Chapter 19
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: The Elders' Fury
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Exactly three days had passed since Gwang-il returned to the main sect.
"Sect Leader."
"You've returned? You must have had a hard time."
"Not at all. The real hardship was all shouldered by Gwang-il alone."
Finally, Gwan-ho, who had gone down to the proxy branch as acting leader, and all the second-generation disciples under him had returned to the main sect.
Their faces were grim, as if rotting away, suggesting they had heard plenty of unpleasant tales over the past few days.
And sure enough.
Gwan-ho's face was frozen as hard as ice when he met Sect Leader Gwan-hae, who had come out to greet them even as far as inside the sect gates.
"Just as Gwang-il said, the Sichuan Tang Clan is deeply involved."
"......"
"It's true that those scum from the Iron Sword Gang dragged away the young children of the blacksmiths in Cheolbang Street by force..."
"Heavens!"
"The acting division leader from the Beggars' Sect, who was already investigating their hideout, also believes the Tang Clan has been scheming this for a long time."
"Hmph!"
"Moreover, that hideout was in an abandoned manor far to the north of the proxy branch... Doesn't that suggest they planned to flee immediately if things went south?"
A ferocious aura radiated from him, as if he would cut down anyone in Tang Clan green robes with a single stroke on the spot.
Though Point Cang Sword Sect was unlike the other great sects in not being a Buddhist or Daoist order.
For an elder of a righteous orthodox sect, his current demeanor was excessively extreme, without a doubt.
'How could the Sichuan Tang Clan stoop to such...!'
Yet even so, Gwan-hae could not bring himself to rebuke or soothe his fellow elder.
The Tang Clan's blatant misdeeds, backed by irrefutable witnesses, had long crossed the line.
Just three days ago, his disciple Tong-cheon and grand-disciple Gwang-il had dragged in the Venom Dragon Captain himself—a living, breathing witness with no room for excuses.
What reason could there be for a supreme poison expert, one of the top ten poison masters in the world beyond even the Tang Clan, to be hauled all the way to Point Cang in such a mangled, one-armed state?
"......Let's head inside first. This isn't something to discuss out in the open."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
Gwan-ho had no intention of escalating things further, so he nodded obediently.
Though his heart burned with rage, they weren't about to march to war with the Tang Clan right then and there.
'The audacity!'
Of course, the fury churning his aged heart wouldn't extinguish so easily.
After sending the second-generation disciples to their quarters and entering the sect leader's hall, those already seated rose one by one to offer silent bows.
It had been nearly a decade since Point Cang's elders had ventured beyond the sect gates.
After scattering across Yun-nam Province over ten years ago to recruit third-generation disciples like Gwang-ja, they had largely avoided leaving the sect.
Of course, some, like Gwan-jong, had wandered outside frequently, up to no good instead of securing their grand-disciples.
"Hmmm!"
And right now, the worst crisis of Gwan-jong's life was upon him.
'Damn it all! What the hell is going on?!'
Just a few days ago, he had shared drinks late into the night with his brother the Yun Merchant Leader and the Venom Dragon Captain.
Yet in those mere days, the Venom Dragon Captain had been crippled and dragged to the main sect like a dog, and the Tang Clan's hideout smashed.
On top of that, his own brother the Yun Merchant Leader had sent word to fully cooperate with whatever that third-generation disciple Gwang-il wanted—pure madness.
'This damned fool...! At least give me a hint of what's happening!'
As he inwardly vented his suffocating frustration toward his absent kin,
"Disciple Gwang-il will explain all the details to the sect elders."
"......"
Gwang-il, who had been sitting quietly at the end, stood and cleared his throat calmly.
Finding and wiping out the Iron Sword Gang tied to Cheolbang Street, rescuing the blacksmiths' children.
Then heading north to the proxy branch to uncover the Sichuan Tang Clan's secret hideout, slaughtering the nine Venom Dragon Squad members stationed there, and dragging their captain all the way here.
Even seeking aid from the Beggars' Sect proxy division leader for cleanup, precautions against fallout, and promises of future close cooperation.
All of it was solely Gwang-il's achievements.
For a first venture into the jianghu after entering the sect, it was an unbelievable feat.
'A first kill on one's debut is never easy.'
'One might run to their master in fear of clashing with evil sect thugs for the first time...'
'Yet he overcame that mental torment, boldly punished the villains, and saved the innocent children.'
'Most astonishing is subduing the Venom Dragon Captain and leaving him crippled!'
'He even took down all nine of his Venom Dragon Squad underlings? At such a young age...!'
'We haven't even taught him how to deal with poison users yet... Heavens! Is our founding ancestor truly watching over this child?'
