Chapter 87

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"Finally, land!"

Wi Je-ho was the first to jump off the ship's rail, shouting cheerfully. After showing signs of boredom throughout the days-long boat trip, his face was now full of joy. Cheong-ra, who had been uncomfortable the whole time despite his seasickness subsiding considerably thanks to Dang Ran-yeong's advice, also quickly disembarked.

"It has been an honor to serve you, Lord Owner."

After Head Guard Yang respectfully greeted Dang Ran-yeong, he also bid farewell to each member of the group, including Cheong-ra. The ship that had dropped off the four people in Hebei soon departed again towards Beijing.

Carriages were waiting at the dock, and before they could fully enjoy the pleasure of stepping on land, another bumpy journey began. Cheong-ra was grateful that he didn't get motion sickness in carriages. After three days of travel, the carriages arrived at their destination.

"It looks like an ordinary village on the surface."

Nam Gang-ryong said as he looked around. The village they arrived at was smaller than Dragon Spring, with no sign of an inn. It seemed to be a village where only a few dozen people might live, and the atmosphere was not good at all. As piercing gazes were directed at the newly arrived outsiders, Dang Ran-yeong calmly walked forward.

'Does he actually know the direction?'

As Cheong-ra, who knew well that the other had a poor sense of direction, was looking at him suspiciously, someone appeared with hurried steps. It was an elderly man who seemed to be the village chief. Wariness filled his eyes as he looked at the swords hanging at the waists of Dang Ran-yeong, Cheong-ra, and Wi Je-ho.

"Who are you?"

"We're travelers passing through. Is there a place to stay?"

As it seemed to be a village without even an inn, Dang Ran-yeong took out a thin silver tael about the size of a finger joint from his bosom and tossed it while speaking. The village chief's face brightened as he caught the silver tael in surprise. His attitude became very polite at the sight of such a large sum of money he had never held in his life.

"It may not be suitable for such esteemed guests, but if you don't mind, I'll take you to my house."

"It would be nice if you could prepare meals for us as well."

"Of course, please let me know if you need anything."

The village chief answered thus and then hurriedly ran to his house. Soon, a large family rushed out of the house and headed to neighboring homes. Cheong-ra felt slightly guilty, but fortunately, all the family members' faces were bright. In such a small village where barter was the main form of exchange, silver taels were rare items even to see.

As Cheong-ra entered the now empty village chief's house, his gaze was suddenly drawn to something glittering on the roof. Looking closely, he saw it was a bowl filled with water. Why would they put a bowl of water on the roof? Cheong-ra tilted his head in confusion.

Soon, the village chief sent his grandson to carefully prepare and bring meals. Cheong-ra placed some sweets in the nervous child's empty hands before sending him away.

Hwan-hong arrived on her own just as they were in the middle of eating lunch. Somehow knowing to come directly to the village chief's house, Hwan-hong lightly greeted Dang Ran-yeong with a nod before immediately looking for the baby Venomous Horned Serpent.

"Rin-rin."

Her gaze, which had been examining the cuff of Dang Ran-yeong's sleeve, showed a hint of surprise. This was because Rin-rin crawled out from Cheong-ra's collar, flicking its tongue. Recently, Rin-rin had been particularly fond of hiding in Cheong-ra's collar. Cheong-ra placed Rin-rin on his hand and held it out to Hwan-hong.

Hwan-hong's face was full of affection as she stroked Rin-rin and checked its condition. When she raised her head, her gaze towards Cheong-ra was gentle for the first time.

"Rin-rin seems to follow Young Master Baek well."

Her attitude was full of goodwill, as if that alone proved Cheong-ra's character. As the attitude of the person who had felt the most distant changed, Cheong-ra also felt more at ease. Hwan-hong sat down with Rin-rin coiled around her finger, showing affection she had never shown to Dang Ran-yeong or Cheong-ra. She first ate her meal silently before reporting.

"After leaving the Hengshan Sect, the Golden Fox settled in Anping here."

"There must be a good reason for leaving a place they've lived for hundreds of years. It's not just because hunters were being a nuisance."

Dang Ran-yeong responded while barely eating, as the food didn't suit his taste, just like at the Hengshan Sect. Hwan-hong nodded in affirmation and continued her report.

"And the hunters have also followed the Golden Fox here. Moreover, since the Golden Fox settled here, children in this village have been disappearing one by one."

