Hyunjun Hyun and the boar-like man clashed for a long time.

"You're holding on well for an old man! Gung-gwi!"

"Did you eat something good, you apostate monk! You're so lively!"

Countless arrows and a huge staff clashed countless times.

And so, as they clashed for a long time, an anomaly occurred.

"Hmm?"

The man turned his head and frowned.

"It seems that Gung-gwi brat has picked up some useful guys from somewhere."

The man quickly retreated.

"Where are you going!"

Hyunjun Hyun shot an arrow, but the man who had decided to retreat was fast.

"See you again!"

"Damn bastard! The way you turn tail and run when you're at a disadvantage is the same as before!"

Hyunjun Hyun criticized the man as he chased after him, but the man had already disappeared.

"Damn it, I missed him again."

Hyunjun Hyun scratched the back of his head and moved his feet to find the place where his companions were.

Finding them was not difficult.

Hyunjun Hyun's eyesight was much better than that of an ordinary person, and the corpses of the assassins were guiding the way.

Hyunjun Hyun, who had found his companions, scratched the back of his head and approached them awkwardly.

"This old man is a little late."

His companions, as if their work had already finished, had found the children and were checking their condition one by one.

Hyunjun Hyun was surprised to see his companions.

To be precise, he was surprised to see Baek Yoonjun.

"Stay still."

As Baek Yoonjun flicked his hand, needles flew into the air and accurately pierced the meridians of the child he was treating.

To Hyunjun Hyun, who had studied medicine a little, Baek Yoonjun's medical skills were extraordinary.

'Mysterious martial arts and even medical skills. I can't even fathom the depths of the benefactor's martial arts.'

Letting out a hollow laugh, Hyunjun Hyun approached Namgung Cheon, who was also staring blankly at Baek Yoonjun's treatment, just like himself.

"It seems we have nothing to do, so how about we finish cleaning up the entrance?"

"Ah, th-that's right."

Hyunjun Hyun and Namgung Cheon disappeared towards the entrance, and Baek Yoonjun continued his treatment.

'Not only the sleeping incense, but they also have a string of major and minor illnesses and injuries.'

The treatment for the sleeping incense had long been finished.

But he was still delayed because of other treatments.

Most of the work could be handled by Baek Yoonjun alone, but he needed help for direct treatment, mixing medicines, or searching for necessary herbs in warehouses and the like.

'Brother Cheon worked hard but was not helpful, and old sir Hyunjun Hyun doesn't seem to be of much help either.'

Baek Yoonjun looked at Tang Yuhwa, who was diligently looking after the children.

'Tang Yuhwa, this brat looks like a little kid on the outside, but her skills in medicine are quite good, aren't they?'

Thanks to Tang Yuhwa's continuous help, Baek Yoonjun was finally able to catch his breath.

'So her saying she was a doctor wasn't nonsense.'

With Tang Yuhwa's help, he continued the treatment, and the end was beginning to be seen.

"Thank you."

"Th-thank you. I will definitely repay your kindness."

"Thank you!"

At first, when he was treating them, everyone seemed to be afraid of Baek Yoonjun, but as the treatment progressed, the treated children expressed their gratitude to Baek Yoonjun one by one.

"Thank you, great hero. I will definitely repay you for saving my life."

Among them, there was also a case where a noble-looking child awkwardly performed a fist-and-palm salute and expressed his gratitude.

And so, as he finished the treatment while receiving thanks.

"The entrance has also been cleaned up, Great Hero Baek."

"You both have worked hard."

"Great Hero Baek, there are more children here who need treatment."

The two who had gone to check the entrance had increased the number of patients.

"Let's check them quickly."

Baek Yoonjun quickly finished treating the new patients as well.

Baek Yoonjun, who had finished the treatment, scanned the children with his eyes.

89 children, a considerable number.

Even if they were children, with this many, Baek Yoonjun's homebody introvert nature began to crawl up.

'What should I do with them?'

Not to mention the children who had nowhere to go, he couldn't just send the children who had a place to go back.

This world was too rough for children to wander around on their own.

Even in modern Earth society where public transportation and the police worked properly, it was an anxious thing for children to wander around on their own, but to release children in the middle of the Central Plains.

'That's absolutely not going to happen.'

But Baek Yoonjun couldn't take care of this many children.

'I picked up one or two people in trouble, and a village has formed at the foot of the mountain.'

Baek Yoonjun had no intention of expanding the size of the village below his residence.

