Chapter 199
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 199
Chapter Title: An Unpleasant Seed (5)
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Rumble!
The sky, clear until this morning, was suddenly filled with dark clouds.
The clouds consumed the sky with unnerving speed. Was this a sign of autumn's true arrival? Thin, sharp flashes of light could be seen within the thick clouds.
A moment later.
Swoooosh!
Heavy raindrops began to pour down, as if intending to drench the entirety of the vast Ten Thousand Mountains.
Splash, splash.
An unusual atmosphere hung in the air with each footstep on the wet ground.
Creeeak.
“Welcome… huh?!”
The server and the cultists knelt in shock.
“The Divine Cult is undefeated! All demons bow in submission!”
“Quiet.”
“...!”
“Where is he?”
It was a question with no clear meaning, but the server, somehow understanding, pointed up the stairs.
Perhaps it was the man's heavy, intense aura? His finger was trembling uncontrollably.
Creak. Creak.
The sound of footsteps ascending the stairs was strangely chilling.
And so, a man made his way to the top floor of Jamiru.
* * *
A faint tremor ran through Jin Gwan-yong’s eyes.
“You speak truly terrifying words.”
“Terrifying?”
“So that was your goal all along?”
“Did you think there was anything else for us to talk about?”
Cheon Hajin said with a smile, his clasped hands resting on the table.
“You wanted to come here with me after we returned to the Cult. I still haven't forgotten the smile you had on your face then. You were definitely planning to kill me.”
“…”
“I don’t know what you had planned for this place, but you were clearly confident. You were sure you could kill a master who had reached the apex of demonic arts. You trust yourself, but you’re not foolish enough to be unaware of the many variables in a fight, so how could you have been so certain?”
Jin Gwan-yong remained silent.
Still watching Jin Gwan-yong, Cheon Hajin gestured with his chin toward Chae Yeomin.
“And then, as if on cue, a strange rumor started to spread. A rumor that I was planning to use Yeomin as a sacrifice in the succession battle.”
“…”
“It might not have been you. Perhaps it was the overzealous loyalty of the cultists who follow you, or maybe it was someone else entirely. But isn't the timing just too strange?”
“Strange?”
“It is strange. If you were going to spread such a rumor, wouldn't it have been better to stoke the flames little by little while I was away? It would have been far better to take the time to make it seem like the rumor arose naturally, to obscure its source.”
Cheon Hajin tilted his head.
“Someone deliberately fabricated the rumor… It's almost as if they were desperate to be found out.”
Would his actions be restricted by the rumor?
If so, that would be a welcome outcome. And if the rumor was further manipulated to appear as the ‘truth,’ that would be even better.
But that was only a minor gain. While it could deal a certain amount of damage in an attack on an enemy, it could never be a decisive blow. Much like the court of public opinion.
In the end, there was only one fundamental reason to use a rumor to provoke Cheon Hajin.
“You knew how I would react.”
“…”
“I despise such petty tricks. My style is to smash things head-on. You, having studied me closely, knew I would cause a scene, just like I did with Hong Wi-mun.”
Cheon Hajin smiled.
“You wanted me to come find you on my own two feet, didn't you?”
Jin Gwan-yong thought.
‘A fearsome man.’
This man isn't swayed by the atmosphere or distracted by trivial issues. When something unusual happens, he doesn't look at the surface, but peers into its core.
The ability to grasp the root, the essence of a situation. In life, there is no power more frightening than this.
And Jin Gwan-yong knew someone with a similar, yet far more advanced, insight.
‘Master.’
The divine eyes of the Demonic God, which could see through all creation.
Though this man couldn't dare compare, if he were to grow, might he not reach the very foothills of the Master's insight?
‘Just what kind of experiences did he go through to grow this much?’
Such an instinct could never be innate. It was the fruit of experience that could only be gained by enduring countless hells.
Cheon Hajin leaned back in his chair, as if bored.
