The negotiation was settled, and the contract was established.

However, it was the simplified Guardian Array of Wondrous Questions installed in the Wudang Sect and the Hainan Sect, not the one installed in the Zhuge Clan and the Imperial Palace.

The real Guardian Array of Wondrous Questions could not be decided on Zhuge Seohu’s level.

Cheon Mubaeck hadn’t aimed for that much from the beginning either. What he had truly aimed for from the start was the simplified version.

He knew well how important a treasure the Guardian Array of Wondrous Questions was.

But the simplified version was different.

Wasn’t there already a precedent of it being installed in the Wudang Sect and the Hainan Sect?

Therefore, it was plausible enough to be installed in other places as well.

On the other hand, Cheon Mubaeck took this matter seriously, and gravely.

‘It means they truly need my help.’

It meant they were desperate enough for help to install even a simplified version of the Guardian Array of Wondrous Questions in a mere escort agency.

It also meant that the Zhuge Clan was having considerable trouble tracking the Inhuman Lust Fiend.

Cheon Mubaeck decided to give his all to this matter as well.

That being said, he hadn’t rashly given a definite promise that he would find her.

He had a slight inkling in his mind, so he had taken a big gamble.

“Here are the bodies of the victims of the Inhuman Lust Fiend.”

Cheon Mubaeck immediately began to act.

The porters went around the city collecting rumors, and Cheon Mubaeck led Heo Seong and the escorts, moving quickly.

The first thing he did was to check the victims’ bodies.

“Of the nine victims, we have only found the bodies of two.”

“Hmm.”

The escorts all frowned.

Most of them were martial artists who had roamed the martial world before joining the escort agency or while on escort missions.

Even for them, the state of the bodies was so severe that it made them instinctively contort their faces.

“Was it burned with fire?”

“Could it be to erase the traces?”

“What a vicious bastard. To desecrate the bodies to hide his methods.”

The escorts clicked their tongues with faces full of indignation.

It looked like a black lump of charcoal, as if it had been burned for a long time.

“This one is a bit different.”

“Yes. It seems the fire went out midway, but all the moisture has dried up, and more than seventy percent of the outer skin is burned.”

“Hmm.”

Unlike the body burned like a lump of charcoal, this one’s face was somewhat recognizable.

But it was just as gruesome. The whole body was completely dry of moisture, like a mummy.

Cheon Mubaeck first put his hands together and prayed for their souls.

The escorts also followed suit and put their hands together.

“Did their families willingly show you the bodies?”

Heo Seong nodded with a somewhat sad expression.

“I borrowed the Lord’s fame. When I said it was the Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero, they asked me to be sure to catch the villain, just as I had annihilated the unorthodox factions in Henan.”

“Hmm.”

Cheon Mubaeck felt a strange sense of responsibility welling up.

The high-ranking figures of the martial world highly valued the fame Cheon Mubaeck had gained from saving Shaolin and from the martial arts tournament between Huashan and Zhongnan.

On the other hand, the relatively smaller clans and common people were enthusiastic about Cheon Mubaeck’s heroic deeds.

Heroic deeds like personally treating the plague patients at Shaolin and annihilating the unorthodox group called the Black Wolf Gang. Thanks to that, even with Cheon Mubaeck’s excessive request to see the bodies, the bereaved families readily agreed, saying they trusted Cheon Mubaeck.

Cheon Mubaeck intended to do his best for the sake of the bereaved families. It was a responsibility that naturally arose for those who had handed over the bodies without even burying them.

After putting his hands together, Cheon Mubaeck unhesitatingly touched the bodies.

At the scene of revealing the melted and stuck skin, the faces of some escorts turned pale white.

Cheon Mubaeck looked around at them and said.

“If it’s hard to watch, go and help the Zhuge Clan with the tracking.”

After speaking firmly, Cheon Mubaeck meticulously examined the two bodies.

How much time had passed? As Cheon Mubaeck was examining the bodies for a while, a meaningful light flickered in his eyes.

“This is… quite a coincidence…”

* * *

Cheon Mubaeck immediately began the pursuit.

First, he had no choice but to backtrack from the points where the victims had been found.

As he did so, his path overlapped with others who had set out on the pursuit.

“As expected, you came this way.”

Zhuge Seohu was personally leading his warriors in the pursuit.

Fatigue was dripping from his face.

Although he had some uncomfortable feelings towards Cheon Mubaeck, he was not foolish enough to express them outwardly.

Weren’t they in a situation where they had joined hands, after all?

“I had no choice but to come this way while backtracking.”

“I see. The trackers our side hired also came this way.”

At his words, Cheon Mubaeck subtly shifted his gaze.

He saw two middle-aged men carefully examining the path while commanding the Zhuge Clan warriors.

