Chapter 22
The Worm Within the Lion 獅子身中蟲 (2)
The eyes of Chief Strategist Jang Dae-wi gleamed sharply.
“From the southwest, Grand Strategist. The enemy is moving north.”
“Hehehe… so it ends here.”
Zhuge Sun-hu smiled in satisfaction.
“Talk about bad luck—of all places, they head straight toward the sector guarded by the Martial Alliance Leader, Golden-Sword Saber Guo Jin?”
“Shall we move as well?”
“Of course. I must be present when that wretch is interrogated.”
“Understood.”
“Wait.”
Zhuge Sun-hu stopped Chief Strategist Jang Dae-wi, who was about to immediately follow.
“You stay here.”
“You think this isn’t over…?”
“Indeed. It could be a diversion. If the signal arrows keep firing, and even bands of rogue wanderers start stirring up the Heaven’s Net formation, someone must be here to adjust the Alliance’s troops accordingly.”
“…Understood.”
That was the end of it.
Zhuge Sun-hu unleashed his movement arts and sped toward the front where Alliance Leader Guo Jin had intercepted the enemy.
***
A tremor flickered at the corner of the Red Dragon King’s eyes.
“My grandson… That child, upon opening his eyes, might not even remain the successor to the Black Lotus whom I so cherished?!”
He had already known that some strange power filled his grandson’s head.
But that this vile force inside Yeom Gi-jin’s mind was in fact a sorcery that could transform him into an entirely different person?!
“Brainwashing?”
No. It was something else entirely.
“Or perhaps… necromancy? Hypnosis? A powerful suggestion of some kind?”
He couldn’t be sure.
All such sinister arts should have long vanished with the fall of the Apostates.
Then, a flash.
“Still… is there hope?”
A fierce light burned in the Red Dragon King’s eyes. He looked at the young martial novice Kang Yong-un standing before him.
“Not only did he discern instantly what even I had not realized, but he had the courage to tell me outright…”
Perhaps this boy held the key.
“Since you’ve analyzed it, you must also have a countermeasure. Speak. If you require anything, I will grant it with all the strength at my disposal.”
His eyes glowed with a blue, intimidating light.
It was a warning—if the boy had spoken recklessly without a true plan, then he had merely fanned the flames of a burning house.
Kang Yong-un was troubled.
“Haa… what else can I do?”
All he could rely on was the Grand Heavenly Art.
Though he knew better than to boast, he had no choice but to answer:
“I don’t know how long it will take, but I will do my utmost.”
***
Half an incense stick of time later.
They set off for the Black Lotus stronghold, escorted by the Red Dragon Guards who served as both watchers and protectors.
“Lord, are we truly doing this?”
“…I don’t know either.”
“This feels like we’re being herded to a slaughterhouse. I don’t like it at all.”
“We could be dragged into the Black Lotus only to vanish without a trace.”
“But even the Deputy Strategist says it’s fine!”
“True. Especially Strategist Kang—he even saw through those wicked illusions. We can trust him.”
Suspended somewhere between despair and faith, Bang Geuk, the captains, and the Storm Troop whispered anxiously.
None of them had foreseen things unfolding like this.
“Very well. Then let us all go to the Black Lotus together.”
That was the Red Dragon King’s reply after Kang Yong-un declared that he would try his best, no matter how long it took.
The Storm Troop leader was startled and objected. He urged that the treatment be attempted here, or at least in the nearby Hongho prefecture.
But both Kang Yong-un—and unexpectedly even Zhuge Hye-ryeong—supported heading to the Black Lotus.
The Red Dragon King’s eyes narrowed.
“Why do you all insist on coming? The only one I need is this child.”
His voice was dry, almost dismissive.
But Zhuge Hye-ryeong held her ground.
“He is the strategist of the Martial Alliance. It is only proper that I and the Storm Troop accompany him.”
Kang Yong-un blinked.
“Me? A Martial Alliance strategist?”
Since when?!
“During the battle earlier, they kept calling me ‘Strategist Kang’… I thought they were just bluffing to save me. But why are they saying it still?”
He opened his mouth to deny it immediately.
But then—sparkle.
The peculiar gleam in Zhuge Hye-ryeong’s eyes made him stop.
“Eh, forget it. She must have her reasons.”
“I’ll ask later. For now, we have more urgent matters.”
The important thing was saving the Red Dragon King’s grandson, Yeom Gi-jin.
“We have no time, elder. Let’s go quickly.”
What could the Red Dragon King say? He could not press further.
On the way, they exchanged only minor questions.
“Ahem… so, you mainly trained in the Three-Essence Heart Method?”
“Yes, Lord.”
“And your swordsmanship is based on the Three-Essence Sword, linked to the fundamental martial formulas?”
“Yes. I have yet to learn other sword techniques.”
After a moment’s silence, Kang Yong-un carefully shifted the topic.
“Lord, I agreed to accompany you to the Black Lotus not only for treatment’s sake, but because I wished to confirm one grave concern of mine.”
“A concern?”
Perhaps irritated, the Red Dragon King’s tone rose slightly.
But Kang Yong-un explained firmly.
“When the Red Dragon Guard returned, I saw you receiving their reports. You must have learned then that the Martial Alliance has completely sealed off the northern approaches of Hongho.”
“Hmph! Nonsense.”
The Red Dragon King flared.
