Reaper of the Drifting Moon Chapter 500

September 12, 2023 • 11 min read • 953 views

Hong Ye-seol and Sal-no stood side by side on the roof of the ruins.

The wind blew, messing up both of their hair.

Hong Ye-seol brushed her hair back with her long, white fingers.

Silently, Sal-no watched her side profile.

The silence between them lasted for a while.

Sal-no was the one who broke the silence.

“What will you do?”

“What do you mean?”

“I will follow whatever decision you make.”

“Is that okay?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

Hong Ye-seol furrowed her brow at Sal-no’s response.

If Sal-no had moved the Black Shadow Assassins during her fight with the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union , she would have already been dead. But Sal-no stopped the assassins from intervening in the fight between the leader of Hundred Wraith Union and Hong Ye-seol, and thanks to that, Hong Ye-seol was able to kill Hundred Wraith Union’s leader without anyone’s interference.

Even after helping her, Sal-no did not expect any reward.

“Why did you help me? You could have sided with the former Union leader.”

“Because I’m an assassin.”

“Excuse me?”

“People may despise our line of work as assassins, but I have my own pride in it. In fact, our job is the kind that wouldn’t last long without something to rely on.”

“So that alternative was pride?”

“Yes. Even though people despise our profession, I carry out my missions with my own will. That was my pride. At least, I had the freedom to choose which missions to perform. But that changed when the previous leader made a contract with Guryongsalmak. I had to carry out missions I didn’t want. And it wasn’t just me. All the assassins of Hundred Wraith Union were subtly forced.”

Of course, there were those who actually liked the Union leader’s decision. Most of them were young assassins who wanted to make a name for themselves in the martial world. However, for older assassins like Sal-no, who were nearing retirement, the Union leader’s decision was not welcome.

They wanted the union leader to continue with the same principles that the Hundred Wraith Union had upheld until then. However, they couldn’t stop the leader’s unilateral actions.

The assassination of seven sage scholar was also a unilateral decision by the union leader.

Knowing the chaos it would bring to the martial world, Sal-no opposed the order. But the Union leader ignored it and pushed forward.

In the end, seven sage scholar’s death led to widespread outrage in the martial world, eventually triggering the Great War.

No matter how much they lived off the deaths of others, they didn’t like the fact that they caused so much chaos and death.

That was one of the reasons why Sal-no sided with Hong Ye-seol.

Sal-no gave a bitter smile.

“I know it’s an excuse. How could a mere assassin talk about pride? But that’s how I feel.”

“Hmm!”

“It seems that you’ve made up your mind as well?”

“Does it show?”

“Are you planning to be with the Reaper?”

“Is it a bad match?”

“No, it’s a good match.”

“I thought so.”

Hong Ye-seol smiled.

So far, she has clashed and fought with Pyo Wol countless times. They had casually shared love, and also stabbed each other in the back. Through their long struggle, they had come to understand each other.

“I need him.”

“In what way?”

“For survival.”

“Survival? Aren’t you surviving now?”

“Just because we’re breathing doesn’t mean we’re truly living. Can you consider it life if we’re merely living at the whim of others? If we leave things as they are, there will always be those who seek to use us.”

“Like Guryongsalmak?”

“That’s right. Silver Lotus Hall and Golden Heavenly Hall, Heavenly Martial Sect and Mad Martial Sect, and any ambitious martial arts sect would try to exploit us. We are a resource too useful to ignore.”

“Hmm!”

Sal-no was silent at Hong Ye Seol’s words. Her speech had precisely hit the mark.

Sal-no asked, “So you think that if we follow him, we won’t be used?”

“Heh!”.

Suddenly, Hong Ye-seol smirked mischievously. Sal-no looked puzzled, wondering if he had said something wrong.

Hong Ye-seol flicked her finger and said, “We’re not following him, we’re using him.”

“Using him? We are?”

“Yes. We’re using the reaper as a shield. There’s no better shield in the current martial world.”

“It makes sense.”

Sal-no nodded his head.

Regardless of what anyone said, Pyo Wol was the pinnacle of assassins.

Moreover, he was the top martial artist recognized in kangho.

A man who was both an assassin and a martial artist, and one who was recognised by both.
He was the only one of his kind in Kangho.

If they could use Pyo Wol as a shield, no martial arts sect would dare attempt to manipulate the Hundred Wraith Union.

Hong Ye-seol revealed her white teeth and laughed.

“Haha! It’s a good idea, isn’t it?”

“Yes! It’s definitely a good idea. However…”

“However?”

“You’re not being honest.”

Hong Ye-seol’s face contorted at Sal-no’s sudden remark.

“What do you mean? What am I not being honest about?”

“Hehe! You know, don’t you?”

“Hmph! I have no idea what Sal-no is talking about.”

Hong Ye-seol chuckled, but she turned her head to avoid Sal-no’s persistent gaze.

Pyo Wol, who had come outside, declared, “We’re going to Poyang Lake.”

“Really?”

“Brother?”

Eun-yo and Do Yeonsan looked at Pyo Wol in surprise.

They had thought it might happen, but it was still shocking to hear it directly from Pyo Wol’s mouth.

Pyo Wol’s words meant that he was going to intervene in the recent war of the great powers.
Pyo Wol thought about it all night.

He had no desire for power or ambition to become the greatest in the world.

All he wanted was to live comfortably in the peaceful city of Sichuan. However, the ongoing situation wouldn’t allow him to live at ease.

