Chapter 280: Run Man of Bai Yuanshan

Wu Chang saw in the photo a square copper plaque, about the size of a fist, its surface carved with an abstract cluster of flame, limited by the craftsmanship.

The plaque's craftsmanship and style exuded weight and antiquity—it should be an artifact—but not a trace of patina marred its surface, clean as if scrubbed with steel wool.

He flipped through the rest without reaction; the Omniscient Crystal showed no disturbance over the other artifacts.

He randomly selected several photos and asked Choi Seong-jae about the origins of the artifacts depicted.

When he asked about the copper plaque, Choi Seong-jae stalled.

After a moment's thought, he replied uncertainly:

"Several years ago, during an archaeological dig, we uncovered a buried small city. The urban area was modest, and at its very center, the team found this copper plaque."

"Scholars found no records in Gao Mu's historical texts relating to that city. Currently, academic circles are divided on the origin of the ruins, and the identity of the plaque in the photo remains unverifiable."

"But some scholars speculate it might be the Sun Immortal Seal from the Three Immortal Seals of Gao Mu mythology."

Wu Chang recalled Li Zaisi's memories: in Gao Mu mythology, the founding god of Gao Mu was Tan Jun, the illegitimate son of Heng and a she-bear.

When Heng descended to earth, the Creator God bestowed upon him three treasures, called the Three Immortal Seals, representing Sun, Moon, and Star.

Later, when Tan Jun came of age and ascended the throne, he used the Three Immortal Seals to establish Gao Mu.

The legend of Tan Jun was merely folk history—never recorded in authoritative texts, never corroborated by archaeological finds—and since the folk tales described it vaguely, no definitive answer exists as to what the Three Immortal Seals truly were.

Some believed they were three seals; others thought "seal" meant the Creator God's mark, and the Three Immortal Seals were not physical seals but three magical artifacts; still others claimed they were three spells, not physical objects at all.

Each theory further splintered into numerous schools: among those who believed in three seals, scholars argued endlessly whether the material was metal or jade, whether the Three Immortals were Heaven-Earth-Man, Sun-Moon-Star, or Bear-Tiger-Bird.

The vagueness of the myth was a drawback—it prevented consensus and a concrete narrative—but an advantage too: it allowed anyone to latch on to anything.

A piece of jade unearthed? Could be the Three Immortal Seals. A pictographic mural? Could be the Three Immortal Seals. This copper plaque just unearthed? Also could be the Three Immortal Seals.

So Choi Seong-jae was unsure whether the plaque was the Three Immortal Seals—he spoke with little conviction.

But Wu Chang was different: the Omniscient Crystal reacted just from the photo. This time, he might have hit the real thing.

Even if it wasn't the so-called Three Immortal Seals, its origins wouldn't be trivial.

He'd only come to harvest faith and take Erin out for a stroll—never expected to encounter another object the Omniscient Crystal craved.

What was that saying again? This treasure is fated to me, meant to be mine.

Just this copper plaque? No—he, as the great hero of Gao Mu, must strike hard against these mad little bastards to preserve Gao Mu's stability!

"Where are these bastards now?"

Hearing Wu Chang's question, Choi Seong-jae's tension eased; his rigid posture relaxed.

"The extremist Xinyuzhou Sect's leader, Kim Chan-yun, has fled into Bai Yuanshan with his followers. The terrain inside is complex; we've yet to locate them. But they left informants within the sect—we've already locked onto them."

Choi Seong-jae paused, glanced at Wu Chang, and frowned—as if reluctant to speak.

Wu Chang frowned slightly. "We're past the point of hesitation. Say it."

Choi Seong-jae was an old man, not some blushing maiden—why was he stammering like this?

Choi Seong-jae gave a bitter smile. "I only learned this the day before yesterday. By the time I found out, it was too late to stop it. Before you returned, I was deliberating a strategy. Now that you're back, this matter depends on you."

He padded his own credibility first, then said:

"When Kim Chan-yun fled with his followers, perhaps needing offerings, he took several hundred believers—and used demonic arts to bewitch all residents of two nearby villages near Bai Yuanshan."

