly, he had easily obtained a clue to finding Pahon.
"I have listened well to your story."
"Then, will you join us?"
"May I ask one more thing?"
At that, standing behind Jeong Jinbang.
A large man with tattoos on his face, among the Thunder Strike Team members, frowned and grumbled.
"You certainly have a lot of conditions."
"Shh."
Jeong Jinbang quickly restrained him.
He had gone through all the trouble to set this up; he couldn't let it be ruined here.
"Speak."
"I am curious as to why you are looking for the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede."
Jeong Jinbang, who had been tense wondering if it was some grandiose question, held back a chuckle.
"Does one need a reason to obtain a rare treasure of the world?"
The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede ranged from a dozen jang to dozens of jang in length, and its blood and flesh could boost internal energy and enable a long, disease-free life.
There was not a single martial artist who would not desire such a treasure.
"It just seems like there is some backstory to it."
Anyone could see that the Thunder Strike Team was a gathering of people with completely different dispositions.
And they appeared to have built a friendship over quite a long time.
"Where in the world is there a wanderer without a backstory?"
Jeong Jinbang's eyes grew desolate.
Just looking at that, it didn't seem like they were simply chasing after a sudden fortune.
But Bu Eunseol asked no more.
"I see."
"Your decision?"
"I will join."
"A good choice."
Jeong Jinbang smiled brightly and introduced the members of the Thunder Strike Team.
The man with the facial tattoos was named Beonrang (藩郎), a hunter from an ethnic minority in Jiaozhi.
The woman carrying a whip was named Geumhwa (金花), a woman of the Miao people.
And the slender, plain-looking young man was named Wolyeong (月影).
He was from Cheonchuk and had wandered beyond the borders learning medicine before settling here.
"But even if we catch the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, how do you plan to distribute it? It seems there are already many wanderers waiting."
There looked to be well over several hundred wanderers aiming for the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede at the Black Snake Pavilion.
"We just have to take its flesh with whatever skill we have."
Jeong Jinbang laughed weakly.
"Those are matters to worry about after we catch it, anyway."
They say they challenge it every time, but they have never succeeded even once.
No, because there were almost no wanderers who believed they could take down the Black Centipede...
Until now, they hadn't even discussed how to distribute it.
"If we take it down, we each just need to take its flesh in whatever way we can. However, since the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede sprays demonic poison, we absolutely need a poison person who can protect the team members."
"I just need to block the poison?"
"That's right. Wolyeong's medical skills are outstanding, but it would be even better if we could ward off the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede's demonic qi in advance."
At that time, Beonrang spoke in a thick, low voice.
"Just because he caught a Golden Spirit Snake King doesn't guarantee he's a master of poison arts, does it?"
He looked at Bu Eunseol while speaking fluent Han language.
"Besides, we don't even know his skills yet, whether he can block the poison of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede or not."
The Golden Spirit Snake King easily detected human presence and traveled underground like a mole, making it difficult to catch.
Its poison was known to be not very impressive.
"He is an incredible master of poison."
At that time, Wolyeong, who had been quiet all along, spoke.
"The Golden Spirit Snake King is called the king of snakes even though its poison is not impressive. It's because it will never be tamed by humans, even if it means death."
He looked at Bu Eunseol and said.
"But he easily wrapped it around his arm like a pet dog. He must have cultivated outstanding poison arts to make the Golden Spirit Snake King submit."
His deep knowledge of medicine was apparently not just empty words.
Not only did Wolyeong demonstrate keen observation, but he also deduced that Bu Eunseol had mastered incredible poison arts.
"That's not what my brother meant."
Geumhwa cut in.
"He's saying that if that guy joins, it might ruin the unity of our Thunder Strike Team."
"That's right."
Beonrang spoke frankly.
"Up until now, we've joined forces and navigated through everything well. If we bring in some useless person..."
His face darkened.
Perhaps there was a special backstory to the Thunder Strike Team.
"You can rest assured."
At that time, Bu Eunseol spoke.
"I won't be living the life of a wanderer here for long, anyway."
"Why is that?"
At Jeong Jinbang's question, Bu Eunseol answered.
"I have brief business here."
"Brief business...?"
Then, everyone including Jeong Jinbang let out a sigh.
"It's ruined. It was a waste of effort."
He shook his head and sighed.
"I'm sorry, but please forget the proposal from just now."
"All of a sudden?"
"I'm sorry."
"Shouldn't I at least know the reason?"