Guryongsalmak, controlled by So Yeowol, was still hostile to him, and numerous people were threatening him.

The best way to escape the threats was to become an existence they wouldn’t dare to mess with. But there was a limit to what he could do alone.

Pyo Wol, who had so far stood unaided and unrivaled, needed to establish his own fortress to protect himself.

Pyo Wol declared, “I will place all the assassin sects in the world under my feet.”

“…”

Everyone was speechless at his audacious declaration.

If anyone else had said such a thing, they would have immediately laughed, but since the person making the statement was Pyo Wol, it seemed more realistic.

So far, there had been nothing Pyo Wol said that hadn’t come true.

He always made his words come to life, which is why his current declaration didn’t feel like an empty or idle statement.

At that moment, Hong Ye-seol stood beside Pyo Wol with a smile.

“I’ve been waiting for you to say that. We, Hundred Wraith Union, will be with you.”

“If you plan to back out halfway, it’s better not to start at all.”

“What?”

“Because I won’t allow it.”

“That is…”

A look of confusion appeared on Hong Ye-seol’s face, as she hadn’t expected Pyo Wol to say such a thing.

At that moment, Sal-no came out and bowed his head.

“Such a thing will never happen.”

“I wasn’t talking to you.”

“My thoughts are in line with the will of the leader. The leader’s will won’t change.”

Sal-no’s voice was calm and very polite.

Sal-no respected the man before him.

The age difference didn’t matter.

Seeing the path Pyo Wol had walked, he couldn’t help but respect him as a fellow assassin.

“Can you take responsibility for that?”

“I will stake my humble life on it.”

“I’ll trust you.”

“Thank you. We won’t disappoint you.”

Sal-no bowed in response.

Pyo Wol looked at Hong Ye-seol, who then shrugged her shoulders.

“There won’t be a situation where my will changes and I kill Sal-no. He’s very important to me as well.”

“Thank you, leader!”

Sal-no expressed his gratitude to Hong Ye-seol.

Hong Ye-seol awkwardly wrinkled her nose.

Do Yeonsan muttered, “With so many people moving, we’ll need to secure horses first.”

Taking a boat would have been the best option. However, there was no direct boat from Giyang to Poyang Lake, and using waterways would increase the chances of being noticed by others. It was much better to move on horseback.

Eun-yo said, “I’ll take care of the horses.”

“Do you know where to get them?”

“There’s a horse market that traded with New Moon Manor. If we use that place, we can secure horses easily.”

Large forces like New Moon Manor regularly purchased horses.

This was why large horse markets tended to form around such forces.

Since New Moon Manor disappeared overnight, the horse market must have fallen into great chaos. Many horses were prepared to be sold to New Moon Manor, but now there was suddenly nowhere to sell them. As a result, the price of horses had dropped significantly.

Once the topic of horses was brought up, Eun-yo immediately took Nam Shin-woo to buy horses.

Do Yeonsan also headed to the market to buy necessary supplies.

At their decisive actions, Sal-no wore a slightly admiring expression.

‘Everyone knows exactly what they need to do.’

Even without any instructions from Pyo Wol, everyone was proactively doing what they thought
was necessary. Acting so independently was not an easy task.

Yet, the fact that they were doing their jobs so autonomously was proof of their eagerness to assist Pyo Wol.

Pyo Wol said to Hong Ye-seol, “There’s something you need to do.”

“Tell me.”

“Find as much information on the assassin guilds as you can.”

“Understood.”

Hong Ye-seol replied immediately.

Her face was flushed.

Seeing Pyo Wol give orders without hesitation made her feel strangely happy.
TL/N-New Fetish unlocked

Pyo Wol asked Sal-no, “Do you know of any decent workshops around here?”

“Are you asking about a workshop because of weapons?”

“Right!”

Pyo Wol nodded.

He had reached a level where he didn’t necessarily need weapons anymore.

With his mastery of Soul Reaping Threads, he could silently kill any moderately skilled fighters.
For stronger enemies, he could use threaded serpent qi.

If he didn’t have many enemies, that would be enough. But he didn’t know how many enemies he would be facing in the future.

The more prepared, the better.

Snap!

Sal-no snapped his fingers, and an assassin from the Black Shadow Assassins appeared atop the wall.

Sal-no spoke to him

“Bring the weapon chest.”

“Yes!”

The assassin disappeared after responding, but soon reappeared carrying a large box on his shoulder.

The assassin placed the chest, the size of a coffin, in front of Sal-no.

Sal-no opened the lid of the box and said, “These are the weapons we carry as supplies. They are probably of better quality than those made in ordinary workshops.”

The box was filled with weapons used by the assassins.

Made by the craftsmen affiliated with Hundred Wraith Union, all boasted top quality and performance.

Pyo Wol carefully examined the weapons in the box.

A dagger the length of a child’s arm.

An oddly-shaped sickle with a chain attached.

A small ax that could be thrown.

Needles as thin as a hair.

The variety was impressive.

The box contained virtually every weapon an assassin could use.

Pyo Wol picked up and examined each weapon one by one.

“Nice!”

“Please feel free to choose.”

Sal-no bowed even deeper.

After examining the weapons for quite some time, Pyo Wol found a bundle of blades.

These blades were smaller than a child’s palm.

Pyo Wol recalled the Ghost Blades he had used in the past.

Although not as good as the Ghost Blades made by Tang Sochu, these were much smaller and lighter. There were more than twenty of these blades.

Sal-no cautiously asked, “Do they meet your satisfaction?”

“Very much!”

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