Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Espionage Division (2)
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“It doesn’t look like you’re relying solely on instinct.”
The man said.
“Not something important, so why bother.”
Oho shot back rudely, provocatively.
His opponent showed no sign of displeasure whatsoever. His tone remained consistently courteous.
“You think so? I did open the path for you to find your way here, but I never expected you’d actually make it all the way. That’s why I’m curious what else you possess beyond your natural senses.”
“Pointless talk.”
“Is it? People value different things. So, what do you hold dear?”
“Are you asking because you don’t know?”
“We’re meeting for the first time now, so wouldn’t it be natural for me not to know?”
“Names.”
“Whose?”
“Who else? Yours.”
Oho continued the conversation calmly on the surface, but inside, he was anything but.
Every moment felt like walking on thin ice.
The man’s weapons were swords. A pair of two-cheok silver-forged civil official swords hung bound at his waist. Even sheathed, their sharp aura overflowed fiercely, as if already drawn.
“Not that important a name, but if you want to know mine, tell me yours first.”
“I’m Oho.”
“Why leave out your surname?”
“Nothing to boast about.”
“Intriguing. Truly. I already know your family name, so I’ll tell you mine.”
He paused for a moment.
It seemed like he was reconsidering whether to reveal it.
At last, he spoke.
“The name’s Bang Jung-heon.”
Oho’s pupils trembled faintly.
‘Bang Jung-heon? Where have I heard that before?’
In that instant, something stirred deep in his mind. It wouldn’t have reacted if it were a name he’d never heard. He definitely knew it. Yet the specific memory eluded him.
He wasn’t a famous martial artist in this region. Oho had that much memorized.
If not a martial artist, then someone from the fringes of the jianghu. People who built their livelihoods relying on the martial world’s dynamism—merchants, artisans, performers, and countless other professions. There were also many quasi-jianghu folk with one foot in that world.
‘No.’
Oho thought otherwise.
This man didn’t belong to that sort.
He was a celebrity. Unconnected to the jianghu.
He’d heard the name somewhere, but it had no connection to Oho’s life.
In the vast empire, unless one was of the imperial nobility or high officialdom, a non-martial artist’s name wouldn’t ring a bell.
‘No way!’
The moment his thoughts reached high officials, a certain incident sprang to mind.
There was a man who told that iron-blooded emperor even exterminating his nine clans wouldn’t suffice for his loyalty.
The nine clans referred to four generations of the paternal line, three of the maternal, and two of the wife’s—nine in total. No punishment of “ten clans” had ever existed.
The emperor decreed the tenth clan to include close friends, disciples, mentors, and all personal connections beyond blood ties, ordering a list compiled.
That resulted in a staggering 873 names for the ten clans.
Even with a death list of over eight hundred thrust before him, the emperor had no choice but to execute the man for upholding his loyalty to the former dynasty, carrying out the horrific slaughter known as the Ten Clans Execution.
However, as far as Oho knew, the Ten Clans Execution had never actually taken place.
The mass extermination of ten clans was the quintessential tale showcasing the emperor’s ruthless absolute power to the world. Word spread from the Response Bureau and Nanjing in the south, crossing the Peng Clan in Hebei to the emperor’s original base in Shuntian Prefecture and even Beiping in the north, claiming over eight hundred slain. Yet it was all rumor—no one could find the supposed victims nearby.
Especially since that death list of 873 was said to include numerous figures from the Six Great Clans. The Peng Clan had longstanding ties to the Shuntian side, but they also mingled with the Nanjing power players of the time. In other words, several elders from the main house were reportedly named on it.
Those men, of course, hadn’t died. They weren’t even summoned for investigation. Even if the ten-clan execution had been enforced, Peng Clan members would surely have been exceptions. The closeness between Shuntian Prefecture, the Yongle Emperor, and the main house ran deep.
What was astonishing was simply the name Bang Jung-heon.
For talk of exterminating beyond nine to ten clans to emerge, even if the emperor admired his spirit and reduced the sentence, a three-clan execution would be the baseline. And Bang Jung-heon was the son of the very man subjected to the Ten Clans Execution.
Oho hadn’t recalled it because he wasn’t a martial artist, but now it came clearly. No doubt about it. As direct blood kin, he should have been executed without fail. The iron-blooded emperor surely cherished heroes and talent, but to call him merciful? Hardly.
“I’ve been blind to a great man.”
“Not really.”
Bang Jung-heon mimicked Oho’s earlier retort.
Frightening.
Oho revised his impression.
This man’s roots and backing were no trifles.
To appoint as a key figure the blood kin of a rebel from the Ten Clans Execution. If such an organization’s ideology were moderate, that would be the unbelievable part. Utterly perilous.
“What’s your goal?”
“What do you mean?”
“Divide and conquer.”
