Chapter 133:

Chapter 133:

Entrance of the Hidden Cave

At the entrance of the hidden cave, martial artists continued to gather, now numbering over a thousand, exchanging glances and engaging in a silent standoff.

Despite there being no one explicitly blocking the path, the reason they hesitated to enter was simple.

Three dominant forces in Sichuan—Sichuan Tang Clan, Emei Sect, and Qingcheng Sect—had already sent their key martial artists inside.

Of course, there were high-level practitioners among the gathered crowd, and many felt confident enough to face any one or two of those inside.

However, with names like the Nine Great Sects and Five Noble Families, the groups inside were formidable, each consisting of dozens of members.

The instant they encountered each other, it would be certain death.

“Damn it.”

As someone cursed at the reality that they had to yield once again to those three major forces, someone else offered a peculiar suggestion to the thousand-strong crowd.

“Why don’t we all just wait here together?”

“What do you mean, wait here?”

“If what’s written in the Zhang Bodo is true, there’s only one entrance to that place anyway! So rather than entering a hidden cave where we don’t know what lies ahead, wouldn’t it be better to wait here for them to bring out the treasure?”

“!!!”

A few people who grasped the meaning behind the suggestion had their eyes light up, and soon others began to understand as well.

‘Right. With over a thousand martial artists here, even the Emei, Qingcheng, or Tang Clan would struggle to handle all of us!’

‘According to rumors, those three don’t get along very well, so there’s a good chance they’ve weakened each other inside the cave.’

The eyes of the martial artists, who were considering giving up and going back, now gleamed with renewed greed.

The man who first made the suggestion faintly smiled as he felt the dark aura of desire spread.

Surprisingly, he was certain that there was only one entrance to that cave.

‘Hehehe. No one will be able to get out of here easily.’

Considering the immense value of the treasures, weapons, and martial arts manuals within the cave, at least a few thousand martial artists had to die here.

To ensure this, the cave’s entrance was designed to have only one point of entry, by the force he belonged to.

* * *

Seeing Mu-jin suddenly adopting a serious expression, Mu-yul tilted his head and spoke.

“Mu...”

As he was about to call Mu-jin by his real name, Mu-gyeong covered his mouth.

“Ahem. Choi Kang-hyuk, what’s wrong?”

Mu-gyeong, unaware that Tang So-mi had noticed something, tried to conceal their identity by using a pseudonym for Mu-jin.

In response to Mu-gyeong’s question, Mu-jin spoke.

“It seems we’re a step too late. Others have gathered here.”

“Oh...”

While Mu-gyeong and Mu-gung quickly understood the situation, Mu-yul and those at the Cheongsu Dojang did not.

“Why is that a problem, Mu... I mean, Choi Kang-hyuk Dowu?”

“If we try to take out the treasure, we’ll likely have to fight all the martial artists who have gathered here. That could mean hundreds, if not thousands, of martial artists.”

“Then, why don’t we just leave the treasure?”

“Even if we leave the treasure, they will still suspect us since we came out from the inside.”

The innocent children couldn’t understand Mu-jin’s explanation.

“If we don’t have the treasure, why would they suspect us?”

“They might think we hid small treasures or martial arts manuals in our clothes. They’d probably want to search our bodies.”

“Then we can just let them search us.”

“What if they suddenly attack or hit our pressure points?”

“Hmm? Why would they do that?”

“....”

Mu-jin realized how hard it was to explain the ugliness of humans driven mad by treasures or martial arts manuals to these innocent kids.

“Anyway, that’s the situation. If we leave the treasure, the martial artists who have gathered here will start killing each other. More than a thousand might die.”

“Oh...”

“Then, what should we do!?”

But the thought of so many people potentially dying made the children’s faces turn serious.

“We need to think of a solution. It would be great if we could find a hidden exit.”

Despite knowing the unlikelihood, Mu-jin muttered this. A trap-laden place like this was unlikely to have a secret exit.

