Chapter 94: He Has Returned (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 94: He Has Returned (4)
The Martial Alliance Headquarters in Wuhan, Hubei Province.
Someone burst into the Vice Alliance Leader’s office on the fourth floor, frantically pushing the door open without even knocking.
“Grandfather!”
It was Jin Yong, the grandson of the Ardent King Hegemon, Jin Gyun.
Inside the office, someone was already in a private meeting with Vice Alliance Leader Jin Gyun. When Jin Yong spotted him, he scowled and spoke in an irritated tone.
“Lee Jeong-gyeom? Why are you here?”
“It’s been a while,” the young man replied, waving a hand with a languid, almost bored air.
It was indeed Lee Jeong-gyeom.
“What do you mean, ‘a while’—!”
“Watch your tongue. As of today, the Wuhan Sword Hero, Lee Jeong-gyeom, has been reinstated as the Master of the Azure Dragon Hall.”
Jin Gyun, the Ardent King Hegemon, cut Jin Yong off.
Jin Yong turned to his grandfather, looking utterly bewildered.
“But Grandfather! Wasn’t Lee Jeong-gyeom expelled from the Alliance along with the former leader?”
He was right. The former Alliance Leader, the First Sword of Wuhan, Baek Hyang-muk, had been ousted on charges of practicing the Blood Cult’s martial art, the Blood Heaven Great Achievement Art. His disciple, Lee Jeong-gyeom, had been expelled from the Martial Alliance alongside him.
Yet, here he was, back at the headquarters.
As Jin Yong tried to argue further, Jin Gyun raised a hand to silence him.
“Grandfather!”
“Where do you think you are, calling me ‘Grandfather’ so freely?”
At the weight in Jin Gyun’s voice, Jin Yong swallowed hard and carefully corrected himself.
“...Vice Alliance Leader.”
Seeing this, Lee Jeong-gyeom let out a short, mocking chuckle.
That bastard!
Fury surged within Jin Yong, but he barely managed to suppress it, fearing his grandfather’s wrath even more.
Jin Gyun questioned him.
“Unit Leader of the Fierce Tiger Unit. For what reason did you ignore protocol and barge into my office?”
Realizing his blunder, Jin Yong quickly spoke up.
“Vice Alliance Leader, have you heard? They say the Blood Demon appeared at the Shaolin Temple, broke the 108 Arhat Formation, and took the Moon Evil Sword with him!”
“I am aware.”
“Then we shouldn’t be sitting around like this! Based on the judgment that the First Venerable—one of the Blood Cult’s two Superhumans—is dead and the Blood Demon is injured, the Alliance Leader... Leader Jeong Cheon led the Alliance’s main forces to subjugate the Blood Cult, didn’t he?”
“And?”
“What do you mean, ‘and’? We must recall them immediately and prepare our defenses. This is a ploy by the Blood Cult!”
At Jin Yong’s words, Jin Gyun, the Vice Alliance Leader and his grandfather, wore a strangely satisfied expression. He had previously thought his grandson was too emotional to see the bigger picture, but seeing him read the flow of the war to some extent made Jin Gyun feel a sense of pride.
“However, you must have received this news before me, Vice Alliance Leader. Why haven't you summoned the strategists? Why are you having a private meeting with this... I mean, with the Azure Dragon Hall Master?”
“The strategists aren't exactly on our side anyway. I thought you’d know that by now? Yawn.”
Lee Jeong-gyeom spoke while stretching his arms.
Irritated by his behavior, Jin Yong snapped at him.
“Reinstated or not, why do you keep cutting in—”
“Enough!”
Jin Gyun cut him off.
Jin Gyun rose from his seat, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked over to the Central Plains Map hanging on the office wall. He pointed to the various branches of the Martial Alliance and spoke.
“I have already notified the nearby branches and ordered them to assemble at the main headquarters.”
“You’ve already sent out the orders.”
“However, I will not be sending this information to the forces led by the Alliance Leader currently heading south, nor to the branches in Yunnan, Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, and Fujian, as they are currently confronting the Blood Cult.”
“What? Why?”
Jin Yong couldn't understand. Now that the information about the Blood Demon’s injury was unreliable, if the Blood Cult’s headquarters turned out to be empty, they would be the ones getting stabbed in the back. There was no reason to keep their forces divided.
Lee Jeong-gyeom smiled thinly and answered.
“There’s a reason for everything.”
“What?”
“This is an opportunity to determine whose leadership is better suited for the future of the Martial Alliance: Alliance Leader Jeong Cheon, who ignored the majority opinion of the Elder Council and used his authority to force the subjugation, or the Vice Alliance Leader, who is cautiously observing and responding to the situation.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because Strategist Sama and the Vice Alliance Leader told me.”
“.......”
