Chapter 66

* * *

"…I apologize, Chief."

"It's fine. I was even more foolish than the successor of Jegei, and there were other variables. We can't blame it all on you. Did you find out who ultimately got the map?"

A third person, who was present besides the one who apologized and the one called Chief, spoke up.

"No, we don't have any special information yet. However, to decipher the code, we ultimately need to find someone who can interpret it. And in this Shinshachun, there is only one person who can do that."

"That's true. Then, even if we lost it, it's not a complete loss."

"Chief! Please give me one more chance! This time, I'll bring back the map without causing any unnecessary trouble!"

"No. The disturbance at the inn has drawn the attention of the Wu Lin Alliance and the public. At a time like this, we need to move together, not separately. We need to become a predator and tear apart our prey, not leave a trail."

"…I understand."

"Remember, the outcome of this will determine whether we spread our wings and start grandly, or collapse without even properly beginning."

The one called Chief stood up and muttered softly.

"The mandate of Han has ended."

"The time of the Yellow Heaven is coming soon."

The shadows in the dim room began to move secretly.

* * *

Zhang Jian and Yang Hong led their horses out of the inn and wandered through the streets of Shinshachun.

Yang Hong, who seemed to know exactly where they were going, walked confidently at the front. Zhang Jian followed behind, thinking about the ruffians with yellow masks. When they returned to the inn to retrieve their horses, the ruffians who had attacked them first were all gone. They had taken away even those who were injured in the fight with the Dark Market warriors, leaving Zhang Jian to see an empty inn.

It was difficult for Zhang Jian to guess their identity on his own. According to Yang Hong, they weren't the Yellow Army, but he couldn't trust Yang Hong's word alone. The appearance of Jegei at the trading site suggested that another ancient family might have interfered. Or perhaps the Wu Lin Alliance, seeing the chaos in their own backyard, had intervened.

In any case, Zhang Jian, who had picked up the map in the chaos, chuckled to himself. They were wearing yellow masks. Could they be the Yellow-Faced Bandits? To him, who had never heard of Zhang Jue in the history of this world, it sounded like a joke.

While his thoughts continued, Yang Hong's steps stopped in front of a general store on the outskirts of Shinshachun's bustling area. He tied the reins to the front of the store and said,

"We're here. There's no point in taking too much time. Let's figure out how to go rather than a perfect interpretation."

Zhang Jian tied his horse's reins next to him and asked,

"It's urgent."

"Of course it is. What we have is stolen goods, and not only Jegei but also unknown people are after it. If we take more time, more riffraff will get involved. Naturally, you should be in a hurry too, Brother Zhang!"

Yang Hong tied the reins and said all this in a rush before quickly entering the general store. Zhang Jian shook his head slightly and followed. But as he entered the store a step behind Yang Hong, something flew at his face.

Reflexively catching it, he saw it was a wooden figurine of an old man. The situation inside the store was chaotic, with a woman throwing all sorts of things at Yang Hong.

"Get out! Get out, you bastard!"

"Yi, Yi! Why, why are you doing this!"

"Why? Why, you bastard!"

The woman was tall and slender, with long hair tied back and sleeves rolled up, suggesting an active person. Her face was contorted in anger as she shouted at Yang Hong.

"Why the hell! Because of you, I almost died at the Dark Market!"

"Ah, no, what are you talking about!"

Picking up a wooden box, the woman threw it at Yang Hong. Yang Hong rolled to avoid it, and the store became even more chaotic.

"You damn fool! The rumors spread so fast, I heard everything! You said you'd steal it in the middle of the night! But then you gathered people and attacked the trading site? Of course, the Dark Market would light up and investigate the situation! Then, I, who deciphered the map, would naturally be caught!"

"Ah, no! It wasn't the people I mobilized! I swear!"

The agitated woman finally picked up a heavy hatchet but stopped when she heard Yang Hong's words.

"…It wasn't you?"

"Of course not! Where would I find people to mobilize like that! We were going to steal it in the middle of the night!"

"We?"

