Chapter 37
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: An Encounter (1)
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“It is not yet time.”
That was all Neungbyeokmun said when someone asked when they would move again.
Ultimately, the people had no choice but to wait at the Flowing Cloud Escort Agency until Neungbyeokmun decided the time was right.
‘Looking at it this way, I can roughly see the power dynamics.’
Meanwhile, Jinmyeong was able to get a general sense of the relationships between his senior brothers and sisters.
The first disciple, Mok Jagyeong, always moved alone.
‘Like some kind of lone wolf.’
It was likely because he was overwhelmingly the strongest among the Heavenly Demon's disciples.
To join hands with him was tantamount to handing over the position of Young Cult Leader to Mok Jagyeong.
‘The rest are all more or less on the same level.’
The second disciple, Jang Hu, the third disciple, Yeong Soso, and the fourth disciple, Gye Buil.
These three were indeed in an alliance.
Their skills seemed to be on par with one another.
Of course, Jang Hu was slightly ahead, but he wasn't overwhelmingly powerful like Mok Jagyeong.
‘So the plan must be for the three of them to defeat Mok Jagyeong and then compete among themselves.’
Each of them probably looked at the others and thought they had a fighting chance.
That was why they had formed the alliance.
‘That woman seems unable to commit to either side.’
The fifth disciple, Biyoung.
She was, in fact, in the most ambiguous position.
She neither associated with Mok Jagyeong nor maintained a good relationship with the other disciples.
‘Their relationship doesn’t seem bad, but that’s about it.’
It appeared she was simply keeping a moderate distance.
‘Is it because she seems to have no desire for the Young Cult Leader position?’
Perhaps she was just good at hiding her true intentions.
But to Jinmyeong, she, unlike the other disciples, genuinely seemed to lack any ambition for the position.
‘Otherwise, Mok Jagyeong wouldn't have let her live.’
Whether she had given up from the start or simply because she thought she had no chance was unclear.
But it was a fact that Biyoung was the furthest behind among the disciples in the competition for Young Cult Leader.
‘She might be the one who has grasped the situation best.’
Perhaps because she became the Heavenly Demon’s disciple the latest, excluding Jinmyeong, her martial arts were the weakest among them.
‘Is that why she ultimately sided with Mok Jagyeong?’
In the original novel, Mok Jagyeong became the Cult Leader, and among the disciples, only Biyoung survived.
She must have judged that the alliance of three couldn't defeat Mok Jagyeong.
‘It's also possible they won because Biyoung joined forces with them.’
In the original novel, Mok Jagyeong would have ultimately triumphed and become the Young Cult Leader, but now, things were flowing differently.
After all, Jinmyeong, who should have died, was now alive.
‘Should I visit a nearby tavern today?’
Unlike Jang Hu and Gye Buil, who constantly headed to the tavern, Jinmyeong had spent most of his time at the Flowing Cloud Escort Agency.
But since he was in Shaanxi, he felt a desire to taste the local cuisine, so Jinmyeong eventually stepped outside the agency.
“Hmm.”
Entering a random tavern near the agency, Jinmyeong frowned.
‘There are no empty tables, but I could share one.’
The tavern was quite crowded, with no free tables left.
Among the many people, two women stood out.
It was Yeong Soso and Shin Yehyang.
The two women, eating at their respective tables, seemed to have noticed Jinmyeong as well.
‘Hmm. I’d rather not go over there.’
Unlike Shin Yehyang, who went back to her meal, Yeong Soso was waving him over.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Jinmyeong headed toward Shin Yehyang.
‘I want to eat in peace.’
For some reason, he felt that sharing a table with Yeong Soso would be incredibly noisy.
As Jinmyeong ignored her and walked toward Shin Yehyang, Yeong Soso’s expression hardened.
“May I sit here?”
“Go ahead.”
Shin Yehyang glanced at Jinmyeong before answering nonchalantly.
As soon as Jinmyeong sat down, a waiter approached him.
“One of the same as that.”
“Yes. One bowl of lamb and bread soup.”
Jinmyeong pointed at what Shin Yehyang was eating.
The waiter glanced at it, nodded, and headed to the kitchen.
“Is it any good?”
“It seems to be.”
Shin Yehyang gave a small nod and focused on eating again.
‘It’s certainly unique.’
Jinmyeong stared at the dish the waiter brought.
A soup made with lamb.
‘I was expecting something like soup with rice, but bread?’
Jinmyeong tore the flour-based item, unsure if it was a rice cake or bread, into small pieces and put them into the soup.
‘Not bad.’
The surprisingly clean taste made Jinmyeong nod.
He could see why the head of the Flowing Cloud Escort Agency had insisted he try this dish.
“Junior Brother, did you just ignore me?”
As Jinmyeong was eating, Yeong Soso approached him.
She sat down in the remaining seat without asking for permission.
“Could you bring the dishes from my table over here?”
At Yeong Soso’s request, the waiter nodded blankly, then hurried to move her dishes.
“Is that enough for you?”
She said, looking at the food Jinmyeong was eating.
“You can have some of mine.”
“This is quite good too.”
Yeong Soso smiled at Jinmyeong’s words.
“I heard our youngest junior brother has been speaking informally to everyone lately. It seems to be true.”
“So it seems.”
Jinmyeong nodded honestly.
“I find it strange myself.”
“I don’t know if you’ve lost your sense of fear or if that’s just your original personality.”
After losing his memory, Jinmyeong had changed.
“But you’ve changed so much, I just can’t get used to it.”
“Is that so?”
Jinmyeong, who had returned after being missing for a year, had learned martial arts, unlike before.
He gained martial arts but lost his memory in return.
“Seeing you now, it seems you don’t even care about losing your memories.”
“They’ll come back eventually.”
