Reaper of the Drifting Moon

“What’s the situation of the war now?”

“It’s still ongoing.”

“What’s the extent of our damage so far?”

“Fifty-five dead and twenty-seven injured.”

“The damage is greater than expected.”

“The Jin family’s resistance is stronger than we thought.”

Seol Kang-yeon’s face became distorted as he listened to the report of his attendant, Lee Yul.

It wasn’t long since the war began in earnest, yet the damage they incurred was already greater than he expected.

“Isn’t the Jin family a tiger without teeth?”

“That’s right.”

“So how are they resisting so much?”

“Isn’t there a saying that even if a rich man becomes bankrupt, they would still have something to eat for three years?1 Although the Jin family is already in decline, the number of connections they have built up is not small. They have a lot of hands helping and reaching out to them from all over.”

“That’s funny. Just how popular are they?”

Seol Kang-yeon’s shoulders trembled.

No one knows just how much he and the Snow Sword Manor warriors suffered after losing their home. They only got a chance to return to their hometown after paying a great price.

The reason why he and the Snow Sword Manor went through such hardships was all because of the Jin family. He couldn’t believe that the Jin family had gained such popularity at that time.

Lee Yul calmly replied,

“They may be holding out for now, but it won’t last very long.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay! I believe in you. By the way, I heard that a member of the Shaolin Temple was assassinated in the Jin family?

“Yes, that’s true.”

“Who would dare assassinate a monk of the Shaolin Temple? Could it be that you ordered it?”

“No.”

“Really?”

“There’s no reason for me to drag the Shaolin Temple, is there?”

“Hmm…”

Seol Kang-yeon nodded at Lee Yul’s answer.

He doesn’t know about the Jin family, but the Snow Sword Manor had to prevent the Shaolin Temple from intervening as much as possible. This is because if the Shaolin Temple intervenes, the scope of their movements will be narrowed.

“In case the Shaolin Temple suspects us, make sure to have some countermeasures in place.”

“That’s already done. The Shaolin Temple will never suspect us.”

“As expected, I can rely on you.”

Seol Kang-yeon shook his head.

It was all thanks to Lee Yul’s exceptional ability that the Snow Sword Manor was able to grow this much and was able to return to Runan.

If it wasn’t for him, it would have taken them more than decades to return to Runan.

“You can go out now.”

“Yes, sect leader!”

Lee Yul bowed his head to Seol Kang-yeon and went out.

The first person he met after leaving the room was Seol Kwang-ho, the eldest son of Seol Kang-yeon.

“Hm? Did you just meet with my father?”

“Young master.”

“What did father say? Did he say anything about me?”

Seol Kwang-ho approached Lee Yul while smirking.

His clothes were stained with blood.

The thick scent of blood coming from him made it obvious that he had just returned after a fierce fight.

Lee Yul frowned and said,

“Did lead the Secret Shadow Group2 again and cause a fight?”

“Hehe! My body was getting itchy to the point that I couldn’t stand it.”

“If the sect leader knew of this, he would get worried.”

“My father won’t know about this if you stay quiet.”

“Okay. But you have to be careful. If you come back injured, the sect leader will be very sad.”

“Don’t worry. Do you think I’ll be defeated? I’m Seol Kwang-ho. Do you think there’s someone out there who’ll be able to defeat me?”

Seol Kwang-ho put his face right into Lee Yul’s face and boasted.

It was an arrogant declaration, but Seol Kwang-ho had the qualifications to do so.

Although his womanizing tendencies are detestable, he possessed enough skill to be considered as the strongest among the warriors in the Snow Sword Manor.

In particular, his Eight Great Wild Axe Technique,3 which seemed to possess the strength of nature, is a strong axe technique recognized even in Jianghu.

The sight of him rushing into battle with a huge axe is reminiscent of a giant bear.

For that reason, despite the war still being at its early stages, he is already known for his Bloody Axe of Hell4 and is a subject of fear.

“You’ll see! With this axe, I will definitely recapture the old site of the Snow Sword Manor!”

“Still, it wouldn’t hurt to be careful.”

“I told you not to worry. I’ll go ahead first.”

Seol Kwang-ho slapped Lee Yul on the shoulder a couple of times with his big hand and turned around.

Seol Kwang-ho thought that he had already patted Lee Yul on the shoulder lightly, but it wasn’t actually the case. Lee Yul felt a pain in his shoulder as if it were being cut off.

Nonetheless, Lee Yul’s expression did not change even a bit.

When he returned to his quarters, he saw a strange man sitting in his chair.