"Ms. Li Yubin somehow obtained intelligence and entered the town ahead of time, blending in with the townspeople, and entered Bai Yuanshan alongside the extremist Xinyuzhou Sect followers. She hasn't come out yet."

"The deep interior of Bai Yuanshan is cut off from the outside world; no news has come out. I don't know whether Ms. Li Yubin is alive or dead…"

Wu Chang shook his head. No wonder he hadn't seen Li Yubin during the interview.

How can this woman never learn? When trouble strikes, she never uses her own connections—she just goes for broke.

Back on the Star Leap, if not for me, Li Yubin's faction strength alone wouldn't have saved her—she'd have been offered as an offering, or just casually crushed by players like a living cushion. And now she's doing it again.

"I understand. I'll deal with these bastards in Bai Yuanshan. But we proceed step by step. First, secure the list of locked informants. Once I've handled my part, I'll go talk to them."

Choi Seong-jae, as if afraid Wu Chang would change his mind, hurried out of the Xing Tian Group headquarters.

Wu Chang clicked his tongue, waved for Qing Long, and asked: "How many personnel can the Xingcai Gang mobilize right now?"

Qing Long bowed. "Boss, the gang has over twenty thousand members. At least twelve thousand are combat-ready, physically fit, and ex-military."

Wu Chang raised an eyebrow. The Xingcai Gang truly was Gao Mu's top gang—twelve thousand fighters? Far beyond his expectations.

But more people is better—group activities, the more the merrier.

He waved his hand casually. "Quality over quantity. Arrange ten thousand men. Arm them. Have them wait near Bai Yuanshan."

Qing Long swallowed hard. Ten thousand men on the move? He'd never seen anything like it.

"Boss, what weapons should they bring? Won't the authorities object to such a large gathering?"

Wu Chang said: "Metal batons or metal extendable batons. If you don't have any, order them now. Also, make sure they all wear athletic shoes. Tonight, we're doing a mountain night run—no one gets left behind."

"As for the authorities? I'm cleaning up their mess. They won't say a word."

Qing Long bowed. "Understood."

Wu Chang clicked his tongue, staring at Li Yubin's face in the "Thank You Letter from Star Leap Survivors" video. He was nothing like that idiot woman—he never wasted a single resource he could use.

Hiding in the mountains, huh? Hard to search, huh?

Then let's play a nationally famous Gao Mu game—Run Man. Heard of it?

In recent years, Gao Mu variety shows have been popular, but the real big Run Man? That was the Kwangju one decades ago.

Tonight, he'd mobilize Xingcai Gang members to recreate the Kwangju miracle in Bai Yuanshan—a mountain version of Run Man.

He wasn't Lee Doo-hwan, but he could still make these Xinyuzhou Sect believers scream.

Let him shatter their delusions with six strikes per second.

Just imagining it, he could almost hear powerful music thumping in his ears.

After Qing Long left, he ordered his secretary to fetch four billion Gao Mu won, all in ten-thousand-won bills, packed into ten thousand red envelopes.

Thick envelopes mean serious action.

Having finished all this, Wu Chang rode to the Xinyuzhou Sect headquarters. The car stopped before the cathedral. Wu Chang turned to Erin beside him and said:

"You keep watching your drama; I'll handle this small matter—it'll be done soon."

At Wu Chang's request, the church had been sealed off, and all believers were relocated to other churches for prayer.

Wu Chang pushed open the church door and saw four priests, faces bruised and swollen, hands and feet bound, kneeling before the stained-glass window at the front.

Choi Seong-jae and several members of the Occult Research Society stood nearby, guarding the four men, waiting for Wu Chang's arrival.

Seeing Wu Chang approach, Choi Seong-jae stepped forward and said, "I can confirm these four are Kim Chan-yoon's spies, but they're tight-lipped and deeply faithful—we've tried interrogating them, but not a word has come out."

Wu Chang said dismissively, "You're just using the wrong methods. You must conquer with virtue."

