Chapter 94
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Iron Hand Hermit
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“You brat, who said I’m your master? Just call me elder like before.”
Noduk immediately shrank back at the Old Man’s words.
“Yes, Elder.”
“By the way, that guy’s supposed to be quite the villain out in the Western Regions?”
“That’s right. As I told you, he’s piled up a notorious reputation there. Better to just root him out completely.”
“Heh heh... You brat. Didn’t I say I had a use for him?”
The Old Man laughed again, but his eyes on Noduk weren’t smiling.
Noduk’s whole body broke out in chills and went rigid.
The Old Man turned his head back to Mokguja and asked.
“Do you want to die like this, or have both your legs cut off and live?”
“Heh heh... Old timer, if you’re gonna kill me, do it clean. Why play games?”
“Keh keh. The guy’s growing on me. Normally, I’d teach you a trick or two and send you out into the world, but I’ve got urgent need of you, so keep that in mind.”
With that, the Old Man turned and left, and Noduk hurriedly followed after him.
Mokguja raised his recumbent body and stared at their retreating backs.
‘Gotta survive somehow. Yeah, just live through this first and see.’
Muttering to himself like that, he ground his teeth once and lay back down.
Noduk knelt respectfully on the floor.
It was midday, and before him sat the Old Man, eating from the food on the table.
“Everything you reported was true?”
“Yes. I saw their bare-handed brawl from start to finish, clear as day.”
The Old Man paused his chopsticks for a moment and nodded.
“In this world, among all those countless masters, exactly five people could beat that Kulrui to death with nothing but their fists.”
Noduk didn’t dare reply and just nodded.
“Of course, I’m one of them. So who are the other four?”
Only then did Noduk stammer out an answer.
“Of course, three of them are the Three Hidden Ones, but the remaining one... I have no idea.”
“Heh heh... I’m not counted among the Three Hidden Ones, Four Wonders, or Five Divinities either. Neither was Kulrui. What the world knows isn’t all there is to it.”
“Then that last one is also an elder unknown to the world, like you, sir?”
“No, that’s not it. The other one is a fellow named Jeon Sogi. Famous by the alias Light Flower Monk. Of course, he’s one of those Four Wonders.”
“I’ve only heard the name. But they say he’s hardly ever shown himself in the martial world.”
“How many people has that guy even met? Even I, who’s fairly close to him, haven’t seen him in decades.”
“But if that’s the case, then he’s one of them?”
The Old Man nodded with a deeply displeased expression and muttered.
“That’s how it has to be. So a punk like you has no business calling him that.”
His meal was already finished, neither hand moving an inch.
“Then that means he’s the Light Flower Monk Jeon Sogi?”
“Kek ke... As if. If Jeon Sogi were him, what would there be to worry about?”
Noduk shut his mouth, glancing at the Old Man’s mood.
The Old Man stared at the teacup on the table for a long while before speaking.
“A few months ago, there was a strange report from Chengdu in Sichuan. Some highly suspicious fellow showed up at a brothel there and vanished. They said Dew-Cutting Sword Guest Ilseonja was treating him with utmost respect, and he was supposedly a disciple of Thunder Sound Zither Immortal Seong Manjo. Now that guy’s shown up in the Western Regions, and right now he’s here in Dunhuang.”
Noduk asked in astonishment.
“What? Then that guy—no, that lord—is really a disciple of Thunder Sound Zither Immortal Seong Manjo?”
At Noduk’s question, the Old Man burst into wild laughter.
“Hey, you idiot. How could that be? Even Thunder Sound Zither Immortal couldn’t beat Kulrui to death with his fists. Ha ha ha...”
“Th-then, the rumor that he inherited Seong Manjo’s sound arts fully is... just a false tale?”
“Hmph. Beggar clan gossip. Do you even know who Thunder Sound Zither Immortal Seong Manjo’s master is, you punk?”
“I don’t know that far. They say his whereabouts are too secretive.”
“Hmph. Of course you wouldn’t. A punk like you.”
The Old Man’s expression grew complicated.
And his gaze settled on a corner of the room.
There sat a seven-stringed zither covered in dust.
Noduk’s eyes followed to the same spot.
The Old Man was silent for a long time, then sighed and turned to Noduk.
“The one you saw is Thunder Sound Zither Immortal Seong Manjo’s master. And my master as well.”
The Old Man muttered wistfully, and Noduk could only gape in shock, head bowed low.
Of course, Noduk didn’t even know the Old Man’s name, let alone what he did.
Long ago, when he’d been in peril here in Dunhuang alongside Soyeongcho, the Old Man had saved them and taught him a single blade art called the Lifeblood Remnant Demon Blade Method.
In exchange, he’d been reporting every little event in Xi’an and nearby without fail for over a decade.
Just then, Noduk, head still buried, felt a chill run up his spine.
Not only were Thunder Sound Zither Immortal Seong Manjo and this old monster senior brothers, but their master was Seonwoyong himself.
