Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 276

277. Setting a Plan

Jang Han spoke once more.

“So, let’s prioritize our survival, even if it means spending spirit stones. We have to consider the possibility of everyone dying in this war. Even if a few of us manage to reach the outer sea, it will be incredibly difficult to survive there.”

“But so many spirit stones…”

“What good will spirit stones do us when we’re dead? Besides, if we go to the outer sea and hunt demon beasts, we can recover our losses. The most important thing now is to leave for the outer sea as quickly as possible.”

A middle-aged man with a dark face stepped forward, seemingly concerned about the high cost, but Jang Han, in his silk clothes, cut him off. The middle-aged man immediately shut his mouth, as if intimidated, and didn’t argue back.

“Let’s gather as many spirit stones as we can and negotiate the terms with the other party. If it’s still not enough, those with extra spirit stones can lend them, and we’ll repay them with our earnings from the outer sea.”

It seemed that Jang Han, in his silk clothes, held considerable sway within the group, as he made all the decisions.

The other six cultivators exchanged glances, some looking dissatisfied, but they had no choice but to accept it. Jang Han, whom they called ‘Brother Yeok,’ wore a satisfied expression.

He spoke to a gaunt man.

“It’s troublesome, but tomorrow, Cultivator Jang will have to go out again. Let’s finalize the amount of spirit stones first, and if that doesn’t work, we’ll accept the original conditions. We don’t have any more time to waste, so we must depart the day after tomorrow.”

The gaunt Cultivator Jang agreed. Now, the cultivators began to plan the specifics of their actions.

“…”

Outside the building, Han Li had been listening to everything from start to finish. The corners of Han Li’s mouth twisted strangely, and then he turned into a streak of light and disappeared.

The next day, as the gaunt man flew towards the Success Hall again, someone was following him.

Han Li, expressionless, followed him and arrived near the hall, then carefully hid in a side door. Now, all he had to do was wait quietly.

After half an hour, the gaunt man entered the hall with an excited face and then returned, looking thrilled. After that, he returned to his residence on the sacred mountain.

But then, something strange happened. Although he had been cheerful, his expression changed to a frown before he entered the building. Han Li’s face also changed as he watched the gaunt man.

‘There seems to be something fishy about this. Perhaps…’

* * *

The next day, as soon as the sun rose, Jang Han, in gold clothes, and the gaunt man, among others, very carefully set off towards the Success Hall.

It hadn’t been long since the alert was lifted and free movement was allowed, so there weren’t many cultivators wandering around the city.

Therefore, they were moving cautiously, fearing they would draw even more attention. Jang Han, in his silk clothes, leading the group, was quietly observing the surroundings as he flew.

The journey was very smooth, and nothing happened until they reached the 49th floor of the sacred mountain. As they were about to reach their destination, everyone seemed relieved.

At that moment, Jang Han, in gold clothes, changed his expression and stopped flying. Then, with a cautious face, he made a strange hand gesture. Those following behind him also heightened their vigilance.

He shouted into the empty space in front of him.

“Cultivator, why are you secretly hiding and blocking our path?”

At the same time, his hand silently reached for his magic tool. A light flashed in the empty space, and a murky voice was heard.

“Haha, there’s no need to be so tense. I’ve been waiting for everyone here not out of malice, but because I need help.”

The owner of the voice was a middle-aged man wearing blue clothes, and his pale complexion made him look as if he had a serious illness. However, everyone checked the other party’s cultivation and couldn’t help but become even more wary.

The middle-aged man in blue robes, like Jang Han in gold clothes, was at the late stage of Qi Condensation, reaching the peak among Qi Condensation cultivators.

Jang Han, in gold clothes, calmly asked, his eyes gleaming coldly.

“Please reveal your identity and what kind of help you want.”

“I am just a wandering cultivator with the surname Gok. You are on your way to the Success Hall, aren’t you? I also want to go to the outer sea, so please let me join your group and take me with you.”

At those words, Jang Han, in gold clothes’s face darkened even more. After a moment of silence, he forced a smile and denied it.

“Success Hall and the outer sea? Cultivator Gok, you seem to be mistaken. We are just passing by for personal matters, so please go and inquire elsewhere.”

There was no way he would agree right away without knowing the other party’s background and intentions. It was best to play dumb for now. The others had completely closed their mouths, as if entrusting everything to Jang Han.

The middle-aged man in blue robes smiled and said.

“Cultivator Yeok, why are you so suspicious? I’ve come all this way, do you think I’ll believe that and turn back?”

“Hmph! I’m telling you it’s a misunderstanding! I don’t know anything about it.”

As he finished speaking, he took something out of his magic tool and showed signs of using force. Seeing this, the others surrounded the middle-aged man in blue robes.

However, the other party didn’t care about their actions and remained leisurely.

“Surely you’re not thinking of killing me to silence me? It’s awkward to boast about myself, but even if I can’t kill all of you with my cultivation, I can certainly cause a commotion and draw the attention of the palace. You all know what the result will be then, right?”

Everyone’s eyes widened at his words, and they eventually looked at Jang Han, in gold clothes.

Jang Han’s expression was also not good. Although he had not yet succeeded in making a decision, he had always prided himself on having a meticulous mind.

In his opinion, the other party’s threat made sense and was entirely feasible. After calculating the pros and cons in his mind, he finally suppressed his anger and asked coldly.

“How do you want us to help you? The transfer array can only transfer a maximum of seven people at a time, and the other party has also stated that only seven are allowed. If a cultivator is added, they will definitely not allow it.”

The middle-aged man in blue robes laughed.

“Don’t worry, I won’t cause any harm. Just let me enter the hall, and I’ll take care of the rest. If it doesn’t work out, I won’t force the issue and make things difficult for everyone, and I’ll leave.”

Jang Han, in gold clothes, narrowed his brows, revealing his suspicion.

“Is that really all you want?”

“That’s right.”

After pondering, Jang Han, in gold clothes, finally gritted his teeth and replied.

“Alright. If that’s all, it’s not a difficult task, so I’ll help you.”

“I thank you all.”

The middle-aged man in blue robes, as if he had expected it, calmly clasped his hands in a gesture of respect. The gaunt man raised his head to look at the sky and urged them a little.

“Then let’s move quickly. We’ve already wasted time, and the other party won’t wait any longer.”

Without saying another word, Jang Han, in gold clothes, led everyone and increased their speed once more, and the middle-aged man in blue robes glanced at the gaunt man’s face and then turned his head.

The group was naturally flying with the middle-aged man in blue robes in the middle. It seemed that everyone was wary of him.

The middle-aged man in the middle didn’t care at all and simply flew at the same speed as them.

Now, they were really close to arriving. At that moment, the gaunt man suddenly increased his speed and began to descend first.

However, they didn’t find it strange. After all, they had been communicating through him.

As they entered the hall, everyone tried to maintain their composure, but they couldn’t hide their unease. Now that they had come this far, they were practically in the hands of the other party.

However, everything was proceeding without any problems. Perhaps they had taken care of things beforehand, as there wasn’t even a restriction that should have been blocking them.

“…”

The middle-aged man in blue robes’s eyes changed slightly.

The others felt much more at ease and entered the main hall where the transfer array was installed. There, two palace cultivators in white robes were waiting.

The gaunt man stepped forward first and respectfully bowed.

“Senior Go, Senior Geon, everyone has arrived. Is everything ready?”

Unlike the man with a smiling face, the two palace cultivators were cold. The bald old man with a haughty expression opened his mouth.

“What do we need to prepare? We just need to receive the spirit stones and give each of you a transfer token. Have you brought the promised amount of spirit stones?”

Jang Han, in gold clothes, stepped forward and respectfully replied.

“Senior, please rest assured. We have prepared all the spirit stones as agreed.”

The bald old man scanned Jang Han.

“You must be Cultivator Yeok. Your cultivation is not bad either.”

He scanned everyone and then stopped his gaze on the middle-aged man in blue robes. The bald old man’s face turned cold, and he asked with dissatisfaction.

“Why is there one more person? Didn’t you say there would be seven? That cultivator also seems to be at the late stage of Qi Condensation. Who is he?”

“Ah, this person is…”

Jang Han, in gold clothes, tried to explain with a wry smile, but the middle-aged man in blue robes smiled and answered himself.

“I am a wandering cultivator who wants to use the transfer array to go to the outer sea, so I asked Cultivator Yeok to let me come along. If the seniors would be so kind as to consider my situation, I will pay double the transfer fee.”

“Double?”

The bald cultivator’s eyes lit up, and he subtly winked at the refined cultivator behind him. The middle-aged cultivator raised one eyebrow and slowly opened his mouth.

“Even if you pay double, the maximum number of people who can use the transfer array at once is seven. We can only activate the transfer array once if we want to deceive the higher-ups.”

“I will take care of it so that the seniors won’t be in trouble.”

Then, the middle-aged man in blue robes looked at someone and spoke without hesitation.

“It seems I will have to take the cultivator’s place.”

Unexpectedly, the target was the gaunt man. The other party’s face changed from one of disbelief to one of anger. The others only exchanged glances, not understanding the middle-aged man’s intentions.

“I’m not just asking for your seat, so don’t worry. I’ll compensate you with two cores of a fifth-level demon beast, so please don’t refuse.”

He calmly reached into his pocket and took out two navy blue beads. Judging by the spiritual energy they emitted, they were indeed the cores of a fifth-level demon beast. The gaunt man revealed a greedy look at the cores, but quickly regained his senses and refused.

“Hmph! I can’t give up my seat for just two demon cores.”

The middle-aged man in blue robes didn’t seem disappointed, but suddenly burst out laughing.

After that, his lips moved silently, and he began to send a voice transmission to the gaunt man in front of everyone. The gaunt man’s face turned even paler in an instant.

The middle-aged man in blue robes spoke aloud this time.

“I’ve said this much, surely you won’t refuse my offer, will you?”

The gaunt man’s face was tense, and he was sweating profusely. He glared at the middle-aged man venomously, but in the end, he reluctantly answered.

“Alright. Since you’ve said so much, I’ll give you my seat.”

At those words, everyone’s expressions changed. Jang Han, in gold clothes, asked coldly, his face darkened.

“Cultivator Jang, what are you saying? We agreed to move together. What is this…”

The gaunt man replied with a wry smile and a helpless expression.

“I’m sorry. If you go first, I’ll join you later.”

Everyone was silent. It was clear that the middle-aged man in blue robes had taken advantage of some weakness and forced him to give up his seat.

Since he was giving up his seat on his own, what could the others say? Also, it wasn’t as if the group would be in mortal danger if one person was missing.

The bald old man suddenly frowned and interrupted, looking displeased.

“Hmph! Who told you to change the number of people as you please?”

“Senior Go, that is…”

The gaunt man was startled, but he didn’t seem to know what to say for a moment.

At that moment, the middle-aged man in blue robes flipped his palm and took out two jade boxes.

He handed one each to the bald cultivator and the refined cultivator. The palace cultivators, who had unconsciously accepted them, looked at the middle-aged man in blue robes without saying a word.

“These are treasures I offer, and I ask that the seniors accept them.”

The two cultivators revealed curiosity and released their consciousness to scan the jade boxes, checking if there were any strange tricks.

Still being cautious, they opened the jade boxes only slightly, and at the same time, a red light burst out.

“…!”

“This is!”
# 278