The woman finally noticed Zhang Jian standing at the door. She seemed out of breath from throwing things and shouting, so she stuck the hatchet on the side table and looked back and forth between Zhang Jian and Yang Hong.

"…What? Who is that man?"

"Zhang Jian."

The woman, who had been glaring at Yang Hong, was slightly taken aback by Zhang Jian's sudden interjection and looked at him.

"…Yes?"

"I'm Zhang Jian. And you are?"

"A, yes. I… I'm Yi, my name is Yi."

Zhang Jian naturally placed the wooden figurine on a nearby shelf. It stood upright amidst the chaos, giving it a peculiar charm.

"I can't follow your conversation. Can you explain the situation?"

"Ah, Brother Zhang. This friend makes replicas of ancient artifacts…"

Yang Hong, who had been lying on the floor, slowly stood up and tried to introduce Yi. But he stopped when she suddenly pulled out the hatchet stuck in the table with a thud. She held the hatchet and smiled at Yang Hong, who awkwardly followed with a forced smile and had to remain silent.

Yi looked at Zhang Jian and introduced herself.

"I study ancient artifacts in this Shinshachun. From artifacts that came from the Central Plains to this new continent over the past hundred years, to items of the original inhabitants of this land, and even goods brought by Western merchants from far away, I accept and interpret any old items."

"Interpret?"

"Yes, interpret. How the people of that time used these items, what the meanings of their actions were, and what their lives were like as a result. Even a small rice bowl can hold hundreds of years of history."

"You're an archaeologist."

Her expression became slightly blank.

"…An archaeologist? Hmm. That sounds good. I'll introduce myself that way from now on."

Zhang Jian looked around the chaotic general store and continued.

"Why are you involved with this ruffian?"

"Ah… Well…"

She hesitated, finding it difficult to explain to Zhang Jian, whom she had just met. Seeing her hesitation, Yang Hong nodded, as if to say she could trust him. She started to tell her story, still looking at Yang Hong with some doubt.

"…Well, artifacts from the Central Plains or the West are quite expensive because of the distance… Of course, the rich in Shinshachun and Tianhou City pay a lot of money to find out where their family records and treasures came from… But that only happens once or twice…"

Zhang Jian understood the gist of her stammering explanation. She was a forger who sold replicas of ancient royal artifacts to the new rich of the new continent. It was natural that she knew Yang Hong, who was a thief and a con artist.

And he understood why she had just been so angry.

The bandits had obtained the map and brought it to the Dark Market. The Dark Market, wanting to verify if the map from Yi Se-min was genuine, brought it to Yi, the most knowledgeable person about artifacts in Shinshachun. They didn't bring the entire map but a partial copy.

But Yi, who had deciphered the old Yi family's code and symbols, immediately realized that the code was a map, specifically the treasure map. She decided to steal it. She brought Yang Hong into the plan to steal the map, and it seemed that she was his informant inside the Dark Market.

"Did you plan for him to steal it, and you to decipher the rest and find the treasure?"

"…Yes."

Hearing her answer, Zhang Jian crossed his arms and looked at Yang Hong with a disappointed eye. Yang Hong fidgeted under his gaze, as he had never mentioned dividing the profits when they had discussed the plan.

"Hey."

"…Why, why are you looking at me like that, Brother Zhang?"

"If you could decipher the map, you wouldn't have come here, right?"

Yi immediately glared at Yang Hong with a fierce look. Cold sweat trickled down his face.

"Eh, eh, what are you talking about? Of course, we had to come here. We need to decipher the map to find the treasure, right?"

"But you didn't mention this part at all. You only talked about splitting it seven to three."

"Seven to three? Seven to four? We agreed to split it fifty-fifty, you bastard!"

She pointed the hatchet at Yang Hong, who recoiled in fear from the sharp blade.

"Hey! Let's not do this! We can just renegotiate the split among the three of us! After all, those masked guys make it impossible for us to handle it alone! We need a swordsman!"

Yi, who was about the same height as Yang Hong, had no choice but to cower as she grabbed his collar and pointed the hatchet at him. But it was impressive how he could still talk his way out of it.

