Chapter 422: Corpses, Looters (1)

Caw-caw.

The cawing of crows was eerie.

A purple sky.

A blood-red barrier encircled the entire Crouching Dragon Basin.

And around it lay rotting and dried corpses.

All these elements combined made it seem as if hell had manifested in the present world.

Yi-gang was rummaging through that place.

The affiliations inferred from the corpses were diverse.

There were Orthodox martial artists like Wudang and Shaolin, and also those presumed to be from the Unorthodox sects.

And there were unknown figures contrasting with them.

They wore black bamboo hats dyed dark.

Just like the ancient Yellow Turban rebels who wore yellow headscarves to show their affiliation.

That black hat seemed to be a symbol of some faction.

“The… Evil Cult?”

The Evil Cult sect had never openly appeared in the martial world.

They only operated in the shadows and never came out into the world.

「That’s right. Those groups used to wear such black hats.」

The Heavenly Demon confirmed.

For some reason, Zhang Sanfeng had been silent since they escaped the barrier.

“It seems martial artists came to this barrier and fought with the Evil Cult followers guarding it.”

Dam Hyun speculated.

It seemed correct.

There were traces of fighting on the corpses.

However, what was puzzling was that the Evil Cult followers’ corpses were noticeably fewer than those of other martial artists.

Even if most of the forces were trapped inside Crouching Dragon Basin, the strength of Wudang or Shaolin was profound.

Could the martial arts of the Evil Cult followers have been that advanced?

Yi-gang, searching the corpses with a calm expression, found several features.

Most of the weapons of the corpses were missing.

There were broken and rusted ones, but no intact weapons. Valuables that might have been in pockets were also gone.

“Did someone loot them…?”

At that moment, Dam Hyun called Yi-gang.

He was also in front of a corpse.

“You need to look at this.”

“Look at the wounds.”

Yi-gang and Dam Hyun were knowledgeable in medicine.

Even though the corpses were rotten and dried, they could infer how they died.

And on the side of that Wudang martial artist’s body…

“No matter how you look at it, it seems bitten.”

There was a large missing chunk.

“…Could it have been torn off by something like a meteor hammer?”

“No, look closely.”

“Those are teeth marks.”

“Yes, the wound was so big at first I thought it was a dagger.”

There were several wounds that looked like they were stabbed with something sharp.

Inferring the process of how the wounds were inflicted was clear.

“Among the enemies, there seemed to be beasts or monsters.”

Though the teeth marks resembled those of wild dogs or wolves, tearing open a martial artist’s side meant it was no ordinary beast.

There must have been yokai here.

“If it’s the Evil Cult guys, that would make sense.”

“Right, the corpses wearing black hats don’t have such wounds. Those must be monsters or beasts controlled by the Evil Cult.”

What on earth happened during the time we were trapped inside the barrier?

They searched the corpses more but there was a limit to what they could find out.

All the corpses here had been dead for a long time.

If the weather hadn’t been cold and dry, they would have decomposed into skeletons long ago.

“For now, let’s try to get out of here.”

Yi-gang looked westward, toward where Shaanxi Province should be.

They had to leave the cursed Kunlun Mountains to gain any information.

Yi-gang and his group headed west first.

Corpses were found everywhere.

There were relatively intact bodies, but most were already rotten and decayed.

After walking for half a day, the group found corpses that had died less than a month ago.

But there was more than just corpses there.

There was someone there.

That man.

He was unwashed, with grime on his face and disheveled hair.

He was rummaging through the corpses that emitted a putrid stench.

The dagger, which looked like a piece of scrap metal, was smeared with blood and grease.

Swish—slice.

He was cutting the corpse’s clothing with it.

The corpse’s already stiff arm covered its body, so he groaned and lifted it away.

As soon as he cut the front flap, he put his hand inside.

A normal person would be disgusted, but he moved his hands confidently as if used to it.

He seemed to focus all his senses on the touch, then pulled out his dirty hand.

In his hand was a handful of silver coins that still shone.

The man grinned.

His few remaining dirty front teeth gleamed yellow.

This series of actions revealed his profession.

He was a looter.

A corpse looter who scavenged usable items from already dead bodies.

Once an ordinary villager nearby, he resorted to this after the world changed.

He knew it was against human decency.

The guilt he felt rummaging through corpses barely cold had long since evaporated.

It was when he was about to search another corpse after wiping blood off the coins on his sleeve.

He felt a chill on the back of his neck.

Swish—

At the same time, a burning pain.

A very sharp blade pierced the skin on his neck.

Though a fool, he was sure it was a sword.

It felt exactly like when he touched a treasured sword looted from a martial artist’s corpse.

“Uh, uh…”

With a trembling voice, he begged for his life.

“Cult, cult members, I’m sorry, sorry! I thought you had already left.”

His whole body trembled, but only deathly silence followed.

“…Cult members?”

It was a younger and clearer voice than expected.

But it muttered coldly.

“Looks like Evil Cult has really risen again.”

It spoke of Evil Cult as if it were someone else’s matter.

The man’s heart seemed to drop.

Could it be that the Orthodox martial artists had come here again?

Either way, death was inevitable.

But the martial artist holding the sword to his neck did not immediately strike.

“Put down the item in your filthy hands.”

As soon as the man dropped the silver coins and dagger.

The blade at his neck was withdrawn.

