Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Chapter 6. The Lone Walker, Solitary Style (獨行流) (1)
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Two pieces of news rocked the martial world.
The first concerned the Demonic Cult's intrusion into the gathering of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families.
The Demonic Cult's reappearance sent massive shockwaves through the jianghu.
Even though they had vanished from the world for decades, the terror they inspired was still deeply etched into people's minds.
The news of their return stirred primal fears.
The martial prowess they displayed by crashing that gathering was utterly horrifying.
Numerous people lost their lives, including Jeomchang Sect Elder Yu Jin-sang. In particular, the skills shown by a figure called the Golden Horse Lion were beyond belief.
He was an absolute master who wielded qi with complete freedom.
No expert at the gathering could stand against him—not even Mount Hua Sect's Qinghe Zhenren.
People despaired at the Demonic Cult's emergence.
Now that they had revealed themselves, a full-scale invasion was only a matter of time. Just as in the past, they would dye the Central Plains in blood.
As the Demonic Cult's invasion loomed as an imminent reality, people trembled in fear.
Amid this turmoil, a second rumor spread.
It was about the Fist Demon, Damho.
Word spread like wildfire that the Demonic Cult thugs who had intruded into the gathering of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families and committed a massacre had been routed by a single man, Damho.
The Fist Demon, also known as the Divine Steel Blood Star.
None of the tales about him were ordinary.
In Shinkang, he had wiped out the Western Mill Clan. In the jianghu, he had slain the leader of Hyeongsan Sect. And this time, he had blocked Demonic Cultists who infiltrated Oyang Sword Gate.
People felt extreme confusion at his utterly unpredictable movements. But one thing was certain.
He was not a Demonic Cultist.
That alone allowed people to breathe sighs of relief. If he had been one of them, it would have been a colossal disaster.
Meanwhile, whispers gradually spread that the Fist Demon was actually a disciple of Mount Hua Sect. People were curious about the truth, but the Mount Hua daoists, along with disciples of the Nine Great Sects, kept their mouths firmly shut.
From the perspective of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, what happened inside Oyang Sword Gate was nothing short of humiliating.
Zhongnan Sect's humiliation in particular could only be called a disgrace. As a result, rumors circulated that Zhongnan Sect was grinding its teeth at Damho.
But given the current state of affairs, they couldn't show it openly.
A man who compromised with no one and walked alone.
That was probably why.
It was around then that his martial arts began to be called the Solitary Style.
And so, Damho became a corner of legend.
After the Demonic Cult's appearance, the establishment of the Murim Alliance gained explosive momentum.
People no longer questioned the need for a Murim Alliance. It had to be created.
Not only the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, but sects from all over lined up to join voluntarily.
The Murim Alliance's founding proceeded apace.
First, Oyang Sword Gate donated land voluntarily.
A hillside overlooking Lake Dongting—an ideal location. As if waiting for this moment, the Silver Song Company donated the initial construction funds.
Eui-seon Sect dispatched support personnel, and martial artists from across the Central Plains gathered, volunteering to join the Murim Alliance.
The Nine Great Sects, Five Great Families, and countless other sects sent large numbers of elites.
As the Murim Alliance's creation progressed smoothly, Damho suddenly vanished from Oyang.
Countless people tracked Damho's whereabouts. But he wasn't found. Still, people tenaciously pursued any trace of him.
The Fist Demon Damho was worth that effort.
No matter what anyone said, he was the eye of the greatest storm in the current jianghu. Depending on his choices, the state of the martial world could shift dramatically.
Not just the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, but the entire jianghu watched his movements closely.
"So a Murim Alliance is being built in Oyang?"
"Yes."
"Not good."
At his subordinate's reply, the man in his early fifties furrowed his brow.
A long scar like a knife slash marred the man's left cheek, giving him a profoundly sinister air.
A large nanga sword hung at his waist. The hilt gleamed, worn smooth from years of use.
Normally, men past fifty softened their gaze, no matter how fierce they had been. But not this man.
Even in his fifties, an unquenchable flame of fierce ambition burned in his eyes, sharpening his presence even more.
The man's name was Jo Yun-san.
He was the stronghold chief of Black Water Stronghold, one of the Green Forest's Eighteen Bandit Strongholds.
In the Green Forest, his moniker was Mad Blood Wolf Lord.
When he first threw in with the bandits, no one paid him any mind.
Every year, countless people joined the Green Forest, and many died. It was a brutal place, a land of the law of the jungle.
The weak didn't survive, and even the strong couldn't guarantee tomorrow if they let their guard down.
Jo Yun-san started at the bottom, in Black Water Stronghold, a small mountain bandit lair. But soon, he stood out like a needle in a pocket.
He shone brightest in the bandits' true calling: plunder. He raided merchant caravans and escort agencies, seizing vast wealth.
He quickly caught the chief's eye, became his closest confidant, and within a few years, took over as chief of Black Water Stronghold.
Under Jo Yun-san, Black Water Stronghold grew and grew. It swelled its forces so rapidly that it entered the ranks of the representative Eighteen Bandit Strongholds a few years ago.
An ordinary bandit would have been content there. But Jo Yun-san's ambitions were vast.
He wasn't the type to settle for being one of just eighteen stronghold chiefs. He aimed to become the overlord of the entire Green Forest.
Yesterday and today, his ultimate goal remained Green Forest Overlord.
Jo Yun-san walked to the window.
The full view of Black Water Stronghold lay before him.
A sturdy log fence enclosed it, with over twenty buildings nestled inside. There was a vast clearing that could hold hundreds at once, and a well that never ran dry even in severe drought.
This was a naturally defensible fortress. Jo Yun-san had poured his blood and sweat into it for over a decade. More than a thousand bandits resided here permanently.
With this force, Black Water Stronghold ranked among the top in the Eighteen Bandit Strongholds.
Jo Yun-san muttered to himself.
"To topple the overlord, I need a strong card."
Black Water Stronghold was powerful, but Overlord Stronghold, led by the overlord Hwang Kyung-mun, was stronger.
With the Green Forest's greatest masters gathered there, it couldn't be toppled by normal means.
"That's why we need to capture that woman. If we take her hostage, we can definitely shake that old man."
"But that woman is guarded by Muk Il-gwang, the top expert of the Dragon Ascent Squad. With ordinary forces, we can't even approach her."
"That's why we use our heads."
At his subordinate's words, Jo Yun-san's eyes gleamed sharply. They burned with the madness befitting his Mad Blood Wolf Lord title.
"That woman is in Oyang, right?"
"Yes."
"And Oyang is bustling with the Murim Alliance's construction?"
"Correct."
"Hmm!"
Jo Yun-san stroked his chin.
His mind raced.
Soon, a good idea struck him.
"Isn't there a sub-chief near Oyang?"
"Yes! He's out tracking Mount Hua Sect daoists' movements."
"Send him my letter and tell him to head to Oyang."
"Understood."
His subordinate replied without hesitation.
Jo Yun-san's eyes gleamed coldly.
'I should have killed that woman back then.'
***
Damho rode Black Ghost along a mountain path, with Bang Jin-bo and Cho Yeon-un riding side by side beside him.
The path they took wasn't a main road. It was a secluded trail used mainly by hunters and herb gatherers, unmarked on any map.
Their guide was Cho Yeon-un.
Thanks to his wanderings across the land, Cho Yeon-un knew many such hidden paths unknown to others. This was one he had used before.
Using this route, they could slip into Hubei Province free from prying eyes.
Cho Yeon-un glanced at Damho.
His friend had become far too famous. During their stay at the inn, countless people had come calling.
Some sought camaraderie, others to use him. Of course, most pissed themselves at his glare before even approaching.
He could have ignored it, but it was a hassle, so Damho decided to leave Oyang for a while.
Oyang was currently the eye of the storm.
The Murim Alliance was being built, martial artists pouring in from sects everywhere. The place teemed with them.
The construction speed was miraculous. All skilled carpenters nearby were mobilized, along with thousands of laborers.
New halls appeared overnight where none had stood before. At this rate, the Murim Alliance would be complete in less than a month.
It was possible thanks to funding from the Jinju Eon Clan, owners of a top-tier merchant group, and the Silver Song Company. What they would receive in return from the Murim Alliance was known only to them.
But completing the buildings didn't make a Murim Alliance. The Nine Great Sects, Five Great Families, and other sects would haggle over shares.
Oyang was now a massive conference hall, a blazing furnace.
The number of dispatched martial artists, funding provided, and sect prestige would determine positions in the Alliance, so everyone's nerves were on edge.
Damho hated Oyang's bustle. That's why he informed Haomen's Gi Ye-hwa of his departure before leaving.
Haomen branches spanned the Central Plains, so he could check commissions to Gi Ye-hwa anytime.
"Here."
Cho Yeon-un's voice snapped Damho from his thoughts.
Looking up, a fairly large wild mountain came into view.
"Cross that mountain, and you'll enter Hubei Province. Stick to these trails, and you won't get lost—you'll reach Tongcheng."
"Mm."
"But you're really leaving?"
Cho Yeon-un looked regretful.
He desperately wanted to leave too, but unfortunately, he was White Front Sect's young chief.
He had to attend the Murim Alliance meetings in place of his master, Jang Il-san.
Damho looked at Cho Yeon-un.
"Take care."
"Sigh! Such a heartless friend."
Cho Yeon-un sighed and turned to Bang Jin-bo.
"You leaving too?"
"Of course."
"Sigh! I can already hear my heart breaking."
Cho Yeon-un sighed again at Bang Jin-bo's matter-of-fact reply.
He had grown accustomed to Bang Jin-bo's cooking. Others' food tasted so bad he could barely eat it.
"And So-cheong?"
"..."
Bang Jin-bo's face darkened at Cho Yeon-un's question.
Eun So-cheong had wept endlessly upon hearing Bang Jin-bo was leaving. In the end, he promised to return soon.
"Thanks for everything, hyung."
Bang Jin-bo bowed deeply to Cho Yeon-un.
"I enjoyed it too. See you soon."
"Yes! Take care of yourself, hyung."
"You too!"
Cho Yeon-un smiled warmly.
Thinking they would meet again anyway eased his heart. In the jianghu, they were bound to cross paths someday.
Cho Yeon-un waved.
"Take care, friend."
"Take care, friend."
"Yeah! Huh?"
Cho Yeon-un's eyes widened at the casual reply.
They had spent quite some time together, but this was the first time Damho had called him "friend."
A bright smile lit his face.
Damho had already turned away, but Cho Yeon-un imagined his face flushing red.
"Hahaha!"
Cho Yeon-un's laughter scattered on the wind.