Chapter 343

Crreeeak, as the iron door opens, Qing’s face beams bright as she greets the sunlight.

Wow. The sun can be this welcoming.

Maybe it’s just been so long since I’ve seen it.

Most of the year, Zhangjiajie is shrouded in snow, rain, or fog, but there are still around one hundred and one clear days.

Not sure if today is one of those days or if it’s just my lightened heart, feeling like I’ve been reborn.

However, despite her serene expression that radiates freshness like the pine scent of a Daoist, her body is a bloody mess.

Even her waist belt is tied with a person’s hair, hanging onto her like a trophy.

People usually call such a person a “Bright-eyed Maniac,”

which means someone far crazier and much more dangerous than a maniac with just crazy eyes.

Qing taps the head of the trophy at her waist and says,

“You’re enjoying the sunlight too, right? You know, no matter how beautiful the scenery is, if it’s always foggy and dreary, people start to rot, just like mold. Now, let’s check what spoils of victory we’ve got.”

I’ve heard that the Yangsan Park Corps is the elite combat unit of the Green Forest. The term “elite” makes me think they might screw things up, and these guys probably can’t even use chopsticks properly.

Anyway, since Qing defeated the enemy commander, she earned the right to claim the spoils of war.

Since it’s said to be a den where the bravest of the brave from the Green Forest reside, wouldn’t there be something good in it?

Perhaps a secret manual?

I don’t even dare hope for something purple; just a little golden would be fine.

And.

“Hmm. What a pile of junk.”

Truly a heap of garbage.

Qing underestimated the bandits.

Keeping valuables in a communal lodging like this requires at least a minimum of ‘trust.’

At the very least, there’s an assumption that my brothers won’t barge into my room and steal my stuff, just a basic level of human-to-human trust.

But trust a bunch of bandits?

If they can’t even trust each other, any precious item would better be carried around or buried in a hidden spot. Leaving it in the room would just invite a thief to swipe it away, and all you’d get is some mocking laughter about a thief getting robbed.

That’s why Qing only took some useless trinkets when she disarmed herself and laid down her luggage.

This shouldn’t be happening, right?

After all, she knocked out a master of the Realm of Transformation using only her bare hands.

Even in a fair duel, a great challenge to prove her martial prowess, to come away with nothing is just absurd.

So, to soothe her frustration, Qing resorted to fire healing.

What do they call it? Fire gazing?

It’s like staring into a fire can burn away the grime and wounds of the heart, leaving you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

Surely, fire, fire indeed.

Burn everything dirty away.

Seolga, are you watching?

Look at me, I’m doing great!

Though I can’t even remember your once glorious self anymore, the spirit of yours still lives within my heart.

And so, having healed her heart with fire, Qing makes a grand exit, like a protagonist in a story, leaving the blazing Yangsan Park behind.

She gives a light tap to the trophy at her waist.

“Let’s go, Dou Sam. Time to return to the Chief. The body may spill if I lift it, but just the head is fine, right? Like in the Three Kingdoms? Guan Yu? Why just the head, right? Hey, Dou Sam, from bandit to Guan Yu level, almost a legendary evolution—super fast promotion. Appreciate it? No need for thanks, I enjoyed it too.”

The head of Dou Sam, stiffening in despair, is filled with nothing but the vivid fear of death, unable to even close its eyes from the pain.

—-

“Eek! Aaah! Seona! Kaya! Chuya! No! No! My father! My father!”

Those screams echo from the temporary tent, sounding like someone was about to spew blood.

Outside the tent, the bandits, keeping watch in a circle five men wide, roll their eyes.

For reference, rolling one’s eyes is humanity’s most universal way of expressing anxiety.

“Is everything okay?”

“I heard that the guys watching over from the other side got torn to pieces.”

“With this kind of anxiety, is there even a point in continuing this banditry?”

“What would we do if not banditry? Got any skills to speak of?”

“Well, I could be a ronin……”

“Better to be a bandit than a ronin. Much better.”

The two bandits, part of different groups, call each other “Brothers.”

Because they are “Nam Brothers,” they refer to each other as such.

Of course, since their skills are comparable, they call each other “Brothers.”

But if a lousy guy dares to call me “Brother,” I’d smack them like a dog and teach them some manners.

Meanwhile, the bandit leader Ajan Deok is deep in thought.

Is it really okay to keep scheming in the Green Forest?

Every time I report back, I’m walking on a knife’s edge, ready to get my head smashed in.

The culprit that killed the Chief’s third daughter and burned down the mansion wouldn’t be from the Blood Sect, but rather Seomun Qing, right?

At this point, I’m almost certain about it.

Considering the fires raging in the bandit camp for the past few days, no one from the Won Gagye has spotted Seomun Qing.

Plus, the trap that was already set hasn’t been restored.

But how?

Did she secretly have an escape route from the Won Gagye all along?

Then why is she sticking around instead of running away?

“Well, she probably has a grudge against the Green Forest…… ”

Overly cruel hands burning down the bandit camp and slaughtering bandits like a butcher, how does that feel?

However, Ajan Deok is still a bandit leader.

If this plan crashes, the Chief, who’s losing his mind, isn’t going to let me die easily.

So, I need to capture Seomun Qing.

Or escape now while I still can.

Honestly, I am not confident.

That sneaky and clever Seomun Qing has a devious mind; she’s really something else.

If Qing heard Ajan Deok’s inner thoughts, she’d probably smugly brush it off, saying she hears that all the time.

“But, where did Dou Sam go? Everyone’s so serious, is he going to pop up now that Yangsan Park has been destroyed?”