“So, everything you've said and done until now has been a lie.”
Staring blankly at Cheon Hajin, Jin Gwan-yong spoke calmly.
“Is there a rule against showing a false self?”
Cheon Hajin smiled. Jin Gwan-yong was finally revealing his true colors.
“There’s no rule against it. But there's nothing more pathetic than denying it after being caught. In that respect, you're not the worst.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Had he decided there was no longer a need to hide? He draped an arm over the back of his chair and crossed his legs, looking both arrogant and carefree.
Jin Gwan-yong frowned.
“You are a burdensome opponent in many ways. You're not easy to overwhelm. I've analyzed your patterns of behavior, but that's only a part of it. I still don't know which way you'll jump at a critical moment.”
“Is that so?”
“It is. I can assure you, my martial arts are currently superior to yours. But when I imagine actually fighting you, I can't see the outcome.”
He unabashedly declared his martial arts to be a cut above, yet he admitted he couldn't be certain of a perfect victory against him.
‘A tricky bastard.’
He was deceitful and arrogant. But at the same time, he possessed a cold, clear view of the world.
Men like him are trickier to deal with than one might think. Their ways of thinking and handling situations are different from ordinary people.
Jin Gwan-yong had judged Cheon Hajin to be unpredictable, but Cheon Hajin, too, did not know the limits of Jin Gwan-yong.
‘In the end, the only way to find out those limits is to clash directly.’
Jin Gwan-yong glanced at Chae Yeomin.
“I considered how you would act upon hearing that rumor. I didn't even need to think about it. I knew you would come to me. I just didn't expect you to bring all those cultists along as spectators.”
“I see.”
“But even that was fine. As long as I could lure you to my residence, I was prepared to act immediately.”
Jin Gwan-yong’s eyes deepened.
“But then you did something unexpected again. You came to me, but you didn't enter my residence. Instead, you drew me out. I realized then why you brought the spectators.”
Cheon Hajin shrugged.
“I don’t have the brains to think that far ahead. I just read the sense of foreboding in that moment.”
“Then that’s all the more impressive. It means your instincts defy common sense.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
“So, what about you?”
“What about me?”
“I’m asking if you have the confidence to face me head-on and win.”
A heavy, low voice, dripping with powerful confidence.
At a glance, it was like that of a ruler, yet there was something vulgar about it. But the experiences he had been through, the level he had achieved, remained unchanged.
This was the real Jin Gwan-yong. Vulgar to the point of arrogance, yet cold and calculating; overflowing with confidence, yet never careless; decisive, yet not rash. He was a difficult opponent.
Cheon Hajin smiled.
“I haven't lived my life fighting only when I was confident I'd win and tucking my tail between my legs when I wasn't.”
“You can’t guarantee the outcome?”
“No one knows the winner until the very end. I just make a choice in the time others would spend overthinking. And I do my best to make that choice work in my favor. So let me ask you…”
Tap.
Cheon Hajin tapped the tea table with his index finger.
“Let's cut the chatter and get to the point. Are we going to fight, or not?”
“…”
“I see you have no intention of giving up.”
Jin Gwan-yong nodded.
“I won’t give up. And unlike you, I don't step into a fight unless I know I can win.”
“How timid.”
“It is said, ‘A victorious army wins first and then seeks battle.’ A fight is something you engage in after you have already secured victory. That is the way of a first-rate warrior.”
Jin Gwan-yong added with a smile.
“‘A defeated army battles first and then seeks victory.’ Your method of starting a fight and then struggling to win won't work on me.”
Cheon Hajin smirked.
“For a guy who makes a fuss with all sorts of petty tricks, you sure know how to quote the classics.”
“Let me tell you in advance, your childish provocations won't work.”
“So you won't fight until you've won first?”
Jin Gwan-yong’s smile deepened.
“I wonder. It feels a bit rushed, but I think I wouldn't mind fighting you now.”