He was a skinny man wearing a black bloody robe. He looked so thin that it looked like his bones were about to pop off his skin.

When Lee Yul came in, the man raised his hand and greeted him,

“Our client has returned.”

“What’s the meaning of this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Who told you to sit in my chair”

“Ah! Well, that—”

“Stand up.”

“You’re awfully being very strict about that.”

The skinny man grumbled and rose from his seat.

Lee Yul sat down in his seat and askwed,

“Where have you been?”

“I just went and said my greetings.”

“Greetings? Did you meet him?”

“Ah, I didn’t see him in person, so don’t worry. I just said hello using my doll.”

The man grinned.

He was Heuk-ho who attempted to take Pyo-wol’s life through the doll’s explosion.

Lee Yul’s eyes became sharp like a dagger.

“I’m sure I told you to control yourself for a while.”

“Ah! Why are you so nervous? Did the sect leader scolded you?”

Heuk-ho giggled.

“What about the other?”

“Everyone is on stand-by just as you ordered. But do we really have to do this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Pyo-wol. It would be simpler if we just kill him immediately. Why do we have to make this more complicated?”

Heuk-ho was genuinely curious.

There’s no doubt that Pyo-wol is a great assassin.

It was definitely surprising to find out that another assassin has managed to reach this level without belonging to the Hundred Wraith Union. But he couldn’t see why they had to complicate things.

Lee Yul ordered Heuk-ho to assassinate Seong-un.

If Seong-un hadn’t been immersed and distracted in reading the Buddhist scriptures, it would have been much harder to assassinate him. But even if Seong-un hadn’t been careless, Heuk-ho would have assassinated him one way or another.

“If you want to cast doubt on Pyo-wol, wouldn’t it be much easier to just fabricate the evidence? If you did, then I’m sure the Jin family would have already gotten suspicious of him and kicked him out by now.”

“You’re stupid.”

“Pardon?”

“If you blatantly manipulate evidence and accuse him of being a criminal, there will always be people who would doubt it. Being accused of being a criminal is all too common after all. It’s better to instill suspicions in people’s minds. They themselves would think and formulate their own conclusions. It may be slight, but as time goes by, their suspicions will grow, and they will naturally ostracize him.”

“Oh! That sounds good.”

“It’s important for the Jin family to be the one to cut himself off. His place will be taken away and he will be isolated physically and emotionally. Can he really withstand the pressure? What do you think he would feel once he’s ostracize by the one who he came to help?”

“OHH!”

“Then what if another murder happens in the Jin family? Especially when they’re already in a tight spot?”

“Of course, the Jin family is bound to point to him as the culprit. They will naturally pursue him relentlessly, right?”

“Then, imagine what choice would a cornered assassin make?”

“If it were me, I’d kill every single one of those who didn’t trust me.”

“Don’t you think he’s going to be like that too? I’ll make sure to make that happen. Then he’ll become Jianghu’s public enemy.”

“You are the real devil! Wow!”

Heuk-ho showed his admiration.

As an assassin, he committed countless murders, but he never thought ot destroying a single person with such an elaborate plan.

“So wait until then. I’ll let you hunt to your heart’s content after that.”

“Okay. I’ll listen to you. Wow! I just got goosebumps!”

Heuk-ho rubbed both of his arms and shuddered.

He sounded somewhat sarcastic, but Lee Yul didn’t care.

He came up with this plan because he knew about Pyo-wol’s identity through the Black Cloud Corps. After learning that the assassin who invaded his front yard was the same as the assassin who caused the tragedy in Chengdu, he realized that he could not handle him in the usual way and made an elaborate plan.

‘I’ll slowly dry your blood and kill you.’

* * *

“Amitabha! Seong-un is dead.”

“Who would dare kill Senior Brother Seong-un—”

There was a group of monks entering Runan.

At their appearance, the warriors in Runan held their breath.

It was because the leader holding a cane, his gray robes, and the clear dots on his forehead indicated that they were monks from the Shaolin Temple.

The group was headed by Un-hae, an elder of Shaolin Temple, followed by Seongam, a third-generation disciple, and many second-generation disciples.

The expression on Un-hae’s face was extremely sad.

He tried his best to control his emotions on the way here, but the waves of emotions did not easily subside.

“I will surely punish those who killed Senior Brother Seong-un with my own hands.”

Seongam, who was next to Un-hae, clenched his fists and muttered.

With his intimidating face and giant figure, anyone who saw him would find it hard to believe that he was a monk.