At this point, Ajan Deok is leaning towards the extreme bait-and-switch strategy.

Barring that, someone acting suddenly dumb and appearing right in front of me wouldn’t be too bad either.

Then it happened.

“Leader! Right now!”

“What is it at this time of night?”

“Seomun Qing! Seomun Qing is here!”

“What? The one who burned the bandit camp? Is there any evidence?”

“No, it’s that Seomun Qing! She’s here!”

Ajan Deok blinked, stunned.

What? Really? She showed up all of a sudden?

Right in front of me, saying “Come catch me?”

“Where, where is she?”

“Across the river!”

“Lead the way, right now!”

When Ajan Deok ran over in a frenzy, countless brothers from the Green Forest had already gathered at the riverbank.

In the dark of night, there she was, Qing, standing on the other side of the pitch-black water.

Of course, Ajan Deok seeing Qing means there was some light that illuminated her, reflecting her stunning beauty into his eyes.

And that light? A huge bonfire, more like an enormous furnace, blazing brightly and illuminating everything around.

From a couple of steps over, Seomun Qing is there busy cooking, huh? Cooking?

Ajan Deok couldn’t believe his own eyes.

But whether he looked once, twice, or rubbed his eyes to see again, she was indeed cooking.

Using a pot and frying pan from who knows where, skewered meat rotating over the fire, while stirring soup, tossing things around, working busily.

And Ajan Deok had a big realization.

Even if she stood right in front of me, asking “Come catch me,” there’s really no way to catch her!

Because of that river!

Heat surged through him.

Who put me through this trouble?

She’s just leisurely cooking in the middle of this chaos.

“You! Seomun Qing!”

“Danger!”

The moment Ajan Deok shouted, someone grabbed him swiftly, moments before a sharp stone whistled past him.

“W-What was that? Was it a spell?”

“It’s a stone. If it hits you, it’ll hurt like hell; if you’re unlucky, it’ll end up like that.”

The Green Forest elite pointed to a fellow who was lying on the ground, blood oozing from his head, reflecting the torchlight.

A stone? Throwing rocks? Is this some kind of mystical technique? Something with power?

“I blocked one, and it was just a plain, hard rock. It’s not even a blade or a weapon; if you throw your True Energy into a rock, with your so-called ‘Supreme Martial Arts,’ you won’t even be able to throw a few before you’ll be scattered.”

The river, about fifteen meters wide.

Since they weren’t standing right on the bank, a stone thrown from over twenty meters away traveled like an arrow.

So, if it hit your head, you’d probably burst it; if you got hit in the bones, they’d break; if your flesh caught it, you’d bruise. Naturally, it was powerful.

Qing also tossed one rock and was amazed at her own strength.

Wow, if I pitched, I could double humanity’s record, she thought.

At this rate, I could probably make an eagle win first place. Wow, that’s insane.

Thinking about it, anyone with abilities like a status screen shouldn’t be allowed to compete in sports.

Way worse than a druggie, just a complete monster.

Anyway, after giving a harsh warning to the fool who dared belittle her sacred cooking with a stone, Qing went back to her culinary madness.

Fearing the stones, no one dared yell out again. But what about the Chief?

Isn’t it about time he showed up?

Of course, if Ajan Deok reported it, it would mean getting his head smashed, so no one could bring it up.

Eventually, Qing finished cooking.

And then, the most promising candidate for the most beautiful dish began a culinary performance for the ages.

Qing eats well.

No need for further details.

This is a late-night cooking and dining extravaganza.

In some ways, it’s an almost cruel masterpiece.

Across the river, the bandits were swallowing their spit.

“Oh, by the way! Are there any heroes from the Yangsan Park Corps over there? Thanks a lot for sharing your cooking tools and ingredients! I’m enjoying it so much because of you!”

Qing had brought stuff from Yangsan Park.

Grains and plenty of seasonings and spices stocked up nicely.

Though the meat felt a bit questionable, she’d caught a few birds on the way here.

She could easily grab birds just by tossing a stone, plus, it’s a fantastic protein source that guarantees taste.

“What, what did you say?!”

Ajan Deok was shocked, glancing at the Yangsan Park members.

Shared? Does that mean the Yangsan Park Corps is in cahoots with Seomun Qing?!

“I-I have no clue!”

“But, aren’t you saying just that? Hey, Chief, where the hell is Dou Sam? Why hasn’t he shown up at a time like this?!”

“I don’t know either.”

“Oh! Over there! You’re looking for Dou Sam!”

Ajan Deok jumped in surprise.

He didn’t even lower his voice.

But the words from over here are too loud to be unheard on the other side.

Yet as Qing’s surreal hearing cut through the noise, he couldn’t dwell on it.

“No need to search over there! He’s right here with me!”

“What!? Dou Sam? The Yangsan Park Corps’ leader has betrayed us?!”

“I planned to betray, but couldn’t. Why? Because I wouldn’t allow it. So, everyone! It’s Dou Sam! His body was in bad shape, so sadly all we’ve got is his head!”

Qing triumphantly holds up Dou Sam’s head from her waist.

“Lies! That’s a lie! You’re not pulling this trick with just a head! My brother is the top master of the Realm of Transformation!”

“But wasn’t he weaker than me? Look, if you don’t believe it, check for yourself!”

Qing grabs the head with both hands and pulls it down between her legs, then with a “Whoosh!”

Dou Sam’s head sails high in the air, tracing a grand arc.

And someone leaps up to catch it with flair.

Of course, he threw it in a comical style; why it looks so cool catching it, gotta be sneaky.

“Brother! Brother!”

Someone close to Dou Sam, shrieked out in horror and despair.

---