Instead, a heavy pain struck the back of his neck.

The looter’s body stiffened and leaned forward.

In the end, he hit his head against the corpse he was looting.

“A thief who steals from corpses. It’s the end times.”

“When the world is chaotic, such people appear.”

Those speaking were Yi-gang and Dam Hyun.

They found the corpses and a looter while traveling.

The looter with his paralysis point sealed could only tremble.

“Still, it’s fortunate that someone who can explain how the world changed has appeared.”

Dam Hyun smiled and drew a dagger.

His interrogation skills were reliable.

When they flipped the looter’s body, he panicked seeing the blade near his face.

“Please spare me! I know nothing! I just survive by scavenging corpses here!”

“Yes, I know that. Just tell me what you know.”

Though unafraid among corpses, the looter seemed scared of Dam Hyun’s gaze.

“I’m an ignorant man who lived in this village all my life! I know nothing!”

“It’s good you lived here all your life. That red barrier, when did it form?”

The question caught the looter off guard.

Because everyone here knew about it.

“Well… about four years, no, four and a half years ago.”

Dam Hyun clicked his tongue seriously.

Yi-gang and Ha-jun’s expressions also darkened.

It was a shocking fact to them.

They had been trapped inside the barrier for just over four days.

But outside, four years had passed. One day inside equaled one year outside, showing how severe the time distortion was.

As Dam Hyun’s expression darkened, the subdued man grew most tense.

“Did I say something wrong?”

“No, you spoke well.”

Four years had passed.

Then they needed to find out how the world had changed in those four years.

“If there’s even a single lie in what you say from now on, know that you’ll lose a finger each time.”

“Ugh, ugh…”

“First, who are you?”

Dam Hyun’s interrogation began.

Unfortunately, the man’s claim of being an ‘ignorant fool’ was true.

There was little information to get from him.

His name was Jang Pal.

He was from a small village not far from Crouching Dragon Basin.

Originally, he was a loafer who barely farmed or hunted.

Then the world fell apart.

The elders the world was over, which was somewhat true.

The day the red barrier formed over Crouching Dragon Basin.

The sky turned purple.

The clear blue sky was never seen again.

Temperatures dropped slightly, and crops failed to grow well.

A bigger problem was the beasts.

Wild animals became ferocious, and dogs turned savage, biting people.

Monsters often descended from the mountains.

They were man-eating monsters unafraid even of groups of men.

Most villagers headed west to the Central Plains to survive.

Yet some remained in the village.

Jang Pal was one of them.

He didn’t love his hometown; he was just afraid to leave for Shaanxi Province.

Sometimes armed martial artists came to Crouching Dragon Basin.

They said they came on a ‘rescue mission,’ but he didn’t understand what that meant.

But they couldn’t defeat those wearing black hats who appeared suddenly.

Those wearing black hats were Evil Cult followers.

They used all sorts of strange martial arts and controlled monsters more dangerous than tigers.

Martial artists from the Central Plains always ended up dead.

Around then, Jang Pal was also on the brink of starvation.

Then bandits appeared.

The bandits claiming to belong to the Thirty-Six Forts Of Green Forest began looting the corpses using the villagers.

Jang Pal volunteered as a guide and became their henchman.

Picking up weapons and belongings from corpses and selling them to merchants was quite profitable.

But that was only for a while.

After four and a half years, no martial artists came from the Central Plains anymore.

At such a time, this haul was truly sweet luck.

If he hadn’t been caught by Yi-gang’s group, that is.

“A worthless guy you are indeed. You really don’t know anything.”

“I’m sorry!”

Jang Pal answered loudly.

All ten of his fingers were intact.

Before Dam Hyun could press the blade, Jang Pal spilled everything.

“Please let me go quickly. It’s really dangerous now!”

“Shut up.”

“I’m telling the truth!”

Fear was clearly on Jang Pal’s face.

It seemed different from what he felt toward Dam Hyun.

“Soon those monsters will smell us…”

Ha-jun, who was sitting, suddenly stood up.

Woof—

A distant dog barking sound was heard.

Woof! Whimper!

And from the other side, this time quite close.

Jang Pal finally burst into tears.

“They’re here… I’m dead now!”

“Oh, stop your whining.”

“You bastard! You’re going to die soon too!”

He shouted curses at Dam Hyun in despair.

The reason for Jang Pal’s state was soon clear.

Three wild dogs larger than a great tiger appeared.

In fact, except for their long snouts and barking, they couldn’t really be called wild dogs.

Their dark skin had almost no fur and was wrinkled.

Their abnormally large mouths had sharp, saw-like teeth.

“You don’t know how terrifying they are… even the best martial artists…”

Jang Pal shouted with tears and snot flowing.

The monsters charged without hesitation.

They were accustomed to attacking humans.

“…They’ll all be bitten to death!”

Through blurred vision, he saw the sword hanging at Yi-gang’s waist draw itself.

It flashed brilliantly as it flew through the air.

Clang—

In an instant, two monsters’ heads hit the ground.

The remaining one was struck by Ha-jun’s punch.

Its jaw was crushed and neck broken, falling down.

All this happened before Jang Pal finished shouting.

“Death, what?”

Jang Pal was left speechless.

Dam Hyun grabbed his collar.

“Take us to your head.”

“Huh? T-the head?”

“Yes, that guy should know something.”

Jang Pal nodded helplessly.

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