Chapter 65
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Grinning Uncle and Prison Secrets
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“Urgh!”
Gye Dusin shot up from his bed.
“Owowow...”
The sudden movement sent excruciating pain shooting through his jaw and nose.
And this... bandages?
He reflexively clutched at his face, frowning in confusion at the feel of cloth under his fingers. Then someone set a mirror down in front of him.
“Here.”
“...?”
He turned his head to see Nangong Seong standing there.
“They said your nose bone is shattered. The Divine Physician mentioned it’ll take about half a month to unwrap the bandages. Even then, only because he applied a special salve he made.”
“...”
Gye Dusin’s face twisted savagely at the explanation laced with amusement.
I lost. Completely lost...
But how?
“...Aren’t you curious how I know the Beggars’ Sect’s lightness skill?”
“...”
As if reading his mind, Nangong Seong spoke first. Gye Dusin nodded rapidly, short and sharp, several times.
“It’s in the realm of talent.”
“What?”
“He picks it up after seeing it once, Uncle does.”
“...”
“Doesn’t make sense, right? Tell me about it. But he saw our clan’s martial arts once and mimicked them perfectly.”
“Wait, what do you—”
Pat pat.
Nangong Seong, apparently at a loss for words, patted Gye Dusin’s shoulder.
“Don’t strain yourself. It’s easier that way when traveling with Uncle. The world’s still full of things we don’t know.”
“Ah...”
Gye Dusin nodded blankly at the calm reassurance.
Well, it wasn’t impossible.
The realm of talent that ordinary people could never comprehend.
To others, he and Nangong Seong might seem like geniuses, but who said there couldn’t be someone greater?
Still...
“Why do you keep grinning like that? Ever since earlier, it looks like you’re mocking me after my utter defeat. It’s pissing me off.”
“I get it, but I can’t help laughing.”
“What?”
“I’m training.”
“...”
“Doesn’t make sense again, huh?”
Gye Dusin nodded once more.
“Like I said, don’t strain. I don’t get it either. Training like this... But it works. I get ridiculously stronger.”
“...”
He suddenly wanted to spit right in that perpetually grinning face.
But why just us?
“Where’s Young Master Yu... I mean, Brother Yu?”
“Hmm, as expected of the Beggars’ Sect Leader’s youngest disciple. Quick to adapt.”
Gye Dusin had nearly said “little brother” but switched mid-sentence. Nangong Seong nodded with a laugh.
Mocking again... I oughta deck him!
Irritation surged, and he nearly swung a fist, but what was done was done. He couldn’t take it back.
A promise was a promise. As a Beggars’ Sect disciple who valued justice and brotherhood, how could he go back on his word?
Endure it, Gye Dusin. No matter how much that Nangong Seong mocks you.
“He said to call him Uncle.”
“Uncle?”
“Yeah. Our rankings line up anyway... He said if you’re my brother and I’m your uncle, it’d make us dog cousins again or something.”
“Ah...”
Gye Dusin nodded weakly.
Suddenly, he had an uncle he never asked for. One three years younger, no less...
“You okay with that?”
“With what?”
“Calling Yu... Uncle.”
“Stupid question. I transcended age long ago. And you get used to it quicker than you think.”
“Quickly? For someone as prideful as you?”
“Well, more or less...”
Nangong Seong trailed off with a smile tinged with a bit of force.
He omitted the end: *...if you stick it out long enough.*
No need to spell it out.
He couldn’t be the only one suffering, after all.
Watching his cocky friend get his ass handed to him earlier had been pure bliss.
There’d surely be another chance later.
He wasn’t giving up that joy.
“Anyway, Uncle’s at the Thunder Prison.”
“Thunder Prison?”
“Yeah. You know, the guy from before—the one whose mess with the Black Guards sparked everything...”
“Ah!”
Gye Dusin let out a small exclamation as realization dawned.
He recalled that middle-aged man from back then was in the Thunder Prison.
“Looks like the Grand Strategist approved it.”
“Yeah. But... have you ever met Uncle before?”
“Nah, why?”
“No? Hmm. Then why ‘Pup’?”
“What? Pup what?”
“Uncle said so. Pointed at you and told me to take good care of his Pup...”
Nangong Seong tilted his head even as he grinned. Gye Dusin mirrored the gesture.
Pup? Me?
First time meeting, and... what a shitty feeling.
“Anyway, it has a nice ring to it. I’ll call you that from now on. Better than Young Hero Gye. Pup, Puppy...”
“...”
“It just sticks perfectly to the tongue...”
Gye Dusin stared blankly at Nangong Seong, who kept repeating “Puppy.”
This bastard...
Training my ass. He’s just trying to rile me up.
“Shut it.”
“...Got it, Puppy. If it bothers you, should I stick to Young Hero Gye?”
“...”
Gye Dusin’s face twisted in frustration, and soon the sound of crashing filled the infirmary.
* * *
Criminals in the martial world often employed bizarre schemes backed by immense power, so the authorities frequently sought the Righteous Alliance’s aid.
Thus, the Righteous Alliance, champions of justice, also handled capturing ringleaders from countless disputes, wars, and those who sowed chaos across the land.
Yet, as the main body of the righteous sects—including Buddhists and Daoists—who proclaimed their own righteousness, they refrained from casually taking lives, even of sinners. Prisons were needed to hold them.
To that end, the Righteous Alliance had dug five stories deep into an area dense with halls, creating the Thunder Prison known as the Five Elements Pass.
Named after the Five Elements Mountain where the Great Sage Equal to Heaven was imprisoned for his great sin in legend, it urged sinners to repent like Sun Wukong, who became the Victorious Fighting Buddha after serving as the monk’s disciple.
