“What about me?”

A girl poked her face in with the faint light of dawn. She had crept through the bedroom door like a cat, and Jung Yeonshin nearly struck, mistaking her for Shin Binbin.

But her eyes were larger. It was Shin Sobin, his immediate junior.

Shin Binbin and Shin Sobin. Though they had recently gone their separate ways into the Suncheon Wing and Radiant Demon Squad, the sisters had spent their childhood training in the Shin Clan. Their presences were similar. Had Jung Yeonshin been more deeply absorbed in circulating his energy, he really would have lashed out.

Having just finished his regulated breathing and circulation, he uncrossed his legs and rose.

‘I can leave right away.’

It was time. Everyone would be gathered as agreed.

“Lightning Genius, what about me?”

Shin Sobin trailed him all the way out of the Radiant Demon Squad compound. Even as its unranked disciples saw him off, she kept her eyes fixed on his face.

“Make sure you beat them all up!”

“If those Sichuan bumpkins get in your way, cut them all down! Show them how sublime the radiant demon arts are!”

“Please bring the others back, too. I miss Mingming and Chang...”

The girl sounded mournful as she spoke of Chung Myung and Heon Wonchang. Chung Myung had been with the Radiant Demon Squad for a long time. A member of the noble race and strikingly handsome to boot, he had earned an affectionate nickname from the unranked disciples.

Heon Wonchang was popular as well, thanks to his characteristic easygoing affability.

Jung Yeonshin silently swept his gaze over the children once, then stepped outside. Shin Sobin lightly caught his sleeve and followed.

“Take me with you. I promise I’ll be useful.”

“You need to look after the children,” he replied evenly.

As Shin Sobin’s eyes drooped in disappointment, the Supreme Flame Dragon chimed in from beside him.

“Wasn’t babysitting why you stayed behind? Helping the children with their martial arts and all. Well, that’s the youngest one’s lot. Ah... just talking to myself.”

“Did an unranked disciple just...”

“A girl the size of a full-grown member of the iron race.”

“What did you say?”

Jung Yeonshin kept walking as the two bickered. Soon he reached the Desolate Fortress’s main gate. Two people from the Suncheon Wing approached them first.

Namgoong Hwashin and Shin Binbin.

“Binbin. How far do you intend to follow me?”

Namgoong Hwashin turned his head and asked with an indifferent expression. Shin Binbin, however, remained composed.

“All the way to Sichuan, my dear.”

“The unranked children must have tried to stop you.”

“What can they do if I insist on going? I brought servants and warriors from my clan to look after them, so I’ve certainly done my part. There’s nothing to worry about.”

Her expression was haughty, but that was as far as her imposing confidence lasted. The instant she saw Jung Yeonshin, who had drawn close, her face went white.

A host of emotions flitted across it. Fear and helplessness were joined by shame, evident in her faint blush.

The boy thought Namgoong Hwashin must have explained the circumstances to her.

There was no particular need for further conversation. Jung Yeonshin inclined his head toward Namgoong Hwashin.

“Young Master Namgoong.”

“Young Master Jung.”

Returning the greeting, Namgoong Hwashin spoke again.

“You are the leader of this combat unit. Discipline must be upheld. If any of our Suncheon Wing warriors should defy your orders during the mission, I will execute them myself.”

An upright disposition did not make him soft. He seemed honed like a blade.

Shin Binbin merely kept her head bowed, offering no other reaction.

“... Very well.”

Jung Yeonshin gave the brief reply and walked past them.

Beside him, Shin Sobin looked at her older sister’s face as though seeing a stranger, while the Supreme Flame Dragon gave Namgoong Hwashin a peculiar look.

“It’s been a while.”

“It has.”

Blue Qilin Namgoong Sejin had reportedly been the Supreme Flame Dragon’s close friend. Namgoong Hwashin and the Supreme Flame Dragon appeared acquainted as well.

Jung Yeonshin suddenly wondered what the Supreme Flame Dragon thought of Namgoong Sejin’s death, but set the question aside for now.

SWISH

An astonishing display of qi waves filled the open space before him. The moment Jung Yeonshin appeared, the warriors released their martial power and fighting spirit.

The entire Lightning Genius lineage had gathered. Though he had arrived ahead of the appointed time, everyone seemed to be there already. Fine horses stood with them, snorting and blowing. All preparations were complete.

“Founding Master.”

“You have arrived.”

Their martial salutes were like clockwork. They raised their clasped hands and bowed their heads in perfect unison, calling to mind the Vajra Bronze Men said to stand within Shaolin Temple’s Eighteen Gates.

