Chapter 67

The hour of the tiger (4 a.m.) arrived, and Mokhyang woke the sleeping princess. Even though he had only poked her, the princess was startled and sat up abruptly.

“What is it?”

“It will soon be dawn. It’s best to move now. Would you like to be carried, or...”

“Shut up!”

Then, the princess began to move, fumbling in the dark. Since Mokhyang had no intention of stopping her, he followed her calmly.

‘Puffing up your pride will only tire you out, hah...’

As the day broke, the same sequence of events from the previous day unfolded. Before the pursuit began, Mokhyang made the princess walk as much as she could. That was why he had woken her up so early... Of course, he couldn’t let her be captured, so when the enemy started chasing them, he began to carry the princess and use his lightness skill. From then on, a heart-wrenching chase began, where they seemed to be caught but never were. The pursuers and the pursued were both in a race that drained their blood.

The princess was on the verge of fainting, seeing the enemies occasionally in the rear, and the pursuers, thinking they could catch her if they just pressed a little harder, abandoned all rest and meals, focusing solely on the chase, to the point of exhaustion.

By evening, the number of enemies had dwindled from over thirty to about five. Lightness skill is a technique that relies purely on inner strength, not on tricks. If used for short distances, the quality of the lightness skill is more important than inner strength. The better the speed, the more inner strength is consumed. However, no one would be foolish enough to use a speed-focused lightness skill for such a long chase. From the previous day’s pursuit, Mokhyang knew that the fugitive’s lightness skill was no joke. But from the fact that he had not joined forces with the imperial army and had only carried the princess, it was concluded that his martial arts were not as formidable. Therefore, the only option was to chase him to the death. If they could catch him, they could tear him apart...

The pursuit alternated between fast and slow, repeating throughout the day. As a result, those whose inner strength waned fell behind, leaving only the most powerful. However, the leader of the pursuers, a gray-robed warrior, was not particularly concerned. He had left markers for the stragglers to follow, and since they used a special scent called Manrihyang, they would surely regroup in the dark by following the scent.

Manrihyang is not a single type of scent but a general term for various special scents with a distinct aroma. Manrihyang has a strong, long-lasting scent that can be followed from a distance. While it can be detected up to a hundred miles away with the right inner strength training, it is almost imperceptible to ordinary people. Therefore, someone trained to detect one type of Manrihyang cannot necessarily detect another.

The forest where the heart-wrenching chase was taking place is not suitable for using lightness skills. Moreover, the opponent seemed to have no intention of escaping the vast mountains. If the fugitive had left the mountains, he could have contacted the experts waiting in various places and stripped him bare, but since he couldn’t, it was maddening. With no choice, the pursuit had to continue.

How many people have been carried while running all day? This is undoubtedly a rare experience, but for the one being carried, it’s not a normal situation. Even though the carrier supports the lower back, the one being carried must also use their strength to hold onto the carrier’s neck. There’s no one with a strong heart who can just stay still. The carrier also has their own considerations, but the one supporting the princess’s lower back was a stranger whose face she had only just become familiar with after the chaos. If the situation turned bad, he might throw her off and run away. Thus, her hands ached, her back hurt from lying down, and her neck was stiff from the forward pressure... Gradually, this became a form of torture.

However, there was a silver lining for the princess in this situation. On the first day, the escape was short, so it wasn’t a problem, but from the second day, she had to run all day. This meant she had to be carried all day by this black-robed warrior, a stranger. The silver lining was that, after the chaos, she had not eaten or drunk anything, so she had not felt the urge to urinate. In a situation where the enemy was in hot pursuit, it would have been impossible to ask to stop and relieve herself, so it was indeed fortunate.

After the intense chase of the second day ended and darkness fell, the black-robed warrior left again to find food. He returned after nearly two hours, starting to roast the food he had brought. The princess, who was almost fainting from hunger, was really trying to hold out, but after seeing the food (?), her appetite vanished.

“Hehehe, I caught quite a lot today. I must have worked so hard for the princess that even the heavens were moved and sent me this much. Hehehe...”

Mokhyang, roasting seven large field mice on sticks around the fire, was joking. The field mice, which Mokhyang had only gutted, still had their cunning-looking heads and pointed tails, and he was roasting them without removing the skin. The princess had no appetite. She tried to suppress the nausea, soothe her growling stomach, and go to sleep.

‘Well, it’s quite an achievement to catch these in such a remote mountain valley.’

This was the innocent princess’s thought, while the ruthless man next to her, humming and pretending to enjoy the mouse meat, had a completely different mindset. In fact, the princess’s only fault was that she had offended this bad guy...

Unexpected Rescuer

The sky was spinning, and her body felt like it was floating away. Her stomach was empty, her throat was dry, and she had no strength left in her body...