The current size was already burdensome enough.

And so, as Baek Yoonjun was unable to do this or that.

"Great Hero Baek, may this old man take care of these children?"

Hyunjun Hyun stepped forward.

For Baek Yoonjun, it was something to welcome with open arms and a cheer.

But since he was a little bothered to just entrust them, Baek Yoonjun asked with a dignified aura.

"Do you have a plan?"

"I plan to send the children who have a place to go back, and accept the children who have nowhere to go, return to Diancang, and run a sect.

I have no intention of getting involved in the martial world, but seeing how the world is going, it seems that at least one force with a proper sense of justice is needed."

"I understand."

Baek Yoonjun immediately nodded his head.

He was grateful that he was taking on a troublesome task, and since it was for a good cause, he had no choice but to welcome it with open arms.

"How about you also visit Diancang, Great Hero Baek?"

Baek Yoonjun immediately shook his head at Hyunjun Hyun's words.

It was a basic trait of a homebody introvert to be very burdened by someone else's invitation.

"I."

Baek Yoonjun's gaze met Tang Yuhwa's, who was looking after the children.

"I have a place to stop by for that child's treatment, so I will refuse."

A homebody introvert would refuse someone else's invitation even by making up an excuse, but in a case like this, besides that, there was something he really had to do.

To treat Tang Yuhwa, the medicines and herbs here were not enough, so he had to stop by his house.

Of course, just in case Namgung Cheon and Hyunjun Hyun might follow him, he would never say that he was going home.

"I see. What a pity. When your work is finished, please be sure to visit Diancang."

"I will do so."

Baek Yoonjun answered Hyunjun Hyun's words and approached Tang Yuhwa.

Tang Yuhwa stopped what she was doing and was staring at Baek Yoonjun.

Her physique was just that of a child, but at the thought of her being long past learning age, Baek Yoonjun felt a slight sense of burden and opened his mouth.

"Will you follow me?"

The characteristic of a homebody introvert, speaking while omitting the subject, popped out.

"I will."

Fortunately, Tang Yuhwa nodded her head at Baek Yoonjun's words without any particular hesitation.

Baek Yoonjun let out a sigh of relief inwardly, but it didn't show on the outside.

'Ugh, it's suffocating. Now that the children's treatment is over, I should go quickly.'

Baek Yoonjun wanted to return home as soon as possible, so he quickly made a suggestion.

"It's to go back, so hold on."

"Okay."

As Tang Yuhwa nodded her head at Baek Yoonjun's words, Baek Yoonjun took Tang Yuhwa in his arms.

"Great Hero Baek."

Namgung Cheon approached Baek Yoonjun.

"...I will not forget the teachings of Great Hero Baek and will engrave them in my heart. I guarantee it, and I will show you a better version of myself when we meet next time."

Baek Yoonjun tilted his head inwardly at Namgung Cheon's words, which he said while performing a polite fist-and-palm salute, but he just nodded his head as if that were the case.

As he was about to turn away, a thought came to his mind, so he immediately stopped and opened his mouth towards Namgung Cheon.

"The title of great hero is burdensome, so when we meet next time, just call me Brother Baek."

Baek Yoonjun had been burdened by the title of great hero all along, but he couldn't bring himself to say it because of his homebody introvert nature.

But now that he was a person he wouldn't see again, he said it as he was leaving, and the refreshed Baek Yoonjun immediately performed his lightness skill to the extreme and left the place.

After Baek Yoonjun disappeared, Namgung Cheon stared blankly at the place where he had disappeared.

"I will do so, Brother Baek."

A single tear was flowing from Namgung Cheon's eye.

Seeing Namgung Cheon, Hyunjun Hyun smiled benevolently and patted him on the shoulder.

"Where are you going, younger brother Cheon?"

"I don't have a particular place in mind."

"If so, why don't you go to Diancang with this old man?"

Namgung Cheon performed a fist-and-palm salute at Hyunjun Hyun's considerate words and hung his head low.

"I will do so."

And so, Namgung Cheon headed to Diancang with the rescued children, following Hyunjun Hyun.

* * *

Several months had passed since Baek Yoonjun's party had crushed the assassin group.

Baek Yoonjun had long since returned home, and Hyunjun Hyun and Namgung Cheon had left the Sichuan region and were heading for the Diancang Mountains.

Zhuge Hyun and Baek Sowol were circling around the Kunlun Mountains in Qinghai and moving towards Xinjiang.

"Xinjiang, you're going far."

Behind Zhuge Hyun, who was performing his lightness skill, followed Baek Sowol with her cheeks puffed out and a face full of sulk.

Zhuge Hyun looked back and smiled crookedly.

"Are you still sulking?"

"Because of Senior Brother's stubbornness, we had to go around the Kunlun Mountains, and thanks to that, I can't even see a village, let alone a place to rest. How can I not be angry?"

Baek Sowol grumbled and recalled the story of Zhuge Hyun being in Kunlun in her mind.

Then she thought about the reason why they were going around now.

'With that personality, he must have caught someone like a rat and become an enemy, and then ran away from the mountain. That's why we're going around.'

Baek Sowol recalled the past journey in her mind.

He had pushed and pushed and pushed someone as if they were about to die.

It was definitely training, and it was helpful.

'Just thinking about it, really!'

But Baek Sowol had really felt a threat to her life.

'Still, there was definite progress in my training. And I was able to confess about my destination.'

In the process, she had also confessed to Zhuge Hyun that she had to go to Xinjiang.

Although she didn't say that her final destination was the Heavenly Mountains.

'I can't let Master and Senior Brother get involved in my affairs.'

Baek Sowol's mind was complicated due to various thoughts, such as dissatisfaction with the past journey and doubts about whether she could return to the Heavenly Mountains well after separating from Zhuge Hyun.

In the process, her expression gradually worsened, and Zhuge Hyun was watching it.

'The young brat has many complaints and worries.'

Zhuge Hyun, who had been watching that, scanned his surroundings with his senses.

Fortunately, it seemed there was a place that looked like a village not far away.

"We'll be able to stop by a village today. I don't know if there will be a tavern, but at least we'll avoid sleeping outdoors."

"Haa, I want to wash up a bit."

Baek Sowol's expression relaxed a little at the news that there was a village.

Although her head was complicated in various ways, she felt much better at the thought that her body could be comfortable for now.

Her lifestyle so far had been to wake up, get beaten up by her senior brother, and then move on.

Of course, it was all camping, and Baek Sowol did all the preparations.

Although Zhuge Hyun always said he had set up a formation, seeing that he didn't sweat a single drop and his breathing wasn't disturbed, it didn't seem like a very difficult task.

'I don't have to prepare for camping today.'

As a martial artist who had learned martial arts, preparing for camping itself was not an incredibly difficult task, but it was a different story if it was after training or a strenuous move.

'I can also escape from the boring grain pills and jerky for my meal.'

Since she couldn't have a complicated meal during camping, she was desperate for some decent food.

It wouldn't be as good as the food Baek Yoonjun made in the mountains, but it would be much better than the meals she ate during camping.

And so, as she thought about food, the days she had spent in Green Mountain came to Baek Sowol's mind.

'I miss it already. I shouldn't be like this.'

A gentle and affectionate master, natural food that was more delicious than anything she had eaten anywhere else, the powerful martial arts she had been taught, and the endlessly high realm of her master that she had come to know by learning the martial arts, and so on.

Past memories passed faintly in Baek Sowol's mind.

"We've arrived."

What woke Baek Sowol, who was faintly immersed in her thoughts, was Zhuge Hyun's voice.

Baek Sowol, who had come to her senses, looked around and found a village right in front of her.

"It's a village!"

As soon as she found the village, Baek Sowol let out an exclamation of joy from her overwhelming heart.

"You like it, brat?"

Seeing Baek Sowol, Zhuge Hyun smiled his characteristic crooked smile.

And so, the two of them arrived safely at the village.

The village was not very large, but it had a certain scale as if there were quite a few people coming and going, and facilities such as a tavern could be found without difficulty.

Baek Sowol looked around the village and found a lot of people gathered near a tavern.

Since it was near the tavern she was aiming for anyway, Baek Sowol approached the place where there were many people.

-The heroic deeds of the White-Robed Sword Immortal! It starts now!!

-Come and see!

There, she saw the voice of a hawker, a large thin board and a puppet, and a father and son who were handling them.

It seemed they were performing a shadow puppet show.

Baek Sowol's family was a family of civil officials, so she had never heard of the White-Robed Sword Immortal, but her gaze was captivated by one paper puppet.

A white robe, a white-haired puppet. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

A characteristic that resembled her master.

'But Master is not that big.'

And it was a muscular puppet that was about twice the size of the other puppets.

(End of Chapter)