NOVEL NEXT Chapter 40: Great Tiger (3)
「If it has two heads, does it also have two internal elixirs?」
The Immortal Divine Sword made such a remark, and Yi-gang glanced at him slightly.
Somehow, it sounded like something Yi-gang would say.
However, Yi-gang could not utter such words. Seeing the form of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, he could not afford to make such leisurely comments.
Of course, to the Immortal Divine Sword, who was an absolute master, it might not be anything remarkable.
「It’s a joke. If you don’t want to become a ghost like me here, it’s better to step back,」 the Immortal Divine Sword said with a slight smile.
However, no one in Yi-gang’s party could afford a smile upon seeing the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger.
“Krrrrrr.”
Next to the growling Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, two tigers lay their bodies flat.
The fur of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger was not golden like a regular tiger. Instead, it was a duller shade of ash, rough and fluttering in the wind.
It was enormous. Calling it a Great Tiger was not an overstatement. Its weight easily exceeded a thousand jin. With those hefty front paws, it could smash even a small car.
But more overwhelming than anything else was the two heads that no normal beast could have.
True to its name, Twin-Headed, the two heads writhed in a lively manner. The particularly unique sound of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger’s roar was likely because both heads were growling simultaneously.
In the four brightly shining red eyes, an undeniable ghostly aura was felt.
Was it fortunate? The Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, having rushed all this way here, seemed not to have the intention to attack immediately.
Yi-gang quietly spoke to Neung Ji-pyeong.
“Can we escape without fighting?”
“…We have horses, but being in the mountains, we’d likely be caught quickly,” Neung Ji-pyeong responded cautiously.
If it were a plain, the horses would be faster, but this place was the rugged mountains. No, seeing the speed at which the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger had charged, it seemed even faster than the horses.
‘The light footwork technique could make it possible, but it’s risky with the Young Master aboard.’
Although Jin Ri-yeon was also an outstanding martial artist, Yi-gang was the problem. Neung Ji-pyeong carefully compared their strengths.
Neung Ji-pyeong would take on the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger himself, and the Biyeon Squad warriors would each take on the two tigers beside it.
And if Jin Ri-yeon were to take charge of Yi-gang’s escort, it seemed like it would be alright.
“Please get in the carriage, Young Master. Since it’s reinforced with iron, it should be saf—”
“Kheorng!”
However, the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger did not give them a chance.
It pounced on Neung Ji-pyeong, and the tigers beside it charged as well.
“Biyeon Squad!”
“Yes!”
Neung Ji-pyeong imbued his sword with internal energy.
Even if it was a tiger with two heads, it was just a beast, after all.
A Peak-level martial artist and leader of the Biyeon Squad, he did not succumb to fear.
Even a slight catch by those sharp claws would undoubtedly leave an arm flailing. Therefore…
“Hyup!”
Neung Ji-pyeong’s body accelerated in an instant.
He rotated his body, dodging the paws of the charging Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger.
Huuwoong!
Neung Ji-pyeong’s sword cleaved through the wind and pressed on. The target was its right hind leg. If one of its limbs were severed, even a ferocious tiger would be helpless.
The sharply honed longsword should have sliced through the tiger’s skin, muscles, and bones.
Kagak!
Neung Ji-pyeong was startled by the resistance he felt in his hand.
It was like the sensation of cutting a rubber mass filled with an iron core.
Even though his sword was filled with abundant internal energy, it could not cut through its paw.
“What!”
Even more astonishing was that the wounds of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, which had landed on the ground, were healing rapidly.
It was then that Neung Ji-pyeong finally realized that the tiger before him was no ordinary beast.
He gripped his sword tightly, but the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger did not charge again. Instead, it turned its body towards Yi-gang.
Neung Ji-pyeong was taken aback to see that Yi-gang was still outside the carriage.
“This can’t be, Young Master!”
He hastily chased after the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger.
The Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger seemed to know what Neung Ji-pyeong valued most. It ran fiercely, as if it wanted to tear Yi-gang apart.