“Water... water...”

One can’t survive for long without water, even if one can go a month without food. The princess had not had a single drop of water for nearly 24 hours, so she was on the verge of death. But the man carrying her gave a stern reply...

“Please bear with it a little longer. I will get you water after the sun sets.”

There was still a long time until sunset, but Mokhyang’s words, though unintentional, were close to the truth and the best he could offer.

‘Is he crazy to give her water now? I’ll make her suffer a bit more before giving it to her. What else can I make her suffer with? Hehehehe...’

The princess was on the verge of death from thirst, but the pursuers chasing Mokhyang were in a similar state. Each had enough dried rations, but with only a small water bottle made of bamboo, earthenware, or leather, most could not endure the two days of intense running, except for a few experts. Moreover, Mokhyang, hearing the sound of water from a distance, shamelessly avoided it, so the pursuers, who were far less skilled, had not even seen water.

The princess finally got to see water at the third camp. The black-robed warrior, who had left to find food, returned after nearly two hours and offered her his shoe.

“Here’s some water. Please drink.”

The black-robed warrior’s smelly leather shoe was filled with water. Since he had no bowl, he had filled the shoe with water, leaving no room for complaint. Normally, the princess would never have drunk from a smelly shoe, but as the saying goes, “After three days of hunger, even a thief will steal,” and if that’s true for food, it’s even more so for water. She drank the water from the smelly shoe.

However, the meal the black-robed warrior prepared was unbearable. He had skewered about thirty large, hairy caterpillars and roasted them over the fire, offering them to the princess.

The princess, knowing that seeing him eat would only make her hungrier, lay on her side. As a result, she didn’t see Mokhyang pretending to enjoy the meal while secretly throwing the well-cooked caterpillars into the forest. Even Mokhyang, despite his usual appetite, couldn’t stomach them. In fact, he had already eaten two bowls of duck soup and a bottle of sorghum wine before rushing here, so it didn’t matter whether he ate or not. But for the princess...

The next morning was a repeat of the same routine. Chasing and being chased... If ‘that guy’ hadn’t appeared, Mokhyang’s plan to ‘starve the princess to death’ might have worked. But he did appear. Mokhyang, maintaining a certain distance from the pursuing enemies, was running when a cheeky-looking guy blocked his path.

He looked to be in his early thirties, with a face so handsome it seemed weak, but a shallow sword scar from his left eye to his right cheek made him look tough. On his shoulders were two tiger claws, a rare weapon about 45 centimeters long, curved like a staff with four to seven blades attached to a steel glove. His shabby clothes suggested he was a wandering warrior, but his agile movements in blocking Mokhyang’s path indicated he was quite skilled.

‘Damn, was there an ambush? I didn’t think anyone could block my path with such lightness skill... Or did he ambush his subordinates on the expected route last night?’

Thinking quickly, but acting slowly, Mokhyang drew his long sword and charged at the man, using minimal inner strength, more to escape than to fight. But the man, looking momentarily flustered, quickly retreated and shouted.

“Stop! I’m not your enemy. I want to help you.”

Mokhyang glanced back and, continuing to run, said,

“If you don’t want to die, get out of here.”

The man, seeing the nearly thirty warriors approaching at high speed with murderous intent, followed Mokhyang. Mokhyang, assessing the man’s skills, knew he was quite formidable.

‘Damn, this is bad. With his skills, he could take out all the pursuers. But if he decides to help me, it’s a problem...’

“Why are you being chased?”

“Damn it... I told you to get lost.”

But the man stubbornly followed, asking questions. For some reason...

At this moment, the princess, who had been unconscious from hunger and thirst, woke up. Seeing the man following, she screamed.

“Kyaa!”

She probably mistook him for one of the pursuers. But as the young man spoke, she gradually calmed down and began to explain.

“I’m not a bad guy. What’s going on?”

“I am the princess of the Great Song Empire. I’m being chased by the rebels. As a subject of the empire, you must help me.”

“You’re the princess?”

“Yes, I am Zhenying.”

The man looked at Mokhyang in disbelief. Mokhyang, seeing an opportunity to get rid of him, deliberately said,

“You don’t believe the princess? How dare you... Get lost.”

But the man, glancing back, smoothly said to the princess,

“I can save you. How much will you pay?”

“What?”

“How much will you pay as a reward?”

“Rude! You’re trying to negotiate with me?”

“If you don’t pay, I’ll leave. I wish you a safe journey. Goodbye.”

He started to slowly move away. The princess, in a panic, called out,

“Wait, how much do you want?”

The man quickly approached and said,

“Not a penny more, not a penny less... 100 taels of gold!”

“Fine. If you escort me to where the imperial army is stationed, I’ll pay you.”

