Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Azure Grove
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The returning group was granted a brief period of rest. Everyone except Won Young. She had been summoned by the Vanguard Division's deputy leader, Yang Jung-ui.
Yuk Jin-yang presumed it was related to the mission report and asked.
"Does the Vanguard Division handle reports in person?"
"No? We're not that inflexible."
"Then why..."
"Obviously, they've got something else for me to do. The deputy leader works me to the bone."
Won Young grumbled.
Heading straight to the office, she asked point-blank.
"I already sent the mission report via messenger pigeon. Didn't you receive it?"
"I did. Geum O-young was thrilled when I forwarded it."
Yang Jung-ui, seated at the desk, replied and gestured to the opposite chair.
Yang Jung-ui personally poured tea for Won Young. The hospitality was impeccable, but her expression soured. She could already guess the ulterior motive.
Sure enough, Yang Jung-ui broached the subject with a meaningful tone.
"But I didn't dispatch you just to wipe out a single cult branch."
Won Young gave a wry smile and took a sip of tea. She had already suspected some deeper agenda behind the Unhyeon dispatch.
No matter how rampant the White Lotus Cult was, it hardly warranted her personal involvement—especially with her jade plaque promotion looming. The Vanguard Division's other juniors could have handled the cleanup just fine.
Yet the deputy leader had singled her out to escort the two rookies. Clearly, he wanted a close look at them this time around.
Yang Jung-ui laid his cards on the table without hesitation.
"How was Yu Baek?"
"He needs more refinement. Still too green."
Won Young answered candidly. Her assessment bordered on criticism, but it stemmed from genuine concern for a junior.
"And Mu Wi?"
"Adequate, but..."
"Then we'll send him on frequent missions to build experience. For now, you take him under your wing."
Won Young shrugged helplessly. Mission assignments for members fell solely under the Vanguard Division leader and deputy's authority.
Yang Jung-ui shifted topics.
"What about Yuk Jin-yang? That Jae-cheon you observed—what kind of man is he?"
"Exceptional talent. I figure he'll surpass me in a year. No, a few months."
"That impressive? I'm not questioning the rookie's potential. The timeline just seems overly optimistic."
"You wouldn't say that if you'd seen it yourself."
Won Young shot back, then added,
"He possesses terrifying intuition."
"Intuition. You mean spotting the double formation? That was impressive. Unless it's the Zhuge Clan, formations aren't taught that deeply."
It was detailed in the report. Won Young nodded and shared her unspoken hunch.
"It seems to activate even in life-or-death duels."
"Elaborate."
"Like dissecting the opponent's martial foundation on the fly? After a few exchanges, he could read their next moves like an open book."
"Not just masterful eye technique? Or maybe their skills were simply inferior."
The description evoked advanced eye arts.
Supreme eye techniques were hailed as foresight arts. They predicted moves seconds ahead from the slightest muscle twitch or postural shift. The Zhuge Clan's version was unrivaled under heaven.
Intuition, by contrast, was a fuzzier notion. Often deemed less reliable than eye arts.
The rivers' three forests demanded more than hunches.
Grandmaster-forged supreme arts or generations-honed martial intricacies defied counters unless you wielded them yourself.
Even elite masters' instincts faltered at times. Intuition? The deputy's interest waned slightly, but Won Young pressed on with vivid details.
"That ambushing White Lotus branch wasn't pushovers. No clue who they poached, but I spotted Emei Sect and Shaolin traces. Thugs who'd only handled petty sorcery before."
"Certain?"
"Absolutely."
Yang Jung-ui's face darkened. Orthodox sect arts, even bastardized by cultists, weren't to be trifled with.
"Thanks to the Yuk Clan's idiots, we snagged their martial repository. Think he'll stick around here instead of heading home?"
"Not the type to bare his soul after one day. He played friendly enough, but gave no real openings."
Won Young grumbled regretfully, then added,
"Low odds he'll linger in the Five Harmony Alliance, though. His polished prowess screams ambition."
"Rephrase, then."
Yang Jung-ui's eyes gleamed.
"Does Jin-yang stand a chance as Tyrant Dragon successor?"
Famed houses and sects didn't crown heirs on talent alone. History brimmed with dark lords eclipsing crown princes. A youngest grandson? Forget it.
Hence, Yang Jung-ui probed possibility over prowess.
"Hard to say. Probably slim."
Won Young hedged.
"If we step in?"
"Then maybe..."
She trailed off, frowning as she countered,
"Why even ask? We can't meddle in their succession."
"Regrettably, we intend to."
"Pardon?"
Won Young's delicate brows knitted. Yang Jung-ui nailed it calmly.
"Leader's orders."
"I didn't mishear? Not some minor clan—the Zhejiang Yuk Clan, pinnacle of ancient great families?"
"Pinnacle? They've got blemishes. Ranking the four great families, Yuk lags."
"Ancestors and lineage alone? Sure."
Won Young's tone heated slightly. Impertinent to a superior, but neither minded.
"You know why they're hailed strongest great family today."
Once-world-ruling Western Zhou Liu Clan and Shanxi Yi Clan.
Zhuge Clan, birthplace of era-defining prodigy Zhuge Gongming.
Yuk's heritage paled by comparison. Not their fault—the others shone too brightly.
Yet lately, Yuk basked in peak glory. Clan head Yuk Mu-hyeok's unrivaled strongest-under-heaven title saw to that. Founder's halo optional.
The world viewed Yuk Mu-hyeok as a new lineage patriarch. Already rivaling or exceeding the founder.
"With the Yangtze Tyrant Dragon standing tall, no one dares touch them. He could shatter an alliance on a whim."
Her measured words failed to sway Yang Jung-ui. Fiddling with the desk orchid, he murmured,
"Yangtze Tyrant Dragon—the issue is after him."
"..."
"You know the Yuk Clan's eldest grandson well? No personal ties for me, but rumors paint a vivid wastrel."
Won Young scowled deeply.
"All too well. He hit on me once."
"No kidding?"
"Extracted an apology, though."
Yuk Ju-jin's reputation tanked even in the alliance. Utter arrogance, scandals with women high and low—sect maidens to noble daughters, no exceptions.
His flaws ran deeper.
Arrogant antics sparked feuds at inter-clan gatherings repeatedly. Scolded by grandfather or father? Rampage with blades, or so rumors went.
"Yuk elders botched his upbringing royally. With grandpa and dad alive, he's this bad. Clan head? Disaster."
"A needle thief steals oxen."
"Exactly. Leader fears a careless slip could topple the balance, reshaping murim profoundly."
Won Young offered no rebuttal. She shared the deputy's distrust of Yuk Seo and Yuk Ju-jin.
Chin on interlaced fingers, Yang Jung-ui probed meaningfully.
"Watch a famed house crumble?"
Won Young stayed silent. Her displeasure with the directive shone through. Explanations aside, meddling remained dicey.
"I get it, but it hinges on the Yuk clan head."
"We can nudge his choice. Bolster Jin-yang's clan standing from the shadows—resources, support, all in."
"Issues aside, Yuk Seo is firstborn. Our pet youngest trails far in succession."
Yang Jung-ui sighed faintly.
"Problems abound, yet leader's resolve holds. Still objecting?"
"How dare I defy leader and deputy's grand designs? Command me, I'll obey."
"Smart. Countermeasures exist."
His tone softened; Won Young perked up.
"Mind sharing?"
"Build his power base."
Yang Jung-ui slid a letter across the desk. Won Young skimmed it and groaned.
"This..."
"Timely—the four great family heads approved. Prince Yeon quietly begged protection for his kin."
The founding emperor's sons topped twenty. Crown prince-like early deaths aside, most shouldered fief duties.
Their plight grew dire. Fief abolition edicts, Jingnan Uprising—forcing sides.
Fratricidal woes persisted. Emperor savaged thorn-in-side uncles.
Prince Zhou Zhu Xiu: fief stripped, exiled.
Prince Shang Zhu Bai: tormented to estate arson and suicide.
Prince Dai Zhu Jie: downgraded commoner, erased from rolls.
Unharmed royals awaited arbitrary chains anytime.
Prince Yeon fretted siblings' fates. His rising star hiked hostage premiums. Preemptive action essential.
"Not rescuing the jailed princes, surely?"
"Of course not. Beyond even me."
Bluntly dismissing, Yang Jung-ui cut to chase.
"But safeguarding uncaptured ones? Considering Jae-cheon for Prince Chu."