Jin Yong knew his grandfather had been constantly looking for an opportunity. However, Jin Gyun had never shared important information with him, considering him too impulsive. To think that his grandfather had shared such details with Lee Jeong-gyeom, whom Jin Yong considered his rival, made his heart turn cold for some reason.
...Has Grandfather joined hands with the former leader?
Jin Gyun’s actions had changed ever since his private meeting with the former leader, Baek Hyang-muk. He was no longer the grandfather Jin Yong knew; he was becoming a sly old fox, as if he had been a politician for a long time.
Left with nothing more to say, Jin Yong spoke dejectedly.
“I understand. Then, I shall take my leave...”
“No. This is actually perfect timing. I intend to reorganize the Hall Master positions and make some changes.”
“Pardon?”
*
All Hall Masters and Deputy Hall Masters remaining in the city were summoned.
Namgung Ga-hee, the Master of the Phoenix Hall, and her Deputy, So Yeong-yeong, were heading toward the assembly hall after just finishing a mission.
“They really don't give us a moment’s rest, Yeong-yeong.”
“Indeed. If they keep working us like this, I’ll want to take a vacation.”
“By the way, why are they summoning every hall? Don't tell me the remaining forces of the headquarters are being conscripted for the Blood Cult subjugation too?”
“That’s...”
“Well, surely that won't happen, right?”
So Yeong-yeong gave a bitter smile at Namgung Ga-hee’s words. She was already in a difficult position after hearing that her own sect, the Hengshan Sect, was participating in the subjugation.
The Leader of the Blood Cult was her brother, So Woon-hwi. If the Blood Cult led by her brother and her own sect clashed, she wouldn't know whose side to take. She had guessed such a situation would arise eventually, but it had come too soon.
Brother... are you safe?
She had no idea where her damn brother had disappeared to while things escalated to this point. A few months ago, a man named Jo Seong-won, the new Chamber Leader of the Beggar’s Sect, had come looking for her to ask about her brother’s whereabouts. That was when she began to suspect something had happened to him.
Since the Lesser Sword Immortal’s whereabouts had also become unknown, her suspicion gradually turned into certainty.
In the midst of all this, she had heard news that the Blood Cult Leader had been severely injured by the Killing Fiend Jue Xin. She was so worried she had considered secretly looking for him, but Jo Seong-won had informed her that the man wasn't the real Blood Demon. He said it was likely the Vice Cult Leader.
So Yeong-yeong had demanded to know what exactly had happened to her brother, even threatening to reveal Jo Seong-won’s identity if necessary. That was when Jo Seong-won told her that her brother had been missing for over seven months.
...Hmph.
Even though he was family, he had disappeared again, and she missed him terribly. He was more precious to her than her biological father or the adoptive father whose face she never even knew.
As they walked along the main road toward the assembly hall, they encountered someone at a fork in the path.
“Hall Master Moyong?”
Namgung Ga-hee’s eyebrow arched.
There stood a woman with a somewhat sharp impression, wearing a light martial outfit of white and yellow. She was Moyong Hye, the Master of the Plum Fragrance Hall—another hall composed entirely of women that rivaled the Phoenix Hall. She was also the younger sister of Moyong Su, the Master of the Golden Dragon Hall.
Moyong Hye approached them with a haughty expression.
“I see you’ve finished your mission.”
“Yes. I heard the Plum Fragrance Hall failed it, so I went in feeling quite nervous, but it wasn't that difficult,” Namgung Ga-hee replied nonchalantly.
Moyong Hye’s expression turned icy. Since the two halls clashed so often, this kind of psychological warfare was a daily occurrence.
Frustrated at being slighted, Moyong Hye trembled slightly before shifting her target. She turned her head toward So Yeong-yeong.
“Deputy Hall Master of the Phoenix Hall. What a shame.”
“Pardon?”
“Do you know why they’re summoning all the halls right now?”
“I heard they’re reorganizing the halls for efficiency and electing a Great Hall Master to lead the younger martial artists.”
“And why is that a shame?”
This was something So Yeong-yeong already knew, as it had been discussed several times. She was aware it was a possibility after the new Alliance Leader and Vice Alliance Leader were elected.
Moyong Hye let out a melodious laugh.
“If your brother, the Lesser Sword Immortal, were safe, he might have become the Great Hall Master instead of the Vice Alliance Leader position he lost. But that’s not going to happen now, is it?”
“You!”
So Yeong-yeong momentarily lost her temper. Strange rumors had already been spreading because her brother, who was said to have been offered the Vice Alliance Leader position, never showed up. So Yeong-yeong was certain the Plum Fragrance Hall was the source of those rumors.
“Yeong-yeong, calm down!”
Namgung Ga-hee held her back. If Hall Masters or Deputy Hall Masters fought within the Alliance, the one who struck first would be disciplined. Moyong Hye was intentionally provoking her, knowing this.