Fortunately, Yi-gang and Jin Ri-yeon did not just stand still, offering their necks.
Jin Ri-yeon embraced Yi-gang and leaped up. The Azure Forest’s light footwork technique, Treading Cloud, was incredibly swift.
She stepped on the roof of the carriage and leaped again. The Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, not losing its momentum, crashed into the carriage.
Kwaah-ahng!
It was a deafening sound, like an explosion.
Neung Ji-pyeong regretted what he had just told Yi-gang. To take cover in the carriage, that it would be safe?
The outer wall of the carriage shattered, and it toppled over.
Had Yi-gang been inside, it would have been instant death.
“Kreung!”
Dissatisfied, the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger stepped on the debris of the carriage and stood up, then backed away with a snort.
Yi-gang, along with Jin Ri-yeon, dodged to where Neung Ji-pyeong was.
“The carriage is destroyed.”
“…I apologize, Young Master.”
“No, who could have known it was such a monster.”
Yi-gang removed a piece of wood embedded in his clothes. Debris from the carriage had flown towards him.
Although Neung Ji-pyeong seemed to feel guilty, Yi-gang understood him.
「It’s not fair to compare a yokai to an ordinary beast.」
Having trained in the Great Yin Flow and due to the advanced development of his upper dantian compared to his martial arts skills, Yi-gang could feel it—
The uneasy sense of oppression emanating from the body of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger.
One should not think of it as just a large tiger. Jin Ri-yeon also seemed to have recognized the danger of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger.
“We might actually die here.”
Yi-gang muttered so.
He had not expected to feel a threat to his life before even arriving at the Azure Forest, let alone from a tiger with two heads, not even assassins.
「That’s just the way of the world. Living as a martial artist is like walking on the edge of a knife.」
However, Yi-gang was calmer than expected.
Just as the Immortal Divine Sword said, the crisis of life often comes unexpectedly.
One day you were given a terminal diagnosis, or on a moonlit night, assassins suddenly appeared.
Encountering a tiger on the road was not so astonishing.
‘It’s not like there isn’t a way, right?’
「Well, yes. There’s also the method of trusting them to handle the yokai excellently.」
Both Neung Ji-pyeong and Jin Ri-yeon were martial masters. They might be able to handle the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger brilliantly.
「Though it does seem very keen on feasting on the descendant.」
The problem was that the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger was drooling as it stared at Yi-gang. Even though he had properly sealed the Purple Spirit Phantom Herb in his arms, it was clearly targeting Yi-gang. It was obvious just by the fact that it had leaped over Neung Ji-pyeong and lunged at Yi-gang.
The party also noticed this.
Yi-gang, who neither had the power to defend himself nor the light footwork technique to escape, was nothing short of a shackle to them.
‘There is another way.’
「Help out?」
When they were attacked by the assassins. The Immortal Divine Sword had possessed Yi-gang’s body. With Yi-gang’s pitiful physique, he slaughtered more than a dozen assassins.
If the Immortal Divine Sword possessed him, he could safely overcome this crisis.
「However, it’s risky.」
But possession was not omnipotent.
After being possessed by the Immortal Divine Sword, Yi-gang had nearly died. If it were not for the energy of the Ten Thousand Year Snow Ginseng remaining in his body, he would have certainly died.
‘I’ve been diligently training in the Great Yin Flow, and haven’t I also consumed two roots of the Purple Spirit Phantom Herb?’
「That’s not enough. There’s a high probability that you’ll die.」
The Immortal Divine Sword was not one to joke about such things.
Yi-gang stood at a crossroads of choice.
Whether to risk death and borrow the power of the Immortal Divine Sword.
Or should he trust Neung Ji-pyeong and the party and wait for now?
“Young Master.”
Then, Neung Ji-pyeong called out to Yi-gang.
“Yes.”
“I apologize.”
Was he still regretting telling him to stay in the carriage? Just as Yi-gang was about to say he was fine, Neung Ji-pyeong’s hand moved like lightning.
“What!”