Seongam’s nickname in the Shaolin Temple is the Crazy Buddha.5

While he possessed great strength from birth, he was so hot-tempered that he tended to cause numerous accidents. Even his parents couldn’t handle him so they ended up leaving him to the Shaolin Temple.

But even after coming to the Shaolin Temple, Seongam’s character did not easily change. While he did become a little docile under the influence of the Buddhist scriptures, his ferocious temper still remained the same, hidden inside of him.

Seongam especially liked his Senior Brother, Seong-un.

All his other senior brothers tried to control him, but it was only Seong-un who looked and accepted him as he was.

When he heard the news of Seong-un’s death, he was devastated and angry.

He even swore.

That he would never kill the person who killed Seong-un gracefully.

A shadow was cast on Un-hae’s face as he looked at Seongam.

His heart was heavy at the appearance of Seongam who exudes such fierce murderous intent even though he was a monk.

‘I can’t have this kid run out of control again…’

Seongmu and Seonghwan were known to be the best among the first-generation disciples, but Un-hae knew that there was no one who could defeat Seongam if it’s simply in terms of martial arts. He was so strong to the point that they couldn’t guarantee they could subdue Seongam once he ran rampant.

Seongam is a double-edged sword.

If used well, he could be of great help to his allies. But he could also act as a great disaster the moment he loses control.

Sending Seongam to Runan despite knowing that fact is enough proof that the Shaolin Temple is taking this situation very seriously.

From the moment the monks of the Shaolin Temple appeared, the people in Runan couldn’t take their eyes off them.

They also knew that a monk from the Shaolin Temple had been assassinated in the Jin family.

This is the first time in recent decades that a Shaolin monk has been assassinated.

Furthermore, he was a first-generation disciple. Not just of any sect, but of the Shaolin Temple. And among the first-generation disciples, Seong-un is the one whom elders and fellow disciples trust the most.

The Shaolin Temple could not afford to stand still.

It was clear that the Shaolin Temple would lose its face and be mocked if they did not respond.

The Shaolin Temple knew better than anyone what would happen to the fate of a sect, who is seen as a joke in Jianghu.

It was Jianghu’s nature to attack and bite like a wild dog once a sect showed a weak appearance.

No matter how unreasonable they have to be, and no matter how much they advocate helping people, they have no choice but to show their strength.

For that reason, Seongam was dispatched.

To show the power of the Shaolin Temple to those who would dare look down on them.

They arrived at the Jin family in no time.

The moment they showed up, the Jin family removed all the obstacles at the entrance.

Jin Siwoo hurriedly greeted them.

“Welcome—”

“Amitabha! Let’s say hello later. Please guide us to Seong-un’s body.”

Un-hae interrupted Jin Siwoo’s greeting and said.

“Okay. Follow me.”

Jin Siwoo eventually led him to the room where Bo-kyeong was.

Once he opened the door, they all saw Bo-kyeong guarding the Ice Jade Coffin containing Seong-un’s body.

“Bo-kyeong!”

“I couldn’t protect Senior Brother. Please punish me.”

Bo-kyeong knelt in front of Seongam.

Seongam grabbed Bo-kyeong by the collar and raised him up.

“Who is it?! The one who killed Brother Seong-un–!”

SoundlessWind21’s Notes

Thank you for reading!

If a rich man becomes bankrupt, they would still have something to eat for three years. Korean saying. People who were originally wealthy can survive and live for a while even if they suddenly fail one day. Secret Shadow Group. Raws: Milyeongdan, 밀영단(密影團). 密 mì – dense, thick, close; intimate 影 yǐng – shadow; image, reflection; photograph 團 tuán – sphere, ball, circle; mass, lump Eight Great Wild Axe Technique. Raws: Eight Hwangdaebusul, 팔황대부술(八荒大斧術). 八 bā – eight; all around, all sides 荒 huāng, huǎng, kāng – wasteland, desert; uncultivated 大 dà, dài, tài – big, great, vast, large, high 斧 fǔ – axe, hatchet; chop, hew 術 shù – art, skill, special feat; method, technique Bloody Axe of Hell. Raws: 지옥혈부(地獄血斧). 地 dì, de – earth; soil, ground; region 獄 yù – prison, jail; case; lawsuit 血 xiě, xuè – blood; radical number 143 斧 fǔ – axe, hatchet; chop, hew Crazy Buddha. Raws: Gwangbul, 광불(狂佛). 狂 kuáng, jué – insane, mad; violent; wild 佛 fó, fú – Buddha; of Buddhism; merciful person; Buddhist image