BASED ON THE KINGDOM OF THE GODS BY YLAB
THE JAPANESE INVASION LEFT THE SOUTHERN LANDS OF JOSEON IN RUINS.
AND NOW ANOTHER STORM WAS LOOMING IN THE NORTHERN LANDS OF JOSEON.
THE JURCHENS ACROSS THE MANCHURIAN PLAIN NORTH OF THE AMNOK RIVER
STARTED GATHERING AT THE BASIN OF THE PAJEO RIVER
UNDER THE FLAG OF THE VICIOUS, POWERFUL PAJEOWI.
WHEN 10,000 JURCHENS GATHER, NO ARMY IN THE WORLD CAN DEFEAT THEM.
FEELING THREATENED BY THE PAJEOWI'S SUSPICIOUS MOVE,
WARRIORS OF JOSEON SCOUTED ANOTHER GROUP OF THE JURCHENS
IN ORDER TO KEEP THEM IN CHECK.
THEY WERE JURCHENS LIVING IN JOSEON CALLED SEONGJEOYAIN.
SINCE THEY HAD LIVED IN JOSEON FOR OVER A CENTURY,
THEY WERE NEITHER CONSIDERED JURCHENS
NOR ACCEPTED BY THE PEOPLE OF JOSEON AS THEIR OWN
AND WERE SHUNNED BY ALL.
THIS PLANT BRINGS THE DEAD BACK TO LIFE… BUT YOU MUST PAY THE PRICE
JURCHEN JOSEON, HANYANG
PAJEOWI, BOUNDARY VILLAGE, PYESA-GUN
PYESA-GUN
What's that?
CITADEL OF MANPO
Isn't he the deputy commander of the Chupajin troops?
Don't tell me there's another debacle coming.
I suppose the rumors are true.
What rumors?
Well…
I heard some Jurchens went into Pyesa-gun to get wild ginseng
and were all killed.
What? It's against the law to enter Pyesa-gun.
I can't believe such a horrible thing happened there.
I heard something scary lives there.
I heard none of those wild ginseng hunters came back out alive.
No one has been allowed to enter for the past 100 years.
Who knows if some vicious monster lives there?
They all have the same tattoo.
They're Pajeowi Jurchens.
The word has already spread.
It's only a matter of time before the Pajeowi find out.
What should we do?
Let's go to the boundary village.
Do not look.
Animal blood and innards are for the lowborn.
There. It's ready.
Remove your filthy hands.
Let's go.
Hey!
Let's have some meat!
BOUNDARY VILLAGE
A VILLAGE WHERE THE JURCHENS IN JOSEON LIVE
This is good.
It tastes amazing.
It's great!
How long has it been since we last had meat?
It's Ashin!
Ashin!
Come, Ashin. Let's eat.
Do you want some more?
It's good, isn't it?
Hey! How dare you?
Give it back.
-Hey-- -I'm sorry.
I told you not to go to Pyesa-gun!
But you said it's not actually dangerous there.
You told me yourself that people in high places spread false rumors
so they could take all the wild ginseng.
That's why you should never go there.
Soldiers are more dangerous than monsters.
Then what do we do?
Just let Mom die?
They say the wild ginseng there can even bring back the dead--
You're not a ginseng hunter.
How will you find wild ginseng in that huge mountain?
I'm not sure if it was wild ginseng, but I saw a strange plant.
It was drawn on a mural at an abandoned shrine.
It says it can bring back the dead.
Nonsense.
There are no shrines left in that area.
-But I saw it-- -Stop talking nonsense.
Listen to me and do not go there.
Those who sneaked in there and got caught
had their tongues cut out.
I can never let that happen to you.
I was planning to travel to Chupajin
to offer these gifts to you, my lord.
Fifteen Pajeowi Jurchens who went into Pyesa-gun
to hunt wild ginseng were all found dead.
Are you sure they are the Pajeowi Jurchens?
But who would do something like that?
A tiger.
You will have to cross the river.
Go spread the word that all the Pajeowi Jurchens
were killed by a tiger.
Understood, my lord.
When will my village
receive an official government position?
We are aware of your loyalty.
Be patient and wait.
Good news will come.
We’re heading out. Get ready.
JOSEON MILITARY CAMP, CHUPAJIN
We have brought all the corpses found in Pyesa-gun as you ordered, sir.
We've verified that the limbs were torn by wild animals,
but it happened postmortem.
It wasn't a tiger.
They were killed by humans.
I am aware.
If 10,000 Jurchens gather…
a great danger will befall us.
Hold out a hand, and you shall receive help.
Pull out a knife, and you shall be slain.