He walked up to the four and asked, "I'll give you one last chance—speak now, and it counts as self-surrender, redemption through service." The four extremist believers acted as if they hadn't heard him; they had glanced up at Wu Chang only at first, then lowered their eyes as if he were a cabbage or a potato, continuing to devoutly recite their scriptures.

Wu Chang clicked his tongue. This great Gao Mu hero was truly looked down upon.

He turned to Choi Seong-jae and asked, "Of these four, who holds the highest rank?"

Choi Seong-jae pointed to one man and said, "Song Jin-hyeon—he's the most respected bishop in the sect, a strong contender for the next Rendazhu Sect, and he previously feigned hostility with the escaped Kim Chan-yoon, hiding it deeply."

Wu Chang raised an eyebrow, stepped forward, grabbed Song Jin-hyeon by the collar, and dragged him toward the confessional.

"I'll talk to him alone. You don't need to follow."

After Wu Chang and Song Jin-hyeon entered the small black room, one member of the Occult Research Society whispered, "Can Lee Sahjang handle this?"

Though Choi Seong-jae had spoken extravagantly of him, and they'd seen the video of Wu Chang returning riding a wave under divine protection, they still doubted Wu Chang's own abilities.

They'd used many methods, even tried occult rituals to influence the man's mind—all to no effect. What could a chaebol heir possibly know?

You can't summon a god just to interrogate an ordinary man—the gods aren't his pets; they can't be summoned so casually.

Choi Seong-jae was about to say "Trust first, question later," but before he could speak, the door of the black room opened—Song Jin-hyeon's restraints were gone, and he walked out meekly behind Wu Chang.

The member who had spoken earlier rubbed his eyes hard, unable to believe what he saw—only half a minute inside, and even summoning a god wouldn't have been this fast—was it already over?

Song Jin-hyeon was the extremist leader, the one they'd treated with special care—they'd pulled out every trick, and he hadn't made a sound—how could Wu Chang just move his hand and get him to surrender?

!

Come on, bro, money can make devils push mills, sure—but you're an extremist believer, damn it! Show your devotion! Show your backbone!

Wu Chang didn't use money against Song Jin-hyeon. For a low-level scum like him, soul resonance was far more suitable.

Soul resonance worked as reliably as ever, but one thing troubled him: Song Jin-hyeon hadn't been controlled immediately—he resisted for half a minute before succumbing.

This couldn't be because Song Jin-hyeon's willpower was high enough to resist his inspiration—it must be that the "willpower barrier" mentioned in the item description wasn't just a simple will stat, but affected by other factors.

Perhaps against someone with even stronger will, soul control would only cause pure mental damage.

Wu Chang waved at Song Jin-hyeon and said, "Speak—what are you planning?"

Song Jin-hyeon revealed everything without reservation: their plans, what they had stolen, which items were most important, the location of their base in the Bai Yuanshan range, the forces hiding there, and the types of occult rituals—every detail.

From Song Jin-hyeon's words, it was clear Bai Yuanshan had long been a secret base for the Xinyuzhou Sect, where they had conducted many occult experiments in the deep mountains.

Including Kim Chan-yoon's followers, over a thousand extremist believers now hid deep within Bai Yuanshan. Though they lacked heavy weaponry, they were all gang members or hardened convicts.

These men had low morals, were ruthless, and were strong fighters—brainwashed, they would do anything for Leyman.

Only an army with heavy weaponry could deal with these monsters.

Among the Occult Research Society members, including Choi Seong-jae, their eyes first showed surprise, then shock, then numbness, and finally fear.

They weren't afraid of the Xinyuzhou Sect's setup deep in Bai Yuanshan—they were afraid of Wu Chang.

What power could make a fanatic with iron will turn traitor in only half a minute?

Even the devil lacked such efficient control over the human mind.

Their peripheral vision kept drifting toward Wu Chang, but the moment they saw him, they quickly looked away, afraid that even a second too long would make them just like Song Jin-hyeon.

