Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: 4th Part. Other People's Feasts Aren't Always Fun (1)
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Choyeonu was met with Namhak's gaze, which held a glint of contempt. Namhak glanced at the empty liquor bottles scattered around Choyeonu.
"You're still the same. Never changes."
"If people changed that easily, they wouldn't be human."
"May you become a man worthy of the Hundred Battles Hundred Victories Flag, Yeonu."
"What, you after the Hundred Battles Hundred Victories Flag, Namhak?"
"Don't speak recklessly with that loose mouth of yours."
Namhak's eyes grew icy.
The blade-like sharpness in his gaze made everyone around hold their breath.
Suddenly the center of attention, Choyeonu shrugged his shoulders. He showed no sign of intimidation under Namhak's stare.
"The Drunken Cloud Dragon, Choyeonu?"
"Is he really the Romantic Wanderer?"
Whispers began to spread among the crowd.
Drunken Cloud Dragon: a dragon staggering drunkenly through the clouds.
That was Choyeonu's moniker.
Though not one of the Nine Dragons, in some ways, he was even more famous than they were.
Decades ago, when the Demonic Cult rose, the martial world crumbled helplessly under their relentless assault. Countless sects were wiped out, and innumerable warriors fell.
As most sects wandered lost, not knowing what to do, a few suddenly rose up.
One of the Nine Great Sects, the Mount Hua Sect, stood at the forefront—and suffered the greatest losses as a result.
At the time, Mount Hua had staked not just their sect but the fate of the entire martial world to halt the Demonic Cult's onslaught. Thanks to them, the martial world caught its breath, gaining time to form the Justice Alliance, a coalition of numerous sects.
The Justice Alliance soon launched a massive counteroffensive against the Demonic Cult. Leading the charge with unmatched valor was a certain figure.
A ronin who had mastered the pinnacle of Taoist swordsmanship.
He was fearless.
Countless Demonic Cult experts fell to his blade. No matter the wounds he took, he never retreated, pressing forward with indomitable will.
Those moved by his bravery gathered around him.
Thus, a new sect was born with him at its core.
A sect of ronin who won a hundred battles without defeat. Hence its name: Hundred Battles Sect.
The great warrior who led it was Jang Ilsan.
The people honored him with the title Demon-Slaying Divine Blade. To commemorate his heroic deeds, they presented him with a flag.
The Hundred Battles Hundred Victories Flag.
It embodied the tribute from the martial world's comrades to Jang Ilsan and the Hundred Battles Sect, who triumphed in a hundred battles.
The flag was more than a symbol of the Hundred Battles Sect's prestige. It represented the pride of the martial world's righteous fighters who had prevailed over the Demonic Cult.
Choyeonu was a disciple of that Hundred Battles Sect. Not just any disciple, but the sole direct disciple of its sect leader, Jang Ilsan.
The martial world's expectations for him were immense. Since his master was a hero of the Great Righteous-Demonic War, they assumed the disciple would grow into an equally legendary hero.
But Choyeonu dashed those hopes, living his life drowned in liquor. Thus, he earned the moniker Drunken Cloud Dragon.
A dragon, yet not one of the Nine Dragons—a drunken one at that.
Some even called him the martial world's greatest romantic wanderer.
Drunken Cloud Dragon, the supreme romantic wanderer. But neither title was particularly glorious. If anything, they dripped with mockery.
Namhak's gaze upon Choyeonu was no different. He made no effort to hide his contempt.
"What brings you here? It's quite a way from Hundred Battles Sect."
"Where there's liquor, how could I be absent? I was passing by and heard there was a grand feast at Hongam Mountain Lodge."
"If you're here for the drinks, just drink quietly and go. Don't cause trouble."
"What trouble am I going to cause?"
"You're not asking because you don't know, are you?"
"You're the one who should smile if you're at a feast. Why glare like that for no reason?"
"I've warned you clearly, Yeonu."
"I know! I've got it memorized, so no need to repeat. My ears hurt."
Choyeonu dug at his ear with his pinky finger. At his attitude, Namhak's eyebrow shot up sharply.
Choyeonu, as if utterly unconcerned, lifted his cup again and spoke to Damho.
"Friend, sorry for the noise."
Damho stared at Choyeonu without a word. Choyeonu winked at him with one eye.
Only then did Namhak's gaze shift to Damho. But Damho wasn't looking at him. Namhak's jaw muscle twitched. Still, saying more would make him look petty.
Namhak whirled around, stirring up a gust of wind.
"Take care."
Choyeonu's voice came from behind. But Namhak didn't turn back.
The Kongtong Sect disciples followed after him.
Choyeonu downed his cup and muttered.
"Tch! What a unlucky bastard. Thinks everyone fears him just because he glares."
He felt the surrounding stares. Looked like he couldn't just drink quietly and leave.
"Will Master scold me again? Wonder if people know that old man's nagging lasts half a day. Heh!"
Choyeonu chuckled to himself. He seemed utterly free of worries.
In stark contrast to Choyeonu's nonstop chatter, Damho said nothing. The onlookers watched the pair with curious eyes.
"Your friend's something else. He always this quiet?"
"Were we friends?"
"What? Feeling awkward?"
Damho didn't reply. Any ordinary person might be hurt by such a response, but Choyeonu was no ordinary man.
"Eh, whatever. If it's awkward, we can start being friends now."
"......"
"For real. So let's be friends."
Choyeonu even grabbed Damho's hand and pleaded. The more he did, the deeper Damho's eyes darkened.
'Friends?'
In his thirty-odd years, no one had ever said such a thing to him.
People his age who saw his limp always reacted in one of two ways.
Contempt or pity.
Everyone was the same.
They didn't care who Damho really was. They judged him solely by his visible disability.
Even the Mount Hua warriors closest to him, and the fighters from other sects who joined him on his Demonic Cult investigation—they were all the same.
No one had ever approached him as an equal, as a friend.
Damho stared straight into Choyeonu's eyes. Choyeonu met his gaze without flinching.
"Pity?"
"Pity? Oh, that leg?"
Choyeonu's eyes flicked to Damho's leg.
He had noticed the limp, if only briefly. For a warrior, it was undoubtedly a fatal flaw. Yet Choyeonu responded nonchalantly.
"So what?"
"Aren't you embarrassed?"
"Everyone lives with some kind of flaw. So what if one leg's a bit lame? Plenty have flaws in their hearts."
Choyeonu smiled.
There wasn't a trace of pretense in his grin.
***
Lee Sinpung's residence lay deepest within Hongam Mountain Lodge, ringed by well-tended artificial hills that formed an impregnable natural fortress, impossible for the uninvited to breach.
Arrays of traps surrounded the hills, and the sole entrance was guarded around the clock by the lodge's elite warriors.
Lee Sinpung rarely left his abode. Even lodge members struggled to see his face.
Unless you were an inner circle aide, seeing Lee Sinpung was out of the question. New recruits often didn't even know what he looked like.
No wonder his moniker was the Hidden Forest Great Tiger.
The great tiger lurking in the woods—that was Lee Sinpung.
He had emerged from seclusion just days ago. Reclusive as he was, he couldn't ignore those who came to celebrate his sixtieth birthday.
In the end, Lee Sinpung left his residence for the main compound. Now, the main gate stood wide open, with throngs of people clutching rare gifts, awaiting their chance to meet him.
Among them were Munsu-gyeong and Jwasaengcheon from the Hyeonhyeon Sect, bearing precious gifts from their sect leader, Mun Segang.
Even after announcing their affiliation, they had to queue like everyone else.
It was a humiliating wait they could scarcely bear, but put another way, it meant their Hyeonhyeon Sect was insignificant compared to the other sects present today.
That was reality.
"Damn it!"
Jwasaengcheon muttered under his breath. Munsu-gyeong shot him a glare.
"Senior Brother."
"I know. Still pisses me off."
"We have to endure. Compared to Hongam Mountain Lodge, our Hyeonhyeon Sect is really nothing."
"Hmph!"
As Jwasaengcheon snorted, a stir erupted from behind.
"Kongtong Sect warriors."
"It's the Thunderclap Wanderer, Namhak."
Munsu-gyeong and Jwasaengcheon's eyes turned naturally backward. They saw over a dozen warriors pushing through the crowd.
Leading them with an overwhelming aura was none other than Kongtong Sect's Namhak.
His arrival was enough to unsettle all the warriors waiting to see Lee Sinpung.
Many awaited an audience, but none matched Namhak's presence or backing.
Overwhelmed by his domineering aura, they dared not speak. Munsu-gyeong and Jwasaengcheon were no exceptions.
Jwasaengcheon ground his teeth, glaring at Namhak. But Namhak didn't even acknowledge him—didn't seem to notice him at all.
To Namhak, Jwasaengcheon was barely worth noticing.
Then, someone emerged from within the main compound.
A middle-aged man in his early fifties, sporting a goatee.
"It's Chief Steward Gu."
The crowd murmured at the sight of the man.
His name was Gu Jung-myeong, Hongam Mountain Lodge's chief steward and Lee Sinpung's most trusted confidant.
Amid the throng, no one else had merited a personal welcome from Gu Jung-myeong—at least not today.
The rarely seen Gu Jung-myeong had come out himself. It underscored how important Namhak was.
"Well, he's a warrior nurtured with great care by the Kongtong Sect, one of the Nine Great Sects."
"Even Hongam Mountain Lodge can't ignore Kongtong Sect."
Whether he didn't hear the murmurs or dismissed them, Gu Jung-myeong kept the smile on his lips.
"A precious guest has arrived. Young hero Namhak. I am Gu Jung-myeong, chief steward of Hongam Mountain Lodge. By the lodge master's order, I am here to escort you."
"Pleased to meet you, Chief Steward Gu. I am Namhak of the Kongtong Sect."
Namhak offered a courteous clasped-hands salute.
Hongam Mountain Lodge split the hegemony of Gansu Province with the Kongtong Sect. Its chief steward was practically second-in-command, equivalent to a Kongtong elder. He merited proper respect.
"You live up to your reputation for refinement. The lodge master awaits. We're delighted to host a guest from Kongtong Sect."
"I too am honored to meet the lodge master. My master asked me to convey his congratulations on the lodge master's sixtieth birthday."
"Oh! What joy! Please, come inside, young hero Namhak."
Gu Jung-myeong took Namhak's hand and led him in, all affable warmth.
Everyone watched Namhak with envious eyes—including Munsu-gyeong and Jwasaengcheon.
Jwasaengcheon bit his lip.
'Those Nine Dragons bastards—what do they have? Just watch. Soon my fame will surpass the Nine Dragons.'
Thick veins bulged on his clenched fist.
That day, Lee Sinpung and Namhak conversed for quite some time. But the contents of their discussion remained unknown.