Scrape.
Cheon Hajin stood up.
“Then we’re done talking. Come out.”
“Before that.”
“What now?”
Jin Gwan-yong looked to the side.
Do Wigyeong was cautiously approaching with a tray.
“Since we came for tea, I thought we might as well have a cup before we begin.”
“So relaxed, aren't you.”
“There’s no need to rush, is there?”
His neck shrinking under the suffocating tension that pressed down on his surroundings, Do Wigyeong glanced nervously between the two men.
Jin Gwan-yong tapped the tea table with his index finger.
“What are you doing? Now that you've brought it, serve it quickly.”
“Ah, yes!”
After carefully placing the tea on the table, Do Wigyeong fled as if escaping.
Jin Gwan-yong drank the tea without hesitation, while Cheon Hajin frowned, looking down at his teacup.
“Why aren't you drinking? Are you afraid I’ve poisoned it?”
“You seem capable of worse, but that's not really the reason.”
“Hmm?”
Cheon Hajin tilted his head.
“Something feels strange.”
Jin Gwan-yong’s eyes flashed.
“It doesn't seem to be because of the person coming up the stairs right now… This is quite peculiar.”
Creak. Creak.
A strange sound echoed as weight settled on the wooden staircase.
A moment later, a man appeared on the top floor of Jamiru.
Chae Yeomin’s eyes widened.
“Brother?”
Cheon Hajin’s gaze sharpened.
Jin Gwan-yong spoke calmly.
“Second Brother, you've come.”
The person who entered, drenched in rain, was none other than Gwan Pyeong.
But he was not the Gwan Pyeong they had seen before.
Drip. Drip.
The sound of water falling from his wet clothes was eerie. His gaze was a hundred times more sinister and treacherous.
Slowly looking around, Gwan Pyeong approached Jin Gwan-yong.
Cheon Hajin’s eyes narrowed.
His slow gait, the faint killing intent emanating from him.
‘An attack?’
Ssk.
Soon, looks of astonishment filled the eyes of Cheon Hajin and Chae Yeomin.
“You called for me, Brother.”
“I did.”
Gwan Pyeong, kneeling on one knee with his head bowed, and Jin Gwan-yong, accepting the greeting as if it were only natural.
It was a shocking sight. At least, by Cheon Hajin's standards, it was an incomprehensible situation.
“Third Brother here says he wants to decide the succession on this very spot. Judging by his actions so far, I believe there is a high probability he will fight to the death.”
“I see.”
“What are your thoughts?”
Gwan Pyeong looked at Cheon Hajin.
The deep, dark killing intent that shrouded his profound gaze sent a shiver down the spine of anyone who saw it.
“Accept his challenge. There is no chance that you will lose, Brother.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. If it proves difficult, I will assist you, so you have nothing to worry about.”
It was a statement that added shock upon shock. Gwan Pyeong was now siding with Jin Gwan-yong, pressuring Cheon Hajin.
A flicker of interest crossed Cheon Hajin’s surprised face.
“Did you crawl under that bastard?”
Gwan Pyeong spoke in a stiff voice.
“Such a shallow attempt to drive a wedge between us won't work.”
“Drive a wedge? So you're saying you didn't crawl because you wanted to.”
A faint tremor ran through Gwan Pyeong’s eyes.
But it was fleeting.
“You’re hardly in a position to be so relaxed, are you?”
“Why is that?”
“It's more surprising that an incompetent fool who couldn't even protect his own people has the luxury to be so carefree.”
In that instant, Cheon Hajin’s expression hardened.
Jin Gwan-yong said with a smile.
“Have you forgotten already? A victorious army wins first and then seeks battle. I only fight battles I can win.”
“…”
“I believe the time has come for me to ask you your own question.”
Flash!
A bolt of lightning outside the window cast a stark white light on Jin Gwan-yong’s smile.
“Will you settle the succession here and now? Or will you give up?”