Zhang Jian, who had been watching the two bicker with a slightly bemused look, suddenly changed his expression. He quickly moved to push Yang Hong and Yi to a corner. They both shouted in surprise.

"Ah! What is it!"

"Why are you doing this!"

At the same time, a long spear flew through the wall from outside the store.

The powerful spear embedded itself with a thud where the two had been arguing a moment ago, trembling slightly.

"…What, what is this?"

After Yang Hong's bewildered muttering, the store was filled with silence. Zhang Jian checked the hole in the wall and the spear with a serious look, then approached the store's door. Peeking out the wooden window next to the door, he saw many people in yellow masks outside. Among them, a man with a build like a sleek leopard, taller than the others, was holding a long spear behind his shoulder.

Zhang Jian quickly moved to the side. At the same time, another spear flew through the wall and embedded itself, destroying the interior of the store.

Feeling the force of the spear, Zhang Jian felt a small sense of competition and grabbed his sword with his left hand. Although there were many masked people outside, the only one who felt threatening to him was the man throwing the spears.

At that moment, the man's loud voice was heard.

"Bring out the item! We will set fire to the place soon! If you don't want to burn to death, come out now!"

Zhang Jian chuckled at the voice. Announcing a fire in the Wu Lin Alliance's front yard and wearing masks to storm in was like advertising to be caught. Yang Hong, who seemed to have similar thoughts, walked over with his legs wobbling and said,

"Do you know who those stupid bastards are?"

"No."

"Damn, they say ignorance is more dangerous. What do we do? Should we go out with the map? We need to buy time until the Wu Lin Alliance arrives."

Zhang Jian shook his head and said,

"Don't waste your energy. Let the Wu Lin Alliance handle those guys. And we can't wait for the Wu Lin Alliance. If they find out about this map, it will get even more complicated."

"…Then what do you plan to do?"

His gaze turned to Yi.

"Is there a back door here?"

"Ah? Yes, yes, there is."

"Let's go."

"Wait, Brother Zhang! Our horses are out front…"

Ignoring Yang Hong's voice, Zhang Jian followed Yi to the back door of the store. He kicked it open before she could even unlock it.

"Ah!"

The yellow-masked person hiding behind the door fell with a yelp. At the same time, Zhang Jian, who had kicked the door open, immediately attacked the three other masked people behind the fallen one.

The masked people, caught off guard by Zhang Jian's sudden appearance and attack, couldn't even put up a proper resistance and were knocked out one by one. Yi, who had followed behind, widened her eyes in surprise.

"Didn't I say we need a swordsman?"

Yang Hong poked her and said that. She nodded absentmindedly, but then someone shouted from the other side.

"There! They came out the back door!"

At the shout from a masked person on the roof of the adjacent building, the other masked people started to run over with a roar. Zhang Jian turned to Yi and asked,

"Do you know martial arts?"

"Ah? Oh, just some self-defense…"

Zhang Jian nodded.

"Then, excuse me."

"Ah!"

Suddenly pulling Yi into his arms, Zhang Jian whistled loudly and leaped onto the wall, starting to run. Yang Hong, who had been staring at him dumbfounded, snapped out of it and ran after them.

"Wait! I need to come too!"

With the masked people shouting and chasing after them, Yang Hong hurried to follow Zhang Jian. Running on the wall, Zhang Jian, with Yi on his back, and Yang Hong, who was running desperately below, quickly made their way through the back alleys to the main road. The masked people, armed with spears and swords, were chasing them closely from behind.

"Ah!"

Yang Hong, who had been sweating profusely in that short time, let out a short cheer. In front of them, on the main road, were their horses. Yang Hong's horse was being held by Zhaosu.

Rushing forward, Zhang Jian first helped Yi onto the horse and then lightly mounted Zhaosu. Yang Hong also climbed onto his horse, and the two horses started to run. The masked people, who had come out in a rush, stared at them dumbfounded for a moment before regaining their senses and moving.

"Horses! Bring horses!"

"Chase them! Don't let them get away!"

However, Zhang Jian, Yang Hong, and Yi were already far ahead, galloping away.