How loathsome.
Both she and her brother, Moyong Su, who clung to power, were cut from the same cloth.
With Namgung Ga-hee’s intervention, So Yeong-yeong barely managed to suppress her anger.
“No guts, I see.”
Moyong Hye continued to taunt her from behind Namgung Ga-hee.
In response, So Yeong-yeong quietly pointed her index finger at her and made a throat-slitting gesture with her thumb.
“!?”
So Yeong-yeong was not one to take an insult lying down. This time, it was Moyong Hye’s face that turned red.
“You little brat, how dare you!”
“Who are you calling little, you fox-eyed wench!”
“Fox? You—!”
Just then, someone appeared and scolded them.
“The Blood Demon has appeared at Shaolin. In times like these, when the younger generation of Hall Masters should be uniting, what is this disgraceful display?”
It was Taoist Master Hoyang, the Plum Blossom White Sword of the Huashan Sect. As the Second Elder of the Martial Alliance, he was in charge of managing the Hall Masters.
At his appearance, Namgung Ga-hee and Moyong Hye looked flustered and bowed respectfully.
“Greetings, Elder.”
However, there was one person who did not bow. It was So Yeong-yeong.
Taoist Master Hoyang looked at her with a questioning gaze.
So Yeong-yeong asked urgently, “What did you just say, Elder?”
“What did I say? I said the Blood Demon appeared at the Shaolin Temple.”
“Is that true?”
Having just returned from their mission, she and Namgung Ga-hee had not heard the news.
Not missing this opportunity, Moyong Hye spoke with a sneer.
“The Blood Demon appeared at Shaolin, crushed the 108 Arhat Formation, and took the Moon Evil Sword, one of the Five Great Villains. To think the Phoenix Hall was so oblivious... What? Are you laughing right now?”
Moyong Hye was dumbfounded. She had said it to mock her, but So Yeong-yeong’s face was flushed with a smile.
“Yeong-yeong?”
It was a situation that left everyone puzzled. Ignoring them, So Yeong-yeong couldn't hide her excitement.
That damn brother of mine. If you’re alive, you should have let me know first!
*
Despite the orders to cut off information, a carrier pigeon from the Beggar’s Sect urgently flew into the main force of the Martial Alliance led by the Merciless Blade, Jeong Cheon.
“This... so it was a diversion?”
The first to confirm the message was Peng Sa-yong, the Head of the Hebei Peng Family and the Sixth Elder of the Martial Alliance. He couldn't hide his agitation.
They had already left Hengshan and passed through Hengyang. If they hurried, they could join the forces of the five branches stationed at the border of Guangxi Province within four days.
This was a matter that needed to be decided through an urgent meeting. If the Blood Demon’s injury was a lie and this was a diversion, the Martial Alliance headquarters was in danger.
“This is serious, Alliance Leader!”
Elder Peng Sa-yong rushed into the main command tent and asked in confusion, “Where is the Alliance Leader?”
“What is the matter, Elder Peng?”
Sitting in the seat of honor where the Alliance Leader should have been was Baek Wi-hyang, the Third Strategist of the Martial Alliance. Come to think of it, the Merciless Blade Jeong Cheon had not been seen since they began heading south from Hengshan.
“The Alliance Leader must know of this.”
“If it is an urgent matter, tell me first.”
In the end, Elder Peng Sa-yong informed him of the situation from the carrier pigeon.
Strategist Baek Wi-hyang muttered as if he couldn't understand.
“That shouldn't be possible.”
“What do you mean, ‘shouldn't be possible’? This is an urgent matter that warrants discussing a retreat. Tell me quickly, where is the Alliance Leader?”
“The Alliance Leader is not here.”
“Not here? What on earth do you mean by that?”
Elder Peng Sa-yong was flabbergasted. How could the leader of this massive martial army be absent?
To the bewildered elder, Baek Wi-hyang pointed to the Central Plains Map on the table. Seeing this, Peng Sa-yong frowned.
“What? The forces of the five branches have already entered Guangxi? There was no prior mention of this...”
“Of course not. It was to ensure that neither the headquarters nor anyone outside would know.”
“What does that—?”
Strategist Baek Wi-hyang pointed to the vicinity of Wuyi County.
“The Alliance Leader has already joined the forces of the five branches that moved south to Wuyi County.”
Elder Peng Sa-yong’s eyes widened. If this was true, it was something even the Blood Cult wouldn't have expected.
“If it succeeds, it will deal a heavy blow, but Strategist... what if the core of the cult, the Blood Demon and their main forces, aren't at Spirit Mountain? What then?”
“That won't happen.”
“Why are you so certain?”
Looking at the frustrated Elder Peng, Strategist Baek Wi-hyang gave a meaningful smile.
“The Blood Demon is definitely dying from the Calamity Slaughter Sword.”