All the training he had undergone until now was not in vain. Yi-gang pulled his body back in that brief moment, but…
Papapak—
He was still too inexperienced to avoid the surprise attack of a Peak-level master.
Neung Ji-pyeong’s fingers touched Yi-gang’s pressure point in an instant. Yi-gang’s body stiffened and tilted.
Jin Ri-yeon caught him.
“Sir Neung…”
It seemed Jin Ri-yeon had understood Neung Ji-pyeong’s intentions.
“If you ride a horse straight ahead, you will soon reach Shanyang County. I entrust the Young Master to you, Miss Jin.”
“Then what about you all…”
“My duty is to protect the Young Master. No matter how I think about it, this seems to be the most reasonable method.”
Neung Ji-pyeong spoke calmly and coolly.
“We’ll handle that monster while you go to a safe place with the Young Master.”
“Wouldn’t it be better if I helped as well? We need all the hands we can get.”
“I, Neung Ji-pyeong, have no intention of losing to a beast. However, it seems that creature is targeting the Young Master. I’ll slay the beast and follow you.”
Neung Ji-pyeong spoke as if to ease her worries. Fighting while protecting someone was more difficult than just fighting.
“We are too heavy to ride a horse with Young Master. Miss Jin is the only suitable one.”
In the end, Jin Ri-yeon had no choice but to nod in agreement.
Once the decision was made, actions followed swiftly.
Jin Ri-yeon climbed onto the strongest horse with Yi-gang. Fortunately, the beasts were only keeping Neung Ji-pyeong in check.
Jin Ri-yeon spoke to Neung Ji-pyeong as if she were reluctant to leave.
“We’ll see you in a bit.”
“Go.”
And then, Jin Ri-yeon spurred the horse.
The horse, already trembling in fear of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, began to run as fast as an arrow.
As the horse dashed away, the beasts next to the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger seemed agitated. The moment they tried to chase the horse, Neung Ji-pyeong shouted loudly.
“Stop!”
A voice filled with internal energy vibrated through the air.
“Your opponents are us!”
The beasts dared not take their eyes off them, focusing instead on Neung Ji-pyeong and the warriors of Biyeon Squad.
Neung Ji-pyeong took a deep breath and opened his eyes wide.
“Biyeon Squad.”
“Yes, Squad Leader!”
The members of Biyeon Squad also had serious expressions.
He told Jin Ri-yeon that they would deal with the beasts and catch up soon. But that was just facing the beasts.
However, Neung Ji-pyeong lied.
“Even if we die here, the world will not forget you and your families.”
He had sensed it when he had exchanged blows with the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger just a moment ago.
The intuition of a martial artist who had crossed the line of death was telling him, that they might bury their bones here.
“We will definitely stop them. Understand?”
“Under your command!”
Neung Ji-pyeong did not speak of survival.
When the paralysis point was pressed, one could not move their limbs.
However, the mind remained clear, and the senses were alive.
Sswiaeak—
The sound of the brushing wind could be heard. The frightened horse was breathing heavily; Jin Ri-yeon, holding the horse’s reins, had a stern expression.
‘I’ve been properly hit.’
Yi-gang wore a bitter expression.
While considering borrowing the power of the Immortal Divine Sword momentarily, he had been struck by Neung Ji-pyeong’s acupressure attack.
As a result, Yi-gang was lying as if he had collapsed into Jin Ri-yeon’s arms.
The Immortal Divine Sword spoke quietly to Yi-gang in that state, 「Isn’t it a good thing? It’ll definitely save your life this way.」
There were no signs of the beasts chasing them. Neither Neung Ji-pyeong nor Biyeon Squad would be easily defeated, so Yi-gang would be safe.
If Yi-gang and Jin Ri-yeon went ahead to Shanyang County and waited, Neung Ji-pyeong and Biyeon Squad might follow, huffing and puffing. They might even laugh, saying, “It was the strangest tiger I’ve ever seen in my life.”