At this moment, in their eyes, Wu Chang seemed more like a demon god than whatever the Xinyuzhou Sect worshipped.

Wu Chang didn't care what they were thinking. After getting the answers and mapping out the extremists' hiding zones, he left the church with Song Jin-hyeon, heading for Bai Yuanshan.

Watching Wu Chang and Song Jin-hyeon depart, a member of the Society whispered, "Director, should we follow them?"

With the methods Wu Chang had shown, their presence seemed unnecessary.

Choi Seong-jae hesitated, then said, "Follow. We must not only eliminate the extremists, but also see the true face of the Ever-Pure Light for Gao Mu."

Both Star Sky Group and the Xinyuzhou Sect's headquarters were in the capital of Gao Mu; from the capital to Bai Yuanshan was only two hundred kilometers—a drive of less than two hours.

Bai Yuanshan was the longest and largest mountain range in Gao Mu, also its sacred mountain, the origin of most Gao Mu myths, including the Dan-gun legend.

Even in the legend of the Sea General, when he was still human, he had seen a god on Bai Yuanshan and received divine blessing.

Perhaps because of these myths, supernatural abilities were severely suppressed within Bai Yuanshan, especially perception and tracking.

Not only supernatural abilities—the deep mountains were perpetually shrouded in a thin mist, making it difficult even for high-tech means to track inside.

That was precisely why Kim Chan-yoon had hidden his people deep within Bai Yuanshan.

But sometimes, cleverness backfires: Bai Yuanshan could suppress supernatural abilities, but not ordinary human ones.

At six p. m., Wu Chang arrived at Songchun Village near Bai Yuanshan.

When Kim Chan-yoon fled into Bai Yuanshan, he abducted villagers from two towns—Songchun Village was one of them.

But when Wu Chang arrived, Songchun Village was packed—its empty spaces had become the Star Cai Gang's assembly point.

Wu Chang climbed onto the stage in the village center and looked down—thousands of people filled the space.

Ten thousand people—endless, boundless.

Over ten thousand Star Cai Gang members filled Songchun Village, dressed in neat black jackets, white headbands tied around their heads, yellow silk ribbons wrapped around their right arms, and metal batons gripped tightly in their hands.

More importantly, each of them had a plump red envelope stuffed in their pocket.

The Star Cai Gang members gazed at their Sahjang on the stage with deep admiration.

They admired him because he was the one protected by the gods, the universally acknowledged great Gao Mu hero—and because of the red envelopes in their pockets.

Among the crowd, faint voices of Star Cai Gang officers could be heard giving orders.

"You bastards, snap to it! Remember Brother Qinglong's teachings—swing the baton with angle, strike with force, and swing with attitude!"

Wu Chang, dressed in a white suit and wearing tinted sunglasses, stood on the stage. He glanced at the microphone already set up, picked it up, and casually tossed it aside.

He spoke directly, and with his energy bolstering it, his voice was resonant and penetrating, far louder than any microphone or speaker.

"Listen up, everyone!"

"All along, our Star Color Gang has been the backbone of Gao Mu Nation, a responsible society that obeys social order and maintains social stability—not wild dogs scrapping over rotten meat on the street."

"But now—"

"A gang of vicious, evil Xinyuzhou Sect tumors—the very villains who once planned the sacrifice on the Star Leap—have kidnapped residents from two villages as offerings, hidden themselves inside Mount Baiyuan, and are about to plan another horrifying sacrifice!"

"Although our Star Color Gang has always been friendly to others and avoided clashes with ordinary citizens, these villains treat human lives like weeds—they're no longer ordinary believers or civilians; they're clearly all thugs!"

"To deal with thugs like these, maggots like these, we must strike hard!"

"This is for the code of the jianghu! And for the peace of Gao Mu Nation."

Boom.

The Star Color Gang underlings below snapped to attention in unison.

"Loyalty! Sincerity!"

Wu Chang nodded in satisfaction, waved his hand toward Mount Baiyuan, and said, "Everyone, set out! Rescue the civilians, crush the villains!"

(End of chapter)