When Bu Eunseol asked for the reason, Jeong Jinbang shook his head.
"We don't want to get tangled up in unnecessary affairs. We just want the blood and flesh of the Black Centipede."
Not only Jeong Jinbang, but the expressions of all the Thunder Strike Team members contorted.
Some even held looks of contempt, as if looking at dirty bugs.
'I made them misunderstand.'
Only then did Bu Eunseol grasp the situation.
Because Jiaozhi had many hidden criminals.
Sometimes, military officers disguised as wanderers would come searching to catch criminals.
When Bu Eunseol said he had brief business despite traveling all the way to this distant Jiaozhi...
They thought he was a figure from the government office here to carry out some secret mission.
"I am not a figure from the government office."
As Bu Eunseol waved both his hands, Jeong Jinbang shook his head.
"It's the same either way. If you have business here, what else could it be but a grudge?"
If he had business in a place swarming with criminals, he must have come looking for someone to exact revenge.
In terms of getting involved in useless grudges, it was no different.
'Hmm.'
Bu Eunseol swallowed a groan.
Even if he wasn't a military officer, it was a situation where they would absolutely not believe him.
Because no one would come to Jiaozhi, where all sorts of criminals and tribes were gathered, for 'brief' business.
'I must definitely join the wanderer team.'
According to Dali's letter, he had to mingle with the wanderers to find Pahon.
Of course, he could approach other wanderer groups, but the story from just now could spread everywhere.
Concluding negotiations with the Thunder Strike Team was the best method possible.
'If I can't be a figure from the government office or have a grudge.'
Rolling his mind, Bu Eunseol spoke like this.
"Actually, I came looking for my father."
"Your father?"
"My mother was a gisaeng. I heard she spent one night with my father, who was a wanderer in Jiaozhi, and gave birth to me."
Bu Eunseol spoke with a pained expression.
"Now that I am fully grown, I felt I had to find my bloodline, so I came all this way to a foreign land thousands of li away."
Even desolate martial artists placed great importance on the Heavenly Decree (天倫).
In reality, unless they were irreconcilable enemies, people rarely brought up parents, and they were very careful about such matters.
So when Bu Eunseol mentioned the father-son relationship, Jeong Jinbang and the others put on solemn expressions.
"So that was it."
Clearing his throat, Jeong Jinbang asked cautiously.
"Do you happen to have any clues? Geumhwa knows the information about the wanderers in Jiaozhi like the back of her hand."
"There are no secrets in the world. If I start asking around, unnecessary stories might leak out."
Bu Eunseol spoke in a calm voice.
"Since there are features only I can recognize, I plan to look for him myself."
"Hmm."
Pondering for a moment, Jeong Jinbang put his head together with his team members to talk, then nodded.
"Can you certainly block the poison of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede?"
In truth, from the Thunder Strike Team's perspective, they didn't have any other brilliant ideas either.
If they had no way to block the poison, they wouldn't be able to participate in the punitive brigade.
"Of course."
"You might feel disappointed, but the atmosphere here is unimaginably desolate. Most of the wanderers are criminals, and people killing each other out of greed is a common occurrence."
He spoke frankly.
"Besides, because of what you said earlier, some wanderers in the inn might be hostile to you or suspect you are from the government office and try to kill you."
Bu Eunseol nodded.
To survive in such a desolate place, one had to be extremely careful.
Moreover, putting Bu Eunseol, who had become a target of others, into the same team could cause unnecessary clashes.
"Alright."
After contemplating, Jeong Jinbang nodded.
"Let's try working together. We must definitely catch the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede."
The eyes of the Thunder Strike Team members were resolute, absolutely not looking like wanderers aiming for a sudden fortune.
'They must have a backstory.'
There was no one among the people of the Jianghu who lived without harboring a backstory.
Bu Eunseol himself was exactly like that.
This current affair was merely an intersection where they happened to bump into each other by chance.
"Understood."
Bu Eunseol nodded.
"I will do my best."
At last, Bu Eunseol successfully took one step toward finding Pahon.
* * *
Finally, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the night of the full moon when the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede was said to appear, arrived.
It was a cool autumn day. However, strangely enough, as they entered the forest, a sweltering heat scorched the earth, and the sticky moisture felt as if it would rust their weapons.
The fishy smell of dirt, the scent of fully bloomed poisonous plants, and the sound of nameless insects flapping their wings mixed together, making one's mind dizzy.