Though he had never seen them, he vaguely imagined they might look something like this. The warriors’ respectful bearing was solemn enough to suggest it.

“My. So it really is true.”

Chief Administrator Im Jinmyeong sighed.

Warriors were not the only ones gathered. Scholars from the Command Bureau had come to see the rescue party off.

When Jung Yeonshin had returned the previous night with his roster, they had granted conditional approval despite their doubts. If the listed personnel were truly present, they would recognize the party as a provisional combat unit.

“The Lightning Genius martial lineage...”

Looking at the bowed warriors, the Chief Administrator stroked his beard and murmured.

Something extraordinary was happening. Many people had donated martial arts to the Desolate Fortress’s Gold-Piercing Martial Repository, but never had warriors revered a single person as their founding master like this.

The Chief Administrator turned toward Jung Yeonshin.

“Young Master Jung.”

“Yes, Chief Administrator.”

“If you bring them all back safely, and your attainments and merits grow still greater...”

What scene was he envisioning? For an instant, a curious gleam seemed to flash in his eyes, but in the end he trailed off and shook his head.

“I must not burden you. I hereby formally authorize your departure on this mission.”

“Thank you.”

Jung Yeonshin answered immediately. The Chief Administrator smiled.

“As this is a provisional combat unit, we shall name it the Wing-Returning Unit, in the hope that the Radiant Demon Squad returns. The best outcome is for you to return alive with the Radiant Demon Squad. Failing that... identify the culprits. I shall submit the documents with those two objectives.”

“We ought to accomplish both,” Jung Yeonshin replied.

Several people whose energy detection seemed particularly keen flinched, perhaps sensing the killing intent suffused through his unassuming voice.

In truth, the boy had a third objective in mind, one the Chief Administrator had not mentioned.

‘Revenge.’

The Chief Administrator nodded without betraying any particular reaction.

‘It is also important to show that our fortress remains strong. Whether this prodigy of the ages can accomplish that much, or whether they will all fall together in the harsh lands of Sichuan, remains to be seen...’

He was already a blue-robed expert, a rank that permitted him to act independently. On top of that, he was creating a new martial lineage.

The Command Bureau could authorize his mission, but it was no longer in a position to dictate Jung Yeonshin’s every course of action. His standing had risen immeasurably.

The Chief Administrator watched Lightning Genius’s retreating back as he turned and walked away. One by one, the backs of the full-fledged warriors following him joined the view.

Amid the brushing hems of their martial robes, only the rattling of sword hilts at their waists rang out. There was a fierce air to the sight.

Chief Administrator Im Jinmyeong’s lips parted slightly.

“Young Master Jung.”

“...?”

Jung Yeonshin glanced back. The Chief Administrator continued.

“The fortress master is currently in Beijing. She sent a message for her disciple. It arrived at dawn today.”

“... Please tell me.”

“Here it is.”

The Chief Administrator drew a rolled sheet of paper from his robes and lightly tossed the letter toward Jung Yeonshin. It flew straight, seemingly imbued with internal energy.

The warriors of the Lightning Genius lineage moved aside. Jung Yeonshin caught the paper and unrolled it at once, his eyes scanning the contents.

The words were written in regular script, neat yet flowing.

[Imbue the flow you have wrought with intent. Breathe through a divine technique, and you shall ascend to the black rank.]

“...”

He could almost hear her crystalline voice in his ears. It was a strange feeling.

“What’s it say?”

Shin Sobin grabbed the Supreme Flame Dragon by the hair and pulled him back as he craned his neck to peek. Despite the violence of the gesture, her eyes were gloomy as she spoke.

“Lightning Genius, take care of yourself.”

“I will.”

Tucking the Desolate Fortress Master’s second teaching into his robes, Jung Yeonshin turned. At last, they set out.

* * *

THUNDER, THUNDER!

The hoofbeats sounded like thunder. It was a familiar noise now. He had listened to it from horseback for more than a fortnight.

‘Thank you.’

Jung Yeonshin stroked the neck of his horse, whose eyes had rolled back. At the same time, he pushed off its back and leaped into the air.

It was time to change their mode of travel. Sichuan’s roads were rough. From here on, lightness skills would be more efficient.

THUD!

His foot left an imprint in the earth. Behind the boy, the warriors who had leaped and landed alongside him immediately began employing their lightness skills as well.

‘We’re almost there,’ Jung Yeonshin thought.

They were racing through Kuizhou Prefecture in Sichuan Province. They had reached the entrance to Sichuan from Huguang Province to the east.

They had changed horses incessantly along the way. Just now, they had abandoned all the horses that had exhausted themselves before reaching the final post station.

THUD! THUD!

His feet struck the earth without hesitation as he ran like an arrow. He had incorporated the subtleties of movement Chung Myung had taught him into his lightness skill. His Mobility Arts carried him forward, tearing through the air like a gale.

The qi waves of the experts following as though in pursuit of the boy were equally dazzling. This was the Desolate Fortress’s Wing-Returning Unit.

After they entered the roads of Shu in Sichuan, word began to spread quietly: experts from the Desolate Fortress were crossing the province with terrifying momentum.

“Say, Acting Captain.”

The Supreme Flame Dragon abruptly thrust his face into view on the right.

He possessed the martial power of the Solar Divine Meridians, said to increase without limit, and attainments in the Hwangbo clan’s supreme arts cultivated for longer than Jung Yeonshin had trained. He looked remarkably at ease even while using his lightness skill.

“Speak.”

“We’ll be arriving soon. There’s something you should know beforehand.”

“Tell me.”

At Jung Yeonshin’s curt reply, the Supreme Flame Dragon smiled faintly.

“With your kind permission, Acting Captain, I’ll speak freely. Well, it concerns my situation.”

“...”

“As you know, my damned clan made quite a mess, and the Desolate Fortress punished the Hwangbo family for treason. Normally, someone like the young clan head wouldn’t survive that.”

Jung Yeonshin had wondered about that a little himself. However promising a prodigy he might be, the Supreme Flame Dragon was fated to die young.

That fact was even widely known, under the name of the Solar Divine Meridians.

“I was a prisoner, waiting for the day I’d die, when somehow I made it out alive. But my position is still very uncertain. To put it bluntly, how many people in the Desolate Fortress actually trust me? They trust the fortress master’s orders. Spending what little life I have left under suspicion? That’s really no fun at all.”

“... And?”

“I need to prove my worth. Before our esteemed Lightning Genius.”

The Supreme Flame Dragon’s smile deepened. Looking at Jung Yeonshin’s profile, he said,

“Whatever you see me do, don’t be surprised.”

“...”

They ran for another half day. Only then did the meaning of the Supreme Flame Dragon’s words become clear.

It happened when the Wing-Returning Unit reached the top of a sheer cliff swept by cutting winds. At the cliff where the Radiant Demon Squad’s trail had vanished, a group of beggars sat waiting.

“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you.”

As they slowly got to their feet, one young beggar addressed them. His shabby face was slick with grease. He even smelled of meat.

Yet none of the Wing-Returning Unit’s warriors looked down on him. The cord tied around the beggar’s waist bore six knots.

“Six knots. The Beggars’ Sect’s young master. Founding Master, that man is the Beggar Heir.”

Hong Joogeom, standing behind Jung Yeonshin like an attendant, whispered quietly.

The Beggars’ Sect.

It was the One Gang among the great factions commonly called the Nine Great Sects and One Gang. Beggars who practiced martial arts gathered from across the land to form its web-like intelligence network.

“Yesterday, the Tang Clan’s twin prodigies paid a visit. Today, the imperial family’s treasured swords make an appearance.”

The young beggar, the Beggar Heir, spread both hands theatrically as he spoke.

Coming from a martial artist, the description “the imperial family’s treasured swords” was no compliment. Since the Ming imperial family and the Desolate Fortress publicly denied any connection, it was only right to take the remark as barbed.

Jung Yeonshin was not interested. He had no time to pick apart words.

“The Tang Clan?”

The boy recalled the Command Bureau’s report. It had stated that traces suspected to be from a Tang Clan ultimate technique remained at the end of the Radiant Demon Squad’s trail.

Blossoms Raining Across the Sky—a supreme divine technique known to martial artists throughout the Central Plains.

“Oh, the White Qilin and even the Supreme Flame Dragon. So the rumors were true. The White Qilin is more handsome than his likeness, and the Supreme Flame Dragon’s poppies look fresh indeed.”

The Beggar Heir grinned and surveyed the Wing-Returning Unit. His manner and tone made it difficult to guess what he was scheming.

Jung Yeonshin’s gaze darkened.

It happened then.

SMACK!

The Beggar Heir’s head jerked down. The Supreme Flame Dragon, suddenly standing beside him, was whispering.

“So, who are these Tang Clan prodigies? What did they come here for?”

“What do you think you’re—!”

The Beggar Heir’s strangled cry never fully escaped. The Supreme Flame Dragon’s palm immediately lashed across his head again.

This time, a rush of heat distorted the very air.

THUD!

The Beggar Heir flopped facedown like a frog. Even the invisible Protective Aura he had raised in that instant had been crushed outright.

A powerful tremor traveled through the ground.