While Joseon was floundering in chaos during the Japanese invasion,
Aidagan, the head of the Pajeowi,
has gathered the Jurchens under his wing.
The Japanese in the south are preparing another attack.
If the Pajeowi in the north use this as a reason to invade us as well,
what will happen to this country?
We can never let them know their men were killed by our people.
They were attacked…
by a tiger.
The deputy commander from Chupajin is here.
Let him in.
Have a drink, my lord
What brings you here at this hour?
We found 15 dead Pajeowi Jurchens.
Are you certain there were 15 of them?
Why? Did I get the number wrong?
I heard you went hunting in the Birch Pass two days ago.
Since when…
do I need your permission to go hunting?
Pajeowi Jurchens receive martial arts training from an early age.
It is near impossible to take down 15 of them at once.
Unless it was you and your elite guards who did it.
You'd better discipline your men before someone else finds out.
Those Jurchen rats…
dared to steal the Haewon Cho Clan's wild ginseng.
They all deserved to die.
You should have captured and punished them according to the law.
And the Haewon Cho Clan does not own those wild ginseng.
They belong to His Majesty the King.
Do you think you can insult me and my family like this
just because I am stuck
in the boondocks now?
You abandoned the people and fled during the war.
That is why you're here.
If you endanger this country once again,
you will not be able to avoid the consequences…
even if you are from the Haewon Cho Clan.
The people are growing anxious,
so I will begin a tiger hunt to calm them.
I advise you to stay put and stay out of trouble.
This is a warning.
AMNOK RIVER, BORDER AREA
BOUNDARY VILLAGE
Are you sure it was a tiger?
The Pajeowi learn martial arts as soon as they can walk.
How can a single tiger kill them all?
If it's a lie,
it'll rub them the wrong way.
It might put you in danger, Father.
Being undercover
is always dangerous.
Look after the family while I'm gone.
All right, then.
Let's just cross the river and go back to our clan.
You let them take all your hard-earned pelts
and even risk your life to go undercover for them.
Will you let them walk all over you forever?
Pyesa-gun. Our ancestors lived there.
The King of Joseon bestowed the land upon our clan,
who was battling hunger and thieves on the barren field
on the other side of the river.
The King also offered us a public office
and exempted us from paying taxes.
Joseon was gracious to us.
Hence, I cannot betray Joseon.
They may have been gracious to our ancestors,
but they took back everything they had given us.
Hang in there just a little longer.
Soon, I will officially be appointed and we'll be able to live a good life.
I think we should call for a doctor.
You know very well
that no doctor would come here.
Then what do we do?
Stay with Mom until I come back.
Ashin! Hurry back!
JURCHEN VILLAGE, NORTH OF AMNOK RIVER
Far past the Amnok River
is Mount Baekdu, Joseon's highest mountain.
It's so huge that you'll find all kinds of trees and animals.
The most famous one among them
is the tiger.
They say that this tiger is 1,000 years old.
Sometimes, it even transforms into a human.
Lies!
No, it's true!
Over 1,000 men have gone into the mountain to catch the tiger, but they all died.
Even the Pajeowi Jurchens who climbed the Birch Pass recently
all got eaten by that tiger.
Is that true?
It sure is.
I saw it with my own two eyes.
You'd better be telling the truth.
If you're spreading false rumors,
you will die.
PYESA-GUN
THIS PLANT BRINGS THE DEAD BACK TO LIFE…
BUT YOU MUST PAY THE PRICE
Our hunt will take place in the Birch Pass.
We will begin the hunt in these two areas.
The Chupajin soldiers will spread out,
guard the trails, and go after them.
We'll lure them out…
to here.
You want to lure them out to Pyesa-gun.
Do not forget.
We will only pretend to hunt them.
When hunting a tiger,
you should not go too slow or too fast.
If we're too fast,
it might end up attacking us.
All right. Let's go!
Let's go!
Begin!
Get a move on!
It's a tiger's paw print.
It's odd though.
Tigers hate the sound of gongs, so they usually move away from it,
but not this one.
What do you mean?
It's moving towards the hunters.
It's a tiger.
It's not a tiger…
It's a monster.
Tell the hunters to fall back.
We'll take it from here.
Retreat!
-Move it! -Retreat!
It's the Pajeowi. Stop them!
Sir!
How bizarre.
It was already dead.
How is this possible?
Here's what's really bizarre.
We were told that our brothers were killed by a tiger.
Then where are their flesh and bones?
They crossed the borders and entered Pyesa-gun,
which is against the law.
There is no reason for us to be held responsible for their deaths.
Our brothers died on Joseon soil.
Brace yourselves for a bloody revenge.
Ashin?
Fire!