Murmur, murmur.
The entrance of the forest where the spirit creatures lived.
Over three hundred wanderers were gathered there.
There were those dressed in the attire of Central Plainsmen, and there were hunters from Jiaozhi standing barefoot with tattoos all over their bodies.
There were Siam people with metal plates on their elbows and knees, and there were Dongying people with long, sharp Japanese swords strapped to their waists.
Their origins and languages were all different, but they had gathered here, united by the intense desire to catch the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede.
"It seems everyone is gathered."
Originally, the command of the wanderer squad was taken by Gwido, who was the leader-figure of the Jiaozhi wanderers and had survived the subjugation every year.
But he had eventually been bitten to death by the Black Centipede last year, and this year, Dokdu, who led the Supreme Wind Team, took charge.
―'Will he do well?'
Just as the wanderers were worrying inwardly, Dokdu shouted.
"Then, we enter!"
With Dokdu at the forefront, all the wanderers began to move stealthily, as if seeping into the forest.
This subjugation was not a competition, but about joining forces somehow to catch the Black Centipede.
It was unknown whether a force of three hundred could properly catch it, and it was unknown how many would survive.
Yet, the wanderers' expressions were composed.
A wanderer's life (浪中人生).
That was generally how the lives of wanderers were.
Drifting like duckweed in the turbulent waves of the world.
If lucky, they survived and made a lot of money; if unlucky, they lost their lives without earning a single penny.
Halt.
Dokdu, who had been running forward for quite some time, suddenly raised his hand and stopped moving.
It was because a faint vibration was felt from the ground.
In an instant, the wanderers tightened their grips on their respective weapons.
Flashing swords, sharp spears, oddly shaped curved blades, and giant maces.
The sound of clashing metal briefly broke the silence; not a single person opened their mouth.
They crouched in the darkness, communicating with each other through their eyes like beasts.
Rumble, rumble, rumble.
The ground was vibrating.
At first, it was a subtle tremor, but it gradually changed into a clear vibration that could even be felt while sitting on a saddle.
Flap, flap.
The beasts of the forest fled with screams, and the birds soared into the sky in unison.
A few wanderers capable of using the Heavenly Vision and Earthly Hearing Art or listening techniques were pressing their ears to the ground.
However, they soon realized there was no need for even that.
From deep underground, the roaring sound of something massive scraping against the bedrock as it moved could be heard clearly.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede had appeared.
Nod.
The wanderers scattered in the forest each nodded their heads and cautiously began to move following the vibrating ground.
Before long, they reached a massive basin.
The center of that place, blocked by cliffs on all sides, was bizarrely flat, without a single blade of grass growing.
Like a spot where a giant beast had laid its body for a long time. A foul, fishy stench pierced their noses, and the air sank heavily with an ominous aura.
The three hundred-odd wanderers slowly pressed into the center of the basin, each maintaining their formation.
The moment everyone's hands became drenched in sweat,
Kiiieeeek!
The ground screamed and tore apart, and the earth in the center of the basin began to surge upward like a massive tomb.
Bang! Pow!
Dirt, dust, and rock fragments exploded and burst in all directions.
Even in broad daylight, the surroundings were dyed pitch black, and a massive shape, easily the size of ten large trees put together, shot up into the sky.
It was a giant head covered in a pitch-black carapace.
It was the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede.
Dozens of red compound eyes emitting a gruesome light like the lanterns of hell on a head the size of a large pavilion.
A giant jaw dripping with venom that seemed capable of melting even steel.
As that thing, the size of a house with just its head alone, shot up above the ground, the three hundred wanderers forgot how to even breathe.
Rrrrrrrr.
Following that, as if a mountain range were writhing, an endlessly long black body crawled out from under the ground.
Along both sides of its body, which exceeded thirty jang in length, hundreds of pairs of scythe-like legs were lined up gruesomely.
For the first time, fear surfaced in the eyes of the wanderers that had been constantly gleaming with greed.
"Attack!"
As someone shouted, the wanderers unleashed hidden weapons all at once.
Clang, clang, clang!
However, the Black Centipede's carapace was harder than steel, so it didn't even take a scratch from mere hidden weapons.
Kwaaaaah!
The Black Centipede scanned the bug-like humans with its hundreds of red eyes, then tilted its massive head back.
A sound like the surrounding air being sucked into its lungs echoed, just like the moment before a typhoon strikes.
"It's the Black Centipede's demonic poison!"
