Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Something More Important Than Money (1)
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As they stepped out of the patriarch's chamber, Murong Suhyang bowed deeply toward Seok Ung.
"I'm sorry, Chief Steward. That rascal keeps stirring up trouble. I'll apologize in his place."
Seok Ung was flustered.
"Why are you doing this? I'm fine, so please don't."
"Even so, wrong is wrong."
"You're the second daughter of the main house. This only puts me in a tougher spot."
Murong Suhyang straightened up, her face filled with bitterness.
"You're too good for those worthless brats from our clan."
It pained Seok Ung to hear such words from a sixteen-year-old girl—a girl who would burst into giggles at the sight of a tumbling leaf.
That made it all the more important to set things straight.
"May I say a few words?"
"Of course."
"There are things you misunderstand, miss, and things you're doing wrong."
"Pardon?"
"First off, the Murong Clan is definitely not some insignificant family."
A shadow fell over Murong Suhyang's face.
"I know. It used to be a great martial house in the past."
"You don't know the half of it."
Seok Ung's tone was firm.
"You've only heard stories of the Murong Clan's glory days, miss. That's why you don't realize just how immense the potential and greatness are, embedded in the very blood of those who bear the Murong name."
Murong Suhyang's eyes wavered. It was the first time she'd heard Seok Ung speak like this.
"In particular, the great-grand patriarch—your grandfather, Patriarch Murong Heon—was the one who brought order to our chaotic clan and ushered in an era of peace across all of Yonyeong. Even today, the elders there revere him as the 'Wise King'."
Wise King.
A term for a benevolent ruler of old. Far too grand a title for the head of a mere martial clan.
"Furthermore, his younger brother—your granduncle—was one of the era's supreme masters, serving as Martial Alliance Leader, a peerless genius warrior."
"I know. He was called the Bright Martial Sovereign, right?"
A subtle heat crept into Murong Suhyang's voice.
The fact that their clan had produced the first-ever Martial Alliance Leader was a source of immense pride for her, too. Though these days, the name was too taboo to utter aloud.
"That's right. Elder Murong Cheon, the Bright Martial Sovereign. He was appointed the youngest Martial Alliance Leader in history and led the righteous sects to victory against the demonic cults—a hero of the century."
Even Seok Ung's usually stoic face flushed with irrepressible fervor.
Murong Suhyang could tell. Seok Ung truly admired her granduncle. Admiration bordering on reverence.
"In the time of the great-grand patriarch and Elder Murong Cheon, the Murong Clan surpassed even the Seven Great Clans to claim the title of strongest in the righteous martial world. Not even the Nine Great Sects could stand tall before us. That's how mighty the Murong Clan once was."
"But..."
Bitterness clouded Murong Suhyang's features.
"That's all ancient history."
Indeed.
She knew her ancestors were remarkable. She took pride in it and vowed never to tarnish their legacy.
But what of the present? The Murong Clan, blessed with such forebears, was barreling toward ruin. Without the scant dozen members of the Flower Sword Squad, they wouldn't even qualify as a martial house.
Seok Ung nodded.
"Yes. A bygone era. But abandoning our pride just because times are tough is no way to live."
"Clinging to past glory will only make fools of us."
"A warrior without pride is a blade without a sheath. Swords cut both ways—and without one, it's bound to wound its master eventually."
Don't dwell on the past, but don't surrender to defeatism either.
Murong Suhyang understood Seok Ung's words. Intellectually, at least. They hadn't yet sunk into her heart.
Studying her expression quietly, Seok Ung spoke again.
"If what I've said so far addresses your misunderstandings, miss, now let me address what you're doing wrong."
"Ah, yes."
"You dislike the young master, don't you?"
Murong Suhyang instinctively scowled. It was plain to see her deep-seated distrust and resentment.
"Long ago, the young master doted on you and looked after you a great deal. Do you remember?"
"...I do."
They'd been close back then. Despite the three-year gap, to her, Murong Bi had been brother and father both, while Seok Ung was chief steward and grandfather.
There had been such times.
"But what does that change? That idiot made my sister fall ill. And cleaning up after that drunken fool's messes dragged us into financial ruin."
Her face flushed red as she bit her lip in frustration.
"I can never forgive him."
"I won't try to change your mind, miss, but I must correct your misconception."
"...?"
"Your older sister's illness wasn't the young master's fault."
"What?!"
"Her condition is the Nine Yin Absolute Meridian, the same absolute meridian that afflicted your great-grandfather—the previous patriarch's father—and your own father, the former patriarch. In simple terms, it's hereditary."
Murong Suhyang's eyes went wide.
She'd always believed her sister's illness was an incurable affliction born of extreme emotional trauma. To think it was congenital?