Yeong Soso stared intently at Jinmyeong, who spoke so casually.
“I find it strange too. I was told I had a timid personality, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.”
The original Jinmyeong, the one before he was possessed, wasn't like this.
He wasn't extremely timid, but he certainly wasn't the type to recklessly disrespect others.
“I guess this was my real personality.”
He regarded killing people as a matter of course.
Moreover, he spoke informally to his senior brothers and sisters with ease, even provoking them.
This must have been the original Jinmyeong’s personality.
He had probably hidden it because he was weak and hadn't properly learned martial arts.
‘And I’m gradually becoming more like this personality…’
Yet, he felt no resistance to it.
No, to be honest…
Jinmyeong was also enjoying his changed personality.
If he hadn't gained martial arts or become strong, he would have lived his life cautiously, worrying about what others thought.
“Though I never thought you’d do the same to Senior Brother Mok.”
Yeong Soso couldn’t help but be surprised that Jinmyeong even spoke down to and taunted Mok Jagyeong.
After all, Mok Jagyeong was the most overwhelmingly powerful among the Heavenly Demon’s disciples.
“Since you have the skill, no one can say anything to you.”
Yeong Soso had also witnessed Jinmyeong’s martial prowess with her own two eyes.
Although he had collaborated with Shin Yehyang beside him, she couldn't help but be astonished when he defeated one of the Twin Elders of Harmony.
Having seen that, could she dare to step forward and try to correct Jinmyeong's manners?
“Aren’t you making me out to be an overly arrogant and insolent fellow?”
“Are you not?”
Yeong Soso asked back, puzzled, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“Not necessarily.”
Jinmyeong said, glancing at Shin Yehyang.
After all, he treated her differently from his other senior brothers and sisters.
Perhaps it was because the memory of them ignoring and bullying him lingered in his body.
In truth, he only showed that arrogant side to the Heavenly Demon's disciples and his enemies.
“Anyway, why did you come over? You didn’t come just to make small talk like this, did you?”
“Of course not.”
Yeong Soso gave Jinmyeong a captivating smile.
“Did you reject Senior Brother Jang’s offer?”
She knew that Jang Hu and Jinmyeong had met separately.
Jang Hu must have proposed that Jinmyeong follow him.
And looking at the current situation, Jinmyeong’s answer was all too easy to guess.
If Jinmyeong had accepted, he would be with Jang Hu right now.
“There was no reason to accept.”
“Is that so? Then what about me?”
Jinmyeong stared intently at Yeong Soso.
‘She’s beautiful.’
He found her smiling eyes incredibly captivating.
She had a different feel from Shin Yehyang.
Unlike the latter, who was so cold she was difficult to approach, Yeong Soso was a woman who made one feel drawn to her unknowingly.
Woong!
At that moment, the Divine Arts of Heavenly Flame, dormant in Jinmyeong’s dantian, began to stir.
“Tsk!”
Jinmyeong, snapping back to his senses, clicked his tongue.
‘Unbelievable.’
Yeong Soso’s main skill was the Illusory Sword, but her bewitching arts were also renowned.
That was why, despite being on his guard, he had nearly fallen for her spell.
“Hmm?”
When Jinmyeong, whose eyes had glazed over as if under a spell, instantly regained his senses, Yeong Soso’s expression turned to one of surprise.
She had never imagined that her prized bewitching arts would fail to work on Jinmyeong.
“Shouldn’t you stop?”
“…”
“It won’t work anymore. The offer is rejected.”
Did she feel humiliated by Jinmyeong?
Yeong Soso, her face flushed, shot up from her seat and glared at him before abruptly turning away.
“You’ll regret this, Junior Brother.”
“I’ll handle that myself.”
Jinmyeong watched Yeong Soso’s retreating back as she left, then frowned.
“Don’t tell me she left without paying?”
“…”
She had ordered a vast amount of expensive, high-class dishes, yet she had left without paying.
“I’ll have to get it all back later.”
He glared at the spot where Yeong Soso had exited, then, a moment later, looked at Shin Yehyang with a serious expression.
“That was a bewitching art just now, right?”
“It was.”
It was rare for a man to be immune to Yeong Soso’s bewitching arts.
If Jinmyeong hadn’t broken the spell himself, she might have had to intervene.
“It’s a strange feeling.”
“What did it feel like?”
It seemed that Shin Yehyang, who had never experienced a bewitching art, was also curious.
“How should I put it? I think I was just staring blankly at her.”
To be precise, he couldn't see anything but Yeong Soso.
It felt as if the world was spinning around her.
“To be like this even when I was on guard… it would have been dangerous otherwise.”
If he hadn’t remembered about Yeong Soso’s bewitching arts, he might have rashly accepted her offer.
“To meet such a master in a place like this.”
It was just as Jinmyeong and Shin Yehyang were about to resume their meal.
Suddenly, a clear voice pierced their ears.
The voice was so distinct that it was the only thing they could hear clearly in the noisy tavern.
‘Who is it?’
Jinmyeong abruptly stopped eating and began to look around.
“Indeed, the world is wide, and there are many masters. Just as Master said.”
It was a line straight out of a novel.
To think he would say out loud what one would normally just think.
Jinmyeong was finally able to locate the owner of the voice.
‘What is he doing here?’
And upon spotting the owner of the voice, Jinmyeong’s face contorted into a frown.
A young man who appeared to be around his age.
“Do you know him?”
“No. Not yet.”
Shin Yehyang asked as Jinmyeong kept his gaze fixed on the young man.
“Not yet?”
“Somehow, I have a feeling I’ll get to know him later.”
Jinmyeong did not take his eyes off the young man.
‘I can’t believe I’d run into him here.’
As Jinmyeong watched the young man, his hands began to grow damp with sweat.