「Even if they die, they would have fulfilled their duty, so they would not resent the descendant. They are splendid warriors.」
The tone of the Immortal Divine Sword was gentle, but its content was utterly cold.
It was true. From sending Jin Ri-yeon away with full honors, one could see Neung Ji-pyeong’s resolve.
However, Yi-gang could not laugh.
‘It’s the same.’
「What are you talking about?」
‘When the assassins came.’
It was not just Sohwa who had given her life for Yi-gang. The soldiers, who had been escorting the carriage, did the same.
They threw their lives away to buy time for Yi-gang to escape. From Yi-gang’s perspective, it was incomprehensible.
Is one’s own life not more important than anything else? And yet, they sacrificed it, not for a noble cause, but to save a loser like him.
‘Why do they die so easily?’
He said it as if blaming them, but there was no way Yi-gang could really blame them.
Yi-gang had survived by consuming the lives of those who had died for him.
That was why he valued his own life more than anything else…
‘Please, possess my body.’
「Do you think I was joking? There’s a fifty percent chance you’ll exhaust your true Qi and die. And a fifty percent chance that your lifespan will be reduced by about three years.」
‘I understand.’
「It’s the life that kid Sohwa earned for you, don’t you have to live?」
‘I don’t want to be ashamed before Sohwa, even after death.’
…That was why he did not want to leave those who sacrificed their lives for him to die.
It was the Immortal Divine Sword, who had reforged his severed blood vessels with his mind.
If he possessed him now, he could release the acupoint seal and turn the situation around.
「Heh, hahaha.」
The Immortal Divine Sword laughed as it looked down at Yi-gang.
Its gaze was terribly cold, yet it seemed pleased.
「Even if they all die, as long as the descendant survives, that would be enough for me.」
The Immortal Divine Sword truly would not care in the slightest if Neung Ji-pyeong and the members of Biyeon Squad died. That was the kind of entity it was.
「I’ll assist based on the will of the descendant. There is a way to minimize the side effects, after all…」
Minimizing the side effects? So, there was a method for that.
「I will instruct you verbally, try to release the acupoint seal yourself. Given that the descendant’s blood vessel was twisted from the start, the acupoint seal likely wasn’t properly applied in the first place.」
Yi-gang’s eyes sparkled.
‘I will try.’
If there was a way, nothing was impossible.
Moreover, Jin Ri-yeon, who was driving the horse, had no idea what Yi-gang was up to.
Her face was sorrowful.
The Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger was a yokai she had only read about in books. It was not to be compared with yokai from ancient times like the Pixiu, but it was no easy opponent. That much was clear since she gave up on fighting at full power and chose to flee with Yi-gang.
Had Yi-gang not been there, she would not have run.
“Hang in there a little longer, Yi-gang. Sir Neung will surely return.”
It was a statement she could not even assure herself.
It was when the roar of the Twin-Headed Ghost Tiger, echoing through the mountains, had become distant enough to barely hear.
Jin Ri-yeon felt a sharp premonition.
At her neck, she sensed the presence of a blade.
“I hate to do this. But you seem like you won’t listen to me.”
“…You.”
It was Yi-gang, who, until moments ago, had been leaning on Jin Ri-yeon as if dead.
“How did you release the acupoint seal…”
“There’s no time to explain, turn the horse around.”
Yi-gang, who was clearly affected by the paralysis, was now holding a short sword to Jin Ri-yeon, threatening her. Jin Ri-yeon could not believe the situation.
“This is no joke.”
Saying so, Yi-gang took a neck ring from within his clothes with one hand.
Yi-gang opened the neck ring, placed the Purple Spirit Phantom Herb in his mouth, and chewed it thoughtfully.
“And, please lend me whatever you have. Everything. Whether it’s a spiritual elixir or that silver bell. Also, please untie that red thread.”
“…”
Facing him, the look in Yi-gang’s eyes was unmistakably those of the boy Jin Ri-yeon knew.
“Quickly.”
“Alright.”
Feeling an inexplicable intimidation, Jin Ri-yeon complied with Yi-gang’s strong-arm tactics.