“Here’s the Grand Strategist’s token.”
After taking Gye Dusin as his nephew, Yu Hyun headed to the first floor of the Five Elements Pass.
Hwang Deok-sam, the source of the chaos on the Yangtze, was held there.
“Go on in.”
Clank, clank. Rumble.
The prison guard verified the token and signaled. Chains rattled, and the stone wall at the entrance ground open with a harsh noise.
“...”
Yu Hyun was inwardly impressed.
Incredible. A rising stone wall like that.
Probably made by grinding down those Zhuge bastards who excel at mechanisms.
With only one entrance in this underground fortress and a door of such thickness, escape was impossible once inside.
A perfect prison... but somehow familiar and unsettling.
Why? Because it’s a prison?
“...”
Lost in thought, Yu Hyun suddenly scowled.
Ah, that’s it. The underground training ground from his training days.
Back when he first learned martial arts from his six masters, he kept slacking on the brutal regimen. The Heavenly Mechanism Diviner had devised that place to lock him in.
Damn those masters...
Locking a person in a prison like this for training?
Unpleasant memories flooded back. Yu Hyun shook his head and stepped into the Five Elements Pass.
Fwoosh, roar!
The guard lit a torch, illuminating the pitch-black interior of the Thunder Prison.
Step, step, step.
How far had they gone?
The surroundings grew brighter, revealing the first floor cell block bit by bit.
“He’s in the interrogation room over there.”
“Did you interrogate him?”
“My rank’s too low for that...”
“...”
Yu Hyun smirked inwardly at the guard, who trailed off apologetically.
What a joke.
Too low rank? Bullshit.
The calluses on his torch-holding hand, the steady footfalls echoing in the dark.
They’re wasting a martial artist of that caliber as a mere guard? Who do they think they’re fooling?
Definitely planted by the Grand Strategist to eavesdrop on their talk.
A surveillance agent, in other words.
Strategists were all the same—sloppy.
At least he knew the current Grand Strategist fell far short of his master, the Heavenly Mechanism Diviner.
Good for him, though... So now what?
After a brief moment’s thought, Yu Hyun nodded.
Hiding with a watcher right there would only arouse more suspicion.
So go ahead and watch. Report it all.
Creak.
The guard opened the door, revealing a small room. In the middle sat Hwang Deok-sam, bound to a chair.
“You dog bastard! How dare you!”
“...”
His mind seemed sharp; Hwang Deok-sam hurled curses the moment he saw Yu Hyun.
“You little shit! What makes you think you—”
Yu Hyun didn’t wait. He charged and kicked the bound Hwang Deok-sam squarely.
Thud! Crash!
“Gah!”
Hwang Deok-sam toppled with the chair, letting out a choked groan.
“Get up, you bastard!”
Eyes blazing, Yu Hyun grabbed his collar, yanked him up, and pressed his nape.
First, shut him up—no chatter. Pressure point on the guard’s blind side...
[Hey, Hwang Deok-sam. Listen close. No time, so do exactly as I say from now on.]
Yu Hyun sent a rapid sound transmission as he pulled him upright by the collar.
Hwang Deok-sam grimaced but couldn’t speak with the point struck. The guard saw nothing suspicious in the sudden violence.
“You damn punk, you have no idea how much trouble you’ve caused me!”
Thud thud!
Even as fists flew out of nowhere, the guard only watched, making no move to stop it.
The Grand Strategist had ordered him to observe.
Of course, Yu Hyun kept transmitting to Hwang Deok-sam, back turned to the guard.
[I don’t know your ties to them, but they’re probably after the Thousand-Year Token, right?]
“...!”
[Thought so.]
Hwang Deok-sam’s expression shifted.
“You scum! We can’t let trash like you, who treats lives so lightly, live!”
Thud, thud thud, thud!
[Listen up. Not sure if you’ll believe me, but I’m hunted by them too. Don’t know why, but they ambushed me in Hefei. I tipped off the Beggars’ Sect to chase them...]
“...!”
His face changed again.
Yu Hyun kept “beating” him, but it shouldn’t hurt—just loud impacts.
[May not believe it, but I’m here to throw you a lifeline.]
“...”
[Hey, act like it hurts. The watcher’s getting suspicious.]
At Yu Hyun’s words, Hwang Deok-sam’s eyes widened. ...Ah, right—the pressure point.
“...Urk, urgh, eugh.”
[Come on! Make it convincing!]
Hwang Deok-sam, point released, twisted his body and wailed in agony.
“Grah! Graaah!”
Luckily, he caught on quick.
Feeling the prickling gaze on his back shift away, Yu Hyun grinned.
Alright, fooled the watcher. Now for the real talk?
We’re short on time, right?
No beating around the bush—let’s get to it. Got it, Deok-sam?
As Yu Hyun’s feigned soft punches continued landing on Hwang Deok-sam, the two exchanged countless words.
Of course, the guard hadn’t a clue...
* * *
“Y-Young Hero Yu! Stop! You’ll kill him!”
“Huff huff! A bastard like this deserves to die.”
“Eek...”
The guard finally intervened after the prolonged “beating.” Yu Hyun, still fuming, and Hwang Deok-sam, seemingly on the brink of death.
“That’s enough. Out you go. No more.”
“You! Just you wait!”
Pushed by the guard, Yu Hyun stormed out of the cell, snarling in impotent rage.
Mission accomplished.
The Thousand-Year Token... Who’d have thought the clue was there.
In a past different from now, he’d finally uncovered why he’d ended up imprisoned in the Righteous Alliance’s Thunder Prison.