Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Translator: Penny
Episode 40
Manor
Before them stood the manor.
Men armed with torches and short swords patrolled the grounds.
"It's over there..." Wang Il began, hidden at the alley's entrance.
But before he could finish, Zhuge Munhyeon, his anger boiling over, shot forward with incredible speed.
"...Huh?" Wang Il stammered, stunned as Zhuge Munhyeon, who had been standing right beside him, vanished in an instant, flying toward the manor.
Then—
POW!
The men didn't even have time to react.
The Silver River Staff, drawn and swung in the same motion, sent them flying, never to rise again.
Their identities? No need to know.
CRASH!
The manor gate shattered inward, exploding into splinters.
"What the—"
No need for words.
POW!
Zhuge Munhyeon smashed aside anyone who stood in his way with the Silver River Staff.
He didn't care if their skulls cracked or their limbs broke.
Before they could react, he smashed them down and knocked them sprawling.
He strode past the fallen men, who had no idea why they were attacked, and ransacked the manor's interior. When he kicked open a door, a furious voice roared, "Who the hell are you?!"
Beside the shouting man, his grandfather sat slumped on the floor.
The man who had left the manor earlier, looking so dignified and gentle as he promised his grandson pocket money...
His snow-white hair was disheveled, his clothes torn in several places, and his cheek swollen crimson, bearing the clear imprint of a hand.
"M-Munhyeon?"
"..."
Worry flickered in his grandfather's startled eyes.
Why are you here...?
Munhyeon clenched his teeth.
After eons of reincarnation, he had finally formed a family bond. Within that circle, he had experienced affection he'd never known before, received unconditional love, and lived a life beyond his wildest dreams.
But now, someone had shattered one of those comforting walls.
"Who the hell are you?!" the angry man roared, glaring and reaching for his collar.
His widened eyes remained fixed on his grandfather, but his hand shot out toward the approaching man.
He grabbed his hair and slammed his head into the wooden floor with furious force.
CRASH!
He stomped down hard on his head, crushing it through the floorboards.
THUD!
Whether he was dead or alive, the man's body slumped limply against the floor.
Shock, horror, and rage.
"You crazy bastard!"
As the other men drew their weapons and charged forward, Zhuge Munhyeon swept his foot across the floor.
"Huh?"
The men's faces twisted in confusion.
He had been right in front of them...
Yet all they felt was a gust of wind brush past their faces...
"Are you alright?"
"Munhyeon, is that you?"
The men whirled around to stare at the voices behind them.
How... how did he...?
He should have attacked immediately, but his feet wouldn't move.
For a split second, he lost track of Zhuge Munhyeon's movements.
That was enough to realize Zhuge Munhyeon was a master beyond their comprehension.
Zhuge Munhyeon knelt beside the slumped Baek Hanseong, forcing down his anger and smiling as he spoke.
"He's just taking a nap."
"Mun..."
Baek Hanseong, who had been clutching Zhuge Munhyeon's sleeve with a worried expression, slowly closed his eyes as he gazed at Zhuge Munhyeon's smile.
Zhuge Munhyeon had struck the Sleep Acupoint to put him to sleep.
After enduring such hardship, he needs rest. Witnessing such cruelty is detrimental to your mental health. You might suffer nightmares for no reason. The floor is uncomfortable, but you only need to lie down for a short while.
Zhuge Munhyeon gently laid Baek Hanseong down beside him. His face, devoid of any emotion, turned cold as he faced the men.
Crack!
The suppressed fury erupted, surging forward like a tidal wave. The floor shattered under his feet, and an icy gale swept through the room despite the closed windows.
"W-wait a minute!"
"..."
"We're..."
Realizing they were no match for him, the men desperately tried to speak.
They were about to reveal their identities.
Either a threat—"I'm someone you shouldn't mess with"—or a plea for mercy. But I have no intention of listening to barking dogs. Just noisy...
Thud.
A light footstep on the floor.
"I didn't ask... anything."
"...!"
Zhuge Munhyeon's voice, which had been like a sudden gust of wind, was now right beside their ears. The men startled and swung their clubs wildly.