“You think you can make me, the Red Dragon King, indebted over something so trifling?”
Of course, as a leader of a grand sect, he had already discerned the implications the moment he heard the reports.
“The Apostates had already been caught in my grasp. They could never have escaped.”
“That, Lord, is precisely the problem.”
Kang Yong-un’s voice remained calm, yet firm enough to carry over the King’s thundering qi-filled shout.
“They had prepared numerous formations designed only to stall for time. You know this well.”
Zhuge Hye-ryeong, who had been silent, also spoke up.
“Though you pursued them faster than expected, had they truly wished, they could have escaped Hongho. At the very least, that much was possible.”
“Khmm… that may be so…”
The Red Dragon King trailed off. He knew it was true—if their goal was escape, then with their careful preparations, they could have fled Hongho at least.
Kang Yong-un pressed further.
“But they did not. Instead, they focused on casting their sorcery upon your grandson.”
Not only that—they had even gone so far as to deliberately hand him over into the Red Dragon King’s hands.
“You realize, do you not? The Apostate who escaped in the end was strong enough to rip your unconscious grandson apart in an instant.”
Thus, the handover was intentional.
Kang Yong-un made this clear to the Red Dragon King.
“Those bastards! Damn them to hell!”
“When I realized this, I feared for something greater. That perhaps you, your Red Dragon Guard, and even the Black Lotus itself would be drawn northward—leaving the Black Lotus headquarters, already weakened, vulnerable.”
“Drawing the tiger from the mountain…”
Zhuge Hye-ryeong neatly summed it up in a single idiom.
The Red Dragon King’s eyes narrowed.
He didn’t need military theory to know what that implied.
“Lord, my greatest fear is that some force intends to lure away your strength, only to strike at the heart of the Black Lotus in your absence.”
Kang Yong-un didn’t repeat Zhuge Hye-ryeong’s proverb. His intuition told him the truth could be even worse.
The Red Dragon King fell silent, face grave.
After a long pause, he suddenly called:
“So Daechu!”
“Yes, my Lord.”
“Send a message to the Lotus at once.”
“I await your command.”
“Order all Black Lotus forces deployed in this operation to return immediately. Have them also scout carefully for any suspicious gatherings near the Lotus—like the rogues we saw around Hongho.”
“At once!”
Commander So Hyuk-rin bowed and departed.
Kang Yong-un allowed himself a breath.
“The courier will take half a day. By evening at the latest, the Black Lotus defenses will change.”
Since the Apostates had purposely let the heir live, this could not merely be a simple diversion.
“If it were me, I wouldn’t use such an obvious ploy.”
Still, he did not contradict Zhuge Hye-ryeong.
“What I fear is something far worse than a diversion.”
He decided on a precautionary step.
“Lord, I have a request.”
“Oh? Speak.”
Leaning close, Kang Yong-un whispered quietly in the Red Dragon King’s ear.
“…So in short…”
“Yes, yes… I see.”
The King’s eyes flashed as he nodded repeatedly. He summoned So Hyuk-rin again and gave him Kang Yong-un’s secret request.
Zhuge Hye-ryeong, watching all this, let her eyes glimmer strangely.
***
Mount Aknok.
A day’s journey south of Dongting Lake. Only about a hundred zhang high, with smaller mountains arranged around it like a folding screen, forming a secluded valley.
The Black Lotus had made their base there.
In front flowed the mighty Xiang River—an ideal site of baesanimsu, mountains behind, water before. A natural fortress.
Kang Yong-un couldn’t help but nod in admiration.
“They picked a fine place.”
Better even than the Martial Alliance headquarters.
“Impossible for a small strike force.”
Along the river rose high fortifications, watchtowers at four points. A handful of attackers couldn’t even capture one.
“To attempt assault here, you’d need thousands. No—at least ten thousand warriors.”
Only now did he grasp the Apostates’ plan—why they had kidnapped the heir, cast their sorcery, and then released him.
“Opening the source, cutting the flow…”
An old proverb: increase revenue, reduce expenditure—maximum gain with minimum cost.
That was exactly what the Apostates had done.
“This way.”
“Yes.”
Upon arrival, the Red Dragon King himself led Kang Yong-un into the Inner Quarters.
“The Storm Troop will come this way.”
Naturally, Zhuge Hye-ryeong, Bang Geuk, and Yoo Seong-jin tried to follow. But the Red Dragon Guard blocked them.
“What is the meaning of this?”
“We are responsible for Strategist Kang’s protection—”
“Strategist Kang must remain with us.”
They resisted firmly, but Kang Yong-un’s own words deflated them.
“Don’t worry. With the Red Dragon King himself here, what danger could there be?”
If the man himself said so, what could they do?
“Damn it. That Red Dragon King is exactly what worries me most…”
“…But fine. We’ve come this far—worry is pointless.”
They had no choice but to turn away.
“Deputy Strategist.”
“Yes?”
Kang Yong-un suddenly called out to Zhuge Hye-ryeong as she turned.
Looking into her eyes, he spoke with layered, ambiguous meaning:
“Once this urgent matter is settled, I would like to share a cup of tea with you.”
Her eyes shone brightly.
“I’ll be waiting.”
“This way—!”
That was the end of it.
Led by the Red Dragon Guard, Zhuge Hye-ryeong and the Storm Troop were guided toward the Outer Quarters.
