Chapter 35: Manhunt (1)
Baek Yisoo brought Minji and Poison Shadow to a stalled construction site. The walls were cracked from the ravages of time. In some areas bricks were missing with missing bricks and numerous cracks. The windows were standing with only their skeletons. A light breeze flowed through the gaps where the wind entered.
Baek Yisoo barely made his way through the rubble and garbage to reach the wooden door. Some of the boards of the wooden door were rotten. Baek Yisoo pushed it open and stepped inside. The dust from the dusty floor made him cough.
After regaining consciousness, he looked at the fat man dozing in the center of the dusty floor, among the boards and drinking jugs lying on the floor. He was sleeping so comfortably that he didn't seem to care about anything.
"The Green Dragon."
This was the middle-aged man who did his request and stabbed him. Thanks to this man, Minji's interest level had risen above 50.
Although the Green Dragon had been asleep from the beginning, as soon as his name was mentioned, he opened his eyes and looked at Baek Yisoo. He yawned very calmly and closed his eyes again.
"What happened?"
"I need your help."
"I'm not in charge of burying bodies, the monastery is."
"I need to reach the Hao Clan, but I don't know the method, I need your help."
"Hao Clan?"
Hearing this name, the Green Dragon slowly straightened up and stretched his body. His fat arms rippled like a shadow with this movement.
"The Hao Clan and the Green Valley don't get along well. If you want me to take you to them, it will cost a bit more."
"No problem."
Baek Yisoo reached into his pocket and took out two silver nyangs. Three gold nyangs and two silver nyangs had come out of Poison Shadow's body. This was most likely the operation budget. Baek Yisoo believed there was more where the money came from.
"You're in trouble, aren't you?" the Green Dragon asked, looking at Minji and Poison Shadow. A dead man and an unconscious woman. It was not a pretty sight. Especially Baek Yisoo, who was covered in blood.
"You need to change. Otherwise they won't talk to you even if you enter the branch."
Baek Yisoo nodded and placed Minji in a clean spot.He decided to take out Koo Mihyun's Outfit Kit and go with the clothes of the assassins he had killed.
"I also need three second-level martial artists, can you provide that?"
"Yes, but don't expect too much. We don't have many specialists on hand."
"No problem."
"Prepare fifty bronze nyang each."
Baek Yisoo tossed a gold nyang to the Green Dragon.
"You may have to wait for change."
"It's okay, you're coming too."
"I don't work."
Green Dragon shrugged.
"I gave it to you to be ready in case the targets escape."
Green Dragon looked at the golden nyanga, nodded and gestured with his hand. When he saw Baek Yisoo looking at Minji, he spoke. "You don't need to worry. No one dares to touch anyone in my territory."
Baek Yisoo breathed a sigh of relief and set off ahead. The two continued on, talking in low voices about their objectives. Baek Yisoo explained how dangerous and cunning the enemies were. Of course, he concealed how he had defeated them or why they were after him. And the Green Dragon had been in the Murim world too long to ask.
The two took the back streets to a noodle shop in the middle of the city.
"This is the Hao Clan's branch in this city. Give all the money you have and wait here."
Baek Yisoo took out a gold nyang and gave it to the Green Dragon. On the way, Baek Yisoo had explained in detail what he wanted to find out. Every move had to be well planned. The slightest slip would cause the assassins to flee the city.
The eastern districts, where there were suspicious movements and people behaving strangely, were priority areas.
The Green Dragon entered the noodle shop and stayed inside for a few minutes. Then he came out with a paper in his hand. His face was sour.
"Is something wrong?" Baek Yisoo asked, seeing his sour expression.
"No," the Green Dragon shook his head and handed the paper to Baek Yisoo. Baek Yisoo had learned to read in a month. He could now read simple texts. When he read the paper, his expression changed and he looked at the Green Dragon.
"Why are there so many procedures?"
"The Hao Clan believes in the supremacy of money. They can sell information about anyone to anyone... They also have many enemies. They have to take precautions for the safety of their information providers."
Tsk..."
Baek Yisoo clicked his tongue. They didn't have much time left. They only had an hour and a half, and if they didn't make good use of that time, things could get troublesome.
"You go to the specified location and get the information. I will assemble the team."
"Understood," Baek Yisoo said and started running towards the address written on the paper. The Green Dragon also started walking in another direction.
As Baek Yisoo said, they had to move quickly.
---
When Baek Yisoo entered the street where the Golden Dawn Restaurant was located, he quickly turned the corner and came across a large artisan restaurant called the Flour Leaves Restaurant. This was the place indicated in the address. When he quickly entered the restaurant, all eyes turned to him at once.
The inside of the restaurant was slightly dim. The wooden tables were illuminated by the flickering dance of candlelight. Old paintings hung on the walls; landscapes covered in faded colors and mysterious faces. Baek Yisoo tensed when he saw that the restaurant was quite crowded.
A man dressed in black robes suddenly bursting into the restaurant... Everyone knew something was wrong.
Baek Yisoo cursed his stupidity, but without giving it much thought, his eyes wandered around the restaurant and looked at the table on the paper. There sat a young man about the same age as him. His face blurred in the candlelight on the table.
His eyes were surrounded by deep lines, and at the same time he looked tense. His hair was dark and the sharp lines of his face bore the marks of a dangerous life. His eyes were focused on Baek Yisoo's clothes.
'Is this man trustworthy?' Baek Yisoo thought.
Baek Yisoo's expression shifted when the young man abruptly rose from the table. He quickly stepped forward and grabbed the young man's arm.
The young man gave him a nervous look.
"Let go of me. Your clothes are too conspicuous, you'll reveal my identity."
Baek Yisoo was also very nervous. He knew he had made a mistake, but if he was more careful it would be too late. The young man was right, but Baek Yisoo had made up his mind.
"If you don't sit down right now, I will tell everyone here who you are," Baek Yisoo said in the young man's ear. He noticed that the waiters and a few people in the restaurant were looking at him with sharp eyes.
The young man was also looking at him with a mixture of fear and anger.
"Sit down," Baek Yisoo said in a stern voice.
"Show me the document that was handed to you," the young man said as he sat down at the table again. Baek Yisoo immediately handed him the paper he had received from the Green Dragon.
The young man only relaxed when he received the paper. After examining the paper, he thought for a while and looked at Baek Yisoo, "A month ago, a group of nine merchants rented a warehouse in the back streets to store their goods. The area where the warehouse is located is very difficult to enter. It has several tunnel entrances to access the sewage systems."
The young man's voice was low and shaky. Nevertheless, every word echoed in Baek Yisoo's mind. Baek Yisoo realized that the young man was acting a little strangely, but from the information he gave, he knew that he was talking about Poison Shadow's team.
"Where exactly is this warehouse?"
When the young man told him where the warehouse was, Baek Yisoo didn't wait any longer and quickly stood up and left.