Whoosh!
Three men.
Their swinging clubs crossed through the space where the sound had come from.
The Silver River Staff, imbued with internal energy, shot straight out and pierced one man's chest. In less than a breath, a fist struck another man's head with brutal force.
Thud! Crack!
Two men collapsed simultaneously.
Their lives extinguished in a single strike.
The remaining one didn't even have time to hesitate before flattening himself against the floor.
"Spare me!"
He screamed at the top of his lungs, veins bulging in his neck.
The moment Zhuge Munhyeon's gaze flickered downward—
Thud!
His head was crushed under Zhuge Munhyeon's foot, splattering blood across the room. Silence descended, broken only by the soft breathing of the sleeping Baek Hansang.
Zhuge Munhyeon carefully lifted Baek Hansang's body into his arms.
First, I need to get Grandfather to safety and call a physician to treat him.
After annihilating the remaining intruders and calmly walking out, Wang Il, who had been hiding nearby, rushed over.
"Could you hold him for a moment?"
"Huh? Yes, yes!"
Already aware of Zhuge Munhyeon's immense martial prowess, Wang Il flinched in surprise, blinked, and nodded vigorously as he took Baek Hansang's body.
Zhuge Munhyeon immediately turned around.
Culprit?
He didn't need to ask or hear an answer; he already knew.
"Hweunru, was it?"
That's where they'd be.
Since they were captured even after the Requested Performance ended, the banquet must still be in full swing.
Even if it was over, it didn't matter.
He'd just make them come to him.
Thump!
Turning, Zhuge Munhyeon stomped forcefully on the ground, his stance lowering toward the manor with its grotesquely shattered gate.
Vast internal energy surged into the Silver River Staff, and strands of energy, as thin as silk, erupted from it.
Strands of energy—
What's commonly called a swordsman's aura.
Grip!
As he tightened his grip, the radiating strands twisted and coalesced into a single, intertwined mass.
Whoosh!
With a downward strike, the staff arced and bent.
Like a fallen star, its power was enough to shatter everything. The Falling Star strike was akin to a slashing blow.
KWAHHHHH!
The staff's energy cleaved through the heart of the second-floor Manor, its shattered remains collapsing weakly to either side.
A single strike.
Wang Il, terrified, barely managed to keep from dropping Baek Hanseong, whom he was carrying.
"Is there a skilled physician nearby?"
The sudden question left Wang Il nodding like a man possessed. Even if there wasn't one, he had to say there was.
"Summon him to the Manor. Wake him if he's asleep—bring him here at once. I'll compensate him handsomely."
"Yes! I'll do as you say."
Who could possibly refuse such a command?
He had never witnessed anything like this before—a perfectly intact Manor collapsing in an instant.
If the physician protested being woken, Wang Il would drag him here by force if necessary. His hands trembled violently, knowing his own life hung in the balance.
The sudden commotion lit up the manor brightly.
People bustled about, boiling water and brewing medicinal herbs at the physician's request.
The commotion roused the rest of the group from their deep slumber.
"What's going on?"
"I don't know."
"Damn it, we can't even ask... Elder Brother Munho, you ask."
"N-now? That doesn't seem like a good idea."
Gwan Hwipyeong's whispers drew Zhuge Munho into the conversation.
The atmosphere surrounding Baek Hanseong, who was receiving treatment from the physician, and Zhuge Munhyeon, who sat beside him, was palpable.
If Munhyeon had been his usual fiery self, they might have dared to approach him. But his emotions were now so deeply submerged, so profoundly heavy, that they felt utterly impenetrable.
His expression remained calm, and his conversation with the physician was composed, but those who observed him closely knew better.
This was a first.
They had never seen him so enraged before...
Several people must have died. I'm certain of it.
"Even Young Miss Sayo doesn't know?"
"...I was asleep too."
"Ah..."
Even the beggars, usually quick with information, could only exchange wary glances.
What had happened to make Baek Hanseong, who had left the Requested Performance, look like this? And why was Zhuge Munhyeon so furious?