“Understood.”

The man then took the tiger claws from his shoulders and attached them to his hands. The tiger claw is a weapon with four to seven blades attached to a steel glove, capable of breaking a sword. With multiple blades, it can cause severe bleeding and is difficult to stitch. Worn on both hands, it is the best weapon for pressuring a sword-wielding opponent.

The man turned and charged at the enemies. Mokhyang had no choice but to stop. If he ran away, the princess might suspect something. But he deliberately stayed a distance away and put the princess down. The princess, though wobbly, watched the young man run towards the enemies with a desperate hope.

Fortunately, the young man’s skills did not disappoint. He killed the black-robed men with considerable skill. It was puzzling how they met in this valley, but in a crisis, there was no room for objections.

After the young man killed all the black-robed men, the leader, a gray-robed man, signaled to four others. They instantly drew their swords and launched a fierce attack without defense.

Two of them ran and slashed at the young man’s shoulders. The young man instantly blocked their swords with the tiger claws. At that moment, a danger signal rang in his head. He expected the enemies to retreat after their initial attack, but they pushed down with force. The young man had to use his strength to hold them off. At that moment, the other two appeared behind him and swept their swords upwards towards his abdomen.

Their attack was well-practiced, with a slight delay. If the young man blocked the first attack, the second would follow immediately. If he tried to retreat, the first two swords would follow, and the second attack would connect. It seemed there was no way out without being cut somewhere. It was a truly nasty attack.

Unable to jump up due to the downward pressure of the first attack, the young man had only one option... He pushed the two swords away with the tiger claws and ran forward between them. With no other option, he had to move forward. But this was exactly what the enemy wanted. After sending the four subordinates, the gray-robed man, waiting behind, saw his chance and charged, slashing down from above. The young man’s hands, pushing the swords away, were spread out... He had no choice but to take the gray-robed man’s attack with his body.

At that moment, a short battle cry echoed, and the situation reversed.

“Yah!”

Simultaneously, a whirlwind of inner strength spread around the young man, shattering the swords approaching from all sides. The five warriors, who had been smiling confidently, were flung away, their bodies like rags.

‘That skill... is truly remarkable. He’s not just a wandering warrior. He must have undergone intense training... But why is he here?’

The young man, looking pale and breathing heavily, ran to where the princess was. The intense attack had been truly formidable. If his skills were not exceptional, he would not have survived even with ten lives.

The princess was amazed that the confrontation ended with the young man’s one-sided slaughter. Despite his greed, his skills were as impressive as the amount he demanded. 100 taels of gold is 2,000 taels of silver, enough for a family to live comfortably for 400 years.

But at that moment, the princess didn’t feel the amount was a waste. Finally, the terrifying enemies who had been chasing her for days were all dead. This naive girl, who didn’t know the value of 100 taels of gold, never felt it was a waste from the start.

The black-robed warrior, seeing the pale young man return, said indifferently,

“Truly remarkable...”

The young man, looking exhausted, simply bowed.

“Your praise is too kind...”

“Truly a remarkable attack. If their skills were just two levels higher, you could have sent them to the afterlife...”

The young man’s face turned sour at the warrior’s indifferent final remark. It was like asking why he had risked his life...

From then on, the young man led the way, with the black-robed warrior and the princess following. Introducing himself as Ren Fang, a wandering warrior, he knew the respectful language used in the palace. More suspiciously, he had a sharp eye for the terrain, quick responses, and clever tactics to evade enemies, all indicating he was a seasoned martial artist. He was a highly skilled and suspicious figure, unlikely to be found in such a remote area.

That evening, the princess finally got to eat. Though the food at the remote rural restaurant couldn’t compare to the imperial cuisine, the princess ate greedily, as if it were the most delicious meal she had ever had. One bowl of duck soup disappeared into her stomach, and she ordered a second. But when she ordered the second bowl, Ren Fang stopped her.

“Princess, no more.”

The princess looked puzzled, and Ren Fang continued,

“You’ve been starving for days. Without martial arts training, eating too much suddenly can be harmful. Rest today and regain your strength for tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

Mokhyang realized his plan had been thwarted again. He had expected her to overeat, become ill, and cause a commotion...

‘Well, I’ve had my revenge. She’s probably lost a few pounds... It’s time to send her back and return to my base.’

Ren Fang was originally a bounty hunter hired by the government to find the missing princess. Known for his tracking skills, he had never failed to catch his target. The government, valuing his skills, had hired him and five other skilled martial artists to track the princess before sending the imperial and regional armies.

Ren Fang, though reluctant to get involved in such a big case, joined out of a shallow sense of loyalty to the state. But the promise of 50 taels of gold for safely escorting the princess made him eager to overtake