JOSEON MILITARY CAMP, CHUPAJIN
I heard about the tragic massacre in your village.
Are you the only one who survived?
What happened to your father?
I heard the Pajeowi…
have executed a spy from Joseon.
Did you cross the river and go all the way there?
I do not get it.
Why would the Pajeowi do this to us?
I have been racking my brain, but I really do not get it.
Have you come to see me to find out why?
No.
That is not important.
Please avenge my father's death.
A lowborn weakling like me cannot do it.
But Joseon is a strong country
and has the power to punish them.
I am sorry for your loss,
but this is not a matter Joseon can intervene in.
My father…
was loyal to Joseon all his life.
Although you could not have him appointed officially…
you could at least do this for him.
It doesn't have to be right away.
Next year… No, the following year…
or even a decade or two later.
Make them shed tears of blood…
then I will make peace with it.
I will do anything.
I will be your spy
or even work as a butcher if you tell me to.
I will gladly do anything even if it's something worse than that.
Please avenge my father's death.
Take this child.
It looks like a Jurchen girl.
This is where you will stay.
I heard she is a survivor from the boundary village.
That tenacious little wench.
I heard she buried all the bodies by herself.
PAJEOWI MILITARY CAMP
-Hey. -What?
What are you looking at?
Ashin.
Get out.
Do you think
you can survive here…
after killing a Joseon soldier?
I guess you're too big to fit in here now.
Good job.
MESSENGER
It's an urgent message!
The peace conference with the Japanese was called off?
Yes, sir.
His Majesty has ordered every troop
to assemble in the south except those in Uiju and Kanggye.
We will leave a few soldiers behind and prepare for battle.
Yes, sir.
But keep a close watch on the Pajeowi's every move.
Yes, sir.
Sir.
What atrocity is this?
Please forgive me.
If this happens again,
I will not let it go unpunished.
I will remember that, sir.
I need you to cross the river again.
You need to find out in detail what the Pajeowi are up to.
PAJEOWI MAIN MILITARY BASE
Open your mouth.
Open up.
You should live a long life.
SPY WHO BETRAYED HIS OWN TRIBE
Dad…
Dad, it's me.
Dad…
It's me, Dad…
Please…
Kill me…
Dad.
Dad, let's…
Let's go home.
It's okay.
Everything will be okay, so let's go home.
Let's go back together.
Kill me.
No more…
Just kill me.
Let's go back.
Please…
Kill me now.
Ashin.
COMMANDER'S OFFICE, CHUPAJIN
Ashin?
Some Pajeowi Jurchens sneaked into Pyesa-gun to steal ginseng.
All of them were attacked and killed.
A war with Pajeowi Jurchens seemed imminent due to growing tensions,
but we wiped out a seongjeoyain village
and managed to prevent such a disaster.
Our brothers died on Joseon soil.
Brace yourselves for a bloody revenge.
Stop.
Even if you kill us now,
our brothers will come after you.
And you'll have a bigger price to pay.
You are right.
Your brothers were not killed by a tiger.
They were attacked.
We found this
where your brothers were killed.
Have you come to see me to find out why?
Please avenge my father's death.
Look after the family while I'm gone.
Ashin.
What is this flower?
What is that?
Beats me.
What's this? Help him up.
Help! Help me.
What the hell?
Gosh, it's cold.
It's so cold.
Is he dead?
Wait…
What the…
Get away from me!
Close the door! Hurry!
Is he dead?
What is that?
Get away from me!
Ashin…
Help me, Ashin.
No…
Ashin! What are you doing?
No, please! Don't kill me!
Ashin!
Ashin.
Don't kill me.
I'm sorry for everything.
Please spare me.
Ashin, you're back!
Yes.
I'm back.
You didn't eat anything again.
I told you that you have to eat.
I don't think I took proper care of you all this time.
Pheasants, deer, rabbits…
That's not what you wanted, after all.
From now on…
I'll provide you with only delicious meals.
Ashin!
Ashin, no!
Ashin!
How is it?
I am not lonely.
We are together, so I am not lonely.
When my job here is done,
after I kill every living thing on Joseon and Jurchen soil,
I will join you.
JOSEON BORDER, UIJU
I heard the Japanese attacked the south again.
What if they come all the way up here?
I heard the envoys left to request help from the Great Empire.
If they help us, we won't be overrun like last time.
The envoys are here!
Can this plant…
PHYSICIAN LEE SEUNG-HUI
…really bring back the dead?
Yes, that is correct.
Before the nervous system rots,
mash the plant and put it on an acupuncture needle…
and pierce the needle one pun deep into the glabellar.
And the corpse will come back to life in two hours.
Subtitle translation by: Liya Choi