Even before someone's shout finished,
Kwaaaaah!
From its maw, demonic poison mixed with green and purple sprayed out like mist.
The poison mist silently engulfed the wanderers in front, but almost no one fell.
Because most had prepared Poison-Evading Pearls to block the Black Centipede's poison, or had positioned poison people capable of blocking the poison.
The same was true for the Thunder Strike Team.
Vwoom.
Bu Eunseol drew upon the power of the Poison Saint and blocked the demonic poison pouring out from the Black Centipede in a single breath.
―'Aaaaargh!'
However, screams could be heard from somewhere.
A few wanderer teams who had participated thinking 'It'll work out somehow' without any defense against the poison had fallen.
Bubble, bubble.
Those who failed to block the poison.
Their entire bodies bubbled and boiled along with the clothes they wore, melting into black liquid.
And even the grass and trees where they stood burned black.
―'Rrrrrrr.'
As the wanderers held on without taking any significant damage, the Black Centipede began to move as if enraged.
Moving its hundreds of legs all at once, it swept over the punitive brigade like a massive black wave.
The sword of a brave wanderer standing at the vanguard and swinging his blade was torn apart like a piece of paper.
As its scythe-like legs brushed past, human bodies were sliced off like tofu.
The spot where its massive body swept through once.
It had turned into a living hell where only crushed bones, torn flesh, and shattered weapons tumbled about.
Rrrrrr.
The Black Centipede, as if satisfied, went back underground.
What was fascinating was that, unlike before it appeared, no vibrations spread from the ground now.
―'It's playing with us!'
The Black Centipede had spiritual intelligence, so in order to toy with and hunt the wanderers.
It was clear that it had deliberately made noise to lure them to this basin.
"..."
The expressions of the wanderers who had gone through a bout of war changed drastically from the beginning.
Although they had saved their lives, they realized just how powerful the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede was.
―'The reason it appeared every year...'
And they realized anew.
Why the Black Centipede had been the king of this forest for a long time, and why it periodically revealed itself.
―'It was periodically hunting us.'
When it moved just now, there was no presence or noise whatsoever.
Yet, the reason it appeared so loudly with noise at first was.
To lure the wanderers to the basin and have a satisfying hunt.
"I can find it!"
At that time, someone shouted.
"Because I sprinkled Ten Thousand Li Root on my hidden weapons, we can definitely find the Black Centipede."
"Oh dear."
Jeong Jinbang shook his head.
"People have been doing that since the past. But does he not know that the Ten Thousand Li Root is useless because the Black Centipede goes deep underground?"
Boom, boom.
But then, a bizarre thing happened.
A strange vibration echoed from the ground,
Shaaaa.
Something began to shake the forest.
It was not the rumbling of the earth like an earthquake, but the vibration that spread when a massive quantity of something moved.
"Aargh!"
At that time, the wanderers standing near the flanks of the formation let out agonized screams.
Suddenly, a pack of house-sized black tigers, Iron Tigers, appeared and attacked the wanderers.
Roar!
The Iron Tigers constantly flashed their yellowish eyes and tore the wanderers to shreds like paper with their steel-like claws.
But that was not the end.
Kieeeek! Kieeeeek!
Along with strange shrieks that sharply tore the eardrums, flash-like shadows shot out from between the tree branches.
It was a pack of Blood Mausoleum Demonic Apes, their entire bodies covered in bluish fur and only their eyeballs glowing bright red.
The beasts, as if imitating human martial arts.
Leaped through the air stepping on tree branches and dug into the wanderers' blind spots.
Their fingernails were as sharp as daggers, and their movements were as fast as ghosts.
To make matters worse, the sound of something slithering out could be heard from the damp swamp.
What appeared along with a fishy poisonous qi were giant One-Horned Snakes with a single horn growing on their heads.
―'Hsssss!'
When the beasts opened their mouths, pitch-black poison mist spread like fog, choking the breath out of the wanderers.
Above them, between the dense leaves.
Dozens of Human-Faced Spiders with bizarre human faces were looking down with gruesome smiles.
The beasts slowly approached the wanderers caught in their spiderwebs, dripping black venom from their sharp fangs.
Suddenly, the spirit beasts living in the forest had popped out all at once and began attacking the wanderers.
―'For so many spirit creatures to suddenly...'
The wanderers panicked.
Spirit beasts that were not easily found even one or two at a time on normal days were suddenly pouring out all at once?
How on earth had such a thing happened?
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