They looked like brothers, with quite similar features, and they were trackers who specialized in tracking people.

“The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows.”

“The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows!”

Gwak Cheonhu, who had followed Cheon Mubaeck, exclaimed in admiration.

In fact, Gwak Cheonhu didn’t need to get involved in this matter. It was Cheon Mubaeck’s business and the Azure Star Escort Agency’s business.

But for some reason, he had personally told Cheon Yuhwa that he would help too.

He looked quite serious. The way he spoke grandly about chasing a villain as a man of the martial world. Cheon Yuhwa, with an impressed face, offered Gwak Cheonhu a temporary position as a guest escort.

Although his intentions were obvious, Cheon Mubaeck decided to let it slide for now.

Gwak Cheonhu was a helpful asset.

Still, he couldn’t hide the harshness in his voice.

“You know them?”

“They are the top authorities in the art of tracking. The two crows that chase even the wind. They were famous as the representative leaders of the Heaven’s Net Escort Agency.”

“That’s right.”

Heo Seong chimed in.

To the people of the escort agencies, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows were nothing short of legendary beings.

They were famous for tracking stolen goods to the ends of the Central Plains and bringing them back.

Of course, after the Heaven’s Net Escort Agency went bankrupt due to some circumstances, they roamed the martial world without settling in one place.

The Zhuge Clan was putting all its efforts into this, enough to hire people of such fame.

Cheon Mubaeck also watched for a moment and acknowledged their skills to some extent.

‘They are definitely experts.’

As Cheon Mubaeck tracked, they also moved in the same direction.

Since Cheon Mubaeck was confident in his own tracking, he had no choice but to acknowledge the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows when he saw them tracking the same path.

Because of this, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows became unconsciously aware of Cheon Mubaeck.

“You have quite some skill, I see?”

The older of the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows, Heuko, said abruptly.

“Well, since there’s only one path, isn’t that natural?”

Cheon Mubaeck retorted nonchalantly. At that, the younger brother, Jeoko, muttered in a small voice.

“He’s just following us, making it look plausible.”

Although he said it quietly, there was no way that voice wouldn’t have reached Cheon Mubaeck’s ears.

If it wasn’t meant for others to hear in the first place, he would have used telepathy.

The fact that he bothered to mutter to himself like that was a clear sign that he wanted to be heard.

But Cheon Mubaeck just snorted inwardly and paid no mind.

The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows’ tracking skills were excellent, but their internal energy was barely at the first-rate level.

They weren’t opponents worth arguing with. Cheon Mubaeck silently continued his pursuit.

Feeling a sense of responsibility, Cheon Mubaeck did his best.

At that, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows also lit a fire in their eyes and engaged in the pursuit.

As their paths were the same, a light of ‘perhaps’ hope appeared on the faces of the Zhuge Clan warriors who were following them.

In fact, as more and more minute traces of the Inhuman Lust Fiend were discovered, the atmosphere became strangely heated.

Especially when Cheon Mubaeck discovered the Inhuman Lust Fiend’s footprint, they were truly excited.

“A footprint.”

“Where do you see that?”

The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows’ eyes shot up. Where Cheon Mubaeck was pointing, there was nothing that could be considered a footprint. At best, there was a slightly indented mark, but it couldn’t be called a footprint.

The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows had triumphant faces.

“This is not it. The Inhuman Lust Fiend is a fiend who doesn’t leave a single footprint.”

Heuko examined the trace a little more carefully, but Jeoko openly sneered.

“The fiend known as the Inhuman Lust Fiend, you see, you have to follow his unique scent and psychology. Huh? How he would escape from here, you have to anticipate that in advance…”

“Are your eyes knotholes? What’s wrong with you?”

At Cheon Mubaeck’s sudden outburst of insults, Jeoko’s mouth dropped open.

Before Jeoko could say anything, Cheon Mubaeck immediately showed him with his actions.

He reached out his hand and brushed off the indented mark.

“What are you doing? If that’s a real footprint, won’t you damage it by touching it so carelessly?”

Even the cautious Heuko was so startled that he shouted like that. He didn’t feel that the indented mark was a footprint, but he did feel that it was an artificial trace.

So he was startled by Cheon Mubaeck’s action. Wouldn’t touching it so carelessly damage the trace?

However, Cheon Mubaeck paid no heed and waved his hand.

“Huh? Huh?!”

Dumbfounded sounds escaped their mouths on their own.

Heuko’s eyes widened.

Every time Cheon Mubaeck touched it, soil fell off. But it was very meticulous. It looked like he was waving his hand carelessly, but he was very delicately brushing off the outer soil.

How much time had passed?

It was faint, but it was clear.

“It’s a footprint!”

Heuko shouted in an excited voice without realizing it. Jeoko just stood there with his mouth shut, stammering.

