The Terminally Ill Young Master of the Baek Clan

“I will never forget this grace.”

“We will erect statues of you, young master, and the venerable master to honor you as our benefactors!”

The village chief of Wangjia Village and the elders expressed their gratitude, almost bowing in worship.

This was because Yi-gang and the Divine Monk had given strict instructions to the soldiers.

They had also sent a letter to the Eastern Depot Guards, warning them not to provoke the dangerous yokai living in this area.

Since the Eastern Depot feared Yi-gang, Wangjia Village would be safe for the time being.

Yi-gang prepared to depart for a mountain expedition from Wangjia Village.

He acquired plenty of dry rations and also received strong liquor to endure the cold nights.

Wangjia Village had stocked up on strong liquor to deal with the soldiers.

The further west they went from Sichuan, the higher the elevation became.

While it was natural for a mountain path to descend as much as it rose, here, after climbing for six hours, they would descend only two hours.

The air grew colder and colder.

The climate was entirely different from that of Chengdu.

Sichuan’s climate was humid and mild, but the dense forests gradually gave way to desolation.

Gray rocks and dry soil became more prevalent, and near the mountain’s summit, they saw eternal snow piled high.

In contrast, the sky seemed to grow higher.

In the deep blue sky, eagles soared.

The trees grew shorter, the air was cold, and so clear that breathing felt slightly difficult.

Yi-gang’s group had entered the plateau.

“Hoh… It seems this truly is the roof of the world,” the Divine Monk said with a smile.

Wrapped in a thick blanket, he was being carried on the back of Gal Dong-tak.

While tender green buds were sprouting in the Central Plains, white breath escaped from the Divine Monk’s mouth.

When he let out a harsh cough, Hyun Cheok, one of the Four Great Vajra, approached.

Placing his hand on the Divine Monk’s back, he began to chant a Buddhist prayer.

“Om…”

A bit of color returned to the Divine Monk’s pale face.

However, his condition continued to deteriorate gradually.

Especially after the weather turned cold, the Four Great Vajra frequently infused him with Prajna True Qi to sustain him.

“When I came here before, it was the height of summer.”

“You have been here before?”

“I once visited the Potala Palace to meet the Dalai Lama. However, this is my first time coming this way.”

“Ah, I see.”

Yi-gang nodded.

The path leading over Sichuan’s mountain range into the plateau was rarely used.

This was because it was a path impassable on horseback.

However, the reason Yi-gang chose this route was because there was a second area in the western part of the plateau where a dragon was said to reside.

「…Hmm.」

In other words, it was because of Bodhidharma.

Bodhidharma let out a dry cough, seemingly embarrassed.

Naturally, it was a spiritual cough that only Yi-gang could hear.

「Still, it is thanks to me that you are able to witness such a sight.」

Bodhidharma’s words were neither boastful nor exaggerated.

The entire panorama of the Tibetan Plateau unfolded before Yi-gang’s eyes.

The deep blue sky, the vast grasslands, and the young mountains rising high.

True to its title as the roof of the world, this highland was breathtakingly beautiful.

It seemed like a place where a dragon could very well exist.

“If we find the dragon here, we can head south to Lhasa afterward,” the Divine Monk said.

Lhasa was the city where the Potala Palace was located.

Although this place stretched across the Tibetan Plateau, it would take quite some time to head south.

“We’ll need to resupply and get some horses.”

Yi-gang pointed out an important issue.

No matter how strong Gal Dong-tak was, he couldn’t keep carrying the Divine Monk over such a long distance.

Even though he kept beating his chest, claiming he was fine, fatigue must have been building up.

More importantly, time was running out.

“If we just walk, it’ll take an eternity.”

“We need to find a village. Do you see that over there?”

Following the Divine Monk’s pointed finger, Yi-gang shifted his gaze.

In the distance, something clearly noticeable came into view.

There was a towering rock on the grassland, and around it, mountain goat skulls were piled like a mountain.

On the horns remaining on the skulls, long strings were hanging, and colorful flags were attached to those strings.

Yi-gang thought for a moment.

Could this be some kind of ritual from an unorthodox cult?

「Seems like there’s quite a bit you don’t know.」

Bodhidharma seemed to have picked up on Yi-gang’s thoughts.

The Divine Monk also spoke with a wry smile, “That is called a wind horse. Let’s go take a closer look.”

Yi-gang’s group approached the thing called a wind horse.

White, blue, red, green, and yellow flags fluttered brilliantly.

Perhaps it was called a wind horse because the fluttering flags resembled a horse running with the wind.

Following the Divine Monk’s gesture, Yi-gang looked closely at the flags.

On the flags, something was densely written in Sanskrit.

“They are Buddhist scriptures.”

“Ah.”

In this region of Tibet, Buddhism was flourishing.

Although the Buddhism of the Central Plains’ Zen and that of the Lama monks was quite different, they still shared the same teachings.

The Divine Monk asked Gal Dong-tak to let him down.

He then examined the wind horse closely.

An arrow was engraved on the rock.

“If we continue straight this way, there should be a village ahead.”

It turned out that the wind horse was both a spiritual symbol and a signpost.

The Divine Monk’s knowledge was certainly helpful.

“The problem is… we don’t know how long we’ll have to walk.”

However, the wind horse only indicated the direction, not the distance.

If they were lucky, it might not be far, but if it was far, they might have to walk for several more days.

Yi-gang summarized the situation, “First, let’s find the village, resupply, get some horses, and also hear any rumors about the dragon.”

“Let’s do that.”

Gal Dong-tak carried the Divine Monk on his back once again.

They resumed their journey westward.

However, a problem arose as they departed.

The first issue was that, even after walking for half a day, there was no sign of a village.

The second issue was the appearance of a band of horse bandits, suggesting there might not be any settlements nearby.

Whether the appearance of the bandits was truly misfortune or, perhaps, a stroke of luck remained uncertain.

Horse bandits of Tibet were, in fact, a rare sight in this area.

The real horse bandits operated further south.

The largest city in Tibet was Lhasa, and there was continuous trade and commerce between Lhasa and the Central Plains.

Since robbing traders there would yield significant profits, all the serious bandits had headed south.

In that sense, the bandits who appeared before Yi-gang’s group were likely the lowest of the low in the bandit world.

They preyed on the local Tibet people and occasionally robbed travelers who had lost their way.

They were just that kind of group.

However, for such a group, their presence was surprisingly imposing.

It was likely because they rode large horses well-adapted to the highlands of Tibet.

Yi-gang quietly muttered, “Looks like we’re in luck…”

The bandits, who obviously hadn’t heard his muttering, bared their yellowed teeth and raised their weapons.

Gal Dong-tak set the Divine Monk down, and Hyun Mu stepped forward to protect the Divine Monk.

“It’s cold, so finish this quickly.”

“Yes, Grand Master!”

Gal Dong-tak stepped forward.

“Hey, you motherless bastards—!”

As the son of the head escort of the Nokrim Alliance, all bandits in the Central Plains regarded Gal Dong-tak as the Young Master of the Mountains.

He shouted confidently, “Come at me! I am the Dual Axe of Defiance!”

However, there was no way the bandits of Tibet would recognize Gal Dong-tak.

Seeing that Yi-gang’s group showed no fear and stepped forward, the bandits grew enraged.

“Hand over everything you have and kneel!”

Without even promising to spare their lives, they charged down the slope.

“Urrrrgh—Hhh—”

“Kkyaaa—!”

They screamed wildly.

Ordinary people would have been terrified when confronted by such bandits.

Their appearance, charging forward with spears and whips at the ready, looked utterly brutal.

Among them, the one who appeared to be the leader rushed ahead.

With his spear raised high, he seemed ready to skewer Gal Dong-tak right through.

However, Gal Dong-tak didn’t even bother drawing his axe.

“You insolent wretch!”

The bandit glared fiercely, thrusting his spear forward.

The momentum of a spear strike powered by a galloping horse was enormous.

No matter how tough a person’s skin was, there was no way to withstand it.

However, one of the Four Great Vajra, who had been watching, intervened effectively.

Hyun Cheok flicked a prayer bead with his thumb.

It was the miraculous bodhi bead, striking precisely at the spear’s tip as the rider charged forward.

Ddeong!

The spear’s trajectory shifted, grazing past Gal Dong-tak’s torso.

The startled bandit and Gal Dong-tak locked eyes.

Even though the long spear had missed, the fine horse of the Tibetan Plateau would surely trample Gal Dong-tak under its hooves.

However, Gal Dong-tak grinned broadly and finally moved.

Raising a hand as large as a cauldron lid, he slapped the cheek of the snorting horse.

Puhng!

It wasn’t the usual sound of a slap; it sounded more like a drum bursting.

The struck horse tumbled to the ground.

Gal Dong-tak laughed heartily.

“This is my newly learned palm technique!”

Though it could hardly be called a proper palm technique, its power was undeniable.

The horse that had been flung aside ended up crushing its own rider.

“Uwaaagh! Gwaaagh!”

The horse stood up without serious injury, but the same couldn’t be said for its rider.

The bandit screamed, clutching his twisted ankle.

“My legggg!”

Gal Dong-tak grabbed the wailing bandit and lifted him effortlessly.

“Shh!”

When a monster capable of knocking down a horse with one hand tells you to be quiet, how could you resist?

The bandit forgot his pain and instinctively stopped screaming.

Their leader had been captured in an instant.

The charging bandits halted, unsure of what to do.

Gal Dong-tak smiled at the leader and said, “What are you waiting for? Tell your men to get off their horses and kneel.”

“Y-yes! Hey! What are you all doing? Get off and kneel!”

Perhaps it was fortunate.

The bandits had some sense.

After hesitating for a moment, they dismounted and knelt.

The rest of the process was simple.

Yi-gang and Hyun Cheok moved among the bandits, striking their acupoints.

Tok, tok, tok—with each light tap on the back of their necks, the bandits stiffened like logs and collapsed.

“Uwaaagh!”

“P-please spare us!”

These were people who had never even properly learned martial arts.

Experiencing acupoint strikes for the first time, they were terrified and begged for their lives.

Compared to the ferocity they showed when charging, the result was embarrassingly anticlimactic.

“Alright, let’s pick out the best horses… Good, these should do.”

Gal Dong-tak and Yi-gang carefully selected the best-conditioned horses.

The bandits, left with no choice but to surrender their horses, wept bitterly.

After selecting four prime horses, Yi-gang approached the bandit leader.

“Now, if you don’t answer my questions properly, we’ll leave you here.”

“Gasp…”

“The eagles would surely be pleased.”

Eagles were circling in the sky above.

If Yi-gang left them there, the bandits might be torn apart alive by the eagles.

“Ask me anything! I’ll answer!”

The leader replied loudly.

“Is there a village nearby?”

“If you ride in that direction for a day, you’ll find one!”

“And where exactly is ‘that direction’?”

The bandit stuck out his tongue and pointed to one side.

It was the same direction they had learned from the wind horse in the morning. It didn’t seem like a lie.

“Are there many people like you around here? I mean, other bandit groups.”

“This area is our territory. If you let us go, we won’t bother you again.”

“Just answer the questions.”

Yi-gang exuded an intimidating aura for a moment.

The bandit, startled, shut his mouth tightly.

Only then did they seem to realize whom they had tried to confront.

Bodhidharma whispered to Yi-gang, 「Ask them that, too.」

He was planning to ask anyway.

Without much expectation, Yi-gang asked, “Have you heard any stories about a dragon in this area?”

“Uh…”

The bandit glanced around nervously.

The others also seemed to be exchanging wary glances.

Without a word, Yi-gang drew a dagger and held it to the bandit leader’s throat.

“You’re trying to be clever, aren’t you?”

“Yes! There’s a dragon in the village you’re heading to!”

“What?”

“That village worships the dragon. That’s why even we don’t dare to approach it.”

“A village that worships a dragon…”

“Thanks to the dragon, their farming seems to flourish. So…”

Yi-gang frowned.

It was a story he had heard somewhere before.

Wasn’t this the same pattern as Wangjia Village they had visited earlier?

「Could it be a similar case this time…?」

Even Bodhidharma’s voice sounded gloomy.

Seeing Yi-gang’s displeased expression, the bandit hastily added an explanation, “I’ve seen the dragon myself.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, I’m sure the young hero will see it too. It often soars above the lake.”

“Hm…”

“A white dragon dancing in the sky…”

Yi-gang lifted his head and looked in the direction where the village was said to be.

Then, his pupils widened significantly.

“…Is that what you’re talking about?”

The bandit quickly turned his eyes to see where Yi-gang was looking.

“Yes! That’s it! You’re lucky to witness it.”

“…”

Perhaps it was due to the clear air of the plateau.

In the distant sky, it was clearly visible—

A white dragon, appearing as small as a finger, was writhing in the sky.