"It was thanks to the young master that your older sister could be sent to Bright Truth Temple under the Wudang Sect."
"What are you...?!"
"He lifted the burden from her heart. 'I'll take responsibility for the family somehow,' he told her. 'Go heal yourself and live free of the clan.' That's what he said."
"...!"
"He was just fourteen at the time."
Murong Suhyang couldn't believe it.
"No way."
"Do I strike you as the sort to lie about something so sensitive, miss?"
Confusion clouded her face.
"But..."
"Can't believe it? Or don't want to?"
Biting her lip, she spoke up in agitation.
"Even if that's true, it doesn't change that he's trash! He must've made my sister's illness worse!"
"You're right. His actions no doubt aggravated her condition."
"I can never forgive that bastard."
"But your older sister and the young master understood each other."
Murong Suhyang's eyes widened in disbelief.
"At such a young age, he sent her away. Because he understood her. Back then... your older sister hated the main house."
"Liar!"
The words burst from Murong Suhyang before she could stop them. Everything else she might accept, but not this.
Seok Ung continued calmly.
"When your older sister returned to the clan, she blamed herself for the young master's deteriorating state. She saw his wayward path as her own fault."
"..."
"And she waited. For him to return to his old self."
Seok Ung glanced toward the patriarch's chamber.
"The young master's aura feels subtly different now. I don't know if it's the turning point... but I believe in him. In you, the little miss, and your older sister too. None of you will crumble like this."
"..."
"Remember this: all three of you carry the great Murong blood. Your lives and circumstances may differ from the past, but you are Murongs."
Perhaps overwhelmed by these unexpected truths,
Murong Suhyang's shoulders slumped, leaving her strangely drained.
"If even I can't believe in my own blood, why do you have such faith in us, Chief Steward?"
Seok Ung smiled.
"People say the Murongs are finished. But I've witnessed their greatness firsthand. Wealth may fade in three years, but even a stripped-bare ancient tree sprouts new leaves come spring."
"..."
"The Murongs won't fall so easily. Wrong is wrong."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 'Damn it!'
He'd half-hoped otherwise.
Truly hoped, but no such luck.
'Nine Yin Absolute Meridian.'
Just like his brother, Murong Heon.
He didn't know when it started, but this absolute meridian had plagued the Murong line for generations.
His father had it, his brother had it. It mercifully skipped Daeho, only to manifest in Sujing two generations later.
'That explains it.'
The days were chilly, but she'd been bundling up more than usual.
Her face was deathly pale, and dark circles shadowed her eyes upon closer inspection. Common signs for the unwell, but...
'It's gotten quite severe.'
With his Brain Gate Heart Technique, he could see it: the blue-black spots hovering at her brow.
A sign that cold poison was on the verge of invading her brain.
'At least she's cultivated internal energy.'
But even that was off.
'No mistaking it—this resembles the One Yang Heart Method.'
The One Yang Heart Method was one of the manuals once kept in the Murong Clan library—not third-rate, but hardly first-class either.
A yang nourishment art that stimulated vital energy and bolstered life force, yet it neglected true energy accumulation and focused little on restoring essence. Middling at best.
Fine for an ordinary person, but what Murong Sujing practiced wasn't even the complete version.
'Yet her energy reserves are substantial. Must've converted a ton of medicine into power.'
Her Nine Yin Absolute Meridian talent had likely helped too.
Those born with it often excelled in comprehension, martial prowess, or artistic gifts—outshining others in some remarkable way.
Hence its moniker: the beauty that doomed its bearers.
In Murong Sujing's case, it seemed to manifest as martial talent.
'Lucky break. Worse than I thought, but not too late.'
He had completed the Brain Gate Heart Technique and restored the clan's lost combat arts. One of those had easily cured Murong Heon's condition.
"All done?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah."
Releasing his hand, Murong Bi let out an involuntary sigh.
"It's pretty bad."
Surprise flickered across Murong Sujing's face.
"You studied medicine?"
"...A little."
"Impressive. Never knew you'd picked it up."
A wry smile tugged at Murong Bi's lips.
"We hardly know each other, do we?"
The words carried a wealth of meaning.
Murong Sujing shook her head.
"We don't know much, but what matters, we do."
"Yeah?"
"You looked out for me, so I'll look out for you and Suhyang. Till the day I die."
"..."
"That's the most important thing, right?"
Did that fool Murong Bi really do all this for you?
'Look at him, too damn soft.'
He grumbled inwardly, but Murong Bi admired her resolve.
In a mad world, one must cherish their own blood. One good soul makes everything brighter—and to him, Murong Sujing was adorable no matter what.
"Got it. It's late, so..."
"Pulse check's over. My turn to ask questions?"
Murong Sujing's expression turned serious.
"If you're okay with it, tell your big sister what's going on."