Naturally, the gazes of the first-generation elders present held clear favor, pride, and awe beyond mere surprise as they looked at Gwang-il.
Everything he had done in the proxy branch demonstrated a proficiency incomprehensible even to jianghu veterans.
'This incident has skyrocketed my standing.'
Gwang-il, receiving the elders' burdensome yet admiring looks, found his current position quite satisfying.
Especially since he would soon teach swordsmanship to seniors twice his rank as a third-generation disciple—this atmosphere was all the more welcome.
Pocketing these positive thoughts neatly aside,
"It all began with a tiny coincidence. The blacksmiths in Cheolbang Street stubbornly refused to sell swords to our sect."
He smoothly recounted the prepared tale without a hitch.
Omitting what needed omitting, embellishing slightly where it fit.
"We've neglected Yun-nam for far too long!"
"Indeed! Otherwise, how could the Tang Clan of Sichuan pull such vile schemes right under our noses in the proxy branch?"
"If those blacksmiths' children had been killed by those lawless fiends, it would have tarnished our sect's honor irreparably!"
"What wrong did those poor children commit to deserve such atrocities? I now seriously doubt if the Tang Clan truly walks the righteous path with us!"
Chatter! Babble!
After Gwang-il's tale concluded after about an incense stick's time,
The elders, who had been silently fuming, erupted like a swarm of bees, roaring their outrage in unison.
Only Gwan-jong and a few with guilty consciences sat pale-faced, mouths shut tight as the dead, heads bowed low.
'Those damn Harmony Faction bastards are still the same.'
Gwang-il's eyes chilled coldly as he matched their faces against his memories one by one.
'I want to crush every last one of those scum right now!'
Recalling the horrors from his past life caused by the Harmony Faction's treachery, it felt like the proper course even now.
'...Damn it!'
Regrettably, in this life, he lacked clear, ironclad pretext to punish them yet.
From his lowly position as a mere third-generation disciple with no real rank, he couldn't very well wave his sword at sect elders while ranting about past lives.
'But that doesn't mean I have no way to tie their hands.'
With the Yun Merchant Leader already leashed, half the battle was won, wasn't it?
So he just needed to apply steady indirect pressure to prevent them from interfering with his future plans.
Specifically,
'Gwan-jong. Using that heaven-rending worm.'
In his past life, hadn't he thoroughly served as the Harmony Faction's leader under the Yun Merchants' backing?
This life was no different; he had clearly only recruited juniors who entered after Gwang-il.
Grab Gwan-jong by the hair properly, and no need to bother with his underling pawns.
'For that, I need a private meeting once.'
Not a difficult task at all.
Summoning that fool who couldn't defy his own brother.
Several elders' aggressive proposals to dispatch second-generation disciples across Yun-nam for vigilant domain management were all blocked by Gwang-il, wielding the founding ancestor's legacy.
Nothing could take precedence over inheriting the Narrow Tip Sword and the ancestor's martial arts—a perfectly orthodox righteous pretext that crushed them utterly.
On top of that, proposing close collaboration with the Beggars' Sect proxy division and urging the top secular power, the Yun Merchants, to serve as the sect's eyes and ears was a pragmatic measure.
The elders, lacking any viable immediate plan even if they charged out now, had no choice but to nod along to Gwang-il's logical arguments.
From uncovering the Tang Clan's insidious plot early on, to appropriate responses preventing innocent casualties and upholding Point Cang's honor.
All achievements by Gwang-il alone, which they well knew.
Of course, their own impending personal gain—directly inheriting the founding ancestor's arts—played a role too.
And furthermore,
"The Beggars' Sect has pledged to actively share information with our sect against this tragedy."
"I-Is that true? From the Beggars' Sect?"
"Yes, Elder. The proxy division leader said so himself—surely they'll follow through."
"Haha! Indeed! No wonder they're called the world's greatest information sect!"
"Of course! Though we missed the Tang Clan's scheme early, aren't they scurrying about like it's their own affair?"
Hahaha!
Gwang-il's bold assurance that the Beggars' Sect would keep Point Cang informed played its part perfectly.
The result?
"Damn it! Why do I have to deal with this hassle...!"
"I vouched for you to my sect elders, explaining every hardship to protect your precious honey pot... But if you truly hate it, then forget it."
"......"
"In the end, the Sect Leader, now aware of the full truth, will send a strongly worded protest to your headquarters' Dragon Head Division Leader..."
"H-Hey, wait! A-Alright! I get it! Heavens! What the...!"
Unable to withstand Gwang-il's fearsome threat, the division leader spat defiance and climbed Point Cang Mountain on his own two feet.