Golden Fox. A fox with golden fur... Cheong-ra naturally thought that the fox might have taken the children, but as if sensing this, Hwan-hong asserted,

"The villagers blame the fox, but in my opinion, it's the work of the Blood Cult."

"That's likely. The fox that was well-behaved at the Hengshan Sect wouldn't suddenly start eating humans here."

Cheong-ra also lost his appetite as he was reminded of the events at the Hengshan Sect upon hearing that the Blood Cult had kidnapped children. Understanding the reason for the village's unsettled atmosphere, he worried about the safety of the children taken by those who performed human sacrifices.

"The hunters are inciting the villagers, so it's only a matter of time before the fox hunt begins."

"The Golden Fox's location?"

"I've found out. The hunters are staying in the house at the eastern edge of this village."

After a moment of thought, Dang Ran-yeong gave his instructions.

"Hwan-hong, Nam Gang-ryong. You two watch over the fox. I'll deal with those hunters here."

The two nodded and stood up to move. Watching them leave, Cheong-ra asked Dang Ran-yeong,

"What about me?"

Dang Ran-yeong narrowed his eyes slightly and replied,

"Why, did you think I'd take you along?"

"If you're not taking Young Master Wi, you should obviously take me. Young Master Dang, you have a poor sense of direction, don't you?"

Wi Je-ho, who had been leisurely eating, laughed with a "kuk" sound. It seemed Wi Je-ho was also well aware that Dang Ran-yeong had a poor sense of direction. Come to think of it, even in Chang'an, he had only traveled by carriage. Indeed, Cheong-ra's words were correct, so Dang Ran-yeong smirked and stood up as soon as he finished his meal.

"I'll guard the house, so you all go ahead."

With no role assigned to him, Wi Je-ho waved them off while sprawled out like an idle rich young master. When they had walked some distance from the village chief's house, Cheong-ra asked curiously,

"What does Young Master Wi do? He seems different from Miss Hwan and Monk Gang-ryong."

"He's like a freeloader who just tags along to achieve his goal."

No wonder Dang Ran-yeong never gave Wi Je-ho any instructions; he was just a collaborator. Cheong-ra nodded and called out to Dang Ran-yeong.

"That's south, not east."

After correcting Dang Ran-yeong's steps, which were heading in the wrong direction, they arrived at the house on the eastern edge where the hunters were indeed gathered. The rough-looking men who had been maintaining their bows, hooks, and traps frowned with all their might when they saw Dang Ran-yeong and Cheong-ra. They all had martial arts training and made killing their profession, exuding a quite fierce aura.

"What business do you have here?"

The one who seemed to be the leader asked threateningly. Dang Ran-yeong stepped forward and proposed with an almost arrogant nod,

"Sell me the fox."

"You want us to sell a fox we haven't even hunted yet?"

The hunter asked incredulously. His greedy eyes scanned up and down the luxurious ornaments Dang Ran-yeong was wearing, and they whispered among themselves. It was clear what they were saying without even hearing it. They probably thought he looked like a rich person ignorant of the ways of the world and decided to try to deceive him. Soon, as if they had reached a conclusion, one of them asked,

"Alright, how much will you pay for the fox?"

Dang Ran-yeong took something out of his bosom and tossed it. The hunter caught it with a "chuk" sound and saw it was the same silver tael that had been thrown to the village chief earlier. The hunter's face immediately turned red.

"Are you joking? If we catch that fox, the value of its fur and inner core would be worth at least a gold tael, and you want us to sell it for this much?"

Regardless of how tense the atmosphere became, Dang Ran-yeong calmly replied,

"Because that's how much you lot are worth as slaves."

"What? Slaves?"

"And that's overvaluing you. There just weren't any silver taels worth less than that."

Saying this, Dang Ran-yeong grasped the handle of the whip coiled around his waist. The whip, released from its fastening ring, stretched out on the ground like a snake. As it was clearly an aggressive stance, the hunters became wary and each grasped their weapons.

Cheong-ra quietly stepped back a few paces. He didn't want to be hit by the blind whip. Though he didn't think Dang Ran-yeong would hit him by mistake, he thought the other might pretend it was a blind whip and hit him on purpose.

"Now then, who wants to be whipped first? I'll give you a chance to behave."