But then, unexpectedly...

“Uki! Ukikiki!”

**Ling-ling’s Sudden Behavior**

While Mu-jin was creating a way out on his own,

“I’ll take over this time.”

“Hmm, is it my turn now?”

The group took turns facing the martial artists who occasionally arrived at the cave. Mu-yul, Mu-gyeong, Mu-gung, the Cheongsu Dojang members, Tang So-mi, and her bodyguards, totaling six people, fought in shifts while practicing Qi Conducting Techniques.

‘...They look like they’re in some kind of sparring match.’

Though Tang So-mi found it an absurd sight, having narrowly escaped death multiple times in this cave, she couldn’t deny the strange spectacle.

“Hahaha, it’s truly delightful to have an endless stream of sparring partners!”

“Let’s go, Ling-ling!”

“Ookki!!”

The most astonishing part was the skill level of the Muja Quartet. Even disregarding Cheongsu Dojang, the other three seemed to have improved significantly since the Yongbongji Conference, in less than a month.

As a result, the number of martial artists lying sprawled on the ground steadily increased in the spacious cave.

Tang So-mi was further bewildered by the fact that they subdued all opponents without killing any of them.

When the number of subdued martial artists exceeded thirty,

“Ookki! Ookkikki!!”

Suddenly, Ling-ling started barking.

“It seems Choi Kang-hyuk has cleared the path! A strong wind is blowing in!”

Indeed, just as Ling-ling said, upon returning to the treasure room, they found a newly dug tunnel large enough for a person to pass through.

“Phew.”

In front of it, Mu-jin was catching his breath, having just returned from clearing the exit.

“Now we just need to take these treasures and leave... but it looks like we’ll need to make two or three trips.”

Leaving the treasures behind would lead to a deadly struggle, but carrying them all at once was impossible with their current numbers.

They would have to transport the treasures to a safe location outside and make multiple trips.

While contemplating this issue,

Step, step.

They heard the faint sound of footsteps from beyond the cave.

Naturally, Mu-jin’s group prepared for battle.

Soon, martial artists dressed in green uniforms appeared from the dark crossroads.

“Elder!”

“So-mi!”

They were the Sichuan Tang Clan martial artists who had come to find Tang So-mi.

They had managed to reach this treacherous place without losing any members, though they had encountered numerous traps.

Although they were elite Tang Clan martial artists, their easy arrival was due to another reason.

“What were you thinking, coming to such a dangerous place alone?”

“I didn’t come alone. I brought my guards with me.”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“But thanks to me, you found this place easily, didn’t you?”

“Sigh... Alright. We’ll discuss this further once we return to the clan.”

Tang So-mi’s confident reply made Elder Dang Taeryeong sigh deeply.

The reason they had found the place so easily was thanks to the unique Thousand-League Tracking Incense that Tang So-mi had spread while breaking through the cave.

Only the well-trained martial artists of the Sichuan Tang Clan could detect this special scent.

Tang So-mi had originally come to investigate the situation, not to find treasures, and had left the scent trail for the following Tang Clan martial artists to find her.

Pointing to the clan members she had led here, Tang So-mi said brightly,

“Now we can leave right away, right? We have people to carry the treasures!”

* * *

Meanwhile,

A strange tension filled the air among the thousand martial artists gathered at the entrance of the cave.

“Why hasn’t anyone come out yet?”

“Could there be another exit inside?”

They had been camped there since noon, and now the sky had turned crimson.

“Ah, they must not have found the treasure yet. Let’s wait just a little longer.”

The subordinate of the hidden forces, who had proposed the alliance, wiped his sweating forehead in response to the impatient questions of some martial artists.

‘Despite all the traps, with the Tang Clan, Emei Sect, and Qingcheng Sect inside, they haven’t found the treasure yet?’

He was confident that there was no other exit in the cave and couldn’t comprehend the current situation.