This was the kind of secret tale that wasn’t easily heard in the martial world—and shouldn’t spread.
Am I really someone he can casually share such a secret with?
Suddenly gripped by dread, Noduk cautiously lifted his head.
Sure enough, the Old Man was looking down at him.
“You catch on quick, punk. Your usefulness ends here.”
In that instant, a hole exploded right between the terrified Noduk’s eyebrows.
Blood sprayed everywhere, even splattering droplets onto the food on the table.
But the Old Man merely shook the finger he’d flicked once and picked up his chopsticks from the table.
“Getting old, I really live off my meals now. Gotta eat plenty if I’m going to serve my elder.”
Muttering that, he resumed his meal.
The Old Man’s true identity was none other than Iron Hand Hermit Dae Jongdo.
He was a protector elder of the Great Cloud Bright Religion and the head of the Great Cloud Society, the organization that handled all the church’s secret affairs. At the same time, he was the second disciple of Nine Provinces Horse Immortal U Cheonso.
His name was utterly unknown in the martial world.
Given the extremely secretive duties he handled, few in the church knew of him aside from the top brass.
And he was the one who had planned and directed the events unfolding at Mingesa Mountain from the very start.
* * *
Seonwoyong’s lodgings were no longer a bustling inn.
A few days prior, he had purchased a mansion in a quiet neighborhood of Dunhuang and settled in.
Jeon Sogi and the Six Gate Immortal had of course moved here as well, along with Han Sojung, but they hadn’t informed Dogwang, Bangchung, and the others.
Yet now, with the sun long set and darkness fallen, the coachman Yuktong—who had followed him from Lanzhou—sought out Seonwoyong, who sat alone in his room.
“Young master. Guests have arrived outside.”
He was, of course, a subordinate of Haomen’s Supreme Gate Master, White-Faced Ghost King Ha Hongjin, and had served as Seonwoyong’s eyes and ears ever since leaving Lanzhou—still doing so now.
Since acquiring the new house, he had also taken on the role of steward.
“What guests? What are you talking about?”
When Seonwoyong asked, Yuktong bowed his head and reported again.
“Th-that is... Lord Dogwang, Lord Bangtong, and the others have come. Not sure how they found out...”
Yuktong replied in a voice like he’d committed some grave sin.
And rightly so, for he was the one who had secretly acquired this house.
But Seonwoyong issued his orders in a calm tone, as if he’d expected as much.
“If guests have come, we should receive them. Bring them in quickly. Prepare a table with drinks too.”
Shortly after, not long since Yuktong had bowed and left, the courtyard outside the room grew noisy.
“No way, is this for real? Coming and going without a word to us.”
“Tell me about it. I feel pretty slighted. Now that we’re here, though.”
Dogwang and Bangchung’s voices stood out especially loud.
Soon, Yuktong guided the five inside and opened the door to the room.
“What’s this? Setting up house? Then shouldn’t you have at least introduced me to the place?”
Dogwang barged in first, making a big fuss.
Surprisingly, Jin Seolhwa was with them.
He’d heard the Shenzhou Merchant Group caravan had already left Dunhuang for Turpan.
Seonwoyong’s gaze passed over the others and fixed on Jin Seolhwa.
“What brings you here? Didn’t you go with the caravan?”
When Seonwoyong asked, Jin Seolhwa bowed his head deeply and answered.
“Fourth Platoon Leader requested that, since the road ahead is so perilous, I stay in Dunhuang and wait for their return.”
The Shenzhou Merchant Group had also sold off a considerable load right here in Dunhuang.
The caravan had indeed lightened up, and there was no need to carry the proceeds around.
“Why ask? We’re all martial artists living in the jianghu. How could we leave Mingesa Mountain behind?”
Bangchung added his defense to Jin Seolhwa’s shy remark, and Dogwang piled on.
“See the sights and pick some extras on the way. That’s how it goes, right? Kek ke...”
At those words, Jin Seolhwa’s face flushed bright red, but he didn’t rebut.
“Come on, everyone sit. You’re not gonna chase us out without a drink, are you?”
Dogwang’s cheekiness continued as they all found seats.
“But how’d you find this place? I thought we’d parted ways for good, so I slipped out.”
When Seonwoyong asked Dogwang, the man just grinned.
“Thanks to Young Master Han. Though it’s not his fault.”
The unexpected answer came from Moyong Cheong’s mouth.
With the old steward off on his own, Han Sojung must have gone back to the inn to leave a note for him, and Moyong Cheong had spotted him.
Moyong Cheong’s beautiful features and bright chatter had a way of loosening anyone’s lips, so opening up the already friendly Han Sojung had been no trouble.
And who could get mad watching Moyong Cheong chatter on about the whole story?
Just then, the door opened and Han Sojung entered.
“Oh my. Everyone’s here?”
Han Sojung greeted them warmly as he came in, leaving them all slightly startled.
It was partly the pink outfit he wore, but also the light powder on his face.
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