“Hebei Peng Clan Counter-Intelligence Agency Espionage Division Shanxi Branch Chief Peng Oho. Quite the talent. Dismissing that complex, tumultuous scheme as mere ‘divide and conquer’ in one word isn’t easy.”
“You admit it was your doing?”
“Any need to deny it?”
“Why?”
“I wouldn’t think someone of your caliber doesn’t know that repeating the same question means no intention to answer.”
“Still, it’d be convenient if you just said it outright.”
“Hahaha.”
Bang Jung-heon laughed.
Was this really him?
Shadows cloaked his face, yet his demeanor was calmly refined, even cracking jokes with a smile.
A pinnacle noble whose merits among merits had placed him at the top of the powerful families, only to suffer clan annihilation overnight when the empire changed. Ample reason for murderous rage to seethe, especially with unattainable power as the object of hatred—despair and self-loathing would be no surprise.
Such a catastrophe was hard to endure even for the stoutest heart, let alone adapt to. And it was merely a few years past. Surviving the calamity by whatever means was extraordinary enough, yet here he was, boldly revealing his name as part of some shadowy group.
This was very bad.
The type you didn’t want as an enemy.
“I see why they call you lazy.”
Oho’s face hardened at Bang Jung-heon’s next words.
Oho’s identity was top secret by nature.
No one knew of the Espionage Division Shanxi Branch Chief’s indolence, nor should they. The source could only be leaks from within the main house.
“Am I dying here?”
“Why think that?”
“Because it’s a name I shouldn’t know.”
“You don’t strike me as the type to blab anywhere. And I have no intention of taking your life. If I did, it would’ve happened long ago. That said, we’ve lost quite a few valuable people to you. Gathering talent isn’t easy.”
Oho felt a chill creeping up his spine.
Bang Jung-heon continued.
“The price for the lives of our men you killed will be paid by your squad’s lives. Especially that one friend with something precious on him—if we secure him early, I’ll kill fewer of your men.”
“……!”
Oho’s face turned to stone.
He’d fallen into a trap.
This man had planned everything.
He’d known Oho would rush downriver to Xiapi. He’d anticipated the speed gap between Oho and the regular Espionage Division agents. They’d set a encirclement to isolate Oho. Not targeting just Oho, but separating his force from the regular agents.
Sring.
Oho instantly drew his black-and-white swords.
“Whatever you’re after, it won’t go your way.”
“Drawing that changes nothing. It’s already too late anyway. And you and I still have business to discuss.”
“I don’t.”
“Listen. The world’s chaotic enough now, but it’ll get far worse ahead. Once the Nine Great Sects and Six Great Clans that represent the realm’s order fade, many new and ancient forces will forge an unprecedented order. Your clan included, everyone will face forced choices. Remember this: we don’t bother with the dim-witted. You already possess many qualities needed for the new era, and I want that talent to find proper use in the changed world.”
“That’s all? Empty prophecy?”
“Not uncertain prophecy, but definite foresight. The Peng Clan as it stands can’t weather the coming chaos. You’ll realize it naturally within your family soon enough. Stagnant water rots. I know your clan’s ills all too well. When you feel change is needed, come find me then. You’re sharp—you’ll know I’m not spouting nonsense. When you need me, I’ll gladly be your guide.”
“Bullshit! That’ll never happen!”
Thud!
Oho kicked off the ground.
The black-and-white swords surged ferociously.
Ting!
With a crisp ring, Bang Jung-heon’s civil official sword was unsheathed.
Bang Jung-heon stepped back one pace. The black-and-white swords cleaved empty air.
‘Can’t win.’
Oho sensed defeat after just one exchange.
Bang Jung-heon was a level above. No, two levels, or more.
He swiftly shifted his sword stance, pressing down from above. The slender civil official sword rose lightly, dispersing the black-and-white swords’ brutal pressure.
Crack! Whoosh!
Oho hurriedly crouched low.
Spurt!
Blood sprayed from his shoulder.
Not just a flesh wound—the entire shoulder joint throbbed heavily.
Immense inner power.
He lightly stamped into a stance and extended his hand.
‘It’s coming.’
The movements were fluid and elegant, the power steady and mighty.
An ambush might be different, but head-on, victory was impossible.
Oho swung the black-and-white swords in linked strikes to claim space. To leap back.
He had to escape.
Clang!
Between the third and fourth linked strikes, the civil official sword appeared with a thin metallic ring.
Yes, as if materializing from nowhere.
The blade tip thrust toward Oho’s brow.
He twisted his body sideways with all his might.
The sword grazed above his ear.
Rip!
He heard his scalp tear.
His head went numb, like struck by a club. Oho’s body staggered.
Losing balance enough to buckle at the knees meant the fight was over.
“See you again.”
Politely, with a joking tone.
Bang Jung-heon said.
Boom!
Though clearly struck by a sword, it sounded like being smashed by palm force.
Oho’s body flew backward.
Consciousness faded.
Darkness settled into his eyes.