Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: The Prepared One
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How could she have left these three to their own devices, knowing they only sought to repay their master’s grace… Gam Pa-pa was flooded with regret.
At the time, she too had found it hard to accept the Divine Doctor’s death, and consumed by her own profound sorrow, she had no capacity to look after others.
But, from now on, things would be different. Even if she couldn't tell them the whole truth… she could no longer stand by and watch them be exploited.
“You three disciples… listen closely to what I have to say.”
As Gam Pa-pa’s expression hardened and she spoke with gravity, Baek So-so asked with a worried face.
“Gam Pa-pa? What’s wrong?”
“According to my investigation, the Divine Doctor Baek Jung-hyeok was by no means killed by the Demonic Cult. In fact, he was struck down by the Golden Fang Poison Claw, one of the three master assassins of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”
“…!”
Gam Pa-pa told the Divine Doctor’s disciples the truth of what had transpired. Of course, she couldn't reveal that Baek Jung-hyeok had returned as Baek Mu-heun of the Demonic Cult.
That was something Mu-heun did not want… so she kept it a secret, but she exposed every detail of how the Tang Clan had used the Divine Doctor and the three of them.
She also relayed that the Divine Doctor had taken on one last hidden disciple, who hailed from the Demonic Cult, and that he had now entered the Tang Clan's territory to avenge his master.
“Th-then what do we do! Is Master’s final disciple going to die?”
“Probably not. Though I’m sure he’s fighting fiercely.”
Gam Pa-pa smiled as if to tell them not to worry.
“Let us wait for a while at a nearby shrine. Once things are settled, I will arrange for you to meet him.”
Baek Yeon-ho, dumbfounded, spoke.
“Is… is everything you just said true?”
Baek Ji-pyeong was speechless, while Baek So-so wept endlessly. Gam Pa-pa stood before them and declared firmly.
“It is all true.”
Gam Pa-pa rose from her seat and said.
“For now, let us discuss the details after we leave this place together. All of you, go back and pack your things. I will deal with the warriors here and then come for you.”
With those words, Gam Pa-pa went outside.
Led by Baek Ji-pyeong, the three disciples, despite their emotional shock, quickly went to their rooms and began to pack their essential belongings, research books, and documents without omission.
As the three were packing in their rooms, massive roars began to echo from outside.
*CRASH! KABOOM!*
The ground shook, walls crumbled, and the sound of wooden pillars snapping and cracking could be heard.
There was the *swoosh* of hidden weapons flying through the air and the shouts of warriors, but not even a quarter of an hour passed before different sounds were heard.
- Why are you doing this?
- Even if you are the branch chief of the Martial Alliance in Sichuan, this is going too far!
- Can you handle the wrath of the Family Head?
Then, after a little more time had passed, other voices were heard.
- Please, spare us. We were only following orders.
- Th-that’s right. We’ll pretend we saw nothing. Please spare our lives.
- Take them, of course! Who would dare stand in your way when you, Gam Pa-pa, wish to take them?
And so, after about another quarter of an hour had passed, Gam Pa-pa came to find the three of them.
“Are you ready to leave?”
Gam Pa-pa’s hands were stained with blood and the debris of the shattered pavilion.
“Hehehehe, wouldn’t it have been better to let you go when I asked nicely? Foolish bastards…”
The Divine Doctor’s three disciples immediately followed Gam Pa-pa.
“Hwi-san, drive the carriage.”
Gam Pa-pa ordered Cheon Hwi-san, the one who had guided her here, to drive the carriage. Cheon Hwi-san, who seemed to have taken a few blows from Gam Pa-pa himself, was obedient. Outwardly, however, there was no sign of injury.
“Wh-where shall I take you?”
“I was planning to go to the nearby shrine, but on second thought, it’s a bit run-down. Now that I know you’re a young master of the Cheonbu Merchant Guild, let’s go there. We’ll be in your care for a bit.”
“Excuse me? You mean the Cheonbu Merchant Guild?”
“Yes, we’ll be in your care.”
“…Ah, yes.”
Cheon Hwi-san loaded the three disciples’ luggage onto the carriage and set off for the Cheonbu Merchant Guild.
Thus, the disciples Mu-heun had sought, now found by Gam Pa-pa, headed for the Cheonbu Merchant Guild. Under her protection, they were scheduled to reunite with Mu-heun.
Meanwhile, Cheon Hwi-san drove the carriage, believing his fate was now in the hands of heaven.
***
The Tang Clan warriors engaged in conflict with the Demonic Cult in the regions of Xizang and Qinghai. The command post received a messenger hawk sent by Gam Pa-pa.
The letter from Gam Pa-pa, the Sichuan branch chief of the Martial Alliance, read as follows:
[Greetings. I address this letter to the esteemed masters of the Sichuan Tang Clan, including the paltry powerhouses Dang Mu-ryong and Dang Mu-seung. By the time you receive this letter, the Sichuan Tang Clan as you know it will likely no longer exist.
Unaware of this, you continue to wage an endless battle against the Demonic Cult in Xizang and Qinghai, sending the warriors you personally selected, taught, and trained to their deaths.
If you ask what is wrong with a warrior dying in battle, I have nothing more to say. However, you two are well aware, are you not? You have watched the schemes of the Poison King, Dang Baek-ho, from the closest vantage point. You know that Dang Baek-ho despises you for always speaking the righteous truth.
And that is why you and your subordinates have been deployed to this war of attrition. In truth, the subordinates Dang Baek-ho truly cherishes have never even left the Sichuan capital.
I know you are not men who follow Dang Baek-ho without thought. As the one responsible for the first of the Tang Clan’s six branch families, Dang Mu-ryong, you have things you must protect. There is also the debt of gratitude your ancestors owe to the main family.
And you, Dang Mu-seung, are in charge of the Tang Clan’s branch family in the Xizang region. Thus, if a conflict arose between the Tang Clan and the Demonic Cult, your family would be the first to suffer, leaving you no choice but to step forward.
I am aware of all your circumstances. Thanks to those fine circumstances of yours, the Emei and Qingcheng Sects have also been tormented by Dang Baek-ho to the point of exhaustion.
I am not saying I do not understand.
However, you are of the Orthodox Sects.
As members of the Orthodox Sects, will you continue to stand by and watch the atrocities Dang Baek-ho commits? I am sorry, but I cannot. The reason I have remained quiet until now was simply because I lacked the power and was gathering evidence, waiting for the right time.
The name of the Martial Alliance is by no means an empty shell. If you would not act, we would have. Of course, someone else has now acted in our stead.
Various timings and coincidences have overlapped, and that time has now come. The power we waited for has gathered, and the opportunity has arrived. Of course, it may be in a slightly different manner than you imagine.
Return to Sichuan at once.
You no longer need to wage a war of attrition there and send your subordinates to their deaths.
Return to the Tang Clan at once.
From now on, you must right the wrongs of the Tang Clan and write a new history for it.
To that end, I have summoned Lady Dang Yeon-hwa, the original, legitimate successor of the Tang Clan. Therefore, come back and see the details for yourselves.
Gam Pa-pa, Branch Chief of the Martial Alliance in Sichuan.]
“What in the world is this…?”
Dang Mu-seung and Dang Mu-ryong were utterly bewildered. Their eyes for reading the political landscape had not gone completely blind. Therefore, it was not as if they had no inkling of what Gam Pa-pa had written.
No, rather, because these were matters they had experienced their entire lives, they knew all too well what she was talking about.
But to say that by the time they returned, the Tang Clan they knew would no longer exist? And summoning Dang Yeon-hwa, who had gone into seclusion after losing the succession contest to Dang Baek-ho? For what reason? Why? Why now?
Then what about Dang Baek-ho?
Upon reading Gam Pa-pa’s letter, Dang Mu-seung and Dang Mu-ryong began to consider various possibilities. After putting their heads together, they came to one conclusion.
The Martial Alliance could not have attacked the Tang Clan.
Gam Pa-pa’s letter itself stated that if they hadn't acted, the Martial Alliance would have, which meant the Alliance was not yet involved in this matter.
Then who on earth could it be?
It couldn't be Gam Pa-pa. Though her skills were said to be on par with the Poison King, she was still beneath him.
The true terror of the Poison King, Dang Baek-ho, was not limited to his martial arts.
He was a man prepared to do anything to survive, and at the apex of his poison arts was something called the Iron-Blooded Poison Fiend, which was not something that could be handled even if they and all the warriors of the Tang Clan charged at once.
Even if Gam Pa-pa was one of the absolute masters who had entered the Transcendent Realm, there was no way she could defeat the Poison King.
Perhaps the Martial Alliance Leader, known as one of the absolute supremes…
No, there were others. The Taiji Sword Emperor of Wudang, or the Plum Blossom Sword Venerable of Mount Hua, So Jin-hong… they might be able to.
However, if it were them, they would not have launched a surprise attack like this. Something was strange.
That was why they had to go back. No matter how much they deliberated here, there was nothing they could figure out.
Soon, all the Tang Clan forces that had been obstructing trade with the Demonic Cult, including Dang Mu-ryong and Dang Mu-seung, began to withdraw.
They were the entirety of the elite troops gathered under the name of the Tang Clan, and if they had been present when Mu-heun waged war against the clan…
Mu-heun’s utter defeat would have been certain.
***
- Jiyeop Mountain, on the outskirts of Sichuan Province
Pang Ri-hyeok arrived at Jiyeop Mountain. He was there to find and escort Dang Yeon-hwa, the reclusive supreme master of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
Halfway up Jiyeop Mountain.
He walked along a side path where there were few signs of human passage, and after walking for about four hours, he finally discovered a single thatched-roof cottage.
“Does a supreme master of the Tang Clan really live in a place like this?”
Pang Ri-hyeok was starting to get scared.
“Ah well, I have to go see!”
He mustered his courage again and took a step forward. When he reached the cottage, he found it surrounded by throwing knives. Traces of dagger-throwing practice covered the area around the cottage in a deadly display.
Pang Ri-hyeok summoned his courage once more and knocked on the door.
However, the door he expected to open did not, and instead, a chilling voice came from within the room.
“By whose introduction have you come to find me?”
Pang Ri-hyeok composed himself again and spoke.
“I have come by the introduction of Gam Pa-pa.”
“Gam Pa-pa… State your business.”
Pang Ri-hyeok felt a sense of relief.
It was only natural; to a master of Dang Yeon-hwa’s caliber, he was an insect that could be killed at any moment without a second thought. In that situation, facing her chilling killing intent, it felt as if death was right before his eyes.
But upon hearing the name Gam Pa-pa from Pang Ri-hyeok’s lips, Dang Yeon-hwa had tempered her killing intent.
Finally able to breathe, Pang Ri-hyeok delivered Gam Pa-pa’s message.
“The time has come, so return and rewrite the history of the Tang Clan!”
“……”
Pang Ri-hyeok had boldly proclaimed Gam Pa-pa’s message, but Dang Yeon-hwa gave no reply.
‘Did I deliver it wrong?’
Fear began to creep into Pang Ri-hyeok again, and he quickly added an explanation to the message he had just delivered.
“Is what! Lady Gam Pa-pa asked me to relay to you.”
Just then.
*Creeak.*
The door of the cottage opened, revealing Dang Yeon-hwa, already prepared to leave.
“Indeed… has the time come? It took long enough.”
“Ah, yes…”
“Let us go. Lead the way.”
“Yes!”
And so, Pang Ri-hyeok and Dang Yeon-hwa departed from the outskirts of Sichuan Province, heading for the capital.