At a glance, it was shallow and didn’t look like a footprint, but.

“It’s a lightness art!”

“When you use a lightness art, the mark is left like this!”

“Heo!”

The Zhuge Clan warriors exclaimed in unison.

Even Zhuge Seohu, who had been cautious until now, had a faint excitement on his face.

Cheon Mubaeck examined the footprint carefully and said.

“It’s the Waterless Lightness Art.”

“The Waterless Lightness Art… Isn’t that a lightness art commonly used by demonic path fiends?”

“This damn demonic being!”

The warriors burst out in anger in unison.

At Cheon Mubaeck’s words, Gwak Cheonhu approached and said.

“If it’s the Waterless Lightness Art, its duration is not long, but it moves quickly with instantaneous explosive power, but its stamina is low.”

“Right.”

Cheon Mubaeck nodded.

“He didn’t go far.”

As soon as Cheon Mubaeck’s words fell, Zhuge Seohu shouted.

“Everyone, move!”

“As you command!”

Cheon Mubaeck moved immediately. Soon after, he found a few more footprints. He moved quickly in the direction the footprints were heading.

Heat rose on the warriors’ faces.

Finally, we’ll find him!

Meanwhile, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows stared at Cheon Mubaeck with increasingly astonished gazes.

Jeoko, who had experienced Cheon Mubaeck’s god-like tracking skills, still had a look of disbelief, but Heuko had no choice but to admit it.

‘Indeed, they said he tracked the Blood Demon Valley alone… What kind of god-like level is this!’

He suddenly looked at the escorts wearing clothes with the Azure Star Escort Agency written on them, moving according to Cheon Mubaeck’s instructions.

A new thought came to Heuko’s mind, but he soon put it aside for a moment.

That wasn’t what was important right now.

As the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows moved with all their might, they also found traces that Cheon Mubaeck had missed one by one.

Once the traces started to appear, they poured out.

In other words, it meant that the Inhuman Lust Fiend was nearby, or at least had been nearby.

But soon, the tracking party that had been running with great momentum had no choice but to stop.

“This…”

“The traces have completely disappeared here.”

They stopped at a certain point in a thicket untouched by human hands, like a jungle in Yunnan.

“Heo.”

“There’s no path at all.”

“We’ll get lost at this rate. It’s hard to find a sense of direction because the thicket is so dense.”

When the traces were cut off, they couldn’t advance.

Because it was such a dense forest, they couldn’t get their bearings.

In the midst of that, Cheon Mubaeck said calmly.

“This way.”

Because it was a firm and confident tone without a hint of wavering, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows tilted their heads.

No matter how they looked, there were no traces, no path, and no sign of anything being revealed there.

“That side looks like the same thicket?”

“What are you looking at to say that? There are no traces?”

The Wind-Chasing Twin Crows did not mock Cheon Mubaeck as before. Not only Heuko, but also his younger brother Jeoko had no choice but to acknowledge Cheon Mubaeck’s skills at this point.

But at Cheon Mubaeck’s following answer, their expressions contorted this time.

“Anyway, it’s this way.”

There was no basis. But he was certain.

But the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows could not easily follow. In tracking, if you take a wrong path once, you are bound to miss the opportunity.

Because you are giving the target time.

Cheon Mubaeck did not persuade them. He just moved.

As Cheon Mubaeck moved, Gwak Cheonhu and Neung-heo also followed, and soon the escorts also followed.

The Zhuge Clan warriors looked back and forth between Cheon Mubaeck and the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows, watching their reactions.

Then Zhuge Seohu hardened his expression and shouted.

“Follow the Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero.”

“…!”

In the end, the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows also followed behind Cheon Mubaeck with hardened faces.

Even so, they inwardly thought that Cheon Mubaeck was wrong this time.

‘Hmph. When you lose the trail like this, you have to go back to the starting point and think again…’

‘This isn’t right. Is it because he’s still young? He lacks experience.’

As the Wind-Chasing Twin Crows were thinking that, their faces changed from moment to moment as the dense thicket gradually thinned out.

And finally, the moment Cheon Mubaeck stopped.

A dumbfounded light appeared on their faces.

“My goodness…”

“Crazy, this is unbelievable… How on earth?”

Their astonished gazes were fixed on Cheon Mubaeck’s back.

The magnificent sight that unfolded before their eyes.

A huge rock canyon revealed at the bottom of a sheer cliff.

Seeing its shape, someone muttered.

“Could it be… Sword King Valley?”

In the past, the Sword King Valley, where the Sword King, the greatest swordsman of his time who was on par with Lu Dongbin, known as the Sword Immortal among the Eight Immortals, was said to have stayed, revealed its magnificent appearance.

(End of Chapter)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep