Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 160

“It’s not congested.”

“It seems so.”

The car sped along the wide road.

“If there’s no traffic, we should arrive in four to five hours.”

“Then it’s not much longer.”

“That’s right.”

Nam Sang-hyuk was talking to Jo Gyu-min, but all his attention was focused behind him.

He couldn’t stand the fact that Kang Jin-ho had been sitting with his eyes closed and arms crossed since earlier.

‘What kind of person is he, really?’

He looks so innocent, yet he single-handedly took down all those gang members. Is that even something a human can do?

Even Sira-soni, who could be called a legendary fighter in Korea, wouldn’t be able to do that. And it wasn’t even with bare fists; they all had weapons.

Yet, he just crushed them unilaterally.

‘Is he some kind of special forces operative?’

Otherwise, no matter how much he thought about it, it just didn’t make sense.

‘And what the heck is ‘beat the grass to scare the snake’ [a Chinese idiom meaning to make a move to reveal the enemy] supposed to mean?’

It seemed like he did that to draw someone out, but if you mess with a local gang, the only thing that would come out is the Triads [Chinese organized crime syndicates].

‘I should probably run away quickly.’

No matter how good Kang Jin-ho is at fighting, what he’s doing right now is nothing more or less than a suicide mission.

The Triads were something even the Communist Party wouldn’t mess with. Living in Korea, it’s easy to look down on organized crime. Nam Sang-hyuk had also lived with that mindset. No matter how powerful a gangster is, he thought, they’re nothing when the police or public security show up.

But living abroad, he realized how wrong that thinking was.

Korea’s public safety was among the best in the world.

China is not Korea.

How else would dozens of thugs be fighting with weapons in broad daylight on the side of the road?

That would be impossible if the public security was doing its job.

Nam Sang-hyuk, who knew how ruthless, cruel, and persistent the Triads were, had no desire to be associated with Kang Jin-ho any longer.

Kang Jin-ho slowly opened his eyes.

Familiar mountain peaks came into view.

“…Tianshan.”

Kang Jin-ho gazed at the scenery outside the window with a slightly wistful look.

“…You’re going to climb the mountain?”

Nam Sang-hyuk looked at Kang Jin-ho with a dumbfounded expression.

“Yes.”

But Kang Jin-ho replied as if it were nothing.

“Um, Mr. Kang Jin-ho… Mr. Kang Jin-ho.” Nam Sang-hyuk took a deep breath and organized his thoughts.

“This is not Korea. Those mountains you see over there are not like the mountains you see in Korea. No! Even in Korea, hiking at night is prohibited. It’s a perfect way to die. Even in those small Korean mountains, people get lost. Once you get lost there, no one knows where you are. It’s nothing like the mountains in Korea, where if you just go down, you’ll find a road and houses!”

Jo Gyu-min clicked his tongue as he watched Nam Sang-hyuk spitting out words like fire.

‘Was I like that too?’

In the past, he used to nitpick at Kang Jin-ho’s actions like Nam Sang-hyuk.

But now, he knew that even though Kang Jin-ho’s actions seemed reckless at first glance, there was a reason and calculation behind them, so he was in a position to trust him.

But this time, he hoped Nam Sang-hyuk would win.

He could see the sun setting.

If Kang Jin-ho said he was going to climb the mountain, he would have to climb it too.

“I know.”

But Kang Jin-ho said it as if it were nothing.

“If that’s the case, how about finding a place to stay nearby and climbing tomorrow morning? If you get lost in this mountain, there’s no one to save you. It’s not like Korea where the rescue team flies in immediately.”

‘Good job!’

Jo Gyu-min felt like he wanted to cheer him on if he could. Whether Nam Sang-hyuk would like Jo Gyu-min’s cheering was another matter.

“Thank you for your concern.”

But Kang Jin-ho was firm.

‘He’s as stubborn as a mule.’

Nam Sang-hyuk eventually gave up trying to persuade Kang Jin-ho. In the first place, continuing to persuade someone who doesn’t listen is just a waste of time.

“If that’s the case, then there’s nothing I can do.”

Kang Jin-ho picked up the bottled water he had bought at the rest stop and tightened the straps of the bag on his back.

“The phone probably won’t work once you go into the mountains. When you come down, call me on my phone. I’ll come pick you up here.”

“Yes.”

Nam Sang-hyuk turned around with a queasy feeling.

It couldn’t be helped, but it felt like he was abandoning someone who was going to die.

But Kang Jin-ho, as if he didn’t care, looked at Jo Gyu-min and said,

“Let’s go.”

“…Weren’t you saying we were going on vacation?”

“Well…”

Kang Jin-ho smiled and said,

“Some people go hiking on vacation, so can’t we just call it even?”

Oh, for crying out loud!

Just as Jo Gyu-min was about to shout, Kang Jin-ho opened his mouth.

“Listen to me, I’m serious.”

“Yes?”

“You don’t have to follow me.”

“…”

Jo Gyu-min’s face hardened slightly.

“The path we have to climb from now on is a bit rough. If you follow me, you’ll only suffer. Just go back with Mr. Nam Sang-hyuk now. I’ll call you when I’m done. From now on, I don’t really need an interpreter.”

Jo Gyu-min opened his mouth with a stiff face.

“Mr. Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know why an office worker is an office worker?”

“…I don’t know.”

“It’s because they do whatever they’re told. If I didn’t want to do that, I would have opened a chicken restaurant, not tried to succeed in finance.”

“Well…”

“The important thing for an office worker is proper skill and sense. It’s also important to pretend to work while not working. But sometimes, it’s necessary to work when you don’t have to. Especially in cases like this, if you postpone your work once or twice, you’ll want to postpone it next time too. Then, success as an office worker will be far away.”

Jo Gyu-min said with conviction.

“Following Mr. Kang Jin-ho is my job. No matter how much it is Mr. Kang Jin-ho, I cannot tolerate interference with my work.”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Kang Jin-ho.”

When Kang Jin-ho looked at him with a questioning look, Jo Gyu-min smiled and said,

“I’m Jo Gyu-min.”

“…Like hell.”

I should have just said ‘okay’ and gone down when he told me to, but why am I so foolish?

Jo Gyu-min couldn’t shake the feeling that he had made a serious mistake.

Whether the mountain was steep or not was not the issue.

Jo Gyu-min realized firsthand that there was a big difference between climbing a mountain with a trail and just going up the mountain without a plan.

“Ugh, huh!”

His foot slipped on the fallen leaves and slid down.

Kang Jin-ho grabbed Jo Gyu-min, who was slipping, and pulled him up.

“Are you okay?”

“…Yes.”

He was okay, but!

Climbing a mountain at night when he couldn’t even see properly, what kind of crazy thing was this?

Besides, this mountain was on a different level from the mountains Jo Gyu-min had seen so far.

It was a good thing it was night. The side of the mountain looked like a cliff, and if it were daytime, he wouldn’t have been able to stand properly because he would have been so scared.

How long had it been since they started climbing, and he was already seeing such a sight?

“K-Kang Jin-ho.”

“Yes.”

“I think we’re going to get seriously hurt?”

“You won’t get hurt.”

Nam Sang-hyuk had learned that you should talk to people who understand, but Jo Gyu-min still hadn’t given up.

“No. I mean… I don’t have any complaints about climbing the mountain itself. If there’s something we have to do at the top, we should do it. But can’t we just go after it gets light?”

“If we leave tomorrow, it’ll take about three days?”

“Yes?”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled as Jo Gyu-min tilted his head as if he didn’t understand what he was talking about.

“This is not a mountain in Korea. Tianshan is like a mountain range with many mountains. We came by car as far as we could, but from now on, we have to climb the mountain.”

“So, we’re not just hiking, we’re climbing the mountain? Like a traverse of the Taebaek Mountains [a major mountain range in Korea]? Something like that?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that earlier…”

“Yes?”

You should have told me that earlier and told me to go back! You crazy bastard!

He thought that if he worked hard for a day, he would have something to say when he returned to the company, but this wasn’t just a day!

If it takes three days just to get there, how long will it take to come back!

“S-So, are we going to climb the mountain all night?”

“We should prepare for camping now.”

Jo Gyu-min turned his head and looked at the moon in the sky.

He missed his mom today.

Kang Jin-ho was very skilled.

He made a plausible bed by weaving together fallen leaves and branches, then dug a hole on one side and started a fire. All of this was done in just 10 minutes.

It wasn’t the work of someone who had done it just once or twice.

But as far as Jo Gyu-min knew, Kang Jin-ho wasn’t someone who had a hobby of going into the mountains.

‘That’s strange.’

He should be someone with little to no camping experience, but he seemed too skilled at everything.

Of course, even if you’re inexperienced, you can get information through the internet these days, but if you know how much of a gap there is between knowing something in your head and putting it into action, Kang Jin-ho’s skill right now doesn’t make sense.

Kang Jin-ho, who had finished organizing, poured water into a cup and handed it to Jo Gyu-min.

“No, I…”

Jo Gyu-min, who was about to refuse, saw the steam rising from the cup and accepted it without saying a word.

Seeing the cup filled with boiling water, he couldn’t help but lower his head.

‘Did he bring a thermos?’

He didn’t see him bring any hot water, so where did this hot water come from? He just started the fire.

Kang Jin-ho got up from his seat, gathered his things to one side, and suddenly started stretching, extending his body.

‘Moonlight gymnastics?’

He said they should sleep now, but he didn’t know what he was doing.

“Then, please rest.”

“…Where are you going?”

“I’m not going, I’m welcoming.”

“Yes?”

Kang Jin-ho smiled lightly.

“Now that the snake has come out, I have to hunt the snake.”

“Snake?”

“I wonder what will come out after I catch the snake. Will it be a dragon, or a tiger?”

Kang Jin-ho said that and turned his body.

‘What the heck is he talking about?’

It seemed like he was talking about what he said about ‘beating the grass to scare the snake’ during the day, but he didn’t know what that had to do with the current situation.

But Jo Gyu-min’s question was soon answered.

A sudden chill came over him.

Jo Gyu-min closed and opened his eyes.

Kang Jin-ho was there.

But it wasn’t Kang Jin-ho.

The back he saw in front of him was the same as Kang Jin-ho’s, but Jo Gyu-min could sense that the atmosphere had changed.

‘It’ had come out.

“Why?”

Why would he suddenly show that side of himself in a place like this where no one was around?

Kang Jin-ho, who had been looking up at the sky, opened his mouth.

“Come out.”