Who in Danggangu could have provoked him to such anger at this hour?
Could it be the Beggar's Sect? That would be disastrous...
As a myriad of thoughts and worries swirled through Sayo's mind,
"Phew, you're alright now. You took a bit of a beating, but there doesn't seem to be any serious damage. Still, given your age, it's best to rest for a while."
"Thank you."
"What a commotion to wake up to..."
After the physician finished treating him, Zhuge Munhyeon pulled a money pouch from his robes and offered it whole.
It was from his mother.
"There's nothing more pathetic than a man wandering outside without money," she had said.
"Y-you're giving me all of this?"
The physician stared in astonishment at the pouch's weight.
He peeked inside...
"Gasp! T-this is too much!"
"Please provide treatment for a while. Just until he recovers fully."
"Th-that's... it's not such a serious wound."
"He's the Zhuge Clan's in-law and my maternal grandfather."
"I know that, but... very well."
The physician accepted the money pouch. It was too much to refuse.
And then...
"Musician Wang."
"Yes!"
"Who's hosting the banquet at Hweunru?"
At Zhuge Munhyeon's question, Zhuge Munho, Gwan Hwipyeong, and Sayo all perked up their ears. They were desperate to know which bastard had angered this monster.
"That would be... the Palmun Gang."
"Palmun? Was he the leader of those thugs earlier?"
"Yes, he was."
"He's still at Hweunru, isn't he?"
"It didn't seem like a banquet that would end quickly."
"I see."
He had been holding back all this time, waiting for the physician to finish treating him.
Now it was time to exterminate the pests.
Not a single one would be spared.
As Zhuge Munhyeon slowly rose to his feet, Sayo stood up and blocked his path.
"Y-Young Master."
"What is it?"
"P-Please listen to me for a moment."
"...?"
"Palmun... he was once the Branch Head of the Beggar's Sect in Danggangu."
The Beggar Disciple had become a thug as a desperate measure for survival.
He was the man Sayo had tried to recruit.
Zhuge Munhyeon turned to Sayo, who wore a troubled expression.
"So?"
"Huh?"
"What's your point about this Beggar Disciple?"
Under Zhuge Munhyeon's piercing gaze, Sayo felt the blood in her veins turn icy cold.
She swallowed hard.
If left unchecked, the Beggar Disciples in Danggangu would be annihilated. The Zhuge Munhyeon she had witnessed was the kind of man who would carry out such a massacre, no matter how many lives it cost.
But...
"I know I've wronged you, Esteemed Elder. But please, reconsider just once more. I beg you."
Zhuge Munhyeon stared intently at Sayo, who was prostrate on the ground, pleading.
To be stained by virtue requires constant self-reflection and relentless effort, but to be tainted by evil requires only a single moment of carelessness and a fleeting temptation.
In other words, committing evil is difficult only at first. After that, one becomes intoxicated by familiarity, and the act becomes natural. Repeated acts of evil grow increasingly vicious over time, while simultaneously becoming normalized.
The Beggar Disciple's ousting of Danggangu must have followed a similar path.
Abandoning the righteous path of chivalry for the life of a rogue, his life must have become more prosperous.
He must have indulged and reveled in it, regardless of others' opinions or judgments.
After all, those who abandon their original path for another all undergo such a process.
On the other hand, I understand Sayo's intentions. She needs to secure the Beggar Disciple's support in Danggangu. And she knows this would greatly benefit the Zhuge Clan as well.
"Young Master, I implore you! Please, just give me one more chance! Even if Palmun won't listen, the lower ranks might be different."
"Different?"
"How could they refuse the flow of the upper stream? Please, just let me persuade them one last time!"
His resolve wavered slightly.
A chance...
All he had to do was close his eyes for a moment and suppress his anger.
But at that very moment—
KWAANG!
The manor's main gate shattered as dozens of martial artists stormed inside.
"Who dares attack our Palmun Gang's branch?! Come out now!"
Zhuge Munhyeon's lips curled into a cold smile as he watched the intruders brandishing clubs and shouting arrogantly.
They were determined to squander their chance after all.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny