The Crown Prince Who Raises Alt Characters

Chapter 188: Scholar Juyul (11) - Setting the Net to Catch Prey "Setting traps to catch prey" *** Excluding minor positions, the disciples of the Black Blood Sect are largely divided into two groups. The Inner Sect, an elite group directly recruited by Black Blood Sect leader Dokgo Gang or taught by him. And the Outer Sect, a ragtag group that handles all sorts of miscellaneous tasks for the Black Blood Sect. You might ask if there would be anyone who wants to join the Outer Sect like this, but surprisingly, there are quite a few who want to belong to the Outer Sect. While it may be impossible to directly learn martial arts or rise to high positions, just borrowing the reputation of the Black Blood Sect makes it good for sucking sweet honey in various ways. Even when fighting against ruffians of equal skill, if you belong to the Black Blood Sect, the other side has no choice but to bow down on their own, and merchants and shop owners in the market also look around and show consideration when you say you belong to the Black Blood Sect. Of course, if you openly engage in exploitation, the protection money that the main sect should collect decreases, so you have to maintain some limits, but even that alone was sufficient for living life enjoyably. And naturally, for such Outer Sect martial artists of the Black Blood Sect, the recent few weeks had been days like a crucible of dissatisfaction. For those who took pleasure in throwing their weight around and causing trouble for weak people, orders had come down telling them not to wander around carelessly but to wait quietly, so how frustrated must they have been? Being extremely tense about fighting against a martial arts master who was one of the Heretical Seven Hegemons was only at first. The resentment and desires that had built up as a result of continuing forced abstinence burst into blazing anger the moment they heard news that Zhang Hualing was leisurely playing around without even bothering to face them. Thinking about it coldly, they were just making their own assumptions and then getting angry on their own, but as said many times, if such objectification were possible, you couldn't do something like being unorthodox sect members. In that regard, the orders that came down from above this time matched the tastes of the Outer Sect martial artists very well. While their anger toward Lady of Trampling Fire was overflowing, they didn't have the courage to swing swords against that vicious and powerful woman. But kidnapping just a few brats who attended the academy was something they didn't need to be afraid of or worry about retaliation. A hunting ground where they, as the strong, could torment the weak - exactly what they loved. Of course, since they had to take them as hostages, they couldn't just kill them recklessly, but conversely, as long as they didn't kill them, anything was fine. "Found them." Spotting a group of children walking down the street, the Outer Sect martial artists' eyes lit up. The children were wearing unique bags that went over both shoulders instead of the travel packs or bundles commonly used in the empire, making it very easy to distinguish them from ordinary passersby. "Do academies hand out things like that these days? They must have money rotting away." "He's just a greenhorn who doesn't know how the world works. Being so conspicuous is like singing a song asking us to capture his disciples." Mocking the pale-faced scholar of the academy whom they had never seen, they approached the children without hesitation. There were also market merchants and other passersby walking the streets around them, but they didn't care. When the Black Blood Sect was making a move, how would mere commoners who weren't even martial artists dare to step forward? "You there, you kids. These gentlemen have business to attend to, so come along for a moment." At the one-sided command that lacked even the minimum courtesy, the children blinked their eyes. Then they began whispering among themselves, and at that attitude, the Black Blood Sect martial artists felt a subtle sense of unease. The number of martial artists was three. And normally when three men with a menacing atmosphere approach in a group and speak to them, children - no, even adults - would instinctively shrink back. But from the children before their eyes, they could hardly sense any signs of fear toward them. One of the children, a girl with a strangely bold impression who seemed like she would chirp like a bird, stepped forward and asked. "What is this about?" "Hey now, if we say we have business, you should know that's what it is - why are you asking questions! Do you need to be taught a lesson to come to your senses?" The Black Blood Sect martial artist, thinking the children hadn't yet grasped the situation, tried to violently grab the girl's arm as a show of force. However, when the girl quickly pulled her body back, the martial artist's hand simply cut through empty air. "Huh?" The martial artist who had grasped at nothing looked at his empty hand with a momentarily dazed expression. At the clicking sound of his comrades' tongues from behind, the martial artist's face contorted and he reached out toward the girl once more. Swoosh! Swoosh! Swiiish! But no matter how much he swung his arms and swung them again, catching the girl was impossible. Whether he was enraged by the sight of the girl nimbly dodging this way and that before his eyes, the martial artist threw his entire body like some kind of buffalo, attempting to crush the girl. But at that moment, the girl swiftly moved her body to the side and lightly tapped the opponent's ankle, causing the Black Blood Sect martial artist to be unable to overcome his own momentum and fall face-first to the ground. Thud! At the louder than expected sound, those nearby were startled or winced as if imagining the pain. The martial artist who had been frozen for a moment with his face planted on the ground soon raised his body with a completely flushed appearance and drew his sword without warning. "You little wretch!! You truly want to die!!" At the sharp coldness of the blade gleaming under the sunlight, those who had been staring blankly wondering what on earth this situation was shuddered in shock. The girl also showed signs of being momentarily intimidated, but soon seemed to steel her resolve and shouted to the children who were with her. "Kids! Let's run!!" Saying that, the girl - no, Soyeon - threw her body in the opposite direction from the martial artists, and the other children also began running down the street in unison following behind her. The Black Blood Sect martial artists tried to chase the children in panic, but soon had to face difficulties. "What, what the hell, those brats!! What makes them so fast!?" Originally, children's stride length is shorter than adults'. So when comparing running speeds with determination, adults should have the advantage, but the academy children were far too quick, as if ignoring such common sense. Even their running wasn't just ordinary street running but darting through all kinds of terrain like monkeys, and faced with that overwhelming agility and speed, the Black Blood Sect martial artists could only have their eyes spinning. Moreover, while they were getting more and more out of breath and their hearts were pounding as if about to burst the more they ran, those children seemed to be getting more energetic the more they ran, weren't they becoming even more lively! "Look at that! Those uncles can't keep up with us!" "Honestly, if they hadn't drawn their swords, couldn't we have just beaten them? They looked weak." "Yeah yeah, it was scarier when we sat face to face with our teacher and had staring contests!" "'Looking down on others is a shortcut to ruining oneself. However, overestimating others too much is also putting shackles on oneself and limiting possibilities.' Uh, and what came after that?" "Ah, ah! I know! I remember! 'With the body of a mere scholar, I cannot show you the heavens, but I should be able to show you at least the spirit of a tiger. So you must become accustomed to this and do your utmost without fear even when you meet wolf packs in the future' - that was it!" To the children who were giggling as they recalled their special training with Juyul, Soyeon, who acted as the leader of the academy children, shouted. "Now, everyone stop talking and let's go! To the evacuation site we promised our teacher!" And such chase scenes weren't happening only where Soyeon was. Throughout Mao Province. Incidents frequently occurred where the Black Blood Sect's Outer Sect martial artists who tried to capture the academy children were made fools of by children who were more agile and bold than imagined, causing them to lose their targets. "You pathetic fools!! Can't you properly handle even mere brats and are you ruining the grand plan!!" The Inner Sect, which could be called the upper echelon, also couldn't help but feel that things were not normal at this point. It's not like they had assigned something grand - they just told them to bring back a few kids, but among all those Outer Sect martial artists, not a single one had succeeded, which was clearly abnormal. "Shouldn't we inform the sect leader of the situation?" "He's in the middle of circulating qi and breathing exercises with the senior brothers in preparation for the fierce battle with Lady of Trampling Fire. If we wake him now, not only will the effects of the elixir pills he finally took disappear, but it might even have adverse effects on his body!!" In the first place, for Dokgo Gang and the upper echelon of the Black Blood Sect, kidnapping children was merely a strategic move to disturb Zhang Hualing's peace of mind and draw her to a stage advantageous to them - it wasn't some absolute trump card in itself. Since they believed the final showdown itself would ultimately be a battle of strength against strength, he was raising his physical condition to its peak together with the most skilled individuals within the Black Blood Sect, but if this were to be disrupted because of a kidnapping operation he thought the subordinates should handle on their own, Dokgo Gang's reaction was all too obvious. We should step forward ourselves even now, but then who would serve as guardian for the sect leader and senior brothers, or how about dividing our forces instead. While the upper echelon debated and agonized over their response, time flowed indifferently, and the Outer Sect martial artists who had been frantically running to catch the children who seemed to be taunting them as they fled felt a strange unease. Their comrades had increased. The Black Blood Sect martial artists who had been scattered in their search had somehow become one mass and were all rushing toward one place. "...!! Shit, isn't this fucked?" "Hey!! Everyone turn back! This is a trap─" But when they realized the situation, it was already too late. Thwack! A stone thrown from somewhere mercilessly smashed the head of one of them. And using that as a signal, stones flew from all directions to pummel the Black Blood Sect martial artists. "Hey you bastards!! I always knew you were no-good scoundrels, but now you've gone and touched children!?" "I already didn't like you guys anyway!! Take the punishment for tormenting people all this time!!" A fact that the Black Blood Sect martial artists had forgotten, or knew but deliberately didn't care about. Those who attended Juyul's academy included not only children but adults as well. Although compared to the children, they had invested less time in martial arts classes and their achievements were lacking, instead the adults possessed the physical abilities that the children lacked. And as a bonus, they also had the resentment from having suffered under the Black Blood Sect's tyranny all this time. When dozens of adult class students began throwing stone slings all at once, the Black Blood Sect martial artists didn't know what to do in the face of that deadly power. In fact, they were called martial artists but most of them were just a gang who couldn't even properly utilize internal energy, so it was natural. Since Juyul had piled up plenty of stones under the pretext of playing with the children, there was no shortage of ammunition, and whenever those with good skills among them tried to charge desperately, stone slings imbued with internal energy would fly from somewhere and mercilessly smash their heads. Zhang Oh stared blankly with his mouth agape at the sight of Juyul putting his hands behind his back again after having extended them forward. Interpreting that gaze somehow, Juyul cleared his throat slightly and said. "They tried to commit evil acts without hesitation in a place where many people's eyes were watching, so this shows they lack the sense of shame and disgust. They tried to use violence without hesitation against weak children, so this shows they lack the sense of compassion. They let their guard down and looked down on others based only on their appearance and status, so they lack the sense of modesty. And even while doing such immoral deeds, they don't know what's wrong, so they lack even the sense of right and wrong. While harming people is something a gentleman should properly stay far away from, how could one refuse to strike down beasts wearing human skin?"